ã€ŠMy System: An Evolved Computer I Made With My Unique Abilityâ€”ã€‹


 Chapter 1 A New Day

    A ripple of water smoothly touched the wet surface of the asphalt. It was a new day and the bright red-orange glow of the sun was just peeking from the horizon. The coldness of the morning dissipated, reced by the warmth that enveloped a certain portion of the earth.

    Swish!

    A figure stepped on the ripple, scattering it on the asphalt. The figure belonged to a teenager with ck hair, and an average build befitting a high schooler. Today was the first day of school, but the night wasfortably chilly that he slept in more than he had expected. If it hadn''t been for his dad waking him up, it would''ve been a disastrous first day of school.

    With his mouth mped on a piece of toast, the teenager sped through the streets, barely noticing that he was navigating directly to amotion.

    "Hey kid, watch it!" A policeman donned in blue and white uniform extended his hands, making the teenager halt midway. "You shouldn''t be here, what are you doing here?"

    Raaarrghhh!

    From a distance, arge werewolf could be seen rampaging at the core of the city, howling as he lifted a piece of concrete on top of its head. It was uncontroble, and even the policeman on the scene couldn''t do a thing to foil its onught.

    People in the surroundings began running amok, screaming as they go. However, the werewolf paid them no mind, its eyes fixated on the policemen that pointed guns at him.

    "How lofty. Do you think mere guns can prate my hide?" The werewolf growled. His voice was so deep and round that it gave everyone goosebumps. "If there''s someone who can beat me in a fistfight, then I''ll leave the city alone. But if not, then allow me to rampage with no reprieve!"

    The piece of concrete that the werewolf was holding was suddenly thrown at a nearby building, adjacent to a family restaurant that had stood there for five generations. The concrete hurtled, perforating the building on one side and out the other. Shards of ss rained down the streets and amidst the intimidating howl from the werewolf, the sound of a copsing building echoed.

    A few seconds passed and the building slowly teetered, and then it finally leaned on one end and started its descent.

    "Kid! Why are you still here! You have to get out of here right no¡ª "

    Clouds of dust filled the city as the building crumbled to the ground, interrupting the policeman''s pleas. In the midst of the mayhem, theugh of the werewolf could be heard.

    "Kid, are you okay?" The policeman concernedly asked as he blindly ced a hand on the teenager''s shoulder. "I told you you should''ve gotten out of here while you still can. What''s your name?"

    "Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi." The teenager calmly addressed. "Why aren''t there any heroes on the scene?"

    "Heroes are incredibly busy these days. Due to the recent massive awakening, they''re busy keeping order. Because of that, they cannot get to the scene of a random crime as soon as they can."

    "And the police? Don''t you have some sort of tranquilizer made specifically for heroes? Why aren''t you using them?"

    The policeman didn''t answer. Instead, he dragged Satoshi away from the scene of the crime. "We don''t have any in stock right now. Those specialized tranqs are super expensive and the demand has skyrocketed the past few years, that''s why only the renowned police stations with a decent budget could get their hands on it. And there are also people who purchase them as well. It''s on a firste first served basis."

    "Well then, I''m almostte for school. I''ll be going then. I hope a high-ranking hero saves the day soon."Satoshi indifferently bit on the toast he was carrying with his mouth and headed in the opposite direction. In his notebook, he immediately wrote everything that he noticed regarding the nature of the werewolf.

    Everyone knew that underneath that werewolf mask is a man who''s utilizing his powers. It had only been half a century since the hero age made the world enter a new era. An era where superheroes that only existed inic books have finallye to reality. Superspeed, superstrength, flight, all of these are made possible by what was recently discovered as the Alpha-gene.<sub> </sub>

    The Alpha-gene, a mutation in the human genome that allows humans to have superpowers. It varies from person to person. Typically, a person will develop/ awaken the Alpha-gene at the age of twelve years old. If one were to hit thirteen without developing the Alpha-gene, there''s a good chance that they won''t develop the Alpha-gene. It still remains a mystery why the Alpha gene could only be developed at an early age and until now, not much has been known about the Alpha-gene. But needless to say, those who awakened the Alpha-gene are way above those who didn''t. And as such, the hierarchy of the world was toppled. Governments and politics were all deemed futile since those with the Alpha-gene could just brute force their way into anything.

    In the first years of the Alpha-geneing to light, governments around the world had a massive headache as to how to deal with the new generations. Since only the children were proven to awaken superpowers, the government had no idea what to do. And so they developed a new organization called the Superhero Assembly Organization, SAO for short (just like that relic of an anime that was released a thousand or so years ago). Any superhero who wishes to join the government is automatically a member of SAO, those who wish to go against the government are automatically deemed as a viin¡ª in short, an enemy of the SAO. And then there are those who don''t want to choose both sides. They are the Neutrals.

    And then, there''s the fourth category: the 1% who didn''t get to awaken when they were young. They are called the Unlucky Ones or the Unawakened.

    Midoriyama Satoshi is part of that 1%, or that''s what he thought. When he reached the age of developing the Alpha-gene, he underwent multiple tests just like every twelve-year-old out there. When the readings showed that he had the Alpha-gene, he was ted. Ever since he was born, the only thing at the forefront of his mind was to develop his body and prepare for the time when he''ll develop the Alpha gene.

    After all, his parents were the top heroes of the SAO. ''Now that I''ve awakened, I''ll do everything I can so they can be proud of me.'' Satoshi kept on telling himself. He once hated his dad for naming him after an iconic pet master, but now, he wanted his dad to look his way as he rose to the top.

    It had been four years since then... but after everything he had done, there were no signs of his superpower surfacing. At first, he thought that maybe his superpower was so powerful that its emergence would beter than normal. But now, his hope was beginning to dwindle as the days passed. As the son of the two most powerful superheroes, an overwhelming pressure was unintentionally ced over his head. Every superhero waited for his debut... but it never came.

    And now he was the weakest of the bunch. While everyone had already been scouted by famous superhero agencies, Satoshi was still idling his life away, trying to figure out what his superpower is. He might as well be part of the 1%, the Unawakened. Sometimes, he even wondered if the reading back then was wrong.

    Or perhaps he was just stupid enough to not even sense what his superpower is. Every Awakened that was interviewed on TV always said the same thing¡ª your awakened superpower is just like an additional arm. Once it''s there, you''ll have no problem using it. It''s as if you''ve always had it with you.

    But even with that advice, Satoshi still didn''t have an idea.

    However, today was different. For some reason, Satoshi was incredibly high-spirited when he got out of the house. His parents were a bit suspicious but they decided to keep quiet about it until he returns home after his first day of school.

    Did he finally realize what his superpower is? They couldn''t help but wonder.

    .....

    "Where are you going kid?" The werewolf called out as he jumped six stories high andnded in front of Satoshi.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi was as calm as a stillke. He didn''t know where this tranquility came from. Was it because of his newfound confidence? Was it because he had encountered countless viins in his life? Or was it the security that his parents are the strongest superheroes in the country? He tried to think of a reason but his head was too stupid to think of a valid one. Shaking his head, he faced the werewolf and clenched his core and fists. He remembered his dad teaching him about this.

    Wherever you are, as soon as you sense danger, brace for impact. Once you see the danger, get away from there...

    "But if you can face the danger, then do so with a grin, you''ll never know when a camera is pointed at you." Satoshi continued the advice by saying it out loud.

    It wasn''t because of confidence, nor encounter with viins, nor his badass parents. Right now, his calmness came from something else. Something that he had been dreaming of ever since he realized the surreal identity of his parents.

    "What are you grinning at, kid? Do you want me to stomp you like that car over there?" The werewolf threatened but it was to no avail.

    "Try me," Satoshi waved his hand as he assumedbat position.

 Chapter 2 The Retro Computer

    Last Night,

    It waste past dinner time when Satoshi headed back to his room. He reasoned that he needed to prepare a few things for school which will be starting tomorrow. But then again, Satoshi wasn''t the type to prepare anything so his parents already concluded that he wasn''t physically preparing himself¡ª he''d done enough of that¡ª but rather, he was mentally readying himself for what seemed like the longest school year yet.

    Another reason why Satoshi headed back to his room at that time was that he stopped watching television. Most days, an interview of his parents will be featured in a majority of all channels on television. That''s why no matter how badly he wanted to chill on the sofa, there was no way he could do it. Not only will he just feel out of ce, but his parents will also feel awkward given his reactions.

    Satoshi''s room was neither cramped nor spacey. It was an average room with a bed, a bookshelf, and a study table. Hailing from a family of superheroes, Satoshi was aware that he''s living a well-off life. He should''ve been more contented about it... but why does his mind keep urging him to be more than what he currently is?

    Sigh~

    After wearing the Headgear and a few thimble-like metal caps for each of his fingers,  Satoshi decided to y the recentlyunched video game called ''Laser Fingers''. Laser Fingers is a simple game. On the ceiling, a few targets will light up, projected from the headgear, and you have to hit them with thesers that came out of your hand. The only catch is, theser continuously goes through a straight line unless you specifically told it which direction it should go.  With the help of the Headgear which can safely utilize brain activities,  it then sends signals to the thimbles, indicating where theser should head next. Theser will then travel through the air and hit the target on the ceiling¡ª of course, the targets are mobile, and thesers are constantly extending as well. That''s why it needed precise control to finish a level. You can manually order theser to move left, right, zigzag, and so on and so forth.

    The best yer of the game was someone who could easily control foursers at once in endless mode. But as for Satoshi, he could easily control ten. He never recorded nor showed anyone how he yed the game though.

    For the next two hours, he would just fire away at the targets, not missing a single beat as he carefully maneuvered thesers. But boredom overcame him once again and he stopped ying. The thought that tomorrow is the first day of school haunted him, and he presumed it would even haunt him in his dreams.

    "If only my superpower would juste out already." He kept on telling himself as he moved to his study table and turned on the retroputer that sat there.

    Compared to the futuristic headgear that held the game ''Laser Fingers'', the retroputer held a few ancient games which are considered relics. Games that have existed for more than a thousand years could be yed on that retroputer, which makes it one of the priceless items in the modern era. But after contemting on whether he should y or not, he decided to just hit the sack.

    "It''s not like it would give me any ideas. For the past four years, I''ve desperately searched for my superpower but it never appeared. I guess my school experience tomorrow would be just like before... except worse. This is high school, for Pete''s sake. Of course, it would be more hellish than ever."

    Heaving yet another sigh of surrender, Satoshi slumped on his bed and stared at the ceiling, extending his hands as countless thoughts invaded his head. He was well aware that it wasn''t his fault. It was his nonexistent superpower which is at fault. But somehow, he mes himself for being too weak. In a physical sense, he is in tip-top shape... but what of it if he didn''t have the superpower? No matter how strong he got, in a physical sense, there was no way it could go head to head with everyone in the school.

    p Since his readings showed that he had the Alpha-gene, he managed to get into one of the most prestigious hero schools in the country of Japan. But even with thatbel in his school uniform, he''s still an outsider in everyone''s eyes. Even with the name of his parents backing him up, he''s still a fish in shark-infested waters. Without the strength to back him up, his parents'' reputation is useless.</anda>

    There''s only one thing Satoshi needed to graduate from being an outsider¡ª a superpower.<sub> </sub>

    As sleepiness kicked in and his eyelids drooped, Satoshi stared at his retroputer once again and thought of ying another game. A stupid thought came into his mind and heughed it off. "What if my superpower is a System or something of the sort, wouldn''t that be crazy?" He said to himself.

    But before slumber fully overcame him, his eyes shot wide open and a blue haze appeared in front of it. Just like his eyes, his hands were also enveloped in the same blue haze. It was akin to a me, but it was neither cold nor hot. As Satoshi rolled his hands around, he could tell that the mes were dancing all over his palms.

    "Wait... is this... ?!"

    Before he knew what was happening, the mes in his hands shot towards his retroputer. For a good second, it was engulfed in mes. Satoshi flinched as the mere thought of the retroputer turning into ashes appeared in his mind. But to his relief, nothing happened.

    "Wait, nothing happened?!"

    "After all these years of fruitless searches... and now that I finally found it... there''s nothing! You mean to tell me that these mes are just for decoration?" Satoshi wanted to m his head against the wall or better yet, jump off the window. But he knew that wouldn''t be a good idea.

    [Ting]

    [Wee owner]

    The letters shed on theputer screen. Flummoxed, Satoshi stood up from his bed and cautiously approached theputer. "What''s going on... "

    [Hello, owner! I''m your exclusive System!]

    [Please grant me a name.]

    Satoshi gulped, staring at his retroputer as if it was an alien that descended on the earth. Right now, he couldn''t believe that he finally found what his superpower is... but even if he did, he doesn''t know how to use it. "Ah, so we''re back to square one, huh."

    Thus, for the remainder of the night, Satoshi tried to exploit his superpower as much as he could, fully knowing that it would at least be useful by tomorrow. Somehow, he''s slightly prepared for the first day of school.

 Chapter 3 Uselessness

    Back to the Present

    "Try me," Satoshi waved his hand as he assumedbat position.

    Last night, Satoshi realized two things¡ª First, that his superpower is nothing short of a farce and second, it was unbelievably useless. Of course, he still is a bit unsure as to what specifically his superpower is, but he knows it was useless

    At least, when ites tobat, it''s useless.

    Before the werewolf could realize what was going on, a bunch of concrete was thrown at him at high speeds, temporarily blinding him and confusing him. While all that was happening, a mechanical hand grabbed Satoshi by his arms and flew him away. At a closer inspection, one would see that it was the retroputer with a propeller on top of it. For some odd reason, it grew a mechanical arm and rotors, giving it the ability to rescue him.

    That''s right when ites tobat, it''s useless, but when ites to escape, it is an entirely different subject. However, Satoshi knows that his superpower has untapped potential, he just doesn''t know how to utilize it yet.

    "Thanks a bunch, um, Doraemo¡ª er I mean, System!" Satoshi called out, thinking about a certain anime character that flies with a propeller on its head.

    And just like that, his first encounter with a viin is over. Satoshi heaved a sigh of disappointment as he realized that his debut was probably one of themest when ites to superheroes. But then again, he concluded that he did extremely well getting out of danger when it was necessary. The only thing to be happy about is that he didn''t die at an early age after finally realizing what his superpower is. It might sound unsatisfactory, but it was all he could do... judging from the fact that his superpower is something he just discovered that night.

    "Wait, am I going to head to school like this?" Satoshi asked himself as dust invaded his eyes, making him flinch. He was too high up the ground that he couldn''t see where he already was. "Well, I shouldn''t.  That would just cause an unwanted ruckus."

    And then, another idea came to Satoshi''s head as he was flying. He could feel a light bulb lighting on his head, making him grin from ear to ear. It was an incredible thought that he didn''t think aboutst night... and yet it was one of his best ideas yet!

    "System! Bring me to the nearest hardware shop!"

    .....

    The first day of high school is probably one of the biggest events any child could get in the hero age. Not only will they finally get the exposure they truly deserve, but they could also beat the living daylights/ bully those who don''t belong to the Hero Age¡ª in other words, those who have little to useless superpowers. That''s because one of the main events of the first day of school, aside from testing out every students'' capabilities, is the one-on-one battles. These are official ''friendly'' matches that would actually determine the future of a high school student.

    After all, every major agency and high-ranking superheroes are going to watch the event!<sub> </sub>

    Of course, that includes Satoshi''s parents, the famous Midoriyama duo.

    ? That''s why Satoshi made up his mind to not lose face this time. Every year, his parents never failed to attend every first day of school of his, and every time they did, they''re only met with disappointment... or at least, that''s what Satoshi thought. But what he didn''t know was that his mom and dad are actually quite proud of him already. Even without using any superpowers, he always gets to the top 50¡ª that in and of itself is already a spectacr feat.

    But to Satoshi, it was nothing short of a fluke. That''s why, now that he got a superpower, he decided that he would redeem himself once and for all. It''s a fitting gesture since he''s practically ''debuting'' as a high school student.

    "Mr. and Mrs. Midoriyama, how are you two faring?" One of the interviewers stepped in front of the two as they tried to enter the coliseum just beside the school. This is where the testing for the new students will transpire. And just like any other years, Satoshi''s parents never failed to attend his ''first day of school''.

    "We''re doing rather well, thank you." Midoriyama Tatsuki, Satoshi''s father, responded as he softly bowed towards the interviewer. His wife followed.

    "We''ve gotten an inside scoop that your son applied to the United Superheroes Academy. Is it true? Are you going to watch him? Or are you finally scouting a student for your agency?"

    Satoshi''s mom was a bit offended by how the interview worded his question but her husband squeezed her hands, signaling that it wasn''t the time to lose her cool. After heaving a sigh that made her regain herposure, she smiled and addressed the interviewer as politely as she could. "Please look forward to it." She simply said before turning around.

    Tatsuki sighed in relief. He didn''t want to imagine his wife going berserk in a school. That''s thest thing he could ask for. "Thanks for not losing it back there, Ayumu."

    "What is that interviewer on about? We''ve got formidable superheroes in our agency, and by that, I mean a lot of them. Why do we need to scout a student?"

    "Because that''s what everybody does, honey. A few years from now, we should be scouting students as well. If not, then the public will view us in a bad light. Honestly, I''m worried. High school students with superpowers? That''s probably worse than the end of the world, don''t you think?"

    "You''re right. As the top superheroes, we should be guiding those students on a better path so they won''t end up as viin''spdogs. But... I don''t know how our son will take it."

    "He''ll be fine. You''ve seen how strong he is. If you take a superhero''s superpowers away from him, he''s no different from an ordinary human. At least our son''s got something in him more than what superheroes have¡ª the unwavering determination to get stronger."

    As the two entered the Coliseum, thundering cheers and confetti greeted them. And just like any other day, the two got to their ''publicity mode'', smiling and waving their hands as they made their way to their seats.

 Chapter 4 The Nailgun

    Throughout the years, the image of a hardware shop has drastically changed ever since the world entered the Hero Age. Before, power tools would be so expensive that only the middle ss and higher could purchase them. Because as fitting as their names are, they are power tools, used for heavy-duty repairs or work.

    But recently, with superheroes having the capabilities rivaling that of power tools, they became a bit... behind the times. Why buy a power tool when a superhero next door could just cut your trees for you? Why buy a power tool when you can bend metals at will? The majority of the popce had grown thinking of the same mindset, deeming the power tools useless.

    Even though hardware shops have an abundance of them, they couldn''t sell them at all. Desperate times call for desperate measures¡ª and that''s why hardware shop owners decided to sell power tools at their original price. A few people started buying them but they''re still not as famous as before. Then again, the hardware shop owners must''ve been contented seeing that the power tools are finally selling out.

    At a certain hardware shop near the United Superheroes Academy, a burly man wearing a brown overall and a greased t-shirt stood behind the counter, with his beefy arms on top of it. His eyes darted around the shop and one customer caught his attention. A young kid, carrying a sling-on bag and wearing a USA uniform, was busily scanning through the shelves over at the power tools section. One nce and the man knew something is definitely up with the kid. "Why would a normal kid be looking at power tools minutes before the school bell rings?" He asked himself but he couldn''t think of a possible reason.

    Curious, he walked up to the kid, the heavyweight man he is.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi sensed the man casually approaching him. With a cheery smile, he waved towards him. "Sir, are you the owner of this ce?"

    "Yes young man, that''s me. The name''s Ivan. What are you doing here? Five minutes and the bell''s going to ring, you know." Ivan continued.

    "Oh! That''s because I''ve been standing over here for a while now and I can''t seem to choose a power tool." He continued, trying not to panic and reveal himself in front of the owner. He knew that buying a power tool is equivalent to buying a weapon so he didn''t want to look suspicious. "My dad''s looking for something that shoots out sharp objects. He needs it for the roof or something."

    Ivan lit up for a split second before returning back to his usual calcting expression. "Oh, you meant a nailgun?"

    ''Wow, I can''t believe such a thing exists.'' Satoshi thought to himself as he nodded.

    "Sorry kid, but we don''t have one here. Thest one we had was dropped by a customer. He got so angry when I asked him to pay for it. And then he stormed out of the ce after doing so, didn''t even bother getting the item he paid for. Right now, it''s sitting at the storage."

    "Great! I''ll get that one please." Satoshi continued.

    "Are you sure about that? It''s broken, you know?" Ivan concernedly asked, imagining the teenager in front of him getting a beating from his dad after buying a useless power tool. "You might get in trouble."

    "Don''t sweat out the small details, sir. My dad''s a technician so he can fix minor chinks on a tool. I''ve been looking for that kind of tool ever since this morning. d I found one."

    Satoshi lied as naturally as he breathed.

    After heaving a sigh, Ivan headed to the storage and handed Satoshi a nailgun. "Look, kid. This thing''s basically paid for so you don''t have to pay me anything. Go to your dad and tell him I gave it to you for free. That way you won''t get in trouble. And also, you got two minutes before the school bell goes off. Hurry along."

    "Sweet!" Holding the nailgun as if it were some prized possession or a relic heirloom, Satoshi stormed out of the hardware shop and got to the USA a second before the school bell rang.

    Although Satoshi was known for not having any superpowers, some students still believed that he was just hiding his real strength. After all, he passed the entrance exam to USA and he wasn''t dropped by the school. There''s also the possibility that the school just didn''t want to get to his parents'' bad side but that''s beside the point. Right now, the students are thinking the same thing¡ª that they shouldn''t unnecessarily get into Satoshi''s bad side until they''ve gauged his true strength.

    Just like any other student, Satoshi was also used to the entrance tests that pitted students against each other. That''s why he didn''t waste any time getting to the waiting room reserved specifically for him. Any students that met him on the way didn''t bother to say hello because, well, they were utterly nervous. One wrong move and they know that they''ll be kicked out of the school. The United Superheroes Academy is a school that gave rise to prominent superheroes today, and they won''t hesitate to kick out those who could possibly tarnish the name of the academy.<sub> </sub>

    Even though the school had a 60% eptance rate, just 2% of those would get to the academy. In simpler terms, even if someone were to pass the entrance exam, the first day of school¡ª which would test everyone''s proficiency andbat ability¡ª is the actual ''entrance exam''. If one were to perform in an unsatisfactory manner, they have a greater chance of being expelled.

    That''s how cruel the educational system is in the Hero Age.

    Pacing back and forth in the waiting room, Satoshi impatiently tried to reactivate his superpowers. He knew that he could transform or evolve inanimate objects into better things just by imagining how they should be... but until right now, he still had no idea how to trigger it. It was like breathing, he knows he could do it but if he were to focus hard enough, then he''ll be taking over the power instead of letting the power work through him, making the process fail miserably.

    The nailgun just casually sat in front of him, broken as ever. He was confident that his power worked on a workingputer... but what if the equipment was broken? Right now the nailgun is not in a workable state and before his turnes, he needs to fix it and imbue in it his superpowers.

    "Doesn''t matter, right now all I have to do is try. If it doesn''t work, then I can just rely on my System¡ª I mean, that retroputer I have which I sent back home."

    Once again, he tried to think back to the time when he managed to turn his retroputer into a System. First, he put the desire at the forefront of his mind, wishing for a weapon that would activate as soon as he thought about it. And then he believed that his superpowers would be able to fix the broken nailgun. "Superheroes say having a superpower is like having a sixth finger that you''ve always have... but it''s not true. It''s like having a whole new world opened to you... or maybe it''s just because I took too long to realize what it is. So I was at fault here?"

    And quite miraculously, the blue mes enveloped his hands once again, settling on the nailgun and burning it.

    "SATOSHI VERSUS HIROSHI!"

    It took Satoshi a split second before he got back to his senses. His name was just called to the stadium and he had to get there even though he wasn''t prepared yet. There are plenty of chances for him ditching the test itself but he knew that would just leave a bad taste in his parents'' mouth.

    "Whatever, let''s just do this."

    Once the blue me that seemed to consume the nailgun was over, four rectangr pieces of metal were all that''s left, each of which had eight nails in them. After examining it for the second time, Satoshi realized that they were actual nailguns¡ª the only difference was that they looked more portable than ever.

    "And how do I use this in my fight? I said I needed a weapon, but how do I exactly use this?" Satoshi scratched his head in slight annoyance. "In any case, let''s just get through with this. I should probably be able to win the first round, right?"

    But then, just as he was walking to the center of the coliseum, he remembered the announcement a moment ago. "What on¡ª you mean I''ll be fighting Hiroshi? That Hiroshi? Ah man, you gotta be kidding me!"

    Somehow, his purposeful gait suddenly turned shaky and every cell in his body warned him of the danger in front of him. His mind was forcing him to go back, to just forfeit the match. But no matter how much he wanted to do so, he knew he couldn''t do it. He just couldn''t walk away even though he was pitted against one of the strongest highschoolers in all of Japan.

    After all, his pride is on the line... and most of all, he didn''t want to disappoint his parents who had always supported him and cheered for him every single year.

    Just when he was about to lose all hope, he felt something click in his mind, like a missing puzzle piece that had always been there, just put at a wrong angle. And somehow, he gained a minuscule amount of confidence¡ª just enough that enabled him to walk to the Stadium without copsing.

    "Let''s get this over with." He said, clenching his shaky fists.

 Chapter 5 Steel And Magma

    Superpowers are ranked based on their usefulness and capability to overpower a viin or an enemy. A support superhero can have a higher rank if his superpower really helps out in team fights. For example, a healer, or a superpower that buffs other superheroes. Whichever it is, its usefulness will enable it to get a higher rank in the SAO. Then there''s the capability to overpower. No matter how strong an opponent is, if a superhero has the ''capability to overpower'' him no matter the costs, then his rank will rise greatly.

    For many years, this ranking was implemented to let the other support superheroes get the same spotlight as the attackers... but what if a superhero had the potential to do both? One that can easily support and attack at any given situation?

    Of course, he will be regarded as a talented superhero. It''s not every day one would encounter such an overpowering figure.

    That''s exactly what Tayokama Hiroshi is. Despite his shabby and normal appearance befitting a normal kid, everyone knows that he''s one of the most talented high schoolers out there. Ever since his debut at the age of six, he was regarded as the superhero that would change how superheroes are viewed.

    And yet, for some reason, he was put in a match against one of the weakest high schoolers in the world¡ª Midoriyama Satoshi, an insult to the world of superheroes.

    "How could the son of the two most powerful superheroes not have any superpowers? If I were him, I would''ve killed myself a long time ago." Hiroshi clicked his tongue in contempt in disgust. Just thinking about breathing the same air as this trash was enough to make him feel terrible.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi! Son of the Midoriyama duo and an insult to them, why don''t you tap out? It would leave a bad aftertaste in my mouth if I were to mess you up real bad in front of your parents." He called out.

    Growing up with one of the most powerful superpowers affected his arrogance as well. Even though he doesn''t really go as far as to bully anyone, he still feels a great sense of pride when seeing someone weaker than him. But deep inside, he really didn''t want to beat Satoshi up, especially not in front of his parents. After all, just like any other aspiring superheroes out there, Hiroshi is a die-hard fan of the Midoriyama duo.

    "Sorry, but I''m going to change things up a little bit today." Satoshi lifted his hands up without clenching his fists. If one were to look at him, one would assume that he has a superpower that could shoot out at any time.

    "Well, if you really want to go at it, then I guess I won''t mind." Hiroshi brought his arms like Satoshi and braced his legs. "You have all the time to tap out, please don''t make this hard for me. I wouldn''t want your parents seeing you in an injured state."

    It alles down to who strikes who first.

    "You a fan? I can get you an autograph if you fervently ask me."

    "dly, we can arrange that after the match. Or, do you want to tap out right now and get it going right away?"

    "BEGIN!" Thementator suddenly shouted as two referees appeared out of nowhere and stood on two sides of the square where the fight will be held.

    For the first time in his life, Satoshi felt a sense of thrill and excitement oveing him. In the previous years, Satoshi would feel like praying in the waiting room before his opponent was announced. Because no matter how physically fit he was, he stood no chance against an indomitable superpower. But now, even though he''s fighting one of the strongest high schooler superheroes, he felt like he stood a chance at winning.

    "Magma burst!" Hiroshi shouted.

    Suddenly, the entire arena turned into a frightening shade of orange. The ground liquefied and the light tint of orange turned a deep red color. Satoshi could tell that the arena is slowly turning into a mouth of a volcano. If he were to get caught up in it, he would melt in no time.

    "You have at least five seconds before you start melting into this domain of magma. Please tap out now, Satoshi, you don''t stand a chance." Hiroshi taunted, but Satoshi just wouldn''t budge.

    "Oh, I''m going to tap out, all right. But first, I want you to step on the edge of the arena. Then I''ll do what you ask." Satoshi calmly asked.

    "And why would I do that? I don''t know what kind of cards you have up your sleeves but I''m not taking my chances. I''m the only one who can do the negotiations. So? You got two seconds." Hiroshi continued.

    Thementator and the audience didn''t even cheer nor shout as they watched the fight. All of them just held their breaths as they keenly watched the ident that would soon follow. As for Satoshi''s parents, they tensed their muscles, ready to jump in the fray the moment something bad happens.

    "Two¡ª " Hiroshi continued with the countdown.<sub> </sub>

    "So that didn''t work, huh." Satoshi sighed as he leaped into the air. "I''m sorry, Hiroshi, but I''ll be taking this victory off your feet."

    The moment he jumped, countless projectilesunched themselves towards Hiroshi, making him instinctively jump and somersault just so he could avoid the projectiles. However, the projectiles were considerably small that some of them managed to nullify his maneuvers. When Hiroshi paused to take a breath, he saw that most of his appendages were perforated with some sharp object.

    And to add to the mental damage, he could see that Satoshi was floating in the air!

    "Y-you, were you hiding your superpower all along?" Hiroshi was dumbfounded. Here he was, expecting to snag an easy win from this guy without a superpower, but now, it seemed like he was being overpowered by him.

    "Not really, I just had plenty of time to train it." Satoshi bluffed. "I got the higher ground, if you want to leave this arena unscathed, you can tap out at any time. You''re basically a sitting duck while I''m in mid-air. I mean, you can use your fireballs but they won''t hit."

    "As if I''d do that!" Hiroshi snapped. "You underestimate my power!"

    With the desperation of a raged bull, Hiroshi continuously fired at Satoshi with the uracy of a sniper. But no matter how much he pinpointed where Satoshi was, he could still dodge the fireballs with ease. Even with the power to change the terrain and the power to deal a lot of damage with his fireballs, he was still outmatched by a floating person who uses some sort of wind superpower that could puncture through his skin.

    Even thementator¡ª who stopped speaking ever since the fight started¡ª had no idea what Satoshi''s superpower is. He just stood idly there, open-mouthedly when he was supposed to be doing his sole job ofmentating on the whole scene.

    From time to time, the audience would nce at the general direction of where the Midoriyama duo was sitting. No one could describe just how proud they were of their one and only son. Right when they had braced themselves for the worst, their son disyed something that they''ve been wishing for ever since they gave birth to him.

    "Honey, can you see it?" Midoriyama Tatsuki eximed as he grabbed her wife by the shoulders. "Look!"

    "What is it?"

    "Under our son''s feet, look at them! Do you see it now? For a moment, I thought our son has a wind-type superpower, but as it turns out, he''s got th power to control metal!"

    "My¡ª " Midoriyama Ayumu leaned on her husband''s shoulder as she bawled her eyes out. She didn''t care what her son''s superpower was as long as he had one. Right now, he finally discovered what it is, and she could not get any happier.

    The barrage of fireballs relentlessly shot at Satoshi and as seconds passed, he could finally feel the heat of the entire magma-filled arena and the fireballs shooting past him. He was sweating bullets and his breathing turned ragged.

    "That all you got, wind boy?" Hiroshi was already running out of air because of the intense magma heat of the surroundings. However, he could tell that he''s close to winning¡ª or not. Every time he shot fireballs at Satoshi, he''d miss. On the other hand, Satoshi''s projectiles were always spot-on.

    It didn''t take long before he was already kneeling on the ground with dozens of wounds on his appendages. Apparently, Satoshi was merciful enough to not puncture any of his organs, otherwise, he would''ve been dead.

    The reason why Satoshi could float was that he was stepping on the upgraded nailgun. For some reason, he had full control over the nail guns and their ''bullets''. That''s why he could float all over the ce and shoot at 100% uracy. Satoshi could tell that people were probably thinking about his superpower and he won''t reveal it just yet. Right now, people can conclude that he has some sort of wind superpower, or an ability to control metal¡ª both are still way off-course from his actual superpower.

    "I told you to tap out," With a grin, Satoshi called out, provoking his opponent even though he was already close to passing out.

    With a swing of his hand, Satoshi fired off a dozen more nails, this time, aiming at the top of Hiroshi''s feet.

    The pain of having his feet punctured with a dozen or so nails made him scream in excruciating pain. Adding the agony that came from the wounds that were inflicted by the said nails, Hiroshi couldn''t persist anymore. As his feet crumbled on his weight, he raised his hands and dered his defeat.

    "It''s my loss."

 Chapter 6 Heaven And Earth

    The loss of Hiroshi was enough to leave everyone speechless as they stared at the match came to a close. Those who were part of the audience and those who were watching the live broadcast of the fight could tell that there was no foul y in the match. Satoshi won fair and square by using a superpower that he had hidden throughout his whole childhood.

    "Isn''t that crazy? Why would he subject himself to such hate if he had such a powerful superpower?"

    "He''s writing his own novel, that''s how it is. He probably did that to have an even greater impact during his high school years."

    "Kudos to him, I never would''ve done that if it were me. He must have balls of steel to endure through all those hardships."

    "Oh shoot, I use to bully that kid before! What am I thinking! No... this is not good."

    "But to think that Hiroshi lost, how could that even happen?"

    Murmurs erupted from the audience as they discussed what just ensued. As for Satoshi''s parents, however, they sat in their seats, trying to maintain theirposure as their son walked away from the stage. They badly wanted to shout and exim to the entire audience that Satoshi was their son... but right now, they have an image to uphold. In the end, they made up their mind to just celebrate their son''s high school debut at home where they won''t be interrupted by paparazzi and news anchors who were eagerly looking out for a scoop.

    Back at the hardware shop, a couple of customers who weren''t able to get inside the Coliseum were watching the live broadcast through the television propped on one of the walls of the store. When they saw that Hiroshi lost to the son of the Midoriyama duo, a lot of people cheered, but some were not convinced about it. Their reactions were pretty much the same as the others.

    "Hey, that''s the kid from before," Ivan screamed.

    "You know the kid, Ivan?"

    "No, but I''ve met him. He''s a good kid." He smiled.

    .....

    Satoshi walked towards the waiting room to await his second match. Even though he didn''t feel nervous in the slightest during the match, he didn''t feel the same after it. As soon as he stepped out of the arena, his feet turned into jelly and his heart pounded like drums. With his shaky hands, he clutched his chest as he could feel himself asphyxiating. ''One wrong move and I would''ve melted to death. That Hiroshi might''ve killed me if I didn''t have a superpower.''

    Since there was no one watching, Satoshi leaned on the wall and decided to take a rest, finally feeling post-match exhaustion. There''s still a match or two left before his next match so there was no need to rush to the waiting room. Besides, he could tell by the noise that there were a lot of reporters waiting for him near the waiting room.<sub> </sub>

    "Um, excuse me, are you okay?" A girl suddenly called out, concernedly handing Satoshi a handkerchief. "You"

    "Oh, Shiroi-san, how are you doing," Satoshi asked as he waved his hands. So she''s fighting in the next match, huh, I guess it would be an easy win for her. Still, I didn''t expect her to enter this school, I thought she would jump straight to hero work since a lot of agencies scouted her during our middle school years.

    "That''s what I''m supposed to ask you, what are you doing? I thought you didn''t have any superpower? Howe you''re using one now? Did you intentionally hide your superpower during ou entire middle school years? When did you find out about your superpower? I thought we were friends, why didn''t you tell me anything?" Shiroi-san hissed. She didn''t want to raise her voice and attract unnecessary attention, especially when there are reporters on the other side of the hallway, awaiting Satoshi''s return to his waiting room.

    "Don''t you have a match? You should focus on that for now. I''ll tell you everything once we both get ''officially'' epted to the USA. And also¡ª aren''t you staring a little bit too much?" Satoshi tried to cover some parts of his upper body but he couldn''t. Most of it was burned due to the intense heat that Hiroshi emitted with hisva superpower.

    "Eek~ okay. I''ll be going now." Shiroi cleared her throat. "And tell me everything once all this is over!"

    "All right all right." Satoshi shrugged as he waved his hands, signaling that she should get going.

    After stealing onest nce towards him and getting flustered in the process, Shiroi-san went on her way.

    "That was dangerous! What was Shiroi-san doing here! Ah, did I say something wrong? Was I acting weird? Do I look all right? Aaarghhh!" Satoshi grabbed his hair in a flustered manner with all the intention to pull it out. But after taking a couple of deep breaths, he calmed down.

    Dusting himself off, Satoshi got up and headed back to the waiting room. The image of Shiroi-san''s beauty still lingered in his mind like smokeing out of a burnt-out campfire. Her smooth, pristine white skin with a light pinkish tone, her slender legs, and proportionate body that seemed sculpted by another goddess, her blue clear eyes that reflect even the darkest of lights, and silky white hair that touched the back of her knees, they all swam in Satoshi''s mind as he staggered to the waiting room. Ever since Shiroi-san rescued her from his bullies back in their first year of middle school, he grew utterly fond of her. But he was well aware that their distance is like heaven and earth¡ª one has a strong superpower while the other has none. That''s the only reason why Satoshi can''t and won''t express his feelings towards her. He was content with the way they are right now¡ª close friends. Even though hees off as indifferent sometimes, Shiroi didn''t fail to talk to him or hit him up during the summer break.

    One time, he even thought that if someone were to date Shiroi, he would be fine with it. After all, he''s a nobody. He''s not even on anyone''s radar.

    During middle school, Shiroi had countless suitors but she turned them all down. Some even believed that she was dating Hiroshi at one point. This frustrated Satoshi so much he started doubling his workout routine.

    But now, things are different. Before, he only had the looks, but with the superpower to back it up, he''s not afraid of anyone anymore. And now that the only barrier blocking his path to romance was finally shattered, he thought that maybe he could get a chance at confessing at Shiroi, his childhood friend, and the only girl in his mind.

    "Mmm... nope, not happening." Satoshi vehemently shook his head. Even after obtaining a superpower, he knew that there''s a good chance that Shiroi will reject his confession. His confidence dwindled.

 Chapter 7 Forfeiting The Match

    Satoshi''s next matches were all one-sided since most of them forfeited the match. They were well aware that they cannot defeat Hiroshi, much less Satoshi, and they figured that forfeiting the match is for the better. After all, the judges would just judge your performance based on the match, if you don''t have any records in the matches, they would then check your background to see if you''re good enough to be in the school or not. Needless to say, these high schoolers have a passable superpower that they didn''t bother getting a bad record by losing against Satoshi.

    Because of that, Satoshi gained more poprity as he rose through the ranks. Before he knew it, he was already in the top eight and he''d be fighting against the other high schoolers who already had a name for themselves. It was getting a bit problematic as well since most of the opponents already realized what his superpower is¡ª or rather, what it looks like. A majority of them assumed that Satoshi has the ability to control metal at will, and they were half-right about it.

    "And for the quarterfinals match, please wee, Midoriyama Satoshi!"Thementator screamed at the top of his lungs even though he was already using a mic at full volume. Because of his irresponsibility a while ago (he wasn''tmentating at all), the school personnel decided to call on anothermentator to apany him, giving them more opportunity to talk.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, the kid who made a name for himself for not having a superpower. But now he has one! Isn''t that surprising?"

    "Yes! It is indeed very surprising. Do you think he did that to make a sessful debut in high school?"

    "That may be the case, yes. And now that you mentioned it, a lot of students in the past have tried doing what Satoshi did, but it backfired for them. Satoshi must''ve been nning this debut for years!"

    "Yes, but I think this would be hisst match. His opponent is none other than Yukino Shiroi, nicknamed the Ice Queen! At such a young age, the people had already given her a name fitting for a superhero. She''s one of the most popr high schoolers out there."

    "She has the potential to control the weather or something, right? Just like that famousic superhero Storm."

    "That''s right, but not only that, she mainly controls Ice, making her one of the most powerful high schoolers out there. I heard she got to the top ten rankings of the most promising high schooler superheroes."

    "She''ll definitely make it big someday. What a powerful superpower!"

    As thementators started talking about the two, Shiroi and Satoshi met in the middle of the arena. In the past, there were multiple times when Shiroi would be pitted against him in a friendly match and he would always lose. And now, even though he finally discovered what his superpower is, he knew that he doesn''t stand a chance against his childhood friend. Right now, he was shaking, trying hard not to maintain hisposure as the countdown draws to a close.

    "Congrattions on getting this far, Satoshi. You''ve done well hiding your true abilities until now." Shiroi sneered as she put her guard up. Although the match hasn''t begun, she was already forming some sort of ice in her hands.

    "I told you, there''s an exnation for it. I never intended to hide my superpower from everyone. Look, even my parents had no idea about it. Sigh~ I told you I''ll exin everything to youter." Satoshi simply replied.

    "I''m not going to take it easy, Satoshi." Shiroi continued.

    "Me neither." Satoshi returned.

    ....

    "BEGIN!"

    "I forfeit!"

    "I forfeit!"<sub> </sub>

    Gasp!

    The audience gasped and not a single breath came out of their mouth after that. It''s as if time stood still as they stared at the two contestants who both conceded the match simultaneously. They couldn''t believe it! Throughout the history of the USA and their yearly event of hosting a match between their new students, this has never happened before.

    "Shiroi! What are you doing?!" Satoshi was on the verge of panicking as he approached Shiroi. "Why are you forfeiting the match! Didn''t you want to get first ce? You told me that, right?"

    "But... this is your first debut, Satoshi! And after watching your fight against Hiroshi, I know I can''t beat you! Even I can''t beat Hiroshi. His superpower is much more dominant than mine! You know I have to forfeit here."

    "I''ve never won a single match against you, Shiroi, you know I''m the one who should be forfeiting!"

    "No, you never used your superpower against me even when we were kids. You were holding back all this time. You probably thought that all of us are not worth using your superpower for."

    "As I said, it wasn''t my intention to hide my superpower." Satoshi sighed.

    Everyone watched in anticipation as the two ''lovebirds'' started arguing. They didn''t know what would happen in the match since both of the contestants forfeited but they couldn''t help but watch them. Even Satoshi''s parents, who were quietly watching at the uppermost corner of the coliseum was trying so hard to suppress theirughter.

    "Dear, you see that? He got that from you." Ayumu giggled as she rested her head on top of her husband.

    "You mean from you. Look at him blushing." Tatsuki chuckled as well. Just like everyone else, they were enjoying the scene ying out between their son and his childhood friend.

    "Shiroi... from what I can remember, he''s her childhood friend, right? I remember her visiting us a couple of times when they were kids."

    "Oh, so our son''s going down that route. That''s pretty good." Tatsuki pretended to cough.

    Meanwhile, there was quite amotion in the principal''s office as two school teachers rushed towards the room. There, they found the principal standing by the window, overlooking the match that''s currently undergoing at the Coliseum.

    "Principal! What do we do!" One of the teachers eximed.

    "Heh, I''ll say we expel that Satoshi kid. He just does whatever he wants without respect for others. What''s the point of hiding his superpower when he''ll use it in the near future? What a dreamer." The other teachermented. Unlike the first instructor, this teacher looked shabby, with ck tattered outfits and eyes with the worst eye bags. "Principal, please expel this Satoshi kid."

    "I''m sorry, Shoto-san, but we won''t be expelling those in the top ten. That''s what the traditions of the USA state. And also, there''s a simple solution to this type of problem. Even though it has not urred once throughout the history of this school, we can easily resolve these types of problems."

    "How do we do it, Principal?" The first teacher asked, she was worried that maybe the two will both be expelled but judging from the Principal''s expression, such was not the case.

    "Simple, by reying the footage and seeing who forfeited first." The principal grinned.

 Chapter 8 The Slime Alien

    In the end, it was Shiroi who happened to forfeit first and so, Satoshi moved on to the top four. He was determined to win the whole petition'' but unfortunately, he met his match¡ª a student who has the power to control metal. Apparently, his nailguns attack were ineffective since the student had some sort of a maic forcefield thatpletely negates the eleration of the nails. Because of that, Satoshi was forced to forfeit as he took a hard blow on his pride.

    "Then again, it''s not like I could catch up to everyone who has been using their superpower ever since they were teenagers. As for me, I still have a lot of things to do and discover. My journey is just getting started." Satoshi said to himself as he took onest look at the Coliseum. By far, it had been the most memorable first day of school he had.

    "What are you doing, son? We''ll bete for dinner." Tatsuki grabbed his son by the shoulders, forcefully turning him around. "Did everything go the way you nned it?"

    Satoshi was wearing a red baseball cap on his head and he pulled it down as his dad peered closer to him. He wanted to tell everything to his parents but right now, he was incapable of doing it. He could tell that the moment he spoke about his superpowers, he would begin bawling his eyes out. And he didn''t want to show that side of him to his parents after all these years. He wants to maintain the strong figure he has in their eyes, especially now that high school is starting. One might not know it but Satoshi''s parents could be quite the worrywarts.

    The sun was beginning to dip down the skies when the group made their way out of the school. With the sky turning into several shades of orange as it approached twilight, the family made their way to a nearby family restaurant. The nearby family restaurant was called Mgronalds and it has been so popr nowadays, probably because a rumored demon lord is currently working as a shift manager in one of the branches (it was just a rumor however since no one has proven whether he really was a demon lord or not).

    p "Satoshi, we should apologize to you... because of our standing as superheroes, we cannot go to crowded areas such as popr restaurants. It would''ve been nice if we could celebrate your sessful debut at a famous steakhouse but our meal might get interrupted by fans. I hope you understand." Tatsuki sincerely apologized to his child.</anda>

    "It''s fine, we rarely get to have dinner together, this is more than enough. How''s the agency nowadays, dad?" Satoshi was quick enough to change the topic since dragging it out would just make his parents feel more guilty. And he didn''t want that. Right now, it''s a rare chance for him to get dinner with his parents. He didn''t want it to feel awkward.

    "We''re doing fine nowadays, but ever since that Boosting Incident, a few agencies are having trouble getting clients. Well, you probably already know that but I just want to tell you that the agency is doing fine. Your mom and I are fine... although, I''m quite worried about the other superheroes out there."

    "Honey, now''s not the time to talk about bad news, right now we should tell him the good news." Ayumu winked twice at her husband before grabbing her son by the shoulders.

    "Ah right! I quite forgot about that." Tatsuki pointed his index finger in the air, lifting his head along with it. This was a weird habit of his every time he remembers something. "Satoshi, what do you think about joining our agency once you graduate?"

    "Me? Join your agency... but I''m not that experienced yet."

    "It would be fine. We''ll only hire you in the summer. You get to earn pocket money as well! And aside from that, you get to experience what hero work is all about. This experience would greatly help you in the future when you decide to be a pro hero."

    "I''ll think about it, dad."

    The Mgronalds restaurant was just at the intersection, covering the entire corner of that street. Just like any other Mgronalds, there''s a drive-thru portion on its side. And there, an all-too-familiar ck sedan drove past, making Satoshi flinch in shock.

    A few secondster, the ck sedan stopped in front of them and the rear windows rolled down. Inside was a girl with bright blue eyes and clear skin that seemed to glisten on the least radiant of lights. "Satoshi! Fancy meeting you here!"

    "Shiroi, you here to eat out as well?"

    "Good timing, Shiroi, you should join them for now. We''ll just pick you up after work. An emergency came up and we have to get to the agency as soon as we can." The man behind the wheel leaned backward as he addressed Shiroi and the others.

    "Yukino-san, how are you doing? Is everything all right?" Tatsuki worriedly asked. "You got an emergency call, right? Is there an ident nearby?"

    "Er, yes, apparently a train went off-course up north in the city of Chiyoda. It seems like a meteor fell from the sky, derailing the train."

    "A meteor? Why was it so sudden? Usually, meteors are forecasted in the news a few days before their descent right?" Tatsuki almost screamed but he was able to maintain hisposure. "In any case, this is suspicious, way too suspicious."

    "Yukino-san, we''reing with you. Who knows what that meteor is... or maybe it''s just a diversion or the prelude to arge-scale attack." Ayumu offered.<sub> </sub>

    "That would be a great help, thanks. Please get in the back seat." Yukino opened the rear doors of the car. "Shiroi, just spend time with Satoshi for a few minutes, we''ll be back soon."

    "If it really is just a meteor, then we would just be undergoing a rescue operation. It wouldn''t take long, with your dad''s power it would be a cinch."

    "Yes, mom, dad. Please be careful."

    "We''ll be back in a few minutes, for now, you can order as much as you want. Here''s my credit card. If something happens, don''t engage in a fight, just get out of the ce as soon as you can." Ayumu reminded Satoshi of something that he had been hearing ever since he was a kid. It was standard procedure for a civilian to flee the scene when danger ensues, and Ayumu got the habit of always reminding Satoshi of it. Not that she meant anything bad by it, she just wanted her one and only son to be safe.

    "Yes, mom."

    Although Satoshi felt a bit of pain in his heart since his parents would miss another family dinner once again, he didn''t feelpletely empty at all. Not only did he have Shiroi forpany, he would also be able to watch both his parents on the television once again. Even though he had seen his parents appear on the television one too many times, he still isn''t used to it. Most of the time, he finds himself admiring both his parents and their superpowers. And today, there was no difference.

    "Come on, let''s head inside." Satoshi grabbed Shiroi by the hand as the two of them entered Mgronalds.

    "Wee to Mgronalds, how may I¡ª "

    "Two Combo A Set Meals please, and an additional jumbo fries. How about you, Shiroi?"

    "I''ll get the samebo meal as well." Shiroi smiled as her face slightly reddened. Satoshi wasn''t even paying attention to her hands but somehow she felt flustered by it. She wasn''t expecting Satoshi to grab it just like that.

    For some reason, the entire family restaurant was filled and the only spots left were two chairs on the window seat. They went there and ufortably sat for dinner. And as expected, a few minutester, the news about the Midoriyama Duo and the Iceman (Yukino Shiroi''s dad) helping the passengers of the train was broadcasted on the local television. Because of that, a lot of customers who were eating in the family restaurant started screaming and cheering, oblivious to the fact that Shiroi and Satoshi were there with them. Not that they mind though, in fact, they were a bit ted by it.

    But an explosion was suddenly heard nearby and the meteor suddenly opened up. The live broadcast panned through the surroundings before focusing on the meteor that seemed to have exploded. There, some sort of slime came out.

    "A monster! I repeat, we have a monster inside the meteor!"

    At first nce, the Slime Monster looked harmless as it slowly snailed on the train tracks. But just before everyone got their guard down, the Slime suddenly whipped a portion of its body towards one of the rescued passengers on the train.

    In mere seconds, the passenger melted into the ground, leaving nothing but smoke and slime as his residue.

    "Everybody, fall back!" Tatsuki screamed his lungs out as he saw the passenger die before his eyes.

    And while all that was happening, the live camera feed was not turned off, it was broadcasted throughout the entirety of Japan, throwing the majority of the poption in a state of panic. An example of this was the family restaurant where Satoshi and Shiroi were. Since the incident happened nearby, every customer started screaming and crawling their way out of the family restaurant, fleeing for their lives in a crazed state.

    "How''s your food?" Satoshi calmly asked Shiro as they continued eating without a care in the world.

    "It tastes the same as yours, probably," Shiroi responded, taking in another mouthful of fries. "Dad did say that we should escape when danger is nearby right?"

    "Yeah, for now, let''s just finish this."

 Chapter 9 Plunder And Counter

    Just like any other aspiring student, Mayu transferred from her province to the bustling city of Tokyo to pursue her dreams. She was taking architecture as her major and just as expected, the tuition fee is quite expensive. That''s why she had to bnce her time between two part-time jobs¡ª one, ate-afternoon shift in a nearby cafe, and two, the Mgronalds branch in Tokyo which is conveniently positioned at an intersection of busy streets.

    It was only her fifth day on her part-time job at Mgronalds so she was still learning the ropes. That''s why when a nearby explosion happened and public unrest became rampant in the streets, she still didn''t dare move from her position. Her cold sweat dripped from her forehead to her cheeks to her chin as she watched the scene outside unfold. It was like a scene taken straight out of an apocalyptic movie¡ª balls of mes erupting everywhere, smokeing out from the distance, and people running around the streets. The view was all too shocking that she couldn''t move her feet. She was fixated on the floor, even her head wouldn''t turn when she told it to.

    "What''s happening." She asked, trying to recall if she fell asleep during her shift and that right now, she was having the worst of nightmares... but so far, she couldn''t recall such a thing happening. The only thing she could conclude is that what''s happening in front of her is real, and there was no way she could wake up from it.

    "How''s your food?"

    "It tastes the same as yours, probably,"

    Amidst the screaming outside, she started hearing voices that sounded like they were the same age as hers. The voices weren''t screaming at all, they were casually talking to each other like nothing''s happening outside. When she scanned the area, she noticed that there were still two people sitting by the window seat of Mgronalds, they were facing outside so there was no way Mayu could see who they were. As far as she knows, they might as well be aliens or monsters.

    "Um, excuse me?" She stuttered, carefully approaching the two customers who were left behind. Since they were on the same boat, it wouldn''t hurt if she talked to them¡ª or so that''s what she assumed.

    "Oh,  good timing,  do you have one more jumbo fries, we''d like to order one more. Shiroi, how about you?" Satoshi called out to Mayu as she approached them.

    "Um, I''d like to get some iced tea please." Shiroi softly said.

    "Ah-uh... right away," Mayu didn''t know what to do so she just took their orders and received their payments. She felt as if she was in a daze while trying to figure out why Satoshi and Shiroi weren''t budging from their seats even though people were screaming right outside.

    "Here''s your order, sir, ma''am." She professionally dealt with them like it were a normal day to get a customer.

    "Thanks, and oh, you''d better stay inside this restaurant, it''s dangerous outside," Satoshi advised before digging into the jumbo fries he just ordered. As he did so, he and Shiroi continued watching the live broadcast on television.

    .....

    "What are you?" Tatsuki called out as he used his superpower on the Slime but nothing happened. He was getting a bit panicky but his wife stepped in and deflected a ''tentacle'' from the slime who was about to hit her husband.

    "Take it easy, dear. Even if your Plunder Superpower doesn''t work on this man-thing-whatever, I can still hold it off with my Counter Superpower. Just don''t overextend and end up being turned into mist."

    In the span of five minutes, the Slime ''Alien'' already made enough damage in a huge portion of the city of Chiyoda. Apparently, its body is so malleable that it could extend it indefinitely, smashing everything in its wake and causing explosions here and there every time it whips its tentacles. And as if that wasn''t enough, every single living being it touched would instantly turn into smoke and a vague resemnce of the slime.<sub> </sub>

    The slime would then feed off of that liquid and grow even bigger, bing a huge monster. And as it grew in size, its speed and strength rtively grew with it as well. When Tatsuki, Ayumu, and Shiroi''s father first engaged it inbat, it was still sluggish and its tentacles were easy to dodge. But now that it grew to ten times its size, it could move faster than Tatsuki''s eyes could track them.

    "Hey, Yukino-san, can''t you stop this slime with your ice powers?" Tatsuki asked, barely dodging three tentacles that shot at him with great speeds.

    "If I could, I''d have done it a long time ago." Yukino was doing all he could dodging the tentacles as well.

    "How about you? Don''t you have some sort of superpower that could counter this thing? You have a lot in your arsenal, right?"

    "Yes, but none of them seem to work." Tatsuki stole a nce towards his wife before shooting out spider-webs at the Slime. And when that didn''t work, he shot out some ice shards, then sand, then water... but as expected, nothing worked.

    "How about fire, don''t you have any Fire Superpower That you''ve plundered?" Ayumu screamed out.

    "No, I haven''t gotten hold of one in a month... tsk, this is bad."

    To further exin Tatsuki''s superpower, which is ''Plunder'', it enables him to steal someone''s superpower and use it for a month. For the remainder of that time, the victim wouldn''t be able to use any of his or her abilities while Tatsuki utilizes it. Tatsuki has no idea how many superpowers he can umte in a month but the most he could get was thirty. Although his superpower, in and of itself, is useless, he is one of the most powerful superheroes to ever exist. After all, his superpower is useless if superpowers didn''t exist.

    Tatsuki''s ''Plunder'' is also used to punish criminals, well, sort of. That''s why he frequents certain prisons to ''Plunder'' superpowers from criminals that reside there. It may seem a bit underhanded but the public views it as ''using criminals for good'' so they deem it eptable. Of course, Tatsuki doesn''t just go around every prison and taking someone''s superpower. He goes as far as to ask the criminal if he would like to ''lend'' his superpower to him in a month. If he agrees, then that''s an additional superpower for Tatsuki. Tatsuki also has the power to cancel his superpower when he decides that he doesn''t need it anymore. So even if the deadline of next month is still not met, Tatsuki could still return the superpower at any time.

    As for his wife, who is ranked second in the SAO rankings, she has the ''Counter'' superpower. Just like Tatsuki, her superpower doesn''t amount to much without the existence of any other superpower. That''s because her superpower allows her to counter any attack aimed at her. No matter how strong the enemy is or how powerful their Kamehameha''s are, she could always counter them. That''s how she never lost against any fight, the only one she couldn''t defeat in her prime was Tatsuki. That''s because Tatsuki could just steal her superpowers from her and of course, she couldn''t counter it because¡ª one, it wasn''t an attack, and two, she wouldn''t have her ''Counter'' anymore if someone steals it from her.

    It was twenty or so years ago when Tatsuki first met Ayumu in apetition. And that''s where they fell in love with each other.

    In any case, the couple may be the strongest superhero under the Superhero Assembly Organization, but they were surprisingly powerless against a Slime.

    "The best we can do is hold them off, we need backup." Tatsuki gritted his teeth as he continued to throw every superpower he could at the Slime.

    "Dad!" Someone suddenly eximed from behind him.

 Chapter 10 RIP Cat...

    Satoshi and Shiroi were already on their sixth pack of jumbo fries but their parents still haven''t finished fighting the Slime. The longer the fight dragged on, the more they noticed that the Slime was gettingrger and more powerful. It was like thest boss in every MMORPG game and his parents were too under-leveled to fight it off. Somehow, this slime is not losing on power output either. Since Satoshi''s mom could counter any of its attacks, it hasn''t advanced to the densely popted area of Tokyo, but it wasn''t backing out either.

    "I have to do something," Satoshi said to himself, although he was fully aware that there was nothing he could do. He nced at Shiroi, and he realized that she was getting worried. Her expression was filled with impatience and concern as she glued her eyes to the television screen.

    "Shiroi, stay here, I need to go get something." Just like Shiroi, Satoshi was getting impatient as well. He stood from his seat before Shiroi could say something, making a run for it to the door.

    Grab!

    Shiroi was a second toote to react but she managed to grab Satoshi by the edge of his shirt. "Where are you going?" Shiroi inly asked, trying to hide the nervousness in her voice.

    "Stay here, Shiroi, I''ll be back soon."

    "No, I''ming with you."

    "Sigh~ all right. But stay behind me. I''d hate to receive a talking-to from both our parents."

    Satoshi knew that there was no way he could refuse Shiroi when she demands something from him. Whether it was his soft spot for her or the fact that she was extremely convincing, the method is very effective to him. And that''s the reason why he could only agree even though he already made up his mind to decline.

    Leaving a hefty amount of tip to the waitress who served them despite the situation, the two then headed outside. Amidst the smoke and mes, Satoshi carefully navigated the streets with Shiroi right behind him. He knew that his idea would probably work, assuming that everything goes well with his ns. With that in mind, he headed towards the hardware store where he bought the nailgun before. That nailgun has helped him a lot in the initial testing during the first day of school and now he''s going to add another machine to his arsenal. There was a lot of equipment that would greatly help him but the only one that stood out for him¡ª the methrower.

    Since he assumed that the Slime is weak against Fire,  Satoshi decided to make a methrower his next ''superpower''.

    Pretty soon, they arrived at the hardware shop and the owner, Ivan, was still there. He was busily cleaning the hardware shop amidst the crisis outside.

    "Oh, kid! You''re back. I saw the fight, you were great." Ivan greeted. "You need something else aside from your nailgun?"

    "Ah, yes, by any chance, do you have a methrower?" Satoshi nonchntly asked as if it was a normal question to ask a hardware shop owner.

    Ivan wasn''t surprised at the question though, he just shook his head and responded. "No, I don''t have any methrowers in stock. And we don''t really sell methrowers in hardware shops."

    "I see, thanks anyway," Satoshi responded.

    Disappointed, the two went out of the hardware store. A man who was rushing to the hardware store to take shelter bumped them, and some sort of object fell from his pockets. The man didn''t notice this, however, since he was too panicked to do so. With a confused expression, Satoshi picked the item up, only to realize that it was a lighter. And it wasn''t your ordinary lighter, it was one of those lighters that were made in ancient times, which can be deemed as a relic. This lighter is made out of stainless steel with gold engravings at the side, its metallic cap is still intact and when Satoshi opened it, a pleasant ''click'' could be heard emanating from it. Before he knew it, he pocketed the lighter, not intending to return it back to its owner.

    "System," Satoshi called out. A few secondster,  his retroputer came out of nowhere. This time, it had tentacles growing out of its bottom part. Satoshi doesn''t know why hisputer undergoes different transformations when he calls it but he didn''t have the luxury to think about it. That could be left forter.

    <Yes, owner.><sub> </sub>

    Letters shed across its screen as a robotic voice resonated in the atmosphere. "Can I evolve simple objects such as lighter? Or does it need to be aplex type of machinery?"

    <No, owner, every object can be upgraded with your superpower.>

    "Do you have any information regarding my superpower?"

    <Yes, owner.>

    "Nice, we''ll get to itter. Oh, and also, call me Satoshi. From now on, your name will be Dex." Satoshi said, remembering those inventory machines that certain pet masters use in an ancient game. (Pokedex''es)

    "Thank you, Satoshi, henceforth I will be called Dex."

    Theputer flies away and vanishes into the distance.

    Shiroi, who was watching the whole thing, couldn''t understand what was going on. She intently listened to the conversation between Satoshi and the mysterious flyingputer but her questions remained unanswered. What was Satoshi''s superpower? What was thatputer? And why does it talk?

    Nevertheless, she didn''t ask Satoshi about anything because she knew that he will tell her about it in due time. And right now, there was no time to do so, or so that''s what Shiroi assumed. But what she didn''t know was that Satoshi also has no idea what his superpower was, and so he can''t really exin anything to her.

    Shiroi watched as Satoshi''s hands danced in the air with a gracefulness of a broken robot. Satoshi isn''t really a good dancer, and his ritual for activating his skill looked nd and horrible, to say the least. Shiroi suppressed herughter since she could tell that Satoshi was trying to focus.

    A few secondster, a light blue me danced around Satoshi''s palms, gettingrger andrger as time passed. Before they knew it, the mes were as big as a basketball, and there were two balls of mes, not just one.

    With eyes that could kill, Satoshi focused on the lighter which he carefully ced on the ground. "Hah!" He eximed, releasing the me from his hands and shooting it at the lighter. Shiroi was shocked, of course, since she thought that Satoshi had the superpower to control metal. And right now, she was seeing mes on his palms. Whatever it is he was going to do with the lighter is yet to be known.

    But! To their surprise, the me veered off course, dodging the lighter by a clean millimeter. The me then turned around and headed towards Satoshi, who dodged it as well. At that moment, he thought that maybe he would transform into a hideous monster had the me touched him, but nothing happened, to his relief.

    The me circled around Satoshi before finding its next target¡ª a white cat, who was strolling around without a care in the world. It was even holding its head up as if it was looking down on both Satoshi and Shiroi. What a prideful little cat.

    "No!" Satoshi eximed as he closed his eyes, thest thing he saw was the me devouring the cat. His me worked on objects before, but now, it touched an innocent cat. Would it die and turn into a useless object? Would it turn into a weapon just like his nailgun? Would it be a sentient machine? Satoshi could only wonder. He couldn''t bear the thought of killing such an innocent cat even though it was looking down on them,appearance-wise.

    "Aaghh!" Shiroi suddenly screamed, making Satoshi open his eyes.

    And what he saw next almost made him lose consciousness.

 Chapter 11 White Lion And White Flame

    Satoshi was ready to say ''rest in peace'' to the white cat which just disappeared into thin air. He didn''t know what happened to it but he assumed that it was already dead. After all, it was consumed by a huge fire, which came out of his own hands. Does that mean he killed the cat? Maybe so, but he didn''t want to think about it.

    "What was that?" Shiroi was beyond shock as she stared at Satoshi, open-mouthedly. She saw everything unfold right before her eyes and she didn''t want to believe that Satoshi just killed a cute innocent cat.

    "I don''t know, this has never happened before." Satoshi didn''t want to panic but his voice got rather shaky after the event started sinking in his mind. The cat was gone, vanished into thin air.

    However, Satoshi didn''t need to  be concerned of the white cat that disappeared. A few secondster, the white cate reappeared, but it looked a tad bit different. In other words, just like the equipment that Satoshi ''upgraded'' using his superpower, the cat underwent a drastic change as well, much to their surprise.

    A blue bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking exactly where the white cat disappeared. Satoshi and Shiroi flinched as the bright light temporarily blinded them and when they opened their eyes, they saw that something else was there¡ª a White Lion, towering over five feet tall and eight feet in length.  The White Lion had clear blue eyes just like Shiroi and lightning coursed through its body as if it was the very manifestation of it. Its mane swayed in the slightest of breeze and its softness almost tempted Satoshi to touch it. He suppressed that urge though since he knew that lions could be dangerous when bothered by humans.

    "Um, Satoshi... " Shiroi didn''t know how to exin the situation. The only thing she knew was that she was genuinely frightened of the lion. The only thing shielding her from a potential attack was Satoshi, who was standing between her and the lion.

    The White Lion and Satoshi stared at each other as if they were at a standstill, with both sides not eager to move. Satoshi was the first one to break from his shell however, as he slowly reached his hand to pet the White Lion. A few moments ago, he was suppressing himself from touching the White Lion''s mane but right now, his hands were moving on its own. He badly wanted to retract his extended hands but it just wouldn''t stop. It''s as if his mind was telling him to get done with it.

    On the other hand, the White Lion indifferently stood there while licking its paws, probably totally oblivious to the menacing hands that got nearer and nearer. When Satoshi''s right hand finally grazed the lion''s mane, it flinched, then slowlynded its gaze on Satoshi, who was closing his eyes in pure fright.

    "Rargh~" The White Lion lightly roared before turning around and sitting on its behind. It stole a nce towards Satoshi, signaling that it''s all right to ride on its back.

    Upon seeing that the White Lion was as calm and gentle as it looked, the two of them heaved a sigh of relief. "Hold on," Satoshi was the first one to break the ice and he did so when he directed another blue ball of me towards the Lighter.<sub> </sub>

    This time, the blue me didn''t deviate anywhere else, it softlynded on the lighter and consumed it with fire. It took exactly five seconds before the Lighterpletely disappear, only to appear as arge ball of whitish blue me. That whitish blue me then floated and stayed in mid-air just, just above Satoshi''s shoulders. Although the me was a feet and a half away from his shoulder, Satoshi could feel the incredible hotness on the me.

    "What was that?" Shiroi interrupted him. "Is that your superpower?"

    "Um, I''ll tell you everythingter. For now, we have to go help your dad and my parents." Since there was no time to test his newfound powers or rather, upgraded lighter and cat, Satoshi just rode on the White Lion, disregarding its scary size.

    At that moment, something in Satoshi''s mind clicked. The feeling was close to having unlocked a sixth or seventh element and it was an odd feeling. In an instant, Satoshi could feel that his mind is connected to the White Lion as well as the Whitish Blue Ball of me that floated right above his shoulders. Somehow, his mind immediately gainedmand over the White Lion and the Ball of me. At first,  the feeling was kind of awkward, like developing a new pair of legs or arms, but after a few seconds of light controls in his mind, Satoshi was already an expert at them. This is the same when he first acquired the nailgun which turned into small metal caskets that shoots out nails.

    The White Lion slowly ran towards the scene where the Slime was fighting Satoshi''s parents and Shiroi''s dad. But once Satoshi gained the confidence to tell the White Lion what to do, he started ordering it to run even faster. Before they knew it, the White Lion was running so fast that some people thought it was a streak of lightning shing parallel to the ground. Satoshi and Shiroi were only safe because the White Lion was purposefully shielding them from particles in the air using its soft mane.

    Before they knew it, they were already near the train station by the city of Chiyoda. It wasn''t that far but Satoshi could tell that they arrived here a little earlier than normal. Once Satoshi and Shiroi saw the location, they realized that what was shown in television was just a small portion of it.

    The rail line, no, the entire train station wasid waste. Houses nearby were ttened to the ground while countless debris with varying sizes littered the entire ce. On one side was a huge Slime Monster, waving its tentacles as if it were brandishing a sword. On the other side were three superheroes, all of them trying to engage with the Slime but they get pushed back every time. Unlike a few minutes ago were there were civilians screaming all over the ce, it was already more or less deserted, and all that one could hear is the asional exhales that came from the Midoriyama Duo and Yukino-san.

    "Dad!" Satoshi called out of the blue as he approached his parents while riding the White Lion with Shiroi with her.

 Chapter 12 Near-Death Experience

    "Son?! What are you doing here?" The exasperated face of Tatsuki could easily be seen on the monitor as one of the cameramen focused a camera towards their general direction. Not only was Tatsuki surprised, but he was also slightly disappointed and angry as well. He told himself that his son should''ve known better, and going here while they fought a formidable viin is basically suicidal.

    p A brief smile formed on the cameraman and the reporter''s face as they recognized the teenager who came to the scene. He was none other than the one and only son of the Midoriyama duo, and not only that, he also just had his debut in the initial exams in the USA. In other words, they''ve sniffed a headline and decided to publicize it as much as they can.</anda>

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, USA Student, Arrives at the Scene!" The headline read.

    "Dad! I came to help!" Satoshi responded before his dad could berate him. Call it fortunate or unfortunate, his parents can''t really reprimand him since they were too focused on blocking the Slime''s attacks. And now, they''ve got two more heads to protect, making the situation a little bit bleak.

    "We''ll talkter! For now, you have to get away from here! There''s no way you could help us, don''t get ahead of yourself!" Tatsuki growled as another tentacle descended upon him. In a split second, countless Ice Spikes came from his hands, impaling the tentacle that was about to hit him squarely on the head.

    "Satoshi! You have to get away from here! You have to obey your father! We can handle this!" Ayumu softly answered but there was a bit of a strain on her face since she was trying to push the Slime farther but to no avail.

    "Kid! You better keep my daughter safe!" Yukino-san eximed.

    "Dad! I got a me superpower!" Satoshi eximed in desperation. He badly wanted to help his parents since they were clearly being pushed back. If worsees to worst, they might even be ridiculed by the masses because they couldn''t stop one viin. "You don''t have one, right? You also think that the Slime is weak against fire, right?"

    Tatsuki didn''t respond. In the first ce, he found it weird that his son is riding what seemed like a Summoned Beast. He could only think that maybe Shiroi was the one who owns the White Lion since it might have the Ice Element. As for Yukino-san, Shiroi''s father, he thought that maybe the White Lion was in fact a family thing of the Midoriyama family so he didn''t bring it up. With both parties seeing the White Lion as the other''s possession, they didn''t question it.

    However!

    What they couldn''t exin was the floating ball of whitish-blue me on top of Satoshi''s shoulder. What was that? Another Summoned Beast? A superpower? But Satoshi has the power to control metal, right? Does he have two superpowers? Did he really mean it when he said that he has a superpower rted to fire?

    Because of those questions invading their heads, they couldn''t really address Satoshi properly. Not only were they preupied with the monster, they also had a lot of questions in their minds at the moment. And that disabled them to shoo Satoshi away.<sub> </sub>

    Taking advantage of the situation, Satoshimanded the White Lion to charge at the Slime Monster. With a single roar, the White Lion dashed, leaving Shiroi behind because of its super eleration. In an instant, the White Lion was already a meter or two away from the Slime, roaring as it tried to intimidate the vicious and disgusting-looking monster.

    "A kid, what can I do for you?" The Slime teased.

    ''What?! It can talk? Yuck!'' Satoshi said in his head as he gained control over the Whitish Blue Ball of me on his shoulders. it then separated into two balls of me and started firing a continuous column of fire directly at the Slime Monster. Because the Slime was so fast, he easily dodged the approaching column of fire by bouncing backward using the balls of his feet.

    And at that moment, after more than an hour of trying to push the Slime Monster back, they finally seeded, but not in the way they expected.

    "Mom! Dad! Yukino-san! I''ll try to hold them off for a while, help with the evacuation and get some help!" Satoshi called out.

    He was trying too hard to appear confident... and yet, his voice is as shaky as an rm clock. Nervousness started creeping up within him as he walked the tightrope of life and death. Deep inside, something was urging him to go back, that he was just deceiving himself, that he cannot go head to head with a formidable enemy.

    In desperation, Satoshi bit his tongue to regain hisposure. And as he came back to his senses, he realized that three tentacles were already shooting at him. If he didn''t get out of the way, he would be cut into three separate pieces based on how fast the tentacles wereing at him.

    At that moment, Satoshi gave three simultaneous orders at once. It''s as if everything was happening in slow-motion as he jumped sideways...

    "SON!" Tatsuki screamed in pain as the tentacles came closer and closer;. Focusing his mind on a superspeed ability he ''plundered'' from someone, he starteding towards his son, but he knew that he wouldn''t make it in time.

    Still, he didn''t give up and elerated faster and faster, straining every fiber of muscle in his body in desperation to save his son from the throes of death.

    And then it happened.

 Chapter 13 Fight To The Death!

    Satoshi miraculously flew in the air, just like how he did it during the initial tests in school. And as he did so, two columns of mes got rid of two tentacles while the White Lion shot a blinding ball of blue lightning towards the remaining tentacle. It all urred in a span of a split second that everyone''s jaws dropped, including the cameramen and reporters on the scene.

    <Notice: Enemy is Paralyzed>

    <It seems like a Lightning Attack is effective against your opponent, Satoshi. Is it because 98.4% of its body is made up of liquid?>

    When Satoshi whirled his head, he realized that his retroputer, this time, with metallic wings, was flying close to him. He smiled, d to see that his first ''upgraded'' machine using his superpower was there on his official superhero debut/fight. "Dex, it''s d to see you, I''ll be looking forward to your assistance."

    <My pleasure, Satoshi>

    From a distance, the cameramen and the news reporters were all moring, grabbing each other by the cors as they asked each other if they were able to record what had happened. Just that scene alone would be a huge hit and they knew it! Although they don''t understand a single thing about what''s happening, they could tell that the scene alone was the epitome of the entire fight¡ª a grand entrance, and the desperation that could be felt from the viin.

    Tatsuki and Ayumu smiled as they watched their son fight like a professional superhero. They had no idea how much image training and actual training Satoshi went through after all these years, all those, for that single moment of truth.

    "That darn son of ours, he totally stole the spotlight." Tatsuki rubbed his nose as a stray tear fell from his eyes. His son may be in danger and he could get gravely injured in that fight, and yet, all he could see was a superhero in the body of his kid. From that distance, Satoshi looked all-grown-up, even though a few days ago, he looked like a kid, despairing over the fact that he didn''t have a single superpower.

    You''re totally right." Ayumu hugged her husband as tight as she could before changing her expression. "Now, let''s not dilly-dally, darling. We need to evacuate all the remaining civilians and call for help. Do you still have that Flight Skill of yours?"

    "On it!" Tatsuki saluted to his wife after giving her a passionate kiss. A pair of ck wings then came out of his back and before they knew it, he was already flying in the air, on the lookout for any civilians while he tried to locate another superhero nearby.

    "I''ll take care of the reporters?" Yukino-san trailed off before snickering. He was totally left out when the Midoriyama duo started focusing on each other. "Aight, I''m on it as well." He answered his own question.

    A hail of nails rained down on the Slime as it tried to swat Satoshi like a fly. Satoshi easily dodged theing tentacle by spinning twice in mid-air and diving. The Whitish Blue Balls of me, now located on both his shoulders, continuously fired a column of me at the Slime, whittling at its hp slowly and steadily. As for the White Lion who was still on the ground, Satoshi didn''t forget to give it themand to dodge from time to time as it continuously fired balls of lightning as well.<sub> </sub>

    <Satoshi, your enemy''s hp is down by 50%>

    <Remember, monsters like this may have what they call the Berserk Mode. It might increase in power all at once in a desperate attempt to survive.>

    "Where did you learn that?" Satoshi curiously asked since he couldn''t remember discussing anything about Slimes in front of his retroputer.

    <From your memories, Satoshi, and also from the countless games you yed using me.>

    "I-I see... well, thanks for the reminder, Dex. I''ll keep that in mind" Satoshi''s eyes twitched as he realized the obvious. Of course, his retroputer knows all the games he yed throughout the years, how could it not?

    The Slime clearly underestimated Satoshi and it could sense it. Somehow, he thought that the offspring of the two humans wouldn''t be stronger than them but boy was he wrong. Not only was the offspring stronger than them, he also had an array of attacks he was weak to. Well, he isn''t really weak against typical lightning and fire but for some reason, this kid named Satoshi has the most powerful lightning and mes in his arsenal. "I didn''t receive any information about this. I thought humans are weaker than this!" The Slime said to himself as he desperately clung to his life while blindly swinging his tentacles around.

    In the end, its hp went down to 10% and he had no choice but to tap into all the energy he got. This is what Dex called the Berserk Mode and he totally was on-point with his guesses.

    A menacing screech came from the Slime as its skin turned into light blue color. It didn''t look that strongpared to its previous murky green color but it did the trick to signal Satoshi of its Berserk Mode. "Dex is right, now that''s what you''d call a Berserk Mode. It''s a bit anticlimactic though." He sighed.

    As the Slime grew bigger in size, so did its power exponentially increased as well. However, it took too long for him to prepare for his Berserk Mode that Satoshi took his chance to fire everything he got towards the monster. And because of that, it didn''t survive for long. As bits of nail and whitish me and lightning all bore down upon the Slime, it gave up its soul and decided to stay still as it approached its death.

    "They''reing soon." The Slime said before it turned into a formless goop in the ground, which then evaporated into thin air, releasing a terrible smell that almost made everyone throw up.

    "Talk about an awful exit." Satoshi covered his mouth as he felt nauseated. As he floated down (thanks to the portable nailgun that''s stuck to his feet which enabled him to fly), he noticed that there were a dozen or so reporters in the scene. In an attempt to hide his face, he covered it with both hands as he looked for his parents. Perhaps the life in front of a camera was something he wasn''t ready for yet.

 Chapter 14 Dodging A Bullet

    As soon as Satoshi''s feet touched the ground, his parents were already all over him, hugging him tightly and smothering him in kisses. Since they were in front of a dozen or so cameras, Satoshi felt a bit embarrassed. It was evident on his face since it turned a nice shade of red. Shiroi and her dad joined in on the fun as well, the only difference was they didn''t participate in the hug, they just kind of awkwardly stood there, blocking the angles where the cameras could take a good angle shot.

    "Son, what was that? Is that your superpower? And where did you find that White Lion? Is he your friend?" Tatsuki excitedly asked as he stared at the White Lion, purring as it stood beside Satoshi. "White Lion, whoever you are, be you a boy or a girl, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude for assisting my son. I hope we get along from now on." Tatsuki bowed, making Satoshi almost roll his eyes since his dad was talking to an actual cat who just turned into a lion.

    "Wait, I thought that White Lion is your family''s familiar or something?! So you really don''t know anything about this, Tatsuki?" Yukino-san was genuinely surprised. "That aside, howe your son could fly, could control metal at will, and could shoot off mes? Are those orbs of fire some sort of familiar as well?"

    The Midoriyama Duo shook their head in confusion. "We''re sorry, Yukine, our son''s keeping a lot of secrets from us, so it seems." Ayumu slightly bowed as she teased Yukino Yukine and his daughter. They were a bit flustered about the whole situation but fortunately, they didn''t ask any more questions.

    A horde of reporters then came to ask Satoshi the most pressing questions like, what exactly is his superpower, or if he has multiple superpowers, or if he was hiding his superpower all along. All those questions were left unanswered however since the Midoriyama duo announced that they will keep it confidential indefinitely¡ª which is a good choice, considering that Satoshi doesn''t yet know the full extent of his powers. Furthermore, Tatsuki and Ayumu could tell how ufortable their son was, that''s why they didn''t prod him to say anything further.

    Out of formality, the Midoriyama duo and Yukino Yukine agreed to an interview thatsted for about half an hour. While Satoshi and Shiroi waited for them to be finished, a man wearing shades inconspicuously passed by, handing Satoshi a business card. After smiling, he then gestured at Satoshi to give him a call any time. Soon after, ady dressed in white passed by as well, handing Satoshi a business card. Then a littleter after, a man riding a bike with the brand ''Mumen'' on it, gave Satoshi yet another business card. The third man didn''t even hide his identity. He just rode off after gesturing at Satoshi like the previous ones.

    "You''re getting famous." Shiroiplimented with a warm smile on her face. "Still, don''t assume that I''ll easily forgive you for withholding your superpower from me. And what exactly is your superpower anyway?"

    Satoshi gulped. Every time he was asked that very question, his brain freezes as if he just slurped a cold drink straight out of the freezer. Meanwhile, Shiroi expectantly stared at him with her immersing clear blue eyes. A pang of guilt brought Satoshi back to his senses as he shook his head violently, telling himself that he should at least properly answer with the truth, otherwise he''d drift farther than ever from his childhood friend.

    Making up his mind, he answered as simply as he could, ignoring the fact that there were reporters keenly listening in on their conversation. "Actually... I have no idea what it is." Satoshi cleanly admitted with a slightly disappointed expression on his face. There was also a hint of annoyance on it but Shiroi didn''t notice it at all. "To tell you the truth, I only realized I had a superpower the night before the first day of school started. I was in my room when the, you know, shot out from my hands."

    Shiroi nodded,pletelyprehending what Satoshi was pertaining to. She knew that the reporters had elephants for ears, and that''s why Satoshi didn''t disclose much regarding his superpower. "I see... so that''s why. Now that you said it, you couldn''t really control it a while ago. That exins it... "

    "Yes, and you do know that you''ll be the first one to know if something were to happen to me. You know how it is." Satoshi tilted his head, slightly pointing towards his parents and Shiroi''s dad as they continued on with the interview.<sub> </sub>

    "Yeah," Shiroi nodded.

    It seems like Satoshi dodged a bullet by a hair''s breadth on that one.

    Additionally, although it didn''t seem like Satoshi was panicking, he basically turned into jelly deep inside. Every time he talks to Shiroi, he just couldn''t bring himself to calm down. And when did they meet, one might wonder? They met when they were three years old. That says a lot about Satoshi''s character, in one way or another.

    The half-hour interview seemed like a few seconds to Satoshi since he was savoring his time with Shiroi. But to his surprise, his parents then walked towards Shiroi''s dad''s car. "Get in, don''t be shy." Yukino Yukine offered. "I''ll give all of you a ride, it seems like we have a lot of things to talk about."

    "Get in." Shiroi went inside the car, patting the seat beside her.

    After receiving a powerful pat on the back from his dad, Satoshi mustered all his courage to get in and sit beside Shiroi. His dad then took the front seat with Shiroi''s dad, and as for his mom, she sat beside Shiroi from the other side of the car.

    "Now, where are we headed? Take the call, Tatsuki." Yukino Yukine beamed as he revved up the engine.

    "Well then, how about we take a visit to the Midoriyama agency before getting another meal?"

    "Sounds good! And then we can begin the interview!" There was a hint of mischief in Yukine''s face as the group drove off.

    "Yes, the interview." Tatsuki seconded as he winked at his son, who was cluelessly preupied with thinking about how he was sitting beside Shiroi

 Chapter 15 We Need A Demonstration

    In a certain neighborhood by the outskirts of Tokyo, where the houses were a bit more expensivepared to normal, a certain two-story house stood by the edge of it, with a spaciouswn and a pristine white wall of a fence surrounding it. Ironically, it may be one of the more expensive houses therein butpared to the nearby houses, it didn''t look that grand at all. Nevertheless, its aesthetic look definitely made it earn its ce in that neighborhood.

    The house was a modern one, with two ts of thick bricked roofs. From a distance, the house could be seen as having an L-Shape, but from another angle, it''s just a rectangle with a bigger first floor.

    A ck sedan was parked in front of the car and five people came out. After admiring the house for a few seconds, the driver talked to the one seating by the front seat and he immediately opened the gates. With a hospitable gesture, he weed the two visitors to his lovely abode, then he apanied them inside.

    Before he did so, he looked at the White Lion that seemed to be following them ever since they left the location of the incident. This White Lion stared at him, then proceeded to lick its paws. Left with no choice, he decided to lead the White Lion to theirwn, hoping that it won''t destroy anything. Unexpectedly, the White Lion was surprisingly obedient to him, going to one side of thewn and lying down there. On top of the White Lion, there were two whitish-blue balls of mes while four small caskets filled with nails floated up and down on top of it as well.

    "You got a nice house here, huh, and it''s not even that far from school," Yukinemented as his eyes wandered off around the house. He was eyeing the White Lion and the mysterious entities floating on its back but he didn''t address them since Satoshi would just exin everything to themter. After all, that''s what they came here for.

    "Oh please, as if you''re house is not that nice." Tatsuki chuckled pointing far off into the distance since Yukino''s ce is just a five minutes walk from theirs. "Pleasee in!"

    "I''ll go prepare the second round of dinner then," Ayumu cheerily excused herself as she headed straight to the kitchen.

    "I''ll help!" Shiroi offered.

    .....

    Sometimeter,

    Satoshi gulped a cupful of water as he nervously helped himself with the cornucopia of food in front of him. Although everyone was being quiet, staring right into his soul, he decided to not mind them for now. He wanted to exin it as clearly as possible but there was no way he could do that since his mind was out of sorts. Adding to that, the constant pressure in his mind, telling him that he had to exin everything to them, worsened his thought process until it short-circuited.

    "P-p-please stop staring, I''m trying to figure out how to exin everything." Satoshi spluttered, pushing down the chicken he ate with another cupful of water.

    After ''licking'' his tes clean, he pped his thighs and thought of what to say. Steeling his resolve, he looked at both his parents and looked down again as he felt guilty. He only ever hid his superpower in one day, but for some reason, he felt like he lied to his parents for years. "I need to tell them now, you can do it!"

    Sigh.<sub> </sub>

    "I found out how my superpower worksst night. And I didn''t want to tell you anything since I still don''t know the full extent of my powers." Satoshi finally admitted. "That''s why when I first used it, I had a hard time adjusting, you might''ve noticed how sloppily I floated during my fight with Hiroshi."

    Silence.

    "Um," Because of the deafening silence that filled the entire room, Satoshi grew a bit concerned. His parents and the Yukino''s were all staring hard at him. ''

    "So¡ª " Yukino Yukine finally broke the silence after heaving a sigh. "What''s your superpower, really? Wait, let me rephrase that... what do you think is your superpower right now?"

    Everyone nodded as he asked that. They were probably waiting for Satoshi to exin it, hence the awkward silence In response, Yuuta scratched his head as he looked up at the wooden ceiling fan whirling around, performing 70 rotations a second... and then Satoshi had an idea.

    "I think it''d be best if I just show it," Satoshi called out as he stood on his chair and extended his hands towards the ceiling fan. "Um, Dad, is it all right if I get this ceiling for myself?"

    "Um... sure, why not?" Tatsuki easily responded. Although the ceiling fan costs at least a hundred thousand yen, it wasn''t really that important and they could always rece it. That''s why he easily granted his son''s request without thinking twice.

    Satoshi didn''t need another heads-up as he tried activating his superpowers. Once again, bluish mes formed on his hands and it started smoothly growing bigger. And just like before, Satoshi was doing this embarrassingly weird dance until the mes were to his liking. Everyone watched with keen interest, trying to figure out what would happen next¡ª all except Shiroi since she had already witnessed the same thing twice.

    One moment, he was swaying his arms and body around, the next moment, he shot the bluish mes towards the ceiling fan, enveloping it with the mes. Just like before, the me somewhat consumed the ceiling fan before it turned into something rather different.

    When the ceiling fan reappeared, it didn''t look like a ceiling fan at all, but rather, a small rotor as big as the palm of Yuuta''s hand. Compared to the expensive-looking ceiling fan, the ''upgrade'' lookedckluster, as if the ceiling fan downgraded into a kid''s toy.

    "What''s that?" Ayumu asked before realizing that it was just a small rotor.

    But before she could say anything, the small rotor floated up and pointed itself at the bulletproof ss that acted as windows in their house. With one rotation, a strong gust of wind shot through the dining area, puncturing the bulletproof walls with ease. And then, before anyone else could recover from shock, the rotor grew big and started blowing warm air around the room, then it started blowing cold air next. For itsst trick, it performed a mini-blizzard that almost froze one part of the dining room before it settled down.

    After realizing how overpowered the ceiling fan turned out to be, Satoshi swallowed his dry saliva, drank a mouthful of water, and continued eating away at his steak. "It''s pretty much like that... I don''t know what it is either... " He continued

 Chapter 16 Superhero Lairs

    For a few seconds, everyone at the dinner table stopped eating. They couldn''t believe what they just saw. How could someone get such a simple yetplicated superpower? And why is it so broken that he could very well be one of the most powerful superheroes in the world?

    Tatsuki and Ayumu squinted their eyes, trying to figure out what their son''s superpower really was. Their gaze thennded on the window towards their left, overseeing thewn where the White Lion, the Ball of me, and the Casket-looking Nailguns were idly spending their time together.

    "So... it''s some sort of ''upgrader'' that improves a certain object?" Tatsuki verified. "Well, if it was only objects, then it would be a bit manageable... but to think that you can upgrade animals as well? How?"

    "How many times can you use it in a day? And what''s the maximum amount of ''upgraded items or animals'' can you get all at once? Is there a limit to how you can control them or can you control them all at once? How about inventory? Can you store them in your mind or something like that?" Yukine asked, pulling out a piece of paper from his pockets. As a former reporter, he couldn''t stop the urge of getting into interview mode as soon as he sees something interesting.

    "I... I don''t know. So far, I have about five of these ''upgraded'' ones. Right now, I don''t know if there''s a limit. So far, I could always activate the blue mes every time I want. And regarding my control over them, I could control the ones that came from objects or equipment. As for the White Lion, I couldmand it what to do, I don''t exactly have full control over it."

    As Satoshi was trying his best to exin what he could do exactly, Tatsuki stood up and headed to the corner of the room. Was he angry at his son for some reason? Or maybe he needed some time to think? One could only wonder. Even Satoshi felt like something is wrong with his dad.

    After getting to the corner of the room, he then stared at the switch and ced his hand underneath it. Suddenly, a green glow came from the wall underneath the wall switch. And then, the empty space that''s supposed to be the lounge part of the house suddenly disappeared, revealing a stairway that led further underground. Everything that happened was a surprise for Satoshi and the Yukino''s. The only one who wasn''t shocked was Ayumu, who probably frequented the underground with her husband.

    "Satoshi, I was going to show this to you on your eighteenth birthday but I guess that could be pushed a little earlier," Tatsuki said. "First, can youmand your familiars to go here underground with you? This is rather urgent."

    "Don''t tell me, Tatsuki, you''re letting your son go to yourir?" Yukine asked, his eyes widened in surprise. "But that''s the one and only secret every superhero has! Even my daughter hasn''t been to myir yet!"

    "You have air, dad?!" Shiroi eximed.

    Satoshi didn''t need telling twice. Everything that happened today seemed like a rollercoaster for him that he couldn''t help but shed a tear. He knew that a superhero showing you to hisir is nothing short of great honor, that''s why Satoshi willingly obliged, calling his ''familiars'' (or so that''s what his dad called them) down to the undergroundir where he presumed his dad did most of his nning before he would confront a viin.

    The staircase leading to the underground was pitch-ck, but when they came to its lowermost step, the lights suddenly filled the entire space, leaving no corner unlit. To Satoshi''s surprise, it was more spacious than he''d thought.<sub> </sub>

    "Why are you surprised, it''s not like you haven''t been here." Tatsuki chuckled as he patted Yukine on the back.

    "What do you mean? This space changed a lot since I first came here. Of course, I''d be surprised." Yukine continued.

    Shiroi also gazed in awe at the size of the undergroundir, it must be at least three stories high. ''But howe we only went down a couple of flights of stairs? This should only be one story, right?'' She asked himself.

    And that''s when she saw it. The staircase was actually a high-end esctor that worked with electromas. Even though they''re going down, everyone didn''t feel it because of how smooth the esctor was rolling down.

    "Now, before we start, let me wee everyone to me and my wife''sir, once again.

    p Tatsuki extended his hands. "As you can see, it''s just your regrir with all our costumes disyed, the awards we received, as well as hero equipment that we''re working on. Once you be of age, you''re going to inherit everything in here, son."</anda>

    With great awe, Satoshi looked around their. Ever since he became aware that his parents were superheroes,  he dreamed of getting his exclusiveir where he can formte ns and hire a guy in the chair. However, that dream was crushed when his superpowers never manifested.

    But now, that dream was revived in his mind, making him somewhat emotional at the sight. "How could you hide something this big underneath our house?" He couldn''t help but ask. "This is nice."

    "We''ve slowly worked on beautifying it. What do you think?" Ayumu said in a high-pitched tone. She wasn''t expecting her husband to show everyone theirir. Somehow, she felt like her son was finally living the dream like a superhero. She could tell, based on his expression, that is.

    "In any case... " Tatsuki cleared his throat and motioned for everyone to gather around as he wore a serious face. "I''ve gathered all of you here because of one thing. I know you''re probably aware of it but son, your superpower is something that could tip the bnce of the society, just like my and your mom''s superpower... "

    "... I know you probably want to show it off to everyone... but right now, you have to hide it from everyone."

 Chapter 17 One-On-One

    Silence befell the entire ce as they await Satoshi''s response. As he stood there, thinking, he realized that what his dad said was right. He didn''t spend enough time thinking about it, so when his dad brought the topic up, he realized just how heavy the responsibility he was carrying.

    First, if it were true and his superpower didn''t have a limit, that means he could be one of the most powerful superheroes in the world, just like his parents. And moreover, he could turn the tides of war if it were to happen. Imagine a limitless army of equipment and evolved animals that don''t die¡ª now that Satoshi meditated upon it, he finally realized how scary his superpower can be.  If the government or the viins realized what his superpower is, he will unnecessarily be a target whether he liked it or not.

    Moreover, it had only been fifty or so years ever since they discovered the Alpha gene. Right now, the government is somewhat walking on eggshells because of the appearance of superpowers. Even with the Superhero Assembly Organization, they know that the control they have over the superheroes is but a walk on a tight rope. If someone like Satoshi were to appear right now, a major change might happen, and the viins wouldn''t sit still if they realized that the government became even more unstable.

    "Yes, dad. Now that you mentioned it, I do have a scary superpower, don''t I?" Satoshi muttered, staring at his hands that were beginning to shake. "With great poweres great responsibility, I know what I must do. Don''t worry dad, I won''t be reckless anymore. I''ll try to limit the usage of my powers outside."

    Yukine and Shiroi couldn''t understand it first but after thinking about it just like Satoshi, they finally realized what Tatsuki and Ayumu were talking about. Only someone who experienced having a great superpower could recognize an even greater one. As soon as Tatsuki saw what his son could do, he immediately knew that his son could be so much more. In the near future, he could tell that his son would one day surpass him.

    After having a few short talks with everyone, Tatsuki heaved a sigh of relief and told everyone to go back upstairs. "I need to talk to Satoshi alone." He said as he grabbed Satoshi by the shoulder.

    Once everybody was upstairs, Tatsuki checked his watch and opened the timer. A separate hand started going round his watch, showing him how much time had psed after he clicked it. "Five minutes, I''ll give you five minutes." He smiled as he took a step back.

    "Five minutes?"

    "You remember when we used to y arm wrestling and mini-wrestling when you were a kid? We''ll relive that, but this time, we''ll be using superpowers." He continued.

    "So, it''s me versus you? But dad, you got that Plunder thing as your superpower... " Satoshi trailed off.

    "Well, let''s make it easier. If you can touch me, I''ll tell you another secret of my superpower. Do you think Plunder is my only superpower?" Tatsuki continued.

    Satoshi didn''t need any telling twice. Assuming a fighting stance, he started simting what he had to do in order to touch his dad. It was a simple yetplicated objective since he doesn''t know each and every superpower that his dad has. In any case, he could tell that he has a chance. After all, this time, he already has a superpower in his arsenal.<sub> </sub>

    With a snap of a finger, the things disyed inside their flipped out of the way as if they were attacked to a detachable floor. Once everything was cleared, Tatsuki extended his hand, gesturing for Satoshi toe at him with all he got.

    Straining his ankle, Satoshi positioned his newfound ''familiar'' (the ceiling fan that turned into a rotor) behind him as he rode the metal caskets from the nailgun. He flew at Tatsuki at incredible speeds while controlling everything in his head. He then instructed the White Lion to stay right behind Tatsuki and cut off his escape routes with the blue lightning he shoots from his mouth. As for the Ball of mes, he positioned them to the side, ready to fire off a column of bluish-white me if Tatsuki gets in their range. It was the perfect setup, but who knows what Tatsuki could do?

    To Satoshi''s surprise, his dad remained stationary in the middle of the room, intently watching his every move.  Satoshi didn''t hesitate to elerate even faster, thinking that he could catch up to his dad if he were to use everything.

    And just when he was about to touch him, Tatsuki cleanly dodge to the side and did a triple somersault. In the process, he managed to dodge the oing ball of blue lightning and the two columns of mes that were supposed to hit his head and torso. He moved with such precision that even Satoshi was shocked¡ª

    ¡ª Not because his dad dodged it, but because he never saw his dad moved like that. After all, everything he did was a perfect copy of Satoshi''s dodging skills.

    Satoshi immediately noticed it¡ª the dodging skills that he honed throughout the years, and his dad just easily executed it without breaking a sweat. He gasped in amazement. "Dad, don''t tell me you... "

    "What? Surprised?" Tatsuki asked, taunting Satoshi even more by extending his hand one more time, signaling for him toe at him any time he wants.

    There was nothing he could do... with his physical capabilities on his father''s palms, he knows that he would just easily evade every attack he makes.

    "Wait... there was one thing!"

    Suddenly, the rotor right behind them grew in size and ran in reverse. One moment, it was blowing everything away, the next moment, it was sucking everything in its path. Satoshi wore a panicked face as he tried to reach for the White Lion, but the White Lion didn''t reach him in time. In a split second, Tatsuki could very well tell that his son''s power got out of control.

    "Son!"

 Chapter 18 A New Chapter

    Without hesitation, Tatsuki started using the superspeed superpower he plundered from someone. This time, he was just in time. Before the rotors could cut his son into tiny little strips, he caught his son and grabbed him as tight as he could.

    And right at that moment, Satoshi turned off the rotors and stared at his dad with a mischievous grin on his face. It only took a split second for Tatsuki to realize that he was utterly deceived.

    "Looks like I won, dad." Satoshi smiled.

    Tatsuki sighed in relief. "You got me there. That was good execution! How does it feel to finally beat your dad with a handicap?"

    "A handicap?!"

    "Of course, if it were a fair fight, there''s no way you''ll beat me." Tatsuki chuckled, patting Satoshi on his shoulder.

    In response, Satoshi couldn''t help but smile. His dad was genuinely happy right now. Who knows how long he waited for this moment wherein he could finally show off in front of his son?

    "But dad, I didn''t know... so your Plunder doesn''t just apply to superpowers? Isn''t that kind of broken? So if you wanted to be the best actor or the best singer in the world, you could do so in a snap of a finger?" Satoshi couldn''t help but ask. He didn''t want to believe it at first but after seeing his dad move just like him, he realized that his dad was much more powerful than he thought.

    "Not really, you know that superpowers have certain rules, right? It may look awesome at first nce but there are limitations." Tatsuki continued. "For example, even though I can sort of Plunder anyone''s physical capabilities, I can only use it for a certain amount of time within a day. After that,  there''s a span of time when I won''t be able to borrow from that certain person again. Also, even though I borrowed someone''s physical capabilities, I could only execute it perfectly. If someone could fully utilize their powers, they would be able to defend against me since they know the techniques better. It''s like a game of chess, if I only replicate the opponent''s moves, then I''m bound to lose one hundred percent of the time, right?"

    "And also, as for my Plunder superpower, there are certain limitations as well. I can''t plunder every superpower I see, only the simple ones. For example, your superpower, I tried taking it a moment ago but to my surprise, my Plunder doesn''t work on you."

    "So that''s why you didn''t move at all at the start! Nevertheless, that''s pretty cool! I can finally brag about my superpower to you dad, you won''t be able to copy it after all." Satoshi grinned.

    "Heh, even if you didn''t, I''m more than proud of you already, even before you got your superpower," Tatsuki said. "Anyway, five in the morning, every day, I''ll be waiting for you here in ourir. I will input your handprints on the system so you can enter here and train at any time. I''ll also train you how to be a respectable superhero. And if you want to build your body, you can just ess the gym by the garage. But I''ll tell you though, the equipment here is better than the ones you have in the garage."

    "You''re going to personally train me, dad? Wouldn''t that usually cost hundreds of gold or something?"

    "What are you talking about? Don''t you know how long I''ve waited for this moment¡ª the time I could finally pass on my legacy to you?" This time, Tatsuki grabbed his son by the shoulder.

    "Can I really go here any time I want?" Satoshi was more than overjoyed as he scanned the entireir one more time, etching the picturesque in his brain so he won''t forget about it.

    "Of course!"<sub> </sub>

    .....

    Chirp chirp!

    Satoshi immediately blocked his eyes from the sun rays which were peeking through the gap in the window curtains. With his blurry eyes, he could vaguely make out the time on his rm clock, which read a quarter before four o clock. Usually, he wakes up earlier than that for a morning run but due to the events that happened yesterday, he slept like a log that night.

    With eyes half-closed, he sleepily put on his slippers and headed to the bathroom to give himself a nice rinse on the face. He then changed into sports attire and headed to their. There he saw his dad patiently waiting for him. He was throwing a few punches at a punching bag.

    After a quick greeting, his dad assumed a fighting stance, and then the training started. This time, the training didn''t include any superpowers, they fought like two rugged men in a street. "I know you already know this, Satoshi... but don''t rely on your superpower too much. There will be times when you won''t be able to use your superpower and the only thing you could count on is your physical strength. Don''t ever forget that."

    Once the training was over, Satoshi headed to school bringing only the upgraded nailgun since the others were too obvious. He began to wonder if he could get another upgraded item that would work as a storage for every familiar he has.

    ¡ª And that''s right, ever since Tatsuki called them his familiars, Satoshi stuck to the name. He also gave every Familiar he has some nicknames so he could call them out as if he was summoning a bonafide familiar.

    As Satoshi got to the bus stop, he saw a familiar face. "Good morning." Hiroshi greeted as he waved a hand at Satoshi. His eyes darted from Satoshi to somewhere else, as if he felt guilty about something.

    "Hey, Hiroshi, good morning. You live here too?" Satoshi asked as he stood beside him, waiting for the bus to arrive. He was surprised that Hiroshi would strike a conversation with him after everything he did to him during the initial tests on the first day of school.

    p "Yeah," He simply responded before looking away. "Look, I''m sorry I lost my cool back there. I was a bit pressured since my favorite superhero was watching, you see. And also, I really thought you didn''t have any superpower, sorry."</anda>

    "No worries, who was it?"

    "Who? Your parents, of course!" Hiroshi eximed as if it was such an obvious thing. "In any case, have you heard about our homeroom teacher?"

    "No, I was too tired. I fell asleep as soon as I touched my bed." Satoshi teared up as he let out a yawn.

    "Yeah, okay, hear this out. Apparently, there''s a rumor that our teacher is KnightHawk!"

    "What?!"

 Chapter 19 The Green-Haired Guy

    "Yes, I was shocked about it too. To think that the one and only top superhero without a superpower would teach us homeroom. What was the USA thinking?" Hiroshi grabbed his chin with his left hand as he thought about it.

    Satoshi was about to say something when the bus came. He knew about Knighthawk, the highest-ranking superhero without a superpower. And he knew just how much he hated every superhero there is, well, more like detest them for having a superpower.

    The reason why he hated it that much was because he was once a policeman, and their station was unfortunately tasked to handle the new generation of criminals¡ª that is, criminals with superpowers. Since he was already in histe thirties, he couldn''t keep up with the younger criminals, let alone criminals with superpowers. And what does someone do to get an edge against someone with a superpower? Well much like how Satoshi worked out until he reached the peak of his strength, KnightHawk also worked out until he gained an advantage against criminals that couldn''t very much control their superpower. With his newfound strength, he climbed through the ranks until the SAO deemed him a superhero because of his unique ability. Right now, with the help of superhero equipment, he became one of the best superheroes there is, and that''s because his control over his body is superior to everyone else. He knew that one day he''d grow weak and step out of the picture, but until then, he would stay in the ranks as much as he could. He became famous for his quote ''With great poweres great responsibility''. But what people didn''t know was that he was quoting a certain uncle in one of the very old movies he watched.

    "Wait up!" Someone came running at both Satoshi and Hiroshi with toast in her mouth. It was Yukine Shiroi. Apparently, she woke upte due to the eventful yesterday.

    "Oh, Shiroi, good morning.." Hiroshi''s face quickly shifted from being guilty to being bright and cheerful. "I didn''t know you live here as well."

    "We just moved." Shiroi brushed it off as if moving houses was something simple. She then stole a nce at Satoshi, and then at Hiroshi. "I see, at least the two of you made up already."

    "Um, yeah." Satoshi indifferently answered. Although everything that happened yesterday was water under the bridge and Hiroshi already apologized to him, he knew that Hiroshi hated him ever since they were little. That was because he''s a die-hard fan of the top two superheroes in SAO, and their son happened to not have any superpower. Even during their fight yesterday, he could feel Hiroshi''s intense hatred towards him. But now, Hiroshi greeted him as if nothing changed, but that''s only due to the fact that he finally showed his superpower. Satoshi was perfectly aware that if he didn''t discover his superpower two nights ago, Hiroshi would continue hating and harassing him.

    Satoshi decided to sit at the farthest seat of the bus, trying not to get any attention He totally didn''t think things through though, since going to the back meant everyone would see you before you got there.

    "Oh! It''s Satoshi!" One of the teenagers called out. For some odd reason, he has green hair, and his eyes matched the color of his hair. He didn''t really stand out but his personality sure did. "Hey, Satoshi! I''m Midori! Sounds like your surname right? Hehe, how are you doing?"

    "Fine, nice to meet you." Satoshi timidly said. He instinctively reverted to being on guard when ites to meeting those with superpowers. He didn''t really have fond memories of them in the past.

    After sitting at the back, he wished under his breath that no one would sit beside him. To his surprise, however, Shiroi sat to his right and Hiroshi huddled right beside Shiroi. Satoshi clicked his tongue. He could tell that Hiroshi was still making moves at Shiroi.

    "Say," The green-haired teenager sat beside Satoshi, right beside the right window seat of the bus. "I wanna ask you something!"<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi looked down, trying hard not to have any eye contact. "Um, sure. Ask ahead."

    "Say, is this you, by any chance?" Midori asked, showing Satoshi an old video.

    In the video, a sumo wrestler stepped into a ring, stomping his feet. But as soon as he entered the ring, a figure flew right at his head, and a triple roundhouse kicknded squarely on his face. Since it was a triple roundhouse kick, the power output of it should''ve been weak, but to everyone''s surprise, the sumo wrestler fell down on his face, unconscious.

    The figure that flew right at the sumo wrestler was none other than Satoshi, back when he was fourteen years old. Apparently, he didn''t know the rules of sumo wrestling back then. He was just supposed to appear on a promotional video featuring the dojo of the sumo wrestler. The cameraman clearly underestimated his skills, however. And so that ident transpired.

    Satoshi''s expression turned to embarrassment as he was reminded of the past. He tried to look away, but Midori grabbed him by the shoulders. "Was that you? I''m not really sure but you have quite a resemnce."

    "Y-yes." Satoshi sighed. He was totally not expecting an embarrassing video of him to show up.

    "Sweet! I finally found you!" Midori said. "Once again, I''m Midori! Even before you debuted as a superhero, you were awesome!"

    Midori wore a bright wide smile on his face, extending his hands. Satoshi didn''t want to shake his hands but he knew he wouldn''t bring it down if he didn''t return it. "Nice to meet you." He simply responded.

    "Since you''re officially my friend! I''ll let you in on a little secret!" Midori didn''t want to step on any brakes, he was going full throttle in befriending his newfound friend. "Did you know, our homeroom teacher would be none other than Knighthawk? I''ve seen it on our eptance letter yesterday! And also, apparently, out of everyone who got epted and who participated in the initial tests yesterday, only twelve of us passed! Right? I couldn''t believe it either. I mean, I lost my first match since I was too nervous. What were the criteria for passing the initial tests? I have no idea. But I think it was because I survived for a good minute, or maybe they were looking at our skills? I don''t know. If my opponent did pass the test, then that''d be sweet, maybe we can also be friends! Oh, by the way, Satoshi, how many friends do you¡ª "

    ''This is going to be a long day.'' Satoshi said to himself as he nced at Midori one more time, before trying to pretend to sleep.

 Chapter 20 Online Hero Blogger

    It was the start of another school year and Knighthawk could tell that he would be receiving another batch of students for one of his subjects. But when the memo came in on the first day of school, telling him that he would be assigned as a homeroom teacher for the new arrivals, he was furious.

    Because of that, he stormed the principal''s office. "Principal! What''s the meaning of this?! I already told you that I''d be willing to teach students in terms of physical education, but why am I being assigned to the new arrivals? Is this some sort of a joke? Perhaps a prank?" Deep within Knighthawk was the feeling of frustration and irritation welling up, but he didn''t show any of it through his expression. He knew just how powerful the principal was, and he didn''t want to offend him.

    "I''m so sorry for thete notice, Knighthawk, but you know how it is in our line of work. When opportunities arise, we must step up and take over. That''s what superheroes are, and you know you are a superhero, right?"

    "Yes, but I didn''t sign up for thi¡ª "

    "Knighthawk, you know very well the difference between those with superpowers and those without... and that''s why I tasked you to do this. The new generation of superheroes are, let''s just say, scary. The Alpha gene is evolving in unexpected ways, and superheroes are getting stronger. If we don''t guide them properly, who knows what would happen to us a few years from now."

    p "That''s right... I could kind of get where you''re getting onto... but that''s all the more reason why you should assign formidable superheroes. If they rebel against me, what can I do against them? You know I''m at an age where my body is declining."</anda>

    "Please, Knighthawk, grant me this favor. Just this one time. If something goes wrong, I''ll pull you out, no questions asked." The principal calmly asked as he pressed his hands against each other.

    "Sigh... fine."

    Back to the present, Knigthawk uneasily paced through the teacher''s office, trying to figure out how to go about his first ss. After going through the list of students he will be handling (there were 12 of them), he realized that all of them meant business. And out of all the students, there is, he was most weary the teenager who just debuted as a superhero yesterday¡ª Midoriyama Satoshi.

    After all, not only did Satoshi achieve a surprise superpower debut during his first day of school, he also debuted as a legitimate superhero when he fought against a world-ss viin yesterday. It''s only a matter of time before he bes the talk of the town.

    "Whatever, let''s do this, " Knighthawk told himself as he shook his head in frustration.

    .....

    The school bus arrived at the main entrance of the USA and out came Satoshi and the others. One nce and Satoshi knew that he wasn''t dreaming. He really did pass the test yesterday and right now is the technical first day of school. But after recalling that Knighthawk would be their homeroom teacher, he couldn''t help but gulp.

    " But then my father said, son¡ª "

    And yes, Midori hasn''t really stopped talking. In fact, he talked too much that Satoshi learned a new skill¡ª ignoring someone while trying to act interested. And that''s because he didn''t want to offend Midori, who genuinely thought that he was his friend.

    "I''ll be going on ahead," Hiroshi said, waving a paper that seemed to be a letter from his parents to a certain teacher. It''s just about time that he left, the atmosphere was growing more awkward the longer he stayed with Satoshi, after all.

    Shiroi and Satoshi nced towards each other from time to time but both were too self-conscious to talk about anything. It was a bit understandable for Satoshi since he had an insane crush on Shiroi ever since they were kids. But right now, even Shiroi was acting differently¡ª and that''s because he didn''t know how to treat Satoshi properly. She wasn''t sure if the Satoshi he knew of back then was the same Satoshi that''s beside him right now. The sole reason for that was probably his debut as a superhero.<sub> </sub>

    In other words, Shiroi began seeing him in a new light that she found it quite hard to normally interact with him.

    "Are you going to act all embarrassed in front of each other, or are you going to head to the ssroom?" A voice suddenly erupted right behind the two of them.

    "Who was that?!" Midori was the first one to shout. At that point, Satoshi and Shiroi immediately remembered that Midori was still with them.

    Instinctively, all of them turned around, only to find out that a famous blogger was right behind them. Shiroi was the first one to realize who the person was and she immediately pulled out a pen and a paper from her bag. With a brimming smile on his face, she extended her hands. "May I have your autograph, online hero blogger!" Shiroi eximed.

    "Oh, it''s online hero blogger!"

    "Kyaa~ I want his autograph!"

    "Is this for real, are we dreaming right now?"

    "Bro, isn''t that¡ª "

    "Ssh, don''t you see what''s going on here?! this is our time to ask him anything!"

    "Right right, we should calm down for now... but I can''t! He looks more handsome in real life!"

    "You''re right! Kyaaa~"

    While everyone was flocking the new face and asking for his autograph, Satoshi went on his way towards the ssroom since they only had three minutes left before homeroommences. He didn''t want to bother about the famous youtube that''s popr with girls since he couldn''t care less about him. As far as he knows, he''s just a blogger, nothing less nothing more.

    "Hey, kid!" The online hero blogger called out, catching up to him. "Why are you ignoring me?" He said with such an offended tone that Satoshi couldn''t help but act surprised.

    "Um... I''m going to bete for my sses so¡ª I mean, if you want it that much, I can just ask for your autograph. Would that make you feel better?" His biting remark was enough to trigger everyone, but none of them spoke. They were waiting for professionalism toe out of the online hero blogger''s mouth before they''d react.

    "You seem to be sitting on your high horse today, Midoriyama Satoshi of ss 3-1. Is that how you address your homeroom teacher?" The online hero blogger said as a smile stered on his face.

 Chapter 21 Eye-Goddess

    The smug look on the online hero blogger''s face was enough proof that he was really their homeroom teacher. Everyone gasped in disbelief but the online hero blogger didn''t even retract a single word from his statement. He just stood there, proudly, as he admired everyone''s reaction.

    When ites to online celebrities, especially those who don''t really reveal their identities, usually they do a face reveal after much anticipation, to further add hype on his or her channel. But the online hero blogger, who had been hiding his face for quite a long time, did it differently. Not only did he reveal his face at the official opening of the USA school year, he even did so as a homeroom teacher of one of the sses!

    And not only that, the online hero blogger was in fact the one and only Knighthawk, one of the most famous superheroes to ever exist. It was a bomb that was dropped in front of everyone.

    To add to the context, the online hero blogger owns one of the most sessful youtube channels with his fifty-four-plus million subscribers. And that''s because he was always the first one to release a video covering thetest fight against superheroes and viins. Some people even believed that the online hero blogger is actually an organization that is scattered all throughout the country. But they thought wrong. The online hero blogger is just Knighthawk.

    But how could the people not recognize a conspicuous superhero even though he wasn''t hiding his face? That''s because the online hero blogger actually had long hair that covered his entire face. Some people thought that it was some sort of wig but it was actually genuinely his hair. And underneath that hair is the face of the world-famous superhero called Knighthawk.

    The students and parents alike who flocked the online hero blogger thought that it was their time to shine. They immediately pulled out their smartphones and started a live feed that soon spread all throughout the world. Finally! The online hero blogger has revealed his face! Who would''ve thought that it was Knighthawk?!

    "Let''s go." Satoshi softly said to Shiroi as he headed to the ssroom. There were too many shes and attention in front of him that he felt nauseated. Just like before, life in front of the camera was not good for him.

    "Um, excuse me!" Someone called out from behind Satoshi, making him impulsively turn around, only to see that it was a girl, who looked like she was younger than him.

    p "Yes?" Satoshi asked, but as soon as he said that, he heard a series of gaspsing from Hiroshi and Midori. Even Shiroi joined in on the gasping.</anda>

    ''What is wrong with you guys?'' Satoshi couldn''t help but think.

    "Are you, perhaps, Midoriyama Satoshi, son of the Midoriyama duo?" The girl asked, she then rummaged through her pockets and handed Satoshi a piece of paper.<sub> </sub>

    Disinterested, Satoshi received the piece of paper, and that''s when he realized that the piece of paper handed to him was in fact a business card. Just when he was wondering what sort of prank the girl was trying to pull off, he noticed an all-too-familiar logo on the top left corner of the business card¡ª an ''H'' with the middle line going downwards rather sideways.

    "Heimdall Agency?! Eye-Goddess?! You''re the superhero Eye-Goddess?" Satoshi eximed, finally recognizing the girl in front of him. Now that he thought about it, he could see that the girl in front of him had the same built as the Eye-Goddess, the only difference was she was wearing her real face instead of her mask.

    "How could you not recognize her, Satoshi? Are you out of your mind? Not only is she the most powerful superhero with the gift of foresight, she also owns the secondrgest agency in the whole of Japan! Seriously, why didn''t you recognize her sooner?! Man, if I were you, I wouldn''t hesitate to ept her offer to have an internship at her agency. Seriously dude wha¡ª " Midori started rambling off once again. Unlike what he did back when they were riding the bus, he only whispered all those things in Satoshi''s ears, making him shake his head in annoyance.

    "Ssh! Not a lot of people recognize me." the Eye-Goddess replied, looking around as she wore a charming smile on her face. Her pink hair and bright yellowy pinkish eyes gave off an allure that mesmerized everyone in the group. "You must be Midori, Hiroshi and Shiroi. I''ve met your parents in the field, they''re all awesome! All the best on your first year of high school!"

    After saying that, the Eye-Goddess turned around and ran in the opposite direction. But after taking a few steps, she retraced her footsteps and stared at Satoshi. "Also, don''t tell your parents I tried to scout you! They might wring my neck or something hehe~ ... If you did want to go through your internship over at my agency, please feel free to give me a call, or perhaps go straight to the agency. Just mention your name and I''ll be personally guiding you. Hope to hear from you soon!" She then ran off, leaving Satoshi and the others a bit confused.

    "Wow!" Hiroshi was the one to break the silence. "Did you get a thing she said?"

    "No, I was staring really hard at her face that I didn''t even notice she was speaking. What did she say?" Midori answered, even though the question was directed at Satoshi.

    "Satoshi, whatever your decisions are, you can at least remember that I''m your childhood friend, right? Right?!" Shiroi teasingly said, nudging at Satoshi''s side, which in turn made him blush a little bit.

    While everyone was trying to get Knighthawk''s attention (hepletely forgot about Satoshi and the others), Satoshi was unexpectedly approached by one of the leading figures of SAO¡ª the superhero with the overpowered ability of foresight, the Eye Goddess.

    "Let''s go," Satoshi repeated one more time, securing the business card in his hand after taking a mental note to look at itter.

 Chapter 22 An Unorthodox Orientation Day

    When Knighthawk finally arrived at the ssroom just before the third ring of the bell stopped resounding, he was severely exhausted to the point that he was breathing heavily. "Just in time!" He painfully said, approaching the lectern.

    Although he seemed cheerful in front of the camera, he looked extremely gloomy when it''s not pointed at him. That''s why when the students saw him for the second time, he seemed bedraggled, like a corpse who just walked out of its coffin.

    "Today, we''ll have a fitness test." He simply said as he returned back to his usual arrogant self. "And I don''t want to hear excuses like ''we''ll miss the orientation'' or ''what about the principal''s speech?'' nothing of the sort! I know you don''t like those boring h-h-hs anyways."

    It was obvious that he was expecting a violent reaction from the students. However, the students'' responses were kind of different. Of course, they were expecting something so unorthodox when ites to the top school in Japan. Their eyes told him that they were actually looking forward to this moment.

    "Heh," Hiroshi smirked, clenching his fists and cracking his neck as heser-eyed everyone in the room.

    "Just watch out, I may look weak, but I''m not one to get defeated in such simple contests." Midori was the second one to react.

    "Satoshi, let''s do our best!" Shiroi whispered, making Satoshi blush a little bit.

    The other students in the room started showing off their superpowers even though they didn''t get permission to do so. They thought that it was fitting to do it a little bit in order to intimidate those who were inferior to them.

    "Silence." Knighthawk calmly said, letting out a yawn soon after. Once the noise finally died down, he headed towards the ssroom entrance and walked out. "Your desk number corresponds to your locker number at the back of the ssroom. Once you don your super suits, you can proceed to the field right in front of the school''s main entrance."

    When Knighthawk closed the door behind him as he left the ssroom, a series of cheers erupted from the ssroom. Everyone was too excited for the fitness test since they could finally use their superpowers to their full potential, no holds barred. Of course, the supervision of a teacher is still present, but it''s not like they''d get reprimanded if they use their superpower. They''re in a superhero school after all.

    Satoshi didn''t need to go to the locker room since he didn''t give a super-suit design to the school. The reason was that he wasn''t expecting to pass, and so he gave up all hope to apply for a super suit. Instead, he got a hand-me-down from his dad back when he was still a teenager. His dad was a second-generation superhero, just like everyone else their age. And that means his super suit is not that outdated, and the materials used on it are quite durable, material-wise.

    His dad''s super suit is a tight-fit ck sweater with a shirt worn on top of it. The shirt had blue and white as its design and a red cap goes along with it. From a distance, his outfit resembled a certain fictional character''s outfit with the same name as him but he didn''t mind the fact at all. He was grateful enough that he had a super-suit, to begin with. As for his lower body, he just wore pants and his brand-new red shoes for the school phys ed. His dad specifically bought it for him since it''s a semi-indestructible pair of shoes for superheroes.

    Because of that, all of Satoshi''s ssmates didn''t even notice the iconic super suit he was wearing. What they noticed was the famous pair of shoes he was wearing. They werepletely in awe, especially Hiroshi who actually came from a poor family.

    "Isn''t that the MX3000?! Dude! That''s so cool! Its fibers are made by none other than Silk Girl, the one and only superhero who produces her own silk! I heard that there are only three MX3000 in the world! How did you even get your hands on that?!" Of course, it was Midori who spoke first, as expected. "I heard that its tensile strength is unheard of, utilizing six types of silk produced by Silk Girl. And then, the fact that it doesn''t get burned, dirty, and is waterproof makes it one of the most indestructible shoes in the world!"

    "My parents mentored her." Satoshi simply answered.<sub> </sub>

    "Didn''t you know? Silk Girl is part of the Midoriyama Agency." Shiroi backed him up.

    "Really? That''s super cool! I didn''t know." Midori said.

    After wearing what seemed like a onesie that looked like a certain frog from a children''s book, Midori walked out of the ssroom along with the others. By the time Shiroi was done putting on his super-suit, only Shiroi was left in the ssroom. She was wearing a white gown with a cape made out of transparent silk. Satoshi made a mental note that if she were to sing ''Let it Go'' (a famous fairy tale song in ancient times) right then and there, he wouldn''t be surprised.

    "Let''s go," Shiroi said.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    Sai Tama, the principal of the school, excitedly wore his suit and tie as he hummed to an old song. He felt rather ecstatic because he would be giving the orientation speech once again to inspire the new generation of superheroes. The school had only existed for thirty years, but it had already be one of the most prominent superhero schools to ever exist in Japan. He was quite proud of it. "Another school year, hopefully, another sessful year!" He told himself, acting out a ss of wine in his hand as he raised it in mid-air. His bald head glinted as the sun rays bounced from it.

    "Good morning, principal."

    "A great morning, principal."

    "Good day, principal."

    Just like any other day, the greetings of the school staff and teachers were like music to his ears. He enthusiastically returned all of them while humming the old tune that continuously yed in his mind. It was a good day...

    ... well almost.

    And that''s because as soon as he got to the auditorium wherein the orientation was supposed to be held, no one was there.

 Chapter 23 Fitness Testâ€” Begin!

    Knighthawk carefully eyed his students, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn''t focus at all. And that''s because each and every ss that was supposed to attend the school orientation was there in the school track field. It''s as if all the teachers talked to each other, and told everyone that they would be doing the fitness test all at the same time. It''s as if they all had the same thought and when their gazes met, they all shrugged...

    ... and then covered their mouths in shock. Realization had hit them! If all of them were in the track field of the school, then that means the principal is all alone in the main hall of the school where he was supposed to give the school orientation!

    "Well, what has happened had already happened. We will continue on with the fitness testing." Knighthawk announced at the dozen or so students he had. "And to add to the challenge, you all get to sign these papers!" Knighthawk then handed out a few sheets of paper to the students he had. In response, Satoshi and the others immediately read through the paper¡ª

    Which is surprisingly an excuse letter! For one month!

    "Um, is this supposed to be... " One of the timid girls in the ss tried to ask but when all the attention focused on her, she stopped short, and then backed away. There was something about her that''s so soothing that for a moment, all of them just stared at her before finally getting back to their senses.

    It was probably her superpower at work.

    "Yes, these are excuse letters that you all would sign. Why did I let you sign these, you may ask? It''s because the student with the least amount of points would be excused from school the whole month!" Knighthawk felt rather confident with his exnation that he was genuinely surprised to see everyone staring at him as if he were some sort of alien whonded on earth.

    Hiroshi was the first one to speak up. "Isn''t this more of an award than a punishment? How could a one-month vacation be a punishment, Knighthawk-sensei?"

    "Heh," Knighthawk smirked. He didn''t want to exin himself since that would just make the actual situation meaningless. He felt full of himself as he looked forward to watching his students make a fool of themselves.

    Satoshi raised his hand.

    "Knighthawk-sensei, if you think that missing one month of school is counterproductive for a student, then you thought wrong." He said out of the blue. "Not only would he or she get more opportunities to be scouted at an earlier date, he or she would also be a hot topic in the city. And once his or her publicity skyrockets, they could get more offers from different agencies. It''s not going to halt the student''s growth at all, but rather, it would boost it to the next level."

    "You''re just saying that because you think this is unfair. Don''t get me, wrong kid. I may be condescending but I know reverse psychology when I see one. All right! We''ll start with the stationary high jump."

    "You don''t believe, me, sensei?" Satoshi asked. He couldn''t put his finger around it but somehow, the arrogance of their homeroom teacher was getting on his nerves a little bit. He knew that it was wrong of him to challenge their teacher into anything but he went for it nheless.<sub> </sub>

    "Yep, I don''t. This is the top school in the whole of Japan! The USA! Missing one month of school would be deleterious to your future career as a superhero."

    "Then how about a bet, sensei?"

    ''This brat, he doesn''t know what he''s getting himself into. But oh well, might as well entertain him and his fantasies.'' Knighthawk said to himself as a smile stered on his face. "Let''s hear it."

    "If I can top each and every fitness test you have right here, then I''d like for you to approve of this excuse letter for all of us." Satoshiid out.

    Knighthawk eyed Satoshi up and down multiple times before arriving at a conclusion... well, more like an assumption. "I''ve seen plenty of kids like you... getting all high and mighty just because you''ve got a superpower in your hands. And I know just how reliant one could actually get when ites to superpower. Just take a look, I''m one of the top high-ranking superheroes even without a superpower. Doesn''t that fact alone scream anything to you? Anyone can be a superhero. And not all with superpowers are actually destined to be one."

    "And so, I''m going to ept your deal if you ept my terms."

    "Deal!" Satoshi said out loud, fully knowing what Knighthawk was already implicating.

    "Heh, you''re biting off more than you can chew, Satoshi. For this fitness test... there will be no superpowers involved. Now let''s see what you got."

    With a wide grin on his face, Knighthawk turned his back from his students and led them to a nearby wall where they can measure the first fitness test... the stationary high jump. By then, all the students felt rather crestfallen due to the sudden change of the rules. Just like any other third-generation superheroes, all of them were heavily reliant on their superpowers. And thus, they didn''t really concentrate on building their body. That''s why this fitness test was a first for them, and they shudder to think how shameful it would be if he or she were to cest.

    The only one who was confident about the uing fitness test was Satoshi. All of his life, he had pushed his body to the limits, trying to squeeze out every bit of strength in every fiber of his muscles just so he could stand at an even ground with those his age. And now that his superpower has finally surfaced, he could finally use his physical strength to his maximum potential. What Knigthawk didn''t know was that both he and Satoshi had the same mindset¡ª only those with strength could wield a sword. Be it a sword or a superpower, it can only be as strong as the wielder.

    It was his time to shine.

 Chapter 24 A Landslide Victory

    Stationary High Jump (Vertical Jump)

    With arms wrapped around his back, Knighthawk strolled in front of the neatly lined up students who were all facing the wall, located to the side of the track field in front of the school. There, they were each given a bag of chalk wherein they''d have to dip their hands in. Satoshi and the others clearly knew what the Stationary High Jump is so there was no need for Knighthawk to exin anything. After ncing at each other and wishing everyone good luck, all twelve of them faced the wall, preparing for the jump.

    "Satoshi, don''t expect us to go easy on you. You do now that you winning here would mark our loss, right? We won''t purposefully make you win. Your challenge should hold true to your skills. Don''t expect us to do anything." Hiroshi said. He has gotten a little bit chummy with Satoshi but Satoshi ignored him nevertheless. He never asked anything from his ssmates, let alone make him purposefully win.

    "So much for the first day of school," Satoshi mumbled after a chuckle escaped his mouth.

    "Whenever you''re ready." Knighthawk finally announced, raising his hand to mark the start of the fitness test. "And remember, you cannot use your superpower no matter what. We have watchers over there who could detect if anyone uses their superpower. Best be warned, the moment one of you uses his or her superpower, he or she would immediately receive a rmendation letter. A rmendation letter for what, you may ask? For expulsion."

    The group didn''t need any more specifics. Some of them, who were nning to use their superpower on thest second of the jump to gain more height, decided that it''d be best not to do so anymore.

    One by one, each student squat down, strained their ankles, and tightened their abdomens and glutes. They then jumped as high as they could, trying to beat thest person who jumped. Some of them were sessful, some of them weren''t. As for Satoshi, he waited before everyone else was finish jumping before he did so.

    ''This kid''s all talk. Look at him, nervously waiting for everyone to finish to ramp up the suspense. Now show me how being reliant on your superpower made you physically weak, and then I''ll drill in that mind of yours why you''re wrong.'' A smug grin could be seen on Knighthawk''s face as he awaited Satoshi''s failure.

    So far, the one who attained the highest record was none other than Hiroshi, who easily got 97 cm on his jump. In and of itself, it was already an extremely high record. Unfortunately for him, however, Satoshi was in the group, and he could easily beat his record.

    "Right, here we go." Satoshi tried to encourage himself as he got down... held his breath...

    And jumped.

    Everybody watched as Satoshi went higher and higher... and higher until his jump was already twice his height. He smiled to himself. Deep inside, Satoshi knew that he could jump higher but he didn''t want to exert too much effort. Otherwise, Knighthawk  would start specting in an overexaggerated way. He already attracted enough attention for himself. Now it''s time toy low and just barely pass the highest record.

    "176 centimeters." Someone called out. It was one of the watchers, who was also tallying everyone''s scores. No one knew his name but he seemed like an important person.

    "176?!" Knighthawk was bbergasted. Even he couldn''t jump that high! Satoshi stared at him and smiled. In response, he averted his gaze and cleared his throat. ''A fluke, that''s it. That''s just a fluke. Or maybe the vertical jump is his only strong suit. That''s it! There''s no way he could get top scores on every fitness test there is! Ande to think of it... I have full control of all the fitness tests, right? Why don''t I add a few more tests so they''ll tire themselves out? One of them''s bound to snatch the top score if every one of them is exhausted. I have one hour, time to mix things up a little bit.'' The lengthy thought somehow made Knighthawk feel at ease. There''s no way a mere brat like him could win a bet when the odds are against him.

    "And if he somehow managed to do so, I''ll just increase the difficulty. I''m the teacher here, hehe."<sub> </sub>

    .....

    The next test was a 100-meter sprint and once again, Satoshi got the top record of 10.91 seconds. After that was the long jump, then the rope-climb, then the grip test. All of which was easily topped by Satoshi, who wasn''t getting tired at all. In fact, out of the twelve students, he was the only one who didn''t seem tired, much to Knighthawk''s disappointment. His n backfired, and now he realized that Satoshi wasn''t what he seemed to be. There was no doubt about it, Satoshi had been working out, and Knighthawk was too blinded by his overpowerful superpower that he didn''t even notice.

    From one test to another, Satoshi didn''t even break a sweat as he got the top record. If it weren''t for Knighthawk''s pride, he would''ve probably already regarded Satoshi as one of the most powerful superheroes there is. With his talent and his physical capabilities to back it up, he knew that Satoshi would make it far in the superhero industry. He badly didn''t want to admit it, however, since doing so would just humiliate him even more.

    "And for the final result... " Knighthawk choked as he stared at the tallied points. There was no point in denying it.

    Satoshi won by andslide.

    "In third ce, we have Midori. Second ce, Hiroshi, and first ce, Satoshi." Knighthawk sighed.

    No one cheered at the result. They knew that once they started celebrating, they would incur upon themselves the wrath of a high-ranking superhero. They remained quiet, awaiting what would happen next.

    "Looks like I won the bet, Knighthawk-sensei." Satoshi rubbed some salt in his wounds, making him grunt in anger.

    "Do what you want, if you want to take a month off of school, then so be it. I lost the bet. I''ll just have to exin it to the principal."

    "Sensei,"

    "What is it this time?"

    "As for the bet, I''m just kidding. There''s no way any of us would like a month-long vacation at the start of the school year. I just hope that you won''t judge anyone by the cover from now on, sensei." At first, Knighthawk thought that Satoshi was about to say something meaningful, but as it turned out, he just wanted to tease him even more.

    "But I like a month-long vacatio¡ª " Midori groaned.

    "Shut up," Hiroshi cut him off before he could finish hisint.

 Chapter 25 Fitness Testâ€” Results

    The heavy atmosphere soon fell on the room as soon as all teachers were present. Compared to a heavy atmosphere that is filled with grief and sadness, this type of atmosphere that befell the room was more on the terror side.  As soon as they got in the room, they knew that they''ll soon be chewed up by the principal. They all held their breaths, fully aware that the principal is not to be messed with. They knew that the principal could very well be one of the most powerful superheroes in Japan but since he''s not affiliated with the SAO (due to him being a foreigner), he isn''t publicly known to be strong.

    Sai Tama cleared his throat before he walked up to the teachers, standing on one side of the room. He still wore the suit he was supposed to wear for the orientation day and the teachers quickly realized what he meant by it. No one showed up during the orientation day after all.

    "You do know why I''ve summoned all of you here, correct?" He asked, turning around. With one step, he disappeared and reappeared on the other side of the room where his desk was. Before he sat down, he cleared his throat once again and adjusted the suit he was wearing.

    In response, the teachers all nodded in unison, too nervous to even move from their spot. Their eyes were solely fixated on their feet, not daring to look the principal in the eye.

    "Why aren''t you taking your seats?"

    After nodding their heads the second time, all the teachers hastily sat down so the meeting couldmence. They already knew what the principal would say but no one dared bring it up. If it had only been one ss who did it, they wouldn''t have been in trouble. But this year, everyone thought of the same thing and so no one attended the all-important school orientation. The moment they all met at the track field made them all think of the same thing. And now that thought is going to materialize since the principal had called for all of them as soon as sses were over.

    "Today, we''re going to go over¡ª "

    "We sincerely apologize for our rudeness, principal. We didn''t mean for it to happen." Mustering all his courage, Knighthawk was the first one to speak up about the matter. "I was certain that I''d be the only ss who will do the fitness test on the first day of school, and so I went through it even though it''s time for the school orientation. Please forgive us."

    The teachers all suck their guts in as they prepared for the principal to go berserk and attack all of them. The heavy atmosphere got a tad bit denser, almost choking the air out of them. Meanwhile, Sai Tama silently sat there without uttering a single word. The pause made everyone assumed for the worse, making them shrink in their seats.

    "Well, I called you here because we''re going to go over the results of the fitness test you''ve supervised." Sai Tama said with a casual tone, totally teasing everyone into thinking that he was infuriated. "Regarding the orientation, I''m not in the least bit mad. This is the first time it happened in the USA. Next time, talk to your fellow teachers before deciding to be absent on such an asion, that way there would be at least one ss who will attend the orientation."

    "And now that that''s out of the way, we can finally talk about the results of the fitness test. Were there any students who caught your attention? Not necessarily the one who got the most points, but the one who''s worthy of being mentioned in this meeting."

    "Then, I''ll be going first. Two of my students both got excellent scores on my fitness test. Aside from that, their superpowers are at least B-rank." Silencer was the first one to speak. He badly wanted to get his mind off of the intense pressure that the principal was releasing.

    "A-as for me, one of my students got perfect scores on all of my fitness tests. And by perfect scores, I mean, she got average in scores. Just like Silencer''s students, her superpower is at least B-rank as well." Red Velvet was the second to ry her thoughts. This time, she purposefully tried to keep the ball rolling just so there won''t be any awkward silence.

    "Out of all your students, there are only at least one or two. Well, that''s to be expected, not everyone would excel in on-the-spot testing like that. Those handpicked students you have do have the potential so let''s see how they''ll grow." Sai Tama said after hearing from the two. "How about you, Knighthawk? I''m well aware that this is the first time you''re overlooking a ss as a homeroom teacher. Is it a bit hard for you?"<sub> </sub>

    "No, sir." Knighthawk promptly responded before the principal got too suspicious of him. He lost a bet against a certain student after all.

    "I also came to know that you''re fitness test is a bit differentpared to all the teachers here. It was a surprise when I first heard of such a thing but your approach is very useful. You tested everyone''s physical strengths instead of their superpower, right?" There was a hint of pride in the principal''s face when he spoke.

    "That''s right, sir. While it is not for me to say this, I do believe that a superhero is only as strong as his physical strength. The superpower he has is just there to give him more options and resilience."

    "No no, that saying is not imprudent at all. For someone who rose through the ranks without having a superpower, you totally have the right to say that." After saying that, Sai Tama rxed on his chair and heaved a sigh in a rxed manner. "So, tell me, Knighthawk, is there anyone that caught your attention during the Fitness Test?"

    "Yes, sir. He''s an arrogant kid but his talent and physical strength are all top-notch. As much as I hate to admit it, the kid''s got an S-Rank for his physical strength... but the most surprising part is that his superpower is S-Rank as well. I''m guessing he''s a very good candidate for this year''s top of the ss."

    "What did you say?!"

    "Impossible!"

    "Are you sure you''re not just ying favorites, Knighthawk?"

    "Watch your words, ss 3-1 has a long history of not getting picked, you know."

    Amotion erupted in the meeting room as soon as Knighthawk said something about Satoshi. He didn''t mean to brag about the kid, but he could tell that his talents were the real deal.

    "Enough," The Principal softly said before turning to Knighthawk once again. "I hope you watch over him. I was watching your fitness test a while ago and I''d say I''m impressed. There are two other promising youngds in your group, right? Look after them as well."

    "With that said, you might be wondering why I''m asking you all these. And no, it''s not because I felt bad that no one attended the school orientation. I''m telling you this because the inter-high tournament ising up in a month''s time. I''d like to pick a few candidates as early as possible."

    "The inter-high tournament? This early? And why are we picking amongst the first-years? Isn''t that a little too much, principal?" Thunderguard asked, fully knowing that everyone had the same question in mind.

 Chapter 26 Inter-High Tournament

    "Yes, that''s what we''re going to do this year. The school board opted for the decision due to the huge gap between our students and the students of other schools. If we kept on winning the inter-high tournament every year, people wouldn''t anticipate the fights anymore and that would be bad for all schools. And to add to that, the city invests a great deal for the inter-high tournaments unlike in the previous years." The principal adjusted his sses as he exined.

    "With this, the tournament would be more equal. The best students of every school, versus the first-years of our school. I''m sure a lot of people would watch that."

    "But sir, the first years are not aware of the basics yet. The other schools would, for sure, win if they fight against beginners like them." Silencer spoke up with great worry. Just like any other superhero he had his own fair share of losses when ites to the inter-high tournament. Just imagining the children experiencing a one-sided battle, he couldn''t help but get concerned. Injuries abound in the inter-high tournament after all.

    The other teachers also had the same conviction¡ª that it would be reckless for the first-year students to fight the best students of other schools. Even if they have better superpowers than them, they simply can''t ovee experience over talent.

    "That''s why I''m leaving all of it in your hands. Train the first years for the next four weeks, I''d like all of you to guide your students ordingly and unlock their potential. With your experience, I'', fairly certain that this would be a walk in the park. Meeting adjourned, please head over to your sses."Sai Tama dismissed while wearing a satisfied countenance. At the back of his mind, he couldn''t help but look forward to the uing inter-high tournament.

    The teachers stared at each other for an indefinite amount of seconds before standing up and exiting the room. With no idea how to approach the situation, all of them grew silent as they headed back to their ssrooms. Perfectly aware that the principal wouldn''t go back on his word, they had no choice but to do their part, otherwise, it might be their fault that the school might lose its well-established reputation. It wouldn''t be an understatement that there''s a huge chance they''ll lose their jobs at this rate.

    And so, with great resolve, every teacher thought up a lesson n on the spot using their teaching approach to hopefully mold their students into greater heroes. Most of them thought aboutbat training. But as for Knighthawk, he deviated from the generic approach and resourceful use the potential of the students to his advantage. His training days during his youth are nowing to y.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi and the others were starting to contemte whether the school would continue teaching them in an irregr manner Starting frompletely missing out on the school orientation andbat training first thing in the morning, it was obvious that their school life would be full of surprises.

    "Satoshi, what do you think would happen this afternoon. Do you think we''ll have a decent ss for a change? Or maybe we''ll have anotherbat training? Honestly, this irregr learning system is better for me since I don''t really get to enjoy school nor anything else, They tend to get boring after a short period of time." Midori stated after sliding his desk nearer Satoshi''s.

    "I hope we won''t have any more surprises. I''m tired for the day." Satoshi responded before leaning his head on his desk, gesturing to Midori that they''re done with the discussion. He badly wanted toy low but right now, all eyes were on him.  The only thing he could do was pretend to be asleep until the teacher walks in for the next ss.

    Little did they all know, they were all in for another surprise.<sub> </sub>

    After a few minutes, Knighthawk entered the ssroom with a pleasant smile on his face as if he just won the lottery. Right from the get-go, everyone knew that something was suspicious based on his expression.

    p "Good morning, today, you''ll be having history. Professor Y will be your teacher for the aforementioned subject." Upon saying that, he packed up his things and exited the ssroom without another word. Nevertheless, he still wore the same suspicious expression when he departed.</anda>

    Satoshi could''ve sworn that for a split second right there, he detected Knighthawk ncing towards his general direction. "I must be seeing things. He said to himself before going back to his pretend-slumber.

    A few minutester, Professory Y entered the room, carrying heaps of thick history books in hand. The students quickly recognized him, due to his trademark white hair and beard, and semi-muscr build. Initially, they concluded that Knighthawk was messing with them but when the real deal really entered the room, they were genuinely surprised. After all, who wouldn''t be surprised? It''s the one and only Professory Y in the flesh!

    "Today, we''re going to talk about the history of the world. Now, all of you got to this school because of your superpower, and mind you, these superpowers didn''t exist back in the day. Back then, people are used to living their daily lives normally." Professor Y began, ignoring the dreamy gazes of his students. "A famous quote once went like this¡ª you can only look so far ahead in the future without knowing your past. Shiroi, can you give us an insight as to what this quote means?"

    "Yes, sir." Shiroi stood up, getting her senses together. "It means that what we learned from the past will determine how much we can foresee the future."

    "More or less, yes. And that''s why history is an important subject. With a better understanding of the past, we can look forward to the future and not repeat the same mistakes. There''s another quote that states ''history repeateth itself''. If we are not careful or aware of the past, there''s a good chance that we''ll repeat the same mistakes of our ancestors from the past. Hence, the importance of history sses. Today, we''re going to learn about the gravest mistake humanity has ever done. Who can tell me what major event happened in the year 2020 AD?"

    ''The coro¡ª nah, I won''t even answer. I''ll justy low for now.'' Satoshi inwardly said to himself. To his surprise, however, he was the only one who didn''t raise his hand.

    "Satoshi, would you like to enlighten us?" Professor Y called him, much to his surprise.

    ''Here we go again..." Satoshi pulled himself out of the chair he was glued to and answered as quickly as he could.

 Chapter 27 Unbelief

    "Can everyone pass these over to everyone?" Knighthawk announced as soon as he entered the room.

    The sun was beginning to wane right by the horizon as the first school day has finallye to an end. It was a normal school day and yet everyone seemed exhausted, evident by their sleepy expression and the way they dragged their body while moving. Just when all of them were starting to head out, Knighthawk came to the ssroom and announced that a paper be passed to everyone. This caused everyone to return to their seats, hoping that everything will all be over soon so they could head home and rest.

    "Since you''re all in the first year of high school, I''m guessing that your superpowers are not yet listed with the government, right? Or maybe they''re already registered and you needed to update it. Whatever the case, I want those forms filled and passed by tomorrow. And let me emphasize that they needed to be turned in tomorrow. It''s incredibly important." Knighthawk stretched his exnation before heading out of the door where he came in a few seconds ago. "ss dismissed."

    Everyone got their paper and stuffed them into their bags. Finally, they could head home and take some rest.

    "Bye!"

    "See you tomorrow!"

    "Aaah, wanna go to the arcade?"

    "Sure thing!"

    "Satoshi, are you heading home?" Shiroi came up behind Satoshi with a smile on her face.

    ''Too close.'' Satoshi said to himself. He could feel his face reddening as he got flustered. "Yes, why?"

    "Then let''s head home together!"

    "Um ah... sure, I guess," Satoshi answered, trying to avert his gaze from Shiroi''s face. ''Don''t she realize that her face is too close? And why am I the one getting embarrassed? Rx! Calm down, Satoshi!'' He thought to himself as he stood up.

    "O-! You''re heading home, then let mee with you!" Midoriughed out loud after speaking. No one knows why heughed loudly and no one dared to ask for fear that it would just make him talk more. This was just the first day of school and Midori already had quite a reputation.<sub> </sub>

    "We''re all riding the school bus, right? I guess I''ll go with you then." Hiroshi offered as well, slinging his bag on his shoulder as if doing so would make him look cooler.

    The party walked out of the school along with an influx of students who were going home as well. Satoshi studied every face of the students, thinking that all of them have superpowers. He couldn''t help but wonder what kind of superpowers everyone in the school had, and as he continued thinking, his gazended on the form that Knighthawk handed to them a few minutes ago. "I wonder what I''ll put here." He said to himself, not realizing that he said it out loud.

    "What do you mean? You have to put your superpower and specify how it works on there. And then, you''ll be registered with that superpower. If your superpower is powerful, however, government officials wille to the school and they''ll try to prove if you''re telling the truth on the paper or not... well, not like anyone would lie about their superpower." Hiroshi lengthily said. "There''s also the option of not putting anything on the paper since some superpower''s better kept a secret. The SAO made sure that such aw is passed so it wouldn''t necessarily endanger the life of a superhero."

    "Yeah, if every single superpower is recorded by the government. That would just force people with superpowers to rebel against the government. It would also make the government a prime target for viins who needs a certain superhero''s identity so they could use his or her superpower against him. By the way, Satoshi, you might not know this but although your parents are affiliated with the SAO, their superpowers are not actually recorded by the government. In fact, not a lot of people know what their actual superpowers are." This time, the ever-talkative Midori continued what Hiroshi was speaking. "The only thing we know about them is that your dad can copy certain superpowers and that your mom can shield herself from any attack."

    "Does that mean, it''s all right if we don''t answer the form and pass it tomorrow?" Satoshi asked out of the blue. Just like his parents, he didn''t want to tell anyone about his superpower, much less the government. Besides, he currently doesn''t know the extent of his superpower so if he were to write something on the form and that''s not how his superpower actually worked, he might get in trouble.

    "Why, is your superpower that great? You can only control metal, right? And now that I think about it, you can only control some nails, so I''m guessing you can''t handle metals with a much heavier weight?" Hiroshi continued. "Well, you do you, Satoshi. I guess with your superpowers, it''d be better if you hide it from the government. It''s not worth bragging about anyways."

    "Yeah, says the one who lost to that said superpower. Next time, why don''t you try defeating me with thatva thing of yours?" Satoshi patted him on the shoulder before walking forward. "Let''s go, the bus is waiting."

    "Heh, you only caught me off guard. When we get a rematch, I''ll be sure to defeat you." Hiroshi didn''t feel offended at all. He knew well for himself that his superpower is superior to Satoshi no matter how he looked at it.

    "Bro, didn''t you see what happened yesterday?! This dude took care of an alien with his bare hands! Even his parents couldn''t hold a candle to the alien! I''m surprised you haven''t seen the news, his face is all over the inte and the papers!" Midori screamed right at Hiroshi''s ear, making him flinch in surprise.

    "Argh! Of course, I did. But he was only able to fight them by using his parents'' gear and their lion familiar. If he only had his superpower back then, he would''ve lost a hundred times over."

    "Yeah, right," Shiroi mumbled to herself. "Don''t mind them, Satoshi, let''s just head home." She continued, grabbing him by the shoulder and dragging him towards the school.

    "A¡ª " Satoshi let out as air escaped his lungs. Shiroi pulled on his arm quite hard.

 Chapter 28 Furys Fury

    A fist almost connected with Satoshi''s face with a gust of wind exploding right at his face. In an attempt to dodge the next attack, he jumped backward, performing a double somersault beforending on all-fours. Although he cleanly dodged the strike that almost nted itself on his face, its power still affected the area around it, leaving him with a graze on his lips. As a drop of blood thickened and slowly flowed through Satoshi''s lips, he raised his hand, gesturing that he needed a break.

    "You''re exceptionally sluggish today, son? Did something happen at school?" Tatsuki half-heartedly asked since he didn''t want toe off as a doting father. He was concerned about his son''s school life just like how he always was, but right now, everything''s different. His son already has a superpower. Somehow, he wanted him to rely on that said superpower instead of relying on his parents¡­ well, not that he ever relied on his parents in the past.

    "Just¡­ dad, would the school be suspicious of me if I didn''t put anything on this form tomorrow?" Satoshi asked, grabbing a paper from his pocket which clearly showed the form every high schooler had to fill up.

    Tatsuki knew in an instant what the form was all about and he immediately grew silent. In the past, he never did write anything, not even a single letter, on that form. That''s why he had a hard time making a name for himself once he entered the industry of superheroes. Just like his wife, they both had a hard time being recognized by the masses even when they took care of a lot of threats.

    But it didn''tst that long. When the media finally recognized their heroic feats, they were given the spotlight and they''ve been living in it since then. However, even after all that, Tatsuki didn''t want his son to experience being shunned¡­ he didn''t know how to go about it though, since his son''s superpower is much much better than his.

    "Satoshi, you''re well aware of your mom and my past, right? If it hadn''t been for our hard work and a considerable amount of luck, we wouldn''t have reached the spot where we are right now. In the past, we experienced a plethora of hardships from both superheroes and viins alike, all because we didn''t sign anything on the SAO back when we were still in high school. Do you know why we have our very own agency? Because no one else wanted to trust us, they didn''t want mysterious superheroes to enter their agency, let alone be a part of it."

    "Therefore, I don''t want you to experience the same thing. We want you to have an easy life, Satoshi, just leave it to us!" Tatsuki confidently puffed his chest as he thumped on it with his hands twice. "Now let me see," He continued, using his teleportation superpower to appear right in front of Satoshi in an instant and then getting the paper from his hands.

    As if that would make a difference at all.

    Just like he had expected, the form had two sections¡ª one asking for the name, and one asking for the superpower and its description. There are a lot of lines on the superpower section just in case a certain someone''s got two superpowers. Tatsuki heaved a huge sigh of relief when he realized that the form that the school still hands out today hasn''t changed a bit since their time. With this, his n could finallye to fruition.

    Unlike in the past, more and more high school students have started to manifest at least two superpowers, giving them an edge against the previous generation of superheroes. Take for example Hiroshi, who could control both fire and earth at the same time, giving him the power to controlva and use it with his will. A lot more students are like him, some even more powerful than him. And that''s why these forms nowadays have more than one line on them.

    "Satoshi,"

    "Yes?"

    "I''ve got an idea."<sub> </sub>

    ...

    Meanwhile, back in the SAO Headquarters.

    In the main building of the Sao Headquarters, a few people could be seen rushing through the hallways and shing at each other, sending papers fluttering everywhere. This was the first time a red alert came off, resounding all throughout the main building and giving everyone an unexpected panic.

    "What is it this time?!" Fury screamed at the room upon seeing the mess everyone''s in. As soon as he shouted, everyone stopped moving and for the first time that night, decency and order could be witnessed.

    With a slow and purposeful gait, Fury descended down the stairs to the center of the conference room, overlooking each and every person who is behind their own respective screens. All of them impulsively gulped and ducked when they noticed the calm demeanor and the innate fury in Fury''s eyes. There was something about him that made them calm down and ignore the current ring that resonated in the whole building.

    "I thought I have real people in this room but turns out, you''re all babies. You were all trained in the highest-rated military facility in case of situations like this and this is how you act? What a disappointment. I walk in here to do my job¡ª and that is, to mobilize every superhero we have as efficient as we can. There is no time to waste, you hear me? This incident might cost us the entire country but if we panic right now, we''ll just be bringing the inevitable right at our doorstep! Now you know why you''re all behind thoseputer screens, I want updates now!"

    There was a pause as Fury turned around, awaiting everyone''s response to his request. Finally, everyone got back to their senses and they started firing off each and every update they received.

    "Two minutes until touchdown, sir."

    "We got the Rank 6-10 Superheroes at the ready sir, awaiting your orders."

    "A few more superheroes areing at the scene, sir. They are in the 20''s rank."

    "Sir, entities have been detecteding off the suspicious falling object!"

    "Now we''re talking! NOW WE''RE TALKING!" Fury screamed once more, this time, wearing the earpiece handed to him. Although he was the most nervous person in the room, he continued maintaining his outwardposure as he forced a smile on his face. ''As long as I sessfully carry out my purpose, I know we can get out of this.'' He said to himself before firing off orders to everyone like a submachine gun.

 Chapter 29 Space Battlesâ€” Commencement

    At the same time Satoshi and the others were starting their journey on their way home, an emergency summon was issued out by none other than Fury himself, one of the most prominent personnel manning the SAO. As of now, no one knows what superpower he has but when ites to gathering heroes and strategizing with them, no one can hold a candle to him. That''s also the reason why a lot of superheroes greatly respect him. Although they''ve never challenged him to any form of fight, they didn''t need any proof that he deserved his spot to lead them. His reputation was off the charts, simply speaking.

    And then the Space Battles followed suit... revealing the novel strategies that Fury came up with just tobat the new threats that were about to enter into the atmosphere. Needless to say, the current threat right now is actually quite... well, it''s world-threatening, to say the least. But sadly enough, the entire world couldn''t react to it in time since the satellites detected the threat a little toote. And since the current threat is having a touchdown in the soils of Japan, Fury had no choice but to take things into his hands and hold off until rescue arrives. He''s confident that the other surrounding countries wouldn''t waste any time in the subjugation of the threat but he had to buy as much time as he could in order to protect Japan from getting destroyed.

    Hence, the Space Battlesmenced, and it was by far one of the best strategies that Fury could concoct in that effective brain of his.

    With the help of three high-ranking superheroes, namely Oxgn, Energizer, and taforma, the strategy came into fruition and that very strategy was what made Space Battles possible. In order for the strategy to work, there were three things to consider¡ª One, an endless supply of oxygen. Two, someone who could create temporary ''floors'' so other superheroes could spacewalk and properly themselves wherever they want. And Three, a superhero who could support both of those. Hence, Oxgn, Energizer, and taforma were the main members of the team, they''d be the people in the backlines, supporting everyone with their superpowers. If it wasn''t made clear yet, Oxgn had the power to freely make oxygen out of nothing and make someone breathe it (pretty useful for underwater quests, to say the least), Energizer has the power to buff a certain superhero so he or she would be able to use her superpower for a longer time (easily the top-ranking support-type superhero in SAO), andstly, taforma can make temporary tforms out of nothing, giving superheroes better mobility by creating tforms everywhere.

    These are the three superheroes who led the subjugation of the threats. Simply put, the threats were none other than Slimes who are obviously more powerful than any other superheroes in existence. Well, all except Satoshi who has proven to stand up against one.

    Not only did these Slimes infiltrate the Sr System without warning, they also are trying to invade the earth. The Slime that Satoshi defeated was one of the handful of scouts the Slimes sent to see if the people of this world is much powerful than them. After seeing that they were weak, the Slimes gained a confidence boost and they decided to wreak havoc before taking over the entire world.

    Fury had no intention of that ever happening.<sub> </sub>

    Without further ado, he immediately called over the very best superheroes with teleport skills and they have them teleport the superheroes just on the edge of earth''s atmosphere. There, Oxgn was waiting for them, and he immediately encapsted everyone''s head with oxygen, all thanks to his ability.  As for taforma, he didn''t get tired of drinking as many energy drinks as he could. He will probably be part of the few superheroes who would greatly contribute to the fight so he prepared himself as much as he could. No one paid attention to him since each and every one of the superheroes who were on the edge of the was too focused on themselves. They were trying to figure out why they were sent into outer space when they could just easily bomb a ''derailing'' meteor from the ground. Little did they know that the meteor was in fact a giant ship that housed a couple of invaders who were out for blood.

    In an instant, Slimes came out of the ship as soon as a hatch was opened. One after the other, the Slimes started charging towards the superheroes who were too shocked to act. Here they were, thinking that there was some sort of emergency that they could handle, not realizing that they were sent in the crossfire of a looming alien invasion. Fortunately, they immediately regained theirposure, the superheroes they were, and they braced themselves for the fight. At the same time, taforma started scattering temporary tforms all over the ce so the superheroes would have footholds in their zero-gravity environment. Every superhero in the scene was trained mainly for emergencies, and that emergency includes fighting in zero gravity. If they were in a calm state of mind, they wouldn''t have a hard time fighting the Slimes who were literally raining down on them.

    "Get your gears together! You''re the only ones standing between these overpowerful aliens and the citizens of Japan! Onward and give it your all! For the glory of Japan!" They suddenly heard Fury''s booming voice through their earpieces. Somehow, that jolt made them get their bearings together, and most of them started clinging onto some of the tforms that taforma made.

    The Slimes were closing in, and taforma continue creating more and more immovable tforms for the superheroes to step on or hold onto. He was getting quite exhausted, but the war is just starting. He knew he couldn''t afford to take a break, not when everyone''s dependent on him.

    "Don''t worry, I got your back," Energizer said, giving him a reassuring smile as she transferred some of her energy to him. "Don''t you dare give up on me, partner." She continued.

    "You got it," taforma responded, straining a smile on his face.

 Chapter 30 Summons From SAO

    Another day of training, another day of school.

    Waking up, Satoshi could tell that the day would be like a routine just like usual and so he didn''t really expect anything to happen. Since he was still sleepy, he didn''t spare any effort to get up since it was still too early in the morning. But before he could go back to sleep, he felt his stomach churn as nature called out to him. And so,zily, he trudged down the stairs, thinking that if he were to fall downwards, it would be much faster for him to get to the bathroom which was downstairs.

    Suddenly, every hair on his body stood as if he felt something weird. ''Was it an intruder? Are we being robbed? Where''s mom and dad?'' Satoshi asked himself even though he knew that their house had a maximum-security system and that no one would dare break-in into it. He darted his head around the house, hoping to find something amiss so he could rush straight to his parents '' bedroom and wake them up. After seeing none, however, he still felt suspicious, as if his gut instinct was telling him that something was wrong.

    He thought long and hard about whether he should wake his parents or not in the middle of their sleep. Since he didn''t know what to do nor what he was feeling, he decided to do it. Whatever it is, he was fairly certain that his parents would be able to handle it. As for him, he didn''t know what to expect so there''s a slight chance that he would freeze up in front of a super-powerful intruder or something along those lines. And to top it all off, he doesn''t have his Familiars with him. They were all chilling in the basement, which was a failure on his part. After all, without them, he''s just a sitting duck.

    With little to no choice, Satoshi retraced his footsteps upstairs and headed towards his parents'' room, only to see that the door to their room was slightly ajar. Without sparing any thoughts, he mmed the door open for fear that his parents might''ve been ambushed.

    There was no one in the room.

    "Haah?"Satoshi eximed,

    Entering the room, he saw a certain note on top of the bed. At first, Satoshi thought that maybe it was left by the superheroes who abducted his parents but from afar, he immediately recognized his dad''s handwriting and so he went forward to take and read it. On it were three words that made him sigh in relief.

    ''Summons from SAO''

    "So that''s what it was." Satoshi sighed yet another time, smiling at himself since he didn''t even think about the possibility. This has happened multiple times in the past and yet he still wasn''t used to it. "I guess I''ll be home alone for today," Satoshi said.

    The first thing Satoshi did was to go to the bathroom and turn on his dad''s shaver. After watching it for a few seconds, he turned it off and finally responded to the call of nature. Once that was dealt with, Satoshi headed back to the basement and petted all of his familiars before starting his training. He didn''t want to miss a day just because his father wasn''t there. "Still, why were they summoned in the middle of the night? Is everything all right?" He asked himself.<sub> </sub>

    "Wait, that shouldn''t be my problem. For now, I need to be able to bring my familiars with me wherever and whenever I want. If something were to happen and I didn''t have any of them with me, then I''ll just be a sitting duck. And if I were to use my superpower on another object, there''s a small chance that it would be useless, so it''s better if I have all of them at teh ready rather than walking on eggshells."

    Worst-case scenario, Satoshi knew that he can always depend on Dex, his very first familiar which also has the system function that records a few important things for him. It also tells him a few things just like a personal AI.

    "Right, that is that and this is this. I should focus on my training for now." He continued.

    p At around the same time, unbeknownst to Satoshi, the Slimes from outer space were already on the verge of invading the world and the superheroes from around the world were trying to keep them out of the earth while fighting them in outer space. If only Satoshi had turned the television on that early in the morning, he would''ve been aware of those things. But then again, Satoshi doesn''t really watch tv that much. He''d rather train his body than loaf around on the couch and do nothing.</anda>

    Pretty soon, the basement floor was already soaked in sweat as Satoshi was done with his workout. He increased the intensity of his workout and he was surprised he managed to finish the whole thing. And even after all that, he still resolved himself to work even harder. His habit of working out throughout the years has been ingrained in his brain that it has be a part o his lifestyle. Even though he doesn''t really need to work out that much because he already had a superpower, he still did so without excuse.

    "Now, time to deal with you guys," Satoshi said to himself, smiling while looking at the Familiars who were on the corner of teh basement. Upon calling them through his mind, his Familiars immediately ran towards him and gathered around in a circle.

    "All of you are pretty strong, and with my help, you can outgrow your potential... but as of now, I still don''t know a lot about you. And I don''t know how to go through with knowing all of your skills and capabilities... that''s why, if it''s possible, would you help me out and demonstrate everything that you could do?" Satoshi continued.

    [Allow me to assist you, Satoshi]

    [If you want to know anything about them, you need only ask] Dex continued as if he was the most reliable being around... well, he probably was and Satoshi just didn''t realize it.

    "Sure! I''ll be in your care, Dex!" Satoshi cheerily said, giving a thumbs up at Dex who was casually floating around with a rotor on its head.

 Chapter 31 By The School Entrance

    After much contemtion, Satoshi decided to bring the Nailgun with him since he didn''t want to overload himself with information by standing all of his Familiars all at once. And right now, everyone only knew of the Nailgun and thought that that was his only ability. And so, it would be safer for hi,m to just have one instead of bringing everything and causing unnecessary attention  to himself.  Although that would make him rtively weaker, he thought that it would be good training in case of emergency. Also, he wanted to not be overly reliant on all of his Familiars. If he managed to master how to utilize every Familiar he has, then one of them is more than enough in every battle, or so that''s what Satoshi''s end goal was.

    [Nailgun: D-Grade

    Abilities:

    Homing Nails¡ª 5% of the nails are homing nails with 100% uracy rate

    Flotation¡ª the Nailgun can float, allowing its owner to utilize its skill and fly in mid-air

    Barrage¡ª Shoots multiple nails every second.

    Unlimited Magazine¡ª the Nailgun never runs out of nails

    Locked ????

    Locked ????

    Locked ????]

    Apparently, the Nailgun is only a D-Grade Familiar, which was a bit underwhelming since it was able to defeat Hiroshi, one of the most powerful high-schooler in the country. But then again, it''s not about the superpower but how you utilize it inbat, which makes any superpower not any less viable than another superpower. With renewed confidence, Satoshi finished his training and headed to school. On one hand, he slung his backpack onhis shoulders, and on the other, he was firmly sping on the fill-up form that they were supposed to pass today. Right now, the only thing that he put on the fill up form was his name and his supposed superpower, which he named ''nail maniption''. As fancy as it may sound, the superpower  hinted on the fact that he could only contrrol nails and only nails. And furthermore, he cannot even control them freely, he could on;y shoot them at something or someone. Nevertheless, that''s what Satosh went for and he just crossed his fingers that the school would be satisfied by his answer.

    Once again, the school bus stopped a few streets away from his house and he was then greeted again by Shiroi and Midori who were already inside the school bus. He already expected another noisy morning now that Midori is here again but he wasn''tining.<sub> </sub>

    "Good morning, Satoshi! How are you doing? Have you answered the fill-up form already? As for me, I didn''t answer anything specific on it since I''m not sure what my superpower is myself. Well, even if I were, I''m not that stupid to give all of my information and give it to SAO willy-nilly. That would just make it easier for them to control me, or they could even sell the details of my superpower if they were threatened too. What I want to say is, a lot of things could go wrong if we aren''t careful. We''re still high schoolers, we can''t afford to make a mistake that would ruin our future." Midori drew a circle with his index finger as if he was slightly lecturing them about something. In retrospect, what Midori said was actually correct. There were already a few instances where a lot of superheroes gotpromised just because their superpowers were leaked to the enemies and although the SAO denied ever colluding with the viins, there''s still a good chance that there''s a traitor amongst its employees. That''s why a lot of superheroes made an unspoken rule that they won''t give every information they have about their superpower. Satoshi''s parents went a few more notches and didn''t give a single word about their superpower to SAO even though they''re officially a member of it. They received a lot of criticisms back then but they had thestugh.

    Satoshi couldn''t help but admire how Midori could be so consistent, especially when making a lot of noise. He sighed as the ever-talking Midori continued on with his monologue, which had already diverted from the topic he was talking about just a few seconds ago. It''s only been the second day and Satoshi was already used to Midori that his voice had be background noise for him. Nevertheless, he couldn''t agree more with him. It''d be best to not specify your own''s superpower since it could be used against you.

    With that mindset, Satoshi felt even more confident as the school bus rolled towards the school. At one point, he wondered why the USA still uses school buses when there are a lot of high-end vehicles that could easily rece them. But then again, it had been etched in the traditions of the school to use school buses so they probably wanted to uphold such a thing. Before he knew it, the school bus had arrived and all of them walked out and towards the school''s main entrance gate.

    "I''m telling you, young miss. You can''t pass it like this." A man in his mid-thirties spoke, having a slight slurring ent in his tone. This man wore a cowboy hat and his outfit made it look like he had juste out of a rodeo show. As if his clear blue eyes, slightly tanned skin, and blond hair weren''tplete enough, he was even nibbling wheat in between his teeth. An A-Rank Superhero who goes by the codename Lariat, his superpower makes him extend any of his appendages and use it as a whip. It''s a pretty niche superpower that requires great skill and patience. After all, damaging the whip would mean injuring himself so he can''t really use his superpower that much.

    In front of Lariat was a girl who had light blue hair and wide-brimmed eyesses but that wasn''t the first thing Satoshi noticed. Her beautiful eyshes and clear blue eyes were what Satoshi first saw.

    "But I wrote something there! I wrote my name!" The girl defended herself.

    "No can do, young miss." Lariat rejected, giving her her paper back.

    "Yes can do," The girl responded back.

    Suddenly, Lariat straightened his back and stared from afar as if he was being controlled by something. He didn''t speak a single word. As for the girl, she briefly smiled to herself before she walked towards the school, hopping with every step.

    "What on¡ª " Satoshi trailed off, wondering who the girl was. Shiroi and the others had the same sentiment.

 Chapter 32 Kurayami Kuroe

    When they got to the ssroom themselves, that''s when Satoshi realized that the girl who manipted the superhero Lariat right by the school gate was actually one of their ssmates. The reason why they didn''t recognize her was that she was wearing a hood and a mask on the first day of school. She was probably sick with the flu and didn''t want anyone getting it but it served another purpose back then. To the others, it''s as if the girl was a new student who just transferred even though such wasn''t the case.

    Due to the attention she was getting from everyone, she leaned forward and covered her face with her hands as if that would redirect everyone''s attention to something else. Well, she shouldn''t have caused such a ruckus in front of the school gate if she didn''t want to be the talk of the ssroom. But then again, she didn''t have a choice but to do it. She didn''t want to reveal her superpowers to the SAO after all.

    "Hey, um, Kuroe-san, right?" Satoshi called out. He didn''t know what to tell the girl. The only reason why he tried talking to her was that he had the same thought as hers. "I also didn''t... " Satoshi then shifted into a whisper. "I also didn''t put my superpowers on my form. If that makes you feel any better."

    "Well, no. The principal is probably trying to decide what to do with me right now. Sigh~ I know I didn''t have to do this but... if I can''t do it then where''s the freedom in that? It''s not like I''m entitled to give them personal information about myself." She muttered, still covering her face with her arms as she rested on her desk. "These guys are fools. They''re freely handing out their strengths and weaknesses to the government as if that would help them. And if worsees to worst, what would the government do for them in return? Of course, send them out and wait for them to die. It''s not like the government''s giving them privileges or something. They only give superheroes more opportunities to risk their lives."

    Satoshi could feel great resentmenting from Kuroe even though she wasn''t making any contact at all. "If you say it that way, then I guess that''s how it is. You''re right about everything else except for one thing. You know, there are a lot of superheroes who wouldn''t think twice about risking their lives and there are those who are willing to die for someone else, something like that. I know where you''re getting at but it''s their choice to make, just like how we choose our own choices ourselves."

    "Yeah, right." She responded indifferently. Satoshi

    "All right, let''s start homeroom!" Knighthawk entered the room with a light expression on his face, totally forgetting what happened the previous day. But unbeknownst to the students, he was actually trying to hide his worries from everyone because currently, every superhero who is able was sent to outer space to fend off the slimes who were trying to invade the. Although he wasn''t part of the crusade since he had to be present as a homeroom teacher in the USA, he was still greatly worried for all his acquaintances and friends who were currently fighting.

    "First, let''s address the fill-up form that was sent to you yesterday. You were asked to fill it up, right? Let''s see here." Knighthawk said in a monotonous manner as if his mind was somece else. He carefully went over every paper to see if everything was urate. He still doesn''t know why the government would do such a thing to superheroes but then again, he wasn''t affected by it so who was he toin? After all, he doesn''t have any superpowers in the first ce.

    "Yamamoto Midori, Midoriyama Satoshi, and Kurayami Kuroe¡ª the three of you¡ª meet me at my officeter on." Knighthawk said without even batting an eye. Well, the three of them already knew why they were being called to his office, and that was because they didn''t fill-up the form properly.<sub> </sub>

    As for everyone, however, they wondered why the three of them were being called to the office? Was it because they were going to get a schrship? Were they going to get an internship rmendation? Did they excel morepared to everyone else? All those questions invaded everyone''s mind due to thepetitive atmosphere amongst high schooler superheroes. The homeroom had already started and yet they couldn''t focus on it... especially Hiroshi, who had always wanted to be a step ahead of Satoshi every time.

    The homeroom subject this time consisted of the rules and regtions and etiquette when ites to being on-field. Things like confirming to the superhero if he needed help or not, or not getting anyone else''s target were the primary discussions of the topic. Knighthawk seemed to be enthusiastic about it as well since he had a lot of experience on-field as a policeman then and as a superhero now.

    Satoshi drowsily flipped through his textbook while trying to remain awake. Everything that Knighthawk was discussing had already been imprinted in his mind long before entered school. His parents had already drilled it into his memory when he was young. ''Even if I were sleeping, I''d have nailed all the rules and regtions there is when ites to being on-field.'' He said to himself as he let himself doze off. He didn''t really care if Knighthawk would catch him red-handed and if Knighthawk were to challenge him with a question regarding the subject, he was confident that he would be able to answer it.

    "Hey, Satoshi." Someone called from beside him, tapping him on the shoulder.

    "Uh, yes?" He sleepily asked, only to find that it was Kuroe calling out to him.

    "Can we share textbooks? I forgot mine at home." She whispered.

    "Well, it''s not like I can refuse, can I?" Satoshi sighed, bringing his desk closer to Kuroe so they could share textbooks. He could still clearly remember what happened to Lariat when he refused to ept Kuroe''s fill-up form this morning.

 Chapter 33 The Loudness

    A weirdo. An alien.

    When Kurayami Kuroe first learned the concept of words, those were the first few words she heard from her peers on her first day of school as a kindergartner. Not knowing what they actually meant, she thought that they didn''t mean anything bad by it, that''s why she never bothered asking them about it.

    ''Kuroe, don''t forget, okay? Whenever someone talks to you, make sure that they''re using opening their mouth. If they''re not, then that means they''re not talking to you even if they were addressing you. You must not forget that, okay?'' Kuroe took her mother''s advice from the start and so, whenever someone talks to her, she had to confirm if they were opening their mouth or not. If not, then she won''t talk to them and would just let them be.

    But on her first day of school, she realized that such a thing was not normal. And that people don''t talk when they don''t open their mouth. When she asked her teacher about it, all she received was a weird stare as if she was a weird person. And so, she decided to keep quiet about it, thinking that what''s happening to her was probably a curse and that there was no way she could break that said curse.

    "She''s a weirdo, don''t talk to her."

    "Why is she looking at me? She''s so weird."

    "I''m hungry."

    "I want to eat something!"

    "Mommy! Mommy! Where are you?!"

    "Waghhh! I don''t want to be here!"

    "Why are they crying?"

    Although no one spoke in the ssroom, Kurayami Kuroe could tell that everyone was being really loud, making her unable to focus on the y she was trying to mold. She grew more and more agitated as seconds ticked by, and the loudness in the surroundings wasn''t getting any quieter.

    Even though she was just five years old, she was smart enough to realize that she shouldn''t lose herposure over the overwhelming noise that seemed to fill her ears to the brim. Instead, she closed her eyes and covered her ears, hoping that the noise would die down and that she wouldn''t have to confront it just like how she initially thought in her mind.

    Throughout the entire school day, Kuroe controlled herself and suppressed her emotions that badly wanted toe out. She had the urge to throw her desk at anyone or anything, just so everyone would be quiet. One or two people talking was bearable for her, but now, at least more than a dozen ssmates were in the room with her, and all of them had especially noisy minds because it was the first day of school.

    When the school bell rang, signaling the end of the day, Kuroe immediately headed out of the ssroom as soon as they bowed towards their homeroom teacher. She couldn''t bear to hear the noise a second longer. Disregarding the goodbyes that everyone uttered towards her, she headed out of the ssroom, down a flight of stairs, and towards the school''s parking lot. She didn''t even get lost despite being a five-year-old kid and that''s because she could hear her mom''s thoughts from far away. All she had to do was follow the noise and vo, she found herself standing in front of her mom''s car as if she was supposed to be there.

    "Yes, honey, I just got to school. Did you say curry? Yes, we''re going to have curry for dinner. Hold on, I''ll call youter once Kuroe and I get back ho¡ª Kuroe? Dear, what are you doing here?"

    Kuroe''s mom couldn''t believe it. The moment she turned her eyes towards the side of the car, Kuroe was standing there, motionlessly still, waiting for the car door to open. At first, she thought that something wrong happened and that she was about to get an earful from Kuroe''s teacher, but after realizing that there wasn''t anyone around in the parking lot except for her daughter, she almost freaked out.<sub> </sub>

    "Why are you here? Is school over? How did you get here?"

    Kuroe nodded. She wasn''t in the mood to speak, all because she got tired of hearing everyone else speak.

    "Are you already dismissed? Did you say goodbye to your homeroom teacher before heading here? How did you get here?"

    "I... I followed your voice." Kuroe simply answered. "Everyone is so noisy in school. You told me that I shouldn''t talk when the teacher is speaking, but everyone is doing it. They don''t get tired talking."

    "Come here."

    Kuroe didn''t expect her mom to hug her and before she knew it, she was already crying in her arms. Even then, the pain in her heart didn''t subside. She knew she was different, she knew that she had an ability that not everyone else has, and yet, she didn''t want to admit that she is. All she wanted was a normal life but now, it seemed more impossible than breathing.

    "That power of yours... Kuroe, that doesn''t mean you''re different from everyone. In my eyes, you''re still a five-year-old, just like all the five-year-old kids I saw on my way to this parking lot. You''re no different from them. The only difference between you and them is that you''re born with a blessing, a superpower that only you can use. You should embrace it, Kuroe, because that''s a part of you, okay?"

    "But... they''re too loud." Kuroe sniffled.

    "You''ll learn to control it in no time. Just don''t... don''te to hate it. Whatever it is, your mom will always be proud of you. See? What''s in my mind right now?" Kuroe''s mom challenged, closing her eyes and smiling.

    .....

    Mom...

    "Psst! Psssst! Kuroe, what are you doing?" Satoshi hissed, trying to shake her off of his shoulder. "Why are you sleeping? Wake uuuup!"

    "Mom?" Kuroe asked as her eyes fluttered open. After letting out a yawn and wiping her drool on Yuuta''s sleeve, she turned her head to the side and stared at Yuuta, still out of sorts after the dream she just had. "Oh, Yuuta, good morning. Yawn~"

    p "Good morning my foot. We''re in the middle of ss right now! Good thing Knighthawk didn''t catch y¡ª "</anda>

    "Satoshi, Kuroe, stop flirting and go to page five. You read the second paragraph together." Knighthawk called out of the blue, smirking at the two of them.

 Chapter 34 Love Interest

    "It was your fault." Satoshi med Kuroe, referring to how everyone in ss 3-1 viewed them as a couple even though it was wholly Kuroe''s fault for sleeping which caused the misunderstanding.

    "No, it was your fault." Kuroe returned.

    "No, it was your fault."

    "No, your fault."

    Kuroe couldn''t help but pout at first before chuckling. She never thought that someone would see her as an equal even though she possessed an extremely powerful superpower. And as for Satoshi, it was a first for him that he wasn''t nervous when ites to talking to a girl. The only girl he ever cared about was Shiroi however, he couldn''t bring himself to talk to her in a normal manner. Every time he does, he would end up feeling flustered, and sometimes his face would even redden. They''ve been friends since childhood but he still isn''t used to herpany. Kuroe was an entirely different case, however, since he could somehowfortably talk to her.

    "You shouldn''t have slept during the ss. You know how it is with Knighthawk and I, right? We don''t get along that well because of his prejudiced views about me having a superpower and physical prowess. I don''t get it though, I''m a rare case and yet he still thinks that I only ever rely on my superpower. And when I proved him wrong, he became even more antagonistic towards me. It just doesn''t make any sense." With a shrug, Satoshi let out a sigh before continuing his walk.

    "That''s how it is with them. Teachers always have a fixed mindset when ites to students. Not only that, they also have fixed views when ites to their teachings. That''s why when they''re proven wrong, they would always assume that it''s the student who''s in the wrong and not them. You can''t me them though, that thinking is already hard-wired in their brain since growing up and it won''t change quite easily. Moreover, our teacher is literally batman, except without the money."

    p "You didn''t have to do him like that Kuroe," Satoshi said. "So... your superpower''s all about mind control, right? Can you also read minds?"</anda>

    "That''s a secret. I can''t just talk about my superpower without you talking about yours first... but then again, I''m guessing we''re the same, right? I''ve seen your fight with that alien in the news and I''ve seen what you''ve written in your paper. You''re also hiding your superpower from the government, huh." Kuroe continued.<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi gulped and didn''t say anything. It''s not like he was hiding it at all but seeing someone of the same age as him figure it out in a snap made him rethink his actions. If she was able to do that easily, then maybe the other people in the school, especially Knighthawk, might''ve figured out something too... or so that''s what Satoshi thought.

    What he didn''t know, however, was that Kuroe could really read minds and she wasn''t assuming at all. In fact, she already knew that Satoshi''s superpower is asplicated as hers but she didn''t want to outright tell him what she knew for fear that he wouldn''t trust her ever again. With that said, keeping quiet about it isn''t that good of a choice either since Satoshi might find out and never trust her again as well. Regardless, she was afraid she wouldn''t be able to talk to him again after that so she prolonged the inevitable by indirectly telling him what she was aware of.

    "Um... well, you probably wouldn''t believe this but... I only ever awakened my superpower a few days ago. That''s why I''m pretty above-average when ites to anything physical. I''ve survived this long thanks to my physical training after all. Also, I wasn''t expecting to awaken a powerful superpower. Even my fathermends me for it... I couldn''t believe it since he''s got one of the most powerful superpowers in the entire world."

    "I understand. I guess awakening and not awakening a superpower could both be a curse huh. I''ve always had my superpower since birth even though my mom and dad never did have superpowers. When I was in kindergarten, I didn''t really fit in since everyone there didn''t awaken any superpower yet. I thought I was different, and so I distanced myself from them. I never really had a friend until now."

    "Wow, that sucks a lot. Good thing you managed to get in on this school. Everyone here has a superpower or two so you don''t have to keep your guard up too much. It may bete of me to say this but wee to the USA." Satoshi continued. He didn''t bother extending his hand since that would just make the atmosphere ufortable.

    The two of them were too engrossed with rting to each other that they didn''t notice the daggers that Shiroi was throwing with her eyes. It was only the official second day of school and Satoshi was already being giddy giddy with another girl. But what could she do? It''s not like she''s dating Satoshi or anything so she didn''t have any right to feel jealous. But they''ve been together longer so seeing another girl with her should be a good enough reason to be jealous. ''Why should I feel jealous in the first ce? Stupid Satoshi.'' Shiroi muttered under her breath.

    "Hoh, I can see a storm brewing over here. I wonder what''s going to happen. You know Shiroi, if you keep on distancing yourself like that without iming your man, he''s going to get stolen, you know. Not like I''m implying that you like Satoshi or anything but from the looks of it, you really do like him, don''t you? You''re probably going to deny it being a tsundere and all but that''s so unlike you. You''re always outspoken, you know, or maybe that''s just a front? Maybe you get bashful as well when ites to Satoshi? Oh, I see how it is, so you''ve liked him for a long time. You don''t have to be that embarrassed... ah! They''re going to the school bus together! Shi¡ª "

 Chapter 35 The Brewing Storm

    "Shut up, Midori." Shiroi sighed, walking faster so she could catch up to Satoshi and Kuroe. Before they could sit together, Shiroi took the farthest seat on the back since she knew that Satoshi would sit there as well. And just like she thought, Satoshi did sit there, but Kuroe sat on the other side. They were still busy talking about the tournament-like test that every first-year had to go through in order to get into the USA. It was like they''d known each other for quite some time now.

    "Ah! Shiroi, this is Kuroe. Apparently, she has mind control or something. It''s a pretty neat superpower." Satoshi gestured towards Kuroo. "And Kuroe, this is Shiroi, my childhood friend. We''ve been together since we were kids. She can testify that I never had any superpower before."

    "Ehh," Kuroe smirked after seeing what Shiroi was thinking about right now. "Nice to meet you Shiroi. I''m Kuroe, we''re in the same ss. You''re the Ice Queen, right?"

    "Yes, um, nice to meet you, Kuroe-san." Shiroi was caught off-guard due to Kuroe''s friendly approach. "Is it true that you got mind control as your superpower?"

    "Not really, it''s just one of my superpowers. I''m just like Hiroshi who has two¡ª earth and fire maniption. But then again, my superpower is interconnected to each other so they aren''t exactly two. It''splicated."

    "I-I see." Shiroi didn''t know what to say next so she just chuckled midway. Now that she thought about it, she doesn''t really interact that much with anyone other than Satoshi. And now that she got acquainted with another girl her age, she didn''t know what to talk about.

    "And so, a fated rivalry between two girls had been born. This rivalry had been prophesied since time immemorial and I''m right here, witnessing what is said to go down in history for many generations. Although it has been foretold, no one knows of the oue of this rivalry. Who would  climb up to the top? Find out next in another episode of Love Rivals." Midori muttered to himself in an attempt to indirectly tell Satoshi what''s currently going on. But in return, Satoshi just gave him the cold look as if he was the weirdest person in the world.

    "Hah, this is impossible." Midori shook his head in return.

    During the remainder of the trip, Shiroi decided to push herself out of herfort zone so she would know more about Kuroe who managed to get close to Satoshi in just a few hours. They were even close enough to share each other''s textbooks during school hours, lean on each other during ss, and read together because of the ever-so-malicious Knighthawk. If Kuroe could do it, then Shiroi concluded that she could do it too since Kuroe is no better than her. Midori was right when he said that a fated rivalry between the two had manifested... but in truth, it was just Shiroi thinking too much into it.<sub> </sub>

    Meanwhile, Kuroe was more than amused as she continued reading Shiroi''s mind. Clearly, Shiroi was more passionate on the subject than she is because she never looked at Satoshi that way, or at least not yet. All throughout the trip, she was trying so hard in suppressing herughter. Not only were Shiroi''s thoughts priceless, but his expressions as well.

    Unfortunately, Satoshi wasn''t focused that focused on Kuroe and Shiroi. In the middle of the trip, the school bus driver decided to turn on the news on the television and that''s when Satoshi became aware of the reason why his mom and dad had to leave home so early. Apparently, an alien invasion is currently ongoing on the Thermosphere, right above the Karman Line. And a few superheroes were called around the world to participate in defending the earth from these space invaders. It was truly a magnificent yet scary battle. The only thing that stood between the Earth being conquered and the bunch of overpowered Slime Aliens were a few dozen superheroes who are working together to bring an end to their invasion.

    p The resistance was led by none other than the mastermander Fury himself who had led the Earth in countless defenses against alien invasions. Albeit rare, it wasn''t the first time that an alien invasion has urred on Earth and so a few defenses were put in ce. However, this time, the defenses put weren''t enough to stop the invasion since the threat is much more powerfulpared to the previous invaders.</anda>

    After showing a video clip of the invasion and superheroes defending the Earth, the report then transitioned to Fury who is currently manning the SAO Headquarters. He isn''t one of the top officials there but there he was, sitting as if he was one of the big shots (He is one of the big shots in the eyes of the people but in name, he is just one of the few top-ranking officials in SAO). The ten-minute interview thenmenced and Fury answered them all as concise and as short as possible. Soon after, he got up and continued leading the charge.

    ''So... that''s what happened. I wonder if mom and dad are okay. They should''ve at least told me that they were leaving.'' Although Yuuta was confident that neither his mom nor dad would die in an alien invasion, the possibility of it happening was never zero. He couldn''t help but worry for them even though he wasn''t the one fighting the war. If he were there, he would''ve felt more assured since he could see what''s happening but right now, he doesn''t even have the means to go to space, let alone fight the Slimes who were trying to take over the world. He clenched his fists in suppressed fury. ''There''s no point worrying about them. Right now, I should aim to be stronger. That''s the only thing that I should focus on right now. If I were to do that, I know that I will be finally allowed to fight alongside my parents.''

    BOOM!

    Crash!

 Chapter 36 Reinforcements!!!

    Satoshi heard the faint sound of crumbling concrete before he regained his consciousness. Dazed, he didn''t recognize where he was at first but when his senses finally returned to him, he realized that he was still inside a battered school bus which seemed to have toppled a dozen times over before halting to a stop. A drop of blood flowed through his eyes and he became aware of why he was experiencing a slight headache. "I must have hit my head somewhere. What happened? Is everyone all right?" He asked.

    "Um... Satoshi, d you''re awake! A little help." Kuroe said with blood on his lips.

    p Because Satoshi just woke up, his vision was still blurry so he didn''t notice something was wrong at first. But when his vision cleared up, his pupils dted from shock.</anda>

    When he first saw Kuroe sitting on the ground and surrounded by an unknown force field, he thought that maybe it was just one of the drawbacks of her superpower¡ª that she cannot move while using her superpower. But the reason why she couldn''t move was that she was stabbed right through her stomach by a thick metal pipe, which protruded through his back and stabbed her right leg. She was kneeling on the ground and she couldn''t move an inch since the metal pipe held her in ce. The only thing she could do was use her force field to stop the bus''s roof from caving in on her.

    "I''m surprised you''re still alive after all that. You doing all right? T-t-that metal pipe really did you in, huh." Satoshi tried so hard to wear a poker face and remain calm but he couldn''t help but stutter on hisstment. He wanted not to panic and to remain as stoic as possible but his efforts were all in vain.

    "I know right, you should probably help me out don''t you think. Can you remove the roof of the bus, I don''t think I can hold the force field that much longer. Everyone else is unconscious and I''m the only one who was awake throughout the entire thing... if I didn''t have this metal pipe piercing me, I''d have taken all of you to safety already."

    Heaving in a deep breath, Satoshi summoned his Nailgun familiar which was in his bag all this time. He then rode on top of his Nailgun and grabbed the roof part of the bus. The moment he grabbed hold of it, he realized that a great b of concrete was actually on top of the bus, ready to fall at any moment if he were to let go of it. Without thinking twice, he hopped out of his Nailgun and had the Nailgun fly through the air and charge at the concrete, which exploded in no time. A few secondster, the great b of concrete was reduced to rubble and Satoshi managed to move the bus''s roof part with easer.

    With that out of the way, the only thing Satoshi had to think about was Kuroe''s injury. Not only was she losing incredible amounts of blood, but it seems that she was losing consciousness as well. "Just hang in there, Kuroe, help is on its way," Satoshi said.

    "I hope... " Kuroe sighed. She didn''t have to read Satoshi''s mind to see how worried he was of her. She forced herself to smile.

    However, that smile was then reced with despair when Kuroe saw a Slime from afar. Apparently, one of the Slimes the SAO was fighting in space just so happened to slip through and it just so happen tond in front of Satoshi once again. These coincidences on top of each other made Satoshi encounter another alien and this time, no one was there to help nor support him.

    With his ssmates out ofmission (even the school bus driver was unconscious) and with only one Familiar in tow, Satoshi was greatly disadvantaged. "If only I had Lighter with me. I''d be able to defeat this Slime in no time. No, there''s no time to be thinking about these things. I need to defeat that Slime as fast as possible, otherwise, Kuroe will die."<sub> </sub>

    Mustering all his courage, Satoshi didn''t hesitate to charge at the Slime without a n at all. Once again, Satoshi rode on top of his Nailgun and maneuvered around the Slime, shooting at it with the unlimited nails that the Nailgun has as its bullets. The volley of nails didn''t seem to be effective, however, since it would just pass through the Slime''s body.

    The Slime, feeling that it was being attacked, whipped its tentacles towards Satoshi at high speeds, forcing Satoshi to do an untimely somersault in the air before the Slime hit him with another whip attack. Having lost his bnce and footing in the air, Satoshi descended towards the ground with sheer force. It happened all too suddenly that Satoshi didn''t have any time to wonder if he was dying or not. His mind immediately shed back to his parents who were still fighting in space. ''Sigh~ what would they think if they found their one and only son died as soon as they return? That would suck. I don''t want to die.'' Satoshi said in his mind as he helplessly iled his arms around.

    Ughp~!

    Before he could hit the ground, however, something floating actually caught him.

    It was Dex, his trusted System, and retroputer.

    [Satoshi, I have encountered a distress signaling from you.]

    [I have brought ourrades with me. Sorry it took so long]

    "Dex! What are you doing here?!" Satoshi asked in surprise, d that he was alive and d that reinforcements have arrived. With everyone here, he now had full confidence that he''ll be able to defeat the Slime without batting as much as an eyelid.

    [As I have mentioned, I have received a distress signal sent from your mind. Are you perhaps all right, Satoshi?]

    "Yes, never better! Now let''s go end this thing." Satoshi clenched his fists after heaving a sigh of relief.

 Chapter 37 One-Man Fight

    Dex''s arrival alongside Satoshi''s familiar was heaven-sent, to say the least. It''s as if a huge weight came off of Satoshi''s chest as he instructed every Familiar of their role. While he did so, he continued attacking the Slime with his Lighter Familiar which is now in his possession. Just like how he defeated the previous Slime he fought, he bombarded it with columns of fire that the Lighter continuously spat out.

    "Dex, I want you to contact the nearest hospital right now for an ambnce. White Lion, try to wake up Shiroi and have her temporarily cauterize Kuroe''s wounds. Dex, I don''t think the White Lion can speak so do the speaking for him. Windfan, you know what to do when I fall." Satoshi ordered while keeping the Slime at bay.

    News about the Slime that slipped past the defenses of the superheroes was shed in the news as soon as it was reported. When news reporters arrived at the scene, they immediately noticed the toppled school bus and everyone unconscious. One girl was impaled with a thick metal pipe and another student was trying to fight off the Slime. Everyone knew just how strong the Slime is and what its weaknesses are. They were relieved to see that the student facing the Slime inbat was somehow sessful. It didn''t take long before ambnces arrive at the scene, and by the time they did, Shiroi was already awake and she understood what Dex meant when he said ''cauterize''. Without further ado, she performed first-aid on Kuroe''s wounds, snatching her away from death from blood loss.

    And a few secondster, Satoshi burned thest remains of the Slime. It didn''t even stand a chance at the whitish-blue mes that the Lighter released. Even the superheroes who were currently fighting in the Slimes in space were surprised at how fast Satoshi defeated the Slime that slipped past their defenses. Fury was expecting a lot more damages to ur before the Slime was taken down but all that transpired were broken concrete and a toppled schoolbus... well, one should also mention a certain impaled student and include it on the list.

    Kuroe was safely transferred to a  stretcher after they''ve carefully removed the metal pipe onsite. It was an arduous task for the doctors since they had to cut out a huge portion of the metal pipe in order to transport Kuroe safely to the hospital.

    "Satoshi, I''m d you''re all right." Kuroe wore a smile on her face amidst the excruciating pain she felt. Shiroi may have iced her wounds but the internal damage was more painful than ever.

    "I can''t believe we survived that one. Save your energy, Kuroe. I''m d you''re okay." Satoshi then turned towards Shiroi who was sitting by the corner of the pavement. "S-S-Shiroi, were you hurt anywhere?" He stuttered.

    She shook her head and handed him a burger. "The rescuers gave it to me. You need it more than I do." Shiroi continued.

    "No, I''m not hungry." Satoshi denied. It took all of his being to just spoke straight in front of Shiroi. And also, she could tell that Shiroi was hiding her hunger as well, she just offered the burger since she felt guilty sleeping for almost the entire incident, just like the others on the bus.

    "W-what happened?" Shiroi worriedly asked. "I probably passed out when our school bus crashed. Are you all right? Were you hurt anywhere?"

    "Nothing much, just a-a few scratches here and there," Satoshi responded, avoiding Shiroi''s gaze since he suffered more than a few scratches. He didn''t want her to worry more, especially after everything they just went through.<sub> </sub>

    "I... I see. Thank you, Satoshi. We would''ve died without you."

    "Don''t worry about it. I could''ve died without my Familiars so there''s that. In any case, I worry about dad and the others. They''re still fighting up there, huh." Pointing to the sky, Satoshi sat down and sighed. There was something about the unknown that gave him the shivers. He shuddered at the thought of fighting in space where everything is surrounded by darkness.

    "Yeah, your mom and dad are all right though. They''ve experienced more than their fair share of Space Wars so they should be able to handle themselves just fine."

    "Excuse me¡ª are you Midoriyama Satoshi by any chance?" The man was in histe thirties, wearing a ck top hat and a suit that didn''t match the tophat at all. He had an uneven stubble and round-rimmed eyesses on his face that made his eyes unusually bigger. As soon as he asked Satoshi to confirm his identity, he snatched a mic from his bag and pointed it at him. "We would like to have a few words with you about the incident."

    "No, we would like to have a word with you about the incident." Another reporter approached Satoshi as if he was some sort of a big-shot celebrity. The woman was a famous figure in the news world and she grantly swayed her hips while walking towards Satoshi. "Would you humor this big sister and give us an exclusive interview? I''m Anne Heath, by the way, you probably heard of me from CCN News."

    "We would like to get an interview with you, would that be all right?" Another interviewer asked.

    In just a few seconds, Satoshi''s alone time with Shiroi was interrupted by a host of interviewers, cameramen, and reporters who gathered around them like flies gathering around a carcass. At first, Satoshi felt like he wanted to shout at the reporters since he wanted to take some rest. But after thinking about it, he thought that he would just ignore them. After all, it''s way too exhausting to scream than not say anything at all.

    Shiroi was a different breed, however. Before Satoshipletely ignored them, she turned the entire area into an ice field, causing the whole crowd to stumble on their feet and fall on their backsides. It was an interesting domino effect, even Ann Heath fell in such a provocative position that Satoshi had to look away in an instant.

    "Let''s go." Shiroi urged, grabbing Satoshi by the hand and dragging him out of there.

 Chapter 38 Hospital Visit

    "Hey, Tatsuki, did you hear what happened? A Slime slipped past our line of defense! Should we go clean up the mess? I heard your son''s fighting the thing." Oxgn worriedly asked. Since he''s not in the jurisdiction of Japan, he never knew who Satoshi was, not until one of the reporters emphasized the fact that he''s actually Tatsuki and Ayumu''s one and only son.

    "Should I go down there? Nah, my son can handle it. He''s stronger than you think." Tatsuki stopped for a moment after sending a Slime away. Because there was no gravity in space, the Slimes couldn''t help but harden themselves a little bit so their body wouldn''t fly away and separate from them. This made it easier for physical heroes to attack them.

    "What do you mean? Even two to three of our men can''t take out a Slime alone. You should go back, Tatsuki. We can take care of these guys for now." taforma gritted his teeth.

    "No, as I told you. It''s fine... let''s see here... hmmm... five minutes? In five minutes he''d be able to defeat that Slime, give or take. You can check the newster on, see if I''m right." Tatsuki responded once again before heading deeper into the battlefield to clobber a few Slimes away in order to buy some time for the exterminators (superheroes who have fire as their superpower)

    ''He''s really confident with that son of his, huh. I''m a bit worried though, someone might die because we didn''t send anyone there... but we need all the superheroes here right now. Oh well, I should just check on him after five minutes, and then if the situation''s worse than I thought, I''ll contact Fury and have him dispatch superheroes there. That Slime wouldn''t cause a lot of damage in a short span of time, and also, Tatsuki''s son is currently engaging it inbat. That would buy enough time, I think.''

    And so the Space Wars continued.

    .....

    "Where are we going?" Satoshi mustered his courage to ask Shiroi who had been dragging her for a few minutes now.

    As soon as he asked that, she abruptly stopped in her tracks and started panting. "The audacity, can''t they see that we''re trying to rest there? How could they be so insensitive? You should''ve shown them what you''re capable of, Satoshi. If I were you, I''d have let your lion familiar run loose and tear them to pieces¡ª I''m kidding, but they know what they were doing."

    A few passersby saw the two and wondered why they were having a dramatic scene in the middle of the pedestrianne. Seeing the people''s reaction, it was Satoshi''s turn to be embarrassed as he averted his gaze from everyone. It''s as if his whole body just wanted to vanish without a trace right then and there. "We should probably go." Satoshi suggested as he slowly walked out of sight.

    ? Shiroi, unabashed by the stares from the people around them, wondered why Satoshi was acting a bit flustered. Nheless, she still followed him.

    Nighttime had already arrived, shifting the greyish atmosphere into a purplish-ck nket that covered a portion of the earth. Cold winds blew on the streets, causing some individuals to shiver due to the cold. It was an unusual kind of cold as if a storm was brewing. "Take this." Satoshi offered, giving Shiroi his coat which is part of the school uniform. He didn''t want her to feel ufortable while he was snugly warm with his coat.<sub> </sub>

    "T-thanks," Shiroi mumbled, dly epting the offer. A smile slightly appeared on her face before it reddened.

    "Kuroe''s hospital is nearby. Do you want to visit her for a bit? Or should I call your dad, he might be worried." Satoshi brought up, pointing at a nearby building with the cross sign on it, clearly showing that it''s a hospital. This is the Kamakura Hospital, named after the de facto capital of Japan in the past. Even though the ce was in no way rted to Kamakura City, it was still named the Kamakura Hospital.

    "Yeah, we should. I wonder if she''s doing okay." Shiroi whispered under her breath.

    "If it wasn''t for her, all of us would''ve died as soon as our school bus crashed. There was a huge concrete on top of the bus, you know, and she held it there with her psychic power of sorts. Because of that, we didn''t suffer any injuries. I think she even lessened the impact of the school bus when we crashed." Satoshi felt goosebumps all over his body as he remembered how gory Kuroe looked a few minutes ago. She had been impaled through and out of her stomach, then to one of his calves. A pool of blood almost bathed her legs since one of the main blood vessels was ruptured.

    "We shouldn''t forget to thank her. If I were in her shoes, I would''ve panicked my heart out. Good thing she was there."

    The usual peak hours of the hospital were all but obvious when the two entered in. Doctors and civilians alike rushed in and out of the hospital, resembling a rush hour at a certain highway, except with people. Meekly, the two set foot inside the hospital and went straight to the medical receptionist and asked her where Kuroe was admitted. After a few confirmations about their identity, one of the nurses of the hospital ushered them towards a room on the second floor of the hospital. Apparently, Kuroe was admitted to one of the VIP Suites of Kamakura Hospital.

    "I didn''t know that Kuroe came from a rich family... or maybe the USA pulled some strings to admit her here?"

    "Probably."

    ''What are you doing standing in front of the door. You can go in.'' Satoshi suddenly heard in his mind, making him flinch and fall on his back. "What was that just now."

    ''''Haha! That was a great reaction! Why were you surprised?'' Kuroe continued talking in Satoshi''s mind as if that was a normal thing to do.

    "What are you doing, Satoshi?" Shiroi cluelessly asked, wondering why Satoshi lost his bnce without a reason.

 Chapter 39 A New Friend

    "N-n-nothing." Satoshi shook his head, mming the door open and seeing Kuroe curled up on her bed, on the verge of tears as sheughed her heart out. "Ahh, you think that was funny?" He asked, poking her on the side to tickle her.

    "Agh~ stop it." Kuroe curled up even tighter as she tried hard not tough. She knew that her wound would open if she were to do so.

    Satoshi realized it a split secondter and stopped doing it, muttering a soft sorry as he sat down on one of the nearest chairs. Now that he got a better look at Kuroe, he realized that she was just putting up a front in front of him and Shiroi. Of course, it was natural for her to do that since she didn''t want them to pity her. Kuroe had thick bandages on her stomach and her left thigh¡ª the parts where the metal pipe did her in.

    "Um... it would totally leave a scar, right?" Shiroi asked out of the blue. Apparently, Satoshi and Kuroe herself badly wanted to ask that very same question but they couldn''t bring it up as it would state the obvious. inly, it would leave a mark no matter how proficient the doctors were at bandaging her up. The wounds were just too deep for natural healing to do its job properly.

    "Don''t worry too much about it. The superhero nicknamed the Nurse is currently in the hospital right now. She paid me a visit a few minutes ago, telling me about what had transpired the entire time I was impaled by the metal pipe. I was on the verge of losing consciousness back then so I couldn''t really watch the entire thing. I heard you looked pretty cool back then, fending that Slime alien or something. Sorry I couldn''t watch the entire thing."

    "Wait, the Nurse is here? That''s awesome! I''m a big fan! I should probably say hello to her now. So... is she going to heal you? Whoa, I want to witness the whole thing! Can I stay overnight here? I''ll look after you I promise!" Shiroi excitedly said, clenching her fists and leaning in towards Kuroe while her eyes sparkled. This was the first time Satoshi saw Shiroi overly enthusiastic, confusing him for a few seconds before he thought to himself that he was also a big fan of certain superheroes.

    p "Um... sure! I could use a little bit ofpany." Kuroe pursed her lips before forcing herself to smile. When she first applied to the USA, she already concluded to herself that she wouldn''t make any friends since she''d never had one in the past. Whenever she tried to approach someone, that person would deem her as weird, and then she''d lose that someone before a friendship has begun. It has happened too many times that Kuroe just gave up on the pursuit of friendship.</anda>

    A new school, another chance to change her life gave her a minuscule amount of motivation to change her mind but there was certainly something in there that changed since she identally unted her powers one certain morning. One thing led to another and now... she considered Satoshi as her friend even though they haven''t formalized anything regarding the topic. Of course, she couldn''t just tactlessly bring up the topic of asking Satoshito to be her friend and by now, it was probably toote to ask him but nevertheless... it gave Kuroe the peace of mind that at least she''s got one acquaintance in school.

    That''s why it came as a shock for her when Shiroi asked to stay the night with her. If she hadn''t pursed her lips and bit as hard as she could that her teeth chattered, tears would''ve fallen out of her eyes continuously like a leaking faucet. She even had to turn around as she said those words that she almost choked on.<sub> </sub>

    "Really? Kyaaa~ I''m so excited! Oh wait, Satoshi, youe with me." This time, it was Shiroi''s turn to grab Satoshi by the hand which made him almost squeal his heart out in puzzlement. "Don''t worry, Kuroe, we''ll be back soon! Oh, and is there anything you want to eat? We''re going to grab some food right now."

    "Nothing in particr." Kuroe calmly uttered but she was more excited than Shiroi when it came to the overnight they were going to have.

    "All right, Satoshie on!" Shiroi continued, dragging him out of the hospital against his will.

    For the first time, Satoshi saw how excited Shiroi could get at such a simple thing and so he didn''t want to stop her. He even lent her some of his allowance just so they could buy more snacks. By the convenience store, Satoshi had to ask Shiroi a couple of times whether the food she bought would be enough for the whole night and after changing her mind a few times, they finally got to the counter with two full shopping baskets in hand.

    "I''m finally going to meet the Nurse! I''ve only ever seen her on TV, you know!" Shiroi bbered on while they waited in the queue. "Remember that iconic scene of hers where she healed at least fifty superheroes in an instant during the Antic War. It was so cool! Ever since then, I''ve always wanted to be like her."

    Satoshi could clearly remember that scene since he''d always admired every superhero to ever exist. Just the thought of someone capable of doing something inhuman fascinated him since he was a child. If someone were to ask him about a certain superhero feat, he could probably narrate it as urately as a reporter during that time.

    That night was one of the most memorable nights, not only for Shiroi but for Kuroe as well. They get to meet the Nurse and they get to spend more time together. As for Satoshi, however, he headed home before he felt awkward in that hospital room.

 Chapter 40 Sumiko Sumire

    Sumiko Sumire hails from a long lineage of assassins that specializes in poison. Be it a simple poison obtained from a mushroom or a poisonous toad, or aplicated poison brewed by the experts, Sumiko Sumire knew all about them even though she didn''t like it. Even when she was a kid, she had already been trained in all things poison against her will. She really didn''t want to study poison but her lineage gave her no choice. Now, assassins aren''t really a thing anymore so her family doesn''t involve themselves in dangerous stuff or crimes but it was a tradition to pass the knowledge of poison to their descendants because it would be useful one day.

    And just when all hope seemed lost, Sumire heard something about a school called the United Superheroes Academy. It was then that she came upon the term superheroes and that children in her generation have a huge chance of awakening a superpower. Of course, it is highly unlikely for her though since her mom and dad didn''t have superpowers, to begin with. However, she didn''t lose all hope. She was hoping that one day she would awaken a superpower that would enable her to enter the aforementioned school. She knew that that was her only way out of her misery of living with poison.

    Unexpectedly, right before the school''s deadline for registration, Sumire awakened a superpower. She had mixed feelings about her superpower however since it was something that she never thought of awakening. In fact, it''s the very thing that she hated the most and the reason why she''s applying to the United Superheroes Academy was because of that very thing¡ª poison.

    She wanted to scream and throw a fit back then... but then again, she can''t really do anything to change her superpower. All that she could do was wholly ept it since it''s a part of her now, just like her appendages.

    Her superpower is much moreplicated than normal, and it''s pretty much a lottery when ites to her everyday life. The moment she wakes up, her eyes turn into a weird color as if she puts on contact lenses. These colors correspond to certain status effects just like in video games. Red would mean that she could inflict bleeding on her enemy, yellow means paralysis, violet means an intense fever, and ck means death. There are more status effects corresponding to her eye color on that day so she had to test it out on animals. And not only that, her saliva is ever poisonous and it won''t go off even though her eyes turn a different color. In short, kissing is out of the question because it would be pretty much the kiss of death or something iconic as that.

    ...

    During the attack of the Slime Alien wherein Kuroe was impaled through her stomach, Sumiko Sumire hit her head hard on the ground but she was still conscious. However, her eyes were of clear ck color that day so she couldn''t really help anyone with her superpower. That''s why she pretended to be lying unconscious until the entire ordeales to a close. She felt absolutely horrible since she could have done something had it been any other day. And unfortunately, it''s not like his superpower has a schedule of some sort, or maybe she just wasn''t aware of how the schedule works. The reason why she managed to get into the USA was by a stroke of luck since her eyes turned yellow that day. One touch from her and her enemy was frozen to the ground, immobile.

    ...

    Back to the present,

    Cold sweat ran through Sumire''s wavy violet hair as she stood in front of the hospital. She was careful not to touch anyone today so she wore some gloves for extra protection. Of course, she can touch anyone with her bare hands without killing that said person but honestly, she didn''t want to risk it. She doesn''t know when her powers would spiral out of control and so she always carries a pair of gloves in her hand. In her mind, she debated whether it was the right move to visit her ssmate and thank her for what she did. And as she did so, she hovered in front of the hospital like an indecisive mouse. People going back and forth Kamakura Hospital nced at her out of curiosity since she''d been in front of the hospital entrance for quite some time now.

    "Miss, are you all right? What are you doing here outside?" An olddy asked out of concern for her, to which she responded by shaking her head and heading inside the hospital.

    That''s when she saw a glimpse of Satoshi and Shiroi walking down the hallway and without a second thought, followed them to Kuroe''s room. However, she was a pace toote and before she knew it, the two of them were already inside Kuroe''s room and she couldn''t bring herself to go inside. The basket of fruits she was carrying was getting rather heavy on her arms but she held onto it in hopes that she''d get the chance to give it to her ssmate. Once everything was said and done, she told herself that she would visit Satoshi next. After all, if he weren''t present, all of them would''ve died in the hands of the alien in a snap of a finger. She figured she''d have to do that once she ovees the hurdle in front of her.

    And then, Satoshi and Shiroi suddenly bolted out the door, all excited. It was so out of nowhere that Sumire faced the wall and tried not to attract attention to herself while the two of them passed her by. Once they were gone, she heaved a sigh of relief as her knees copsed to the floor.

    Kuroe''s alone right now. Now''s her chance to give her the basket of fruits and run away.<sub> </sub>

    Suddenly, Sumire heard a voice from behind her, making her flinch in the process. "You''re Sumire, right? Why aren''t youing in?" It was Kuroe, standing right by the door to the VIP room.

    ...

    Sumire was surprised since she never would''ve expected Kuro to know that she was there. Her pupils dted as she examined Kuroe from head to toe, trying to figure out what her secret was. Then again, she couldn''t see anything out of the ordinary so she just quietly nodded her head and meekly walked towards her room. Obviously, this was her first time visiting someone in a hospital so she doesn''t really know what to say to Kuroe.

    Upon entrance, she eased herself on one of the seats adjacent to the bed where Kuroe was spending her idle hours on. Her eyes darted from here and there since she couldn''t look at Kuroe straight in the eyes. While clenching on the fruit basket in hand, she lifted it up and gave it to Kuroe. "I-it''s for you. Thank you for what you did back then." She continued. Well, she couldn''t really specify what Kuroe did but she had hoped that she got her message across.

    "Oh, thanks. You''re Sumire, right? Why didn''t you juste in? You didn''t have to hover around the hallway like a stalker." Kuroe continued, opening the basket of fruits and grabbing an orange. After peeling it, she offered a piece to Sumire who ate it without question.

    When Sumire reached out for the piece of orange, Kuroe noticed that she was wearing thick gloves even though it wasn''t that cold. She didn''t ask about it though since she already knew what she was thinking. In fact, even her superpower is already evident to Kuroe way back then.

    "I... I didn''t know what to¡ª this is my first time visiting someone in the hospital. " Sumire said.

    "You don''t have to think about it. Next time, you can juste without doing anything. Thank you for the visit, I really appreciate it. Oh, and are you feeling all right after what happened? I''m sure you hurt yourself somewhere. You should get a check-up first before leaving."

    "I... I actually have nosephobia. So I''m a bit nervous right now. This is my first time entering the hospital and I only did so because I was panicking by the entrance. I hope you feel better soon. See you tomorrow." Sumire then stood up and bowed after briefly smiling towards Kuroe. And before Kuroe could respond, she already bolted out the door.

    A smile formed on Kuroe''s face as she read the thoughts of Sumire just when she was running through the halls of the hospital. A few minutester, Satoshi and Shiroi arrived back at the hospital with all the snacks on hand, clueless about Sumire''s visit but they did notice the basket of fruit lying around and figured that a rtive must have sent it to Kuroe.

    As for Sumire, the reason why Kuroe didn''t stop her was that she was already satisfied with her visit. She managed to achieve the impossible even though she had a phobia of hospitals. And also, because of the visit, she felt even more confident expressing her thanks to Satoshi. She had always kept it in her mind to give thanks when a thank you is due. And that''s exactly what she intended to do.

    But not today, she''d had enough excitement for today.

 Chapter 41 Class Representative

    Knighthawk walked inside ss 3-1 with a purposeful stride, implying that he was about to say something important. It was only the first week of school and everyone was already exhausted. Well, a big part of it was when they were suddenly attacked by a Slime Alien which breached the line of defense made by superheroes by the edge of the Earth''s atmosphere.

    It was evident that Knighthawk was actually worried about his ss because he wore a concerned expression on his face before exhaling and grabbing the paper on his desk. The bell has just rung, beginning the subject of homeroom and Knighthawk told himself that he would enjoy every moment of it. After all, he''s also assigned with the subject hero training which is scheduled to be today.

    "Okay, I''m d that you''re all doing all right. It almost gave me a heart attack when I heard about the news. Fortunately, we got quite a few capable first years this year. Had it not been for them, all of you would''ve died." Knighthawk began. He didn''t mince his words and decided to give it to everyone as some sort of warning and encouragement that everyone should improve their initial fighting capability. "That''s why, from this point on, every school bus of the United Superheroes Academy would have a licensed superhero as an additional passenger, just in case the impossible happens again. You don''t know how I had to move mountains just to urge the principal to pass such a thing and I don''t intend for you to know in the first ce."

    "So, as you may as well know, the inter-high tournament is happening in a month''s time, and guess what, the principal chose the first-years to be the representatives for this year. You might be monitoring this popr tournament and you know just how we''ve been winning this tournament for at least ten consecutive years now. And so this is our handicap this year. That''s right, all of the first-years would undergo a series of tests and a few of you will represent our school."

    Midori raised his hands, much to everyone''s expectations since all of them wanted to raise their hands as well. "Sir, does that mean all of our representatives this year are first-years? How does the principal expect us to go against third and fourth years?"

    "That''s where I''m getting at." Knighthawk cleared his throat. For the first time, he didn''tsh out at someone''s question and that''s because he was already expecting someone to ask it. "When we had our meeting, we were told to train all of you specifically in order to catch up to them. We''ve been given a pretty disadvantageous handicap. Even if we have no chance of winning, we want to at least choose representatives that would be able to put up a fight and put on a good show for the sake of a publicity stunt. Imagine just how more popr the USA would be once this happens?"

    "Of course, that''s not the only thing. We''ll train you so your chances of winning would shoot up. As your homeroom teacher and the subject teacher of hero training. I''d be training you how I see fit, and that it physically, emotionally, mentally, and superpower-wise. With this, you''d be able to go head to head with the third and fourth years. Trust me, I may not have a certain superpower but I can take any of you on in a fight. That''s why I value experience more than power."

    "And now that we''ve discussed those things. You''ll have a slight change in your schedules... " A wide grin stered on Knighthawk''s face as if he was about to say something monumental at that moment. He stayed silent for a few seconds to build up anticipation. And then, he handed Satoshi a stack of papers.

    "That would be your schedule for this year''s curriculum. I hope you find it useful. You can get one and pass to your seatmate."

    Satoshi nodded and as soon as he gave the rest of the pile to Shiroi, he began reading through the schedule, trying to spot the difference between this and their previous curriculum.<sub> </sub>

    And that''s when he noticed it¡ª their schedule bore great resemnce to the third-years. If he were any regr students, he wouldn''t be able to notice it but he had been a die-hard fan of superheroes ever since he was a kid and so he knew a lot of useless things about them. For example, he haspletely memorized the entire curriculum of all the grade levels in the USA since he badly wanted to get admitted there. That''s why he was able to notice it easily.

    He then raise his hands before everyone else got the paper. "Isn''t this... this looks like the schedule of third-years. Are we really going to have this in our curriculum?"

    With jaws almost dropping to the floor, Knighthawk was genuinely shocked that Satoshi managed to notice such a thing easily. "Yes, you bet it is. That''s why I wanted all of you to prepare yourselves. These may look easy but it''s not easy as you think. You''d have to adjust to the schedule and at the same time learn as much as you can from it. It may not be the exact replica of the third year''s curriculum when ites to superhero stuff but it is dialed up a notch to make it harder for first years."

    "And so,ter, our hero training will be quite different. I hope you prepare for it. ss dismi¡ª wait, hold on. I think I''m missing something here." Knighthawk stopped in the middle of his sentence, trying to recall something.

    Then he remembered it. "Oh yeah, we haven''t had the time to choose who our ss representative would be. Let''s tally the votes and get this over with. Anyone who wants to put himself or herself up, raise your hands."

    "In that case¡ª " Hiroshi chuckled before standing up.

    "I vote for Satoshi! Who else votes for Satoshi?" Midori screamed before Hiroshi volunteered. And in a split second, everybody in ss raised their hands except him and Satoshi.

    "Eh?!" Satoshi let out a confused exmation before Knighthawk nodded and epted the tally.

    "It''s decided then, homeroom''s over." He continued, heading out of the ss without another word.

 Chapter 42 Hero Training Class

    Later that day,

    Satoshi and the others were a bit confused as to why they were traveling somewhere for their hero training. It was a nice clear day outside the school and they were led by Knighthawk towards a nearby school bus where they''d be riding for an indefinite amount of time. Of course, they didn''t have time to ask questions since Knighthawk emphasized arriving there on time, wherever that is. And Satoshi, as the new ss representative of ss 3-1, had to lead everyone in an orderly manner so there won''t be any trouble that might irk Knighthawk the wrong way.

    "Come on snails, what are you dilly-dallying around for? This ain''t a field trip for crying out loud." Knighthawk was growing a bit impatient since everyone was moving rather slowly. And then there''s Hiroshi who was still salty that he didn''t be the ss president of ss 3-1. Even when it already happened a few hours ago, he was still trying to rile up Satoshi just because he was democratically and unanimously chosen by everyone.

    Once they got inside the bus, Knighthawk specifically told the driver to floor it. And before they knew it, they were already traveling downtown Tokyo to go to a certain ce. Knighthawk then smiled a mischievous smile before heading down the row of seats and staring at Satoshi.

    "Okay, now that you''re the ss representative for my ss, you know what to do, right?" It''s as if Knighthawk was putting everything on Satoshi''s shoulders but it was clear he was trying to bully him. Whatever it is that Knigthhawk wanted him to do, it was obvious he wanted to put him in a bad light. Of course, it''s not like Satoshi had any right to refuse since he had to go through it as the ss representative anyways.

    The school bus then continued down the road until it almost reached the edge of Tokyo. By now, Knighthawk still hasn''t said anything aside from hinting that Satoshi had to do something. Everyone on the school bus was also curious as to what Knighthawk was referring to because they could feel the same intent from him.

    "We''re almost here." Finally, Knighthawk announced their inevitable arrival. His eyes then lit up as he clenched his fists in excitement. At longst, he would finally do something fitting as the teacher of the hero training. Needless to say, he was looking forward to what they were about to do. Furthermore, he wanted to surprise his students and that''s why he just left a few crumbs here and there so they won''tpletely guess what''s about to happen.

    "CHOTTO!!! Is that what I think it is?!" Midori screamed as soon as a huge structure of a building came to view. Pressing his face against the windows to the sides of the school bus, he leaned in to get a better view and to confirm that it was really the ce he knew. A gasp left his mouth as he was assured that the ce was really the real deal. With pupils dting, he stole a nce towards everyone''s general direction before assessing what they were about to do there.

    The structure was like a huge concrete dome with windows that filled every surface of it. From a distance, one could see that there were shing lights inside and amotion of screaming people could be heard. At first nce, Satoshi thought that maybe the ce was something where people with superheroes party... but after thinking about it, he remembered a certain ce where an incident of a superhero dying was reported.<sub> </sub>

    The Concrete Arena.

    With all sides filled with concrete, the arena is the very epitome of a diator''s battlefield. Since there werews regarding fight-to-the-death matches, the Concrete Arena is one of the few ces on Earth where superheroes could fight to the death¡ª well, not really. Before, that was a thing but now that the Concrete Arena is affiliated with the USA, there are a lot of medical experts in it monitoring the entire situation just in case some superheroes go amok. This is one of the few ces where fighting superheroes is legal. Ever since that incident, no one had reportedly died in the Concrete Arena which is somewhat a good thing. But then again, the fights in the Concrete Arena are the real deal, and it is probably one of the few violent ces on Earth when ites to superhero shes.

    "The Concrete Arena," Satoshi said under his breath.

    "Yeah, that! Said to have been built five decades ago by world-renowned engineers, they''ve specifically designed the ce to be indestructible so superheroes could have the freedom to unleash their maximum potential in fights. There had only been one superhero who had died during one of the matches here in all of its history. This is pretty much an urban legend when ites to superheroes due to how rich it is in history. It was even said that this is the reason why the SAO was founded¡ª because there need to bews and people monitoring the superheroes. But why are we here? Are we scheduled to have a match?"

    "No, you''re here for something else." Knighthawk said. "Don''t worry, I won''t let you watch the other matches where blood and gore is disyed. There are better arena stages in there where more casual fights are held. We''re attending one of them right now, so don''t worry. You won''t be fighting anyone, at least, not today." Knighthawk continued. "I brought you here because I need you to watch some of the few matches from your upperssmen."

    "Ah, you mean third and fourth years from other schools? I did hear about rumors that if you''re powerful enough, you can make easy money in the Concrete Arena. Who would''ve thought that someone took that seriously." Midori contemted, wondering just how much they were earning in a day. "But then again, if I wanted to save up a lot of money in a snap of a finger, I''d have done the same thing. So who are we spectating, Knighthawk-sensei?"

    "Oh, that. We''ll be watching a pretty popr figure. Her name is Plume, and yes, she''s a fourth-year at our school."

 Chapter 43 Concrete Arena, Professor Y

    There was no need for introductions when Knighthawk talked about the one and only Plume. After all, among all the fourth-years in the whole of Tokyo, she could very well be the most popr of them all. Not only is she a top model of a very popr fashion magazine, she''s also an actress and one of the top-ranking fourth-year in all of Tokyo. With her superpower ''Feather'', she is proficient in both offense and defense and there aren''t a lot of superheroes who can best her in a one-on-one. Well, she''s only the daughter of two of the most renowned superheroes in history, Wingman and WingWoman. Aside from their anticlimactic and mediocre names, they''re a force to be reckoned with since they''ve mastered the arts of air maneuvers and flight. They were even nicknamed ''The Angels of Tokyo'' back in the day since their wings were of pure, pristine white color. The only thing missing in their outfit is a halo on their head and that would pretty muchplete their image.

    Aside from having inherited her parents'' affinity to the air, she also got a wild mutation in her Alpha Gene, which made her wings a lot more flexible¡ª this means she can hover, unlike her parents who can only fly backward and forward. And not only that, her feathers are made of an unknown material that is pretty much indestructible and they could even detach from her wings. Also, she can control every feather in her possession, using it as a shield, as a weapon, or as a projectile when the situation calls for it. In her recent interview, she revealed that she could precisely control every feather she has, which is insane considering that she''s still young and she already has mastery over her superpower.

    To add icing to the cake, she''s currently the undefeated champion of the Casual Division in the Concrete Arena. No one could beat her and her streak has no chance of ceasing. This is also where she got the nickname ''Plume'' which is just another term for bird plumage.

    "And you know, she even won the most beautiful girl in a popr ranking section of the same magazine. She''s unstoppable. Imagine having maxed-out stats in both attack and defense, not to mention she looks like a goddess. Sigh~ us normal superheroes won''t even be able to hold a candle to her." Midori didn''t stop telling everyone all the information he knew about Plume. He spoke non-stop until the school bus finally stopped and then it was time for them to queue up to enter the Concrete Arena.

    No one knows why it''s called the Concrete Arena and no one wondered why it was so. Someone probably just called it that way when it was first built and the name was stuck to it. As the group approached the Concrete Arena, they realized that it was much more gargantuan in sizepared to when they viewed it from the school bus windows. It''s pretty much a mountain with who knows how many floors.

    "Excuse me, sir, but children aren''t allowed here. Do you have a¡ª " The guard started.

    "Oh, we''re here as a special guest. Look there on the schedule... yep, that one right there, the United Superheroes Academy reservation." Knighthawk said with utmost confidence since he personally knew the owner of the Concrete Arena. Well, no one actually knows what his real name is but everyone knows him as Don Quixote, from a popredic novel that was popr back in the day.

    "Pleasee in, sir. The elevator is right by the right side of the hallway. You don''t have to click on any floors since it would direct you to the floor where you needed to go. Floor 12, Casual Division, right?"

    "Right."

    The exchange between Knighthawk and the guard was stopped short as another usher escorted everyone to a nearby elevator which would supposedly bring them to the right floor where they were heading.<sub> </sub>

    "Remember, this is sort of like an official arena match or something like that. So you better not cause any trouble. Also, there''s this thing called ''Choose Your Legends'' going on in the Concrete Arena. It''s sort of like an ongoing tradition where the challenger gets to choose his or her legends and then they can fight against each other. Same rules, same prize, you know how it is. It''s like an impromptu official match, except the rewards are the same as in an official match. The name came from a certain game and they hold the same event every year for their yers. I don''t know why the Concrete Arena didn''t get a copyright strike but then again, it''s as popr as the game so¡ª oh, we''re here."

    Right when Knighthawk finished talking, the elevator dinged and they were greeted by a spacy hallway with a red carpet that led to the center of the building where the fights take ce. A crowd of spectators was already present, hoarding the first row seats so they could get a better look at the Plume and her legendary fight. Ever since she entered the ring in the Concrete Arena for the Casual Division, she had never lost a fight. And because of that, people from around town would gather more and more to watch her fights, wondering when her reign will end as the undefeated. Also, the other reason why the first row seats were filled up was that there''s a ''Choose Your Legends'' event in this fight. And that means Plume would choose a random superhero to go against her in a random fight. Usually, when ites to other participants and their ''Choose Your Legends'' event, they would choose a weaker superhero than themselves, resulting in a fight so anticlimactic that the other people would basically leave the show. But it is an entirely different case for Plume. She would always challenge someone better than her and still win by the skin of the teeth. That''s why she easily became a popr fighter in the Concrete Arena.

    "You can all sit here. This is the second row so the view is not that greatpared to the front seats but it''s still a great view nheless. Besides, all of you wouldn''t even be able to enter here if it weren''t for the school nning this excursion for our hero training. I practically had to beg the principal for it." Knighthawk shuddered at the thought since the Principal is one scary being.

    ''Plume, huh,'' Satoshi said to himself as he seated himself beside Kuroe and Shiroi¡ª well, more like he didn''t really care where he sat but before he knew it, Kuroe and Shiroi were seating on both her side. A violet-haired girl sat beside Kuroe and from time to time she would nce at Satoshi. However, Satoshi didn''t notice it so he didn''t really bring up the topic. "I''ve seen her before. If I were to grade her superpower, I guess it would fall perfectly in a 9.5 out of 10 ratings, much like Hiroshi''s superpower. However, it''s not like she doesn''t have any weaknesses. If someone were to use projectiles much better than her, then she would easily lose. Her body is not that durable either so I don''t think she could tank that many hits without her superpower. If she were to go up against my mom or dad she would easily lose, hands down. And if there was someone out there with the superpower to nullify another, then it woulde down to how great you are when you fight physically."

    Satoshi was talking to himself and making notes in his notebook as he realized that everyone was already shouting Plume''s name. A few secondster, Plume entered the arena like an angelic fighter. She wore light armor consisting of a breastte and faulds which are both stylish and it matched the short white dress she was wearing. Her wings shone a slightly silvery color which matched the color of her armor. Since her eyes couldn''t be seen from her helmet that had wings on its side, no one noticed that she scanned the audience before stepping forward.

    ''Satoshi? Why is he here? Isn''t he still a teenager?! What is he doing here?'' Plume asked herself but she didn''t think that much about it after seeing Knighthawk and the entire ss 3-1 with him. Right now, she should focus on her uing fight. After all, she has a title to defend.

    And then she came across a good idea that would have to wait forter. With a smile on her face, she stepped into the arena and posed to signify that she was prepared to fight.

    And that''s when the next challenger stepped up into the arena... not really, he didn''t really walk into the arena, more like he rolled towards it with his wheelchair and then floated up to step foot on the arena. "Why are there stairs going to the arena? There should''ve been a tform for wheelchairs or something." Heined, scratching his head which is as bald as an egg.

    "Professor Y? What are you doing here?!" This time, it was Plume who was caught off-guard. After all, her next opponent is not only a licensed and professional superhero, he''s also one of the renowned teachers of the United Superheroes Academy.

 Chapter 44 Choose Your Legends

    <strong>Previously... </strong>

    There was no need for introductions when Knighthawk talked about the one and only Plume. After all, among all the fourth-years in the whole of Tokyo, she could very well be the most popr of them all. Not only is she a top model of a very popr fashion magazine, she''s also an actress and one of the top-ranking fourth-year in all of Tokyo. With her superpower ''Feather'', she is proficient in both offense and defense and there aren''t a lot of superheroes who can best her in a one-on-one. Well, she''s only the daughter of two of the most renowned superheroes in history, Wingman and WingWoman. Aside from their anticlimactic and mediocre names, they''re a force to be reckoned with since they''ve mastered the arts of air maneuvers and flight. They were even nicknamed ''The Angels of Tokyo'' back in the day since their wings were of pure, pristine white color. The only thing missing in their outfit is a halo on their head and that would pretty muchplete their image.

    Aside from having inherited her parents'' affinity to the air, she also got a wild mutation in her Alpha Gene, which made her wings a lot more flexible¡ª this means she can hover, unlike her parents who can only fly backward and forward. And not only that, her feathers are made of an unknown material that is pretty much indestructible and they could even detach from her wings. Also, she can control every feather in her possession, using it as a shield, as a weapon, or as a projectile when the situation calls for it. In her recent interview, she revealed that she could precisely control every feather she has, which is insane considering that she''s still young and she already has mastery over her superpower.

    To add icing to the cake, she''s currently the undefeated champion of the Casual Division in the Concrete Arena. No one could beat her and her streak has no chance of ceasing. This is also where she got the nickname ''Plume'' which is just another term for bird plumage.

    "And you know, she even won the most beautiful girl in a popr ranking section of the same magazine. She''s unstoppable. Imagine having maxed-out stats in both attack and defense, not to mention she looks like a goddess. Sigh~ us normal superheroes won''t even be able to hold a candle to her." Midori didn''t stop telling everyone all the information he knew about Plume. He spoke non-stop until the school bus finally stopped and then it was time for them to queue up to enter the Concrete Arena.

    No one knows why it''s called the Concrete Arena and no one wondered why it was so. Someone probably just called it that way when it was first built and the name was stuck to it. As the group approached the Concrete Arena, they realized that it was much more gargantuan in sizepared to when they viewed it from the school bus windows. It''s pretty much a mountain with who knows how many floors.

    "Excuse me, sir, but children aren''t allowed here. Do you have a¡ª " The guard started.

    "Oh, we''re here as a special guest. Look there on the schedule... yep, that one right there, the United Superheroes Academy reservation." Knighthawk said with utmost confidence since he personally knew the owner of the Concrete Arena. Well, no one actually knows what his real name is but everyone knows him as Don Quixote, from a popredic novel that was popr back in the day.

    "Pleasee in, sir. The elevator is right by the right side of the hallway. You don''t have to click on any floors since it would direct you to the floor where you needed to go. Floor 12, Casual Division, right?"

    "Right."

    The exchange between Knighthawk and the guard was stopped short as another usher escorted everyone to a nearby elevator which would supposedly bring them to the right floor where they were heading.

    "Remember, this is sort of like an official arena match or something like that. So you better not cause any trouble. Also, there''s this thing called ''Choose Your Legends'' going on in the Concrete Arena. It''s sort of like an ongoing tradition where the challenger gets to choose his or her legends and then they can fight against each other. Same rules, same prize, you know how it is. It''s like an impromptu official match, except the rewards are the same as in an official match. The name came from a certain game and they hold the same event every year for their yers. I don''t know why the Concrete Arena didn''t get a copyright strike but then again, it''s as popr as the game so¡ª oh, we''re here."

    Right when Knighthawk finished talking, the elevator dinged and they were greeted by a spacy hallway with a red carpet that led to the center of the building where the fights take ce. A crowd of spectators was already present, hoarding the first row seats so they could get a better look at the Plume and her legendary fight. Ever since she entered the ring in the Concrete Arena for the Casual Division, she had never lost a fight. And because of that, people from around town would gather more and more to watch her fights, wondering when her reign will end as the undefeated. Also, the other reason why the first row seats were filled up was that there''s a ''Choose Your Legends'' event in this fight. And that means Plume would choose a random superhero to go against her in a random fight. Usually, when ites to other participants and their ''Choose Your Legends'' event, they would choose a weaker superhero than themselves, resulting in a fight so anticlimactic that the other people would basically leave the show. But it is an entirely different case for Plume. She would always challenge someone better than her and still win by the skin of the teeth. That''s why she easily became a popr fighter in the Concrete Arena.

    "You can all sit here. This is the second row so the view is not that greatpared to the front seats but it''s still a great view nheless. Besides, all of you wouldn''t even be able to enter here if it weren''t for the school nning this excursion for our hero training. I practically had to beg the principal for it." Knighthawk shuddered at the thought since the Principal is one scary being.

    ''Plume, huh,'' Satoshi said to himself as he seated himself beside Kuroe and Shiroi¡ª well, more like he didn''t really care where he sat but before he knew it, Kuroe and Shiroi were seating on both her side. A violet-haired girl sat beside Kuroe and from time to time she would nce at Satoshi. However, Satoshi didn''t notice it so he didn''t really bring up the topic. "I''ve seen her before. If I were to grade her superpower, I guess it would fall perfectly in a 9.5 out of 10 ratings, much like Hiroshi''s superpower. However, it''s not like she doesn''t have any weaknesses. If someone were to use projectiles much better than her, then she would easily lose. Her body is not that durable either so I don''t think she could tank that many hits without her superpower. If she were to go up against my mom or dad she would easily lose, hands down. And if there was someone out there with the superpower to nullify another, then it woulde down to how great you are when you fight physically."

    Satoshi was talking to himself and making notes in his notebook when he realized that everyone was already shouting Plume''s name. A few secondster, Plume entered the arena like an angelic fighter. She wore light armor consisting of a breastte and faulds which are both stylish and it matched the short white dress she was wearing. Her wings shone a slightly silvery color which matched the color of her armor. Since her eyes couldn''t be seen from her helmet that had wings on its side, no one noticed that she scanned the audience before stepping forward.

    ''Satoshi? Why is he here? Isn''t he still a teenager?! What is he doing here?'' Plume asked herself but she didn''t think that much about it after seeing Knightahwk and the entire ss 3-1 with him. Right now, she should focus on her uing fight. After all, she has a title to defend.

    And then she came across a good idea that would have to wait forter. With a smile on her face, she stepped into the arena and posed to signify that she was prepared to fight.

    And that''s when the next challenger stepped up into the arena... not really, he didn''t really walk into the arena, more like he rolled towards it with his wheelchair and then floated up to step foot on the arena. "Why are there stairs going to the arena? There should''ve been a tform for wheelchairs or something." Heined, scratching his head which is as bald as an egg.

    "Professor Y? What are you doing here?!" This time, it was Plume who was caught off-guard. After all, her next opponent is not only a licensed and professional superhero, he''s also one of the renowned teachers of the United Superheroes Academy.

    <strong>>>>> Chapter 44</strong>

    When ites to the SAO ranking, people only care about the top ten. That''s why even though Professor Y is a formidable superhero, he never got the recognition he deserves since he''s only in the top twenties. The ranking from top 20 to 11 is quite differentpared to the top ten since there could be hundreds of top 11 or top 12, all the way to top 20. The only thing you need to do in order to enter the ranks and receive an official number is to defeat someone from that rank and you''ll easily gain a rank higher than them. And if someone beats you from your current rank, you''ll then move a rank lower and would have to defeat another one of a higher rank to climb up. This system makes it so that superheroes would asionally challenge each other and improve¡ª an iron sharpening iron process.<sub> </sub>

    That''s why when the moment Professor Y entered the arena, not only is he risking his reputation as a top twenty superhero, he''s also risking his rank since he''d certainly lose it if he loses the match. However, he had to undergo the match if they were to teach a valuable lesson to their students. And also, the principal personally told him to fight Plume so he doesn''t really have a choice whatsoever.

    After heaving a sigh, Professor Y rxed in his wheelchair while looking at Plume who was certainly panic-stricken due to the unexpected situation. Who would''ve thought that her next match would be with a superhero that''s in the top twenty?

    "Begin!" An automated voice screamed all throughout the arena and so the match began before both parties could catch a break.

    Professor Y didn''t hesitate. In a split second, he disappeared from where he was and reappeared by the edge of the arena, taking a portion of it and throwing it at Plume. At that moment, a series of hardened silvery feathers stuck itself on the ground where Professory Y was. It was obvious that the feathers belonged to none other than Plume and just like Professor Y, she also thought of executing a surprise attack but neither was unsessful.

    Plume flew upwards just before the debris hit her. She was as calm as an owl in assessing the situation since she knew that she couldn''t panic in front of Professor Y. One wrong move and she''ll certainly lose.

    Just when she was elerating upwards, the debris which wasing straight at her suddenly appeared on top of her, almost hitting her squarely on the face. Fortunately, she was wearing a helmet and so she charged straight through.

    Suddenly, Professory Y was on top of the debris, delivering a blow from his hand that would decimate Plume in one hit. In that split of a second, Plume managed to defend herself with her wings, which resulted in Professor Y receiving all the recoil damage and sending him out of the arena. In that instant, Professor Y knew that he''d lose and so he decided to do a somewhat illegal move... or at least, it is illegal when ites to fights with superheroes.

    In an instant, he changed positions with Plume so that it would be Plume who''d be out of bounds. But the moment he did so, he hit his head on the arena, knocking him out in an instant.

    It was as in as day that the fight ended in a draw¡ª the first ever draw in Plume''s record, much to her disappointment.

    "A DRAW!" The automated voice announced once again as if it was the most disappointing thing in the world and the people were also groaning as if they wanted something more.

    Plume went to the center of the arena as if she was dismayed by herself. Who would''ve thought that experiencing a draw would have such a huge impact on her? She wanted to throw hands with someone, anyone, just to get rid of the anger welling up within. And if she were to do something like that, she wanted her opponent to feel her rage and lose in a traumatic manner.

    She locked eyes with everyone in the audience trying to find the best punching bag there is. In the front seat, she could see a bunch of superheroes she''d fought before. She could see their burning rage reflected into their eyes as if they were looking for a rematch¡ª well, they really were looking for a rematch since they''ve already lost way too many times against her.

    But then she saw a familiar face¡ª the face of the perfect punching bag. She smiled to herself and raised her hand, pointing towards a certain someone in the audience. That someone wasn''t even paying attention to her since he was looking towards the distance, preupied with some thoughts in his mind. A girl beside her then nudged her with her shoulder and that''s when he realized that he was chosen as a Choose Your Legends candidate.

    He nced left and right, thinking that Plume was just mistaken. He even had to double-check behind him but to his surprise, there was no one there. Plume was really pointing at him, choosing him out of everyone in the audience.

    "Me? Haah?!" Satoshi screamed, shrugging towards Plume as if she was joking. But then, her smile grew wider as if she was looking forward to the match. Two men in uniforms then approached Satoshi without talking another word. Without further ado, they grabbed Satoshi by the shoulders and led him to the waiting room. "Wait, what?! Is this for real?!" He asked a second time but no one seemed to listen to him. Even Midori and the others were just waving at him, wishing him to break a leg or something of the sort.

    Downstairs, Satoshi was led towards one of the waiting rooms where he''d supposedly prepare for his fight. By that time, he decided to not talk about it anymore and he just summoned Dex from somewhere, speaking to him through his thoughts toe over and help him with the fight. Of course, since Dex is connected to his mind, he didn''t have to exin anything. All he had to do was summon him along with the others. However, he didn''t know how he''d be able to smuggle them inside the Concrete Arena.

    "Wait, Dex, can youe over here alone and leave everyone outside?" He asked aloud.

    Meanwhile, the guards who were waiting for him to prepare (Every Choose Your Legends event would have a preparation time of half an hour so both parties could prepare for the fight. This was recently passed in the Concrete Arena rules since it''s unfair on both parties to fight without mentally preparing themselves.)

    A few minutester, Dexes in inside the room. Satoshi was surprised since Dex was wearing some sort of camouge and this was the first time he''d seen it. "Good thing you''re here. I need something that would enable me to bring everyone in without anyone noticing. Do you have some portable space or something that could help us? Just anything, any ideas?"

    [Running simtions...]

    [Simting possible oues... ]

 Chapter 45 Orb Oboros

    [Running simtions...]

    [Simting possible oues... ]

    [Simting lowered and increased chances...]

    [Finding objects or animals...]

    [Found likely specimens... ]

    The screen on Dex''s monitor seemed to buffer and load a couple more times before it finally stopped and acted like its usual self again. It was clear that it had been running a lot of simtions in its system just so it could guide Satoshi in his next endeavor. He only had thirty minutes to prepare and he knew it''d be much worth it if he were to construct a winning n for the uing trial.

    Without further ado, Dex then lifted one of its mechanical arms and rigidly pointed at Satoshi''s bag. This bag is an important relic for him since he had it ever since he was in elementary and he never thought of recing it. It may have been discolored now but it still had the original aesthetic feel to it as a leather briefcase.

    And when Dex pointed towards its general direction, Satoshi had to blink twice, open his mouth, and ask the word ''what'' a few times before realizing what Dex truly meant. There were no more words to be said, just the understanding that whatever Satoshi will choose in the uing thirty minutes would either make or break him. It was such a valuable thing to him¡ª that bag¡ª but what''s even more valuable than that is sullying the Midoriyama name. Whatever the oue of the fight would be, he knew that he had to put up a fight no matter what.

    Breaking that thought in mind, he closed his eyes and summoned the blue mes on his hands. Once the blue mes touch his briefcase, it would be gone for good, rece with even better storage that would presumably enable Satoshi to store his familiars in one ce without ever worrying about them being too conspicuous wherever he goes. He gulped as sweat dripped between his brows. Time was running out and it''s not like he''s got any choice regarding the situation.

    "Can''t do it... no, besides, it''s not like this briefcase would be gone for good. He''d still remain but he''d have a different form and shape. It''d still be the same precious briefcase I had since I was a kid." Satoshi said to himself, finally touching the briefcase with his blue mes and watching it in half horror and anticipation as it molded itself to a different figure altogether.

    Despite his urges to change his decision, he decided to go through with it with mixed emotions. He remembered the time when his dad first gave him the leather briefcase, telling him to take good care of it since that was one of his responsibilities as an elementary student. Back then he regarded that leather briefcase highly since it was probably one of the most expensive bags he''d ever seen and until now, it''s still a cherished object. Closing his eyes, he underwent the process and he didn''t open his eyes until the process was done.

    Even when he opened his eyes, he still couldn''t get over the fact that the leather briefcase had already changed shape. It became an orb, which is as small as one of them jawbreaker candies. The only difference it had from jawbreakers was that it was pure white with a thin pink line around it which met on the middle of the orb where a button was. If someone were to ask how it looked like, it had a great resemnce to the premiere ball¡ª one of the many types of balls that could catch a monster in a certain popr game.

    "Oh, so now I''m carrying a Pokeball now. This has gotten weirder than expected." Satoshi scratched his head.

    [Satoshi, I''ve sensed that you''ve had a great attachment to that leather briefcase. A simplemand would revert anything to its former state but it won''t undo all the functions that you''ve added to a certain object or beast.]<sub> </sub>

    [In that sense, you can still use the leather briefcase by reverting it to its previous form, and at the same time, you can use it as storage for your familiars. As for me, you don''t have to go through all the trouble of storing me since I can camouge and fly practically anywhere.]

    After saying that, Dex then reverted the leather briefcase back to its former form and shifted it back to its orb form. Because of its abilities and its functionality, Satoshi had decided to call his new familiar with the name of ''Orb Oboros''. Even Dex was weirded out by how Satoshi decided to name his new familiar but he wasn''tining. It was a catchy name and it sets it apart from the other familiars. Besides, being called Orb Oboros is much better than being called Windfan. Long story short, Satoshi''s naming sense had improved by a minuscule amount.

    Finally, Satoshi instructed Dex to carry Orb Oboros with him and go outside so he could smuggle the other familiars in. And five minutester, Dex returned with the whole squad in his pocket. So far, everything''s going as nned and Satoshi felt a bit rxed even though his opponent was undefeated. She did get one draw but technically, that isn''t a loss so she''s still undefeated.

    ...

    "Great! Satoshi is getting the spotlight again." Hiroshi said to himself, shrugging his shoulders while feeling a bit resentful towards his rival. If there was someone in their batch who''s more than deserving to fight the one and only Plume, he knew that it would be him. And yet, for some odd reason, Plume didn''t even think twice about pointing towards Satoshi. It''s as if everything was nned right from the start, which made Hiroshi wonder if Plume was bribed by Satoshi''s parents so he could get more exposure as a hero.

    "Hah~ it''s not like he''s going to win anyway. I mean, that''s Plume we''re talking about here. As much as I wanted Satoshi to win and give our ss more recognition, I know for a fact that he doesn''t stand a chance against such a powerhouse. She''s literally undefeated and mind you, she''s fought her fair share of professional and licensed superheroes so she''s the real deal. Satoshi would just lose face if he were to go through this fight and lose. But then again, I''m kind of curious how he''d be able to fight someone with a skill level more than three times his own." Midori started his chatter once again and there were no signs of him stopping.

    In an instant, the entire crowd of spectators grew silent as Plume entered the stage with an intense aura about her. She had been looking forward to her punching bag for the past thirty minutes that it made her more excited for the uing match. A brief smile stered on her pristine white face as rage burned within her core. At that very moment, she didn''t resemble an angel at all.

    "Just a minu¡ª " Somebody''s voice interrupted the silence that matched the atmosphere around Plume. And then, Satoshi entered the stage with the two guards with him. He was trying to convince them of something but it was painfully obvious that he wasn''t getting through to them. Instead of listening to him, they just continued dragging him towards the arena as if that''s his one and only fate. Satoshi didn''t fight back though, he just let them drag him to the arena since he didn''t want unnecessary trouble right before his fight. It would just waste his precious energy after all.

    Kneeling on the ground, the two guards just had to lift Satoshi just so they''d be able to put him on top of the arena. "I told you, I haven''t finished my sandwich! I still had five minutes, didn''t I? I thought you said I have thirty minutes to prepare?!" Satoshiined.

    "Let''s just... sigh~ you can finish itter. Right now, people are betting on you and they''re looking for a good fight. Of course, the undefeated Plume would win no matter what. Hang in there, buddy." One of the guards said in a friendly manner, which made Satoshi''s nerves calm down for a bit.

    Multiple times, the guard had to do the same thing to other Choose Your Legends candidates since they didn''t want to fight in the first ce. However, one of the most important rules in the Concrete Arena is that anyone who is chosen in that event would have to participate in order for them to get a percentage of the betting pool. If that candidate chooses to give up before the fight even started, then they won''t get a single cent from the betting pool. What a missed opportunity. And that''s why the guards swore to themselves that they would help every candidate not to make any mistakes. Furthermore, it''s obvious that it''s Satoshi''s first time fighting in the Concrete Arena.

    "No way, is he really going to fight her?" Shiroi asked herself but while she did so, Kuroe was already waving her arms and screaming, prodding Satoshi to show them a good fight.

    "BEGIN!" The automated voice announced once again.

 Chapter 46 A Loss

    A sh of light almost blinded Satoshi, making him stumble backward. Being the calm fighter he was, he immediately summoned his Windfan to blow him away from the stage. In a split second, countless metallic feathers stuck on the arena. If he hadn''t listened to his instincts, he would''ve suffered critical injuries that would leave him out ofmission for a few weeks. That''s how it is when ites to fights in the Concrete Arena. Even though this was just the casual division, there''s still a huge chance for someone to get horribly injured, rendering them useless for who knows how long.

    Satoshi dodged Plume''s attack by a hair''s breadth but he wasn''t out of danger yet. The rules of the Concrete Arena states that once you''re out of bounds, you''ll be the loser of the match. That''s why a smile formed on Plume''s lips as he saw Satoshi falling down slowly to his inevitable loss. Although she felt sad that she wouldn''t be able to beat him up, the feeling of victory was more than enough for her to appease her rage.

    But then, Satoshi summoned yet another familiar¡ª his Nailgun¡ª and he rode on it, catching his bnce at thest moment before shooting upward towards the ceiling of the arena. He then started shooting nails at a fast rate, catching Plume off-guard and wounding her with it. Of course, she was able to react quickly and shield herself from the nails that rained down on her, but Satoshi was smarter than her, tactics-wise. He immediately targeted arge space, forcing Plume to spread out her defense since she could tell that every nail could be controlled. This allowed Yuuta to target the gaps between her wings, wounding Plume as the nails hit her.

    ''There was no doubt about it, he has the power to control anything metallic, just like that legendary superhero in the movies.'' Plume thought to herself in frustration. The inflicted shes from the nails caused her to flinch every time but she endured it. So far, Satoshi didn''t have any openings, and adding to that, he''s got the higher ground. She''s totally at a disadvantage here.

    She''s got two choices. One, she can defend as long as she could and that would make the fight drag on until everyone from the audience gets tired of it. Or two, she''ll suffer severe wounds after beckoning her feathers back so she could fly up and engage Satoshi inbat mid-air. If she were to do the former, the most likely scenario would be her losing all her fans after such a loss... or optimistically speaking, they''d just leave the arena and watch her next fight. Or seconds, she could sacrifice her fair skin and let Satoshi attack her with nails as she drops her defenses and goes on the offensive. There''s a small chance that he could pull it off, but somehow she denied it. She couldn''t help but have mixed feelings about her next actions, which forced her to stay where she was while Satoshi continued his onught.

    "I can do this all day, Plume." Satoshi taunted her from above, prompting her to attack instead of hiding behind her shell like a cowardly turtle. Just thisment alone really hit Plume''s nerves but she didn''t drop her defense. Instead, she closed her eyes and listened to the sounds of the Nailgun. She knew that the moment the nailgun stopped firing, that would be her chance to move since it would be reloading. If she misses her chance right now, she''d best just forfeit the match since there''s no chance that she''d be able to win.

    With a grin, she continued her desperate attempt to get out of the sticky situation.

    Click. Click. Click.

    The nailgun seemed to fire even more rapidly than its first wave but once the break was detected, well, it would be an understatement to say that Plume took a break and she managed to regain her position and mercilessly attack Satoshi. From the looks of it, he was fighting much better than normal but then again, he was moving too much so it won''t be too long now before he tires himself out.

    "White Lion, I need some help," Satoshi called for his White Lion this time. As much as he hated to take him out, he was well aware that he was running out of gas. With their minds connected once again, all that Satoshi had to do was tell her how to dodge every Plume''s attack while he catch his breath. It''s like resting and fighting at the same time on autopilot and Satoshi couldn''t get used to the weird feeling.

    "Get down here, Satoshi!" Plume screamed, losing her patience. She''d seen Satoshi fight before during the broadcasted Slime Alien match but now that she''s seeing it right in front of her, she couldn''t believe that such an unknown student would hold so much talent. And not only that, he could use every summoned being as if it was his dominant hand. There was little to no chance that Satoshi will win¡ª but some people from the audience believed that they''d be able to witness something extraordinary today; that they''ll be able to see Satoshi win against the undefeated champion.

    Plume could sense how the spectators were acting and so, she didn''t have any choice but to impress them. If she loses their interest now, then her pay would actually be cut short.<sub> </sub>

    Then something suddenly transpired. While Satoshi was trying to gain space from Plume, she was already charging right at her like a maniac. Her eyes were bloodshot and she was extending her hands as if she was going to strangle him to death. She was also elerating towards Satoshi at a fast rate.

    "Dangerous, very dangerous," Satoshi muttered to himself, summoning yet another familiar from his storage, Orb Oboros. "Go Lighter! You can do it!" He cheered as if he was in a pokemon battle.

    Lighter once again formed two orbs of mes and shot them with incredible energy towards Plume. Little did Yuuta know that Lighter could actually burn Plume''s feathers and she had already lost a couple of them before Satoshi could stop.

    "AARGHH!!!" As Plume felt the burn on her wings, she copsed to the ground and winced in pain. Her feathers were supposed to be indestructible and yet a simple orb of fire managed to burn her aforementioned wings. She knew that it would recover since she had damaged one before and it returned back to normal after a few days,

    "But... I still have a fight tomorrow." Plume''s first thoughtnded on her schedule tomorrow¡ª a schedule that she won''t be able to do since her wings are critically injured¡ª a taste of her own medicine after bringing most of her opponents to the Nurse due to her insane capability of injuring someone.

    Satoshi didn''t know what to do so he stopped his attack altogether and went down the arena. In his haste, he got down out of the arena and rushed towards Plume. He knows howpetitive she could get when ites to superhero fights but he knows deep inside that she''s just a girl three or so years older than her. He would''ve been able to defeat her had he continued his attack and since he has more weapons in his arsenal, it would be a cheat to overwhelm her when all she could do was focus on attack or defense one at a time whereas Satoshi could do both and more simultaneously. It was just a bad matchup and Satoshi felt really bad that he had to do something so unsightly as a superhero.

    "Winner¡ª Plume!" The automated voice announced once again as soon as Satoshi''s foot touched the outside part of the arena. Silence so awkwardly befell the entire stadium as the event sunk in into their minds like a huge tragedy. They were so sure that Satoshi would win... and yet, he relinquished all that glory just because Plume''s wings got a little bit damaged.

    "Eh? What is he doing? He should''ve won that fight!" Hiroshi clicked his tongue as if he was staring at some disgraceful thing. If he were outside, he would''ve probably spat on the sidewalk to further entuate his disappointment.

    "My disappointment is¡ª "

    "I''ll stop you right there, sirs," Midori said, covering Hiroshi''s mouth before he could finish a famous tagline. He then cleared his throat and stood in front of everyone. "ss 3-1, we all know that what Satoshi did might have been disappointing since he was clearly the winner but! Put yourselves in his shoes, suckers. He had defeated the undefeated Plume but even then, he didn''t look down on her as if she was just her enemy. Frankly, if I were him I''d have done the same too. If you see a maiden get hurt and you can do something to ease her pain even just a little bit, wouldn''t you take action? Think about it."

    Having said his part, he heaved a sigh as he returned to his seat and stared at everyone who was on the verge of leaving. They too got back to their seats since their minds took a one-eighty after hearing Midori. Instead of expressing their disappointment, they pped their hands as Satoshi and other medics rushed in towards Plume''s aid.

 Chapter 47 Catching Up

    "Are you doing all right? Sorry, I couldn''t hold back because you were so strong." A sense of guilt filled Satoshi as he slightly bowed his head towards Plume who was admitted to the Concrete Arenan''s clinic after the fight. Her wings were quite burned but a few superheroes specializing in their healing skills were brought over and they did what they could to speed up Plume''s recovery process. They managed toe at such short notice since Plume was actually a popr fighter in the Concrete Arena and they know just how much she''s worth when ites down to it. Usually, with normal superheroes, it might take at least a day or so before these healerse by but it was totally a different case for Plume.

    "Come on, Satoshi, it''s your win, you totally deserved that. And what did you just say, you couldn''t hold back? So you were nning on holding back until the end of the match? You''re hurting my pride, you know." Plume teased, gently punching Satoshi in the gut to signify their reconciliation. "In any case, when did you learn to fight like that? I''ve seen you on the television but you''re certainly stronger than how you were back then. How were you able to do it? And also, what''s your superpower anyways? Summoning different gears and beasts? Are you a summoner? Or perhaps, are you a tamer?"

    "No... I, I don''t know either. But yes, about my superpower... well, it''s sort of like a summoner sh tamer thing. I can''t really exin it yet since I don''t know much about my superpower. I only ever awakened it a few days ago a day before the first day of school."

    "You say all that but you''re already this strong. But then again, it''s true that once you awaken a superpower, you''d be able to control it as if it''s your own arms and legs. I guess it''s true with everyone. After all, I managedpletely master these wings as soon as I was born. Can you believe that?"

    "Of course, why wouldn''t I remember. You used to take us up on that tree, remember? Haah~ I wonder what happened to that tree. That area is already industrialized, right? Too bad, that part of Tokyo was one of the best when ites to pics."

    With a smile on her face, Plume forced herself to sit down on her bed so she could talk morefortably with Satoshi. It''s been so long since theyst caught up with each other and she thought to make the best of it while they were at it. "In any case, how are you doing now in school? Are you having a good time? How are your ssmates? Your teacher, Knighthawk, I heard that he didn''t have any superpower at all. Is he a good teacher? Are you fitting well in school? I''m sorry I couldn''t visit you that often. I was a bit, you know, preupied with stuff."

    "School''s good. Our teacher is kind of weird but he''s doing well for his first time as well. At first, I didn''t know if I''d be able to get in but my superpower awakened the day before and since then, my only worry was not bing an outcast in our ssroom. So far that''s working well. How about you, Elimine-san? Shiroi and I haven''t heard from you ever since you started studying at the United Superheroes Academy. Was it pretty busy as a student?" Satoshi continued.

    "It wasn''t that I was super busy with school... it''s just... you know how it is with me when ites to beingpetitive, right? By the time I realized that I had to hold back and assume a low profile, I was already one of the best in school and before I knew it, I was given more opportunities and responsibilities. Things like being part of the studentmittee, being the president of the student council, and even trying out a few agencies as per the school''s suggestion. I didn''t have any choice since it was my fault that the chain reaction started in the first ce. And so... here I am, in the Concrete Arena, earning a lot of money. You should totally go over to my vi at Jeju. It''s a nice ce overlooking a cliff."

    "Whoa, but isn''t it like... super expensive to get a vi there? That''s nice. I wish I could earn that much money as well."

    "You defeated me in this match. I''m sure you could do it in no time. You know, you''re clearly more talented than I am, as expected of the only son of the Midoriyama duo." Elimine patted Satoshi on her back. "Oh wait, you''re here for the excursion, right? Shouldn''t you go by now?"

    Satoshipletely forgot about the time. The moment Elimine brought up the subject, he realized that he was already runningte. In haste, he stood up, bowed towards his senior, and said his farewell. "Please get well, Elimine-san, I hope you get well soon."

    "Sure! Looking forward to it!" Elimine waved her hand in excitement as she watched Satoshi rush outside. She couldn''t imagine that the boy he used to y with and bully a little back when they were kids would be someone who could overpower her in a fight. "W-what''s this?" She asked herself after seeing her face reddening like a beet.<sub> </sub>

    .....

    Atst, the final Slime alien had been taken care of and it was time for the heroes to return home. Having stopped yet another alien invasion that would for sure go down in the history books, the heroes were just d that it didn''t end up like the previous incident where hundreds of superheroes died. Sure there were at least a dozen casualties during the entire ordeal but it was nothingpared to the victory that they pulled off. It was a time of celebration and every superhero was invited to a grand party. However, only a few said yes since most superheroes wanted to reunite with their families after being gone for three days.

    Every news agency in the world didn''t waste any time interviewing their local superhero and broadcasting it on the television for everyone to listen to their war stories. It became so popr that every video about the alien invasion was a sure hit, even on social media tforms. The reporters clearly depicted that the superheroes were solely responsible for achieving such a victory when in essence, it was Fury''s great leadership that resulted in a triumphant end. Of course, superheroes like Oxgn, Energizer, and taforma were the main core of the superhero army so they received their due credits. And the top heroes also got their spotlight as well.

    <o>,m As for the Midoriyama duo though, who was greatlyplimented due to their performance, they ditched all their interviews just so they could get back home as quickly as they could. While they were fighting back in space, they received the news that their son came face to face with a Slime Alien for the second time and somehow it worried them a little bit. Even though they were well aware that their son could easily handle such an attack, they were also worried that something might''ve gone wrong since it would only take a split second of misjudgment for someone to lose a fight. And to top it all off, it''s not like their son had a lot of experience when ites to all-out fights.</o>

    That''s why as soon as their nended at the Haneda Airport, Tatsuki and Ayumu immediately grabbed their luggage and headed straight outside, stopping a taxi and giving him specific directions leading to a certain residence. It didn''t take an hour before they were right in front of their doorstep. After paying a hefty amount for both the cab fare and tips, the husband and wife hurriedly entered their house, calling out their son''s name¡ªpletely forgetting that he was in school at the moment.

    "Honey, can you go to youtube or something and search our son''s name. I''m sure there will be videos of their fight. It may not be as urate as the hospital records but we should get a better picture of how he''s doing right now." Tatsuki said, heading towards the kitchen to whip up a quick lunch in thete afternoon.

    "Oh, sure. Is there any meat in the fridge? I''d like a heavy lunch before dinner." Ayumu said in her sweet gentle voice, indirectly coaxing her husband to cook what she likes. Well, it''s not like Tatsuki would deny her request though even if she asks it in a different tone.

    "Coming right up," Tatsuki winked, getting two pieces ofmb chops by the freezer and effortlessly tossing it in his hands as he made his way to the cooking area of the kitchen.

    Meanwhile, Ayumu was already typing her son''s name away on youtube...

    "Wait... what''s this?!" She eximed in bewilderment. "Honey!"

 Chapter 48 Realization

    "Wait... what''s this?!" She eximed in bewilderment. "Honey!"

    Ever since they got married, Tatsuki has only ever heard his wife shout twice in her life. A soft-spoken and gentle girl¡ª that''s what Tatsuki fell in love with and since then, he''d already epted every part of her throughout their marriage. Of course, there were times when she wasn''t gentle but being soft-spoken was one of her iparable traits. When Satoshi was born, that was the first time Tatsuki ever heard his wife shout and he was in all sense surprised by it¡ª in a good way of course. After all, Ayumu still had that softspoken-ness even when she reaches that higher pitch, sort of like a whisper but louder. Ever since then, that shout was etched in Tatsuki''s mind. ''If it would take such pain for my lovely wife to shout, then I guess I won''t hear her scream that way anymore.'' He thought to himself.

    But now, just when he was preparing something for dinner, he heard that very same shout¡ª that shout of surprise, this time with a hint of pride and admiration.

    Without further ado, Tatsuki literally dropped everything and ran towards his wife, thinking that something unexinable must''ve happened while she was scrolling through youtube. In those few seconds, as he rushed to his wife''s side, he wondered what his wife could''ve seen on youtube that made her shout like that. Probably a weird video? Or a hrious one? He could only wonder.

    "What is it? What happened?!" Tatsuki almost slurred his own speech by how fast he talked. He immediately sat beside his wife, curious as to what she was watching.

    "Here, look at this," Ayumu said, her voice was back to being as calm as ake on a windless day and as cold as the wintry night. "Isn''t this... "

    "Yeah, that''s the Concrete Arena, yes, specifically the Casual Division stage. Wait... what on¡ª what is Elimine doing there? Isn''t she just a kid? Thest time I saw her she was even promising our Satoshi to marry her when they grow older. What happened to her?"

    "Of course, she grew up. How many years has it been since youst saw her? Ever since she got admitted to the United Superheroes Academy, even Shiroi and the others didn''t hear from her since. In any case, that''s not what I''m talking about, honey. Look!"

    Before Tatsuki could counter-argue that it hasn''t been that long since they saw Elimine, Ayumu clicked on the y button and the fight began ying. Another fighter was present on the other side of the arena, and from the looks of it, he seemed rather familiar. Tatsuki focused on the other figure who managed to cleanly dodge Elimine''s indestructible feathers and he immediately respected the opponent. The opponent then slowed down and stepped on two metallic bs that shot out nails. BY that time, Tatsuki was still looking at the opponent''s feet when he realized what he''d been missing.

    "Ayumu, am I dreaming right now? What is our son doing in the Concrete Arena... and why is he in an official match? Is this even legal? Should we sue the Concrete Arena? We''ll be able to take them on, right?" Tatsuki then pulled out his phone and was already dialing his most trustedwyer when Ayumu stopped him.

    "Why? We have to do this. This isn''t allowed." Tatsuki hissed.

    "No, there''s probably a good exnation for this. Let''s wait until our son gets home so he can exin everything. And look... isn''t he holding himself well against Elimine? When they were young, I''ve always thought that no one would be able to best Elimine san in her generation. Never did I expect that it would be our son who''d be able to do that. Besides, if you look closely at the audience here... here, take a look, honey."

    "Isn''t that... our son''s ssmates? So they also attended the match? What are they doing? Honey, should we report them to their parents?" Tatsuki continued.

    <o>,m "No, look. That''s their homeroom teacher right there. It''s probably a school thing. Otherwise, why would their homeroom teacher do that if he''ll definitely get fired?"</o>

    "Who knows, maybe he wants to be fired and he decided to drag our kids along. Honey, we should take it up to the authorities and tell ourwyers. I''m sure we''ll be able to win the court case."

    "Honey, let''s wait for our son first. We shouldn''t take action before hearing the entire story." Ayumu tried to calm down her husband by grabbing his hands and kissing him on the forehead. "Now, aren''t you cooking dinner for the three of us? Satoshi is bound to get home in a few minutes."

    "Ah, right right." Tatsuki managed to get back to his senses. "Okay, I''ll listen to you, for now, honey, let''s wait until Satoshi exins himself. Also... why did he have to forfeit the match? He was winning! That idiot."<sub> </sub>

    "But... maybe she didn''t want Elimine to lose her winning streak. He did well. In my eyes, he was the one who won that match, and I don''t think Elimine epts the final result. In everyone''s eyes, our son clearly overpowered her, but he didn''t want to totally wound her pride. He probably gave a lot of thought into it."

    Tatsuki didn''t speak any further. He didn''t even notice it but he was smiling as he made his way to the kitchen. Just like his wife, he was actually quite proud of his son for reaching this far even when he just awakened his superpower. Of course, he may be proud but he didn''t want his son to see it too much since that might negatively affect his growth. No matter what happens, Tatsuki told himself that he would strictly guide Satoshi until he bes the best there is.

    .....

    "I can''t believe you managed to defeat the one and only Plume. Are you some sort of a genius? But then again, you''re the son of the famous Midoriyama Duo so I can''t expect less from you. How does your superpower work by the way? I mean, those¡ª what are those, familiars?¡ª they''re pretty strong as it is but you have a lot of them. And it doesn''t seem like you expend energy when you summon them so they''re probably from another dimension or something." Hiroshi went on and on,ying out his theories about how Satoshi''s superpower works.

    Just like any other normal day, no one listened to him.

    "Here''s our stop. Bye Midori, see you tomorrow." Satoshi patted him on the shoulders before the three of them¡ª Shiroi, Hiroshi, and him¡ª exited the bus to their stop. As usual, Hiroshi parted ways with them without another word and Shiroi and Satoshi both went to the same direction.

    "Ah right, your parents and my dad are arriving today, right? Do you think they''ve already returned home? Hopefully, they''re all right." Shiroi worriedly brought up while walking with her head down low.

    "Yeah, they''ll be fine. They''re not top superheroes for nothing, you know. Right about now, my dad''s probably cooking a sumptuous dinner for mom. Who knows, but they''re certainly okay. As for your dad, he might still be in the airport, maybe."

    Satoshi couldn''t believe that he was spending yet another walk home with Shiroi. He didn''t want to show how happy he was being in that situation so he decided to hide his expression while looking up at the sky. It was already nighttime, past the beautiful time of twilight where the skies turn a beautiful grey color. The earliest faintest lights of stars could already be seen, more so since the skies were clear and cloudless.

    "Right! I just remembered something!" Shiroi stopped walking and stared right into Satoshi''s eyes. He flinched, thinking that Shiroi must''ve caught on to his feelings. In his mind, he already prepared a lot of counters as soon as Shiroi brought it up. "That orb you were holding earlier... since when did you have that?"

    "Oh, that? that was Orb Oboros, a new member of the family." Satoshi casually responded, relieved that Shiroi didn''t ask him whether he likes her or not. He then reached into his pocket and grabbed an orb as big as the palm of her hand. "It''s a familiar that can store all the other familiars, more like a storage ring of sorts in RPG games. To be more specific, do you know that old game about pocket monsters? Yeah, this one certainly looks like one of those, right?"

    "Ahh, you mean p**eballs, right? Yeah, it certainly looks like one. That''s quite a handy familiar though. At least your other familiars wouldn''t be as conspicuous as before, especially that lion of yours. It shoots out lighting, right?"

    "Yeah, and then there''s Windfan, that familiar could balloon up in size as well."

    A few minutester, the two arrived by the Yukino''s front door and Satoshi said his goodbye and headed back home. A thought suddenly shed through his mind. "Wait a second... if Dex can tell me what kind of ability my next familiar could get and I could tell him what ability I want... wouldn''t I be able to get every ability I need as a superhero? It wouldn''t be random like before. I could actually choose what kind of ability I''d get when I obtain a familiar!"

    "Isn''t this... kind of insane?!"

 Chapter 49 Merman And Flexor

    On a certain port, a middle-aged man innocently strolled down a wooden path where boats were anchored. He innocently nced around the ce, as if he was looking for something of value. There was a hint of uneasiness in his breathing as anxiousness ate away at his soul. From time to time, a night watch would sh a camera around and he would hesitantly duck to avoid being seen. He didn''t act strangely, however, since that would just attract unwanted attention towards him.

    It was already in the middle of the night, so there shouldn''t be anyone running around the port, but somehow, this middle-aged man was there. He didn''t look out of ce though since he had the clothes of a casual portman. "The shipment should''ve arrived by now... but why is it not here yet? Was there a mistake on the schedule? No, the package has always arrived on time. There shouldn''t be any changes in the time." The man assured himself, walking towards the end of the wooden bridge and looking down.

    "That thing should be here any time now." He continued, staring long and hard at the cold murky waters of the sea.

    Slowly, two glowing orbs appeared right where he was staring. It took him by surprise at first but after sensing the unnatural, he assumed that the ''thing'' he was waiting for had finally arrived and two glowing orbs were probably signals to tell him of theiring. Every bit of anxiousness in his system was gone and he stared closer to the two glowing orbs, which were bing clearer as it neared the surface of the water. "Did they change submarines? But then again, that submarine was too old forfort. They probably prioritized selling those goods to buy themselves a new submarine. Clever."

    By now, the two glowing orbs were resembling someone''s eyes, making the middle-aged man squint his eyes, wondering if he was dreaming. After doing it the second time, however, the two glowing orbs broke the surface of the water and out came a man¡ª well, it was more fish than a man.

    The strange creature''s appearance made the middle-aged man fall over the back of his head where he hit a perfectly fine wooden nk that made up the path. He was unconscious in an instant, making the strange creature scowl at him in confusion. "Sigh~ this is why I don''t want people seeing me." The strange creature said.

    The strange creature had the face of a man, but his body was covered in bright blue and green scales that shone at the slightest reflection of light. His arms had webbings as well, likened to that of duck''s and as for his eyes, it had another set of eyelids, resembling those that belonged to reptiles and amphibians called the nictitating membrane. And where his legs were, a bright-colored tail of a fish reced it, making him look like a certain character straight out of gulliver travels'' fairy tails¡ª a story about a certain being who never left the ocean and wished to walk on the ground. Indeed, it was such a cliche yet interesting story, much like how the strange creature viewed his life.

    Just as he was contemting what to do with the man, the strange creature heard a strange sounding out of the shore. It''s as if the ocean was being sucked into somewhere as the sea level went down and out came a strange bullet-shaped metal that was as long as a six-story building. That strange metalpartment was then dragged to the shore by yet another entity. This time, the entity was that of a regr man, not some strange creature that could turn into bubbles at any given time.

    "Man, you look like a fish out of the water." The manplimented the strange creature who was covering his scales with his arms as if that would do anything.

    "Shut up Flexor, it''s not like I wanted such a superpower. I''ll revert to normal soon so deal with those guys while I wait. Seriously, if it hadn''t been for me swimming around the ce, we wouldn''t have located that submarine." He continued with a slightly pissed tone in his voice.

    "Of course, thank you so much. To think that my disciple actually learned something from my lessons. Our agency is strict when ites to actual missions you know. I''m surprised you were given one this early."

    "You''re not the only one surprised. But then again, the Eye-Goddess specifically told me that I, with the emphasis on the ''I'' part, is the only superhero fit on the job."

    "Yeah right, as if a superhero who goes by the name of Merman would be fit in any other jobs. Just be d that this is water-rted. Otherwise, the Eye-Goddess would have kept you in a little fish tank and disyed you for extra bucks. You know what, there''s a zoo nearby, you should totally apply for a spot. Who knows, they might give you one."

    "Shut up, for a moment I considered doing something so embarrassing. If I did that, they''d probably y the Little Mermaid movie on loop in front of me. I''ll be damned." Merman responded. He didn''t take to heart all of Flexor''s teasings since he''d always been that way ever since his first day at the agency.

    "I just scanned the entire submarine and there are crates on its tail side. I think that''s where they kept the smuggled goods. You should report it to our boss as soon as possible. You know how it with our Eye-Goddess, her and ''waiting'' aren''t allowed to mix."

    Just as they were discussing and confirming the crates on the tail side of the submarine, a figure swooped in from the sky,nding a couple of feet where the two of them were standing and sending dust straight into their eyes. They flinched and desperately tried to get out the sand off their eyes but to no avail.

    "Ah, guys! I''m sorry, I was just¡ª anyway what did I miss?" A cheery voice greeted them.

    "Oh, nothing much. We just caught one of the main submarines of those smugglers." Flexor responded.<sub> </sub>

    "Girl, you should really work on yournding. That stuff would kill my eyes before I expect to be blind." Mermanined.

    "So... what were they smuggling?"

    "You know what Plume, it''s best that you didn''t know. Kids shouldn''t know such a thing, you know." Flexor suggested while Merman nodded too much his head could''ve fallen off if he wanted to. "In any case! What was that... you know, that thing!"

    "Ah yes! That fight! We saw it. Girl, you lost big time." Merman continued Flexor''s words.

    "Oh that, he''s Midoriyama Satoshi, son of the Midoriyama Duo and my childhood friend. I wouldn''t even counter what you said. I really did lose big time. He was just kind enough to give me the win even though I was already down on the ground." Plume shrugged his shoulders.

    Flexor, who was bringing in the crates from the submarines after he turned it around, scratched his chin as he tried to remember something. "Satoshi... Satoshi... Satoshi hmmm? I think I heard that name before. Yeah, I certainly did."

    "You mean when he fought that Slime Alien? Or when he fought another Slime Alien? Or were you talking about when he beat Hiroshi during the initial testing in the USA?" Plume confirmed.

    "Yes, all those... but I heard it from someone else... "

    "Ah! Yes! You''re right! Our boss! Our boss mentioned him a few times before! Remember?" Merman extended his hands and pointed at Flexor. By now, he''s almost returned to normal and his tail has reverted back to two good legs once again.

    "Right right! He told us to scout him for the agency, right? Yeah, no wonder his name sounds familiar. Our Eye-Goddess sure has a good eye though. That kid is a cornucopia of talents rolled into one. Have you seen him fight?"

    "Yeah, he''s got some sort of pet master superpower... one of the most powerful superpowers I''ve ever heard of in my lifetime. Also, he uses it pretty well as well. I swear that kid is a fine addition to our team."

    Plume was looking left and right as she intently listened to Flexor and Merman''s exchange. This was the first time she''s heard about the Eye-Goddess taking interest in Satoshi when she''d never mentioned her before towards her. Or maybe the reason why she never brought it up was that she knew that Plume was somewhat close to the Midoriyamas. That said, she was genuinely surprised that the Eye-Goddess personally scouted Satoshi whereas every single one of them needed some other form of rmendation before even getting the chance of being part of the agency.

    "Wait a second, Flexor, so you mean to tell me that the Eye-Goddess is going to recruit Satoshi?"

    "Yeah, she even changed her mind about sending us to him. She personally went to Satoshi and offered her a spot in the agency." Flexor answered.

    "Unfortunately, the kid t out rejected him. It was such a bruh moment, you know." Merman continued.

    "Eh?!" Plume eximed, she couldn''t express her shock after hearing such a story with its turn of events.

 Chapter 50 A Premonition

    The Heimdall Agency is not only the second biggest agency in Japan, it''s also the most selective when ites to recruiting future members. Unlike the Midoriyama Agency which epts anyone who''s got potential and works with them to unleash the best in their abilities, the Heimdall Agency chooses those with pure raw talent and nurtures them to be top superheroes. That''s why, when ites to epting new members, Heimdall Agency is the hardest one to get into but its members are the cream of the crop. Eye-Goddess makes sure that the standard of the Heimdall Agency would always remain at the top even though they''re just the secondrgest agency.

    And because of that, Elimine found it hard to believe that the Eye-Goddess personally recruited her childhood friend, Satoshi even though it was Eye-Goddess''s vow to not recruit a kid, much less a teenager, in her agency. What was even more surprising was that Eye-Goddess met with Satoshi herself when everyone in the Heimdall Agency received tons of rmendations beforehand before Eye-Goddess approves an audience. Even after all that, there''s still a one in twenty chance of eptance since Eye-Goddess is very particr when ites to superpower. It was even believed that she doesn''t ept identical superpowers because she has different views about the rivalry.

    It didn''t take long before the authorities arrived at the scene of the submarine and the smuggled ''goods'' inside the crate. After talking briefly to the policemen and investigators, Merman and Flexor ushered Plume out of the way since they didn''t want her to know anything about the incident. Even though they''re aware that Plume is already nearing her twenties, they still didn''t want her to know of the reality of the world even when superheroes deal with them all the time. Making sure that she didn''t look back, they made their way out of the area and went to a nearby convenience store to buy some food. Pretty soon, the local news was already covering the crime but it only covered vague details about it.

    Flexor and Merman, however, didn''t know that Plume has incredibly good hearing aside from her superpower. That''s the reason why she didn''t ask about the incident. After all, she could hear the screams and sniffles of the people inside the crates and that''s more than enough to exin everything to her.

    "Wanna eat something?" Merman asked, nudging Plume by the shoulder. He noticed that Plume was deep in thought about something and he decided to distract her.

    "No, I have to go somewhere." Plume responded and without further ado, she jumped upwards and elerated, letting her wings carry her higher until she almost touched the clouds. She looked down and heaved a sigh of calmness before flying over the city of Tokyo. "Did she really¡ª " She trailed off before shaking her head. For now, she opted to enjoy the night view of Tokyo from up above.

    "But we wanted to hitch a ride!" Mermanined upon seeing Plume soar up the sky.

    "I guess we''re walking back to the agency then." Flexor sighed.

    ...

    Ever since she mastered the art of flight (ever since she was a kid) she''d always fly over Tokyo and enjoy the view from up there. After having done that hundreds of times, she still couldn''t get used to the tranquility of the sky. God willing, she''d have stayed right then and there, away from the noise and busyness of life. That''s why flying up here was her form of rxation, and she always does it when there was something on her mind, or when she''s just tired of life overall.

    Aside from her enhanced hearing, she could also see quite well, better than the average human. After all, she has eyes resembling that of birds. At night, as long as there''s a little bit of light around, she''d be able to see the entire area clearly. This enabled her to see Heimdall Agency from up above¡ª a building that''s about twenty stories tall. Compared to the Midoriyama Agency, the Heimdall Agency is almost the same size as it, also rivaling the other in appearance.

    Plume decided to stay in the sky for a few minutes before free-falling towards the Heimdall Agency. She''d always loved free-falling since the agency has a different entrance for her¡ª well, it was just a simple tunnel that leads to the parking area of aircraft but Plume had called dibs on the entrance and she used it ever since. As she approached the tunnel, lights from its sides turned on one by one while she made her way through.

    The entire hangar lit up as soon as she arrived and she walked down the path towards the entrance to the agency. To her surprise, the Eye-Goddess was right there by the entrance, standingpletely still while looking straight ahead, arms crossed. A gentle smile spread across her face as her tensed body rxed for a little before she took light steps towards Plume.

    For one, Plume didn''t know why Eye-Goddess was waiting for her and her first thought was to apologize since she had probably done something wrong. She started retracing all her memories since she got into Heimdall Agency, trying to figure out what she did wrong but she couldn''t think up of anything. Somehow, the Eye-Goddess was intimidating her without cause, and it made her utterly nervous.<sub> </sub>

    "As expected, I knew you''d return tonight." The Eye-Goddess gently spoke, now that she was right in front of Plume. "I''ve been waiting for five minutes though since I didn''t want to miss your arrival."

    "Pardo¡ª er I mean, ma''am, why did you wait for me? Do you have something important to tell me?" Plume could tell that the Eye-Goddess was acting rather suspiciously but she couldn''t tell her that directly so she just had to confirm if the Eye-Goddess is really going to talk to her about something.

    "Yes, pleasee with me," Eye-Goddess said, turning around and heading back to the entrance of the agency where two burly men posted as guards opened the entrance for them and slightly bowed their heads in silence.

    Quite frankly, Plume was caught off-guard since this was the first time the Eye-Goddess personally spoke to her and it was right when she wanted to ask her about something. This was a surreal moment for her so she couldn''t really talk much. When she was flying through the tunnel that leads to the entrance, she had a lot of questions in mind but now that she was in the moment, she couldn''t utter a single word. All that she could do was follow the Eye-Goddess as meekly and as quietly as she could, just like a puppy who knew that it''s done something terrible.

    "I presume you have a question to ask of me, don''t you?" Eye-Goddess spoke with such a clear and tranquil tone that Plume almost choked on her saliva due to nervousness. "Well, why don''t you ask me such a question to break the ice? I mean, I already knew what you''re going to ask about me but I''d prefer hearing it from you personally."

    Plume nodded her head and thought of a better way to ask her question. She was put under pressure, of course, since she didn''t want Eye-Goddess to wait and she also didn''t want to offend her by asking such a tactless question. In the end, she stuck with the simple version, hoping that that would be much satisfactory to her. "Um... did you recruit Satoshi personally for the Heimdall Agency? I heard it from Merman and Flexor and I was just curious."

    A smile stered on Eye-Goddess''s face as soon as Plume asked her the question. "I see. In my vision, I heard you asking the same question but the wording and tone were quite... rude. But I guess you''ve had enough time to think things through that you''ve asked me it quite differently."

    "And yes, I really am keen on recruiting Midoriyama Satoshi in our agency. You''ve seen how he fights, right? You really lost that match didn''t you?" Eye-Goddess patted Plume on the shoulder, trying to console her a little bit since the discussion might''ve hit a sore spot.

    Plume wasn''t offended at all at thement though and she just nodded her head. "Yes, he''s a childhood friend of mine and he recently awakened his ability. Is it some sort of pet master or tamer superpower? I thought that those superpowers could only use animals. He could''ve gotten his familiars from other dimensions which made him pretty powerful."

    "You''re not wrong and you''re not correct either. Satoshi has been given a gift that far surpasses your imagination. You probably haven''t seen it but his superpower is something that could change the world in either a good or bad way. That''s why I wanted to recruit him, to save him from the burden of putting the earth on his shoulder."

    "What do you mean, ma''am?"

    "You see, I''ve had a vision... and if things were to transpire the way it is seen... then Satoshi might either be humanity''s hope, or humanity''s downfall. I''m recruiting him in hopes that he''d be the former and not thetter."

 Chapter 51 Promised Recruitment

    Eye-Goddess then went on to exin how her visions were all rted to Satoshi growing up. "But I can only portions of it so I don''t know what would really transpire one moment after another in the future. But from what I could gather... without the proper guidance and influence, he''s bound to be a monster¡ª a monster that would soon change the world''s views on superpowers and superheroes as a whole. His parents, Tatsuki and Ayumu, were both my mentors before and I''ve never beaten them in any fights. I was under their agency for a good amount of years and I''ve learned what I can about overpowered superheroes. They really stand on a whole new level and they couldn''t help but look down on everyone who has a portion of their talent. Plume, this may sound crazy in all sense but believe me when I say that... Satoshi could easily kill any superhero if he were left on his own devices. He would be so powerful that... not even his parents¡ª who are the number one and two superheroes in the entire SAO¡ª could stop him."

    Bewilderment gued through Plume''s mind while she listened to Eye-Goddess''s monologue. Although she didn''t want to believe that everything the Eye-Goddess said was true, she knew to herself that she was speaking at least some truth in her words. After all, she''d experienced fighting Satoshi first-hand and there was no way she could beat him even though she was undefeated in the Casual Division. And furthermore, Satoshi is still just a kid, fresh in high school, who knows what could happen once he starts learning about superheroes in the field when he''ll be assigned to missions under an agency.

    Plume was left quiet for a moment, digesting everything that Eye-Goddess told her so she could appropriately respond. In her mind, she could also tell that the Eye-Goddess would be the best mentor for Satoshi since she could read into the future. If there will be bad decisions that can be prevented, then Eye-Goddess is capable of it. And now that it''s already emphasized in Plume''s mind how scary Satoshi could get because of her power, then she was even more convinced that Eye-Goddess should take him under her wing.

    "Then... should I ask him personally about it?" Plume volunteered, her voice cracking with concern to both Satoshi and the world.

    "Yes, if it wouldn''t be a bother to you, then please rmend me to your childhood friend, Satoshi. I would be more than happy to guide him on the right path and I myself know that I''m capable of doing it as someone who could see into the future." When Eye-Goddess said that, she wasn''t ted at all when Plume volunteered. Instead, she was worried, because she could tell that Satoshi could easily overpower her if he wanted to. However, if the safety of the entire world hangs in the bnce, then she concluded that she had to do it. After all, no one else would step up except her.

    "I will try to talk to him tomorrow, ma''am. I don''t think he''ll be able to reject your offer if I told him that you''re rmending yourself to be his mentor. I mean, any superhero who hears that from you would easily ept without asking any questions whatsoever."

    ? "Thank you so much... and hopefully, my exnation answered every cloud of doubt in your mind. I''m assuming you rushed over here to inquire about Satoshi, no?" Eye-Goddess said with a gentle smile while patting Plume on the head. Without saying another word, she turned around and quietly walked down the hallways towards her personal office. She expected great things from Plume, and Plume could tell that everything relies on her based on their conversation.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    Satoshi enjoyed every bit of time he had in the school bus after Midori was dropped off at a nearby stop. For once, there was peace and quiet and he even thought of taking a nap. However, he didn''t want to drool in front of Shiroi so he suppressed the urge to nap and just sat quietly instead. Throughout the entire trip, no one brought up the topic of Satoshi''s match against Plume for fear that it would offend him. After all, he was supposed to win but he let his guard down upon seeing his childhood friend suffering. They concluded that Satoshi was deeply affected by his loss that they didn''t talk about it. Unbeknownst to them, however, Satoshi was just thinking about all the possibilities of his superpower and that''s the reason why he was unusually quiet.

    Fidgeting, Kuroe and Shiroi both have the same impulse to console Satoshi after seeing his initial expressions. But due to the heavy clouds that seemed to hang above Satoshi''s head, the couldn''t say anything to him and so the bus was filled with uneasiness and anxiousness. While all those were happening, Satoshi was thinking of every superpower he could think of that he could add into his arsenal. He also took note of how long he''d have to use his familiar in order to achieveplete mastery over it.

    Of course, he also took into ount his previous familiars and how he could boost their usefulness by getting other familiars in his inventory. If he''d be able to utilize every familiar to the fullest while adding more and more to his wide range of ''superpowers'' then he could easily be the most powerful superhero in the world¡ª or so that''s what he thought in his mind.

    Until the end of the trip, no one spoke to Satoshi about the match. In fact, there was a heavy silence on the school bus until Satoshi arrived home. He didn''t even say goodbye since he was too engrossed in his thoughts. The only time he came back to his senses was when he entered their house and the sweet aroma of roastmb wafting in the air. That''s when he realized that his parents were back home and he''d finally enjoy one of his dad''s best dishes due to some sort of unknown asion.<sub> </sub>

    "Satoshi," Ayumu firmly said but her voice came out as gentle as the cool summer breeze.

    "Wee back mom, dad, how was the Space War? Was everyone all right?" Satoshi asked. His expression a split second ago was that of seriousness but when he saw his mom and dad, his expression shifted into a vibrant and cheerful one as he approached his mom and hugged her, and kissed her on the forehead. He also briefly hugged his dad in the kitchen before returning to the sofa.

    "No, before all that, we have to talk to you about something," Ayumu said the second time after her beckon was ignored.

    "Yeah, you''ve got some exining to do, mister." Tatsuki shook thedle he used for basting themb. He then set up the table and called for all of them to sit. "Come, let''s talk about it during dinner."

    Quite frankly, this was the first time Satoshi heard his mom talk like that. For a moment, he was a bit curious as to what they were concerned about but he put it at the back of his head since the fragrance of the roastedmb was divine. For that reason, he initially ignored his mom, and then came his dad, telling him that he had to exin some things.

    At first, Satoshi thought that his parents were referring to his fight against the Slime Alien. ''They probably wanted to know the full details of the fight since the reporters only captured a small part of it'' He said in his mind as they gathered around the table. But what he didn''t know was that his parents were actually talking about his fight in the Concrete Arena. After all, children below the age of 18 aren''t allowed to enter the Concrete Arena. Of course, in the video, it was shown that they were with Knighthawk¡ª their homeroom teacher in school¡ª but that still didn''t fully exin what the situation was about and so Ayumu wanted to hear it straight from her son''s mouth.

    "What''s this?" Ayumu asked, showing the video on her tablet. The fightsted only two minutes and yet it already had more than six hundred million views on the inte. It was even number one on trending on youtube locally.

    "Wait... that was¡ª " Satoshi began, almost choking on the piece of roastedmb he was putting in his mouth. After making sure that it made its safe way to his stomach, he took a few sips of water before exining to his mom and dad about the excursion.

    ...

    A few minutester.

    "Oh, so that exins it," Tatsuki said, he was enjoying the story that he was already on his second piece of roastedmb. "Don''t worry honey, I don''t think a school excursion is that unsupervised. It was even shown that one of the teachers in school personally fought with Plume to show the students what a fight between superheroes is like. I think they''re ready for such a lesson since they''ll be choosing their agency soon."

    "Speaking of agencies... Satoshi, have you chosen an agency already? Are you sure you don''t want to go to our agency?" Ayumu concernedly asked her son, leaning in to get a little bit of a dramatic effect.

 Chapter 52 The Dream

    Satoshi has ns to join their agency as soon as hees of age. Before, he wanted to support both his parents in some of their missions while working under them. That was his initial n since he didn''t really have a superpower back then. But now that his superpower could rival any superpower known to man, he could tell that he could do anything if he decides to do it. He didn''t want to be tied down to any agency so he could be free when ites to decisions. Whenever an incident urs, an agency would always contact the nearest hero or contact their most suitable hero for the job. Satoshi didn''t want that. He wanted to have the freedom to choose which missions he wanted to do. He didn''t want the uncertainty of the type of missions that would be given to him...

    And if he were to join an agency, it would just cause unnecessary rivalry since he''s sure that the head of the agency would give any mission he wants just because he''d be able to do it. What if someone wanted that mission for himself or herself but Satoshi stole it right under him? And what if that someone had connections with criminals like superhero killers or huge gangs that could very well overpower anyone in a fight? Satoshi shuddered just thinking about it.

    In any case, even if his mindset about his potential as a superhero has changed, it still didn''t change the fact that he wanted to help both his parents in their mission. After all, it was his lifelong dream to go side by side with his parents as they clear missions or fight superviins/powerful evil groups.

    There was only one thing he could do. However, at this point, he still didn''t have the means to do it so he couldn''t really tell his parents about it. With a sigh under his breath (he didn''t want his parents needlessly worrying about him), he looked up and answered his parent with a casual and somewhat indifferent response. "I''m still thinking about it, but I might join your agency, mom, dad."

    "I see... " Tatsuki dabbed his mouth with a table napkin before clearing his throat. Based on what his son said, he immediately realized what he was implying. He''d known Satoshi ever since his wife gave birth to him so it was only natural that he could tell what his son was thinking. A smile formed on his face. ''After all these years, that diligence and eagerness is still on your blood, huh, son.'' He thought to himself.

    p "So you wanted to build your own agency?" Ayumu suddenly asked, out of the blue, making Satoshi surprised.</anda>

    "Come on, honey, you shouldn''t say that this early. Who knows what could happen in the future." Tatsuki chuckled upon seeing Satoshi''s sudden reaction.

    "B-b-but¡ª how did you know?''

    "We''re your parents, of course, we''d know," Tatsuki said. "Well, just remember that we''ll fully support you as soon as you''re doing it for the good, all right? If you need anything just ask me or your mom. We have a couple of buildings strewn around the city of Tokyo so you could use that as your primary agency. And if you need money or materials, you do know that we don''tck them, right? We''re like the ''batman'' of superheroes, you know.

    Satoshi didn''t know if he''dugh or not. His parents really did know everything about him. And even then, the fact that they were willing to help him with his dream was more than enough to make him tear up.

    .....

    The next day, United Superheroes Academy

    A crowd of students gathered around the school entrance, causing amotion so early in the day. Some of the students who just wanted to get into their ssroom as soon as they can were sucked into the swirling vortex of people moring for Plume''s attention as she stood in the middle with guards surrounding her. She didn''t want to garner any attention to herself but she realized that it would take her a long time if she were to ask the teachers where Satoshi''s ssroom was. She didn''t want to go through the pain of countless interviews from the teachers so she decided to wait by the school entrance until Satoshi showed up.

    Not long after, the school bus that brought ss 3-1 arrived by the entrance of the school. As usual, Satoshi was sitting right at the back of the school bus so he was one of thest persons who noticed the crowd a moment toote. He got out, holding what seemed to be a droplet in his hand that floated atop his palms. "Would this really work?" He asked himself.

    Suddenly, the droplet became frozen ice and it shrunk a few millimeters smaller in radius as if something''s pressurizing it from the outside. Satoshi didn''t know how to use it yet but based on the information Dex gave him, this droplet would be a fine addition to his growing list of familiars. And so, he wanted to test it out as soon as he can. "But how?"

    Suddenly, a figure flew above him and free-fell towards him, making him impulsively step out of the way while letting his droplet go. He still didn''t know what flew in front of him, all he knew is that he had to act fast.

    Unfortunately, his Orb Oboros was still in his bag, and every familiar he has were all in there¡ª well, all except for one.<sub> </sub>

    Without further ado, Satoshi was on the lookout for any liquid. To his surprise, the gardener of the school was nearby so he grabbed his bucket and dipped his Droplet on it. Based on Dex''s information, Satoshi expected the Droplet to work its wonders and connect with the other liquid in the bucket. To his relief, he really felt as if the Droplet had gotten heavier and his mind managed to connect to it so easily as if he''d had that superpower for quite some time now. Suddenly, the water from the bucket floated and rested at the top of his hand like a huge orb of crystal, except the crystal was purely made out of water.

    Before Satoshi could turn around, he swung his hand like a whip and the water orb crashed onto whatever it was that attacked him. The water orb then sshed everywhere and with a snap of a finger, it turned into ice. Just like that, the match was already over and Plume was pinned on the ground, ice all over her body.

    "Wait, I just wanted to talk." Plume sighed, staring into Satoshi''s soul through his eyes.

    In a split second, Satoshi recognized Plume and he immediately withdrew the attack¡ª well, not until everyone saw what happened. Clearly, it was yet another loss for Plume but no one brought it up. The whole crowd just stared in silence, letting the moment sink into their minds.

    "Elimine-san?! What are you doing here?" Satoshi asked, turning the ice into water once again and manipting it back to the bucket of the gardener before he retrieved his new familiar, the Droplet.

    "I was waiting for you, of course." She continued. "Can you fly?" She asked, pointing upwards.

    Quickly, Satoshi rummaged through his bag so he could get his Nailgun from his Orb Oboros. A strong gust of wind blew towards him when Plume flew upwards. A few secondster, he followed suit, trailing right behind Plume as they climbed upwards.

    This was the first time Satoshi ever flew towards the sky and somehow, it scared him a bit. Of course, he did have experience with flying when he fought against the Slime Alien and against Plume but he didn''t have time to think about it back then so this was an entirely new experience. He swallowed his dry saliva as the air became thinner and thinner. Pretty soon, they reached the troposphere and Satoshi instinctively touched the clouds before stopping his ascent.

    "So, what did you want to talk about?" Satoshi asked as soon as Plume stopped going up as well.

    "Remember we had that match yesterday, right?" Plume asked, to which Satoshi nodded. Why would he forget such an important match?

    "Yes, what of it? If you want to have a rematch then you can just tell me. Oh, and also, how are your wings? Are they all right now?" Satoshi asked out of concern. He didn''t want to mock Elimine-san after having lost twice against him.

    "I... I want to personally rmend you to the Heimdall Agency. Also, I think Eye-Goddess has taken a liking to you as well. Are you in? It would greatly benefit youpared to going to your parents'' agency. "

    "No, sorry Elimine-san but I have other ns." Satoshi continued. He could feel his legs turning into jelly the more he experienced being suspended in the air.

    "No? Why? What do you mean you have other ns?"

    "I''m going to set up my own agency," Satoshi responded a matter of factly.

 Chapter 53 Onigashima Midori

    Most of the time, a person just needs a little bit of push that would drive them into doing a certain thing. And that push may even be just a nudge by the finger and the person woulde toppling forward, out of his or herfort zone and into the unknown where he''d never thought about setting off.

    Onigashima Midori came from a poor family. Ever since he''d be aware of his life, his family was already poor. Fortunately, they didn''t have any debt but it was a struggle living day by day. From what he remembered back then, his father''s business suddenly got bankrupt due to a ''mis-investment'' and it left them with little to no money for themselves. He had three older brothers and three younger sisters and all of them were dependent on his parents. Growing up, Midori had to take up part-time jobs in order to survive. He never experienced a fun school life and he''d never had any friends at school. Andpared to how he is now, he''s actually pretty timid and quiet, not even daring to approach anyone when the teacher decides to separate his or her ss by groups. He just couldn''t bring himself to talk to anyone due to his inferiorityplex. He figured that someone as poor as him is not worth talking to and it ruined his childhood and pretty much the rest of his school life.

    But a year ago, the Alpha gene had awakened within him, giving him the superpower that exponentially increases his strength and durability the more damage he receives. As long as he receives a steady influx of attacks, he would be able to survive and grow stronger, much like how a berserker never really dies no matter how many wounds were inflicted upon him or her. And so, Midori''s superpower was ssified as the ''Berserker'' superpower. And for years, he trained himself by inflicting damage to himself in order to adjust his body''s durability. After all, as long as he could survive an attack, he''d be able to survive the rest of it, provided that the attacks have the same throughput as the first one.

    Despite his overpowered superpower, Midori somehow felt that he hasn''t discovered everything in his superpower. He didn''t know why but every time he uses his superpower, he could tell that he''s only using half his potential even though he''s already using a hundred percent of his power. Confused, he decided to meet up with a superhero expert who specializes in categorizing and discovering new superpowers. By now, Midori was earning a little bit of money and he could finally provide for his family, even for a little bit. His little bit of poprity also provided his family the opportunity to be known to the locals and they were able to get part-time jobs for themselves using his name. Because of that, things were finally looking better and better for his family. His inferiorityplex was beginning to dial down by a minuscule amount as well since he now has a superpower and a little bit of money. Compared to before, everything is getting brighter and brighter for Midori.

    Back to his current situation, Midori finally got to meet a superhero expert and he asked him about his suspicions. The superhero expert then cleared his throat, leaned back on his chair, and adjusted his sses before saying something along the lines of "Ny percent of the time, when a superhero feels that, they have another superpower that they haven''t found out yet. Just wait and it will manifest soon." The superhero expert then went on and on with all the superheroes that came to him with the same question. And just like what he said, those superheroes really had another superpower dwelling within them. Some of them discovered it quite early, but some had to go through a few years before they found what their other superpower was.

    "That''s how it was when ites to superpowers. Sometimes, when you awaken one, it''s hard to discover the other one when you have two because usually, you only have one. But don''t worry, the mind always knows if there are some parts missing in your body. Don''t worry and just wait for it. You''ll discover your superpower soon."

    Well, the only thing was, he heard those words back when he was in elementary school. And now, as a first-year high school student, he still hasn''t found what his other superpower was. A majority of him already concluded that he won''t find out what his other superpower was, but then again, a small part of him still hoped that he''d be able to uncover what that superpower is¡ª before he dies, that is.

    Currently, he didn''t have any worries about his family. Even though they''re still poor, they''re not strugglingpared to before. At least they have a roof over their head and food on the table. And more than that, everyone could finally continue their schooling due to Midori''s aplishments and connections. But then again, the thought about his other superpower still ate away at Midori''s mind but he always tries to put it at the back of his mind. He''s contented enough with his life as it is and thinking about a phantom superpower wouldn''t do his mental health any good.

    ...<sub> </sub>

    The greyish clouds were already hanging low on the sky as thest rays of sunlight disappeared from the horizon. For someone, the time of twilight may not mean much but for Midori, it''s his favorite part of the day. It''s not as dark enough at night that he couldn''t see, and it''s not that bright either that would make his eyes ufortable. As a berserker, his senses are also highly sensitive and so, the ''just right'' time of twilight gives him momentary peace. Ever since he awakened his superpower, he found the time of twilight the best time to walk around the neighborhood. Of course, the time of dusk is also a second favorite as well.

    As he got down from the school bus, Midori heaved a sigh of relief and enthusiastically waved his hands towards Satoshi and the others. He could clearly remember the time when he was timid and was the quietest guy in school. But now that he''s entered high school, he decided to change his persona and assumed a character of a bright and energetic teenager. So far, he managed to pull off an overfriendly personality, and somehow, he''s getting used to it. And honestly, he actually liked his present personality, vowing not to revert to his previous personality where he never got any friends. Right now, even though Satoshi and the others were a bit weirded out about him, they didn''t drive him away. For him, that''s more than enough since he already considered them his friends.

    Midori heaved a sigh of relief as he thought about the events that unfolded throughout the day. Not only did he get to enter the glorious Concrete Arena, he also watched a live fight between Satoshi and the legendary Plume. Out of all the matches he witnessed from the Casual Division, that was the best one so far and he was sure to take it in well. "So gaining the terrain advantage will always do you more good than harm. Aside from that, Satoshi had the same firepower as Plume but he''s more precise and more controlled with his attacks, which gave him the advantage in the whole match. So uracy and terrain... I guess I have a lot of things to learn."

    Turning right from the street, he finally caught sight of their ramshackle old house where his entire family lives. It may not look as pleasing on the outside but it''s livable and it''s more than enough for Midori. Nevertheless, he did promise to improve the appearance of the house as soon as he gets extra money. His internship in a new agency is bound to happen soon since he''s a student in the United Superheroes Academy and once he reaches that stage, he''d be able to earn more money. Deep inside, he hoped that he''d be a part of a nice agency where the pay is high and the number of quests or missions issued is more than enough for everyone.

    "I''m ho¡ª" He impulsively announced as he opened the door.

    Whaty in front of him was a disaster, no, it was an entire catastrophe in and of itself.

    On top of the only couch in the house, a little girl was lying down and she seemed to have difficulty breathing. She was sweating profusely and a little bit of blood was left on her lips. Her chest was heaving up and down as she clutched it. And the pained expression on her face was more than enough proof that she was suffering. Around her, the entire family was gathered, clutching their hands as they hoped that the little girl would make it until who knows when.

    It was Midori''s little sister, and she was dying.

 Chapter 54 Another Superpower

    Midori''s little sister, Miya, had always been sickly ever since she first came to this world. And of course, it didn''t help that they were poor and the only thing they could do was look after her with great care since they couldn''t afford hospital bills. And it''s not like Miya was terminally ill, she just has a weak constitution so she easily gets sick. Because of that, it''s quite a normal urrence when she gets sick.

    But today out of all days, Midori could tell that Miya was more ill than she used to be. He immediately rushed towards her side and grabbed her by her hand, ignoring the crowd that surrounded her. "Miya, what are you doing? Hang tight the ambnce is over here."

    With a weak nod, Miya forcefully smiled towards her brother, her eyes fluttering. Even though she''s still on the verge of death, Midori could tell that she was trying to fight whatever it is that''s destroying her body. But even then, her hand already felt lifeless and cold, making Midori bawl his eyes out.

    "Son, we''ve called the ambnce two minutes ago. But at this rate... I don''t think they''ll be able to arrive in time. We didn''t know what happened to her, she just suddenly copsed and coughed up blood." Their dad said, his eyes still swollen from all the tears he shed.

    When Midori had the time to look around, he tried to analyze if something really went wrong, or maybe she had probably eaten something bad and it was more than enough to put her in a critical state. That was exinable. However, based on everyone''s expression, they really did not know what happened to her. Midori felt bad for raising his suspicions on his family members but he couldn''t help it. After all, Miya wouldn''t get sick that quickly unless something really happened. Now he knows that something really did happen but it wasn''t connected to anyone in the room. It was just an unknown ident... or probably a premeditated one but the culprit is yet to be identified.

    "Big brothe¡ª cough!" Miya weakly uttered with a pained expression on her face, coughing up blood in the process. But this time, the blood wasn''t a nice red color. Instead, it had the color and appearance of ck tar and its viscosity was different from that of blood since it was more syrupy. Midori''s pupils dted as he patted his sister on the head while leaning in to hear her better. He was perfectly aware that the best thing he could do right now was tell her to save her energy and stop talking but seeing that she was trying hard to tell her something, he just couldn''t do it. By now, everyone was already bawling their eyes out since they could already foresee her dying. At most, she only has a few seconds to live.

    "What is it? Come on, Miya, you can say anything to your big brother." Midori''s eyes welled up with tears but he tried not to show a weak side to his sister so he suppressed his tears. That didn''t stop it from falling though since a split secondter, two rivers of tears were already streaming down his cheeks and snot was falling from his nose.

    "P...poison... I... take care of... i love you all, big br¡ª " Miya said as a single tear fell out of her eyes.

    Midori could''ve sworn that he heard the steady beep of the heart rate monitor as it signaled the loss of detected heartbeat. A scream echoed throughout the room as Midori grabbed his sister by her head and bawled his eyes out. Everything shed before his eyes as he clearly remembered when his youngest sister was born. Because most of the time, he would look after his sister when his parents aren''t at home. Whenever she was sick, the first name she''d utter was that of Midori''s name and for sure, Midori would run to her aid and take care of her, cook food for her, and watch over her until she feels better.

    And yet now... Midori was toote. He could imagine his younger sister calling out to her and yet he was nowhere to be found since he was at school. He couldn''t even take care of her in herst moments on earth. And by the time he arrived, she was in no condition to talk. Midori continued screaming while clutching the lifeless body of his sister. For the first time in his life, Midori was in an uncontroble berserker state, and yet he wasn''t rampaging. He was just angry and grieving, not even moving a muscle even though his body forcefully told him to run amok and destroy everything in his path. In a matter of seconds, his body grew thrice his size, and yet he was still holding his sister as gently as a mother elephant caressing her newborn calf.<sub> </sub>

    But just when he was about to lose himself, something in his brain clicked and his vision changed drastically. Instead of seeing everyone normally, he perceived everyone as if everything in their body was see-through. If he wanted to look at the muscles, then he could see it, if he wanted to look a little deeper, he''d be able to see the bones of everyone in the room. And it didn''t stop there, he could even see the nerves and their electric signals that travel to the brain.

    No sooner had he looked towards his sister, did he see that something was wrong within her body. Somehow, some sort of ck tar was filling up her lungs, blocking her breathing and scraping her lungs every time she breathed. It looked worsepared to how it is viewed outside and he couldn''t help but hold his breath. And he also found out that...

    ... his youngest sister was still alive. The only reason why she was limp and lifeless-like was that she suddenly fell unconscious¡ª a normal response by the body when someone''s having difficulty breathing. This response has even made a person drowning survive since the body would actually slow down the breathing just enough to keep the brain alive. Even if it was slow and the heartbeat was close to being undetectable, the person is still alive.

    Midori wanted to sigh in relief but he knew that his younger sister is still not out of danger, not until that dangerous substance was removed from her system. Without thinking too much about it, Midori focused on her lungs and tried to see what the root cause of the problem was. That''s when he noticed that his hands were glowing a weird greenish color which epassed his younger sister''s chest area. Little by little, the mysterious liquid in her lungs started to dissipate. It was slow and Midori couldn''t bear to watch as his glowing hands did its wonder. At that point in time, he wasn''t even thinking that he just discovered his other superpower. All that was in his mind right now was that he had to save his sister no matter what.

    With another ear-piercing scream, Midori''s glowing hands shone brighter until it almost filled the room. He focused on getting rid of the dark liquid in his sister''s lungs then after that, he started repairing the bleeding in her lungs and the scratches the liquid caused on it. The longer the time passed, the stronger his healing power got and somehow, he wasn''t the least bit exhausted. In fact, he felt more energized before that he continued healing and healing her sister until she was rid of every ailment and her weak constitution.

    By then, Midori had already lost his mind and no one can stop him. He was just screaming and letting his healing powers run wild. It was obvious that he was using his berserker superpower along with her healing and that made him an unstoppable healing machine. His parents and siblings, who''ve been watching the entire thing, panicked as they tried to stop them as they could. But of course, they knew that no one in their family had the ability to stop Midori from rampaging... and also, if they were to attack him, it might unnecessarily cause Midori''s anger to be directed at whoever did it. That''s why the entire family couldn''t do a thing as they painfully watch the entire process.

    Pretty soon, however, the ambnce came, and in came the Nurse who was on duty that day. The moment he saw what was happening in the house, she immediately fired a soft light beam which interrupted Midori''s energy flow and it temporarily stopped him from what he was doing. In that instance, Midori got back to his senses and realized that he had gone to berserker mode once again. This time, however, no one got hurt, instead, the result was the direct opposite of what he was expecting.

    "Big brother... it''s okay, I''m already fi¡ª big brother? BIG BROTHER!!!" Miya turned from being gentle to panicking as her older brother slipped into unconsciousness and copsed right in front of her.

    For a change, Miya wasn''t the one admitted to the hospital that day. Instead, it was his brother who got admitted and as an icing on the cake, it was actually his first time being admitted to the hospital.

 Chapter 55 Most Powerful Healer

    The bright yet calming lights of the hospital greeted Midori as soon as his eyes shot wide open. One look and he immediately recognized one of the ces that he hated the most due to how fast it drains someone''s money¡ª the hospital. "What happened?! I... Miya... my sister''s dead... " Midori muttered to himself while looking at his hands which were connected to IV drips.

    As tears streamed down his cheeks, he still remembered the coldness of his sister''s body as he held her in her arms. Midori had known the nature of death ever since he was young but seeing it first-hand happen to his youngest sister scarred him for life. He clenched his fists as it ballooned twice its size before he smashed the side of his bed. It wasn''t even a strong pound with his fist but it certainly caused a mini-earthquake in the hospital. "Miya... I''m sorry." He kept on muttering while he bawled his heart out.

    The mini-earthquake rumbled throughout the hospital, causing mild panic but it was short-lived. Fortunately, it wasn''t that strong so there weren''t any damages to the building. Of course, there were people who ran straight out of the building¡ª for example, a man in his early twenties who was rolling his grandfather in a wheelchair. He decided to run away and leave his helpless grandfather behind as he escaped the hospital. His mind then reminded him about his grandfather and he immediately retraced his footsteps but by then, there were no earthquakes anymore.

    The Nurse, who was about to clock out after a hard day''s work, was about to remove her gown when the earthquake urred and the first thing that came to mind was her most recent patient¡ª Onigashima Midori. If it hadn''t been for his superb healing ability, she wouldn''t have paid attention to him but upon witnessing the event, she could tell that Midori could be more powerful than her when ites to healing. That''s why Midori was the first one she remembered. After all, she nned on recruiting Midori to her agency as soon as he''s out of the hospital.

    Putting on her scrubs once again, she rushed through the hallways and up the second floor where Midori was admitted. Unbeknownst to Midori, he was actually admitted to a VIP room and it was the Nurse who paid for all his hospital bills. There he was, worrying about the money and his recently ''diseased'' youngest sister when in fact both were nonexistent. He neither had to pay any bills nor worry about his sister''s death since she didn''t die in the first ce.

    Upon opening the door, the Nurse saw Midori clenching his fists and crying while tears and snots were all over his face. The otherwise cheery Midori was showing off an expression he never showed anyone. That''s why when the Nurse went inside, he immediately wiped his nose and eyes before looking away from the nurse.

    "Onigashima Midori, right? Are you feeling all right now?" The Nurse soothingly said. "I''m Nishimura Haruka and I''m assigned to look after you."

    Hearing the name, Midori''s face quickly whirled around to confirm that the person behind her was the authentic superhero who goes by the alias The Nurse. Of course, he wasn''t expecting anything much since every doctor wanted to impersonate The Nurse in the first ce.

    "Y-y-you''re the¡ª " Midori almost bit his tongue in amazement as he saw The Nurse in front of him. It came as a huge shock for him that his jaws dropped and he momentarily forgot about his ordeal.

    "Yes, the one and only. Now stay still for a bit." Haruka pursed her lips as she pressed her palms on Midori''s head. She knew tha Midori was currently suffering from shock and that''s the reason why he couldn''t remember that his younger sister is still alive. Furthermore, he couldn''t remember that he was actually the one who healed his sister.

    "Why am I at the hospital? My sister, Miya? Is she¡ª " Midori stopped short, choking on his tears.

    "Yes, she''s fine. In fact, you''re the one who healed her. I just checked your records and it said that you''re enrolled in the United Superheroes Academy, right? It''s pretty weird though since it says there that your superpower is a berserk-type one." Haruka muttered. "In any case, stay still. We can talk about these things once you''ve calmed down a bit."

    Midori didn''t know what to say. Right now, he''s got a lot of questions in his mind and even though he wanted to pester The Nurse and interrogate her, he couldn''t do it out of respect for her. If it had been other doctors who are currently in his room right now, he''d have panicked and tried to escape the hospital to see what had happened to everyone in his family and to his youngest sister. But upon seeing The Nurse and upon hearing that his sister is fine, he decided to just take her word for it and await her exnation.

    With eptance came calmness and a few minutester, Midori had finally calmed down a little bit or so that''s how The Nurse put it. His breathing became more rxed and his eyes closed as he drifted into a half-sleep state. The Nurse smiled at his face, d that the treatment was working. It won''t be a matter of time before he remembers everything that transpired before he cked out.<sub> </sub>

    "Hahhh~!" Midori suddenly screamed, standing up from his bed. "I remember! I remember!" He repeated with a smile on his face.

    A split secondter, he was bawling his eyes out once again, not because something bad happened... but because he was so overjoyed that he was able to save his sister. And to top it all off, he finally found what his other superpower was after all these years. Now he doesn''t have to wonder if that certain superhero expert was lying to him or not. He definitely wasn''t lying.

    "d you''re back. Now, before we talk about everything else, I''ll tell you about your sister." Haruka began, pulling out a few papers which were stacked beside the bed. "I''ll cut to the chase, Onigashima Midori, I''ve done a few background checks on you while you were sleeping, and honestly, you''re quite an interesting figure. You managed to take care of your whole family at your single-digit age and used your connection to give them jobs. You also managed to enter the United Superheroes Academy and had the reputation of a hard worker where you previously lived."

    "And recently, you bought a house for yourself and your family is currently using it as theirs. One look and I noticed that it''s an old house so I''m running some repairs on it right now. You also don''t have to worry about the whereabouts of your family since they''re currently residing at my summer house by Tokyo."

    "I also got here a paper¡ª a record of your one and only visit to the hospital and it wasn''t even an official visit, just a conversation with a certain superhero expert. I''m assuming you talked to him about your ability since it''s a healing ability, right?"

    "But one thing struck me as odd, your reputation and the superpower I saw within you were quite different. Based on your data, you have a berserker type of ability. But that''s not the case, you have a healing ability, right? Or do you have two abilities at the same time? Which is it?"

    For one, Midori didn''t know why Haruka ran a background check on him when he didn''t do anything wrong. Still, it wouldn''t do him any bad if a professionally licensed superhero is interested in him so he just brushed off his worries. Without further ado, he exined everything that happened in his life, how he awakened the berserk-type superpower when he was young and how the superhero expert told him that he had another superpower. Of course, he didn''t know it back then but timing of all timings, he managed to awaken it at thest second when his youngest sister was about to die. By now, he could clearly remember that he managed to save his sister but after that, he couldn''t recall what happened so he didn''t jump to any conclusions yet. Miya may be okay now but if her situation hasn''t improved, then she''d still be prone to other sicknesses.

    Sicknesses aside, Midori could''ve sworn that his little sister mentioned something about a poison.

    "Nishimura-san¡ª "

    "You can call me Haruka, I think we''re more than acquainted to be this formal." Haruka softly smiled while speaking in her usual gentle tone.

    "Haruka-s-san... by any chance... was my sister poisoned? You don''t have to say anything about her well-being right now, I just wanted to know if she were... "

    "About that, we''re actually not sure. I guess you''d have to ask her about that yourself since... you''ve actually sessfully removed whatever it was that almost killed her and aside from that, you''ve healed her of all her symptoms. Even her weak constitution was gone. I hate to admit it, Midori, but you may be the most powerful healer to ever exist..."

    "... even I, the legendary Nurse, cannot do a even fraction of what you just did."

 Chapter 56 One Step Ahead

    For the first time in Satoshi''s life, a concrete goal was set in stone in his mind. He finally had something to work on in his life, not just aimlessly wandering around like a nomad and getting swayed by his ups and downs. For once, he aimed for something that would encourage him to go above and beyond, and spur himself to do his very best like no one ever did.

    It had been a few hours since Satoshi decided to set up his very own agency but quite frankly, he doesn''t have any idea how to do so. Was it like setting up a business? Can anyone do it? Does someone need a specific license to set up an agency? Those questions ran through Satoshi''s mind throughout the whole day that he couldn''t think straight. Most of the time, he would just be staring into empty space and Kuroe would nudge him back to reality since she sat beside him. He would almost always snap back but the perturbing thoughts lingered in his mind for quite a while.

    Time flew by so fast that before Satoshi knew it, the school bell had alredy rung and students were rushing out of the academy by the droves. Usually, Satoshi would be the first one to rush to the school bus but this time, he walked rather slowly, making mental notes of all the questions he''d had to ask his parents so he could start preparing his own agency. Now that''s he''s got a goal in mind, he wanted to ride the wave and achieve it before he burns out and change his mind. There was just one problem though, every agency he knew were owned by an adult and he''s still a teenager. If he were to open an agency, he''d have to grow up first, literally speaking.

    So for now, he needs to prepare as much as he could so the moment hees of age, he can open a brand-new agency without any hassle.

    Kuroe and Shiroi, meanwhile, walked a pace away from Satoshi, wondering why he was acting quite unusual today. Ever since he revealed his new familiar and fought with Plume a second time, he became lost in his thoughts. On one hand, Kuroe knew what Satoshi was actually thinking about since she could read his mind. And the reason why she followed right behind him was because he didn''t want to disturb his contemtion. On another hand, Shiroi was genuinely worried for Satoshi since he barely touched his lunch during break. She couldn''t tell whether he was thinking about something serious or not and that thought made her back down and just watch Satoshi instead of asking him if there''s something wrong. And so, the two of them quietly watched over him as he made his way to the school bus along with everyone else.

    The trip home was normal, Midori still talked a lot and as usual, everybody ignored him. (It would be muchter when the incident about his sister would happen so he''s still in the mood to act and talk). And as for Satoshi, he continued to mull over his thoughts until he got home. Kuroe and Shiroi still couldn''t bring themselves to talk to Satoshi so they kept quiet. And as for Hiroshi, well, he frankly just didn''t care whether Satoshi was having a bad day or not. After all, that''s the least of his concerns.

    "Bye, Satoshi," Shiroi mildly greeted, almost as if she was whispering to the dead.

    "See you tomorrow!" Kuroe greeted as usual as if nothing happened. That''s one of the advantages of being able to read someone''s mind, you''d always know whether someone''s thinking about their problems or not.

    "Yeah," Satoshi indifferently greeted back, dragging his feet as he got out of the school bus. With the remaining steps to their doorstep, he was able toe up with all the questions he''d have to ask his parents in order to prepare himself for his endeavor.

    ?

    The moment he walked in, however, his mom and dad were both on the other side of the door, as if waiting for him.

    "Here you go," Ayumu cheerfully said, handing a letter to Satoshi. Meanwhile, Tatsuki was just nodding in the background with a satisfied smile on his face.

    Satoshi hasn''t even removed his shoes and his mom already handed him the letter. It goes to show just how important the letter was so Satoshi opened it as soon as he got it. He wondered what the contents of the letters were since it made his parents wait by the door for him.

    The envelope didn''t have a mailing address, it was just a clear envelope with a few creases, implying that it was personally handed in by the sender to his parents. And if his parents handed him the envelope, then it either means that they''ve already read the contents of the letter and wanted him to read it, or the contents of the letter were actually meant for him and not to his parents. They were just the middle-man of some sort.<sub> </sub>

    Curiosity piqued, Satoshi opened the letter and hastily skimmed through it. In summary, it was Elimine''s personal letter to his parents, telling them if she could recruit Satoshi as part of her agency. She was very friendly yet serious in the letter, showing that she was sincere when she asked for it. There were also hints of awkwardness in her sentence since she''s not used to asking anyone for something when she could get it. She was really going out of her way to recruit Satoshi as if she badly needed her in her life. It was a very genuine recruitment letter and for some reason, Ayumu and Tatsuki were moved by it.

    Before Satoshi arrived at the house, they had already discussed to each other how it''d be best for their son to learn the ropes from someone else instead of them because that would just give him a one-sided view of the world of superheroes. And what better opportunity than send it to someone that was once an intern in their agency. And furthermore, Elimine isn''t just any other intern for Ayumu and Tatsuki, she''s also a dear childhood friend of their son, not to mention the daughter of two of their closest friends.

    "Heimdall Agency is owned by the Eye-Goddess and Elimine, your childhood friend is a part of that agency. It seems like the Eye-Goddess has taken an interest on you, Satoshi. Say you try out her agency, learn the ropes, and then you can go ahead and create a brand-new agency for yourself." Tatsuki rxedly said while crossing his arms in front of him.

    "Yes, Satoshi, it would be better for you to learn the ropes hands-onpared to learning it on paper. And if we were to exin everything, it might take us a long time before we could tell you everything you need to learn to run your own agency." Ayumu agreed with her husband, stating the obvious that they had a serious talking-to together before they talked to Satoshi regarding the said matter.

    "Also, it would be a good experience for you, Satoshi. At first, we wanted you to be a part of our agency... but you know how it is, we won''t be able to properly guide you since you''re our son. At least in the Heimdall Agency, there won''t be any partiality when ites to its members." Tatsuki continued.

    Satoshi clearly understood what they were talking about. And well, part of the reason why he didn''t want to join another person''s agency was that he wanted to join his parents'' agency. But after getting his superpower and finally getting the goal of setting up his own agency, he knew that he couldn''t rely on his parents all the time so he didn''t want to bring up ever joining another agency. Subconsciously, he trapped himself in a dilemma that he''d either join his parents'' agency and not join anyone else''s because that would make him feel bad towards his mom and dad.

    But now, they''re clearly telling him that he could join another agency with their permission just because Elimine, his childhood friend, is a part of the agency. And well, the Eye-Goddess does have one of the best reputations when ites to agency heads.

    "I know, the Eye-Goddess personally approached me and tried to recruit me a few days ago. I declined though." Satoshi answered a matter of factly. "I never expected them to want to recruit me that badly. Elimine-san talked to me this morning as well, encouraging me to join Heimdall Agency as well."

    "WHAT?! The Eye-Goddess personally approached you? That''s a first, throughout the history of her agency, I''ve never heard anyone get in because of her personal rmendation. It''s either a member of the agency who rmends a superhero or a renowned superhero who rmends someone to her. This is a first¡ª that she personally tried to recruit someone¡ª "

    Suddenly, Ayumu and Tatsuki stopped as if they glitched. They then slowly looked at each other as they realized something. "Does that mean... " Tatsuki muttered in a slightly panicked tone.

    "Yeah, that must mean ''that'', right?" Ayumu responded.

    Satoshi couldn''t help but give his parents a confusing gaze.

 Chapter 57 Opt Out

    The Training Center of the United Superheroes Academy is unlike any other. Compared to other schools inside and outside the vicinity of Tokyo, the training center of the USA is thrice as big on average and could house hundreds of superheroes training at the same time. With the help of advanced technology as well, the terrain of the training center could be modified in any way possible, making it one of the most efficient and effective training centers of all time. Even other professional superheroes who have hit a wall in their career would sometimes book the training center to train there for hours on end. It is said that the training center has helped countless superheroes get theeback they deserved and that''s why it''s be super popr.

    Today of all days, the training center was once again opened and a split secondter, ss 3-1 entered the world-famous training center with Knighthawk in the lead. For some reason, he was wearing one of his mischievous smiles as if he was plotting a crime or something. As usual, he''de up with practical training that would help the younglings survive in the world of superheroes. Of course, he''s got his own biased views when ites to training but nevertheless, he wasn''t the homeroom teacher of ss 3-1 for nothing.

    "Still, why''s that noisy student of mine absent?" Knighthawk said to himself, clicking his tongue as he turned around to address everyone in his ss. Since there are only twelve students in his group, it was hard to miss if someone was absent. "Has anyone heard from Midori?" He announced, lightly stomping his foot to assert a little dominance and to garner everyone''s attention. Even some of the superheroes who were currently training in the training center stopped what they were doing to look at him. Some of them did so to gesture that he was interrupting their training, and some were just genuinely curious as to why he raised his voice and stomped his foot. Either way, the act gave him a minuscule amount of embarrassment, causing him to redden while clearing his throat.

    "In any case, we have a few handouts to give to everyone and I need someone to give it to him. Does anyone want to volunteer?" Knighthawk asked.

    Since everyone, except Satoshi, was looking forward to the training, they all wanted Knighthawk to get it over with but no one wanted the hassle of taming printouts to their ssmate''s ce. That''s why no one raised their hands. And besides, Midori was an exceptionally loud person and they didn''t want to associate themselves with him.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi wasn''t paying attention to everyone else. And the moment silence befell the entire group, he got back to his senses and realized that Knighthawk had asked for a favor. Whatever it was, he didn''t catch it. He also missed the timing to ask what it was all about and so he just awkwardly stood there like everybody else.

    But Kuroe had other ns. Now that Satoshi''s guard was down, she used her psychokic abilities and tried to raise Satoshi''s hands. But just before she did so, she received a light electric shock on her body, warning her that continuing her prank would result in an even worse scenario.

    [Unknown attacker detected¡ª superpower, psychokinesis]

    [Unknown attacker¡ª obstructed]

    [Unknown attacker location¡ª 4 o''clock]

    Satoshi, hearing the voice in his mind, immediately nced towards his four o''clock, only to see that Kuroe was there, wearing a slightly annoyed face. Realizing what happened, he smiled at Kuroe and nodded. ''Dex must''ve taken some unnecessary precautions. Good job Dex, you can continue doing that until I tell you not to on specific asions.'' Satoshi said. Of course, he knew that Dex wouldn''t be able to block mind-reading skills or telepathic talks to each other but at least attacks like psychokinesis won''t be a problem anymore.

    "All right, if no one wanted to raise their hands then I''ll just assign Satoshi for the task. Satoshi, can you deliver these handouts to Midori on your way home to schoolter?" Knighthawk sighed.

    "Ah er, yes, sir," Satoshi said, receiving the handouts from their homeroom teacher. Had he known that Knighthawk was actually asking for something so simple, he would''ve volunteered right then and there.

    As for Kuroe, she didn''t know how to feel about the entire situation after realizing that her prank wouldn''t have worked in the first ce¡ª and the reason why Satoshi gave him the look a few moments ago was that she failed to use her superpowers on him.

    "Now that that''s out of the way, follow me." Knighthawk then ced both his arms on his back and walked forward. He headed to the portion of the training center where there were lots of dpidated buildings and desertnds. His students meekly followed.<sub> </sub>

    Compared to the other portions of the training center, this specific location has a higher temperature than the rest, and the moment they stepped foot on it, they suddenly felt very sweat due to the high humidity of the ce. It was also unusually bright and some of the dpidated buildings were even half-buried in the sand. It was clearly a desert and from the sparkles on Knighthawk''s eyes, he''s nning to have everyone undergo training in such a bizarre ce.

    "Now, you might be wondering why we''re all here for your hero training but there''s a good exnation for this. If by any chance you don''t know this ce, it''s called the Ga-ara Desernd and it''s one of the most used functions of the training center. This is because it greatly helps superheroes adjust to extreme arid heat and it helps them with survival when they suddenly find themselves in a desert."

    "Not only that, it will also help you maximize and limit your movements since the heat of the ce could be quite taxing on the body. Well, I don''t need to exin the h h h''s of this ce since you''re bound to find out everything about them soon. Just... be careful out there."

    "Oh, and also, remember that this hero training is graded. So if you do something underhanded or cheat, then you''d automatically receive a failing grade. Not only that, your rank will heavily affect your grades so make sure that you achieve a high rank."

    Once again, Knighthawk seemed like he was speaking in tongues since everyone in ss 3-1 didn''t know what he was talking about. All they know is that they''re going to have hero training for ss and they''ll be having it in a desernd in the training room. Even when Knighthawk was already giving advice and suggestions to them, they still couldn''t get what the drill is all about. As far as they know, they''ll be having their training for the uing inter-high.

    "Also, the other first-years are going to join you in this exercise. You''re all members of CLass 3-1, the best pick for first-years. If any of you were to lose against any other first-years, then that would leave a bad taste not only to my mouth but also to the principal as well since he personally put you in this ss. You may not be the strongest first-years but you got the most potential. Don''t disappoint us."

    Knighthawk then turned around and pretended to sigh heavily before turning around to exin the rules. He decided to do it so that his students would feel more pressure during the exercise. Even though he said that he didn''t want any of them to lose to anyone, he was silently hoping that some of them would so their pride would take a huge blow. With that out of the way, his expression returned to that of a normal expression as he walked around his students while exining the rules.

    After hearing that from Knighthawk, on the other hand, everyone felt the intensity and importance of this training that they almost felt like choking. They understood that no matter what happens, they shouldn''t perform poorly in the test. From then on, their minds started overthinking¡ª are we going to get eliminated from the inter-high? Is this an audition of sorts? What if I lose? Are we going to fight against everyone?¡ª these questions ran through their minds while Knighthawk started exining the rules of the training.

    "To put it simply, this will be a free-for-all match where everyone is free to do anything. Anyone can be the viin, the superhero, and anyone can take the pacifist route. Anything goes. You can ally yourselves with one another and pick out the weaklings first, you can attack anyone on your team, and you can even opt out to not participate in this training session."

    "Just remember that your overall performance is going to be graded. And also, the map will shrink from time to time and thest person or group standing will be the winner. That''s all you need to know."

    Suddenly, someone from ss 3-1 raised his hands. This person had ck hair and a scarf around his forehead. He isn''t much of a talker, that''s why everyone found it weird that he raised his hands first.

    "Yes?"

    "Then, can I not participate in this hero training?" He asked out of the blue.

 Chapter 58 Commencement, Livestream Broadcast

    Since he was the only one who didn''t want to participate in the hero training, everyone looked at him in bewilderment. He didn''t wait for anyone''s answer and instead, walked away without awaiting Knighthawk''s response. He didn''t speak another word as he excused himself. There was a hint of intensity in his eyes as he walked, causing the others to feel their goosebumps creeping up and down their spine. Even Satoshi, who was known to not be afraid of anyone since his parents are the most powerful superheroes in the SAO, felt that danger oozing out of that ssmate of theirs.

    And then, the strangest thing happened. Just when Knighthawk was about to step forward and stop his student from leaving, he suddenly froze in his ce. And it wasn''t just your simple ''freeze'' when a psychokic ability is used. In fact, he was frozen as if time stopped itself. Usually, when someone freezes in ce due to some psychic power, their eyes would still be able to move and they could still twitch their toes and fingers. But this time, Knighthawk froze in a weird way. As usual, what''s unknown to anyone would immediately be considered scary so every student in ss 3-1 also froze in shock as well. They could only wonder what superpower their ssmate had that made him back out of thepetition.

    Kurogami was never an outspoken person. Even when they had to do self-introductions amongst themselves, he never spoke. Heck, he never spoke a single word ever since he''d arrived in the United Superheroes Academy. The only time a wordes out of his mouth is when he answers the teachers in ss and even then, his answers would always be so concise that his answer would be over before everyone could even recognize his voice. That''s why it came as a surprise for them when he suddenly voiced out his opinion out of nowhere and he didn''t even wait for Knighthawk''s approval, he just decided to carry out his decision even though everyone in ss kind of opposed it.

    Meanwhile, Knighthawk finally unfroze but by then, it was already toote. Kurogami was already by the edge of the training center, eating his lunch while everyone was still gathered around in front of the desernd. Since he couldn''t do anything else, Knighthawk decided to be indifferent about it as he cleared his throat. He may be bothered that Kurogami used his superpower on him but then again, he''ll be the one grading the entire training and Kurogami easily gets a failing mark. Kurogami''s retribution may be misced, but Knighthawk would still carry it out since he dared disrespect him like that.

    "Also, one more thing to remember," Knighthawk continued, ignoring the fact that one of his students ignored his hero training. "This is sort of like an audition for the inter-high. Those who perform poorly throughout the entire training wouldn''t be able to join and those who did well would for sure take part in it. I hope that all of you would be chosen for the inter-high and all the best."

    A huge siren-like started sting all throughout the training center, announcing to everyone that the hero training for the first years havemenced. In an instant, the entire training center became quiet, adding unnecessary pressure to the first years who were participating in the hero training. In total, there were four sses of first-years and all of them had at least twelve students at a minimum. That''s why, in the worst-case scenario, every single student is up against more than forty superheroes.

    It was an authentic free-for-all, all right.

    "Why are you still standing there? It''s not like time will stop and wait for you. Go! And may the odds be ever in your favor." Knighthawk mischievously announced, referencing a pretty old yet ssic movie of the ancients about a free-for-all tournament. He always wanted to say it ever since he was assigned as a teacher in the USA and now that he''s done and said it, he felt satisfied.

    .....

    Meanwhile, in all of tv and news station, even on the official website of the United Superheroes Academy, the hero training was being broadcasted across the whole of Japan. And even those in other continents could tune in to the live stream on youtube which is essible everywhere. Apparently, this hero training was decided by USA Principal, Sai Tama, who wanted to show off the first years of his school. With this, everyone would be able to study the superpowers of the first years, giving them more disadvantages at the uing inter-high. This would also encourage a lot of superhero schools to participate in the tournament since they might have a chance at beating the unbeatable school. Of course, these are all just advertising tactics for Sai Tama, who was very sure that a majority of first-years would be able to carry the school to victory in the uing inter-high. As the principal, there was not a shred of doubt in his mind.

    In the live stream, a certain first-year was shown to be running around the ce, hiding from one debris to another while carefully watching his surroundings. The drones, who were following every student, didn''t have time to move around to get a full view of the student. One moment, a blue glow appeared from where the first year was and the next moment, he disappeared from view as if he''s turned invisible. When the drone switched to thermal vision, that''s when they''ve confirmed that the first year was actually invisible.

    The first-year student was none other than the world-famous Midoriyama Satoshi, who inquired from his Dex and turned his t-shirt into a cloak that rendered him invisible. It may not be as effective as the cloak of invisibility in a certain novel series that''s be so popr in the past, but it certainly did the trick. As long as the person didn''t have psychic skills or thermal vision, they won''t be able to see through Satoshi''s disguise.

    Satoshi thought long and hard about what he''d name his new familiar. In the end, he decided to name it the Cloak of Invisibility even though he knew it''s possible that he''d get a copyright strike if anyone else caught wind of it. With this, he was temporarily safe as he moved closer to the center of the map. He didn''t want to get disqualified after finding himself out of bounds once the map shrinks just like any other free-for-all tournament.

    "Now, where is everyone," Satoshi mumbled to himself.<sub> </sub>

    ''Pssst!''

    ''Pssssssst!'' Satoshi suddenly heard in his head.

    He whirled around, wondering where the voice in his head wasing from. Based on how the words sounded in his mind, he was ny percent sure that he heard Kuroe speaking directly in his mind. But then again, he didn''t want to assume that she''s really behind the voice since there might be others who are psychic just like her. And if they were able to speak to his mind, then it''s possible that they could change how they sound like as well.

    ''I can sense you Satoshi, but I can''t see you anywhere. Where are you?''

    Satoshi held his breath. He didn''t want to expose his location since that might trigger an ambush from another ss. Instead, he stood still and kept quiet while trying hard not to think of anything.

    ''I''m at a fallen building which is half-filled with sand. You can find Sumire and me there. It''d be better if we team up since I don''t really want to engage in a fight and get outnumbered.''

    Even though every sign was telling Satoshi that it was Kuroe speaking to him, he still didn''t fully believe the voice in his head. Instead, he decided to go around the building and check it out. When he saw that it was really Kuroe and Sumire hiding in the aforementioned location, he sighed in relief and joined them. He did unequip his Cloak of Invisibility before showing himself though since he didn''t want them to know another of his trump cards.

    "Satoshi, you''re here!" Kuroe whispered, waving his hands violently towards Satoshi. "This here is Sumiko Sumire, one of our ssmates. She''s a friend of mine."

    With an amicable smile, Satoshi approached Sumire and extended his hand¡ª to which Sumire responded with a gasp as she froze. It took at least ten seconds before she got back to her senses and hastily shook Satoshi''s hand. In her nervousness, she stood up and bowed and almost fell forward. Fortunately, Satoshi was prepared and he was able to catch her. Her face reddened in response, and then she decided to return to where she was seating a moment ago.

    "Don''t worry about her. She doesn''t talk much but she''s a great ally. She''s just like that since she wanted to thank you for what happened back then¡ª you know when we were attacked by the Slime Alien and you single-handedly fought it to protect us."

    "Oh, that? You don''t have to sweat it out. Anyone would have done the same thing. In any case, it''s nice to meet you Sumire. We can discuss what your superpower ister but first... Kuroe, you''re interconnected with everyone''s mind, right? Any updates?"

    Kuroe raised her hand and did a thumbs up before nodding towards Satoshi with a pleased expression on her face. "Boy, would you want to hear my updates, hehe. I have a n." She continued.

 Chapter 59 Executing The Plan

    Shiroi found himself inside another building but he didn''t know what to do next. In the end, she just hid and tried to steer clear from the nces of the other students who were out for blood. There were a couple of them who''ve already formed their groups and they were looking for easy prey.

    There were multiple times when she wanted to reveal herself and attack one of the groups but she doubted whether she was capable of achieving such a feat. In the end, cowardice would always get the better of her and she missed plenty of opportunities to get out from her hiding spot.

    Blood poured out of her lips as she slightly bit on them. She knew that the map would shrink soon and if she didn''te out of her literal shell, she wouldn''t survive for long. And even if she were to survive just by hiding, what would that prove about her abilities? It would just give her a failing grade for not participating in the training. But if she were toe out now and ultimately lost in the end, then it would give her a big fat zero. Either way, she''d lose out on the hero training no matter what she does. But then again, doing something is better than doing nothing. So the best decision was to move instead of doing nothing, lingering in the shadows while everyone racked up points which would give them a higher chance of being chosen as a participant in the inter-high.

    Gritting her teeth, Shiroi shot out ice and slid right into the open just when a group of first-years passed by. She didn''t care about getting attacked or ambushed by the enemies. The only thing in her mind right now is to find another hiding spot and try to locate everyone in ss 3-1. With her own ss, she''d have a better chance of survival. After all, Shiroi trusts her ssmates more than anyone in the training center.

    As she nced around with a panicked expression on her face, her drool dropped to the ground due to how focused she got. She then precisely shot every single student on sight with her ice powers and quickly escaped away. What she didn''t know was that she''d already eliminated a couple of students after she instantly froze unsuspecting contestants.

    Just when she was about toplete her escape, a first-year came out of nowhere and tried to stab her in the eyes. Unlike many other superheroes, Shiroi really did have a slow reaction time but her uracy and firepower are iparable to those her age. That''s why when the surprise attack suddenly greeted her, she literally froze in ce, not even attempting to dodge the attack aimed right at her face.

    But then, her attacker just froze in front of her. In a split second, his attack stopped right when it was about to hit her right eye. Not only did his arm be motionless, but also his whole body. It''s as if time, unfortunately, stopped for him and he couldn''t do anything about it. Even his muscles didn''t twitch.

    "Shiroi, you all right?" A familiar voice called out to her, making her whirl her head towards the general direction of the voice. To her relief, Kuroe was right there, running towards her. "That was close."

    "Yeah, too close." Satoshi sighed in relief upon seeing just how close the index finger was towards Shiroi''s eyes. If they were a tad bit toote, Shiroi would have already injured her eyes.

    Sumire, who was together with the team, was d that her eyes were of yellow color today because that would mean that her superpower would give her the status effect of paralysis. She was the sole reason why Shiroi''s attacker stopped in an instant. Well, Kuroe was about to do something about the situation but Sumire was a step ahead of her.

    "Let''s get out of here. Another group is going to pass by here soon." Kuroe warned after shutting her eyes tight for a second. Right now, she was using her psychic powers at full strength. She didn''t want to let her guard down since that would put all of them in a pickle.

    Satoshi and Sumire, who had been following Kuroe''s advice up until now (she was the sole reason why they managed to save Shiroi) decided to just nod their heads and follow Kuroe to a different location. If her lead would let them maneuver through the map in safety, the only thing that they could do was to follow her tail. Even Shiroi, who saw what Kuroe is capable of, decided to follow the group without question as well.

    "A few students from ss 3-2 are walking to our right. They''re not that strong but it would be better if we let them fight against another group and then we''ll clean up the rest. It would be better if we y smart while traveling to the center of the map so we don''t have to worry about it shrinking. Shiroi, that was too close forfort. You almost got disqualified."

    Without further ado, the group broke into a jog in order to get to the inner part of the map and escape the territorial line that marked its shrunken part. They got to the inner part in time but there were others who were more unlucky. In an instant, more than a dozen first years were already disqualified.

    "We''re safe for now. We have at least another fifteen minutes or so before we start moving closer to the center of the map. Now that the area was reduced in size, the only thing we could do is hope that no one else would find us while everyone tried to kill each other." Kuroe said, sitting right under the tall nts of wheat. For some reason, the desernd actually had nts in the middle of it. If it were tended to greatly, they''d have produced so much produce during those years. Of course, that''s what Kuroe thought. She''s perfectly aware that she''s a human.<sub> </sub>

    BRING IT ONN!!!

    WUUOAHHHHH!!!

    Before they could even assess what was happening, they rushed towards the noise that seemed like a scream of enthusiasm more than of fright and panic. Suddenly, the noises of first-years on the other side of Satoshi''s party''s hideout, almost got them caught by surprise. They suddenly rushed towards the location after hearing such a familiar voice.

    To their surprise, Hiroshi was there, without a shirt, yelling at everyone to get in line and shootingva at them from time time. Just like a few seconds ago, he was still screaming while he let his superpowers temporarily consume him. Those who tried to attack were either beaten up or stolen from but that''s not the least of their concern, right?

    Hiroshi continued screaming while he eliminated most of the yers who flocked around him. He didn''t even break the contract, just a normal phone call and you''re already paid. He continued screaming and iling his arms around while earth and fire and organize ng superpowers.

    The fight ensued a few more minutes before Hiroshi was personally stopped by Satoshi. And by then, he already defeated a lot of first-years. Hiroshi, who had been sessful with attacking others, almost screamed his lungs out upon seeing his grandiose achievement.

    "Satoshi, what are you doing here?" Hiroshi asked with a slight scowl on his face.

    "We rescued you, idiot. As a matter of fact, and as much as I hated to admit it, we need you in our team. If we are to stand a chance against those other first-years, we need all the help we can get."

    But just when Kuroe started exining everything about her n, she was interrupted by some sort of power beam or re after seeing that other students were also plotting to surround the entire group. Satoshi and his party braced themselves as they started banging on nearby doorways. Of course, no one expected an answer from the other side of the doors so Satoshi forced his way anyways.

    And when it opened, another group was there, lying in ambush as they trapped Satoshi''s party in the middle of them. In total, there were three teams that surrounded Satoshi and the others.

    Nevertheless, they didn''t feel the least bit worried about the situation since they were just unlucky. Well, let''s just say that Satoshi and his ''best of friends'' Hiroshi are also going to fight on their side so they don''t need to feel pressure.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, son of the famous Midoriyama duo. We know who you are." One of the first-years announced while wearing a smug look on his face. "We also know your past achievements. And the more we studied about you, the more we know that we can''t defeat you alone. Heck, even these three teams may not even be enough." One of them continued.

    "Stop talking, let''s get this thing over with," Satoshi interrupted.

 Chapter 60 Unanimous Leader

    Kuroe clenched her fists in frustration as she apologized many times in her head. Her eyes darted sideways before she finally addressed Satoshi who was already slightly losing his wits since they were driven into a corner. Here they were, trying to avoid every possible engagement with other groups, and just when Kuroe''s mind reached its limit and she took a break, they were ambushed.

    Either the entire scenario was due to another superhero with a psychic superpower or it was just a coincidence that luck was not on their side this time. Whatever the case may be, they were already in that circumstance and there was nothing they could do but try to escape or fight against everyone.

    "I''m sorry," Kuroe clicked her tongue after saying that as it left a bitter taste in her mouth. She didn''t know how to exin to Satoshi that she''d already reached her limit but she was too embarrassed to admit such a thing. After all, what use does she have if she couldn''t even use her superpower right at that moment?

    Meanwhile, Satoshi''s gears were already turning together in his head while he nned their escape. He didn''t want to fight anyone but then again, there are three groups of first years surrounding them. It was inevitable that they have to engage one or all of them inbat. "Don''t worry about it. It''s not your fault." Satoshi muttered, patting Kuroe on the back. "You''ve done well up til now. We just need to survive here and then we can wait until the time runs out. Either way, we''re safe when the map shrinks again."

    "Yeah, don''t sweat it out Kuroe, try to recover some energy while we handle these things. It''s our turn to do the heavy lifting." Shiroi said.

    Sumire, who didn''t speak too much during their entire time together, meekly walked towards Satoshi with a resolute expression on her face. There were no hints of nervousness in her bodynguage even when they were outnumbered. After all, she was confident about her superpower today, and not only that, she''s also confident that Satoshi could easily get them out of their ordeal.

    "I can take care of the third group with Shiroi. If you can take on the two groups and bid some time, we''ll be able to take care of all of them." Sumire told Satoshi in a serious tone. Based on her tone, Satoshi could easily tell that she wasn''t ying around. After all, she even set aside her shyness since the situation spoke for itself.

    Even though Sumire was perfectly aware that Satoshi could easily take on all three of them, she decided to volunteer in order to ease his burden even if it''s just a little bit. Besides, they needed Satoshi to conserve as much energy as he could because no one knows what would happen next in the entire free-for-all match.

    "So this is how it is, huh. I didn''t think that the number one ss of the first years would be this stupid. I''m Kobayashi Siril (Cyril), the ss representative of ss 3-4. And I know you''re Midoriyama Satoshi, the ss rep of ss 3-1. Introductions aside, why aren''t your ss together? And here I was, thinking that it would be quite hard to fight against your ss if you were together."<sub> </sub>

    On his signal, a bright yellow light appeared out of nowhere and surprised everyone in Satoshi''s group. It was none other than the rumored first-year who calls himself shbang because that''s his superpower. No one knows how he does it but he''s certainly good at his timing. Even if his superpower is a simple one, he could still utilize it like an expert, which granted him a pass to the school.

    In an instant, everyone in Satoshi''s group flinched and covered their eyes. The only one who wasn''t fazed was Hiroshi as he caused the ground to break and controlled it with his will. As everyone from ss 3-4''s footing became unsteady, Hiroshi shot up to the sky by causing the earth to properly him upward and he started shooting fireballs at the three groups. "Satoshi! What are you doing?! Get your backside up here and help me cover everyone!"

    "You- you don''t have to tell me." Satoshi granted as he charged at Siril and grabbed him by the neck, but just before he could punch him straight in the face, an invisible wall suddenly appeared right where Siril''s face was and Satoshi punched it, causing him to stagger backward. "Nice cover, Shielder!"

    Then, someone from behind them summoned a huge vine that cruelly wrapped Satoshi and constricted his movement. He wriggled but he couldn''t get out of the vine. Captureplete!

    However, just when everyone in ss 3-4 was about to rx, the other group who was about to join in on the fray suddenly froze on their feet. "You''re not going anywhere," Sumire said as her yellow eyes glowed a tad brighter than they used to. She was activating her status effect of paralysis but there were just too many people in the other group, making her feel nauseated. She covered her mouth as puke almost escape from it. "Shiroi! Help Satoshi get out of the vine. Hiroshi, continue to provide cover!"

    "NO! WE GO ACCORDING TO PLAN!" Satoshi screamed, making everyone pause for a split second before nodding towards him. This was the first time Satoshi shouted an order with such intensity that they were momentarily shocked. Needless to say, all of them unanimously epted Satoshi to be their leader so they didn''t question his judgment.

    After nodding towards Satoshi, everyone in the group nodded at each other. Without saying another word, Shiroi summoned her ice superpower and started immobilizing the first group while they were under the paralysis effect. Just when Sumire gave out and started puking what she had for breakfast, Shiroi already trapped the entire group in an ice prison that continuously hardened, making it almost impossible for them to escape. Meanwhile, Hiroshi continued to engage with the other group who was shooting metal spikes on him non-stop. Some of them were able to injure him but he didn''t stop firing fireballs towards them and restricting their movement with an earthquake.

    "It''s time," Satoshi''s eyes glinted as a smile formed on his face.

 Chapter 61 Kobayashi Siril (Cyril)

    Upon saying that, the vines that continued to grow thicker and choke Satoshi started to melt as if they were put in an oven. There were no signs of fire and it didn''t seem like Hiroshi was doing something to the vines but for sure, it melted right in front of everyone''s eyes.

    Unbeknownst to everyone, Satoshi briefly summoned his familiar ''Lighter'' and shot a single spire of me towards the Vine. That tiny amount of unquenchable me was enough to melt the entire vine to nothingness. With a satisfied grin, Satoshi dusted himself off and rode the Nailgun while shooting a few nails towards Siril and literally nailing him down on the ground as the nails pierced his shirt. A huge circr thing suddenly flew right on top of Siril''s and his group''s head and before they even realized what was happening, Satoshi''s Windfan started turning with full force, pushing a lot of air towards Siril and his group and pinning them on the ground. They couldn''t even talk to each other since the air was too loud. Just the wind alone was enough to pin them on the ground after all.

    "Hiroshi, try to assist Shiroi and Sumire. The ice won''t hold for long." Satoshi ordered, implying that the group trapped in Shiroi''s ice was about to escape.

    And he was right. Apparently, someone with the fire superpower was within the group as well. It didn''t take long before the ice prison that Shiroi constructed while expending most of her energy melted so easily and everyone in the group came out unscathed. A fireball then shot at Hiroshi, which he wasn''t expecting at all. It hit him straightly on the shoulder, causing him to lose bnce and tip over, falling down towards the ground. Fortunately, he managed to control the portion ofnd where he wasnding and turned it into soft mushy earth resembling mud. The fall didn''t hurt him, but it certainly provided an opening for the other group since the second group didn''t have someone checking in on them.

    Satoshi, who was still preupied with controlling the Windfan and rendering Siri''s group immobile, had to go check the second group and used his other familiar, Droplet, on them. Droplet is not really useful if there isn''t any water around since it''s just, well, a droplet. But thanks to Shiroi''s ice prison that just melted, there was an abundance of water. This time, Satoshi caused the water droplet to mix in with the said water and he immediately worked on trapping the entire group in an orb of water. Obviously, fire is weak to water so that group couldn''t do anything but slowly lose consciousness as they drowned. Satoshi hated the method but that was the only way he could deal with that group.

    A sh of electricity, this time, shot towards Satoshi and he dodged just in time before it hit him. That electricity then traveled towards the orb of water and electrocuted those trapped inside it. Seeing the damage he''s done, Electro, the first year with the power of electricity, realized that their entire ss doesn''t stand a chance anymore and he conceded. The other three in the group didn''t even bother to reveal what their superpower was since they conceded as well.

    However, despite showing such spirit, Satoshi wasn''t risking the chance of a surprise attack so he controlled the orb of water and imprisoned those in the second group as well. He also captured Siril and his group and pretty soon, the entire ss was in an orb of water, desperately trying to w their way out as their lungs begged to breathe. "Ice them," Satoshi called out and Shiroi immediately iced the surface of the orb before Satoshi sent it hurtling out of bounds.

    When Satoshi''s familiar, Droplet, returned to the palm of his hands, an announcement rang throughout the entire training center, saying that everyone else except for Siril has dropped out of the free-for-all. Bewildered, Satoshi nced around to see if he really missed throwing Siril out of bounds. Nevertheless, he was sure that Siril was indeed inside the orb when he sent it away.<sub> </sub>

    Unless he escaped at thest second¡ª that''s the only reasonable exnation. But how could he escape such a thing when he didn''t even put up a fight when he was being pinned by the Windfan on the ground. If he had the strength to do so¡ª in retrospect, why didn''t he put up a fight in the first ce?

    After asking such questions, Satoshi finally got it. They were all ying by the palm of Siril''s hand from the start. The reason why he ambushed them at such timing was that he was aware of Kuroe''s limits. And aside from that, he was also aware that Satoshi was more than capable enough to get rid of everyone in his ss.

    There was no doubt about it, he wanted Satoshi to get rid of his ss so he can have lesspetition.

    p Siril smiled at himself. His n had gone awfully wellpared to how he viewed it. At first, when the Windfan rendered his group immobile, he had an inkling to use his superpowers at once. Even though he just got rid of two-thirds of his ss, at least he''d have a higher chance of being chosen as a candidate for the inter-high. But then again, he wanted a surefire way of bing a candidate so he waited... and waited... until Satoshi sent them flying out of bounds. Before his body touched the ground, however, he shot upward and reptilian wings suddenly grew on his back.</anda>

    His eyes also turned reptilian as well and the nictitating membrane covered his eyes. His eyes also became brownish yellow and a horizontal line reced his irises. Without taking a break, he flew forward, towards the center of the map. Now that his entire ss was gone, all he had to do was engage Satoshi and the others in a fight, try to struggle as much as he could, and then lose in a glorious manner.

    While it may seem that he was back to take revenge for his ssmates, his goals were actually the opposite. Thinking about that, a mischievous grin formed on his face as he watched Satoshi and his party regrouping from a distance.

 Chapter 62 Dragon And Lion

    From a distance, a huge entity with wings could be seen flying towards Satoshi and the rest of his group. By now, they''ve already arrived at the center of the map so they didn''t have to worry about getting kicked out of bounds. All that they need to do is stay there until time runs out. But then again, it''s much harder to survive than to stay inbound.

    Fortunately, Kuroe had rested quite enough and she was able to use her psychic abilities once again. She then scanned the entire expanse, finding no first-years nearby, she sighed in relief and announced to everyone that it was okay to take a break. Trusting her words, everyone in the group copsed as they gathered around. As for Satoshi, he grabbed a few things from Orb Oboros, and pretty soon, a bonfire was lit and everyone gathered around it. Satoshi then pulled out marshmallows and sausages so everyone could have a momentary pic together. No oneined nor berated Satoshi when he brought out food since all of them were running out of energy.

    As the clock ticked, the group continued eating while waiting for other first-years to get there and engage them inbat. But what they didn''t know was that everyone was still preupied with their own battles that they didn''t have time to form a group and lunch a full-frontal attack to Satoshi and the others. By now, most of the groups have already been singled out and the ones left were those who work alone. There were still two or more groups here and there but they''re not that activepared to when the free-for-all just started.

    Also, after they saw what happened to the three groups who tried to attack Satoshi, they decided not to go through the same motions. They concluded that they might end up just like the groups who were sent out of bounds by Satoshi.

    "What do we do now? Do we just wait here? What if they deem us unqualified for the inter-high just because we rested?" Hiroshi brought up. Quite ironically, he was on his third stick of sausage and there were no signs of him stopping his binge.

    "No, we''ve done more than enough as it is. Right now we just have to survive." Shiroi responded while stealing nces towards Satoshi. She didn''t know what to answer since Satoshi had been silent all this time.

    Just like Satoshi, Kuroe didn''t speak either. She didn''t have to since she could read their minds. She almost chuckled out loud upon hearing Hiroshi''s inferiorityplex surfacing as hepared himself to Satoshi. ''Did he do better than me? Of course, he did! Why did even have to save us right then and there? Stupid, why did I even join this group. Satoshi would just overshadow my performance. No, I''m the great Hiroshi, my superpower is that of earth and fire. There''s no way I can lose to someone who just controls pets or something. Arghhh! What if I didn''t get chosen as a candidate in the uing inter-high?! That would suck big time.'' All those thoughts were heard by Kuroe, word for word.

    Suddenly, Kuroe''s attention was directed towards an unidentified object which was closing in on them like a homing missile. It wasn''t that fast, but based on how it''s approaching them, Kuroe could tell that it''s a big entity. Whatever it was, it certainly posed a threat to their group. "I sense something. Satoshi, to your right, can you see it?" She announced, getting everyone''s attention and directing it to the mysterious flying entity which was about to reach them in ten seconds at the maximum.

    Satoshi noticed it as soon as he looked towards the general direction where Kuroe pointed. Of course, he''d seen and yed too many games to know that what''s flying towards them is amon final boss or amon enemy in games. It breathes fire, had wings that could decapitate anyone who touches it. It has a powerful hide and a tail that could sweep an army. But what''s more noticeable is its bright color and its wingspan which unts its glory and majestic size.

    A dragon.

    RAAWGHHRR!!!

    A shriek echoed throughout the entire training area as the dragon breathed blue mes which were aimed towards Satoshi and his group. Shiroi didn''t waste any time blocking it with a thick block of ice. Kuroe, who was still inbat mentality, used her psychic powers to keep the water that melted from the ice and use it to block the next spires of mes that came out of the dragon''s mouth. One look and Kuroe already knew that the dragon was none other than Siril.

    "No wonder he didn''t attack back then. He probably wanted to get rid of his ssmates so he''ll have a better chance of being chosen as a candidate. He''s good." Kuroe said to herself before handing the water to Satoshi.

    "Thanks!" Satoshi responded, summoning his familiar ''Droplet'' and causing it to mix with the water. Just like before, he could finally control huge amounts of water so no one had to worry about the mes that came out of the dragon''s mouth.<sub> </sub>

    "That''s Kobayashi," Kuroe announced to everyone.

    "You mean from that dragon maid anime or something? Why is she here?! That''s a ssic series though." Hiroshi eximed as the ground melted on his feet. Previously, Satoshi overshadowed his performance by defeating all the groups that attacked them. That''s why Hiroshi wanted to redeem himself by working together with everyone. As much as he preferred flying solo, he knew that doing his own thing would just affect his overall performance negatively. He may be arrogant, but he''s not stupid.

    "No, you idiot. Kobayashi, Kobayashi Siril." Kuroe announced for the second time. Finally, everyone was on the same page.

    Even Satoshi assumed that Kuroe was talking about the ssic series when she announced that. Hiroshi was just a step quicker in asking the question. He was called stupid though so Satoshi sighed in relief that he wasn''t the first one to ask the question. Instead, he just swallowed his saliva, brought out Orb Oboros for the second time, and summoned his White Lion.

    Although Satoshi didn''t know the full extent of the White Lion''s capabilities (the only thing he knew is that the White Lion could fly, could shoot lightning from its mouth, and is fast), he was very confident that the White Lion could take on Kobayashi Siril. After all, they''re almost the same size when ites down to it.

    Feeling his blood rushing due to excitement, Kobayashi Siril let out a roar as he elerated even faster towards Satoshi''s group. He wasrge enough and so he believed that he could take on everyone in the group. Like a meteor hurtling down the sky, he used all his weight to bore down towards Satoshi.

    But then, arge figure appeared before him and headbutted him so hard his skull shook even though he''s got exceptionally thick skull whenever he''s in his dragon form. After shaking his head, he realized that another beast was in front of him¡ª a White Lion to be exact.

    Just like dragons, lions have existed in legends which were passed down to generation to generation. While all of these legends were fictional in the past, it was always depicted that the dragons are the superior race. Even in video games, dragons would always be thest boss and the lions were always depicted as stylish mounts adorned with expensive ornaments while their master shows them off to everyone. That''s why Siril overestimated himself. ''There''s no way a lion could defeat a dragon, right?''

    With that thought in mind, Siril tried to outmaneuver the White Lion by elerating to one side and instantly changing directions. He zigzagged in the sky while shooting columns of fire from his mouth. But every single time, the White Lion would deflect his attacks and it could even keep up with his speed. Not only that, he also had to dodge the asional ice spikes from Shiroi, and fireballs from Hiroshi who were keen on hitting him no matter what. It took all of his being just to dodge every single thing.

    By the time five minutes passed, Siril was already on the verge of fainting due to exhaustion. And at that moment, Satoshi took his chance and summoned his Windfan from Orb Oboros. The fan then blew a huge gust of wind towards Siril, causing him to lose bnce mid-air.

    Helplessly, he spiraled towards the ground. Seeing his chance, the White Lion let out a huge roar and shot a powerful blue bolt towards him, electrocuting him in an instant. And as if that wasn''t enough, the White Lion bit on one of his wings and pinned him on the ground. Kuroe decided to take her chance as well and activated her paralysis status effect to further pin the huge creature.

    "That was a great fight albeit being one-sided. I guess you got m¡ª " Siril admitted but just before he could finish his sentence, an announcement resonated throughout the entire training center.

    TIME''S UP!

 Chapter 63 A Decision Met

    As soon as he was helplessly pinned on the ground, Siril''s life shed before his eyes as if he was about to die. He could''ve sworn that he saw a beam of light from up above as if someone was going to take him somewhere far away. His senses cked out as he closed his eyes and the only thing he heard was the sound of his uncontrobly loud beating heart and his rapid breathing as if he was palpitating. A sigh of surrender left his lips as he lifted his arms to gesture that he didn''t intend to fight anymore.

    But even then, he had hoped that Satoshi would finish him so that he could tell everyone that he fought to the bitter end. He shuddered at the thought of Satoshi stopping midway and telling him to walk away because that would be pretty shameful. His pride just wouldn''t take such a suggestion.

    TIME''S UP!

    Overhearing the announcement, a huge wave of relief swept Siril as he chuckled lightly. Meanwhile, Satoshi and his party, who were about to attack him mercilessly, stopped short in their tracks. For some reason, time was already up even when they haven''t met all the other sses. In an instant, Satoshi called all of his familiars back and returned them inside Orb Oboros. Everyone else also deactivated their powers and helped Siril get up. At that time, Siril had already reverted to his human form so they didn''t have any difficulty grabbing him back up on his feet.

    "Thanks," Siril muttered as his face reddened with embarrassment. He bit his lips in frustration upon realizing that he couldn''t even beat a single familiar summoned by Satoshi. If he was on that level, then how could he think about going head to head with Satoshi, let alone attacking his group while on his dragon form.

    "No worries, you''ve put up a great fight," Hiroshi said, extending his hands so Siril would shake it. Meanwhile, Satoshi just smiled at the gesture, finding it almostughable. At one nce, Satoshi could tell that Hiroshi was just trying to act like he was a sport. Of course, this is somewhat like a tournament so he needed to act like a saint to further increase his chances of being chosen. Furthermore, he was doing so in order to redeem himself after being humiliated during the initial tests during the first day of school.

    "Yeah, if anyone''s fit to be a candidate, then you''d be the first pick. You had all of us at the palm of your hands back then... just that, I don''t think everyone in your ss liked what you did." Satoshi shook his head and shrugged. Even if he were desperate to be chosen, he couldn''t imagine himself doing such an underhanded tactic.<sub> </sub>

    "Well, if I didn''t get chosen after all that, then I''d rather die than face all of them. This was the only chance that someone in our ss would get to the inter-high and I took it. If I were to get chosen, then I''m well aware that they''ll be proud of me. But if not, then everything would''ve been for nothing. It''s a risk I''m taking for everyone in my ss. You won''t understand these things though since ss 3-1 had always been in the spotlight for as long as anyone could remember."

    Forcing himself to smile, he shook Satoshi''s hands and headed out of the desernd portion of the training center. Surprisingly, there were still a lot of students who managed to survive the free-for-all but they didn''t really shine throughout the entire thing¡ª and that''s because they preferred to hide and avoid danger rather than facing them head-on.

    Now that the hero training was over, Kurogami stood up from his seat, grabbed his bag, and headed back to ssroom 3-1. Well, he could''ve left as soon as the hero training started. After all, he was the only first-year who didn''t participate in the match. But then again, he knew just how powerful he was and how dangerous his superpower was and that''s the reason why he didn''t join in on the training. Had he done so, he would''vee out on top, unscathed¡ª or so that''s what he expected of himself. In any case, the reason he stayed was that he was quite intrigued with Satoshi. The way he fought greatly mesmerized him that he had to see the match through to the end. By the time he realized that he was already keenly watching the hero training, it was already over. He nced around, thinking that he''d done something embarrassing but seeing no one, he hastily left the scene like a rat who happened to stole some food from the kitchen.

    Unbeknownst to him, however, the principal was staring at him from afar, wearing a satisfactory smile as he saw Kurogami''s reaction. "Seems like I wasn''t the only one intrigued by how Satoshi fights. This would be interesting," Sai Tama muttered to himself before turning around and heading back to his office. In his mind, he''s already chosen the candidates for the uing inter-high tournament. Of course, that list is likely to change throughout the days since the final announcement would be noter than a few days from now. Nevertheless, he''d already decided that Kurogami will be part of the inter-high team no matter what.

    After all, he may very well be the core of the team while Satoshi acts as the leader.

    Meanwhile, Knighthawk was pping from a distance when his ss walked towards them. He was just d that everyone in his ss survived. That, in and of itself, is an extraordinary achievement and he was proud of them for it (except for Kurogami though since he didn''t join during the hero training. Midori also couldn''te as well). However, when everyone got in his sight, he stopped pping together and assumed an unimpressed gaze. Clearing his throat, he congratted everyone in a sort of indifferent manner while trying hard not to smile. Kuroe was able to read his mind, however, so it''s not like he could hide his feelings from everyone forever.

 Chapter 64 Criminals And Serial Killers

    Those who watched the teaser trailer of the first-years who''ll be participating next month were shocked to see that the United Superheroes Academy would do such a thing. Usually, it is advisable to just hide all the candidates'' superpowers until everyone is in the actual arena of the inter-high themselves. Every school in Tokyo decided to take notes of every first-year shown in the broadcast and even made sure to watch all the camera footage.

    Even the third-years of a lot of high schools devoted their time in having meetings after school¡ª studying every tactic, assuming the full extent of the superpowers they saw, and breaking down the tactics that ensued throughout the hero training session. They were especially keen on inquiring about Satoshi who was the biggest threat to the inter-high.

    As for the principal of the United Superheroes Academy, Sai Tama, he couldn''t stopughing at the desperation of a lot of schools. Even though he did that on purpose, the other schools couldn''t make it any more obvious that they were desperate to break the streak of the USA, which had been undefeated for quite some time now. Even with all those information leaked, Sai Tama was still rxed, fully confident that the first-years won''t bring them down this year. There was not a shred of doubt in his mind that the first-years would lose on this year''s inter-high.

    .....

    A few dayster,

    Atst, the most awaited moment of the first years has finally arrived¡ª the day when the candidates of the inter-high tournament would be announced. It was even an understatement to say that every first-year was very excited about it. Even Kurogami, who never showed any interest in anything, was really looking forward to who''ll be the chosen ones to represent the school. Of course, he never expected to be chosen since he didn''t join the hero training in the first ce. He was just curious as to which students caught the principal''s interest.

    Then there''s Midori, who was excited about the uing inter-high but then he missed the hero training after being admitted to the hospital. He did get an offer from the Nurse but he wasn''t sure whether he should turn her down or not. There''s also the mystery of her brother being poisoned and until now, he still didn''t know who did it. Even though he was excited about the results, he could tell that he won''t be chosen since he was absent in the first ce. And also, it''s not like he''d be able to focus in the inter-high when he''s got his own problems to deal with.

    Needless to say, it was true that everyone was very much anticipating the important event. Sai Tama knew this and so he announced that everyone should arrive at school at least half an hour before the school bell starts. "There will be a total of seven candidates for the inter-high so pray that you''ll be included there." He continued, leaving much to be discussed the day after.

    ...

    Satoshi is an early riser (unlike a certain character with the same name who doesn''t really wake up early, thereby almost ruining his career as a pet master) but today of all days, he arose exceptionally early. The sun hasn''t yet appeared from the horizon when Satoshi got up and fixed his bed. He then checked all of his familiars to see if there was something wrong with them. He wanted to make it a habit to check on them a couple of times daily because they are still living entities in the first ce. And as their owner, it is his responsibility to look after them and take care of them. After checking them and ying around with them for a time, he stuffed them right back inside his familiar Orb Oboros and headed downstairs to greet his parents.<sub> </sub>

    Just like usual, they were already up. It was his mom who was cooking breakfast this time and his dad peacefully sat on the couch while reading the newspaper. When he nced up and saw his son sleepily trudging down the stairs, he waved his hands and gestured towards the television which showed a videoption of him during the hero training. He wondered why his dad was still watching that after watching it more than a hundred times. Even then, he couldn''tin though since his dad was genuinely proud of him and the results of his training.

    "You should eat before you go," Ayumu mentioned as she was finished cooking. She then set up the table and signaled that everyone seat so they could start eating together.

    "It seems like we''re about to get busy again, love," Tatsuki mentioned in-between his bites, pointing at an article in the newspaper. "Those criminals are back at it again with that drug of theirs. The problem is, their connection is too spread out all over Tokyo that we can''t single them out. Also, these criminals are getting more and more organizedpared to before. It poses a huge threat to all the inhabitants of this city."

    "What''s that?" Ayumu asked, ignoring everything that her wife just said since she already knew about it. She could tell that it won''t be long now before they''ll be summoned by the SAO once again in order to deal with these criminals.

    "Oh, it''s a recent case of poisoning. At least four or five children were already targeted. One of them died, apparently" Tatsuki sighed. The reason why he didn''t want to bring up such a sad topic was that it didn''t sit well with him. "This is what I hate about serial killers. They don''t really have a motive... and the inhuman way they kill someone leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Moreover... this killer is killing kids! Kids. What has gone wrong to this."

    Meanwhile, Satoshi just ate while listening to his parents'' conversation.

    "By the way, Satoshi, have you decided? Are you going to join the Heimdall Agency?" Ayumu tried to change the topic.

    Satoshi then nodded. "Yes, but only for a short while." He continued before downing hisst bite of sausage so he could atst head to school.

 Chapter 65 The Visit

    Clear skies and the asional breeze. It was the optimal casual weather as everyone walked towards the entrance gate of the United Superheroes Academy. Since the sun was still halfway up the horizon, the slight warmth mixed by the coldness of the night a few hours agobined together, producing a pleasurable morning for everyone.

    Despite this satisfactory time of day, a tense atmosphere already enveloped the entire school as more students arrived. For some odd reason, most of them were holding their breaths and a good number of them clutched their chests so tightly that their uniforms were terribly wrinkled. And for Midori who''s got incredible hearing skills, he could overhear the somewhat loud beating of their hearts as he walked in. This was the fateful day when the candidates, or rather, representatives of the school for the uing inter-high would be chosen. That''s why even all of the teachers were somewhat anxious as they await the principal''s announcement.

    When Satoshi arrived, the tense atmosphere had already reached its climax and he almost choked upon feeling it. He nced towards Kuroe and Shiroi who were kind of nervous as well even though it was just a regr day. Satoshi may very well be the only one who didn''t feel any nervousness at all. Quite frankly, he didn''t care whether he''d be chosen as a representative or not since he''d done his best in the hero training. If he wasn''t chosen, then it happened because someone else was better than him.

    "You nervous? I-I-I''m not nervous at all, you know." Hiroshi''s teeth chattered as he talked. His nervousness was so conspicuous that Satoshi didn''t even have to say anything. Everyone noticed it. "I-it''s not like I expect to be chosen. I know for sure that there are only limited spots on the team. Don''t expect to be chosen as well, Satoshi. You''ll just be disappointed."

    With a nod, Satoshi looked away, ignoring what Hiroshi just said. There really is a great chance that he won''t be chosen since the criteria of the selection process weren''t disclosed. All in all, he did what he could, and the results would just depend on how the principal would view their performance.

    While Satoshi''s eyes wandered around the ce, staring at the different faces of the students in his school, a thought urred to him that there were actually a lot of students in the United Superheroes Academy. It didn''t just revolve around his ss and each of them has their own trials to conquer and problems to face. He then remembered what Siril told him a few days ago during the hero training for all first-years. And honestly, what he said was right. There''s no way anyone in ss 3-1 would see the status of other lower sses because they never paid attention to each other. Somehow, a hierarchical system had been subconsciously ced in the school where superheroes of higher standing would not even notice those below them. It was subtle but it was there. No one dared to offend a superpower with a powerful student and those in power could do anything they want as long as they don''t break any rules. Inequality had always been present in the history of man but now that superpowers havee into the picture thanks to the Alpha gene, that distinctive line that separated equality and inequality became a blur.

    And Satoshi knew how it feels to be on the other side of the spectrum. After all, it''s only recently that he''s obtained his own superpower.

    "What are you thinking about?" Someone called out to Satoshi, tickling his ear since the person spoke too close to his face forfort. "You''re thinking about whether you''ll get in or not, right? I''m telling you, Satoshi, out of everyone who participated in that hero training, you''re the MVP¡ª most valuable person! I''ve seen the broadcast and you''ve done incredibly well. You don''t have to be nervous. Also, what''s up with your superpower? You were able to blow away an entire ss with just a single summon? That''s neat! I wish I had a superpower like yours."

    It was Midori. Somehow, Satoshi could hear the instability in his voice. He then patted him on the back without speaking so he''d stop talking and listen to him. "What are you doing?" He asked, weirded out that Satoshi was acting in an uncharacteristic manner.

    "You all right? You were admitted to the hospital, right?" Satoshi asked out of the blue.<sub> </sub>

    "Wait, how did you know that? Oh¡ª so you were the one who brought those handouts to our ce." Midori chuckled lightly. "I''m sorry you had to see that. Please don''t tell anyone about our ce. Actually, I''m still looking for a part-time job so I could finish the repairs to our house."

    "You don''t have to worry about that. It''s already impressive that you can manage your entire family, the expenses, and food at the same time. If I were you, I''d have lost my mind a long time ago." Satoshi said. "I''m sorry you had to miss the hero training like that. But don''t worry about that, there''s always a next time. I heard from your youngest sister that you actually have a reallymendable superpower but she didn''t want to tell me what it is because it''s your secret. Or so that''s what she said."

    "You even talked to Miya? Wait... did you go inside our house?!" Midori eximed to the point that everyone stared at him for causing such amotion. Feeling embarrassed, he slightly bowed his head and stuck closer to Satoshi.

    "Was I not supposed to when they invited me to go in?" Satoshi cluelessly asked.

    "N-not really."

    "She also told me about that¡ª you know¡ª the incident. Apparently, she was poisoned. And she wasn''t the only one. Did you hear the news?" Satoshi whispered. "My parents are going to look into it,. I''ll tell you once I have more information about the incident."

    "Yeah, thanks... wait?! How much did you talk about?! Why did she tell you such a¡ª " Midori was already panicking.

    "Oh, they even showed me your baby pictures. I thought you colored your hair but it was already green ever since you were born, huh." Satoshi teased, pointing at his crotch. "Is it also green down there?"

    "Y-you," Midori grabbed Satoshi by the neck as he tried to tickle his sides. And at the same time he did that, a figure already walked towards the podium.

 Chapter 66 Candidate Choosing

    "It''s starting." Midori gulped, letting go of Satoshi and dusting him off. He then sped his hands together and eagerly stared at the principal as he slowly trudged towards the podium.

    Even though Sai Tama, the school principal, didn''t have any hair at all on his head, his graceful stride made it seem like he had a beard and that beard was flowing with the wind. He just had this aura of tranquility and everyone in his presence marveled at it. "Ehrmm, mic test. Testing. Testing. Testing." He began.

    whiiihnng~ the sound of feedback echoed throughout the open area in front of the school where everyone was gathered. It then died down and the tense atmosphere aggravated as a result of the momentary silence.

    "So everyone''s gathered here, huh. Before I start, I just like to apologize for all the third and fourth years of this school year. Because of the recentints from other schools in the vicinity of Tokyo, I had to slightly alter the selection process of our candidates. As you may as well know, this school, the United Superheroes Academy, is one of the most prestigious schools around the world, grooming thousands upon thousands of students throughout the years and helping them achieve their incredible potential as superheroes. And because of this prestigious school''s incredible output, I have decided that it would be unfair for all the other schools to fight our experienced third and fourth years. I know some of you may haveints about this decision but please understand that it''s not a permanent decision. And besides, our third and fourth years can already join other tournaments for adults so it''s your chance to step up and bring forth results for this school."

    "That said, I once again apologize to all the third and fourth years for robbing them of this precious experience. I know that this will be the first time that our representatives will all be first-years but I hope that you''ll cheer them on throughout the entire inter-high tournament."

    Some of the teachers pped upon hearing that, followed by everyone in the audience pping as well. Sai Tama almost flinched when someone began pping since he was expecting a violent reaction from some of the third and fourth years. Fortunately, such a thing didn''t happen and he get to continue speaking.

    "For the candidates, we''ll be picking seven of them but due to some rmendations and after thinking about it, I''ll be picking eight candidates. Without further ado, for our first candidate, we have a somewhat surprising first-year. You may not have seen him in the hero training but he was rmended by none other than the Nurse herself! That''s why I can''t just turn a blind eye to it."

    "Onigashima Midori."

    The announcement brought a series of gasps throughout the entire crowd as they stared at the green-haired first year. At that moment, it still didn''t sink in that he was chosen as the first candidate for the inter-high tournament. Adding to that, he wasn''t expecting to be chosen at all that''s why he couldn''t believe that he just heard his name.

    "Oi! The Nurse rmended you?! What on earth did you do?" This time, it was Satoshi who grabbed Midori by the neck as he rubbed his head with his fist. "Congrattions on being the first candidate!" Satoshi continued.

    "Wait... was that¡ª was that true? I thought it was a prank? Why was I... " Midori''s sentences were all jumbled up together since he didn''t know what to say anymore. Currently, he was just too ted to even speak straight.<sub> </sub>

    "Yeah! You lucky bastard." Hiroshi clicked his tongue. He was surprised that Midori was chosen even though he didn''t participate in the hero training.

    Some of the first years were genuinely happy for Midori but the others showed distaste and envy. Of course, that much is to be expected since a school is a breeding ground forpetition.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi." Sai Tama continued but this time, he received little to no response. Of course, it is to be expected that he will be a candidate for this year''s inter-high. He basically single-handedly took on everyone and he wasn''t even breaking a sweat when he did so.

    "Congrattions, Satoshi." Midori''s face is already filled with excitement as he grabbed Satoshi by the hand and shook it with fervor. "I''ll be looking forward to being in your team! Man, wait til my family finds out about this!"

    "Kobayashi Siril. You''ve given us a great lesson about tactics. I hope you''re as promising as you showed us to be."

    "Itsuka Shidou. As the ss representative of ss 3-2, you managed to keep your team together without engaging with everyone. I hope your input will be as useful in the uing inter-high." Sai Tama continued.

    A huge cheer erupted from ss 3-2 as their ss representative''s name was called. For some reason, Itsuki Shidou is the only guy in the ss... for some odd reason. But that fact aside, it was obvious that Itsuka Shidou was actually promising. How could a normal person hold apany of girls together in a free-for-all fight? He surely has talent, but everyone in the other ss just doesn''t know about it yet.

    "Next is Kurayami Kurogami. You held yourself back during the hero training because your superpower is destructive. That restraint of yours will be vital in the uing inter-high tournament."

    Although Kurogami didn''t participate in the inter-high, there were rumors that his superpower is actually the most superior one, even more powerful than Satoshi''s. Of course, he still hasn''t disclosed his superpower to his ss so they could only wonder as to what it is. But if the school principalmended him for holding himself back during the hero training, then that should mean that he really is as powerful as the rumors say... except those rumors are as unbelievable as stories in myths and legends.

    The power of the shadow¡ª if the rumors are true, then he may very well be the most powerful superhero that hasn''t debuted yet.

 Chapter 67 Tayokama Hiroshi

    "Fukushima Fuuka,"

    "Sakura Cherry,"

    "Tayokama Hiroshi,"

    Once these three names were announced and they were given their due apuse, Sai Tama then delivered an inspiring speech, pertaining to the school as a collective body that resembles a family. He then spurred everyone to cheer on the candidates and give them their one hundred percent support as they represent the entire school in the uing inter-high tournament. After reminding everyone and making sure that there were no visible hard feelings throughout the first years, Sai Tama''s lips tightly curved upward before turning away from the podium and walking out of the stage. This left all the students in their own devices as they congratted orforted each other after the candidates'' selection came to an end.

    "Wait... that was my name, right? Right?!" Unexpectedly, Hiroshi grabbed Satoshi by the cor and squeezed it, almost choking him to death. In an impulse, Satoshi pushed him away, causing him to fall rear-first on the ground. However, that wasn''t enough to faze him and he got back, dusted himself in an overexaggerated manner before going up to Satoshi and grabbing him by the cor once again. "I got in! I got in! And I was thest pick!!! HAHAHAH~" He screamed at the top of his lungs, causing spit to shower upon Satoshi''s face and everyone nearby.

    "Stop that, that''s disgusting." Satoshi wanted to p the living daylights out of Hiroshi but he maintained hisposure and calmly pushed him away for the second time. This time though, he summoned his White Lion and told him to pin Hiroshi on the ground so he won''t bother anyone. That wasn''t enough for him though since he continued screaming and celebrating in his heart''s content. It''s as if an entity possessed him, making him hysterically make a fool of himself.

    At first, Satoshi felt sorry for him and wanted to pick him up so they could head together to ss. But after remembering that he was just spitting right at his face a few seconds ago, he shook his head, turned around, and headed to ss just when the school bell was rung.

    Meanwhile, Hiroshi stayed lying down on the ground with a foolish smile on his face. Just like Midori, he came from a poor family and the only reason why he got to the United Superheroes Academy was that his mom and dad were close to the Midoriyama Duo. They were basically the ones who rmended Hiroshi to the Midoriyama Duo and in turn, they rmended Hiroshi to the school, encouraging him to apply for a schrship so that he won''t have to pay anything. As long as he brings forth good results, he won''t have to worry about the tuition fees.

    .....

    Hiroshi was the son of two mediocre superheroes. His dad could control fire but couldn''t manifest it. And as for her mom, she could control the element of earth but she couldn''t manifest it as well. They both met during a mission where they had to work together to bring down illegal smugglers in a nearby forest. Together, they managed to foil the ns of the smugglers into smuggling boosters for criminals. This was rted to that historical Boosting Incident everyone knew about.

    At that time, Hiroshi''s dad realized that he could work well with thatdy with the earth element. They both thought the same thing and so a wedding and a child were inevitable. By the time they caught up with everything in their lives, Hiroshi was born. Together, the two of them prayed that Hiroshi would get a nice superpower so he won''t have to struggle in life. Hiroshi''s mom and dad both experienced the harsh reality of the world where superheroes abound. Because the two of them were just mediocre superheroes, they weren''t given high-ss missions but instead, they were given odd jobs and mostly clean-up missions after the superheroes have done their job. Because of that, they could barely survive financially and they had to take on part-time jobs at convenience stores or family restaurants just to get by.

    Growing up, Hiroshi never experienced the luxury of brand new things, even his clothes were hand-me-downs from his cousins or people he knew. He wasn''tining though, because he realized at an early age that it''s better to have clothes than to walk around naked¡ª that it''s better to have a roof over your head and a meal on the table than to have none. At an early age, he realized the truest sense behind the word ''contentment'' and he became quite ustomed to his life. But then again, he could tell that his parents were somehow suffering just so he could live afortable life. He wanted to return that favor to them but what could he do as a kid? Ask around for money? Would he even be epted to work part-time jobs? Of course not.<sub> </sub>

    That''s why, when he awakened his superpower, a huge feeling of relief overcame him. ''Now''s the time to give my parents the life they deserve'' or so that''s what he said to himself. But at that moment, he only knew that he inherited his father''s superpower. When he found out that he inherited both, he was ted, and he wanted to do his best as an uing superhero.

    During his childhood years, that''s when he was introduced to the indifferent Satoshi. As a rising superhero, he greatly admired the Midoriyama Duo who stood at the peak of all of Japan. And when he came across the fact that their one and only son didn''t have a superpower, he felt great pity towards him. He wanted to console him when he got the chance to meet him.

    But the scenario in his head was proven wrong. What he didn''t know was that Satoshi was actually strong-willed, and he would never back down even when he didn''t have a superpower. He was relentless, so relentless that no one dared to bully him even when the other side had a lot of superheroes with them. That was one thing Hiroshi didn''t have and it dealt a great blow to his pride. How could someone without a superpower have such ideals whereas I was born with everything and I''m not half as strong as him? Those thoughts lingered in his mind and he somehow resented Satoshi. Compared to him, Satoshi had an even harder life. And yet. he''s got everything under control. While there he was, with nothing going his way. Even his rmendation to the school was due to the fact that his parents were friends with the Midoriyama Duo. And furthermore, the reason why they were friends was that his parents were once rescued by them during one of their missions.

    Since then, he looked at Satoshi as his rival, as a goal that he''d never reach no matter how strong he got. He was angry at the universe for not giving such a strong-willed person a superpower. But even more so, he was angrier at himself for having a superpower and not producing the results that Satoshi could achieve. Long story short, he grew envious... envious at the teenager who has everything yet has nothing. Midoriyama may have everything he ever wanted but at the end of the day, he didn''t have a superpower. That fact alone made Hiroshi furious. And he didn''t even know if that fury was directed only to Satoshi or to him¡ª or maybe it was directed at both, which was probably the case.

    p On the first day of school, the initial testing, or rather the ''entrance exam'' for all the first-year urred, Hiroshi had built-up frustration over Satoshi''s situation. That''s why he was bitter when he was pitted against the son of his benefactor. He wanted toy it all out on him by defeating him in an overwhelming manner. A part of him wanted to prove that he is stronger than him even though he knew that Satoshi will always be better than him. At the back of his mind, there was a portion of him that admitted his own inferiority towards Satoshi.</anda>

    That''s when the most baffling thing happened. Somehow, Satoshi flew in mid-air and started controlling nails. There was no doubt in everyone''s minds that Satoshi had the power to control metal all along. Out of everyone who witnessed it, it was Hiroshi who was most bewildered out of everyone. A plethora of thoughts urred in his mind. After all, why would someone like him hide such a powerful superpower? How did he manage to cope with the bashing that the media gave him after all these years and even then, he didn''t reveal his trump card? And why reveal it now? Why reveal your superpower now when he could''ve revealed itter. Even if he were to showcase it after graduating high school, he would still be as popr as he is right now.

    While he was pondering on those mind-boggling thoughts, Satoshi had already defeated him.

    However, that didn''t make Hiroshi feel crestfallen. In fact, it relieved him to no end. Satoshi''s identity is not the same in his mind anymore. Before, he was a teenager who got everything but no superpower. But now, he was those two things, and even when that notion made Hiroshi feel more inferior to him... at least the distance between them was so great that there''s actually no point inparing himself to Satoshi¡ª this gave him the freedom he needed from the shackles of his confusion.

    As Hiroshiy on the ground, overlooking the clear skies that extended like the never-ending sea, he smiled to himself. He was chosen as a candidate. That was more than enough proof that his parents made the right choice... that his parents really saw something in him and believed in him when they practically begged the Midoriyama Duo to rmend him to this school.

    "I did it... mom, dad." He muttered to himself, totally indifferent about the school bell that rung repeatedly throughout the entire school.

 Chapter 68 Meeting With The Principal

    The rest of the day went by as usual with Knighthawk''s usual reminder that everyone shouldn''t think too much about the announcement. Although a big part of him was extremely ted since four out of the eight students were from his ss, he didn''t want to conspicuously express that happiness since that would just disappoint some of his students even more. There were only twelve of them in his ss and there were plenty of chances when they could''ve stepped up to further increase their chances of bing a candidate, but then again, Hiroshi and Satoshi performed more than above and beyond everyone''s expectations. While the former attracted a lot of enemies and managed to hold out until the end, thetter managed to bring the whole ss together while simultaneously defending everyone in his team. Only a handful of professional superheroes could do that in that given situation. Even those in the training centermended Satoshi''s performance since he was a team yer. Not only that, he didn''t exclude anyone in the team even though some of them were too weak. Just from the broadcast alone, it was obvious that Satoshi would be chosen.

    Aside from that, there''s also the great mystery of why Kurogami and Midori were chosen. Both of them didn''t participate in the hero training but as it turned out, that was just a little test to see if anyone''s worth noting. Kurogami just had that innate talent in him that no one''s aware of just yet. But if he were chosen as a candidate even though he rejected the test, then he must be quite talented. As for Midori, he was rmended by none other than the Nurse herself. That fact alone is enough to give him a ce in the limited spots. Even then, connections don''t work that way, the Nurse must''ve told the principal something that fully convinced him to give Midori a spot. As to what it is, everyone could only wonder. With their curiosity piqued, they wondered what superpower Midori possesses.

    Satoshi, meanwhile, started thinking about all the candidates and how he''ll be able to work with them. He couldn''t really tell whether they''ll be able to stick together or not, due to the fact that he was oblivious to the superpowers the others possess. The only ones he personally knew were that of Hiroshi and Siril because he fought them once before. As for the others, he doesn''t have the slightest idea.

    "Hey, we have to go to the principal''s office." Hiroshi suddenly called out with a slight urgency and excitement in his voice. Of course, who wouldn''t feel that way when the principal personally called for you?

    "Satoshi, finish your lunch. Quick." Hiroshi said, stuffing himself within seconds and rushing out of the door.

    "You don''t have to tell me twice." Gulping down his lunch as if it were water, Satoshi quickly followed suit, right behind Hiroshi. As for Kurogami, he maintained his poise and just walked slowly as if he had all the time in the world. When no one was looking, however, that''s when he broke into a sprint.

    While the eight of them ran, apprehension settled in as they wondered why the principal was calling for them. All of them were looking forward to it, sure, but the entire notion is new to them since they were never called to the principal''s office yet. But then again, it''s not like any of them did something wrong so there was nothing to overthink about, or is there?

    The candidates found themselves standing in front of the Principal''s office before they knew it. All of them inhaled a lungful of air before stepping forward. It was Hiroshi who knocked to represent all of them. Well, no one wanted to step up and knock since they were all nervous but Hiroshi was more enthusiastic than nervous.

    "Come in," The principal''s voice had some sort of high-pitched yet serious tone into it, making everyone flinch but not too much. Together, all eight of them trudged inside the principal''s office, which proved to be more spacious than they initially thought. It had a normal principal office vibe and yet it was personalized to the touch. Sai Tama put in a lot of details in his hobby as a superhero for fun. That''s why there were certain objects in the office (just like a tatami table in the middle of the room and a cushion where the principal could lie at any given moment) that made it quite... unique, to say the least.

    A single ray of sunlight infiltrated the room through the open windows, hitting Sai Tama''s bald head and causing it to glisten as the light was reflected on it. His eyes were that of a dead fish and yet his aura was full of life as if a potent superpower dwelled within. Of course, Sai Tama wouldn''t get to where he was if he weren''t a strong superpower. Moreover, even if he wasn''t, his disciple could single-handedly take care of everyone here. After all, he''s a powerful cyborg just like a certain cyborg in a certain cinematic universe that became popr a few hundred years ago.

    "I called you here because you only have at least a week before the inter-high begins." After closing his arms on his chest, Sai Tama spoke about the purpose of his summons without dilly-dallying around. Despite his high-pitched voice, he was stern when he spoke, emphasizing the fact that he was talking seriously. This caused everyone to gulp once more as they almost choked on their dry saliva.<sub> </sub>

    "From this moment on, you are a team. Set aside your differences,y aside every weight, and work as a team withoutining. I don''t want to hear any of you not getting along with each other. Even if you hate a certain person in your team, so much so that you''d rather die than be with that person, I don''t want to hear a singleinting out of your cursed mouths. You are a team, but before all else, you''re all first years. That fact alone should tie a camaraderie amongst yourselves. You might have seen a lot of inter-high tournaments in the previous years and I tell you, if even one of you isn''t in on the team, then you''ll certainly lose."

    "Furthermore, this is a very important time for the school. You all have to win no matter what. And you were chosen because you have the capability to see that through. Aside from that, you''re all as strong as the third-years. If you were to lose now, not only will everyone in this school lose face, I''ll also lose face as a principal. At least... just don''t get eliminated on the first round, please."

    An exhale left Sai Tama''s mouth before he continued on with his monologue. "With that said, I want you to spend all of your break time together. I don''t want to see any of you left out. If you''re going to have lunch at the rooftop, then fine, I''ll tell our security to open it for you guys. If you want to eat out, I''ll provide the necessary funds for you. If you want to go to the beach in your free time, just tell me where it is and I''ll drive you over there. I am in o way partial to my students, but I have to do this to show mymitment to all of you. And in order to strengthen your friendships, you have to do everything together. Well, aside from when you get home, that is. That''s your own personal time."

    "But as I said, if someone nned to go somewhere for a break, all of you should be included. Just for this week. This will help all of you as a team, and this has been an ongoing tradition ever since we joined the first inter-high. Don''t be surprised, your upperssmen also experienced the same thing... and why do you think we''ve managed to secure first ce for consecutive years now?"

    Everyone just nodded, for fear that they''ll get sent to oblivion if they spoke.

    "You''re all dismissed. You have at least an hour before lunch break ends, right? Go to the training center or something or eat out. Whichever you opt to do, do it together. I will not tolerate disobedience, especially when I''m asking nicely."

    Once again, all of them nodded, somewhat jumpy. No one knew if they flinched when the principal spoke that final word a little bit louder than the rest but all of them felt fear coursing through their body at that instant. Whatever it was, the principal was really as charismatic as the rumors made him out to be.

    A huge sigh of relief washed them as soon as the doors behind them closed after they exited the Principal''s office. They stared at each other and they felt a bit giddy. There''s no way they''d go against the words of the principal himself.

    "So... what are we going to do? Should we head to the rooftop?" Midori was the first one to speak up, breaking the silence that heavily weighed down on all of them.

 Chapter 69 Lunch Break

    In front of ss 3-1''s ssroom, a certain fourth year lingered around the hallway whilst biting on her fingernails. There was a hint of anxiety on her expression as she paced back and forth, trying to muster up the courage to open the door to ss 3-1 and call out to someone.

    Ever since Satoshi rejected her rmendation, she was appalled. She couldn''t believe that someone as promising as Satoshi would reject an offer from the Eye-Goddess herself. Furthermore, he was keen on setting up his own agency which also meant that he wasn''t interested in joining his parents'' agency. With those things said, it was obvious that he was skipping a lot of steps when ites to bing a professional superhero. "Didn''t he know that he should have an enormous amount of experience so he''d be able to set up his own agency? And also, he''s just a teenager, shouldn''t he think about joining an agency first?"

    Because of that, Elimine decided to approach Satoshi a second time and ask him to join their agency. A day before, she already told Satoshi''s parents about it, giving them a heads up before she asked him once again.

    But now, she was unsure of how to time her approach, probably because Satoshi''s ssmates were inside the ss and she didn''t want to disturb them during their lunch break.

    "Elimine-san? What are you doing here?" A girl suddenly spoke behind her, causing her to jump a few inches upwards in surprise. She momentarily froze as her legs weakened a little bit and all of those happened in just a split second. After catching herself and regaining herposure, she turned around, only to see that her cousin was there, Shiroi.

    "Ah, Shiroi, by any chance," Elimine whispered while leaning a little towards Shiroi. "Is Satoshi inside?"

    Shiroi couldn''t tell whether her cousin was hiding something from her or not but she felt a tad bit jealous about it. She didn''t show it on her expression though, because initially, she was just curious as to why Elimine was attempting a low profile when it was unnecessary.

    "No, they were called over by the principal. Do you want me to ry something, big sis?" Shiroi asked.

    "Ah, no, I''ll just tell herter." She half-smiled before retreating. Just on her gait alone, it was obvious that she was nervous, and that whatever it is that she had to tell Satoshi, it''s probably quite a sensitive topic.

    With a tilt to her head, Shiroi wanted to figure out what her cousin was going to tell her childhood friend. But then again, she didn''t have any idea so she just ignored it and got back to her ssroom. There, Kuroe was waving at her enthusiastically, gesturing that she sit with her for lunch. "Was that Plume? Wow, you''re really close, huh."

    "She''s my cousin," Shiroi responded, setting down her bento box so she and Kuroe could eat together.<sub> </sub>

    "I see... must be nice." A sigh left Kuroe''s lips before she ate another mouthful of rice. "The inter-high, huh, I wonder if we''re going to win this year." She said to herself, wondering what she could''ve done better so she''d be chosen as a candidate. It would''ve been nice if she were chosen, or at least that''s what she wished for back then. Right now, she''s just passive about the topic with a hint of disappointment.

    "Hopefully, Satoshi''s pretty strong, you know," Shiroi told her a matter of factly while eating. Her tone implied that Satoshi had been quite formidable even then. Well, Kuroe doesn''t really know anything about Satoshi''s past since she could only read what someone''s thinking at the moment. There were times when Satoshi thought about his past. Back then he didn''t have any superpower so Kuroe was curious as to when he awakened such a powerful superpower.

    "Shiroi, weird question but... what was Satoshi like back when you were kids? You''re his childhood friend, right?" She asked out of the blue since she was genuinely curious herself. At least, if she heard it from Shiroi herself, then she''d be able to connect the pieces of the puzzle and have a vague idea as to what happened to Satoshi that made him the person he presently is.

    The sudden question made Shiroi''s cheeks redden as the edges of her lips curled upwards, forming into a smile that represented her nostalgia after reminiscing the past. In that instant, a flood of information about Satoshi''s past was evident in her thoughts and Kuroe absorbed it like a sponge. It didn''t take long before she knew Satoshi as Shiroi knew him.

    "We... I don''t really talk to him that much even back then when we were kids. He always talks in a stiff manner and sometimes his voice cracks as if he was nervous whenever he speaks. Even then, I''ve been saved by him countless times and he was always strong-willed. Even when he acts timidly at times, he doesn''t fail to step up in appropriate times. It was only recently that he obtained, or rather, awakened his superpower. That awakening just caused him to be even stronger, and now he''s be an unreachable individual, even for me."

    Kuroe was just nodding all throughout Shiroi''s monologue, all the while trying to suppress her lips from smiling. Ever since they met the two, she could tell that they get along really well, they just didn''t know it because they brushed it off as being childhood friends. Kuroe knew otherwise.

    "So... you like him, right?"

    "Eh?!" Shiroi almost spat out the mouthful of rice she just put in her mouth. Fortunately, her impulse was to swallow it before the unthinkable transpired.

    In return, Kuroe justughed it off, shaking her hand in a gesture that she was just kidding. It was half-meant though since it was true. ''That Satoshi, I wonder what he''s doing.'' She asked herself, fully knowing that every candidate for the inter-high are undergoing a strategy meeting or something like that with the guidance of Principal Sai Tama.

 Chapter 70 Voice Command

    The rooftop of the United Superhero Academy is one of the most visited spots on school and that''s because it''s spacious and it could get kind of aesthetic whenever a sunset is due. It is also the number one confession spot in school just like any other cliche school out there. But that wasn''t the only thing that made the rooftop as popr as it was.

    Due to the training center being always filled with professional superheroes, Sai Tama then decided that the school should have another training center or something of the sort on the school''s premises. Of course, since there wasn''t any ce where students could train freely aside from the training center which is always filled to the brim, the principal decided to use the school''s rooftop as a training ground for the students if they were toozy or too shy to go to the training center. Principal Sai Tama made it his priority to make the rooftop out of almost indestructible materials so it wouldn''t affect the lower floors if by any chance two students were to have a mock battle there.

    Hence, the rooftop became a replication of the Concrete Arena but more child-friendly. Anyone can go there and practice a mock battle against anyone. A guard is always posted on the rooftop so it''s safe to go all-out. As for flying debris, the rooftop is covered in an invisible barrier so there was no need to worry about things falling from the rooftop. Students who wanted to jump off the rooftop couldn''t do it and so, there were no suicide attempts in the school. It was a roundabout and unexpected way of dealing with such a sensitive topic but it works nheless.

    On that rooftop, currently, eight first-year students gathered around each other, all of them intently staring at each other''s eyes. Well, all except for Midori since he was still eating his lunch as he wasn''t able to finish it before they went to the Principal''s office. Well, he did finish one of his bento boxes but he brought two of them today.

    "So, what are we going to do here? Any ideas?" Shidou finally broke the silence, his voice resonating as gently as ever. Even though almost everyone in the group were guys, his voice was still mesmerizing for everyone. "Should we reveal our superpower so we could utilize them and strategize with them beforehand?"

    No one spoke, causing Shidou to fidget before he continued speaking. "I have this superpower called ''The Voice''. It''s very self-exnatory."

    "How is that self-exnatory?" Midori asked in between his bites. "If you''re going to exin your superpower, then just tell us what it is as clearly and as concisely as you can. I guess I should just start then, my superpower is a berserk superpower. The more damage I sustain, the stronger I get. This berserk skill also affects my secondary superpower which is a healing superpower. The Nurse told me that my healing superpower is superior to hers and I think she meant every word she said. If what she says is true, then that means I can surpass her in due time. My healing superpower allows me to heal any ailment or injury regardless of what it is but it drains my energy at an exponential rate."

    "My healing superpower also increases in effectivity based on my desperation, kind of like my berserker skill so I can adjust my output quite well. However, I don''t use my superpower to their full extent all the time so I''m not that confident in controlling them."

    "Now, Shidou, that''s how you properly exin what your superpower is, not just giving us vague clues about it. Okay? Now you try it." Midori continued.<sub> </sub>

    While everyone was shocked that someone as free-willed as Midori was actually powerful, they all kept quiet as they stared at Shidou. A great part of each of them wanted to scream and tell Midori that his superpower shouldn''t be that strong but they suppressed that urge. As much as they wanted to react, their priority was to know about everyone''s superpower so they concentrated on Shidou this time.

    "Um... o-okay," Shidou gulped at Midori''s sudden response that he almost choked on his words. "M-my power is called '' The Voice''" He stuttered. "Some call it the ''Mating Call'' or ''The Woo'' but basically, how my power works is that I can basically woo anyone of the opposite sex by using my voice alone."

    Before they knew it, every guy in the group uttered ''cool'' before they realized it, causing the two girls in the group to show their disgust on their teammates. Sakura and Fuuka even wondered if their team could actually take the trophy of the inter-high.

    "Wait, you''re not kidding with us, right? If that''s the case, then does that mean that we won''t have to worry about the other female candidates? Can you take care of all of them at once?" Hiroshi excitedly asked, his eyes glistening with excitement. It''s as if Shidou suddenly became a great figure amongst men.

    "No, unfortunately not. If I intend to woo someone, then it''s going to take a few days at most before she''spletely into me. But my superpower is pretty effective... the least I could do is provide a distraction and catch a girl candidate off-guard, creating a diversion in the process. Aside from that effect, I can also cause someone to freeze in ce by just shouting at them, or I can somewhat hypnotize them if my mental strength is strong enough. For example... freeze, you idiot!" Shidou suddenly extended his hands and screamed at Hiroshi who was just as surprised as everybody else in the group.

    In that instant, however, Hiroshi felt his whole body stiffen as if invisible chains bound him. Even his mouth couldn''t move nor twitch. As for Shidou, he rxed a secondter and released Hiroshi from his paralysis. "Something like that," Shidou''s tone reverted to his usual gentle-as-a-calmke tone before he sat on his spot once again.

    "Voice Command huh... that''s pretty neat." Satoshi muttered to himself, all the while staring at Hiroshi who was probably traumatized or embarrassed by what just happened.

 Chapter 71 Power Of Nature, Space Distortion

    "How about you uhm... Kurayami?"

    "Call me Kurogami," Kurogami responded, cutting Shidou off as he was shifting the attention from him to Kurogami. Although it didn''t end up the way he thought it would, he managed to redirect everyone''s attention to him so he won''t have to exin his superpower in a more detailed manner. After all, revealing one''s superpower doesn''t mean you''d have to reveal your trump card as well.

    Midori was a different case, though, he just revealed everything about himself, which is essentially a good thing since that would open up more possibilities for him in supporting the entire team. It just goes to show how serious he was regarding the matter, so much so that he''d riskying out all his cards just to win the tournament.

    "I have the power of the shadow, and that''s all I can tell you." He simply answered, extending his hands and gesturing at Sakura Cherry who was right to his left. "And you? Don''t tell me you got some sort of useless superpower, otherwise, I''m going to flip.

    "Wait, you watch that anime too? That''s such a ssic! It also has a sequel to it, his son is the protagonist. If you haven''t watched it then you should. It starts off kind of boring at first but it got better over time." Midori interrupted, pertaining to a certain anime where someone named Sakura was nicknamed useless because of how, well, useless she was at first.

    Having brought attention to herself, Cherry couldn''t help but hang her head down low and fidget nervously while all eyes bore upon her like a drill steadily creating a hole on her forehead. She was just like the character on that anime herself, not because she was useless, but because of her strikingly pinkish hair and slender body. Well, she''s more proportionate than that character but needless to say, her features are more than enough to mistake her as the character''s real-life counterpart.

    "I... I don''t really understand my superpower but what I do know is that I can increase the life force of a certain person on the detriment of something else. The power of nature, or so that''s what I called it ever since I was little. There was one time when I identally turned a friend of mine into a tree just because I identally transferred her life force on a seed that she was stepping on... haha... ahahahaha... "

    "MORE LIKE THE TREE GREW AROUND HER AND SHE SLOWLY DIED!" Cherry screamed, her face distorting in a disturbing manner. Raising her hands and standing from where she was, she continuedughing hysterically as her body stiffened and jolted in mysterious ways. It was all too sudden that no one managed to react nor stop her in time. She just continued screaming,ughing.

    Then she paused.

    And continuedughing uncontrobly once again. But after that, she started crying as if she was the victim. Her cries were too pitiful that everyone thought maybe she''d gone through an unrecoverable past. Covering her face with both her hands, she continued crying. "She was my best friend... and yet the tree slowly grew around her, causing her joints and bones to break and bend in terrifying ways. She screamed at me... I screamed back... and yet there was nothing else I could do. I watched as the tree squished her... blood and gore flowed from within that tree but it continued growing. Its steady creaking sound harmoniously went together with the cracking of her bones and the rupturing of her organs... I... there was nothing I could do. I just watched in horror as I screamed my heart out."

    ? Upon saying that, she stopped crying, and then wiped the tears and snot off her face. Just on her expression alone, one could tell that she was feeling excruciating pain deep within her bones and soul. Obviously, the traumatizing experience she went through as a child scarred her for life, making her emotions run wild every time she remembers it.

    "Wait, I haven''t introduced myself, yet, right?" She continued, much to everyone''s bewilderment. Her expression has drastically changed from being traumatized to being warm and gentle. Even her smile could be likened to the sakura trees in early spring due to how warm and sincere it was. Everyone was mesmerized by it and a tranquil silence fell deep within the group. "I''m Sassu. Don''t tell Cherry I came out just to tell you about her past. She doesn''t want to talk about it but don''t worry, I already told you everything. That being said, I''d like to take care of this body and Cherry at the same time so it would please me a lot if you don''t ask her any questions about her superpower. Just remember that she could aplish anything you asked her to as long as it''s deep within the range of reality, that''s just how powerful she is. Also, if ever you need my help, you can just call out to me and I''ll switch with Cherry."

    "Oh, and by the way, I''m another personality she created using her childhood friend''s personality and character traits¡ª you know, that one who died because of her. So... it would also please me if you don''t ask about Sassu or anything about her childhood. Right now, I''m doing all I could to suppress all her memories regarding that past. I wouldn''t want her mind to break due to the trauma."<sub> </sub>

    "That said, I should go now, Cherry might sense me if I stay too long. Don''t tell her I came out!" Sassu continued before she blinked twice. "W-what happened?" This time, the consciousness returned to Cherry and she was back to her usual timid self.

    "Nothing, you kind of dozed off for a second. Are you feeling all right?" Satoshi, fortunately, was quick enough toe up with a convenient story so she won''t feel suspicious. "Should we head down to the Nurse''s office?"

    "Um... no, i-it''s fine. It happens to me a lot... " She continued. "You were asking me about my superpower, right? I''m just... I have a superpower that''s connected to nature. I can steal and transfer life force, buff someone temporarily, or even cause a slight change in the weather." She continued.

    In response, everybody pped softly as if she just did something to deserve it. Perplexed, she nced at everyone before finally epting to herself that they were probably just genuinely curious about her superpower. Nevertheless, she felt an inkling feeling deep inside her as if she just did something that caused everyone to be a bit wary of her. As to what it was, she could only wonder. After all, she knew that her memories weren''t reliable in the first ce.

    "Next... how about Fuuka? Care to tell us what your superpower is?" This time, it was Hiroshi who spoke up instead of the usual Midori. Even though Cherry''s uncontroble personality had disappeared already, Hiroshi could still feel the fear welling up inside him. It took all of his being to suppress the scream that was about toe out from his lips. Cold sweat steadily dripped from his forehead, however, and his goosebumps haven''t calmed down since then.

    "I can cut through any objects and distort space." She said. "However, I''m not strong enough to cause a ck hole... probably because that would destroy the world in one go. Also, I can''t actually affect a living thing with my superpower. That''s the only limitation I have. As long as it''s an object, and it''s not alive, I can either cut through it or distort it. I don''t know how it''ll be useful in the inter-high but it has helped me escape from dangerous situations in the past. It will prove to be useful when we''re retreating."

    "It''s my turn then," Hiroshi cleared his throat. "I can control earth and¡ª "

    "We all know what your superpower is. You were the most viewed match for this year''s first-year initial matches after all." Midori interrupted him out of the blue, fanning the mes of fury which weren''t there a moment ago.

    "Let me continue." Hiroshi hissed, clearing his throat once again before smiling. "I can control earth and fire, giving me the magma superpower. If you need me to change the terrain or you want some chaos in the field, then I''m your man. No one can provide a drastic change in the terrain better than I do. Also, I may be weak but I am a team yer. You all don''t have to worry about me getting in your way."

    "Are you sure about that? Last time I heard you were flying solo during the free-for-all hero training session. You sure you''re a team yer?" Siril called out, half-teasing the guy. "Never mind that, we all know what we came here for, right?"

    Everyone nodded, then their eyes focused on Satoshi who was just quietly overseeing the entire exchange.

    "Yeah, what is your superpower exactly, Satoshi?" Siril continued with a skeptical gaze.

 Chapter 72 Hero Agenciesâ€” History

    With a curious gaze, everyone stared at Satoshi,pletely concentrating on Satoshi as they eagerly awaited his words. Their eyes were glued to him, so much so that Satoshi had to look away since he felt a little bit embarrassed.

    But then, before he said anything, the school bell rang throughout the entire school, resonating in their ears and signaling the end of their lunch break

    "It''s just like you thought, I can summon the creatures I tamed, sort of like a pet master superpower." Satoshi continued. A split secondter, he stood up and stretched a little bit before heading towards the door to the staircase. "We''ll bete for our afternoon ss, let''s go." He continued, trying to suppress a smile that almost came out. With a sigh of relief, he went down the stairs, d that he was saved by the bell, in all sense of the word.

    As for the rest of the group, they could tell that Satoshi was hiding something from them but who were they to ask? In the end, they couldn''t bring themselves to annoy him by repeatedly asking him to reveal all his cards. They didn''t want to overstep their boundaries.

    Besides, each of them already assumed that he was the most powerful member of the group. Unanimously, they''ve decided that he''d be the leader of the team, unbeknownst to Satoshi. Of course, they didn''t know what each other was thinking but little did they know that they were thinking about the same thing.

    Following right behind Satoshi, they all headed to their respective sses, d that they at least made some progress with their teamwork over lunchbreak. This wasn''t the only time that they''ll be with each other though. Right now, they weren''t actually aware that the Principal was nning a few things behind their backs to further their overall rtionship with each other.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    Principal Sai Tama ended the phone call with a satisfied smile, holding a few tickets in hand and swaying them back and forth as if he was fanning himself on a hot summer''s day. Just like any other teacher in the United Superheroes Academy, he also looked forward to the inter-high wherein he''d be able to see his students grow into team yers instead of soloists when ites to being superheroes. Throughout history, Sai Tama has watched a lot of superheroes mess their careers by working alone instead of getting along with other superheroes. That was the reason why agencies were born and why schools for superheroes were set up. And so far, Sai Tama was pleased with the results that his school was producing. After all these years, there were only a few cases wherein students from his school would fly solo. Most of the time, they''d form their own agency or join an already existing agency.<sub> </sub>

    And not only that, the previous candidates of the inter-high were living examples of how teamwork ys out in certain battles. Some of them formed their own agencies, and some could even synergize so well with other superheroes that they had the opportunity to get recruited abroad. It was the greatest achievement a superhero could get when an agency from America or Europe recruits him or her. Because if that were to happen, then that superhero is a few hundred steps closer to being sessful. More poprity, and even more opportunities¡ªpared to Japan, of course, since Japan is quite an independent country that doesn''t depend too much on anything due to how advanced the country is, both economically and technologically.

    However, that doesn''t mean that Japan and the other countries don'' have their own fair share of troubles. In fact, Japan had suffered a lot of incidents regarding superheroestely and its society is slowly getting shaken up. If something were to happen once again¡ª as a part two of the Boosting Incident¡ª then the country might even fall into chaos... or so that''s what experts predicted when the Boosting Incident came to an end.

    "Yeah, I guess they have enough time after school... should I give them some sort of budget? Yeah, I guess I should. How would they enjoy the amusement park with their empty stomachs? And they''re growing superheroes, after all, I should give them more than enough budget for food." The Principal rubbed his chin while trying to think up a safe amount. It''s not like the budget woulde from the school funds anyways, it''sing from his own pocket. So even if it was more than enough, he didn''t have to worry about it... well, he never had any problems, financially speaking, so adding a little bit more on the budget wouldn''t hurt.

    After deciding on the amount, the Principal sat back on his desk and continued working on the stack of paperwork he had to aplish before the end of the day. Then again, it''s a good activity to pass the time before he could call his awkward students into his office once again and give them the tickets to a nearby amusement park. Like the gathering of inter-high candidates during lunchtime, going to the amusement park together is also part of the tradition. Every year, all the inter-high candidates undergo such an experience so it''s a normal thing to expect.

    m!

    Before he got to finish the first stack of paper, the door to his office burst open, and in came a red-haired girl in a teacher''s uniform. Somehow, her teacher uniform was a size smaller than her usual, making it curve through her body as if it was tightly hugging her. She didn''t mind it though, as if she''s used to wearing such a tight fit already. Without sparing a single pause, she took three long strides with her slender legs and stood in front of the Principal.

    "Kirisaki Sana, what seems to be the problem?" Sai Tama asked in a cid tone, unfazed by her figure nor her unusually attractive facial features.

    "Sir, wh¡ª why was that Satoshi kid chosen as one of the inter-high candidates? Didn''t he cheat during that hero training?!" She eximed, her voice cracking due to its high-pitchedness.

 Chapter 73 Kirisaki Sana

    Kirisaki Sana had been a teacher in the United Superheroes Academy for quite some time now and for some odd reason, she harbored hatred towards the Midoriyama Duo. No one knows what happened back then but she never hid her animosity towards the couple. Whenever someone asks her about the past, she would always brush it off with silence, and if she chose to speak, she would just say some cold remark about the appearance of the person who asked. It was quite a waste, to be fair. After all, Kirisaki Sana is actually the most prepossessing teacher in the entire United Superheroes Academy.

    Not only that, but she''s also a very famous model in advertisements and fashion alike. But then again, the reason why she never got the poprity she deserved was because of her rude personality. Because of that, she could only work once with an employer before she loses all her patience and throws a tantrum. That''s her usual way of dealing with disappointments and mistakes, and it had be her brand, as much as she hated to admit it.

    Well, the reason why she was like that was because of her spoiled environment. Having been born from a rich family, she nevercked anything in her life, and now that she''s got a superpower in her arsenal, she was basically on top of the world.

    Nevertheless, Sai Tama saw something in her and decided to employ her as a teacher in the United Superheroes Academy. She may be the youngest teacher and the most problematic one, but Sai Tama saw her potential and patiently groomed her into bing a teacher... well, it''s working so far since she''s improvedpared to before.

    Two years ago, when Kirisaki Sana was employed as the biology teacher and the head of the nurse''s office, she wouldn''t miss a dayining to the Principal about her day. It always happens after school, with no breaks whatsoever. Sai Tama, on the other hand, didn''t see any harm in it though since she never caused any trouble. She could be so shameless in barging into the principal''s office andining but she never talked back to any students she met. In fact, she had the farce of being an easygoing teacher even though she had an entirely opposite personality.

    But then again, there were times when she ripped off that pretense and threw a tantrum in front of her students... but her students thought that maybe she just had a bad day. After all, losing patience happens to the best of teachers.

    ? Today was a different case altogether, though, since Kirisaki Sana barged in on the principal''s office even though school was not over yet. Sai Tama didn''t say anything about it though, he just sat there with a calm expression while his arms are folded on top of each other, pinning the stack of paper on his desk since it might fly away if Kirisaki Sana started sting with her temper tantrums.

    "Kirisaki Sana, what seems to be the problem?"<sub> </sub>

    "Sir, wh¡ª why was that Satoshi kid chosen as one of the inter-high candidates? Didn''t he cheat during that hero training?!" She eximed, her voice cracking. "Did you see what he did? He used his familiars. How could we know that those familiars are his? What if his parents bought it for him? Shouldn''t we look more into this matter before we do anything else? If he was actually using familiars that he didn''t get using his superpower, then that would damage the reputation of this school. Principal Sai Tama, what were you thinking? You shouldn''t have overlooked such an obvious thing. This is why I told you to just expel that kid back then. The moment Iid my eyes on him I knew he was up to no good."

    "That''s a good point." Sai Tama mumbled, continuing on with his stack of paperwork. A smile formed on his lips as he realized that Kirisaki Sana was quite level-headed today. Was it because of her hatred towards Satoshi''s parents? Or did she have an incredibly good day? Whichever the case, Sai Tama was relieved that he didn''t have to clean up his office after Kirisaki Sana''s visit. "But how could we prove that those are his familiars? Just like we can''t prove they aren''t his, we also can''t prove that they''re his. Besides, how could we expel him when he showed satisfactory results during that initial testing? And aren''t we done about this matter? That girl he was fighting with surrendered first... I think her name was Shiroi... and because of that, he was able to advance. Also, what is up with your outfit? That is unbefitting our school''s standards. I suggest you change your clothes first before we continue talking about this."

    "Also¡ª don''t get me started on Satoshi. We both know why you hate the Midoriyamas. Don''t bring something personal to school. If you want toin about my decision about Satoshi, then should I tell him your secret?"

    "B-but!" Kirisaki Sana wanted toin more but it was obvious that she was already caught between a rock and a hard ce. There was nothing left for her to say so she decided to keep quiet about it. Her sentiment remained the same, however, no matter what the principal told him. "I didn''t have any teacher uniform left! They''re all a size smaller now... did I get fat?" She continued. "Was it because I turned twenty this year?" She said to herself, pinching a little bit of fat on her waist.

    "I''ll send in a request about that. Expect new teacher uniforms tomorrow. Also... " A mischievous smile formed on the principal''s lips as he grabbed the tickets from his desk. Once again, he started fanning himself with it. "You actually came at the right time. I got a few tickets to the nearby amusement park that recently opened. I was hoping you''d go there with a few students... you know, some sort of an excursion but with a small group."

    "Really?! Yay! I haven''t been to the amusement park in so long. Will I go with an entire ss? Please don''t give me ss 3-1, please." She pleaded, but her eyes were already sparkling with excitement.

    "You''ll be going with the inter-high candidates after ss." The Principal almost let out hisughter after saying it. Fortunately, he maintained hisposure and handed the tickets to Kirisaki Sana. "Oh, and also, don''t even think about excluding Satoshi. Remember your secret which is safe with me." He indirectly threatened.

 Chapter 74 Romantic Invitation

    Kirisaki Sana''s jaws dropped as the information was thrown at her without warning. At that moment, her excitement dwindled to the point that she wasn''t looking forward to the outing anymore. Meanwhile, the principal didn''t know whether he shouldugh or not upon seeing Sana''s genuine reaction. He never asked why though since he already knew why she hated them so.

    "I''m not going." Kirisaki Sana said in such a gloomy tone. As much as he hated to do it, she also wanted to go to the amusement park. After all, she never had an enjoyable vacation in a long while.

    "No, you''re going... besides, don''t you want more overtime? Think about it, you get paid overtime and you get to enjoy a little vacation. How''s that? Sounds pretty reasonable, don''t you think?"

    Honestly, even with Satoshi in the group, Kirisaki Sana found the deal very tempting. Her hands shook as she continued extending it towards the handful of tickets that Principal Sai Tama is waving around. A part of her wanted that vacation but another part of her didn''t want to associate herself with Satoshi. Because of that, her mind was fighting against each other as she pondered on her decision. She even went as far as to grab her hand with the other in hopes that that would make it stop.

    But her other option weighed in her mind more. Principal Sai Tama was right on the money when he offered overtime pay because that put a lot of pressure on Sana''s mind. In the end, her other hand inadvertently let go and it grabbed the tickets on Sai Tama''s hands, slipping from his grasp like a piece of paper flying in the wind. As soon as Sana did that, Sai Tama withdrew his hands and put them under his desk. With that, Sana wouldn''t be able to change her mind since she already grabbed it.

    "Good choice," Principal Sai Tama smiled, returning to his usual duty of paperwork. There was no need for discussion as if he expected Sana to act that way.

    "I... I''ll excuse myself, then." Without further ado, she tightly gripped the tickets and bowed towards the Principal before peacefully going out of the office. Another smile was stered on the principal''s face as the doors closed in front of him.

    When Kirisaki Sana got out of the office, she copsed behind the door and put the tickets on her face. She didn''t know how to react to her decision. On one hand, she felt ted that her momentary vacation has overtime pay but on the other hand, she felt like her stomach would churn at the presence of Satoshi. "Why did I have to ept that?! Then again, it''s too hard to pass up on that kind of offer. Now that I think about it since when did Ist go to the amusement park?"

    As her mind drifted to herst memory of an amusement park... she realized that she only had bad memories of that ce. Thest time she went there was when she was still in college. She decided to confess to her crush when the Ferris wheel reached its highest peak. As the sunset and a tranquil atmosphere surrounded them, she expectantly stared at her crush''s eyes and confessed all her feelings, pouring everything into her words.

    Then... as it turned out, her crush was already engaged to someone else. Quite the tragedy for her very first confession (he wasn''t her first love).

    Remembering that depressing memory made Kirisaki Sana shake her head as if her head was about to fall off. At the same time, Jazz, the math teacher (also goes by the superhero name Silencer) passed by, wondering what happened to Kirisaki Sana.

    "What are you doing?" Jazz asked out of the blue, almost about to touch her shoulders.

    But before he did so, Kirisaki Sana bolted upright, almost making Jazz fall on his rear end. "N-n-nothing!" She bashfully said before running through the hallway.

    "Oi! You shouldn''t run in the hallway! Seriously," Jazz said covering his face with the back of his hand as he tried to hide his face reddening.

    .....<sub> </sub>

    The clear blue skies were already turning a light orange hue, epassing the entire school with its warm ze. There was something about this time of day that gives everyone the drowsy feeling, an early afternoon of rxation, and a breath of fresh air. As the sun continued to dip down on the horizon, saying itsst farewells on the day.

    Kirisaki Sana tapped her foot in an inconsistent rhythm while waiting outside the ss 3-1''s ssroom. She bit her lips and lightly chewed on it due to nervousness, so much so that it reddened and bled a bit.

    Then the school bell rang.

    It''s as if every nerve in Sana''s body was electrocuted as she flinched and almost jumped five inches off the ground. A squeal left her mouth but she managed to catch herself by putting both hands on her lips. ncing left and right, she was relieved that no one saw her in her shameful state. She sighed in relief, then cleared her throat before she stood in her ce once again. With her anxiety growing by the second, she continued waiting, waiting for Satoshi, Hiroshi, and Kurogami toe out. She figured that asking them first would remove a great weight on her chest since she won''t have to deal with themter.

    When the flood of students came out (well, that was an exaggeration since there were only twelve students in ss 3-1), Kirisaki Sana''s body stiffened while waiting for Satoshi toe out. When she finally saw her, her face reddened and she turned away. But before she couldpletely get her face out of Satoshi''s sight, Satoshi saw her and wondered why she was acting quite suspiciously. Because of that, he carefully approached her. Even then, she kept on ncing behind her, not noticing Satoshi who was creeping right behind her.

    The moment she caught her breath and regained herposure, she turned around and resolved herself to approach Satoshi while trying to maintain her calm nerves. But before she could turn around, Satoshi tapped her by the shoulder, making her squeal a second time before turning around in haste. "Red Velvet-sensei, what are you doing here?"

    Red Velvet is Kirisaki Sana''s superhero name, based on a certain ssic dance group hundreds of years ago but still popr today due to their unusual music style. She clutched the hems of her skirt, exhaling before she addressed Satoshi. "Oh... uhm... " She stuttered.

    When talking behind Satoshi''s back, she could say a lot of things about him without a care in the world. Even on his first day of school, she was the one who told the principal that he should expel Satoshi for making light of the initial testing. If the principal had listened to her, then Satoshi would''ve been expelled right then and there. But then again, it''s not like Satoshi did something wrong during that time. There were plenty more students who forfeited the match just like him. Nevertheless, now that she''s in front of Satoshi, she started acting like the most bashful thing in the world. Fidgeting, she tilted her head to the side and handed Satoshi the tickets to the amusement park. From a third-person''s perspective, it seemed like she was tantly asking Satoshi for a date or something along those lines. Well, those who saw what transpired concluded the exact same thing and they steered clear away from the scene.

    "U¡ª um... what are these?" Satoshi asked, looking around. It took all of his being to not redden at the sight of Sana''s bashfulness. Putting the best of his poker face, he stared at Red Velvet straight in the eyes, curious as to why she was handing her three tickets.

    "I-it''s... t-the principal... it''s for the inter-high candidates!" Her voice almost broke as she slurred herst few words. "We''re going there." She continued, pointing at the tickets before storming out of the way.

    Midori and Hiroshi, who were always right at Satoshi''s tail, saw everything that happened and they realized what Sana meant. Had they not known any better, they would''ve assumed that their biology teacher was actually asking Satoshi out on a date. They were almost speechless, watching everything unfold in front of them. For the first time in their life, they told themselves not to move nor flinch because that would unnecessarily interrupt the atmosphere going on between a student and a teacher. For some odd reason (because of Sana''s uncharacteristic stutter and fidgeting), they really thought that their teacher had a thing going for Satoshi... a part of them didn''t want to believe it though but they were almost convinced.

    "So... we''re going to the amusement park? Principal''s orders?" Midori broke the silence that befell them. He didn''t know what to say at first since he and Hiroshi were both trapped in a daze when Kirisaki Sana left the scene.

    "A-apparently so," Hiroshi responded.

 Chapter 75 Pickpocketing Incident

    An amusement park is something that represented both worlds in one ce. It was a ce where fun andughter abound, and yet, a sinister aura could be felt within. It is an understatement to say that an amusement park is a den of thieves, pickpockets, and a cornucopia of criminals, and the fact that this ce is their yground is already the norm. One wouldn''t go about their day in the amusement park without hearing about a case of kidnapping, a stolen wallet, or simply a stolen cotton candy by the front of the store itself.

    However, there are a great number of children who consider the amusement park as their safe haven, a setting where they could enjoy themselves to their hearts'' content without worrying about getting bored at all. Of course, such is not the case for a few children who experienced kidnapping in the amusement park.

    The Nichijou Amusement Park just opened a month ago and it had already received a number ofints about thieves and molesters running about. Despite all that, the management decided to turn a blind eye to it because frankly, it would just add to the finances of the amusement park if they were to act on it. Acting on it would mean adding more employees and guards as patrols after all.

    On a certain alleyway in between stalls that sold a variety of snacks for all the visitors of the amusement park, a masked man with red eyes and scarlet hair slowly sauntered through, taking a few pauses in between to add to his innocent appearance. With his hands in his pockets, he gazed through the cracks and corners of the stall, taking in the scent of different vors while enjoying the sight of the hardworking stall owners trying to make ends meet by shouting and promoting their consumables to the people passing by, each with a different expression to show.

    "Such a lovely sight," the man muttered to himself, remembering thest time he went to an amusement park. "Now that I think about it... there was one time when that happened, huh. I was young back then, without a care in the world and ultimately arriving at the crossroads of life. And now here I am, still without a care in the world even if it burns. But the only difference is, this time, I''m doing something in order to continue living. Sigh~ those were the days, what would''ve happened to me if I had said yes back then?"

    Lingering thoughts about his past made him snicker at such an absurd and cliche past. ''I''m here on a mission, that''s all I should think about right now. Focus, Sei,'' He said to himself.

    Right when Sei got back to his senses, he detected a faint movementing to his left. It came from a ramen ce called Ichiroku Ramen, probably a parody of a certain ramen shop in a very popr ssic series. There, a man with the same mask as Sei gestured that hee to him, making him stop short in his tracks before tackling the guy with full force.

    Themotion caused a lot of people who were eating at the ramen shop to pause as they stared at Sei who seemed to have attacked the man without any valid reason. It didn''t take long before Sei realized what he did and he immediately got back up and offered his hand to the man he just tackled. The man did know who he was so he didn''t shout back at him nor tried to retaliate. He just kept quiet, nevertheless wondering why he was tackled.

    "Sorry, force of habit," Sei said to the ramen guy while dusting him off. "I didn''t mean to do that, please don''t tell the boss of my blunder."

    "It''s all right... but you did attract a couple of unwanted attention so that''s a different issue. You know how paramount this transaction is... don''t fail the boss." The ramen guy continued before speaking in Japanese and bowing towards his customers as if to apologize for amotion that he didn''t even cause.

    "The paper''s on your pocket. I put it there when you tackled me. I didn''t know how the boss foresaw that you''ll tackle me but he did instruct me to put the paper there while you tackled me. Wow, as expected of the boss." The ramen guy whispered in a hissing manner.

    "Ssh! We don''t talk about the boss! Even in public!" Sei said to the ramen guy before speaking in Japanese like him and bowing towards the customers¡ª an exact replica of what the ramen guy did a few seconds ago. Without further ado, he exited the premises with the precious paper in his possession.

    While walking out of the narrow alleyway, he saw something happen at least a hundred meters away from him, causing him to act before he could even think. From afar, a man wearing a ck cap and a ck mask were walking around, pickpocketing wallets here and there without rming anyone. It was obvious that he was an expert at his job since no one noticed that their wallet was missing. The reason how he did that was swiftly get the wallet while recing it with an empty one. It was a veryplicated yet efficient way of robbing someone and it had worked quite so far. Sei couldn''t tell how many wallets he had already stolen but there was already a lot.

    Springing into action, Sei once again started his innocent act by walking with his hands in his pockets and pacing himself just right so no one would notice his presence. This way of walking had worked for him so far and he was confident it would work once more.

    The pickpocket didn''t even notice him even though he was already walking right behind him. Just when he was about to grab another man''s wallet, Sei nudged him on the shoulder, causing him to drop the wallet he was holding. "Sir, your wallet?" He told the pickpocket, handing him the wallet he had just stolen from the man in front of him.

    Sei''s sudden call caused the man to turn around, only to find out that his wallet was being returned to someone else instead of him. It only took him a split second to piece two by two together and he immediately yelled. "PICKPOCKET!"<sub> </sub>

    p There was no way for the pickpocket to run and two guards approached him with all the intent to apprehend him. Apparently, the pickpocket Sei just caught was actually a most-wanted pickpocket called ''Sleight''. He was an expert at switching wallets of other people and causing them to fight amongst themselves while preying upon more and more victims. There were already a lot of cases when it happened that the management realized that it was a work of a certain pickpocket or a group of them.</anda>

    "Please sir, you must cooperate." One of the policemen voiced out while pulling out a pair of handcuffs.

    "I already told you, that man was trying to frame me when he wasn''t able to pickpocket that guy! It wasn''t me! I didn''t do anything wrong! You should arrest him as well as a possible suspect if you''re going to arrest him."

    In retrospect, the thief had a very reasonable excuse and somehow, Sei was surprised that a normal pickpocket could think of such an borate loophole. He smiled to himself, chuckling as the crowd started getting brainwashed by the pickpocket.

    "Yeah! You should arrest him as well!"

    "Yes! Yes!"

    "How do we know that it wasn''t him? And did he have any proof?!"

    "Arrest both of them!"

    "Mommy... are they bad people?"

    "How dare you steal my wallet!" Even the man who got his wallet stolen joined in on the fray, pointing fingers at Sei who didn''t do anything wrong.

    As for Sei, it was quite a spectacle that he wasn''t trying to defend himself. In fact, he even offered his hands to the policemen so they could handcuff him without asking him. "Let''s see how it is then, we''ve got a lot of security cameras all over the amusement park. Don''t tell me we won''t watch that before we go to the police station? If by any chance you saw me get that pitiful of a wallet, then go ahead and sue me, frankly, I don''t care because that¡ª that¡ª and that camera saw what happened. Far out, this is giving my tongue a bad taste."

    "Well, not like you''d need those proof anyways," He shrugged, staring at the pickpocket as if expecting him to do something that would prove he was in fact the bona fide pickpocket.

    Suddenly, the pickpocket''s face turned into a horrible deformation before the flesh all over his body started amassing like a blob growing when it came in contact with water. He let out a scream, but that scream was liquified as if his very throat was turning into liquid itself. In just five seconds, the pickpocket was unrecognizable anymore since he''d grown thrice his size and was uglier than a blobfish out of water.

    "Sike, I didn''t mean it like that," Sei''s jaws dropped at the sight of the monster that almost touched him due to how close he was. While he was trying to get out of the way, a familiar sight caught his attention, causing him to stop in his tracks.

    "Wait, isn''t that¡ª"

 Chapter 76 Fleshy Blob

    The fleshy blob of something that was once human grew into an enormous size until it became conspicuous to all the visitors of the amusement park¡ª too obvious, in fact, that even Sana''s group saw it just when they were entering the premises.

    "What''s that, a new attraction? Looks disgusting." Hiroshi was the first one to call it out, even though everyone thought the same thing. As for Kirisaki Sana, she immediately felt the danger emanating from within the amusement park and decided to prepare herself, just in case.

    "Stay behind me." She told everyone, waving her hand behind her as if she was gesturing to a bunch of kids in a kindergarten setting. A bead of sweat flowed from her temples to her chin as the anxiety was getting to her, she didn''t even notice that Satoshi was right behind her, and she was blocking his way with his hand.

    Screams from the nearby attraction were already imminent but Satoshi and the others ruled it off as people enjoying the sights. After all, screams in an amusement park aren''t that big of a deal, especially when the attraction was as grotesque as the one they were seeing right now. It may not be child-friendly but it is certainly scream-inducing.

    A half-wail and shriek came out from the fleshy blob once again, causing chills to run down up and down Sana''s spine as she cautiously approached the eye-catching scene. She didn''t know why she was being drawn there but as it turned out, she wasn''t the only one. A lot of guests were already flocking the weird entity when they got there.

    Sana was expecting a unique yet enjoyable experience on that certain attraction but when she got there along with the rest of the inter-high candidates, she realized that it was pure pandemonium from there on out. People were yelling their lungs out in a panic-stricken manner as bits and pieces of flesh shot out from the blob monster. There were already authorities on the scene and some superheroes who were assessing the situation. One of which was a red-haired man who was firing off some red beams from the tips of his fingers. Satoshi immediately recognized the man since he was actually pretty famous. After all, the game Laser-fingers was based on his superpower.

    "Wait, isn''t that¡ª Red Velvet! d you''re here!" Sei called out after gathering all his fingers into five points before firing off what looked like a spiraling cylinder ofsers that went through the blob. However, the fleshy blob just let out a weakened moan before the portion of its body regenerated.

    After doing a side somersault and crawling out of the danger zone, Sei arrived in front of Red Velvet aka Kirisaki Sana. "I don''t think I''ll be able to beat this guy alone, can you do something about it? Got any food on you?"

    (Kirisaki Sana, superhero name¡ª Red Velvet, has the power to imbue certain buffs on food she cooks. However, she prefers to bake dessert more than cook meals for different people. Her superpower is the support type, and she''s easily one of the best support types around. This was what earned her the right to be a teacher in the USA.)

    "I got some cupcakes on me... they''re strawberry-vored though. I also got some macarons on me... still strawberry vored." Red Velvet twiddled her thumbs while exining, fully knowing that Sei really hated strawberries or anything with that said vor.

    "Urgh~ well, it''s not like I''ve got any choice. What buffs do you have?" He continued.

    "Strength enhancement, sense enhancement, superpower enhancement, speed enhancement, recovery enhancement... and regeneration enhancement. Take your pick."

    "I''ll take all of them except thest one then." Sei continued.

    Satoshi and the others watched as Sana handed the red-haired guy some macarons she kept in her backpack. Until now, they still haven''t seen how their teacher''s superpower works, they''ve only ever heard of it. And well, the situation was a bit hectic so they thought that it would be best if they kept quiet and just watch everything unfold. ''As expected of professional superheroes, they''re always quick to act... always ready as well. If it were me I''d have forgotten to use my support-type superpower when the moment of truthes'' Satoshis said to himself.

    With a gulp, Sei nervously stared at the macarons on his hand, his face making an expression of genuine disgust and slight hatred towards the snack. ncing towards the blob that continued to grow bigger and shoot out fleshy smaller blobs, he took in the gravity of the situation and shifted his gaze back at the macarons, which he imagined were staring back at him with nothing but contempt. He knew that desperate times call for desperate measures, but never would he have thought that the desperate measures could be quite¡ª well, desperate indeed.<sub> </sub>

    After mustering his courage a couple of times, he gulped once more before shutting down his nostrils so he won''t smell the smell of strawberry, he then ate all the macarons and downed them with water. But even then, he felt his gag reflex activating¡ª just the mere thought of eating strawberry made him feel as if he''d throw up at any given moment. His eyes were tearing up as he stared at Red Velvet as if begging for mercy.

    Meanwhile, Red Velvet covered her mouth and tried not tough at the expression Sei was wearing at the moment. However, she couldn''t suppress it, the sight was just tooughable to pass up. Before she knew it, she was already pping her knees whileughing to her heart''s content. "I never thought you''d really eat it. You know, Sei, there''s a reason why I always bring strawberry-vored desserts with me."

    "Yeah, talk about perfect timing Anyways, thanks for the treat! I''ll try not to throw up in the middle of the fight." Sei motioned, his eyes turning a brighter shade of red as the buffs from the macarons kicked in and activated. It was like he was on drugs because of how buffed up he felt. Well, Red Velvet''s power was like drugs, to begin with.

    "Also, can you call any superhero you know? I''m having quite a hard time dealing with this guy." Sei continued, popping a thumb towards the fleshy blob.

    "What happened to him?"

    While everyone was receiving a rundown of what happened before everything turned out like that, Satoshi slipped from the group and went to the other side of the blob. From afar, he could tell that the sun was setting on the horizon and it won''t be long before the nightes. A strong breeze was blowing past as well, signifying the sooning rain that would transpire a few hours from now.

    Not only would it be hard for superheroes to fight at night, but it would also eat away a lot of their time since they won''t be able to enjoy their visit to the amusement park while the fleshy blob continues its rampage.

    "What should I do... " Satoshi had a lot of options in mind but he couldn''t get a concrete idea of what he''ll do. Suddenly, his eyesnded on the huge swimming pool right in the middle of the amusement park. This swimming pool was currently devoid of humans since the people there were the first ones to get away when the blob appeared. With that scene in front of him, a smile spread across Satoshi''s face as his n formted itself.

    As usual, he grabbed his Orb Oboros and summoned his ''Droplet'' familiar, dropping it on the swimming pool and waiting for it to take over the entire thing. Meanwhile, he rode on his ''Nailgun'' again and started flying all over the fleshy blob without the consent of the authorities, superheroes, and even his peers and teacher. Right now, the only thing in his mind was to defeat the blob and get everything over with so everyone in the amusement park could continue on with their enjoyment. Fortunately, there weren''t any damages done by the blob yet.

    "Random bullsh''t go!" Satoshi muttered under his breath, remembering a certain meme that he saw way back when he was still a kid. As he said that, he started firing off nails at the fleshy blob at a rapid pace, but since the blob was too soft, the nails just go through its body and get stuck midway before even piercing it. That was Satoshi''s n though because the next thing he did was summon his White Lion, telling it to unleash a powerful lightning bolt... well, nails are actually pretty good electricity conductors.

    "P*kachu! Use thunderbolt!" Satoshi screamed, then he felt a bit weird since that was one of the lines he never wanted to say in public. But then again, he was right in the middle of a serious incident so having little side jokes here and there actually helped, rather than focusing too much on the negatives.

    Right then, the fleshy blob screamed a dying scream, unlike before when Sei was shooting offsers from his fingers. This time, it was obvious that the fleshy blob felt pain being transmitted in him as lightning coursed all over his gigantic flesh of a body.

    "SATOSHI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Red Velvet screamed from the ground. Meanwhile, Sei was already running around the fleshy blob, initiating an assist for Satoshi since he''d rested quite enough already.

    "This kid, taking the spotlight from me," Sei smiled to himself, joining in the fray.

 Chapter 77 A Better Player

    Sei smiled as if he was being challenged by a kid and he immediately dashed towards the fleshy blob without sparing aa second thought. As for him, he knew that no matter how strong the teenager was, there was no way he would outshine him because he''s one of the shiest, if not the most popr superhero there is. Besides, he received a buff from none other than Red Velvet, one of the best support type superheroes to ever exist. There''s no way he''d be beaten by a kid after receiving such a buff.

    Furthermore, not only did he get buffs from Red Velvet, he also received multiple of them. Feeling confident in himself, he decided to continue whittling away relentlessly at the fleshy blob. "What are you going to do now, huh?" He clicked his tongue and licked his lips in satisfaction while firing off twentysers from his hands at once.

    Thesesers then spiraled towards the fleshy blob and they had more force than before, much fasterpared to his previous attacks. Sei''s movements also became more intense and snappy, as if he was a different person. It was obvious how much of a power up he got after receiving the buffs and there was something different about him that made him outshine Satoshi even more. Feeling pleased with himself, he continued moving at a much faster pace, making Satoshi wonder why he waspeting against him when they both have amon enemy. Ignoring his outward challenge, Satoshi continued firing off nails towards the fleshy blob, increasing the amount of conductors in its body before he fired off a second charge of electricity from his Pikachu, or rather, his White Lion.

    Somehow, Sei may be shy but his attacks weren''t working. Instead, it only ever irritated the fleshy blob and angered it even more. As for Satoshi, his moves were still less shypared to Sei but it was very effective. It didn''t take long before the reporters who were focusing on Sei started zooming in on Satoshi since he was more useful than him. Unfortunately for Sei, he may have increased his firepower but it still didn''t do much against the blob which repelled most of his attacks and even regenerated faster than it. v

    For the second time in Sei''s life, he felt disappointed in himself after a mere teenager who''s not even a professional was outshining him in the battle of being a show-off. Well, not like Satoshi was trying to be a show-off¡ª that was probably what gave him an edge against Sei, unbeknownst to him. In the end, Sei toned down his attacks and only assisted Satoshi while he continued his assault against the blob. That was the right move by Sei though since it made the reporters focus on the both of them instead of who was the shiest or the most useful.

    ...

    Thinking back on the past, Sei remembered the time when a game based on his superpower was released. It was the proudest moment in his life because it had been his lifelong dream to create a game that everyone would enjoy. Although he wasn''t the one who created it, at least someone was inspired with his superpower which led to the birth of the aforementioned game. This game was his pride and joy. Every time he boots up the game in his VR, his name would always pop up before everything else, and a sense of aplishment will ovee him, feeding his vanity even more... every single time.

    And because the game was based off of his superpower, he easily became the top yer of the game and no one could evene close to his record. At most, he could control twenty of thosesers independently and his uracy was always one hundred percent. As mentioned before, a superpower is like another appendage. Once you discover it, you''ll be able topletely master using it in no time. To Sei, ying the game Laser Fingers is just like stretching his arms and legs in an early morning.

    However... notwithstanding that fact, he came to his limit and he couldn''t move past that. When there were already twenty onesers,ing out of his fingers in the game, he wouldn''t be able to control one of them. In the end, he could only reach the maximum score with twentysers whereas there aren''t any records on twenty onesers. The game was stage-based after all and once you reach a certain score, you will move on to the next level. If you don''t reach the threshold score though, there will be no points recorded. Once again, he felt like no one would be able to reach that score because the highest anyone has ever gotten was tensers and that''s about it.

    But just like any other reign, it alwayses to an end every single time. And when that fateful day came, it hit Sei like a truck.

    Just a few days ago, he booted up his VR once again and tried ying the Laser Fingers to see if someone ever came close to his record. Then his jaw dropped as soon as he saw it. The highest record at the moment was not twenty onesers, but twenty threesers!

    ''Why am I here, just to suffer?'' he said to himself as a stray tear fell from his eyes. It''s as if his own life betrayed him right in front of his eyes. How could someone control twenty threesers when he could barely control twenty one?

    With a bit of envy and rage inside him, Sei decided to watch the rey of the gamey to see whether it was authentic or not. His other hand was already on the report button, only one click away just in case he saw something amiss the footage.

    The footage didn''t show the person ying it, just like usual, but the gamey was (as much as he hated to admit it) as real as the sun that rises in the east. His fingers were moving just like how he used to and when there were already twosersing out of each fingers, the yer wlessly maneuvered them by clicking his fingers to one side then to another. His uracy was at ny eight percent which was nothing short of impressive. His fingers didn''t have any aimbots on them as well.<sub> </sub>

    Then the stage with twenty onesers came and the yer''s uracy dropped down to ny three percent but he could still control threesers on one finger while controlling two on the each of the rest of his fingers. He managed to keep that up until twenty threesers to which someone''s voice was caught by the feed. "Satoshi, dinner time!" The voice said, and the yer immediately stopped ying after saying "Yes, dad."

    Another blow to his pride¡ª the yer didn''t finish the level not because he couldn''t do it, but because he couldn''t miss dinner time. It was themest excuse he could ever think of but then again, the yer behind that high score was the real deal. He was much better than him when ites to using his superpower.

    "If he had my superpower, he would''ve been one of the top-ranking superheroes by now. Those skills are no joke." He said to himself upon removing the VR Headgear from his head. He sighed, wishing that he''d be able to meet that yer so he could ask some advice from him. He could tell that if he were to swallow his pride and approach that yer as meekly as possible, he''d be able to improve his skills. Not only would he not need buffs from support type superheroes, but he''d be even more reliable and shier than before.

    "Satoshi, I have to meet you no matter what."

    .....

    Back to the Present.

    With a groan, the fleshy blob moved much slower than before, probably because of the amount of metal it has in its body. The electricity was working quite effectively as well since it weakened the blob to no more than a useless heap of flesh. It couldn''t even shoot off parts of his body anymore. A broad smile formed on Sei''s face after seeing that Satoshi was gaining an advantage at such a formidable foe. "Not bad, kid!" He screamed from afar, continuously cutting off the fleshy blob''s path with hisser fingers.

    Just then, Satoshi heard a click in his mind and he nced back at the swimming pool right behind him. His ''Droplet'' familiar had already affected the entire swimming pool and he could finally use it just like before. With a slight nod, the entirety of water in the swimming pool flew in the air andnded on the fleshy blob, trapping it so mercilessly inside.

    Then, the ''Droplet'' turned to ice and temporarily trapped the fleshy blob in its icy prison.

    And with that, the fleshy blob was defeated. Satoshi retrieved his ''Droplet'' Familiar and put the fleshy blob in his Orb Oboros. ''Now I should turn him over to the authorities or something. Phew, that was harder than expected.'' Satoshi thought to himself just as everyone in his ss rushed towards him.

    "Satoshi, you cannot just dash off like that, do you know I''m responsible for y¡ª" Kirisaki Sana, aka Red Velvet, slightly reprimanded him, half-screaming.

    Sei interrupted her before she finished her sentence. "Wait... Satoshi?! You''re Satoshi?!" He eximed, much to everyone''s surprise.

 Chapter 78 A Disciple

    "Wait... Satoshi?! You''re Satoshi?!" Sei eximed with a gasp. "By any chance... do you y Laser Fingers?"

    It was such an out-of-the-blue question that everyone was taken aback. All of them stared long and hard towards Sei as if they were looking at an alien who just descended from space. ''What are you talking about?''¡ª They all had a single thought in their mind but they didn''t want to ask Sei since that might offend him.

    "Yes," Satoshi responded, his hand defaulting to the clicks he does every time he controls thesers. It''s as if every finger of his was having light spasms.

    What happened next made everyone drop their jaws as Sei literally banged his knees on the ground and kneeled in front of Satoshi. It was such an unusual sight¡ª a professional superhero showing respect to a teenager, let alone a superhero who wasn''t even licensed yet. However, despite such a weird disy, no one reacted nor flinched at all. In fact, all of them held their breaths, trying to listen in on what Sei would say next now that he was kneeling in front of Satoshi after asking such a weird question.

    "Satoshi... I... I don''t want to admit this but... my superpower is more suited to yours." He swallowed a great deal of his pride when he said that but he still felt a pang in his heart as if his entire being was shattered right then and there. "That''s why, if it''s not too much to ask... will you take me in as your intern? I need to learn how to control my powers more."

    Of course, Satoshi knew for a fact that Sei was the model for the game Laser Fingers. And it should also be mentioned that Satoshi is a huge fan of Sei. That''s why it was such a great honor to fight alongside him even though he tried to outshine him during the match¡ª such an impulse is normal for a popr superhero, after all. Well, how would they have attained such a high poprity standing if they never tried showing off to the public?

    Nevertheless, the situation in front of him was so unbelievable that Satoshi could''ve sworn he lost consciousness for a split second. Satoshi had been awkward with girls or in front of the public (except, of course, when he was too focused on his match or a life-or-death battle) that he didn''t know how to react. Instead, he reddened and looked around after realizing what was happening right now. He was blushing so much that he attempted to cover his face with his forearms.

    "Please, stand up Sei-san." He said in a low voice, almost a whisper.

    "I... I can pay any amount, just name your price, Satoshi. Just... I want to know how you got past the twentysers threshold."

    Satoshi, in response, nodded vigorously, hoping that the embarrassing situation would be over. Soon after, the reporters and the authorities came and gathered around Satoshi. After handing the criminal to another superhero with a space maniption superpower just like Orb Oboros, Satoshi managed to slip past the interviews, imitating how his parents do it, and before he knew it, he made it past a crowd and regrouped with the other inter-high candidates and their teacher.

    .....

    "So... where are we going? To the Drop Tower? Or should we ride the Vikings one¡ª an all-time favorite? If you were to ask me, I''d definitely go with the Vikings first before the Drop Tower, then do another round before going to the rollercoaster. If you can survive all that without puking, then you can enjoy all the rides in the amusement park without difficulty. Even the swing carousel would be no match for you." Midori was back to his old self again with his lengthy suggestions, which were drowned by the noise of people around them chattering about. As usual, no one listened to him.

    <o>,m At least an hour after the incident, the Nichijou Amusement Park was back in business. Even the stalls that were damaged by the incident were hastily repaired and soon, snacks and drinks were being served from them. "Sakura, do you want something? I want to buy some parfait." Fuuka casually said. Unlike the boys, the two girls already made a connection with each other after having just met over lunchtime. Or maybe, they just didn''t want to be around the boys whom each have their own world. They were especially wary of Satoshi as well since his superpower was a bit scarier than they''d expected.<sub> </sub></o>

    Meanwhile, Sei was still following right behind Satoshi as if he was his own personalpdog. With a notebook on one hand and a pen on the other, he observed Satoshi''s every movement as if that would help him with his journey to bing the best Laser Fingers yer in the world. Satoshi already told him that he would teach himter but he just wouldn''t listen. To him, watching his master would prove to be useful in the long run so he decided to do just that. Like before, Sei could be quite enthusiastic at times but he''s quite lost in the head sometimes.

    As for Kirisaki Sana, she just couldn''t look at Satoshi straight in the eyes after what happened. To say the least, she couldn''t control him back then when he opted to fight the fleshy blob whom they realized was actually a pickpocket whose superpowers went out of control. Because of that, Kirisaki Sana gave up on trying to rein him in because she was too powerless to do so. But then again, that doesn''t mean that she won''t supervise all of them, the troublemakers they are.

    For the first time in Kirisaki Sana''s life, she experienced what it felt like to chaperone teenagers in the amusement park. Each of them wanted to go their own way, every man for himself, but she knew that she had to look over them because she would be responsible if something were to happen to one of them. ''This was supposed to be a mini-vacation for me but why do I have to stress out on these things?'' She sighed inwardly while watching everyone ride the rides they want and buy the souvenirs and food they fancy. She felt a mild headache on her head but she ignored it, thinking that it will disappear if she didn''t think about it.

    Just when she was about to give up, a thought came to her head and she immediately lit up as if a light bulb turned on in her head. Without further ado, she approached Sei and tapped him on the shoulder.

    One look, it took just one look for Sei to realize that Kirisaki Sana was up to something. "Nope, certainly not doing it." He said at once before she could even say anything. He didn''t mean anything about it though since he was just kidding when he said that.

    "Can you look after Satoshi and the others for me? I''ll go apany the girls to the parfait shop." She said as if it was her sworn duty to go with them when the parfait shop was just twenty or so meters away. Well, deep inside, she wanted to buy parfait and relieve herself of the stress even just for a moment. Fortunately, not everyone was as rowdy as Satoshi in the group and the girls were actually pretty tame and gentle. ''Associating myself with them wouldn''t be so bad for a mini-vacation.'' She said to herself, rejoining them just when they were about to ce their orders.

    "Right, where do we go first?" Sei asked, pping his hands as if he was everyone''s guardian (he was just a temporary watcher though).

    In response, everyone in the group also pped their hands and smiled a mischievous smile. Even Satoshi joined in on the fun as if they were rehearsing some sort of y in the middle of the amusement park. "Should we go with Midori''s idea for a change?" Satoshimented.

    For once, Midori''s suggestion was actually taken into ount and it made him exhrated. He began pping his hands in a weird manner while chuckling at himself. "To the Vikings, we go!" He continued, pumping his fists in the air before running towards the Vikings ride to line up.

    "Should we ce a bet then, first to puke would treat everyone to dinner!" Sei pumped his fists just like how Midori did and everyone agreed to him. At first, he was wondering if he''d fit right into the group after showing such disgrace, asking Satoshi to be his master. But now, as it turned out, no one really minded what he did. It was such a breath of fresh air to him since the superhero world could be quite tough andpetitive, coupled with harsh criticisms.

    As for the girls, Kirisaki Sana managed to bond with them as well as they shared desserts and sweets together. Overall, the visit to the amusement park went well, exceeding the principal''s highest of expectations.

 Chapter 79 Final Training

    The days of the week flew by too fast that all the inter-high candidates thought that they didn''t have enough time to prepare for the inter-high tournament which was going to happen next week. Every day, they had different team-building activities with thetest one being a one-on-one date with each other before going on a group date to a nearby family restaurant. Fortunately, Satoshi and Siril were paired with Cherry and Fuuka so they enjoyed the date quite well. (There was a misunderstanding though since Shiroi saw Satoshi and Sakura together but it was cleared up in the end.) As for the others, they didn''t enjoy being with another guy and being the singles they were, they actually felt bitter towards Satoshi and Siril. It was all resolved in the end when an all-out free-for-all fight was arranged soon after where Fuuka emerged victorious after trapping everyone using her space distortion skill. Everyone was appalled after seeing that Satoshi didn''t win the entire fight but then again, no one med him since Fuuka was just powerful. Even Kurogami who has the power of the shadows in the palms of his hand couldn''t even get near Fuuka.

    But for Fuuka, she knew that Satoshi and Cherry were just holding themselves back because they were aware of the bacsh that would happen if they were to resist Fuuka''s capture. Cherry could easily transfer or absorb someone else''s life force so just simply looking at Fuuka and connecting with her by touching her would easily defeat her. And it should be mentioned that Cherry could''ve absorbed a portion of everyone''s life force when they were trapped inside a space distortion and she could use that energy to break free and touch Cherry. She didn''t do it though since that would defeat the purpose of everything. And also, she wanted to save as much lifeforce as she could for the uing inter-high tournament.

    Although Fuuka got the victory by herself, she knew well in her heart that she didn''t deserve it, not in the least bit. If everybody were to fight to the death, they could''ve easily bested her. Of course, it should be mentioned that she also wasn''t trying her best so her victory was actually obtained through fair means¡ª not like she thought about it though since she could only see the others holding back even though she was also doing so.

    Now, with thest day drawing to a close, the inter-high candidates were met with another trial¡ª their final trial¡ª before they could participate in the inter-high tournament next week. Since this is such an important day in preparation for the inevitable, the principal even personally called the Nurse herself despite her busy schedule, just so that everyone could participate in the training, no holds barred. Even if someone were to have a near-death experience, the Nurse would be there, curing them in a sh. At most, it would take two days to recover the fatigue from the recovery process so the weekend would still have its uses in preparation for the inter-high tournament.

    "What do you think we''ll do this time?" Cherry asked Fuuka, whispering towards her just when they were following Knighthawk to the Training Center for the umpteenth time. Every single time they go there, they''d experience a new team-building process so they could tell that they''ll be in onto something different as soon as they arrived at the fated location. Not one of them had any idea as to what was about to transpire but they were all equally curious nheless.

    "I don''t know. We just had a free-for-all, do you think it will be another free-for-all? Or maybe an obstacle course with everyone? Whatever it is, this is ourst training session. The Principal is probably going to make us work together as a team this time."

    "Wait... don''t tell me... " Out of the blue, Midori joined in on the conversation with a surprised expression on his face. It was conspicuously obvious that he was up to something the moment he said those words. "Do you think... we''ll be fighting a... we''ll be fighting one of our teachers?! There''s no way, right? Wait... maybe I''m right. The only way we''d be able to train our teamwork is if we have amon enemy or something of the sort. And what better way to do that than pit a professional superhero against us as ourmon enemy. The teachers are the most likely candidates so maybe such is the case, right? What do you think?"

    "You might be right for once, Midori." Hiroshi bit his lips. For the first time throughout the week, he felt especially nervous for this training session, not because it was thest, but because the Nurse was there. Her presence basically meant the sign of injury and not just any other injuries since she''s only called if injuries are pretty serious. Just the sight of her was enough to send shivers down Hiroshi''s spine but he didn''t say anything about it. Even until now, he was trying not to make his nervousness spill out from his being. "If not a teacher, then it must be a professional top-ranking superhero. I don''t know how it''d y out but... I got a bad feeling about this."

    "Yeah, me too, to be honest." Siril chimed in. "I mean, look, the Nurse is here, right? And if you don''t have enhanced vision like me, then you probably didn''t notice but every teacher and the Principal is over there, right in the middle of the training center. That must be a sign that something''s about to go down, right? And it''s going to go down really fast as soon as we arrive there."

    "Don''t state the obvious. So what if all the teachers are there, the worst that could happen is that we go against all of them all at once. We should just do what we always do." Kurogami coolly said while walking right in front of everyone. He seemed especially darker and more mature due to his overall ck outfit that covered half of his face like a turtle neck and extended towards his calves like a long skirt. It was more like a trench coat, except the cor was erect.<sub> </sub>

    "As expected, you''re still unfazed after all the pressure bearing down on u¡ª " Midori was about topliment Kurogami when he noticed that his hands were trembling. Not only that, his trench coat-like superhero costume was unevenly buttoned as well. He wasn''t the only one though, even Hiroshi was wearing his superhero costume inside-out.

    Seeing everyone''s tense expression, Midori decided to just keep quiet and just let everyone do their own thing. The training session is not forever anyways so there was no use increasing the tension they felt just when they were about to start.

    Upon arrival, Knighthawk turned around and wore a smile on his face while clenching his fists and rubbing them together. He had the most pleasant expression out of all the teachers as if he was looking forward to what was going to happen. "Today is yourst and final team-building training as the inter-high candidates. I just want everyone to know that you can use the full extent of your power without being wary of the injuries and damages inflicted because the Nurse is here. You can go wild and y with your strategies while you get the best out of this training session." Knighthawk vaguely exined, just how he always did with the previous training sessions. It''s as if he was enjoying every monologue he got, taking in the bewildered expression on his students'' faces while they listened intently to him.

    "Please, don''t say it like that Knighthawk, we all know that there''s only so much a body could take even in its recovery process. It would be nice if none of you gets injured, that''s all I have to say." Haruka, aka the Nurse, sighed after saying that. Throughout the history of the United Superheroes Academy, she was always present in final training sessions such as this one so she knew that it wasn''t going to end well, especially if it was the Principal who nned it.

    Just like any other year, Principal Sai Tama also nned thisst hero training session so the Nurse was prepared for the worst.

    Without further ado, Sai Tama stepped forward and shortly nced towards every inter-high candidate. From his point of view, he could only see a bunch of nervous teenagers in front of him, no more no less. And that''s becausepared to his superpower, all of them were like little tadpoles in ake.

    "Today, we''re going to be ying a game of tag for your final training for the inter-high tournament. "Of course, this isn''t like your normal game of tag where one of you will be the ''it''. Long story short, all of you first-years and all the teachers here will participate in this game of tag... "

    "And I," Sai Tama then pressed his right thumb towards his chest, showing off his confidence. "I will be the ''it''."

 Chapter 80 The Game Of Tag I

    In an instant, Sai Tama disappeared from where he was standing. Right before he vanished into thin air, a smirk was visibly seen stered on his face, then the sheer force of wind almost knocked everyone out of the way.

    And a hundredth of a secondter, Siril''s face was already buried on the ground as he was pped real hard. In that instant, all the teachers were already up on their feet. Getting as much distance as they could so they won''t lose face in front of the first-years. The moment they saw Sai Tama unleash a small portion of his power, chills went up and down their spine, almost sending them into panic due to how superior the principal waspared to them. A few of them, like Knighthawk and Red Velvet, even thought about teaming up with the other first-years so they won''t be smashed to the ground that easily.

    "Oh, and I forgot to mention!" The Principal''s voice reverberated throughout the entire TRaining Center. "Once you got tagged by the ''it'', which is me, you''ll join my side and be an ''it'' as well. How about that, pretty fun, right?" He continued.

    Siril, who managed to react based on sheer reflexes alone, managed to shift his face into dragon form just when he was smashed to the ground. At that moment, he figured that the Principal was actually trying to push him to his maximum potential by pushing how far his reflexes could go. It was only a hundredth of a second but he managed to react just in time.

    When the Principal grabbed him by the face, he purposefully slowed down right before the moment of impact so Siril saw through his attack and reacted. Had he not seen through the attack, he would have smashed his face right in, and probably crushed his skull in the process.

    "Get up, we got work to do. Good job tanking that hit." Principal Sai Tama pulled Siril up and dusted him off. "In the inter-high tournament, there will be other candidates who are much faster, much stronger than me, not to mention more merciless and urate in their attacks. If you gave them the chance, they''d easily bash your skull right in without thinking twice about it. You have good reflexes, Siril, just make sure you rely on them a little bit more."

    Once again, Principal Sai Tama waved his hand and he disappeared from where he was standing. Siril felt the wind rushing towards him once again, which exined that the principal was actually traveling at high speeds, faster than what the human eyes could handle.

    "Yes, sir," Siril replied a beat toote. A smile formed on his face as he shifted into his dragon form and let out a roar, warning everyone that he''ll being for them, ready or not.

    But just when he was about to fly up, he felt his body stiffen as if some great hand was holding him back. That''s when he saw Shiroi and Kuroe at a safe distance. Kuroe''s face gave off a pained expression, signifying that she was having a hard time binding Siril with her psychic superpower. As for Shiroi, she was charging some sort of ice beam right behind Kuroe. It was obvious that they were trying to hunt Siril before he could make another move.

    As Siril stared at Shiroi and Shiroi stared at him with desperation in her eyes, Siril let out another defeating roar, trying to break free from Kuroe''s grasp before Shiroi could attack him and render him immobile with her ice. He was already caught by the principal right when the game started, it would be too humiliating for him if two girls were to capture him once again as if he was just a puppet in the training session.

    ''No, this can''t happen. I won''t allow it!'' He thought to himself, trying to move any part of his humungous body, prepared to fly off as soon as he broke free. But it was all for naught, Kuroe was more powerful than him even though his size could rival a building.

    "Sorry, Siril," Shiroi muttered, knowing that eliminating Siril would be for the better since that''s one more yer deducted from the game.

    Just when her ice attack was about to shoot out from her hands, Principal Sai Tama appeared in front of the two of them and tagged them. "Your attack takes too long to charge, Shiroi. If you want to render someone immobile, make sure your attacks are fast enough so it wouldn''t burden your teammate whose responsible for support. Why didn''t you fire off a couple of ice shards at Siril''s wings first then slowly freeze him instead of pre-charging an attack while being out in the open?"

    "And you, Kuroe, you know a thing or two about illusions, right? With your psychic ability, you should''ve hidden your location. That way, no one would attack the two of you while you''re preparing an attack. Remember, you don''t have a single enemy in the inter-high. Most of the time, it would be a team fight where every candidate will be present. Keep that in mind."

    "Every time you take action, be absolutely certain that you have backup ns and that you know all the consequences of what you''re about to do. That way you can prepare for anything and improvise on the spot." Sai Tama lengthily lectured them on their weaknesses. "Now off we go. The three of you should work together from now on and try to hunt other yers. It would be quite satisfying if you catch a teacher as well. Now that you''re on my side, then your challenge is to capture a teacher. I wouldn''t be capturing any of them until I see it fit to do so."

    Once again, Sai Tama disappeared from his position, on the lookout for other first-years who were running for their lives, metaphorically speaking.<sub> </sub>

    As soon as he was gone, Shiroi and Kuroe already formted a n in their minds. The first teacher that they thought about capturing was none other than their homeroom teacher, Knighthawk. After all, he didn''t have any superpower so it would be like ying a game of tag with a child.

    They were clearly underestimating Knighthawk though, who had plenty of experiences when ites to covert missions.

    From the shadows of the rubble that filled a certain portion of the training center, a ck figure flitted about, carefully treading the cracks on the concrete so his footprints wouldn''t be heard. He was also careful not to close off his view of the surroundings so he would know if someone wasing for him.

    Even then, after all the precautions he took, a hand grabbed him by the throat before he could even react. "Ssh, be quiet, kid. I''m not an ''it'', or at least, not yet." The gruff voice spoke. "Good thing I found a useful one."

    Kurogami turned around, his whole body tensing up since he was caught off-guard. He was sure, too sure, that no one would notice him since he was blended too well with the shadows. Notwithstanding his carefulness, he was still easily caught by their one and only teacher who didn''t have a superpower¡ª their homeroom teacher, Knighthawk.

    "How did you¡ª "

    "Experience, boy, how do you think I''ve survived this long?" Knighthawk smiled. "Now, if you don''t want to get caught, you can work with me. Trust me, when ites to espionage, I''m one of the top superheroes in the rankings. I may not have superpowers but I''m pretty good at espionage in general. Look, you didn''t even notice me back then, right?"

    "Fine, but don''t hold me back," Kurogami said, about to step forward and leave Knighthawk when he was grabbed by the cor.

    "Shi¡ª what are you doing?!" Knighthawk hissed.

    When Knighthawk spoke, Kurogami realized that he could only hear Knighthawk on one ear. For some odd reason, something damaged his right ear just when he was about to move forward. He didn''t even know what hit him, it just happened so fast. "What was that?" He asked, his voice shaking.

    "You stepped into a trap. A space distortion trap, to be exact. Good thing that trap was specifically made to produce a loud noise. If it were a deadly trap, you would''ve cut an arm or a leg off, easy." Knighthawk continued.

    "What... but why is a trap here out of all ces? Is this another n by the principal?" Kurogami said, realizing that his right ear was already bleeding. He tried to recall what the noise sounded like, but it happened too fast that his eardrum was obliterated before he could react.

    "n by the principal? No, why would the principal y dirty like that when he could brute force his way in and out of everything?" Knighthawk said. "That was Fuuka, I didn''t know she could incorporate two of her superpowers in one go. I guess she''s been training a lot for this inter-high tournament."

    "Fuuka? You mean... Fukushima Fuuka? She has another superpower?!"

    "Yeah, and thanks to your idiocy, you''ve revealed our whereabouts. We have to move, now!" Knighthawkmanded, getting Kurogami back up on his feet and dragging him with him.

 Chapter 81 The Game Of Tag II

    "Did you get anything?" Cherry asked as Fuuka''s head darted to one side, indicating that she was sensing something. Just a few meters from where Knighthawk and Kurogami were, Cherry and Fuuka were also crouched low, trying to stay in their safe haven after setting up traps around the vicinity. At first, they thought that maybe one of the ''it''s managed to sneak up on them but t their relief, the two were on the same side as them.

    "I don''t know... the trap seemed to have activated over there but I don''t see any movements. And also, the trap didn''t catch anything." Fuuka whispered back, her face leaning closer towards Cherry for fear that someone was eavesdropping on them.

    "Are we just going to stay here? Or do we need to go somewhere else? I don''t think we''re safe here." Cherry worriedly asked as beads of sweat trickled from her forehead. She never would''ve thought that a simple game of tag could be quite scary and by now, there was no turning back. They''re already too deep into the game of tag that the only way for it to be over is when everyone else was already tagged by the Principal.

    "Why do you think the Principal also included our teachers? I think there''s something else at y here." Fuuka muttered, clenching her fists while tuning in on every trap she set up. One small misstep and she knew that she would''ve eliminated another potential ''it''. That''s why she was too keen on the traps that she scattered.

    "I don''t know... but now that you said it. I think the Principal has a good reason for including our teachers in this."

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    "Can we really do this?" Kuroe asked Siril, sneaking right behind his back and almost making him jump out from his skin.

    Surprised, it took Siril all of his being to suppress the scream that almost came out of his mouth. He already felt his throat tense up but fortunately, he managed to cover his mouth with both hands. "Sheesh, can you please not do that. Just talk to me normally."

    "And why were the two of you here, anyway? You weren''t included in the list of inter-high candidates." Siril continued.

    "We have a good exnation for that. But long story short, the Principal wanted this training session to be more chaotic so he recruited more first-years just in case. Kuroe and I just happened to be part of those extras."

    "I see," Siril nodded his head, putting the subject out of the way. Right now, they have a more important matter to attend to¡ª and that is, catching their teacher who was right in front of them.

    It was none other than Hugh Jazz (an absurd name, he was never proud of it growing up), also known as the Silencer. One of the top-ranking support superheroes because of his super effective superpower known as ''silence''. It was nothing short of extraordinary, once he activates his superpower, he could silence anyone in the vicinity and limit their movement. The affected person could still move, of course, but in moving, he might feel like he was dragging multiple boulders attached to his feet. The Silencer is also capable of deactivating superpowers but it was a fifty-fifty chance. He doesn''t actually know the prerequisites of activating his deactivation powers and until now, he still hasn''t unlocked the secret.

    "We just sneak up to him from both sides, and then we spring on him." Siril continued discussing the n with Shiroi and Kuroe.

    "Yeah, that would work. Jazz-sensei''s attention will be drawn towards Siril since he''s bigger. And then, once Siril is silenced, we''ll sneak up to him and touch him."

    "Okay,"

    "Okay,"

    "Now we go," Siril continued.

    Once again, Siril shifted to his dragon form as slowly as he could just so their teacher wouldn''t sense his presence from afar. He bit his lips and tried not to cause any unnecessary sounds as his body grew bigger and scales grew from it. His transformation took about three minutes and by then, Shiroi and Kuroe were already slinking around the area, trying to get to the other side so they could signal to Siril when to jump.

    Siril could hear his heart pounding from his chest as his conscience told him that it was not morally right to jump on his teacher. He tried to ignore the feeling but his mind kept on urging him to not do something hical. "It''s all part of the training. It''s all part of the training. You''ve already messed up by being the first one to get captured by the Principal. I have to redeem myself. Besides, our teachers are also a part of this training session. They could defend themselves against their students just as much." Having tricked his mind into thinking that what he was about to do is eptable, he crouched low on the ground as his eyes turned into slits, ready for the signal.<sub> </sub>

    "Let''s go."

    It didn''t take long before Kuroe and Shiroi made it to the other side. They then swung a red scarf towards Siril, hoping that he''d be able to see it from afar. Well, they certainly didn''t underestimate Siril''s eyesight since he managed to see it, in as day.

    With a roar resounding from his chest then out of his mouth, Siril jumped up and flew a short distance in the air before aiming his stomach at the Silencer, who had his eyes shut after all this time. "It''s going to work!'' He said to himself, his confidence skyrocketing.

    However, he was met with disappointment when he reverted back into his human form and he fell to the ground with a resounding plop. Not only did the Silencer, well, ''silence'' him. He also managed to deactivate his superpower. As mentioned before, the Silencer''s deactivation skill works fifty percent of the time. Siril was just unlucky that it worked on him.

    "W-w-what are you doing?!" Shiroi hissed in the meantime. She couldn''tin though as she was sent hurtling towards the Silencer right when Kuroe used her psychic powers on her. Before she knew it, she crashed on their teacher, falling on his back as their teacher''s face got buried to the ground. A handful of dirt made its way through Silencer''s mouth as he was met with shock by the impact.

    It''s not like the Silencer didn''t see Shiroiing at him, his focus was just misced. At that moment, he tried to silence Shiroi but little did he know was that Shiroi didn''t use any superpower¡ª it was Kuroe who did it. Because of that, his superpower didn''t work on her even though he was quite quick with his activation.

    "Did we get him?" Shiroi asked, biting her lips in nervousness as she stood up. "I''m sorry, Jazz-sensei. It was Kuroe who threw me at you without my consent. I... but it was my fault for not saying anything. I should''ve been able to act quicker."

    "Ha ha ha... no, it''s fine. You did a great job back there. If I had expected that to happen, I would''ve been able to stop you in time. But you, you''re Kuroe, right? You managed to improvise at thest second and catch me off guard. Howmendable. Taking risks while trying to achieve amon goal, your teamwork is exemry. And as such, it is my loss. I get it that you''ve already been tagged by the Principal, right? I''ll lend you my aid in catching the other senseis."

    "Yes!" Siril, Kuroe, and Shiroi pumped their fists in the air. They didn''t know how they pulled that off but it worked nheless.

    .....

    From afar, Satoshi watched as Kuroe, Shiroi and Siril caught one of their teachers. Up until now, Satoshi was scrambling through the shadows while wearing a capsule of water around him to mess with any thermal sensors from other first-years. Thanks to his familiar ''Droplet'' he was able to do that without difficulty.

    "Do we jump them? I think we can take them on if we do our best." Hiroshi whispered at Satoshi. For some odd reason, they were the first ones to join together.

    "Yeah, I can provide you with all the buffs you need. Just say the word." Kirisaki Sana (Red Velvet) called out, pulling a couple of muffins from her bag. "I don''t know why I''m here with you guys, but I''m not doing this because I want to... but because I need to survive. I wouldn''t be able to face the Principal if I were caught earlier than the others."

    "Then you can get caught now, I mean, Jazz-sensei was the first one to go down so you''re not inst ce." Hiroshiid it out before her, hitting a nerve that he shouldn''t have poked.

    "What did you¡ª "

    "Quite the lovely bunch we got here." Another voice suddenly spoke from behind them.

    At first, Satoshi and Hiroshi didn''t know whom the voice belonged to, but as for Sana, she immediately recognized it after hearing one word.

    It was the Principal, and he was out for blood.

 Chapter 82 The Game Of Tag III

    Without missing a beat, Satoshi summoned his familiar, Windfan, and directed it at them to blow them away. The Principal almost touched them but fortunately, he was caught off guard when the Windfan almost knocked him forward. His first impulse was to stop himself from falling and by then, Satoshi, Hiroshi, and Sana were already a couple of hundred meters away from him.

    "Hiroshi, just like we nned," Satoshi called out.

    In an instant, a couple of walls spawned out of the ground, climbing to frightening heights of ten stories. These walls served as a breaker for anyone who tried to chase the three of them. In the middle of these walls were narrow pathways and on one of them, Hiroshi''s party hid while trying to regroup and recover.

    This was the tactic they formted as soon as the game started and it wouldn''t be possible if Sana wasn''t with them. During the entire process, it may seem like Sana wasn''t doing anything but she was actually the backbone that made it sessful. One of her buffs was enhanced reflexes which he gave to Satoshi because he was the one who''ll be doing most of the heavy lifting. And as for Hiroshi, she doubled his superpower output so he could manipte earth and fire with ease. This was what made them unpredictable and simultaneously dangerous.

    "That was close. The Principal really is scary." Hiroshi was reduced to simple sentences after everything that happened. Well, no one can me him since they were just blown a couple of hundred meters away by a huge Windfan.

    "If you''re nning to do that again... just remember I''m not doing that again." Sana tried to maintain her alluring aura but she was reduced to the state of a panting dog. Her ragged hair and the multiple scratches on her tattered clothes didn''t make her image any better.

    Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief, totally ignoring Sana''sints since he was sure he''d do it again if the opportunity arises. He couldn''t sense any signs of the Principal being nearby so he led the group to a nearby abandoned, decrepit building which is a good hiding spot. Once again, he used his Droplet familiar so he could encase everyone in an orb of frozen water, sort of like an igloo in the middle of a desert. With this, no one would be able to see them while Hiroshi recovered his energy.

    "If you were to train more, you''d be able to do more than those." Satoshi pointed his lips towards the towering walls that limited everyone''s movements. Those walls weren''t indestructible, but they could totally impede anyone traveling through them.

    "Shut up, why am I with you anyways," Hiroshi said, but he didn''t have any intention of leaving the team. "What do you think about the others, did they already get captured? We have no way of knowing."

    "Yeah, for all we know, this game of tag might go for hours... and then we''ll miss the night shows airing tonight." Satoshi continued.

    "That''s right! That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Goo is premiering tonight! Sheesh, why did we have to go through this? Out of all the days." Hiroshiy t on his back as a huge sigh escaped his mouth. After a few seconds, he was fast asleep, snoring as he tried to find a morefortable spot. Out of nowhere, he grabbed a rock and hugged it as if it was a pillow.

    Satoshi gulped. He could already foresee the awkward atmosphere that would befall the two of them. With Hiroshi awake, Satoshi didn''t feel self-conscious at all. But now that Hiroshi was deep in his slumber, he couldn''t shake off the feeling that he was alone with a girl, even though technically he wasn''t.

    ''This is going to be a long wait.'' Satoshi inwardly said.

    .....

    "You go first,"

    "No, you go first,"

    "My right ear already got done in. I don''t know what will happen if I activated another trap of that Fuuka. And in all honesty, I''m afraid what those traps might do to me."

    "Don''t worry, my senses are top-notch. I managed to pull you out of that trap before it even inflicted some real damage."

    "Barely, you barely reacted on time! If your senses are as good as you said, then why don''t you lead the way and show me."<sub> </sub>

    "Haap! That''s no way to talk to your homeroom teacher!"

    As Knighthawk and Kurogami continued to argue like little children, shbang and Shielder (who are in the same ss as Kobayashi Siril¡ª ss 3-4) appeared in front of them and tagged the two of them. There were no words exchanged anymore as shbang and Shielder went on their way. "You''re now on the Principal''s team," shbang said, creating a shbang before disappearing in front of Kurogami.

    "Who are y¡ª what on earth?" Kurogami said as his eyes watered from the shbang. The shbang wasn''t even that strong, it''s just that Kurogami was really sensitive to light due to his attunement to the shadows.

    "All that, for nothing. Sigh~" Knighthawk said. "You know what, I don''t even want to bother capturing the others."

    "Then you stay here. I have a score to settle with that girl Fuuka." Kurogami said, his eyes turning a different kind of dark.

    As Kurogami turned around and headed the other way, Knighthawk had to squint his eyes in amazement as he saw an unfamiliar sight in front of him. It''s as if Kurogami''s feet melded with his shadows and he was sliding through the ground like an ice skater on the rink. This was what Kurogami decided to do since he thought that the traps might be nted on the ground. If his feet didn''t touch the ground at all, then he wouldn''t activate anything.

    Just when he was gettingfortable sliding around, he sensed something up ahead and he ducked impulsively. That''s when he heard a weird ''bloop'' sound up above, and something seemed to have sucked the air right in on top of him. ''So she also set up traps in the air, huh. Seriously, I would''ve died if I didn''t see through that.''

    Of course, Kurogami was exaggerating when he said that. At most, the spatial trap would have knocked him unconscious without any damage to his head.

    Once again, Kurogami''s eyes turned a shade darker until his eyes, even outside his irises, were pure ck. His shadow, which assumed his form up until now, started to get bigger and bigger until it extended to some ces, getting thinner and thinner as it scoured through thend. Currently, Kurogami was trying to locate Fuuka by trying to locate her shadow which is always on the ground. Of course, if Fuuka was behind a wall or under a shade, then it would be harder for Kurogami to detect him.

    As luck would have it, however, Fuuka was actually in a hole on the ground along with Cherry who was hiding with her. Even though they couldn''t be seen in in sight, their shadows couldn''t be all the more obvious. It didn''t take long before Kurogami detected them.

    "Found you," Kurogami muttered under his breath as he slid, this time a pace faster than normal. Fuuka and Cherry were just nearby, approximately seven hundred meters from where he was, so he didn''t have to travel that long. But then again, he knew that the ce around them would be more riddled with spatial traps than usual so he''d have to be careful.

    "Well, if worsees to worst, I could just brute-force my way through and tag them. As long as I don''t die, I won''t be killed." He continued, realizing that what he said was just in stupid but there was no way to retract it. Fortunately, no one heard it or he''d have forced himself to crawl into a hole and hope to die due to embarrassment.

    Another trapped almost blew Kurogami''s thighs off but he managed to jump in time. Getting tired of all the traps set in ce, he decided to grab a handful of rocks and throw it towards the front as he smoothly slid while riding his own shadow. He managed to trigger all of the traps and safely go through the wastnd-like part of the Training Center. However, he revealed his location to Fuuka and Cherry because he was activating traps directly towards their general direction.

    "We have to get out of here. The rest of my traps will buy us enough time to go to another location." Fuuka said, panic-stricken. Whatever it was traveling towards them, it was unstoppable. Even her traps couldn''t stop it.

    "But where would we go?"

    Unluckily for them, Kurogami had already found their location and once he got it, there''s no way they''d be able to escape him. By the time they started getting out of their hideout, Kurogami was already on their tail, paralyzing them by constricting their shadows in ce.

    "Kurogami? So this is how your power works... " Fuuka had already surrendered. She didn''t even try to resist as Kurogami approached her and Cherry.

    "Game over," Kurogami said with a mischievous smile.

 Chapter 83 The Game Of Tagâ€” Conclusion

    Five minutes had already passed and yet, after such a short time, Satoshi, Hiroshi, and Sana were the only ones left who hadn''t been caught. They were able to survive up until now but the situation has changed. Currently, everyone is targeting them in a race against time as to who will be able to tag them first. It would be a great honor to tag the remaining yers after all, and it seemed like everyone was thinking the same thing.

    "What should we do now? Should we just give up?"

    "No," Satoshi simply said. They''ve gotten this far after using their n. And now, it''s time for them to survive as long as possible before the Principal and the others it''s managed to tag them. Doing so was easy, they just had to hide from in sight and continue moving around while watching out for their surroundings. But they knew for sure that the Principal could sense where they were and he was just waiting for them to let their guard down.

    "Do you need anything else?" Sana said, d that Hiroshi finally woke up and the awkward atmosphere manifesting from them disappearedpletely. "I have about three buffs left, all of which are superpower buffs."

    "It''s all right, I don''t need anything yet. So, what''s the n, Satoshi? How do we intend to hold out for a time?" Hiroshi said. Whatever it is that Satoshi nned to do, he decided to support him since that''s the closest he could get to victory. If it meant swallowing his pride and licking Satoshi''s foot, he would dly do so if it resulted to him getting better results. And right now was such a time. Even if he wanted to separate from the group and do his own thing, he knew that his survival will drastically increase if he stuck to Satoshi like glue. It may be an underhanded tactic but right now, he wanted to win no matter what.

    "Can you dig a hole big enough for the three of us? Not too deep though." Satoshi asked Hiroshi.

    "Sure, why?"

    "We''ll stay there until time runs out."

    Hiroshi nodded, pressing his palms on the ground while he tried to make the earth do his bidding. Pretty soon, a hole was getting dug. It won''t be long before they could conveniently stall while everyone desperately tried to search for them.

    For starters, Satoshi''s n is to let Hiroshi dig a hole, then the three of them will stay there while he covered the hole with water affected by his ''Droplet'' familiar. With this, no one would be able to find them. Even Kurogami won''t be able to sense them even though they''ll be only a few feet underground.

    Then again, it''s such a cowardly and underhanded tactic to do, but that would their victory no matter what so Satoshi was quite pleased with his n.

    SMASH!

    But just when his n was starting to materialize, Hiroshi''s face suddenly got buried on the ground as the Principal appeared out of nowhere and smashed him. Red Velvet was also thrown out of the way when Principal Sai Tama blew her away by back-pping her shoulder. "So this is where you were," The Principal muttered.

    The Principal then let out a shout, calling everyone to where he was. In just mere seconds, everyone surrounded Satoshi with the intent to capture him. Of course, whoever touches him would be the real winner of the training session since he was thest man standing. And not only that, everyone unanimously agreed that Satoshi was thest boss of the training session for some reason. Even the Principal was in on it. After all, he could''ve easily tagged Satoshi and then proceeded to tag Red Velvet and Hiroshi.

    It was a scene straight out of a movie where the protagonist makes his final stand against a horde of enemies. Satoshi felt his determination and adrenaline welling up inside him as every lesson his dad taught him reyed in his mind. He didn''t know whether he was ready or not, all he knew is that he should survive as long as possible¡ª and he could only do that if he were to squeeze every ounce of his skill.

    In a split second, Satoshi jumped up and rode on his Nailgun just when the Principal and Siril charged at him. He was unlucky though since Kurogami managed to freeze one of his Nailguns since its shadow was on the ground. With only one Nailgun on his right leg left, he flew upwards, summoning his White Lion since it was morefortable to ride on its back. He didn''t call back his Nailgun though since he could still use them to shoot at the others and limit their movements. The next thing he did was to shoot some Nails at Kurogami so he would lose focus, and then the other Nailgun was free. Now he was a flying tank that shoots nails and lightning.

    <o>,m Out of all the participants of the game of tag, only two of them could actually fly¡ª Siril and Kuroe. Well, Principal Sai Tama technically couldn''t fly but he could jump really high. He didn''t want to try it out though since he was susceptible to the lightning attacks of the White Lion. Jumping towards Satoshi would one hundred percent give him electrocution.</o>

    As for Siril, he was basically sitting duck in the air. He may be fast and bulky, but he was too big of a target. Onemand from Satoshi and he would be riddled with nails all over his body.<sub> </sub>

    In short, it was all up to Kuroe to bring Satoshi down on the ground.

    While everyone eagerly waited below, Shiroi and Hiroshi started shooting projectiles towards Satoshi, hoping that one of them would at least hit. Satoshi deflected them with the nails he shot from the Nailguns though, but he was having great difficulty dealing with them while avoiding Kuroe''s projectiles as well. Thanks to Satoshi''s familiar Dex, Kuroe''s psychic attacks don''t work on Satoshi anymore. But that''s because Kuroe wasn''t using her maximum power.

    "It won''t be long before my familiars run out of energy... assuming that they run out of energy. By then, what should I do?" Satoshi asked himself as an ice spike whizzed past his face.

    "Satoshi,e down here and run like a man." The Principal screamed, making Satoshi stop in surprise.

    That window of opportunity was more than enough for the Principal to jump up and try to reach Satoshi. But Satoshi was quick to react and he jumped out of his White Lion and dove headfirst towards the ground. He then called his White Lion back Orb Oboros and summoned him again so he won''t fall to his death.

    Crack!

    For some reason, Satoshi felt chills run up and down his spine as if something wrong was about to go down. Before he knew it, he impulsively ducked and that made him tilt too forward that he fell on the ground and the White Lion stopped going forward.

    But he was a moment toote. As soon as he fell on the ground, Fuuka appeared out of nowhere and fell on top of him, his face buried on her chest. His face reddened at the sudden event and he didn''t know how to react. His first instinct was to get up and run but then he thought that doing so would just hurt Fuuka since she fell on him. In the end, he resigned to his fate and stayed lying down.

    "What just happened?" He asked inwardly. It was all too sudden that even his fastest of impulses and instincts couldn''t react on time.

    "Um, sorry, are you okay? I still couldn''t control my powers that well." Fuuka gently said as she slowly stood up and offered a hand towards Satoshi.

    ''A girl''s hand? There''s no way!'' was the first thought that urred in his mind so he just effortlessly stood up without taking his hand and decided to dust himself off. "No, it''s all right. That was quite a nice surprise attack. I didn''t even see iting."

    "No, I''m sorry. Are you hurt anywhere?"

    Time took a standstill as everyone watched the scene unfold in front of them. They couldn''t believe that Fuuka, of all people, was the one who managed to capture Satoshi. She managed to get the trophy under their noses by ''teleporting'' or something along those lines towards Satoshi. Hiroshi and Shiroi were speechless as well since they were the ones who desperately shot at Satoshi while Kuroe did her best in distracting him and sneakily trying to tag him.

    "And that ends our Game of Tag for today. Satoshi, your n would''ve worked perfectly had you covered all the holes on it. You''re already a pretty good superhero, even more, powerful than most professionals. One piece of advice though, it will be better if you expand your arsenal of familiars if possible because that will help you in the long run. It will also give you infinite possibilities in formting ns and such."

    p! p!

    "That''s it for the Game of Tag, you''re all dismissed. Please keep in mind all the advice I gave you and contemte on it over the weekend. I wish you all the best of luck in the uing inter-high tournament!" Principal Sai Tama continued before he turned around and exited the Training Center.

 Chapter 84 New Allies

    A cold breeze shuffled the curtains on the window to Satoshi''s room, waking him up in the process as the biting cold made him impulsively shiver and pull on his nkets. He wrinkled his nose as if to enjoy the cool breeze but that just made him impulsively sneeze. His eyes fluttered, then it opened andnded straight to the rm clock that rested on his study table. It read 5:10 in the morning.

    ''That''s weird,'' Satoshi said to himself, rubbing his eyes to see if he wasn''t dreaming. But there it was, clear as day, the rm clock really read 5:10 in the morning.

    For some odd reason, he didn''t wake up when the rm clock resounded at least half an hour ago. He tried to recall what happened that weekend, how he got so exhausted that he slept through his rm¡ª then he remembered that his dad and he were up the past two days, trying to turn some animals and equipment and add it to his arsenal. He had a vague recollection of all the new familiars he got but his thoughts once againnded on the fact that he missed his rm clock. All of that happened in a span of ten seconds and he quickly got up, folded his nket, and set up his bed and room in order before rushing out of his room.

    ''Oh, Satoshi what are y¡ª '' Ayumu was about to knock on her son''s door when he apparently burst out of it, almost tripping at the nonexistent doorpost andnding on his mom.

    "Good morning, mom," Satoshi greeted back before his mom could even greet him first.

    Leaving his mom in her thoughts of confusion and puzzlement, Satoshi rushed through the staircase, almost tripping over his foot but he safely reached the lowermost step. He turned around towards the general direction of the kitchen and dining table, only to see that breakfast was ready and his dad was nowhere to be found. He swallowed a considerable amount of dry saliva out of nervousness as he got the urge to go to the bathroom and relieve himself and brush his teeth. But he tossed all those thoughts into the bin as he reached the corner of the living room and pressed his hand on the hidden sensor. ''Dad''s gonna be super mad.'' Satoshi was jumping up and down while ncing at the clock from time to time. It read 5:12 in the morning. He was twelve minuteste.

    From his mind, he could hear his dad telling him that he''ll have training every 5 am in the morning. ''Anyway, five in the morning, every day, I''ll be waiting for you here in ourir.'' Those words verbatim constantly yed in Satoshi''s mind as he waited for the panel in front of him to open so he could finally travel down to the basement where the Midoriyama Lair is located. He could already foresee his dad fuming in anger while tapping his right foot in an uneven rhythm.

    Shiiiing! The sound of soft metal resounded in Satoshi''s ears as the tform went down. Once again, just like any other day, he found himself in his parents''ir. He still couldn''t believe that thisir also belongs to him after his dad gave him permission to.

    "Son, what took you so¡ª did you just wake up? Change into your superhero suit already." There was a bit of disappointment in his dad''s voice as he waved his hands, gesturing that he changed his outfit right now since he was still wearing his pajamas. But then again, he wasn''t mad at all, much to Satoshi''s relief. He probably understood why Satoshi was pretty much drained after a mere two days of pokemon hunting.

    Satoshi nodded and headed towards the ''locker area'', well it resembled a locker room, and he quickly went towards the locker where he kept an extra supersuit.

    To his surprise, something else was there, aside from the supersuit that he typically wears. Usually, his supersuit consisted of a red cap, red shoes, and very iconic shirt and shorts. But now, it was different

    His cap was still red but a shape of an orb known as a Pokeball was emphasized on its front. His usual t-shirt was also reced with a blue and white hoody, with the linings of its pockets a bright yellow color. As for his shorts, it was now pants, and his shoes were brand-new, probably another creation of Silk Girl. It had the notable features of the MX3000 but the color was much darker.

    "Dad, what''s thi¡ª "

    "Pretty cool, right?" Tatsuki patted his son on the shoulder. "Now get to it and let''s have some training with your big guns. the inter-high tournament''ster, right? You should prepare as much as you can."<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi nodded. It seems like his parents were more excited than him for the inter-high and it made him almost tear up a little bit. He could tell that his parents were looking forward to the moment when he''ll awaken his superpower and now that he has it, they were more than willing to support him every step of the way. Just that small gesture, heck, even if Satoshi just heard words of support from his parents, he would''ve been more than thankful enough regardless of what he awakened. After all, they supported him even though he didn''t have superpowers in the beginning.

    Unbeknownst to Satoshi, however, his mom and dad were practically crying over the result when they found out that he was chosen as a candidate for the inter-high tournament. Since he was too busy training and preparing for the past week, he didn''t notice that his parents were ying all his training footage on a loop, tearing up every single time they watched it. There was even one time when Tatsuki rented a hall and invited everyone he knew just so they could all watch the training footage of Satoshi. Well, everyone enjoyed it though since there was plenty of food and drinks andpany from other people. It was also an opportunity for everyone to further their connection so it was a win-win situation for everyone. A few agencies even approached Tatsuki, trying to recruit his son. Of course, that fed his ego but he was more than pleased that they noticed his son''s talent.

    "Right, now, before we start. I actually have something for you. I ordered this pet ever since I saw your White Lion and who would''ve thought it would arrive today. Also, Ivan, that guy from the hardware store, delivered something this early in the morning. He said that you ordered a piece of equipment from him and he just received the shipment this morning. But first!"

    Tatsuki then approached an aquarium-shaped container draped with a cloth so no one would see its contents. Curious, Satoshi approached it with his guard up.

    Without further ado, Tatsuki lifted the cloth and revealed the animal inside the container. It was a lizard¡ª a chameleon, to be exact. And the container actually had two partitions, one had the chameleon and one had the frog.

    "Right, now do your thing. You know," Tatsuki tried to imitate Satoshi''s hand gestures every time he ''upgrades'' a certain animal or object and it turns into his familiar.

    Satoshi''s eyes sparkled as he saw the chameleon in front of him. He had wanted a pet chameleon for so long but he couldn''t bring himself to tell his parents about it. Fortunately, Tatsuki just so happened to check Satoshi''s retroputer when he fell asleep one night, and there, Satoshi was browsing for chameleons and if he could buy one nearby.

    As for the frog, his dad particrly likes frogs so he thought why not get his son one in exchange for getting him a chameleon.

    A light blue me was ignited on Satoshi''s hand and it floated a few seconds in the air beforending on the chameleon. And then, the chameleon turned a bluish color before growing twice its size. Its color changed into blue as well, and it became even cuter. As it opened its mouth and revealed its toothless smile, it crawled up Satoshi''s shoulder and disappeared. Satoshi could still feel its weight but it seemed to have vanished into thin air. Thin branches seemed to havee out of the floor as well, wrapping Satoshi''s legs and anchoring him on the ground.

    "So a nt-type, huh. Not that unusual but pretty useful for sneak attacks. Use that with your cloak and you won''t even be seen when you attack someone." Tatsuki said,

    Next came the frog. At this point, Satoshi wasn''t expecting anything from the frog since it had a weird red and orange vor. What he didn''t know was that the frog was actually a poisonous one. And when his blue me touched it, its size increased until it was almost as tall as their. Its color became that of purple as well and poisonous gas came out of its body.

    "Sheesh~" Tatsuki eximed. It was his first time seeing such a gigantic frog, well, actually it was his second time if he were to count the time when he watched a certain anime series with shinobis on a certain vige.

 Chapter 85 Inter-High Tournamentâ€” Commencement

    With his six new familiars in tow, Satoshi headed to school with somewhat renewed spirits, fully knowing that he had vastly improvedpared to how he was before. When ites to superheroes, it was easy to hit a wall after training for so long but as for Satoshi, he just had to gain new allies and incorporate them into his strategies. This will give him even more endless tactics in matches and there wille a time when he won''t even feel disadvantaged against an opponent. Of course, that time wille after years of experience with his familiars.

    "Right, time to debut once again." Satoshi tried to pump himself up but all he felt was nervousness on his way to school. He may be excited, but the anxiousness was still there, and he thought that it won''tpletely disappear, not until they were already participating in the inter-high tournament.

    Holding his Orb Obors as if that was his lifeline (well, it was his one and only lifeline) Satoshi arrived at school with mixed feelings. There, he found Midori and the others, eagerly waiting by the school entrance as every student who got their early surrounded them, cheering them on for a sessful inter-high tournament. There were confetti, banners, and screaming as Satoshi got there. Midori immediately rushed towards him and wrapped his arm around his shoulder.

    "Isn''t this cool? Look, even Miya is here. She insisted toe because she wanted to get your autograph." Midori said, pointing at the familiar girl right by the posts of the entrance gate. She was sitting down, resting her legs since she had been standing for more than an hour now, awaiting Satoshi''s arrival.

    Satoshi was a bit surprised. For the first time in his life, someone asked for his autograph even though he hasn''t done anything noteworthy¡ª or at least, for himself, he hasn''t aplished anything worth an autograph for. He sheepishly approached Miya as Midori excitedly handed him a permanent marker.

    Seeing Satoshi, Miya''s face lit up, she then turned around and showed her bag to Satoshi. It was a brand-new bag, one that even had the price tag on it. "Midori, are you sure about this, that bag is new, right?"

    "If my sister is okay with it then go. Don''t goining to your big brother afterward, okay?" Midori said with a smile on his face, it wasn''t even a reprimand, frankly speaking.

    Miya bobbed her head up and down before handing the bag to Satoshi. It was a brown bag which is slung on the shoulders. As she let go of the bag and Satoshi grabbed it, it''s as if Satoshi could hear her say ''please take good care of it'' as he uncapped the permanent marker.

    "To, Miya, Midoriyama Satoshi, be healthy, always." Satoshi mouthed as he wrote the same exact words on the bag. Fortunately, Satoshi had decent handwriting so the bag didn''t look like a mess. d that he did an adequate job with his autograph, Satoshi returned the bag. Fingers crossed, Miya won''t beining in the near future.

    "Thank you, does that mean I''m your first fan?" Miya asked, hopping in ce.

    "Yes, now head back to school. You don''t want to bete on a Monday, right?" Midori said, lightly shooing his sister away. "Thanks, Satoshi, ever since she watched the footage from the training sessions we had, she always pestered me on getting your autograph. I''m just d you obliged."

    "No worries," Satoshi''s face reddened since he didn''t know how to react.

    As if on cue, the school bus arrived by the front gate, driven by none other than Principal Sai Tama himself. "Get in superheroes in the making, you''ve got history to make." He said, pointing his thumbs towards the seats at the back.

    One by one, Satoshi and the others got in on the school bus before the day finally sunk in on their heads. It was D-Day, now or never. If they weren''t fully prepared for the inter-high, then they should just own up to their capabilities and try not to hold the rest down. They were chosen as candidates, but that doesn''t mean they''ve done their absolute best to be worthy of such praise.

    As Kurogami sat down, he couldn''t tell whether it was his breakfast or the fact that he slepttest night that caused his legs to turn into jelly. But just before he could think twice about it, he saw that the others were starting to get jittery as well. Throughout the history of inter-high tournaments, first-years were rarely ever picked to represent their school so this was an entirely uncharted ce for them.

    Amused, the principal watched as all of them became a bundle of nerves. ''At least, the journey wouldn''t be cumbersome. All of them are pretty much reduced to their mouse-like state.'' He said to himself as he started the engine.

    .....

    The air of Saitama Prefecture was drastically differentpared to Tokyo. Even though they were right beside each other, Saitama Prefecture sort of had this historic atmosphere to it, with its castle towns, museums, and scenic spots unique only to the location, it was something that Japanese and tourists alike enjoy whenever they drop by.

    The Principal has a special connection to the Sai Tama prefecture. Some could even say that this is his favorite prefecture because of his name. "We''re here," He announced, breathing in the fresh air of Saitama (that sounded weird) as he opened the doors to the school bus.

    Hiroshi was the first one to rush out of the school bus. "I''m going to puke." He announced, almost tumbling right by the small stairs leading outside. As soon as he got out, a steady stream of his breakfast escaped his mouth, but it was censored with a rainbow filter so no one actually noticed what he was puking.<sub> </sub>

    ? "This is the Inter-High Stadium, built a few years ago to house the inter-high tournament. Previously, we''d have the inter-high tournament on one prefecture after another but after a few incidents of cheating here and there, we decided to just use one stadium. Also, because there are a lot of superhero schools in all of Japan, only one prefecture could have the inter-high tournament. And then after thates the Grand Tournament where the top eight schools will be pitted against each other. You probably haven''t heard of the Grand Tournament All-Stars in the news and that''s because... unfortunately, the Tokyo Prefecture had never won on that tournament. Well, more on thatter." The Principal continued, making Satoshi and the others gather around him to listen.

    "I''ve heard about that. Apparentlyparing the inter-high to GTA is likeparing heaven and earth. If the inter-high allows light injuries and broken bones, the GTA allows foul ys¡ª even being beaten to death is allowed. Currently, the all-time champion of GTA is none other than¡ª "

    "Midori, if you want to talk then freely do so in front of everyone. I''ll dly hand over the mic to you." Principal Sai Tama calmly said, but his voice was too cold that Midori froze a hundred times over.

    "Sorry, sir,"

    .

    Pause.

    "As I was saying, there are a lot of good candidates this year. Keep in mind that you''ll be fighting a lot of third-years during this inter-high tournament. These third-years already experienced being under an agency, and some of them may have even experienced actualbat or viin attacks. Against those candidates, all of you might very well be chicks in the coop. But despite that, also do keep in mind that you were trained by none other than Principal Sai Tama himself. Do you want to know a secret that only inter-high candidates know about me?"

    All of them gulped.

    "The truth is... I never had a superpower." Sai Tama said with a slightly mischievous smile. "And that''s all I''ll tell you, for now."

    "No, you''re joking right, Mr. Principal?" Hiroshi was the first one to ask.

    "Yeah, we''ve seen you move, no normal human could do that."

    "Don''t lie to us, Mr. Principal, we know you have superhuman abilities."

    However, Principal Sai Tama justughed it off. "Believe all you want, even if you try to get all of my information in the inte, you will know that I don''t have an ounce of the Alpha Gene within me. I''ve tested a couple of times, the result was always a t zero."

    "It''s true... " Fuuka said, scrolling through her phone. "B-but how?"

    "With lots of training¡ª training that you wouldn''t even begin to imagine. If I were to tell you, some of you would justugh it off, but it has proven to work throughout history. I wasn''t the only one who achieved such a thing. In fact, a predecessor of mine who lived more than a millennium ago left a dent in history because of how powerful he was. I haven''t approached that kind of power, but that doesn''t mean it''s not possible."

    "What I''m saying is, I''m the best trainer there is to ever exist and I''ve offered you some advice back when we had our training sessionsst week. Now, whether you followed that advice to the letter is entirely up to you. If you did though, then you''ll be doing yourself and everyone in your team a favor."

    "Now off you go, and may you bring the trophy to the USA once again. Go Beyond!"

    "Plus Ultra!" Satoshi and the others simultaneously screamed, remembering the all-time favorite quote of superheroes back in the day.

 Chapter 86 A Prank

    Needless to say, the Inter-High Stadium was cold to the teeth and saying that was an understatement. Since Satoshi and the others were already inside, they had no choice but to shiver as they walked towards their designated waiting room. A couple of times, Satoshi was tempted to bring out his familiar ''Lighter'' so they''d have fire to warm them up. But then again, doing so would trigger every fire sprinkler in the vicinity.

    "Why is it so cold here?" Midori said, his hands cupped on his mouth. "And why don''t you feel cold, Cherry?"

    "My superpower, the temperature doesn''t affect me that much." She responded. Like everybody else, she was extremely nervous as well. In just a few minutes, the first round of the inter-high tournament would start and there''s no time to prepare anymore.

    "You fools, this coldness shouldn''t be enough to faze y¡ª achoo~" Kurogami sneezed right before he finished his sentence.

    "The airconditioning system on the Inter-High Stadium was purposefully set to the negatives just because the number of people spectating the tournament will bnce things out. Once the people start pouring in, it wouldn''t be as cold." Principal Sai Tama simply exined. "Also, you feel a lot colder when you''re nervous. Seriously~" He shook his head, trying to suppress the chuckle that was about toe out.

    Ever since the inter-high tournament was formed, the Principal had guided countless high schoolers like Satoshi and the others towards thepetition. But even then, he still couldn''t get used to the nervousness that everybody felt.

    The interior of the Inter-High Stadium didn''t change that much over the years, and so Principal Sai Tama confidently navigated the maze-like hall and hallways. In just a few left and rights, they''ve arrived at the waiting room marked ''USA''.

    "I guess here we are. This is where you''ll be spending your entire weekdays. Remember, the school is paying for your amodations here. It may look like your regr waiting room in arenas but this stadium''s waiting room isparable to five-star hotels. Please keep that in mind as you represent the school in this inter-high tournament."

    "Yes, Mr. Principal," Everyone simultaneously said.

    Without further ado, Principal Sai Tama opened the door to the waiting room. Behind that door was something out of this world¡ª or so that''s what the inter-high candidates initially felt.

    "This is themon area. To the right is where the guys would stay, and the girls to the left. The two doors in the middle lead to the bathroom. The bathroom has a hot spring inside, a jacuzzi, and a lifetime supply of soap and shampoo. I''m kidding. Everything in here is paid for by the school, so I hope you won''t damage or break anything here. That would hurt the school''s funds a lot and I might even ask your parents to pay for it."

    Throughout the tour, Satoshi and the rest just kept quiet. Some of them had never stayed in a five-star hotel before but as for Satoshi, he knew that the waiting room is actually much better than a lot of five-star hotels in Japan. Hence, everyone in the group was amazed. ''Would I really be staying in this heaven for five days?'' They asked themselves in their minds.

    "And that''s all for the tour. Your principal still has a lot of prior engagements and school-rted work needed to be done and I have to finish a majority of them today. I''ll excuse myself. All the best in the inter-high tournament!" The Principal said, pumping a fist in the air before heading out of the door where they all came in.

    A split secondter though, the door opened once again and the Principal peeked in. "There are hidden cameras in every nook and cranny of this ce except for the bathroom, I just want to let you know. And also, some of the teachers might visit you after school. Your rtives and friends are free to visit as well, just don''t do it so much since that might distract you from the tournament. Now then, I''ll be taking my leave seriously this time."

    "..."

    Sigh~

    As if on cue, everyone copsed in themon area and set their bags down. It seems like the travel from school to here took a minor toll on their bodies, which were screaming for sleep.

    "Should we clock out for a few hours before themencement in the afternoon?" Hiroshi asked, stealing a nce towards Satoshi who was already lying on the floor, on the verge of sleeping. For some reason, he already had a nket wrapped around him.

    "Oh, ah, yes. I''ve researched a few things about the Inter-High Tournament and they''ll send us the details to the first roundter. Usually, they''ll slip the paper right under the door, just before lunchtime. Let''s get some rest for now."

    Everyone nodded and pulled out nkets. From the sleeping area. They didn''t even bother sleeping in the rooms, all of them huddled in themon area since it was still pretty cold.

    They should''ve known though that every waiting room has its own air conditioner and heater.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    Two hooded men passed by the waiting room, each carrying scrolls on hand. They then rolled it out and inserted the paper inside each waiting room. "That''s all we have to do, right?"

    "Right,"<sub> </sub>

    "Are you sure about this?"

    "Yes,"

    "Absolutely sure?"

    "Orders from the higher-ups. We can''t do anything about it."

    "Okay,"

    As the two walked to the end of the hallway, one would notice that the hooded man to the right was still carrying a scroll in his hand. A mischievous smile formed on their face as the n was a sess. Well, if worsees to worst, they''ll just tantly lie that they missed one waiting room and forgot which waiting room it was. Well, it would''ve been better if the higher-ups announced it during the live stream to in more viewers. That was always effective.

    .....

    Ever since the fated day of the Inter-High Tournament arrived, people in their homes eagerly anticipated the live stream that will soon follow because that would show every participant in the tournament. Also, parents of the candidates were looking forward to seeing their children on television, and that''s why the anticipation was through the roof.

    As soon as the live stream started, however, one waiting room harbored a great deal of attention and most people decided to watch it. Because of that, the live stream on the local television constantly showed that room so the viewership will be maintained.

    That room was none other than the waiting room for United Superheroes Academy. While every other waiting room had their candidates sitting together, nning and talking about their strategies for the first round, all the candidates of the United Superheroes Academy were taking a nap as if without a care in the world. But then again, the United Superheroes Academy was located near the outskirts of Tokyo so their candidates traveled longerpared to the others. But then again, should they really be sleeping at such a time?

    One of thementators exined that while this is the first time this happened, it was obvious that all of them had prepared as hard as they could before the inter-high tournament. As the cameras panned and took a closer look at everyone sleeping, one could tell that they were really exhausted.

    "They''ve probably been training in the weekends as well."

    "Wow, they must''ve worked hard for this inter-high tournament."

    "I guess so, but this year, the Mirai High School is joining, not to mention the Great Mountain Academy. Those two are real powerhouses that almost took the number one and two spots duringst year''s inter-high. Against first-years of the USA, they might have a chance at getting the gold.

    "Yes, we should also watch out for the other schools in general. It seems like we have a lot of new candidates this year. At this point, we don''t know who''ll rise to the top."

    "What''s this?"

    "Hey, look! Look at this!"

    "What''s happening?"

    Thementator then started speaking about the two hooded men who were slipping papers through the bottom gap of the waiting room. One after another, they slipped the paper on each of the rooms. It was then exined by thementator that the paper contained the contents of the first round so every school could formte a n to increase their chances of passing the first round.

    However, when the hooded men went in front of the USA''s waiting room, they didn''t slip a paper. Instead, they talked for a bit and left. Their conversation was even yed during the live stream, leaving every viewer shocked at the sudden turn of events.

    "Well, to everyone watching at the leisure of your homes, it seems like someone yed a little prank on the USA. How will they be able to pass the first round?"

    Upon saying that, the screen shifted into bright colors paired with entertaining music¡ª signaling the introduction of the first round. This way, everyone who was watching at home would know what would happen during the first round.

    After that, two words appeared on the screen, showing what type ofpetition will happen in the first round.

    BADGE FIGHT

 Chapter 87 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight I

    Inspired by a certain ssic television series, the Badge Fight is apetition that a lot of game shows had incorporated in the past. However, this was the first time the inter-high tournament would put up such a thing in the first round. While it is not as violent and as rambunctious as a free-for-all which was held every year, it is certainly an interestingpetition that is fair for all the schools. Moreover, it is an effective way to reduce the number of schools in the first round.

    The Badge Fight is directly inspired by that certain ssic television series about a hunter exam of some sort. But since they didn''t want it to replicate the rules on that series, the higher-ups decided to change it up a bit.

    Every inter-high candidate is given a badge with a corresponding number on it. Just like a free-for-all, all candidates will spawn at a random area in a stage. Everyone''s goal is to regroup with their teammates and try to collect badges from other candidates. While doing that, they had to protect their own badges because points will be deducted if another school gets them.

    Every candidate also has what they called the ''target''. The ''target'' is a random candidate in a random school holding a specific number. If one candidate managed to get the badge of his ''target'', he will receive a lot of bonus points which will add up to the school''s final point count. A loss of a badge means deducted points, getting a badge adds up to your point, and hunting down a ''target'' grants you even more points.

    After these rules were shed on the television, the live stream then shifted to the waiting rooms where candidates were nning their next move. Some nned to regroup first, while the majority of the confident ones decided to hunt alone because that would be an efficient way to get badges from weaker candidates. Some wanted to focus on the targets while the others went for quantity...

    ... then there''s the USA candidates who just woke up.

    "We haven''t received any paper yet? What happened? Was there a shift in the schedule?" Hiroshi asked, rubbing his eyes as a yawn left his mouth.

    "No, there were no announcements. And even the site still has the same exact schedule. I wonder what happened." Midori said, hastily booting up theputer by the corner of themon area.

    "Was there a mix-up?" Fuuka asked in mild panic.

    "Hopefully not. Maybe we''ll be briefed as soon as we get to the stage." Satoshi continued. "The best thing we can do for now is to prepare. We''ll hear the instructionster so there''s no point mulling over this situation right now."

    "Satoshi is right. Right now, we should head to the stage and worry about those thingster. If we''re five minuteste on the stage, we''re immediately disqualified." Kurogami said, getting up, and donning on his superhero suit.

    Everyone followed suit and ten minutester, Satoshi and his party headed out with increasing anxiousness.

    As they walked through the hallway, other candidates¡ª school representatives¡ª started exiting their waiting room as well. To everyone''s surprise, the other schools had at least one candidate who held a paper in hand. They were even discussing something about a Badge Fight which was the first round of the inter-high tournament.

    "Just what is going on?" Satoshi muttered underneath his breath but he didn''t ask the other schools about it. It was obvious that all of them received a heads up about the first round beforehand while they didn''t. Either the organizers of the inter-high tournament made a mistake or it was all premeditated.

    "Don''t worry about this, Satoshi. I did my research and this happens sometimes. At least the handicap was given to us early on. There was one time the entire USA team only wore tracksuits since someone swiped their superhero suits before the second round started. The Principal doesn''tin about this so there''s nothing we can do about it. I guess it''s amusing for people when they see someone being given a hard time. Those suckers." Midori was as talkative as usual but Satoshi didn''t mind. Right now, he was seething with anger, not because they were given a handicap, but because everyone was looking down on them as first-years.

    He wasn''t even the least bit furious about the papers on the other candidates'' hands, what he was infuriated about were their condescending looks and smirks as they passed by.

    "Don''t worry, we''ll show them," Hiroshi said, grabbing Satoshi by the shoulder. He wasn''t the type to console someone but even he was enraged about their gazes. If it weren''t for Satoshi holding back, Hiroshi would''ve acted out right then and there. Quite frankly, the reason why he grabbed Satoshi by the shoulder was to hold himself back, not Satoshi.

    Compared to the sight of the Inter-High Stadium from the outside, the interior of it was actually much bigger than everyone had expected. Of course, some of them had already done their research and watched a few inter-high tournaments in the past¡ª but seeing the stage in person was actually much more overwhelming.

    "It''s big."

    "Yeah, you bet."<sub> </sub>

    "I think I''ll get lost in there."

    "I heard they could even change the terrain depending on what thepetition will be."

    "Wow, that''s crazy. How much do you think this ce is?"

    "Look! Isn''t that Terror?! IN THE FLESH?!"

    A series of ooh''s and aah''s erupted from the students as they stared at the top of the stage. On it was a floating tform where a single person stood¡ª the third in rank in SAO rankings, Terror.

    Terror was known for his superpower called ''Fear Infliction''. Aside from his enhanced physical capabilities, he could also inflict fear upon minds whose weaker than his. It may not seem like a pretty good superpower against formidable viins but he has brought down hundreds of viins. His capture rate is also at a whopping ny seven percent, which is why he managed to rise through the SAO ranks even with just a simple superpower.

    Survivors who hade in contact with Terror had to go through therapy for months, and some of them even changed altogether upon seeing the one thing they fear the most. Of course, because of that, he was also nicknamed the ''Scarecrow'' after a famous viin from a ssic superhero franchise. He never liked the name though, so he stuck to Terror.

    Rumors imed that if one were to see Terror, one would hear his parents behind him, calling him a failure. Of course, that was just a rumor but if one''s greatest fear was exactly that, then it''s usible that it could happen to one of Terror''s targets.

    "Inter-high candidates! I personally wee you to the Inter-High Tournament." He spoke, bowing towards the students that craned their necks just to get a good glimpse of him. With his ck hair and panther-like eyes, he was actually as handsome as the media portrayed him to be.

    Suddenly, a few pirs shot up from the floor right in front of the students. Since Satoshi and the others were at the back, they weren''t surprised by the sudden arising of the pirs. However, those in front certainly felt the force that pushed the pirs up, causing some of them to fall on their rear ends before dusting themselves.

    "The pirs in front of you are eachbeled for every school. If you''ve read the paper, you know what those pirs contain."

    In the middle of the pir was a hollow space where the badges were located. There were a total of eight badges on every pir.

    ? As if on cue, every candidate stood on the pir where their school name was etched. Up until now, Satoshi and the others still didn''t know what to do so they just followed what the others did. Satoshi then distributed the badges to each of them.

    "Now, to summarize the rules of this badge fight, all of you are given a badge with a number on it. At the back of the badge is the number of your target. If you managed to get the badge of your target, then you get bonus points. You can get anyone''s badge as long as it''s not your teammate''s and that will you more points. If your school loses a badge, then you get deductions from your overall point count."

    "All of you will be transported to a random location in this Stage. As soon as you hear the signal, the first round willmence." Terror continued. "Now, without further ado, let the inter-high tournament BEGIN!"

    "And may the odds be ever in your favor!"

    In haste, Satoshi started giving everyone instructions before they were transported to their locations. "It''s a badge fight. Protect your badge at all costs and if your target is manageable, then try to get their badge. Our n is to regroup as soon as possible. Don''t be hasty, and always observe your surroundi¡ª "

    One moment, Satoshi was right in front of his team. The next moment, he found himself under a tree, sitting down. "Where am I?" He asked.

    "What luck, I found a badge." Someone muttered right in front of him.

 Chapter 88 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight II

    "What luck, I found a badge." Someone muttered right in front of him.

    There was no time to get his act together. In an instant, Satoshi used his ''Windfan'' familiar to blow the guy away. However, that wasn''t enough to faze him.

    The man was at least three years older than Satoshi, or so that''s what he assumed due to how tall he was. "My name is Reid. I don''t think introductions are necessary but you should at least know the name of the superhero who will seize your badge."

    With a smirk, Reid leaped from the tree branch where he was standing and hended right in front of Satoshi with a smile on his face. Having seen Satoshi''s superpower (which is summoning a huge fan), he could tell by the desperation on Satoshi''s face that he doesn''t have any trump cards left. Confidently, he strode forward, clenching his fists as he prepared himself to beat Satoshi to a pulp.

    Satoshi knew what he was thinking though. After all, guys like him tend to musclehead their way through everything if an opportunity arises. As Reid closed the distance between Satoshi and him, Satoshi couldn''t help but hide the smile that was about to appear on his face.

    "You see, I feel bad getting your badge, giving your team some juicy deduction points. Also, you might not know it but I know who you are, Midoriyama Satoshi." Reid continued talking. "And I know what you''re capable of. That''s why I know you can''t win against me."

    ''Wait, if he knows what I''m capable of... then why is he so confident? Does he have some sort of superpower that couldbat mine? That''s impossible.'' Satoshi thought, the smile that was about to appear on his face disappeared. Instead, it was reced by a mild panic that grew from within his thoughts.

    "Also, I know that you''re part of the USA, and as much as I hate to say it, having that title under your name puts you on the pedestal of the candidates that need to be eliminated no matter what. You do know why your Principal gave you a handicap, right? That''s because the USA had been on a winning streaktely. No matter how much the other schools worked together, they stille out to the top, unscathed¡ª or at least, the third-years did."

    "Seriously, what was your principal thinking?" Reid chuckled. "Oops, it seems like I talked too much. Time to end this and regroup with everyone."

    "Regroup? You''re not going anywhere." Satoshi said, donning on a cloak of some sort that provided him invisibility. Before Reid could do anything, he was hit with an uppercut right at his jaw, sending him skittering backward as his sense of bnce was lost. One hit and he was out.

    Satoshi then removed his Cloak of Invisibility and heaved a sigh of relief. As he thought, no matter how strong a high schooler''s superpower is, they still couldn''t survive a single hit to the jaw. d that his n worked, Satoshi grabbed the badge from his opponent, marked zero three one three.

    "In the end, what was his superpower?" Satoshi asked, shaking his head as he left the scene.

    Meanwhile, a shadow appeared right behind him, since Satoshi was too focused on walking in front, he didn''t notice that there was a shadow-like figure tailing him.

    "I''ve seen him, he''s heading right where our camp is. Prepare to lure him in and then try to get his badge." The shadow-like figure whispered as if he was talking to someone. But quite frankly, he was just on his way to regroup with his school. Then he happened to see Satoshi on his way there. The reason why he was talking to himself was that he felt embarrassed talking to everyone in his school. Right now, the most terrifying thing wasn''t the challenges, but the need for him to talk and report everything he saw to their boss.

    Chop!

    As the shadow-like figure cautiously approached Satoshi to give him a nice p on the neck Someone got him earlier than he nned. That someone gave him a taste of his own medicine since the shadow-like figure was also chopped to the neck, rendering him unconscious.

    "You should be careful, you know," A familiar voice erupted from behind him. He didn''t even need to turn around to know who owned the voice¡ª it was Midori, and somehow he was the first one to regroup with Satoshi.

    "That was close, if I''d been a step toote, we wouldn''t even be here right now. That person is known as Shuri, a female illusionist who also specializes in covert tactics, hit and run, and the like. But that''s not her superpower. Apparently, she can naturally attract someone of the opposite sex. That''s why she covers herself to the point that she looks like a guy... or she''s just a big fan of the ninja way. She''s a good friend of mine from my previous school so I recognized her right away. Akane''s her name."

    "You knew she was a girl and you still gave her a chop to the neck? What on earth were you thinking, Midori?" Satoshi lightly hissed although he was d that he was saved by Midori.

    "Desperate times, desperate measures... and would you look at that! She''s my target, badge three four one six. I guess I lucked out big time. There''s no need for me to hunt anymore unless I want to increase our bonus points. I guess I''ll just stick with you then, Satoshi."

    Satoshi finally regrouped with someone from the same school as him. Despite Midori''s annoying attitude, he knew he couldn''t miss such an opportunity. This would also give him the chance to protect Midori and the ''target badge'' he got just now.

    "Have you already gotten a badge?" Midori asked, resting his arms behind his head as if he was nonchntly walking in the park.

    "Yes," Satoshi raised his hand and showed a single badge. "It was a quick fight since he didn''t see what wasing at him. By the time he knew it, he was unconscious. Of course, I let him rile me up and try to attack me first, but it didn''t happen."

    "Now, let''s try to regroup with everyone else. Based on the energy I''m feeling, I suggest we head this way." Midori said, pointing towards a random direction¡ª or so that''s what Satoshi assumed was the case.<sub> </sub>

    "Why are we going there?"

    "Because Fuuka and the others are there. You might not sense it, but thanks to my enhanced senses, I can detect everyone through their actions. I''m not that urate with my skill though since I only discovered it a day before the inter-high began."

    Once again, there was nothing Satoshi could do but nod away at the ever-talkative Midori.

    "Wait, kind of off-topic here, well, sort of, but did you hurt yourself anywhere?" Midori asked.

    "No, why?"

    "Just tell me if you did. I can heal you right away."

    Another nod from Satoshi.

    The duo managed to reach the thickest part of the forest (the stage was that big, yes) where they heard sounds of other candidates fighting each other. It wasn''t arge brawl, just one school against another. And right now, anyone who could hear could tell that they were having a little boxing right in the middle of the tournament.

    "We''ll get disqualified anyways, and frankly, we don''t have a chance at winning. Even if we had, there will be more superheroes faster than us so it''s better if we just resign now."

    "Guys, what are you thinking? It''s not like this is your memorial or anything. Fine, you should all go to who knows where. Once our team disbands, it''s all over for our school anyways."

    Sneaking in, Midori and Satoshi watched as the falling out amongst the candidates of one school were in in sight.. and that was when they defeated an entire school... and there were just three of them!

    "Can you believe that?! How could they defeat eight people?!" Midori whispered but his volume was a notch higherpared to a normal whisper.

    "I don''t know either. All I know is that they''re strong. And can you do something with your voice? You''re too loud." Satoshi whispered back.

    "Sorry," Midori said, cupping both hands on his mouth.

    ''This will be a long day,'' Satoshi wanted to click his tongue but what came out of his mouth was a heavy exhale¡ª something worse than a sigh indeed.

    Suddenly, the guy who wasining a few minutes ago raised his hand, signifying that everyone stop talking. "Hey, did you hear that?" He asked with all seriousness on his face.

    "What do you mean?" His other team member asked.

    "A voice, someone''s tailing us." The guy ryed to his two teammates. "It seems they''re waiting for an ambush."

    Pause.

    "...."

    "WHO''S THERE?!" The guy bellowed.

    Midori and Satoshi gulped.

 Chapter 89 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight III

    Donning on the Cloak of Invisibility, Satoshi then proceeded to sneak away from the ce with Midori tagging right behind him. Since the Cloak of Invisibility could only fit one person, Satoshi couldn''t offer it to Midori. Instead, he left a small portion open so Midori could still somewhat see him and follow him.

    Since Satoshi and the others couldn''t research all the schools that will be participating, they don''t know which school they met. And of course, they didn''t want to find out after witnessing their sheer strength.

    "How do we meet up with the others?" Midori asked. "I mean, unlike the free-for-all training we had, the area won''t shrink so it''s up to us to regroup as soon as possible and try to locate the other schools to get their badge. But then again, I l already got the bonus after getting Akane''s badge. Who would''ve thought that she''ll be my target, what luck."

    Meanwhile, the guy who detected Satoshi and Midori couldn''t detect them anymore since they had already started moving. With a shake of the head, he turned around. "Let''s get out of here, it''s too open." He said.

    Without further ado, their team got out of the thickest parts of the forest after getting eight badges for themselves. On one hand, the guy held the badge with a certain number on it¡ª zero six nine zero.

    ...

    Itsuka Shidou scratched his head in confusion, he could feel that something was wrong ever since he was chosen as a candidate for the inter-high tournament. It''s as if his life was turned upside down but he couldn''t quite put a finger on it (well, it''s just that he hasn''t been getting any screen timetely¡ª that must''ve been the reason). There were times when he spoke and conversed with everyone but it seemed like no one cared to listen (once again, it was because he hasn''t been shown that much), and yet, it felt like everything was normal.

    As soon as he woke up, he saw the scenery that everyone saw when they were transported into the stage. The first thing that came to his mind was their method of being transported. ''Someone must''ve used a space-type skill to transport us, like teleport. But there were a lot of us... maybe they''ve hired multiple superheroes with space distortion superpowers?'' He asked.

    In any case, Itsuka wasn''t like the others when ites to his superpower. If he was alone, he was as useless as a sitting duck in the middle of a highway. That''s why, instead of moving around, he hid and waited for an opportune moment.

    and waited.

    and waited.

    "This is not working." He sighed while plucking one leaf after another from the bush where he hid. He was getting bored, and until now, no one passed by him, which was disappointing since he was waiting for a person to do so. After all, there''s a fifty percent chance that the person passing by would be someone from the opposite sex.

    CRAAASH!

    FWOOOSH!

    Suddenly, the ground a few meters from him was struck by something and a huge crevasse was formed, making him flinch and fall out from where he was hiding. When he looked up, a girl wearing purple armor was flying through the air while a familiar girl was sliding on the ground with fluid movements. The purple girl was carrying what seemed like arge sword and she was swinging it around. Purple lightning was emitted from that sword, and the girl on the ground was trying to dodge it. Sometimes, the girl on the ground would disappear and appear in a nearby space. She would then swing her hand and a powerful sound wave would be released, tearing down its path like a miniature hurricane.

    "Space distortion and Sound Maniption? What a scary superpowerbination," The girl in the airughed haughtily. "But with my Astral Superpower, your attacks are ineffective against me."

    "Wait, Fuuka?!" Shidou eximed. At that moment, Fuuka slid towards him, falling rear-first onto his face since she tripped.

    "Oomph!" Shidou eximed. Fuuka then responded by standing immediately. "Shidou? What are you doing?"

    ''Oh, she talked to me, am I finally getting screen time?'' Shidou told himself while grabbing Fuuka by the shoulder and throwing his body to the side. Fortunately, he was just on time. They managed to avoid the purple-armored girl''s attack.

    "Oh, another prey. You know, instead of running around, you should just give me your badges. I''ll let you off scot-free."

    Shidou couldn''t shake off the feeling that the girl seemed familiar, as if he saw her somewhere in the past. But once again, he couldn''t put a finger around it. It''s as if fate is ying around with him like a marite on strings. "Why would we do that? How about you give me your badge, that will make me happy."Shidou continued.

    "Hey, what are you doing? That will just needlessly rile her up. Also, she''s my target and I''m hers. Why would she give her badge just like that? Stop being stupid." Fuuka continued.

    "Shut up, just let me handle this," Shidou said, gently putting Fuuka on the ground.

    For a moment there, Fuuka could''ve sworn that her heart skipped a beat when Shidou spoke to him. Her face reddened and her heart rate quickened. ''What''s going on? But he looked so cool just no¡ª aargh! What am I thinking?" She shook her head in frustration.

    Then she remembered something.

    "... but basically, how my power works is that I can woo anyone of the opposite sex bu using my voice alone."<sub> </sub>

    There was no doubt about it. Right now, Shidou was using his superpower. ''So that''s why my mind was fooled for a second there. What a scary superpower.'' Fuuka shuddered. Having experienced Shidou''s superpower first-hand, she finally recognized just how scary it could be.

    "And w-w-why would I do that?" The girl stammered, her face flushed red.

    "You know, I feel like... we''ve met somewhere before. I don''t know... " Shidou muttered, his eyes turning a light blue color even though it was light brown a split second ago. His blue hair also became a shade lighter as he spoke. "What''s your name?"

    "M-m-my name?" For some reason, the girl could also feel like she met Shidou before. ''Is this fate? Did we meet in our past lives?'' She asked herself. By now, her face was a bright shade of red as her heart rate quickened.

    Shidou then smirked, but that smirk mesmerized the girl to the point that she sheathed her sword. At first, she thought that she sheathed her Astral Sword just because she wasn''t inbat at the moment, but the reason was much more superficial than that¡ª in short, she was letting her guard down in front of the ''ikemen'' who seemed to tug at her heartstrings too well¡ª no, it''s as if he was ying a melodious tune on her heartstrings, making her feel warm inside as her pulse quickened.

    "Yes, your name," Shidou repeated.

    "I-i-i-t''s... Tohka." She said, fidgeting. "I''m... Tohka."

    "WHAT ON ACTUAL¡ª " Shidou lost hisposure in that instant.

    .....

    Satoshi stared at the number behind his badge, zero six nine zero, and he wondered whether he''d locate his target before the time runs out. "Wait, is that your number?" Midori asked, surprised.

    "Why?"

    "I saw that number just a few moments ago," Midori responded quickly.

    "Really?! Where?"

    "You know the guy we met back then? The one who annihted several candidates and there were just three of them in his team? Yeah, that guy."

    "Are you sure??? Are you absolutely sure?!"

    "Yeah, while we were walking away, I briefly saw him turn around and that number was thest badge he was holding. That was the same number, zero six nine zero¡ª what a nice number?" Midori continued.

    "What do you mean nice?"

    "Nothing. In any case, it''s nice that we know who has it now. The only thing we need to do is get it from him. It might not be easy but there are two of us. Besides, you''re strong, and I might very well be the number one support-type superhero here." Midori could''ve sworn that he heard a couple of ''boos'' as soon as he said that he wasn''t wrong. As soon as he said that, a few people who were watching the live stream heard what he said and they started booing him.

    "Right, but for now, we have to regroup," Satoshi said. "Still, this forest is so big, huh. If I didn''t know this is located in the middle of a stadium, I''d probably assume that I''m in a real forest or something."

    "I know right," Midori muttered.

    Just as they were walking in the open, Satoshi stopped short as he heard a noise nearby. A split secondter, three figures came out from the thickets.

    "Satoshi? Midori? Phew, good thing we found you." Shidou sighed in relief, patting Fuuka on the back. "We can finally breathe."

    "Oh, Fuuka, Shidou... uhm... and who''s the other one?" Satoshi greeted, his hand stopping in the middle of its wave since he didn''t know who the third person was.

    "Ah, it''s a long story," Another sigh left Shidou''s mouth.

 Chapter 90 [Itsuka Shidous Backstoryâ€” I]

    Itsuka Shidou''s first memory of ever watching on tv was with his dad. He could clearly remember his dad, saying something along the lines of ''I named you after that guy. The character on the screen was your average teenager who was thrown into a fantasy that he didn''t know existed. He was then tasked to talk to spirits of sorts with the help of a crew who tells him the most optimal words he could say while conversing with a certain spirit. By the end, the agreement would be sealed with a kiss, and then it''s over.

    At first, Shidou didn''t get why something like that was happening. He even thought at one point that everything shown on the television was real. Well, one couldn''t really me him since he was still five years old at that time, barely awake to the reality of the world. Kudos to his father though, for letting him watch a series with a harem tag even though he was just five... and not only that, he even named him after the character.

    "This is a certified ssic. Hundreds of years ago this was a thing. Until now, there is a lot of series with this kind of plot." His fathermented at one point while they were watching together.

    And then it was time for him to go to school. Oh, how memorable his first self-introduction was in front of his ssmates. As soon as he said his name, every single teacher burst outughing. It was the first time something like that urred in the ssroom. Usually, it would be the students who''d burst outughing, wheezing as if their lungs were about to explode. But this time, it''s as if an Uno reverse card was pulled out from somewhere and it was the teachers who assumed theughing. It felt like a walk of shame as Shidou walked back to his desk and sat, pulling his hoodie over his head so no one would see his embarrassment. He overheard one of his teachers say that his dad was a ''man of culture'' for naming him something like that. Frankly, he didn''t know what that meant, but he knew it is a negative more than a positivement. They wouldn''t haveughed if it wasn''t the former.

    When he got to elementary, he became much more popr because some of the students knew the series where he got his name. By this time, Shidou was starting to look like the main protagonist of that series and he owned it, even maintaining his body so he would stay having that image. He also didn''t feel bad about his appearance at all.

    Middle school was the time when his superpower first manifested, giving him yet another surprise in his life. He didn''t know why his superpower was quite simr to the guy in the series but at this point, he wasn''tining. He had known a lot of people his age who didn''t awaken superpowers so having one was satisfactory.

    He could still remember the time when his superpower activated. There was a beautiful girl in his ss, a school crush or something like that since a lot of students liked her. Because of his name, Shidou didn''t really pay attention to girls because they knew the weight of his name and they judged him before they could even get to know him. One day, that beautiful girl in his ss didn''t attend school and a lot of guys volunteered to bring the handouts to her but the teacher knew of their ulterior motives so she chose Shidou for the job. Shidou couldn''t say no though since the teacher quickly left the ss after assigning the task to him.

    "Now that I think about it, this is the first time I''ll be going to a girl''s ce. Should I bring something? Nah, I''ll just drop it or give it to whoever opens the door. And then I''ll take my leave. That''s right, it''s not like she''d involve herself with me after this." Shidou told himself. Unbeknownst to him, this was also the first time he''ll be talking to a girl. He never wanted to associate himself with them mostly because of his name and their false perception of him. ''It was inevitable though, and I guess the time hase for me to talk to someone,''

    As he thought about those things, he found himself right by the doorstep. To his surprise, the girl''s house was actually bigger than he expected. He gulped, the gravity of the situation was dawning on him. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead as he brought his finger towards the doorbell. He couldn''t believe it, somehow, his hands were freezing up before it could even press the doorbell. ''Was it always this hard to press a doorbell?'' He asked himself in bewilderment.

    But then again, he realized that this was the first time he''ll ever converse with a girl, and that thought made his mind implode¡ª or at least, that'' what he felt.

    Ting!

    Nevertheless, he managed to press the doorbell after standing there for ten whole minutes. He sighed in relief after he heard the ringing resounded throughout the house. But son after, anxiousness filled him once again after he realized that he''ll finally talk to her. ''As soon as that door open¡ª''

    Squeak.

    Since it was a wooden door, arge wooden door with intricate carvings, the squeaking as it opened made Shidou jump. He almost ran away after getting the urge to get away from the ce. And then, time seemed to have stopped as the girl peeked from the door and walked towards him. "Ah, Shidou-san, right? Do you need anything?"

    "Oh wait, sorry I called you by your first name, I got used to it since the girls talked a lot about you. Sorry," She flinched. Upon seeing what Shidou was holding though, she then remembered that their homeroom teacher messaged her about the handouts. "And sorry for the trouble," She continued.

    "It''s fine, Suzy... san?" Shidou scratched his head as he gave the handouts to her. He joked about calling her by her first name since she called her by his first name first. But upon saying that, Shidou felt like something clicked in his mind.<sub> </sub>

    Suddenly, Suzy''s expression changed and her face reddened. As their hands touched when she got the handouts from him, she flinched, but she wasn''t grossed out by it. A coquettish smile formed on her face as she turned around. "T-then... see you tomorrow, Shidou," She said, removing the honorifics altogether before running back to her house and mming the doo behind her.

    "What was that about?" Shidou once again scratched his head, wondering if he did something wrong that made her act like that.

    He didn''t sleep a wink that night.

    .....

    Unbeknownst to Shidou, he was actually the most respected out of all the guys in their ss. He seemed like the timid type but he neverined whenever the teacher tells him to do something. He''s also proactive in helping other students carry stuff (which he does so that no one would bully him). He never would''ve thought that such a simple gesture to keep himself safe made him actually look better than usual. Even the girls in his ss respected him and because of his good looks (ignoring his name), there were quite a number of girls who are interested in him. But what they didn''t know was that all of those had to do with his constitution and the passive effects of his superpower. Why? Because this has never happened on the past years.

    The next day, Suzy came up to his desk and thanked him personally, calling him by his first name once again without the honorifics (in present Japan, this gesture meant that you two are close enough to be friends) and this rocked the entire ssroom. Even the girls who couldn''t approach Shidou back then started scheming since they didn''t want Suzy to im him. It was your typical school ro and before Shidou knew it, he was swept right in the middle of that storm.

    "Hey, did something happen between you two yesterday?" One guy asked.

    "Did you confess to her?"

    "No way,"

    "Did she just call him by his first name?"

    In an instant, Shidou became a huge topic in the school, and not only that.

    Before the end of the day, at least a dozen girls asked her out and since it was the first time for him, he didn''t know how to respond to them. One of those girls was Suzy, who didn''t really imply that she likes him, but she gave him a bento for lunch.

    That was the first-ever case of Shidou''s superpower running amok. But now, he manages to control its effect by staying silent, or by not letting his emotions get the better of him. Sometimes though, he panics, and that panic will instantly activate the full extent of his superpowers¡ª

    ¡ª just like what happened during the first round of the Inter-High Tournament.

 Chapter 91 [Itsuka Shidous Backstoryâ€” II]

    "WHAT ON ACTUAL¡ª "

    Shidou bit her tongue before he could utter a bad word. Ironically, he was nning on stopping right before he said it but karma got the better of him and he bit his tongue in the process. He flinched and shook his head as he rested a hand on Fuuka''s shoulder.

    "I''m sorry, can you repeat your name again?" Shidou asked.

    "Tohka, Yatogami Tohka," The girl said, bewildered. She didn''t know why he was reacting like that. Of course, she had an inkling as to what the reason is but she didn''t contemte too much about it. Right now, even though Shidou''s superpowers are working on her, the first priority in her mind is still the Inter-High Tournament and that overrode her reason more than anything else.

    "Even herst name is the same," Shidou was about to cry as he broke down on the ground. After a few seconds of trying to recollect his thoughts. He then raised his hands. "We surrender, just take our badges." He continued.

    "Really?!" Tohka did a secret celebration in her mind as she walked towards Shidou and Fuuka.

    "..."

    "Are you crazy?! No, I''m not going to give my badge to her. Don''t you know I''m her target?!" Fuuka hissed as he grabbed Shidou by the cor. But upon seeing Shidou''s face up close, she staggered backward, her heart skipping yet another beat. Before she knew it, she was huping.

    "Don''t worry about her, just leave us alone after getting the badge. I swear we won''t stop you."

    Fuuka could tell Shidou wasn''t bluffing when he said that. Usually, when Shidou says something, he will smile slightly when he''s nning something mischievous. But right now, he just won''t stop sighing. He had given up, it was clear in his eyes.

    Tohka could also tell that Shidou wasn''t acting. Every time she uses her power from another dimension, her senses are enhanced by a considerable amount, that''s why she can tell whether someone is lying or not, well, sort of¡ª there are superheroes who can bypass someone''s enhanced senses and lie in front of their face, getting away with is as well. But now, Tohka knew Shidou wasn''t lying. She just walked towards Shidou and grabbed the badge from him.

    Perplexed, Fuuka also didn''t know why Shidou was acting differently... but then again, it''s not like she can do anything against Tohka who could cut through any of her attacks. She may be an expert in space distortion and sound maniption but all of those were canceled by Tohka''s Astral Superpower. It''s as if her superpower was meant to cut through powerful attacks¡ª or maybe she''s only weak against physical attacks. Either way, Fuuka was well aware that she was just dying the inevitable, only wasting her energy as she fought against her opponent. Well, she wasn''t even fighting, she was just running away while desperately defending herself. But now, at least she can finally rest. Also, it''s not like having Shidou by his side would help.

    ... unless she gets charmed by Shidou... one way or another.

    "Come on, Fuuka, let''s get out of here." Shidou was so done with it that she grabbed Fuuka by the hand. But Fuuka wasn''t just going to leave empty-handed.

    In desperation, she leaned towards Tohka, making her fall towards Shidou. Since she let her guard down upon seeing Shidou turn around, she didn''t expect the surprise attack. Before she knew it, she fell right on Shidou''s arms.

    "Fuuka, what were you¡ª sigh¡ª are you all right?" Shidou asked, biting his lips since he already knew what would happen next. Once again, he felt his mind activate as his eyes turned a bluish hue and his hair a shade lighter. He opened his mouth and quietly scolded Fuuka.

    In response, Fuuka shrugged with a mischievous grin on her face. Shidou could''ve sworn that he wanted to p the living daylights out of that face but he couldn''t do it. He''s still not used to girls so touching one is out of the question. (What he didn''t know was that touching is actually much more effective than talking to a girl. If talking to a girl could charm them after a few minutes or a few hours at most, then what more if he holds their hand or something?)

    But Shidou wasn''t thinking about the effectiveness of his superpower. That wasn''t the reason why he gave up on ''charming'' Tohka with her voicemand of sorts superpower. He knew what would happen if someone of that name would get charmed by him. Not only would his dadugh at him, but he will be theughingstock during the live stream.

    Unbeknownst to them, the entire thing was actually being broadcasted. And at that moment, the caption on the live stream wasn''t the ''Inter-High Tournament'' but the ''Date A Live In Real Life'' or something along those lines. Before they knew it, three billion people were already watching the live stream.

    [Aiyo, it''s real!]

    [Our forefathers will be proud. Look at that!]

    [We''ll be watching your career with great interest!]

    [Spirits. Mysterious girls appearing from another world... ]

    [daremo ga utsumuku machi~~~ ]

    [Lezzgo!]

    Thements on the live stream were ring up. If Shidou knew what was happening right now, he would''ve been shocked by the number of people watching him right now. Well, he might be even more shocked after knowing how much revenue he''ll get from the live stream.

    "I''ll hold onto your badges for now," Shidou said, gently letting go of Tohka so she can get back on her feet. She blushed and coyishly nodded before handing the three badges to Shidou. "Let''s go."<sub> </sub>

    "Um, I¡ª I''m going to get my badge back! But I can''t do it right now," Tohka said, almost tripping on her words. "T-t-that''s why I''m going to apany you."

    "Yeah, right," Shidou sighed. There was nothing he could do about it. Tomorrow, she''ll be right back to normal as long as he doesn''t converse with her or touch her. "I''m just wondering... "

    "Yes?" Tohka''s eyes sparkled as he stared at Shidou.

    "How did you get your name? Did your dad like... " Shidou was trying hard to find the right word.

    "..." Fuuka didn''t know why Shidou cared so much for Tohka''s name.

    "Hmmm... my first memory of ever watching tv was with my dad. I could clearly remember my dad, saying something along the lines of ''I named you after that girl''. The character on the screen was your average fantasy girl who was thrown into a reality that she didn''t know existed... "

    "Even our introductions are the same... " Sigh~

    .....

    A few years earlier,

    A certain dad stared at his house for thest time, a sigh left his mouth. On the fence, a huge sticker was posted. It said ''On Sale'' in big red bold letters. And on top of that, a sticker was ced¡ª Sold, it read. Right beside him was his wife who supportingly rubbed his arms to console him. It had been a hard year for the family after the dad lost his job. But now, he''s got another opportunity down by Tokyo so he took his chance and moved to their rtive''s house there. Of course, even though he won''t be paying a single cent for rent downpayment, he knew that he''d have a hard time adjusting to the new atmosphere. After all, he was a man from a vige.

    "I guess you''re really moving, huh. All the best in your new job and new environment. You''ll adjust in no time." A neighbor who wasing out for work. He wasn''t just any neighbor, he was one of the few closest friends that the dad had throughout their stay in that neighborhood.

    "Yeah, I guess I''ll see you when we see you,"

    "Wait, no way, your move is today? We''re sorry, we haven''t prepared anything." The wife of the neighbor came out with their only daughter tagging along.

    "No, that''s quite all right. We can have another meal once we''re settled."

    "By then, our kids probably won''t recognize each other. We even named them in pair." The neighbor said. "Well, just give us a call, Tokyo is only five hours away from here."

    "No, we wouldn''t want you to do that. We can just contact each other from time to time. We can have a meal once we get to have a vacation. Also, didn''t you want to send your daughter to study in Tokyo?"

    "Yeah, but that''s when she''s already in high school. That''s like eight years from now haha."

    "I guess," The dad shrugged.

    BEEP!

    "Looks like our ride is here. Come on Shidou, say goodbye to your ''osananajimi'' over there." The dad spurred, lightly pushing his son.

    .....

    Back to the present,

    Shidou''s dad couldn''t help but chuckle at the live stream. "Who would''ve thought, right honey?" He said. This time, it was he who rubbed his wife''s shoulders.

    "Yeah, fate can be quite surprising at times, huh,"

    From a distance, Shidou''s dad''s phone rang, and then a notification could be seen.

    In response to: Have you seen the Inter-High Tournament Live Stream right now? ¡ª Yeah, who would''ve thought! Hahha!

 Chapter 92 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight IV

    Lifeforce. To some, it is merely a myth, but to Sakura Cherry who had lived her life with the very power of the life force, she knew that it was much scarier than any force there is. After all, the power of life is only separated from its pr opposite by a thin gray line. If one were to venture over to that side, one could easily take and rece the life of another with death.

    "Out of all thepetitions they coulde up with... why is it a free-for-all?" Cherry asked with a sigh while wallowing underneath a tree. She didn''t want to move for fear that she''ll fall right into an ambush... or that someone will attack her and she won''t be able to control herself due to shock.

    Of course, she received a considerable amount of training after that incident with her best friend. She also had to go through countless therapies due to the trauma that surfaced. And yet, somehow, that trauma was soon gone and she was back to being a normal child without remembering the details of what happened. She did have a vague recollection that a tragedy happened but something stopped her from recovering that memory. Her parents were relieved by her recovery though, but they still couldn''t shake off the guilt since her best friend''s parents med her for what happened. Her parents did all they could to stop the media from covering the story, and of course, the SAO helped with the cover-up since both her parents are part of the SAO. If it were a normal urrence where a child murdered another child, then the judgment would''ve been more obvious. But since it was because of a superpower running amok, one could view it as an unfortunate ident since that was the first time her superpower manifested.

    Long story short, Cherry didn''t suffer that much from what had happened, except she developed a trauma and another personality.

    "What is this girl doing? She can easily defeat everyone but she''s hiding like a coward." Sassu clicked her tongue in annoyance, trying hard to resurface as she whispered right at Cherry''s conscience.

    Although it may look like Cherry was hiding from the opponents because she was weak, Sassu was perfectly aware of why she didn''t want to participate in the free-for-all.

    With her life force superpower, she can easily dominate the free-for-all. Just by touching the ground and detecting the life force of the trees that filled the stage, every individual also releases a certain amount of life force from their body so she would easily detect everyone''s whereabouts in a split second. While that won''t give her any advantages in the Badge Fight, she''d be able to n ahead and steer clear from every student. The only ones who''d be able to detect her are those with detection superpowers.

    Furthermore, if she wanted to, she can actually pinpoint a single target and absorb a little life force from it. That''s why she can defeat anyone she wanted to as long as she wasn''t attacked first.

    Instead of using her innate ability, however, Cherry decided in herself that it was unfair if she were to fight head-to-head against everyone. After all, her win is already guaranteed in her mind. Clearly, she was underestimating every candidate there is.

    "Found you,"

    Before Cherry could react, something appeared at her rear, jumping on her as if she was prey being hunted down. Apparently, someone with super speed was running around, trying to snatch badges one after another from unsuspecting candidates. But upon seeing Cherry''s defenseless position, he thought that it may be his chance to actually defeat a candidate instead of just stealing their badges.

    But what he didn''t know was that Cherry''s sudden outburst of surprise gave Sassu an opportunity to resurface. Every time Cherry feels an intense emotion in herself, Sassu would have the chance toe out and when shees out, it would be super unlucky for one to be on the opponent''s side. Sassu can be so ruthless when ites to using Cherry''s life force superpower.

    The guy who tried to snatch Cherry''s badge immediately backed away after sensing the sudden change in Cherry''s demeanor. A while ago, she was like a cat who was abandoned by her owner. But now, she felt like a rabid dog, ready to bare its fangs on anyone it could sink its teeth into.

    ''What just happened?'' The guy was surprised since he suddenly didn''t want to get the badge from the girl he deemed defenseless. ''Did she do something?''

    Unbeknownst to him, every cell in his body was already telling him to get out of the ce before they get deleted out of its existence. After all, a single touch could transform him into a tree, or worse, he might even transform directly into fertilizer.

    Suddenly, Cherry''s appalled face turned into an evil expression as the surfaced Sassu mischievously smiled. "You wanted to get my badge?"<sub> </sub>

    Before the guy could answer, Sassu sat on the ground and pressed her right palm on the ground. In an instant a circle of withered grass and rotten trees surrounded her. Just one touch and they all died. "If you dare,e step inside the circle. I dare you," Sassu gestured at the guy, telling her toe to her if he was that confident in his abilities.

    In face of sheer power, a mediocre wouldn''t even be able to twitch their legs when they freeze in ce. This was what exactly happened to the guy. In an instant, fear overcame his body as the unexinable happened right in front of his eyes. ''How could lush grass and perfectly healthy trees turn lifeless in an instant? He couldn''t imagine just what kind of cursed superpower Cherry was wielding.

    p "I-i-i''ll be going now," The guy tried to sound as masculine as possible but his false bravado couldn''t be any more obvious.</anda>

    "And where do you think you''re going?" Sassu called out, stepping out of the circle of death she created. "Give me your badge."

    "I''m Sonic, there''s no way I''d give you my badge when you can''t even catch up to me." He said with a lightheartedugh. But after saying that, he essentially trapped himself. How could he run after saying such a cowardly thing? Running away was not an option for him anymore since that would just make him look bad, especially now that a live stream broadcast is currently ongoing.

    Before Sassu could react, Sonic crouched down low and elerate towards her. In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of her, trying to snatch the badge on her chest. As far as Sonic knows, Sassu didn''t really have a superpower that allowed her to confront his speed. That''s why he was confident that he''d be able to grab that badge in an instant.

    As the world slowed down around him and he went for the grab, he saw Sassu smirking out of the corner of his eyes... and for some odd reason...

    She was staring directly at him. Sonic should''ve known that Sassu was the deranged version of Cherry and that with her in control, she could enhance Cherry''s senses to their maximum. Right now, Sonic was faster than the speed of sound but Sassu could see him move, clear as day.

    Sassu didn''t even have to move, she just had to stay still as she activated Cherry''s life force superpower. In an instant, those in the vicinity would either be given more life force or drained of some. It was a scary thought and if Cherry were the one fighting right now, she would''ve broken down before she could even activate her superpower. What''s worse, she might even let Sonic get her badge without fighting at all.

    That''s why Sassu just had to resurface no matter what. Fortunately, she found her chance and took it.

    ''What''s going on?'' Sonic asked in horror as his hand withered right in front of him. First, he felt a burning sensation on his fingertips while his hand went nearer Sassu''s badge. And then, a sharp piercing pain prated through his skin to his muscles and before he knew it, the skin on his hand was gone and his muscles were beginning to shrink and eat away as his hand shriveled. It didn''t even take a split second for Sonic to go back as he held his hand in excruciating pain.

    "Give me your badge while I''m asking nicely." Sassu continued to threaten him. This time, the grass around Sonic''s feet wilted. "If you step out of that circle, your arm will not be the only thing rotting away. Honestly, I don''t want to see something gross so if you could please cooperate, that would be really appreciated."

    Sonic nced towards his rotten arm, then towards Sassu who seemed to have cursed him, then back at his hand. He knew he didn''t have any choice anymore. Either he rots away or he gave her his badge. ''why did I have to underestimate her? She was a candidate for Pete''s sake.'' He sighed inwardly before throwing his badge towards Sassu.

    "Thank you for your service!" Sassu saluted as her smile grew even more sinister.

 Chapter 93 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight V

    After his encounter with the lunatic, Sonic fell on the ground and heaved a sigh of relief. He stared at his hands which were on the verge of death. This was the first time he felt his confidence in his speed dwindle while he recalled what happened a few moments earlier. It''s as if he came face to face with death itself... no, more like life and deathbined into a swirling vortex of the unknown. Sonic didn''t know how to describe the feeling he felt. Either way, he was scared out of his wits. It was one of those unforgettable moments that will scar someone forever.

    "I came out of there alive, unbelievable." Albeit his unusable hand, Sonic didn''t feel bad about escaping. He could finally rx.

    Sigh~

    "Oh, wait~~~!"

    Suddenly, an all-too-familiar voice resonated through the forest, making Sonic perk his ears up as he stood in a sh. He knew who owned the voice¡ª the crazy girl.

    ''Run!''

    ''Run!''

    ''Oi! I said run! What are you doing?!''

    No matter how much Sonic patted his legs, it wouldn''t budge. He was glued to the ground as his knees buckled. Once again, he felt shivers run up and down his spine while he felt like throwing up. The genuine fear of death arose as well, which cemented him in his ce.

    From a distance, he watched in horror as Sassu ran towards her, waving her hands frantically as if to taunt him to run. Despite that, Sonic helplessly gulped as he finally copsed on his knees.

    Three meters.

    Two.

    One.

    With a gulp, Sonic shut his eyes tight he felt the ragged breathing of Sassu in front of him. And somehow, he felt her shadow, much more sinister than normal¡ª or maybe it was just him overexaggerating things. Nevertheless, Sonic was on the verge of peeing his pants, the tingling pain on his dying hands became all the more evident.

    "I forgot something!" Sassu cheerily said, fully knowing that Sonic was really afraid of her. And yet, she continued to torture him by touching his injured hands¡ª the hands that Sassu used her life force superpower on. "It looks like a tree bark, doesn''t it? Does it hurt a lot? I reckon it must''ve hurt a lot." Sassu went on, pressing on Sonic''s forearm, then at his palms, then at each of his fingers. "Does it hurt? Does it? Come on... you tell me, I won''t know unless you t out tell me. Come on! Come on!"

    Meanwhile, Sonic just kneeled there, on the verge of tears. Of course, it hurts a lot, but he didn''t want to encourage the demented girl in front of her. Doing so is just begging for more, after all.

    While all that was happening, the pain in his hand was gone in an instant. He clenched and unclenched his fists and to his surprise, it was all back to normal. "My power''s the life force, what I take, I can bring back." Sassu continued. "Don''t worry about your right hand, it''s all back to normal. Sorry for scaring you like that back there, I was a bit scared and I didn''t know what to do."

    After coquettishly showing off her eyshes at sh, Sassu then stood up and waved her hands. "See you whenever! Sorry about all that!"

    And just like that, she was gone.

    .....<sub> </sub>

    Siril bit his lips, as another de flew by, almost cutting his head off. Well, to him it felt that way but such wasn''t the case. First off, killing isn''t allowed in the Inter-High Tournament. That''s why using a killing blow would result in immediate disqualification. But then again, it''s not like the killing blow would be stopped on time so the victim would be dead nheless even though it would result in the disqualification of the other party. ''Yeah, I''m just overthinking thi¡ª no, definitely not overthinking things!"

    Another de of wind passed through his head. This time, it was more powerful than the first and it cut the tree behind him cleanly. With that enough force, it would''ve been rtively easy for his head to get chopped off and he wouldn''t even feel a thing. ''What a terrifying superpower. It''s just wind maniption and yet it''s this scary. Third years really are on another ne of existencepared to us first-years.'' Siril said.

    Right now, Siril knew it wasn''t the right time yet to transform into his Dragon Form, that''s why he only transforms a part of her body here and there. If it was about to get cut, then he''d shift that certain body part into its dragon form. That way, his opponent won''t know what his superpower is, and at the same time, he''ll be able to save enough energy until help arrives. When Siril thought about ''help'', he was pertaining to his opponent receiving help. As soon as they''re gathered around, he''d unleash his superpower and blow them all away. It would be a quick loss for them and free additional badges.

    "What are you doing? You won''tst long enough! Haha~!" The opponent screamed as he continued firing Wind des in an erratic manner. "Just keep on defending like a coward. Let''s see where you''ll end up." He grinned, continuing his onught.

    If it were any other guy, then they''d have been afraid of multiple wind desing at him. But it was Siril who was on the other side of the ring. For better or for worse, he could defend himself for a few days before he runs out of energy. But the guy whom he was fighting with, he stood no chance at all. Not only was he exhausting himself out, but he was also wasting every bit of his power in case something unthinkable happens. ''He''s the type of guy to go all out, guns zing, on the first round of a match. He''ll get tired soon.''

    Siril may seem like he wasn''t having a hard time but in all essence, he was. Right now, it was taking every ounce of his focus to just carefully expect the Wind desing at him. Fortunately, he trained his reflexes so that he could shift and revert as fast as possible. He never would''ve thought that he''ll use something like that in a pointless fight such as this.

    "Why won''t you go down?!" The guy screamed However, he didn''t stop relentlessly attacking Siril. He was getting exhausted but he knew he had one job. He was tasked to attack someone from the USA and injure him or her in the very least. That way they''d have lesspetition on the next rounds. He could still remember the exact words of their leader before they were all transported to the stage. ''Find one, injure him or take it out, then regroup with us. We''ll be waiting by the center of the stage. Take care guys.''

    It was supposed to be easy. Yes, it was supposed to be easy and yet everything was backfiring at him right at that moment. His opponent was unscathed after all the attacks he fired at him. Moreover, he didn''t budge at all. For some odd reason, he managed to deflect orpletely defend all his attacks.

    "What''s going on? Are first years from the USA really this strong? My wind des are already powerful enough to cut through rocks. How is he still alive after all that? No, maybe he has a superpower that focuses on defense. Yeah, that may be the case!"

    With that thought in mind, the guy briefly smiled before changing his tactics. If regr wind des won''t work, then he''d just have to condense them and make them even more powerful. He will still be expending the same energy but his wind des are much smaller, faster, and a few more times deadlier.

    "He''s changing his tactics. I''m sure of it." Siril told himself. For a moment, he thought that maybe he should use his trump card and defeat the guy in an instant. But after further contemtion, he decided to challenge himself and try to hold out as much as he could. Because of that, he also smiled briefly, leaving the guy confused.

    "Did he read me? Is he a psychic? Maybe that''s what his superpower is." The guy continued.

    On the first hit, Siril flinched. He could tell that the wind des have gotten stronger. It was strong enough to even scratch his dragon scales, which was scary since none had ever scratched his dragon scales before. ''No wonder he''s a candidate here. There aren''t any noobs in here.'' Siril thought.

    He still didn''t shift to his dragon form though.

    .....

    On the other side of the brush,

    The man whom Satoshi and Midori noticed back then was finally leading his team to the center of the stage. But before they could get there, they heard a scuffle. Curious, he gestured that everyone remained quiet as he sneaked to watch what the fight was all about. ''If I''m lucky, I''d be able to steal another badge, or two.'' He licked his lips.

    But upon seeing that one of his team members was fighting, he felt a bit confused. There he was, the strongest wind maniptor in his school, and he was having a hard time bringing down a defenseless opponent.

    "What is he doing?" He asked himself, perplexed.

 Chapter 94 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight VI

    "What is he doing?" He asked himself, perplexed.

    Rustle rustle.

    "Oi, Grior, what are you doing?" The guy asked,ing out of a nearby bush just to ask the wind-de user an unnecessary question.

    "Leader Aljier, I didn''t know you were here. Please stand by for a moment, I''ll finish this USA candidate in one fell swoop." He said with waning confidence.

    Aljier''s eyes drifted from Grior then to Siril and he immediately realized who was ying with whom. With a click of the tongue, he scratched his head, suppressing the urge to smack Grior to the ground due to his own helplessness. ''He may be the strongest wind maniptor in our Great Mountain School but his brains arecking. Why did he engage with a much stronger opponent with the false confidence that he''d win? Preposterous!''

    "You''re not going to win. Even if you did, you won''te out unscathed. That guy is strong."

    "Really?! It doesn''t look like that to me. Leader, he''s been defending himself for more than ten minutes now. If he were stronger than me, he''d have done something by now." Griorid out in front of Aljier who didn''t buy a single word he said.

    After all, he could see the rity and the conniving expression on Siril''s face. It was as conspicuous as the trees in the stage where they''re currently in. "That, or he''s nning something. I suggest you pull out for now and let us handle the rest." Aljier suggested, gently cing a hand on Grior''s shoulder before patting it so hard he dislocated his arm a couple of times over.

    ? "Agghhkk~" Grior screamed in pain as his arm spun a couple of times with its axis right by his shoulder''s scap. He fell down and stopped using his wind des altogether as Aljier stepped on his injured hand, breaking it in the process as he twisted his foot. Another scream came out of his mouth but he bit his lips upon realizing that screaming more would just give their location to other teams.

    "ra, you know what to do," Aljier said, clicking his tongue while pointing towards Grior.

    "Yes, leader," Another figure popped out of the bushes, and this time, it was a girl covered in what seemed like a white dress of some sort, Uponmand, she knelt beside Grior and ced her hand on his arm which had been broken many times over in a span of a split second. ra felt a bit of nausea upon seeing Grior''s battered hands but she wasn''tining. She was just d that Aljier isn''t an enemy. But then again, his behavior is questionable as a superhero since he bullies everyone inferior to him. This was how he managed to rise to the top in their school, earning him his rightful ce as the number one candidate for inter-high.

    Although ra and the others disliked his personality, he is one reliable candidate so she wasn''tining. With that thought, she bit her lips as she healed Grior''s injury.

    "Aljier, injuring our fellow candidate wouldn''t help us. Just let him be next time," Someone spoke from behind with a mild-mannered tone. The other guy was a tad taller than the rest of them and he wore a loose shirt and pajamas as if he just got out of bed. He seemed sleepy, or it''s just his aura that screamed he was a sleepy person.

    Ruffling his hair, he stepped forward and patted ra''s head. "You should speak up sometimes too, it will help with your inferiorityplex." The guy continued.

    "Nah, he deserved that one." Aljier indifferently said despite what his teammate said. Without a thought, he spat on the ground and stared back at Siril who could finally take a breather after Grior stopped attacking him. Now that everyone''s out of the bag, Siril knew it was his chance to defeat them in one fell swoop.

    But seeing the third-year injure his own teammate made Siril question if he would engage them inbat or not. Although he was confident that he could defeat all of them after shifting into his dragon form, he had his doubts about whether he could get out unharmed since their leader seemed formidable. And also, there were four of them¡ª four third-years. Worst-case scenario, he could get away with all their badges but not without a deep wound or two.

    "Man, I could really use some help right now," Siril said to himself, clicking his tongue.

    Meanwhile, the sleepy guy grabbed Aljier by the throat as he stood behind him. He then lifted him upwards. "No, he didn''t deserve that one." He continued, eyes ring.

    "All right, all right, I''m sorry," Aljier mumbled as he felt the sleepy guy''s grip on his neck tighten. He wheezed, and then coughed as the air got back to his lungs.

    The sleepy guy then turned towards Grior and knelt in front of him. "Are you all right?" He said, patting him on the head once again. In an instant, he felt better. "Yeah, thanks so much Vulcan-san,"

    "No worries, I just sped up your recovery so you might feel a bit dazed. Take a good rest. ra, replenish his energy if you can. We still have a long first-round ahead of us."

    ra nodded as the light on her hands turn a bright green color instead of its previous whitish color. Beads of sweat trickled on her forehead as she continued but then Siril noticed that the sleepy guy just patted her on the head again and her previous tiredness was gone in an instant.

    "What on earth is his superpower?" Siril asked.<sub> </sub>

    Swish!

    Suddenly, a tree branch flew right by his face, causing a small gash of a wound to appear on his cheeks. The attack was too fast that he couldn''t even react on time. Because of that, he suffered a wound before he detected the bloodlust that came from the enemy''s side.

    "You over there!'' Aljier screamed. "Kobayashi Siril from the United Superheroes Academy, right? Hand over your badge while we''re being nice." Upon saying that, he threw another branch, and once again, the branch was too fast for Siril to see that it grazed his legs.

    Well, if his eyes were to shift into its dragon form, then seeing the attack would be fairly easy but he didn''t want them to know what his superpower was. Unless they did their research, he knew that his superpower should be hidden as long as possible. That way, he can surprise them while their guards are down.

    ''I knew it!'' Aljier licked his lips. Upon throwing those two branches, he realized two things. One, that Siril was hiding his actual superpower. And two, his superpower is the defensive type, sort of like a tanker. With these thoughts in mind, Aljier knew that winning against him would be easy.

    "Why don''t you hand over your badge now before you get hurt for real?"

    "Why? Are you going to mug me?" Siril asked. Even though he was panicking deep inside, he didn''t show an ounce of it as he spoke.

    "Maybe, if our patience runs out," Aljier answered.

    BOOM!

    A sound wave erupted where Aljier was standing. In an instant, he disappeared and reappeared in front of Siril with his index finger pointing outward. Without further ado, he pressed his index finger right on Siril''s stomach. "You''re finished." He continued.

    With his heightened senses though, Siril realized that if he were hit by that index finger, he would die in a sh. That''s why he shifted into his dragon form before the index finger touched his belly. He felt a considerable amount of killing intent leaking out of Aljier as he did that and that was more than enough to convince him that he was out for blood.

    Siril didn''t even need to think twice about it. He shifted without hesitation.

    However, after assuming his dragon form, he still flew a couple of meters backward. Blood dripped from his mouth as he coughed in pain. "What just happened?" He asked himself.

    His dragon form was not only known for its massive size, but also for its absolute defense as well. And yet, Aljier just prated his defenses as if he was a knife cutting through butter. If Siril were a normal person, he would''ve died instantly by now. Fortunately, his fast reflexes saved him and he managed to survive such a powerful attack.

    "Force multiplier. The smaller the point of contact and the bigger the opponent, the more force is applied. It could be quite scary if you didn''t react on time." Aljier narrated, shaking his hands as if his own attack had recoil damage. But all he was doing was taunting Siril to get nearer so he could attack again.

    "Aljier, you almost killed him." The sleepy guy calmly warned. "You might get disqualified."

    "Yeah! Isn''t that illegal?!" Siril screamed in acquiescence.

    TI-RING!

    [Aljier Bradford had been disqualified from Round 1]

    The announcement that rang throughout the stage made everyone pause for a moment. Indeed, it was an unexpected announcement.

    "Che¡ª " Aljier clicked his tongue in displeasure.

 Chapter 95 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight VII

    Just like how every candidate was transported into the Stage, Aljier vanished in an instant and was sent out of the Stage by some unknown power. He didn''t even have time toin nor did he have time to apologize to his teammates about his shorings. It was a well-deserved disqualification though since he really didn''t control his superpower back then.

    ?

    Aljier was known to lose his cool, and there were times when he''d be disqualified in official matches, not just in inter-high tournaments. He was one of those rare candidates that got the oppportunity ever since he was a first-year and that somehow got in his head.

    In the blink of an eye, Aljier realized that he was out of the Stage right now, ineligible toplete the entire first round. Now, all that he could do was rely on his teammates so they could get to the second round. "Man, can''t they just overlook that? It''s not like that USA candidate died or something. I know he could take a hit and I controlled my force output. Why was I disqualified when I didn''t do anything wrong?" Aljier clicked his tongue for a second time as his tantrum got the better of him and he started flinging chairs around.

    A few minutester, security was given the heads up and he was sent to the waiting room of the Great Mountain School. At least he wouldn''t cause unnecessary trouble in therepared to causing a ruckus by the audience seats.

    Meanwhile, thementators were having a st at the sudden turn of events.

    ....

    Siril and everyone in Aljier''s team was genuinely surprised at the oue of Aljier''s actions. Vulcan-san, who watched in horror as Aljier attacked Siril, immediately knew that he was going to be disqualified. And he was right on the money. As for ra and Grior though, they could tell that Siril wasn''t hurt that severely with the attack, that''s why they were shocked.

    "That is to be expected. Now we just have to¡ª "

    Whish~

    With their leader gone, Siril grabbed his chance and got the Badges that fell from Aljier, flying out of there with his humungous dragon-form body. His speed was iparable from when he was just defending that''s why his retreat was totally unexpected.

    "And there he goes," Vulcan-san sighed. He could already foresee their school failing the first round due to losing the main core of their team.

    By then, Grior''s injured hand had already been healed and he felt more energized due to Vulcan''s effective superpower. They still have a chance if they re-strategize and put Grior on the pedestal. He is in no way inferior to Aljier''s attack power after all.

    "Let''s get out of here, we''ve caused enoughmotion as it is. Grior, can you walk?"

    "Yes, thanks to you and ra. Good for him, I didn''t like him anyway." Grior muttered under his breath, actually d that Aljier was disqualified.

    "Yeah, but we need him. Right now let''s regroup with everyone else. We can''tst long without them."

    ra and Grior nodded. With Aljier gone, it was safe to say that Vulcan is now their new leader. Both of them thought that it''d be for the better but if they pass the first round, everything would go back to normal and they shuddered at the thought.<sub> </sub>

    .....

    After getting a meager distance away from Aljier''s group, Siril reverted back to his human form and studied the nine badges on his hand. Unfortunately, he didn''t get a badge owned by his ''target'' but in retrospect, he earned a lot of points for his team. He breathed a sigh of relief and leaned on a tree, awaiting other candidates to see him He hoped that anyone from his school would find him in that ce but he didn''t know where he was and his sense of direction isn''t working that well due to his exhaustion.

    Of course, there''s the easier option of shifting back into his Dragon Form and flying around the Stage while searching for Satoshi and the others. But that would not only reveal his location, but the whereabouts of his teammates as well assuming that he finds them.

    "Siril?"

    "Siril! It''s you!" Someone suddenly called behind him. "Phew~ good thing I found you."

    At first, Siril thought that the person right behind him was an enemy so he immediately backed away and prepared himself for a fight. But after recognizing that it was just Sakura Cherry, he sighed in relief and copsed on the ground. "It''s just you."

    Cherry nodded and sat in front of him. "I was looking for you guys. Then I fainted and by the time I woke up, I have another badge on my hand... "

    After rummaging through her pockets, Cherry then showed a badge towards Siril. As usual, the number didn''t belong to his ''target'' so he didn''t react to it that much. In response, Siril got the nine badges in his pockets and showed them to Cherry. "I stole these. Didn''t really defeat anyone."

    "That''s nice. At least you got a few points for us. Hopefully, the others aren''t having a hard time."

    Siril kept quiet as he asionally nced towards Cherry. Every candidate in their school was aware of her biggest secret but they didn''t dare tell her about it. Right now, Cherry wasn''t having a hard time and Siril had a vague idea why that is. Upon being introduced to her ''other self'', he knew that that personality would be able to take care of anyone it crossed paths with.

    ''What was her name again? Sa¡ª Sasha? No, Sassu. Yeah, I think that''s correct. That Sassu... she''s a scary one. No doubt'' Siril inwardly said.

    Swish!

    Before Siril could break the awkward silence that surrounded him and Cherry, a wind de whizzed past his face, almost cutting him on the neck. Fortunately, he shifted a part of his neck into dragon form in time.

    "So this is where you were. We need those badges back." Vulcan calmly said.

 Chapter 96 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight VIII

    Hmph!

    Bam!

    Pow!

    Because this was another encounter with the wind-de guy, Grior, Siril was confident in himself that he won''t be beaten up even if there were three of them. But somehow, a few secondster, he was already down on the ground. And Grior wasn''t even attacking him with weird wind des. It''s as if he received a huge power-up in the short span of time when he escaped from them.

    "Siril!" Cherry squealed, clutching her hands tight as she tried to look away from the scene. Seeing Siril all beaten up didn''t make her feel any better and since Sassu hasn''t taken over her body yet, she was in her usual cowardly self.

    "Don''t move. I can handle this." Siril heavily panted before standing up, struggling to get back on his feet.

    He could tell that Grior was getting exhausted after firing such powerful wind des that prated his dragon scales. But something weird happened after that¡ª

    The sleepy guy, Vulcan, just touched Grior on the head and he was back to his full power, firing off another round of those wind des before pausing for a few seconds for the second time. The girl right behind him was also chanting some sort of healing mantra but Siril was so far that he could only hear bits and pieces of it.

    Unbeknownst to him though, the girl, ra, was actually the one buffing and healing Grior as he attacked. As for Vulcan, his power is an entirely different thing but it doesn''t steer clear from a support-type superpower.

    With nothing left to lose, Siril turned around, blocking yet another flurry of wind des with his back which he shifted into its dragon form. This time, the wind des pierced even deeper, deeper than the previous attacks did.

    "Urgh~!" He pursed his lips extending his hands towards Cherry. "Run away, keep these badges safe. I know you''re more than capable enough to keep that safe until Satoshi and the others regroup with you. Don''t worry about me."

    In total, there were ten Badges handed towards Cherry. ''But I''m sure there were just nine of them befo¡ª'' Before she could finish her thoughts, she realized that Siril wasn''t wearing a badge anymore. Cherry stared at Siril with pleading eyes. "No, let''s go together. I can''t use my superpower nor can I control it yet. We can get away. We''re still a good distance away from them."

    "No, you have a greater chance at getting away if I buy some time. If we both run away, they''ll just chase us and catch up to us sooner thanter. Didn''t you notice? They don''t get tired. Somehow, their buffs are so effective that their exhaustion vanishes in an instant. I don''t know how they do it but it''s probably that sleepy-looking guy''s doings."

    "No, but."

    "Hurry! We don''t have enough time! I''m at my limit already!" Siril was getting rather impatient. As a final result, he screamed his lungs out as he transformed full-on Dragon Form and turned around.<sub> </sub>

    With a roar, Siril fired a beam towards the three of them, just enough to burn their skin since putting more power into his attack would disqualify him in an instant. Briefly looking back, he saw that Cherry was already running away.

    "She''ll be fine." Siril smiled to himself as his brows furrowed and he continued charging towards Vulcan and the others. Once the smoke cleared and his beam was gone. Siril bodymmed himself towards the group.

    "Jump," Vulcan said in his usual calm tone, making Siril miss his all-out attack. "ra, heal our burn. Grior, keep on firing wind des at that guy. He won''t hold for long. I can tell that his attacks are getting more and more desperate by the second."

    "Vulcan, I need to reset." Grior continued, once again stopping his attacks.

    Mind Sleep.

    As far as Vulcan knows, he''s the only one who has this rare support-type superpower, and that, in turn, gave him an edge against the other candidates in their Great Mountain School. His superpower revolves around giving the mind and body enough sleep in a span of a split second. Because of that, the body doesn''t need to take a long time to recover and superheroes who are affected by his superpower could continue fighting as if they just freshly woke up from a well-deserved rest. The only downside of Vulcan''s superpower was that the time he gives so that the mind could get some rest will be added to the time he needed to sleep. That''s why he always felt sleepy. If he touches someone''s head once, he needs to sleep at least eight hours that night so he could recover from sleep. And right now, he had been touching Grior and ra''s heads more than ten times now, requiring him at least two weeks of sleep. No wonder he always looked sleepy.

    This was also the reason why Aljier didn''t dare touch him even though he couldn''t retaliate if Aljier were to attack him. Vulcan is physically strong and that''s the reason why he managed to lift Aljier a few moments ago while holding onto his neck. But Aljier could''ve easily obliterated him had he chosen to.

    Seeing as that he''s the foundation of the team, no one would dare touch him because it would be a major loss for them.

    Once again, Siril scrambled back to his feet and fired off another beam towards the group, but just before he could charge it up, he noticed that there were four people in the group... not three!

    Bewildered, Siril stopped his attack and squinted his eyes. Right now, he was fully shifted into his dragon form and there''s no way his eyes could fail him. ''I could have sworn there were four people in the group just now.

    "But how? Their leader has been disqualified, right?"

    That''s when he saw it¡ª Cherry was standing between him and the group. And what''s more, she was doing a t-pose.

    "Stop it, Siril." She threatened.

 Chapter 97 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight IX

    An intense aura enveloped Cherry as he stopped Siril''s attacks. Curious, Siril dropped to the ground and reverted to his human form. He was getting tired anyway and he grabbed the opportunity of Cherry''s uncharacteristic actions just so he could get some rest. Nevertheless, he wondered why Cherry suddenly stepped in when a few moments ago, she was cowering in fear and almost ready to run away from the scene.

    It''s as if she did a one-eighty and assumed another personality contradictory to who she was.

    ''Oh, right. Sassu.'' Siril said in his mind, finally understanding why. ''I guess she can take it from here.''

    Like a predator gazing down on her prey, Sassu smiled while waving the nine badges she was holding towards Vulcan and his group. She seemed cheerful yet malicious at the same time, which made Vulcan rethink about attacking her right then and there. "You want these badges? I can''t give them to you. I promised Cherry I''ll keep them safe and rescue Siril over there. Hey, Siril, you doing all right? You seem to be having a hard time so Cherry switched with me."

    "Yeah, thanks," Siril simply responded.

    Vulcan couldn''t tell what was happening. A few seconds ago, the girl was running as far away as possible, not even daring to taunt them for a fight. But now, she even went as far as to stand in front of them without activating a sliver of her superpower.

    Although Vulcan felt a bit awful for attacking such a defenseless girl, he knew that this is apetition and that backing away just a little bit would be disadvantageous for him. With that thought, he nodded towards Grior and ra who seemed to get what he was trying to ry to them.

    However, one thing struck him as odd. Somehow, Siril reverted back to his human form and was totally dependent on the girl. ''Does that mean she''s stronger than him?'' Vulcan asked but his thoughts were a step toote.

    Grior already started firing wind des at Sassu.

    Sassu leaned to her right but the wind de still grazed her left shoulder, much to her dismay. At that instant though, something weird happened to Grior.

    First, it was his arms that seemed to turn into a disgusting purple color before his skin seemed to have melted away. Grior screamed as he felt the stinging pain of his muscles directly touching the air. Both his hands turned that way, making him copse on the ground. "What''s happening?! WHAT''S HAPPENING?!" He screamed in desperation as tears unconsciously flowed from his eyes.

    ra and Vulcan got to work healing Grior. While ra gave him recovery and regeneration buffs, Vulcan gave him at least a week''s worth of sleep using his power but nothing happened. The deterioration aggravated and Grior howled more intensely as seconds passed.

    Once his skin peeled off, his muscle started turning into light pink color and it dripped on the ground. That''s right, it''s as if his muscles turned into ice cream, and a mushy pinkish goo formed on where he was standing. There was no pain anymore, but it seemed so disgusting that ra and Vulcan almost fainted at the sight.

    Even Siril couldn''t stomach the scene. With his gag reflex activated, he ran towards the nearest tree and puked his breakfast. "Gahh~~~"

    "You shouldn''t have done that. How dare you leave a scratch on my shoulder. Cherry won''t be pleased if she finds out." Sassu shook her heads, approaching ra, Grior, and Vulcan with a mischievous smile as if she would eat them alive if they get allowed her to get near.

    "You, what''s your name?" Sassu asked, pointing at ra who was trying to heal the melted muscles of Grior.

    "ra,"

    "I see, ra, can you heal this scratch? I promise I''ll return your friend''s arms back to normal if you do. I won''t even ask for your badges because that would already be rubbing salt to the wound but I''ll ask the three of you to leave us alone... after ra heals my wound, that is."

    ra shook her head. "No, heal my friend''s arms first. And then I''ll heal your scratch."

    "Fine, fine, you don''t have to be so nitpicky about it." Sassu continued.<sub> </sub>

    In an instant, Grior''s hand returned back to normal as if nothing happened. At first, Vulcan thought that the girl had some sort of illusion superpower but he couldn''t rule out the fact that Grior''s screams were real. He definitely felt something weird happen to his body and by no means was it an illusion if he felt it. That''s why Vulcan kept quiet about it.

    Shaking his head, Vulcan then grabbed ra''s and Grior''s badges and handed them toward Sassu. "It''s our loss. Take it."

    "No, just scram before, you know, I change my mind! Ah, wait! If it''s not asking too much, your superpower is based on reset or something, right? Can you heal my good friend Siril over there before you leave? That would be nice." Sassu cheerily said, pointing at Siril who was just wiping his mouth after puking.

    "You mean, we get to keep our badges and go away if we heal your good friend over there?" Vulcan asked as if it was open for negotiations.

    "Yes, however you take it is fine by me."

    "All right,"

    Vulcan approached Siril and touched his head. Suddenly, Siril felt great vigor in his body as if he was just woken up from a good night''s sleep. He couldn''t wrap his finger around the sensation but he felt more energetic than usual. Also, the scratches all over his body were removed as well as if they didn''t exist in the first ce. ''What a scary superpower indeed.'' Siril thought after muttering a soft thank-you towards Vulcan.

    Without further ado, ra, Grior, and Vulcan left the vicinity as Sassu enthusiastically waved her hands towards them. Siril shivered while staring at Sassu. ''That girl is downright crazy, all right.'' He told himself. In hindsight though, it was thanks to her that they got out of the situation unscathed.

    "Aight then~~~ say, what should we do now, Siril? Should we have some alone time together or should we regroup with our leader and the others? They''re just nearby, I can sense their life-force from here." Sassu continued.

    ...

    A few minutester,

    "And you know what she thought next? You won''t believe it, Siril! She thought that using her superpower is cheating in this Badge Fight! Can you believe her? Stupid Cherry, she thinks it''s unfair to use her superpower when everyone''s typically doing it. Had she used it back then, she''d have been able to defeat everyone and regroup with Satoshi and the others." Sassuined while walking beside Siril, arms behind the back of her head.

    "Then, why didn''t you do it? Why didn''t you just defeat everyone and be done with it? Now that you''ve taken over, you got her powers at your disposal, right?" Siril asked, confused.

    "No no, even if I did, I''m still just a split personality from Cherry. I''m still under her no matter what happens. Back then, her only wish is to save you, and that I did. I''m going out of my way to regroup here so we can regroup with leader and the others, you know. Although Cherry won''t like it, I deem it better for her so she won''t have to use her superpowers that much."

    "I mean, if she gets used to using her superpower, then what would happen to me? I''d probably disappear from her mind. I solely exist as a bncer in her mind, you know. After all, Cherry wouldn''t use her superpower at all costs... that''s why she subconsciously created me to use it in emergencies. With that said, it won''t be long now before we switch consciousness again. I guess it will a goodbye, for now, Siril. Honestly, it was fun spending time with you. "

    Upon saying that, Sassu leaned in and kissed Siril by the cheeks. To say the least, Siril was dumbfounded, so much so that he froze in ce. And right at that moment, Cherry''s consciousness switched back and the first thing she noticed was that she was giving Siril a peck on the cheek.

    "W-w-whajhadfadfalsd~~~ " Cherry eximed, flustered. Even Siril didn''t understand what she said. As her face turned a notch redder, she turned her face around so she wouldn''t meet Siril in the eyes. "I''m sorry," She squealed as a hup interrupted her.

    "Oh, you''re back," Siril said. It took all of his being to keep his poker face while he covered the lower part of his face with his right hand. He felt his legs shaking, and his head felt feverish he could''ve sworn steam was rising out from it. Fortunately, there was a disturbance nearby and he reined in his overflowing embarrassment, refocusing on the distraction.

    "Oh, Siril?! Cherry''s here too." Satoshi then called before Siril could call out to him first.

 Chapter 98 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight X

    Free-for-all is regarded as one of the most used concepts when ites to forming tournaments. Of course, they''re not wrong since most tournaments always use it to whittle down the number of participants from the start. Instead of having participants fight one versus one together until they reach the top, it''s much faster to see a group of superheroes in their natural habitat with all the chaos and mayhem around them. Free-for-alls are also the main catalyst for dramas when ites to shows. Every single movie that had free-for-all as a concept would pretty much be watchable no matter how cliche it is due to the drama, the salt, the spice that enveloped it. Betrayal, alliances, and even solitude are all portrayed so urately in those films and tournaments. That''s why everybody likes it, and no one would miss out on watching one, especially if it was broadcasted live for free on thergest video tform to ever exist.

    Most importantly, the reason why Free-for-alls arergely sessful as a concept was its unpredictability. Participants born and raised in different environments, shing together, causing pandemonium and confusion all over¡ª that''s what everybody looks forward to in a Free-for-all. Unpredictability.

    A certain third-year walked with a confident gait while constantly looking behind his team with a smile. In return, his team nced back at him filled with assurance and admiration. Even though he wasn''t the leader of the team, he''s pretty much the core of it due to his superpower¡ª Thermal Vision.

    Some may look at it as one of the weakest superpowers to ever join the inter-high tournament but right now, they haven''t lost a fight due to his vision that could extend up to two kilometers. In other words, he could basically know everyone''s location on the Stage, allowing his team to safely navigate through the candidates and pick out the weak ones and defeat them. Because of that, they''ve already umted enough badges to put them on top as the best school for the first round.

    "Let''s just keep this pace until time runs out. There''s no need to unnecessarily bring ourselves to fight other schools. Let''s stick with those who are alone, and then defeat them. With the number of Badges we have, I think we''re safe for first ce."

    Everyone nodded in response,pletely trusting him every step of the way. And it''s not like some of them were weak either. In fact, all of them are the strongest in their school, Flowing Wave Academy. Flowing Wave Academy is easily thergest academy in Tokyo that pretty much epts anyone. That''s why there are a lot of promising superheroes there as well, hundreds of them.

    That''s why Oculus (that''s his superhero name, of course) was surprised that he was chosen as one of the eight candidates for their school. It was totally unexpected but he carried it with great pride after knowing it. After all, being chosen as a candidate is pretty much like winning the lottery. He''d have more chances of exposure and not only that, there will be agencies carefully watching the inter-high as they try to gauge the superheroes who''ll be a great fit as a part of their team. And although his superpower is not that shy, he knew just how useful and practical it could be in missions.

    The first thing he did as soon as they spawned was run around, regrouping with everyone while avoiding small scuffles here and there. In a few minutes, he gathered all eight of their school candidates. That small gesture was more or less noticed by the agencies who were watching the entire live stream and they took a few notes about his capabilities.

    "We only have thirty-two badges... don''t you think we should get some more? My gravity superpower can handle at least three people, assuming they don''t have physical superpowers."

    "No, Saturn, we stick together. You''re one of the strongest in our team and wergely depend on you if something unforeseen happens. We only have a few minutes before the first round ends," Oculus continued, also referring to Saturn with his superhero name.

    "Right, you always have the right words to say, you know that?"

    Oculus briefly smiled before activating his superpower once again.

    In a blink of an eye, Oculus could''ve sworn that he saw a figure right by the tree in front of him but a split secondter, the figure was gone, as if it didn''t exist in the first ce. "That''s weird, was there a malfunction on my superpower? No, that guy must''ve concealed his temperature... he may have the fire or ice superpower. Best be careful. If I''m wrong, then I''m wrong, but at least we wouldn''t be caught unaware if we approach him."

    Of course, Oculus still decided to approach the figure but he did so with utmost care. He also ryed to everyone that whomever it is on that tree could be considered a dangerous candidate since he could freely hide his temperature as if it were nothing. Raising his hands, Oculus then nodded towards his team so they could approach as if they were walking on literal eggshells. His brows furrowed as he tried to take a glimpse of the figure on the tree.

    "..."

    To his dismay, he found nothing. At the next step, Oculus could feel as if his feet are being sucked by the ground. "Don''t tell me¡ª " He gasped before he could say something else.

    "What is it?" Saturn whispered.

    "What if... that guy could phase? Like a phasing ability?"<sub> </sub>

    Saturn and the others stared at Oculus as if he just said something anticlimactic. So what if the enemy could phase? It''s not like he''s powerful enough to take them on or anything. If he, hypothetically speaking, is as powerful as they would expect, then why hasn''t he shown himself yet? Why hasn''t he attacked yet?

    "Come on, Oculus, we can totally take that guy on. We''re a bunch of third-years here, even if he is a fourth-year, what can one fourth-year do against a group?" Saturn shrugged his shoulders with utmost confidence.

    "Don''t jinx it." The girl behind him whispered.

    .....

    When ites to sneak attacks, Kurogami is probably one of the most proficient out of all the candidates of the USA. However, throughout the majority of the Badge Fight, he was immobile. He just stayed on his spot as a scarecrow stuck in the middle of a rice field. Half of his body blended in with the shadow while his eyes were closed. If one were to pass by and see him, they would think that he was getting eaten by the tree but such wasn''t the case.

    Right now, unbeknownst to everyone, Kurogami was sensing everyone''s shadow in the vicinity like a radar. Whoever or whatever moves is detected in an instant and this allowed him to get information out of everyone. Of course, he can do this while moving but he chose not to do so so he could save more energy instead of expending it without aplishing anything. Right now, his goal is to gather as much information as he could and only act at the opportune moment.

    Those who watched his broadcast immediately grew tired of watching him just standing still, stuck to his shadow. Pretty soon, the views on his live broadcast went down because he was as uninteresting as watching a rock. Every student has a camera or a drone that is constantly watching them so people at home could watch every point of view whenever they like. Those who are watching live in the Inter-High Stadium get to watch the highlights on-screen while watching everyone down the stage. It was quite a surreal experience which is worth the tickets they bought.

    In any case, Kurogami just stayed still. In particr, he was watching a certain group slowly move towards him. For a few minutes now, he sensed their shadows and he could tell that one of them has the ability to sense people''s location like him. After all, they carefully maneuvered away from fights and only engaged inbat with someone who is weaker than them or who is alone so they could overpower them. They''re a scary bunch, but Kurogami wasn''t fazed at all.

    Suddenly, he felt two eyes ring at him and he immediately erased his presence by ''being one'' with his shadow. He didn''t actually get absorbed into his shadow form, he just covered himself with shadow so he could camouge himself on the tree. And there he waited, eagerly looking forward to sneaking up on the group that so cautiously approached him.

    Three...

    Two...

    Two and a half...

    One...

    One and a half...

    In his mind, Kurogami counted and once he reached zero, he came out and extended his shadow towards the group. Since he moved faster than a split second, Oculus and the others didn''t notice him.

    And by then it was toote.

    They were already rendered immobile as Kurogami''s shadow affected theirs.

 Chapter 99 First Roundâ€” Badge Fight Conclusion

    Like an antagonist in every novel out there, Kurogami shifted out of his shadow as if he was walking into the spotlight. He wore a slight grin while slowing down his pace, each step a thud louder than the rest¡ª or so that''s what everybody pictured as he loomed like a dark cloud over them.

    Oculus was the first one to realize that they were rendered immobile and he tried to get away... but to no avail. After all, he isn''t a strength-type superhero so there''s nothing he could do about sticky situations such as this. As for Saturn, he almost got away but Kurogami tightened his hold onto his shadow.

    "Who are you?!" Oculus shouted in a panic, hiding the Badges he was holding behind his back.

    "Give me those," Kurogami said, "You can keep your Badges but give me those,"

    Kurogami sighed in relief. He knew that time was about to run out and yet there were no preys in the vicinity. But uponnding himself a huge catch, he knew that this was his chance to redeem the time he wasted waiting. Of course, he didn''t want any school to harbor hate towards their team since there might be other rounds where they''ll see each other again. That''s why he decided to just ask for the badges that they have instead of getting all the badges they currently possess.

    Of course, he was aware that the team had a lot of badges, and yet he only asked for the ones Oculus was currently holding. In total, Oculus was holding at least a dozen or so of those Badges and Kurogami unhesitantly asked for it.

    "Here," Oculus didn''t think twice about handing it to Kurogami, they were all doomed anyway. Even if he were to ask for all of their Badges, he would most certainly give it to him since they didn''t have any choice. Right now, they''re stuck, to say the least, and Kurogami literally held their freedom by the palm of his hand.

    ''Why didn''t he ask for all our Badges though? And he could''ve gotten it himself. Why go through all that trouble? Did he expect me to hold onto these Badges til the bitter end? What a fool, of course, I''ll give it to you no questions asked. The sooner you free us from here, the faster we''ll be able to replenish our Badge count. There''s no use crying over spilled milk after all.'' Oculus said to himself just when he handed all the Badges he was holding to Kurogami.

    A brief smile formed on Kurogami''s face and then he turned around and waved his hand off towards them. As if on signal, the shadow that held Oculus''s group''s shadows in ce disappeared and they were once again free to move. All of them almost fell forward but they caught their bnce in a split second.

    "You may go now," Kurogami said.

    Pause.

    "You think!" Saturn eximed as he retracted his hand in a punching motion. He then ducked low and sprung towards Kurogami, intending to punch him with full force on the head.

    It was so sudden that Kurogami didn''t have a chance to react. Had Saturn looked closer, he would''ve seen the colors drained out of Kurogami''s face as his punch closed in.

    "Stop, Saturn, we''re going," Oculus said in an instant.

    When ites to schools and their inter-high candidates, just like any other school, the Flowing Wave Academy held great regard when ites to hierarchy. That''s why Saturn stopped his attack as soon as Oculus told him to do so. His punch stopped just when it was about to bury itself on Kurogami''s right cheek.

    Meanwhile, Kurogami couldn''t move at all as the attack almost got him. If Oculus didn''t tell Saturn to stop, Kurogami would''ve flown a couple of hundred meters due to the swift strike. He didn''t even have time to blink as he watched in horror while adrenaline coursed through his body.

    "You were lucky, next time you wouldn''t be so lucky," Saturn said, unclenching his fists as he rejoined with Oculus and the others.

    Kurogami''s expression had a different impact on Saturn, however. As Saturn walked back, he couldn''t help but nce at Kurogami who was just standing there, unfazed. Even though he released a considerable amount of killing intent as he tried to punch him, Kurogami still didn''t move and all he did was stare at him as if he didn''t even exist. Saturn felt shivers run up and down his spine in face of greater power. He couldn''t believe that someone didn''t fear his punch when everyone else did.

    "That guy is scary, what was his name?" Saturn told himself.

    "You saw what he was wearing, right? He''s from the USA. Man, I''d say their first years are scary," Oculus said.

    The others didn''t say anything else, they just nodded.

    .....

    Meanwhile,<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi and the others were listening to Tohka''s backstory while Shidou cringed in the background. What he didn''t know was that he and Tohka were actually childhood friends and their parents named them after two iconic characters in a certain series. And as if by fate, they saw each other again in the inter-high, this time as students. However, they don''t have prior memories of each other.

    "We only have a few minutes left, what should we do?" Siril asked out of the blue as their group took a rest by a nearby tree. There were a lot of trees in the background but they specifically chose this tree since its canopy is a bit wide, giving them a bit of hiding space from the peering audiences that watched from above.

    "Let''s just stay here," Satoshi said, his arms in his Orb Oboros just in case something happens. Of course, he didn''t want to risk being attacked out of the blue so he summoned the Giant Toad, the White Lion, Dex, and the Chameleon so they could stand guard and watch the surroundings. The Chameleon is one of Satoshi''s new familiar and so far it proved to be useful in sneak attacks. That''s because it was able to hide somewhere and even move faster than the eyes could see.

    "How many Badges do we have right now?"

    "So far we have sixteen, and that''s not counting the bonus we got," Fuuka responded. "I don''t know how they''ll count the bonuses but it must be worth quite a lot of points."

    "Yeah, probably," Shidou said. "Why are you looking at me like that?" He suddenly voiced out towards Satoshi.

    "Don''t mind me," Satoshi said, chuckling. As a fellow man of culture, he did know where the names Shidou and Tohka came from so he couldn''t help butugh. Just looking at them made him want to burst into tears and hysterically ha-ha his heart out. "You guys want some sandwiches? I packed some in my Orb Oboros."

    Everyone nodded at the offer.

    "Here you go," Satoshi didn''t hesitate to grab some of the sandwiches in his Orb Oboros. These sandwiches were packed the night before but they were still as fresh as when they were first made. That''s how useful the Orb Oboros was when ites to storing.

    Pretty soon, everyone in the group, including Tohka was eating with gusto as they let their guard down.

    "So, which school are you from, Tohka?" Satoshi asked. It took every cell of his being to suppress theughter that almost came out of his mouth.

    "The Great Mountain Academy," Tohka responded casually as if she was already part of the group. Well, technically speaking, she''s already included in the group since she never caused them harm throughout the entire first round. Well, that is if one didn''t count the start where she engaged a fight against Fuuka.

    "I heard that''s a real powerhouse of a school. That''s actually my second choice if I didn''t get to the United Superheroes Academy." Shidou chimed in.

    "Same here," Fuuka continued.

    "The Great Mountain School was my first choice," Tohka continued after taking a big bite out of the sandwich that Satoshi gave her. "Thepetition in the United Superheroes Academy is pretty tough. I know that my chances of getting into tournaments and the like are significantly lower. Although the Great Mountain School is full of elites, at least there weren''t a lot of studentspared to your school."

    "Yeah, you''re right about that. Me getting into the Inter-High Tournament was a mere fluke, you know," Shidou agreed.

    Rustle. Rustle.

    Suddenly, the bushes right behind Satoshi was disturbed and a figure leaped out from it. While everyone stood up and prepared for a fight, Satoshi just continued eating.

    The White Lion then came out of the bushes with a few Badges on its mouth. "Don''t worry, it''s just the White Lion doing all the heavy lifting for us while we wait," Satoshi shrugged it off as if it were nothing.

    "..." Of course, everyone was shocked. How could a mere familiar defeat a couple of inter-high candidates?

    "What do you me¡ª"

    [TIME''S UUUUP!]

 Chapter 100 Great White Shark Academy

    [TIME''S UUUUP!]

    A loud siren-like noise filled the air as the first round of the inter-high came to a close. In that instant, everyone on the stage was transported out and they were once again back to the sidelines while the stage changed into a different setting altogether. Everything happened in an instant that shocked all the candidates, especially those who weren''t able to do anything during the first round.

    "Do you think we''ll be able to win?"

    "I didn''t even find who my target is!"

    "No, we should''ve been able to a lot of points."

    "How many schools do you think will pass?"

    "We got this guys!"

    While every single candidate was conversing and encouraging one another, reflecting on their performance in the first round, thementators started talking about the results of the first round. Of course, the candidates weren''t told firsthand what the results would be nor how many schools would pass but the viewers aren''tining. It''s theck of information that made the Inter-High interesting and even right now, the candidates were second-guessing about their ranking cements.

    "So, they''ll choose at least six schools for the second round, right?"

    "That''s right!"

    "Who do you think are going to get the top spots this round?"

    "Hmmm... " The othermentator ced a hand on his chin while thinking about the performance of every school. "I''d say the United Superheroes Academy has a huge chance of securing a top spot. Flowing Wave Academy as well, they had the most points despite what happened before the time ran out."

    "Mirai High School was quite low-key this round but they managed to secure their targets, earning them a lot of points. Also, the Great Mountain Academy had one of the craziestebacks in the first round. I''m pretty sure all of them will be part of the top spots. What do you think?"

    "Indeed, but the question is, who''ll get the first spot?"

    As thementators nced at the camera, it panned towards a few groups of schools before then cking out and a different background kicked in. It was the ranking board and everyone held their breaths as they tried to ept whatever result woulde out. A few times, the view shifted to a few familiar faces including Satoshi before announcing the school on the sixth spot.

    [Sixth spot¡ª Great Mountain Academy with 89 points]

    [Fifth Spot¡ª United Superheroes Academy with 128 points]

    [Fourth Spot¡ªStillwater Academy with 130 points]

    [Third Spot¡ª Flowing Wave Academy with 139]

    [Second Spot¡ª Mirai High School with 178]

    [First Spot¡ª Great White Shark Academy with 209 points]

    As it turned out, every Badge taken is worth five points and every target secured is nine points. It was a pretty normal point system yet it became soplicated since they didn''t say anything about the point system, not until the first round was over. As everyone stared at the screen which showed the tallies for the first round, the audience couldn''t remember how an underdog and an unknown school managed to take the first spot. It was the first time something like that happened in the Inter-High Tournament but the urrence wasn''t all that unexpected. It was surprising of course since no one has heard about the Great White Shark Academy. However, if one were to watch the live streams, every superhero in the Great White Shark Academy is actually pretty powerful.<sub> </sub>

    But that''s not all there is to it.

    Apparently, if one were to search the Great White Shark Academy in the, the first two words that would pop out wouldn''t be ''a school'' or ''normal school''. Quite surprisingly, the school is actually a reform school for teenagers whomitted crimes and because they''re not yet old enough to go to prison, they get sent to the Great White Shark Academy instead.

    Now, reform schools joining the Inter-High Tournament isn''t all that weird since any school could join it as long as their candidates are eligible to participate. And reform schools aren''t all that great anyway so no one took notice of it.

    And yet, there it was, right on the board of rankings¡ª a reform school taking the first spot on the first round of the Inter-High Tournament. Indeed it is newsworthy of a headline on tomorrow''s newspaper or the front page of any news site out there.

    "Well, you jinxed it. Who would''ve thought a reform school would take first ce."

    "This is pretty surprising. But if one were to watch the reys, they would see that the Great White Shark Academy really did an outstanding job in steadily racking up Badges. They were so under the radar though since not a lot of people watched their live stream. However, they really did live up to their name as the Great White Shark!"

    "Now, with these rankings. What do you think we''ll expect on the second round?"

    "Honestly I, I don''t know. We still don''t know the details of the second round. For now, we''ll just have to wait for the announcement while we once again look at every waiting room and watch over our candidates enjoying their free time."

    Switch~

    Tatsuki and Ayumu were having an early lunch at their agency while they watched the live stream broadcast. Superheroes who were part of the agency couldn''t be any more proud of Satoshi''s performance as well. After all, they''ve known him ever since he was a kid. That''s why seeing him debut sessfully as a hero during his first year of high school came as a surprise but they were always rooting for him after he told them that he''d be applying for United Superheroes Academy. Most members in the Midoriyama Agency are actually alumni from the aforementioned school, that''s why they couldn''t be any more proud that the one and only son of their husband-and-wife leader is aiming for that school. Even though he didn''t show any promise because he didn''t have a superpower back then, it was still quite a feat in choosing such a school that had the lowest eptance rate.

    "Look it up," Gauntlet Gus clicked his tongue while Silk Girl nodded in silence. Of course, in a normal setting, they wouldn''t have given out orders or obeyed someone''s orders because they have their pride to uphold. But right now, those ideals were thrown out of the window as something unexpected happened during the live stream.

    The Great White Shark Academy. It had existed for quite a few years now but no one has heard of it until just now. It''s just like Satoshi''s debut story¡ªying low for his entire life and thening out into the scene with guns zing. For some odd reason, they managed to gather a few elite high schoolers even though they were just a reform school¡ª well, more like the main selling point of the school was that it''s a reform school that gathers teenagers with viinous tendencies.

    ? "Isn''t this... I mean... " Ayumu muttered as Silk Girl typed away at her keyboard.

    "Controversial, you mean? Yep, it is. A reform school getting first ce in the first round of the Inter-High Tournament is something that has never happened before. And furthermore, I fear that reform schools wille to a different light after this event. I don''t think it''s good for the public... not because reform schools are necessarily bad in the first ce, but because reform schools for high schoolers with superpowers is pretty much a school filled with viins."

    "It may be controversial, but they cannot mess up with the rankings. The Inter-High Tournament is sensitive about those things, and it''s not like the Great White Shark did anything illegal getting first ce." Darkening said with a sigh. As someone who was once connected to a very powerful viin in the past, he didn''t want to talk about viins since it leaves a bad aftertaste in his mouth. But then again, it''s not like all of the students in a reform school are full-fledged viins¡ª although a few of them are though.

    "I got it. I pulled out some files from the main archive. Apparently, their main site and Wikipedia page were once taken down after an incident a few years ago." Silk Girl narrated with her usual cheerful yet calming voice. "Built around ten years ago, the Great White Shark Academy wasn''t an academy before, but a prison. Great White Shark Prison. This prison was built for superheroes who''ve gone over to the dark side¡ª in short, viins. It''s only five yearster when a certain businessman bought the Prison and ''reformed'' it into a reform school... Gasp~ you wouldn''t believe who bought it."

    For the first time in their lives, everyone heard Silk Girl gasp with such emphasis that they were taken aback. Everyone stopped what they were doing, fully invested in what she was about to say next. Holding their breath, they await as Silk Girl continued her monologue.

    "It was... Kronos Schiltz. He was the one who founded the Great White Shark Academy!"

    "You mean... the very same Kronos Schiltz who was the mastermind of the Boosting Incident back then?!" Gauntlet Gus eximed.

    Silk Girl nodded, leaving everyone gasping, bbergasted.

 Chapter 101 Kronos Schiltz

    The Boosting Incident happened back when the first wave of superpowers appeared on Earth. Of course, not anyone wished to be a superhero even before the superpowers surfaced, but that''s not the only point why viins appeared in the world.

    The establishment of a new order, of an invisible hierarchy, urred in an instant, leaving those with and without superpowers to fend for themselves whilewlessness spread throughout thend. There were no rules regarding humans with superpowers so the government couldn''t do anything about it. The least they could do is rewrite somews and alter human rights as the governments see fit. Needless to say, there was chaos, and for a brief moment, it''s as if the world is plunging directly into another world war.

    Riding the waves of chaos, of course, were ambitious viins who wanted to make a name for themselves before they were stopped by superheroes. By then, the SAO was hastily formed, keeping the known superheroes in check and passingws to the government for approval. SAO was rather busy back then¡ª a perfect chance for viins to strike.

    Now, there were viins who were small-minded no matter what they do. Piging, stealing, breaking trafficws¡ª they tend to break all these simple crimes as if that would make them popr. They didn''t even think that humans with no superpowers do those things on a regr basis. They were no different from normal criminals who gued thend.

    Then there''s a small percentile of viins that have a bigger goal in mind. In secret, like the ck market just to make an example, powerful viins started making underground deals and blogs, releasing a little information about themselves so they could get odd jobs. From assassination to mass murder, there were a plethora of jobs in the underground so the viins were having the time of their lives. Pretty soon,rge-scale crimes were being done, making the SAO have a headache. And this is just in Japan, all the other countries faced difficulties dealing with their viins as well. It was so serious that for a few years, not a single country managed to help another since their internal problems were too much to handle. Even the current prime minister of Japan stepped down since he couldn''t solve a single problem no matter what he did.

    Oddly enough, the viins were much more structured than the governments and superhero associations. It was really an incident to behold. Nevertheless, things got worse by the day, and Japan entered martialw for a few years while they try to get back on their gear. It took at least a year before the SAO was finally cemented as a legitimate organization withws under the government. Laws for humans with superpowers were passed as well, hastily to be honest.

    Just when things were improving, and the people were already seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, the abyss opened up once again and a name appeared out of nowhere.

    Kronos Schiltz.

    Born from a normal family with two working parents, Kronos never experienced the attention of his own parents and so he decided to attract attention by causing mischief. From his earliest memories, he could still remember being a bully, then bing a leader of a small gang that terrorized a few streets. And then, once he reached middle school, his name was known far and wide due to his wild reputation. Of course, he never did major crimes...

    ... those were saved forter.

    Well, Kronos Schiltz was getting the attention he wanted because of the little troubles here and there. For a time he was content, bothering teachers and students alike and creating another group of bullies in his school. Because of their influence, Kronos Schiltz delved into the world of gambling,rceny, and extortion. Of course, those were just petty crimes and Kronos Schiltz was slippery enough to not get into any trouble.

    But as a young man, and an ambitious one at that, he decided to get into the more dangerous spectrum of crimes. Murder, arson, and assault were included in his bucket list that was easily fulfilled. And even after all that, he was doing so well in school¡ª too well in fact that he was always number one in everything.

    He was having the time of his life, and because no one dared stop him, he aggravated until he reached the point of no return.

    Then his superpowers awakened. It''s as if fate gave him everything he could ask for. When one reached that state of rottenness, there was no stopping him or her. As they continuously ride the waves of fate with blood on their footprints, they would reach a point where they''ll try to achieve the impossible¡ª to be an absolute ruler.

    Kronos''s superpower was Blood maniption. He could manipte his own blood, form it into anything he could think of. And what''s even scarier is that he could manipte someone else''s blood as long as a single drop of his blood touches the blood of another.

    In just a few months'' time, Kronos imed through the ranks of viins in the underground as he delved into the ck market and other fishy websites on the inte. Killing someone became a walk in the park for him and he gets to earn a few extra bucks as a bonus. He didn''t have problems with money since then, not to mention his influence in school and his good grades.

    Everything was going smoothly. Then... Kronos was introduced to something that he once disliked and sworn that he''d never involve himself on the subject. And yet there he was, diving headfirst into the world of quietus¡ª into the world of substance abuse.

    "Kronos?"

    p "Yes, that''s me." Kronos confidently said while bobbing up and down like a normal kid. Even the guard asking for his name had suspicions written all over his face as he stared at the kid, up and down, a couple of times.</anda>

    "Am I going in? Or are we going to stare at each other?" Kronos asked, cutting his wrist with a knife. Blood then poured forth from his huge wound and slowly dripped onto the ground.<sub> </sub>

    Shiiiing!

    Before the guard could blink, the blood on the floor suddenly disappeared as it shifted into a sharp spike, pointed at his neck. "I''m in a good mood today, I might just kill you right here and now," Kronos said in a lighthearted manner as if he was greeting someone with a good morning.

    "I''m sorry," The guard bowed his head and opened the door behind him

    sh!

    "Then do your job properly next time so it wouldn''t cost you your life. Seriously, why waste my precious seconds without thinking twice?" Kronos clicked his tongue as his blood turned into liquid form and went back to his system. His wound closed in an instant as well as if he didn''t just cut his wrist like a maniac.

    "Oh, you''re here," A guy from the other side said, tipping his cap towards Kronos. He didn''t bother standing from his seat since he was quite snug sitting down there.

    "Yep, did you bring the money?"

    "Of course, why do you think I''m here for?" The man smirked, grabbing the suitcase by his side and putting it on the table. "You know I never buy anything in the ck market but this one seems like a good deal. I''ve seen your promotionals and I don''t think they''re edited. How about side effects? Are there any side effects?"

    "None so far, but overdosing would make someone lose their minds¡ª I mean, they''ll get high." Kronos shrugged.

    "Sounds like any other drug to me. I guess you''re going to hit the underground market soon?"

    Kronos shrugged for a second time. "No, you just spread the word. People wille to me in all four corners of the globe."

    "You''re right about that. But what''s in it for me?"

    "You get first batch every single damned time." Kronos extended his hand for a handshake to which the man responded with the same gesture.

    "It''s a deal then. You''vee to the right person. I''m not the leader of the Silver Spoon Gang for nothing."

    With a nod, Kronos put the suitcase he was holding and mmed it on the table. Holding his breath, he opened the suitcase, revealing ten vials neatly lined up together on foam. At first nce, the vials contained blood... but s, it wasn''t blood. Not in the least bit.

    Recently, Kronos had been working on a certain drug that would amplify the powers of superhumans in exchange for their sanity if they get overdosed. He identally stumbled upon it while studying his own blood and its properties. It was not for naught though since he could use it to cause more chaos and earn more moh''s in the near future.

    "Ten vials for five million yen. Quite a bargain, don''t you thin?"

    "You can sell them for more, just say the word and I''ll sell you more vials." Kronos shrugged. "Those Boosting Drugs will change the world, you know." He continued.

 Chapter 102 Primal And Cyborg

    Back in the Waiting Room,

    Primal and the others sat around in a circle in themon area, too excited to get some rest. It wasn''t mentioned before but round two of the Inter-High willmence on the next day so they have the entire lunchtime and afternoon all for themselves. As students from the Great White Shark Academy, they didn''t really have a rich background nor do they have sufficient funds so they could go outside to get some food for themselves. All of them just stayed there, awaiting the scheduled lunch toe whereas other students from other academies were heading out, getting some food while celebrating their hard-earned victory.

    Well, most of them weren''t really leaving to celebrate anything since most of them just lost.

    It was quite ironic since Primal and the others were the real victors of the first round and yet they didn''t have the luxury to celebrate. Just what they''d expect from a reform school whose currently being funded by the government. If it weren''t for the Inter-High, they wouldn''t even be able to experience such a luxurious ce of a waiting room.

    "I guess we earned it, huh. The candidates this year are a bunch of weaklings, huh." Killjoy said with a chuckle. For some odd reason, the entire group stuck to their superhero name instead of using each other''s names. No one knows why but it was an order from their leader, Primal, so they had to follow it. It''s not like it was harmful to all of them and it helps boost their ego by having a superhero name when they aren''t even licensed superheroes yet. (They weren''t the only ones thinking the same. Other schools also practiced such a thing as well.)

    "No, we just didn''t meet the strong ones in the first round. Those people in the United Superheroes Academy are strong, not to mention the ones from Flowing Wind Academy. I''ve been doing my research and there are a few characters that we need to be wary of."

    While everyone was casually lounging about, Primal was taking everything seriously as he discussed things with everyone. Just like the other academies, they still didn''t know what the second round is all about but it would do them good to prepare as much as they can beforehand.

    "So, what do we do then?"

    "Gather as much information as you can from the names I''ll tell you. And then we can discuss how to deal with them. If worsees to worst, we can use those." Primal continued.

    As soon as Primal mentioned the word ''those'', everyone''s faces lit up and they eagerly booted up their phones andptops, ready to obey everymanding out of Primal''s lips.

    "First, we have Tohka Yatogami, the very first superhero with an astral-type superpower. Then Fuuka, a space attributed superpower... then Kurayami Kurogami and Midoriyama Satoshi. There''s also Aljier from the Great Mountain Academy, he was disqualified but he''s the strongest in the bunch."

    "Also, search up the leaders of the other schools who are in the top six. We''ll have to deal with them sooner orter. BUT!"

    "But?" Some of them asked, surprised.

    "Prioritize looking up Midoriyama Satoshi, he''s the biggest threat out of everyone in here. He may be a first-year but I''ve seen the kid fight. He fights like one of us reform students, not really one of them rich pampered kids."

    "You say he''s a kid when you''re just two years older than him." Goldilocks motioned, licking a lollipop while scrolling through her phone. "Everyone''s seen his fight against the Slime Aliens, right? That was pretty cool for a debut. Then there''s his fight with Hiroshi as well, you know, that kid with earth and fire elements."

    "Yeah, does anyone know what his superpower is?" Primal asked,

    Ding!

    In a split second, as soon as the doorbell rang, Primal was already in front of the door as if he teleported there. He then opened the door as the fragrant scent of food entered his nostrils. "Room service." The man on the other side mentioned with a calm tone. He was trying to be professional at all costs, adjusting his bow tie with his free hand while maintaining his straight posture, all the while holding the food he brought for everyone.

    Well, he was holding a cart, it''s not like he was carrying a tray of food for eight people.

    "Thank you," Primal said with a smile before pulling the cart inside the room. He then gently closed the door.

    "Food''s arrived."

    As if on cue, everyone stopped what they were doing and they gathered around once again. This time they were more attentive than before and they eagerly waited while Primal served the food. No one spoke nor uttered a single sound but some of them could''ve sworn that the other''s stomach was rumbling. No one reacted to anything though, their eyes just fixated on their food like ravenous wolves catching sight of their dinner.

    A few momentster, they were eating with great gusto and the food was vacuumed out of the tes. It didn''t even take them a whole two minutes before the food was gone. They weren''tining though since it helped satiate their hunger for lunch. While everyone rubbed their stomach, they stared back at Primal who seemed to be typing away at hisputer as soon as he finished eating.<sub> </sub>

    "Cyborg, you know what to do, right?" Primal said out of the blue, making Cyborg stand up in response even though he wasn''t told to stand up. He wanted to show that he was paying attention to the leader even though they just finished eating.

    "Don''t be so stiff, just do as you were taught."

    Cyborg nodded and went straight to hisputer and phone which was tucked in the corner of the room. "Are you sure we have to do this? Can''t we just watch him during the second round to see what his superpower really is? Besides, we have a lot of materials on youtube already."

    "Yes, we have to make sure. Don''t question me, Cyborg."

    "Yes, leader."

    Without further ado, Cyborg essed hisputer and opened up a website known to a lot of people. On the upper right of the website was a logo that said ''SAO'' and on the homepage was a brief introduction of the identity of the site. One would immediately know that Cyborg was essing the main SAO site so he could peer into the archives.

    ''If I get caught, I''ll be dead meat for sure. But I guess I don''t really have to think about all that. I''m the Cyborg, there''s no way they can detect me.''

    Now, just like any other website affiliated with the government, the Superhero Assembly Organization uses top-notch security in its websites so that a normal human wouldn''t be able to peer into the sensitive information stored within. But then again, it''s not like all of that sensitive information are inessible. With the right tools and knowledge, one could grab hold of that information if they were skillful enough. The inte, after all, has never been a safe ce when ites to storing information. If the government really wanted to keep their secrets under wraps, then they should have written them on paper and had them locked somewhere in a vault.

    Cyborg then pressed his index finger on the USB Port and in an instant, his finger transformed into weird little wires which then interconnected with each other to replicate a USB. Cyborg was then flooded with a lot of information but thanks to his advanced artificial system brain, he didn''t go into overdrive while reading through the influx of information.

    "As I thought, their website uses an oveyed-three-factor authentication. One is locked behind aputer server, which is then locked on a single masterputer, and then a master phone. These passwords change every three seconds as well so I have to crack the first password and try to input the next two before they showed up so the time limit of three seconds wouldn''t trigger an rm after I unlocked the first authentication." Cyborg lengthily exined to everyone while biting his lips. This was the hardest task he''d ever encountered in his life as a certified hacker.

    "You mean there are three passwords that change every three seconds and you have to crack them before the three seconds are up to get in, right?" Primal surmised. "Get on with it then instead of running that mouth of yours with all thoseplicated information."

    "I mean, this would be a bit challenging for me but it''s doable." Cyborg continued. "The only thing is... there''s no turning back once we get in. Are you sure about this, leader?"

    "Yes, I know you can safely get out of there before you trigger any rms. Also, we''d simply cut you off if you ever failed."

    "I guess we think alike, leader," Cyborg said with a grin as he went on with his job.

    Three.

    Two.

    One.

    Click!

    Before the three seconds were up, Cyborg got in and he immediately got Midoriyama Satoshi''s file before he was locked out of the archives once again.

    However, his face quickly turned into disappointment as he saw Satoshi''s records.

    "Nothing, his superpowers aren''t here. In fact, there''s no information about him at all!" Cyborg announced in confusion.

 Chapter 103 A White Blur

    Cyborg checked for a second time and lo and behold, there were really aren''t any records regarding Midoriyama Satoshi. Sure he had that footage from where he fought against the Slime Alien and he also has his footage from the initial match on the first day of school in USA. But aside from all that, there was no information on him. It''s as if he hasn''t even registered to the SAO System, not once.

    "How could someone with such a powerful superpower not have any trace in the SAO?" Primal asked Cyborg who also didn''t know the initial reason. Even they have a few records in the SAO after being identified as a superhero... or maybe their case was different since they were teenagers who involved themselves in petty crimes. Usually, people like that would have a permanent record in the SAO archives and all of their superpowers are specified.

    "Was he not registered? No, that''s impossible, most schools encourage their students to undertake the SAO registration so they''d have an easier time being recruited by agencies. Did he purposefully ditch all those registrations until now?"

    As questions swirled in their heads, they were beginning to form some doubts regarding Satoshi. It was obvious that he came from a very powerful background¡ª both of his parents are top ranking in SAO¡ª but to think that he has such a huge influence in the SAO was a bit absurd. There was no way a mere teenager like him could withhold such sensitive information for years without being noticed.

    Or maybe SAO just decided to keep his superpower under wraps because he''s some sort of VIP superhero? Primal and his group could only wonder.

    Little did they know that Satoshi''s reason was far more simpler than that¡ª well, it was actually quiteplicated but not that hard to understand.

    In simple terms, the reason why Satoshi wasn''t recorded in the SAO archives was that he was ate awakened. It''s not like he ditched every registration in his previous schools, but rather, it was because he could never be registered in the first ce since he didn''t have a superpower.

    Of course, Satoshi badly wanted to be registered as a superhero, more than anyone else. And it frustrated him that he couldn''t be registered as one. But unbeknownst to him, it actually helped him conceal his superpowers to the masses, and rightfully so, since his superpower was much moreplex and unexinable than he could ever expect.

    As Primal and Cyborg were scratching their heads at the dilemma that is Satoshi, meanwhile Satoshi was lounging about with the other USA candidates in their waiting room, eating the same lunch that Primal and his team got. Initially, they thought of going outside to eat together but since they have plenty of time to do that in the afternoon, they just decided to get some rest first so they won''t have to catch up to itter.

    "Where were you?" Satoshi suddenly asked, causing everyone to inadvertently whirl towards him as he chewed on his drumstick.

    "Who? Me?" Kurogami asked. "I was out waiting for prey and then a group of students fell right into my trap. I got a handful of Badges because of that."

    "No, him," Satoshi responded, fully ignoring Kurogami''s response. He then pointed his lips to Hiroshi who was lying quietly in the background. For some odd reason, he wasn''t in the best of moods despite being the spontaneous character of the bunch. Also, he hasn''t touched his food ever since it was given to him. His mind was off somewhere else and it was evident in his expression.

    "Me?" Hiroshi pointed to himself after heaving yet another sigh. "I wouldn''t want to talk about it but... I guess I should now. Besides, this would help us in theter rounds, hopefully."

    Curious as to why Hiroshi was speaking vaguely, Satoshi and every candidate from the USA stopped eating and gathered around Hiroshi, prompting him to speak. After what he just said, they assumed that he has valuable information regarding the first round.

    "You know that Academy that got first ce? The Great White Shark Academy, whatever it is called?" Hiroshi began.

    "Yeah?"

    "Well, I''vee face to face with one of them. He calls himself Primal and if I were to voice out my own opinion, he deserves such a name." Hiroshi said. "As you can see, he never did get my Badge, but he did beat me to a pulp."

    Without further ado, Hiroshi booted up hisputer and went straight to youtube, reying his pov live stream. As mentioned before, all students were live-streamed so no one would miss any action.

    It started with Hiroshi spawning into the rightmost part of the map. There, he thought that he''d be safe from all harm so he decided to make a move towards the middle, trying to hunt other candidates along the way.<sub> </sub>

    But as it turned out, he was the one being hunted, not the other way around.

    A few minutes into the live stream, a candidate who had gray hair and ashen eyes, with a build befitting of an athlete, approached him with confidence while cing his hands in his pockets. He didn''t speak a single word, he just smiled.

    "Who are you?" Hiroshi then asked, fully prepared for an all-out brawl just in case the figure pounced at him. To his disappointment though, the other guy didn''t answer.

    "Tayokama Hiroshi, am I right? I remember you, you fought with that Midoriyama kid during the initial testing back at your academy. Pretty epic fight if you ask me." The candidate said, his hands still in his pockets as if to show that he didn''t mean any harm at all. "Oh, where are my manners, I''m Primal from the Great White Shark Academy. I don''t usually go around telling people my real name so you''d just have to get used to that. Even then, it would be nice if I could form an amicable rtionship with you and the other USA candidates. That would be quite an honor."

    "Well, if you want to have an amicable rtionship, why don''t you hand over your badge, and then you can go on with the rest of the first round?" Hiroshi challenged, extending his hand as if to tell Primal that he was more than wee to relinquish his precious badge.

    "Funny, I was about to say the same thing," Primal said. "It seems like we''d be getting into a scuffle as much as we hated it. Why don''t you give me your badge and then we can call it quits? I''ll leave here, you leave here, everybody wins."

    "You mean you''ll win? There''s no way I''ll give you my badge, not until hell freezes a thousand times over if that were even possible."

    "We got no choice then."

    In an instant, Hiroshi formed some sort of shield in front of him and controlled both fire and water so he could shoot balls ofva toward the opponent. But just when his attack was about halfway done, he heard a low growl¡ª no, sort of like a roar that sent shivers up and down his spine. Hiroshi likened it to the feeling of being hunted as helpless prey.

    A white blur, and then ws almost dug deep into his chest. Had Hiroshi been toote to react and dodge the attack, he would''ve been pierced a couple of times through his chest. Of course, that was just an illusion though since the white blur¡ª whatever it was¡ª didn''t mean to kill him. The ws were just a means to make him fall out of bnce, and it wasn''t as deadly as Hiroshi assumed.

    If it were deadly, the white blur would''ve been disqualified from the first round by now.

    "Those are some good reflexes right there. I''m surprised you dodged that one." Primal said, his eyes turning yellow as slits for irises formed in it. He grinned, showing off the fangs and his canine teeth while staring Hiroshi in the eye.

    "You tried to kill me."

    "No, not really. I was just trying to scare you. If I had intended to kill you then you''d have been dead meat by now. Man, fortunately, we didn''t meet outside this stadium."

    Hiroshi didn''t waste any time turning thend on the corners of his feet intova, providing him with some sort of skateboard that smoothly slid through the ground while the edges of the skateboard turned the ground intova. Hiroshi had learned a lot ever since he fought against Satoshi. One thing he realized from their fight was that mobility was necessary when ites to one-on-ones. Of course, power and resilience are of importance as well but what''s the use of that if you were to get knocked out before you even realize what hit you?

    As Hiroshi slid through like the silver surfer on the ground, Primal just smiled at him, and then the white blur appeared once again. Turns out, Primal was the white blur and that white blur was his ultimate form. In a split second, Hiroshi experienced what he feared would happen¡ª get knocked out before realizing what hit him.

    Bam!

 Chapter 104 Breaktime

    "And that''s what happened." Hiroshi narrated, expecting everyone to react ordingly.

    But all he got was silence.

    Pause.

    "So..." Satoshi suddenly uttered as everyone stared at him. "His superpower is shapeshifting? Or does he only have a single transformation?"

    "That, I have no idea. He moves faster than the eye could see. A white blur and then bam! Just like that."

    After Hiroshi''s simple depiction of what he experienced, another silence soon followed and they were all left staring at each other.

    "I''m gonna go sleep," Siril said, heading to the room. He was tired from all that moving around in the first round and shifting to his dragon form drained a lot of his energy. That''s why he needed more food and restpared to an average teenager with superpowers.

    "Me too," Hiroshi said.

    "Me too," Fuuka as well.

    In the end, there were only Cherry, Kurogami, Midori, Satoshi, and Shidou left in the room, staring at each other in the face. Satoshi could tell that they were expecting something else aside from someone yelling that he or she''ll sleep for another time. They didn''t look that tired at all either, much like Satoshi. Well, Satoshi didn''t really expend that much energy since his familiars did all the work for him. All he needed to do was observe from the sidelines and give instructions through his mind. It might''ve been pretty exhausting though but Satoshi was used to it.

    "You all want to go out?" Satoshi asked, hoping that he was right on the money with his suggestion.

    In an instant, Cherry and the others got up and grabbed their backpacks by the corner of themon area. Their serious expressions were instantly reced with excitement as if they were dogs who were offered a walk.

    As for Satoshi, he didn''t need to pack up anything since everything he needed is stored in his Orb Oboros, he just had to bring his bag so that no one would get suspicious of him.

    Within a minute, Satoshi and the others were already out of the waiting room and a guard immediately went up to them, tipping his hat before leading them outside the Inter-High Stadium. Satoshi didn''t even need to tell him anything since the guards know full well what they want to do if ever they go outside.

    And it''s not like the Stadium has any ce where you could eat. One would have to go outside if they were to buy anything. The Stadium, in all its glory, is just a in old stadium after all. Of course, by now, countless stores would have already flooded the space surrounding the stadium as if there was a festival in town.

    A cacophony of noises and indistinct voices were what greeted Satoshi and his party as they got outside. As soon as Shidou saw the crowd where they were, he immediately put on his sses, his mask, and he wore an oversized hoodie that covered most of his body. He did it so fast that Satoshi thought Shidou disappeared behind him. "What are you doing?" Cherry asked.

    "My superpower, it gets amplified the more people there are in a scene." Shidou responded, darting his head here and there as if to tell the whole world that he''s a suspicious person.

    "I''ll be checking out some of the stalls over there. They seem to be selling some kind of parfait." Kurogami said with a straight face before walking away. His pace quickened in an instant though and before they knew it, Kurogami was already running full throttle towards the nearest parfait stall.

    "I''ll be going to¡ª "

    Bump.

    Shidou felt his heart leap out of his chest when someone bumped him. Now that his powers are amplified due to the sudden increase in the headcount of people nearby, he knew that just a simple touch is enough to get a woman''s attention¡ª assuming that what bumped him was of the opposite gender, of course. He gulped and slowly turned around. He didn''t want to say any words since that would be akin to jumping right into a trap.

    "I''m sorry are you¡ª wait, Shidou?! What is up with your outfit?!"

    It was Tohka, and she was with her group of friends. Apparently, they all visited the Inter-High Stadium so they could cheer her on. All of them seemed familiar and by now, Shidou didn''t want to ask what their names are. ''I mean, what is the coincidence that their names are like... that that, right?'' He said in his mind, thinking about a certain series where his name and Tohka''s name came from.

    "This is Kurumi, this is Yoshino, and this is¡ª "

    "Stop, I get it!" Shidou hissed before Tohka introduced the third one. He could tell that her name would be no different from the...

    "¡ª Kokko."

    "Wait, her name is not Kotori?"

    "How did you know that?" Tohka eximed, impressed. "Kokko is her nickname but her name''s really Kotori. How did you know her name?"

    "How did I¡ª look here Tohka, Either fate''s ying with us, or someone up there is having a goodugh about this," Shidou continued speaking in a low tone just so Tohka''s other friends won''t hear him. Since Tohka was already charmed by Shidou before, she''s still under his influence but her three friends aren''t and Shidou didn''t want to risk it.<sub> </sub>

    "What do you mean?"

    "Ugh~ never mind. Off you go then, I have an ice cream to catch up with." Shidou said, turning around heading to a nearby stall where they were selling ice cream.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi, Midori, and Cherry were just watching Shidou from the sidelines. They briefly met Tohka from the first round Badge Fight but who would''ve thought that they''d run into her as soon as they got outside.

    "Do they know each other?" Cherry asked,

    "I don''t know, who knows, maybe?" Satoshi answered, to which Midori just shrugged.

    For some odd reason, Midori was not in his talkative mode today.

    "We''re about to get some ice cream as well! Let''s get one together." Tohka suggested, grabbing Shidou by the arm, causing her three friends to take a deep inhale in shock. They didn''t know that their friend was actually seeing someone.

    "What are you doing?!" Shidou continued, wondering why Tohka was still pestering her. He didn''t interact with her that much during the entire first round so he knows that the effect should''ve worn off by now. "Did my powers get stronger? No no no no..." Shidou muttered to himself.

    "Why, what''s the matter?" Tohka asked.

    "Nothing."

    Cherry, Midori, and Satoshi followed right behind Shidou''s group since they were quite aimless as well. At first, they were eager to get out and experience the fresh air of the Saitama Prefecture, but now that they were outside, they lost all of that excitement. Without a n to back up their little excursion, they didn''t know what to do, in short.

    "I''m not going to treat you," Shidou continued.

    "My treat."

    "Everything all right on your end, Midori?" Satoshi suddenly asked.

    "No, not really," Midori continued. "It''s just that, it''s my first time being away from my family and it kind of sunk in while we were in the first round of the Inter-High. Don''t worry about me though, my mind''s just constantly thinking about whether Miya and the others were eating properly, or if they were doing okay. I mean, I gave them most of my savings just so they could treat themselves to something nice while I''m gone... am I worrying too much? Is this normal?"

    To be fair, Midori still talked a lot, the only difference was he wasn''t doing it spontaneously.

    "Yeah, they''ll be fine. They''re probably watching the live stream right now or something. Right now, you should worry about the second round happening tomorrow. You remember what happened during the first round right? I don''t think the event coordinators like us that much... or maybe they''re trying to give us a handicap because of our record."

    "Maybe, I thought of the same thing as well." Midori sighed for the third time. "I''m really worried about mom and dad right now."

    "You can give them a call or something."

    "I don''t have a phone. Ah yes, I forgot to buy a phone for them as well! I should probably save up for that huh. It would be bad if I were to die and then I couldn''t get to call my family for myst words, right?"

    "Not a nice way to think about a phone but sure. You know you really need one, right?"

    While Midori and Satoshi were having a casual chat about phones, Cherry just lingered right behind them. She didn''t know what to talk about at all so she just kept quiet.

    As for Shidou and Tohka, they finally reached the ice cream stall and they both shouted their order at the same time.

    "Onerge mint chocte chip ice cream, lots of sprinkles, please."

    "Onerge mint chocte chip ice cream, lots of sprinkles, please"

    "Aiyo~ing right up." The friendly guy behind the counter smiled.

    Even their ice cream preferences were the same.

 Chapter 105 Emergency Summons

    While the Inter-High Tournament was taking ce, specifically while everyone was having a good time at the mini-festival right by the edges of the Inter-High Stadium, the SAO sent out a phone call to every avable superhero in Japan.

    This phone call was an emergency summons. And to say the least, an emergency summons is quite rare when ites to the SAO. With the abundance of strong superheroes currently, they don''t really need to sound the emergency summons unless absolutely necessary. Petty crimes such as robberies or snatchers are all dealt with by the police or a low-ranking superhero.

    "What do you think?" Tatsuki asked just when he closed the door behind him. It was a normal afternoon with fair weather so thest thing they were expecting was the summons from SAO.

    Usually, the emergency summons would happen at least once a year if an alien invasion or a formidable group of viins appear. The emergency summons was also issued if there was a huge disaster in Japan, for example, the magnitude eight earthquake that happened two years ago.

    To think that the emergency summons would happen twice this year is more or less very nerve-wracking. The first one was when the Slime Aliens attacked and they were sessfully pushed back. So what would it be this time around?

    Questions whirled around the Midoriyama Duo''s head as they sped off towards the SAO Headquarters, when they got there, a lot of heroes were already there, awaiting orders. In total, there were at least two dozen superheroes in the room including the Midoriyama Duo and for some miracle, all the top ten SAO superheroes were there.

    Usually, the third-ranking superhero, Death Angel, doesn''t usually participate in the emergency summons. In fact, he doesn''t want to be in the limelight at all, that''s why he never rose in his rankings. If he were to do a couple of missions, it wouldn''t be long before he both surpassed the Midoriyama Duo. He was that formidable.

    That''s why the SAO rankings are fair. You don''t get a rank based on your superpowers alone, but your contributions to society are heavily scrutinized as well. After that, you''re given hero points and those hero points reflect your rank in SAO rankings. Death Angel has only ever appeared thrice on TV and those times he was the MVP. That''s why he still has a lot of points despite not doing anything for the past couple of years.

    "Oh, Archus Strongs and Sirius Strongs, both of you are here." Midoriyama Tatsuki greeted with a bit of nervousness and uncertainty in his voice. Archus and Sirius both came from a family of elite superheroes who has a big name in America and that''s why they were held with high regard even in Japan. Also, their superhero names, Death Angel and Life Angel are pretty popr around the world.

    Seeing them in one room at the same time made Tatsuki and Ayumu feel a little concerned as to what the emergency was all about. If it were a small-scale invasion or a group of superpowerful viins, then it''s more than enough to get the top fifty superheroes. Even the Midoriyama Duo need not be here.

    And yet, for some odd reason, the top ten superheroes were summoned. Either arge-scale invasion is happening, or a massive catastrophe is about to go down.

    "Yeah, I was told to go to this emergency summons by mum and dad from America. I wouldn''t usually involve myself in such dangerous things since I''m already quite settled, but something big''s going down. Mum and dad wouldn''t say anything about it if it were manageable just like the Slime Alien invasion a couple of days back." Death Angel said, ruffling his stark ck hair before rubbing his shoulders. The room was getting chilly and he wasn''t used to the cold.

    "I thought I was the only one. d to have you here big brother. Hopefully, this is not as catastrophic as it sounds."

    "It''s the Midoriyama Duo! Kyaaa~~~ I''m a big fan! I''ve always wanted to meet you in person but I couldn''t do it because of work and my agency is having a tough timetely with all the major incidents from back then. I''m Takenaka Miki¡ª "

    "¡ª the Fulfiller, right?" Ayumu interrupted, grabbing the Fulfiller''s hands and gently shaking them. "No, it is an absolute honor to meet such a great hero as you. Your power could easily be number one if the support hero rankings are separated. No wonder you''re ranked ten in the SAO rankings."

    "No way, the honor is all mine! I''ve always looked up to you ever since I was a teenager! Receiving such great praise from you, I couldn''t be more blessed!" Fulfiller said, bowing at a ny-degree angle.

    "Come on, y-you don''t have to bow. Every superhero here owes you one or two because of that superpower, you should be more confident." Ayumu continued.

    "Yeah, remember the Grimm Viin Incident? You used your support power on me and my brother and that''s what enabled us to defeat the entire ring by ourselves. If it weren''t for you, we would''ve died. That viin called the Candy Witch is pretty terrifying." Life Angel said with a grin.

    "We owe you our lives back then. And our rankings? It is a mere reflection of you extending a hand towards your fellow superheroes." Death Angel acquiesced. He is a man of few words but he gives credit when credit is due.

    "No way, this is¡ª don''t focus on me too much, this is embarrassing hehe~~~ " Fulfiller responded while covering her face, reddening in embarrassment.

    "I wonder... " Tatsuki said. "Does your superpower work onplicated superpowers as well? For example, can you connect me and my wife?"<sub> </sub>

    It should be mentioned that Fulfiller''s superpower is one of the top support superpowers there is. It doesn''t include buffs of any kind, nor does it include fast regeneration or healing. In fact, her superpower leans more on the psychic archetype than anything else.

    Psychic Link.

    It doesn''t just work on people with superpowers, but it also works on ordinary humans as well. Basically, she can connect the minds of two people, allowing them to exchange information as if they have two selves. If used on two people with superpowers, they''ll be able to use the other superpower as if it were his or herself.

    Of course, the only limit is that she can only provide two links. If she were to exceed that, her mind wouldn''t be able to take it and she''ll be out ofmission for a month. The first time she tried that, she thought that her superpowers were gone for good but after a month, she was able to link people again.

    Needless to say, it''s a pretty overpowered superpower.

    "Yes, I can link pretty much anyone. But if their superpower is passive, for example. Someone with four arms as part of his superpower would be able to link with another person but they won''t be able to share their superpower. If it''s a physical trait for a superpower, then it won''t work. Some superpowers work like that as well. For example, the Eye-Goddes''s superpower is a bona fide superpower, it''s not a physical trait at all. But when I tried linking her with someone else before, it didn''t work. She was able to use the superpower of the other hero but the other hero couldn''t use hers."

    "I see, so it''s pretty much a fifty-fifty chance or something, I guess." Tatsuki continued.

    "In any case, should we try it?" Fulfiller asked, she was more excited than anyone else.

    Everyone who heard her perked their ears as they realized that something amazing was about to go down. If it was sessful, then another piece of history would''ve been written. For the first time, the top two superheroes were about to attempt to receive the greatest buff there is.

    "Link." Miki then said.

    In an instant, Tatsuki and Ayumu felt something change in their minds, it was as if it expanded by two and the amount of information they know was starting to get muddled. But after a few seconds, those thoughts cleared up and they were able to exchange information with each other even without talking.

    "I see, so even if you can''t link our superpowers, this is still pretty useful. You can strategize instantaneously just by thinking of something." Tatsuki continued.

    "It''s as if you have an extension of your body. It feels rather weird yet powerful at the same time." Ayumu continued.

    "Now let''s try it." Tatsuki continued. "Try using the me superpower I plundered, Ayumu,"

    Ayumu nodded and to everyone''s surprise, her arm released an incredible amount of mes. She had to stop using it otherwise she might burn the whole building.

    "Next is super speed," Tatsuki said next.

    Just like the results of the first one, Ayumu managed to use superspeed without difficulty.

    "Next, we move on to the next phase, try using Plunder on Death Angel. Death Angel, would that be okay?"

    "Sure, go ahead," Death Angel agreed.

    Ayumu nodded. "All, right. Here we go."

 Chapter 106 The Gate

    Ayumu nodded. "All, right. Here we go."

    "..."

    "..."

    "Did you do it?" Tatsuki asked.

    Death Angel then extended his hands and a ck orb appeared out of them. "Doesn''t seem so."

    "So you can use the superpowers I plundered but you can''t use my ability, huh. I guess that''s one way to limit such a powerful superpower. All right, now I''ll try it." Tatsuki''s eyes narrowed as he stared at Death Angel.

    "Plunder."

    Suddenly, the ck orb on Death Angel''s hand disappeared. "Man, your superpower really is scary. It''s as if someone turned a switch in my mind. It feels weird having your superpower taken from you."

    "Right, now try using Death Angel''s superpower¡ª dark matter," Tatsuki told her wife.

    She was able to use it just fine. Just like the previous superpowers.

    After that, Tatsuki and Ayumu tried if he could use Counter, and sure enough, he was able to use it. All in all, the experiment went well and everyone pped their hand and patted the three on the back. Miki reddened even more after receiving more praises as well, she could tell that she won''t be able to get used to that for as long as she lives.

    SLIDE.

    "All right everyone!" Someone called up. It was none other than Fury with his bald head and his eyepatch. "I''m sorry I waste, we had a little bit of a mix-up on the way, nothing serious, just a hostage incident. But it was all resolved thanks to the heroes in the scene."

    "Now getting to the main point on why you''re all called here,"

    A light behind fury suddenly turned on, revealing a huge whiteboard where a projector projected an image.

    The image was a bit blurry, probably because the person who took it was running away upon seeing such a bizarre sight. It was a picture of what seemed like a wormhole, except it was dyed purple. The wormhole could be seen right behind the Statue of Liberty so everyone had an approximate as to how big it was. Its diameter was muchrger than the Statue of Liberty.

    "This... this is what appeared in New York Harbor just a few hours ago and experts were already on the scene." Fury recounted. "No one knows why this wormhole appeared there but spections tell that it is of alien origin and another invasion is bound to ur. As to the identities of the invaders, we could only wonder. It''s different from when the Slime Aliens attack since they sent scouts. Right now, we have no knowledge about what these wormholes are."

    "However!"

    "We did have a big lead."

    "A thousand years ago, an ancient text or manuscript was uncovered regarding a certain individual''s story. No one knows if it''s historical or fiction but! It could lead us to discover what lies behind these wormholes. Those manuscripts have been uploaded on the inte as well but parts of it were missing."

    "Anyways, the manuscript talked about an incident called the Gates, and how people with superpowers arose from the scene to stop the beasts that came out of it. Experts say it''s just a story but from what we can tell, this incident is happening in our world right now." Fury continued.

    "Tomorrow, a team of superheroes will be sent as an exploration team inside these Gates. We don''t know what to expect from them but we''re expecting the worst... why?"

    Fury then snapped his finger and the projector shed six more images on the screen. " We have one right by Yokohama, which is just a prefecture away. We''ll be sending our team of superheroes for exploration as well, hence this meeting."<sub> </sub>

    "Now, if anyone wants to take part in this, raise your hands. No one''s going to force you here since there were a lot of you who responded to the summons. But! Bear in mind that going through this exploration might help you climb through the SAO rankings."

    Although Fury sounded a bit desperate, at least half of the superheroes who responded to the summons all left before he could finish speaking. Of course, the stakes are high because heaven knows what''s behind those gates, but if no one were to act on it, then an invasion is most likely possible.

    "I guess that settles it then. Now that I think about it, this is the first time that all the top ten heroes from the SAO rankings are going to join hands. Meet me by the conference room a few minutes from now and we''ll discuss our approach."

    Upon saying that, Fury left the room. He seemed to be in a hurry but that''s just how he usually was. He didn''t want to waste any idle time, especially when there are a lot of things to do.

    "I guess that''s that. Why wouldn''t they want to go?" Stoon, ranked seven, the metal maniptor, asked as he scratched his head. "This is the best chance when ites to climbing ranks. They might even get to the top 20 if they did their best."

    "Too risky" Warper, ranked four, waring ability, said with a sigh. "This is rather exciting though. I don''t know if we''ll be able to survive this one."

    "We''re exploring worlds now? Since when did this be a sci-fi novel?" Tatsuki sighed.

    As the group discussed what awaited them, unease filled their minds because this may be their most dangerous mission yet. Although they''re the most capable superheroes in the whole of Japan, they knew that going into the unknown could lead to possible death because that''s how it is.

    .....

    Presently in America, New York Harbor

    The stunning sight of the Gate garnered the attention of the onlookers who were just there to admire a historic relic¡ª the Statue of Liberty. That''s why they didn''t expect that history will unfold right before their eyes when the Gate seemed to spawn out of nowhere.

    Then, it was reported to the American Hero Assocation (AHA for short) where they then sent experts to monitor the Gate. After careful observation, AHA decided to gather a well-bnced team of superheroes they call the Explorers. They did pick from the top fifty superheroes but they made sure not to pick from the top 20. This was because they wanted them to prepare just in case the worst case scenario happens.

    Japan had that mindset initially as well, but after contemting on things, they realized that it would be better to send in the best instead of sending lower rank heroes as fodder. That way, no one needlessly have to die and if the top heroes couldn''t stop the threat, then no one can, simple as that. Why prolong the inevitable when you can just dive straight in?

    "We sure about this?" Crank Tank, ranked thirty eight, asked, nervously swallowing his saliva after addressing everyone in his team. He was surprised that his voice didn''t sound shaky at all, probably because lots of cameras were pointed at him.

    "Who knows, but the world is watching so we should put on a great show, at least. It would be bad if we lost without a fighting chance." Knifetongue, ranked forty sixth, mumbled.

    "Yeah, we''re up against unknown enemies, the only thing we can do is perform the way we do things as heroes. And the next best thing to do is bring forth results. That''s all there is to it." ck Bullet, ranked twenty sixth, tipped his hat in order to hid his eyes from the cameras. Fortunately, he was wearing a mask so he didn''t have to cover his face as well.

    "Leave the healing to me, you know that''s the only thing I could do." Clerica, ranked forty-ninth, reassured everyone, waving her small lightweight staff. Of course she was more nervous than the rest but she had to suppress those feelings in front of the masses. Right now, the whole of North America depended on their team. And how would they depend on them when they were unsure if they could be depended to or not as well?

    That''s why they put up that obvious false bravado in front of the people.

    With the next few steps they took, everyone held their breath in anxiety. The world watched expectantly, waiting for something to happen as the group got nearer the Gate. Crank Tank was the first one to step in, then Knifetongue, then Clerica, then ck Bullet, then Resonance (ranked thirty second) who has never spoken during the entire exchange. She was the most nervous out of all of them that''s why she couldn''t speak at all. This was her time to climb through the rankings and although it was as dangerous as walking on thin ice, she''ll take it.

    The Gate seem to enalrge when they approached it, and then it felt like it was swallowing the heroes that stepped through. And then...

    ... they were gone. The Gate returned to how it normally looked. As for Crank Tank and his party, they were thrown into a different world altogether

    "Brace yourselves," Crank Tank advised, observing the unfamiliar surroundings.

 Chapter 107 Desert Worms

    Crank Tank and his party held their breaths as they entered the Gate, hoping for the best. No one has ventured into the Gate, even drones and such because it wouldn''t allow such things to enter. The disruptive energy being released from the Gate was more than enough to make any electronics malfunction and that''s solely why there were no records as to what they could expect inside. With mixed feelings, the group wandered in, fully prepared for an all-out war against the invaders.

    The first thing that they felt when they entered was the arid heat that seemed to seep into their skin. It wasn''t even a few seconds yet and they were already exhausted and sweaty. The vast ins were filled to the brim with sand and the asional breeze brought about warm air that made breathing difficult. It''s as if everything from their head to toe were burning. Two suns overhead, one with a nice orange and the other purplish, could be seen¡ª the two criminals behind the intolerable heat.

    "Gah~~~ I wasn''t expecting this." Crank Tank said as the weight of his body caused him to fall forward due to exhaustion. The fight hasn''t even started yet and he was already down.

    Clerica didn''t waste any time covering the party with her area heal and giving a bit of her energy towards Crank Tank so he could regenerate a bit of vigor. In a few seconds, Crank Tank felt a bit better and he stood up, his breathing was still ragged though. "Thanks a bunch, Clerica, did you bring a lot of energy potion with you?"

    She nodded in response, d that she brought more than usual.

    "Keep your eyes and ears out," Kifetongue continued. "I''m sure there are enemies nearby."

    Crank Tank was about to say the same thing when suddenly, ck Bullet transformed his hands into cannon-like shooters and started firing off from a distance. No one even noticed that he was already wearing his specialized goggles which have thermal vision and night vision. It was one of the support items he carries around just in case he was caught off guard.

    "ck Bullet, what are you doing?!" Crank Tank screamed, about to grab ck Bullet by the cor since he moved on his own. When ites to exploration, moving without precaution could pretty much endanger the entire team, that''s why Crank Tank was rightfully furious.

    "I guess you can''t see that, huh. There''s a huge heat signature right in front of us and it''s making its way towards us right now. If you look closely, you''ll be able to see the disturbance in the sand, please look out for that." ck Bullet concisely exined. He knew that answering back at Crank Tank or denying what he did would just be met with criticism. That''s why he exined everything aspact as possible so they wouldn''t ask any more questions.

    Just like what he said, Crank Tank and the others could see the disturbance in the sand even though there was nothing on top or moving through it. It was obvious that whatever was moving through the sand is invisible to the naked eyes, ck Bullet just got lucky since he brought his goggles with him.

    "Sorry about that ck Bullet, nice cover." Crank Tank said, pressing his fists together before screaming an ear-piercing shout. "TAUUUUNNNT!"

    His scream was enough to shatter the eardrums of those listening to it that''s why he was mindful not to aim his shout towards his party. From afar, he could hear the struggling wails of the invisible monster that was rushing toward them at incredible speeds. Something clicked in his mind.

    Three ticks.

    "I got three of them. ck Bullet, just tell them where the others are." Crank Tank informed them, rushing towards the disturbance on the sand, fully prepared to tank a hit on whatever the monster was.

    "Right," Crank Tank said, he continued shooting at the monster while scanning the area.

    None.

    Aside from the thermal signature inf front of them, there were no signs of the other two, whatever the monster was.

    "I think it''s some sort of a huge worm. Hmpgh~" Crank Tank continued before he flew a few tens of meters after being hit by truck-like force. In a split second though, he was back up on his feet, rushing towards the invisible enemy as if his life depended on it.

    Well, all their lives depended on it. That much is not an understatement. As someone who is used to taking damage, he knew that he was the core member of the party. Without him, the defense would bepromised and everyone would fall off like leaves in the autumn. That''s why he''s trying his best to get in the way of the invisible monster no matter how scary it was. After all, the mind defaults a thing unseen and unknown to be frightening, terrifying even.

    "I can''t see the other two! Are you sure about this Crank Tank?" ck Bullet was already sweating bullets while scanning the area two to three times more just in case he missed anything.

    "Of course, I''m sure! I heard three ticks in my mind!"

    "ck Bullet, leave this monster to me, you go scan for the other two." For the first time throughout the entire thing, Resonance finally spoke. Her voice was much clearer than what everyone expected though since she never really speaks that much.<sub> </sub>

    "Die!" Resonance said with a calm voice towards the invisible monster.

    There was a brief dy, and then a huge shockwave poured forth from Resonance''s position towards the invisible monster. A scream was then heard¡ª a scream of pain and death.

    Resonance''s power is simple yet pretty overpowered. Her words hold great meaning and those words are then tranted into shockwaves. With just one word, she can deal considerable damage but using it activates a recoil wherein she can''t speak another word until three minutes have passed. That''s why she was used to not speaking too much because activating her superpower causes her to be dumb. So far, she discovered that the word ''die'' is the most damaging word of all but she''s still searching for another word with more damage output so she could have an easier time. But then again, the stronger the word, the more time it takes before she could use it again¡ª the longer the interval, in short.

    Ssh!

    It''s as if someone turned on a faucet in the sky as something exploded and blood and gore started raining down on them. As soon as the invisible enemy died, it exploded and its invisibility was negated. Because of that they finally saw the true form of the enemy.

    Crank Tank was correct, it was a huge desert worm.

    "Everybody all right?" Clerica asked, drinking yet another energy potion as she continued her area heal.

    "Not yet! Don''t let your guard down just yet. There are still two of them and I''m still attracting them with my aggro. Don''t celebrate too early, you guys." Crank Tank said, biting his lips. He didn''t expect the worm to be powerful. Fortunately, Clerica was healing them continuously. If not, then he would''ve suffered terrible injuries right now after the worm sent him flying.

    "Crank Tank, you sure about that, right? That there are still two more signatures?" ck Bullet asked for the second time.

    "Of course I''m sure! How would I not be? I clearly heard three ticks. There''s no way my superpower is tricking me right now." Crank Tank continued, he was on his wit''s end.

    "Then... there''s only one exnation for this!" ck Bullet screamed. "Clerica, heal Resonance''s throat right now so her cooldown will lessen! And then Resonance, aim your shockwaves right underneath us!"

    ck Bullet figured out that if the heat signatures couldn''t be seen on the surface of the desernd, then the worms should be underground, leisurely taking their time until their prey would put their guard down, and then, they could strike. Since Crank Tank already taunted them, ck Bullet is sure as hell that the invisible desert worms are nearby.

    Clerica and Resonance nodded.

    "Ehrmm, ehrmm, ehrmm." Resonance started clearing her throat just to see if her cooldown already reached zero. Meanwhile, Clerica drank yet another energy potion before working on healing Resonance, it''s taking every cell in her body just to continue the area heal, but she just had to do it for a few more seconds so the others could recover their energy. After that then she can just focus on negating the heat that so gued the entire party.

    "I''m ready." Resonance once again spoke calmly like a stillke in the middle of an untouched forest. She closed her eyes and aimed at the ground.

    "Die." She continued.

    Just like before, there was a brief pause before the shock wave hit the ground, creating a small quake that almost swept everyone off their feet. A muffled scream came from the ground before a dying moan followed.

    Two ticks.

    One tick.

    Zero.

 Chapter 108 Into The Gate

    While everyone was enjoying their day-to-day life around the world, a couple of superheroes were sent to literal hell to explore the Gates that spawned on the surface of the Earth out of the blue. Of course, this wasn''t made public yet since it might cause worldwide panic. That''s why everyone in the Inter-High wasn''t yet aware of it, and so was a majority of everybody else.

    Just like Crank Tank and the others, the japan exploration team of superheroes, led by the number one hero Plunder, also held their breaths as they entered the Gates. It was mentioned before that the Gates couldn''t be scouted by technological means, that''s why they didn''t have any choice but to send superheroes in without prior knowledge of what to expect on the other side. Those thoughts brought more weight to an already seemingly arduous task at hand. And of course, each and every superhero weren''t safe when it came to those thoughts.

    "We don''t know what to expect so keep your guard up! I''ve plundered about twenty superpowers and I''ve given you a list of them. If you need support, just tell me." Plunder continued.

    "We also have the Fulfiller here, there''s nothing to worry about." Counter, Midoriyama Ayumu, said with a smile.

    The rest of the top ten superheroes nodded at the reassurance but they were all pretty unsure themselves. For all they know, they''re diving straight into their deaths and there''s nothing they could do about it but just be prepared for whateveres.

    Now in front of the gate, the group felt the intense energy seeping in and out of it as if it were a monster. They can feel the pressure, unease, and anxiety welling up within themselves. They couldn''t let that get through them though since the fight hasn''t even started yet.

    "Let''s go!"

    Swooooooosh~~~

    ....

    It was the pr oppositepared to the environment that Crank Tank and the others from the New York Harbor Gate experienced. Instead of a desert with intolerable heat that seemed to dry out the skin and muscles, what Plunder and the others experienced where the sheer cold that even the most resistant human cannot take. The moment they entered, they were already on the verge of getting frostbite, each and every one of them.

    "I got this!" Light Angel was quick enough to act, as expected from the number fifth.

    Sirius Strongs, also known far and wide with his popr hero name as the Light Angel, is Death Angel''s brother, Archus Strongs. While the Death Angel can control dark matter and manipte it, Light Angel can manipte light. He can weave it around and cause it to focus on something, controlling both brilliance and heat at the same time. Although his superpower is strong enough to be in the top ten, it dide with disadvantages himself as well. As one may know, light is a very powerful superpower. It can be the greatest distraction or the most powerful unexpected attack since it travels faster than the majority of things in the known universe. But he had to control its intensity, otherwise, he could blind himself before he could blind the enemy.

    Raising his hands up high, Light Angel directed the sunlight towards them, gathering every ray and pointing it to where they were, causing the snow to melt and the heat to disperse towards them. Gathering from a single light source is easy for Light Angel so the action wasn''t that taxing on his body. "Sorry, I was a second toote, must''ve been the nerves."

    "No worries, we didn''t expect it at all. good job reacting in time." Plunder said, shing a thumbs up towards him. "Let''s move forward."

    "No, we should stay here," Eye Goddess said, "Sorry for saying something after you''ve decided, Plunder-san, but we shouldn''t move forward." She continued.

    Plunder knew Eye Goddess''s personality and he could tell that she wasn''t trying to take over the group. It was a genuine warninging from the superhero with incredible foresight. "Why? Are there enemies in front?"

    "Yes and no, there''s only one." Eye Goddess continued. "I''ve... I''ve seen the future and the moment we enter in... we''re all dead."

    "What do you mean we''re all dead?" Death Angel interrupted. He also knew that Eye Goddess was acting out of character at the moment since she wasn''t the type to speak up when someone had already taken the leader''s role.

    "Surrounding us right now, in this blizzard, are powerful monsters that could rival each of us. If we don''t work together in bringing them down, then we''ll be walking straight to our demise. Then we have to take into ount the boss of these monsters. I assume that the entity right ahead of us is the boss, not because he''s ten times our size... but because of the future I saw. I only saw a glimpse of the future, merely five seconds of it. And I already know how powerful he is."

    "Right," Plunder agreed. "Thank you for the warning, Eye Goddess. With this, we can n ahead of time. Does the boss have a certain superpower or skill that we should be wary of? How are we defeated?"

    Eye Goddess nodded. "Yes, it has the power to control one person at a time. At first, it tried to control each of us to see who''s the strongest... and then... "

    "It controlled Plunder and finished all of us off, right?" Stoon, ranked seventh, finished Eye Goddess''s sentence.<sub> </sub>

    "Yes, that''s why we can''t just charge towards it willy-nilly. For now, let''s focus on the small fries first, and then we can deal with the bosster. Right now, it seems to be sleeping, hibernating. And as long as we don''t produce unnecessary noise, then we''re okay, I think."

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief. If they didn''t have the Eye Goddess in the team at the moment, they might''ve probably walked into their deaths the very second they entered the Gate. Of course, they still have to deal with the bosster but right now, prioritizing the small fries should be their priority since they''d be a nuisance if the boss fight were tomence.

    "Warper, we''re counting on you." Technomarine, ranked eighth, said to the ranked fourth Warper.

    Warper nodded and produced eight portals. "I''ll keep these open for now. This will take you to the enemies around us."

    "All right, those who can fight, let''s finish those small fries one by one, and then let''s regroup here before we n to take on the boss." Plundermanded. "Remember, time is of the essence here. We don''t know when the boss will wake up. It might even wake up as soon as we enter these portals. That''s why we have to defeat every single enemy as fast as we can and as quietly as we can."

    With a nod, everyone headed to each of their own portals, fully confident that they could take out the small fries. The Eye Goddess didn''t say anything about the mobs that surrounded them so they assumed them to be weak¡ª which is a good assumption.

    "Warper, you stay here. If the boss happens to wake up, let out a shout so we cane right back." Plunder said, jumping into the portal in front of him before he could hear Warper''s yes.

    Had he waited a secondter, they wouldn''t have had to go through something problematic.

    .....

    The Top Ten Superheroes based on the Current Superheroes Association Organization Rankings.

    1 Plunder¡ª Midoriyama Tatsuki¡ª Can plunder other people''s superpower and use it for a definite amount of time.

    2 Counter¡ª Midoriyama Ayumu¡ª Can counter any attack thrown at her.

    3 Death Angel¡ª Archus Strongs¡ª Can control dark matter. He doesn''t act around a lot so his rank isn''t reflected as the strongest. He may very well be the strongest hero of Japan.

    4 Warper¡ªEisus Harper¡ª Space warp. Can produce portals that can transport anything within a short distance.

    5 Life Angel¡ª Sirius Strongs¡ª Can control light, a support superhero specializing in buffs

    6 Eye Goddess¡ª Kitamura Ayano¡ª She''s number six due to her high hero score after warning the masses of multiple incidents before they even happened. Superpower¡ª can see through the future.

    7 Stoon¡ª Gerik Axor¡ª Metal maniption, he specializes in controlling a toon of robots, earning him the title, one-man-army.

    8 Technomarine¡ª Xander Marino¡ª A shapeshifter that could shapeshift into any animal but he prefers shapeshifting into aquatic beasts.

    9 Clone X¡ª Seo Arata¡ª Cloning. He can send out twenty of himself which is on par with an above-average person. Aside from that, they have the power to shoot beams out of their mouths.

    10 Fulfiller¡ª Takenaka Miki¡ª Has the power to connect two minds together, granting them the power to use both of their superpowers. She can also use that to herself and use the superpower of the person she''s connected to. Psychic Link. She can only perform two links at a time.

 Chapter 109 Overkill

    When Tatsuki entered the portal, he could already feel that something is wrong with the atmosphere, not because of the chilling cold, but because of the intense energy that he felt amidst the swirling blizzard.

    "Something''s not righ."

    Click!

    With his plundered superpower, ''Telescope'', he scanned the area, looking for possible lifeforms so he could pinpoint where the monsters were. Aside from the pirs that seemed to surround him, there was nothing else he saw. Of course, he could till feel the energy surrounding him, almost choking him.

    But aside from that, there was nothing he could see. His borrowed superpower ''Telescope'' could only do so much. It''s not like it could detect heat signature or anything of the sort, the most it could do was see a few meters forward.

    "What a useless superpower... well, it''s not like I expected to be in the middle of a snowstorm." Tatsuki clicked his tongue.

    Whoooosh~~~

    SLAM!

    ''Superspeed'', just one thought made Tatsuki elerate from where he was to a couple of hundred meters in a span of a split second. He couldn''t tell where the attack came from but he knew that it was arge-scale one. All he could do was get out of harm''s way even though he doesn''t know the coverage of the attack. As soon as he stopped though, he felt an intense gust of wind and snow hit him right on the face. ''Strengthen'', he thought to himself, nting himself from where he was so he won''t get blown away.

    Fwoooooo~~~

    The attack apparently came from the sky and it''s as if one of the pirs fell on top of him. That''s what caused the sheer force that he felt which caused him to move away. Had he not reacted in time, he would''ve been ttened to death without even knowing what hit him. "What''s going on?" He couldn''t help but ask. There was no space in his mind for cowardice or fear. Right now, his sole focus was to assess the situation and act ordingly.

    "Right, we can do this."

    ''Gust''

    ''Strengthen''

    ''Superspeed''

    Combining the three superpowers together, Tatsuki''s eyes lit up before he grinned at himself. He always enjoyed the execution part when ites to mixing things up. Every experience was a new one so he never really got boredbining superpowers together. He does it in moderation though since straining himself too much would result in an injury¡ª and an injury shouldn''t be underestimated when ites to a fight.

    After taking a step forward, Tatsuki extended his right hand as far as it could, applying the three superpowers on it. He decided to activate it for a split second first to see if it would break his arms. Fortunately, nothing happened.

    "Here we go,"

    With a swish, Tatsuki swung his hand with great force, causing a huge whirlwind that interrupted the snowstorm, thus canceling it. The whirlwind didn''t abate for a few seconds then it disappeared in an instant since no winds maintained its speed. But it did the job, the scene cleared up, giving everyone a clear view of what they were expecting.

    Then there was silence... two things were evident as soon as the storm cleared up. Indeed, another storm was brewing while the snowstorm was transpiring, and that storm hit them squarely on the face in the most unexpected manner.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    While the reporters and experts eagerly awaited the news from the Portuls, Crank Tank and his team were currently resting under Clerica''s buff, wondering why they still couldn''t get out of the Gate. ording to rumors, if they already defeated all the monsters in the room, then the Gate will open again and they could exit as if nothing happened. But right now, the only thing they did was stare at the Gate with utter bewilderment. Five times, they tried to exit the Gate five times but to no avail. It just wouldn''t budge. In fact, it''s as if it still pushed them in whenever they tried to get out.

    "Let me ouuut! LET ME OOUUUUT!" ck Bullet screamed as if to tease the Gate but nothing happened. He was only met with quietness.

    "Stop it ck Bullet." Crank Tank said. "Maybe there''s a time limit for the Gate. Maybe it will open after a certain time has passed."

    "What if the time limit was for a different reason? What if the Gate closes when it hit that supposed time limit?" Knifetongue brought up as he bit on the bread that Clerica handed to them. "Right now, we should scout the area to see if there are still any monsters."

    Everyone then stared at Crank Tank... there was no other choice.

    "Are you sure about this? Once I do this I''ll be out ofmission for a few minutes. Aggro¡ªSingrity can only be used once as well." Crank Tank scratched his head. Although he confirmed it with everyone, they''ve already decided.

    "We''ll cover for you," Resonance said, clearing her throat for the umpteenth time. She was finally getting warmed up.

    "Yeah, and it''s not like you''ll die if they hit you once or twice, right?" Clerica said with a light smile. "Besides, I still have a couple of energy potions left. I can certainly bring you back as soon as you hit your limit."

    Aggro¡ªSingrity. As the name suggests, it''s one of Crank Tank''s signature moves that allowed him to taunt every single monster in a wide area. As expected of someone on the thirty-eighth rank, he may be useless in damage output or buffs, but when ites to aggro and tanking, he''s on par with the higher-ranked superheroes. Not only does Aggro¡ªSingrity boosts his overall range, it also provides him with imprable defense as long as he''s out ofmission. The perfect shield, the perfect aggro superhero¡ª that is Crank Tank.

    "Well, then. Be prepared. If you think you can''t defeat everyone, then leave me alone and regroup. They wouldn''t be able to pierce through my imprable defense." Crank Tank said with a reassuring grin.

    "No, you saw how powerful those desert worms were, what if you attract an even more powerful one? It''s sure to pierce through your defense. I''ll bring you back as soon as you fall into unconsciousness."

    "That''s right, we need all hands on deck here," Knifetongue said. "Besides, I haven''t done anything yet,"

    Knifetongue, quirk¡ª knifetongue! He can extend his tongue indefinitely and turn it into a knife, shaping it as he wills like a ban-kai! (A certain narrator too familiar to be mentioned is the one who said this in the background.)

    With everyone''s approval, Crank Tank let out a chuckle. "You guys, if we die here, then we should at least stop everyone before they get out of that damned Gate! YOU HEAR ME!"<sub> </sub>

    "YES, LEADER!" They all shouted in unison.

    "You idiots, calling me a leader at such a crucial time. I don''t dislike it." With a click of his tongue, Crank Tank stomped his foot and posed like a sumo wrestler waiting for his opponent to strike. He was totally in a defensive position, getting in the gear before he fired off his special move.

    Aggro-Singrity.

    It''s as if the ground cracked beneath them when Crank Tank''s foot was buried an inch underground. An intense energy spread through the surface of the desert, reaching its farther reach and causing the monsters therein to respond to the beckoning.

    "BRACE YOURSELVES!" Crank Tank said before his eyes rolled backward and he fainted.

    "I''ll take care of Crank Tank! You guys prepare! I''ll remove the sun protection from you temporarily, please bear with it for a little while. I need all the energy I have to wake Crank Tank up."

    No oneined as they nodded.

    Knifetongue opened his mouth and his tongue immediately transformed into a knife. He remembered cutting his lips when he first manifested it, that''s why he wears a metallic brace so his teeth, gums, and lips won''t get cut in the heat of battle. The knife extended to a hundred meters and wrapped around Knifetongue''s body. It was a literal floating armor made out of a single malleable de.

    Screeeeeeech!

    Kiyaahhhhhhhkkk~~~

    Skreeeeeee~~~

    The screeches and the screams of the monsters far and wide began toe at them by the droves. Resonance screamed a couple of ''die''s towards a certain direction but after using her superpower a couple of times, she was already exhausted.

    "Save your power for the strong ones, Resonance, we''ll take care of these small fries''" Knifetongue said, using his tongue as a spring andunching himself towards the group of desert worms and a couple of unrecognizable monsters. In no time at all, he had already cut them into pieces.

    As for ck Bullet, his two arms were already firing nonstop, pushing the horde and giving Knifetongue a breather. Their teamwork was impable, and they were able to use their superpowers while being mindful of their teammates. It was like watching the cogs of a machine fit and work perfectly on each other.

    "Crank Tank is awake!"

    "I''m firing another Aggro-Singrity. I felt something in my mind before I lost consciousness. There''s a boss! I repeat, there''s a boss!" Crank Tank said as soon as he woke up.

    "Right! We should probably defeat that boss so we can get out of here! Crank Tank! Whenever you''re ready!" Knifetongue was getting desperate. He lost count of how many monsters he had already killed.

    Aggro¡ªSingrity

    "..."

    Once again, the air in the desert seemed to change at the same time when Knifetongue and ck Bullet were done dealing with the desert worms and the other monsters.

    "HERE IT COMES!" Knifetongue screamed. "Clerica, I want you to heal Resonance''s vocal cords. And she''ll need all the buffs she could get!"

    Everyone was on the same page.

    This time, Clerica disregarded Crank Tank who fainted while he was still standing up. She immediately rushed towards Resonance''s side and healed her vocal forms. She then drank the remaining energy potions she has to give Resonance regeneration, muscle strengthening, and advance healing.

    "Die," Resonance said as blood escaped her lips.

    Because the boss¡ª an evenrger desert worm ten times the size of the normal huge desert worm¡ª was more powerful than she had expected, she immediately damaged her vocal cords. But as soon as she did so, she felt it recovering, thanks to Clerica''s buff.

    Meanwhile, Clerica already fainted from exhaustion.

    "Die!" Resonance screamed a second time.

    Kiyaahhhhkkk~~~

    "Die!"

    Kyieeeeeeeeee~~~

    "Die!"

    Frwuuooooohh~~~

    "Die."

    "Die."

    "Die."

 Chapter 110 An Intruder

    "What is¡ª what is this?!" Clone X''s jaws dropped to the ground as soon as the snow cleared up.

    "This is¡ª " Counter stopped short, trying to catch her breath due to the shock.

    As for Fulfiller, she just gasped in exmation. The scene that they saw was something out of an apocalyptic movie, no, it was even worse than that.

    The pirs that everybody saw from afar... at first, everyone thought that the pirs were just part of the background, much like how these types of structures could be seen in rocky ces. But they were dead wrong.

    "Everyone! Stay where you are!" Plunder screamed. Fortunately, everyone heard him.

    As it turned out, the Pirs were actually huge orc-like monsters carrying tree stumps as if they were wielding a light sword. Their fangs protruded from their mouths and their ring red eyes were fixated on every superhero in the scene. They were fixated on where they were, not daring to move unless someone or something approaches them.

    Furthermore, the orc-like monsters resembled the stones from a very ssic tourist attraction on Earth¡ª Stonehenge. Needless to say, Plunder and the others were hopelessly surrounded. What''s even worse was that the boss¡ª an orc-like monster the size of a mountain¡ª was inside the circle of the other smaller orcs.

    The boss was still sleeping though. Upon closer inspection, one could tell that it was holding some sort of orb and a huge sword was equipped on his back. Every time it breathed, it causes a huge gust of wind so powerful that it rivaled Tatsuki''sbination move a couple of seconds ago.

    "What do we do now?" Fulfiller asked in a whisper. The sight of the giant orcs was enough to make her heart faint.

    "Nothing, let''s stay where we are. Warper, get us out of here, and then we regroup." Tatsuki said.

    Warper, who was standing in the middle of everything, didn''t respond, much to everyone''s surprise. He just stood there as if he were a statue in the middle of the park. Even a slight twitch couldn''t be detected from him and his portals were still up. Somehow, he froze, and no one knew the underlying reason for it.

    "Warper! Warper!" Stoon called out, sending one of his drones to wake him up. But even the drone couldn''t do anything to him.

    The sudden unconsciousness of one of their teammates caused the nine of them to slightly panic although they didn''t show it in their expressions. After all, you''ve already lost half the war if your spirit has been broken. Everyone was well aware of that so they decided to keep their unease to themselves.

    And then, Warper moved. It was so sudden but everyone was just d that he did.

    After extending his hands, Warper deactivated his portals and threw a punch in empty air. In that split of a second, Warper opened another portal and his punchnded squarely on Stoon''s face.

    "Be quiet, damned human." He said with a serious tone.

    "Warper! What''s going on!" This time, it was Technomarine who shouted.

    Technomarine, ranked eighth, has one of the rare superpowers of shapeshifting. He can transform into any animal he willed to but he prefers transforming into aquatic animals more than anything else. As soon as he screamed at Warper, his body grew in size and he became a huge octopus. He didn''t let give Warper a window to react to his movements and he immediately restrained him, albeit with great difficulty. Half of his tentacle count missed after Warper opened four portals while the other four got through.

    "Stay just like that," Plunder ordered, using his superspeed and hypersonic superpower so Warper will fall into unconsciousness. However, Warper remained standing while the tentacles constricted him.

    Tatsuki tried to attack Warper but he covered all his blind spots pretty well with portals. Although they reached a standstill, Warper just wouldn''t budge.

    "Fulfiller!"

    "Roger," Fulfiller responded, fully knowing what to do.

    Psychic Link.

    Ting!

    Much to everyone''s surprise, Fulfiller''s expression changed as if something she wasn''t expecting happened right in front of her. For the second time, she closed her eyes and uttered her skill.<sub> </sub>

    Psychic Link!

    Ting!

    "That''s impossible... " Fulfiller said.

    "What do you mean?" Clone X, who was beside her, asked concernedly.

    By the time he said that Warper already slipped through Technomarine''s octopus grasp by putting portals all over his body and teleporting a few meters away. Because of that, everyone''s jaws dropped in bewilderment since the Warper they know wouldn''t use his superpower on himself unless it was an emergency. Right now, however, he used it as if he had been doing it for a long time¡ª as if he''s used to it already.

    "Warper... Warper''s already linked to someone else!" Fulfiller said. "But that''s impossible! I haven''t used the Psychic Link on anyone. If I did I would''ve felt it."

    "You mean... " Clone X muttered.

    As soon as Fulfiller announced that, Plunder already realized what was going on. Slowly, he turned his head towards the biggest orc which was located in the circle with them. Well, the Orc Boss was still there, unmoving...

    The only difference was its eyes were already open.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    Nighttime finally descended on a certain portion of the Earth, causing the starry skies to be much more visible. Compared to other countries, nighttime in Japan is exceptionally brighter due to the city lights and their overall affinity to brightness. It wasn''t that different in the Saitama Prefecture where the Inter-High Tournament is currently being held.

    Satoshi and the others just got back inside their respective waiting room after eating dinner outside. Since almost half of them decided to rest out during lunch, Satoshi decided that they should all eat out together for dinner to celebrate surviving the first round of the tournament. The others agreed in an instant since they were quite hungry as well.

    And now, it was time to sleep. There were a lot of things that happened that day and they all deserved it.

    The rooms of the boys and girls were pretty much identical¡ª a spacious room with tatami mats on its flooring. It can fit at least six futons so there was no trouble with its space. Fuuka and Cherry were having a st in their spacious room since there were only two of them there.

    With eyes forcefully closed, Satoshi tried to get some shut-eye since everyone was already asleep. As usual, his routine didn''t work and the only thing he could do was look through the window as the full moon shone brightly against his face. A couple of times, he got the urge to open the window and get some fresh air but it was cold outside, and doing so might wake up the others so he didn''t do it.

    A few minutes ago, he received a video mail from his parents, telling him about the current predicament that''s happening all throughout the globe. Apparently, Gates started appearing and it was predicted to contain monsters. top superheroes didn''t have any choice but to scout the insides of the Gate since no electronics like drones and the like could get inside. Satoshi felt a bit nervous and worried at the same time when his mom and dad''s video mail came to an end. Although they were the top two superheroes in the whole of Japan, they aren''t invincible. One can take it down a notch even and say that they''re just humans, which is true in a sense. If they were to meet an even greater power in the Gate and they can''t call for help, Satoshi was sure that his parents would risk their lives fighting to the bitter end.

    "No let''s not think about that and raise some death gs. Right now I should focus on the Inter-High Tournament so that when they return, they can be proud of what I aplished." He told himself before shaking his head for the second time since saying such a thing is also a death g.

    ''Let''s just go back to sleep.'' Satoshi said, closing his eyes once more. He told himself that if it won''t work then he just had to punch himself so hard that he''ll fall straight into unconsciousness.

    Slide...

    In an instant, Satoshi was up on his feet as soon as he heard the slightest sound. He didn''t know what caused it but he knew for sure that the sound came from the windows. While his eyes tried to gauge whom the figure belongs to, he already grabbed the figure by his hand and neck and pinned him to the ground. ''An intruder? Why would an intruder go here? To sabotage us so we won''t be able to perform well in the second round? Highly likely. Fortunately, I was still awake.

    "Ouch!" The figure eximed. To Satoshi''s surprise, the voice that came out of the intruder''s mouth belonged to a girl.

    "Who are you?" Satoshi hissed, hoping that no one would wake up and see him pinning a girl. That would most certainly cause a misunderstanding.

    "I''m Emma Leisenberg... my readings brought me here." She simply responded.

 Chapter 111 Emma Leisenberg

    "I''m Emma Leisenberg... my readings brought me here." She simply responded.

    Striking white hair, clear blue eyes, and fair skin that could rival that of Shiroi''s¡ª those features were what Satoshi saw first as soon as she saw the girl who called herself Emma Leisenberg. Before he even realize that Emma escaped from his grasp and pinned him in return. For once, Satoshi wondered if he was dreaming or not... and if not, then why did the girl suddenly appear before him? Why didn''t the rms resound when she intruded in their waiting room? And why choose their room out of all ces?

    Looking straight into Emma''s eyes, Satoshi could tell that she was just as confused as he was. There were no signs of malice nor intent in her eyes, which is quite confusing considering that she was the one who went into their waiting room.

    "Who are you? What are you doing here?" Satoshi asked. "You do know that this room can be triggered with rms right? One signal from me and it''s an expressway to the police you go." Satoshi said, half-threatening the girl.

    "Come on, you don''t have to call the police. I just came here to talk." Emma said, her eyes finally showing expression. To his surprise, Emma was actually panicking quite a bit, even though their roles were reversed.

    ''Why is she panicking more so than I am?'' Satoshi asked himself but he couldn''t bring himself to ask Emma about it.

    "Shhhh!!!" Emma said, pressing her index finger on her lips.

    Emma just realized that the room where she was in right now was actually the men''s room. Of course, the first person she met as soon as she got here was a man, how could he expect that he''d be sleeping in a room with girls? Besides, the room was conspicuously big for a few people. It would be even weirder if he was the only one in the room.

    Meanwhile, Kurogami stirred from his slumber after hearing the slight shuffle by the end of the room. It was alreadyte at night and yet he could sense that someone was still awake. Curious, he turned around, trying to catch the one who woke him up.

    "This is bad!" Satoshi whispered to himself, pulling Emma inside his nket. It would''ve been all right if he had obstructed Kurogami''s view on Emma but then he realized that Kurogami could easily bypass that by using his superpower. It would be easy for him to sense two shadows as if he were breathing normally.

    <o>,m "What are you¡ª mmph!" Emma was about to exim when Satoshi hugged her to shut her up. Her mouth was pressed on his chest and she couldn''t speak, otherwise, her drool would be all over Satoshi''s shirt.</o>

    "Someone woke up. Be quiet." Satoshi warned.

    Emma felt her heart rate quicken but she didn''t overreact. If someone were to see them in that position, then they''d one hundred percent misunderstand, that''s why she couldn''t bear to move an inch, even though she was a tad bit ufortable.

    "Oh, Satoshi, I see you''re still awake," Kurogami said as he stood up and picked up his futon. He then walked towards Satoshi and ced his futon beside him. "I presume you''re anxious regarding the second round of the Inter-High Tournament?"

    ''No! What are you doing?! Why are you talking to me, now of all times! Really?!'' Satoshi screamed inwardly but his expression was the opposite. He justughed it off while scratching his head. "Yeah, probably."

    "I don''t think we''ll be having another free-for-all on the second round... maybe it will be individual battles by now. So six academies with at least 8 candidates. That''s about four rounds before we reach the finals. I''m guessing it will take the entire day just to go through the... you know."

    ''What is this guy talking about?'' Emma thought. She heard the rustling and decided to take a peek from the edges of the nket, and that''s when she saw Kurogami making his way toward them. She gulped, which prompted Satoshi to hug her tighter so she won''t make a sound. Fortunately, she understood the cue and decided to rx a little bit.

    When she rxed though, she realized that she was more exhausted than she expected to be. The travel was very taxing to her body and not only that, the readings weren''t really urate so she got lost a couple of times until the readings pointed to something very apparent. And that''s how she got there. And somehow, she ended up in the arms of the very person that the readings pointed to.

    "Who is this guy, really?" She asked herself while the softness of the futon enveloped her with pleasant warmth.

    "No, I don''t think we''ll be having individual fights as early as the second round. They''ll still cut the numbers down until we''re on top sixteen or something." Satoshi responded, wondering if Kurogami will fall asleep soon.

    "Maybe so. In any case, we have to prepare as much as we can. I realized during the first round how helpless I was since I couldn''t move much. I never really relied on my movements in the past but I guess it is very much needed when someone''s aiming to be a superhero. Not that I''m slow, no, but I never really practiced my movements and I defaulted to being immobile during the first round."

    "I see," Satoshi said, showing that he was paying attention when in his mind, he was constantly hoping that Kurogami would go back and sleep.<sub> </sub>

    "How about you, Satoshi? Are you having problems with your familiars? You only used one or two of them during the entire first round? Were you nervous?"

    Satoshi shook his head. "It''s not that I was nervous... but I didn''t want the viewers to question my superpower too much. If I let my familiars run amok and then proceed to acquire andslide victory, then the majority would start asking me questions. I want to keep a low profile for now... not until I be strong enough to fend for myself."

    "Valid. With great poweres great responsibility after all." Kurogami nodded his head. "Well then, I''m off to sleep. You should try to stop your fidgeting or you''ll wake up the others."

    "Yeah, thanks," Satoshi answered.

    With a satisfied smile, Kurogami then yawned and grabbed his futon once again. "I hope that eased your mind a little bit." He said before returning to his usual spot.

    Satoshi couldn''t tell whether Kurogami was really worried about him or he was just as nervous as him while thinking about the second round that''s due to happen tomorrow. Little did he know that it was a mixture of both. The reason why Kurogami talked to him was because he was genuinely nervous for the second round, and he thought that it would badly affect their team if the leader was just as nervous as him. But then again, he assumed all of that just because Satoshi wasn''t asleep yet.

    "He''s gone," Satoshi whispered, not daring to peek under the nket since he might see something that would really wake him up. Carefully putting his hands on Emma''s shoulders, he gently shook her, trying to wake her up as quietly as he could.

    "Mhmmm..." Emma mumbled as her arms wrapped around Satoshi.

    "Emma! Emma! What are you doing?!" Satoshi was getting more and more flustered by the second as he felt Emma''s body against his while her hug got tighter.

    He was now panicking. At this rate, they''ll get found out!

    "Emma! Emma!" Satoshi repeated a second time but he didn''t get any response at all. That leaves him no choice.

    After nervously swallowing his dry saliva, he let go of Emma''s shoulders and grabbed the edge of the nket. He couldn''t tell whether Emma was ying a prank on him or not, that''s why he wanted to catch her red-handed. Even if she were to do something, he''ll be able to see it once the nket is out of the way. A smile formed on Satoshi''s face and he gently lifted the nket.

    Let''s just say he wasn''t expecting anything like what he saw.

    Snuggled on his arms was Emma, and she was sleeping soundly,fortably, as she squeezed Satoshi with her embrace. The redness on Satoshi''s face, in turn, became more evident as he realized what was going on.

    "Emma! Emma!" This time, Satoshi was really trying to wake her up, shaking her violently while almost screaming at her ears¡ª well, more like hissing at her since he couldn''t really scream at that moment.

    "Mhmmm?" Emma mumbled once again.

    To Satoshi''s relief, she opened her eyes. The moment she did, she immediately realized what just happened and she deliberately let go of Satoshi. "I''m sorry, I was too tired I fell asleep."

    "That''s all right." Satoshi sighed in relief. "Now tell me why you''re here."

    "All right, all right. You don''t have to give me that look. Sheesh." Emma said. "In any case, this futon is really warm, huh. Can I stay here while I tell you?"

    ''This is going to be a long night.'' Satoshi told himself as he let out another sigh.

 Chapter 112 Total Despair

    "So what you''re saying is... you came all the way here to look for me," Satoshi whispered, pointing at the device that Emma was holding. From what she said, it''s some sort of a search-type device that would lead her to the person who could help her. And somehow, that device pointed to Satoshi.

    Emma nodded in response.

    "And also, you can''t tell me why you were looking for me? Why did youe all the way here anyway?" Satoshi asked who knows how many times already but Emma didn''t want to answer that. As far as Satoshi knows, Emma came from another country. He has no idea how she got her though.

    "Yes... actually no, I''m... I''m actually looking for some aide. And by far, you''re the only one who can help me. Are you the strongest around here?" Emma asked, just to confirm that her readings weren''t wrong.

    "No, why?"

    "I see... but why did my device direct me to you? There must be some¡ª how about your parents? Are they stronger than you? Sometimes the readings get affected by the energy surrounding the person so if that were the case, then it''s not that inurate."

    "Yes, why?"

    "Where are they now?"

    "I... you probably didn''t know about this but there''s another invasion going on," Satoshi said in a crestfallen manner. "Gates have appeared around the world and my parents were leading a party of superheroes to explore one of them."

    "So that''s how it is... we also have superheroes in our world." Emma continued. "Well, we don''t call ourselves superheroes though, we call ourselves Rankers,"

    "Wait... what are you talking about? Your world?"

    Emma nodded.

    "You''re not from this world?!"

    Emma nodded.

    "You mean... you crossed worlds just to get here?!"

    "Well, not exactly. Our world is in the same universe as yours, it''s just that I was sent here to help."

    The more Satoshi asked questions, the more he got confused. Emma was from another world but she specifically said that she lives in the same universe as theirs...

    "Are you an alien?" Satoshi asked. "This is cool, I''ve never met a human-alien before."

    "That''s mean but technically yes, I''m an alien. I''m human though so it''d be nice if you don''t call me that. Besides, I came here to help you with the Gates,"

    "What do you mean? I thought you were looking for help?"

    "Yes. What I mean is, I''m looking for someone to help me¡ª as an assistant¡ª so we can go around closing these Gates."

    It took a couple of seconds before Satoshi finally grasped the situation. To summarize, Emma was a human alien from another world and she traveled through space to help Earth in clearing these Gates that so suddenly appeared. Satoshi was confused. It''s not like alien invasion is new to him. Once or twice a year, an alien invasion happens on earth so it''s nothing new. But seeing the Gates was a different topic, then there''s the mysterious Emma Leisenberg as well.

    Somehow, something was happening behind the scenes and Satoshi was still not aware of it.<sub> </sub>

    "And then my readings pointed me to you! That''s how I got here." Emma excitedly whispered back.

    Satoshi wasn''t really paying attention so he didn''t hear what Emma''s narration was all about.

    "Well, let''s leave it for tomorrow, I need to get some sleep," Satoshi said. He didn''t want to think about the girl under his sheets anymore, he just wanted to get some shut-eye so he can perform at maximum tomorrow.

    "Wait, aren''t we going to help your mum and dad?!" Emma asked, surprised. "I mean, they''re currently fighting inside one of those Gates, right? Do you know how dangerous those Gates are? I mean, your mom and dad may be on par with S-rankers in our world but they could still die in there, you know."

    "We can?!" Satoshi almost lost hisposure. Fortunately, he didn''t scream out loud.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    SAO rankings, in the past, were furiously criticized due to how they solely relied on the firepower of a hero. The more powerful your output is, the more you''re recognized as one of the top heroes. But after a few years, that ranking became so wed that people became confused as to what a superhero really is all about. After all, based on the rankings, strength is what defines a hero. How about their ideals? Their cooperation? How they work well in a team? How about their overall strength as an all-rounder?

    At first, SAO decided to separate superheroes based on categories. A separate ranking for support heroes and a separate ranking for damage dealers. But after contemting it, they decided to stick to the past rankings and instead implemented points on every mission or incident solved. With this, any superhero can strive to get number one as long as they work harder than the rest. Even someone without a superhero, like Knighthawk, can climb through the ranks since it didn''t really specify that you need a superpower to enable you to do missions. Somehow, the rankings evened out and theints lessened.

    But now, with the new rankings implemented, anyone can be the number one hero as long as he/she works double-timepared to the top hero. That''s how Tatsuki and Ayumu got to the top spot¡ª they were always in the middle of the fray whenever an incident urs, earning them a lot of points. Those points reset every year though, but somehow, they''ve always kept the top spot.

    Still, Tatsuki and Ayumu were sure that every superhero out there could easily outrank them in no time. It''s just that some of them don''t really care about rankings so they don''t work hard on it. Ironically, those who want to up would always find themselves struggling and those who take it easy would always be involved in trouble, one way or the other. Was it divine punishment? One could only wonder.

    But now, those thoughts became a reality for both Tatsuki and Ayumu. Apparently, the Gate Boss¡ª the biggest orc in the group¡ª connected his mind to Warper, causing him to act weirdly in front of hisrades. This allowed him to disregard any safety measures he took so his superpowers won''t run amok, enabling him to go beyond his limits and use the full potential of his superpower. And since the mental burden is shared with the huge orc, it wouldn''t really cause internal damage to Warper.

    It would''ve been a good thing if the orc was on their side but unfortunately, such wasn''t the case. It didn''t take long before Warper started his onught of attacks that seem toe out of nowhere. His attacks were so erratic that even Ayumu couldn''t directly defend against him.

    Because Warper broke past his limits under the influence of the orc, his superpower was greatly enhanced, giving him an arsenal of skills that the other superheroes for the first time. He was able to summon more than fifty portals at the same time and every time he punches, the portals move. That''s why no one knows who''ll get attacked next. Ayumu couldn''t really counter Warper''s attacks though because, in order to counter someone, she should be expecting the attack toe right at her. If she can''t see the attack then it''s useless.

    And attacking is out of the question either. Somehow, Warper developed a skill that allows him to reflect any attack directed at him. And that attack would be twice as powerful as before. Those type of superpower is a direct counter to Tatsuki''s Plunder superpower. Whatever they throw at Warper would simply boomerang towards them with even greater output.

    In an instant, Warper became the number one threat amongst the group of orcs that surrounded them.

    "We''re at an impasse, what do we do now, Plunder?" Life Angel said after suffering a light beam right at the face. He was aiming at Warper with the thought that he won''t be able to respond to his attack. Light is faster than sight after all. And yet, somehow, he was able to anticipate his attack and reflect it right at Life Angel, causing him to stage backward as blood escaped his lips. The rest also suffered the same fate, discouraging them from attacking Warper, much less the Gate Boss behind him.

    "One way or the other, we have to deal with the boss. Once we defeated him, everything will go back to normal. But it''s hard to outmaneuver someone with the warping ability. Sigh~ out of all of us, why was he the one who got the short end of the stick?!" Counter responded, he could feel himself running out of options as seconds passed.

    "I... " Fulfiller called everyone''s attention by slightly raising her voice. "I... I have a way, but it''s a risky one. Eye-Goddess, can you check if it would work?"

    Now that Fulfiller mentioned it, Eye-Goddess has been awfully quiet throughout the entire ordeal, which was weird since she would always be the first one to speak up every time they take an action, telling them the end result.

    In response, Eye-Goddess just shook her head. "It... it won''t work. Unless a miracle happens, we''re all going to die here." She simply said before anyone could interrupt her.

 Chapter 113 The Last Stand

    "You ready?"

    Satoshi felt a lump on his throat as nervousness almost overcame him. Right now, he didn''t know what to expect from Emma, heck, he doesn''t even know whether she was trustworthy or not. But nevertheless, he was told that they needed all the help they could get and it was not like Emma had already done something to him. Besides, he knew perfectly well that he''d regret it if something were to happen to his parents. Being aware that he could''ve done something would''ve eaten away at his guilt.

    "I said, are you ready?"

    "I, uh, yeah sure," Satoshi said, clutching at his trusty familiar Orb Oboros because he''s the only one carrying all the familiars, well, except for Dex of course since Satoshi knows that Dex follows him around wherever he goes.

    With a nod, Emma got out of the nket and opened the window. She then waved her hands around. For a moment, she could''ve sworn that she heard some noise behind her but thinking that it may have just been Satoshi, she ignored it.

    Slowly, a purple haze formed right in front of the window, growing bigger and bigger and rotating as if it were a horizontal tornado. The haze started rotating even more unsteadily, growing even bigger until the entire window was covered by it. With a satisfied smile, Emma nced sideways towards Satoshi and gestured at him. "Let''s go," She said so casually even though the portal looked so unsteady and fragile.

    "No way I''ll go through that," Satoshi said, shaking his head.

    "Then, what are you going to do?"

    Emma could tell that Satoshi didn''t want to go in because he hasn''t fully trusted her yet. Because of that, she decided to hop in and out of the portal, putting her hand back and forth and traveling through and going back. "See? Perfectly harmless," She continued.

    Sighing, Satoshi approached the portal. Well, it''s not like he had any choice. He alreadymitted to it and Emma already opened the portal. The only thing left to do is to jump in.

    "Come on!"

    Sigh~

    .....

    "Die!"

    Clerica, exhausted, copsed on the desert sands. She had alreadypletely run out of energy potions and healing Resonance back depleted all her energy. Crank Tank and the others heaved a sigh of relief as they heard a dying moan, and then another desert worm exploded from afar. Bits of blood and gore rained down once again. This time, they felt a bit relieved instead of grossed out due to the bloodiness of the situation. Then again, that was the only desert worm so there was no need for them to panic. More so, it''s thergest desert worm so it might''ve been the boss.

    Having defeated the boss, the group was assured that they''d be able to go home soon. "That was thest of them." Crank Tank said in a celebratory manner.

    "YES!" ck Bullet and Knifetongue raised their hands together while shouting. It had been a hard-fought battle but they survived. The Gate would now open and then they could go out, having cleared the Gate. Of course, if there''s nothing inside the Gate anymore, then it''s only obvious that it would close on its own.

    Rumble.

    Rumble.

    Rumble.

    A smile could be seen on Crank Tank''s face as he forced himself to move forward. He''d start making his way to the Gate so they could go out the moment it opens. The others followed suit. Somehow, all of them still had the energy to stand up and walk. They couldn''t believe it either since they''d already hit their limit a while ago.

    "Resonance, your throat all right?" Crank Tank asked. "You really got us out of the bind there. Also thanks for Clerica''s buffs, you were able to hold on until the end."

    "We all did a very good job. After this, we should go grab some meat or something, my treat," Crank Tank continued.

    "Whoa, that''s rare¡ª boss treating us for a meal, I mean." ck Bullet pointed out. "We should go to the most expensive restaurant then if that''s the case."

    "Yeah," Knifetongue agreed.

    ? As the group walked, their feet digging into the sand and leaving behind a trail of footprints that were then erased by the warm desert winds, they finally reached the location of the Gate. It looked monstrous as ever, terrifying even. To think that they were able to enter in without thinking twice about it was nothing short of a miracle. Looking at it up close after everything had happened made them rethink their decisions.

    "Let''s go," Crank Tank beckoned, leading the charge. Without a second thought, he extended his hands and proceeded to get out of the portal.

    Fwoooooom!

    Crank Tank couldn''t react on time. As soon as he touched the Gate, he was thrown into the air as if some huge force repelled him from where he was standing. Dazed, he stood up and dusted himself, wondering if there was a malfunction in the Gate.

    "Knifetongue, can you try it for me? I think there''s something wrong with th¡ª "

    Fwoooooom!

    Just like what Crank Tank experienced, Knifetongue was also repelled by the Gate.<sub> </sub>

    Before Crank Tank could order another party member to try it out, ck Bullet raised his hands and told everyone to be quiet. He then cautiously approached the Gate.

    "The Gate¡ª The Gate is not yet open." ck Bullet said. "I mean, it would''ve already opened if the objective was to kill the boss. But we already did that. Why are we still trapped in here?"

    ck Bullet tried to internalize what just happened. They were able to defeat all the desert worms and even their leader. But if that were really the case, then their job should''ve been done by now.

    No, wait¡ª

    "What if... what if that Giant Desertworm wasn''t the leader? What if there''s another Gate Boss?" ck Bullet supposed.

    "Come on, don''t joke like that, ck Bullet. If that''s the case then we won''t be able to do anything. Our one and only support are already out ofmission. I''m out ofmission, and it won''t be long before we be toast." Crank Tank said.

    Even after saying that though, Crank Tank could tell that something was amiss inside the Gate. If what ck Bullet said was true, then they''re already doomed.

    Swish.

    Swish.

    Swiiiiiiiish!

    Just like the sand in an hourss, the sand seemed to be sucked right in the middle, causing everyone to lose their footing. Before they knew it, a huge whirlpool of sand appeared in the middle of them. Without thinking twice, Knifetongue extended his tongue without shifting it into a knife and then he grabbed everyone with it, carrying them over to a safe spot, straining his tongue until it almost ripped.

    Fortunately, Clerica saw what was about to transpire and she forced herself to heal Knifetongue''s tongue before it got ripped due to all their weight.

    "What was that?!" Crank Tank eximed while they all watched the whirlpool of sand be more violent.

    Only ck Bullet had a different thought as he watched the strange phenomenon. While everyone was thinking that it was probably just a normal reaction to the environment inside the Gate, ck Bullet thought otherwise. He knew that assuming a monster was behind everything is the safest approach when ites to the unpredictability of the Gate.

    "Crank Tank! Try taunting it right now!" ck Bullet suddenly shouted.

    "What do you mean?"

    "Taunt it!"

    As mentioned before, Crank Tank was already tired, he was even more exhausted than Clerica. That''s why he didn''t want to use his skill anymore. Any more than this and he knew he''d lose consciousness.

    "Why do I¡ª " Crank Tank was about toin when ck Bullet interrupted him.

    "Just do it!"

    "Sigh~ all right." Crank Tank said. "TAUUUUNNNT!"

    Kiyaaaaaaahkk~~~

    "Oh no," Clerica said as colors drained from her face.

    "I knew it." ck Bullet said, biting his lips.

    Everyone watched in horror as Crank Tank leaned over while his eyes rolled over until only the back white part was visible. He had lost consciousness afterpletely depleting his energy, leaving him defenseless. Clerica who was out ofmission as well knew that they just arrived at the point of no return.

    Whatever it is that''s down there, it might be ten times biggerpared to the gargantuan desert worm that they assumed as the boss.

    "We''re going to die," Knifetongue said the inevitable, almost biting his tongue in the process.

    "No, not yet! We have to fight! If this monstrous thing got out of the Gate, then we''re not the only ones who''ll be in danger! Right now, we have to take ourst stand!" ck Bullet said, transforming his hands into cannons once again as he aimed at the ever sinking whirlpool of sand.

    But before the beast emerged out of the sand, another portal appeared in front of them. It had a lighter shade of purplepared to the Gate but it scared the living daylights out of them nheless.

    "WHAT IS IT THIS TIME?!" ck Bullet eximed in despair.

 Chapter 114 Status Quo

    ck Bullet, who assumed the leadership position after Crank Tank fell into unconsciousness, stopped short, causiGate others to be immobile as well. The purple swirling haze grewrger, adding to their overall nervousness. With its intense energy leaking out, no one knew what to expect next since everything had been unpredictable ever since they entered the Gate.

    Needless to say, all of them felt panic-stricken while staring at the portal. Was it a double event where there''s another Gate inside one? They could only wonder, gulping as they anticipated what woulde out of the portal.

    "See? Harmless," A girl''s voice was evident as soon as the portal increased twice its size in an instant. One secondter, a girl with snowy white hair and clear blue eyes came out, beckoning someone toe with her.

    "Are they m-monsters?" Knifetongue was the first one to speak up amongst their party. Clearly, the girl had human features but anything could happen in a Gate. For all they know, the girl could very well be a monster.

    "Come on!" Emma gestured once again, making the others pause as they dreaded what woulde out of the Gate next.

    "You sure about this, right?" The voice of a guy resounded soon after.

    When Satoshi came out of the portal, he half expected to meet his parents in an instant. But after seeing everyone''s unfamiliar gazes, he realized that he''d been tricked. Without reservation, he approached Emma and hissed at her. "Why are we here?!" He said with his brows furrowed.

    "Well... I kind of mixed up the... the order... hehe~~~" Emma forced a smile on her face as if that would get her out of her mess.

    "What do you¡ª we''re in America! That''s like on the other side of the. How could you mix such a thing up?!" As per usual, Satoshi talked with his light tone so he wouldn''t necessarily Garner everyone''s attention¡ª even though he already did,pletely.

    "It''s all right, it''s not like they''d recognize y¡ª " Emma began, totally jinxing the situation

    "Wait! Aren''t you that... you know! That high school student who debuted during the Slime Alien invasion!" ck Bullet said, but Satoshi didn''t understand a single word since ck Bullet spoke in fluent English.

    "Um, I''m... yes!" Satoshi stammered.

    "What are you doing here?" ck Bullet asked.

    Fwooooom~~~~

    Before Satoshi could attempt to trante what ck Bullet told him, a huge wave of sand almost washed him away. It didn''t transpire because of a strong gust of wind, but because a huge creature emerged from underneath the desert sand.

    What came out of the sand was a beast they''d never imagined. It was a thorny rose as huge as a six-story building, wiggling and whipping around as if someone sprinkled salt on it. Its hundreds of vines whished continually on the sand, sending a heavy cloud of dust upwards. A shriek emanated from the top of the Monster Rose as it continued its rampage.

    "So that''s the bo¡ª " ck Bullet was in awe. Compared to the desert worms, this Monster Rose was an absolute nightmare. It was thrice the size of thergest desert worm, and not only that, its vines were equally threatening to each and every one of them.

    Whip~

    Before ck Bullet could react, the Monster Rose raised a few of its vines, intending to hit ck Bullet squarely on the head. Since ck Bullet was a bit surprised at how enormous the Monster Rose was, he was a step toote to dodge. With death lingering at his door, ck Bullet closed his eyes, hoping that he''d suffer a quick and painless death.

    "Watch out!" Emma screamed, producing another portal and sending the vines flying somewhere else. Meanwhile, Satoshi summoned his familiar ''Lighter'' andmanded it to spit out spires of mes to burn off the rest of the vines that slipped through Emma''s defenses.

    Well, ck Bullet didn''t see any of that since he shut his eyes tight. Had he seen the miracle he''d hoped for at thest second, he would''ve believed that it happened right then and there. "Am I dead?"

    "No, at least not yet. Get it together ck Bullet." Knifetongue said, pushing past his limits as well just so he could cut a couple of vines that tried to ''whip'' him to death. As for Resonance, she didn''t speak a thing, she just watched over Clerica and Crank Tank while Knifetongue and ck Bullet defended them. Right now, Resonance couldn''t really do anything since her voice is still recovering. And even if she were fully recovered, she was well aware that the Monster Rose wouldn''t be taken down by just a single word. That''s why she was as helpless as a newborn kitten. As much as her pride didn''t want something like that to happen, there was nothing she could do about it.<sub> </sub>

    Meanwhile, Satoshi and Emma didn''t dare look back as they continued to harass the Monster Rose that seemed to stampede its vines all over the ce. Satoshi almost went through his mental limit as hemanded the Lighter of every intricate movement. Of course, there were hundreds of vines everywhere and Satoshi had to dodge it, all the while telling his Lighter to dodge and fire. He couldn''t take a breather.

    Emma, on the other hand, was focused on defending herself and everybody else by producing portals that would block the vines that slipped past Satoshi''s offenses. She was nearing her limits too since there were only too many portals she can make. But because of that though, the clean-up became more efficient and a few minutester, Satoshi had safely adjusted to the movements of the Monster Rose and he managed to control his attacks even more precisely. He was in an adrenaline rush and he maximized every second of it.

    "Who''s that kid?" Resonance asked, her voice bing hoarse as the seconds passed. Since she overused it and Clerica couldn''t heal her anymore, her throat continued to deteriorate. She didn''t ask for any energy potions or the sort from Satoshi though since they were being saved right now.

    "You don''t know him? He''s that overpowered kid during the finals of the initial exams. He''s also on TV, the only superhero who managed to defeat a Slime Alien after it ran amok in a city in Japan. I forgot what city it is." Knifetongue said before rushing in for another flurry of attacks.

    "I see, so that''s him." Resonance muttered. She could vaguely remember reading an article about him and thought that his superpower was weird but she didn''t take it to heart since she doesn''t know him anyway... and it''s not like she''s interested in someone else''s life when she''s busy as a superhero as she is.

    "Emma! Cover!" Satoshi screamed,

    "Aiyo~," Emma said, pursing her lips as she leaped out of the way from the iing vines thatshed at her. She decided to utilize her dodging skills since she had to make up for a few more portals to cover for Satoshi.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi rushed toward Resonance and the others with a purposeful stride, causing Resonance to stagger a bit. A few secondster, Resonance realized that Satoshi wasn''t looking at her, but at the staff that she was holding.

    [Skill¡ª Unwavering Control has been unlocked!

    Description¡ª After manually controlling your familiar, you''ve unlocked unwavering control, causing them to obey simple orders and see it through to the end...]

    "Nice! System, run diagnosis on this item!" Satoshi didn''t even let Dex finish what he was saying. He knew that this was the first time he unlocked a skill from his ''System'' familiar but time was of the essence and there was no point in celebrating at the moment. He did already understand the gist of the skill so there was no need for Dex to tell him any more than it already did.

    [At least, call me Dex]

    "Sorry, can you please run a diagnosis on this item?" Satoshi said.

    [Running Diagnosis... ]

    [Yes, it will awaken the very thing you''re thinking. One hundred and one percent match.]

    "Thanks! I owe you yet another one!" Satoshi yelled out, extending his hands and doing his weird dance as two orbs of blue mes danced at the palms of his hand. Right now, Satoshi didn''t even think about the secrecy of his superpower. Emma and he were just maintaining the status quo against the Monster Rose and unless they don''t get the other American superheroes for help, then the favor would absolutely tip to the Monster Rose''s side.

    "Wait, what are you¡ª " Resonance, who was the only one awake in the group, was about to ask Satoshi about his weird movements and the mes when one of the Orbs touched the staff that Clerica gripped tightly on.

    Woop~~~

    In an instant, the staff disappeared, leaving a hollow space between Clerica''s fingers.

    "Thanks," Satoshi smiled as a yellow glow emerged from where the staff was a few seconds ago.

 Chapter 115 All Hail The Eye-Goddess

    [Satoshi, you''re powers are growing stronger,]

    [You have to be careful]

    Somehow, what Dex told Satoshi as soon as he used his superpowers on Clerica''s staff made him wonder if Dex was teasing him or not. A moment ago, he barked orders at it and it was somehow offended by the way he talked. So maybe this time, he was trying to mess with him. ''Why did I have to be careful? And if my powers are growing stronger, then isn''t that a good thing?'' Satoshi said to himself while anticipating what sort of creature woulde out of the staff. He kind of expected a newer version of the staff but to his surprise, something else came out¡ª something life-like, something mobile.

    "Wuu~" A soft voice came from the new familiar that Satoshi got. For some reason, the new familiar looked like a teru teru bozu (those cute white dolls that the Japanese hang up when it''s a rainy day) except it had a halo. It was the cutest thing that Satoshi ever saw in his life. In an instant, he felt like it would be his favorite familiar. And somehow, he felt a pang of jealousy from the other familiars as soon as he thought about that.

    "I''m just kiddi¡ª "

    [Petmaster support has been activated]

    [Please name your new familiar, Satoshi]

    "Sera," Satoshi didn''t even think twice about the name of the familiar because it seemed cute and angelic at the same time. He doesn''t know why the staff transformed like that though. Unbeknownst to him, Clerica''s staff is actually alien technology from the invasion a few years back. It cost Clerica a fortune to get such a staff and Satoshi just got it for himself. But then again, it''s not like Clerica can do anything about it since she was unconscious.

    [Sera''s support has been activated]

    [Sera''s support rank is set to C]

    [Sera''s stats has been boosted up]

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi called up but he had no time to find out what Dex meant in his head. As soon as he asked the question, a few tentacles came at him and he summoned his familiar ''Nailgun'' and rode on it once again. He barely dodged the oing vines and some of them bruised him a bit.

    However, as soon as he got those bruises, it disappeared in an instant as if he was never bruised in the first ce. It''s as if what happened was just a temporary illusion.

    Suddenly, the entire atmosphere was covered with yellow glowing light as three halos appeared on Sera''s head. Satoshi would know soon enough that those halos represent the multiplier of its healing abilities. As of right now, Sera can only produce three halos and that''s the current limit of her ability.

    However, her abilities were more than capable enough to heal everyone in the group and debuff the Monster Rose at the same time. In a split second, Crank Tank and Clerica woke up and they felt more rejuvenated than ever. Even Resonance, who was experiencing a sore throat, felt like she could shout a thousand times over at the enemy.

    "What... just... happened?" Clerica asked, staring at Resonance. However, Resonance was as speechless as her.

    "Sorry about that Satoshi. I can''t use my portals that much anymore. We still need to go to the other Gate right?"

    "YES! I''ll take care of this. Just make sure you have enough energy to get us there." Satoshi bit his lips. Why is he trusting a girl he just met? It''s not like she''s proven herself to be trustworthy enough.

    As soon as Emma spoke, she felt unknown energy welling up within her as if someone was powering her up. And then she realized that some sort of figure was floating in the middle of the battlefield. That figure seemed like a white doll with three halos on its head. And somehow, the doll was sping both its hands as if it were praying.

    When the yellow glow reached the Monster Rose it began screeching in pain as if the sun was directly burning it with its rays. It shriveled, and then its size was reduced to half of its former glory.

    "So this is the power of... " Satoshi mumbled, making a mental note that he had to thank Clerica for the staff that became an invaluable ally on his team. Had he checked the information about his new familiar, he would''ve realized that it was the first S-Grade Familiar he got.

    "Thanks, whatever you are!" Emma screamed at Sera who was floating at the top of the battlefield.

    Because of everything falling into ce, everyone knew that they had a fighting chance at defeating the unbeatable Monster Rose. With another shout, Crank Tank taunted the Monster Rose so all its attention will be directed at him, leaving the damaged dealers to attack it from its blind spots. Knifetongue and ck Bullet regained their energy as well and they took that opportunity to continuously attack the Monster Rose as if there was no tomorrow. Satoshi followed their pace as well, utilizing White Lion, Lighter, and Nailgun as they continued their assault.<sub> </sub>

    "We got this!" Crank Tank said.

    "Wait, where''s my¡ª WHERE''S MY STAFF?!" The color on Clerica''s face vanished in an instant as soon as she realized that her staff was nowhere to be found. She rummaged through her bag and even looked around the surroundings. She even dug a few feet of sand around her but to no avail. Somehow, her staff just disappeared from her hands.

    "Um... about that... " Resonance nervously gulped as she pointed at Satoshi. She knew it would be hard for her to exin if she pointed at the Familiar that continuously healed them. All for good reason though since there would be much confusion if Resonance exined it without thinking too much about it. "Satoshi got your staff... and then he summoned some sort of Familiar through your staff."

    "WHAT?!"

    After saying that, Resonance then pointed at the familiar that floated directly on top of the Monster Rose. "That familiar," Resonance continued.

    "WHAT?!"

    Clerica couldn''t believe it!

    That staff¡ª The Staff of Brynhildr¡ª is one of her most prized possessions. Ites close second to her life when ites to importance. It was the most expensive thing she bought in an auction and until now, she''s still paying for it. It didn''t really bother her since she earns quite a lot... but now it would leave a bad aftertaste in her mouth every time she pays for it because it''s basically gone.

    After thinking about it though, it''s not like she can me Satoshi for doing something underhanded. A few moments ago, they were at the end of their rope, only awaiting their inevitable deaths. Had Emma and Satoshi note to their rescue, they would''ve died right then and there. As aforementioned, Clerica still held her life as her top priority, that''s why she partly epted the loss of her staff in exchange for obtaining the blessing to live another day.

    "That kid... he''s Satoshi, right? That powerful superhero from Japan?" Clerica said. "I guess that''s fine then. I''ll just look for another staff." She continued even though she felt bad about it.

    As they continued their onught, the Monster Rose''s hp steadily went down. There was nothing it could do. Just an additional familiar on the enemy''s side was enough to tip the favors against the Monster Rose. With Resonance''sst ''die'', the Monster Rose let out a weak moan before it fell on the sand, causing sand to spray everywhere.

    They''ve defeated the Monster Rose.

    Emma excitedly ran towards the Monster Rose and grabbed something from there. Only Satoshi was the one who noticed what she did so he didn''t say a word about it. Right now, his topmost priority is to get Emma to use her portal once again and transport him to where his parents are. It wouldn''t do him any good if he confronted Emma about her suspicious activity so he kept quiet.

    "Let''s go," Satoshi continued.

    "Sure!"

    After getting all his familiars back and putting them into Orb Oboros once again, Emma made another portal that was big enough to fit the two of them. She was full of energy right now so opening a portal was as effortless as breathing.

    "Wait!" Crank Tank called out but Emma and Satoshi already stepped into the portal.

    Fwoooom~~~

    "We didn''t even get to say thank you, huh," Knifetongue said with a sigh. "They did save our lives after all. Clerica, I''m sorry about your Staff of Brynhildr but it had to be done. That kid risked his life to save us and he almost died a couple of times back there."

    "I can''t believe we just survived that. I thought I was already a goner when I lost consciousness." Crank Tank muttered. We''d better bring that kid to our agency no matter what."

    "Yes, all hail the Eye-Goddess." ck Bullet agreed.

 Chapter 116 Raise The Morale

    Once again, Satoshi and Emma found themselves in another world. This time, the environment was snow. At first, Satoshi felt a bit cold so he used the Cloak of Invisibility to cover himself up. He didn''t even think about offering Emma something to wear since she didn''t react to the coldness. A few minutes passed and Satoshi recognized his blunder. He decided to summon his familiar Windfan so it could continuously blow hot air towards them, warming them up.

    "Where are w¡ª "

    "Ssh," Emma interrupted Satoshi, making him feel a little bit annoyed. He didn''t disregard her interruption and he stopped speaking.

    Every direction they nced at was no differentpared to the rest of the surroundings. It was in and white, obviously because of the thick snow that covered the entire expanse. There were no trees nor anyndmark anywhere aside from the blurry shadow they could see from afar. Satoshi and Emma immediately realized that that''s where the Midoriyama Duo and the other top ten were so they quickly headed there. They did so discreetly though since they didn''t want any unwanted attention towards them.

    "Hopefully they''re still alive." "Emma muttered to herself as she took a quick nce at Satoshi from time to time, she didn''t want her expression to reveal her worries since they weren''t even that close. Why did she have to worry about him when he doesn''t fully trust him in the first ce. Those thoughts seemed to sh subconsciously and yet somehow, they meshed pretty well together when ites to working as a tag team.

    "There they are!" Emma said excitedly after catching sight of the ten superheroes that were surrounded by a bunch of gigantic monsters. In an instant, Emma stopped in her tracks, intimidated by the sheer size of the monsters. Of course, she knew it was possible to defeat them if she were to work with Satoshi but right now, she felt a bit panicked and frightened at the same time, causing her to get paralyzed with fear.

    "Come on," Satoshi said with an eager voice, finally catching up to Emma who was way ahead of her. He was just a normal human after all and there''s only too much he could do with his base running speed. He also didn''t want to overuse his familiars because something might happen if he were to do it, that''s why he decided to use them only at critical moments¡ª meaning the whole fight.

    Grabbing her hand, Satoshi forced Emma to take another step as he dragged her nearer to the monsters. "We can''t lose any more time." He continued.

    .....

    <o>,m Plunder and Counter were at their wit''s end as Warper yed with them without reserve. The other superheroes couldn''t evennd a hit on him anymore and they were on the verge of losing hope. Right now, the Gate Boss was toying with them using Warper while his subordinates watched over them. There was no escape, and the only thing they could at least do was hold on until the bitter end¡ªuntil they all die, that is.</o>

    "Fulfiller," Plunder called out, pointing towards his wife. Fulfiller immediately got what he was talking about and performed a link on both their minds.

    Psychic Link.

    In an instant, Ayumu and Tatsuki once again felt the connection in their minds and they were able to utilize each other''s powers once again. This was the boost Tatsuki needed so he can counter Warper''s attacks and hopefully beat him so they could take care of the boss. Firing a few ice spikes, Tatsuki got a bit closer to Warper¡ª not because the ice spikes gave him the opening, but because he was using his wife''s Counter to block any attacks that maye at him. Even the warps were negated if he managed to predict where they would appear. Seeing through attacks is also what gave Tatsuki an advantage against the merciless onught of Warper.

    Because of that opening, everyone started charging at Warper at full speeds, only focusing on defending instead of attacking. If they were to get hit by any attacks Warper might throw at them, unless they provided a well-made distraction to give Tatsuki even more openings.

    Superspeed!

    Super Strength!

    Anticipation!

    It was obvious that Tatsuki was nearing his limits as he activated as many superpowers as he can in order to stop the rampaging Warper. He could very well understand that Warper wasn''t the one attacking him, but it was because he was under the influence of the Boss. Right now, his goal was to stop him as soon as he can before his energy runs out. By then, everything would be lost.

    "Death Angel, Life Angel, are you ready?" Fulfiller called out.<sub> </sub>

    Up until now, the Boss hasn''t made a move yet, it just stood immobile in the middle of the circle, as if amused by the show ying out right in front of it.

    Death and Life Angel nodded, already expecting what Fulfiller was about to do next.

    As mentioned before, Fulfiller can only perform two Psychic Links simultaneously so she decided to do that. She didn''t want Tatsuki to do all the heavy lifting. And while everyone was doing their best to lighten Tatsuki''s load, she figured she should just do her utmost best as well so they can have a greater chance at winning.

    If they couldn''t win this current wave, then all hope would be lost after all.

    With a few more ice spikes, and a few more fireballs thrown at Warper, Tatsuki was only less than ten meters away from Warper. Warper''s portals were bing more and more unpredictable, making him dodge faster with his superspeed, quickstep, and anticipation superpower.

    And then, the opening came!

    Clone X suddenly appeared with all his clones around Warper. Because of the opening Tatsuki caused, it wasn''t just him who acquired a few openings during the bout. Even Technomarine who wasn''t in the scene until now appeared right below Warper as a mole. Apparently, he dug underground so Warper wouldn''t notice him and throw him out with one of his portals.

    There was a pause, and then everybody went into the attack. Tatsuki managed to punch Warper by the super plexus and Clone X chopped his neck, just enough to render him unconscious. As for Technomarine, who was still disgusted by the fact that he was forced to transform into and animal, he decided to cut off Warper''s escape route by holding onto his feet after transforming into a huge octopus.

    Silence,

    "..."

    And then, a roar was heard. There was no doubt about it, the Boss of the Giant Orcs was pissed.

    For the first time, it took a step and let out another roar causing another blizzard to ensue. The other Giant Orcs started moving as well. What Tatsuki and the others thought was a momentary victory was actually just a prelude to the despair that will befall them. After having wasted their energy like that, there was no way they could do anything about the next wave. They were all on the verge of exhaustion but they could still hold off for a few minutes, or so that''s what they initially concluded.

    Light and Dark Angel started shooting off one skill after another¡ª one of light and one of dark matter¡ª but the only thing it did was chip a little of the Boss''s hp. If they go at it for quite some time, it''d probably take them at least a month before they cold defeat such a beast. Then there''s also the Giant Orcs to worry about. Those Giant Orcs aren''t a joke... well,pared to their boss, they were inferior of course.

    Suddenly, the Boss of the Giant Orcs raised its Orb and muttered something unintelligible in the air. Somehow, the orb gave off a faint yet mesmerizing glow of light brown in color. And then, suddenly, ck smoke started rising from the Giant Orcs that surrounded them. Their eyes turned red as well and their fangs were more evident than before. They weren''t just angry, they were enraged as if someone turned on their berserker side inside themselves. While they had to deal with a powerful Boss who was buffing his subordinates, they''d still have to deal with the other Giant Orcs who were about to go on a rampage. They were salivating, and all the pauses in between were reced by deep growls as if they were ready to devour a new prey whole.

    "One look says it all. They''re hungry." Tatsuki ryed to everyone. "SUPERHEROES! PREPARE TO FIGHT TO THE DEATH!"

    As soon as they all nodded, Tatsuki led the charge as he shouted in a war-like manner. Adrenalin was continuously being pumped into his system as he disregarded of all the bruises and welts on his body. He wasn''t the only one who experienced the same oue.

    Just like how the Giant Orcs were buffed by their powerful leader, Tatsuki''s small speech was enough to power-up all his teammates as well.

 Chapter 117 Gate Clear

    The air has gotten heavier as the blizzard continued to rampage, wearing down the group. Still, Tatsuki and his party relentlessly attacked the Orc Boss as it desperately fended for itself with the help of its subordinates.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi and Emma were still running toward the group. The next thing they knew, they were already in the middle of a snowstorm. It was nothing for the Windfan though since it could just as easily blow the snowstorm away.

    Emma wondered why Satoshi has a few overpowered familiars but she didn''t dare ask. Turns out, she didn''t notice when Satoshi grabbed Clerica''s Staff of Brynhildr and transformed it into his familiar. She was busy dodging those vines after all. Well, Emma is an oddity as well so she wasn''t shocked that Satoshi was more powerful than her.

    "Mom, Da¡ª " Satoshi stopped short upon witnessing the scene straight out of his nightmare. Of course, he half-expected to see such a scene on tv but who would''ve thought he would witness it personally. In a heartbeat, Satoshi stopped in his tracks and stared in awe at the Giant Orcs and the superheroes''st stand. It was a desperate battle by the edge of life and death itself.

    "Satoshi! Satoshi! Get it together." Emma woke him up from his split-second freeze-up, causing him to breathe heavily while clutching his chest. The adrenaline was rushing through him, urging him to throw up... or to do something.

    [You have empowered your Familiars because of your hatred and desperation]

    [Undergoing process... ]

    [Transformation and rewrite sessful]

    [Activated permanent skill¡ª Petmaster''s Blessing]

    [Skill¡ª Petmaster''s Blessing

    Description¡ª With the growing affinity with the Petmaster and His Familiars, the bond has be stronger, causing your owned familiars to be greatly empowered. Overall stats increase by a thousand percent. In return, perma-death will be activated.]

    [Perma-death ¡ª Dying once is not the issue here, but your irreceable bond with your familiar will be gone for good when they die. (This status isn''t applicable to the System). That means me, Satoshi, but the others... well, they die when they die once.]

    [Activated passive skill¡ª Petmaster Monitoring]

    [Skill¡ª Petmaster Monitoring

    Description¡ª Your mind will constantly sh the status of all your familiars... kind of like the ssic petmaster game where you catch monsters with balls and you battle it out with other petmasters. With this, you will know when your familiar is dying and you can recall him or her before that happens.]

    [Satoshi, you should be aware that your feelings affect your superpower, either in a good or a bad way. Please don''t let your feelings get the best of you. Be calm always, and try to rein in your emotions like an expert sledder.]

    Satoshi nodded. The notifications in his head made his pupils dte but it was all for good. Fortunately, nothing detrimental happened to his familiars. Who would''ve thought that his powers had that kind of function as well?

    "You all, right? You shouldn''t let this get to you. For now, we have to act when we can."<sub> </sub>

    Regaining hisposure, Satoshi summoned the White Lione, Nailgun, Lighter, and kept Windfan out all at once. He also used the Cloak of Invisibility so he can attack anywhere without the enemies detecting him. The reason why he used the Cloak of Invisibility was that it can negate any detection skills, making it the best equipment for covert operations. With his ultimate form, Satoshi dashed straight into the frontlines, not even stopping to say his greetings to his parents. He didn''t want to waste any time.

    Emma, who was by the sidelines, saw that Satoshi has now calmed down so she decided to support him all the way. "I''ll cover you with my portals, just continue what you''re doing and I''ll cover your blind spots!" She said. Satoshi responded with a slight nod.

    Riding on the White Lion, Satoshi manipted both the Nailgun and the Lighter so he could attack the other Orcs who were forming the huge circle, blocking off everyone''s escape routes. If one of them were to fall down, it would really lighten the burden of everyone in the superheroes'' team. That''s why Satoshi decided to hold off the other Orcs while focusing on one of them. He left the Boss alone for now since his dad and the others were able to hold them back even though they were having a hard time.

    Meanwhile, Tatsuki and the others were at their wit''s end, awaiting the throes of death to catch up to them while desperately trying to hang on for dear life... when suddenly, they heard a huge rumbling as one of the Orcs which formed the circle stagger backward and fell on his rear. It was a slow fall and the Orc seemed a bit pissed. It did stand up in an instant though to attack what was attacking it. But how could he counter when he couldn''t see his attacker in the first ce?

    The other Orcs seemed to wonder why one of theirrades was acting up. Satoshi didn''t touch any of them yet since they were focused on theirrade. It would''ve been better if they focused on attacking Satoshi''s dad and the others since that would give Satoshi an even harder time keeping them in check. Satoshi, with his White Lion, Nailgun, and Lighterbo, the Orc didn''t stand a chance. Satoshi didn''t even have to use the Windfan to keep the Orc from moving since it didn''t move in the first ce. It was affixed to its ce.

    When the Boss Orc realized that something was wrong, it began to roar. Tatsuki was surprised. Someone or something was helping them but they couldn''t see who it was. There were asional balls of lightning and fire raining down on one of the Orcs though. Adding to that, there were portals appearing here and there even though Warper was currently unconscious.

    "Let''s not get distracted! Let''s continue suppressing the boss until we find an opening!" Tatsuki screamed.

    Then there''s Emma, who couldn''t see half of what Satoshi was doing. So every time the Orc Satoshi was targeting would attack, She would teleport that attack to the other Orcs. She concluded that that would at least help Satoshi with defeating the Orc. Also, since the Orc couldn''t see Satoshi, it was always unsure of its attacks, making it hold back. Emma didn''t have a

    Little by little, Satoshi was able to whittle down on the Orc''s HP, ultimately defeating it.

    WIth a thud, the Orc fell like a mountain with a rockslide event. This caused the other Orcs to panic, breaking down their formation and destroying the circle they initially nned. Right now, they didn''t care about Tatsuki''s group at all. Someone unknown was attacking them from somewhere and they had to find who the perpetrator was as soon as possible and deal with him.

    Because if they don''t, then it''s only a matter of time before all of them were defeated.

    What started as a winning game turned out to be the opposite due to the new variable added to the fight¡ª Satoshi. In an instant, Satoshi tipped the bnce in favor of his parents. Their spirits were renewed at the opening and they decided to continue fighting despite their depleted energy.

    "Sera," Satoshi called out, pulling out the Orb Oboros and opening it like he would a Pokeball. A smile formed on Satoshi''s face upon seeing Sera once again. He couldn''t help but admire its cuteness after all.

    Sera let out an enthusiastic ''womp'' before positioning itself on top of the battlefield once again. It already heard Satoshi''smand in its mind so it didn''t need any telling twice. In an instant, she activated her buffs, debuffs, heal, and everything in between. Satoshi couldn''t even tell how many skills Sera activated all at once but it worked nheless... and he couldn''t detect its energy depleting... as if it was steadily replenishing its energy from somewhere else.

    Looking up, the others realized that there was a bright yellow glow on top of the battlefield. At first, Tatsuki thought that it was an enemy but Eye Goddess grabbed him by the shoulder before he could attack it. "It''s a friend," Eye Goddess said with a smile. "Right now, you''ll feel different."

    And she was right. They suddenly felt rejuvenated even though they haven''t rested yet. All the bruises, wounds, and broken wounds instantly disappeared from their bodies as well. Whatever it was floating on top of them deserved to be given the gratitude it deserves¡ª or so that''s what all of them thought.

    Now that the other Orcs were in disarray and the Boss Orc was panicking, they knew they could win. Additionally, the Boss Orc was in a panic as well, causing it to make a blunder from time to time. Those blunders transformed into openings for Tatsuki and his party, and before they knew it, they had already cleared the Gate¡ª all the while not realizing that Satoshi was the one who helped them.

 Chapter 118 Satoshis Disappearance

    The first rays of sunlight on a bright early morning finally shone through the windows towards the boys'' room, causing Kurogami to wake up. As someone who was attuned to darkness, he was really sensitive to light, that''s why just the slight alteration in brightness made him wake up in an instant. There was no need for him to wash his face as well since he was wide awake. As usual, when he looked down, his lower body wasn''t there once again. This happens sometimes when he sleeps, he gets too rxed that his lower body merges with his shadow, or rather, shifts into its shadow form. Somehow, he can''t do it that much when he''s awake though, but he knew that his potential when he could fully shift his body into the shadow form would make him an alpha-level mutant¡ª or so that''s what he wanted to call himself based on a pretty famous best-selling superheroics.

    After all, a shadow has no informationpared to the wave-particle light, its pr opposite. Shadow is anywhere and everywhere as long as light exists, which means Kurogami could essentially move faster than light if he were to master that technique.

    "All in due time," Kurogami heaved a sigh, ncing at Siril, then at Midori, then at Hiroshi. He immediately realized that Satoshi was missing. "I knew it, he was acting weirdlyst night." He told himself, clicking his tongue. "I should''ve been more attentive. Where did he go? Hopefully, hees back before the second round of the Inter-High Tournament starts."

    SLAM!

    Before Kurogami could even stand up and do a couple of stretches before heading to the bathroom for a quick bath, the door to the boys'' room burst open with Fuuka right behind it. She was panting, as if in a mild panic.

    "Guys! Check it out!" Fuuka screamed, pointing at the screen on herputer. Just like Kurogami, she just woke up but she had a habit of checking the news first thing in the morning. That''s why she was shocked that something like that happened overnight. While they were all participating in the Inter-High Tournament, who would''ve thought that a worldwide catastrophe would ensue. Of course, there was nothing they could do about it, but then again, timing of all timings, they were cut off from such an important event, being participants and all.

    On Fuuka''sputer screen was an article that discussed the recent incident about the Gates that seemed to appear on every continent around the globe. These were then handled by a few top superheroes but so far, no one has returned yet except for one exploration team¡ª The superheroes that handled the Gate in North America. They were talking about a certain duo that helped them in their subjugation.

    If it weren''t for them, we would''ve been dead by now. Crank Tank said in one of the interviews. He didn''t specify as to who helped them though since Satoshi didn''t want his cover to be blown. Also, no one would actually believe Crank Tank and the others if they were to reveal his identity.

    "May I see?" Kurogami said while the other guys gathered around after being woken up by Fuuka. After scrolling through the article, they also felt concerned, especially Kurogami after seeing that Satoshi''s parents were included in the Exploration Team that entered the Gate that spawned in their country.

    "No wonder Satoshi looked so worriedst night. I''m guessing he couldn''t sleep because of this news. Why didn''t I notice it earlier, tsk." Kurogami said.

    "Wait, where is Satoshi?" Midori asked, looking around.

    "He''s probably just in the restroom or something," Hiroshi responded but he felt anxious as well that Satoshi wasn''t around when they woke up. As much as he hated to admit it, he knew that Satoshi is the leader and the core member of their team. If he were to disappear because of an emergency, then everything will fall into chaos, even their impable teamwork would be ruined in an instant without him in the center of it.

    "No, there aren''t any shadows in the restroom. He probably went somewhere outside." Kurogami continued. "We still have at least an hour before the start of the second round. Let''s wait patiently for him. I mean, he''s probably just doing his morning routine or a morning jog."

    Fuuka and the others nodded, well, not all of them did. Pursing his lips, Shidou clicked his tongue. "Somehow, I''m getting a bad feeling about this. For now, why don''t we look for him? I''ll just feel uneasy if we stay here and do nothing. What if he got into trouble or someone wanted to sabotage us during this Inter-High Tournament? We shouldn''t overlook every single thing."

    "You''re right." Fuuka continued. "Everyone''s got their phones, right? Let''s look around the Stadium. I''ll also tell Cherry about it. After half an hour, let''s all return here and discuss what we do next. Hopefully, by then, Satoshi had already returned."

    Everyone nodded.

    A few minutester, all of them got out, not even eating a single bite of breakfast since time was of the essence. They could only wonder where Satoshi went.

    ...

    As mentioned before, the live stream of the Inter-High Tournament was on for twenty-four hours every day, broadcasting every single movement of the participants except when they needed to do some personal stuff. Right now, it was still morning so no one expected any action when they turned on their television to watch the live stream. Those who were watching in thefort of their homes thought that every school left would be in themon area, discussing their strategy for the next round. Of course, that''s the most reasonable approach since there were only a couple of schools left in the bracket. Getting into the third round is as hard as running with one leg.

    But to everyone''s surprise, the candidates of the United Superheroes Academy were rushing outside as if they were being chased by a ghost. The viewers thought that it was some sort of promotional or something set up by the higher-ups themselves.

    And then, as soon as they got outside, they started using their powers as if to practice¡ª but it was obvious that they were looking for something.

    [What are they doing, lol]

    [Looking for your mom hahha]

    [Maybe a training session? I don''t know, it''s probably one of the training sessions]

    [No, I think they''re looking for a person.]<sub> </sub>

    [They seemed panicked, are they all right?]

    [Something''s happening all right]

    [Why were they the only ones who were participating in this event?]

    [How would we know, we''re also tuned in just like you.]

    Thement section became lively once again as soon as some new action appeared on the screen. With great joy, thementators gave his feedback to the live stream crew, telling them that people were starting to get engrossed in the current unknown incident.

    "It seems like, USA Candidates are having a bit of a problem right now, what do you think about this?" The firstmentator asked the secondmentator. Just like the viewers, they also had no idea what exactly is going on. But they decided to follow through with their job all the way since it''s their sworn duty to report every single detail they could obtain from people and the others."

    "I think... ahha! I got it!" The secondmentator said with a huge grin on his face. Without further ado, he grabbed the mic closer to his mouth so he can say what he thought about the situation. As amentator, it is their job to look for any details that would make it interesting for the viewers if they were to hear about it.

    "Look again, do you see something amiss?" The secondmentator asked.

    "What do you mean?"

    "Just... take a look!"

    While the secondmentator was arguing with the othermentator, thements section suddenly burst into a few thousands as soon as he stopped speaking.

    [Hey, that guy was right,]

    [You mean thementator?]

    [Yeah, there really is someone missing!]

    [Wait... you''re right! Satoshi is missing!]

    [That''s why you shouldn''t wander around kids.]

    [I don''t get they can''t just contact him by phone though, it''s not like he doesn''t carry one, right?]

    ? [No, maybe his phone died or something. That''s why they can''t contact him]

    [The second round starts in an hour, right?]

    [You''re right!]

    [Will they be able to find Satoshi? Hopefully so, I''m watching the live streams because he''s there.]

    As the clock ticked by, the USA Candidates weren''t the only ones who grew anxious. Even the viewers andmentators were nervously awaiting the results of the search since they''ve already chosen to be invested in the live stream. They wondered why Satoshi had to leave without telling anyone about it. Was there internal strife between them? Was Satoshi going through something? One could only wonder.

    One thing''s for sure, however, that the spotlight was once again focused on the USA Candidates because of his disappearance.

 Chapter 119 Instant Return!

    "Thanks," Satoshi muttered even though his pride won''t allow it. Even though he was the one who carried all the weight, it was all thanks to Emma''s support that they were able to help two exploration teams and ultimately help save Satoshi''s parents. His trust in her increased a little bit but that doesn''t mean that she''spletely in the clear.

    <o>,m After all, she came out of nowhere, requesting his help.</o>

    "No probs. I''d be off then." Emma said.

    "Where?"

    "To the other Gates, you don''t think the others managed to clear the Gate? No, I don''t think so. Now off you go then, you have apetition to attend to, right?" Emma said, opening a Portal underneath him.

    "Wha¡ª "

    .....

    Every second made Midori and the others feel the nervousness creeping up from their skin as they wondered where Satoshi run off to. They''ve looked at every nook and cranny around the Inter-High Stadium and yet there was no sign of him. Even Fuuka and Kurogami started exhausting their powers just so they could search for Satoshi. They concluded that Satoshi is the center of the team and that they''ll lose if they don''t find him.

    They were getting desperate by the second and it was evident on their expression.

    When the fated hour hase, everyone gathered by the front door of their Waiting Room. All of them were on the verge of exhaustion but they didn''t mind it. Right now, they were expecting the good news from each other and that would be all worth it if they were to hear it.

    But unfortunately, no such news got to them. With faces filled with worry, they all looked at each other as they felt the stress rise up from within their system.

    "I''ve checked every shadow on the premises... in and out of the Inter-High Stadium. But there''s no sign of Satoshi anywhere." Kurogami reported.

    "I''ve maximized my sound maniption and there was no sound heard that matches Satoshi''s voice. Either he up and disappeared in the room or hepletely ditched us."

    "I guess that''s it. What do we do now?" Midori said with a sigh as he sat down in front of the waiting room''s door. He knew there was no point in going in and looking for Satoshi inside since they looked for him there first thing. Everybody thought the same as well.

    "Let''s just go in and participate anyways. What if something came up and Satoshi had to go somewhere? What if he was expecting us to win the second round and he''ll be back for the third round? Right now we have to do what we can to cover for him." Hiroshi suggested, rubbing his nose. To be fair, he wasn''t one to stick up for Satoshi since he considers him a rival... but now, there really was nothing they could do but hope for the best.

    "That feels oddly weird, you covering up for Satoshi, I mean," Shidou said with a grin. "In any case, there really is nothing we can do but hope for the best. Hiroshi''s right. Let''s do what we can during the second round and give Satoshi the good news when he gets back. Besides, we''re plenty strong even without him, temporarily speaking, of course."

    "Right!"

    ...

    Meanwhile, Before Satoshipletely got through the portal that Emma set up right on his feet, he activated his powers thinking that it could at least stop the portal. That was one of the disadvantages when ites to Satoshi''s superpower¡ª that is, there''s always a dy every time he tries to summon a familiar. The only thing that didn''t have a dy was his actual superpower, the dancing blue mes on the palms of his hand. That''s why, at that point, he was desperate in stopping the portal that he shot blue mes at it. He had a lot of questions in his mind after Emma said that. ''What did she mean by that? Does that mean the others had no fighting chance against the monsters in the Gate? Does that mean she''s going to clear all of them by herself? Why did she need me in the first ce? Why did shee to me for help only to ditch me? What is she thinking?'' All these questions manifested on his palms as the dancing blue mes.

    Before Emma''s portalpletely disappeared, the blue mes lightly touched it and it disappeared. It didn''t stop Satoshi from being teleported away from Emma though.

    "I''ll see you soon," Emma said with a forced smile. "This is probably thest time though," She said the second sentence underneath her breath but since Satoshi has pretty good hearing, he was able to hear it.<sub> </sub>

    "What do you¡ª mph!"

    When the portal disappeared, a disc appeared on Satoshi''s palms and in an instant, that disc transformed into a ghost-like beast that resembled a fire ball¡ª except, the fire ball was dark purple in color and it has two white slits as eyes. As soon as Satoshi saw it, he thought that it looked exactly like the monster called ''Ghastly'' in the ssic petmaster series. Without thinking twice, he named it Ghast and put it in the Orb Oboros. The information about Ghast immediately flooded his mind but he ignored it. Right now, there were more important things to think about.

    "Wait, why am I back in our room?!" Satoshi said, seeing that he was back in the Waiting Room. There were no signs of anyone though, as if all of them left. In haste, Satoshi checked the time, dreading the fact that he might bete for the second round.

    To his relief, he has thirty seconds left.

    .....

    Meanwhile, Emma sighed when Satoshi disappeared from her portal. There were plenty of times when she wanted to send Satoshi away but she couldn''t. She wanted to depend on him a little bit more but now she''s at the end of her line. She knew that Satoshi was still in thepetition where she found her and dragging him to help her against his will was probably not okay for him. Even though Satoshi didn''tin, she assumed that he just remained quiet so as not to hurt her feelings.

    "Besides, this is my job anyways. He''s just thest resort if I can''t take care of everything... but how could I do it when the monsters are much stronger than usual? Why am I even here in the first ce." Emma sighed.

    "In any case, I still need to clear the other six Gates. This is thest thing I can do for my race." Emma told herself, a stray tear leaving her eyes. After a sniffle, she wiped off her tears and opened a portal. "Onto... hmm, let''s see... I guess I''ll go to Africa''s Gate then."

    Fwooosh~~~

    As soon as the portal closed and there aren''t any humans inside the Gate that opened in the middle of Japan, the Gate closed, causing everyone who was watching to cheer for the top ten superheroes. They were sessful in clearing the Gate.

    ...

    Tatsuki and his team were surprised that they managed to get through that hellish ce with the help of someone unknown.

    "Yes, if we hadn''t received help from that unknown person... then we''d have died by now. The monsters inside the Gate are nothing tough about. One of them is as strong as a top superhero." Tatsuki said in one of the mics since there were a lot pointing towards their team as soon as they got out. They probably wanted to hear an update as soon as possible so they could report it to the masses in a sh. Of course, Tatsuki and everyone else was okay about it since it''s their job to calm the masses down. Now that the Gate''s cleared, they could live yet another day¡ª that message should be broadcasted as soon as possible after all.

    "Did you hear anything about the Gate in America? Apparently, they received outside help as well." Clone X muttered towards Tatsuki before one of the reporters asked them about it.

    "Whoever they are, and whatever their intentions were, we''re just grateful that they''re on our side." Tatsuki answered concisely before turning around and leading his team out of the way. They already said enough about the Gate, even the details of monsters were made public as soon as they talked about it.

    Two question remains unanswered though, who were the entities that helped the American Team and the Asian Team to clear the Gates? And are they nning to help the other superheroes in the other continents?

    .....

    "I guess it''s time to put you to a test, huh," Satoshi said, summoning Ghast andmanding it to open a portal. It then threw up a disc which got bigger until Satoshi could fit inside. Satoshi didn''t hesitate to go inside.

    One moment, he was in the Waiting Room, the next moment, he was in the arena along with everyone else in his team.

 Chapter 120 Second Roundâ€” Inter High I

    "SATOSHI?!" The first one to notice him was none other than Hiroshi who covered up for him when they couldn''t find him a few minutes ago. "Where have you been? How did you get here?" He hissed, trying to get his thoughts together since the scene was too good to be true.

    "SATOSHI?!" Midori was the second one to exim, followed by everyone else who saw him appear out of nowhere. No one knows where he spawned from but they didn''t mind that at all. They were just grateful that Satoshi managed to arrive in time before the fated second roundmences.

    "Let''s talk about all thatter. Do we have some sort of¡ª "

    [Satoshi, you''ve lost affinity with your other familiars... four of them to be exact]

    [You haven''t used them now summoned them ever since you got them. And now they''ve been sent somewhere they couldn''t get out of¡ª the PC]

    ''What do you mean the PC?'' Satoshi thought to himself as his sentence was interrupted by Dex.

    [The PC stands for Purged Conduit, not a personalputer. They''ve been transferred there by some unknown force connected to your superpower. As of now, I don''t think you''ll be able to get them back from there.]

    ''I see'' Satoshi said to himself with a sigh. Dex was right, he really couldn''t detect the other four familiars he got back when he was preparing. One of them was Sain, probably one of the most powerful familiar that Satoshi ever got. In any case, there was no use worrying over spilled milk. If there''s a way, then he''d be able to find it sooner orter. Just as he thought, there was still a lot of mystery revolving around his superpower.

    "Satoshi, are you all right?" Cherry asked with a bashful tone. Just like everyone else in the group, she was relieved that the core of their team has returned, but seeing the unusual expression on his face made her worry a little bit.

    "Yes, just a bit shook. In any case, let''s focus on the second round. What will bepeting at this time?" Satoshi said, just shrugging off what just happened to some of his familiars.

    "WHOA! LOOKS LIKE SOMETHING''S HAPPENING AMONGST THE UNITED SUPERHEROES ACADEMY CANDIDATES!" Thementator suddenly eximed, starting the broadcast. "In any case, it seems like all their hard work weren''t for nothing this morning! We certainly enjoyed watching them scamper around, right?"

    "For the second round, the management decided to hold off on the information due to the unfairness during the first round. It was a bit underhanded to leave the USA hanging while everyone else got all the information they needed. NEVERTHELESS! They managed to survive the first round and now entering the second round! EVERYONE! LET''S GIVE THEM A ROUND OF APPLAUSE!"

    p! p!

    "Certainly needs getting used to." Shidou rubbed his nose as his face reddened a bit. He still wasn''t used to being in the spotlight even though this was their second day in the Inter-High Stadium.

    "FOR THE SECOND ROUND! We''ll be having the superhero celebrity Henna to announce it for us!"

    A superhero wearing a nice masquerade mask and a flowy ck dress suddenly walked towards one of the tforms before it floated up. She had long wavy ck hair and her body was slender yet proportionate. Her introduction truly befitted her appearance. "Thank you so much, dearmentator. It is an absolute honor to have even just a minor part in such a big event. Ehrmmm~~~ "

    "For the second round, it will be much simplerpared to the first round. Since we have a grand total of six schools¡ª namely the United Superheroes Academy, the Great Mountain Academy, Mirai High School, Flowing Wave Academy, Stillwater Academy, and the Great White Shark Academy,"

    As soon as it was announced, everyone in the audience started hollering and screaming in enthusiasm and excitement. Of course, who wouldn''t be excited when they were looking forward to suchpetition for a whole year. They weren''t expecting it to happen in the second round though because usually it is done in the third round.

    "The rules are as follows: Every school will be pitted against another school and they will battle it out until one side has lost or has given up. Everything goes during this match, even killing intent which wasn''t allowed during the first round will be fine, as long as you don''t kill anyone of course. No matter the injury though, the Nurse is only one call away."

    "That said! Here are the brackets for the second round!"

    Amidst the cheering from the audience, a huge screen appeared in the middle of the stage with six rectangles disyed on it. In the background, a drum roll started ying and a couple of texts started rolling down as if every rectangle is a portion of a roulette.<sub> </sub>

    [Flowing Wave Academy versus Mirai High School]

    [Great Mountain Academy versus Stillwater Academy]

    [United Superheroes Academy versus Great White Shark Academy]

    ....

    Primal licked his lips, he awaited this moment where he''ll be pitted against the United Superheroes Academy. This will be the day when they''ll prove themselves worthy of first ce as a reform school, giving Kronos Schiltz the good name he deserves as its founder. They were ted, not because they were one hundred percent confident that they will win, but because they could tell that they''ll be able to go head to head with the United Superheroes Academy. Ultimately, they were aiming to win, but as long as they put up a good fight, they were sure to make a name for themselves as the Great White Shark Academy.

    "Cyborg, we don''t know what to expect but I want you to continuously watch over Satoshi. Leave all the other candidates to us. Your sole job is to extract as much information as you can on Satoshi''s superpower but don''t get in too close, observing from afar is more than enough." Primal said with a grin.

    "Yes, Leader," Cyborg responded without hesitation.

    "How about us, leader?" Viper asked, her slithering tongue as uncontroble as ever.

    "All of you? Just have fun. I''ll take care of Satoshi and the rest while I''m at it. Just don''t get in my way." Primal said, cracking his knuckles.

    Since all the fights will be happening at the same time in separate stages, every school didn''t really have a chance to prepare for strategies and such. In other words, they were thrown into the battlefield without prior notice and it''s up to their raw power if they''d be able to win or not. And adding to that, these schools were the top six schools after the first round. All of them had their own strengths and those strengths were expected to sh with each other in the second round¡ª this time though, the sh would be more orderly since each school in question will be able to work as a team right from the start.

    While the countdown continued to go down, Satoshi turned around so he could get a clear view on his team. He could feel the uneasiness within due to his disappearance and somehow he felt bad because of it. Nevertheless, he knew he had to say something so they''ll be fired up right from the get-go. Right now, morale''s all they need.

    "I''m sorry about what happened this morning. Something came up and I''ll tell you all about itter. But right now, there are still some things I need to take care of and I wouldn''t be able to do it while I''m participating in the second round. That''s why let''s make this quick. The Great White Shark may have gotten first ce in the first round but we all passed the first round nheless. They aren''t superior to us, and besides, they''re also students just like us."

    "Just give us the orders, leader, we''ll get it done," Shidou said with a smile, jerking a thumbs up towards Satoshi.

    "Yes, you don''t have to worry about your six. We''ll guard that with our lives. Just move forward," Fuuka said.

    With a sigh of relief, Satoshi realized that he didn''t need to bolster their morale. They were already fired up in the first ce and their expression was probably just a sign of their nervousness. This is the second round of the Inter-High Tournament after all and there are a lot of things on their te right now¡ª the expectations of the school, the expectations of their parents, and the expectations of everyone watching who concluded that the United Superheroes Academy will get the trophy this year once again. All of those mixed into a ball of nerves in each of their systems.

    Three.

    Two.

    One.

    Zero.

    Once again, every school was transported into their respective stage/arena and the second round of the Inter-High Tournament has finallymenced. Satoshi gulped. It was at this moment he felt everyone''s reliance on him, causing him to forcefully grin as he carefully watched the Great White Shark Academy on the other side of the arena.

 Chapter 121 Second Roundâ€” Inter-High II

    The Great White Shark Academy Candidates:

    (Leader) Primal¡ª Alexander Whitewing¡ª Primal Instincts, he can exceed the physical limitations of a normal human and awaken his primal instincts. He can transform into a primal beast that has super strength, super speed, agility, and above-human reflexes. A literal beast on the face of the earth.

    Cyborg¡ª Hector Stone¡ª Cyborg, he can do pretty much anything a cyborg can do, hack into mainframes, fly, limit break his machinery, and release beams, and he can release miniature drones into the air to monitor or reconnoiter an area.

    Killjoy¡ª Ricky Windham¡ª Adapt, he can use any weapons, cane up with the most suitable strategy, and can use anything heys his hands on. He''s a master of disguises, illusion, and the mind of the team.

    Dreamsnatcher¡ª Sherley Sanders¡ª Dreamsnatch, she can use her soothing voice to make anyone fall asleep and be trapped in the dream world if they were to respond to her. She doesn''t just trap them in their sleep but in a somewhat deeper sleep, sort of like in the state of sleep paralysis.

    Contrail¡ª Janine Contraire¡ª Clouds, she can spawn clouds anywhere and control their state. Given time, she can even produce a thunderstorm, a twister, a blizzard, pretty much anything that involves clouds and the weather. An upgraded version of Yukino Shiroi (Satoshi''s childhood friend) who hasn''t reached her full potential.

    Snipes¡ª Wesley Irond¡ª 100% uracy, the hawkeye of the group, he never misses a shot.

    Mound Pound¡ª Russel Fairclough¡ª Invi-Hammers, controls hundreds of invisible indestructible hammers that can be used for both offense and defense.

    Viper¡ª Kitagawa Haruna¡ª Viper, born with the ability to shapeshift into a snake, her trauma awakened her ability to ess the power of the mythical medusa. Aside from having the features of a snake as per transformation, she can turn anyone into a stone for a limited time if they were to gaze into her eyes.

    .....

    The stage this time didn''t have any obstacles whatsoeverpared to the first round wherein it was filled to the brim with trees. That''s why Satoshi immediately caught sight of the Primals'' group. Primal stuck out his tongue as if he was a rabid dog. Despite his handsome appearance, he was drooling, totally negating the refined looks of his. Without further ado, he charged at Satoshi relentlessly, At the same time, Snipes aimed a gun toward Shidou, and Cyborg and Viper started working their way towards both sides of Satoshi''s group.

    "What do we do now, it''s your call, leader," Midori asked, extending his hands and clenching his fists. Since Primal hasn''t reached his maximum velocity yet, Midori could still see him so he prepared himself to meet him halfway before he could even reach Satoshi and engage him inbat. He was confident that with his Berserk Skill and ultimate healing superpower, he''d be able to take on Primal. From what he could tell, Primal almost had the same superpower as him but he feared that he was more formidable than him when ites to raw power. ''But with my regeneration and healing ability, I''d have more sustain than him. It''s a matter of who gets exhausted first.'' Midori told himself.

    "Everyone, hold your ground." Satoshi finally spoke after a few seconds, making everyone stop short in their tracks. They were about to make a move on the enemy but Satoshi''s sudden beckoning made them wholly listen to him. "I''ll hold them off, and you go study what their superpowers are. Then once we haveplete data on them, we can counterattack."

    "Are you sure about this, Satoshi?" Hiroshi asked, his arms already buried superficially on the ground since he was prepared to summonva from deep underground and ssh it all over the other party.

    "Yes, I''ve... you''ll see soon enough," Satoshi said with a smile.

    For once, everyone deeply felt how reliable Satoshi was. And based on his unbreakable confidence, they could tell that he''s gotten even strongerpared to before. ''What actually happenedst night?'' They could only ask themselves in puzzlement.

    ? Either way, they listened to Satoshi and decided to hold off on their attacks while Satoshi take all of them on. They still had their doubts, of course, but they knew that Satoshi wouldn''t say something and do the other. Whatever n he has in his arsenal, it is more than capable enough to deal with each and every one of the Great White Shark Academy Candidates.

    "Let''s go!" Satoshi said, opening his Orb Oboros and summoning White Lion, Droplet, Windfan, Nailgun, and Lighter all at the same time. Or so, those were the only familiars that everyone recognized. In an instant, a normal person like Satoshi suddenly gained the power of lightning maniption from the White Lion, water maniption from the Droplet, wind maniption from the Windfan, pseudo-metal maniption with the Nailgun, and fire maniption with the Lighter. Just from one nce alone, one could already tell that Satoshi is more than enough to deal with everyone in the Great White Shark group.<sub> </sub>

    However, no matter how many options Satoshi has in his arsenal, if he wasn''t fast enough inmanding all of them at once, then he''d just end up dead before he even realized what was going on. And that''s exactly what happened.

    As soon as Satoshi rode on his Nailgun (while Droplet, Lighter, and Windfan flew right beside him), Primal managed to catch up to him, finally reaching his top speed and extending his ws at the unsuspecting Satoshi. ''Even if you have that many familiars, you can''t attack someone if you can''t react to it in time.'' Primal said to himself, satisfied that he can finally get rid of Satoshi. He knew that once Satoshi is out ofmission, he can pick out everyone one by one since their morale was already low even before the second round even started.

    But just before his ws grazed Satoshi''s face, Satoshi muttered a few words. And as if by some sort of a miracle, the attack didn''t connect.

    Before Primal could even react, he found himself in the same spot where he was once before. "What just happened?" He asked himself, turning around. As usual, the others didn''t have any idea what happened. They did notice a purple circle appear just when Primal was about to attack Satoshi but it was so fast that they wondered whether it was an illusion or not.

    "Leave it to me," Snipes announced, aiming his gun at Satoshi. Meanwhile, Viper and Cyborg already reached their destination. While Viper tried to attack Hiroshi, Cyborg was trying to engage Midori in a fight.

    "A snake girl huh, wait til I melt that skin of yours with myva," Hiroshi said with a smirk, covering his vicinity withva so Viper wouldn''t get near him. Viper hissed and then reverted back to her human form. "That''s not how you treat ady!" She said, pouting.

    "Listen here, girl, if you want fairness in a match then¡ª " Before Hiroshi could continue what he was saying, his body became as rigid as a rock. He couldn''t even move his tongue anymore and slowly, his whole bodypletely shut down. With his gaze still on Viper, he realized that it must''ve something to do with her superpower.

    And he was right.

    Right now, he got transformed into a stone after he responded to her. Satoshi and the others saw the entire thing so they knew that it must''ve activated because of a certain action. Now they''ve be weary of the snake girl so Cherry and Fuuka stepped in since Hiroshi was already out ofmission.

    "What just happened," Midori asked,pletely blocking one of Cyborg''s attacks. Clearly, he overestimated Cyborg since his attacks were weak, but who knows what kinds of tricks he has under his sleeves.

    "Don''t talk to her. She can freeze you if you respond to her talks." Satoshi warned. It''s only been a minute since he summoned Ghast andmanded him to cover all of his blind spots. And now, as much as he hated to admit it, he had to summon Sera now so it could unfreeze Hiroshi.

    "Wait, let''s wait for a more moments before we summon her," Satoshi said to himself. "Shidou, can you do something about the snake girl?" Satoshi asked.

    "On it," Shidou said without thinking twice about it.

    "Midori, I''ll go deal with that robot guy. You try to heal Hiroshi over there if you can." Siril suggested.

    It didn''t take long before everyone had their own little fights. It was a full-on brawl with neither side relenting. Primal got bigger as he went over his usual limit, fully challenging Satoshi in a one-on-one for the second time. "Whatever tricks you pulled a moment ago, it''s probably just a fluke." He continued.

    "Right then, try me," Satoshi said with a smile, extending his hands. ''I guess I''ll have to put off summoning Sera for now. She''s the trump card after all.'' Satoshi told himself. ''But then again, Ghast and the others can defeat a majority of superheroes if they work together. They''re more than enough for backup.''

 Chapter 122 Second Roundâ€” Inter-High III

    For the first time in Satoshi''s life, he finally felt the thrill of fighting against superheroes. Compared to the other superheroes he fought before, the Great White Shark Academy Candidates are quite formidable. He could tell that Hiroshi and the others were head to head against the other candidates which just goes to show how much training they''ve put into their superpowers. The more Satoshi fought with them, the more he realized that they really did deserve first ce during the first round.

    Suddenly, a grin appeared on Satoshi''s face as he raised his hands. "I have a proposition!" He eximed.

    A couple of invisible hammers rained down on Satoshi but he cleanly dodged them with a few somersaults. He then approached Mound Pound and gave him a nice chop on the neck, rendering him unconscious in an instant. All this time, Primal and the others couldn''t react at all. Even though Satoshi moved slowly, he moved with great precision. They could tell that he also put in the hard work in his physical self rather than his superpower. ''How could a summoner with a great superpower rely too much on his physical strength?'' They couldn''t help but wonder. Still, they admired the feat nheless. After all, they were the same, superpowers are just an extension of the body. When ites down to it, physical strength is the only thing you can rely on and it would never betray you.

    "Let''s hear it then," Primal said, raising his hands and telling his group to stop attacking. Since every candidate trusted their leaders too much, both sides stopped attacking at once. Satoshi even allowed Primal''s group to heal Mound Pound, the guy that fell unconscious due to his attack. That way, everything will be fair once the proposition was heard and the middle ground was agreed upon.

    Of course, that gesture was more than enough to attract the audience and thementators, causing them to focus on their group instead of the other two groups who were fighting as well. As mentioned before, all the fights were simultaneously done in different stages, that''s why one wouldn''t be able to watch all the fights, they could only focus on one. But then again, the stages were side by side with each other so it''s not like one will miss out when he or she wasn''t looking at the other fights.

    Right now, however, everyone''s focus was on the USA versus Great White Shark fight because, for some odd reason, both sides stopped attacking each other.

    "IT SEEMS LIKE SOMETHING INTERESTING IS ABOUT TO COME DOWN ON THE THIRD STAGE!" Thementator screamed, pointing his index finger at the third stage so everyone''s attention would be focused there.

    Satoshi''s group stayed behind him and Primal''s group did the same as they walked forward. "What do you propose, Satoshi?" Primal asked with a satisfied grin, fully expecting Satoshi to challenge him in a one-on-one fight. Aside from winning the second round, beating Satoshi to a pulp would greatly boost the Great White Shark Academy''s standing since Satoshi was considered to be one of the most powerful high schoolers at the moment. ''You just don''t know how much I''ve waited for this moment.'' Primal inwardly said. He decided that as soon as Satoshi announces the challenge, he would attack him before he could even react. Right now, he''s warmed up enough that his superpower is activated to its maximum potential.

    "This is taking too long and I''ve got ces to be," Satoshi announced as one of Cyborg''s drones approached him while Cyborg hacked the screen that showed the highlights of the fight. On there, Satoshi and Primal were shown in full view with their conversation being broadcasted on all the live streams worldwide. Satoshi didn''t stop Cyborg from streaming it since there was nothing he could do in the first ce. It would just needlessly agitate Cyborg if he were to p the drone to oblivion.

    "And?"

    "Why don''t you alle at me, all at once, so we can end this second round?" Satoshi proposed.

    "Wha¡ª Satoshi! What are you saying?" Midori screamed. "You''ve seen how powerful they were! Are you forfeiting this match?"

    "No, just listen," Hiroshi interrupted. Although he felt a bit annoyed at Satoshi''s proposition, he knew that there was more to it than that.

    Primal''s expression seemed to shift as soon as he heard what Satoshi had to say. With a chuckle, he turned around and slightly clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Did I hear you right? Are you telling me that you can take on all of us with just you? Are you kidding yourself right now? Do you hear this, guys?" He said, turning around and addressing his teammates.

    In an instant, Primal released all of his bloodlust and exceeded the maximum limit of his transformation. With a swift swinging motion, Primal aimed right at Satoshi''s neck in an attempt to cut him down. Of course, that would probably disqualify him but at least he would injure Satoshi to the verge of death. And of course, with both of them out of the picture, it''s only a matter of time before his team wins.

    However, Satoshi didn''t move an inch despite the strong gust of wind Primal''s attack caused. He just smirked and let Ghast take over. Once again, Primal''s attack didn''t connect¡ª

    ¡ª no, in fact, it did connect, not in a way he expected though.<sub> </sub>

    Due to Ghast''s portal superpower, Satoshi directed Primal''s attack on Cyborg, who was thrown a couple of meters from where he was standing. He didn''t even see where the attack came from but it sure packed a punch.

    "What was that just now?!" Siril asked in a whisper. Up until now, he still hasn''t said anything nor had he done something throughout the entire second round. He just couldn''t find a window of opportunity to transform into his dragon form so he just stayed on the sidelines while cheering everyone on. But then again, everyone joined him on the sidelines after Satoshi''s announcement.

    Primal didn''t waste any time unleashing another attack, thinking that what Satoshi did was just a fluke. Up until now, he still couldn''t see how his attack was redirected. As Satoshi stepped backward, Primal twisted his body and flung himself towards Satoshi, hands outstretched and ws extended.

    Satoshi tilted to his left and bent backward, avoiding the attack by a hair''s breadth before shooting a couple of nails towards Primal''s eyes. He managed to avoid them by jumping backward a couple of times and then crouching down low before springing towards Satoshi once again. This time he roared out of frustration.

    But before he could reach Satoshi, he felt the fur on his back stand up and realized that he was about to get attacked from behind. He turned around and saw that one of Satoshi''s familiars was there¡ª Lighter. Tightening his core, he twisted and tried to kick the Lighter.

    However, Lighter is just a ball of fire so his attack just went through.

    And while all those were happening, Primal didn''t notice that the Windfan was directly on top of him. As it sted him with air, he was pinned to the ground.

    Cyborg and the others couldn''t take the one-sided beating anymore. Without further ado, he propelled himself towards Satoshi, carrying Viper on his back. Mound Pound started distracting Satoshi with his invisible hammers but Satoshi just redirected their attacks using Ghast. With Ghast''s portal superpower and a few elemental superpowers on his side, Satoshi was unstoppable. Because of that, everyone''s attention was directed to the Third Stage. Even the live stream now focused on the Satoshi versus Great White Shark Academy fight since it was the most engrossing out of all the fights. Satoshi was alreadyparable to a pro superhero with how he fought.

    "Viper, you know what to do," Cyborg said.

    Viper nodded.

    Midori and the others just watched as Satoshi single-handedly dealt with everyone. It wasn''t typical for Satoshi to step up and put himself in the spotlight like that so they were a bit worried but seeing that he can easily defeat the entire group without their help made them feel relieved and useless at the same time.

    However, one of Satoshi''s statements a moment ago made Shidou a bit suspicious. After all, Satoshi said that he''s got ces to be. "Something happenedst night, I knew it," Shidou said to himself, worriedly staring at Satoshi who weaved himself safely through the flurry of attacks he received.

    "Should we go help him?" Midori asked.

    "You do know that we''ll just get in the way if we did, right?" Sassu said, taking over Cherry''s body once again. "Let''s wait for now. Let''s not make it harder than it already is for Satoshi."

    Meanwhile, Cyborg has finally gotten close to Satoshi and before Satoshi could react, Cyborg hurled Viper right at him. Of course, Satoshi couldn''t help but let out a gasp upon seeing the hideous fangs inside Viper''s mouth...

    ... and that response was more than enough for Viper to turn him into a stone.

 Chapter 123 Second Roundâ€” Inter-High IV

    "Are you sure about this?"

    "Yes," Cyborg responded, biting his lips. It was obvious that Primal was powerless against Satoshi so they had to take action, one way or another. Even though Primal told them not to move from their ce, they had to disobey his orders if that meant avoiding a loss in the second round. After all, at this rate, they were going to lose since Primal couldn''t evennd a hit on Satoshi.

    "Killjoy, what do you think?" Viper asked. Since Killjoy was the one who can see through strategies and was pretty much the mind of the team, Viper just had to ask him.

    Killjoy closed his eyes for a few seconds before nodding. "One hundred percent. I don''t know why but it will work. Let''s take this chance to get rid of Satoshi. Once that''s over with, we can pick them off one by one. This is the least we can do for our leader."

    "How about us?" Contrail asked. Just like the others, they still haven''t moved from their spot. Although Primal was already having a hard time, they still couldn''t dare disobey his orders.

    "Stay here for now. Leader would be more furious if all of us steps in. His pride won''t allow it." Cyborg responded. "You ready, Viper?"

    Viper didn''t need any telling twice. She immediately grabbed Cyborg from behind before he flew. His jet propulsion worked twice as fast as normal for some reason and Viper thought at first that there was something wrong with Cyborg. At first, she assumed that Cyborg was panicking deep within but after seeing his expression, she realized that such wasn''t the case. His face was as red as a tomato. Needless to say, he was flustered since Viper was technically hugging him from behind.

    "We won''t have a lot of chances and I can''t maintain this speed for so long. Once we get close to Satoshi, he''s sure to send us away flying by means of his rotor-like familiar or some other form of attack. I''m guessing he has warping abilities as well and that''s why he can easily redirect anyone''s attack just like that." Cyborg exined.

    "That''s why we''re going to fly low, avoiding his line of sigh and only showing ourselves at thest second. I''m sorry if this is ufortable, Viper, but this is the only way. Hang tight." Biting his lips and trying hard to suppress his emotions, Cyborg continued his flight. He flew too low that it was hard to detect him. Even Kurogami who had been monitoring everyone''s shadows could only slightly detect him. He didn''t mind them though because he was sure that Satoshi will notice them soon enough. After all, they were hurtling themselves at such high speeds, and besides, they''re not that inconspicuous. Even if it were thest second, Kurogami and the others were absolutely certain that Satoshi will notice them.

    And yet... somehow... their seeable movements couldn''t be perceived by Satoshi at all. Since Primal was doing some big moves every time he attacks, Satoshi''s focus was directed at him. And because he assumed that no one on Primal''s side would disobey his orders, he didn''t pay attention to the surroundings. Right now, the only one he could see was Primal, no one else.

    Little did he know that Killjoy has a big part to y during that entire exchange. Somehow, he trapped Satoshi in an illusion that Primal is the only enemying at him. That''s why even though Cyborg couldn''t be any more obvious, Satoshi didn''t detect him at all. Had Satoshi nced away from Primal a split second, the illusion would''ve reset and he would''ve noticed what was amiss. Unfortunately for him, he was too keen on defeating Primal that he got caught in the trap, hook line, and sinker.

    "Satoshi! Look out!" Kurogami screamed... but by then it was toote.

    When Satoshi turned around due to Kurogami''s scream, he realized that another figure wasing at him. Of course, he still managed to react, opening a portal right in front of Cyborg and sending him back to where he was standing a couple of seconds ago. However, he totally overlooked the fact that Cyborg had a passenger.

    Before Cyborg couldpletely pass through the portal that Ghast opened as per Satoshi''s orders, He had enough time to grab Viper and throw her right at Satoshi. A split secondter, Satoshi fell down with Viper on top of him. He was flustered, of course, but he couldn''t do anything since Viperpletely transformed her lower body into her snake form and wrapped Satoshi as if she were a boa constrictor. She hissed and gazed right into Satoshi''s eyes. A gasp came out of Satoshi''s mouth and a split secondter, he turned into a stone.

    "Hah... hahahahaha~~~" Primal screamed whileughing raucously as if to tell the audience that that was exactly his n¡ª that he had Satoshipletely fooled from the start which is exactly not the case. Either way, Cyborg and the others were d that they were able to stop Satoshi for good. Viper''s status effect canst for as long as three hours so it was obvious that Satoshi was already out ofmission. Even though Midori has the power to bring him back from that state, Killjoy already thought about that and decided to target him first if he so ever moved a single step.<sub> </sub>

    "AND IT LOOKS LIKE GREAT WHITE SHARK ACADEMY WILL WIN! WHAT A DANGEROUS EXCHANGE!" Thementator screamed right at his mic, causing everyone to scream in excitement once again. No one expected such a twist in a match and having witnessed such an epic sh of superpowers hyped them up.

    "Che~~~ look at him riding his high horse only to lose," Hiroshi muttered but deep inside, he was already panicking. Without their leader, they knew they didn''t stand a fighting chance against such a powerful group. Besides, they''re just first years and almost everyone on the opposite team was experienced third-years.

    "I guess that''s it. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Good job Viper." Primal said. "Now, onto the next phase."

    Primal nodded his head towards everyone, gesturing for them to go nearer so he could give them instructions. This time, he wouldn''t let his feelings get the better of him. Even though his pride was greatly hit after receiving help from Cyborg and Viper, he didn''t bring up the subject. In the end, they managed to put a stop to their number one threat... and that''s all that matters¡ª victory is all that matters. Pridees close second though.

    "What do we do now, Hiroshi," Midori asked.

    "What do you mean? We can''t defeat them." Hiroshi whispered. "But we can''t give up either. If we give up now without doing everything we can, not only will we get a bad reputation, we''ll also give our school a bad name."

    "Yeah, we''ll totally be rejects as soon as we return. Confound it, and here I was having full confidence that Satoshi would win against all odds." Siril clicked his tongue in frustration. He didn''t want to me Satoshi for what just happened but he couldn''t help it. Of course, everybody had the same sentiment as him since it was Satoshi''s idea to take on everyone without his team''s help. And now that he lost, they couldn''t do anything to change that oue.

    Either way, they will lose. The only problem was how would they show everyone that they did their best? How could they show everyone that their actions shouldn''t warrant such hatred towards them when the oue is decided?

    "We just have to win, right?" Sassu licked her lips, stepping forward. "Don''t think about anything else right now you bunch of monkeys. Honestly, I''m disappointed in all of you. We lost our key member, so what? Does that change our objective? No."

    "We were chosen as candidates for our school because we have the highest chance of winningpared to the others. Even if we lose here, they won''t have a say on why we lost. But right now, if we lose our will before the fight even started, then that makes us worse than we already were."

    "Midori, find an opening while you''re on berserk form. Kurogami, monitor everyone while trying to limit their movements. You don''t have to limit their movements too much, just freeze their shadow for a split second so you could provide support to the attackers. Hiroshi, focus on dealing wide-area damage with your earth and fire superpower. Siril will tank all the hits, he will be our dragon shield. Shidou, take care of thedies, all right? As for me, I''ll be your main attacker and the temporary leader of this team. Satoshi will be pleased, I wonder if he''ll pat me on the head once this is over? Hahahahha~~~"

    Honestly, Sassu''s erratic actions and speech was the push they needed to get them back to their senses. She was right with everything she said. Right now, their objective hasn''t changed. Even if there''s only one candidate standing against the enemy, they''d still try to snatch a victory right under their noses.

    "Well, looks like everyone''s getting fired up without me." Someone spoke from behind Primals group. "But just like what I said, I got all these under control. You don''t have to do anything."

 Chapter 124 Second Roundâ€” Inter-High V

    "Well, looks like everyone''s getting fired up without me." Someone spoke from behind Primal''s group. "But just like what I said, I got all these under control. You don''t have to do anything."

    It was Satoshi!

    "B-but how?! Impossible!" Viper stammered. Unless Satoshi has a way of reverting his stone state, he wouldn''t have been able to talk. Panicked, Viper whirled his head only to see that Midori was still in the group. Based on their research and the information provided regarding every USA candidate, Midori is the only one who has healing abilities and it wasn''t even that reliable yet since it''s just his secondary superpower. There was no way Midori managed to heal Satoshi from that distance.

    "That was a nice speech, Sassu. But let''s leave that moral for the third round." Satoshi said, walking towards Primal''s group as if nothing happened. They were speechless, to say the least.

    "I see, you''re still full of surprises even after all that." Primal shrugged. "I guess this calls for a second round. I''ll oblige on your offer this time."

    "Nah, you were this close. I had to use my trump card early on." Satoshi said, pointing up. Above the battlefield was Sera, sping her hands as if she was praying. She just reverted Satoshi''s stone state and yet she still had the energy to buff every familiar in the arena.

    "What was that?" Midori asked even though he knew that Satoshi will exin itter. Right now a fight is still ongoing.

    "I see," Primal repeated. This time, he wasn''t taking any chances. With a nod, he gave everyone the approval to attack Satoshi without reprieve. "Just like we practiced." He continued.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    The smell of coffee wafted around the house as Ayumu prepared for breakfast. A moment ago, she felt her husband''s kiss on her forehead as he whispered that he will do his usual training. She wondered why her husband doesn''t get tired at all. Even after everything that transpired yesterday, he still had the energy to do his usual routine. Of course, as for her, she decided to rest in a little bit more since she knew that her husband won''t finish his workout after two to three hours.

    Whirrrrrr~~~

    The hidden door that led to their smoothly slid open and Tatsuki walked out, all fresh and rejuvenated after taking a post-workout hot bath. As soon as he walked into the living room, the strong smell of brewed coffee entered his nose and it caused his stomach to grumble. He hasn''t eaten anything since yesterday, no wonder he''s hungry.

    "That smells nice, what are you preparing?" Tatsuki called out, giving his wife a back hug while kissing her on the cheek. "Bleh~ your hair smells like frying oil."

    "Of course," Ayumu giggled after feeling her husband''s stubble on her cheek. "I''m preparing a heavy meal for brunch so just wait. We haven''t eaten anything since yesterday after all."

    "Sweet~!" Tatsuki said before jumping on the sofa and reading the newspaper like the usual dad. At the same time, he turned on the television which is connected to the inte. The first video that popped up was the live stream of the Inter-High Tournament and he immediately clicked on it. ''How could I forget! I wonder how my son''s doing.'' He asked himself. The incident yesterday almost cost them their lives and right now, he felt blessed that he was still alive to see another day¡ª alive to witness his son grow into a respectable superhero in the near future.

    The moment he started watching the broadcast, Satoshi was already about to be attacked by Cyborg and Viper. Then the inevitable happened and he lost the exchange, ultimately turning into a stone. "Wha¡ª " Tatsuki''s jaws dropped as he foresaw the future. He already projected himself consoling his son after they lost the Inter-High Tournament. He already saw himself eating a bowl of ramen with his son in a nearby stall while he give him words of encouragement and while tears and snot continued to stream down his son''s face.

    [AND IT LOOKS LIKE GREAT WHITE SHARK ACADEMY WILL WIN! WHAT A DANGEROUS EXCHANGE!] Thementator eximed.<sub> </sub>

    "No! Come on, son! What are you doing?!" Tatsuki couldn''t help but cheer in front of the television screen, attracting his wife''s attention.

    "Why, what happened?" Ayumu asked, a bit concerned since her husband doesn''t usually show that much fervor when ites to watching tv shows. That''s when she noticed that Satoshi was immobile in the background. "Oh¡ª "

    "They''re strong, all right. I''ve looked up those kids'' superpowers and they could easily be top rankers someday. Especially that... you know that student who calls himself Primal? He''s plenty strong. When ites to physical attacks no one can top him in the tournament. That''s probably how they bested our son."

    "But... are they going to... oh no..." Ayumu covered her mouth with her hands. Watching the live stream was a bit painful for her since she didn''t want her son to fail in front of so many people. After all, there were more than a billion people watching the live stream at that very moment.

    "No, they still have a chance. Right now, the first thing that they need to keep in mind was that they shouldn''t lose their will to fight. One of them... it will only take one of them to snap into reality and spur everyone to continue fighting." Tatsuki continued, biting his lips. Even though he was confident that one of them would certainly make that happen, that doubt in his mind started eating away at him. Of course, there''s an off-chance that they will just surrender and let the Great White Shark Academy advance to the finals.

    ''No, they''re not that weak. I''m confident that they wouldn''t even consider forfeiting the match in the first ce.'' Tatsuki said to himself.

    Just like every viewer at home and in the Inter-High Stadium, they became too invested in Satoshi''s match that they didn''t even nce at the other matches. At that instant, everyone was looking at the Third Stage¡ª the arena where USA and the Great White Shark Academy are fighting.

    Suddenly, a yellow glow emerged from Satoshi''s head and it started going upwards. Everyone held their breath since they didn''t know what was happening. Was it the works of one of the Great White Shark Academy Candidates? Well, they could only wonder. Right now, the bizarre urrence was the focus of the audience... and yet, for some odd reason, no one noticed it at all. Apparently, both groups were too focused on themselves that they weren''t even looking at Satoshi.

    That yellow glow then transformed into one of the cutest familiars anyone had seen, a teru teru bozu-like plush that had three halos on her head. She let out an enthusiastic ''womp'' before she sped her hands in a prayer-like fashion. In an instant, Satoshi was enveloped in the same yellow glow and then he could move again as if nothing happened.

    "Dear, did you see that?" Ayumu asked. "Have you ever seen that Familiar before?"

    "No, it''s probably a new familiar. It looks powerful though... and it''s cute to boot." Tatsuki said, rubbing his chin. He wondered if his son would let him pet his familiar.

    <o>,m "That kid, making us worry for nothing." Tatsuki forced augh as his stomach growled. A moment ago, he was prepared to give his son a consoling speech but now, celebration has reced that thought. With Satoshi returning to the stage once again, there''s no way they could lose now.</o>

    "Go get ''em!" Tatsuki cheered this time, grabbing the newspaper he dropped on the floor a few seconds ago.

    .....

    Satoshi stepped sideways and then pulled something from the Orb Oboros. Fortunately, he managed to sense the invisible huge hammering down at him and he barely dodged it. That''s why he pulled the Cloak of Invisibility and rode on his Nailgun. The White Lion started roaring, causing lightning to form right on top of the third stage. The reason why Satoshimanded the White Lion to do that was to keep Contrail busy. Out of everyone who has a wide area of effect on the other team, Contrail was the most dangerous of all since she can control clouds and cause pretty much every weather pattern.

    While Contrail was busy, Satoshi rushed at Primal and gave him a punch. Of course, he summoned Ghast at the exact same time and made his punch go through a portal. It then reappeared right behind Primal and hit him squarely on the nape. Another portal appeared on Satoshi''s feet and he disappeared before Primal could w him. The next portal appeared right in front of Cyborg and Satoshinded on top of him with Lighter floating beside him. After frying both of Cyborg''s arms and legs with Lighter''s unquenchable me, he fired a couple of nails toward Killjoy''s eyes, blinding him. With that, he won''t be able to see anyone''s movements and he wouldn''t be able to strategize anymore.

    "He wasn''t kidding," Fuuka muttered, covering her mouth at the one-sided fight.

 Chapter 125 Second Roundâ€” Inter-High VI

    "Arrghhh!" Primal let out a scream as he charged at Satoshi with ws outstretched.

    "You just never learn your lesson, do you?" Satoshi asked, causing another portal to appear. Because of that, Primal identally attacked Dreamsnatcher, knocking her unconscious. She didn''t even know what hit her.

    Whizzz!

    A bullet then almost pierced Satoshi''s skull but Ghast made a portal and caused the bullet to teleport right behind the one who shot it¡ª Snipes. The bullet then hit him right on the knee cap, making him lose bnce as he screamed in pain.

    It didn''t take long before Satoshi had already defeated every single candidate except for Primal who was still desperately fighting him. Primal just wouldn''t give up, not even having a shred of sympathy to all his teammates who were already defeated. He continued to elerate, his attacks bing more and more precise than ever. Somehow, he was beginning to adjust to Satoshi''s tempo. Even the portals that Satoshi set up are already expected by him.

    "You still want to fight?" Satoshi asked.

    "As long as I defeat you... hah, hah," Primal panted before charging at Satoshi. He twisted his body to avoid a portal and jumped a second time in mid-air just to dodge the two spires of mes that almost hit his legs. The Windfan was following him close as well but extending his ws to it was enough to make it flinch back. After all, Satoshi was careful that he wouldn''t kill any of his familiars. They may have gotten stronger but they only have one life.

    Once he reached Satoshi, Satoshi disappeared from where he was standing and then he received a kick in the gut and a punch on the face. Somehow, Satoshi had full control over his portals he can do multiple attacks with them. His power rivaled that of Primal as well.

    After all, while Primal was getting stronger by the second, Satoshi was piling up with strength as well, thanks to Sera who continuously buffed him. As long as Primal didn''t attack Sera, he wouldn''t be able to defeat Satoshi.

    "Hey, um, I think we should step back a little bit," Sassu suggested. Someone strong could detect another being who is much more formidable after all. Right now, she could tell that Satoshi had already surpassed Primal in terms of raw strength. Every blow they dealt against each other caused shock waves that blew at the audience. Their fight can already be considered a pro fight... or a pro viin versus a pro superhero fight. If it were a movie, this part would''ve been the climax.

    "Yeah, that''s a good idea," Midori asked. Even with his berserker skill activated, he could barely keep up with Satoshi and Primal''s movements. They were disappearing and reappearing here and there and they don''t even notice it. Both of them were in the zone and no one can stop them.

    "I didn''t want to use this but you leave me no choice," Primal said, getting something from his pocket. ''

    "Don''t tell me¡ª " Satoshi didn''t even finish what he was saying.

    Ssh!!!

    "... " Everyone was speechless, even thementator who was supposed to say something just stared at the stage.

    Everybody watched in horror as all of Satoshi''s appendages were cut. Because of the recent distraction, Satoshi stopped short, giving Primal an opening which he used to cut off all of Satoshi''s appendages. Blood gushed out from Satoshi''s shoulders and half-cut thighs but he didn''t scream. "Haah~ haah~ what do you think of me now, Satoshi? I''m stronger than you!"

    "You cheater! You used a superpower booster. I thought the production of those was discontinued? Where did you get such a vile thing?" Satoshi gritted his teeth.

    For the first time in his life, Satoshi showed great indignation and his face was twisted to an expression of pure anger. Why wouldn''t he be angry at Primal? That very drug he injected into his body was something that his parents risked their lives in order to wholly get rid of it. That drug was the reason why the majority of people distrusted the superheroes before. And not only that, many lives were taken that day when the great war between heroes and viins was etched in history. Why wouldn''t he be angry when that very liquid almost took his parents away from him?

    And back then, he didn''t even have a superpower in the first ce. Had his parents died back then, he would''ve been left without some sort of attachment to them. He would''ve greatly regretted how powerless he was back then.

    "Anything goes in this tournament. And it''s not like they saw what I did. Look?" Primal said, extending his hands towards the audience.

    "... "

    "HEY! STOP THE FIGHT! STOP THE FIGHT!" Thementator screamed, making everyone panic.<sub> </sub>

    Meanwhile, Primal''s white fur started turning a bright red color as he grew twice his size. His power output and everything else increased by one hundred percent as well. He was already quick and precise before but now he was a monster¡ª a monster iparable to any superhero one has encountered.

    "NO!" Satoshi screamed. "Everyone calm down!"

    Thementator, upon hearing Satoshi scream while his appendages were gone, suddenly stopped short. he signaled at the cameramen to focus all cameras on Satoshi before he gave a speech.

    "..."

    However, Satoshi didn''t speak. He just stayed lying down as if he was thinking about something. He swallowed his dry saliva. "I didn''t want to show you my trump card but I guess I shou¡ª aghk~"

    STAB!

    p Before Satoshi could act. Primal charged at him and stabbed him straight through the heart, causing him to shriek as blood came out of his mouth. He felt as if he was losing his grip on his life but Satoshi knew that it would take more than a stab to the heart to kill him. Everyone gasped in shock as Satoshi''s life dwindled but no one dared make a move. The gravity of the situation made them unable to act. Even the USA candidates froze up as soon as they saw Satoshi''s bloodied body limply lying down on the ground. In their minds, they constantly screamed at themselves to move and ask for help but nothing happened.</anda>

    As for the viewers at home, they couldn''t bear to watch such brutality that they closed their eyes in surprise. Even though they wanted to know what would happen next and the reason why the management hasn''t disqualified Primal yet, they just had to close their eyes since they couldn''t take it anymore.

    At the same time, Tatsuki and Ayumu, who were now eating breakfast, suddenly flipped their tables. and headed outside. With Tatsuki''s flight and superspeed skill, he grabbed onto his wife and flew straight towards Saitama Prefecture. They knew that it would take them at least a minute to get there but they were taking their chances. They also contacted the Nurse as soon as they took off.

    ...

    With a weak moan, Satoshi whispered one of his familiar''s names.

    "Sera, you know what to do." He continued before the life disappeared from his eyes.

    "oum~" Sera said with a determined face before she flew down and passed through Satoshi''s chest.

    Once again, Satoshi was enveloped in bright yellow light but this time, it was a couple more times stronger than the first time. The sound of sparkling diamonds could be heard from the background as Satoshi''s limbs flew back and reattached themselves. However, the bright yellow glow didn''t stop there.

    It continued until Satoshi was fully standing. Meanwhile, Primal could tell that Satoshi was powering up even though he did everything he could to stop him from doing so. Because of that, desperation finally got the better of him and he started mercilessly hacking and shing at Satoshi as if he were a pig for ughter. However, his attacks just wouldn''t connect.

    "You shouldn''t have forced me to use this," Satoshi muttered.

    When the brightness dissipated, a few sparkles erupted around Satoshi''s body before his new look was revealed. This time, Satoshi''s hair turned clear white and his eyes were bright red as a phoenix''s. He was wearing an elegant white overcoat with its cor up and iid with gold ornaments. His arms were wearing gloves as well and his right eye was fitted with a monocle that seemed toe as a set with the coat. On his head were three, no, four halos that floated as if they were different entities. Those halos, as mentioned before, determined the level of Sera and now she seemed to have increased in power.

    Not only were Satoshi''s appendages intact, there was also no sign of a stab in his heart. And adding to that, he felt as if unknown energy was welling up within him.

    "Do you still want to continue?" Satoshi said, disappearing in an instant.

    Now, it should be emphasized that Primal''s reflexes and overall power output increased by a hundred percent, and yet he didn''t see Satoshi''s movements at all. He just disappeared from where he was standing and reappeared right behind him.

 Chapter 126 Second Roundâ€” Inter-High VII

    Chop!

    In a sh, Satoshi gave Primal a chop to the nape, rendering him unconscious in an instant. That chop contained enough power to split a mountain but Primal took it like a champ and didn''t even break a neck bone. He did faint though.

    "I guess that''s done then," Satoshi muttered.

    A split secondter though, he felt as if his soul left his body. It was an unusual feeling which caused him to lose his bnce. After being in a daze for a few seconds, he just had to lie down before his consciousness left him. After defeating Primal, he became unconscious as well.

    [Primal, Alexander Whitewing, is disqualified from the tournament for attempting to kill a candidate.]

    [Primal, Alexander Whitewing, is disqualified for using a superpower booster]

    [Primal, Alexander Whitewing, will be escorted by security officials out of the premises, please remain calm and continue to enjoy the Inter-High Tournament]

    [We are genuinely sorry for all the inconvenience this may have caused.]

    "SATOSHI!" Midori and the others screamed in unison as Satoshi reverted back to his usual ck-haired form, grabbing him by the shoulders and checking his pulse and whatnot. Fortunately, he wasn''t in any critical condition. He just fell asleep.

    "SATOSHI!" Another voice erupted from the audience and then the Midoriyama Duo suddenly flew towards the Third Stage with the Nurse in tow.

    "Is he all right? Why are his appendages¡ª did we hallucinate honey?" Tatsuki asked out of the blue.

    "No, I don''t think we did," Ayumu said, pointing at the shredded part of the sleeves and pants where his arms and legs were supposedly cut off. "Nurse, is something wrong with him?"

    "No, he''s just sleeping. He expended a lot of energy after all. I''ll heal him a bit so he can recover faster." The Nurse said, cing his hand on Satoshi''s head and giving him just enough energy so he''ll wake up soon. "Sigh~ and here I was thinking that it was an emergency. Seriously, you two are doting on your son too much."

    "No," Sassu spoke up. "A few seconds ago, Satoshi really was on the verge of death! He just managed to act in thest second. If he didn''t, he would''ve been dead by now. You should watch the rey of the live stream and you will know. Also, I''m Sakura Cherry! Great fan! I''m aiming to be your son''s girlfriend if anything!" Sassu said with utmost confidence, extending her hands to which Tatsuki and Ayumu properly responded.

    "I see, I healed him enough. I''ll be on my way then. By the way, Midori, were you the one who healed him? Great job as always, I knew you''d surpass me soon enough. Even I have a hard time reattaching limbs and yet you did all four of them in no time at all." The Nurse said. Of course, she knew the whole story since she was watching the live stream as well. She just said that to Satoshi''s parents so they wouldn''t panic that much. They are the face of the SAO after all, they cannot behave in an unseemly way in public.

    "No... um, it wasn''t me. As Sa¡ª er, I mean, as Cherry said, it was all Satoshi." Midori answered promptly, vehemently denying the Nurse''s statement. "It was Satoshi who healed himself."

    "You mean, regeneration? How could he¡ª "

    "He was stabbed through the heart and had his four limbs detached. If you called that simple regeneration then what have we been witnessing up until now?" Kurogami said. "He was able to survive those deadly wounds and heal all of them in an instant. Not only can he control a lot of familiars, he also has immortal-like regeneration."

    "I see," The Nurse mumbled. "Your son really is the mysterious one, ain''t he? I guess I''ll ask him a few questions about it when he gets some free time."

    .....

    "W-where am I?"

    When Satoshi woke up, he saw that his every Familiar was gathered in a circle. It was an empty space with a violet haze and yet even though the space seemed to extend into infinity, it had its boundaries as well. When he looked down, he saw nothing but the violet haze, and yet there was a floor on which he could walk on. No one had to tell him to walk toward his familiars. There was one empty seat and he figured he''d have to sit there.

    [You''re finally here, Satoshi]

    "Dex?" Satoshi asked as a retroputer floated out of nowhere and sat on the empty seat.

    ? "Where am I supposed to sit then?"

    [Of course, in the middle.]

    Satoshi nodded and did what he was told. He decided to just trust Dex since he didn''t know what was going on. Besides, it''s as if all his familiars were in on this so he didn''t think too much about it.

    [We are in your consciousness, Satoshi, sorry you have to meet us like this but this is an emergency]<sub> </sub>

    [Your superpower has gotten stronger and at this rate, it might swallow you]

    "What do you mean it might swallow me?"

    [I mean, there wille a time when you won''t be able to control your power and it might cause us to... be uncontroble as well. You should remember Satoshi that we are directly linked to you. If something were to happen to you then it will affect us as well. Just like when you were on the verge of death back then, Sera had to integrate herself into you which caused you to expend more energy than usual.]

    [Because of your determination to live, you managed to gain control of Sera even though it was just a few seconds. It did deplete your energy but at least you didn''t go berserk.]

    "You mean, there''s a chance that I be uncontroble and go on a rampage if I were to integrate with you?"

    [In the past, no, but now that your power is steadily rising, you might lose control of it one day. The chances of you going on a rampage increase by the day. If you don''t control your superpower, then it will cause us to go on a rampage as well.]

    "So... what should I do now?"

    [That''s the problematic part. In order to gain control of your superpower, you have to either continuously gain more familiars or integrate with another familiar and practice it. If you can control your energy output and not cause a huge influx of energy towards your familiar, then your familiar wouldn''t run amok.]

    [Of course, that would be difficult, but take things slow and you can master it. If worsees to worst, I can help you out, Satoshi. But if you rushed things and you went on a rampage, then I''m afraid I can''t do anything anymore.]

    "All right, thanks for telling me. And everyone, I''m sorry for relying on you too much." Satoshi said, bowing his head towards his familiar. "I''ll train hard to be a worthy master."

    [You don''t have to apologize, Satoshi, we all are right behind you, always.]

    "Thanks, Dex,"

    [You should probably wake up. Your mom and dad were very worried about you. Up until now, they''re still in the waiting room along with your team. They''re waiting for the good news.]

    "All right, How do I wake up?"

    .....

    Beep...

    Beep...

    Beep...

    When Satoshi woke up, he was greeted with a blinding white light that was focused on him. He flinched and swayed his hands in an attempt to get the light out of the way. Apparently, it was just the Nurse, pointing a shlight on one of his eyes.

    "I''m d you''re awake. How are you doing?" The Nurse greeted. She didn''t need any further introductions since Satoshi knew her all too well.

    "Um, how long was I out?" Satoshi curiously asked.

    "About five minutes. I''ve watched the rey to confirm and wow... I never thought that you had such a superpower. Is it rapid self-regeneration? I thought you were a petmaster-type? Do you have two superpowers? Man, kids these days,"

    Satoshi shook his head. "No, I only have one." He smiled. "What happened? Is everyone all right?" He asked, wondering if he had gone berserk before he was dragged to this hospital bed.

    "Yes, thanks to you. That Primal kid was about to go on a rampage, good thing you stopped him. Well, that aside, how were you able to heal a stab to the heart? And your limbs too, they were reattached as if nothing happened at all. How did you do it?"

    "I... I didn''t know either. The only thing in my head back then was that I can''t die yet. And somehow, I felt unknown energy rushing through me, and the next thing I knew I was standing up once again. I defeated Primal and then after that I don''t remember what happened ne¡ª oh, I felt dizzy before I lost consciousness."

    "That''s normal," The Nurse said, writing something on a paper. "I mean, that bodily reaction is normal when you awakened a new superpower¡ª that, or you used an aspect of your superpower that you haven''t used yet."

 Chapter 127 Second Roundâ€” Inter-High Conclusion

    "That''s normal," The Nurse said, writing something on a paper. "I mean, that bodily reaction is normal when you awakened a new superpower¡ª that, or you used an aspect of your superpower that you haven''t used it."

    "Thetter''s probably the case," Satoshimented.

    "I see... so it''s more like a branch of your superpower? And it''s your first time using it? Fascinating." The Nurse said. "Well, let''s talk about thatter. For now, I just want to apologize for thete response of the medical team and the management. This was the first time someone attempted to kill someone in a tournament... or rather, it''s been so long since someonest did that that we weren''t quite used to it. Fortunately, your mom and dad rushed from your house to here and grabbed me. When we got there it was already toote though, you were already healed."

    Satoshi shuddered at the thought that he was that close to dying. He didn''t want to go through the same experience again, never again.

    "You can move along now. Honestly, I''m impressed. With your injuries, you should''ve been here for a few more days but to think that you can just walk out as if nothing happened? The next generation of superheroes are going to be a pain in the rear end, that I can tell." The Nurse chuckled.

    <o>,m "Thank you so much," Satoshi bowed toward her before heading out.</o>

    As soon as he got out, one of the guards saluted at him. "Please follow me," He said,

    Satoshi nodded.

    .....

    Tatsuki and Ayumu paced back and forth themon area as Hiroshi and the others watched them. This was one of those rare moments when they could see the Midoriyama Duo in their natural habitat so they decided to burn the memory in their minds. All of them were great fans of the Midoriyama Duo, after all. If you were a kid and you''re not a fan of the Midoriyama Duo after everything they''ve done, then something''s wrong with you.

    "Is he all right?" Tatsuki muttered, rubbing his chin in absolute worry. Not once did it ur in his mind that the house was an absolute mess right now. Because of panic, they did flip the table and smashed it onto the wall.

    "He''d better be, the Nurse is taking care of him after all." Ayumu continued.

    Just watching them made the other candidates feel as if something was choking them up. They didn''t expect the Midoriyama Duo to be worrywarts. They even started wondering how Satoshi became so independent even after having such overprotective parents. But then again, Satoshi almost died back then, any parent would be worried if they were to witness such a horrifying sight. If it were any other parent, they would''ve sued the management right then and there.

    Creak!

    "Um," Satoshi muttered as he went into the waiting room. He didn''t bother using Ghast so he could teleport inside the Waiting Room at once. After all, that would just surprise his teammates all the more.

    "SATOSHI!" The first one to scream was Tatsuki as he unconsciously activated his superspeed and grabbed Satoshi in a tight embrace. Satoshi felt his back arching in an ufortable manner but he didn''t ask his dad to let go. Instead, he just let him be since he was quite worried. Ayumu also rushed towards him after screaming just like his dad and together, the whole family disyed their bond in front of the other USA candidates.

    "What happened back there?" Tatsuki asked, touching Satoshi all over his chest and arms to see if there were any scars or if there were any serious injuries left behind due to the sh. To his relief, there weren''t any. It''s as if nothing happened, even.

    "I should be asking that, dad, mom. Those orcs shouldn''t have been a problem to you." Satoshi muttered.

    "Wait¡ª don''t tell me... " Ayumu muttered. Because her motherly instincts were strong, she could tell that Satoshi was somehow involved with something dangerous. She gasped as she realized that the unknown entity that helped them a few hours ago was none other than their son. "You were the one who¡ª "

    "Why did youe there? That was dangerous!" Ayumu lightly reprimanded her son.

    "What do you mean, dear?" Tatsuki asked, confused.

    "It was him! Your son was the one who helped us clear the Gate!" Ayumu voiced out.

    "Wait, did you really¡ª " Tatsuki was shocked beyond belief.<sub> </sub>

    "N-no! I... I was forced to do it." Satoshi said, immediately recalling a certain someone.

    Emma!

    "Um, this is a bit off-topic but were all the Gates cleared already?" Satoshi asked out of the blue.

    "I don''t think so. I''ve been watching the news ever since we finished the second round. Only the Gates that spawned in America and Japan were cleared. And of course, they were the ones who received your help, right?" Shidou asked.

    "You know what, I won''t even be surprised anymore if Satoshi does something crazy again." Midori continued. "I mean, I thought I was the only one in the team who''s got superior healing ability, even the Nurseplimented me about it. Then there''s you who easily reattached all your limbs. How on earth?!"

    "Ahhehehe~" Satoshi scratched his head. "I''ll be heading to the bathroom first." Satoshi continued.

    As soon as he stood up and left to ease himself in the bathroom, everyone started talking about Satoshi''s weird performance as well as him overextending during the second round. He didn''t have to take on everyone but he did so anyway.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi was worried about why no other Gates was cleared yet. He figured that Emma was having a difficult time clearing the other Gates without his help. She did help him rescue his parents. Had she not been there, Satoshi knew all too well that his parents and everyone in the group would''ve died already. That''s why he saw it fit to return the favor by lending her his aid.

    Besides, he still hasn''t thanked her for providing him with such a powerful familiar¡ª Ghast.

    "Let''s go." Satoshi closed his eyes while simultaneously summoning Ghast, pulling him out from Orb Oboros. After having a clear image of Emma in his mind, Satoshi activated a portal and walked right through.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    With blood dripping from her head, Emma dazedly dodged the attacking at her. This time, all-rounder golems and powerful mages were the enemies in the gate that spawned in Africa. Andpared to the American Exploration Team or the Japanese Team led by the Midoriyama Duo, the superheroes in Africa couldn''t do a thing when it came to the threat. Even when Emma stepped in, the tides of the battle never tipped in their favor.

    Of course, Emma could only do so much with her portals and even then, she almost ran out of energy after fighting for almost an hour now. That''s why she started limiting her portals and decided to dodge a few attacks herself. Nevertheless, she couldn''t dodge everything and a few attacks got through, causing her to bleed on the forehead.

    She had already lost a lot of blood but she kept on standing. Everyone in the African Exploration Team was already unconscious, and some of them might even be dead. But right now, Emma''s thoughts right now were stopping the monsters from getting out of the Gate. ''Over my dead body'' She said to the golems as she continued her fluid movements to dodge the Golems'' attacks while redirecting their attacks so they could hit each other.

    "I won''t... I won''t let it happen again, you damned monsters." Emma gritted her teeth.

    "Whoa, rx! You''ll kill yourself at this rate." Satoshi called out to her from behind.

    "I''m so out of it that I''m already imagining Satoshi''s voice. Sigh~ I guess this is it for me, huh. I probably wished that he''ll fight by my side one more time..." Emma smiled as her energy finally run out. As much as she tried to tell her legs to move, they just won''t listen. It''s as if they willed to nt themselves on the ground.

    "Sera," Satoshi called, telling her to heal Emma just enough so she''d be able to move. While doing so, he used Ghast to redirect the punch that the Golem directed at Emma.

    In an instant, Emma recovered her energy as if she just woke up from a goodnight''s rest. Her blurried vision cleared, and the hallucination she once saw became reality. For a few seconds, she stared at Satoshi with eyes as wide as an owl, looking at him up and down to see if she were dreaming. However, the all-too smiling Satoshi patted him on the shoulder.

    "You all right?" He asked. A few moments ago, he overheard her speaking to herself and he wondered if there was a reason behind her great resentment towards the Gates and its monsters. "I thought you were dead." Satoshi continued.

    "How did you get here?!" She eximed.

 Chapter 128 Another Gate

    "How did you get here?!" She eximed.

    Snapping back to her senses, she was more than a hundred percent sure that Satoshi was indeed right in front of her. Before Satoshi could react, she grabbed him by the cheeks and pinched it as hard as she could.

    "Ouch~ what are you doing?" Satoshi had all the time in the world to dodge her hands but he didn''t do so. He wondered why he didn''t dodge.

    "But... I didn''t teleport you over here? Do you know of anyone who has a teleportation superpower like mine? No, I don''t think so. My superpower is already rare as it is... if there is then you must be really lucky to find him or her."

    "Let''s talk about thatter. We have a Gate to clear." Satoshi told her. "You can rest first if you want, I can handle these guys."

    "Look at him getting all cocky after getting here. Go ahead then, I''ll rest for a bit." Emma waved her hand. "I''ll check if anyone''s still alive over here."

    Satoshi nodded before rushing towards the group of Golems that sprinted towards him. Riding on his Nailgun familiars once again, he zipped through the air while shooting nails at the Golems. It didn''t look all that cool but Satoshi was feeling the wind. He didn''t look back at Emma for fear that she might be staring at him with a disinterested expression on her face. All the while shooting nails at the Golems, he summoned his White Lion and transferred over there, letting the Nailguns float and at the same time calling out for his Lighter familiar toe out. Once again, Satoshi became a bulldozer, firing nails, lightning, and spires of mes at the same time. It was overkill for the Golems since they couldn''t touch Satoshi at all while tanking heavy damage. Somehow, Satoshi felt pity for the Golems since they couldn''t do anything, but after remembering that they annihted an entire party of superheroes and almost drove Emma into a corner, his sympathy disappeared.

    One group after the other, Satoshi got rid of the Golems while maintaining his mobility. He was unstoppable, to say the least, but an inkling feeling gnawed at Satoshi since every Golem was too easy to defeat.

    p Meanwhile, Emma was checking the bodies one by one to see who was still alive and who''s not. Out of all the members of the superhero party, only three were still breathing. Emma sighed, ming her own powerlessness since they died on her watch. She suppressed her tears from falling since she didn''t want Satoshi to see her weak side. Seeing all those dead bodies had an effect on her, it was as if she was reliving her past.</anda>

    "How many of them?" Satoshi asked, making Emma flinch in surprise since he suddenly appeared in front of her.

    "Only three," Emma simply responded. "I... it was my fault that they died."

    "No, all of them would''ve died if it weren''t for you."

    Emma gulped before opening her mouth. She was about to say something but she decided not to. As for Satoshi, he briefly summoned Sera and told her to heal everyone who''s still alive. Of course, there''s only so much Sera can do without powering herself up and Satoshi didn''t want to tire her out before the actual Dungeon Boss fight. Considering all that, Satoshi healed the three people just enough for their stability. After doing so, Satoshi then headed out once again to sh with the next groups of Golems.

    If it were a normal party of superheroes, the amount of Golemsing at them would''ve overwhelmed them to the point that they tire themselves to death. That''s exactly the reason why Golems are scary, they''re too defensive that knocking one down would require a substantial amount of energy. As for Satoshi, he didn''t have to worry about that since using his familiars doesn''t require energy. Also, ever since Satoshi had his familiars, they never got exhausted no matter what happens. That''s why he wasn''t worried that they''d run out of energy.

    The only thing he had to worry about was what happened during the second round of the Inter-High Tournament. He lost himself and merged with his summon, depleting his energy. He also felt his familiar energy get drained as well and who knows what could happen if it runs out of energy? Perish the thought of the worst-case scenario¡ª that''s why Satoshi didn''t want that to happen again.

    But then again, the only way for history not to repeat itself was for Satoshi to train that side of his superpower as well. If he doesn''t then there''s a huge chance that he''ll run amok again. ''I guess I''ll just ask dad about itter.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    The horde of Golems just kept gettingrger andrger that Satoshi was wondering if there was an end to them. He had been fighting them for at least an hour now and he had killed hundreds of Golems but somehow, they were stilling by the droves. Emma wondered the same thing as well, but her mind was preupied with the fact that Satoshi just used some sort of powerful healing superpower on the three superheroes that were still alive. ''Is that kind of healing superpower normal in this world? Is that considered weak?'' She asked herself since she was still ignorant of Earth.<sub> </sub>

    Emma shook her head, inhaled, and exhaled a couple of times before mustering her courage to start assisting Satoshi once again. She started anticipating the attacks of Golems and cing portals there. She would then cut it off as soon as the foot or the arm of the Golem went through, cutting it in half and restricting the Golem''s movements. It was mentioned before that the Golems that Satoshi fought moved like professional superheroes so they weren''t your run-of-the-mill slow Golems. Some of them are faster than Satoshi, even.

    Fortunately, Satoshi was mobile enough and his firepower rivaled the Golem''s almost imprable defenses. Something doesn''t right with the Golems though since there was no end to them.

    "Wait a... wait a cursed second," Satoshi almost wanted to curse out loud but he bit his lips in frustration. After pondering for a few minutes about it, he finally realized that the reason why the Golems didn''t dwindle in number was that they were, in fact, Golems. They were mere rocks formed by some sort of summoner that controlled them like puppets on strings. As soon as Satoshi looked at them that way, he realized that they were mere pawns, being controlled by a more powerful figure in the background. As of now, he doesn''t know where the location of the summoner was, but with Dex with him, finding his whereabouts is as easy as doing a single push-up.

    "Dex," Satoshi called out, before he could even finish his message, Dex immediately interrupted him.

    "Northwest, by the single tree over there, Satoshi. It''s the most obvious hideout there is and that''s probably why he chose to hide there." Dex exined.

    "Thanks, Dex. I owe you yet another one," Satoshi said to Dex with a grin before Dex disappeared right in front of him.

    Without further ado, Satoshi weaved his way through all the Golems and eliminated a few of them at the same time. Even though he didn''t need to, he found the thrill of knocking a couple of Golems to oblivion quite amusing.

    It didn''t even take one minute before he arrived at the lone tree that stood in the scenery less background. He shot spires of mes with his Lighter and burned the tree to the ground.

    Uwahhhhhhh~~~

    A long terrifying moan came out of the tree as if hundreds of wolves howled at the same time. Satoshi stepped back a little bit and braced himself, trying to figure out what woulde out of the tree.

    And then, a faceless entity emerged from the tree, with white and red flowy robes and hands that resembled that of a half-rotten corpse. Two violet glints of light shed from the faceless hood part of the robe. Satoshi assumed it was the summoner''s eyes so he locked gazes with him.

    "You know... because you and I... you and I are the same." The summoner wailed before reaching out his hand and summoning a couple of dragon-like monsters twice the size of the White Lion. And then, two phantom-like blue tigers appeared on the side of the summoner, not to mention the giant phoenix-like bird that appeared behind it. It was obvious that the summoner was trying to intimidate Satoshi.

    Satoshi didn''t know what to do since he could sense that his familiars were much weaker than the familiars that the summoner have. He still didn''t back down though and he summoned Sera and Ghast, hoping that they would be enough to keep the summoner in check.

    "Potentially powerful... but not powerful enough... you won''tst, summoner." The summoner said before unleashing his summons.

    "Try me," Satoshi stood up to the challenge with a forced smile on his face.

 Chapter 129 Sync 100%

    "Try me," Satoshi stood up to the challenge with a forced smile on his face.

    Against another powerful summoner, a certain summoner wouldn''t stand a chance unless his summons is much more powerful than his adversary''s. However, such a thing cannot be so easily gauged especially when it was their first time meeting each other.

    One thing''s for certain, though. Right now, Satoshi is facing a Dungeon/Gate Boss. And based on his experience, these Gate Bosses are quite a pain on the rear side by just how chunky and capable they are. It was safe to assume that Satoshi stood no chance against the Summoner in front of him. Satoshi could feel the tension down to his very bones just by ncing at the Summoner''s individual summons. Right now, he''s only got White Lion who''s a beast-type summon, and even the White Lion didn''t stand a chance against one of the many summons. What more his other summons?

    Emma''s senses immediately felt Satoshi''s powerlessness as he firmly stood in front of the Summoner. With its mighty presence looming over him, Satoshi didn''t step out of the way because there were three superheroes behind him. Also, there''s Emma who''s still trying to recover. Satoshi had to consider protecting those four, all the while fighting a Summoner who''s leagues better than him.

    "Why aren''t you making the first move?" Satoshi''s voice almost cracked but he camouged it with a light cough as if he was clearing his throat. He felt his stomach hanging low and his throat constricting as nervousness almost got the better of him. He knew he couldn''t back down now. Right now''s the critical time and if he were to make a mistake, then getting out of this Gate is a mere wish away instead of a mere possibility.

    "You... You''re afraid, summoner... Why do you still shield them from their inevitable doom? What drives you to save them, summoner?... You can''t win against me, isn''t that as clear as day?" The Summoner continued.

    "You don''t know me, shut your trap." Satoshi forced a smile on his face as he bent backward and tightened his core. He was physically ready to fight even though he hasn''t fully resolved his mind. It was aplicated feeling but Satoshi rode on it. At least he''s got half the resolve to fight.

    And he intended to win.

    "Your choice... it is rather foolish... how amusing, humans are." The Summoner spoke as if he was a popr green alien on a certain sci-fi movie series. Satoshi recognized the reference that he almost chuckled out loud.

    "Droplet, Ghast, Sera, Windfan, I''ll be relying on you this time around. Also you Dex, lend me your strength." Satoshi continued.

    A total of seven clicks were heard on Satoshi''s mind and he recognized it immediately. A split secondter, Dex appeared beside him as if to give him a pat on the back. "Those clicks, those were the clicks you hear when ying Laser Fingers, right?" Satoshi asked as a genuine smile spread across his face. For the first time since his encounter with the Summoner, Satoshi had rxed quite a bit. Hearing those clicks, he perfectly knew what Dex was trying to imply.

    [We summons are a mere extension of your arms, Satoshi, just like how thesers on that game you used to y are a mere extension of your fingers. Just give us themand and we will see through it no matter what. If by any chance, you still can''t win, then we''re prepared to be decoys so you and the other people can escape. We heard your goal loud and clear and we will assist you to the best of our abilities.]

    This was the first time Satoshi heard Dex lengthily say something but it sure gave him a boost of confidence, a push on the back, hyping his morale. "I know you got my back, Dex, all of you. But you don''t have to take it too far. We will win with the affinity we have right now. We''ve been to many battles and let me just say that I can''t do anything without you guys."

    A battle between immense power and an unshakeable bond. The two summoners faced each other with their solid strengths and weaknesses. Satoshi grinned, feeling more confident than ever. Without his summons, he''s powerless as a sheep to the ughter, but with them, he can do anything. Even reaching the stars is out of the question.

    "So... you''ve finally found your answer... Summoner?" The Summoner asked Satoshi.

    "Yes," Satoshi said, extending his hand and ncing toward Ghast.

    "Wuuuu," Ghast seemed to respond as he opened a big portal. Fortunately, there was a big body of water right behind the mountains and Ghast had already sensed it, for one reason or the other. Upon activating his portal, Ghast procure tons and tons of water from the body of water, aiming the fountain towards Droplet.

    Droplet took it greedily, and before the Summoner could react, Droplet had be a body of water suspended in the air. Satoshi then stared at Sera and had her fly over to the top of the battlefield, away from the attacks of the Summoners and the other familiars on the ground. Even if they fire off multiple attacks from the ground, Sera would be able to sense it and dodge. And if worsees to worst, Satoshi had already instructed Ghast to always support Sera just in case.

    The Summoner could feel that giving Satoshi more time to prepare would just put him at a disadvantage. Of course, he wanted to return the favor since his preparation wasn''t interrupted by Satoshi. It was only fair y for him to wait but right now, he couldn''t afford to miss another chance since Satoshi was getting stronger by the minute.<sub> </sub>

    "RAGGGGHHHH~~~ " The Summoner screamed as the two phantom-like tigers charged at Satoshi at full speeds.

    Without further ado, Satoshi rode on his Nailguns and had White Lion nk the Summoner. Satoshi wasn''t wasting another minute. He knew that his priority right now is to kill the Summoner because, without him, all the other summons would be worthless as well. With Sera''s buff, and Nailgun and White Lion assisting him, he decided to focus on the Summoner which seemed to have decided to retreat.

    As for the phantom-like tigers, Droplet and Windfan were ordered to keep them at bay. Because of that, Windfan pointed up and decided to form a blizzard which would then enable droplets to instantly transform the water it controlled into ice spikes. If the ice spikes won''t render the phantom-like tigers immobile, then the cold will. As for Lighter, it was left to fight the dragon-like multiple summons on its own. Of course, Lighter was more than capable of burning them up since they weren''t that defensivepared to the Golems back there. The snow did take an effect on it since its firepower went down a notch. It was still formidable either way.

    But then, in an instant, the blizzard that Windfan created was gone. The frozen dragon-like monsters were brought back as well and also, the phantom-like tigers became even faster than before they were almost invincible.

    Fwuoooooohhhh~~~

    When Satoshi looked behind him, he ducked as a fireball almost hit him on the face. A portion of his hair was singed but there were no real damage done. Right behind the fireball was another summon that Satoshi didn''t expect to attack at all. After all, it was the biggest out of everyone and it didn''t seem like it would make its move unless the battle was nearing its end.

    It was the Phoenix that flew right behind the Summoner back then. It probably realized that Satoshi was aiming for the Summoner and that''s why it got agitated.

    "Nailgun," Satoshi need not give the Nailgunplicated instructions since everything''s on his mind. He just had to think of it and his summons will get it.

    It was time for Phase two!

    Satoshi started falling mid-air, not because the Nailgun abandoned him, but because he would be relying on another familiar from now on.

    Not the White Lion, but Ghast.

    Fwoop!

    Satoshi went through a Portal and appeared right behind Droplet. At that moment, he wasn''t sure whether he''d be able to pull it off but all his doubts were cleared when he felt all the expectations of his summons weighing down on him as if some sort of pressure was suddenly passed down on him. He forced a smile and synced with Droplet the way he''d never synced with it before.

    Droplet started condensing all the water it was manipting up til now and suddenly, it transformed into a crystal, which then imnted itself on Satoshi''s head. Satoshi suddenly felt overwhelmed as if a huge wave came crashing full force on his body. And yet, that feeling somehow calmed his mind, a refreshing feeling yet heavy at the same time, just like what he initially felt being born as a powerless son of the Midoriyama Duo.

    Satoshi''s hair turned blue and his appendages seemed to be one with water. With one swing, he sent powerful ice spikes that made a couple of dragon-like monsters explode.

    [Stay calm, Satoshi, don''t let your emotions get the better of you. You can''t lose your cool or you''ll end up falling into unconsciousness once again.]

    "Thanks for the reminder, Dex, I can do this." Satoshi gritted his teeth as his body transformed into one body mass of water, slinging through the sky like a liquid meteor.

 Chapter 130 Summoners History

    Satoshi felt his energy being drained with every single minor movement he made. Right now, he was totally integrated with Droplet so his whole body can shift into water and revert back to being human as he willed it. It was one of the weirdest feelings Satoshi had ever encountered in his life since he can freely control himself all the while trying to visualize everything in his head for fear that his appendages would flow away. His fright didn''t happen though since he continued to move faster towards the Summoner while getting rid of his summons at the same time. No matter how many dragon-like monsters he summoned, or how many buffs they received from the Phoenix, Satoshi easily overpowered them due to his integration with his Droplet familiar.

    ''Water Armor,'' Satoshi said in his mind just when the Phoenix fired another barrage of fireballs at him. In a sh, Satoshi''s water-like body hardened and it turned into ice armor, entirely blocking the fireball that came at him. Although the firepower of the fireball was admirable, it didn''t even leave a scratch on the ''water armor'' that Satoshi created.

    "What a neat trick... Summoner... " The Summoner said as it continued to run away, but Satoshi continued closing in on him like a maniac.

    As the Summoner watched the throes of deathe upon him in the form of Satoshi, he closed his eyes and surrendered. He knew that there was no use resisting. He had prided himself as the most powerful summoner to ever exist and yet the very first summoner he ever fought with was much stronger than him. He was beginning to wonder if his life had been a waste as well, and thinking about the past, he knew that it had been, for sure.

    [Satoshi, wait a minute] Dex suddenly appeared out of nowhere, causing Satoshi to abruptly stop his attack. He was already aiming for a finishing blow when Dex seemed to have a better idea in mind.

    .....

    Quite a few hundred years ago, in another world,

    "NOOOOOO!" A man screamed, sweating profusely. But as soon as he opened his eyes, he forgot the nightmare he just had. His arm, for some odd reason, was extended towards the ceiling here amp was hanging, its gentle light almost unnoticeable since the first rays of the sun were beaming down through the windows.

    "Honey, are you all right?" A woman beside him asked, rubbing him softly on the head, ruffling his ck curly hair. "You were having a nightmare, weren''t you?"

    The man nodded, got up, and wiped the sweat all over his body. He was sleeping without a shirt on, leaving the nket drenched with his sweat. This happens every time he gets a nightmare.

    "Come on, honey, the vige chief shouldn''t be waking up thiste in the morning. Are you all right?" His wife said, kissing him passionately on the forehead before standing up. "Come on, breakfast''s ready."

    "Yes, I guess I''ve been cking offtely." The man said to himself, half-chuckling. "Are there any requests from the vigers?"

    "Yes, but you should eat some breakfast before addressing all of them. I know how you are, you''d forget to eat until you finished granting most of the requests. You shouldn''t do that to yourself, honey. And that''s why I''ve taken drastic actions!" His wife continued, grabbing the stack of papers by the front door and hiding it behind his back.

    Her husband had all the capability to sneak up behind her and get the stacks of paper but he decided not to. He smiled a gentle smile before settling down at the dining table. "You got me there, dear, now let''s have breakfast together."

    "Oum~ that''s how it should be." His wife continued.

    In secret though, his wife didn''t know that he already released one of his phantom-tiger summons to patrol the entirety of the forest, see if there are any beasts lurking around. With this, he''d be able to take care of the dangers around the vige before someone startsining. At first, he nned on leaving his phantom tigers on patrol 24/7 but doing so is heavily taxing and he didn''t have unlimited energy. Even though he''s a powerful summoner, there''s only so much he can do. That''s why he made it his routine tomand the phantom tigers to patrol the area. He has limitations too and he was well aware of that.

    "And where are your phantom tigers, honey?" His wife suddenly stared at him with a doubtful gaze.

    "Oh, I um, sent them out on patrol??? Hehhe, don''t worry about it. They''ll be back in a few minutes. Mhmmm, these sandwiches are delicious, what did you put in them?" The man said, chewing on the sandwich with great gusto so he could sessfully shift the topic.

    "I wonder why I married such a man, sigh~~~ you should take it easy every once in a while, dear." His wife said.

    "Look, Plumeria, you know how it is. Our vige is weak enough as it is and neighboring viges are having a hard time as well. If I don''t do anything in my power to uphold peace and safety in my vige, then we''re bound to fall sooner thanter. Right now, I''m already sensing betrayal brewing amongst my subordinates. If I don''t do all I can right now, they''ll certainly try to take my position from me and I''m afraid that scenario will plunge our vige into destruction. Then there are the neighboring viges to worry about as well. Right now, they''re probably conspiring against each other, trying to gain more territory in this beast-riddennd."<sub> </sub>

    "Then, why don''t you just get rid of everyone? Why don''t you attack the other viges and unite all of us as one? If you''re going to overwork yourself, then do so without holding back." Plumeria pouted, facing backward. "I... you know I can''t live without you, Gabriel. If something were to happen to you hic~ yesterday was already a warning. You almost died back then!"

    "Honey, you know what will happen if I suddenly get rid of my subordinates, right? The people will deem it suspicious and heave an uprising. All I ever do to them, I do for their sake, and yet, they''re afraid of me. All of them, each and every one of them wanted to get rid of me."

    "Then, why don''t we just run away? Get away from this ce?"

    "We can''t survive a day in the forests. I can''t fend off hordes upon hordes of beasts every single day. That''s why, as much as I hate to admit it, we''re stuck here until who knows how long."

    "Sigh~ let''s just shift the topic into something else lest it ruins our breakfast."

    "I acquiesce, these sandwiches are the real deal after all." Even with all the doubts in his mind, Gabriel shifted his expression into his usual cheerful one, pretending that everything was fine despite the pressure ced upon his shoulders.

    "VILLAGE CHIEF! VILLAGE CHIEF! THE RASKATWA VILLAGE IS ATTACKING US FROM THE NORTHWEST!"

    "VILLAGE CHIEF! THE RASKATWA VILLAGE!"

    "WAHHHHH WE"RE UNDER ATTACK!"

    "VILLAGE CHIEF!"

    In an instant, Gabriel stood up, gulped his sandwich with one bite and essed the sight of one of his phantom tigers. As expected, he saw a few people from the Raskatwa Vige attacking a group of people who were gathering herbs, mercilessly killing them and stabbing them a couple of times more, intending to rile him even more.

    "ARGHHH!" Gabriel said, jumping out of the window and summoning a few of his dragon-like summons to keep the other attackers at bay. As for the Raskatwa Vigers who were attacking the herb gatherers, he decided to kill them himself. Unforgivable!

    As soon as he jumped out of the window, his phoenix came out and he rode on top of it. His phantom tigers were also going around the vige, gathering all the other vigers who were outside the vige. At least, if they were all inside, then he''d be able to focus on defending the vige without worrying about the loss of another life.

    "How dare you!" He screamed, telling the Phoenix to heal every person who was gathering herbs just a moment ago but no matter how hard the phoenix tried to, there was no saving them. He got down from his phoenix andmanded it to fire a couple of fireballs at the group of Raskatwans.

    However, just before the fireballs hit, the Raskatwan in front let out a chuckle before swaying his hand. In an instant, a huge emperor penguin appeared beside him, firing a powerful hydro pump attack, negating the fireballs in an instant.

    "T-t-that... Aenon?" All the colors drained on Gabriel''s face as he realized the person who summoned the emperor penguin. He couldn''t believe it!

    Before Gabriel could evenprehend what was going on, the person who summoned the emperor penguin pulled his hood down, revealing the face of a man he''s greatly familiar with, the only difference was he was wearing a Raskatwan outfit, not his usual outfit as an official under Gabriel.

    "You... how could you do this?!" Gabriel still couldn''t believe his eyes, a part of him wanted everything to be just a dream but the more he stared at Aenon''s evil leer, the more he was certain of his betrayal. It was like the kiss of Judas, a great betrayal worth a couple of silver coins.

 Chapter 131 An Unexpected Turn

    "I know you''ve been eyeing my position for quite some time now, but to think that you''d sacrifice the lives of innocent vigers just to get what you want. You can''t even be considered human." Gabriel said.

    "Oh please, you know I''ve always wanted this to happen, it was yourck of foresight that caused this, vige chief," Aenon responded.

    "You can''t defeat me." Gabriel continued,manding the phoenix and his phantom tigers to attack. But before he could do so, Aenon pointed his fingers atop the hill.

    And at that point, Gabriel knew that he had already lost.

    Atop the hill, where their house isfortably located, were a couple of vigers on the side of Aenon. They''ve used themotion to sneakilye to his ce and abduct his wife, tying her on a pole for everyone to see.

    It was a misjudgment on his part. The moment he saw some of the vigers get killed he lost his level-headedness and jumped into the fray, totally forgetting that he has a wife he had to protect. The only person he could me was himself, he has gotten soft, and he had not anticipated that his subordinates would resort to such underhanded tactics.

    "Fine, it''s my loss," Gabriel said, putting his hand up as a sign of surrender. "You can have my position as a vige chief. In return, set my wife free."

    "And what''s in it for me? How about you give me all of your summons, and then we can start talking." Aenon continued. "You know how easy it is to do something like that, right?"

    "Fine, but how do I guarantee that you''ll release my wife," Gabriel asked. "How do I guarantee that you won''t stab me in the back again? Don''t misunderstand, I know what you''re capable of after killing all those innocent vigers. Don''t y games with me."

    With a tense expression on his face, Gabriel gathered all his summons and put them on hold, waiting for Aenon to say something in response.

    But to his surprise, Aenon just chuckled while wearing a smirk on his face. He extended one of his hands and grabbed his face with the other as if to mock Gabriel with every essence of his being. His eyes were filled with mockery and contempt. "Oh, vige chief, do you think you''re in the position to give your terms of the deal? This is amand. If you don''t give me your summons, then I''ll kill your wife in front of you and kill you. And if you want to fight all of us, know that you can''t overpower all of us, and we''ll kill your wife. Either way, the position of the vige chief is mine! Hahha!"

    As much as Gabriel hated to admit it, what Aenon said was true, they have him cornered...

    or do they?

    For years, Gabriel had been eyeing a beast on the Valley of Hilgathyurim, a beast so powerful that he was revered as the leader of a colony of beasts there. He had been observing him for a time now and a few months ago, he decided to fight against him, bringing him into subjection by the skin of the teeth. This beast goes by the name Toruk Makto, for some odd reason, but he decided to name it the Commander. It was twice the size of his phoenix and because it was his most recent summon, no one knows about it yet. Even he hasn''t told his wife about it because she would certainly berate him for putting his life on the line for a mere summon.

    ''I guess today is his unexpected debut.'' Gabriel said to himself.

    After muttering a few phrases, Gabriel finally gave all his summons to Aenon, who happily epted them. He then grabbed that window of opportunity to summon the Commander and fly straight to his wife. Needless to say, the Commander is the apex predator in that forest. No one can hunt nor hurt it.

    But...

    There was only much it could do against the evilness and the conniving nature of people.

    Gabriel and the Commander werete by a split second. Before he could even touch his wife, someone drove a stake through her heart.

    "NOOOOOOOO!!!"

    .....

    Back to the present,<sub> </sub>

    No one knows how many years Gabriel had been sleeping but when he woke up, he found himself in an unfamiliar ce as a summon of someone or something. He has no idea what happened to him since his body had been reced with some sort of smoky material. And in his mind, there was a constant order that he should kill every human that enters the Gate.

    Due to the incident that happened before he died. He still harbored great hatred towards the entire human race as a whole. That''s why he found it convenient that something in his head wasmanding him to hunt every human on sight. He never felt any happier.

    But when he fought with Satoshi who ced the well-being of others first before his safety, he realized that he had long forgotten the very person he once was. And in time, he turned into someone that he absolutely abhorred. ''Wait, aren''t I acting like Aenon and the others? For the sake of my own gains, I attacked innocent people?''

    That realization hit him like a truck and the sentiment only came to his mind when Satoshi was about to kill him. There was still a chance for him to summon the Commander and end everything once and for all... but he knew that doing more than what he''d already done will just gue his conscience even more. That''s why, as Satoshi inched closer and closer to him, he smiled and resigned, fully epting the death sentence that Satoshi ced on his head.

    "I... I''m d that I get to die... on your hands, summoner." Gabriel said with warmth in his voice. "You''ve reminded me of my young self, and you made me realize something I had long forgotten."

    [Satoshi, wait a minute] Dex suddenly appeared out of nowhere, causing Satoshi to abruptly stop his attack. He was already aiming for a finishing blow when Dex seemed to have a better idea in mind.

    Satoshi was this close to going in for the kill, but the words of Dex and his sudden appearance shocked him and he lost his momentum. He stopped short, wondering why Dex suddenly stopped him from his attack.

    "What is it, Dex?" Satoshi asked, his focus still on the Summoner that fell on the ground. For some reason, he didn''t try to get up at all. He justy there, sighing.

    [That Summoner... it is a Summon as well! Try using your superpower on him] Dex suggested. [You''ve defeated him anyway, there''s no way he''ll resist. He has already epted his death by your hands, Satoshi.]

    Putting his hand on his chin, Satoshi thought why Dex suggested such a thing. As much as he knows, behind the smoke-like body of the summoner lies a human who holds great animosity towards his death or something along those lines. He was dumbfounded, there was no way he could use his blue mes on a person. And if it were to work, that would be even worse.

    "Do it, I want to be free of this bondage, summoner," Gabriel said. Deep inside he was crying as he now tried to resist the voice in his head. He didn''t want to kill another human because it just reminded him of the betrayal that happened to him... and more so the untimely death of his wife.

    Satoshi turned around, realizing that the other summons of the Summoner didn''t make a move anymore. Even his summons stopped moving as well since he didn''t give them anymand anymore. He sighed. "Is this what you really wanted?" Satoshi continued, asking such a vague question.

    "I don''t know... but whatever it is that you want to do, then do it... I think... It is a thousand times betterpared to my state right now. You''ve defeated me, and for that, you have my life to use." Gabriel continued.

    "I understand."

    Once again, Satoshi started doing his weird dance while summoning the blue mes on his palms. Somehow, he felt even more powerful than before and his mes were a tad biggerpared to the past. Little did he know, his intent had reached all his summons and they in turn imparted in him more energy than usual. Even Sera, who was the best support type in the group, was buffing Satoshi over and over while he do his ritual. Satoshi didn''t notice any of those things, however, the only thing he noticed was his slightlyrger mes.

    "Here we go," He gulped, sending the mes to the summoner.

    Fwuooooom~~~

    "AARGHHHHHH!!!" Suddenly, Gabriel started screaming as his body squirmed and violently thrashed in pain.

    "Oh no, anyway," Satoshi muttered. He was shocked at first but he knew there was nothing he could do about his blue mes since he had already fired them.

    One second, the summoner was there, the next second, he disappeared, and only his robe was left fluttering right above the ground.

 Chapter 132 An Additional Ally

    Satoshi was taken aback by the situation that he was speechless for a few seconds. He didn''t expect the Summoner to just disappear in front of him after being touched by the blue mes. After all, he believed that Dex''s suggestion would work out for the better. Who would''ve thought that it would end in a way that he least expected. Slowly, he inhaled and exhaled to regain hisposure before turning to Dex and asking him about the current situation.

    "Care to exin what just happened, Dex?" He said in a calm tone. He didn''t want to me everything on Dex since Dex was the only one who instigated it. For all he knows, he was the one who listened to him and killed the Summoner.

    Before Dex could answer, however, another bright glow appeared, just when Satoshi had fully concluded that his blue mes killed the Summoner. In an instant a man appeared in a white robe. Based on his looks, he was at least in his early twenties. His long blond hair and phoenix-like brown eyes were the first things that Satoshi noticed as soon as he appeared. He was at least six feet tall, and his body was that of an athlete.

    For a few seconds, the man looked around, and then his gazended on Satoshi. They locked eyes, and somehow, Satoshi thought that maybe they''ll get engaged in another fight. However, the man didn''t charge at him, nor did he do anything that would prompt Satoshi to attack.

    "I am Gabriel, it is my pleasure to serve my new master." He said, cupping his hands and bowing down on a ny degree angle as if he was a disciple meeting his master. Satoshi felt the sincerity in his bow and he became a bit confused. Since when did he be this man''s master?

    "Satoshi''s fine. You don''t have to call me master." Satoshi said, shaking his hands in the air to reject what Gabriel just said.

    "Oh, in that case, I shall address you as Satoshi." Gabriel continued, cupping his hands a second time. "I am eternally grateful that you gave me another chance. In this second life, I shall serve you for as long as I live."

    "You don''t have to be so formal." Satoshi scratched his head. Unbeknownst to him, Gabriel only knows how to speak formally.

    After the exchange, Gabriel stood up and looked around. "This doesn''t resemble my at all. Where am I?"

    "Oh, that? You were summoned here in a Gate. I assume you were human before, right? Do you know who ced you here? And if so, what is the purpose of these Gates?"

    The question made Gabriel''s mind almost short circuit since he didn''t understand what Satoshi just said. Fortunately, he still has his memories from his past life and the memories of fighting with Satoshi, along with the memory of the voice that constantly told him to kill. Based on those memories alone, Gabriel concluded that this ce is neither his nor Satoshi''s.

    "Yes, I was¡­ " Gabriel decided to tell his story to Satoshi.

    While all that was happening, Emma joined in on the conversation, just when Gabriel was talking about how his wife died and how he killed everyone who betrayed him, ultimately dying in the end. Emma was so touched by the story that she started bawling her eyes out. Satoshi ignored him.

    "Are you sure about this? Following me for the rest of your life, I mean." Satoshi asked upon hearing Gabriel''s history.

    "I don''t know if this is a good choice, but I know you''re a good kid. I''ll do my best to assist you. Besides, I don''t have anything else to do before I die again."

    "I guess that''s that then, wee to the team. It is a pleasure to be working with such a capable summoner as you." Satoshi said, extending his hand.

    "No, the pleasure''s mine. And you''re a much better summonerpared to me, Satoshi. During our fight, I immediately noticed your affinity with your summons. You can even integrate with them. Throughout my life, I''ve only ever heard of one summoner who was able to integrate with his summons, and it took him decades to achieve such a feat."

    This was the first time Satoshi heard about that person so he made a mental note to ask Gabriel for details once they were out of the Gate. As if on cue, the ground started to shake as if an earthquake was imminent. That was the signal that the Gate was closing.

    "Can you walk? Satoshi asked the three men he healed a few moments ago.

    They nodded in response.<sub> </sub>

    "That''s good. Please walk towards the Gate, it''s supposed to be still open." Satoshi instructed. "You''d best get out of here or else you''ll be trapped in here forever.

    Hearing that, the three superheroes stood up, thanked Satoshi for saving them, and then got out of the Gate. Later on, they would then narrate their experiences to the reporters who would greet them as soon as they came out of the Gate. Their story is pretty much simr to how the American guarantee Japanese Exploration Team cleared their respective gates.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi instructed Gabriel to stay in the Orb Oboros first along with his familiars when he returned to Earth. Emma decides to scout the other Gates before Satoshi rejoins her. They took it upon themselves to clear all the Gates, but they couldn''t guarantee the safety of the superheroes that ventured there.

    When Satoshi teleported back to the restroom, he then exined that he fell asleep inside and no one asked him any questions about it. His parents bid them goodbye after seeing that Satoshi was back to his normal self again. At first, they wanted their son to drop out of the tournament after he almost died but they then realized that Satoshi won''t drop out even if they told him to. Because of that, they just kept quiet about the matter and instead gently reminded Satoshi to always be safe.

    <o>,m ¡­..</o>

    That night, Satoshi once again teleported to Emma and assisted her in clearing all the Gates. It didn''t take them that long to clear most of the Gates since Satoshi had many more summons at his disposal. To his surprise, Gabriel could still wield his summons even after bing Satoshi''s summon. This made Satoshi''s overall offensive output to skyrocket as Gabriel resembled a one man army.

    Emma also found herself sitting more and more in the backlines and letting Satoshi and Gabriel do all the work. When she first came to Earth to look for a suitable partner, she didn''t expect to find someone so capable. ''At least this world will have a different ending.'' She told herself as a smile formed on her face.

    When the Gate that appeared in Europe was already dealt with, Satoshi, Gabriel, and Emma gathered so they could form a n of attack on the only Gate left¡ª the one that opened in Antarctica.

    Of course, there were already people living there and some superheroes were present there as well. But due to theck of manpower, someone has yet to enter the Gate and clear it.

    Unlike the other continents where superheroes abound, Antarctica is one of the remote continents to exist on Earth so it was only normal that no one has taken action to clear the Gate there yet.

    "So¡­ are we going to clear it by ourselves?" Satoshi asked the group. He was already a bit exhausted after all the fights he''d been through but thanks to Sera constantly replenishing his energy, he could still fight.

    "We don''t have much of a choice, I guess." Emma mumbled. She was getting tired of all the Gate-clearing as well.

    "If I may, Satoshi. I think it would be better if we wait for other people to take action and try to clear it first. At least they''ll be able to whittle down their numbers, and then we can intervene and clear the Gate." Gabriel suggested.

    "But there''s a good chance that the first ones to enter the Gate will die. We''ve seen what happened to the other continents. If we can do something about it¡­ I mean, your idea is great, but aren''t there any other alternatives aside from clearing the Gate by ourselves?"

    "You know what, let''s just go and scout the area first. After that, we can decide if we''ll wait for the other superheroes to take action. If the Gate is more dangerous than it actually is, then we have no choice but to clear it by ourselves."

    " I guess it really doese down to that, huh."

    "Don''t worry about it. The people would just think that the Gate disappeared without anyone doing anything. At least no one has to die if we were to clear it by ourselves." Emma said, patting Satoshi on the back.

    Without further ado, Emma opened a portal that would teleport them into the Gate that spawned in Antarctica.

 Chapter 133 Antarctica Gate

    I am the Ice Empress.

    Deep inside, I am well aware of my indomitable position as the Ice Empress. No one has best me inbat and back from whence I came, I was a formidable goddess, a force to be reckoned with. Even kings and the strongest warriors alike can''t best me in battle. With my two Fanged Pr Bears at my side, aiding me inbat, I have led countless campaigns, never losing a single one.

    ..

    For years I have led my kingdom in peace and tranquility. With seasons passing, I''ve guarded my kingdom as if it were my own son. My historical record prompted the neighboring kingdom to steer clear away from me, even offering me treasures so I''ll maintain my ground. Of course, I have no intention of invading other kingdoms. All I ever wanted was peace¡ª peace evesting.

    Hendrick, my son, oh how I wish you were alive to see what your dear mother has achieved. If only you didn''t sacrifice your life for my sake, you would''ve been the one to fulfill this destiny. You would''ve been the formidable knight that led the Ice Army to countless victories, driving away invaders with that piercing gaze of yours.

    Your father, he would be proud.

    It saddens me that I lost the two of you in my early years. I still remember the times when the three of us will sit under the nket of stars, relishing each other''spany while we take a breather from the daily duties of leading a kingdom. That was nice, oh how I wish to relive that moment.

    Fear not, my dear husband and son. For I, soon, will rejoin you in your slumber. I am of old age now, and I have dedicated this kingdom under the rulership of my right-hand man. I have observed him over the years, he always goes above and beyond his duty. And above all, he prioritizes the citizens more than anything else. That''s my only wish, because with that wish granted, peace and harmony will remain in the Ice Kingdom.

    The throes of death are waiting upon the door, and my slumber is nigh. Within me, I feel the embers of life slowly dissipating as I passed onto the church to one of youth. With this, my job is done, my work fulfilled.

    I wonder if I''ll be able to meet you. Would we look the same when we were in our prime? Would our son recognize us? Were you all waiting on the other side for me?

    Rest easy, your dear mother is on her way.

    ...

    Breathing herst breath, the Ice Empress gave up her soul, sinking into her bed like a majestic portrait of someone deep in her sleep. Richtford, the Ice Empress''s right-hand man, shed manly tears as the Ice Empress he followed from his childhood died on his watch. There was nothing he could do tobat old age, and that''s why he awaited the inevitable, as much as he hated to see the strong figure of the Ice Empress weakening by the day. As an orphan taken in by the Ice Empress to be one of her pawns, he rose through the ranks and proved himself the most trustworthy candidate to be on her right hand. He fulfilled his duty, and in return, he was handed another responsibility, too heavy a burden to carry on his shoulders. And yet, he didn''t want to renounce such an overwhelming duty. He noticed the hardship, and the vignce the Ice Empress had to keep just so the Ice Kingdom could maintain its prosperity and peace.

    cing his right hand on his chest and his left hand on his back, he saluted the Ice Empress onest time. "If there were ever another life, my queen, I desire that I serve you once more." He said.

    .....

    Back to the Present.

    Satoshi gulped at the sight of the Gate in Antarctica. In retrospect, he initially assumed that there was ack of manpower, that''s why no one has entered the Gate yet. But as it turned out, that was only part of the reason.

    "Don''t you think this is... " Emma mumbled, her eyespletely fixated on the Gate that swirled around like a mass of boundless energy.

    "Colossal? Yeah," Satoshi responded, craning his neck up just to see how tall in diameter the Gate was. He almost fell backward from looking too high.

    That''s right, another reason why no one has taken action yet was because of the sheer size of the Gate. Who knows what monstrosities linger inside such an entrance. It could even be called the entrance to hell, for all one cares.

    "I guess... we''re going in?" Satoshi asked.

    "Who''s going in?"

    Aghk~!

    In a split second, Satoshi noticed a presence behind him and he inadvertently turned around to attack it out of impulse. In that instant though, he was grabbed by the nape and almost mmed to the ground. Had he not reacted in time and turned around to push the hand out of the way, his face would''ve been buried deep in the snow.<sub> </sub>

    "Hoh, you''re quite fast for a teenager. What''s your name?" The man asked. He was wearing aplete Eskimo gear, with thick skating sses, a parka, and hide boots.

    "I''m Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi." He said, only just realizing that the man was speaking in Japanese.

    "Oh, so you''re Japanese, huh. I guessed that right." The man said, jerking a thumb towards his face before extending his hand. "I''m Lloyd Witherer, nice to meet you, Midoriyama Satoshi."

    "Oum~" Satoshi nodded.

    "And you must be¡ª "

    "Emma, Emma Leisenberg," Emma responded, shaking the man''s hand as well. She figured that Satoshi didn''t see him as a threat so she wouldn''t either.

    "So, what were you two teenagers doing in such a remote ce as Antarctica? Were you lost? No, that''s a weird question. How could two teenagers be lost in the middle of nowhere? Wait, now that statement is even weirder." Lloyd muttered. "In any case, I can tell that you''re curious as to what''s inside that portal thing, right? I wouldn''t go inside if I were you."

    "Why?" Satoshi asked, half-amused that the man was treating them like a bunch of kids.

    "There are monsters inside," Lloyd said. "But fear not, md and mdy! My team of superheroes is here to seize the day! Once again, I''m Lloyd Witherer. You might not know who I am but I''ll be in the news soon. I''m the leader of the Antarctica Exploration Team¡ª a team of superheroes assigned to clear this gate."

    There was a light smile on Satoshi''s face as he admired the optimism of Lloyd Witherer. ''Doesn''t he know that he might die inside? How could he instantly assume that they can clear the Gate? Are they really that strong?'' Satoshi couldn''t help but wonder. Appearance-wise, though, he already concluded that the man was just your regr run-of-the-mill superhero.

    "Leader, who are you talking to?" Another individual, wearing the same thing as Lloyd, came up to the group, assisting herself with two walking sticks. Satoshi and Emma only noticed that she was a girl after she already joined in on the circle.

    "Oh, just a bunch of teenagers. I don''t know where they came from but they''re curious about the Gate." Lloyd calmly exined.

    "Wait... how could two teenagers be¡ª " Suddenly, the woman jumped back and wings of me appeared on her back. "Lloyd, get away from those kids!"

    "What are you talking abo¡ª "

    "If you don''t know where they came from, then it''s safe to assume that they came from the Gate!"

    "Rx, Rachel, they speak Japanese. Besides, I caught them before they could even enter. I literally heard this kid say he wanted to go inside. Why would he say that if he came out of it?" Lloyd said.

    "Then... who are they and what are they doing here?" Rachel asked, approaching the group once again but this time, she was more wary than usual. She didn''t recall her ming wings just in case she needed to escape.

    "This kid here said his name is Midoriyama Satoshi, and this girl said her name is Emma Leisenberg."

    "Hold on," Rachel said, typing away on the hologram keyboard that came out of her wristwatch. After a few seconds, she sighed. "Midoriyama Satoshi is the son of the famous Midoriyama duo. I''ve already sent them a message, alerting them of his whereabouts. As for the girl, there are no records of her whatsoever. She may be an unregistered citizen."

    "See? They didn''te from the Gate." Lloyd shrugged. "Can we stop talking about this now? We have a Gate to clear."

    "You''re right. I''ll go fetch the others. Entry should''ve been five minutes ago, they''re probablyzing around at HQ."

    "I guess we''ve got no choice but to go back for now. We should also escort these teenagers there." Lloyd said, tranting to Satoshi what he just said so he would understand.

    However, to his surprise, Satoshi shook his head and pointed at the Gate. "No, we''re going inside the Gate, let us apany you."

 Chapter 134 The Ice Cave

    Lloyd didn''t expect Satoshi and Emma to feel strongly about going inside the Gate. Even Rachel, who already concluded that the teenagers will be staying in their Headquarters, stopped in her tracks and turned around, her face wearing a baffled expression.

    There was a sudden shift in Rachel''s expression but before she could say anything, Lloyd stepped in and stood between her and the teenagers. "You know what, it''s gettin'' cold here, no? Let''s talk once we got back to the Headquarters."

    Leader''s orders, so Rachel just nodded and continued leading the way.

    A few minutester, the group arrived at a clearing where a huge tent-like structure was located. The color scheme of the ce was definitely questionable since there were a few rough blotches of white paint here and there but Satoshi could tell that the structure was decent. Lloyd then exined that the harsh temperatures were what caused the cracks on the structure but they patched it up.

    "Here we are, wee to our humble abode."

    Quite frankly, the interior of the structure was much more weing than its outside appearance. The interior was circr, with a few bookshelves and amon area in the middle of it. By the edge of it were pathways which then connected to other rooms, the toilet, dining, and kitchen area. There was a gaming console as well, much to Satoshi''s surprise, and someone was ying Laser Fingers.

    "This here is Caleb. Hezes around but you can depend on him during a fight. That girl over there stuffing herself with peanut butter and jelly sandwich is Vinny. She''s not as strong as Rachel but she covers all the holes in our team." Lloyd introduced.

    Vinny had ck curly hair and a doll-like face, but her face was somewhat stretched since she was trying to fit a whole sandwich in one bite. As for Caleb, he had blond hair and he was much shorter than Satoshi. If they were to stand side by side, one would assume that Caleb is younger than Satoshi.

    "New recruits? We weren''t informed we''d have reinforcements for clearing the Gate." Caleb was the first one to speak up, putting his VR Headgear down and extending a hand towards Satoshi. Satoshi casually reached out his hand, thinking that Caleb was expecting a handshake.

    Fwoosh! In an instant, Satoshi was lifted in the air and was about to get thrown to the floor. Before he felt the impact though, he tightened his core and decided to roll with it, hoping that the momentum would make Caleb hit the ground instead of him.

    Caleb was surprised, but he didn''t let such a sneak attack get the better of him. As the two of them almost hit the floor, he twisted his body so he''dnd on his feet. Satoshi did the same, but he pulled at Caleb at the same time.

    The momentum caused Caleb to lurch forward while Satoshi brought his knee up, aiming right at his diaphragm. In response, Caleb blocked the attack and did a leg sweep. Satoshi nted his right foot on the ground before kicking Caleb by the shin.

    "Aghk~!" Caleb eximed, immediately shooting up while holding his shin. The pain shot straight to his head, causing him to react in an embarrassing manner. "You''re good." Heplimented, shaking his index finger at Satoshi.

    "It was just luck." Satoshi scratched his head.

    "Ooh, this kid''s pretty good." Lloyd pped his hands. "Is your superpower strength-based as well just like Caleb? No wonder you were confident in entering the Gate. From the looks of it, you''re head to head with our little daredevil here." He continued, patting Caleb''s head in the process.

    "Nope, that guy''s got a different superpower, something like a beast tamer?" Vinny pointed out. "That girl''s pretty useful as well, she''s got teleportation skills."

    "Hoh~" Lloyd rubbed his chin. "You''re a beast tamer? Howe you can fight hand to hand? Did you train? Nice going kid. At least you know that you cannot rely wholly on your superpower alone."

    "You read us?" Satoshi asked, confused.

    "Yep, irvoyance. I have a psychic-type superpower. I can pretty much do anything psychic... except teleport though. That''s something beyond my powers."

    Emma just nodded. She had heard of irvoyance as a superpower, pretty powerful for reconnaissance or scouting out the enemy. On top of that, Vinny''s got more gimmicks in her superpower. ''She''s strong, all right'' Emma said to herself.

    "In any case, what are these teenagers doing here? It''s not like they got lost stranded in the middle of nowhere." Vinny continued, finally swallowing the sandwich she stuffed in her mouth.

    "Oh, about that," Lloyd heaved a sigh while scratching his head. "They wanted to apany us inside the Gate."

    "Why don''t we let them? You saw how he fought against Caleb. I don''t think they''re that weak either." Vinny said a matter of factly. "We need all the hands we can get if we were to protect the city here. Mind you, there are a lot of superheroes over there but only the four of us volunteered to do this shit. If they''re willing toe with us then let them. They''ll be useful, I can attest to that."

    "I don''t mind either." Caleb raised his hand and coolly agreed with Vinny.

    "I guess that''s decided then. Pack your gears, we''re going in." Lloyd called out.

    "Wait, you haven''t asked about my opin¡ª " Rachel was about toin when Lloyd cut her short.

    "I agree with Vinny and Caleb, that puts the tally three to one. Surely the majority will overrule, right?" Lloyd said. "Come on, Rachel, you saw how the kid fought. In the least, they won''t be additional baggage once we get in."<sub> </sub>

    "If you say so," Rachel twiddled her thumb, surprised that Lloyd interrupted her. After all, he''s never done it before. It definitely did make her heart skip a beat, for some odd reason.

    "Right, let''s head out!" Lloyd said a second time.

    The harsh winds of the brewing snowstorm greeted the group of six as they got out of the structure. Emma shivered in the cold so Lloyd got back inside to get a pair of parkas for Satoshi and her.

    "Treat that as souvenirs. You probably got here because of thatdy''s teleportation... what I mean to say is, wee to Antarctica... although this is not that much of a wee."

    "Let''s have hot chocte after clearing this Gate," Caleb suggested. "That, and pizza."

    "Sounds like a good deal to me," Vinny shed a smile and a thumbs up towards Caleb before giving him a high five. Rachel''s face also lit up upon hearing the word ''pizza''. There was no denying that she wanted to be part of the party.

    "You and your tastes" Lloyd couldn''t help but wear a grin upon seeing his team get along.

    Once again, the Gate loomed in front of them, seemingly more gigantic than usual. Lloyd stared at it in awe. "Wahh, it''s bigger than how I expected."

    "That''s what she sa¡ª ahchoo~!" Caleb sneezed before he could say the joke.

    "Going in," Lloyd continued.

    "That''s what he sa¡ª ahchoo~!"

    Fwooooosh!

    Satoshi could feel the mass of energy sucking him in as soon as he stepped foot inside the Gate. Compared to the other Gates, the force of this one was more than double the intensity. It was easy to tell that this Gate contained more dangerous monsters. Satoshi braced himself, prepared to summon Gabriel as soon as they got inside.

    "Everyone, don''t let your guard down." Lloyd reminded them.

    A split of a secondter, the Gate behind them closed as if it was never there in the first ce. Everyone was bewildered since that wasn''t supposed to happen. Based on the previous reports, the other exploration teams from other continents still saw the Gate behind them while they were fighting the monsters. But right now, the Gate disappeared entirely. Whether it would spawn again or not after they cleared the Gate was a question left forter.

    "That''s that then, we''re screwed." Caleb said, crestfallen.

    "Well, let''s put that behind us for now." Lloyd said.

    As usual, Satoshi and Emma found themselves in a new environment. Every Gate had their own and this one was no different.

    An Ice Cave.

    Walls were lined with ice and crystals that shimmer at the slightest reflection of light. It had its unique and mesmerizing sheen of blue, which was pleasing to the eyes. If it was a regr tourist spot, Satoshi and Emma would''ve enjoyed the sights. But right now, enjoying the scenery was at the bottom of the list.

    "We''re already wearing parkas but it''s still freezing cold in here." Rachel shivered.

    "Lighter," Satoshi called out, summoning his fiery familiar. "This will keep us warm for now."

    "What a neat trick," Vinnymented, admiring the wisp of me that floated beside Satoshi, dancing around as if to show off. "Wait... gasp!"

    "What is it, Vinny?"

    "We... we have to go back." Vinny suddenly said. "That... we cannot defeat that..."

 Chapter 135 Ants And Spiders

    The expression on Vinny''s face took a sudden change as all the colors were drained from it. Even her lips paled and her hands were shaking. This was the first time Lloyd and the rest of the party saw Vinny react to an enemy like that. Usually, even if the enemy was close to impossible to defeat, Vinny would always remain calm and collected, telling them all the information she knows about the enemy as per her irvoyance Skill.

    From the looks of it, Vinny saw something just by the end of the Ice Cave, and whatever it was, they cannot defeat it. However, how could they possibly get out of the Gate if they couldn''t defeat whatever it was that resides there? Besides, the Gate that leads to this ce disappeared right when all of them got in. There was no way out, and the monster/entity at the end of the Ice Cave could juste up to them and ughter them at any moment.

    Whatever it was, it was a figure that none of them could take alone or at once. Everybody saw that pretty clearly in Vinny''s expression.

    "Why, what is it?" Lloyd asked, but his question was drowned by the sound of skittering that filled the white noise of the Ice Cave. The skittering became louder and louder until it became so annoying that Lloyd almost lost his temper.

    Skitter.

    Skitter.

    "Formation," Lloyd screamed amidst the skittering. In an instant, Vinny took the backlines, and Caleb and Rachel went forward along with Lloyd, sort of like an arrow formation. While Rachel took care of all the holes in their defenses, the three of them could run wild, supporting each other as they do split-second decisions.

    No sooner had they started charging when a group of ants emerged from the multiple chambers of the cave¡ª no wonder the skitters were louder than expected.

    "Rargh!" Lloyd pressed both his fists against each other before jumping upward, causing a small crater to form from where he leaped. On his way up, he smashed a couple of ants crawling at the ceiling of the cave. The cave rumbled which made the ants crawling on the ceiling lose their footing. Before they knew it, they were raining down at the party. On his way down, he clenched his butt cheeks and tightened his core, screaming another ''Rargh'' before crashing down on the ants.

    "Leader, be careful." Caleb voiced out as he engaged in close-quartersbat. He was surprised that Lloyd sprang up to shake the crawling ants on the ceiling but after a few seconds, he realized that Lloyd probably did that so the skittering would lessen. He particrly hated the skittering.

    "Sorry about that," There was a hint of excitement in Lloyd''s voice as he said that. This was one of the rare times when he could go all out as a power augment-type superhero and he wasn''t going to blow up the experience. Instead, he would enjoy it to the fullest (they could just think about the unbeatable monster by the end of the Ice Cave after they dealt with the ants).

    Meanwhile, Caleb would get overwhelmed by the ants from time to time but he would stand up and plow his way through like a bull. His lips curved upward as he obviously enjoyed the brawl just like their leader Lloyd.

    As for Vinny and Rachel, they were more cautiouspared to the two. They carefully burned the ants that would interrupt Lloyd or Rachel''s attack, and at the same time cover their blind spots. It''s as if the two werewn mowers and Vinny and Rachel were the people behind it, cutting the grass that was missed in the process. Of course, from time to time, Rachel would charge at the ants and burn some of them with her phoenix wings and a zing sword made out of mes that shoot out of her body.

    Vinny used her psychic powers to make some of the ants float for a split second so Caleb and Lloyd could better aim at them. As for Rachel, she was like a ming torch touching a colony of ants.

    "Should we help them? It''s not like they''re having a hard time." Satoshi asked. The reason why was because he noticed that the ants were much tougher than expected. Even those that were crushed by Lloyd were only scratched. Fire seemed effective though since Rachel''s attacks more thanpensated for Lloyd and Caleb''sck of firepower. Nevertheless, the raid was taking too long and Satoshi feared that they will exhaust their energy before the boss fight even began. And to top it all off, they don''t have a healer in their party. How could a group not have a healer in their party? He was dumbfounded.

    "Let''s wait a bit. I''m sure they have a n in mind. They seemed like an experienced team so every move they made should''ve been calcted." Emma suggested. As much as she and Satoshi wanted to fight the ants, they knew that they have to conserve their energy for the Gate Boss Fight. After all, Vinny was terrified by it. She probably saw the sheer powerlessness of their group against the monster.

    Lloyd couldn''t help but steal nces at Emma and Satoshi, wondering why they weren''t helping. At first, he was annoyed, thinking that they were probably holding up their false bravado since they wanted to enter the Gate out of curiosity. And now that they''re here, they''re wimping out. He was furious. Why would theye here if they''ll just be a burden? Why aren''t they helping at all? From what Vinny said, I''m sure they were powerful. But what are they doing with that power?

    Those questions blinded him for a bit, but just before he was about to bark orders at Satoshi and Emma, he realized that they were looking directly at them as if they were staring right into their soul. It was confusing, to say the least. Why were they staring so intently at our actions?

    Just then, he realized that he was pondering the situation from a different angle. It''s not like the two of them were backing out due to cowardice, it''s because they were carefully analyzing their allies and their enemies alike. There was a certain calmness to Satoshi and Emma''s gaze that made Lloyd realize. ''They weren''t panicking, that means they are fairly certain that we can take care of these small fries.''

    And he was right on the money. Emma and Satoshi didn''t want to step in as it might ruin the pace they''ve set for themselves.<sub> </sub>

    "We''re almost done, leader," Caleb said, seeing thest of the ants crawling out of the chambers.

    "NO! NOT YET!" Vinny eximed much to everyone''s surprise.

    "What do you mean?!"

    "The ants... they''re... they''re running away from something else! Another horde!" Vinny continued.

    "WHAT?!" Lloyd eximed. "All right, it''s not like we didn''t prepare for such a scenario. Everybody calm down and let''s deal with these ants before we engage the other horde inbat. What horde is it, Vinny?"

    "Spiders! Big Ones!"

    ''So they were running away from the spiders. Why were the spiders trying to attack them? Aren''t they monsters from the same Gate? It seems like much is still left unseen from these weird Gates.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    As thest of the ants died down from the mighty hands of Lloyd and Caleb, the party of four nodded to each other before bracing themselves a second time. The spiders were about toe out.

    "They won''t survive at this rate. They''ve almost depleted their energy reserves." Emma whispered to Satoshi.

    "Yeah, but Lloyd did say that they were prepared for this scenario. I''m sure they have a n in mind."

    "Right,"

    Screeeeeeeech!

    Kieeeeehh!

    Kiyaahhhhkk~~

    This time, the skitters were reced by shrieks, a more annoying sound that made Lloyd want to bang his head on the cave''s rocky walls. A good question though, why were the spiders shrieking? It''s not like they do that on earth.

    "Formation!" Lloyd screamed for the second time, pressing his fists against each other. That was his ritual to get his gears in the fight. As for Caleb, he just crouches down low as if he was about to pounce on his prey. He might think it looks cool but he looks stupid. Even Satoshi badly wanted to tell him the cold hard truth, but he and Emma found him amusing so they decided to keep quiet, sneaking in snickers here and there.

    Needless to say, the spiders were much tougher than the ants, and Caleb and Lloyd suffered heavy injuries fending them off. Of course, they were the front-liners of the party so that was normal for them. They didn''t expect the spiders to be that strong though. The ants were already tough shells to crack in the first ce, how could the Gate be so unforgiving?

    "It''s time, Rachel," Lloyd said as he copsed on the ground after bashing the brains of thest spider.

 Chapter 136 The Confrontation

    "It''s time, Rachel," Lloyd said as he copsed on the ground after bashing the brains of thest spider.

    Rachel nodded as her eyes glowed an alluring shade of red-orange. Her wings appeared behind her as she floated up. Satoshi and Emma wondered what she was doing.

    The wings on Rachel''s back continued to grow until the ming roots of her wings spread all over her body like veins coursing through every part of her system. Her face red up, quite literally, and then she transformed into a phoenix.

    That''s right, a phoenix. Out of all the mythological beasts out there, it''s the phoenix. Satoshi wondered why he kept on encountering phoenixes as if a certain author writing his life was giving him hints about his particr favorite creature.

    After a squawk, the mes on Rachel''s wings increased in their burning intensity and a sh of bright gentle red seemed to envelop the ce. Immediately, Satoshi and Emma felt the positive effects of the gently fiery light touching their skin. They felt their energy being renewed and their overall condition getting better. After going through multiple Gates previously, they still felt the lingering effects of exhaustion even though Sera had fully removed it. Now those conditions were alleviated once again due to the healing effects of Rachel.

    "So she was hiding that kind of skill, no wonder they could be that reckless. If the support of the team is this powerful, they could go all-out any time they want. What a solid team." Emmamented.

    "No, it''s not that the team is solid, it''s thatdy called Rachel who''s a solid member of the team. She''s an all-rounder, she can very well be a top superhero. Why have I not heard about her?"

    "Probably because that ce called Antarctica is a remote ce?" Emma asked in return.

    "Right,"

    Pretty soon, Rachel reverted back to her human form and she heaved a sigh, smokeing out of her mouth. "Is everyone all right?" She asked. Unlike Lloyd, she didn''t think much about the tag-along, Satoshi and Emma. In her mind, she just thought that the two of them were acting out of cowardice.

    "Yeah," Lloyd answered in behalf of the rest of the party. Once again he stole a nce at Satoshi and Emma but he didn''t say a single word. After all, he was already well aware of what they''re currently doing¡ª assessing their abilities because clearly, they''re stronger than them individually.

    "What do we do now?" Caleb asked, remembering what Vinny just said before they engaged inbat with the ants and the spiders.

    "We have no choice, don''t we. We should defeat the boss, or else we''re trapped in here forever." Lloyd continued. "First, we''ll assess the situation and then we''ll formte a strategy. No matter how powerful the enemy is, there''s bound to be a strategy that will defeat it."

    ? "But it''s close to impossible to defeat it." Vinny continued. "I don''t know what kind of monster she was but she''s called the Ice Queen. Apparently, she''s a powerful ice user summoned here as the boss of this Gate. I don''t know if she''s a monster or the remnants of what was once human, but needless to say, she could easily overpower the four of us. That''s a given."

    "But with these two teenagers with us, we might have the chance of winning." There was confidence in Lloyd''s voice as he said that but everyone wasn''t convinced. Apparently, Lloyd was the only one who saw through Emma and Satoshi''s intentions. As for all of them, they already assumed that Satoshi and Emma were burdens. What use is a powerful superpower if the user doesn''t know how to use it?

    "You saw what they did while we were fighting. They just stood there without doing anything. Could we trust them to watch our backs once we get there?"

    As soon as Rachel said that, Satoshi beckoned for his Windfan to follow right behind him as he walked toward Rachel. "You don''t have to worry about that. I have a few ns in mind."

    .....

    A few minutes ago,

    Due to the sheer coldness of the ce and the fact that Satoshi was on guard from all the skittering, he didn''t detect the powerful entity by the end of the Ice Cave. But as soon as Vinny said it, Satoshi immediately felt the raw energy that leaked out of thergest chamber of the cave. Chills ran p and down his spine after detecting such a formidable enemy. Even he wasn''t confident that he could defeat such a figure.

    "Dex," Satoshi called out, just when the others started charging at the ant horde that crawled towards the group.

    [As you wish, Satoshi,] Dex immediately responded. Even though Satoshi hasn''tpleted his instructions, Dex already knew what to do. In an instant, Dex turned around and headed towards the huge chamber, activating his invisibility so both parties won''t find his presence suspicious.

    Cautiously, Dex flew towards the entity. For once, it wanted to disobey Satoshi''s orders and go back since the energy emanating from therein was so overwhelming. Dex is a system, and so its senses could very well be keener than most humans. What Satoshi and Vinny felt was only a small fraction of what Dex felt as it got nearer.

    Once Dex got to the furthest part of the chamber though, it reached a clearing, a huge space filled with ice. The first thing that Dex noticed were the two Ice Pr Bears that are as big as a five-story building. These two Ice Pr Bears were roaring and their forelegs stuck in mid-air as if they were frozen in time.<sub> </sub>

    Fwoooosh~~~

    Dex then felt cold air blow towards its screen, making it stagger backward before noticing the huge entity behind the already monumental ice bears.

    It was an ice sculpture, no, a masterpiece, butpared to the size of the ice bears, it''s rtively small, only three meters in length. The ice sculpture had the figure of a proportionate woman with her long hair and deer-like eyes that seemed to stare straight into Dex''s soul if it had one. The ice sculpture was holding an orb in her left hand and a scepter in her right hand as if she wasmanding a huge army. She was riding on a sleigh-like contraption attached to the reins of the ice bears.

    [Scanning...] Dex inwardly said, studying every nook and cranny of the unmoving statue. After a few seconds, Dex then flew away and reported back to Satoshi, just when Lloyd and the others were dealing with the second horde of enemies.

    "The Ice Queen, huh, would it work?" Satoshi asked Dex. It already knows what Satoshi was pertaining so it didn''t ask anything back.

    [Yes, but ites with risks, Satoshi. And also, it is possible to make her your summon.]

    "Why would I need such a huge summon?" Satoshi said before thinking about histest familiar, Gabriel and his thoughts were immediately changed.

    "It''s time, Rachel," Lloyd weakly said after dealing with thest spider.

    .....

    Back to the present,

    Together, the group started running towards the huge chamber so they could get a closer look at the monster that Vinny informed them about. With each step, Vinny''s tremblings started to aggravate since she was more than nervous to get close to the monster. But she continued on along with everyone. After all, it''s safer to be with the group than to be isted.

    The closer they got, the more they felt the raw energy that the monster was emitting. Lloyd wanted to tell the group to turn back a few times but he didn''t.

    And then they saw it, the towering figures of the Ice Bears and the Ice Queen.

    "Whoa," Satoshi said. Compared to what Dex informed him, the actual image of the monsters was much more overwhelming in person.

    "Humans? What are they doing in my realm?" The Ice Empress talked in utter confusion, then she winced as the clear voice of someone told him to attack the humans and kill them at once. She tried to resist, but the voice was just too strong.

    "AAAARGHHH!" She started screaming, much to everyone''s confusion.

    "Everyone, brace yourselves!" Lloyd said as the two Ice Pr Bears turned mobile once again. They roared and started rampaging towards the group.

    "Emma!" Satoshi shouted.

    "On it!"

    Without further ado, Satoshi started charging toward the ice bears, summoning Droplet and Windfan to assist him. He didn''t want to summon Lighter yet since he was saving him to integrate with himter (when he engages inbat with the Ice Queen). With those two, Satoshi controlled all the ice in the vicinity and had Droplet merge with it, creating a wall of water that continued to shoot ice spikes. The Windfan started blowing hot air in the meantime, causing the power of the Ice Bears to dwindle.

    "SATOSHI WATCH OUT!" Lloyd suddenly screamed, extending his hands as if Satoshi was at death''s door.

    And Satoshi indeed was, at death''s door.

 Chapter 137 A Window Of Opportunity

    "SATOSHI WATCH OUT!"

    At that moment, Satoshi watched in horror as the Ice Queen seemed to slip through the ice at high speeds, bringing down her scepter at Satoshi with a force that could crack the ground. All the life shed before Satoshi''s eyes. Even Emma, who''s supposed to have the fastest eyes in the group since she specializes in interdimensional portals, was aghast upon seeing the terrifying movement of the Ice Queen. Despite her size, she was faster than sight.

    By the time Satoshi realized that he should react, the scepter was already upon him, almost hitting his head. He knew that at such speeds, he would surely be cut in half.

    At this rate, he''ll surely die

    ''I don''t have any choice,'' Satoshi said to himself as he activated his Integration Skill once again. He didn''t bother choosing which familiar he''d integrate with but the first thought that urred to him was either Ghast or Sera. Either way, if he''ll be able to sessfully integrate with them before the scepter delivers its judgment, he''d be able to survive.

    Nevertheless, upon activating that skill, he''s only got a few minutes left before he copses. If the Ice Queen wasn''t defeated by then, then everything will be in vain.

    But if he were to die now, then that would be an even greater loss!

    There was no need to think about what the next move will be. If he didn''t react on time, then everything will fall apart. Without further ado, Satoshi thought of integrating with his summon.

    Anyone, just anyone integrate with him!

    Once again, Satoshi felt an even greater power welling up inside him. His body increased in temperature as his blood flow and heart rate quickened. His breathing became ragged and he felt like his connection with his consciousness was getting farther and farther. Somehow, he felt this weird feeling of being conscious and unconscious at the same time but nevertheless, he didn''t lose sight of why he integrated with his summon in the first ce. At that instant, Satoshi tried to step away from the scepter that descended upon him like the scythe of death about to cut him in half.

    Fwip~

    In the blink of an eye, Satoshi disappeared and reappeared somewhere, as if he just teleported like it was normal. Even the Ice Queen, who was already moving faster than anyone in that clearing, stopped in disbelief as he saw the most powerless of the bunch be the most formidable one.

    "What just happened," Confusion filled Satoshi as he stared at the palms of his hand. ''Did I just do that?'' He asked himself in his mind.

    Compared to Satoshi''s first look as he sessfully integrated with his familiar Sera, this time was rather different. Not only was his hair of two different colors, but his outfit and overall vibe were also halved. Figures, he just integrated with two of his familiars, after all, namely Ghast and Sera. While Satoshi''s right portion of his body had the light yellow glow with his white outfit and intricate gold patterns (not to mention the white hair and three half golden rings floated above his head), the left portion had an eerie color with his stark ck hair and jet ck clothes straight out of an eighth-grader syndrome''s wardrobe. His left hand had ck bandages as well¡ª as if those bandages were trying to suppress an even greater power in his left hand.

    "Wait, I just look like a chuuni!" Satoshi eximed. (A chuuni, also called eighth-grader syndrome, is a syndrome wherein one pretends openly. Oftentimes, one pretends as if he has awakened some powers or is a member of an elite group, which are mostly untrue.)

    In every sense of the word, Satoshi did look like someone who was suffering from eighth-grader syndrome but in the world of superheroes, it didn''t even look that weird at all. He just looked like a superhero who dressed his part.

    "Whoa~~~" Emma interjected. The panic that befell her was suddenly switched to wonder as she watched Satoshi teleport out of harm''s way.

    Wait, teleport?!<sub> </sub>

    "You can use portals?! Like me?!" Emma''s exmation was even louder than Satoshi''s. Upon meeting Satoshi, she already considered herself inferior to him, but now, she felt even more useless. If her only use is opening and closing up portals, and Satoshi could do it, then why was she even there in the first ce?

    "I''ll exinter, for now, try to focus on fighting those Ice Bears. I''ll take care of the Ice Empress myself." Satoshi said.

    Even though he managed to dodge the Ice Empress''s attack, it still grazed him on the shoulders. But Sera healed him right away. "I feel the steady drain on their energy as well as on mine, I have to make this quick." Satoshi said to himself, bracing himself as the Ice Empress stared at him, intently analyzing him from head to toe.

    "An impressive human," The Ice Empressmented.

    "You''re quite impressive too, but it would''ve been better if you didn''t attack us." Satoshimented before charging at the Ice Empress. This time, his speed was on par with her.

    Lloyd and his party watched as Satoshi went from being powerless to going head to head with the Ice Empress inbat. Based on her movements alone, they became aware that none of them could match up to the raw power of the Ice Empress just like what Vinny had predicted. And yet, a teenager, someone much younger than them, was engaging her inbat. "The next generation of superheroes are quite promising, huh." Lloyd snickered while receiving the full-frontal swipe of the Ice Bear. He blocked it with ease and delivered a blow to its stomach, making it stagger backward.

    Seeing an opening, Caleb did a low kick to throw one of the Ice Bears off bnce, all the while dodging the other Ice Bear''s attack. He did it by leaning backward and straining his ankles so his center of bnce would spin him counterclockwise, throwing him out of the way.

    Rachel and Vinny, meanwhile, were supporting all the groups with their ranged attacks, getting help from Emma from time to time as she set up portals that caught the Ice Bears off guard. At first, Emma thought that she should support everyone including Satoshi. However, Satoshi already called dibs on the Ice Empress (that was misworded) and so she decided to leave their fight alone. That way she won''t distract Satoshi as he set up a series of attacks in order to bring the Ice Empress to her knees.

    Since summoning more familiars won''t necessarily affect the energy that Satoshi expended, he decided to summon Lighter to assist him. While teleporting here and there, he started sting spires of mes in every direction, causing the overall temperature of the space to rise up. Soon enough, Satoshi noticed that the Ice Empress''s movements were beginning to dull. He could easily parry the volley of ice spikes she rained down on Satoshi and her scepter swings.

    "H-how?!" The Ice Empress stammered. He couldn''t believe that a mere human was overpowering her in raw power. She, the Ice Empress, who managed to maintain her kingdom''s peace throughout her life, was losing out on a human teenager? She just couldn''t believe it.

    And yet, she couldn''tnd a single hit on Satoshi while Satoshi chipped away at her armor. Moreover, the mes that shot at her were unquenchable mes and she couldn''t put it off no matter how hard she tried.

    "Not yet," Satoshi muttered, summoning his Windfan andmanding it to blow hot air at the Ice Empress. By now, the Ice Empress were fighting against three entities and she couldn''t target any of them. Why? Because Satoshi would simply move them away by teleporting them.

    It was a very efficient boss fight, and quite frankly somehow anticlimactic.

    Seeing their master getting pushed back, the two Ice Bears let out a roar before turning around, totally ignoring Lloyd and the others. Right now, all they wanted was to shield their master from Satoshi''s attack so she could escape or restrategize, at least.

    But that misstep was everything that Lloyd and the others needed. With their backs turned, the Ice Bears just put a huge target on their backs. Once again, Rachel activated her phoenix form and burned at the Ice Bear. It doesn''t matter if she exhausts herself to the point where she falls into unconsciousness. Right now, there was a window of opportunity in front of her and she took it. Lloyd and the others took it as their chance as well, and they mercilessly bombarded the Ice Bears as if they were hunting down prey in the woods.

    It didn''t take long before their dying wails reached the Ice Empress and Satoshi''s wails. They paused for a moment, anticipating the next move of the other party. Satoshi could tell that the Ice Empress was still holding back... and if the Ice Bears were to die now, she might go on a rampage. Satoshi also felt his consciousness dwindling, his energy was depleting. Fast.

    "You leave me with no choice, human," The Ice Empress cooly said as a threatening blizzard emanated from her body.

 Chapter 138 Sain, Pelez And Alez

    The blizzard was unlike any other Satoshi had seen in real life or on tv. It was so strong that even the full st of the Windfan couldn''t stop it. Fearing that the Windfan and the Lighter would freeze (unbeknownst to Satoshi, he could already subconsciously feel the status of his familiars), he decided to recall them and put them back in the Orb Oboros.

    "Thank you for your work," Satoshi said.

    "Aghk~!" Vinny screamed as one of the ice spikes stabbed her by the shoulder.

    "Urk~" Rachel shifted into her phoenix form once again just so she won''t have to deal with the ice spikes. It also enabled her to heal the others who were suffering from the blizzard.

    Satoshi was a step toote to notice that the blizzard was actually not made of snow, but of ice spikes. He didn''t notice it at first since his body was phasing every time an ice spike passes through. This was all Ghast''s doing and Satoshi wasn''t aware of it.

    [Be careful, Satoshi] Dex''s concerned voice suddenly rang in Satoshi''s head, making him flinch.

    Just then, something cold and sharp hit Satoshi through the chest, piercing his heart and rendering it frozen. He gasped, feeling the chilling gaze of the Ice Empress as she stared back at him. "The hour of judgment hase, it is time for you to die, human." The Ice Empress said.

    Compared to the Ice Empress''s faster-than-sight eleration before, she''s gotten even faster, instantly covering the distance she had with Satoshi in less than a hundredth of a second. There was no way Satoshi could react to such insane speeds.

    That''s why the next thing he knew, he was already falling down. It became harder for him to breathe, and even when he tried to speak, there was no voiceing out of his mouth. Then he remembered a fact when he watched a documentary about serial killers¡ª a stab through the lungs would render you unable to scream. Right now, he was experiencing such a predicament.

    Furthermore, his energy was almost depleted. At this rate, he''ll go on a rampage once again.

    When his vision cleared as he neared his death, he saw that the Ice Empress shrank in size and she was almost as tall as him, only slightly taller, that is. ''So she was hiding her strength all along. No wonder Vinny said that we don''t stand a chance against her. They didn''t have any chance in the first ce.

    As Satoshi fell, he immediately felt his muscles binding up as if they were reattaching themselves. The heart that once stopped suddenly started beating furiously and blood spurted out from where he was stabbed. Without a second thought and out of desperation, he cupped his hands on his chest, hoping that doing so would minimize his blood loss. Cell by cell, then vessel by vessel, Satoshi felt himself regenerating and at the same time, realized that his energy was depleting fast. Fortunately, he will live, but at what cost?

    They''re dead anyway. It''s not like Lloyd and the others could take on the Ice Empress without his help.

    "SATOSHI!" Emma screamed, a stray tear escaping her right eye.

    But suddenly, Satoshi''s body jerked and a bright yellow glow on top of an eerie purplish haze enveloped him. Before everyone knew what happened, a huge crater formed on the cave floor, shaking its foundations of it. Crystal stctites hanging from the ceiling started raining down and rocks started to crumble, sending debris downwards and causing the others to dodge them in return. As soon as the light smoke cleared from the crater formed, they realized that it was Satoshi''s doing. He was doing a ''why are you approaching me'' stance while two wisps of mes danced and circled around his hands.

    "Don''t worry, I just knocked them down." Satoshi turned around and threw one of his mes towards empty air. A split secondter, they heard a ''whish'', and then the Ice Empress appeared right behind Satoshi with hernce pointed at him.

    That''s right, somehow, the scepter that the Ice Empress was holding transformed into ance of pure ice. And apparently, the whish they heard was the Ice Empress changing directions since she was almost hit by the wisp of mes that Satoshi threw at her. Of course, she didn''t know that the blue mes actually did. But right now, she wasn''t risking her chances. She assumed that the blue mes would kill her instantly if they were to touch even the tiniest fraction of her skin.

    For the first time during the entire ordeal, Satoshi felt a slight hint of panic emanating from the Ice Empress. And he wasn''t the only one feeling it, even Lloyd and the others found it evident that the Ice Empress was getting sore afraid at Satoshi''s unpredictability. With a light grunt, she brought down thence at Satoshi, to which Satoshi didn''t dodge. His body just phased through the attack as if he was a ghost. Confused, the Ice Empress sent out another flurry of attacks in two different directions so Satoshi wouldn''t be able to dodge everything. She was confident that she can leave at least a dent in Satoshi''s invincible armor since she was able to stab him through the heart a couple of seconds ago.<sub> </sub>

    But Satoshi remained unmoving, and none of her attacks dealt him any damage. Satoshi''s eyes started glowing a light shade of purple, then it turned darker and darker until a haze seemed toe out from his eyes. "From the depths of the deepest realm, Imand that youe out. Our bond goes beyond dimensions. I have no idea why you were sent there but now, I''m beckoning you over to this side. And you, you have no choice but to heed mymand. Come out, Sain," Satoshi extended his hand and gripped it in mid-air, clenching it as blue mes enveloped his hands.

    [Summon sessful]

    [Congrattions, Satoshi, you were able to call back Sain from the Purged Conduit. I''m afraid your power is increasing more rapidly than expected.]

    A sh of blue light appeared on Satoshi''s hand and then a scorpion emerged from it. The small scorpion started crawling on Satoshi''s hand until it settled on Satoshi''s middle finger, attaching itself to it. A scorpion ring.

    "What was that just now?" Lloyd wondered, but until now he still can''t quite grasp what Satoshi''s superpower is. And at this point, asking another question just made his head ache a little more.

    "Raaarghhh! Mere tricks won''t defeat me, human." The Ice Empress screamed, unleashing yet another blizzard of ice spikes. But as soon as she did so, something powerful hit her from the back, sending her flying a few meters before she crashed on the rocky cave walls. She gasped for air, but her diaphragm was violently hit.

    It was the Ice Bear! Somehow, the Ice Bear was attacking the Ice Empress all on its own. Why?! How could it betray its lifelong master?!

    "Pelez! What are you doing?! Come to your senses. It is I, the Ice Empress!" The Ice Empress said, but the Ice Bear just wasn''t listening. It roared a second time and charged at her.

    Since the Ice Bear was one of the most trusted familiars of the Ice Empress, she didn''t detect any killing intent when it attacked her just now. But right now, she doesn''t know what caused the Ice Bears to switch sides. Up until right now, everything was still fine and the Ice Bear continued to obey her orders.

    And yet, right now, they''re attacking her as if she was the enemy in this enclosed space?!

    Unbeknownst to the Ice Empress and everyone else, as soon as Satoshinded on the cave floor, creating a huge crater, he attacked the Ice Bears and knocked them unconscious. And after that, he shot two of his blue mes at the Ice Empress. Of course, he missed...

    ... or did he?

    Those blue mes thennded on the two Ice Bears, Pelez and Alez. And because of that, Satoshi had sessfully brought the two formidable enemies to his side. And furthermore, they were even more powerfulpared to when they were under the leadership of the Ice Empress.

    Now was Satoshi''s chance to push the Ice Empress to the corner. And he didn''t want to miss it. A split secondter, he teleported right in front of the Ice Empress, aiming his fist right at her face. The first thing that the Ice Empress noticed was the scorpion ring that Satoshi wore. She didn''t have the leisure to admire it though since she had to dodge out of the way. Right now, Satoshi was as fast, if not faster than her. She couldn''t understand it at all. How could a mere human overpower her after she already used everything in her arsenal?

    But before she could think about that, something sharp pierced her chest, causing blood to drip from her lips. Somehow, the scorpion ring on Satoshi''s hand turned into a long chain of chainsaw, which followed her and stabbed her as soon as she stopped moving.

    "Ban-kai." Satoshi muttered, remembering a ssic animated series about deadly hollows and shinigami''s.

 Chapter 139 The Heros Return

    "Ban-kai."

    Quite frankly, the chain of chainsaws that seemed to infinitely extend was something straight out of that certain animated ssic. That''s the sole reason why Satoshi called it that even though it had an official name¡ª his Chainsaw Familiar, Sain.

    "I... It''s my defeat. You, you''re not human." The Ice Empress mumbled as she copsed to the ground. Obviously, she was on the verge of death, bright red-colored blood spilled out of her mouth as she coughed and choked, clutching her chest where a gaping hole was left by Sain.

    "You, do you also hear the voice in your head, telling you to kill us, humans?" Satoshi asked out of the blue as soon as he approached the Ice Empress.

    Ice Empress nodded, then she turned away as if she had done a grave mistake. For once, there was silence in the Ice Cave, and even with the voice constantly telling the Ice Empress to kill Satoshi in front of her, she was able to resist. Somehow, she was able to resist it nowpared to before. Well, she was already defeated so that probably affected her response to the voice.

    "Looks like we''re done here," Lloyd said, putting a hand on Satoshi''s shoulder and patting it gently. He deserved it, he did all the work after all.

    "You, I don''t know what you did to Pelez and Alez but... I just hope that you''ll take care of them. Promise me that you won''t abuse them, nor let harm befall them. They are my family, my only family."

    There was a pause, and then Satoshi nodded. The others didn''t speak a single word. Right now, instead of celebrating, they decided to remain quiet due to the overall atmosphere of the ce. It would''ve been infinitely better if their enemy couldn''t connect to them, but their enemy could talk, no less. This made the overall subjugation much harder. They don''t even know if they could kill the Ice Empress.

    Fwooooooosh~~~]

    The familiar whooshing sound could be heard from the back once again and the first one to notice it was Vinny, who was constantly keeping track of the surroundings. Once again, she felt an incredible amount of energy from where they came from. And that could only mean one thing. Finally, the Gate had opened and they can nowe out of this damned ce.

    "Let''s get out of here, Satoshi," Lloyd called out, turning around while the rest of his team followed. As for Emma, she remained immobile, waiting for Satoshi''s call.

    "Sure," Satoshi responded, turning around to follow. But after a couple of steps, he balked, and then addressed the Ice Empress for thest time. "Would you like to go with me?" He asked. He didn''t make the question sound like an order, but more of an invitation.

    "dly," The Ice Empress forced a smile on her face. Although this would be the first time she''ll be serving a master, she could tell that Satoshi is a leader. After all, his bonds with his summons are unlike any other and she witnessed that firsthand. Besides, with them gone, there''s nothing she could do in this limited world. Even if it''s just a little bit, she was curious as to where Satoshi came from and how he grew up to be such a powerful figure despite being a human.

    .....

    The next morning was the final day for the Inter-High Tournament¡ª probably the most anticipated day of the year around the globe. But somehow, the news about the tournament never reached Lloyd and his party''s ears and when they were informed about it, they were surprised. T

    There''s a colony of humans in Antarctica and they are a part of it. And due to that, their lives were pretty much isted from the rest of the world. Of course, they get updates for huge events from time to time but most of the time they don''t know anything. That''s one of the many reasons why the news about the Gate reached them a bit toote.

    "I guess we should be proactive about this from now on. Since Vinny is the most suitable person to work on gathering information, I''ll be assigning the task to you. It won''t be that hard, you just have to check the news every day. We should also upgrade some of our equipments here and repair most of them so our connection to the world would be much more stable." Lloyd said.

    Right now, they were back at the Headquarters once again, eating breakfast. It won''t be long before the Third Round of the Inter-High Tournamentmences but Satoshi wasn''t worried. Because of his integration with Ghast during the fight with the Ice Empress, he gained more control over Ghast''s portal ability. If he willed it, he could teleport to the Waiting Room in an instant so he didn''t worry about it at all.

    "So, you''re a part of this Inter-High Tournament in Japan, right? Shouldn''t you be going right now? The countdown says that you only have less than an hour left." Lloyd pointed out, showing the countdown on the live stream that''s about to be shown on Youtube. A few minutes ago, the team watched a couple of videos about the Inter-High Tournament and they became hooked. Had they lived in the city, they would''ve joined the Arena in a sh and gone head to head with other superheroes for money.<sub> </sub>

    "Emma''s with him, they can just teleport there at any time." Rachel said. "Thank you for your help earlier, Satoshi. We clearly underestimated you and the girl."

    "We thought you backed down during the fight with the ant horde and the spider horde, but you were just bidding your time as it turned out. Had it not been for that, we would''ve been killed by the Ice Empress." Caleb shuddered. He could still remember how powerless they felt against the Ice Empress and Satoshi was the only one who took a stand against her.

    "Do you think there''s something about this that attracts other entities? I mean, we had alien invasions once a year, and this time huge portals appeared and monsters resided inside." Lloyd suddenly asked, totally steering the topic to something different.

    "That''s a food for thought, and totally usible," Rachel responded. "Whatever that is, we should probably find out about it because if not, then there wille a point when we''ll lose against an alien invasion."

    "Yeah, the aliens are getting stronger and stronger. Remember those Slime Alien ones? They''re pretty overpowered. Fortunately, a lot of superheroes teamed up to fight in space. But if the invasion was scattered just like these Gates, then I don''t know what will happen." Lloyd continued.

    And he was right. Even though Lloyd was the only one who talked openly about it, everyone feared the same thing. There''s a reason why aliens are targeting Earth and they don''t know the reason why. And who knows what would happen in the next invasion?

    .....

    While the clock ticked, Hiroshi and the others started getting fidgety since there was still no sign of Satoshi. And then, during the night, they heard that thest Gate¡ª the Gate that opened in Antarctica¡ª was already closed by the Antarctica Exploration Team led by someone named Lloyd. They didn''t even bother giving his surname because he''s not a high-ranking superhero.

    And just like any others, he said in his report that they received help from two teenagers and that if it weren''t for them, they would''ve died. Of course, Lloyd didn''t reveal Satoshi and Emma''s identities as per Satoshi''s request. But he was extremely grateful for them. That''s why the least he could do was fulfill Satoshi''s request and hide their identities.

    This left people around the world wondering who the two teenagers were and if they are really on their side. Many rumors and questions started revolving around the inte and some even found it their life''s purpose to unravel the identities of the two.

    "You think he''ll arrive on time. Five minutes left." Shidou asked. "I mean, this is the Third Round, no less."

    "He''ll get here," Midori bit his lips. Of course, everyone felt jittery since Satoshi was still not yet there. A few minutes more and they''ll be walking towards the stage.

    "Yeah, there''s no way Satoshi would leave us hanging like that. That''s so unlike him," Cherry said. It was obvious that her alter ego, Sassu, was the one currently in control.

    "Let''s just wait a few more seconds, and then let''s head down to the stage." Fuuka cleared her throat. Somehow, everyone''s nervousness was getting into her.

    Just like in the previous round, there was still no information as to what the contest is going to be like in the third round. But Fuuka, who pondered about it all night, arrived at a conclusion that it was going to be a three-way fight. ''If they were to do that, then it would be clear that they didn''t want us to win,'' Or so, that''s what she thought.

    Suddenly, cold winds blew right at their napes, causing them to turn their heads in the direction of the boy''s room. There, Satoshi was standing with an ice statue of ady.

    "Are we going or not?" He asked with a huge smile on his face.

 Chapter 140 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight I

    The center stage of the Inter-High Coliseum had already been prepared the night prior for the third round. This time, it was just a t area with a thin transparent dome on top of it. Apparently, this dome was put in ce just in case something goes wrong and an attack would pierce through towards the audience. Although this dome can block misfires and most attacks, it can''t really block a super powerful attack like the punch from the USA''s Principal. It was just put up for precautionary measures.

    While the candidates slowly entered the stage where the third and final round will be held, the spectators started flooding in as well. The huge screen on one of the sides of the audience was turned on and the cameras started rolling. The live stream had resumed and the broadcast hadmenced for the day.

    On one of the pathways that led to the seats, a certain white-haired girl entered with a huge grin on her face. She slowly walked towards her seat as if she was the happiest girl on earth, looking around, as her eyes started to tear up. The cacophony of the audience started getting louder as they eased into their seats but that didn''t annoy her in the least bit. Surprisingly, she even smiled upon hearing it! A young child who was sitting on her mother''sp was waving a light stick and giggling all over when she realized that someone was looking at her. When she turned around, she noticed that a girl with white hair was looking at her as well. She smiled and giggled for a second time before waving her arms.

    Meanwhile, Emma couldn''t help but be amused at the sight of the baby girl. She wiped a stray tear from her eyes before taking another look around the audience. "It''s been so long since I''ve seen this many people. They look like trash from over here." She said to herself since she was seated on one of thest row seats.

    .....

    A few minutes ago,

    "Now that that''s done and over with, what''s your next n? Are you going to stay here or are you going to go back?" Satoshi asked with a light tone as he opened a portal that would lead to the Inter-High Coliseum. He was already runningte as it is so he was getting impatient when he asked Emma the question.

    In response, Emma shrugged and wore a clueless expression on her face. She forced herself to smile but it was evident that there was sadness in her being. Satoshi felt a bit suspicious of her facial expression but he didn''t pry nor ask any questions about it. There was a reason why she kept quiet and he knew it was not ethical to stick his nose into it. "I''ll... I''ll probably stay?" She finally said, but even her answer was unsure.

    "If that''s what you want then you can stay if you want. I''ll talk to my parents to see if we can do anything about your identity and all thoseplicated things. You do know you can''t just go around unregistered, right?" Satoshi asked.

    "Of course," Emma bobbed her head up and down in agreement.

    "For now, I''ll ask one of my acquaintances to apany you. With that, you can at least stay where I''mpeting, and then we can talk about your next steps after that. You sure you don''t want to go back to your world? I''m guessing it''s not that hard to teleport from here to there, right?"

    Emma shook her head. "No, I''ll much rather stay here for now,"

    "Suit yourself," Satoshi said.

    Unbeknownst to Satoshi, Emma didn''t tell him all the reasons why she went to Earth. The only details he knew were that Emma was looking for him and that Emma went to Earth in order to put a stop to the Gates. Those reasons were only two of the few, the rest Emma kept a secret. There was a reason why she didn''t want to go back, and why she was keen on destroying all the Gates that appeared on Earth.

    After all, she was the sole survivor of their... but that backstory is for ater time.

    .....

    "Satoshi, where have you been? Everyone''s been looking for you!" Hiroshi whispered as the group started walking into the stage.

    "Yeah, you just went to the restroom, and then you disappeared. Is there some sort of secret tunnel there or something?" Shidou asked.

    "Of course, he used his familiar that can create portals," Sassu shot back at Shidou. "In any case, where did you go this time, Satoshi?"<sub> </sub>

    "I just hope you won''t scare us again like what you did during the second round. Did you know, I saw your limbless legless figure in my dreamsst night and the maniacal face of Primal repeatedly appeared as he stabbed you through the heart. I woke up like three timesst night, breaking out in cold sweat. Look, even my eyebags are heavier than my financial problems." Midori continued, putting his face closer to Satoshi so he would see his evident eyebags.

    "Aren''t you nervous, guys?" Hiroshi suddenly blurted out. "We''re in the finals! How could you all be so calm!"

    "Shouldn''t you be?" Fuuka responded. "We''re in the do-or-die stage. If we get nervous, it would impede our decision-making capability and what''s next? We won''t be able to act in time. Calm your nerves, Hiroshi."

    "Yeah, you should calm down," Siril agreed with Fuuka, but he continuously wrote the kanji for ''man'' on his palms and put it in his mouth. It was obvious that he was the most nervous of them all.

    "Satoshi, do we have a n?"

    "Let''s just do what we can. As it is we don''t know what the third round is going to be." Satoshi responded. And he was right.

    Right now, they already proceeded to enter the arena but the instructions for the third round are still yet to be given out. What''s taking them so long?

    In that instant, lively background music started ying all over the coliseum, causing everyone to stop what they were doing and listen. They knew that an announcement is bound to given out soon and they were right on the money.

    The screen that broadcasted the entire tournament to tv stations all over the globe suddenly changed its view as a camera panned to one of the hallways that led to the spectators'' area. A man in a tuxedo suddenly walked out, bncing a cane in his hand. He wore a in ivory mask on top of his eyes. His build wasn''t that big but he exuded a lot of charisma. It was evident since everyone started hollering as soon as he appeared.

    "No way, it''s Tuxedo!" Midori''s eyes bulged as soon as he saw the man.

    "We know, you don''t have to say it out loud." Hiroshi pointed out.

    They weren''t the only ones who were shocked to see Tuxedo in person. After all, the superhero''s a busy man and he rarely appears in public. Of course, as someone who''s number one when ites to poprity ratings, Tuxedo wouldn''t want to find himself in public since people will just surround and pester him.

    When ites to superhero rankings, there are two rankings to keep in mind. One would be the SAO Rankings where a superhero''s reputation and work are judged based on points and one''s rank corresponds to their service to the masses. Then there''s the Poprity Rankings¡ª rankings based on the physical appearance of the superhero. Of course, a superhero''s SAO Ranking could greatly affect their Poprity Rankings since the public votes for that. Tuxedo, although he''s number one in Poprity Ranking for male superheroes, he''s only in the top twenties when ites to his SAO Rankings. The Midoriyama Duo don''t stray too far in the top ten. It should also be mentioned that the Poprity Rankings of gentlemen anddies are different. That way, there will be a number one male and female superhero when ites to poprity rankings.

    As Tuxedo walked towards the first row of the audience, a tform was sent there so he could float like the other announcers who have been invited for the first and second rounds of the Inter-High Tournament. He just nodded his head in response to the cheers of the audience and then he was handed the mic.

    "Thank you for this great honor. I don''t usually present myself in public but I epted this invitation because I too, think it''s about time I expand my agency. I want to express two things as thementator for thisst round. One, I''m here with everyone present and on behalf of everyone who is not present, to watch over the next generation of superheroes. And two, I will just put it out there but I want to recruit young Satoshi and join my Kingsmen Agency."

    There were a few gasps and ''ahhs'' from the audience but no one reacted in an overexaggerated manner, much to Tuxedo''s relief.

    "That aside, the third round will be an all-out battle! But! It would be different from the second round of course! Because this time, it will be a one-on-one three-way fight!"

 Chapter 141 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight II

    The audience started cheering hysterically as soon as it was announced. Well, what''s better than a two-way match? Of course, a three-way match. More chaos, more unpredictability, unexpected alliances, and betrayal. All of those could only be experienced in a three-way fight. This wasnt the first time a three-way fight became part of the Inter-High Tournament so no one found it weird that it became the finals.

    "Three-way fight? I knew it." Fuuka muttered to herself.

    "Yeah, I guess not all of us are going to fight, huh," Hiroshi told himself, crestfallen. Although he was looking forward to getting on the stage just like any others. They knew that a three-way fight is limited only to three or five matches. And just like before, they had to choose representatives amongst themselves.

    "Don''t worry, if anyone wants to fight then just say it out loud. I''ll be backing out of this match." Satoshi called out to everyone. Unlike the second round where he fought everyone single-handedly, he deemed it best to let everyone get the spotlight even though that would lower their chances of getting the trophy for this year''s Inter-High Tournament. Quite frankly, Satoshi didn''t really care about the title... all his wishes were already fulfilled when he got a superpower, got into his dream school, and even got the opportunity to enter the Inter-High. All of those experiences were more than enough for him. That''s why he didn''t think twice about putting the others in the spotlight.

    "Ehrmm," Tuxedo cleared his throat before proceeding with his speech. "The three-way match will have a grand total of five rounds. Now, let me state the rules for everyone. Participants, please listen carefully since I"m only going to say this once."

    Everyone gulped as silence befell the entire Inter-High Coliseum.

    "First would be the Picks! In a three-way match, there will be three participants so the first pick would be at a disadvantage. Every round we will be having a pick instead of letting the management decide. This way, we can watch our dear high schoolers strategize first-hand."

    "The first one to put up their pick for the corresponding round will receive 50 points under their name. The second pick will get 100 points. Andstly, the third pick will receive 150 points. Now, you might think that this is unfair since the third pick has the most points. But! This means that the first pick will always get more points if he was able to defeat the other picks. Pretty fair, right? If you look at it objectively, the first pick can get a grand total of 250 points if he wins, the second pick can get a grand total of 200 points, and the third pick can get 150 points. And yes, the points assigned to you can only be imed by your opponents, not by yourself when you win. The more points you have under your name, the more you''re at a disadvantage."

    "Now, one might think that getting the first pick puts you at an advantage... no, it increases your chance of being defeated because the second and third pick could simply pick out their teammates who could easily defeat you. Think about all that before you choose your path in thisst round."

    "Also, the winner of the previous round could either back down or continue on to the second round if he or she wants to. That means, winning the previous round will earn you the right to get the first pick. BUT! You can only get that first pick if you go to the next round as the winner of the previous round. If not, then the first pick would be given to the two schools who lost the previous round."

    As the leader of the USA Candidates, Satoshi knew that it was up to him toe up with a strategy. But before he could do anything, everyone else in his team raised their hands in an instant. All of them seemed to have a n in mind and as much as he hated to admit it, he was the only one clueless as to what the n was about.

    "We''re getting the First Pick for the first round!" Hiroshi screamed out loud, obviouslyying out a challenge towards the Flowing Wave Academy and the Great Mountain Academy.

    "Hoh, it seems like the United Superheroes Academy wants to give us a show. Let''s give them a round of apuse!" Tuxedo screamed, extending his hands as he addressed the audience, to which the audience responded by cheering and hollering much louder than usual. "Now that we''ve got the First Pick for the first round... you should announce the name of your representative so we can get the ball rolling."

    "MIDORIYAMA SATOSHI!" Everyone shouted in unison, much to Satoshi''s surprise.

    "W-w-what?! What are you all doing? Didn''t I tell you that I''ll back out in this one? I thought you all wanted to fight in the third round?" Satoshi hissed. He didn''t want to cause a scene so his voice was much quieter than normal.

    "This is retribution, Satoshi, for disappearing from our sight." Sassu pointed out.

    "Yeah, as our leader, you shouldn''t have done that. Now it''s your turn to redeem yourself in our point of view." Hiroshi said. The reason why he looked crestfallen a few moments ago wasn''t that they already nned for Satoshi to be the First Pick of the first round.

    After all, that was just half of the n.<sub> </sub>

    "Guys," Satoshi called out a second time but Midori already activated his Berserker Superpower and dragged Satoshi towards the Stage.

    "We will get the Second Pick!" Saturn, from the Flowing Wave Academy, called out. "Oculus, you''re up."

    "What?! ME?!" Oculus said, wondering why their leader picked him when he cannot even stand a chance against Satoshi. He was aware of that since he has already watched plenty of materials from Satoshi''s previous fights.

    "Yes, you know what to do." Saturn continued.

    "Oh, so that''s what you were talking about," Oculus said. As he nced to the side, he saw that Aljier, the leader of the Great Mountain Academy, was inconspicuously nodding at Saturn.

    The alliance between the Great Mountain Academy and the Flowing Wave Academy couldn''t be any more obvious.

    "Grior, you''re up," Aljier said. He didn''t have to announce that their school is the Third Pick since that was thest pick anyways.

    During the second round, Oculus only used one of the perks of his superpower since he knew that they''d be able to get into the Third Round anyways. In short, he didn''t feel cornered during the second round thanks to the incredible leadership of Saturn, their leader. But now that they''re in the third round, it''s a different matter altogether. His superpower is pyrokinesis and he decided to not hold back. As for Grior, his superpower is wind maniption. It might not be as powerful as the superpowers in his team, but it should be mentioned that he''s the best wind maniptor in their school and that''s why he was picked out as a candidate for the Inter-High Tournament. With his expertise in wind maniption and his ally who can use pyrokinesis, they knew that they have a chance of defeating Satoshi.

    Satoshi stepped forward, feeling rather guilty, not because he didn''t want to fight, but because he was chosen against his will. He didn''t know what his friends were thinking and he assumed that they deemed this the best option to win even though they wanted to experience fighting in the Inter-High Tournament.

    Unbeknownst to him, though, everyone already knew what he was up tost night and they knew just how much hardship Satoshi had to go through just to save the world. His identity may not be in the news but based on what they heard from Satoshi''s parents, he really was the one behind the cleared Gates all around the globe. They didn''t know how to cheer Satoshi up so they decided to just give him the opportunity to win andslide victory so he would at least feel better.

    "With all the picks in ce, I guess I should signal the First Round before someone startedining haha~~~ Here we go! Ready! Start!"

    The first thing That Grior did was surround Satoshi with heavy walls of winds, trapping him inside a tornado. In an instant, Oculus realized what Grior implied so he lit the walls of winds on fire. Oculus knew that ordinary fire won''t affect Satoshi since he''s got insane regeneration skills so he broke through his limiter and produced fire more intense than the sun''s heat. This caused the thinyer of the protective dome to break but fortunately, the coliseum was too big so the mes didn''t go to the audience.

    "With this, Satoshi would burn and admit defeat... if by any chance he wasn''t affected by this, then he''ll just run out of oxygen and asphyxiate." Grior told Oculus.

    "Be prepared. As soon as we defeat Satoshi, we''ll be fighting against each other." Oculus smirked.

    "You know..."

    "... You really shouldn''t count your chickens before they''re hatched." A voice came from behind them.

 Chapter 142 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight III

    Grior and Oculus both had determined looks on their faces, which prompted Satoshi to give them a chance to attack him first before he defeats them. The two of them were from different schools so Satoshi was just as curious if they''ll be able to work together. In order to do that, not only do they have to reveal most of their superpower move sets, but they also have to synchronize their attacks so they won''t interrupt one another. With all these thingsing into y, Satoshi couldn''t help but feel curious as to what their opening attack would be.

    He was surprised when Grior suddenly unleashed a powerful tornado that broke through the protective thinyer of a dome that surrounded the arena. If it were any other superhero, they would''ve suffered a few bruises or cuts just from that attack alone. It was obvious that Grior is the number one wind user in their school based on his impable control over his superpower. His power output is not a joke either. It could very well bepared to other superheroes who have the same superpower¡ª a formidable wind user through and through.

    While admiring the thick and huge column of air that surrounded him, Satoshi was almost blown out of the way. In an instant, he summoned Sain, his Chainsaw Familiar, and used the multiple saws to root himself on the ground. That way, he won''t be blown away and get sent to the audience. That would certainly cause him to stter, which wouldn''t be a great sight in the Inter-High Tournament.

    "Here we go," Oculus said, extending his hands over to the tornado that Grior made. In an instant, the tornado went up in mes. This attack surprised Satoshi more so than Grior''s tornado.

    "Wait, he has a fire superpower?" Satoshi asked himself as beads of sweat trickled from his forehead. He wasn''t sweating because he was nervous, but because the surroundings were getting ufortably hot.

    "With this, Satoshi would burn and admit defeat... if by any chance he wasn''t affected by this, then he''ll just run out of oxygen and asphyxiate." Grior told Oculus.

    ? "Be prepared. As soon as we defeat Satoshi, we''ll be fighting against each other." Oculus smirked.

    What they didn''t know though was that their entire conversation was heard by Satoshi. As soon as the FIRE TORNADO became scorching hot, Satoshi summoned both Sera and Ghast, one to heal his burns and the other to get him out of the fire. It didn''t even take a split second for Satoshi to get out of there.

    Grior and Oculus both smirked at each other as if they were fully prepared to fight each other as soon as the ming tornado dissipates. They didn''t even notice Satoshi standing right behind them.

    "You know..."

    "... You really shouldn''t count your chickens before they''re hatched." A voice came from behind them.

    Upon saying that, Satoshi immediately ducked as Oculus sent a ming orb towards his head. A wind de almost cut his legs as well, fortunately, he managed to jump just in time.

    "How did he¡ª " Grior was about to ask how Satoshi got out of the vortex of mes when he received a punch right by his sr plexus, causing him to wheeze as the air escaped his lungs. He hardened the air in the atmosphere to shield himself from Satoshi''s next punch and then used the winds in his favor so he could fly out of the way.

    As for Oculus, he managed to duck Satoshi''s roundhouse kick as he used an explosion to slingshot himself out of the way. After that, he used his hand as leverage to turn around and nt an explosion on Satoshi''s face.

    Just like Satoshi, Oculus is quite confident in his physical prowess as well, that''s why he didn''t back down when Satoshi started using physical attacks instead of using his superpower. ''If you want to fight like this, then I''m not going to hold back.'' Oculus thought to himself as a smile formed on his face. The fight was just getting started.

    "Grior, don''t just run around like that and help me out here," Oculusined as Satoshi leaned backward and unleashed a flurry of kicks at him. In response, Oculus sidestepped and did a sweeping motion with his hand, aiming right at Satoshi''s throat. If he were to dodge, then his attack wouldnd squarely on his jaws, which is exactly what Oculus wanted to y out.

    However, Satoshi saw through his attacks and instead of dodging, he blocked it with his left hand. When the attack connected, Satoshi quickly changed his parry into a tight grip, grabbing Oculus''s right hand and turning around. He nned to throw him on the ground¡ª a famous finishing move in judo and other simr martial arts.

    That''s when Grior stepped in. He knew that once Satoshi defeated Oculus, it was only a matter of time before he loses as well. In a desperate attempt to save Oculus from being thrown down, he sent a gust of wind at Satoshi''s leg and sent another gust right where Oculus would bending. ording to his estimate, Satoshi would lose his bnce and Oculus wouldnd on the gust of wind as if he was thrown onto a soft bed.

    That''s exactly how it yed out. Satoshi didn''t expect Grior to take that chance as an opportunity. He could tell that his two opponents shouldn''t be underestimated. Just like him, they''ve been to countless physical fights and they know their way inbat.<sub> </sub>

    Even though the fight was mostly physical in form, Tuxedo and the rest of the audience were rendered speechless as they watched the teenagers'' mastery over their bodies. In a civilization where superpowers are greatly regarded, it''s easy, or rather, it''s the norm for someone to overlook their physical capabilities since one could alwayspensate for their physical abilities with their superpower.

    That''s why it''s quite a rare sight to behold a physical fight. And the exchange of blows they witnessed right now isn''t just your typical street fight, but every move was carefully calcted and executed with minute precision. It was indeed a feast for the eyes of everyone watching.

    And just like the audience watching the fight live, everyone at the leisure of their homes was rendered speechless as well. This was truly the third round of the Inter-High Tournament.

    "On your left!" Grior called out. Oculus then dodged and sent another explosion right at Satoshi''s hips.

    BOOM!

    This time, the attack connected and Satoshi was knocked leftwards, sending him rolling a couple of meters before he punched the ground, causing him to decelerate with a slide. Half of his shirt was burned but there were no signs of charred skin underneath. This made Oculus and Grior take a step back. If he isn''t using any of his familiars, then how did he recover in an instant? After all, even the hand Satoshi used to punch the ground wasn''t even bruised.

    Of course, why did they assume that Satoshi isn''t using his familiars when they were using their superpowers in a hand-to-hand fight? That''s simply a subjective way of thinking. They just assumed that Satoshi would hold back just because this turned into an exchange of fists.

    That would just be disadvantageous for him.

    Heaving a sigh, Oculus raised his hand as if to address everyone, including the audience. This made Satoshi pause. He didn''t want to attack someone who put their guard down on purpose. In a tournament, that would just be ying dirty.

    Seeing the signal, Tuxedo nodded to the side of the audience towards one of the cameramen, gesturing that he focused on Oculus. The camera then zoomed in until Oculus was the only one on it.

    "I have a proposition to make," Oculus voiced out after clearing his throat. "Since everyone wants a physical brawl, then I would like this round to be a pure physical fight. Of course, this is just my proposition. It''s up to Satoshi and Grior if they will agree with me."

    "In this match, no one is allowed to use any superpower. All of us will just be fighting using our physical abilities."If one were to use their superpower, then they are immediately disqualified from the match."

    "Ooh, this is getting interesting." Tuxedo said, smiling. In himself, he wanted to watch a full-on, three-way physical brawl and he could tell by the sparkles in the eyes of the audience that they wanted to witness something like that as well. Of course, he had no leeway to refuse such a request.

    "If the two candidates agree with you, Oculus, then I will allow that rule on this round. However, this rule will only be for this round, let me make that clear."

    Satoshi and Grior both had no idea what spurred the idea in Oculus''s head but one thing''s for sure, the two of them were also having fun exchanging fists with each other. Of course, they''d agree.

    "Sounds interesting, count me in." Satoshi nodded, agreeing to the proposition.

    "I''m on board as well," Grior agreed, shaking Oculus''s hand in the process.

 Chapter 143 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight IV

    Well, the inevitable soon happened.

    Although Grior and Oculus teamed up against Satoshi, he just defeated them as if it was child''s y. No matter how much experience Grior and Oculus had in terms of hand-to-handbat, it was clear that Satoshi is the most formidable out of the three. After all, he had been relying on his physical strength ever since he knew that his powers won''t manifest. He would be even more surprised if someone his age was physically more capable than him.

    "AND THE FIRST ROUND GOES TO... THE UNITED SUPERHEROES ACADEMY!" Tuxedo waved his hands, causing the audience to raise their hands as well as scream, pleased with the result of the first round. Upon witnessing a unique battle iparable to previous battles in the Inter-High Tournament, the spectators couldn''t ask for more. Tuxedo was thrown off his feet as well as if someone pulled the rug under him. In his eyes, he didn''t witness a couple of teenagers engaging in a street fight, but rather, three superheroes who could adjust to any given situation. "Truly, the future generation of superheroes is bright if we have these kids." He continued.

    Back in his days, the reformation was just getting started so there was a lot of chaos. Tuxedo saw firsthand how chaotic a country can be with itsws abolished, and taken over by a different system that suddenly existed. It was up to everyone to fend for themselves and some even took the event as a chance to harass other people. Tuxedo grew up in a world where the fine line between superheroes and viins didn''t exist... it was nonexistent at all.

    However, that didn''t stop him from pursuing his childhood dream, of bing a superhero. He started as your friendly neighborhood superhero who fightsmon thugs and stopsmon criminals who were running about the ce. Thieves, bullies, and everything in between were all on his watchlist and pretty soon, he earned the nickname Tuxedo since the first time he was featured in the news, he wore a Tuxedo. Of course, the choice of outfit wasn''t his at all. It was his mom who gave him the Tuxedo since she heard that her son will be appearing on the news.

    p Even though Tuxedo only had his looks, he was diligent enough to earn enough points and be ranked high enough in the SAO Rankings. He started doing hero work at a young age, and that''s why he climbed through the ranks much smoother than the others.</anda>

    That''s the reason why he felt nostalgic while seeing these teenagers fight in front of him. He hade so far, even ranking first in the Poprity Rankings in the Male Division. Back then, he remembered that no one actually taught him how to fight. Everything he knew was self-taught. He never had a master.

    But now, with all the superhero agencies taking in internships, and a lot of training centers existing all over the country, not to mention the many superhero schools that contributed greatly to the growth of a superhero, he could tell that the next generation of superheroes had already surpassed the previous. And as someone who grew up learning the ropes, he could tell that the next generation had been very blessed.

    "Right! Now let''s proceed to the second round... oh, it seems like the United Superheroes Academy wants to keep their First Pick the same for the second round. Of course, strike the iron while it''s hot, or so the saying goes. With this, they can still the maximum amount of points... but could Satoshi survive another round?"

    "We''ll be sending in Vulcan as our second pick!" Aljier from the Great Mountain Academy called out.

    "We''ll be sending out"Oversight!"

    "Hmm, let''s pull out some files here. It seems like Vulcan has the power to take control over someone''s mind, kind of like telepathy. And then there''s Oversight who''s got superspeed... and foresight? Whoa, what a solid candidate! These youngsters never fail to surprise me." Tuxedomented.

    "Based on the results of the previous fights. It''s quite obvious that the Great Mountain Academy and the Flowing Wave Academy will still work together to bring down amon enemy... I mean, that''s the ideal approach, of course, they''ve already thought that through." Tuxedo cleared his throat. "Now, what kind of fight are we going to see in the Second Round?"

    Meanwhile, Satoshi nced back at his teammates with a panicked expression. "Why are you doing these?"

    "Just have fun, Satoshi! Clear your head a little bit!" Midori shouted from the sidelines.

    "Yeah, we know you have a lot of things on your mind! Don''t let it get to you! Just have fun!" Sassu cheered with a squeal while she bobbed up and down like the happiest girl on earth.

    "Yeah, if you lose, we''ll never forgive you!" Shidou called out.

    "Hey, that was uncalled for," Fuuka hissed at Shidou. "What if he feels pressured?"

    As usual, Satoshi didn''t know what they were thinking. But if they relied on him that much, that means there''s only one thing he could do. With a smirk, he stepped forward.<sub> </sub>

    "HEEEEY!" Satoshi screamed at the top of his lungs, causing Tuxedo and everyone in the audience to look at him. Garnering everyone''s attention, he smiled, then nced at Hiroshi and the others.

    "If you want me in here, then might as well put on a good show." Satoshi continued. At first, he didn''t want to do this but the situation called for it. Besides, he remembered a saying that his father always told him.

    And no, this wasn''t about smiling when a camera''s pointed at him. It was another saying.

    "Remember, Satoshi, a superhero is not a superhero when he doesn''t put on a good show. So, if ever you''re fighting someone, always remember to put on a good show... unless of course, you''re having a hard time fighting him. In that case, you should prioritize surviving more than anything else. Don''t forget though... a superhero... ?"

    "Always puts on a good show," Satoshi repeated.

    "It seems like the FIrst Pick of United Superheroes Academy is up to something. Did I hear something about putting on a good show?" Tuxedo asked with a grin on his face. Of course, he heard it. He just wanted to confirm so everyone else would be more hyped.

    Satoshi nodded.

    "RIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT! LET''S SEE WHAT THIS SHOW IS ALL ABOUT, SATOSHI! ROUND TWO, STAAAAAAAAAAAART!" Tuxedo screamed at the top of his lungs after taking in a lungful of air.

    Needless to say, Vulcan and Oversight felt a bit insulted at what Satoshi said. But knowing their enemy, they knew that he could actually pull off a good show while fighting them. He did it in the first round, there''s no way he could do it again in the second. Besides, it was in that Satoshi was much stronger than them. The reason why they were sent out was mainly to tire him out. Everything will be known in the Third Round.

    As soon as themencement of the second round was announced, Oversight didn''t waste any time peering through Satoshi''s movements. Since he could see at least three moves into the future, he nned to use every opportunity of that on Satoshi so he could anticipate every movement, giving him more time to prepare a counter. He didn''t really mind the other presence on the stage, Vulcan. Vulcan can do his own thing.

    "I will try to make him lose hisposure. As soon as I take over his mind. I''ll trap him in a dream. This is easier than normal. Justunch a surprise attack and I''ll attack his mind at the opportune moment." Vulcan said in a calm tone. "If we can pull this off, then we can win."

    "There goes my n out the window. I''ll see what I can do. I''ll leave the mind attack on you." Oversight said before disappearing.

    Well, he didn''t really disappear, he just traveled faster than sight to attack Satoshi. While doing so, he tried to anticipate every move Satoshi will make if he does a certain action. He knew that he just had to surprise Satoshi by doing something uncanny. At that moment, Vulcan can attack his mind and trap him in a dream. "Easier said than done." He told himself, gritting his teeth as the whish almost got the better of him.

    To his bewilderment though, no matter what he did, the future showed him the same response from Satoshi.

    He didn''t move from his ce. Not a step, not even a nce towards Oversight. "Is he throwing this fight? No way," Oversight asked himself. "Why would he throw this fight when he just said he''ll be putting on a good show? Was it a bluff? What is he thinking?"

    This was when Oversight, well, made the wrong first move. Had he looked a secondter into the future, he would''ve seen that Satoshi had in fact moved... well, only his lips did.

    "Gabriel," Satoshi muttered.

 Chapter 144 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight V

    Suddenly, a floating figure wearing a tattered cape appeared right in front of Oversight, causing him to tuck his tail and run. In the presence of an unknown, it is for the best for one to take a precautionary retreat while expecting the worst-case scenario to happen. Little did Oversight know, had he attacked at that instant, Vulcan would''ve taken control of Satoshi''s mind.

    "What was that? One of his summons?" Oversight asked, side-ncing towards Vulcan.

    "I have no idea, this was the first time I saw that... what do you think it is?"

    Everyone in the audience, even Satoshi''s teammates, was left speechless at the imposing aura that the floating figure gave. It''s as if it came straight out of death''s door and appeared on stage to haunt everything it sets its eyes to.

    "What are you wearing?" Satoshi asked.

    "I didn''t know what else to wear... and it''s not like I wanted to show my face in front of these teenagers. What would they think if a middle-aged man beat them?" Gabriel asked with a sigh.

    "Ah, right. I didn''t think of that." Satoshi nodded, understanding what Gabriel meant.

    "What are your orders, master?" Gabriel asked.

    "I know it''d be you who''d be able to put on a good show, that''s why I called you out here. I want to see what you''re capable of and at the same time, I want you to impress everyone watching." Satoshi smiled. "This is your debut, your introduction to this world, your genesis. I hope you take that all in and show them what the Great Summoner Gabriel has."

    "As you wish, Satoshi. Once again, I thank you for giving me this opportunity." Gabriel said, floating a little bit higher before extending his hands.

    After clearing his throat, he turned around, addressing the audience. "I am... I am the Great Summoner! Bow before me, or experience my wrath!" Gabriel said in a deeper voice than usual. When Satoshi told him to put on a good show, there''s no question that he''ll do just that. And since his face was covered with the hood, he looked even more threatening as usual, giving him the atmosphere of someone great, just like what he called himself a moment ago.

    The audience didn''t know what was happening but since Satoshi announced that he''ll put on a good show, they knew that they''ll just have to go with the flow and see what Satoshi had in store for them. With Tuxedo in the lead, all of them bowed towards the one calling himself the Great Summoner.

    Seeing everyone bow before him was truly a surprise for Gabriel. Quite frankly, he just didn''t know what to say so he recited something from a book he once read. Honestly, he felt a bit embarrassed upon seeing everyone bow before him that he froze in ce, then nced at Satoshi.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi sat by the corner of the stage, pleased with Gabriel''s introduction. He then gestured at Gabriel to continue what he was doing.<sub> </sub>

    "Ehrmm, I see that you all still value your lives as well. However! There''s two of you who''s got a death wish!" Gabriel growled, turning around to face both Vulcan and Oversight, who were too nervous to even bow down.

    "I guess the two of you are prepared to die?" He asked, extending his hands as countless portals appeared.

    Oversight gritted his teeth at the sight of the robed figure. He thought that Satoshi just summoned an end-game boss and there was nothing he could do but dodge every attack that woulde out of the magic circles. He thought that the portals Gabriel made were actually magic circles.

    As for Vulcan, he wondered if he would see Ainz Ooal Gown underneath the hooded robe he wore.

    Suddenly, creatures starteding out of the portals. At first, there were two phantom tigers, and then a huge phoenix appeared right behind him. As if that wasn''t enough, a huge four-winged wyvern appeared, almost covering the entire stage as it screeched. And then, an army of dragon-like beasts came out of the portals by the horde. A huge emperor penguin, six feet in size, also came out, wearing armor and a crown on its head. Satoshi was surprised that Gabriel still had a lot of summons in store and yet he didn''t use it on him. Was he holding back when they fought back then? Satoshi could only wonder.

    The sight of all the beasts gathering around the Great Summoner made everyone speechless, especially the huge wyvern that almost covered the entire stage. It was so big that a dozen people could probably ride on top of it.

    Of course, the audience wasn''t the only ones who were shocked. Tuxedo, who had been floating nearby, almost fell out of his tform when the wyvern suddenly appeared. His pupils dted and he almost lost his will to live upon seeing such a wonderful creature. He was speechless. He even forgot toment on what was happening just now.

    The viewers at home were on the same boat as well. They thought that Satoshi couldn''t get any more powerful and yet he summoned a powerful summoner. It''s as if he had an army under one soldier. How could someone have an overpowered superpower? Once again, everyone began questioning what superpower Satoshi really has. And since he doesn''t have any records in the SAO Archives, everybody was left with no choice but to specte.

    Meanwhile, Ayumu and Tatsuki were having their usual breakfast while watching the live stream on television. Suddenly, Tatsuki spat out the coffee he was drinking, causing Ayumu to look at what he was watching. "Is that... "

    "Yes... that''s our son, Ayumu." Tatsuki confirmed, his eyes about to fall out of their sockets due to his disbelief.

    "So this is what Satoshi meant when he said he''ll be putting on a good show." Vulcan sighed.

    "Are you going to give up? Because I''m sure I will. There''s no way I can fight against that many creatures at once." Oversight sighed in response to Vulcan''s sigh.

 Chapter 145 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight VI

    The second round ended before it even started. Before Gabriel couldunch an attack on Oversight and Vulcan, they raised their hands in frustration and surrendered. Satoshi was surprised. How could they give up just like that when the fight hasn''t even started yet? How could they know for sure that they''ll lose when they don''t even know how strong their opponent is.

    Those questions made Satoshi rethink his approach to the Third Round. At this rate, his team will get andslide victory and he hasn''t even done anything.

    Aljier (the leader of the Great Mountain Academy Candidates) and Saturn (the leader of the Flowing Wave Academy Candidates) were both disappointed at the candidates they chose for the second round since they didn''t even fight. But then again, they tried putting themselves in their shoes and they realize that they don''t really have a fighting chance. Right now, fighting Satoshi is just a pass to getting beaten up.

    And as if that wasn''t enough, the United Superheroes Academy had already gotten maximum points for the first two rounds. If they win the third round, then the Inter-High Tournament will be over. There''s no point in fighting the fourth and fifth round when they already have enough points as first ce. If they don''t step up now, then it''s all over.

    Even if there was only a slim chance of them winning, Aljier and Saturn decided to take that chance instead of giving up. They won''t just hand the victory to Satoshi easily.

    "Second Pick!" Aljier screamed.

    "Third Pick!" Saturn screamed.

    Tuxedo''s lips curved upwards upon seeing the two determined teenagers step up into the stage. As usual, the other USA candidates still forced the third round on Satoshi. It''s not like Satoshi had any other choice than to ept it. After all, he would feel bad if he just handed the opponents a win. Midori and the others were relying on him after all, and he didn''t want to break their trust. Most especially, he was the leader of all the USA candidates. Right now, he had to set the example as their leader and not turn his back on them.

    "Hoh, it seems like the Battle of Leaders is going to happen this time around! Who would''ve expected?!" Tuxedo announced.

    The screams emanating from the spectators exponentially became louder as Aljier and Saturn stepped to the te. Of course, Satoshi wasn''t the only one who was popr amongst the crowd, Aljier and Saturn are too. After all, they performed exceptionally during the First and Second Rounds of the Inter-High. Satoshi just hogged the majority of attention.

    The Battle of Leaders is a rare urrence in the Inter-High because sometimes, leaders don''t usually get to fight other leaders. Thest time a battle of leaders happened was around six or so years ago. And now, it''s happening again, much to everyone''s surprise.

    In an instant, the viewership of the live stream increased to more than three billion. Almost one-third of the entire poption was closely watching the Inter-High Tournament. News outlets from different channels globally started covering the phenomena as well, causing those at home to watch the live stream, their curiosity piqued.

    And that wasn''t all.

    Even scouts and agencies across the world started tuning in. They became rather interested in the teenager named Satoshi, and they hoped that maybe they could lure him into their agency in the near future.

    The atmosphere in the Inter-High Coliseum started heating up as Aljier and Saturn stood on one side while Satoshi stood on the other. Both of them were grinning, awaiting themencement signal of the Third Round.

    This was their final stand. If they lost here, the United Superheroes Academy will win... and another year will be added to their impable winning streak.

    "Just so you know, I have a superpower called Force Multiplier." Aljier began. Although he was talking to Saturn, his gaze didn''t leave Satoshi''s. "If I were hit, I could multiply the force of that hit and unleash it. Physical attacks are ineffective against me, but elemental attacks aren''t."

    "So you have shock absorption too? Man... so even if we win here I''d still lose against you. Should I just give up on this fight?" Saturn pondered, then a smirk formed on his face. "Nah, that would just ruin the fun."

    "My superpower is an enhancement type. But it''s not your typical strength enhancement superpower." Saturn continued. "It''s more on enhancing my muscles, giving me superhuman abilities. I can enhance my power, my speed, my reflexes, and even my mental capacity. Of course, there''s a limit to my enhancement as well, and I can''t use two enhancements simultaneously. I''m still working on that."

    "Sounds to me like you have a better superpower than mine. You should master using all of your enhancements at once, that way you''ll be even more powerful. Right now we should do what we can." Aljier responded, giving him a nice pat on the back.<sub> </sub>

    "Right," Saturn continued.

    Tuxedo couldn''t help but let Aljier and Saturn spend more time strategizing since he could sense that bonds were being forged right then right now. He didn''t want to interrupt such a precious moment of their youth. "When they grow up, I''m sure they''ll be helping each other morepared to now. Ah, youth." Tuxedo said to himself, cupping a hand over his mic so that no one would hear him say something nostalgic.

    "LET THE THIRD ROUND BEGIIIIIIIIIIN!" Tuxedo screamed his heart out, signaling the start of the third round.

    Just like the previous round, Satoshi didn''t even move an inch from where he was standing. He just let Aljier and Saturn charge at him with no reprieve, both of them using their maximum power output so they could attack him before he could even react.

    But what they didn''t know was that Satoshi already knew what they were about to do. After all, the two of them were like an open book, showing everything in their expressions and giving Satoshi more time to prepare.

    Even then, Satoshi was surprised at how fast Aljier and Saturn could go. They both have a strength-type superpower. How could they be so speedy?

    Nevertheless, it was all calcted in Satoshi''s head. Ahead of time, he had already summoned the Ice Empress, awaiting the opportune moment for her toe into the scene.

    Excitement filled Aljier and Saturn as they thought that their attacks would connect. They moved so fast that even the speed of sight wouldn''t be able to track them. Unless Satoshi had superhuman reflexes, he wouldn''t be able to respond ordingly to their attacks.

    But just when their attack was about to hit him, they felt literal shivers run up and down their spine as the temperature dropped to almost zero.

    Snow?

    Why was it snowing in the Coliseum?

    And then, a figure appeared in front of them¡ª an Ice Statue in the form of a proportionatedy with her piercing gaze. She blocked both Aljier and Saturn''s attack with a scepter she held. Ice spikes started growing by the edge of the stage, shooting up until they almost touched the floor where the audience was currently sitting.

    Although Aljier and Saturn were caught by surprise, they still continued their attacks. Aljier unleashed another punch much more powerful than the first, and Saturn decided to outmaneuver the Ice Empress, attacking her from the rear.

    The Ice Empress wasn''t panicked in the least. She just took a deep breath before disappearing and reappearing right behind Aljier. Aljier was able to follow her by his sight though so he used the momentum of his punch and unleashed a kick as he turned around. The Ice Empress managed to block the attack with her scepter but she was surprised a mere human managed to follow her movements.

    "Satoshi, this human... he is strong. But you''re stronger than him." The Ice Empressmented, sending out a flurry of spear lunges towards Aljier. Aljier responded by tanking those hits like a pro. As mentioned before, physical attacks are ineffective against him. He could just absorb the force and use it as reserve energy. Even the spear wouldn''t pierce his thick skin, which he purposefully enhanced so he could take on any form of physical damage.

    Saturn, on the other hand, decided to attack Satoshi. Right now, he knew he''d just get in the way if he tried to help Aljier. And also, he concluded that confusing Satoshi would help them in the long run since he''s currently controlling his summon at the same time.

    What they didn''t know was that every summon that Satoshi had are actually sentient beings, able to think for themselves even if Satoshi didn''t give them any instructions.

    Right now though, Satoshi could tell that Ice Empress was getting a bit curious about the one fighting her right now, Aljier. Needless to say, she was enjoying herself ying around with someone who was only slightly inferior to her in terms of speed.

    "I guess I should enjoy myself too." Satoshi told himself, blocking another Saturn''s sweeping kick.

 Chapter 146 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight Conclusion???

    "Did anyone order popcorn?" Shidou asked, already digging in on the popcorn he just ordered.

    "Yep, me," Midori called out, raising his hands enthusiastically.

    "Shh! We''re trying to focus here!" Sassu hissed between her bite on the hamburger she just ordered.

    "You really think Satoshi could win?" Hiroshi worriedly asked, slurping on the soft drink that came along with the popcorn.

    "He can''t lose," Siril responded even though the question was not directed at them. "We''ve seen how he fights. There''s no way he can lose. Besides, those two are muscleheads. They aren''t even thinking about their attacks nor are they conserving their energy. All they do is plow their way through like a mad bull. I can''t me them though. If I had half their strength, I would be doing the same thing."

    "Look at you, enjoying yourselves while our Leader is doing all he can to win the tournament." Someone behind them clicked her tongue. Surprised, everyone turned around.

    It was none other than Kuroe, their telepath ssmate. Shiroi was tagging behind her as well but she didn''t speak a single word.

    "Oh, Kuroe, Shiroi. What are you two doing here?" Midori greeted. "Are you here to fight over your man over there? Don''t worry he''s not flirting with anyone else, he''s simply fighting for his life right now. Did youe here to cheer for him? In that case then you shouldn''t be wasting your time. The fight''s bound to be over soon."

    As usual, Midori was as talkative as ever. Kuroe was tempted to use her telepathic ability to render him speechless, literally, but she figured she might attract unnecessary attention if she did so.

    "No, we came here to spectate. The management told us that we can join the others candidates as long as we have the identification that proves we attend the same school. So we showed our IDs and they easily let us in." Kuroe exined, sitting beside Fuuka. "I''ve seen you fight, you''re pretty cool. Where do the sound wavese from though?"

    Fuuka was a bit surprised that Kuroe actually talked to her. Usually, Kuroe keeps to herself and doesn''t talk much to everyone. But ever since she interacted with Satoshi, she became more talkative, bringing up small talks out of the blue no matter how weird the questions are.

    What she didn''t know though was that Kuroe was just as passionate as Satoshi when ites to superpowers, she just couldn''t bring herself to talk to anyone since she was too self-conscious of her superpower. But when Satoshi told her that she wasn''t the odd one out¡ª that everyone has a superpower in the USA, she became more confident to interact with others. Those small words may not mean much to Satoshi but to Kuroe, it changed her mindset quite a bit.

    "I... I don''t know either. I... I didn''t really get my superpower when I hit puberty. I was born with the power to control and distort sound and space." Fuuka continued. "How about you?"

    "So we''re the same, huh. Yes, I was born with my superpower as well. How did you cope with it? I mean... space and sound maniption are quite dangerous, you know. You could easily kill someone." Fuuka continued.

    "Yeah, fortunately, I didn''t kill anyone, hehe," Fuuka nervouslyughed, trying to brush off the topic. But seeing that Kuroe was still waiting for her answer, she cleared her throat and narrated her childhood incident.

    "We... I mean, I was five years old when I first encountered what my superpower was. But as for my parents, I think they already knew. My parents always reminded me not to raise my voice, or swing my hands when I feel something weird about them. That''s why I never did. I was so stiff back then, for fear that something bad might happen if I disobeyed my parents."

    "And then it happened. One time, we went to the local park where I yed sandcastles with my kindergarten ssmates. There was a boy, I could still remember his name¡ª Ferdinand. He''s an exchange student and until now, I still don''t know why he was an exchange student at such a young age. Or maybe he just says that but his parents actually moved to Japan so he can study there. I don''t know... "

    "... he found us ying by the sandbox and he decided to mess with us for a bit. My friends and I were working on a beautiful castle where a beautiful princess lives, you know, typical kindergartner stuff. But he just had to run towards it and kick it. We worked for an hour to make it and yet he just destroyed it."

    "Ooh, then it all goes downhill from there, huh," Kuroemented.

    "Yes, I cried. I felt angry at him. My cry was heard throughout the park and everyone''s eardrums burst. Someone tried to stop me from crying but they couldn''t even get near me. Whenever they tried, wounds would appear in their body as if invisible knives were floating in the air. Ferdinand also couldn''t move in ce, as if some sort of invisible box trapped him."<sub> </sub>

    "That''s when I found out I had the power to distort space and sound waves. Everyone in the park had to be rushed to the hospital for immediate treatment. Fortunately, the Nurse was around town. She was still a teenager back then and she was the one who healed everyone''s eardrums."

    "Up until now, I still remember what the Nurse told me. Even though she was just a teenager, she didn''t resent me for what happened. She just patted my head and told me that it wasn''t my fault. That any child would''ve responded the same after what Ferdinand did. She also told me that my powers are wonderful and that I should practice using them instead of locking them away after what happened."

    "I did what she said, and now here I am. Hehe." Fuuka grinned. Even though her childhood memory was quite traumatizing, she found tranquility in the words of the Nurse and that''s what spurred her to move forward. "In any case, how about you?"

    "Ah... me? " Kuroe muttered. "I''ll tell you, but don''t expect it to be as cool as your incident. Hehehe~"

    .....

    "Oh, Shiroi and Kuroe are here too, huh," Satoshi said to himself as Saturn continued unleashing blows upon blows. At first, Satoshi was afraid that his blows would hurt but after getting hit on purpose a few times, he realized that Saturn''s physical prowess was on the same level as him. That''s why he didn''t even bother using his summons. He just used his strength like usual. Of course, he didn''t fight with him head-on since that would certainly injure him. What he did though was carefully anticipate every attack and redirect it. That way he wouldn''t suffer any damage.

    Meanwhile, the Ice Empress was slowly eating away at Aljier''s stamina. He was getting tired by the second while the Ice Empress didn''t show any signs of slowing down. Pretty soon, Aljier was cornered and there was nothing he could do but fight the Ice Empress head-on.

    Aljier tried to look troubled but deep inside, he was d that everything is going ording to n. He purposefully let the Ice Empress corner him so the Ice Empress would hasten her attacks. In turn, he absorbed every attack like a champ, nning to unleash it at an opportune time.

    The Ice Empress didn''t know anything about this though but she already realized a few minutes ago that Aljier was holding back while leading her so she could corner him. She didn''t stop with her relentless attacks though even though she had an inkling feeling that Aljier was nning something. Whatever it is, she decided to face it head-on.

    "Saturn!" Aljier finally shouted. "NOW!"

    "RIGHT!"

    Suddenly, Saturn twisted his core and crouched so low his chin almost touched the ground. He then enhanced his hamstrings and his legs, oveing his limit as his muscles were overworked. In turn, though, it gave him such speed that even the Ice Empress was surprised she didn''t see him.

    One moment, Saturn was attacking Satoshi, the next moment, he was right behind the Ice Empress, charging at her at such iprehensible speeds.

    The Ice Empress was caught off guard and Saturn took it as his chance to lock the Ice Empress in an embrace. He assumed that the Ice Empress was all ice but when he felt the bounciness on her bosom as soon as he hugged her from behind, he blushed. The Ice Empress was actually not made out of ice after all!

    Nevertheless, he continued charging, locking the Ice Empress in his embrace and going ever forward, until they reached the edge of the stage. Without the Ice Empress harassing him, Aljier smiled as he grabbed his right wrist with his left hand and rotated his hand. "I''ve absorbed enough power to pierce your heart, Satoshi." He continued, twisting his right hand andunching a focused shock wave straight at Satoshi.

    All of that happened in a single second so Satoshi wasn''t able to react. And before he knew it, the shock wave traveled through his chest, leaving a gaping hole on it. The shock wave continued traveling in a straight line, piercing all the way through the walls of the Coliseum. Figures, the shockwaves had the force of all the Ice Empress''s physical attacksbined and multiplied by Aljier by more than his body could handle.

    As soon as he did that, his arms were torn to shreds, but he was able to deal enough damage to pierce through Satoshi''s heart. There''s no way he could survive such a hit.

    Everybody gasped upon seeing the gaping hole on Satoshi''s chest. Blood spurted out from it. "Gah!" Satoshi opened his mouth and blood flowed from it, trickling down to his neck as he fell forward.

    He wasn''t breathing.

 Chapter 147 Third Roundâ€” Three-Way Fight Conclusion

    This was the second time Satoshi ''died'' in the tournament and at this point, no one should''ve been surprised that he wasn''t breathing.

    s, such was not the case at all.

    The first one to panic was none other than Aljier who had used all his strength to knock Satoshi so he could win the Third Round of the Three-Way Fight. However, he didn''t expect Satoshi to die just like that. He clearly overestimated his physical capabilities and totally forgot that his summons is what made him strong. His physical strength, at most, should only be slightly above averagepared to most humans.

    ''But there''s that... he was able to survive a pierce through the heart during the second round, right? Wait, what if he can only use that once and there''s a specified time for its cooldown? Then... does that mean I killed Satoshi? No... no way!'' Aljier grabbed his head with both his arms as he knelt on the ground. He didn''t know what to do.

    "MASTER!" The Ice Empress screamed, rushing towards Satoshi''s aid and examining his wound. "Master, don''t die!" She continued.

    Once again, the entire audience and everyone watching at the leisure of their homes was speechless at the brutal sight of Satoshi. Even Tuxedo froze, he didn''t know what to do. The scene was straight out of a superhero versus viin fight where the superhero had died a glorious death.

    Cough!

    Cough!

    Suddenly, Satoshi gasped and blood spurted out of his mouth. He forced a smile on his face as he saw the ever-worried Ice Empress. ''Who would''ve thought that she would be this worried.'' Satoshi smiled to himself. "Don''t worry... I don''t die when I''m killed, remember?" He continued.

    A bright glow erupted from the top part of the Coliseum. There, Sera was quietly waiting for her master''s orders. As soon as she received it, she integrated with Satoshi once again and fixed him. His nonexistent heart regeneration and the gaping hole on his chest disappeared in an instant. Compared to before, the Integration didn''t deplete Satoshi''s energy that much since he had gained more insight into how to control the usage of his energy.

    And since Aljier and Saturn had already used their final moves, there was nothing they could do against Satoshi. Satoshi was still standing, still raring to go. It was obvious who won the Third Round.

    With a total of seven hundred fifty points, the United Superheroes Academy once again continued its winning streak at the Inter-High Tournament.

    "Let''s give another round of apuse to all our participants in the Inter-High Tournament!" Tuxedo screamed.

    While everyone was cheering and congratting each other, Aljier and Saturn walked toward Satoshi, wearing satisfied smiles on their faces. "That was a great match," Aljier said, extending his hand for Satoshi to shake.

    "Sorry for scaring you like that. That was an incredible move... but I don''t think you can use it in actualbat. It''s quite deadly. If it had been anyone else, he or she would''ve been dead by now." Satoshi returned the handshake. He also shook Saturn''s hand.

    "I got a bit carried away, sorry. And... that was the only thing we could think of so we could defeat you. We still couldn''t hold a candle to you though. You''re strong." Aljier said with a sigh.

    "NOW! NOW THAT THE FIRST PLACE HAD BEEN DECIDED, WE WILL NOW CONTINUE THE LAST THREE ROUNDS TO SEE WHO WILL GET SECOND PLACE!" Tuxedo screamed.

    Turns out, the Inter-High Tournament wasn''t over yet.

    "I forgot about that." Saturn smiled to himself. "Prepare yourself, Aljier, the ones who''re going to snag that second ce would be the Flowing Wave Academy."

    "Don''t underestimate us." Aljier continued. "Oh, and also, Satoshi, mind if we exchange mail? I figured it would help me in the long run if I have a connection with you."

    "Come on dude, just tell him you want to be friends." Saturn nudged him on the side. "In that case, I''d like to ask for your mail as well, Satoshi."

    "Sure, why not." Satoshi smiled.

    .....

    Once again, Satoshi found himself in the Nurse''s clinic, lying down on one of the beds there. He was wearing a hospital gown and the top part of it was unbuttoned. Meanwhile, the Nurse carefully checked his chest and his stomach, to see if there were any scars. "I still can''t figure out how you could do that. Then again, I''m just d that you didn''t die back there. It would be quite troublesome if someone died during the Inter-High Tournament. That would be quite catastrophic and the annual event might even be discontinued next year."<sub> </sub>

    "Judging from this year''s Inter-High though, I think they''ll reconsider the rules set in ce for thepetition. After all, it had gotten much more dangerous with all the powerful superpowers appearing out of nowhere. The next generation is sure to surpass the previous one. That''s for sure."

    Satoshi just nodded, enjoying the airconditioned room where he was in. After the check-up, the Nurse told him that he could exit the clinic any time he wants. He stayed for a little longer though, taking a nap.

    He woke up when he heard the door to the clinic slide open. When he nced to the side, he realized that it was Emma who entered. She was smiling, and there was a bounce in her steps as she approached the bed where Satoshi was lying down. "Congrattions on your win! That was a nice match."

    "Thanks, how was it? Did you enjoy watching from afar? I forgot to give you some money. Sorry, you couldn''t buy any food while watching."

    "That''s all right, we ate quite a lot in Lloyd''s headquarters. I''m not hungry." Emma continued. "What happened back there, though... I thought you were dead." Emma wore a serious expression on her face as she whispered, leaning in closer towards Satoshi as if she was saying something important.

    "Oh, that? Yeah, I thought I was dead too. Fortunately, I wasn''t. That attack was really powerful. They really fully intended to win. I feel bad holding back for them." Satoshi continued.

    "Isn''t that a good thing? You should be more proud of yourself, you know. You were able to hold two of the best high schooler superheroes in Japan. The fact that you could hold back against them just goes to show how strong you are."

    "I guess," Satoshi mumbled. "What are you doing here though? How did you know I was here?"

    "I followed you. Come on, Satoshi, you know how my superpower works." Emma answered without a shred of untruth in her voice.

    Meanwhile, the Nurse couldn''t help but smile at the girl who seemed close to Satoshi. She doesn''t know who she was but based on how they arefortable with each other, she assumed that they have a special rtionship. ''Ah, this is youth~'' the Nurse said to herself, inwardly chuckling. "I have some lunch here if you want to eat, Satoshi and um, Emma, right?"

    Emma nodded.

    "I don''t know if they still taste good though. They''re karaages, but I''ve cooked them this morning so they''ve already gone cold." The Nurse said.

    "That would be nice!" In an instant, Satoshi''s eyes lit up. He felt rather hungry but he didn''t want to bring it up.

    With Satoshi''s approvalid before her, the Nurse smiled and rummaged through her bag. She then handed Satoshi and Emma the two bentos she had. She was actually saving the food forter but she decided to just buy some food from the stalls outside. Furthermore, she''d been eating only karaage for at least a week now. A change in her meals is probably for the better.

    "It looks delicious! It smells nice as well. What is this, Satoshi?" Emma excitedly asked.

    "That''s karaage, deep-fried chicken meat." Satoshi shortly exined, holding his chopstick and getting a piece before offering it to Emma. "Here, ahh," He said.

    "Let''s eat!" Emma continued, opening her mouth. She then grabbed a pair of chopsticks as well and offered a piece to Satoshi. She thought that she should return the favor since Satoshi went out of her way to feed her.

    It should be mentioned that Emma doesn''t actually know much about Earth''s culture so she didn''t mind feeding Satoshi and vice versa. She also didn''t bother asking Satoshi about it since she didn''t know anything about it. In the first ce, she just assumed that the culture in her world is pretty much the same as that on earth. "Here, ahh, " She gestured, offering a bite of karaage and prompting Satoshi to open his mouth.

    "Thanks!" Satoshi said, opening his mouth.

    Slide.

    In that instant, the door to the clinic slid open, and in came the rest of the United Superheroes Academy Candidates, along with Shiroi and Kuroe who visited for the final round. After having lunch, they decided to quickly stop by and visit Satoshi at the clinic. They even brought lunch, thinking that he hasn''t eaten yet.

    But what they saw made their jaws drop to the ground. Not only was Satoshi having lunch, but a beautiful girl was also feeding him!

 Chapter 148 Inter-High Tournament Arc Epilogue

    For the next few days, news about the United Superheroes Academy winning another year in the Inter-High Tournament was a hot topic all over the globe. Needless to say, it was an achievement that even the other schools didn''t expect. One could literally write a novel on how the story unfolded!

    When Sai Tama first announced that he''d be choosing first-years as candidates for the uing Inter-High Tournament, skeptics thought that he was cracking a joke. Everybody knows that experience beats skill no matter how powerful it is and that''s the reason why most candidates for the Inter-High Tournament were third years, fourth years even if they still are interested. But most of the time, the fourth-years don''t really participate since they''re already of age to join an agency. A majority of fourth years would much rather join an agency than waste their time in a tournament.

    Not many noticed it but Sai Tama was the first one who did. He didn''t simply blindly announce that he''d be choosing first-years just because he wanted to. It was because he was sure that they have a higher chance of winning.

    Throughout the years, the Inter-High Tournament''s candidates had been fluctuating. But in thest decade, more and more first-years were included as candidates for other schools. This was because of the transition. More and more talented superheroes have been appearing as ofte, and that''s why most first-years can now go head to head with their seniors. Sai Tama didn''t see his decision as a challenge but as an opportunity to prove his theory.

    When the Inter-High finally began, everyone was surprised that the United Superheroes Academy really did choose from among the first years! Sai Tama wasn''t kidding at all!

    Then, the management decided to y a prank on the USA Candidates by not giving them a proper briefing about the first round. And yet, they managed to pull through every single time. From the capture-the-badge event in the first round, to the inter-high event in the second round, then to the three-way fight in the third round. Then the win. There was simply no stopping the United Superheroes Academy and their winning streak.

    Subsequent to the tournament, Sai Tamafortably sat in his office at school. He was already informed that his school''s candidates managed to get first ce for this year as well and he was quite satisfied. Actually, he only assumed that Satoshi and the others would be able to get to the top four spots, at least. But when he heard that they were already in the finals as part of the top three, he was ted. There was no doubt in his mind that they''d be able to pull off a win. Just when Sai Tama was preparing to let go of the school''s winning streak, he was given another chance.

    "To think that they''d make it that far. I really made the right choice." He said to himself. "It''s not that the third years of my school are inferior to the first years, it''s just that if they fought against each other, it would probably be an even match."

    Sai Tama''s rxing day was gone in an instant though as he was bombarded with calls from news stations and the like. He became even more famous, and many stations wanted to feature him, hoping that his schedule was still not as hectic. Sadly, he had to decline a few interviews since he was getting tired of it.

    The days flew by in a sh, and Sai Tama became even busier because of all the publicity the school has gotten. News stations started appearing in front of the school entrance, hoping that they could cover the school for a limited time. Many first-years were interviewed as well, even those who weren''t candidates for the Inter-High Tournament. As for the candidates, well, they received as much publicity as the principal. Most people recognize them whenever they go out. One time Satoshi wanted to buy ice cream at the convenience store and that convenience store was suddenly filled with people, reporters, and interviewers, who were trying to cover him. It was such a pain in the rear side but Satoshi enjoyed every bit of it. He knew that as a future superhero, he should get used to such scenarios since they would happen more often once he''s formally registered.

    Midori also managed to get a breather in his arduous life because of his poprity. Since he needed to work a couple of part-time jobs to support his family, he had to apply a couple of times in a few ces. To his surprise, however, all of the work he applied for immediately epted him even without the interview. And that''s not all, even hospitals from all over Japan started recruiting him as well! That''s when he remembered what the Nurse told him and he decided to work as her assistant. Not only did hend a decent full-time job, it also pays well, much to his relief.<sub> </sub>

    Then there''s Emma, who didn''t really have any rtives on Earth since she came from a very distant. It was quite a surprise for the Midoriyama Duo when Satoshi suddenly showed up in front of the house with an unfamiliar girl. After a few talks, the pile of misunderstandings was cleared up and fortunately, Satoshi wouldn''t be married off to her. Ayumu and Tatsuki also realized that Emma partly helped with the subjugation of the Gates and they thanked her.

    And since there are a lot ofplications with Emma''s identity, the Midoriyama Duo decided to help her with her paperwork. From birth certificates, citizen registration, ID,s and the like. She also didn''t have prior education due to some unforeseen reasons in her world (she hasn''t told Satoshi yet the full story on how she came upon earth) so the Midoriyama Duo covered for that as well, applying her to the United Superheroes Academy and forcing Satoshi to teach her a few things so she could catch up with school. She''d be attending school as soon as summer break ended and then she just had to participate in a few tests along with other students who wanted to enroll in the United Superheros Academy as well.

    Because of the Inter-High Tournament, a lot of students decided that they should switch schools and instead study there to learn from the best. A lot of exchange students were sent to the school as well, giving Sai Tama a few headaches. In the end, he decided to host a mini-entrance exam for those who were willing to apply. With this, he''d be able to filter the hundreds of students who were trying to enter school. Schools in Japan can''t really reject students unless they have a bad record, and so Sai Tama resorted to such tactics so he could at least reject a few of them.

    And back to Emma, yes, she started staying at the Midoriyam household in the meantime. Of course, no one knew about it since there will be a war if one were to know. Satoshi already learned about it the hard way when Shiroi and the others saw Emma giving him a bite of karaage by the clinic. And no, it wasn''t Shiroi or Kuroe who made the first move. For some reason, it was Cherry who was most adamant out of everyone. Satoshi waster told that Cherry actually introduced herself to his parents as a potential girlfriend.

    For the next few days, everyone''s school days returned back to normal and Satoshi was no exception. He still did his routine of practicing with his dad in the mornings before going to school, and sometimes, Emma would join them.

    Although Satoshi received a lot of buffs and a few more skills in his arsenal, he still couldn''t defeat his dad who always had a trick up his sleeves. Not only was he powerless every time they had a regr physical spar, but he also couldn''t defeat his dad even when he uses his integration skill. Well, there were a few times when he was so close to beating him but Tatsuki would just overpower him with another trick, or simply show him his skills. Satoshi had a long way to go before he could surpass the number one SAO superhero.

    There were also times when Satoshi would train with his mom and it was even worse than his dad. He simply couldn''tnd a hit on her no matter what he does. After all, her superpower is called counterattack. As long as the attack could be expected, she could always counter it. No matter how fast or how strong Satoshi''s attacks were, they were simply negated by her mom. Somehow, she can tell where he''d appear and counter him at thest second. As expected of the number two superhero.

    .

    And then, the season of youth was almost over. It was only a matter of time before the much-awaited summer break arrives. And for a bunch of first-years, the summer break is something that they all look forward to.

 Chapter 149 Summer Break!

    Ironically, the start of the summer season was a rainy day. As soon as Satoshi woke up, he felt a slight heaviness on his body which prompted him to close the windows. His gaze slowly drifted towards his rm clock which read five in the morning. ''It''s raining, huh,'' Satoshi said to himself as he got up so he can train with his dad.

    On his way out, Emma also got out of the guest room and proceeded downstairs. She decided not to participate in the training today but after seeing Satoshi in sportswear, she changed her mind. She didn''t want to be left behind in training especially when Satoshi was giving it her all. In haste, she turned around and headed back to the guest room so she could change from her pajamas.

    "Good morning, Satoshi," Ayumu greeted with a light smile on her face. Satoshi could never understand why her mom would be more energetic on a rainy day since he himself slightly dislike the cold weather. "Your dad''s already downstairs, waiting."

    Satoshi nodded, sniffing in the aroma of the hamburg steak that her mom was cooking for breakfast. ''Hamburg steak for breakfast? Do we have a visitor?'' Satoshi wondered. ''Or maybe it''s just because Emma is staying here. That''s probably the case.''

    When Satoshi got to the far side of the living room to ess the secret doorway there, Emma came running right behind him. "Let me join the training too." She said.

    .....

    A few hours ago,

    A ne flew right above the troposphere and started descending down to Haneda Airport. The ne was a private jet and most of the time, these types of nes are put on hold since there were will be more passenger nesnding. Fortunately, the private jet arrived at just the right time when one of the runways are clear.

    When the clearance was finally taken care of, the private jet smoothlynded on one of the runways and proceeded to go to a hangar. This hangar was rented out by the only passenger of the ne, not counting the pilot and the co-pilot of course.

    Once everything was settled, the passenger of the ne came down, wearing a brown trenchcoat. His striking blue hair and cerulean eyes couldn''t be more obvious under his hat though, but then again, it''s not like he announced his arrival to anyone.

    "So this is Tokyo huh, it''s brighter than I had expected." The man said, popping a piece of gum in his mouth.

    This wasn''t his first time in Tokyo, in fact, he had been to Tokyo more than the count of his fingers. Still, every time he goes here, he would alwaysment on how bright it was, even though the brightness of the city has toned down a bit over the years.

    "Sir, your limousine is waiting by the airport entrance." A woman in her twenties spoke. Apparently, she was assigned by the SAO to look after the man as a temporary secretary during his visit to the country.

    "Thanks, you can go ahead and wait for me there. I feel a bit light-headed so I wanted to take some time to walk around the airport. You know, to clear my head a bit."

    "As you wish, Schwartz-san." Thedy bowed her head and went away without saying another word. When she had reached a considerable distance from the man, she started biting her lips. This was her first time weing a superhero to the country and it made her feel nervous. No, nervous was an understatement.

    ''Did I do something wrong? What if I said something wrong and he just didn''t want to bring it up? Argh~ I should have reviewed the culture of his country before I weed him. But what can I do, it''s not like I was told about this ahead of time! I was only told about this a few hours ago. I didn''t even have time to prepare. Also, I don''t even know what his superpower is. The only thing I know about him is his name.'' The woman said to herself.

    A few minutester, she found herself in front of the limousine and she quickly got inside. She heaved a sigh of relief, but she couldn''t stop feeling anxious since Schwartz was acting weird.

    Well, to anyone who had met him, how he acted was actually pretty weird. However, Schwartz is not a normal person. That''s why the norm doesn''t apply to him. While other people prefer peace and quiet as theirfort zone, Schwartz prefers the noise, drowning everything in his head and giving him the distraction he needed to rx. And that''s why he decided to stay at the airport for a little while longer.

    At least, until his head clears up a bit, or at least until the sky clears up a bit.

    "This is getting quite troublesome. And also... wouldn''t people find it weird that it''s raining heavily today?" Schwartz asked himself. "No, thinking about it wouldn''t do anything. For now, I should rx."<sub> </sub>

    It took at least an hour before Schwartz finally got to the airport entrance and he went inside the limousine without as much as a single word. The woman who was supposed to be his temporary secretary for the day immediately cleared her throat and nodded at the driver. Of course, they already knew Schwartz''s schedule so there was no need for them t inform him. And also, Schwartz was actually looking forward to the first thing on his schedule.

    "I wonder how they''re doing," Schwartz muttered with a smile.

    .....

    "Emma!" Satoshi screamed, prompting Emma to put up a portal right in front of Tatsuki''s fist before itnded on Satoshi. However, Tatsuki knew what was going to happen all along since he had already activated his foresight skill¡ª one of the recent skills he acquired from Plunder. In an instant, he pulled his fist back and navigated around the portal,nding a hit on Satoshi''s face.

    But Satoshi wasn''t going to fall for the same trick twice. In an instant, he summoned the Ice Empress to block the punch. Since Ice Empress is really confident in terms of speed, she blocked the attack with ease.

    p "Fire Burst," Tatsuki eximed as explosions came forth from his fist, knocking the Ice Empress away. Satoshi took it as his chance to duck, summoning Sain, his chainsaw familiar. He then told it to run amok, producing countless des so they could gain distance from Tatsuki.</anda>

    "Not bad," Tatsuki muttered right behind Satoshi, pointing his finger at his neck. "But as I told you before, never ever panic in a fight. Panicking causes you to stumble and those stumbles would cause you to make wrong moves... and further down the line, it would indefinitely cost you a win. You must always remain calm all throughout the fight. You never know what your opponent has up his or her sleeves." Tatsuki continued. "Still, you''re improving on your control with all your familiars. If you can use all of them at once, then you''d probably be able to surpass me."

    "But dad, you can hold twenty or so abilities all at once. How can I surpass you? And you even got teleportation this time around." Satoshi continued.

    "Well, I hate to break it up to you but... even I, as the number one superhero of Japan, have few superheroes I can''t beat¡ª not because they''re more powerful than me, but the matchup is disadvantageous for me. If you used all your power, with that Integration Skill of yours and summoning everyone, you''d be able to defeat me. I''m sure of it."

    "What do you mean? There are superheroes much stronger than the number one?" Emma asked.

    "Of course, I''m only number one in this country. How many countries are there across the globe? There''s bound to be someone better than me." Tatsuki continued. "Come to think of it, there''s this guy I cannot really defeat no matter what."

    "Who is he?" Satoshi''s curiosity was piqued.

    "You''re bound to meet him soon."

    Ding!

    "Oh," Tatsuki smiled, as he signaled for Satoshi and Emma to go with him upstairs. The training was already done after all. "There''s someone at the door," He continued.

    Satoshi and Emma took a peek by the windows as soon as they got to the living room. From afar, they could see a limousine parked in front of their house. A man walked out of it. Meanwhile, a girl dressed in a ck suit was standing in front of the gate, she was the one who rang the doorbell.

    The man had blue hair and eyes, and he was wearing a brown trenchcoat. For a moment, he nced up and waved his hand. In an instant, the rainy weather disappeared as if it wasn''t there in the first ce. One moment, it was heavily raining, the next moment the sun was already beaming in a cloudless sky.

    "What the¡ª" Satoshi gulped in amazement.

 Chapter 150 Joseph Schwartz (Aquaborne)

    The man then tipped his hat towards Tatsuki beforeing in. It''s as if time stopped as the man trudged straight through thewn since Satoshi didn''t avert his gaze from the man. Even Emma, who had seen everything unfold, was a bit shocked as well. But she wasn''t as surprised as Satoshi since she was quite used to seeing people with wonderful superpowers back in their world. "You must be Satoshi, I''ve heard so much about you." The man said upon entering the house, extending his hand for Satoshi to shake.

    Satoshi mindlessly nodded as his jaw dropped to the ground. He didn''t think twice about returning the man''s handshake.

    "Wait, Aquaborne?!" He eximed as soon as he got back to his senses. "Dad, you know Aquaborne?!"

    "Oh, we forgot to tell you but we''re good friends. He even helped me design my superheroir back in the day." Tatsuki responded patting the man on the back.

    Joseph Schwartz, also known by his superhero name Aquaborne, is actually the number one superhero in Switzend. Despite being andlocked country, Switzend is home to the most powerful water-type superhero in the whole world.

    When he was young, Joseph Schwartz actually came to Japan as an exchange student and that''s how the two met. They instantly became rivals due to howpetitive they were but they never resulted in bringing one another down. Whenever they fight, countless people would watch it because of how close the match would always result to. Before, Tatsuki and Joseph were actually equally strong, but when they both graduated, Joseph had improved in his control even more that Tatsuki couldn''t defeat him anymore. Had Joseph Schwartz stayed in Japan instead of moving back to his home country, he would''ve easily snagged the top spot in the SAO Rankings.

    At first, people assumed that Joseph Schwartz had the power to manipte water and for years, that''s what he assumed his superpower was as well. But who would''ve thought that his superpower goes much moreplicated than that? Later on, Joseph Schwartz realized that he can control water down to every molecule of it, and not only that, he could even turn his whole body into liquid as well. He called this superpower ''Liquidation'' and the name was stuck ever since.

    "Yes, your father and I used to duel a lot back when we were still students. Our fights are almost always a draw though until we graduated. Since then your dad can''t defeat me. Not even once." Aquaborne crossed his arms, teasing Tatsuki who continued patting his back.

    "How about a match before breakfast?" Tatsuki challenged, his eyes lighting up. After all, he just met his long-lost rival.

    "Fine by me," Joseph responded.

    "Dear, you know Joseph just arrived right?" Ayumu interrupted.

    "Yes, I have a better chance of defeating him now that he''s weakened by jetg," Tatsuki responded, assuming a fighting stance.

    "So that''s what you were after, how low." Joseph shrugged.

    "You can have your duelter. For now, let''s have breakfast. And Satoshi, did you forget your schedule today?" Ayumu softly reminded him. It was the first day of summer break after all, and it''s not like there was anything for him to do.

    Satoshi nodded as the seven of them, including the driver and the temporary secretary, sat around the table. As everyone started passing the tes and the side dishes around, Satoshi still couldn''t believe the fact that Aquaborne is sitting right in front of him. The Aquaborne! He felt his adrenaline rising just looking at the superhero he aspired to be back when he was still a kid.

    He could still remember the news when a certain ship named after the fabled Titanic began sinking by the coast of Newfounnd (what are the odds) and Aquaborne came to the scene and rescued everyone, keeping the Titanic afloat using his superpower. He could still remember when he, teary-eyed, pointed at the video of the Titanic, asking his mom if he could be a superhero too¡ª just like Aquaborne who always keeps his smile no matter how dire the situation is. And no matter how hopeless, he would alwayse out victorious. Of course, he''s a huge fan of his parents for being the top superheroes in Japan, but Aquabornees a close second in his aspirations.

    "You might lose your jaw if you don''t close your mouth, Satoshi," Emma whispered to him. "Is he really that great of a superhero?"

    "Yes, and he''s really powerful as well," Satoshi responded as he closed his mouth.

    "Oh, back in my world, we have a superhero there who could turn water into ice, turn his body into water or into ice, control even the water in the atmosphere, and phase through water and teleport anywhere," Emma answered. "But he died,"

    "I see," Satoshi muttered in between his bites. Now that he thought about it, he still hasn''t asked Emma the full story of their world and why she wasn''t keen on going back there. He made a mental note to ask him as soon as possible.

    "So, what made youe here after all these years, Joseph?" Tatsuki asked, passing the te of hamburg steak to him.<sub> </sub>

    "Oh, that? I was curious about this guy over here," He casually responded, pointing towards Satoshi. "I''ve seen his debut, the entrance exam against a guy with the earth and fire maniption ability. I also saw his fight against the Slime Alien and his performance during the Inter-High Tournament. As expected of your son.... but I thought he didn''t have a superpower, since when did he awaken it?"

    Tatsuki shook his head and smiled. "He awakened it a few years ago, he just didn''t manifest it until recently. This is quite unusual though, so you came all the way here just to check out our son?"

    "Yes, I''m a fan after all." Joseph continued, theid-back expression on his face was still evident.

    "Wow, who would''ve thought that you''ll be a fan of a fan of yours." Tatsuki smiled. "Are you sure that''s about it? I can see that you''re still not telling me everything."

    "Yeah, this is a separate issue and that is another." Joseph nodded, pointing his lips towards the egg rolls, which Satoshi immediately handed to him. "You''re aware that I have a daughter, right? She''s the same age as Satoshi."

    "Hoh, so you want them to enter an engagement? Is that why you came here?" Tatsuki smirked, his smile seemed more mischievous than ever. "Let me think about it, as long as she''s got the looks then why not."

    "Nice, I guess we can talk about that another time. Haha¡ª "

    "Dad, you do know that I''m still here, right?" Satoshi asked, receiving second-hand embarrassment from their topic. ''An engagement? What are they talking about?!'' He thought, panicking slightly.

    "Jokes aside, I''m here to check out our Alma Mater and meet the headmaster." Joseph stoppedughing. "And I was thinking... maybe your son can apany me, you know. And then I''ll apany him over to Heimdall''s Agency after. He''s going there for an internship, right?"

    "Yeah, you won''t believe how many internships offers my son received here. Almost every agency tried to recruit him. Well, he already chose Heimdall''s agency before all these came about though. In any case... are you going to enroll your daughter¡ª " Tatsuki trailed off.

    "Yes, her name''s Lydia Schwartz and she inherited my power... with a few more perks." He continued. "You know how it is in Switzend, right? I didn''t want her to grow in such a mediocre environment where every superhero just wants to achieve the bare minimum. I was surprised when she told me she wanted to study here in the USA, so I immediately epted."

    "She''ll being here by the end of summer break, I figured there will be a huge event? Sort of like a hands-on entrance exam, right? The headmaster announced it on the school website. Apparently, hundreds of students wanted to transfer to the USA, all thanks to your son over here for promoting the school."

    "Like father like son!" Tatsuki continued.

    "Even though my daughter has a strong superpower, she won''t grow unless she experiences the cold hard truth¡ª that skill alwayses first, and not your superpower. In our school, I know she''ll find a lot of rivals there... or at least, there''s one she could go head to head with. That''s why, Satoshi, I''m leaving my daughter in your care."

    ''What am I supposed to say here?!'' Satoshi asked himself. He couldn''t think of what to answer so he just nodded in silence.

    "Just like old times, huh. I"m warning you though¡ª your daughter won''t be able to defeat my son no matter what she does."

    "Even better, that would spur her to hone her skills even more. Somehow, all of this feels really nostalgic, you know." Joseph slightly chuckled.

    "I know right," Tatsuki agreed.

    "And no, we are not going to have alcohol for breakfast." Ayumu immediately cut him off, sh could already tell what Joseph and her husband were thinking.

 Chapter 151 Heimdall Agency

    Unfortunately, the fight was postponed for another day and Satoshi gave Aquaborne a tour of his alma mater. The meeting with the principal went smoothly and now they were on their way to the Heimdall Agency, which is also located in Tokyo. While the Midoriyama Agency is located by the outskirts of Tokyo, the Heimdall Agency is located at the heart of it, and that''s why it has be one of the biggest agencies in Japan.

    "So, why did you want to be an intern for the Eye-Goddess?" Aquaborne asked.

    It was alreadyte in the morning and the hustle and bustle of Tokyo could already be felt. Peoplemuting for work, not to mention the students rushing to school, filled the streets by the droves, this pushed Satoshi and Aquaborne to the edge of the sidewalk while they made their way to Heimdall Agency. Since they would just get annoyed if they didn''t do anything, Aquaborne decided to strike up a conversation with Satoshi, hoping that that would extricate his mind from the current displeasure.

    "She''s... she''s the first one to ever recruit me. And also, she was a member of the Midoriyama Agency before. I thought maybe I could learn a thing or two from her." Satoshi responded, his gaze focused on the crowd in front of him.

    "I see, then why didn''t you just enter your parents'' agency?"

    "People might say they''re biased for epting me so readily... I don''t know how it is in Switzend but here in Japan, thepetition is tough when someone wants to enter a huge agency. And also, my parents have never epted someone in their teens as part of their agency. People are sure to ask questions if they suddenly recruit me, even as an intern." Satoshi exined.

    "I can understand. Even I wouldn''t want a family member''s reputation to be questioned, even if it only involves the triflest of things." Aquaborne said.

    Before they knew it, they found themselves in front of one of the tallest buildings in the vicinity. It was approximately twenty floors tall with its off-white color and aesthetically pleasing architecture. Satoshi gulped, he was about to meet the Eye-Goddess, formally this time, and he''ll be working as a temporary intern for the entirety of summer break. He couldn''t help but feel a tad bit anxious. Even the normal-looking building seemed more ominous because of what he felt.

    "Well then, let''s go in."

    With the breathtaking image of the building outside, one might think that the interior would also appear formal. However, Satoshi and Aquaborne had concluded early. The interior of the ce was actually more weing than they thought.

    Two security guards stood by the entrance, wearing their usual uniforms. That wasn''t the first thing that Satoshi noticed though, but the wooden chairs and table by the corner of the main lobby. The lights were also adorned with wooden sculptures around it, not to mention the reception desk that was made from a single piece of wood. At first, Satoshi wondered if he was in the wrong ce since the main lobby looked more like a cafe than an agency. But when he noticed the white letters behind the reception area that read ''Heimdall Agency'', he was brought back to his senses in an instant.

    "Come on, we''re not on a field trip here," Aquaborne teased.

    "Ah! It''s Aquaborne!"

    "Why is he here?"

    "Did anyone know he''sing?"

    "Quick, inform the Eye-Goddess right away!"

    "Gah, I want to get his autograph!"

    "Can we approach him?"

    A burst of energy suddenly descended on the people by the main lobby upon witnessing the one and only Aquaborne enter the agency. Some of them squealed, while some gasped in disbelief. Of course, a numbered few didn''t hesitate to approach him and ask for his autograph.

    "Can we take a picture with you?"

    "Why not?" Aquaborne winked.

    "Yay!"

    While everyone was having the time of their life interacting with one of the most famous superheroes around the world, Satoshi casually made his way toward the reception area. Before he could say anything though, the receptionist just smiled at him. "I''ve already informed the Eye-Goddess that you''ve arrived. She said she''ll personally escort you to her office so please wait for a moment."

    "I uh... sure, thanks!" Satoshi responded, nodding his head before turning around and regrouping with Aquaborne. He retraced his steps though and just walked towards the wooden chairs by the corner of the main lobby since Aquaborne was already surrounded by a huge crowd.

    "By any chance... are you... "

    Satoshi was surprised to find the receptionist right in front of him.<sub> </sub>

    "... Midoriyama Satoshi?"

    "Yes," Satoshi nodded slowly, wondering why the woman asked her for his name when she already knew about it. After all, she was the one who informed the Eye-Goddess of his arrival.

    "Is it all right if I asked for your autograph?" The woman said bashfully. "My youngest, he''s a fan of yours. It will really make his day if he knew I got your autograph."

    "Sure, do you have a pen and a paper?" Satoshi asked. Although he felt a modicum of nervousness since this was the first time someone asked for his autograph, he forced a smile and gave the woman what she wanted.

    However, that didn''t stop there. Next, three superheroes who were still on probation in Heimdall''s agency approached Satoshi, asking for his autograph, then a couple of high-schoolers who passed by noticed him and requested the security guards if they could get his autograph. Pretty soon, a small crowd also surrounded Satoshi, much to his surprise. He didn''t expect that he was already popr enough to give out autographs. It''s as if he was in a dream, and he didn''t want such a dream to end.

    After all, the past where he didn''t have his superpowers yet was still fresh to him. But now, he was giving out autographs as if he was already a licensed superhero.

    "Ever the popr one, I see." a woman''s voice gently spoke, causing Satoshi to whirl around.

    A woman slightly taller than Satoshi, wearing a thick jacket, pants, and shirt, approached him, her light pinkish hair alluringly swaying around as she adjusted her sunsses, revealing her pink irises. "Nice to finally meet you, Satoshi. You still remember our first encounter, right?"

    Satoshi nodded, speechless. She didn''t expect the Eye-Goddess to suddenly appear behind him.

    Slowly, the crowd surrounding both Satoshi and Aquaborne dispersed, and the two of them finally had the leisure to breathe. "I still can''t get used to that kind of treatment, you know. That''s why, Satoshi, you should get used to it while you''re young. If you''re already this popr while you''re still in your teenage years, you''ll attract an even bigger crowd when you grow up." Aquaborne pointed out.

    "And what is the great Aquaborne doing here?" Eye-Goddess greeted, extending her hand. Aquaborne obliged to shake it.

    "Oh, I have to talk to you about something."

    "Yes, you were going to ask me if your daughter could join my agency as an intern over the summer break as well, right?" Eye-Goddess responded. She had already seen the future, after all.

    "So, is she in?" Aquaborne wasn''t even surprised that Eye-Goddess easily guessed the purpose of his visit. But then again, it''s not like he was trying to hide it.

    "I''ll be the judge of that. Do you have her files?"

    "No, she''ll just show you her superpowers when she applies. Besides, she''ll only be here during the summer break." He continued.

    "Is she going to attend the United Superheroes Academy?"

    "Yes, I guess that was pretty obvious?" Aquaborne scratched his head. "She personally wanted to study there so I just let her. Besides, I wanted her to meet a lot of superheroes in her generation. I mean, there aren''t really a lot of formidable superheroes in our country."

    "I was just guessing though since there are a lot of students transferring to United Superheroes Academy starting this fall... it''s probably because of this guy over here, who managed to win in the Inter-High Tournament although his entire team consisted of first-years."

    "We just got lucky," Satoshi responded, forcing a smile on his face. "There were a lot of strong candidates and I even almost died twice."

    "Yeah, I''ve seen that footage where your body got shredded. Man, I wonder why they didn''t censor that... youreback was pretty cool though." Aquaborne shed a thumbs up towards Satoshi.

    "Why don''t we head over to my office, let''s have a cup of coffee while we talk over your internship, Aquaborne can join us as we¡ª " Suddenly, Eye-Goddess stopped short as her eyes gazed outside.

    Satoshi and Aquaborne''s gaze followed Eye-Goddess''s and they realized she was staring at a random building across the street. She didn''t speak a word, which was weird since they knew that Eye-Goddess is usually talkative, even in her interviews she couldn''t be any more lively.

    And yet not, she showed the exact opposite.

    "Never mind, I guess we''re going outside," Eye-Goddess said. "Satoshi, I guess this is your first assignment as an intern,"

 Chapter 152 A Diversion

    Eye-Goddess''s lips curved upward as she stepped forward, her heels clicking on the tiled floor. Aquaborne and Satoshi couldn''t help but be curious about Eye-Goddess''s sudden change of heart. They followed her outside, no words left their mouth.

    As soon as they got out, the Eye-Goddess then pulled out her phone and sent out a few texts. Satoshi tried to peek over her shoulders but he couldn''t see anything. What he didn''t know was that Eye-Goddess already predicted that he would take a peek so she just blocked his view in the process. Her superpower can be quite convenient at times.

    "You called, Eye-Goddess," Plume suddenly appeared, her wings pping twice as she smoothlynded right in front of Satoshi, surprised that he was even there.

    "Elimine!" Satoshi casually greeted. "How are you doing?"

    "I can''t believe it, you''re really part of the Heimdall Agency, huh, you should leave some poprity for us superheroes, you''re hogging all the fame." Elimine teased, rubbing Satoshi''s hair before addressing their boss.

    "Have you seen Flexor? I can''t reach him." Heimdall muttered. "I need both your help with th¡ª "

    BOOM!

    Forty seconds after they got out, of the Heimdall Agency Building, a huge explosion suddenly reverberated in the area, causing everyone to cover their head and duck down. The sound of rubble flying in all directions and screams then followed. Making Satoshi nce around, wondering where the source was. Of course, he knew it was nearby since the force almost knocked him over as well. Had it not been for Elimine grabbing onto him and shielding both of them with her detachable plumage, he would''ve flown right back to the Heimdall Agency Building.

    What exploded was the random building that Eye-Goddes eyes a few seconds ago. Out of nowhere, it exploded, probably killing everyone inside. Panic enshrouded the vicinity, and people started running amok, fearing that what just transpired was the prelude to a terrorist attack.

    "Quick, check if there are any survivors. Satoshi, Aquaborne, I''m sorry but could you assist Plume? I''m afraid Flexor wouldn''t be able toe in time. I''ll try contacting other superheroes but they''re upied at the moment."

    Aquaborne and Satoshi didn''t need telling twice. As Aquaborne activated his superpower, Satoshi summoned the Droplet to help assist Aquaborne with his superpower. He also summoned Ghast and Windfan to help remove some of the rubble from the scene.

    "Seeing it in person is actually quite terrifying," Aquabornemented as he controlled the water in the atmosphere and made it seep into the cracks of the dpidated building. Since water can flow even into the smallest of cracks, Aquaborne used it like ''feelers'' so he can sense the people trapped underneath the rubble. Satoshi began removing rubble from the topmost part downwards using Ghast and Windfan.

    "Yes, now that I see it in person... I honestly can''t believe how someone could have such a superpower." The Eye-Goddess couldn''t agree more. She shrugged.

    As for the star of the rescue, Plume, she was doing everything, including the rescue. With her presence alone, she managed to calm down the masses and assist them to the nearest safe zone/shelter. While doing so, she helped with the extraction of the people trapped underneath the rubble. She was also the one who contacted both the police station and the ambnces. Quite frankly, she didn''t need any help, and Satoshi realized it as soon as she saw his childhood friend in action.

    "Is that really the Elimine I know? She was so rambunctious back in the day." Satoshi said to himself.

    "Focus, Satoshi," Plume called out, seeing that Satoshi was just looking at her. When she turned around, however, she covered her face, hoping that no one had seen the redness on it.

    The sound of ring sirens filled the air, but just then, something clicked in Satoshi''s mind. He didn''t know what it was all about, but he knew for a fact that the feeling he felt was a reaction his body produces when danger is near. He immediately stopped the rescue and looked around. Amidst the sound of the sirens from police cars, something else felt weird.

    "Mmph! MMMph!"

    Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the faint figure of Eye-Goddess, being dragged away from the scene, a handkerchief ced on her mouth. She was struggling, trying to escape the grip of the man who kidnapped him, but it was all for nothing. The man probably has a physical-type superpower.

    "How did he kidnap the Eye-Goddess though, couldn''t she see the future? No, she probably didn''t expect the attack so she failed to activate her superpower." Satoshi said to himself, summoning the White Lion and riding on it.

    Aquaborne tried to stop Satoshi from leaving his post but was unable to do so. As for Plume, she shouted at Satoshi, wondering what he was up to. But Satoshi didn''t hear her, or he pretended not to. Either way, Satoshi left, and Aquaborne and Plume were the only ones who were left on the scene.

    "I heard the explosion! Do you guys need any help?" A random man on a bicycle asked. He was wearing sses and an odd-looking hat.

    "And who are you?" Aquaborne asked.<sub> </sub>

    "I''m called Bike Rider. I have a superpower called ''Stamina'' which enables me to do normal movements without getting tired. I wonder if I could be of help."

    "I''m not so su¡ª " Aquaborne stared at Bike Rider from head to toe and he could tell that he was just an ordinary person. Even his superpower is not that noteworthy. Regardless, hemended the young man for volunteering to help when other superheroes who passed by didn''t even bother.

    "We need all the help we can get." Plume responded.

    "And that''s what she said. You can help by clearing the smaller debris, directing the people to the safe zone, and helping those medics over there."

    "Roger!" Bike Rider said with so much enthusiasm that Aquaborne actually felt second-hand embarassment from him.

    .....

    My superpower, Tunnel Vision, is not that fascinating.

    To exin how my superpower works, I can give anyone Tunnel Vision as long as our eyes met. My superpower works more like a curse where the person would have a limited range of vision for three minutes. It may not be much but three minutes is more than enough to steal from someone.

    Initially, I wanted to be a superhero, I wanted to appear on TV and be popr. I know that my superpower wouldn''t get me there but still, a young man can dream, right? Right?

    But no, I learned at an early part of my life that dreams don''t be reality. That life is crueler than I thought. Back then, my parents got into so much debt after being scammed by a real estatepany. They couldn''t pay off the house, and at that time, I thought that maybe I could help.

    How could I help?

    Those words came to my mind as I walked out of the house, wondering if I could apply as a superhero in one of the agencies here in Tokyo. I mean, there are a lot of agencies here, there''s no way I won''t be epted in one of them, right? Right?

    All of that changed, however, my whole being¡ª my whole character changed. Was it for the better or for the worst? I''m guessing it''s thetter.

    On one of my walks, I saw a guy drop his wallet and he didn''t notice it. I decided to return it to him... but after seeing the amount of money he had, I decided not to return it. Finder''s Keepers, or so that''s how the saying goes.

    That''s how it all started.

    Pretty soon, I was using my superpower in crowded areas, giving someone ''Tunnel Vision'' and stealing their money. I was raking more than I expected and I managed to pay off the house. It was an exciting moment in my history, but at what cost?

    I got into even bigger crimes, I involved myself in gangs, and even harmful substances were out of the question, I was dealing all of them. I became a bigshot, not because I was strong, but because I was cunning. And just when things couldn''t get any better, the Creaker approached me! I couldn''t believe it I thought I was dreaming! He said he needs me! That he will wee me in his circle if I could pull this initiation off!

    No, I have to pull it off. I''m sure I could pull it off.

    .....

    From afar, a man stared at Eye-Goddess, cursing her with the Tunnel Vision. Somehow, the viin called the Creaker knew that the Tunnel Vision would work on her. And indeed it worked. When one of his henchmen approached Eye-Goddess from behind, she didn''t even notice. Without hesitation, the man pressed a towel on Eye-Goddess''s mouth so she wouldn''t be able to scream, and then he carefully dragged her towards one of the narrow alleyways. A sessful kidnapping that worked even under the noses of superheroes who were busy rescuing the people.

    After all, the explosion was but a mere diversion. Their main target is none other than the head of Heimdall Agency, the Eye-Goddess.

    "I knew I could pull it off. Creaker would be proud." Tunnel Vision said to himself, chuckling as he blended into the crowd who was heading to the safe zone.

 Chapter 153 Rescue Mission

    Eye-Goddess was speechless, well, literally speechless since a handkerchief was pressed against her mouth. For some reason, she didn''t detect the future, that someone would try to kidnap her in broad daylight while amotion ensued. She tried to scream, iling her arms around but the man was simply much stronger than her. It''s not like Eye-Goddess''s superpowers could help her in dangerous situations. After all, without it, she''s no stronger than a regr human.

    A few meters away, Satoshi and the others were conducting a rescue operation and they didn''t even notice that she was being abducted right under their noses. Eye-Goddess was frustrated, but she couldn''t me them for doing their job a little too eagerly.

    ''But why didn''t my superpower work? No, it was working fine until a couple of seconds ago. Did they have someone with them who has the ability to negate superpowers? That''s the only way I could exin what happened. What do they gain from kidnapping me? I''m the head of a renowned agency, even if they were sessful in this kidnapping, there''s no way no one woulde looking for me.'' Even though those reassuring thoughts urred in her mind, she still tried to struggle, but it was all for naught. No matter how hard she iled or try to remove the towel pressed on her mouth, she was just too powerless.

    Her eyes were on the verge of tears as she was dragged into a narrow alleyway. Once she disappears from view, no one can do anything about it. Clinging to that final ray of hope, she iled even harder and struggled.

    No one noticed it... or so that''s what she thought.

    Fortunately, Satoshi''s instincts still didn''t betray him and he senses something amiss, prompting him to turn around. That''s when he noticed the Eye-Goddess''s legs as they disappeared into a narrow alleyway. One look was all it took for Satoshi to realize that the Eye-Goddess was in danger. It seemed like she was being dragged from behind after all.

    "Joseph-san, Elimine, I''ll leave the rescue to you. I need to go somewhere." Satoshi called out.

    Before Aquaborne or the Plume could respond, he was already well on his way, riding on his Nailgun as he flew above the houses surrounding the Heimdall Agency.

    At first, he wanted to sneak up on the kidnapper and rescue the Eye-Goddess all at once, but then, that wouldn''t get him to the bottom of the situation. Right now, he needed to know the reason, the motive, behind the kidnapping. Besides, from the looks of it, it doesn''t seem like the man was working alone.

    "If he''ll lead me to their base, then that would be better," Satoshi said to himself. As for an added precaution though, he wrote a message to his parents. He would send it at a moment''s notice if things get too dangerous. He also already summoned Ghast, who could teleport him in a split second.

    One minute passed and the Eye-Goddess stopped struggling. She just let the man drag her around as he weaved his way through narrow alleyways. Meanwhile, Satoshi just observed from a distance. If something goes wrong, he would teleport right beside the guy and give him a good beating. Fortunately, the guy didn''t do anything except drag the Eye-Goddess.

    Satoshi estimated that the rescue was already probably over and he sent a message over to Plume, telling her about the current situation. A few secondster, Plume was already flying beside Satoshi, watching the guy''s every move. "Why didn''t you inform me back then?"

    "The rescue was the priority, besides, I can handle myself pretty well," Satoshi responded. "Why do you think they kidnapped Eye-Goddess though?"

    "I''m not sure, probably because they needed her foresight about something... that, or they just received orders from a superviin. Usually, when ites to kidnapping major superheroes, it''s the work of a superviin behind the scenes. I hope such isn''t the case."

    "Yes, if things get too dangerous. I''ll be taking Eye-Goddess and then we teleport out of here." Satoshi continued. "But if we can handle it, it would be much better if we bring them all down and give them to the authorities."

    "If there''s a superviin involved, then this would be a lot moreplicated. We should watch our every step, Satoshi." Plume said with a hint of concern in her voice. "What great timing, huh. This is your first day as an intern and you''re already exposed to two minor incidents... I''m confused about one thing though."

    "What?"

    "How could someone sneak up behind the Eye-Goddess when she can see a few seconds into the future? And he managed to kidnap her at that."

    "From the looks of it, I don''t think he''s alone."

    "I figured as much." Plume pursed her lips.

    Finally, the man arrived by an abandoned house, dragging the Eye-Goddess all the way inside. Cautiously, Satoshi and Plume followed right behind him. The man was too excited that he didn''t notice he was being followed. As soon as he got inside, he was greeted by three other men wearing the same ck shirt and pants he was wearing. They celebrated as soon as their eyes beheld the Eye-Goddess.

    "I didn''t know we''d be able to do it!"

    "Yeah, that diversion really worked wonders!"<sub> </sub>

    "It was all thanks to Tunnel Vision doing all the heavy lifting."

    "We should inform him right away!"

    "No, not yet." The guy said, grabbing a chair on one end of the room. He then proceeded to tie the ever-iling Eye-Goddess on it.

    "Let me go! You don''t know what you''re getting yourself into!" Eye-Goddess angrily said as she tried to get out of her binds. It was useless though, but she didn''t stop due to desperation.

    "Trust me, we know, all right." The guy responded before nodding to another guy. The other guy nodded back before taping the Eye-Goddess''s mouth.

    "We wait for Tunnel Vision. He let us in on this heist so he should be the one taking the glory." The guy announced, grabbing a bottle of water on the table by the corner. He rxed, d that the mission was over.

    A few minutester, another figure arrived, wearing the same ck outfit. As soon as he saw the Eye-Goddess, his eyes lit up, and he startedughing hysterically. Satoshi and Plume immediately concluded that he was the brains behind the entire operation.

    "He seemed familiar... " Plume mumbled to Satoshi as they hid behind a pile of rubble. "Didn''t they say that his name is Tunnel Vision?"

    Satoshi confirmed with a nod.

    "But he''s just a petty pickpocket. We weren''t able to catch him though since he always slip right past us. But why did he kidnap Eye-Goddess? What would he gain from it?"

    "Maybe he''s working for someone else," Satoshi whispered.

    "HAHA!" Tunnel Vision continuedughing, walking towards the guy who kidnapped the Eye-Goddess with him. "Creaker will be pleased!"

    The guy then smiled in response as Tunnel Vision grabbed him by the shoulders in excitement. "Boys, today we''re making history!"

    As soon as he said that, he then walked to the other end of the room where aptop was located. He booted up, deftly typed away his password, and then logged in on a face-time tform. After waiting for a few minutes watching the loading animation on screen, a face popped up, causing Tunnel Vision to perk up. "Hello, Creaker-san... I''ve done what you''ve ordered."

    Plume covered her mouth, much to Satoshi''s bewilderment. Her pupils dted as she stared at Satoshi. She was panicking, that much was for sure, but Satoshi didn''t know the reason why. After contemting about it though, he finally remembered the confrontation that happened a year ago. "That''s... that''s him! That''s Creaker! The Superviin Creaker!" Plume shakily whispered, her eyes darting towards theptop where Creaker''s face was clearly being shown.

    Back then, Plume was caught up in an incident where Creaker showed himself to the public and wreaked havoc. Plume was not as strong back then and she was immediately defeated by the Creaker... no, being defeated was an understatement. Plume was sent to the hospital due to her critical condition after the fight. When the other superheroes came to the scene, Creaker just gave them a chuckle before escaping. He was strong, strong enough to be considered a superviin. And right now, Plume just realized that her nemesis was the mastermind of the kidnapping.

    "Plume, get it together. You can''t lose focus now, otherwise, you''ll just be dead weight when the action starts." Satoshi spurred. "As soon as he hangs up the call, we''re moving in."

    "I uh... I''m sorry," Plume shut her eyes, wiping her tears before clenching her fists. "I''m okay. Let''s do this."

    "You''ve done well, Tunnel Vision. I''ll get there soon. Don''t let your guard down." Creaker said before hanging up the call.

    That was the signal. Without further ado, Satoshi summoned Sain, his Chainsaw familiar. "Ready?"He asked, to which Plume responded with a shaky nod.

    "Ready."

 Chapter 154 Successful Capture

    As soon as Satoshi got out of hiding, Plume immediately followed, shooting feathers at the men who were celebrating a little bit too early. Satoshi was already flying around using Ghast to teleport everywhere. Every time he attacks, he would use Sain to give a few wounds and scratches to the men. They were definitely caught off-guard, especially the one who calls himself Tunnel Vision.

    Eye-Goddess, Kitamura Ayano, had already calmed down a few minutes back after she saw in her future that she will be rescued by Satoshi and Plume. Although she wondered why they waited for everything toe down before rescuing her, she was d nheless. It''s not like she was hurt during the entire situation and moreover, she wasn''tining to them after they went through the pain of rescuing her. She sighed in relief, d that she won''t have to stay in the cold musty ce for long.

    "Where did these kidse from?"

    "Where is he aghk~!"

    "Somebody what is¡ª !"

    "Argh!"

    It didn''t even take a minute, Satoshi had already knocked and rounded up the henchmen of Tunnel Vision without difficulty. Of course, it was only possible because of Plume''s support. This may be the first time they worked together as a superhero duo but they synced incredibly well. They are childhood friends after all and their bond is much stronger than their superhero experience.

    However, Plume was surprised that she almost couldn''t keep up with Satoshi''s erratic movements. She had been a licensed professional superhero for at least a year now and Satoshi barely even started as an intern a few minutes ago. And yet he was somehow better than him, both physically and superpower-wise. ''Is he really the Satoshi I knew? I heard he just awakened his superpowers... how is he so strong?''

    "Eye-Goddess-san, are you all right?" Satoshi asked, using Sain to cut off the ropes that bound her. Something clicked in Satoshi''s mind and he felt the disappointment of his Chainsaw Familiar. It was probably annoying that it was just used to lightly wound the enemies and to cut off ropes. While it was looking forward to bloodshed, all it received was a half-assed fight.

    Curious, Satoshi made a mental note that he should delve deeper into the characteristics of his every Familiar. Apparently, others want the pacifist route like Sera, others want an action-packed fight like Ghast, then there''s Sain who only wanted carnage. He wondered how the other familiars would react to every fight. At the bottom of things, Satoshi believed that understanding his familiars would lead to their affinity being stronger, and in turn, the Integration would be much smoother and energy-efficient.

    ''Why isn''t the Eye-Goddess answering?'' Satoshi asked himself.

    "Mmmph!" Eye-Goddess motioned before removing the tape on her mouth. "Yes, I''m fine, thanks."

    "How did you get caught like that? I thought you can always look a few seconds ahead into the future with your Foresight?" Satoshi asked, worried.

    "It''s because of that guy called Tunnel Vi¡ª wait, where is he? You didn''t catch him?!" Eye-Goddess asked.

    Satoshi and Plume stared at each other, perplexed. Before they charged out of their hiding spot, their aim was to catch everyone including Tunnel Vision. And yet, the thought somehow flew over their heads and Tunnel Vision was nowhere to be found. It''s as if he just slipped into nothingness.

    Actually, Tunnel Vision was right there, and he used his abilities on the three of them before he slipped out of the scene. As mentioned before, his ability is to give someone tunnel vision, sort of like a misdirection superpower where he directs the attention of someone away from him. With this, he had escaped authorities countless times. Even powerful superheroes couldn''t catch him. As long as he locked eyes with anyone, his escape is guaranteed. In the world of pickpockets and thieves, his superpower is outstandingly useful, and that''s why he had be an important figure when ites to petty criminals.

    And just like every single time, Tunnel Vision managed to get away once again, leaving all his henchmen as cannon fodder. He didn''t bother checking up on them, as long as he saves his rear side, everything is as it should be. That''s how it is in the world of small-time criminals. No trust was involved, nor was there camaraderie.

    "Dex," Satoshi muttered, hoping that his system covered for him. Previously, he had a few suspicions as to what Tunnel Vision''s superpower is, but right now, he was sure that his superpower is his literal name. And that''s why he managed to sneak past Eye-Goddess''s foresight and sessfully kidnapped her. He overlooked one variable though¡ª Satoshi''s gut instincts and Dex.

    [He''s right outside, walking, thirty meters from your location.]

    "Thanks, keep on tailing him"

    "Satoshi?" Plume asked, wondering why Satoshi was speaking to himself.

    "I have his location. Plume, can you stay here and call the authorities? Something might happen if Creaker gets here before the police do."

    Plume nodded and immediately dialed one one zero. After introducing who she was, she gave the authorities a rundown of what happened. As for Satoshi, he cautiously headed outside, only following the Dex''s location so he won''t identallye in contact with Tunnel Visions'' superpower.<sub> </sub>

    [To your right]

    "Right," Satoshi sprinted towards the corner and turned a sharp right, he immediately saw Tunnel Vision, blending through the crowd. He slowed down, then tailed him, hoping that he could get a jump on him soon.

    But just when he was about to get him, Tunnel Vision nced backward out of the blue, and he immediately recognized Satoshi. He broke into a sprint, and a split secondter, he was gone from Satoshi''s sight. Satoshi knew full well though that Tunnel Vision was right in front of him, he just couldn''t see him because of his superpower. Furthermore, Dex kept on giving him updates on Tunnel Vision''s location so even though he couldn''t see him, he knew where he was.

    Satoshi gave chase.

    Tunnel Vision was confident that he used his superpower on Satoshi and that he pulled off another sessful escape. That''s why when he saw Satoshi still on his tail, he was flustered. How could he still see me? Did my superpowers not work?

    One of the weaknesses of Tunnel Vision''s superpower is that he had to have eye-to-eye contact with the person in order for it to work. That''s why he avoids causing a ruckus since he couldn''t give Tunnel Vision to the whole crowd. He was surprised though since Satoshi was not in the least bit affected by his superpower. "Did he have someone watching over me? No, that shouldn''t be possible." He told himself¡ª but that was the only exnation that made sense.

    Tunnel Vision increased his pace and once again weaved through narrow alleyways and crannies. If there was someone overlooking him from afar, then he could easily dodge his or her sight by changing directions and using the buildings as cover. But Satoshi still kept chase.

    "What''s going on?!" Tunnel Vision clicked his tongue, slightly panicked. Unbeknownst to him, the one watching over him was right behind him, just invisible though.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi just kept on running in the direction that Dex directed him to. He still couldn''t see Tunnel Vision but he believed Dex is giving him the right directions.

    Since he was getting nowhere, he decided to give White Lion specific instructions. Before he summoned him, he gave him a few orders, telling him to strike the man he described with lightning. The White Lion was confused but it was eager to get summoned, so it agreed.

    "Let''s go," Satoshi said.

    In an instant, the White Lion was summoned, then he roared and struck someone with lightning. It all happened within a span of a split second so Tunnel Vision didn''t have time to use his superpowers on Satoshi''s familiar.

    And just like Eye-Goddess, without his superpower, Tunnel Vision is just any ordinary guy. He fainted in an instant as soon as lightning struck him. Satoshi made sure that White Lion electrocuted him with manageable voltage though since he could easily die.

    "Aghk~!"

    Satoshi heard an exmation and then in an instant, a man appeared a few meters in front of him, face-down, and unconscious. Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief. "Thanks for the cover, Dex," Satoshi said, giving Dex a thumbs up as he showed up.

    [No worries, Satoshi, d to be of help.]

    White Lion also roared in satisfaction, to which Satoshi responded by giving him a pat on the head. After tying up Tunnel Vision using his own shirt. With him secured, Satoshi then gave a call to Plume, informing her of his sessful capture. On the other end, Plume updated him about the authorities getting to the scene.

    "I''ll get there soon."

    "Did you really catch the Tunnel Vision?" Plume couldn''t believe it.

    "Of course, I''ll bring him there now."

    Click!

    Satoshi rode on his Nailgun, carrying Tunnel Vision on his shoulders. When he finally got to regroup with Eye-Goddess and Plume, the authorities began questioning him. Tunnel Vision is as slippery as an eel after all, and Satoshi was the first one to sessfully capture him. "So much for your first day as an intern, huh." Eye-Goddess smiled, patting him on the shoulder.

 Chapter 155 Team-Up

    Back at the Heimdall Agency,

    "I''ll be going then, please take care of my daughter," Aquaborne enthusiastically waved his hands towards Ayano, Elimine, and Satoshi. A ck sedan pulled up outside, and Aquaborne didn''t hesitate to hop in. Before the car roared off, the windows rolled down and Aquaborne''s temporary secretary nodded towards Satoshi, a sign of farewell since her job will be over soon, fortunately.

    "So, once again, wee to your internship," Ayano said, extending her hands and formally weing Satoshi to the crew. She couldn''t imagine that such a day woulde when the very son of her mentors would work under her. Of course, she''d be ecstatic, after all, this was also the first time when she personally scouted someone as an intern. Although that doesn''t make Satoshi a permanent part of the agency, she''d hoped that it would prod him to choose her agency before other agencies. Then again, there''s a good chance that Satoshi will inherit the Midoriyama Agency so she wasn''t very optimistic about her hopes.

    Satoshi didn''t know why Eye-Goddess was so excited to wee him, he entertained her by shaking her hands and nodding. This was his first time working as an intern under an agency. Of course, he did his research, but that doesn''t mean he knows everything about the said subject. He did feel bad that he''ll miss out on his precious summer break by undergoing an internship. However, this is a necessary experience in order to be a superhero¡ª an equivalent to going to the army after you reach a certain age in the past.

    When the new order was issued, a superhero had to through certain procedures before getting a license. First, they have to debut and show off their superpowers to the world, that way they could at least have a small following before turning pro. Second, they have to experience, at the minimum, a month of internship under an officially registered agency, this way they could get introduced to the inner workings of the pro hero world. Experience is the best teacher, after all, and that''s why the government decided upon this procedure, instead of putting uing superheroes in ss and letting them listen through hours of lecture, eating away at their boredom. After that would be the licensure exam. It''s different every year but once you passed it, you''ll finally avail of the benefits and perks of being a licensed superhero. This would also allow one to use his or her powers in certain emergencies.

    Currently, Satoshi is on the second level of the procedure¡ª internship¡ª and if everything goes as nned, he''ll be one step closer to bing a professional superhero.

    "I want you to meet someone," Ayano sped her hands after shaking Satoshi''s, and then she headed towards the elevator. Satoshi meekly followed, wondering who he''d meet.

    As someone who''s had a great interest in superheroes ever since he was a kid, Satoshi knew almost every registered superhero in Japan, as well as the top superheroes in other countries. Right now, Heimdall Agency has more than a hundred employees operating throughout the whole of Japan, and Satoshi knew each and every one of them by name. If someone were to ask him to enumerate every member of the Heimdall Agency, he could nail it without batting an eye.

    The ride on the elevator was nothing short of awkward since Satoshi had no idea what Eye-Goddess wanted to talk about. She was bobbing her head up and down while humming a familiar tune from a virtual reality game. Satoshi immediately realized that she was humming the soundtrack of the Laser Fingers team. He couldn''t bring himself toment about it though.

    Ding!

    Once they arrived on the fifth floor, Satoshi was greeted by a hallway and two wooden doors by the end of it. Two figures strolled out of the door, both of them drinking canned juice in hand. They seemed rxed at first, but upon seeing Eye-Goddesse out of the elevator, they stiffened, anxiety bing noticeable in their expression.

    Their expression shifted to that of a surprise though when they saw the figure beside the Eye-Goddess. They quickened their pace, then extended their hands in front of Satoshi, their eyes sparkling.

    "You''re Midoriyama Satoshi, right?"The first man lightly greeted. "Nice to meet you, wee to the Heimdall Agency. I''m Eric Asturias, also known as¡ª "

    "Merman! Flexor!" Satoshi couldn''t help but interrupt as he grabbed both their hands and shook them. "It''s nice to meet you too!"

    "Oh, you recognized us? That''s unusual." Flexor said, scratching his head. "Well, it''s nice to see you here. So Eye-Goddess managed to recruit you, huh."

    "Only as a temporary intern," Eye-Goddess said. "I guess no further introduction''s needed right? Then, can you brief him about your mission?"

    "Wait, he''sing with us?" Merman asked. "But... he''s just a kid, this is a dangerous mission. We''re dealing with crooks here."

    "And killers, and drug dealers, possibly." Flexor added. "Agency Head, we know this kid has a lot of promise just like Plume, but we''re not taking him. We can do it by ourselves."

    Putting her hand on her chin, Eye-Goddess portrayed that she was contemting their resolve but quite frankly, she had already decided. And that''s final. A few seconds passed, and then she sped her hands, her usual cheerful expression returning. "He''s stilling with you. Brief him about the mission, and then see what he can do. I can assure you that he''s more than capable of this mission."<sub> </sub>

    At the end of the day, the Agency Head gets to have the final say in all things agency-rted. Even though Merman and Flexor voiced their opinion, and they have notable reasons as to why they did so, they still couldn''t decide. If Eye-Goddess said that Satoshi will take part in the mission, then the decision''s final, they couldn''t refute it.

    Merman and Flexor were both not a fan of teenagers working as interns, and that''s because every mission, no matter how small, always has that certain risk to it. Any situation can go sideways in an instant and lives are at stake, most of the time. On this particr mission, they''re dealing with smugglers who are willing to open fire when the opportunity calls for it. Who knows if they''ve hired bodyguards with superpowers as well, or trained killers determined to murder anyone who''d get in their way. It was easy to regard a certain mission based on their rank, but those ranks are just estimates. The danger is always there.

    "All right then, Satoshi, follow me. Let''s talk about your first mission." Merman said. He suppressed the sigh that almost came out of his mouth since that might anger Eye-Goddess.

    "You brief him on the mission. I''ll inform Plume about the changes." Flexor said.

    .....

    "And that''s about it," Merman said, pointing at the projection on the white screen. He just gave a rundown on how the mission would go while Satoshi took notes. "Do you have any questions?"

    Apparently, their mission was the same as the previous one where they tried to intercept smugglers by the port. The only difference this time was that the expected shipment was much biggerpared to thest one. This means that security will be just as tight, and the shipment might even change locations at thest minute, or so that''s what Merman and Flexor expected.

    "There''s just four of us?" Satoshi asked. Although the answer to the question was crystal clear, he just had to ask it since the mission seemed too high-leveled for the four of them, namely Plume, Merman, Flexor, and him. If there were just four of them, how could they deal with hundreds of smugglers? By the sheer size of the ship they''re intercepting, there''s a huge possibility that more than a hundred people are there.

    "Yes, we don''t really have enough manpower at the moment due to some uh... some circumstances." Merman continued. Satoshi immediately noticed the nervousness in his voice.

    He was hiding something.

    "Can we really take care of this one just like what Eye-Goddess ordered?" Satoshi asked.

    "Of course, we have to. Besides, we have Plume on our side. If things go south, then we can rely on Plume to pull us out. We don''t want that to happen though, a failed mission is not something you''d want on your record as a pro."

    Slide.

    "Are you done with the briefing?" Flexor asked as soon as he entered. Two more figures followed behind him. The first one was Plume, as expected, but the second one left Merman and Satoshi speechless.

    "I heard you''re joining us, Satoshi, best of luck with your debut as an intern." Plume said as a greeting.

    "So you''re Satoshi, huh. I don''t really like working with teenagers but I saw how you fight. Just don''t hold us back." The other figure said. It was none other than Gerik Axor, superhero name Stoon, ranked seventh in the superhero rankings.

    "Stoon?!" Merman eximed before Satoshi could. "It''s n-n-nice to meet you sir! I''m a huge fan!"

    "You can have my autographter. Is everyone ready? There were a few minor adjustments to the mission. We have to leave now." Gerik Axor responded. "I''ll be taking over as the leader of this mission, let''s get thosewbreakers and put them behind bars."

 Chapter 156 Change Of Plans

    A chilly breeze caused the tent to flutter just when Spatoon finished setting it up. He wiped a brow from his forehead before admiring his handiwork. The tent he set up had been with him ever since he debuted as Stoon, the metal-maniptor superhero. That''s not the reason why he brought it with him though.

    He was aware that the team had to stay on the lookout for who knows how many hours in the night, and it would be quite ufortable waiting by the port without something to shield them from the frigid airing from the sea. That''s why he brought the tent. It wasn''t a ce for rxation, however, and he made that perfectly clear.

    Nighttime soon came, and the winds became even colder. Even Satoshi, who could tolerate the cold, began shivering. He didn''t bother summoning Lighter though since the orb of blue mes would needlessly attract attention. In the end, he settled with the Cloak Of Invisibility. He received quite a few gasps though when the others saw his head floating around and his body was nowhere to be found.

    There was also the option of letting Ghast set up a portal by the seaside of the Port, but Satoshi couldn''t be bothered. It would just waste Ghast''s precious energy.

    "And now the waiting game begins," Stoon said in a low voice before sitting down by the corner of the tent and arranging the other bags they brought with them.

    Satoshi and the others remained quiet, wondering what they''d do next while uneasily staring at Stoon. Stoon ignored them though, he just started rummaging through one of the bags he brought with them. After a few seconds, he started handing out bags upon bags of junk food. They were surprised, but they weren''tining at all.

    "We''ll be doing a lot of heavy liftingter, so now''s the time to take a breather. Later on, we won''t even have time to pause, that''s why you have to enjoy the waiting game while you can. I also brought board games. Is anyone up for chess? Snakes anddders? I have the lot."

    The rxed atmosphere that Stoon created made Satoshi and the others rx as well and pretty soon, all of them were ying a round of monopoly. Even after a few hundred years, ssic board games were still relevant. They really stood the test of time, as expected of ssic board games.

    "And I''ll be taking your apartment."

    "I''m getting a loan."

    "That''s a lot of debt you got there, huh."

    Despite their immersion in the game, they were still on the lookout for suspicious vessels or people. An hour had already passed but there were no signs of the ''Dejects'' whatsoever. Stoon didn''t feel uneasy, however. On the off-chance that the tip-off was misced, he was willing to wait it out. Even if he had to wait for more than a week, he would do so without thinking twice. "There''s no way the tip-off is wrong, though. They should arrive tonight." Stoon reassured himself, a hint of worry creeping in his head.

    After another round of monopoly, snakes anddders was next in line. The game brought about nostalgia in everyone. It had been so long since they yed such a childish game and experiencing it once again made them remember the past.

    "Being a kid is... well, you know... it''s pretty good." Merman suddenly spoke up. "You don''t have to worry about paying rent, or buying groceries... you know, stuff like that. And you get to y around every day."

    "Yeah, too bad we had to grow up." Stoon smiled, finding the conversation hrious. "That''s why you should enjoy your childhood while you can, Plume, Satoshi,"

    "I sense something." Merman stood up, his skin turning into bluish-green scales. Compared to before where his lower body was mostly shifted into his aquatic form, this time it was his upper body. His ears resembled that of fins, and they twitched on the faintest of sounds.

    A superhero who could transform into a merman, Merman can do anything that a merman can do. Be it swimming at insane speeds, having basic connections with aquatic life, or even hearing sounds through the water. It was even rumored that he canmunicate with whales, but he hasn''t made an official statement about that yet.

    "It''s a low growl, almost inaudible due to the tidal waves. But I''m sure of it, whatever''s making that sound, it''s not natural." Merman continued, cautiously approaching the shore and cing his head underwater.

    Stoon and the others awkwardly stared at his rear side, waiting for him to raise his head from the water and give them an update. "I was correct. It was a submarine... no... no, wait"

    A shift in Merman''s expression told everyone that he was hearing something else. Everyone gulped, thinking that maybe they''d interrupt Merman''s hearing abilities if they were to breathe. Merman''s brows furrowed, then he bit his lips in anxiousness. Secondster, he put his head underwater once again.

    While the others thought that Merman was trying to listen underwater once again, he was actually doing something else. He hummed, then opened his mouth as if he was saying the letter ''o'' as softly as he could. A frequency traveled through the ocean, connecting him to the fishes that swam by. It was like echolocation, or maybe it resembled someone spreading gossip in the neighborhood. In any case, the frequency allowed Merman to have a rough outline of that portion of Yokohama Port.

    And just as he feared, his hunch was right on the money.<sub> </sub>

    It was not one but three submarines, heading to the Yokohama Port!

    "Um, Flexor, you checked the files for all the ships arriving by Yokohama today, right?" Flexor asked just to make sure that he wasn''t mistaken. It was pretty clear that the submarines weren''t in the schedule but Flexor just had to confirm. He wanted to grab onto the sliver of hope that the submarines weren''t unexpected.

    "Yes, why?"

    "Did it mention anything about three submarines? arriving tonight?"

    Flexor shook his head.

    "Three submarines are heading our way. I don''t know what kind of models there are but from the sheer size of them, they could easily house one hundred fifty or so people."

    "This is bad. The tip-off was right." Stoon said. "How many minutes before they arrive?"

    "About six to eight minutes."

    "Plume, contact all the nearest agencies right now, tell them that Heimdall Agency is requesting their assistance. Call the authorities as well, we''re looking at smugglers here, the lot of them." Stoon ordered.

    Plume started sending messages through her phone as soon as Stoon finished talking. Of course, she contacted Eye-Goddess first before doing anything else. If the worst-case scenario would happen, then at least Heimdall Agency would have time to gather more superheroes to aid the group.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi couldn''t help but get a feeling of deja vu. Every time he gets involved with an incident, it would always take the wrong turn. Starting from the Slime Alien, for instance, then there were the Gates. It''s as if he''s a living ma that only attracts trouble. "So much for plot progression," Satoshi said underneath his breath before standing beside Stoon. He didn''t know what to do so the least he could do was appear attentive in front of everyone.

    "What do we do now? Do we engage as soon as they arrive?" Flexor asked, slightly worried. Stoon still hasn''t given a single order on how they''d deal with the smugglers.

    "No, I can''t have you risking your lives here. I''ll do what I can to keep these submarines submerged. It will put a lot of strain on my body but I''ll keep them down there and buy us some time until reinforcements arrive." Stoon said. He knows all too well that keeping them underwater is the safe y because if they ever break out of the water, Stoon knew he won''t be able to seal them up since they might have contingency ns to get out of the submarine. Besides, submerging them back in after he sealed them up would expend more energy.

    The reason why he can''t really seal them up while they were submerged is that his metal maniption cannot be directed to metal he cannot see. And even if he could see them, the refraction caused by the water would mess with his aim.

    "And you, Satoshi, I want you to assist anyone in any way you can. I know I''m asking something so vague but you''re the only one who''s got the most resilient superpower here. Fill in all the holes that we left in our strategy."

    Satoshi nodded, summoning the Nailgun and Sain just in case.

    "Oh, looks like the party has started before we''ve arrived." A voice suddenly spoke from behind them, causing chills to run down their spine. The voice was unfamiliar, so Stoon knew in an instant that the one speaking was not on their side.

    "Isn''t that Stoon? Wow! I never thought I''d get to see him. We''re bigshots now, aren''t we?"

    "Calm down, Rugrat, we still need to prove it to our boss, then we be bigshots."

    "Okay!"

    Satoshi and the others didn''t have to turn around to realize that a dozen or so viins have already surrounded them.

 Chapter 157 Your Son?!

    Previously,

    "They call themselves ''Dejects'', based on the term ''rejects'', probably. Despite their name, they couldn''t be underestimated, not in the least." Stoon started exining as he hauled a few bags of equipment in his pickup. He could''ve easily manipted the trolleys and effortlessly arranged the bags but he opted not to. Just like any other professional superhero, he doesn''t want to rely on his superpowers alone. He may be a formidable metal maniptor but he could always rely on his strength when the situation calls for it.

    "The Dejects?" Plume''s eyebrows furrowed, trying hard to remember where she had heard the term. A hazy memory told her she heard the term on a news report a few years ago but she couldn''t quite put her finger around it. Needless to say, her knowledge of current events wascking as a professional superhero.

    "You know, that group that has a lot of members. They were quite open with their crimes until recently but now they seemed to disappear from the scene. Of course, there were still a few copycats lingering around,mitting crimes under their name." Satoshi briefly exined. "Based on the news, though, it was assumed that they have excellent backing. That''s why no one can touch them nor could anyone track their main base of operations."

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, right?" Stoon confirmed, eyeing him from head to toe and causing him to put up his guard since he felt ufortable. "You seem to know a lot when ites to the Dejects, did you research on them as soon as you were briefed of the mission? Or did you know of them beforehand?"

    Satoshi nodded once before responding back. "I''ve been keeping track of all the incidents and major viin organizations ever since I was a kid. It''s be a habit. Now I research everything when a new groupes into the scene." Satoshi continued.

    "Then... you''re probably aware of what the Dejects are up to, right?" Stoon asked. He was hoping that Satoshi was unaware of it but from the embers in his eyes, he knew outright that his assumption was wrong.

    "Yes, illegal smuggling... and it doesn''t just involve substances," Satoshi answered.

    "That''s right. That''s why we''re getting a move on right now. A reliable source told me that they have an expected shipment tonight, two hours earlier than expected." Stoon sighed in a crestfallen manner before approaching Satoshi and patting him on the head. "I''m sorry you had to enter the superhero world at this state. We tried our best, but viins are getting better, more structuredpared to the past." Stoon said.

    Satoshi nodded. What Stoon said was right. Unlike in the past, viins are bing more established than ever. Just like how the superheroes are forming agencies and gathering under organizations, the viins were practicing the same thing, recruiting powerful people, forming connections, and setting up an even deeper root to further their ideals. It was the literal representation of how two things can both be on two sides of the same coin.

    Although the news won''t say it, people were having an uneasy feeling about it as well. Petty crimes are diminishing, and major incidents seem to happen more often. A sign of a brewing storm behind the scenes.

    "All of you hop in on the back. Satoshi you ride with me." Stoon ordered. "I think you need more information regarding the mission."

    Everyone nodded. And pretty soon, they were well on their way towards Yokohama Port. One of the busiest parts in Japan, no, in Asia-Pacific. This port is used for import and export. Of course its a goldmine for viins who''d want to smuggle goods under the radar.

    "So kid... " Stoon continued on with the conversation. "Why do you think someone from the Top Ten is helping you out in this mission? You did hear from Flexor and the others that this is just a subpar mission, right? Just an interception of smuggled goods, right?"

    Satoshi was doubtful about it at first, but after hearing Stoon''s question, it was evident that something else was really going down tonight by the Yokohama Port. "Usually, one of the Top Ten is only called when the mission is of utmost importance, in cases when regr superheroes cannot handle the mission. Just like when the recent Slime Alien Invasion urred, or when the Gates around the world appeared."

    "That''s right. You sure know your stuff kid, are you aiming to be a professional supe¡ª that''s not even a question, huh." Stoon chuckled. "In any case, you''re right about that. This mission is important. Our agency, the Ironman Agency, had been tracking the Dejects for who knows how long now. And recently, one of our informants gave us a huge tip-off. Something''s bound toe down by the Yokohama Port. I don''t know if it was true or not but I''ll check it out nheless. It''s better safe than sorry, after all."

    "Do you work out?" Stoon asked out of the blue.<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi nodded. He didn''t bother telling Stoon that he trains with his dad every day.

    "You''re already ahead of eighty percent of all the superheroes in Japan. Your dad taught you that you can''t always rely on your superpowers, huh." Stoon said with a light smile on his face. "I have a son, the same age as you. He didn''t have a powerful superpower like his dad, but he practiced real hard. He''s in the Flowing Wave Academy. You fought with him during the Inter-High Tournament."

    ''Flowing Wave Academy? Who? Saturn? Why don''t I have any idea? I know every single superhero and a couple of their connections and rtives. If it was his son, then I''m sure I''d have been aware of it.'' Satoshi gave it a little bit of thought, but to his disappointment, he couldn''t recall ever meeting Stoon''s son. Did he have a son? The media never mentioned anything about it... or at least, as far as Satoshi could remember.

    "Confused, weren''t you? Haha." Stoon said. "His name''s Pietro Axor. He uses my wife''s surname though since he didn''t want everyone to know of our connection. It''s not like he''s angry at me or anything, it''s just that he wanted to achieve bing a superhero without my connection."

    "You mean Pietro Malmo? Oversight? He''s your son?" Satoshi couldn''t believe his ears. That guy gave him a hard time in the finals. "I don''t get it. His superpower is quite powerful though. From what I can remember, he has the ability to see three moves ahead of his opponent, right? Also, he has super speed. I witnessed it firsthand and his superspeed is much more refined than Speedster. I don''t mean his control is better than him, just that, he''s a lot faster."

    "Yes, he burned the midnight oil just to get to that level. You see, when ites to superspeed, reflexes also matter a lot. It''s not like your eyesight could always follow your movement. To think he''s reached that level of proficiency already." Stoon said, a smile of nostalgia spreading across his face. "Oh, sorry, I was rambling aren''t I? In that regard, however, I hope the two of you get along. I''ve seen your fight, and as the next generation of superheroes, I hope that you''ll take care of him."

    "Didn''t he want to be a superhero without using your connections?" Satoshi teased.

    "This is this, and that is that. Besides, I''m not using my connection, you don''t have any form of connection with me whatsoever, right? I''m just asking you to look out after him, as a fellow high schooler."

    There was no point for Satoshi to reject such an offer. Besides, after that match, the three of them thought that they could get along. Just as a wise man once said, it''s better to garner allies than enemies. "I''ll keep that in mind," Satoshi said.

    "I''ve seen your fight. You''re pretty powerful." Stoon continued. "My son and that kid from Great Mountain Academy almost defeated you though."

    "You mean almost ''killed'' me. If I were any other kid I''d have died back then." Satoshi rified.

    A few minutester, the group reached Yokohama Port. A usual weekday where the hustle and bustle considerably increased. Adding the heat of the sun overhead into the mix made the atmosphere ufortable, annoying, and sweaty. Very sweaty.

    "We''ll be waiting on that dock over there. It overlooks a huge chunk of the port so we''d hardly miss anything. Keep your eyes peeled, there may be lookouts strewn all over the ce." Stoon warned, his expression drastically changing into work mode as he handed each of them a bag.

    "Remember, the Dejects is not a bunch ofmon crooks, it''s an organization. Before we even caught wind of their ns, they''ve already set up precautions on the off-chance they fail. Don''t let yourselves be distracted by the business of the ce. Keep your guard up, you never know when the enemy will strike."

    With his short speech done, he led everyone to the dock, all the while hoping that everything goes well with the mission.

 Chapter 158 Traitor Within

    Back to the Present,

    Stoon med himself for not noticing the crowd gathering right behind them, but then again, who''d have noticed them within the business of the Port? And it''s not like Stoon had the leisure to be suspicious of each and every person passing through. ''Should I use my robot army now?'' He asked himself, fully knowing that the timing couldn''t get any worse. He needed to save up as much energy as he could in order to hold down the submarines. But now he''s forced to engage inbat which is sure to deplete his energy.

    ''They nned for this.'' Satoshi muttered in his mind.

    There were about two dozen or so viins surrounding them, each with their own unique abilities, of course. Merman and Flexor readied themselves, raising their fists as the group closed in on them. Even though there was still a chance for them to escape, they knew it was out of the question. If they couldn''t stand up to the viins right now, then everything will fall into chaos. The submarines are arriving as well, if they get to the shore, then things will take a more unpleasant turn.

    "I can''t believe you''ll fall into one of the oldest tricks in the book, Gerik," Someone spoke from behind the growing crowd of viins. He was wearing a monocle, and a cowboy hat was bnced on his head. A smirk was spread across his wrinkly face, and he walked with a weird gait towards Satoshi and the others. He specifically eyed Satoshi, examining him from head to toe as if he was a specimen in a science project.

    "What is a kid doing here?" He asked, diverting his gaze towards Gerik.

    "Crow Russel, you! Since when... " Gerik Axor clenched his fists in frustration.

    Gerik Axor felt a mix of rage and sadness as he saw his best friend standing on the other side. They grew up together, graduated together, and became interns together. They''ve been through thick and thin, their bonds solidifying even more. He was even his best man during his wedding a few years back.

    And yet... and yet this very same man that has spent his life with him since their childhood has joined the dark side, and he only became aware of it because he wanted to do so. What changed him? What made his transition from being a hero to a viin? To Gerik, he''s heard a lot of stories regarding that but his best friend has never shown any of his viinous sides. He was family-oriented, so much so that his son was even in the famous United Superheroes Academy albeit being a second-rate high schooler and all.

    "What happened to you?" Those were the first few words that escaped Gerik''s mouth. "You''d never do this, and yet... why?"<sub> </sub>

    Before the group of viins attacked the group, Crow Russel raised his hand, demanding them to stop as he exined himself. "And yet, here I am, you really can''t tell what the future holds, huh." Crow sighed. "I have my own goals and ideals, and somehow they aligned with them. So now I''m here."

    "Sigh, change of ns. Satoshi, you take care of all the viins. Merman, Flexor, and Plume, I''ll be assigning all of you under Satoshi. Right now, he''s the only one who can buy some time." Stoonmanded. While he believed that the trio had enough strength to probably hold them all off, he knew that Crow might have a few backup ns in his sleeves. He understood his best friend well enough to perceive what he was thinking. If Satoshi was the one to buy them some time, they knew he''d be able to carry it out, even without their assistance.

    Stoon didn''t just assume such was the case, after all, he saw how Satoshi fought with one of the Slime Alien who slipped past Earth''s defense during the recent Space War. What took three or more superheroes to defeat, Satoshi took down by himself. That''s how he knew that Satoshi was more than enough to keep them at bay.

    Satoshi nodded.

    "Let''s go." Crow Russel smirked, signaling for everyone to charge. Crow Russel has the power of lightning, or rather, he could summon lightning from the skies and freely manipte it. Because of his rivalry against Stoon, he was able to improve his precision when it came to his lightning superpowers. That''s why he could somewhat disrupt Stoon''s metal maniption. He could also turn into a lightning bolt himself, an invincible streak of pure energy. However, that form of his has a weakness, he could only use it high above the ground, otherwise, the ground would suck him right in, and then he''d have depleted his energy¡ª or worse, he''d suffer serious injuries.

    Without further ado, Crow Russel charged at Satoshi, his hands, lightning sparksing out of them. Satoshi immediately summoned the White Lion to take care of him though and then he began dealing with small fries. Their superpowers are pretty diverse, but one could tell only Crow Russel was a threat. But then again, it''s not like the group came here to fight, rather, they came here to buy some time until the goodse, and to also weaken Stoon so he''d have problems dealing with the submarines. This was also the reason why there were three submarines instead of one.

    What the group wasn''t aware of was that only one submarine has the goods. The other submarines were just decoys. They did that because they knew Stoon wasing. Had it been any other superhero, they''d have dealt with them differently.

    Merman and Flexor started close-quartersbat with the other viins as well. As for Plume, she began circling at the top of the ce, shooting her feathers at anyone who tried to get near Stoon. There were so many of them though, and although their superpowers were just subpar, they weren''t below average either.

    "They''re here!" Stoon roared, sensing the submarines who were about to ascend from the water.

 Chapter 159 Boosting Incident (Version 2.0)

    A man wearing a hood grinned mischievously as he watched the helmsman of the submarine in front of him. His long ck hair swayed with the waves, irritating his eyes. This made him flick his bangs from time to time, which is a pain to see. Even the other people in the submarine didn''t want to look at him. It just made them feel annoyed to the point that they want to shave his head.

    "We''re here," The man said, turning around just so he could address everyone in the submarine. They eagerly stared at him, notwithstanding his habit of flicking his bangs as if they were flies on his forehead. "Tonight, we show the world just how powerless these superheroes are!" He announced, raising his hands to further prove his point. A cheer could be heard amongst the crowd, then they started disying their powers.

    ''It''s all thanks to that guy Crow Russel. But who would''ve thought that he''d side with us? No, maybe it''s the supreme leader''s will. I am but a mere chess piece. It is unnecessary for me to question his decisions.'' The man said to himself, walking towards the crowd of viins.

    He passed by them, but he continued walking, finally arriving at the tail part of the submarine where all the goods are stored. Finally, the great n of the supreme leader will be put to fruition, and no one can stop it once itmences, not even the mighty Midoriyama Duo. No one.

    ...

    The Boosting Incident. An incident where viins all over the globe were given the opportunity to be on par with the superheroes they want to kill. With the Superpower Booster, viins amplified their power by more than a hundred percent, giving them the edge to defeat the superheroes they hated to their very core. Once again, absolute power belonged to the side of the viins, and the superheroes are fighting a losing war. The viins run amok the streets, piging as they go, and no one can stop them. The superheroes couldn''t do a single thing, and some governments even pushed the me on the superheroes, stating that they weren''t doing their duties properly. Many superheroes were lost that day, and a lot more resigned. They couldn''t take the pressure that everyone depended on them too much. Why don''t they fend for themselves? I''m fighting for mankind and yet they''re ming me for this incident? Those thoughts whirled around the heads of the superheroes. They saw the fight as pointless. A small percentage of them even joined the viin''s side.

    It was pure chaos, back then. And it''s surprising to know that this tribtion happened only twenty or so years ago.

    Before the Boosting Incident, the Invasion of the Metralloids urred, a race of metallic species that saw Earth as a weak target, and decided to invade it. Many superheroes valiantly fought in this Space War, and fortunately, Earth won. They were able to stop the invasion, but at what cost? Many superheroes died that day. Because of that single piece of bad news, the viins ganged up and took the opportunity so they could bring down superheroes once and for all. A mere week after the Metralloid Invasion, the Boosting Incident urred. Most formidable superheroes were out ofmission due to the recent Boosting Incident and well, the subpar superheroes couldn''t really take care of the viins. Even the weakest viin could easily go head to head with the top ten, this says a lot about the Superpower Booster that had beenmercialized under the radar of the government and the SAO.

    p And now, another identical incident is bound to happen. If Stoon''s team couldn''t stop the submarines and the ''Dejects'' by the Yokohama Port, then Japan will fall into pandemonium once more. And this time, more viins would join in, wreaking havoc.</anda>

    ...

    "Creaker-san, something''s weird with the submarines!" The helmsman screamed.

    "What''s happening?" Creaker asked, but his voice didn''t sound panicked at all.

    "We can''t go up. I''ve already disced all water."<sub> </sub>

    Beep.

    [There''s something wrong with our submarine. We can''t go up. Over.]

    [This is submarine three, we can''t break to the surface. Over.]

    "What''s happening?" Creaker bit his nails in frustration, trying to figure out a way to get out of the standstill.

    ...

    Back on the surface.

    Stoon gritted his teeth and clenched every muscle he could. It took all of his strength and focus to keep three submarines underwater and right now, he can''t afford to be moved. Even the slightest touch could throw him off his game. A nerve appeared on his forehead, and blood started rushing to his head as he clenched his jaws, even more, causing his eyes to go bloodshot. ''No... I must hold them until reinforcements arrive.''

    Meanwhile, Satoshi was doing his best to keep all the viins at bay. He was charging at a group, throwing a few viins around, dodging every projectile that came at him, and all the while protecting Stoon from the viins who were trying to disrupt him. This was the first time Satoshi fought these many people. Even with Merman, Flexor, and Plume''s assistance, he was still having a hard time. He had already summoned the Ice Queen, and Gabriel, but even they couldn''t deal with twenty or so viins. "How could they be so powerful? I thought they were only third-rate viins?" Satoshi said to himself as an ice spike flew by. Fortunately, Satoshi cleanly dodged it and it hit one of the viins at the back of his head. The ice spike didn''t scratch the viin''s head though.

    "Sorry, are you all right, master? That viin was about to stab you by the neck. You weren''t able to sense him." Ice Queen calmly warned Satoshi.

    "Thanks for the cover," Satoshi responded as he wiped a drop of sweat from his forehead.

    They''ve been fighting for more than ten minutes now, and yet not one viin had been defeated yet. Merman and Flexor came to a realization, but they didn''t want to voice out their suspicion, for fear that that would instill discouragement in their hearts.

    ''These guys, they''ve already used Superpower Boosters!''

 Chapter 160 Extinguished Hope

    Swoosh!

    The calm waves by the Yokohama Port washed into the shore, creating an almost enchanting rhythm to those who were to hear it. From time to time, however, these gentle waves turn to something erratic, almost rhythmless, causing the calm to transition into chaos. A metallic object almost surfaced from the ocean, but it was sucked back before it could even break the water''s surface.

    Fifteen minutes, that''s how long Stoon had been keeping the submarines underwater. He had long since reached his limit and his body was running on pure adrenaline alone. His heart raced, and buckets of sweat freely flowed from his forehead, trickling on his back.

    "Ghast!" Satoshi screamed before the viin with extended ws swiped at him mercilessly. There was no room for him to breathe, no, there was never a room in the first ce. The viins had calcted the power level of their enemy and were fully prepared for it. It wouldn''t be a surprise if they had a contingency n on top of a contingency n.

    It was a drawn-out fight, and Crow intended for the fight to remain that way. Right now, no matter how much Plume called for help, she wouldn''t be able to do anything. After all, someone from the viins'' group has the ability to put up illusions, and currently, that viin is working with someone who could jam the signals. To Plume, it may seem like her messages are getting sent, or her calls were getting through but no one was picking up... but sadly, such wasn''t the case. No messages and calls were going through due to the jammed signal, and the illusion made it seem like the opposite was happening.

    Merman and Flexor were nearing their limits as well. Satoshi had no choice but to summon Sera, so they could at least hold out for a little longer. It wouldn''t be long before they all run out of energy though, and Satoshi wouldn''t be able to do anything about it.

    "You should give up, Gerik! This fight has gone far longer than you can handle. Oh, how about this. Why don''t you join our side, and then we can call it quits?" Crow said with a grin.

    "Never," Gerik gritted his teeth in frustration.

    A de whizzed past Gerik''s face, almost making him flinch, but he held his ground. That de was a mere illusion, he was aware of it. In a span of fifteen minutes, he already trusted that Satoshi would be able to shield him from all attacks while he kept the submarine underwater.

    "Plume, you have to leave, go directly to Heimdall Agency and request for backup!" Gerik growled.

    Unbeknownst to everyone, Plume had been trying to leave ever since the fight has started. She knew it would only take a few minutes to get to Heimdall Agency and that''s why her initial response was to go there and give Eye-Goddess the details of the situation. However, something seemed to block her off, like an invisible dome that trapped everyone in it. No matter how much she pushed through, she couldn''t get past the invisible dome.

    "I''m on it," Satoshi called out. "On my signal, fly straight ahead! Don''t stop!" Satoshi said.<sub> </sub>

    The reason why he couldn''t put up a portal for long was that he was dealing with a lot of viins at once. Every single time he tried tomand his summons, the viins'' attacks would just get more intense, and there would be no room for him to think straight. They were greatly outnumbered and overpowered, it was quite a miracle that they could still hold out despite their absolute disadvantage.

    At this point, Satoshi had already integrated with Ghast so he doesn''t have to worry about giving him orders, he could just do it himself with Ghast''s help. As soon as he gave the n to Plume, the viins'' all converged on him, attacking him with their full power. Satoshi was being pushed back, but he didn''t care. Right now, the priority was for Plume to report back to Heimdall Agency. Satoshi also had to keep in mind that no attack should get through to him because that would cause their only hope, Stoon, to lose his grip on the three submarines. But then again, Satoshi had alreadye up with a backup n, just in case all else fails.

    Plume took a deep breath, dodging the barrage of attacks that flew towards her and yet disregarding them at the same time. With a twist of her core, she elerated forward, totally giving Satoshi a hundred percent of her trust. ''I hope I don''t crush into the invisible dome... Satoshi, don''t let me crash into that dome and injure myself.'' She silently prayed.

    Upon saying that in her mind, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Inhale. Exhale. She didn''t stop elerating... "Wait, I didn''t stop elerating?!" Plume muttered under her breath as she opened her eyes, only to find out that she was about to crash into a building.

    She brought her legs downward, causing her momentum to sling her vertically as she flew parallel to the building, a few ss windows were shattered, but no real damage was done, or at least, not that Plume was aware of.

    "I''ll be back, Satoshi, please don''t die." Plume said to herself, pping her wings in one big motion to properly herself even faster. The Heimdall Agency was on sight!

    The sliver of hope that stayed in Plume''s heart seemed to shine as she breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, she can tell Eye-Goddess about the situation, and then they can contact as many superheroes as they could for backup. The incident will end today and it won''t result in the sequel of the Boosting Incident.

    And then...

    ... she noticed it. The billowing smoke rose from the building of Heimdall Agency. The smoke wasn''t the only thing noteworthy about the ce, but the raging fire that seemed to devour everything around the vicinity. Down below, a famous viin was going on a rampage, he was swinging his arms around as mes continued to shoot off of them, melting and burning everything in its wake.

    "Pyromaniac?!" Plume was in disbelief at the sight of the superviin.

 Chapter 161 Collateral

    Three months ago,

    ''Gah~ what a day~'' Crow Russel ruffled his hair as he exited their office. Recently, his workload has increased and no matter how hard he tried to finish everything before the day ends, he would always be left with something to do¡ª then it''s another heavy workload the next day, and the next, and the next.

    He sighed, pulling out the lighter from his pocket and throwing it into a public trash can. He had quit smoking a year ago since he didn''t want his newborn son to see that side of him. Also, he has another son, who is currently studying in United Superheroes Academy. If he didn''t get ahold of his life now, then when would he be able to do so?

    ''I wonder what''s for dinner today.'' He asked himself as his stomach growled in response. Thest time he ate a meal was during breakfast, no wonder he was as hungry as a wolf right now.

    Dragging his feet to the train station, then walking all the way home, he was moving purely on adrenaline to get home. He may be a superhero, but even superheroes cannot escape the restrictions of hunger. That''s why he heaved a sigh of relief when he finally got home. At least, he can finally eat his wife''s home-cooked meal.

    Or so that''s what he thought.

    A smile spread across his face as he knocked on the door to their apartment. "Honey? I''m home." He excitedly announced before entering. In his imagination, he already saw his wife running towards her in her apron, weing her with a smile on her face. He already heard the ''Oh, you''re back?'' sweet swords of his wife as she embraced him, melting his fatigue away. The rxing atmosphere of the house, he almost felt it. Almost.

    But as soon as he opened the door, no one was there to wee him, not even the usual cries of his newborn son, or the slight nod of his teenager to greet him. No one. In fact, there were no signs of any family member in his ce. The lights were turned off, and an eerie cold aura emanated from the living room.

    "Honey?!" Crippling fear and panic rose within Crow''s system as he rushed towards the living room, only to find that there was a man sitting there.

    The man was approximately seven feet tall, with a burly body. He wore a trench coat and a hat that covered most of his face. His hand held a piece of paper and his legs tapped an indistinct pace. It was obvious he was getting impatient from waiting, but Crow ignored all of that. Whatever it is that happened in his house, he knew that the man was responsible for it.

    Lights began flickering in the house, and then a steady bzzzt sound emanated from Crow''s body while he powered himself up. The light bulbs, which were once flickering, now gave off a steady stream of light, illuminating the entire ce.

    There were no signs of struggle, and everything was in order. But then again, one couldn''t call the ce in order when the inhabitants were missing from it. "YOU! WHERE IS MY WIFE?!"

    Crow didn''t wait for an answer, he flew right at the man, with his fists tucked in. He was ready to deliver a good jab on the burly man''s face. And by the off-chance that it doesn''t work, he can just electrocute him to death.<sub> </sub>

    Notwithstanding his sudden movement, the man didn''t move at all. Instead, he raised his hand, fully intending to block his fist even though electricity coursed through it. The man didn''t speak a word, he calmly sat there with one hand holding a piece of paper and the other hand trying to block Crow''s fist.

    Zzzzzt!

    The punch connected, and a steady stream of electricity struck the burly man. However, he still didn''t move, nor did he have the slightest reaction to the electrocution. Instead, he smiled and twisted Crow''s hand. "I''m trying to be weing here, is this how you greet a visitor? You should at least offer me a drink."

    Just like any other superheroes aspiring to climb the ranks of the SAO Rankings, Crow also didn''t overlook his physical capabilities and had been training ever since. His lightning superpower is strong enough as it is, and the only thing that could give him more edge in a head-to-head fight is by increasing his strength.

    That''s why he was confident when he threw a punch at the burly man. He knew that it would at least hurt him a little bit, even if somehow, his superpower could negate his electricity. However, such was not the case.

    Crow immediately noticed the grin on the man''s face as he easily broke his arm like a toothpick. His electricity also didn''t work on the man, as if the man was a living ground wire. There was no time to back down, however, and Crow twisted and delivered a kick to the man, totally ignoring his dangling right arm.

    However, his leg also broke like a toothpick when the kick connected. With a groan, he sprawled on the ground. He has met his match. "Crow Russel, superhero name Zeus, with two lovely sons and a wife. Do you only amount to this much?" The man asked.

    With his left arm, Crow supported himself just so he could stand up, he tried to electrocute the man once again but to no avail. The man was simply electric-proof¡ª that, and no attack seemed to get through him. "What do you want?" He gritted his teeth.

    "I have here something that might interest you. It has its own drawbacks but you know how it is. Poweres with sacrifices, right?" The man said, handing an injection to Crow. "And let me get straight to the point. Your family is safe, I''m just... keeping them as coteral."

    p "I''m asking you... WHAT DO YOU WANT?"</anda>

    "Nothing much, just help me out on a mission, and then we''ll call it quits." The man continued. "I''m Creaker, by the way, nice to meet you, Zeus." After saying that, Creaker stood up, stretched a little, and handed Crow the piece of paper. "Give me a call when you''ve already decided."

 Chapter 162 Humanity

    No matter how one tried to break through beyond their limits, there would always be a dead end. That dead-end is inevitable, sort of like aw that governs everyone in their physicality. Even superheroes who seemed to be indestructible and all-powerful have a weakness, be it their loved ones, or a drawn-out fight that would expend all of their energy. Crow knew that perfectly well and that''s why the viins he brought with him were all defensive, or at least physically tanky enough that any superhero will have a hard time bringing them down. Their goal wasn''t to defeat Stoon and his team but to deplete their energy in a drawn-out battle.

    And it seemed to be working.

    Even the famous son of the Midoriyama Duo was already getting overwhelmed, and even with his almost invincible integration skill, he was nearing his limits. Sera, who had been buffing the four of them the whole time, was also nearing her limits as well, so Satoshi had no choice but to put her back in the Orb Oboros so she could rest. This was the first time he saw one of his familiars get exhausted and he couldn''t get used to it. But then again, that much should be expected since they''d been at it for at least an hour now.

    There was still no sign of Plume, nor any sign of backupsing to their aid.

    "What do we do now?" Flexor asked as one of the viins with a strength-type superpower (like him) overpowered him, pinning him on the ground and locking one of his arms behind so he wouldn''t be able to move. Another viin who could extend his appendages managed to catch Merman off-guard as well, wrapping him around and rendering him immobile. The only one left standing between the viins and Stoon was Satoshi.

    A barrage of fireballs shot at Satoshi causing him to jump sideways. Something blocked his path, however, an invisible panel that made him look stupid. Without thinking twice, Hajime crouched so he could dodge the fireballs but a few of them grazed his back. Before the fireballs reached Stoon, he used Ghast''s power and created a portal on their trajectory, then released the fireballs down on the other viins.

    Suddenly, the ground where he stood began turning into mud, Satoshi lost his footing and a series of ws and spikes almost cut him in half. If it weren''t for Ghast who was currently integrated with him, he''d have died right then and there. He summoned Nailgun and then called out Gabriel and the Ice Queen to aid him. "I''ll be relying on you again, sorry,"

    "No worries, master," Gabriel reassured him, giving him a thumbs-up before summoning his Phoenix. His phantom tigers also came out as well, and they were the ones who dealt with the viin with ws and the viin who shot spikes. As for his Emperor Penguin, it focused on the viins who have fire-type superpowers, and his Commander dealt with this who could fly. Since Satoshi was already having trouble controlling his familiars while he was integrated with one of them, he decided to leave most of the fighting to Gabriel and the Ice Queen.

    But then again, it should be emphasized that these viins used Superpower Boosters. That''s why even though their superpowers aren''t that strong, they gained a huge boost to their abilities. These viins should''ve been small fries in front of Gabriel and the Ice Queen but even they had a hard time dealing with them. For the first time throughout the one-hour battle, both sides reached an impasse. Of course, it may look like a deadlock but it''s actually a huge advantage for Stoon''s side since their main goal was to buy some time.

    "Nothing will happen if you just keep on defending, Stoon," Crow called out. He didn''t stop trying to attack Stoon with lightning, but his lightning would always be nullified by Satoshi''s white lion. Satoshi only calls his White Lion when Crow attacks and this gesture was a huge low to Crow''s pride.

    "No one wille to your aid, and pretty soon, we''d be able to transfer the goods and deliver them to all the underground markets in Japan. By the time all the superheroes are notified, everything would be toote."

    "Yeah, we''ll see about that," Stoon muttered.

    Half an hour ago, Stoon should''ve already copsed but somehow, Satoshi''s buffs kept him going. First, he summoned a cute stuffed-toy-like creature that floated atop them, and now he summoned a phoenix. These two familiars gave him the strength he needed. Although his limiter was removed, he didn''t run out of energy. There were certain moments when he felt like dying, however, but he held on, knowing that they were the only ones who stood between a peaceful nation and a dead one.

    .....

    The devastation that Pyromaniac caused at the heart of Tokyo was truly a sight to behold. Not only did he melt dozens of buildings, but even the ground also melted in his wake. It was so fiery that the reporters were stationed a kilometer or so away, just so they wouldn''t feel the intense heat that Pyromaniac caused.

    <o>,m Plume also couldn''t get near as well. A few seconds ago, the Heimdall Agency was still intact, but now it was like melted cheese, flowing on the ground and merging with it. Fortunately, Plume didn''t detect any people inside the Heimdall Agency. Plume probably saw the future and told everyone to evacuate.</o>

    While that, in and of itself, is a good thing, it still didn''t solve the overall problem of a superviin running amok. When Pyromaniac was caught a few years back, it took more than a dozen superheroes to bring him down. Right now, there was only Plume in the scene and she was flying way overhead. What they need right now is a powerful water-type superhero. That''s their only hope.

    Suddenly, a projectile seemed to slingshot from the reporters'' area towards Pyromaniac. The reporters were shocked by the sudden appearance of the projectile but they managed to point their cameras at it. Upon closer inspection, they realized that the projectile was actually arge orb of water¡ª

    ¡ª and in it was a person.

    .....<sub> </sub>

    Aquaborne''s visit to Japan was a result of both curiosity and assurance. First, he wanted to get to know the famous son of the Midoriyama Duo, Midoriyama Satoshi. And second, he wanted to use his connections to pave the way for his daughter''s transfer.

    Unexpectedly, he came at the wrong time. What should''ve been a rxing visit soon turned the exact opposite as a superviin managed to escape prison and started wreaking havoc in the center of Tokyo. Apparently, Aquaborne was on his way to the airport when he heard the news, and he immediately rushed over to check the scene.

    When he arrived, however, things had already taken a turn for the worse. No one was responding and a superviin was let loose. The incident had already aggravated to the point that no ordinary superhero could stop it. Aquaborne had no choice but to step in,unching himself towards Pyromaniac while enveloped withpressed water. This is one of his special moves, the Hydro Cannon Ball.

    Meanwhile, Plume took this chance to distract Pyromaniac, shooting him with some of her feathers but he easily parried them. Pyromaniac was surprised to see Plume flying above him but he wasn''t thrown off guard at all. Before Plume could react, a spire of me shot towards her at increasing speeds.

    Now, Pyromaniac wasn''t just any other viin. He''s actually one of the most powerful fire-type viins so his mes were no joke. Even if Plume were to block his mes using her indestructible wings, she could still get scorched due to its intensity. That''s why she dropped her urge to block the attack. Instead, she tried to fly away as fast as she could. The mes, however, spread in the air and continued to shoot towards her, covering a much greater distance than her.

    In other words, there was no way she could dodge the attack. Out of desperation, she covered herself with her wings, hoping that she won''t get burned to death. So much about causing a distraction.

    Just before the fire reached the tips of her feathers, however, it was extinguished in an instant. Instead of flinching from the stinging pain of a burn, she flinched as drops of water sshed onto her. She unfurled her wings and maintained altitude, fairly certain that Aquaborne managed tond a good hit.

    Aquaborne stood in front of Pyromaniac, his blue hair swaying with the breeze just like a scene in a clich¨¦ superheroic. A smile formed on his face as he extended his arms, orbs of water forming all around him. "Plume! Just go do you thing, you can leave me here with this small fry." Aquaborne announced.

    At the same time, Pyromaniac licked his lips and extended his hands as well, orbs of mes surrounded him. "You think you''re the only one with that gimmick, huh." Pyromaniac eximed before unleashing his barrage of fire balls. Aquaborne started shooting his water orbs as well, matching his attacks with Pyromaniac. "I don''t have time to deal with small fries like you." He said, waving his hand upward.

    In an instant, a huge wave rose up out of nowhere, smoothly sliding towards Pyromaniac who have no room to dodge. This was another exclusive special move by Aquaborne¡ª Tsunami Wave. Using his innate energy, he draws out water from an unknown source and uses it to overwhelm his opponents. He could form the water in any way he wanted but as for this moment, tsunami seemed like the best attack. Moreover, it was shy, so the reporters are sure to have a celebration if they get a footage of it.

    The tsunami attack didn''t just wash away the fire that Pyromaniac caused, it also flooded the vicinity and washed the rubble away. Of course, Aquaborne took into consideration the fact that everyone was already evacuated. Had that not been the case, he''d have used an entirely different special move.

    From afar, the group of reporters and civilians started cheering. All the cameras pointed at Aquaborne as he raised his fist, a gesture of victory that a superhero does after a sessful battle.

    Meanwhile, Plume headed towards the flock of reporters and tried to get in front of as many cameras as possible. The reporters were all confused but they focused on her camera even without their superiors giving them the signal. All of a sudden, Plume closed her eyes and scream. "All able-bodied superheroes! Come to the Yokohama Port right now! Heimdall Agency needs assistance with a group of smugglers!"

    Upon saying that, Plume turned around and headed back to Yokohama Port without saying another word. She had finished her mission. Now it''s time to go back and assist the others. She clenched her fists in frustration while hoping that everyone''s still on their feet. "Please be safe, Satoshi." She muttered to herself.

    A sonic boom resounded as she pped her wings.

    .....

    Satoshi''s memories started to turn hazy as he drifted into the state of consciousness and unconsciousness. His body was running purely on adrenaline and he could feel his control over his familiars slipping away. From time to time, he could hear Dex''s voice in his head, calling for him, prodding him to go back... but he didn''t know what he meant. His mind was in a state of confusion, and his movements were purely based on muscle memory and instincts alone.

    This was what Satoshi felt as soon as he tried integrating with two of his familiars even though his energy was almost depleted. Since Ghast''s abilities weren''t enough, he decided to integrate with Sera as well. Even though Dex had already warned him to slowly practice his newfound skill, he still didn''t listen. This time, something in the depths of Satoshi''s mind clicked and he started rampaging like a wild beast. Stoon, Merman, and Flexor watched in horror as he mercilessly defeated each and every single viin in sight. He was unstoppable, to say the least, and even Zeus was starting to get frightened of him.

    What Dex feared the most has happened. Due to Hajime forcing himself to the limits and going above what his body could handle, he had lost all sense of humanity in him, making him a killing machine in the form of a teenager whose regenerative and teleportation abilities matched no other.

 Chapter 163 Conclusion?

    ? [Satoshi! Satoshi!] The voice of Dex echoed in Satoshi''s head. Dex''s awful attempt of waking his master up was awful since nothing was happening at all. And while all these were going on, Satoshi was rampaging like a raged bull, driving the viins into a corner and helping Stoon get more breathing space.

    Although Satoshi could hear Dex clearly, he couldn''t do anything about it. It''s as if his body manifested a mind of its own, moving like a marite on a string. No matter how hard he tried to rein himself in, his consciousness just won''t connect with his body. Satoshi initially thought that he was dying, but seeing his body regenerate no matter how much wound he suffered, that didn''t seem to be the case. "So this is my peak... too bad I only get to witness it. With the amount of energy I depleted... I think I''m going to die at this rate."

    Those thoughts gued Satoshi''s mind while one by one, the viins dropped like flies. It didn''t take long before Zeus was the only one left and there was nothing he could do about the situation. With such a failure, he knew that he won''t be able to run, and that''s why he fought a losing match against the berserk Satoshi. He was extremely overpowered, however, and pretty soon, he was pinned on the ground with Satoshi on top of him. A barrage of punches rained down on him, knocking him unconscious before he could even retaliate.

    "Satoshi! Stop it right now!" Stoon screamed at the top of his lungs, but Satoshi just turned his head and red at him in return.

    "I don''t think he can understand us right now. He must''ve lost control over his superpower." Merman whispered at Stoon.

    "That was what I thought of as well... for now let''s leave him be. We can''t attract his attention since he might attack us too." Flexor added.

    He was toote with the warning however, and Satoshi charged at the three of them without reprieve. The bloodthirst in his eyes leaked out, almost making Stoon lose his focus over the three submarines he was holding down. ''This is not good! No... this is not good!'' Stoon slightly panicked, ready to throw some punches if Merman and Flexor couldn''t stop the teenager.

    Swoosh!

    Satoshi''s punch stopped at a hair''s breadth in front of Stoon''s face. He couldn''t afford to flinch so he just closed his eyes, and even then he felt an intense wind pressure epassing his face.

    Whack!

    A moment of silence, and then all bloodlust disappeared from Satoshi''s face as his eyes rolled backwards. He then fell on top of Stoon, almost making him lose his focus.

    "I''m so sorry about that. We almost didn''t make it in time." A familiar voice called out. "You okay, Gerik? What happened here? And why is Zeus unconscious on the ground?"

    "He... he betrayed us, Tatsuki-san."Gerik panted. "I''m holding three submarines underwater at the moment, and I believe all the smuggled goods are inside, including Superpower Boosters."

    "Superpower Boosters, you say?" Tatsuki pursed his lips.<sub> </sub>

    "Yes, the viins we fought have taken the drugs as well. We don''t know how many batches are inside, but seeing the size of submarines, I believe there are thousands of them." Stoon continued.

    A minute or soter, a group of superheroes rushed towards the scene, led by Eye-Goddess and Ayumu. They were surprised to see that the viins were dealt with already, which was surprising since Stoon was the only powerful superhero around. Merman and Flexor are just second-rate superheroes, that''s why it was hard for the other superheroes to believe that they were the ones who defeated all of them, including Zeus, who is one of the most powerful lightning-type superheroes in all of Japan.

    The only usible exnation on how they were able to take care of the powered-up viins was because Satoshi was there. Remembering the scene he encountered a moment ago made Tatsuki shiver as chills run up and down his spine. Even though he already masked his presence using an anti-detection ability, he still felt the bloodlust that emanated from Satoshi. Had it not been for him, Satoshi would''ve attacked everyone on the scene. It was the right call for Tatsuki to hit his son on the nape using his maximum strength enhancement, rendering him unconscious in an instant.

    "Never a dull moment here in Japan, huh." Aquaborne casuallymented. "What did I miss?"

    "Oh, nothing much, I almost got killed by a kid though. Seriously, the next generation of superheroes are scary." Stoon sighed.

    "You can let go of the submarines now, Stoon. We''ll handle the rest." Tatsuki said, patting him on the shoulders.

    That assurance made Stoon rx a little bit. And as soon as he did so, all the strength left his body and he became unconscious in a split second. He was still standing though, just that his eyes were clear white since it rolled backwards as well, just like what happened to Satoshi.

    Slowly, the submerged submarines surfaced out of the water. Everyone gaped in awe as they saw the sheer size of the submarines. To think that Stoon managed to hold them down for more or less an hour said a lot about his abilities. There was a pause, and then Tatsuki noticed something that made him scratch his head.

    "Didn''t he say that there were three of them? Where''s the other one?" He asked himself. "Merman! You should dive down and check where the third one is."

    Merman nodded and immediately jumped into the water. He immediately activated his sonar-like ability since the submarine must still be underwater. Such a huge vehicle can''t be missed easily.

    Or so that''s what he thought.

    The moment he dove deeper, he saw that the top part of the submarine was slowly descending into deep waters. It''s as if someone removed the top part of the submarine and let Stoon hold onto it¡ª a decoy. Merman clicked his tongue. As he surfaced and shook his head, Tatsuki already knew what he meant even though he hasn''t exined anything yet.

    They won the battle, but they lost the war.

 Chapter 164 Control Control

    The next day, reporters all throughout Japan covered the incident in Yokohama Port. However, they only mentioned the fact that there the viins cornered Stoon and his team of interns. Not once did any of the news stations say anything about the usage of Superpower Boosters even though it had already been proven that the viins involved, except for Zeus, had traces of the drug in their system. The reason why it wasn''t included in the reports was that it would only cause unnecessary panic, and the government, along with the SAO, decided to put it under wraps. Since the incident was foiled anyways, there was no need for the masses to know of it. Even though Stoon and his team insisted that they weren''t able to gather the smuggled goods and the supposed Superpower Boosters, the two prominent figures in Japan''s politics ignored them.

    Satoshi woke up to the sound of a car being parked in front of the house. Out came Yukino Yukine, along with his daughter, Shiroi. Apparently, his parents invited them for breakfast. After all, it had been weeks since theyst ate a meal together. Furthermore, both Tatsuki and Yukine wanted an inside scoop on what happened during Satoshi''s fight with the viins since he ran out of control and single-handedly dealt with everyone. Even with the two of thembined working together against the viins that used the Superpower Booster, they knew that they wouldn''t be able to survive for long. One of the main reasons why the Boosting Incident caused the masses to doubt the power of the superheroes was because a single viin could easily overpower one of the top tens back then. All the normal superheroes had a hard time dealing with all the viins that ran rampant all over the streets. And as for the top ten, they didn''t get a single moment''s rest. All of them were always on the battlefield, and some of them even died. Back then, the Midoriyama Duo were only in the top 6-10.

    Yes, the top five of the SAO Rankings were killed, along with countless high-ranking superheroes. The Midoriyama Duo really had to step up to the te and put a stop to the incident. They were able to do it, capturing Kronos Schiltz in a perfect tandem fight where Ayumu tanked all his hits while Tatsuki whittled down his hp. It was like an end-game epic boss fight where the stakes are high on the yer''s team.

    Thanks to the hard work and sacrifice of all the superheroes back then, peace once again thrived in thend of Japan, and now, society is finally returning to its former state of bnce.

    But with this recent incident where Superpower Boosters were involved, it''s bound to snowball into an even greater event. While the masses weren''t told about the specifics of the incident, every single high-ranking superhero was briefed about it. They were told about the hidden details of the recent incident and were reminded to be wary, that any slight suspicion should be taken with seriousness. Zeus''s betrayal was unavoidable, and he already exined his case to the SAO, that his wife and sons were kidnapped and threatened. Of course, that was a valid reason since most would do the same if they were in the same situation. Zeus was a high-ranking superhero, all right, but against one of the most formidable superviins, he has no chance of winning. Also, his wife and sons were kidnapped, and everything was plotted by none other than Creaker himself. Back then, Zeus recognized the intruder''s superpower, and he immediately knew whom he was dealing with. Because of that, he didn''t retaliate further.

    A wild manhunt mission was ordered to the most trusted superheroes, the Top Ten, and they were given the task to be on the lookout for Creaker who recently escaped prison. Zeus couldn''t face the public anymore, and his sons and wife were nowhere to be found. There was nothing he could do but mourn.

    ...

    Back to the Midoriyama Household, the Midoriyamas and the Yukinos sat around the table, enjoying the breakfast that was prepared by Ayumu. Shiroi was surprised to see that Emma lived on the same roof as Satoshi and she gave him a suspicious stare. Panicked, Satoshi mouthed ''I''ll exinter'' before they started eating.

    "I couldn''t believe you were able to do that. So like, not only can you summon powerful familiars, you can also merge with them and have their superpower?" Yukino Yukine, Shiroi''s father, excitedly asked as he ate a sunny-side-up with one bite.

    "I couldn''t believe it either when I saw it. Fortunately, the two of us reached the scene first, otherwise, we wouldn''t be able to exin what happened."

    "Yeah," Ayumu chimed in. "Satoshi, may I ask what happened? I saw you from afar, did you lose control over your superpower?"<sub> </sub>

    Before Satoshi could answer, his dad answered in his stead. "Yeah, no doubt. The normal Satoshi wouldn''t have been able to defeat two dozen boosted viins¡ª that or it''s just adrenaline doing its trick."

    "No, Dad, I really did lose control back there," Satoshi answered. "I felt my body moving on its own, and no matter how hard I tried to rein it in, it just wouldn''t listen. My familiars were also driven to the limit as well. Had you not stopped us, dad, my two familiars would''ve died after depleting all their energy."

    Silence befell the table but Satoshi still kept eating. Doing so would ease the tension after all, and he didn''t want his breakfast with Shiroi to be ruined. In response, the others resumed eating as well, trying to find an opportune time when they''d be able to bring up another topic.

    "Ehrmm," Tatsuki cleared his throat. "Yukine, do you remember back then, when we were up against the Silver Spoon Gang?"

    "Yes, how could I even forget that fight, two against a hundred and one, right?" Yukine chuckled. "Ah, that''s right! Listen here, Satoshi. Did you know, your father used to lose control of himself whenever a fight gets out of hand. Right now, it doesn''t happen much but way back then, he would always pull through and win against all odds, after losing control, of course."

    "Just like you, Satoshi," Tatsuki continued what Yukine was saying. "And ask any superhero out there, they''ve experienced losing control at least once in their life as a superhero. It''s normal, but just like everything involving your body, you can control it."

    Apparently, Tatsuki could sense that Satoshi felt rather dejected about losing control over himself. As someone who is proficient in physicalbat, he has always trained himself control, and yet, that control betrayed him for the first time in his life. Of course, he''d feel dejected, it''s as if his very being turned against him. No matter what the reason is, Satoshi knew all too well that it was his own shorings that resulted in that.

    "What should I do?" He asked, swallowing his pride. Dex had already told him what to do, but his instructions were unclear since it only involved using his superpowers more.

    "As the saying goes, go beyond pl¡ª I''m kidding. Ehrmm! As the saying goes, you cannot control the wind, but you can guide your way using it. The same works on superpowers." Tatsuki pointed out. "Come with me,"

 Chapter 165 The Suppressor

    After eating breakfast, the group went down the Midoriyama''sir. There was a delighted expression on Tatsuki''s face as the five of them descended. Meanwhile, Ayumu just smiled. She knew just how much her husband was looking forward to this for a long time now.

    As for Satoshi, he was a bit worried. Apprehension was written all over his face as he meekly trailed behind. He didn''t want Shiroi to see his pathetic side though so he tried to wear a poke face of confidence, all the while feeling anxiety in his system.

    ? "Back in the day, this was given to me as a prototype by one of the famous engineers in America. This was back when the Hero Age exploded into the scene and many people who manifested their superpowers were afraid of the new norm. Almost every single one of these first-generation superheroes went out of control. Some were able to control themselves and the others, well, they needed some assistance.

    "That''s when suppressors are invented."

    "Oh, I''ve heard of that. It was discussed in our history ss, remember?" Shiroi joined in on the conversation.

    "Yes, back in the day, every superhero has a suppressor, a machine that looked like a capsule of some sort. This machine can temporarily absorb the energying out of the Alpha Gene and it could greatly help the superhero gauge their limits." Tatsuki continued walking towards the corner of their.

    "But now, the second and third-generation superheroes don''t really need suppressors since the Alpha Gene has stabilized a bit. With this, suppressors are deemed useless and no one uses them anymore. It was like a relic even though it only appeared fifty or so years ago."

    "Basically, the suppressor confines you in a small space where you can unleash your superpower at the maximum. Once you reach your maximum output, you''ll be able to control your power and dial it down a bit. While you do that, the suppressor will adjust the amount of energy it absorbs based on your output and it will greatly help you with your control as well. By the way, all of us were so strong that we basically had to use the suppressor. That''s why I still have one." Tatsuki said with a grin.

    When the group reached the edge of their, the light automatically turned on at that portion of the room, revealing different equipment and machinery that were once used by the Midoriyama Duo. Even the famous Midoriyama Mobile was parked there, its ck sheen was as brilliant as ever.

    Tucked in the corner of their was a tube-like object. A thick nket was draped over it, masking its presence. As Tatsuki pulled the nket, ayer of dust was disturbed, causing everyone to cover their mouth as they started coughing.

    It was as Tatsuki described it¡ª a capsule, except it was vertically ced. A thin transparent ss covered the capsule and the entrance was framed with steel. Gadgets and buttons and wires seem toe out in unexpected ces. It looked more like a torture chamber than a suppressor.

    "Get in," Tatsuki told his son. ]

    Shiroi''s presence dictated what Satoshi had to do. Even though he was unsure of the machinery since it looked extremely suspicious, he steeled himself and decided to walk inside without hesitation. If Shiroi wasn''t there, then he''d have thought twice about going into that machine. ''I can''t show my weak side, not with her here.'' He told himself.

    The suppressor''s entrance automatically swung open and Satoshi stepped inside. The feeling of ustrophobia crept up on him but he decided to ignore it. Right now, he needed to go through this. Even though the chances of this helping him were low, he still wanted to take the chance while trusting his parents at the same time.<sub> </sub>

    Emptying the thoughts in his head and the urge to get out of the machine, Satoshi closed his eyes and focused. The machine began to shake, then stir. A constant whirring sound then came out of it, with the asional ''bzzt'' of electricity on its head. At first, Satoshi''s mind told him that it might teleport him somewhere unknown but seeing that he hasn''t budged from his ce, he dismissed the idea.

    "Now used your superpower! Try to use its maximum output!" Tatsuki screamed, overpowering the loud whirring sound of the machine.

    In all honesty, Satoshi felt like he was being experimented on by his parents but the expressions on their faces really showed the concern they felt for him. He knew they were doing what they could to help him with his current setback, and so he decided to listen to their word and use his superpower.

    Once again, Satoshi did his weird dance where he tried to manifest the mes on his hand. His pupils turned to blue, and a small lick of me appeared on his hand, a light blue me that danced as he moved his palm.

    However, Satoshi didn''t stop there. He continued focusing all his power, all his energy as he tried to continue forming the blue me. Before, it grew bigger and bigger as he focused on it. This was the second time he was going to do it. The first one was when the White Lion and the Lighter became his familiar and back then, two orbs of fames appeared on his hand.

    One Orb.

    Two Orbs.

    Three Orbs.

    The orb of mes multiplied as he focused his superpower. When he reached the seventh orb, however, things started changing drastically. The blue light in his eyes turned smic white, and the mes brightened in color until they shone a strong white light. The seven orbs revolved around his palms. Tatsuki and the others wondered why the machine hasn''t absorbed Satoshi''s energy yet.

    Turns out, it can''t detect the unknown energy that came out of Satoshi. Somehow, the energy Satoshi was releasing couldn''t be registered, despite the fact that the suppressor has always worked in every superhero.

    As the seven orbs continued spinning faster and faster, producing a weird ''blooping'' sound, they began merging in the palm of Satoshi''s hand. Something in Satoshi''s mind clicked and before he knew it, he unconsciously summoned all the familiars he owned.

    "SATOSHI!" Tatsuki shouted at the top of his lungs, he didn''t know what was going on. So did the others.

    BOOM!

 Chapter 166 Change

    The shockwave of the explosion almost knocked Tatsuki and the others off their feet. Thankfully, Yukine managed to erect a solid ice wall between them and Satoshi. Still, the force of the explosion caused the ice wall to vibrate and break, leaving them bewildered.

    "Satoshi!" Tatsuki screamed for a second time as he rushed to his son''s aid. Colors drained from his face as he imagined the worst-case scenario. Even though he''d never heard of anyone dying from using excessive energy, there was still a slight doubt in his mind that something bad happened to his son. He wasn''t the first one who thought that though since all of them rushed to Satoshi''s aid. The most notable one out of the group is none other than Shiroi, whose teary eyes became evident as she wore a concerned expression on her face.

    Never in Tatsuki''s life had he seen a suppressor malfunction. After all, the machine was already tried, tested, and it had stood the test of time. The only reasonable exnation they could assume was that Satoshi''s energy was different from other superheroes, and this caused the suppressor to not detect it. Had it been able to suck in even a portion of Satoshi''s power, it would''ve helped him even if it''s just a little bit. But then again, Satoshi was an aberrant and even his parents couldn''t exin what his superpower really is. Getting an unknown result from the suppressor is actually quite expected.

    When they got where Satoshi was, they noticed that he came out of the situation unscathed. They couldn''t exin the momentary appearance of Satoshi''s familiars but they guessed that his superpower must''ve powered them up in one way or another. They didn''t ask him any questions though. Instead, they came up to him and asked him if he suffered any injury.

    "W-what just happened?" Satoshi asked, dazed. He was even more confusedpared to Tatsuki and the others. The moment he released the energy that umted in the palm of his hand, all of his familiars were simultaneously released. His parents and the Yukino''s might not have noticed it but Satoshi certainly did. In that single moment, in that split of a second, he saw the familiars gathered in a semi-circle, bowing towards him as if they owe him respect. They didn''t even dare make eye contact with him, even Dex, who was most familiar with Satoshi since he was his system and his very first familiar, he still couldn''t look at Satoshi''s eyes. It''s as if they were admittedly scared of him, of the power he held that brought them into submission.

    For once, Satoshi actually felt bad that his familiars couldn''t even look him in the eyes. Even Gabriel and the Ice Queen who seemed more human than most of his familiars averted their gaze from him as if he were some sort of monster. He couldn''t exin it.

    ''Dex, what just happened?'' Satoshi''s question rang in his head for a few seconds before he realized that Dex didn''t answer at all. It''s as if he lost his connection with him, or he was purposefully avoiding him? Nevertheless, this was concerning for Satoshi, who had always relied on Dex whenever he needed information about his superpower.

    ''Let''s check the others.'' He asked, but his familiars were nowhere to be found in his mind just as he thought.

    "Satoshi, are you okay?" Shiroi asked, wiping the tears off her face as she turned away from Satoshi. It was toote though since Satoshi had already noticed the worry on her face.

    "I''m all right. It''s just that I can''t feel my familiars right now. I''ll wait for a few moments and then I''ll try to summon them again." Satoshi said to himself. "I better get going, I might bete for my internship shift."<sub> </sub>

    "That has never happened before," Tatsuki muttered under his breath as he stared at his son. "Son, don''t hesitate to contact us if you feel any changes in you, all right? We''ll try to do what we can to help you."

    "Sure dad. Thank you for trying to help me out. I''ll try toe up with other methods to ovee this difficulty." Satoshi continued. He was back to square one¡ª no, it''s as if the mad experiment reverted all his hard work to square one. He still wasn''t sure of it though since he could still feel that slight connection he has with his familiars, it''s just that they weren''t responding to his calls. One way or another, what Satoshi did brought about change, and it drained him of his energy quite a bit.

    In fact, Satoshi did his very best not to topple over and lose consciousness. Right now, he was exerting all his strength just to walk straight. He didn''t want his parents to worry about him. And as mentioned earlier, he also didn''t want to show any of his weak side whatsoever in front of Shiroi, who seemed pretty worried about his well-being right now.

    "Shiroi," Yukine uttered to his daughter, implying that he apany Satoshi outside, preferably until he reached Heimdall Agency.

    Shiroi didn''t need telling twice, she caught up to Satoshi and walked side by side with him. She didn''t speak a word. In her eyes, she could tell that Satoshi was way stronger than her already. Although she felt a bit anxious that he might leave him behind, she was proud that the boy who dreamed of bing a superhero is already living his said dream. Before, it was impossible, sort of like a reach-to-the-sky moment since he never did have a superpower. But now, he''s having a problem controlling his superpower? That proves that his potential is worth so much more¡ª so much more.

    <o>,m "You don''t have to worry about it too much, Satoshi.'' Shiroi assured him as the two of them rode the tform that led to the secret entrance/exit to the Midoriyama''sir. "You''re strong, and this setback just goes to show that you can still improve, that there''s still something you can do to be even stronger. Before, you didn''t have a superpower, right? And it''s only fairly recently that you awakened? Right now, you should think about that moment, the moment when you got your superpower. You should appreciate that more than anything else, don''t be blinded by your current setback. This is just another hurdle, another chapter of your life, right?" Shiroi lengthily said</o>

    "You''re right. Thank you, Shiroi." Satoshi forced a smile on his face.

    And as if on cue, Dex suddenly appeared in front of him, causing him to flinch backward.

    [Satoshi,] Dex called out, causing Satoshi to feel nervous once again.

 Chapter 167 Temporary Setback

    "Is everything all right?" Satoshi blurted out of the blue. "What happened? I thought I lost of all of you."

    Somehow, Shiroi was a bit weirded out that Satoshi suddenly started talking to Dex even though this wasn''t the first time she''d seen such an exchange. She decided to listen in on their conversation since she was also curious as to what transpired a few moments ago. Of course, she also saw the brief appearance of all of Satoshi''s familiars when the explosion urred. She was even surprised that Satoshi actually had a lot of familiars, more familiars than she had expected. There''s a definite difference between Satoshi summoning his familiars one by one and them appearing all at once.

    [Everything''s all right, Satoshi, you don''t have to worry about them. They''ve entered a state of hibernation after you''ve used up most of your uncontroble energy and directed it at them, forcing them to grow more powerful.]

    [This change wouldn''t have been possible if you didn''t forge your bonds with us. If we didn''t have a high enough affinity with you, then that energy would''ve consumed us, causing us to explode and die. Fortunately, you didn''t just focus on summoning only one of us. These past few days, you tried to put us inbat, and this helped us out a lot. Your power has stabilized for now, but at the moment, I suggest not forcing yourself and creating another familiar. This might affect the overall hibernation of the rest of your familiars.]

    [They may be hibernating right now, but they''re also in the middle of evolving, of climbing to a higher tier as a familiar. Please abstain from using your superpower in the meantime, Satoshi, and wait for them. I may be the only familiar who could assist you for now but I''ll try to do my best. I am, your system, after all.]

    The long exnation that came out from Dex reassured Satoshi even just a little bit and he sighed in relief. ''Now that exins why I couldn''t summon any of them. So for now, I cannot create other familiars, and I should just wait for them to wake up, right? I guess I could wait, but this makes me feel a tad bit uneasy. What if something happens and none of them are awake yet? I''m basically a sitting duck by then, right? I mean, Dex is here with me, but there''s only so much one familiar could do.'' Satoshi said to himself and Dex nodded to confirm. He was correct. Right now, he''s basically reverted to being an Unawakened, a powerless person.

    As the thought dawned on home, Satoshi almost choked on his dry saliva as anxiousness grew within him. Shiroi watched as all the colors drained on Satoshi''s face but there was nothing she could do about it. She knew just how dependent superheroes are of their superpowers. After hearing what Dex had to say, Shiroi just didn''t know what to say in order tofort her childhood friend.

    "Did you hear all of that?" Satoshi asked. "Well, it''s not like anything''s changed. Besides, at least I won''t have to worry about my powers getting out of control."

    "Don''t worry, Satoshi, you''ll get it back in no time, you heard what your familiar said, right?" Shiroi clenched her fists, changed her mind, and decided to pat Satoshi on the shoulders instead. "I guess this is my stop. Take care, Satoshi, do you want to go home together?"

    "Sure, you take care as well," Satoshi said, waving his hands. "Oh wait, which agency are you part of?"

    "Ironblood Agency," Shiroi answered before crossing the street and waving back at Satoshi a second time.

    ''Ironblood Agency, huh. So she didn''t join her dad''s agency as well. That''s a good choice though, Ironblood is bound to get into the top fifty in SAO Rankings soon, and he can teach a few things to Shiroi since he doesn''t rely that heavily on his superpowers.'' Satoshi continued.<sub> </sub>

    "Satoshi?" Someone called out to him.

    Before Satoshi could cross the street, Kuroe and Cherry greeted him as they ran into him. Due to her special ability of telepathy and psychokinesis, Kuroe immediately realized that something was wrong with Satoshi. It didn''t take long before she knew that Satoshi had temporarily lost his superpowers. Of course, she didn''t say anything about it, otherwise Cherry would know of it as well. And, she doesn''t really trust Cherry at the moment since she has two personalities. No one knows when her other identity might pop out after all.

    "Oh, Kuroe, Cherry-san, what are you two doing here?" Satoshi immediately tried to change the thoughts he has in his mind but he was a step toote. Kuroe already read his mind.

    "We''re going to Ironblood Agency," Cherry answered. "How about you, um... you joined Heimdall Agency, right, Satoshi?"

    "Oh, so same as Shiroi. Yep, I''m heading over there now." Satoshimented. "Well then, I''ll be on my way, have a great day!" He awkwardly said, trying to get away from the scene so Kuroe won''t have the chance to bring up what she just read in his mind.

    However, Satoshi was once again a step toote. Before he could cross the street, Kuroe grabbed him by the hand. "I''m sorry, Cherry, please go on without me. I need to talk t Satoshi." She said, somewhat in a desperate tone that Cherry was a bit surprised.

    Well, let''s just say Kuroe regretted what she just did a split secondter. She had spent quite a few days with Cherry and she knows what made her click. Just now, Cherry was a bit surprised, and she knows that the faintest of stimulus could make Sassu resurface¡ª Cherry''s other identity.

    Heh.

    In an instant, the aura around Cherry shifted and a creepy smile appeared on her face. Without further ado, she approached the other side of Satoshi and grabbed his other hand.

    "Oh, so you''re onto Satoshi as well huh. That''s not fair, Kuroe, hogging him and all. Let me go with you!."

 Chapter 168 Helping Out A Friend

    Sassu skeptically stared at both Kuroe and Satoshi since they weren''t speaking a single word. As the three of them walked side by side with each other, Kuroe just kept giving Satoshi nces and Satoshi would asionally nce back. It''s as if Sassu wasn''t even there in the first ce, as an overlooked decoration in someone''s attic.

    ''What happened?''

    ''I temporarily lost my powers''

    ''What?! How?''

    ''I was losing control of it, and you know, some stuff happened and now I''m basically a sitting duck.''

    ''By temporarily... do you know when it wille back?''

    ''I don''t know yet. It''s an unusual case of exhausting all of your superpower''s energy, so much so that even my familiars entered hibernation.''

    ''I see, so you just need to rest, right?''

    ''I think so, I am pretty helpless at the moment though.''

    ''That''s all right, if you need anything just give me a call. I''ll try to help you out.''

    ''Thanks, Kuroe,''

    ''Sure, no worries,''

    The entire exchange happened in both Kuroe and Satoshi''s minds since they conversed telepathically, leaving Sassu in the dark. Right from the start, when Satoshi got to know Kuroe, he already trusted her. And well, there was no need to hide anything from her since she could read someone''s current thoughts and connect her mind with someone as a two-way connection. Satoshi knew all of that so it was okay for him to tell her anything. Besides, Kuroe trusts him as well. In fact, she treats him as one of her closest friends. Amongst everyone in the ss, he''s the closest to her, and Shiroies a close second.

    "Sassu, let''s go, we''ll bete for our patrol shift." Kuroe suddenly spoke up, grabbing Sakura Cherry by the hand and causing her to lose her grip on Satoshi''s.

    "Wai-uh, what?! What was that all about?" Kuroe asked, throwing a light tantrum since she didn''t have any idea what happened. "I''m not leaving here until you tell me anything. Aren''t we friends?"

    Suddenly, Sassu''s hand glowed a bit and Kuroe immediately felt energy being drained from her. This made her unsp her hand from Sassu as she fell on the sidewalk. "Satoshi, what''s wrong? Are you okay?" She asked, leaving Kuroe on the ground. She didn''t suffer any damage since Sassu controlled her energy drain output. The only thing she felt was a bit of a jolt when Sassu activated her powers so there was no harm done, none whatsoever.

    "Yeah, I''m all right," Satoshi responded. He couldn''t just tell Sassu about his current predicament since she''s as unpredictable as the weather. What if she identally slips and tells someone about what happened to him? Satoshi didn''t want to risk it.

    "Are you sure?" Sassu asked, this time grabbing Satoshi by the hand and using her powers on him.<sub> </sub>

    Since she could manipte the life force, she could also detect if there was something wrong with it. That''s why she opted to use her superpower on Satoshi. A split second is all it takes for her to recognize what''s wrong with him. If her hunch was right, then Satoshi has a physical problem, not an emotional or a mental one. She could tell since Satoshi wasn''t the type of person to mull over his feelings or overthink things. He''s a straightforward type of guy, and that''s the reason why she likes him... or at least, Sassu (Sakura Cherry''s other identity) does.

    "You... you depleted your... so that''s why." Sassu finally understood why Satoshi didn''t want to share it with her. In an instant, her eyes glowed misty and she apologetically bowed toward Satoshi. "I''m sorry for being insensitive, I was just concerned for my friend, that''s all. I didn''t expect that you''dpletely deplete your superpower energy and that there''s no clear-cut way of regaining it. I mean, I''ve met a lot of people, and you''re the only one with this kind of problem."

    "What do you mean?" Now Kuroe was getting curious as well.

    "I mean, every superhero I''ve met can regain their energy when they use it. They can regain it normally, even if they deplete itpletely. But with you, it''s gone. Not gone... like it will never go back... but gone gone... like it came from a different dimension kind of gone." Sassu continued.

    ''I totally get what you mean.'' Satoshi said in his mind, making Kuroe''s ears perk up as she read his thoughts.

    "Don''t worry about this though, I know a way!" Sassu''s expression changed from being sorry to being cheerful. The transition was bizarre since it only took her a split second to change her mood. "Let''s go to a more secluded area."

    "But we''re going to bete," Kuroe tried to reason with Sassu.

    "No, this is more important than our internship." Sassu adamantly refused Kuroe''s reasoning.

    "All right, then. If you really can do something about Satoshi''s condition then we''ll trust you and follow you." Kuroe continued. "Don''t think about doing anything suspicious though. I may be weaker than you but I can put up a fight if need be."

    "Rx, I''m Sassu, not anyone suspicious," Sassu said, grabbing both of them by the hand. "Now off we go!"

    A few minutester, the trio arrived by an underpass devoid of people. At first, Satoshi wondered why they had to go here of all ces, but then he realized that this was the nearest ce with not a lot of people. As it turned out, Sassu actually gave it a lot of thought.

    "Here we are, now, hold out your hand," Sassu said extending her hands towards Satoshi, daring him to touch her hand.

    Satoshi absent-mindedly reached out his hand. However, when they were about to touch Sassu''s, he flinched and retracted his hand. Now that he thought about it, he''d never held a girl''s hand before.

    ''Are~ was that true?'' Kuroe teased in his mind after seeing his thoughts.

    ''Shut up,'' Satoshi said before Sassu grabbed his hand instead.

    In an instant, Sassu''s hand glowed, and Satoshi felt energy being transferred to him.

 Chapter 169 Back On Track

    The glow continued to grow brighter and brighter until it epassed the entire underpass, covering the trio in white light that almost blinded them. While Kuroe and Satoshi flinched impulsively at the sight of the light, Kuroe just smiled, assuring them that everything is fine and that there was nothing to worry about. Satoshi and Kuroe thought that the light has reached its most brilliant peak but they were wrong. The glow just continued getting more dazzling.

    Fwoop~!

    Something unknown resounded, sort of like energy being sucked in and sucked out at the same time. Simultaneously, the light dissipated. One moment, it was unbearably to look at, the next moment it was gone as if nothing had happened at all.

    When the lightpletely dissipated from Sassu''s hand, Kuroe and Satoshi blinked a couple more times before their eyes adjusted to normality once again. They could''ve sworn that the light would blind them but it didn''t. Instead, they felt something warm envelop them, like the warm sun on a chilly morning.

    "There, done," Sassu forcefully chirped. Nevertheless, she couldn''t hide the exhaustion in her voice.

    First, Satoshi stared at his hand, wondering if some sort of change happened to them. He scanned his palms and then the back of his hands but nothing really changed despite the conspicuous bright light that seemed powerful enough to do something. But then again, he did feel newfound energy welling from within his body, like a wild snake ready to pounce on its prey. He couldn''t quite wrap his finger around it so he decided to ask Sassu what she had just done.

    Sassu was in no condition to answer his questions, however, since she immediately copsed to the ground. Her breathing became ragged, and a mild fever attacked her out of nowhere. Staggering, she tried to steady herself but as expected, she fell on her face, as if in a daze. "Sassu, what happened to you?" Satoshi worriedly asked.

    "Oh, so you can tell it was me, hehe~" She cheerfully said. "Well, I didn''t do that much, just transferred some of my life force to you so you could recover the energy you lost. You really used up a lot of your energy, huh. But that''s fine, at least you didn''t die or anything because of it. Although, there was a good chance that you''d have died if I didn''t transfer my life force onto you."

    "I only got your energy back to its stable state. I hope that it would boost your system enough to recover the rest. I can''t really share any more of my energy with you or I''ll die. But I tried to give you every ounce of energy at my disposal. Sheesh~ I think Cherry might reprimand me on this one. Just don''t tell on me, okay?"

    Kuroe and Satoshi somewhat understood what she said so they nodded along. The energy that Satoshi felt had spread all throughout his body already. And in that instant, he once again gained his connection with his familiars. A sigh of relief left his lips, and he sincerely thanked Sassu who did all she could to help him without asking anything in return. "Um, thank you, Sassu, I owe you one." Satoshi bowed towards her.

    "No need to be so formal. We''re friends, aren''t we? Besides, you look a lot better when you''re not drooping your shoulders and frowning and all." Sassu weakly smiled. "Cheer up, Satoshi, don''t sweat it out."

    "Thanks,"

    "Right, up you go, we''re bringing you straight to the hospital," Kuroe said, lifting Sassu with her psychokic abilities.

    "Take care, Sassu, and thank you so much. Later, Kuroe." Satoshi greeted as the two headed to the direction of Ironblood Agency, which was the same way to the hospital, of course.<sub> </sub>

    As for Satoshi, he continued making his way to Heimdall Agency once again, this time with renewed confidence. Just a moment ago, he thought that his superpowers wouldn''t reappear in a long time and that he was back to being an Unawakened person. Fear and doubt filled his mind as he tried to ignore the problem of a superhero losing his superpowers. And more than that, he feared for his life, since he knows that he could easily be killed if the news about his superpower disappearing is made public. Fortunately, those thoughts could remain as thoughts in Satoshi''s head, all thanks to Sassu.

    "No, this is not enough," Satoshi said to himself, clenching his fists. "I should be able to fight off viins even without depending on my superpower. I should get stronger, a lot stronger."

    [Satoshi, I just detected your connection with your familiars, and it seems like they''vepleted their hibernation stage as well. Congrattions, Satoshi, you were able to ovee this situation in such a short amount of time.] Dex said in his mind.

    "Thanks," Satoshi muttered.

    [There''s one more thing to be concerned about however,]

    "What do you mean?"

    [Right now, all your familiars, including me, have evolved greatly and we have be so powerful. You can feel the fear in our hearts as we try to understand our newfound power. These powers are all granted by you, Satoshi, after you''ve given us enough energy to summon a whole army of familiars.]

    "Wait, what?!"

    [That''s right. While you have gained more control of your power, we lost a part of our control as well. So, Satoshi, you have to be careful every time you use us from now on. Always control us at one hundred percent, otherwise something bad is bound to happen. Please keep that in mind, Satoshi, please.]

    "So... all of you are stronger now, right? Isn''t that a good thing?"

    [Yes, and no... um, it''s kind of a double-edged sword, Satoshi. But I digress, if you perceive this as a good thing, Satoshi, then we''ll try to think that it is. Right now, we''ll try to get to know our new skills, and try to limit using us in the meantime.]

    "No worries, I''m just d you''re still there, Dex, and the others," Satoshi said in his mind, addressing each and every familiar. "For a moment, I thought I lost all of you."

 Chapter 170 The Slums

    "Hey, you''re the new kid, right?"

    It''s as if a huge burden was lifted off Satoshi''s shoulders when he entered Heimdall Agency. He didn''t even bother asking how the agency was rebuilt in an instant even though it went up in mes two days ago. In fact, the incident totally flew out of his mind. The only thing in his mind right now was that he got his powers back and that he should probably treat Cherry to something nice one of these days. Thanks to her, he didn''t have to worry about his superpowers. After all, superheroes are nothing without their superpowers¡ª that and their moral values, of course.

    "Yes," Satoshi answered, staring at the person who was almost the same age as him, or rather, who looked like the same age as him. He knew the guy, a rockstar from America who goes by the superhero name Crispwisp. He has the generic look of a young teenage American, blond hair and blue eyes, paired with a nice denim jacket and jeans. He is a pretty famous newly licensed superhero, not because of his looks, no, but because of his superpower which is shy enough to give his poprity all the push it needed.

    "Nice to meet you, I''m Ricky Tucker, people call me the Crispwisp." He said, extending his hands. "I''m the new member of the Heimdall Agency, so I guess you''ll be my senpai, right? I mean, I''m not really a fan of bowing to someone younger than me but hey, I''m just d I get to join the Eye-Goddess''s Agency."

    "Good for you," Satoshi responded, shaking his hands in return. "I''ve seen you on television, you know, back when you stopped two trains from colliding? That was, heh, that was pretty cool. There were no casualties from the impact as well, how did you catch them?"

    "Really?! You''ve seen that footage of me? Gee, thanks! Compared to other shy superheroes my age, I wasn''t really that popr. I''m d that I at least have one fan in this country." He rubbed his nose as he blushed, too taken aback by thepliment.

    Satoshi didn''t deny what he said. He really was a fan of Crispwisp, especially because he had the traits of a superhero that Satoshi aspired to be. In terms of his public appearances, Crispwisp seemed like a down-to-earth type of guy, and he wouldn''t settle for shy crimes even though he has the superpower to do so. Most of the time, he''s out there, chasing thieves and pickpockets, stopping car crashes, picking up trash by the beach, or simply helping out in themunity by giving out food. Whilst most superheroes wouldn''t settle for a low-profile mission, he''s different. He''d be the first one to volunteer himself no matter which incident is of the question. That''s why Satoshi greatly admired him.

    "Oh great, you two have already met. Satoshi, why don''t you take a patrol by the outskirts of Tokyo. Crispwisp, you can apany him." Eye-Goddess greeted as she passed by. "I''m sure you''ll find it a memorable experience."

    "Sure Eye-Goddess! We''ll do our best!" Crispwisp responded. "By the way, has anyone not told you about the elephant in the room?"

    "What do you mean?" Satoshi asked.

    "I mean, your superhero name. You''re just Satoshi? As in your name? Did you really go with that as your superhero name?" He curiously asked. "I''m sorry, I don''t know if my question offended you or anything... but I was just curious."<sub> </sub>

    "No, that was apletely valid question. Honestly, why haven''t I thought of that?" Satoshi said.

    Satoshi and Crispwisp turned around and headed out as per instructed by Eye-Goddess. Even though they just met, they suddenly had this connection that made them friends in an instant. Eye-Goddess smiled, she knew that Crispwisp wasn''t as popr but he has a clean record. And by the looks of things, she was pretty sure that Crispwisp doesn''t know the identity of Satoshi. "Oh, and before you head out!"

    Surprised that Eye-Goddess called out to them again, the two turned around and faced her, ready to receive additional instructions.

    "Just remember that even though Satoshi is your upperssman, you''re the one who has a registered license, Crispwisp. Make sure that the two of youmunicate properly if ever an emergency arises. Well, the two of you already know the ins and outs of patrol, the superhero schools pretty much nailed that in your head, but I''m just putting it out there that if... by a small chance that something happens, I want the two of you to act responsibly, and as a team."

    "Yes, leader," Crispwisp answered while Satoshi nodded in response. "Come on, Satoshi-senpai, we have an area to patrol."

    ...

    Later, at the area called the slums, by the outskirts of Tokyo.

    Even though this area is home to a lot of homeless people as hrious as that sounds, the government never really admitted the area to be called slums since that would give it a bad reputation for tourists. Of course, everybody knew that these are the slums though, it''s just that it was never publicized. Once called Kamagasaki, this area, a few hundred yearster, lost its name and is now only called the slums.

    From time to time, superheroes would patrol the area but they wouldn''t find anything, just homeless people doing their thing like sipping coffee, or reading the newspaper. They never bothered anyone and the crime rate, surprisingly, is pretty low in the slums. That''s why the Eye-Goddess sent Satoshi and Crispwisp here, just for experience before they started patrolling the center of Tokyo.

    "So, what do we do now? Do we just walk around? I mean where do we start, this ce is pretty big." Crispwisp broke the silence, causing a few people who were sitting by the sidewalk to look at them. Their stares were nothing malicious, however, so Satoshi didn''t feel weirded out at all. In response, he nodded to Crispwisp.

 Chapter 171 Girl In A Hoodie

    The overall vibe of the slums spoke just how deteriorated the ce was. Trash littered every nook and cranny of streets, and stray cats roll around in all ces, ying with garbage and pieces of paper. People slowly shuffle by as if they have no purpose in life, and Crispwisp and Satoshi couldn''t help but slow their pace down to match it with the residents of the ce.

    Makeshift houses filled both sides of the streets. From time to time, they would encounter stalls that sell suspicious stuff. Crispwisp and Satoshi didn''t bother checking any of them since that would just be a waste of time. Instead, they continually kept their guard up and observed everyone in sight. They came to a point where they stopped conversing altogether, the two of them getting too into their patrol.

    .....

    A little girl was surrounded by a bunch of men, eyeing her as if she was their most prized possession. One of them patted the girl''s head. "We have an order, you know what to do." The guy said, and the girl nodded in response. Even though the man who patted her on the head seemed oddly distrustful, he was the girl''s father, and right now she was going to do as she was told.

    The girl carried a basket in hand. She was told to approach the first two men who would to the alleyway and give them the basket she was holding. There was no need for her to collect the payment since the shipment was already paid for. It should be a smooth exchange, her father reminded her that much.

    With unsteady footing, she cautiously approached the corner of the alleyway. For a moment there, she forgot to breathe since she was filled with nervousness. Every single time her dad told her to deliver something, the people who would pick it up from her always looked like bad people. She couldn''t even look them in the eyes no matter how much theyplimented her. She was a mere courier, and thanks to the shipments she delivered in her basket, his dad and his friends could leavefortable lives. She also didn''t have to suffer just like everyone else in the slums.

    Still, the girl was still a child (ah yes, the floor is made out of floor) so she could tell whether she was doing something bad or not. While she doesn''t know what sort of stuff she delivers or why she was delivering it, she could sense that something wasn''t right. It''s as if every part of her being was telling her to stop. However, every single time her body tells her to sumb to her gut feelings, she would just shake them off as if she didn''t hear them. She was living afortable life, her dad doesn''t hurt her anymore, and the men who were with them were happy.

    That''s all that matters.

    As she approached the corner of the alleyway, a strong gust of wind blew her hood, revealing a pair of horns on her head, half-buried by her red hair. Her eyes were like mes, and one could tell that she was the type of girl that didn''t belong to the slums. She could easily pass off as a child actor, and yet she was staying in the slums with her good-for-nothing dad.

    Meanwhile, her dad just watched her from afar while he smoked with his buddies. Deliveries were always not safe in the slums and a package would always look suspicious. But a girl carrying a basket of cupcakes she sells for a few yens apiece? Now that''s the perfect cover for a perfect parcel delivery.

    However, no matter how lucky a person is, or how much he''d ovee the threads of fate, luck would always run out. Everything will be revealed, and the girl and her dad was not an exception.

    They were supposed to be the two customers, two customers who would pick up the parcel, pat the girl on the head, and thank her, and then everyone can be on their merry way. But no, fate had a few cards up his sleeves... or maybe it was Heimdall''s foresight that decided to catch them red-handed?<sub> </sub>

    As the girl reached the sharp corner, she turned around, only to be greeted by two young-looking men. She stopped short in her tracks and stared right at them. That''s when she remembered what her dad told her, that she should never show her full face to the customers. She immediately set the basket she was holding down on the ground as she put her hood back up. It was toote though since Crispwisp and Satoshi already saw her face crystal clearly. What she did just made her look suspicious.

    Usually, the deal would go like this. The girl would ask if they want to buy a few cupcakes. If the men would say yes, then they aren''t the customers and she would just sell them cupcakes. But if they said no, and that they were actually getting something from her, then she would know that they were the customers and she would ess the hiddenyer of the basket and give them the parcel¡ª a box, an eight by four inches box. Whatever''s inside it, the girl could only wonder. She had never seen what was inside, not even when she once tried to sneak a peek while they were packing it.

    "Would you like a cupcake?" She asked, opening her basket to reveal a few freshly baked cupcakes. "They''re just fifty yen apiece."

    "Oh, sure, I''ll¡ª " Satoshi was about to buy from the good-natured girl, pulling out his wallet from his sling bag when he realized that Crispwisp''s eyes were glowing yellow. He stopped speaking as he stared both at Crispwisp and the girl, trying to figure out what was wrong. From the surface, Satoshi could only see that the girl was trying to sell a few cupcakes to earn a little cash. But to Crispwisp, it was different.

    Thanks to his superpower, he could see things in a different light, literally, and something in the basket looked a bit odd. That''s why he stopped Satoshi shortly as he focused his gaze on the basket, hoping that he could get a better glimpse at the objects hidden under the cupcakes.

    "Sorry about that, how about we get everything, including the basket?" Crispwisp said, forcing a smile on his face so he could act a wee bit friendlier towards the little girl.

    ''Those weren''t in the options... but they didn''t just want the cupcake... so that means they''re the customers, right? They''re just probably hungry so they want to get everything.'' The girl thought to himself before she nodded and handed everything to Crispwisp and Satoshi. "You don''t have to pay. The money is more than enough!" She continued.

    "What are y¡ª " Satoshi was about to ask something when Crispwisp grabbed him by the shoulder and squeezed it so hard he winced in pain. It was a bold gesture to shut him up and it worked.

    "Thank you, young girl, what''s your name?" Crispwisp asked.

    "My dad said not to give my name to customers. Goodbye," She bowed before going back to her dad. Somehow, she didn''t feel anything weird from the customers. This time, she didn''t feel afraid.

    ''Why? Why wasn''t I scared of them? I''ve always been scared of them.'' She asked herself.

 Chapter 172 Blue Liquid

    The encounter was nothing short of suspicious and Satoshi was aware of it. But what''s even more suspicious was how Crispwisp handled the situation. Why did he take the entire basket instead of buying just one cupcake? Was there something in the cupcake? Why did a little girl appear out of nowhere? The more questions Satoshi asked himself, the more confused he became, and Crispwisp''s actions just made him more skeptical. Satoshi''s brows furrowed as his gaze shifted from Crispwisp to the little girl who was running away in the opposite direction.

    "Don''t follow her, no matter how suspicious it looked, don''t follow her. We don''t know what we''re dealing with here." Crispwisp''s voice suddenly changed into a serious tone.

    "Why did you do that? Is there something wrong with the cupcakes?" Satoshi asked. By now, the little red-haired girl disappeared from view.

    "No, but first, we have to intercept something," Crispwisp opened the basked and handed Satoshi a cupcake. "Want some? There''s nothing wrong with it. It''s a perfectly good cupcake." He continued, taking a bite.

    Satoshi thought twice before getting a cupcake from Crispwisp and eating it. It was actually a pretty delicious cupcake, he wondered if the little girl baked it herself. "You haven''t exined anything to me, Crispwisp,"

    "All right, while we wait, I''ll tell you everything," Crispwisp whispered. "You do know how my superpower works, right? I can direct energy in the air by shaping them like waves and moving and weaving them around. One of my special abilities aside from my energy maniption is energy detection. It enables me to see energy, much like how thermal vision enables you to see heat."

    "And?"

    "Well, while you were about to buy cupcakes from that girl, I sensed something underneath the basket. I don''t know what it was but it was emitting some sort of faint energy. It was definitely suspicious and then one thing urred to me." Crispwisp continued. "What if there were other people behind the little girl, making her run errands and deliver goods to other people? My hunch was right when I asked for the basket. She readily gave it to me without asking for anything in return, right?"

    "Right," Satoshi continued.

    "That''s a prettymon scenario. That means the goods are already paid for and she was just delivering them. I don''t know whom she''s delivering it to but one thing''s for sure, this is definitely something suspicious."

    "What if it''s just a toy or something, are you sure that you''re not just looking too much into things?" Although Hajime sort of understood where Crispwisp was getting at, he couldn''t help but approach the situation from a different angle. After all, there''s a good chance that Crispwisp''s hunch was wrong.

    "If it were just a toy, then I''d have ruled it out as such and let the girl go with her basket. But no, the energy I detected under the cupcakes is something that I''ve never seen before. I don''t know what kind of energy it is but it is definitely not your run-of-the-mill type of energy."

    "Let''s take a look." This time, Satoshi''s curiosity was piqued. Without further ado, the two of them dug between the gaps of the cupcakes and removed the cloth underneath. They saw a parcel.

    "Here goes nothing." Crispwisp held his breath as he carefully opened the parcel. What came out was a metallic canister, a cylindrical container that might''ve contained rolls of films. The unknown energy didn''t speak of cough drops, however, so Crispwisp grew a little nervous. Aside from candies and cigars, the only thing that could be put in metallic containers such as this one were syringes, or small hospital equipment like a scalpel, or scissors. Were they waiting to give it out to quack doctors? Satoshi and Crispwisp both had the same thought.

    But no, their assumptions were wrong in more ways than one.<sub> </sub>

    Clink! The soft clicking sound of the canister made the two of them gulp. Something slid out of the canister¡ª

    ¡ªfive syringes to be exact!

    Each syringe was identical to the other, a bright blue liquid swished inside it. Compound V? No, everybody who had been watching the news would know what the liquid was at first nce, and Crispwisp and Satoshi were no exceptions to it.

    "Superpower Booster. Oh no, Satoshi-senpai, I think we''ve uncovered something... something dangerous."

    "No doubt," Satoshi nervously swallowed his dry saliva as their eyesser-focused on the syringes. They carefully put them back inside before proceeding to finish the rest of the cupcakes.

    "I thought they were discontinued? Why are they still being circted? And in the slums too, no less." Satoshi muttered.

    "That''s how it is. The enemies really are like slippery eels. And right now, they''ve mastered working in the shadows even more. Why haven''t other superheroes encountered Superpower Boosters? That''s because the viins are cautious of them. They wouldn''t be seen in broad daylight carrying Superpower Boosters and the like. The best way to circte it around is by using third-parties... or using as many people as possible that are not connected to them."

    "You''re right... poor girl, she doesn''t know what she was doing." Satoshi sighed, clenching his fists in frustration. "She doesn''t have any idea that she''s an aplice of something unforgivable."

    "Yeah, but right now... right now is not the time to take action. Let''s capture the receivers first, and then we''ll take things from there."

    Satoshi nodded in response.

    A few minutester, two men d in ck arrived by the corner of the alleyway. Crispwisp asked them if they wanted some cupcakes, just like how the girl asked him a few minutes ago. As for Satoshi, he waited behind a pile of garbage, covering his nose since the smell almost made him puke. To their relief and disbelief, the two men answered that they were expecting a parcel.

    There was nothing left for both Crispwisp and Satoshi to do but to jump on the two men, knocking them unconscious before they could even retaliate.

    "Off to the authorities, we go," Crispwisp said as he slung one of the unconscious guys on his shoulder like a bag of potatoes.

 Chapter 173 Re-Patrol

    Eye-Goddess''s face was filled with worry as she sat in front of Satoshi and Crispswisp. It was all a hunch, a gut feeling that she should send the interns to the slums since there aren''t any idents that ur there. She thought that maybe they''ll be able to unwind and get a feel as to how a patrol is supposed to go. It was just supposed to be training for them, and yet they got themselves into a deeper hellhole than Eye-Goddess had expected. Even Satoshi, who was also eager to experience his first patrol, never would''ve thought that he''ll bump into a bigger problem once again. This had always happened every single time as if fate itself was targeting Satoshi whenever he moves even just a bit.

    A few minutes ago, Crispwisp and Satoshi got back to Heimdal Agency after stopping by the police station. There, the authorities unanimously decided that they wouldn''t report the capture on news stations since it mightmence a global panic. The Superpower Booster is something that almost reshaped the world due to its mere existence. If the popce were told that its existence had reemerged in the shadows once again, then the superheroes would surely feel the bacsh. It wasn''t even that worse in the past before, but the public had already med the superheroes because of the Boosting Incident. If such a thing were to happen again, then the policies that solely exist to keep the superheroes in check might get toppled, and chaos might ensue in the whole world once again as the fine line between superheroes and viins is made more conspicuous.

    "Did anyone see you? Were you wearing your costumes?" Eye-Goddess asked for who knows how many times already. She just had to make sure that Crispwisp and Satoshi weren''t in any real danger.

    "Yes, we didn''t wear our costumes. Also, we made sure that the group who sent the kid didn''t see us. Fortunately, Crispwisp''s idea of waiting for the real customers worked and we were able to capture them. We couldn''t question them on the spot since it might''ve attracted the other people in the slums." Satoshi exined.

    "If we''d known a few more details regarding this exchange, then we would''ve been able to round them all up, and then trace where they''re getting the Superpower Boosters," Crispwisp exined. "They''re using a little girl to deliver the package... and based on what we saw, this wasn''t the first exchange done by her."

    "Good judgment, I wasn''t expecting something like this to happen as well. It''s a relief that you managed to remember your training and you were able to maintain yourposure at such a relevant incident. Good job you two." Eye-Goddess said. "We will send the report to the higher-ups of the Superhero Assembly Organization and then we''ll wait for their decision. Most likely, they''ll give us this case and since you two were the ones who discovered the exchange, you''ll be a part of the mission as well."

    Crispwisp and Satoshi gulped at what Eye-Goddess just told them. They were going to be part of a mission? Even interns don''t get to experience such a rare opportunity. Most of the time, one should be licensed and already a pro hero before bing part of a mission. Despite that fact, Eye-Goddess told them that they were included, or rather, there''s a good chance that they''ll be included.

    "For now, I want the two of you to continue your patrol by the slums, watch out for these exchanges, and if you see anything suspicious, try to gather as much information as you can. However! Whatever you do, don''t engage with people involved with the Superpower Booster. There''s arger force at y here so we should tread carefully." Eye-Goddess continued. "Meeting adjourned, you can take a rest or continue your patrol shift if you want. Make sure to update me if you see or encounter anything noteworthy."

    First day patrolling and they''ve already stumbled upon something world-changing, Crispwisp and Satoshi felt nervousness creeping up within their system.

    As Eye-Goddess stood up and exited the conference room to take a phone call, Crispwisp and Satoshi just stared at each other. They didn''t utter a single word and yet they nodded at each other as if theypletely understood what it is they had to do.

    That''s right, they were going to resume their patrol once again.<sub> </sub>

    "Let''s go, Satoshi-senpai." Crispwisp signaled, and Satoshi nodded in response.

    A few minutester, they were back in the slums once again. By now, the sun was beginning to set and the coldness of the slums was emphasized by the night that would soon follow. The skies were turning a light purplish haze before it turned into a solid grey, marking the twilight and causing the slums to look more sinister than ever. Regardless of the nudging feeling they felt, urging them that they should head back, Crispwisp and Satoshi pressed on, their eyes like hawks as they scanned the area.

    "Do you think another exchange is going to happen today?" Satoshi whispered.

    "No, but there''s a good chance that we''ll stumble upon a delivery. You know, those guys need to restock while they''re giving out the Superpower Boosters, right?"

    "Right,"

    An hour passed, and there was still no sign of any delivery or any exchange. However, this didn''t affect Satoshi and Crispwisp at all. They were still as zealous as ever. Right now, they had to gather as much information and evidence as they could while waiting for the higher-ups'' decision. That way, putting a stop to these illegal activities would process much faster than normal.

    "Should we head back now? Our shift''s almost done." Satoshi suggested.

    With a sigh, Crispwisp nodded. "Sure, I guess we''ve had enough excitement for today. We should probably head back no¡ª "

    Before Satoshi could react, Crispwisp covered his mouth and dragged him by the corner of a ramshackle house. Crispwisp then pointed at the fork on the street where someone familiar was walking.

    It was the red-haired girl, apanied by a man who was wearing shabby, patched clothing.

 Chapter 174 Cupcakes

    "Let''s follow them." Prompted Crispwisp as he sprang into action, hiding from one spot to another as he tailed the red-haired girl and the man with him. Crispwisp already assumed that he was his dad, but Satoshi thought otherwise. He may be an acquaintance of the girl or a simple caretaker. Although it would be convenient to assume that he was her dad, Satoshi didn''t want to jump to conclusions.

    The two continued to walk until they reached the far edge of the slums. At this point, there were no more passers-by and the ce was long devoid of people. Crispwisp and Satoshi nodded at each other as they were thinking the same thing¡ª this ce is the perfect location for underground deals and the like.

    "Should we call the authorities right now?" Crispwisp asked, pulling out his phone which had been kept silent all this time. They were on a crucial mission after all and he didn''t want his phone to give away their location.

    "No, not yet, let''s wait for now. We still don''t know what they''re up to... and even if we did, we must rethink our n of action first before doing something stupid. This might even be a false rm from an unexpected source. Or maybe that source wanted to brew infighting amongst themselves. This might be our chance, it''s make or break for us, Crispwisp.

    ''Sasuga (As expected of) Satoshi-senpai! He really knows how to handle the situation!'' Crispwisp said in his mind as he nodded along. There was no way he''d disobey what Satoshi said. It wasn''t because he was trying to obey the letter of thew, but because he greatly revered Satoshi. In his eyes, Satoshi is one of the most sessful superheroes out there. Why? Because despite being one of the youngest, he was admitted to the Heimdall Agency, and his public records when acting as a superhero always seemed so heroic. ''It''s as if you''re already a full-fledged superhero.''

    "What are you looking at?" Satoshi hissed, beckoning for Crispwisp to look at the red-haired girl and the man with him. They were in the middle of the mission and he shouldn''t be losing his focus. In a mission, a single mistake can cost you your life. That''s why it is never to be underestimated¡ª any mission, that is. The only thing separating you from life and death during a mission is one small misstep.

    "Look, they''re making their move!" Crispwisp whispered, continuing his tail. He kept on signaling for Satoshi to follow along since they can''t afford to miss what was about to go down.

    "I know, I know, you don''t have to exaggerate your gestures," Satoshi whispered back. Even he was genuinely curious as to what they were about to do.

    As the red-haired girl and the man with her continued their walk, Crispwisp and Satoshi swiftly followed, not daring to make any noise. There were a couple of times when the duo turned around to check if they were being followed but Crispwisp and Satoshi were great at hiding and stalking¡ª pretty useful skills when ites to tailing someone.

    "There they are, they''re entering a building." Crispwisp narrated.

    "I know, I can see."

    As they entered the decrepit building, two men who were inside greeted them with a slight bow. In response, the red-haired girl and the man bowed down as well. It was a normal sight, but to Crispwisp and Satoshi who knew better, they knew that something was about to happen.

    "Let''s go,"

    .....

    ''Here are the scary guys again,'' The red-haired girl said to herself, flinching after she bowed. They were alwaysplimenting her and patting her on the head, telling her how good of a girl she was. But deep inside, she knew tha they had ulterior motives¡ª not that she was aware of the meaning of the word, she just felt rather out of ce. Their gestures and their speech contradict each other after all, and children are pretty sensitive when ites to hypocrisy such as that.

    ''Huh? Someone''s following us.'' The red-haired girl said to herself, sneaking a nce from behind. She didn''t make her movements that big for fear that his father will see him and look where she was looking as well.

    Crispwisp and Satoshi didn''t notice it, but the red-haired girl noticed them while they were slinking around like that. The red-haired girl even found them a bit hrious.<sub> </sub>

    "Aira, what are you doing? Get a move on already. We have an important oneing up tonight. A dozen batches. That''s a dozen batches for yah." His father said with a greedy grin on his face. Tightening the grip on Aira''s hand, he lightly pulled her. It was obvious that she didn''t have that much of a choice. Even if she wanted to squirm out of his grasp, she couldn''t do it. How could a weak girl overpower someone over ten times older than her? Even with her superpower, she won''t be able to do anything with that big of a gap.

    "Look, I''m only bringing you there because you''re our mascot. As much as I hate it, you make the deals a lot easier when you''re around. Aren''t you d? You''ll be able to help daddy and his friends. And then we can go on living ourfortable lives." Aira''s father exined.

    With slight hesitation, Aira nodded and hung her head down low. There''s no way on earth she can escape her current dilemma, no way at all. The only thing she could do was suck it up and go through it. It''s not like the guys were hurting her at all, no, but the fact that they''re using a child to further their illegal activities is unforgivable. Even Aira who grew up without ever learning morals knew that what his father and his friends are doing is wrong.

    She wanted out of it... there was no way out.

    However, there was a sliver of hope, lurking about in the dark, literally speaking. This hope had two names, Crispwisp and Satoshi. Aira might not know what they were doing right now but she was hopeful that they would rescue her. They were the only ones who didn''t feel ''bad'' to her. Call her gut feeling but she believed in them. It was even an understatement to say that she trusted them since she depended her life on them. It may be a gamble, but it was worth taking.

    She decided to wait.

    "A dozen you say?" One of the father''s friends hoorayed while pumping a fist in the air. And he wasn''t the only one who was ecstatic. Everyone in the room felt the same way. A dozen amounts to big money. If they were able to deliver all of these properly, then they''d be settled for life. For life!

    <o>,m "Believe me, I heard it directly from Creaker himself! This won''t be a bust, I promise. "</o>

    "All right, so when are we moving?" One of them cracked his knuckled before speaking. He then proceeded to crack his neck.

    "Tonight."

    "Tonight?! As in tonight tonight?!" The fat man amongst the group eximed as he shuffled closer to Aira''s father.

    "Yes, that''s why we''d better get going. We can''t lose focus here." Aira''s father said with a grim tone in his voice. Of course, it was a high-risk high-return mission so they cannot be too careful. Also, there were rumors that some superheroes are currently patrolling the area. He knows it was just a rumor but he cannot rule out the possibility.

    "Aira?"

    "Mm?"

    "Time to bake those cupcakes."

 Chapter 175 Aira

    Aira quietly nodded before sneaking a nce in the general direction of Satoshi and Crispwisp. She knew something unthinkable might happen to her if she disobeyed her father''s words, that''s why she meekly went to the kitchen area of the building and started making the cupcakes. There was aplete set of equipment and ingredients in the kitchen, that''s why she couldn''t really give an excuse to her father that she was missing an ingredient. One time, she tried using that as an excuse when she threw the flour in the trash can. Well, long story short her father saw what she did and she was severely beaten up. She didn''t want that to happen again, that''s why she just obeyed as she was told.

    Besides, she enjoyed baking anyway. She never expected that something she loved doing in the memories of herte mother would be something she hated to the point where she wanted no part in it. At such a young age, Aira already knows what hope and despair feel like, more especially the drastic difference between the two terms.

    With her talented hands, Aira expertly mixed in all the ingredients for the cupcake batter. It was all muscle memory for her¡ª how to bake a perfect cupcake.

    "Mister, why are you hiding over there by the corner? Are you also afraid of Aira?" Aira asked, not averting her gaze from the cupcake that sat in the oven. "You see, everyone is afraid of Aira, and Aira is afraid of everyone. But you two misters are kind, I know, and I''m not afraid of you."

    Satoshi and Crispwisp, who were hiding right behind a pile of wooden boxes, gulped as they realized that the red-haired girl managed to pinpoint their location. They werepletely hidden, and it''s not like they made any sounds... but how could she know their location.

    "We came back to save you," Satoshi simply answered. He thought it best to reveal his location than to wait for Aira''s reaction if they didn''te out. She already stated that she wasn''t afraid of them so the chances of her screaming after they revealed their location is nigh zero. But if they didn''t reveal their location, there''s a good chance she''ll lose herposure and shout at them just so they woulde out. Also, what if she threatened them toe out? Being threatened by a four or five-year-old just didn''t sit right with Satoshi. It would be a great blow to his pride, especially since he''s currently an intern.

    "Y-yes, that''s right!" Crispwisp decided to y along with Satoshi even though he was unsure what the n was here.

    "Aira knows, and Aira also knows that you two aren''t lying," Aira said, her voice sounded indifferent but the two still found it cute.

    "Then why are you still making cupcakes. Come on, let''s go." Satoshi coaxed while signaling for her toe with them.

    "Aira has to, so you can catch the other bad guys. You''re the good guys, right? You should catch all of them." She simply pointed out as if that wasn''t the n, to begin with.

    "Yes, we have our own methods. You don''t have to y a part in it. Let us adults handle it." Crispwisp responded.

    "Aira knows that even adults mess up too. My dad messes up a lot, and his friends mess up a lot too. They have to use Aira so they won''t mess up. You might not catch them if you handle them alone, let Aira join, and Aira will make sure that you can catch all of them."

    "You''re right, you''re absolutely right, Aira... but let us handle it. It is super dangerous if you were to help us. Aren''t you scared?" Crispwisp asked.<sub> </sub>

    Meanwhile, Satoshi stepped forward and told Crispwisp to shut up. Well, he didn''t exactly tell him, he just turned around and shook his head at Crispwisp. Crispwisp got the idea.

    While it is true that both Crispwisp and Satoshi only wish for her safety, Satoshi knew just how frustrating it felt when you needed to do something and yet you cannot do it. Besides, what Aira said was true. If they were to move while everyone''s guard was down, there''s a good chance that they''ll be able to capture everyone. If they took it upon themselves to charge in and try to capture everyone, they''re sure to make a mistake. Satoshi saw through all that, and that''s why he decided to tell Crispwisp that they''ll go with the child''s n.

    "But she''s just a kid, what if something dangerous happens to her? I won''t be able to forgive myself."

    "Have you seen my videos? In any case, you don''t have to worry about her. I have teleportation abilities¡ª it''s more of a portal ability, I guess."

    "Wait, you can make portals? Wow, I didn''t know that. In any case, we don''t have to worry about losing our cover, right? As long as you''re notte with the portals, then all''s good."

    "Right, if we ever sense that Aria is in trouble, I''ll immediately pull her out. Would that be all right, Aira?"

    "Un~" Aira nodded.

    "We really are going through the kid''s n, right? Tell me I''m not dreaming." Crispwisp was slightly panicked. This was the first time he was assigned on a mission, and right now he has to assist a kid? The process of things just escted way too quickly and Crispwisp couldn''t recover.

    "Yep, don''t sweat out the small details. As long as we''re sessful with this haul, then we can go back by the end of our patrol, wearing a job well-done badge on our cor." Satoshi assured him before turning towards Aira. "Are you really, really, really sure about this? Once you step out of that door with your basket of pancakes, you know there''s no turning back, right?"

    "Osu~" Aira saluted Satoshi with her childish impression of a soldier.

    "Then let''s go get them. Your lead, Aira," Satoshi saluted back.

 Chapter 176 Round-Up

    Aira had no idea how many times she had gone out on behalf of her father, selling cupcakes and delivering goods to his dad''s clients. Well, one of the reasons why was probably because Aira could only count to ten.

    This time was no exception. She just had to go through the motions, endure it, and then return to her father''s arms without ever dealing with his violence. If she did everything properly, her dad wouldn''t punish her. If not, then she''ll receive a beating. It was crystal clear what she needed to do.

    Still, she couldn''t help but feel nervous. This time shouldn''t be different, but she was more anxious than usual. Her legs were like jelly, her arms shaky, and her whole body jittery. She was scared, more so than normal. ''What if I got caught? What if dad sees through me? What if the two superheroes were caught?'' There were so many things that could go wrong in their n, and that made her afraid. Unpredictability was scary.

    "No, Aira can do this," Aira said to herself as she walked to the corner of the street once again.

    The streets were barely lit, and there were shadows that messed with Aira''s imagination. She gulped at the slightest movement and every time she paused, she would stare back at her dad who was at the other end of the street. He kept on urging her to go on, and she meekly obeyed. In the past, Aira didn''t notice any of the details but right now, she noticed them with rity¡ª probably because this was thest time she''d be doing this. If all else fails, then she''d be caught by her dad, and then she''ll suffer. And if everything else seeds, then she''d be free from doing bad things. Either way, this is thest time, and what would happen in the near future relies heavily on her performance. She prayed that thetter would happen¡ª that Crispwisp and Satoshi who went back to rescue her would seed.

    As usual, there were two men by the corner of the alleyway, she went through the motions of asking them if they wanted some cupcakes, and then she proceeded to hand over the goods which were already paid for. Even though her dad and her dad''s friends were a few meters away, she could''ve sworn she heard them cheering just like how they always do when she makes a sessful transaction.

    "Aira, what do you do now?" She asked herself, recalling the instructions that Crispwisp and Satoshi gave her.

    .....

    As soon as Crispwisp and Satoshi saw that Aira managed to do as she was told, they proceeded with the n. It was a simple n¡ª while Crispwisp round up the two men who were getting a dozen Superpower Boosters, Satoshi will round up Aira''s dad and his gang. For it to be able to work, the two of them should believe that the other party would be able to achieve his end of the deal. To Satoshi, he knew that Crispwisp will be able to do something that easy. He isn''t a licensed superhero just for show.<sub> </sub>

    ? Crispwisp was a different matter though, he doesn''t know if Satoshi would be able to deal with the entire group alone. For one, he doesn''t know what Satoshi''s superpowers actually are. And second, he is an unlicensed superhero, just an intern. But then again, it''s not like he could deal with everyone there alone. He may be a licensed superhero but there''s only so much he could do. And a few moments ago, Satoshi seemed confident that he''ll be able to deal with everyone there. That''s why he epted the n in the end and decided to trust him even though what he''s about to do is next to impossible.

    "I''ll leave it to you," Crispwisp hesitantly patted Satoshi on the back before he headed towards Aira. He immediately surrounded the two men who were getting the parcel with energy that flowed like strips of cloth from his hands. His eyes glowed a nice shade of yellow as he approached the two men. "Move, and those Superpower Boosters will explode as soon as I released energy on them." He threatened calmly.

    "Ah," Aira let out a sound that was both an indication of surprise and relief.

    She couldn''t describe how rxed she felt as soon as she saw Crispwisp beside her. All the mixed feelings she felt while delivering the goods were abated in an instant, and the worries that filled her mind were instantly gone. Finally, it was over. She could finally escape the clutches of her father. Finally, she didn''t have to curl up every time she''d be beaten. All those memories were a thing of the past, now that she''s been rescued.

    Well, not yet. Crispwisp and Satoshi may be on the scene already, but the round-up was still far from over.

    While all these were happening, Satoshi slowly approached the hideout of Aira''s father and her friends. As expected, they were already celebrating, dancing around, and drinking to their hearts'' content as if there was no tomorrow. Of course, he wouldn''t be happy after earning such a quick buck, and a hefty sum at that. All they had to do was ept the goods directly from Creaker, and then deliver them to the guys without anyone noticing. It was all thanks to Aira, of course, but the idea was introduced by none other than her dad. Technically, it was his fault that Aira got involved in this mess.

    Seeing their celebration, Satoshi couldn''t help but feel sick to his core. While a lot of superheroes died due to the Superpower Booster, and while his parents fought and almost gave up their lives to stop such things from being distributed, these people here were celebrating it. It was the exact opposite, and it made Satoshi really livid.

    With a wave of his hand, he summoned Ghast and the Ice Queen. With Ghast, he plugged off all the exits, leading the portals back inside. And as for Ice Queen, well, she knows what she needed to do. Satoshi''s mind and his familiars'' were interconnected after all.

 Chapter 177 Appearances

    Aira''s dad immediately noticed the weird shade of purple that covered all the entrances and windows of the building. The once rowdy celebration instantly turned into silence as the group tried to figure out what transpired. They looked at each other, thinking that one of them was trying to y an borate prank on the group. There was no one who was suspicious of them in the vicinity, and also, they were the only ones there. Who else could it be?

    "What is going on?" One of Aira''s dad''s friends anxiously asked, prompting e everyone to look at each other once again while they try to figure out who blocked all the exits with a mysterious goo-like wall.

    "If it''s not us... then what we should do now is try to get away. You, try to jump through that purple thing." Aira''s dad instructed one of his men. Since he was the main leader of the group, the others didn''t have any choice but to go through with his instructions. ''

    "A-a-all right, I''ll do it. I have a defense-type superpower so maybe I should be able to take it." One of them suggested while raising his hand. He didn''t know what would entail once he took a step into the void but he was willing to risk it. After all, it would alle to an end if they couldn''t get out of there. They''ll be dead anyway, Creaker would kill them before they could even give a testimony. Even before they get to the police, they''d be murdered in cold blood. That''s why there was no escape for them if they won''t be able to get out of the ce.

    With a gulp, the man held his breath before he did as he suggested. The moment he stepped in, he felt something hard hit his feet. His eyes were closed so he couldn''t see where he ended up. Still, he somehow felt that he was still in the same ce, just the overall atmosphere made him feel that way.

    Opening his eyes, he realized that he was still in the room. ''What sorcery is this?'' He asked in surprise. He may still be in the room along with everyone else, but he was on a different side.

    "Portals, someone put up portals all around us. there''s no way we can get out of here." Aira''s dad bit his lips in frustration. No one in their group could negate a powerful superpower like teleportation or portal use.

    "What do we do, boss?"

    "Let''s do what we can, there must be a way to get out of there."

    Instead of thinking about his one and only daughter, the first thought that came to his mind was how they''d all get away from all the crimes theymitted. Even though they were already backed into a corner, his first thought was to escape. There''s not a shred of thought set aside for his daughter at all, as if she didn''t even exist in the first ce. One setback and Aira was instantly removed from the picture, washed away like a stain on a white shirt.

    Suddenly, the temperature indoors started to drop drastically, and they shivered in the cold. Once again, they stared at each other to see if anyone amongst the group was ying a dirty prank, but such wasn''t the case. No one had any idea where the coldness came from but one thing was for sure, they didn''t like it.<sub> </sub>

    Fortunately, one of them had a fire-type superpower but he was eventually overpowered by the cold. In the end, the only one he could keep warm was himself, and the others started suffering due to the cold. They felt like freezing to death, and their consciousness dwindled. Whoever was behind the portals and the sheer cold, he was one heartless bastard¡ª or so that''s what Aira''s dad thought to himself.

    .....

    A few minutester, the authorities got to the scene, as per Crispwisp''s call. It didn''t take long before everyone was taken into custody. Something like that couldn''t be hidden from the public so the government had no choice but to release a statement about what happened. The use of Superpower Boosters and their distribution of it was once again brought to light by the public. No matter how much they tried to cover it up in the past few days, they knew it was inevitable that it woulde out.

    Once again, Satoshi''s name was broadcasted in the news as one of the two people who managed to unearth the organization behind the incident. Of course, since his name wasn''t anything new in the news, not a lot of people were surprised. In fact, there was only one person who was bewildered by the entire situation was none other than Crispwisp. ''How could he pull it off? What did he do?'' He asked himself.

    There were a lot of questions in his mind and some of those were answered when Aira''s dad and his group came to the scene¡ª or so that''s what he thought. When he saw that all of them were shivering in the cold, he instantly assumed that Satoshi''s superpower is ice-type and a powerful one at that. His guess was totally off the mark though.

    "You did well," Satoshi said, patting Crispwisp on the back. Just like Crispwisp, he couldn''t believe that Crispwisp could pull it off. It totally flew over his mind that what he did was way more outstanding than what Crispwisp achieved.

    "I should say the same thing to you. How did you pull that off? Your ice powers are amazing! Who would''ve thought you have the ice superpower, you totally don''t seem like the type of guy who has ice superpowers. Most superheroes I met with that kind of superpower are kind of cold... literally." Hemented.

    "Ah, uh yes... I guess?" Satoshi didn''t know what to respond since his powers weren''t really what Crispwisp thought it was. But then again, he didn''t want to disappoint him since he seemed to be impressed by what he had just done. For now, Satoshi didn''t want to ruin his moment. "So, where''s Aira? Is she all right?"

    "Yeah, she''s over there." Crispwisp pointed his lips to one of the ambnces that got to the scene. There she was, sipping on a hot cup of cocoa.

 Chapter 178 Great Reset

    Seeing Aira cozily enveloped with a warm nket while drinking hot cocoa automatically dampened Satoshi''s anxiety and a smile swept across his face as he approached the little kid. What she did was something that not a lot of people, much less children her age, could go through. She stayed calm and collected throughout the entire situation without even breaking a sweat. Inwardly, she was nervous to the point that she wanted to scream and die on the spot. However, she believed that Crispwisp and Satoshi would pull through and that she will be saved¡ª that is, as long as she sessfully did her part. If she couldn''t do something so simple, then she''s not worthy of being saved. That mindset was what saved her and made her face her fears head-on.

    "Aira, how are you doing?" Satoshi asked, kneeling in front of the red-haired girl while scanning her face and her appendages. There weren''t any signs of injuries, much to Satoshi''s relief.

    In response, Aira promptly set aside the hot cup of cocoa she was drinking and stood in front of Satoshi. In silence, she bowed, thanking Satoshi without speaking a single word.

    "May I ask what your full name is?" Satoshi asked. From afar, he could see quite a few reporters lurking around, trying to find the right timing so they could interview the little girl who was rescued on the scene. They were keen on interviewing both Aira and Satoshi, but they didn''t want to interrupt for fear that they''d get on Satoshi''s bad side. They know the kid¡ª the one and only son of the most powerful superheroes in all of Japan. Offending their son is the same as offending them and as a reporter, that wasn''t something one wishes to achieve.

    That''s why they gave them space, waiting for their opportune moment before they could separately interview the two.

    "Aira Lvensky," She continued. Actually, she doesn''t know what her full name is, but she knew that her dad had a ''Lvensky'' or something that sounded like that in his surname so she just added that to her name. She doesn''t know if she got it correctly though.

    "Right, so, Aira Lvensky, what are you nning to do now?" Satoshi asked, thinking that she might have some sort of n or something she wanted to do once she was free from doing those illegal dealings. Even though she was an aplice, there was no way she would get convicted for a crime that she was forced to do. Besides, she didn''t know that it was illegal¡ª even though she was aware that what she was doing was bad.

    "Um... that one! That tastes delicious. I''m going to finish that." She simply responded, returning to where she was sitting and grabbing the hot cup of cocoa she set aside. She continued drinking it while Satoshi tried to talk to her. He kept on forgetting that he was talking to someone pretty young, at least four to five years in age. Still, he wasn''t surprised that Aira answered his question easily, and she gave a simple answer at that.

    "After that?"

    "Aira is going back home to sleep." She answered.

    "No, what I mean is... " Satoshi trailed off before asking his question once again. This time, he tried to rify it as much as he could. "I mean... do you have a dream? Something that you want to do or achieve in the future? Do you want to be a superhero? Or do you want to study in school?"

    She nodded. "Yes, Aira never attended school." As she spoke, she carefully set aside her cup once again, saving the drink forter. "My dad said that superheroes go to superhero school. Aira wanted to be a superhero but dad said superheroes are bad guys. I think you''re not bad guys. You tried to save Aira when you didn''t even know her name. Aira thinks that dad is one of the bad guys, but Aira doesn''t want dad to be one of the bad guys." Crestfallen, she got her cup once again and drank from it. She seemed to be relishing the taste of the cocoa.<sub> </sub>

    "So you want to be a superhero? Superheroes are not bad guys, you know." Satoshimented, fully knowing that what he said wouldn''t convince Aira in the least. He wasn''t the type to quickly get along with kids but Aira was a different matter. Although she may seem distracted, always looking at a distance, she was one of the friendliest kids Satoshi met.

    <o>,m "Yes, Aira wants to be cool like you." Aira continued. "Aira saw mister on the television once. You were fighting an alien. It''s green and scary, and it defeated everyone... but you defeated it. That means your way cooler and stronger, right?"</o>

    "Right, so you want to be cool like me?: Satoshi continued.

    Aira nodded. "My dad said that I shouldn''t use my superpowers because it''s scary. How can I be a superhero if I''m afraid?"

    Somehow, Satoshi saw himself in Aira when she asked that question. Back when his powers haven''t manifested yet, he was also thinking somewhere along those lines. He wasn''t afraid because of his powers, he was afraid because his powers haven''t manifested... and yet he applied for United Superheroes Academy. Right now, Aira was having doubts about whether she should use her powers or not. The only thing that Satoshi could do was offer her advice, and then she can go from there.

    "Hmmm... you know... you saw me fight on tv, right?"

    "Yes!"

    "Did you know that back then, I was afraid too? I was scared since I couldn''t control my power. But here''s what I learned after bing a superhero¡ª superpowers manifested for superheroes, not the other way around. You''re the only one who can control your superpowers, no one else... and what better way to control it than practice it?"

    "But... it''s dangerous... my dad calls it The Great Reset." She uttered. "My dad said that with enough energy, I can turn back time to decades even hundreds of years. Aira doesn''t know what a decade is... is it food?"

    "Wait... you can turn back time?" Satoshi asked in disbelief.

 Chapter 179 First Patrol Done

    Aira just nodded along, leaving Satoshi in a state of shock. If what Aira said was true, then she could very well be one of the most powerful awakened to ever exist. There''s also the question as to why she awakened at such a young age but that''s beside the point. Right now, someone who could manipte time possibly exists, and that powerful superpower is in the hands of a four or five-year-old.

    "Look here, Aira," Satoshi suddenly leaned in closer to her, grabbing her by the shoulders as he stared straight into her eyes. He didn''t know how to go about what he was going to say but time was of the essence and he had to say it as effectively as possible. He couldn''t afford for Aira to just brush off his warning as a mere suggestion.

    Aira stared back into her eyes. "Yes, you don''t have to say it, big brother," She continued, shaking her head. "Aira turned back time. Aira knows what you''re going to say but someone is going to hear it... so you don''t have to say it, big brother," She continued.

    In a split second, Crispwisp came up to Satoshi and tackled him from the rear. "Satoshi-senpai, how are you doing?" He enthusiastically greeted. "Hello, Aira, are you doing all right?"

    She nodded.

    Satoshi couldn''t understand why she didn''t want to reveal her superpower to Crispwisp when he was one of her benefactors. And then Satoshi remembered how Crispwisp handled the reporters earlier. He was as talkative as a parrot, and that won''t help when ites to keeping sensitive secrets. Aira probably sensed it as well so she decided not to tell him.

    "In any case, Satoshi, we have to go back to the agency. Eye Goddess is calling us." Crispwisp jerked his thumb backward.

    "Sure, just let me talk to her for a bit." Satoshi nodded, forcing a bright smile on his face since some of the reporters were aiming cameras at him. "I''ll join you in a second."

    "No problemo~" Crispwisp continued.

    Once again, Satoshi turned around and gave Aira the stare. "You know what I said, can you promise me that you won''t tell anyone even if they tried to force you?"

    "Yes,"

    "Okay," Satoshi continued, pulling out his phone. "You know how to use a phone, right? I already opened someone''s contact there. Once they''re done talking to you, you call that number, and then we''lle and pick you up."<sub> </sub>

    "Oum~," Aira said, nodding along.

    .....

    The report didn''tst that long, Eye Goddess just wanted to hear what transpired from Crispwisp and Satoshi''s point of view since the reporters didn''t give out full details. Even Eye Goddess was impressed as to how Satoshi pulled it off but knowing his superpower, she knew he was capable enough. Until now, Crispwisp still had no idea what Satoshi''s superpower was and Satoshi wasn''t going to tell him any time sooner since he wasn''t asking.

    Eye Goddess was especially curious about who the child was and Satoshi gave her her background. She advised that they should just let the authorities handle the rest while the two of them get some rest but Satoshi had other ns. Aira was powerful, and if she could really turn back time, then she was as dangerous as him. If she falls into the wrong hands, something worse might happen to Japan and that won''t be the end of it.

    That''s why he gave his phone to her and opened his dad''s contact information. His dad is more than capable enough to help such a powerful awakened. If there''s someone who could help her, then his dad more than fits the profile. Satoshi assumed that Aira was fine with it since she didn''t reject the idea. She could turn back time, so she might be able to change the past if she didn''t want it.

    "I guess I should head home now," Satoshi said to himself as he got out of Heimdall Agency. Today was a very eventful day, not to mention it was their first time patrolling. Somehow, he got mixed up in something big once again. He still couldn''t believe how attracted trouble was to him.

    While walking home, Satoshi dropped by at one of the Mgronalds nearby. There wasn''t a long line so his order was given to him in an instant¡ª french fries, arge-sized drink, and two mgburgers. Satoshi couldn''t help but feel weirded out by the over-enthusiastic part-time worker by the counter. His name tag had the name ''Mao'' written on it and he wondered if it was a Japanese name or not. In any case, the man seemed pretty weird... or maybe he was just trying his best as a part-time worker. ''Maybe'' Satoshi said to himself.

    Eating thefort food on the way home, Satoshi tried to think about all his familiars and how they''ve changed. When he used both Ghast and the Ice Queen during the surprise round-up they did on the criminals, they were a bit worked up, and Satoshi couldn''t understand why. Turns out, they were having a hard time controlling the output of their powers. They did get stronger, that''s for sure, but control is a different matter altogether. If it weren''t for Satoshi''s precise instructions and greatmand in his head, Ghast and Ice Queen would''ve run amok, instantly ruining their n of leaving the criminals alive.

    Somehow, Satoshi became even more exhausted when he just used two of his familiars in such a short span of time. "I have to get a good overview of what''s happening. I guess I should check all of them tonight and then ask Dex for all their details so I would be able to help them with their control. Now that my superpower''s toned down a little bit, I should focus on helping my familiars in the meantime." He muttered to himself.

    When he got home, he was surprised to see that both his parents and Emma were waiting by the doorstep, fidgeting. They were probably waiting for his return after seeing him on television.

    That''s when he noticed that Aira was standing with them, probably waiting for him as well.

 Chapter 180 Chronicle

    "Aira?" An exhale left Satoshi''s mouth as he approached his parents. He could more or less guess what unfolded when Aira called his dad''s number. After all, there should''ve been a reasonable exnation as to why a little girl''s voice came out when Satoshi''s dad received a call from Satoshi''s number.

    Tatsuki didn''t find the necessity to ask any questions. He immediately got in the car, along with his wife and Emma. He didn''t exin what happened and just told the two to follow him. They promptly followed, wondering what the emergency was all about.

    Much to their bewilderment, Tatsuki picked up a red-haired girl from the police station. The identity of the girl remained unknown since Tatsuki doesn''t even know who the girl was in the first ce. The only thing she said during her call was that Satoshi instructed her to contact the number given to her. That''s it.

    Throughout the remainder of the drive from the police station to home, they wondered who the little girl was. The one who was most curious out of the group was Ayumu, but she decided to trust her husband and wait for his exnation. Still, baffling questions riddled her mind, urging her to ask who the girl was, and why they were picking her up from the police station.

    "Dear, who is she?" Ayumu finally brought up the elephant in the room, leaning in to get a better view of Tatsuki''s expression. She had known him for more than twenty years now and she knows what expression he wears when he''s hiding something, or when he was telling a lie.

    "I have no idea, let''s wait for Satoshi and have him exin," Tatsuki responded, not taking his eyes away from the road.

    When they finally go home, they eagerly awaited Hajime''s return, fidgeting by the front gate as they stared from afar. A few minutester, Satoshi got back, surprised to see Aira with his parents and Emma. Satoshi let out a name, and then he approached Aira before even greeting his parents that he just got home.

    "Let''s head inside," Tatsuki wore a serious expression on his face, turning around and heading back inside first before anyone else did.

    Satoshi didn''t say another word, he just nodded back and urged Aira to head inside with them. She obediently followed.

    A heavy atmosphere enveloped the living room as Tatsukifortably sat in one of the seats, sping his hands together. Ayumu sat beside him, then Emma sat on the opposite couch. Since there were only two couches to sit on, Satoshi sat beside Emma and Aira beside him.

    "So, who''s the kid, Satoshi?" Tatsuki asked what everyone repeatedly questioned in their minds.

    "This is Aira, she''s a... she''s a uh¡ª her dad''s the mastermind behind the incident and I took it upon myself to help her." Satoshi couldn''t really exin it properly, hoping that he was able to get through them.

    "Why did you feel the need to help her? It''s not like the authorities wouldn''t help a child like her?" Ayumu concernedly asked in return. There was a hint of worry in her eyes since she could tell that Satoshi hasn''t really told everything.<sub> </sub>

    "Um... it''s because... it''s because of her superpower." Satoshi continued. "She said she can turn back time."

    "Wha¡ª " Tatsuki stopped short and looked around as he scratched his head. There was panic in his demeanor, and he didn''t know what to do at first. Fortunately, he got ahold of himself and headed to the corner of the room, pressing his hand against the door lock¡ª the door which led to the underground where theirir was located.

    "Dear, what are you doing?" Ayumu asked.

    "We have to head inside. We can''t afford to let anyone hear us." Tatsuki said to everyone in a hushed tone, signaling that all of them head inside their.

    Aira gasped in awe as she saw the ''coolness'' of the ce. She only ever heard about superheroes on the television and she''d never seen air in all her life¡ª she doesn''t even know what air is. But now that she''s seen one, it was the most amazing sight she''s ever seen. Her eyes sparkled, and everyone inly saw how excited she was.

    "Satoshi... are you sure about this? Can she really turn back time?" Tatsuki confirmed. He still couldn''t believe that someone with such a powerful superpower is actually in the form of a little kid.

    "Aira doesn''t really turn back time," Aira responded. She thought twice before speaking up because she was in an unfamiliar ce. "And also, Aira can only turn back time for herself."

    "Wait... if what she''s saying is true..." Ayumu trailed off as her gazended on Satoshi. Now she understood why Satoshi brought it upon himself to help her. There was no way they''d allow the viins to get ahold of such a powerful superpower.

    Throughout the history of superheroes, someone who could manipte or tamper with time is considered a legendary superhero. There was only one superhero to exist in the past. He goes by the superhero name Chronicle, but he died due to unknown reasons. Of course, the Superheroes Assembly Organization believed that Chronicle was killed, and that''s because his superpower is a game-changer. He could travel back in time at least a day, which could reset everything. Of course, he could only reset when he willed it, and if he didn''t sense any danger and he got into an ident, he would still suffer before he could turn back time. Somehow, someone managed to kill him before he could even think about resetting. Chronicle may be overpowered, but he wasn''t exactly invincible.

    "So... how does your superpower actually work, Aira?" Satoshi asked.

    "Uhmm..." Aira mumbled. "Aira can... Aira can think very hard, and then Aira''s mind will go back to the past and Aira can control herself in the past. I thought I was dreaming... but something will change, and it was scary. Aira didn''t tell anyone, dad doesn''t know about it."

 Chapter 181 Nailgun S-Grade

    In the meantime, Tatsuki and Ayumu approved of Aira staying at their house. Of course, they made sure to ask Emma if she''d be willing to share her room with Aira since there was only one guest room avable. It would only be a temporary stay though since Tatsuki volunteered to clear the storage room so Aira could have a room for herself. Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief. Even though he was a bit hesitant to ask his parents for help, he knew that they''d support his decision afterpletely hearing him out. And he was right on the money, they really did agree even though they haven''t heard the entire story.

    For a moment though, they thought that Aira was actually Satoshi''s secret love child. That''s why there was a heavy atmosphere during the entire trip from the police station. And that heavy atmosphere got even heavier as they nervously waited for Satoshi''s return.

    "Thank you," Aira mumbled before Emma led her to take a shower. Before she entered the shower with Emma, she waveringly turned around and bowed toward Satoshi''s parents. She wasn''t just saying her due thanks to them, she really meant it when she said it. She was grateful that they were willing to help her even though they didn''t initially know her identity.

    Back then, when she decided to cast off her dad to the police, she actually had no idea how she''ll be able to survive. After all, even though her father treated her poorly, he still fed and clothed her. Without him, Aira couldn''t live in the big world out there. Still, she went through with it in hopes that Booster Incident woulde to a close as soon as possible. She knew the story from her father, and even though she was on the wrong side, she was perfectly aware of who was in the right and who was in the wrong. That''s why she didn''t think twice about her decision. When she saw her chance, she took it, no question.

    "So... you can go back to the past, huh, that''s actually pretty cool. So you already know what my superpower is?

    " Emma was still skeptical about her superpower so she decided to test her.

    To her surprise, Aira shook her head. "You''ve decided not to tell me your superpower as a test, so Aira doesn''t really know." She continued.

    "Oh, so I never said my superpower to you in the future? How far can you go back to the past?"

    "Half a day," Aira promptly answered. "The sun is going down, right? Aira can go back to the past when the sun is still going up."

    "Okay then, I''m going to tell you my superpower after we''re done taking a bath. Do you know my superpower now?" Emma said with a smile, patting Aira on the head. Now that she knows what her superpower is and its limitations, Emma found a loophole that helped her test Aira. Her superpower may be powerful, but just like any other superpower, it isn''t all that invincible as well. Just look what happened to someone with almost the same superpower as Aira, the Chronicle. He was killed and he couldn''t even avoid it.

    "You create portals, and you can go wherever you want. Aira wants to go to the Eiffel Tower!" Aira''s eyes sparkled with delight as she jumped up and down with glee. She closed her eyes, emphasizing her pudgy cheeks as she acted cute in front of Emma.

    "Sure sure, let''s go there with Satoshi next time." Emma genuinely offered. "For starters, why don''t we hop in the tub?"

    .....

    Satoshi sat in his room, the solitude granting him the tranquility he much deserved. Recently, with the help of some important people in his life, his superpower underwent drastic changes. Fortunately, he was able to keep it under control, but for how long? And what could he do to better rein his superpower in? Those questions invaded Satoshi''s mind, robbing him of the peace he much enjoyed.

    This is where it all started, right in this very room, after he yed his favorite game of Laser Fingers. He turned his head towards his empty desk where his retroputer once stayed. Dex, thatputer now had a name, and he was the most solid sign that Satoshi had already awakened his superpower.

    A lot has happened since then, invasions, minor incidents, schoolpetitions, and tournaments. So much had transpired that Satoshi felt like he was inside a very long dream. He was already living the life he hoped for back then. Despite the fact that it brought an equal amount of hardships, it was still worth it, or at least that''s how Satoshi felt.

    "Dex?"<sub> </sub>

    [Yes, owner?]

    "Can you show me Nailgun''s stats?" Satoshi held his breath. He knew that all his familiars underwent changes. At most, Satoshi assumed that all of them climbed a rank or two.

    Satoshi''s familiars were recorded by Dex, down to their minute details. That''s how Satoshi could keep a record of them. All this time, he only looked at Nailgun''s information, and rightfully so since Nailgun is his first familiar. Also, it totally flew over his mind to check his familiars'' grades and abilities. His superpower is too flexible after all, and to be honest, he felt really powerful every time he uses it. That''s why he didn''t sweat out the small details.

    Right now, however, things took a turn and he had to take a step back and try to look at the whole picture before anything else. His familiars had gotten so powerful that he mighte to a point where he couldn''t control them anymore and that could even injure someone badly, or worse...

    Satoshi dreaded the thought. At the same time, Dex pulled up Nailgun''s grade and abilities, showing itright in front of Satoshi''s face.

    [Nailgun: S-Grade

    Abilities:

    Homing Nails¡ª 100% of the nails are homing nails with 100% uracy rate

    Flotation¡ª the Nailgun can float, allowing its owner to utilize its skill and fly in mid-air

    Barrage¡ª Shoots multiple nails every second, rapid-fire and nail speed increased by 1000%

    Unlimited Magazine¡ª the Nailgun never runs out of nails

    Locked ???? (Unlocked¡ª Elemental Nails¡ª Water, Earth, Fire, Air, Long Ago, the four nations... this skill allows the imbuement of any of the four elements on the output of nails)

    Locked ???? (Unlocked¡ª Diamond Pierce¡ª nails can''t pierce diamonds)

    Locked ????(Unlocked¡ª Kage Bunshin No Jutsu¡ª the four separate nailguns can multiply up to sixteen nailguns)]

    "What?!" Satoshi eximed in disbelief, bolting upright from his bed and rming everyone in the house.

 Chapter 182 A Former Rival

    Satoshi woke up earlier than normal to sneak in a morning jog before his training with his dad. The morning was chilly, as usual, so Satoshi wrapped himself in his hoodie and he wore the thickest jogging pants he had. As he got out of their front gate, he breathed in the cold fresh air, before he quietly closed the front gate. He didn''t want to wake anyone up, especially Emma since she will most definitely join him in her morning run.

    Right now he wanted to soak himself in solitude as he tried to take his mind off of things. The information he sawst night about his Nailgun familiar shook him to his very core. So before he viewed his other familiars'' information, he wanted to mentally prepare himself.

    Although it would''ve been better if he viewed all his familiars'' information at once, he figured that hitting the bare minimum of his mastery over Nailgun would work better in the long run. At least, he would have at least one mastered familiar at his disposal when the worst-case scenario happens. That is exponentially much betterpared to meeting all his familiars halfway.

    "Big bro," Satoshi almost jumped out of his skin in fright when someone called behind him. He swiveled and got even more frightened when he noticed that there was no one standing behind him. "What the¡ª "

    "Are you going for a run? Aira wants to join,"

    Satoshi''s gaze shifted downwards, and that''s when she noticed Aira, still in his pajamas and wearing the tattered shoes she worest night. She was hugging herself, shivering. Even though the cold morning air got the better of her, not a singleint left her mouth.

    "Are you sure? You''re still in your pajamas. Don''t you feel cold?" Satoshi asked, he didn''t even notice that his hand was already patting Aira''s head.

    "Aira wants to go with you," She continued.

    "Next time, head back inside." Satoshi gently told her. "And look, how could you run in those shoes?"

    Disappointment was written all over Aira''s face, pouting as she walked back inside. Satoshi wanted to call her back since she was dragging her feet, but he turned around and shook his head instead. How could he let a little girl in pajamas run in the cold? She''d just get a fever soon after.

    Step.

    Satoshi paced himself before elerating towards the nearby park where he usually jogs. The chilly breeze hitting his face renewed his energy, and he wasn''t the least bit tired as he quickened his pace. A few greetings of good mornings were received and reciprocated as Satoshi did hisps. Once he was finished, he stopped by the water fountain and drank, beads of sweat pouring from his face.

    A sigh left his lips as he summoned his Nailgun and stared at it for a good few seconds. The Nailgun seemed to stare back at him, and every time Satoshi gave it specific instructions in his mind, it promptly obeyed without dy. In mid-air, the Nailgun spun around, shot a couple of nails on the ground, and even whizzed past the trees at insane speeds. Satoshi shivered at the thought of riding the Nailgun while it sped at such insane speed.

    Its newfound skills¡ª Elemental Nails, Diamond Pierce, and Clone¡ª were perfectly in sync with Satoshi''s instructions as well Furthermore, the power output of the Nailgun was more powerful than ever.<sub> </sub>

    For some reason, Satoshi thought back to the time when he fought against Hiroshi during the ''demonstration'' test on the first day of school. If Nailgun was this powerful, he would''ve easily swept through the entirepetition. Even the person who had a maic field wouldn''t have stood a chance against him. A smile formed on Satoshi''s lips. He really hade so far with his superpower, and everything happened in a span of a few months.

    "Ah, right, Heimdall Agency has a training room, right? I guess I should stop by there after my training with dad." Satoshi said. It was still his second day as an intern so there were still a lot of ces he hasn''t seen in the Heimdall Agency. Hopefully, he could get some much-needed training there before he was sent on another patrol mission.

    "Satoshi?"

    This time, Satoshi didn''t flinch when someone called out to him. From afar, a boy his age was walking towards him, holding a leash with a dog on the other end. Satoshi immediately recognized the dog''s breed, a german shepherd.

    "Yes?"

    "I knew it. Who would''ve thought that you also jog around this park. Do you live nearby?" He asked.

    Satoshi nodded, wondering who the boy was. He was a moment toote to realize that it was none other than the boy who defeated him back then, the one with the maic forcefield that nullified all his metal attacks during thepetition on the first day of school.

    With an amicable grin, the boy approached Satoshi, extending his hand for a handshake. Seeing that there was nothing wrong with his demeanor, Satoshi shook his hand in return, petting the german shepherd a secondter since he couldn''t help it. "He''s cute, what''s his name?"

    "Ava, short for Avnche." The boy responded. "I saw you on the news. I can''t believe that one of my schoolmates already appeared on television a couple of times. I''m a big fan, by the way."

    "Thanks, I''m a big fan too. The name''s Simon Cerberus, and yes, that''s really my surname." He introduced. He figured that Satoshi had already forgotten his name, that''s why he brought it up.

    "Cool, I''m Satoshi, I guess you know that by now." Satoshi scratched his head. He didn''t know how to respond to what Simon said so he just awkwardly introduced himself.

    "..."

    There was a pause, and then, Simon let out a single um. "If it''s not a bother... would it be all right if I ask for a rematch? I''ve always wanted to go head to head again with you." He sheepishly asked.

 Chapter 183 Interruption

    "Sure, why not, should we fight by the school stadium?" Satoshi was surprised that Simon would bring up a rematch out of the blue but just like him, he also wanted to have a rematch. Right now, he doesn''t know if Simon got a lot more formidablepared tost time, but he could tell that there was an air of confidence within him.

    Simon had been training, Satoshi could tell. Well, it''s not like he hadn''t been training himself. Besides, this fight would really gauge how much Nailgun had improved as an S-Grade Familiar. In all honesty, Satoshi had no idea what S-Grade really meant, but judging by the sudden jump from D-Grade to S-Grade, there should at least be a notable difference, right?

    "How long have you had your superpower?" Simon asked out of the blue while they made their way to the school stadium.

    "I was ate bloomer. I awakened my superpower a day before the first day of school." Satoshi exined. There was no need to hide that fact since it would be revealedter on, and it''s not like that little piece of information would give Simon the advantage he needed during the fight.

    "I see," Simon uttered. "I awakened normally¡ª if you''re curious about that."

    "So you awakened when you turned thirteen? No wonder you were crazy good at using your superpower." Satoshimented. "Your superpower''s all about maic fields, right?"

    "That''s right, but it''s nothing noteworthy. The reason I was able to win against you on the first day of school was that my superpower had a clear advantage... and also, if what you''re telling me is the truth, then you didn''t have time to practice your superpower back then." Simon exhaled, a smile forming on his face. "That''s why I wanted to fight you again. I want to know if I could still beat you or not."

    "Sure, but we''d have to finish the fight in half an hour, I have a prior engagement," Satoshi responded.

    "No worries."

    The school stadium loomed like a threatening mountain as they approached it. This was a ce of bloodshed, a testing ground that expelled more students than Satoshi knew on their first day of school. Not only was it a ce where fights against students are allowed, this stadium is also an arena for professional superheroes who want to sneak in some training in their free time¡ª if the school allows them to, of course.

    Fwoosh!

    sh! sh!

    ? Boom!

    From afar, Satoshi and Simon could already hear the sound of someone practicing by the stadium, and the two of them simultaneously hastened their pace since they were both curious as to who was fighting right now.<sub> </sub>

    They were both girls, Satoshi and Simon would notice because of their slender bodies and long hair that waved as they moved and weaved with grace, likened to a moving painting of a wavy ocean.

    One of the girls jumped high, shooting a few invisible projectiles that made a ''blooping'' sound as they touched the ground, eating away a portion of where the projectiles hit. Meanwhile, the other girl somersaulted a couple of times just to dodge the invisible attacks. On herst flip, she tightened her core and flung her arms wildly as if sshing water onto the other girl. Suddenly, ice spikes appeared and shot themselves at the girl who jumped mid-air. There was no way for her to dodge, that much was for sure, and Satoshi thought that he might have to step in or the girl would get stabbed, endangering her life.

    "Soundzero." The girl uttered, waving her hand in a straight line before forming a circle with it.

    For some odd reason, the ice spikes never reached her. Rather, they crumbled into ice dust, sparkling as they hit the invisible barrier that the girl constructed. Satoshi''s lips curved upward as his pupils dted, ever focusing on the girl who jumped as she seemed to float on her descent. Because of that, he managed to see her light movement of flicking her wrist behind her back.

    "What is she¡ª " Satoshi almost choked on his words as he felt the intense pressure that suddenly engulfed the entire area, like purgatorial mes ever unquenched.

    As someone who had survived the first few years of his teenage life without a superpower, Satoshi had learned to subconsciously rely on his instinct. That''s why he could tell danger without even seeing one. Without missing a beat, Satoshi summoned his Nailgun and rode on it, elerating towards the girl who shot the ice spikes. Thest time he rode the Nailgun, he could still see his surroundings since the Nailgun wasn''t that fast. But right now, he elerated so much to the point that his surroundings became a blur.

    "Kage bunshin no¡ª " Satoshi muttered, activating the Nailgun''s skill of cloning itself while simultaneously giving it the instructions to block the attack.

    In a split second, Satoshi gave three orders. One is for Dex to detect where the invisible attack would hit¡ª Two, for the Nailgun to elerate while Satoshi rode on top of it. Andstly, he gave instructions to himself that he would block the invisible attack with his full body, whatever that attack was.

    Unbeknownst to the girl who threw the ice spike, the other girl actually flicked an invisible attack aimed at her right ear. It was sort of like a sound orb, made to explode as soon as it touched her skin. Once it explodes, it will produce a sound set at a very high frequency which had a hundred percent chance of busting her eardrum. It wasn''t a lethal attack, but it would really give the ice spike girl the L if she couldn''t dodge it.

    Before the ice spike girl attacked the other girl with an ice attack, she noticed something fast elerating towards her at insane speeds. It was so fast that her feet froze in ce. Even if she tried to dodge, there was no way she couldpletely get out of the way, and that''s why she just gave up on dodging altogether.

    "Watch out!" Satoshi screamed as he flung himself towards Shiroi.

    "Satoshi?!" Fuuka eximed as her attack connected squarely on Satoshi''s back, rendering it useless.

 Chapter 184 A Rematch

    "Are you all right?" Satoshi unhesitantly grabbed Shiroi by the shoulders, checking if she was badly injured. That attack by Fuuka was nothing short of underhanded, not to mention that it could''ve endangered Shiroi''s hearing. It may not powerful enough to kill her, but it sure could injure her ears badly. With all those thoughts swirling in his head, Satoshi didn''t even have the leisure to think about his usual impulse whenever he sees Shiroi. It was quite obvious that she likes her and vice versa, but somehow, they were as dense as a brick wall, and they couldn''t even notice the affection they so tantly show each other.

    "Ye¡ª Satoshi? What are you doing here?" Shiroi asked as the two of them stood up. Ever since Fuuka and Shiroi became friends, they usually fight by the school stadium early in the morning just to sneak in additional superpower practice before school starts. This was the first time they encountered Satoshi by the school stadium, not to mention that he was apanying someone they don''t know.

    As for Fuuka, she quickly rushed to Shiroi''s aid, about to apologize since she got too into the fight. Of course, had Shiroi been paying close attention to her slight movements, she would have been able to anticipate such an attack. Even Satoshi who was a few meters away from the fight perfectly saw what Fuuka was trying to aplish. But then again, if Fuuka''s opponent didn''t know her superpower, then they''d get easily caught off guard.

    "Um, Shiroi... I''m sorry. I got too carried away. I didn''t know you won''t be able to notice it." Fuuka hung her head as she apologetically spoke.

    "No worries, there was no harm done and Satoshi saved me. And also, it was my fault that I didn''t notice your attack." Shiroi warmly smiled. "Let''s have another match next time."

    "Sure!" After responding to Shiroi, Fuuka''s gaze thennded on Satoshi. "In any case... "

    "I''m Simon Cerberus. I challenged Satoshi for a match." Simon introduced himself with a slight grin on his face. He knew who Shiroi and Fuuka were since they were both famous in school, just like Satoshi. Unexpectedly meeting them out of nowhere really caught him off guard but fortunately, he managed to maintain hisposure despite the anxiousness he felt deep inside.

    "You challenged Satoshi?" Fuuka couldn''t help but ask, wondering if the Simon in front of her was actually powerful. Had she thought harder, she would''ve realized that Simon actually fought Satoshi and won on the first day of school.

    "We''re done with our practice match, you two can go ahead and use the stadium," Shiroi said, muttering another thanks towards Satoshi before she and Fuuka went to the sidelines.

    Without speaking another word, Satoshi and Simon both stood on both ends of the stadium, preparing for their first rematch. Satoshi summoned only one Familiar, Nailgun, since he was going to use him on this match to the fullest in order to have at least a small percentage of mastery over it. With the great boost in power that the Nailgun was experiencing, it could very well be an out-of-control familiar. At least, he would be forced to get used to Nailgun during the fight.

    Simon nodded, relieved that Satoshi would fight him with only one of his familiars. He was well aware that he stood no chance against the Satoshi who uses everything in his arsenal. He''d seen videos online of Satoshi''s fights and he could fight pretty well, perhaps better than most professional, licensed superheroes. That''s why Simon was kind of hoping that Satoshi would turn it down a notch during their fight. And he did.

    He figured that if Satoshi uses only the Nailgun, then he''d have a huge chance at winning. After all, he''d already defeated the Nailgun back on the first day of school. And he''d gotten stronger, a lot stronger since then.<sub> </sub>

    A smile swept across Simon''s face as he reached into his bag and got a few rods. After putting all those rods on his back, he clenched his fists, all prepared for the fight that would soon ensue. Satoshi, on the other hand, was more than ready as well. It was written on his face that he was looking forward to the fight.

    "The fight willst indefinitely, and it will only end if one of you faints or gives up... or someone interrupts the match." Shiroi teased, staring at Satoshi who felt a pang of guilt after what he had just done. Even though he saved Shiroi from harm, it''s still uneptable to interrupt someone''s fight.

    "Both sides, ready? BEGIN!"

    DASH!

    A ssh of dust erupted from Simon''s soles when he charged straight at Satoshi, turning around as the momentum carried him forward. With one fluid motion, he threw one of his rods toward one side of the stadium, then he threw the other three rods just when he was about toe down on the ground.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi wondered why Simon through all those rods on the four corners of the stadium. He knew they served some kind of purpose but as to what it was he could only wonder. There was no need to think about its purpose though because Simon was almost on his closebat range. He stepped back, allowing the Nailguns to position themselves on the soles of his feet and the palm of his hands, flying out of harm''s way in the process. Since propping himself on top of two nailguns didn''t help with his bnce, Satoshi figured that riding the nailguns on all fours would work better. And it did, he noticed that he had better controlpared to before.

    Before Simon could make his next move, Satoshi thenmanded the Nailgun to clone himself, and in a split second, eight nailguns roamed the entirety of the stadium, each of them aimed at Simon who was as defenseless as a newborn deer.

    With no reprieve, Satoshi shot countless nails at Simon who decelerated as his attack didn''t connect at all. The countless nails elerated to the point where Satoshi feared that Simon''s flesh would fly all over the ce. He wasn''t able to control the power output of the nails since he got a bit too excited. In shock, he closed his eyes, hoping that Simon survived the onught.

    Had he opened his eyes all the way though, he would''ve seen Simon vanishing in sight in an instant and appearing on one corner of the stadium as if he just teleported.

    "What was that?!" Shiroi, the acting referee of the match, eximed as her eyes grew wide.

 Chapter 185 New Challengers

    One moment, Simon was standing in a perfect shot for Satoshi. The next moment, he was gone, reappearing on one side of the map as if he teleported out of nowhere. Did he fuse with the wind? Or maybe he just disappeared and reappeared? But how could he do that? Thest time Satoshi fought him, he didn''t have the superpower to teleport, much less trick someone that he teleported. It was a conundrum for Satoshi and he couldn''te up with an answer for it.

    ''No, I may not know this right now but this new skill of his is somewhat connected to his maism superpower. But how could he... hmm.'' Satoshi contemted in his mind as he descended to the ground, signaling the pause of the fight.

    "Surprise, hehhe~" Simon extended his hand, pleased that his newfound skill caught Satoshi off guard. At the very least, he had proven to Satoshi that he wasn''t the only one improving on his superpower. Ever since they fought thest time, Simon took down notes on where he could improve on and after months of training, he had finally ovee one of his main weaknesses, limited mobility.

    "Then I guess I should show you something as well." Satoshi shed a grin towards Simon who had been expecting him to unleash one of his special moves as well. In an instant, Satoshi used the Nailgun''s cloning technique once again and fired off Elemental Nails around him.

    Now, Simon already knew what the Nailgun was capable of. And that''s why he only dodged what needed to be dodged. The nails that would for sure not hit him, he ignored, and he just stayed in ce, using his maic force field to parry the other nails that got too close forfort.

    However, he misjudged the part where the nails didn''t have anything in them.

    As soon as the nails hit his maic forcefield, he was hit by a gust of wind that swept him off his feet, sending him hurtling in mid-air. Before he could use that weird superpower of his where he teleports, Satoshi didn''t miss a single beat to fire both fire nails and wind nails on his way, causing a huge fire tornado to appear.

    "What the¡ª "

    Satoshi wasn''t done yet.

    With another wave of his hand, Satoshi unleashed water nails and ice nails toward the fire tornado, freezing it in an instant and trapping Simon inside it. Once the frozen tornado was put in ce, Satoshi kept on firing ice nails toward the tornado, then fire nails to cause it to heat up and turn into water.

    As a cherry on top, just when Simon was drenched with water, Satoshi fired off a single electric nail on his way. One could tell what was going to happen next and Satoshi didn''t have to describe it to everyone.

    Bzzt! Bzzzzt!<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi could''ve sworn that he saw Simon''s skeleton appear from his skin when he was electrocuted. He quickly stopped the attack and rushed to his aid. "Are you all right?" He asked, not daring to touch Simon since he''d get electrocuted as well.

    "Not quite, that was impressive," Simon said. "I''m assuming all those attacks came from the nails you shot? That''s clearly overpowered. Even with my new skill, I wouldn''t be able to hold a candle to you." He continued.

    "I just caught you by surprise, that''s all there is to it. If you''d known that my Nailgun familiar is capable of such a feat, then you wouldn''t have given me time to breathe. With that teleportation skill of yours, you might have been able to push me to a corner." Satoshi extended his hand, offering it to Simon who has copsed knee-first on the ground.

    Simon willingly obliged and took the hand, shaking it as soon as he got up. It was a nice, albeit a quick match. Nevertheless, he enjoyed it, and he was looking forward to having another rematch with Satoshi sometime in the future. "You''re right. I guess I still have training to do. Are you up for a rematch some other time?"

    "Yup, any time. Just swing by our ssroom during breaks or something. I''ll wee a challenge." Satoshi gripped Simon''s hand as he shook it in return.

    The two audiences by the sidelines who were watching the whole fight were speechless all throughout. Even Shiroi who put it upon herself to be the referee didn''t even get to speak a word. As soon as the match started, well, it was over, and there was nothing for her toment on, nor was there anything for her to say since she was blown away by the sheer power of the two. She couldn''t tell how Simon could teleport like that despite having maic powers, nor could she tell how Satoshi managed to imbue elements on his nails. As far as she knows, Satoshi never had those skills when ites to his Nailgun familiar.

    "Great match, is everything all right, Satoshi... you know... " Shiroi whispered as shee up to Satoshi. She was talking about the incident where the suppressor was used on him.

    "Ah, yes, despite the setback it helped me out a lot," Satoshi responded. He didn''t want to go through the intricate details of how Cherry and Kuroe helped him out with the setback though.

    "..."

    "Right, in that case..." Shiroi trailed off before nodding towards Fuuka who was also having the same thought like her. After witnessing the fight, they started to wonder whether Satoshi and Simon together would be willing to fight with them, just to change things up a bit. For a few weeks now, after all, Fuuka and Shiroi had beenbat-training and they pretty much know each other''s move sets already. With the two new challengers avable in front of them, they just couldn''t help but challenge them, this time, on a two-on-two where they''d team up against Satoshi and Simon.

    In response, Fuuka nodded along, gesturing that she fully agreed with Shiroi''s idea. "How about another round? This time with the two of you against the two of us." Fuuka challenged, to which Satoshi and Simon nonchntly smiled.

 Chapter 186 Two On Two

    A two-versus-two match.

    When Simon first challenged Satoshi to a match, he was never expecting anyone else to challenge them. He couldn''t believe that Satoshi''s ssmates from ss 3-1 would get to invite him to a match as well, and the notion made his jaw drop to the ground in his amazement. He always wished to train with ss 3-1, one of them, at the very least. And right now, not only did he experience fighting with Satoshi, but he''d also experience fighting alongside him.

    "Sure, why not." Satoshi let out an exhale as he smiled at Shiroi. Thest time they fought was during the first day of school and needless to say, thepetition was too anticlimactic to the point that everyone remembered it for all the wrong reasons. Both of them shouted their surrender, after all, and Satoshi was just lucky that Shiroi said it first before him.

    Right now, however, there''s no such thing as ''I give up'' or forfeiting the match. This is just a training match, after all, and it wouldn''t mean anything if one of them gives up. Besides, Shiroi was raring to go after noticing new Satoshi''s new skills and Simon''s fresh superpower. Fuuka just jumped on the bandwagon since it was a two-versus-two. She was tired after all that moving around but that didn''t affect her at all.

    Without another word, Satoshi and Simon turned around and walked to the other side of the stadium. They didn''t even go through any strategies, probably because this was only a practice match instead of a serious one. Also, they already have a good feel of their superpowers since they just fought each other a few moments ago. That''s why they didn''t feel the need to talk, they figured that doing so would break their pace and shake their focus.

    As for Fuuka and Shiroi, they started going through some of the countermeasures they could implement in the match. Shiroi decided to go on the offensive while Fuuka opted toy out space-warped and sound-warped traps. They knew that one slip and Satoshi would definitely take home the trophy, that''s why they couldn''t let their guard down even for a second. If pushes to shove, the two of them would focus on the offensive, singling out Simon first before taking out Satoshi. Aside from Simon''s unpredictable teleportation, there''s nothing much going on with his maic force field superpower. Fuuka could easily keep him in check with her space maniption superpower.

    "Wait, who''s going to be our referee?" Shiroi asked. Honestly, there''s no need for a referee when ites to practice matches. However, Shiroi wanted to go all out against Satoshi so they could have their well-deserved match that they''ve been putting off for so long. Furthermore, she was quite curious as to how Satoshi actually fought. Undoubtedly, Satoshi is one of the top candidates for the number one high school superhero in Japan, but Shiroi knew all too well that watching his fights on the television and actually fighting him herself are two opposites. If she tried hard enough, then there might be a fighting chance that she''ll win, or so that''s what she told herself. Right now is that deciding moment.

    "I''ll do it." A dragging voice spoke from behind. Behind the willing volunteer was the face of their homeroom teacher who yawned soon after as if he had just woken up. The four of them wondered why he graciously offered to be the referee when there are no merits for him from doing so. Unbeknownst to everyone, however, Knighthawk was afraid that he''d be held ountable if the practice match goes out of control. Why? Because he''s their one and only homeroom teacher in question. Even though it''s against his will to officiate the practice match, he still forced himself to do so. "Stand on two opposite sides... yes, that''s it. Everyone ready?"

    Satoshi and Simon gulped as they assumed their fighting stance. Even from afar, they could already feel the excitement welling up from thedies. It was obvious that they were looking forward to this match. The four of them nodded in response to Knighthawk''s confirmation.

    "Begin!"<sub> </sub>

    "I''ll handle this, Simon said to himself, charging forward without Satoshi''s go-signal. Previously, he wasn''t able to show the full potential of his newfound skill since Satoshi interrupted him with his overpowered elemental nail attacks. But right now, before the opponents could even make their first move, he was already setting up without missing a beat.

    p "Let''s see what you got." Satoshi grinned, summoning Sera, his buffer familiar. and letting her fly above the arena. Up there, she''s simply untouchable, and while everyone was tiring themselves out, she should be able to continuously provide buffs for him and Simon. And at the same time, provide debuffs for the enemy.</anda>

    It should be mentioned that this was the first time Satoshi summoned Sera after what happened during the ident with the suppressor. That''s why she was surprised to see that Sera was actually wearing a dress with intricate gold designs. This time she had a total of seven halos, each of which revolved over her head like a crown. She let out a soft ''mhmm'' before enveloping the air with buffs exclusively for Simon as per instructed by Satoshi.

    In that split second, Simon immediately felt the boost he needed. Not only did he feel lighter on his feet, but his reaction time had improved by a few notches, all thanks to Sera''s buffs. Before Fuuka and Shiroi engaged him in close-quartersbat, he threw all the metal rods he had by the edge of the arena. Everyone watched as the rods, which seemed to have no use at all, firmly stuck themselves to the concrete.

    While Fuuka and Shiroi didn''t know why he did something so useless, they decided to just attack him nevertheless. Extending her hands, Fuuka formed a few spatial traps on her palms and a couple of sound traps that he aimed right at Simon''s ears. As for Shiroi, she began forming ice spikes while preparing a blizzard behind her.

    "Here goes nothing," Simon said,ing face to face with Fuuka who threw all her traps right at his face.

    Fwooosh~

    In an instant, Simon disappeared right in front of them, reappearing by the blizzard which he forcefully repelled with his maic force field.

 Chapter 187 One-Sided

    "So strong," That''s the only thing Satoshi could say as he watched Simon''s masterful performance of dodging. Not only did he manage to avoid the connecting attack of Fuuka, but he also disrupted the forming blizzard with his maic forcefield. As usual, Satoshi still couldn''t tell how he scaled such a distance in a short amount of time. The only thing he could think of was teleport, but as far as he knew, Simon never had a teleportation superpower.

    "Ah... now I see it." A smile swept across Satoshi''s face as he realized the sheer genius of Simon''s new skill. He was using his maic field all along, but instead of repelling, he was attracting. The metal rods he ced all around the arena weren''t there just for show, nor were they there just for a ritual. They were actually maic rods, and Simon adjusts his maic attractability in order to travel from one point to another at insanely high speeds. That, in and of itself, was something that no ordinary superhero could do, especially since it required the precise timing on when to stop, and at the same time the reaction speed to act as soon as the attraction stopped working. It''s the same with super speed. If your reaction time can''t keep up with your speed, then that''s as fast as you could go.

    And yet, Simon was traveling so fast as if he''d been teleporting. He hadplete control over the timing, not to mention his intricate proficiency in his maic force field.

    "This was all thanks to you, Satoshi. Every single time I saw you fight on television, you always have another ace up your sleeves. That''s why I just had to climb up my superpowerdder and try to catch up to you." Simon tightened his core as he activated his maic force field once again. In a hundredth of a second, he appeared right in front of Fuuka, firing off a punch right at her cheek.

    The attack came as a surprise for Fuuka but she was somehow expecting it so she was able to react just in time. Before the fist connected, she flicked her wrist and directed an osciting sound wave that acted more like a shield instead of an attack. Simon''s fist didn''t connect, barely stopping a few millimeters away from Fuuka''s cheek. It''s as if there''s an invisible barrier propped between the fist and Fuuka.

    <o>,m With no second to spare, Fuuka fired off a couple of spatial and sound wave attacks right at Simon, hoping that one of them would at least hit him. To her utter disappointment, however, Simon once again disappeared from where he was, reappearing in front of Shiroi before disappearing and reappearing behind her. The movement was so erratic that even Satoshi had a hard time keeping track of him. He was simply untouchable and unstoppable at the same time.</o>

    "I got this," Shiroi extended both her hands as she stepped back, bringing them forward in a sweeping motion as if she was drawing an x with both her cuts. From the force of her movement came a bone-chilling wave of ice, traveling towards the general area where Simon was.

    With the wide area of effect attack, there was no way Simon could dodge it no matter how fast he was. His instant movements were limited inside the territory that the maic rods surrounded. And there was no way he could travel out of the arena because that would mean an instant defeat as per the rules of the stadium.

    In any case, if he didn''t dodge, then he''d take the full brunt of the attack. And there''s only so much coldness his body could withstand.<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi immediately gave a few orders to Nailgun, instructing it to shoot a couple of nails imbued with the element of fire. The barrage of nails simply melted the wave of ice, traveling through it and piercing the offensive and defensive attack of Shiroi. In turn, Shiroi had to jump sideways just to avoid the powerful nails that almost pierced her as well. Her movements canceled her area of effect attack, and what''s more, they''ve been pushed to the edges of the arena due to the powerful force of the nails. Even Fuuka, who had been relying on sound wave traps and spatial traps to shield her from the attack, was pushed back as well.

    After getting his bearings back, Simon shed a thumbs up towards Satoshi. " Thanks for the save. I almost forfeited back then." He said before resuming his onught of attacks.

    While Simon was taking on both Fuuka and Shiroi in the front lines, Satoshi just rxed from behind, supporting Simon and defending him if need be. He didn''t want to spoil Simon''s opportunity to finally practice with two people from ss 3-1. He''s going to support him, of course, but other than that Satoshi left him the job to defeat the two of them. If any chance Simon was backed into a corner, however, Satoshi would step in.

    "Don''t let your guard down," Satoshi called out to Simon just when he blinked towards Shiroi''s rear once again.

    Suddenly, Satoshi felt someone looking at him as if those eyes were burrowing a hole through his nape. He immediately jumped on his feet and turned around, thinking that someone or something was probably nning a sneak attack on him.

    That''s when he realized that Fuuka actually sessfully sneaked behind him, using her sound and space maniption to the best of her abilities to mask her presence. He didn''t even realize that she was gone from where she stood a few moments ago. It''s as if his eyes just epted that she was out of the picture.

    "Whoa~!" Satoshi almost fell backward as he dodged some of the invisible traps that Fuuka chucked at him. It was a miracle that he was able to dodge all of them before Nailgun caught him and flew him out of the danger zone. "That was close, real close," Satoshi said to himself, a sigh of relief escaping his mouth.

 Chapter 188 Appearance Of A Dungeon

    The fightsted for another minute or so until Simon got a sneak attack in on Shiroi. As someone who''s experienced in powerful area of effect attacks and big shy moves, Shiroi can''t go head to head with someone proficient at closebat range. That''s why every time Simon sneaked up on her, she would be backed into a corner and forced to waste her energy on powerful ice moves. It didn''t take long before she got cornered with no choice but to forfeit.

    On the other hand, Fuuka stood a chance against Satoshi had she yed her cards right. In the end, she couldn''t beat him as well since he could somehow anticipate her next attack. No matter how much she tried to hide her presence, or lessen her movements so Satoshi wouldn''t sense her invisible attacks, nothing worked on him. It''s as if he had eyes everywhere, ultimately forcing Fuuka to waste her energy until she was too exhausted to go on.

    "Satoshi and Simon''s team wins," Knighthawk announced before heading out of the stadium. He didn''t want to be part of the match in the first ce, and he just took it upon himself since the responsibility falls on him if something goes wrong.

    "That was a great match," Shiroi was the first one to speak up as she offered her hand to both Simon and Satoshi in a handshake. Fuuka followed her lead.

    "Yeah," Simon responded before heading towards his pet dog Ava, who had been tied on the corner of the stadium, obediently waiting for his master to finish his engagement.

    "Let''s have a match again some time," Satoshimented, telling everyone his sentiment since he really wanted to have a rematch with anyone in the group. The three of them responded with a nod.

    As Satoshi bade goodbye to everyone else including Ava, Simon''s dog, he felt a slight nudging feeling in his mind as if he was forgetting something. ''Well, I forgot about it so it''s probably not that important.'' He said to himself as he headed home.

    Halfway there, he met Emma, who was actually looking for her. She was with Aira, and somehow Aira was fully clothed for running. When she saw Satoshi walking toward them, a beam of a smile formed on her face and she quickly ran, giving him a tackle hug before showing off the new clothes Satoshi''s parents got for her.

    "You''re almostte for an internship, and you also missed training." Emma casually pointed out, walking beside Satoshi and matching his pace as the two of them headed home.

    "Ah, right! I forgot! Dad''s going to chew me off when I get home." Satoshi said with a troubled expression on his face. Even though he knew that his dad wouldn''t actually nag him about it, he still felt guilty that he left his dad hanging. He may be his dad, but to Satoshi, he also is his role model, the number one hero that he had always looked up to ever since he was born. That''s why he held great respect for him and doing something tha might disappoint him actually gave him a bitter taste in the mouth. Without further ado, he increased his pace as the three of them headed home.<sub> </sub>

    <o>,m ...</o>

    While everyone was going on with their daily lives, daily training, and for the case of the students of USA, their internship, a storm was brewing by the Sea of Japan. Well, it wasn''t that much of a storm, just a rising pir that came out of nowhere.

    This pir was all-too-familiar to everyone who lives on Earth. Why? Because this wasn''t the first time a pir appeared in the world. While this may be the first time it appeared on the sea, everyone already knew what to expect of it. And that''s why the Japanese Government, in association with the SAO, decided to announce ownership of the said pir before itpletely rose out of the sea.

    A Dungeon.

    Throughout the years, Earth has experienced many catastrophes¡ª Alien Invasions, Worldwide Incidents, Otherworldly Threats, Threats from other Dimensions, the recent incident of Gates... then there are the dungeons. The dungeons were the first global catastrophe to ever appear on Earth when superpowers were beginning to surface. Needless to say, no one was prepared for the catastrophe and a lot of casualties urred back then. The people who managed to awaken superpowers managed to put a tight leash on these dungeons though, and after a few years, they''ve already cleared all the dungeons that appeared all over the globe. From time to time though, dungeons would appear and it is up to anyone who wanted to clear it.

    However, after everyone realized the shocking truth about the dungeons and how valuable they were, disputes between nations began to erupt. After all, who wouldn''t want the rare equipment, familiars, treasures, and otherworldly items that existed therein? Everyone, of course.

    Everyone wanted to get ahold of a dungeon. Wars began breaking out in a lot of countries. And adding to that, other major incidents and alien invasions didn''t really help. The world was in a state of chaos back then, and the fighting aggravated even still.

    In a desperate attempt to put a stop to this madness, a number of countries agreed to what''s called the Territorial Dungeon Act today. This act states that the dungeon would automatically belong to the country where it spawned. And it is up to the government of that country whether they want to ask another country for help, or if they want to sell or give that dungeon to another country. This rule brought equilibrium to Earth once again, and finally, the dispute between ownership of dungeons was greatly reduced. Yes, wars still urred but it''s not asmon as before.

    Pretty soon, news about the new dungeon was circted all over the globe, and once again, Japan was put in the spotlight. Everyone was curious as to what sort of treasures and challenges lie inside the dungeon, and more importantly, which heroes would be chosen to enter it.

 Chapter 189 Superhero License Exam

    Since Eye-Goddess is part of the top superheroes based on the SAO Rankings, the internship was pretty much canceled for today since she had to go to the SAO Headquarters to discuss the recent Dungeon Event with everyone. Satoshi''s parents were a part of it too, and they too left their agencies. The members of the agency were free to leave, but since there are still a few things that needed to be aplished before the end of the day, some of them decided to stay.

    With disappointment written on his face, Satoshi headed back home with nothing else to do. He was looking forward to another day as an intern but as it turned out, he received a day off. If it were any other person, they would''ve been ted, but to Satoshi who wanted to gain as much experience as possible to further prepare himself for his lifelong dream of bing a professional superhero, it was a punch in the gut. Aside from physical training and mastering his control over his familiars and their newfound skills, there was really nothing left for him to do. He could help Emma with her training, or call over the noisy Midori or Hiroshi for a practice match just like he did this morning... but that''s about it. And it''s not like he wascking inbat training with his dad giving it to him on a silver tter every day in the morning.

    When he got home, he was surprised to see both Midori and Hiroshi waiting for him by the front gate. Emma was there too, answering their call since she and Aira were the only ones at home.

    "What are you two doing here?" Satoshi picked up his pace to greet them.

    "Our agency''s on break and we figured yours too. Well, turns out every agency in Japan is on break so there was nothing to do." Midori shrugged. "And that''s why we came to pick you up!"

    "What do you mean?" Satoshi asked.

    Without further ado, Midori pulled up a flyer from his pocket and showed it so enthusiastically. It was a flyer of the recognized Hero Licensing exclusively run by the SAO. Hiroshi briefly grinned as he nodded along the disy. The two of them have talked about this, and unbeknownst to Satoshi, every first year in the world was already aware of what they were about to say.

    Ironically, Satoshi had always been updated with superhero news, in fact, he was a great fanboy when ites to every superhero. There was one point in his life when he had saved up articles about superheroes every day,piling them in folders per month and per year on his retroputer. That retroputer is now Dex though, but he could always revert into his previous form so Satoshi could ess the files. Going back to the topic, since Satoshi had been busy the past few days, he was unable to update himself on the recent news regarding the superheroes he admired the most. Fortunately, Hiroshi and Midori were here to save the day and update him of one of the most important things he had to know.

    "The Superhero License Exam. You''re not going to take it?" Hiroshi asked, much to Satoshi''s surprise.

    ''They''re still first years and teenagers at that. Why are they suddenly talking about the Superhero License Exam?'' Satoshi had question marks running to and fro his mind as he tried to figure out what Hiroshi meant. He still couldn''t think of a reason why though, so he just had to ask. "What are you talking about?"

    "You mean, you''re not going to take it?" Hiroshi, with a doubtful face, confirmed.

    "Of course, I will, but we''re still ineligible to take it, you know. Only third and fourth years can take them and one needs to be at least eighteen years old, right?" Satoshi asked, perplexed.<sub> </sub>

    "Well, not really... you see, starting today, the Superhero License Exam is extended to first years, and anyone from sixteen years old and above can take the exam. Just like a driver''s license." Midori said. "I''m surprised you are unaware of this. But then again, it was just reported on the news yesterday when they announced the Superhero License Exam schedules."

    "So, are you going, or not?" Hiroshi asked for the second time even though he already knew the answer.

    "Sure," Satoshi answered, grabbing the flyer that Midori pulled up from his pocket. While giving it a quick scan, he kept on thinking just how soon it was for him to be taking the Superhero License Exam. But then again, it''s not like he wasn''t yet prepared for this. "Let''s go," He said after confirming the address.

    "Before that... who''s she?" Hiroshi curiously asked, jerking a thumb towards Emma who had been standing quietly by the side.

    Emma fidgeted. The reason why she hasn''t spoken up until now was that she didn''t want to interrupt their conversation. Besides, she doesn''t know that much about this world so she was trying to limit her speaking.

    "Is she your cousin?" Midori asked.

    "Um, not really, she''s a guest." Satoshi continued. "Her name''s Emma Leisenberg."

    "I see, she''s a foreigner. Must be from the Midoriyam Duo''s connections." Hiroshi assumed. "Is sheing with us?"

    Emma shook her head. She had to look after Aira, after all, unless of course, Aira wille with them. It was written all over her face that she badly wanted toe but she couldn''t. And she didn''t want to disturb Satoshi while he was going to take that Superhero License Exam. At the very least, she knew what the Superhero License Exam was, and this was all the more reason why she couldn''t go with him with Aira tagging along. After all, Aira can be especially clingy to Satoshi.

    "Yeah, she''sing with us," Satoshi spoke before Emma could outrightly reject the offer. And then he mouthed to bring Aira with her too. "Just, make sure to hide her hair. Someone might recognize her."

 Chapter 190 Added Bonus

    A few hourster, the Dungeon, Codename Dungeon Spire, has finally fully emerged from the Sea of Japan, growing at a frightening height of more than fifty thousand feet, extending as far as the troposphere and peeking through the clouds up above. This dungeon was probably thergest one to ever spawn, and the Japanese Government as well as the Superhero Association Organization were a bit bothered by it.

    "Sir, we''ve already summoned every hero we can contact, including the top ten." One of the personnel called out to Fury who had been making a phone call. He wasn''t in the best of moods, that''s why he was wearing a disgusted face as he nodded to thedy who just informed her about the summon. Thedy ''eek''ed in response even though she knew that his frustration wasn''t really directed at her. Fury waved his hand, dismissing thedy, before recalling the phone call that he had just received.

    Apparently, the phone call was directly from the White House in America. Since Fury has a high position in the SAO, he has direct contact with government leaders all across the globe. That doesn''t mean he gets to decide whenever though, there are still the board members of the SAO voting alone if a suggestion had been made. Notwithstanding, Fury has a great influence when ites to the SAO, and he was even the one handling all contacts, so it''s obvious that whatever it is that he suggested, the majority was bound to agree.

    Right now, America came to a proposition that Japan hand over Dungeon Spire to them, not because they wanted to hog all the resources and items inside for them (that''s part of their ulterior motives though, of course), but because it was obvious that Japan couldn''t handle such a dungeon. Based on appearances alone, Dungeon Spire is the biggest dungeon to ever spawn throughout the history of dungeons spawning, and also it had been proven that the overall levels of the monsters inside the dungeon are greatly affected by the size of the dungeon itself. If that were the case, then there''s a huge possibility that Japan wouldn''t be able to handle it.

    One week.

    America has given Japan one week to clear the dungeon. If they can''t do it then America will step in. While Fury didn''t really approve of their proposition, he knew that America wouldn''t sit through the entire situation. As far as he knows, they might probably be doingmentaries about Japan, telling their citizens that they can''t handle it. If this goes on, then the one-week deadline will be decided by the masses and not the government of Japan itself.

    And if the people were to want America to clear the dungeon, then Japan has no choice but to hand it to them if they are unable to clear it. It was a simple publicity agenda. Let the people decide, and even the most solid act or bill or treaty will go right out the window.

    Fury clenched his fists. He was in a tight spot and so is the entire organization. Of course, whatever resources and items were found in the dungeon, they badly needed it. It would be a great addition to the country''s financial reserve, not to mention the great number of countries who''d want an auction to be organized for the items, which in turn would rake in more money. If America forced them to clear the dungeon within one week, then they should aplish it without question.

    After clearing his throat, Fury went to the conference room where all the avable top superheroes were summoned. The moment he stepped foot inside, silence befell the room. It wasn''t the awkward silence type, but a silence that portrayed great respect and admiration towards Fury. While he may only be one of the many members of SAO holding a high position, the superheroes actually respected him. His decisions were top-notch, after all, and he was able to stop many cmities just by his ns alone. Needless to say, the superheroes greatly trusted him.<sub> </sub>

    "So, you''re all here. I presume the lot of you are already aware of the recent cmity... or should I say, opportunity?" A brief smile appeared on Fury''s face as he tried to hide the nervousness within. He knew that there are a couple of superheroes in the room that could read minds. If he so much thought about the recent phone call he received from the White House, then everyone would be aware of the pressure thrown on them. He didn''t want that, at any cost, and that''s why he put all those disturbing thoughts at the back of his mind while he discussed the mission at hand.

    "This dungeon, code-named Dungeon Spire, is confirmed to be the biggest dungeon to ever spawn on Earth. With that fact alone, I assume all of you already have a firm grasp on what to expect, right? Stronger monsters, unpredictable traps and rooms. Some of you might even die exploring this dungeon." Fury continued as the projector lit up, projecting an image of Dungeon Spire captured by a drone.

    "But!"

    "Those are not the only things that we should expect. With great difficultyes great rewards. if we were able to clear this dungeon, then the rewards will be massive. We don''t know what to expect inside such a dungeon but one thing''s for sure, the rewards are rtive to the difficulty level and the size of the dungeon. In other words, we can expect great rewards."

    "And while the government advised us to tag everything discovered in the dungeon as government property, we refused the offer. The terms of the dungeons are still the same, and that means anyone who epts this mission would be rewarded an item of their choosing from the dungeon itself."

    A series of ''oohs'' could be heard from the crowd. Of course, aside from the huge sum of money they''ll receive for risking their lives, the added bonus of an item of their own choosing is something that everyone looked forward to. What if there''s an item there that would greatlyplement one''s superpower? In the world ofpetitive superheroes, no one wouldn''t want that.

    Hands are raised, and as expected, there were more volunteers than Fury had initially thought.

 Chapter 191 Words Of Encouragement

    In total, there were more than twenty people who signed up to explore Dungeon Spire, and that''s not counting the five people in the top ten who signed up, specifically Plunder, Life and Death Angel, Technomarine, and Stoon. Quite surprisingly, Satoshi''s mom didn''t sign up for the Dungeon for reasons unknown and she didn''t wish to disclose them. Everyone was a bit concerned as to why she didn''t join but no one dared ask her.

    Apparently, Tatsuki (Plunder) specifically asked his wife to not join the party, telling her that it would be dangerous. ''If anything goes haywire, then at least Satoshi won''t be left alone.'' He said, to which Ayumu shook her head in rejection.

    "At least I''d be there to protect you," Ayumu reasoned out.

    "As if I need protecting." Tatsuki smiled. "We have to do this, remember the Boosting Incident? I don''t want that to happen again. And if we can''t help it, then at least we should do what we can, right?"

    Of course, she remembered the Incident¡ª the time when the two of them almost lost their lives. Back then, the thought of leaving Satoshi alone to fend for himself, all powerless and young, was unbearable. They promised themselves that it would never happen again.

    "Come back, okay?" Ayumu grabbed her hand and clenched it.

    "I alwayse back." He grinned.

    As usual, Tatsuki was chosen to be the leader of the group. If he hadn''t volunteered though, Fury would''ve had a hard time choosing a leader. He just saved him unnecessary work, which Fury was grateful for.

    The exploration will be set for tomorrow. Unlike the Gates, the Dungeons don''t block external signals. With this, SAO could send in a couple of drones for reconnaissance first before the exploration team dives in. And that''s the reason why exploration was set for tomorrow. This will give everyone enough time to n and scout at least a couple of floors before the actual run-through of the dungeon.

    The bunch of nerves and insecurity everyone felt couldn''t get any worse. Had Fury told them that they have a deadline to meet, they''d have felt even more worried. Fortunately, Fury kept the information to himself and instead, gave everyone a schedule.

    "So, you''ll be leading us again today, Plunder, I guess our lives are in your hands." Life Angel said, performing a graceful bow as he pressed his fist on his palm.

    "And vice versa," Plunder greeted back. "I''ll be in all of your care."

    Hisment brought about a nice atmosphere in the room, and for a few minutes, they were able to forget the uncertainty that was bound to happen tomorrow. At the very least, they are aware that their lives are in capable hands, and that notion alone reassured them a tad bit.

    "Oh, by the way, the Superhero License Exam is today, right? Is your son going to apply?" Stoon casually said as he got a sandwich from a nearby table. "He''s pretty strong. I think he''ll pass with flying colors." ]

    "What, it''s today?!" All the color drained from Plunder''s face as he quickly got his coat. "I''m sorry, I have to go."

    "But what about the ¡ª "

    "Brief me tomorrow!" Plunder shouted on his way out. There was no way he''d miss his son''s Superhero License Exam.<sub> </sub>

    After all, ever since Satoshi was born, he vowed to always be there for him, especially on special asions such as this one.

    Throughout the years, he had always been powerless, but the reason why he survived despite being different was that his parents had always supported him. It gave him the strength to plow through life and drove him to cover his weaknesses with strength. If he didn''t have a superpower, then he''d at least be physically strong. If he couldn''t get into the school of his choice, then he''d choose the second one. If he gets bullied, then he''d think up of a way to deal with it. There was nothing one couldn''t ovee if they had the reason to, and that''s how Satoshi lived his life as someone without a superpower back then.

    And right now, he still received that full support, even though he already got a superpower and a powerful one at that.

    Actually, Tatsuki didn''t really need to rush out of the conference room since the Superhero License Exam venue was in SAO Headquarters. And yes, the conference room is positioned to have a clear view of the exam venue.

    Tatsuki knew that. He still needed to go meet up with his son and offer him a few words of encouragement and advice. There was no way he''d just watch his son from afar. At the very least, he should give him something, just to show that he''ll be watching him and supporting him all the way.

    Once he reached the entrance (it didn''t even take him five seconds to get there since he used a superspeed superpower), he immediately recognized the five people who were walking toward it. It''s as if fate yed a major part in his timing since he came face to face with Satoshi and the group right before they entered.

    "Great timing," He let out before putting a hand on his son''s shoulder.

    "Dad?" Satoshi asked, surprised, wondering how his father knew that he''d be here when he didn''t tell him anything about it. In fact, it was only today that he became aware of the Superhero License Exam being open to first years.

    "Do your best out there, I''ll be watching," Tatsuki said, giving a thumbs up with his other hand. It was quite an image since he was wearing his super suit in all its glory.

    As his gaze scanned the area, he realized that there are more participants going through the front entrance. A smile formed on Tatsuki''s face as he first address Satoshi''s group. "And all of you as well. I hope all of you do your best as well. I''ll be cheering you o¡ª Emma? Aira? What are you two doing here?"

    "They''re here to spectate."

    "Oh, I thought they were going to apply as well. Haha." Tatsuki chuckled. "Well then, off you go. To think that I''ll witness this day... I''ve always dreamed of seeing you off as you get your license sniffle~"

    ''What a doting father.'' Midori slightly enviably said in his head.

    "Everyone! Do your best in the Superhero License Exam! I look forward to seeing you in the field!" Tatsuki raised his voice, addressing everyone who was about to enter the venue.

    The examinees actually stopped short the moment they noticed Plunder. They couldn''t believe that the top superhero would be by the front gate to give them words of encouragement. Even though he initially nned to just give it to his son, his words still resonated with everyone.

 Chapter 192 Superhero License Examâ€” Commencement

    Thepetitive air lingered around the stadium where the Superhero License Exams would be held. Superheroes of all ages and sizes were there, doing all they could to focus and get rid of the unnecessary baggage of nervousness they had within. Each individual had their own way ofing to terms with their anxiousness. One of them banged his head against the wall, another muttered a soft prayer while holding beads in his hands, and there were others who started writing the character for man in Japanese. As minutes passed, the air became heavier, more intense. There was even a hint of bloodthirst in the air,ing out of individuals who are in it to rise to the top no matter what.

    "Wow, talk about intense," Midori said to himself, swiveling his head around, taking in the scenery in front of him. Compared to the Inter-High Tournament, the Superhero License Exam had an even morepetitive vibe. He felt himself choking up.

    "Of course, we''re not the only ones trying to be superheroes here. There are more individuals here who''ve taken this test multiple times now, and I won''t me them if they get desperate during the exams." Hiroshi pursed his lips, he also couldn''t get used to the thick air around him. "That said, I don''t see the rest of our ssmates here, are they going to apply for a license? Now''s a good time."

    No.

    "This is the first Superhero License Exam, right? Then now''s probably the worst time." Satoshi responded. He could still remember every rey of the Superhero License Exam he watched in the past. And back then, the first exam is always the mostpetitive since everyone is fighting for that license.

    There are a couple of reasons why the first exam was always saturated with participants. Some probably did it out of desperation, since they''ve already failed a couple of times in the past years. Some are probably trying to find a better job since they are in dire need of money. And some probably wanted to make a name for themselves since the people who passed the first exam tend to be more popr.

    "That''s right. We may not have a television at home but I''ve done my research." Midori answered, agreeing with Satoshi''s statement. "The first Superhero License Exam is always the most saturated. Only the best of the best pass it and depending on the Exam, there may even be limited spots for the exam itself."

    Superhero License Exam usually consists of two rounds. One is a free-for-all fight where either thest number of people are left standing, or there are limited spots and a number of people need to pass it. Either way, the numbers are usually fixed¡ª one hundred to two hundred participants depending on the exam. Throughout the years, a lot of guides have been released for the Superhero License Exam, but none had predicted what the next exam will be, not even once. That''s how random the exams were. It seems like the head of the SAO just doesn''t run out of ideas when ites to testing soon-to-be superheroes.

    "Oh, you''re here." A guy''s voice called out to them from behind.

    It was none other than Oversight of the Flowing Wave Academy (also the son of Gerik Axor, or Stoon, ranked seven in SAO rankings). Beside him stood Saturn, the one who gave Satoshi a hard time back at the Inter-High Tournament finals. He was one of the most powerful high schoolers who got an augment-type superpower and he was even the leader of the representatives of the Flowing Wave Academy back then.

    "Oversight and um, Saturn, right? I''m sorry I don''t know your names and all." Satoshi scratched his head. "You''re Pietro though, right? I heard from your dad." Satoshi pointed at Oversight.<sub> </sub>

    It was true, they only ever announced their superhero made-up names during the Inter-High Tournament.

    "I''m Taniguchi Kyou, nice to meet you again, Satoshi." Saturn extended his hand as Satoshi obliged to shake it. "I look forward to seeing you again in action."

    "Did you hear what Plunder told us earlier? Yeah, I''m pretty hyped up as well." Oversight said. Of course, everyone knew that Satoshi was Plunder''s son.

    In fact, everyone was actually giving him the stares now. This was one of the drawbacks of bing famous before one gets his superhero license. Not only is everyone observing you, but they''re also targeting you.

    Colors drained from Satoshi''s face as he realized what was going on. Right now, he knew that he''d be put in the spotlight as soon as the Superhero License Exammences.

    "I see, everyone''s early as usual," A voice reverberated in the halls as a towering figure appeared, approaching the group. He didn''t wear any microphone, but his voice sure was loud.

    The first thing everyone noticed was how bald the person was. But despite the baldness, he didn''t seem thatme at all. His hairless head actually added to his dignified persona, not to mention the eye patch he wore on his left eye.

    "The name''s Fury, and I''ll be your supervisor for this year''s Superhero License Exam." He walked towards the center of the group before he continued speaking. "You''re all probably aware of the dungeon that recently spawned in the Sea of Japan, right? That''s just one of the reasons why we need superheroes¡ª to take care of otherworldly threats and at the same time, uphold peace in the streets. Right now, you all are here to get your license, which will enable you to be a full-fledged superhero. But that''s just the start of the journey."

    "I''m not going to give you more words of encouragement here, the top hero already gave that a moment ago. Instead, let me remind you one thing... let this be a learning experience for all of you, whether you pass or fail, you only have yourself to me," Fury turned around as the doors leading deeper into the stadium opened.

 Chapter 193 Death Reaper

    "The first round of the Superhero License Exam..." Fury said at the top of his lungs before stopping in order to create suspense, adding to the anxiety that every individual participant had.

    Gulp.

    Momentary silence filled the air as it grew thicker. Fury''s lips curved upward. "... will be a race. Break a leg, everyone."

    Once the stadium was opened, a huge banner at the top of the entrance could be seen, marking the words ''Start'' and ''Finish Line''. Satoshi and the others stood close to each other as they realized that the race-type test would have a looping track and that only those who''d finish in the top spots would be granted a pass to the second round.

    Fury found no need to exin the rules since it was already disyed in therge monitor that also showed a live stream video of the Superhero License Exam. Besides, it''s not like this was the first time that such an exam will be held. Throughout the years where the Superhero License Exam was conducted, the race exam was amon one, held almost every year. There are even guides and tutorials on Youtube on how to pass the exam. It''s nothing new to the examinees as well, even the first-timers.

    Even the course wherein everyone will bepeting in hasn''t changed over the years. That''s why those who had been taking the Superhero License Exam for many years, sure have a huge advantage. Of course, this wasn''t due to the fact that the exam was overlooked, or that the administration waszy, but rather, to help those who had been failing for many years so they''d have a chance to pass the exams. SAO needs as many superheroes as possible after all, with all the otherworldly threats, viiny, and crimes that ur throughout the country.

    And right now, with the appearance of Dungeon Spire, the urgency of the SAO couldn''t be more tested.

    "Hah, this will be a piece of cake," Hiroshi smirked, enveloping his arms and legs with mes that were ready to shoot up at a second''s notice.

    "Yep, see you at the finish line." Midori crouched low, activating his Berserk and Healing Skill at the same time to maximize the full power output of his muscles. These past few weeks, he had been undergoing intense self-training to heal faster than his muscles deteriorate during his Berserk form. Although he couldn''t do it in a lengthened period of time, he knew that a few seconds is more than enough for him to finish this race.

    "Sure," Satoshi answered, summoning Ghast and Nailgun. He figured that the examiners might not ept him teleporting at the checkpoint and then back at the finish line so he decided to do short bursts of teleportation while flying with his Nailgun. That way, he''d be able to satisfy the examiners by showing them a fraction of his power.

    Murmur. Murmur.

    The whispers that epassed the group suddenly became louder as a certain figure passed by. He wasn''t anything noteworthy, or at least that''s what his figure screamed at everyone. Nevertheless, everyone thought it best to be wary of him, not because he was powerful (and he is powerful) but because of his purpose.

    "I-isn''t he... the Death Reaper?" Someone uttered in a low tone,

    "Y-y-yes, that''s him. We shouldn''t have... tsk!" Another one said, shutting his eyes in frustration.

    Death Reaper was tall in stature but he was skinny. His pointy ears resembled that of a bat, and he wore small circr-rimmed sunsses on his eyes which barely covered them. His tattered clothes, despite making him look like a beggar, intimidated the group, causing them to step aside as he walked into the center. A creepy smile swept across his face in return as he was awaiting such reactions from them.

    "I guess it''s hunting season this time of year again," He licked his lips, swinging the two small scythes in his hands which were bound together by chains on each end.

    "Do you know him?" Someone asked from the crowd near Midori, to which Midori promptly replied.<sub> </sub>

    "Yes, that''s the Death Reaper. Usually, he avoids the first Superhero License Exam but right now, he''s here out of all ces. This is bad." Midori grunted.

    "I know... fortunately we can overtake him... the others aren''t that lucky though." Hiroshi agreed.

    Three...

    Two...

    One...

    Ready...

    Start!

    The race gun was shot, and the exammenced, making everyone scramble towards the front. However, with one great leap, Death Reaper managed to overtake everyone, including Midori and Hiroshi who were confident that the Death Reaper wouldn''t be able to go head to head with them in terms of speed.

    Just as everyone here had been preparing for the past year to pass the Superhero License Exam, Death Reaper had been preparing as well, forming strategies that would give him the edge when ites to any exams. And right now, it was clear that he was more ready than anyone else in this group. As soon as he was forty or so meters ahead, he stopped short, turning around and facing everyone who was running toward him.

    "Sorry guys, just doing my job," He said to himself, swinging his chain scythes relentlessly, trying to discourage anyone who mighte near. Adding to that, he let out a sliver of bloodthirst towards the group, causing them to stop short in their tracks as crippling fear overcame them... well, not all of them.

    [I''ve nullified the attack to the mind, Satoshi,] Dex said in Satoshi''s mind as he woke up from the daze.

    "Snap out of it, you two." Satoshi then raised his voice, pping both Hiroshi and Midori in the face. "We can''t afford to lose here."

    The three of them weren''t the only ones who snapped out of the mind daze, but then again, it''s not like there were a lot of them who were able to do so. Most of them were also psychics as well. It was probably their mental fortitude that enabled them to not be affected by the bloodthirst.

    "So, who here is nicknamed the Iron Blooded Orphan?" Death Reaper called out, "Be honored, someone out there has given me the opportunity to stop you from being a superhero. Well, not that it would make any difference to everyone, I still have enough breathing space to take all of you on."

    "Are you sure about that?" A metallic voice resounded from the group, followed by a nking of metal.

 Chapter 194 Oshiete, Oshiete Yo~

    Iron-Blooded Orphan walked forward, a glow of red glistening from his metal helmet. Even though his full armor was heavy he walked as if he was as light as a feather. "Are you sure about that?" He asked. Everyone could''ve sworn that he was gritting his teeth from behind his helmet.

    "That''s more like it!" Death Reaper screamed with excitement, swinging the chain scythes in his hand. As its momentum flowed like water, it became a blur in everyone''s eyes.

    Since the signal was already fired, there was no need for all the participants to wait. All of them started running towards Death Reaper, hoping that the distraction that is the Iron-Blooded Orphan would be more than enough. They wanted to get out of there, the sooner they did so, the higher their chances would be of getting a Superhero License.

    "Stop pushing!"

    "Aghk~! You''re stepping on me."

    "Argh! Don''t pull my shirt!"

    "I''m getting there first."

    But that''s exactly what Death Reaper was hoping for. With a sinister grin on his face, he stared at the nearest person in front of him and activated his superpower. "Freeze," He muttered.

    The person in front suddenly froze, his eyes rolling up until only white could be seen. And with a groan, that person stumbled forward, causing a chain reaction of people falling over on top of one another. Only those who were smart enough to remain a little bit behind were safe from the stampede.

    Although Iron-Blooded Orphan was positioned in front, he didn''t fall over. Instead, he elerated his pace, rushing towards Death Reaper while swinging a broadsword that he got from behind him. The broadsword emitted a bright white light,ing from the Iron-Blooded Orphan''s superpower.

    "Fourfold sh!" He screamed, bringing the Broadsword down towards Death Reaper.

    Despite wearing an armor that covered his entire body, Iron-Blooded Orphan actually moved pretty fast. In a split second, he was already in front of Death Reaper, and by the time Death Reaper realized that he was about to suffer an attack, there was no time for him to dodge.

    Death Reaper''s pupils dted as adrenaline rushed through his body. In that split second, he managed to keep up with Iron-Blooded Orphan''s speed as he put up his chains scythes. He had hoped topletely thwart the blow, but he wasn''t expecting the power that was unleashed from such a simple attack. What he didn''t think about was that he was actually hit four times at once, and he only blocked with the equivalent power of one blow. Had he listened to the Iron-Blooded Orphan''s scream, he would''ve realized that Fourfold sh doesn''t mean four times the power, but four times the quantity.

    Every bone in Death Reaper''s body screamed with pain as the vibrations of the blow hit his chain scythes, making his body tremble violently.

    However, Iron-Blooded Orphan wasn''t done yet As soon as his attack hit, he inhaled and started hissing. "Water Breathing... First Form... just kidding!" He eximed, hacking and shing at Death Reaper with no reprieve.

    At first, Death Reaper thought that he was going to recite some sort of a sword attack but he stopped short, giving Death Reaper no break.

    Grunting, Death Reaper started to dodge and parry the barrage of attacks that Iron-Blooded Orphan brought down on him. He gritted his teeth and tried to use his superpower on his opponent once again. However, it didn''t seem to work. It''s as if Iron-Blooded Orphan waspletely immune to his debuffs and status effects.

    "Is. that. all. you. got?!" Iron-Blooded Orphan jumped up and brought his broadsword down on the Death Reaper.<sub> </sub>

    He hit him squarely on the head.

    A drop of blood.

    Then blood started trickling from his head.

    Gasp! A couple of examinees eximed.

    "Not yet, not yet," Death Reaper forced a smile on his face, wiping the blood off his forehead. It was a heavy blow, but it didn''t really deal that much damage... or at least that''s what he thought. Actually, the poison had already invaded his body. And a few minutes from now, he''ll be paralyzed, just like how he froze the first person running and caused everyone to copse behind him.

    "You shouldn''t have done that, now you leave me no choice." Death Reaper said, his sinister smile growing even more sinister until it almost touched the ears on the sides of his face. His eyes turned into slits as well, just like a conniving snake about tounch itself towards a person.

    Suddenly, the blood on his face disappeared in an instant as his eyes glowed ck and red. His sinister smile became genuinely scary as they heard some bone-breaking noises from behind the Death Reaper.

    Then it emerged, some sort of energy wings or something of the sort. It resembled coagted blood, freely flowing behind Death Reaper''s face. There were indecipherable designs on the wings, and the way it moved was simply out of this world. Death Reaper beganughing. "How''s that for a change?"

    A couple of projectiles wereunched toward the participants, pinning most of them on the ground. Even Iron-Blooded Orphan, who was wearing full body armor, was thrown away by the projectiles, and then some of the projectiles managed to pin him on the ground as well.

    "Grrr what''s this!" Iron-Blooded Orphan eximed. No matter how much he tried to swing his mace around, it was to no avail. Who would''ve thought that he''d be defeated even before he managed to get his Superhero License Exam?

    "This? Well, it''s a kagune, Death Reaper exined. "I''m kidding. I actually have the power to control blood, but I liked this design."

    "I see... so you''ve seen the ancient series, huh, it had a nice ending," Iron-Blooded Orphan muttered.

    "Heh, of course, I know that, I"ve read the text as well. And I have all copies of them."

    What Death Reaper didn''t know was that Iron-Blooded Orphan was actually buying some time in order to recover his energy. He knew he could defeat the Death Reaper in one fell swoop, he just needed the right timing and enough power.

    "All right, let''s go," Satoshi suddenly muttered behind them.

    And apparently, he was the only one left behind the start line.

 Chapter 195 First Round Over

    Despite the Iron-Blooded Orphan''s sheer power and tankiness, Death Reaper still managed to whittle away at his overall power, weakening him to the point of exhaustion. While he wasn''t able to stop anyone else aside from the Iron-Blooded Orphan, it didn''t bother him at all. After all, his utmost priority was to stop the Iron-Blooded Orphan from getting his superhero license this year. That was what he was hired to do.

    "Now that I think about it... where was that kid? That Midoriyama kid. Well, never mind that, I guess he ran away or something." Death Reaper said to himself.

    Just a moment ago, Satoshi was too focused on the fight between the Iron-Blooded Orphan and the Death Reaper that he was the only one left behind. Death Reaper somehow resolved into stopping him from getting the Superhero License as well since it would make him more popr in his line of work. Imagine stopping the son of the famous number one and two superheroes? That would be a neat achievement to put up on his resume or something.

    But he disappeared, and right in front of his face, even.

    Apparently, Satoshi donned on his familiar, Invisibility Cloak, and rode on his Nailgun, whizzing past the Iron-Blooded Orphan and the Death Reaper unnoticed. "I don''t have the time to worry about these two. Right now I need to pass the first round or else I''d have to wait another year before I could get my Superhero License."

    While Satoshi could''ve easily risked falling behind a few seconds and knocking the Death Reaper unconscious. He didn''t feel the need of helping Iron-Blooded Orphan even though he was striving just as much as everybody else to be a superhero. Besides, it''s not like fighting in the Superhero License Exam is forbidden, so what Death Reaper did wasn''t really illegal.

    In fact, Death Reaper appears every year in the Superhero License Exam, stopping a few candidates here and there as he was hired to do so. He even has an official website where anyone could buy his services at an affordable price.

    And if what he was doing is actually really underhanded, then why hasn''t the SAO taken action about it? Needless to say, there was nothing else Satoshi could do here but leave and try to qualify for the second round.

    "I wonder where Satoshi went... hmmm... " Midori muttered. One moment, he was right behind the start line, the next moment he was gone. It''s as if he just disappeared into thin air, and there was no trace of him whatsoever anywhere.

    "I don''t know, but we can''t think about him right now. There are pretty formidable participants this year." Hiroshi muttered, flinging himself ever-forward with mes that came out of his soles and palms.

    The two of them increased their pace, watching in horror as the qualifying count being shown live started going up. It went faster than expected. In less than five seconds, twenty-five people already qualified for the second round.

    "Faster!" Hiroshi gritted his teeth in frustration, firing an even stronger burst of mes from his soles and palms. As for Midori, he didn''t feel the need to voice out his frustration since he had been doing his best right from the start.

    Thest fifty meters that led to the finish line were the very definition of chaos. With multiple supers firing off at each other without reprieve, trying to get in the way of everyone before they finally stepped foot on the finish line. Of course, there were some who aimed to finish right then and there, but those struggling behind didn''t give them a chance as they so desperately tried to hinder them.

    "Come on! We can do this!" Midori and Hiroshi said as the two of them rushed straight through, ignoring the pandemonium that ensued around them. There were other participants who tried to drag them down but with their superior agility and strength, they managed to pull through.

    Furthermore, the top picks to qualify for the second round already made it through, that''s why Hiroshi and Midori didn''t really have a difficult time weaving their way through.<sub> </sub>

    [Ny-nine]

    [One hundred]

    [One hundred one]

    The counter continued going up as Midori and Hiroshi finally finished. Fortunately, it was the top two hundred and not the top hundred. Had it been that way, one of them wouldn''t have been able to qualify right then and there.

    When they got there, the waiting room by the finish line was already almost filled with people. Of course, only two hundred or so people could fit in there after all, and once those participants qualified, the waiting area would be closed off and those who failed would be escorted out of the premises.

    Every year, hundreds upon hundreds of dreams are crushed during the Superhero License Exam, and this year was no different.

    "What the¡ª " Midori instantly eximed as soon as they entered the waiting area.

    "Geh- why? Is something wrong, Midori?" Hiroshi asked, concerned.

    Midori couldn''t help but salivate at the sight of free refreshments and drinks. Well, it wasn''t that unusual for the Superhero License Exam to have that but this was the first time he get to experience it up close. "Are those really for free? Really?!" He excitedly asked Hiroshi, who nodded in response.

    "Sweet!" Without further ado, Midori rushed towards the refreshments first, drank his fill, and began stuffing himself up with all the food he could get. And then, when no one was looking, he began stuffing some of the food in his bag. "Hehhehe," He muttered to himself.

    "You shouldn''t eat too much, you know, the second round is bound to start soon." Someone spoke from behind him.

    "Wh¡ª ah, Satoshi! You were here? I didn''t see you so I thought you still haven''t qualified." Midori took another bite of the sandwich he just got. He couldn''t tell what was inside the sandwich but he ate it anyway.

    "What do you mean? I was the first one here." Satoshi casually said, much to Midori''s surprise.

 Chapter 196 Meeting With Fury

    "What do you mean? I was the first one here." Satoshi casually said, much to Midori''s surprise.

    "Really?!" Hiroshi couldn''t believe it. ''But how?! He was thest one to leave the start line. Furthermore, there are other participants who should be much faster than him. Some of them even had superspeed. How could he..."

    Satoshi smiled, satisfied that hisment left both Hiroshi and Midori confused. It was simple really. Since the panel might overrule that he was the first one to arrive. He decided to unequip his familiar the Invisibility Cloak and fly right above everyone''s heads. And while all that was happening, he summoned Ghast, his portal-maker familiar, and have it create portals in front of everyone who''d venture too far into the track. Of course, Satoshi specifically instructed Ghast to teleport them a little bit behind the others but not too far. Because if that were to happen, then they mightin to the SAO and might even put Satoshi in a bad light if they found out he was behind the teleportation.

    Because the teleportation was only a short distance away, other participants thought that someone in the group was messing with them when in fact, it was Satoshi who was doing so and he was already hundreds of meters away from the group. Infighting urred and it became rather troublesome, even for Midori and Hiroshi who were caught in the middle of it. But then again, that bought enough time for them to catch up and even ce in the top fifty percent of finishers.

    As for Satoshi though, he was already enjoying the free refreshments and food long before everyone even got to the finish line. He finished in record time as well. While not as fast as other records, he was the first one to finish on this year''s batch, which is already a good enough feat.

    "What''s the name of the kid? Midoriyama Satoshi, you say." Fury asked one of the SAO employees before he looked at the data they''ve gathered on Satoshi.

    [Name: Midoriyama Satoshi

    Age: Sixteen years old

    Superpower: Unkown (spection: beast tamer)

    Recorded familiars: (A retroputer, white lion, blue mes, a huge fan, water, unknown 1, unknown 2, a summoner, and an ice warrior)

    Potential danger level: Triple S, just like his parents, Midoriyama Ayumu and Midoriyama Tatsuki, currently holding the top two spots in SAO Rankings.]

    "Hoh, interesting," Fury muttered, a smile forming on his face. "It''s not every day you get to see someone with a Triple S potential danger level. That''s quite surprising... and his superpower is unknown? Hmmm."

    ''This kid, he''s much smarter than I thought... or maybe it''s because his parents were none other than the top two... that''s probably the case.'' Fury said to himself.

    From afar, he watched as Satoshi talked to his ssmates just like any other regr high schooler out there. Whilst doing so, he continued watching a couple of clipspiled on Satoshi''s fights, and just as he thought, he couldn''t tell just what kind of superpower he has. Well, not like it would be easy for him. After all, even the SAO had no clue about it.

    "Interesting." Fury uttered to himself, "Let''s see how well he does in the second round."<sub> </sub>

    There was also one thing that Satoshi didn''t mention to the two. Before he actually crossed the finish line, he used his Droplet familiar, gathering water nearby and putting it right in front of the finish line¡ª a great wall of water that stopped everyone from finishing. Not like he did that to mess with everyone, but he did so in order to buy time for his friends. In the end, it all worked out pretty well since they were able to qualify without much difficulty.

    But then again, it''s not like they needed any help. Even if there were only the two of them in the first round, Satoshi was confident that they''d be able to qualify. As such he decided not to tell them anything.

    "I wonder what the next round''s going to be," Satoshi asked, "Geh~ what are you doing Midori?"

    "Miya''s going to like these! Since no one wanted to eat them, I''ll be taking these home," Midori said, licking his lips. While doing so, he continued stuffing himself even though round two is about to start.

    "You shouldn''t eat too much before apetition, you know." A voice spoke from behind them, causing the three of them to turn around.

    It was none other than.

    "Fury-san!" Satoshi enthusiastically called out before extending his hands, to which Fury responded by extending his hand as well and they shook hands.

    "It''s nice to finally meet the one and only son of the Midoriyama Duo." Fury uttered. "And these are... I remember the two of you, from the Inter-High Tournament, right? Let''s see... Midori and Hiroshi, I think?"

    Midori and Hiroshi nodded.

    "Well, try not to overeat before the second round. I''ll tell you this now but the second round will be much harder than the first... but then again the three of you easily cleared the first round so I don''t know just how difficult the second round would be for the three of you... hmm... well... hmm... "

    While Satoshi had known Fury for a long time since he sometimes visits his parents, Midori and Hiroshi didn''t, that''s why they were a little surprised that the charismatic high-ranking member of the SAO is actually pretty friendly.

    Fury crossed his arms, tapping his fingers on them as he started thinking about something. "Should I tell you... or should I not tell you... hmmm..." Just then, a mischievous smile spread across his face as he stared at the three of them.

    Whatever it is that he was going to tell them, he had decided that he will do so¡ª or so that''s what Satoshi assumed since his face clearly expressed the notion.

    "Let me just say this... I advise that the three of you try to get the top rank on the second round as much as you can... then again, even if I didn''t tell you, you''d still do it, right?" Fury said before turning around and waving his hand, wishing the three of them the best of luck in the uing second round of the Superhero License Exam.

 Chapter 197 Second Round

    After thirty minutes or soter, the first round of the Superhero License Exam finally came to an end. A total of two hundred participants managed to cross the finish line, but that wasn''t without difficulty. Apparently, there was a time limit to the first round, and even if two hundred people didn''t qualify, the first round would still end. Well, it''s not like it has happened before. With the crazy number of participants joining every year, it''s hard to get into the top two hundred. The time limit wasn''t the problem, but the number of participants joining in a desperate attempt to be a full-fledged superhero.

    "You pretty much ate and packed everything huh," Satoshi jerked a thumb towards theters who didn''t find a single bite of food. Apparently, Midori stuffed himself to the neck, and with the help of Satoshi and Orb Oboros, they packed most of the food.

    "That''s enough preparation, I guess," Midori said with a grin.

    "Second round''s about to start." Hiroshi cut their conversation off as Fury again entered the room, bearing the news of the second round.

    ''Now this, this does put a smile on my face,'' Fury said in his mind, a faint smile disyed on his face. As mentioned, Fury is part of the one percent of people who don''t have a superpower. But that didn''t stop him from bing a part of the SAO, the government-affiliated organization that handles the superheroes of all of Japan. Although he felt a bit downtrodden that he didn''t awaken a superpower, he was still content since with his position, he could meet as many supers he want, and he was even held in high regard by these people with superpowers.

    "The next round will be a simple one... well, not exactly, you know how it is with the SAO." Fury said, still having that signature tone of his that seemed to fluctuate unevenly. "Throughout the years, the first round had always been expected, there are even guides as to how to clear it and pass to the second round. This year was no different, and it seems like the participants have filled in the headcount."

    "However, that was only the start. Here in the SAO, we give everyone a chance to be a superhero... but unfortunately, not everyone is cut out to be one. And that''s why the second round exists, to sift through the candidates and find out who deserves a license. Even if you''re not prepared for the second round, as long as you''ve done your part in your training, you should be able to clear it, no sweat."

    "The second round will be another race, pretty surprising, right?" Fury chuckled, adjusting the eyepatch he wore all the time. No one has actually seen him without his eyepatch and the mystery is something that is heavily discussed on the inte. "However, there''s a catch, you can''t use your superpowers. And also... "

    "... did I say it''s an obstacle course race?"

    As Fury turned around, he could hear a couple of groans from the participants. A test that measures one''s physical capabilities isn''t all that umon when ites to the Superhero License Exam. However, it''s not something that''s rare so no one was actually expecting it. In the end, it was SAO who had thestugh.

    The gates that led out of the stadium were raised once again, and the countdown was shown on the huge screen that disyed the live stream. "Oh, and also, only those in the top fifty will get their superhero license. Better run!"<sub> </sub>

    With those words sinking in their minds, the participants didn''t need any telling twice. As soon as the countdown reached zero, they all began pushing and tugging at each other, moring as a light stampede broke out. This was always the case when ites to race-type exams and it''s not all that surprising. While there aren''t any guides as to what the second round will be, these people overlooked the fact that there are plenty of guides about races on youtube. If they had used their heads even for a split second, they should''ve known better and stayed at the sides of the track.

    The middle part is always the danger zone since everyone wanted to be first and they would start pushing and tugging at each other. But then again, it''s not like all of them were qualified enough to receive their superhero license. As aforementioned, this is the sifting part and only twenty-five percent of them would pass.

    Satoshi, Midori, and Hiroshi chose to stay at the sides and they managed to clear the congested area of the race which is the starting line. Unlike the others, they actually used their heads (in all honesty though, Midori and Hiroshi just tailed Satoshi since they knew he''d be able to pass. Even though that wasn''t enough to make them eligible for the superhero license, at least it would improve their rankings, and hopefully they''d get the top fifty.)

    "I''d go on ahead," Satoshi called out, waving towards the group as he made a huge leap and got ahead of everyone.

    For the first obstacle, it was a mud pit withs on top. If one were to cross, one literally had to crawl through the mud pit... or so that''s what everyone would initially think.

    By the corners of the mud pit were logs where thes are attached so they won''t fall on the mud pit. Without thinking twice, Satoshi started leaping from one log to the other like a frog. In just a few seconds, he cleared the mud pit which would''ve usually taken a normal person to clear in three or so minutes. He continued running, not daring to look back since he knew that he was the first one anyways. And even if someone were to get ahead of him, he would just increase his pace like usual and get ahead of them as well. While it may seem like Satoshi was running at full speed, this was actually just his casual speed, and he could run faster than he disyed.

    "Interesting," Furymented as he watched from afar. "Now that''s what you call a superhero."

 Chapter 198 Obstacles

    There were a total of ten obstacles in the obstacle course second round race. After the mud pit is the rope-climbing up to the tenth story which is a great hurdle for everyone who is acrophobic. Telekic superheroes were stationed right at the base of the rope-climbing since someone might fall and die a horrible death. At least if such an ident happens, the superheroes would be able to catch them.

    Apparently, this also gives other acrophobic participants a fighting chance at the obstacle. After all, the assurance that there''s someone or something catching them when they fall is a great confidence booster. They won''t need to think twice about grabbing the rope and hoisting themselves up.

    The problem with the rope-climbing is that it''s one of the most challenging obstacles. After all, there were only a total of ten ropes. If someone were to grab one and another grab right under them, they could potentially ruin those who went first. And of course, there will be participants who wouldn''t think twice about doing such a thing since everyone is fighting here for the top fifty spots.

    Satoshi didn''t have a problem with this though, since he was already halfway through the rope-climbing course when everyone was still stuck in the mud pit. Midori and Hiroshi, meanwhile, were gritting their teeth as they crawled through, swallowing mud and coughing it out as they go.

    "How did Satoshi get there so fast?!" Hiroshi eximed, watching from afar as Satoshi already got on top of the tform by the end of the rope.

    "He hopped on the sidelines, remember? But then again, it may look easy but it required great bnce. I wouldn''t dare try it since it would just put me at a disadvantage." Midori answered, his face already covered with mud.

    "Yeah, there''s also the risk of falling on the other side, which would put you back in the starting line as per the rules... definitely a ballsy move." Hiroshi continued.

    "Then again, he was able to do that despite the risks. Satoshi really is leagues ahead of us, huh." Taniguchi Kyou, also known as Saturn from the Flowing Wave Academy, called out. He was right behind Midori and Hiroshi, crawling through the mud like a catfish out of water.

    "Yeah, we fought with him and we were no match against him." Oversight said.

    As the four crawled through and finally reached the final stretch of the mud pit, Satoshi was already rappelling down the other side of the rope-climbing. Instead of rappeling though, he ran straight down like some sort of a lunatic.

    "Wah~ is he crazy?!" One of the telekic superheroes assigned on the base of the rope-climbing eximed, already putting up his palms just in case Satoshi slips and falls headfirst.

    "He''s going to die! Let''s catch him!" Another one called out, extending his hands into the air as well. If a participant dies on their watch, the bacsh they''d receive¡ª well they didn''t want to think about it.

    "We got to catch him!"

    "But what if he made it all the way down? Wouldn''t we cut his time?"

    "Let''s not think about that! He''s going to die at this rate! If that happens who''s going to answer to the Midoriyama Duo?!"

    "Right! It''s better safe than sorry!"

    Suddenly, they heard a click from their device which is connected directly to Fury just in case they needed additional instructions. The click then turned into a beep before Fury''s deep voice was heard.

    [Just watch... beep!]<sub> </sub>

    "..."

    "Um..."

    "Did he just tell us to watch?"

    "But the kid!"

    "Fury getting furious is way worse... no, not really... maybe?"

    By the time they were done arguing with each other, Satoshi had already reached the foot of the tform. Before he hit the ground, however, he braced himself and dove forward, changing his trajectory parallel to the ground instead of the vertical that he maintained while running downwards the rappelling area. The eleration was perfectly timed, and by the time the assigned watchers knew what was happening, Satoshi was already rolling through the ground on his way to the next obstacle.

    "What was that?"

    "Wow... is that kid for real?!"

    The watchers were somewhat surprised that Satoshi managed to move like that even when he wasn''t using any of his superpowers. However, Satoshi had no time to turn around and see how they reacted to him. Right now, the next obstacle was the most problematic one yet.

    Tight-rope walking.

    It was a simple yetplicated obstacle since anyone behind could ruin the distance of the person in front. They could simply shake the tight rope to an extent and have the person fall over. It would be an automatic restart if that were to happen.

    Fortunately, Satoshi had already put a huge distance between him and the other participants. However, he wasn''t going to miss this chance.

    Without further ado, Satoshi grabbed the rope and started pulling himself forward. Instead of walking on the tight rope, he decided to move forward as if he were in the rope-climbing section. That way, even if someone were to catch up, they won''t be able to shake him off.

    And just like he thought, as soon as he reached halfway through the tightrope, the first of the bunch finally caught up to him, all muddy and almost exhausted. The rope-climbing really took a lot of air from everyone who did it.

    "So that''s him, huh," The second guy to reach the tightrope was a man named Tsukishima Tsukimi, and he was probably one of the few candidates who are on par with Satoshi''s overall physical capabilities. Because just like Satoshi, he also worked his body to the bone, not relying on his superpower which was actually not that useful inbat.

    "Oi, kid! What are you crawling out there for? You a worm or something?" He called out, his voice as loud as ever.

    Something in Satoshi''s mind clicked, and for the first time in his life, he wanted to go back to the starting line and give the person who called out to him a nice punch in the face.

 Chapter 199 Superpowerâ€” Provocation

    Tsukishima Tsukimi was born without superpowers. Just like Satoshi, he also had the Alpha Gene in his blood, but somehow, his superpowers never showed... or at least, that''s what he thought.

    As it turned out, his superpower had actually manifested earlier than most, but he didn''t realize it at all. Figures, his superpower wasn''t all that noteworthy, after all, and if he were to be given a choice whether to have his power or not, he''d most likely choose thetter as it was more of a burden than a superpower, to begin with.

    It all started when he was ten years old, no, it was probably earlier than that. He just didn''t notice it. His family went to the beach and while ying beach volleyball with his friends, someone dropped the ball on the other side of the and he immediately said ''you suck'' to that person.

    For some odd reason, everyone, including those on his team, got angry at him and started beating him up to the point where he got his ribs broken and his face was a mess of swollen flesh. He was immediately taken to the hospital and the local news even covered the story. Of course, it was a great embarrassment to the parents of the ones involved but for Tsukimi, it was a traumatic memory.

    Since then, every singlement he lets out gets him beaten to a pulp. He couldn''t tell why such a thing only happened to him though. Even when hepliments someone, ites out as an insult and he gets beaten up.

    In the end, he decided not to talk anymore. When he reached middle school, his condition became worse to the point that everyone thought he was dumb¡ª that he couldn''t speak at all. And while all of that was happening, a thought urred in his mind.

    ''I get beaten up because I was weak.''

    ''If I were slightly stronger than them, I''d have stood a chance.''

    ''It was my fault I was this pathetic.''

    Although he went on apletely different way of approaching his uniqueness, it all worked out in the end. He started weight training, then stamina training, and it reached the point where he could finally stand up to those who tried to beat him up.

    Sometimes, he would even go at a crowd and say something, only to be beaten up. Of course, he wouldn''t stand a chance against them but it most certainly gave him a clear gauge as to how strong he currently was.

    And while all that was happening, he finally realized something¡ª something that he should''ve realized a couple of years ago.

    His words... are his superpower.

    It didn''t even ur to him at first. The only time it did was when he tried to provoke someone a second time, to which he responded with how he was doing all he could in his life but it still wasn''t enough. While he was giving that speech, Tsukimi gave him a good punch in the face and the fight was over before it even started.

    The more he used his words, the more it became in to him that that was his superpower.

    Superpower¡ª Provocation.

    .....

    "Oi, kid! What are you crawling out there for? You a worm or something?"

    Satoshi wanted to punch him so hard that he even started crawling backward. He couldn''t tell why he was riled up with such simple words but that''s what happened. Somehow, his body just started moving on its own.

    [You''ve been hit by a superpower that affects the mind, Satoshi]<sub> </sub>

    [Negating the effect]

    "Thanks, Dex," Satoshi said, realizing a bit toote that the guy just used his superpower on him.

    "..."

    "Wait,"

    "That didn''t work?!" Tsukimi eximed, clicking his tongue as he started making his way through the tight-rope course. It''s not like that affected him though since he knew that his superpower only worked on the majority. As much as he hated to admit it, there are some who couldn''t be affected by his superpower, and those people have a strong mental fortitude than normal.

    "To think that he''s one of those guys, what a blessed kid," Tsukimi said to himself, smiling. There was no need for him to provoke the son of the Midoriyama Duo after that happened. He even concluded that his superpower won''t work on him the second time.

    And with that, Satoshi cleared the fourth section of the obstacle course.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    They''d already done a couple of tries but they just couldn''t get over the rope climb no matter how many times they tried. Midori and Hiroshi sighed in frustration as Pietro Axor (Oversight) and Taniguchi Kyou (Saturn) already went ahead of them. At this rate, they won''t even get to the top one hundred, much less the seeded top fifty that would qualify for the Superhero License.

    "Tsk!" Midori clicked his tongue, punching the b of wood in front of him, behind it was where everyone else was rappelling for the third part of the obstacle course.

    "Wait... " Hiroshi called out, causing Midori to open his eyes once again.

    "What is it?" Midori asked.

    "Nothing much, it''s just that... hmmm..." Hiroshi mumbled, ncing towards Midori and then at the wall that he just punched.

    "If you have something to say just say it. It''s not like it''s going to hurt. And if by any chance you have an idea how we''ll be able to get through this and pass... just say it!" Midori scratched his head, wondering why Hiroshi was mumbling to himself when all it did was waste their precious time.

    "I mean... it didn''t really say that we have to climb through the ropes, right? And also, didn''t Satoshi clear the mud pit by jumping through the logs, right?" Hiroshi continued.

    "Yeah, you''re right... and so? What do you suggest we do now?" Midori asked, too slow to get what Hiroshi actually meant.

    "I mean, can you just punch our way through?" Hiroshi said, grinning.

 Chapter 200 Go Beyond Plus~

    It''s as if a switch was flipped on Midori''s head and he smiled, a creepy grin as if he was nning world domination. Hiroshi smiled back at him, but the smile in and of itself was filled with ulterior motives since he would be using Midori to get out of there. There was no way he''d punch the t of wood in front of him... that''s why he could only depend on Midori who is more muscr and overall physically stronger than him.

    "That''s a good idea!" Midori cheerily said and without thinking twice, brought his hand back and swung it hard. Thump. The wooden t in front of him seemed to crack a little.

    Fortunately, the wood used for this section was old, dry, and brittle enough that it could be punched through. Midori winced as splinters punctured his fist. He didn''t mind it though and brought his arm back once again, this time, bracing his core for an even more powerful blow. He didn''t mind if the punch would leave his fist all bloodied and broken. At the very least, this action would put them way ahead of everyone in the rope-climbing and rappelling section. It''s basically a shortcut through two of the ten sections of the second round.

    "Oomph!" Midori held his breath as his fist connected, this time it went straight through. He managed to crack the wood with sheer physical strength alone... but at what cost? Because of that, his fist¡ª as well as his forearms¡ª were bleeding, thanks to the splinters and the sharp cracks of wood left behind after he brute-forced his way through.

    "Let''s go," Behind Midori''s forced smile was pain, but he uiningly continued with the race with Midori right behind him.

    Somehow, the gesture made Hiroshi feel a modicum of guilt since he was the one who basically forced the idea into Midori''s head. And now he was hurt because of it.

    All''s well that end''s well though since they were able to get ahead of almost everyone. "Are you all right?" Hiroshi couldn''t help but ask, pursing his lips. "Sorry, it was my idea, and yet¡ª "

    "You don''t have to apologize. Besides, this much won''t kill me... it would impede my overall performance but overlooking that it''s all good." As Midori quickened his pace, he eventually started feeling the difort in his arms, causing him to grit his teeth. "We have to do at least this much if we want to catch up to Satoshi."

    Hiroshi frowned as he ran beside Midori. Just a few months ago, he looked down on Satoshi so much because he wasn''t blessed with a superpower. There was even a point in time when he wanted to bully him, but instead, he mocked him since hepensated for the absence of a superpower with physical strength.

    Thinking about it, he realized that he was naive. How could he mock someone''s hard work? Without a superpower, he is just a normal high schooler.

    As for Satoshi though, even without his superpower, his physical prowess alone is more than enough to get him the edge in a fight. He knows because he always got a decent ranking in matches, way better than most below-average students.

    The fourth obstacle gave Midori a hard time but fortunately, they managed to clear it. They were well within the crowd of participants which still gave them a standing chance to get to the top fifty. As long as they kept their pace, they''d be able to clear the rest of the obstacles and desperately try to surpass everyone¡ª try to get ahead of the crowd.<sub> </sub>

    Currently, everyone was struggling through the sixth obstacle¡ª a dimly lit cave with all its meandering paths and multiple mouths. One could easily get lost through the cave or at the very least reach a dead end... and that''s because there was only one way out through the cave... and the rest of the paths were all dead-end.

    With this obstacle, luck would y a huge part, as well as skill in how adaptive someone is as a future licensed superhero.

    As a superhero, both luck and skill y a huge part in a lot of battles. And just like the recent urrence of a dungeon spawning, a superhero must be prepared for anything at all costs... and most of the time, a superhero would find himself in situations where he''d be at a disadvantage, usually a ce or terrain that''s a bad matchup for their abilities.

    Hence the sixth obstacle was the cave. If a superhero couldn''t get through faster than anyone else here, then they don''t deserve to get the Superhero License... at least for the current year.

    Satoshi was way ahead of everyone though. And while everyone was stumbling through the dark in the caves (screams could even be heard inside, as if someone was losing their mind. This caused a few of the participants to resign since the fear of death got into their minds... and the darkness wasn''t really helping), and Satoshi was already on the tenth obstacle. As he turned around to look if there were others catching up to him, he was relieved to find no one. This would give him more time to assess the tenth obstacle and clear it with as much efficiency as possible.

    "Are you kidding me?" Satoshi asked as he watched his breath, leaning on his knees as he took in a lungful of air.

    The tenth obstacle was none other than andmine field¡ª how typically original¡ª just like a certain popr series where a certain powerless hero was given a superpower by eating someone''s hair.

    Satoshi heaved a sigh before he put both his hand in front of him, assuming a sprinter''s starting position just before a race starts. He already knew what that thendmines on this path wouldn''t be enough to kill someone... but it would still hurt if he got hit directly with one.

    Nevertheless, he was going to risk it. He thought that if he ran fast enough, the explosion wouldn''t affect him that much since he''d be way in front before the explosion even happened. There was no time to think about whether it would work or not.

    "I just have to go beyond... plus ultr¡ª "

 Chapter 201 Landmines!

    ''Bad idea! Bad idea!

    As soon as he stepped foot into the field, Satoshi already activated one of thendmines. By the time he realized what was happening, he was already way up in the air, blown by the wind pressure caused by thendmines. As absurd as it may sound, thendmines were actually made to let off an intense amount of air pressure that would blow anyone away no matter the size. Fortunately, Satoshi''s eleration was an unhesitant forward and the air pressure propelled him forward as well.

    That wasn''t the end of it though since he''d have tond again and hit anotherndmine. Mustering all his focus into his trajectory, Satoshi tightened his core and braced himself for the next explosion.

    Boom!

    When hended again, the air pressure from the explosion this time sent him upward a couple of feet. A moment passed, and that split of a second became a stretched-out experience where Satoshi saw everyone behind him, moring to get into the top fifty spots. While the explosion put him in a deadlock, it gave him time to breathe and rethink about his strategy.

    As he was free-falling downwards, Satoshi decided to flip himself, facing downwards with his arms in front of him. He thought that maybe he''d break his arms because of his risky headfirst freefall... but then again, it''s a little price to pay for first ce.

    With his downward force and the air pressure from the explosion¡ª of course, with the right trajectory¡ª he''d be able to propel himself right through thendmine field, crossing the finish line in an instant.

    It was easy to say, but hard to aplish. Still, Satoshi had no choice but to move forward and try it out. He''s got nothing to lose... well, he has¡ª a few expected broken bones, but it''s worth it as long as he gets first ce.

    The descent seemed to stretch out time as he continued pummeling downwards. Before he hit the ground, he tucked himself into a crude shape of a cannonball with his armsnding directly on the ground. He felt his shoulders crack but the air pressure from thendmine sent him skittering forward instead of upwards, triggering a straight row ofndmines which sent him elerating even more.

    When he crossed the finish line, he was still elerating. Shutting his eyes, he wondered when he''d stop, thinking that he might bump into the walls of the stadium beforeing to a halt. Aside from his dislocated shoulders, who knows what else would break if he hit himself?

    That''s when he remembered that he had already passed the finish line¡ª which also meant that the rule about not using any superpower doesn''t apply to him anymore. Without further ado, he called boh Ghast and Sera.

    A portal appeared right in front of him which spat him upwards instead of forward. At the same time, Sera healed his dislocated shoulders, bruises, and everything else that needed to be healed. She even went as far as to reset his lungs back to normal. A moment ago, he was out of breath, but right now, it''s as if he never ran the race in the first ce with how rejuvenated he felt.<sub> </sub>

    And what''s more, the risks he took actually bore fruit and he was able to get first ce.

    Satoshi clenched his fist as he let out a celebratory ''yes'' underneath his breath. He instinctively shut his eyes tight as beads of sweat streamed down his forehead. He half-dragged himself to the waiting area, immediately making his way to the refreshment section and drinking as much as he could to the point that he felt bloated. There was nothing more rewarding than finishing first and iming food and drinks at an eat-all-you-can as the first person to arrive. And somehow, these two things happened to Satoshi back to back.

    "Nice performance out there, young man," Fury was there again to greet him, his hands behind his back. "You really showed that you''re worthy of the Midoriyama name, as expected of the duo''s son."

    "However! This is just the beginning, the starting line of your journey." Fury turned around, at the same time grabbing a sandwich and taking a huge bite off of it. "Once you receive your superhero license, you''d be allowed to use your superpower in public. That fact alone will be a huge responsibility on your shoulders, and I can''t stress out the fact that a superpower is not an all-powerful weapon wielded by an individual. It has its shorings, and a misced usage of it, or wrong timing, can lead to a disaster, or someone''s death."

    "Keep that in mind,"

    With a stern yet prideful expression on his face, Fury handed Satoshi a shawarma. Satoshi gratefully received it, slightly bowing down to thank Fury for the advice. He knew very well just how much responsibility a licensed superhero has since his mom and dad are the top two superheroes in Japan. If the worst-case scenario happens and you happen to be on the scene, you must at least be prepared to put your life on the line. That''s how heavy the responsibility was for a superhero.

    Just like now, with the recent appearance of Dungeon Spire, everyone was reliant on the superheroes once again as they explore it and try to clear it. There may be rewards and priceless treasures and artifacts inside the aforementioned dungeon, but that doesn''t change the fact that the superheroes are risking their lives for the country.

    "Now that I think about it¡ª " Satoshi muttered to himself as he got an idea. "If I get my license today... does that mean I''m eligible to go to the exploration, right?"

    A smile swept across his face, then it was reced by a frown as he realized that his parents probably won''t allow him because of the dangers that lurked within the dungeon. They weren''t particrly new to dungeons so he was sure that they''d outrightly decline before he could even exin himself.

    "Whatever the case, now that I passed the Superhero License Exam, I should focus on getting stronger," Satoshi said to himself, this time, summoning the White Lion in front of him.

    He doesn''t know just how long he had to wait for everyone so he decided to approach one of the workers in the SAO Headquarters Building and ask if there was a vacant training room nearby. The worker was a bit confused since Satoshi just finished the exam. ''Isn''t he supposed to be tired?'' The worker said to himself but regardless, he nodded and showed Satoshi the way.

 Chapter 202 Robin Hood

    Satoshi gazed in awe at the sheer size of the SAO Headquarters Building. It had been years since hest saw its interior (his parents took him to their workce at one time when he was still five or six years old). There were a lot of noticeable changes in the appearance of the ce, and the walls which had a nice pristine white color before had been repainted to a metallic gray color, adding to the formidable atmosphere of the ce. It was more of a stronghold, no, a fortress rather than a headquarters¡ª and rightfully so.

    In an event of a cmity, the SAO Headquarters is one of the most reliable shelters out there. Compared to other shelters, it s one of the safest, if not the safest.

    "I''m sorry, sir, but I guess the only avable training room is upied... " The personnel bowed down, disappointed that he couldn''t serve the son of the famous Midoriyama Duo.

    Just a few seconds ago, the training room wasn''t actually upied, but someone beat Satoshi to it, and now it was. Although it wasn''t the personnel''s fault, he still med himself for not being able to help.

    There was a guy in the training room, wearing a green hoodie and holding a bow in hand. There were a couple of dummies in the training room, sitting ducks, or so that''s what Satoshi viewed them. The guy''s hoodie flowed as he leaped a couple of distance while firing at the dummies, his arrows not missing a single one. He was more like a hunter, and his shooting skills were topnotch.

    [3.1 seconds, a new record] The System suddenly resonated in the room as the guy in the green hoodie stopped jumping. Sweat dripped from all over his body and the floor even had drops of them. Satoshi was surprised that despite all his jumping around, he didn''t slip on his own sweat. And his arrows hit all the targets perfectly as if he were a robot.

    "That''s not nearly enough." The guy muttered to himself. "I can still do better."

    A sense of bloodlust could be felt emanating from his body as his concentration reached an all-time peak. He raised his hand and pointed his index finger up, signaling for the system to give him another round.

    Once again, the timer was reset to zero, and the guy positioned himself on the center of the room once again, breathing in and out as slowly as he could while his gaze stared straight ahead.

    It wasn''t that conspicuous but there was another timer on the other side of the room. It read four hours and seven minutes, and it continued going up. At first, Satoshi thought that it was a clock, but seeing the inuracy of the time made him think otherwise.

    "That''s how long he''d been using the room for." The personnel said to Satoshi, thinking that he was about to ask the question regarding the timer.

    "So he''d been practicing for more than four hours now? Wow," Satoshi trailed off, his gaze fixated on the guy. He wondered why someone with a professional license already could spend hours upon hours of practice. ''It''s not like I''ve never done it before back when I was powerless... but that''s some dedication right there.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    The dummies emerged from the floor for the umpteenth time and the hooded guy jumped on the signal, shooting the dummies with arrows at insane speeds with incredible precision. He never blinked, and his arrow all hit the mark, all fifteen of them.<sub> </sub>

    [3.098 seconds, a new record] The system announced.

    "I can still go faster, tsk~," The guy said to himself, clutching his bow in frustration. At the same time, the door to his room opened, marking the end of his practice session.

    When he turned around, he saw Satoshi with the personnel. He didn''t speak a word, nor did he recognize who Satoshi was since he wasn''t really paying attention. Instead, he bowed toward him and exited the room.

    "A-are you... " Satoshi suddenly spoke up, making the guy stop short in his tracks. He turned around, confused as to why a teenager was calling out to him.

    ''Oh wait, today''s the Superhero License Exam, right? He''s probably one of the candidates.'' The guy said to himself. "Yes?" He asked in return since Satoshi seemed to be hesitating with his question.

    "Are you the Green Arrow?!" Satoshi asked, remembering a certain ssic that was popr a couple of hundred years ago, about a man on a green hoodie who can shoot arrows with awesome precision. He was a big fan of superhero works and that''s why he knows a lot about the superhero ssics, and Green Arrow was one of them.

    "Green Arrow? Pfft~ no, who''s that?" The guy shrugged, waving his hands as if Satoshi just said something funny. "The name''s Robin Hood, superhero name, Robin Hood, nice to meet ya, kid." He continued, turning around and extending his hands towards Satoshi.

    "Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi," Satoshi returned, shaking his hand.

    "Oh, so you''re¡ª it''s nice to finally meet you," Robin Hood grinned before waving his hands for the second time and exiting. "Good luck out there, you hear?"

    Satoshi nodded. Even though Robin Hood was just like, well, Robin Hood, he still saw him as someone who represented the Green Arrow even more, not because he was wearing the green hoodie, but because he was pretty insane with the bow. Nevertheless, the encounter was something so unexpected that Satoshi temporarily forgot he went here to practice.

    With the assistance of the personnel, Satoshi finally got a vacant room all for himself. This was one of the rare moments where he''d be able to practice alone without anyone disturbing him and so he wanted to get the best out of the little time he had before they announce the top fifty people who passed the first batch of the Superhero License Exam.

    "Dex, can you give me information about the White Lion?" Satoshi asked as he summoned the White Lion.

 Chapter 203 SS-Grade White Lion

    A ferocious roar and a crackle of thunder could be heard as lightning shed in the practice room. In an instant, the White Lion appeared, mighty as ever. There were a few changes to its appearance, nothing fancy, but it was significant enough that Satoshi noticed it.

    First off, the fangs of the White Lion got bigger, like tusks protruding out of its mouth. Its mane, which was already long and fluffy, had gotten even thicker, tempting Satoshi even more to bury his face in it. As for the White Lion''s eyes, they had a clear blue and white color. And from time to time, a bolt of blue lightning could be seen on its pupils. There was also blue lightning coursing through the White Lion''s body, giving off the atmosphere of a strong lightning-user familiar.

    "Whoa, you look nice, let''s check your stats."

    [White Lion: SS-Grade

    Abilities:

    Electro-Ball¡ª Summons a ball of pure blue lightning energy and hurls it at the enemy, has a forty percent chance of paralyzing the enemy.

    Blue Lightning¡ª Summons blue lightning that descends from the sky, a powerful attack that uses up the maximum damage output of the White Lion

    Thunderclouds¡ª creates a thundercloud that covers an area with lightning, thunderstorms, and rain.

    Thunder Ritual¡ª White Lion''s power will increase drastically on a rainy day,

    Locked ???? (Unlocked¡ª Raging Lion Armor¡ª transforms into an armor that drastically increases the wearer''s overall stats, able to shield a fatal hit as well as protect its wearer from the majority of debuffs and poison.

    Locked ????

    Locked ????]

    "Even though it''s already of the SS Grade, it still hasn''t unlocked two of its powerful moves, huh," Satoshi scanned through the information, ncing towards the White Lion who had been licking its paws the entire time while staring at him back. To think that the White Lion was previously a stray cat before, Satoshi couldn''t help but be amazed by his own superpower which in and of itself isn''t that powerful.

    "Now let''s try your move sets," Imitating Robin Hood, Satoshi lifted his hand and pointed his index finger upwards. Fortunately, the system recognized the gesture and a couple of panels appeared from the floor releasing a couple of dummies conveniently for the White Lion''s target practice.

    Without further ado, Satoshi extended his hands with open palms while assuming the stance of a summoner with eighth-grade syndrome. He screamed at the top of his lungs.

    "Electro-Ball!"

    Roar~! The White Lion jumped in the air as a blue orb of pure lightning energy appeared on his mouth, it then did a front-flip in mid-air, hurling the blue orb towards one of the dummies. With a smoothnding, the White Lion let out a satisfied roar just when the lightning orb hit the dummy, incinerating it in an instant.

    Bzzzt! The Blue Lightning then coursed out of the lightning orb, hitting the other dummies and burning them before.

    [.62 seconds, a new record] The System announced. [Do you want to overwrite the previous record? Yes? No?]<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi was surprised that such an attack was able to incinerate all the dummies in an instant. However, he didn''t want to overwrite the old record since it was set by Robin Hood. He briefly heard it a moment ago, and he figured that he wouldn''t want to ruin that moment for him since he didn''t use any superpower in setting that record in the first ce. Satoshi shook his head and responded to the system with a ''No''.

    "Next, let''s try your blue lightning," Satoshi said, patting the White Lion for a job well done, to which the White Lion purred happily.

    Satoshi signaled once again and another set of dummies emerged from the floor. "Blue Lightning!" Satoshimanded.

    There was a brief darkening of the room''s ceiling and then a sh of bright light. Satoshi was too near the scene that he was almost blinded by it¡ª a white-blue light that once again incinerated the dummies in an instant.

    [.09 seconds, a new record]

    [Do you want to overwrite the previous record? Yes? No?]

    Satoshi had to say no once again. Somehow, he felt that the White Lion not only underwent a transformation with its appearance but its power increased more than twofold as well. Its disy of power was a sight to behold and Satoshi felt a little bit awed by it, thinking that other superheroes might not even stand a chance against the White Lion right now. His lips curved upward as he approached the White Lion and patted it on the head again. Before he knew it, he was already burying his face in its mane.

    "Feels good~," Satoshi said to himself, totally enjoying himself while oblivious to the fact that there were other people who could see him from outside the training room.

    When he opened his eyes, his gaze immediatelynded on both Hiroshi and Midori, who had been suppressing their chuckles for almost a minute now. They were surprised to see that the first ce finisher was this guy who''d been hugging his familiar for quite some time now.

    "Let''s go, Satoshi, they''re going to announce who passed the exam," They called out as the doors to the training room opened.

    "How''d you do?" Satoshi asked. He thought for sure that the two of them passed because of their calm demeanor. "What was your overall ranking?"

    "Oh us? Mmm... about that." Midori''s voice died down as he scratched his head, forcing himself to smile.

    "We didn''t make it." Hiroshi continued. "Just as you said, there were a lot of pretty good candidates this batch and we didn''t stand a chance against them."

    "We''ll just try again next year, or maybe they''ll ept us on the second batch so we can retry... I mean, we did pass the first round so...: Midori uttered to give himself a pat on the back despite the setback they experienced.

    "Yeah, that happens. You can definitely try again on the next batches since you qualified on the first round." Satoshi assured them. There were many cases where that happened and it''s not like the SAO would deny anyone who has the potential to be a superhero.

    "In any case, congrats on passing. You''re only a few days ahead of us but we''re going to catch up soon." Hiroshi said, pointing his fist towards Satoshi.

    Satoshi returned the first bump as the three of them returned to the waiting area.

 Chapter 204 License Acquired

    The sun glinted off the edge of the Superhero License as Satoshi held it up, grinning from ear to ear. To think that a few months ago, he waszing around in his room ying Laser Fingers while passing the time and dreading the thought of high school. And now he was here, done with the Superhero License Exam, finally taking one of the most crucial steps into bing a superhero.

    "To think I managed toe this far... " Satoshi sniffled. He couldn''t take his eyes off of the license. There was just something about the sparkly cover of the license that gave him a sense of achievement. It was more than a dreame true for Satoshi, and now that he''s reached it, he couldn''t help but feel overly emotional about it.

    After saying goodbye to Midori and the others, Satoshi headed back home, pleased that the Superhero License Exam went better than he had expected. It was something that he couldn''t wait for his mom and dad to know, as well as Emma and the others.

    "Oh, that''s right, Emma! She dide with us, right?" Satoshi said to himself, turning around, only to find that Emma and Aira were right behind him, each of them holding cotton candy.

    "You seem to be enjoying yourself back at the training room so we figured we''d just roam around and buy stuff," Emma said before Satoshi could tell her anything.

    "What''s this, Emma-nee? It''s delicious." Aira said as the cotton candy stuck to her mouth and cheeks. "It''s very messy though."

    "Ooh, cotton candy, that takes me back." Satoshi greeted. "Sorry, I was too focused on the Superhero License Exam that I forgot about you guys. How was it? Did you enjoy watching?"

    "It''s so-so." Emma continued, eyeing the cotton candy before taking a bite off of it. Since she doesn''t know how to actually eat cotton candy, she ate it just as messily as Aira. "So this is called cotton candy, huh... it''s messy but delicious, just like what Aira said."

    "Ah, right... so you don''t have cotton candy back at your world, huh," Satoshi said, going towards them and walking beside the two while matching their pace. "Now that I think about it, what sort of world did you have? I mean... if it''s not too much to ask."

    "It''s pretty much like yours... but we''re behind in technology. Our food isn''t tha great either... sure they were delicious, but the food here easily tops our delicacies." She continued. "Take this cotton candy, for example."

    "I see,"

    "We also have the same governmental system, and schools and such... but it all changed when the attack happened... you know... the Gates." She continued. "Despite all our superpowers, we were pushed back, and it didn''t take long before humanity was forced to build shelters. Nations were destroyed, and in order to survive, we have to lock ourselves in shelters. Fast forward a couple of years, the monsters breached the shelters, and one by one, shelters fell. It went even more downhill from there."

    "It came to the point where thest shelter was destroyed and the remaining humans took ast stand against the monsters. I was one of them, but my mom sent me here to find someone strong... or so that''s what she said."

    "As it turned out, she sent me here to keep me safe, not to get some help. It was already toote by the time I realized it. When I met you, our world had already fallen. Not a single soul was left, and the monsters had already terraformed the for their kind. Even if I were to return there... there''s no way I''d be able to fend them off..."<sub> </sub>

    "... and even if I did, what would happen after that? I''m the only one left. No one else is alive anymore."

    "How can you be so sure? Maybe some of them are just hiding." Satoshi said after thinking about it. "Humans can be quite resilient, you know, and the monsters aren''t actually omnipotent either. There''s no way they had the power to annihte all humans from the face of your world... unless of course they were sent there to do just that."

    "I guess I''m not one to talk though... I''m only telling you this with apocalyptic movies as references in my head. You might be right, perhaps there are no humans living there anymore."

    "But we haven''t confirmed it yet so we can''t be so sure."

    "Yeah, I guess you''re right... I guess you''re right." She mumbled.

    The sun was already up overhead. Satoshi could''ve sworn that the Superhero License Exam took the entire day, but time went slower than he had expected. It was actually still midday, time for lunch. And right about now, the superheroes might be having a meeting, a conference about the uing expedition down Dungeon Spire¡ª the dungeon that so suddenly appeared in the middle of the Sea of Japan.

    "Oh, how are your school preparations? You''re going to the USA in the next quarter, right?" Satoshi said. "Did you catch up with all the subjects? Do you need help with anything?"

    "I''m almost done with math... I''m having a hard time with English though. Back on our, we all have the samenguage¡ª which is conveniently yournguage here... that''s why it''s hard for me to learn anothernguage. It was basically nonexistent in our world."

    "Oh, right... how about history?"

    "I''m good at memorizing so I don''t have a problem with that."

    "And your training? How''s your individual training? Don''t forget there will be tests or practical matches before you could get epted."

    "I''m keeping up with the training schedule. Your parents are pretty good trainers. I can tell that they''re exemry superheroes." Shemented.

    "Well, they are," Satoshi responded with a smile. By tomorrow, his father was going to lead the exploration of the dungeon... and while he felt a tad bit uneasy, he knew that nothing bad will happen since his dad was incredibly strong. "I hope it goes well... the expedition," Satoshi muttered to himself.

 Chapter 205 Next Day

    The next day came unexpectedly sooner, or at least to Satoshi it did. Last night, his father managed to briefly stop by and give him some words of advice and congrattions before he left. He didn''t forget to ruffle Satoshi''s hair, a ritual he usually does before he goes off on a mission.

    "Do your best out there, you''re carrying the Midoriyama Family name after all." Those were Tatsuki''sst words to his son before he left.

    When morning came, Satoshi couldn''t help but feel like some part of him was missing. The sun''s rays were barely peeking from the curtains as he did, and the coldness of the morning still got to him, causing him to shiver as a yawn came out of his mouth. He struggled to get up from bed to stretch. And when he finally got back to his senses, that was the time he realized that his dad was nowhere to be found¡ª

    "I guess there will be no morning training for today... and the internship is also temporarily postponed because of the sudden appearance of Dungeon Spire... what do I do?"

    So bored.

    Satoshi returned to his bed since he lost all motivation for his morning run. He had all the time in the world so he could do his exercises and physical trainingter. There was nothing particrly interesting in his room and staring at the ceiling wasn''t all that exciting either. In the end, Satoshi got up from his bed a second time and headed downstairs, his footsteps heavy on the wooden stairs that connected the second floor to the first.

    On his way down, he saw Emma with his mom by the kitchen, preparing a breakfast of rolled omelets and fried rice. "Mornin'' Satoshi," Emma greeted first.

    "Morning, where''s Aira?"

    Emma didn''t answer, instead, she pointed towards the couch with her lips. And there was Aira, her eyes glued to the screen, unblinking.

    "She''s watching thetest episode of spy wars. A series about a certain spy called bondman or something." Emma said. "In any case, are you heading out today, Satoshi?"

    "Not really, why do you ask?" Satoshi responded, grabbing a cookie before sitting beside Aira. He couldn''t tell what the hype was all about with the series that Aira was watching but he was interested nheless.

    "Um... I was wondering if... um... you know... you could apany me somewhere." Emma bashfully asked, turning her back towards Satoshi to hide her flustered face.

    "Mhmm, not bad." Meanwhile, Ayumu gave Emma a thumbs up, teasing her for her assertiveness.

    "Is it a good show?" Satoshi asked, trying to start a conversation with Aira.

    "Yes, Aira likes this one," Aira cheerfully chirped, pointing at the television with eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.

    [I have to go through this jungle.]<sub> </sub>

    [Put myself in countless death-defying experiences to improve.]

    [I am bondman.]

    While the television disyed the show and Aira continued to exin the plot to Satoshi, Satoshi''s mind wandered a little bit. He just couldn''t help but get worried about his dad. With that said, this wasn''t really his dad''s first dungeon exploration. He was usually the captain/party leader when a dungeon appears in Japan so Satoshi should''ve been used to this by now.

    All things considered, however, the current dungeon didn''t look like your run-of-the-mill dungeons. And Satoshi concluded that it was more dangerous than the previous dungeons.

    "And then bondman went woosh~ then bam! Then¡ª " Aira continued, excitedly doing her hand gestures as she summarized everything she watched to Satoshi.

    A smile formed on Satoshi''s face. To think that Aira had been living in a different world just a few days ago, it was hard for him to imagine. Then again, Aira was safe now, and she was doing a lot betterpared to before. He saved her, there was no doubt about that fact. And now that he''s got his superhero license, he vowed to be the very best like no one ever was, to be a superhero that saves everyone with a smile on his face, unwavering, and full of hope.

    It may sound cliche but that was Satoshi''s dream. For the moment his eyes were opened to the fact that his parents were the number one and two superheroes in all of Japan, he vowed to surpass them one day. With the superhero license, he was one step closer to that goal¡ª one step closer to bing the number one superhero.

    Breakfast was called and the four of them ate heartily. As usual, Ayumu''s rolled omelets and fried rice were as impable as ever... even though she did cook more than usual. Satoshi had been under his parent''s wings since birth and he knew full well that her mom only ever cooks more than usual when she''s anxious... or if she''s got a lot in her mind. Either way, it was a crystal clear sign that she was worried¡ª and those worries usually revolve around their hero work, more specifically the dangers they had to face on the battlefield.

    In short, she was worried for her husband.

    "Satoshi, you up?" When Satoshi got back to his senses thanks to Emma''s call, Emma had already changed from her sleeping clothes to a casual t-shirt and pants as well as rubber shoes.

    "What do you mean?" Satoshi asked. It totally flew out of his mind that he promised to apany her somewhere after breakfast.

    "You were supposed to go somewhere together, remember?" Ayumu lightly reminded him.

    "Ah, right..."

    ''But where though?'' Satoshi thought. He didn''t bother asking the question since it didn''t seem like the right time to. In the end, he went back to his room, did a couple of body weight exercises, and then changed into a fresh set of clothes after a quick shower. Emma didn''tin, she patiently waited by the couch, watching Spy Wars with Aira. Unlike Satoshi, Emma is actually tuned to the series with Aira. That''s why she could keep up with the subject every time Aira did that enthusiastic summary of hers.

    By the time he returned downstairs, Aira was already pouting, grabbing Emma by her shirt. "No, Aira wants toe! Let mee uu~~" Sheined.

 Chapter 206 Beast Dimension

    "But you already came with us that one time, remember? This time you can''te. Next time, okay?" Emma lightly rejected her, patting her on the head. "Oh, Satoshi, you''re here."

    ''Where are we going exactly?'' Satoshi said to himself, nodding towards Emma. From the corner of his eyes, he could''ve sworn that his mom winked at Emma but it must''ve just been the light ying tricks on him. He ignored the ridiculous notion and walked toward Emma.

    "Now now, you shouldn''t bother your big sister like that, Aira." Ayumu gently advised, patting Aira on the head. "Why don''t you help me cook lunch instead? It''s your favorite, and also... you know how to bake cupcakes, right?"

    "Cupcakes, hehhe~!" Aira''s expression drastically changed and she was cheerful again, jumping up and down before she said her goodbyes to Satoshi and Emma.

    "We''re heading off."

    "We''re heading off!"

    "Take care!" Ayumu greeted back.

    "Take care, big bro! Big sis!" Aira cheerfully waved her hands towards Satoshi and Emma. It seemed like she was really looking forward to baking cupcakes since she was already in the kitchen before Ayumu even got there.

    The neighborhood was quiet, except for the asional cars that drove past or someone on a bicycle passing through. It was a peaceful morning, with clouds that blocked a portion of the sky from the sun''s rays. A fair day, perfect for an outing.

    ''This is probably why Emma was so keen on going out today. It is the perfect weather, and she''d been stuck at home for who knows how long, only ever going outside when I''m free. That must''ve bored her so much.'' Satoshi said to himself. It''s not like he has any problem with it whatsoever though since he felt like he needed a bit of fresh air... every now and then, at least.

    In silence, Emma walked forward and Satoshi meekly followed. It''s not like this was the first time Emma asked him to apany her. Thest time she did, the two of them ate at Mgronald''s and she had a good time watching the squabble between the employee and the girl who seemed to be stalking her (she had been lingering outside the restaurant before she mustered the courage toe in). After that, they went to the nearby shopping mall since she wanted to check out the ''creatures of this''¡ª or so that''s what she called them (she was referring to cats and dogs and all the other critters avable in the pet shop. She was particrly fascinated with the echidna).

    "Hey um, Satoshi," Emma finally spoke up just when they were on their way out of the subdivision.

    "Yup?"

    "Have you ever heard of the... Beast Dimension?"

    .....

    A few days ago,<sub> </sub>

    "And that''s how you use a smartphone, how was it? Pretty easy, right?" Ayumu sped her hands together, her eyes smiling. "Now you do it."

    To be fair, even though the technology in Emma''s world was nothingpared to that of Earth''s, they do have phones over there, just keypad ones though. Still, Emma was in her teens¡ª the age where learning how to use a smartphonees instinctually. Needless to say, Emma mastered the smartphones much faster than Ayumu did back in the day. She just needed to know the basic functions of the phone and from then on, she learned her way through, browsing, and looking things up.

    One day, while scrolling through the inte, she came across a certain website wherein pets were sold. It was your usual pet shop website (this was the time when Emma got hooked on pets¡ª different kinds of domesticated animals that one could keep at home), except there was another button right beside the menu screen.

    Unbeknownst to Emma, that button was exclusive only to professional superheroes, licensed ones. And because Ayumu was, well, one of the many superheroes listed in the SAO archive, she get to have ess to that exclusive button.

    Emma found it by ident while scrolling through the pet shops and admiring the mice and hamsters avable for only a couple thousand yen. When she clicked the button, she expected the website menu to open.

    However, that didn''t happen.

    Instead, she was redirected to another site¡ª a site that seemed like the pet shop but wasn''t. Even though the resemnce was uncanny, there were different pets sold... or in this case, beasts.

    Instead of the menu button, there was a drop-down menu of elements instead. Fire, Earth, Wind, Air, Lightning, etc.

    Curious, Emma clicked on one of the elements¡ª Fire¡ª and then the website redirected to another page where all of the fire beasts avable are listed, each with their own price. She scrolled down, the price range getting wider and wider the more she scrolled. At the bottom part of the page, there was a certain beast called the ''Kurama'' and it costs more than a billion yen. Emma had never seen so many zeroes in her life.

    She spent the next few minutes browsing through the other elements and that''s how she came across the ce called the Beast Dimension.

    The Beast Dimension appeared quite recently, only a century or so ago. They were like Gates that appeared all across the globe, but no monsters nor threats seeped out of these portals. Throughout the years, many superheroes tried to clear what they deemed the Beast Dimension but they couldn''t clear the entire world. It was basically another world, another. And there was no way a handful of superheroes could kill every beast in another world.

    Because of that, the portals that led to the Beast Dimensions were closed off to the public and only licensed superheroes brave enough to venture into that dimension were allowed in.

    And furthermore, it''s not like the portals were heavily guarded either. First off, the portals are harmless, and second, only those with a death wish would go inside without preparation.

    From time to time, expeditions would be sent out to the Beast Dimension¡ª to document, capture, or tame beasts¡ª exactly what Satoshi needed when ites to that unique ability of his.

 Chapter 207 A Proud Father

    Back to the present.

    "Have you ever heard of the... Beast Dimension?"

    Satoshi stopped short and stared at Emma for a good few seconds. Of course, he knew about the Beast Dimension. In fact, it''s hard to find someone who doesn''t know anything about the Beast Dimension. That''s why Satoshi was confused as to why Emma asked the question. ''Oh, maybe it was a rhetorical question,'' Satoshi said to himself but he responded nheless. It''s like when someone asked if you did anything and you respond with a no, which typifies that you did something since you denied something you may or may not have done.

    "Why do you ask?" Satoshi returned after nodding at Emma and responding to her.

    Emma pursed her lips. "I actually managed to reserve a trip to the Beast Dimension. You can thank meter." She said, giving Satoshi a thumbs up. Somehow, she was back to her cheerful attitude, her mood swings much more drastic than usual.

    Satoshi knew all too well how hard it was to reserver a trip to the Beast Dimension. He was actually impressed that someone like Emma managed to pull it off... and that''s saying a lot since it''s only been a few weeks since Emma came into their world.

    "Where are we going, though? I''m assuming the trip to the Beast Dimension isn''t today." Satoshi continued.

    Once again, Emma''s face darkened as her expression turned sour. Satoshi couldn''tprehend how Emma managed to shift her expression from cheerfulness to fury, all in an instant. Her expression then toned down, and now she wore a somber expression, her face shifting into an expression filled with sadness.

    "You know... you''ve already done a lot for me, Satoshi." Emma began. "That''s why I want to return the favor this time."

    Without further ado, Emma extended her hands in front of her, or rather, in front of Satoshi, forming a purplish portal that glowed a sinister shade of ck. The portal started gettingrger, more prominent, as Emma imbued it with her energy. ck streaks of lightning began forming in and out of the portal as if to warn Satoshi of the danger that lurked within it. Any time now, he concluded that a formidable monster woulde out of the portal.

    "What are you daydreaming about, let''s go," Emma motioned, putting one foot into the portal without a care in the world.

    "I mean... doesn''t that look dangero¡ª " Satoshi shook his head and pped both cheeks. Wincing, he stepped forward, fully trusting Emma with wherever it is they were going. While what Emma said about the Beast Dimension was all just words, Satoshi believed that she was saying the truth and so he decided to have faith in her.

    Holding his breath, he stepped forward into the portal, not daring to take a peek. Satoshi wasn''t a coward, but he figured out that a little surprise wouldn''t hurt.

    ...

    Meanwhile, at the foot of the Dungeon Spire.

    Countless boats started docking by the entrance of the Dungeon Spire where a base was hastily set up. Tatsuki was the first one to arrive along with a team of reporters and SAO personnel. In a few minutes time, tents were set up and the media had already positioned themselves, interviewing SAO personnel while waiting for the other superheroes toe.

    Every news channel in Japan covered the exploration. Tatsuki was used to the media, and even though they tend to invade his personal times every single time they could, he didn''t mind.

    It didn''t take long before the other superheroes arrived and Tatsuki finally wasn''t the only focus of attention. The media''s attention was, atst, divided, and Tatsuki took a breather.<sub> </sub>

    As he eased himself onto one of the chairs in the middle of the huge tent where the meeting will be held a few minutes from now, a brief smile formed on his face as he unlocked his phone for the umpteenth time and stared at the screen.

    There it was, in bold letters, the name of his son, Midoriyama Satoshi, on the top of the list with the people who passed the Superhero Licensed Exam. Tatsuki couldn''t help but shed a tear even though he had seen already seen the post a couple of times. He knew just how hard his son worked to achieve his dreams, how many times he''d thought of giving up but never did. Even those times when he''d go above and beyond his physical training¡ª it''s as if all those years were just yesterday for Tatsuki.

    "You''vee this far, son... when I get back, we''ll get into even more training." He said to himself.

    "How are you holding out? Nervous?" Someone spoke from behind the tent. Of course, there was no way Tatsuki would ever mistake Fury''s voice for someone else.

    "Fury! Come in,e in," Tatsuki called out, right before the tent was ''swished'' open.

    "I was going to anyway, are you ready?" Fury asked before he gave Tatsuki a fist bump.

    "Of course I am, I was born ready," Tatsuki responded, obliging with the fist bump. "Just like old times, eh?"

    "Just like old times."

    .....

    When Satoshi''s eyes fluttered open, the first thing he noticed was the rocky barrennd that seemed to stretch to the horizon. His mouth gaped open at the sight, so much so that Emma had to go to him and put his jaw back in ce. "Stop acting so surprised, we''re only in another world and all."

    "Another world?! What are y¡ª " Before Satoshi could continue his exmation, Emma pressed her hands on Satoshi''s mouth, prompting him to keep quiet.

    "Sssh! The monsters might hear you!"

    "MON¡ª monsters?! What are you talking about?" Getting his act together, Satoshi whispered to Emma.

    "Quick! Come this way!" Without a moment to lose, Emma grabbed Satoshi by the hand and dragged him into a nearby cave. "Tsk~! It was my fault for not telling you anything beforehand."

    "Yeah, you should have told me you''ll be bringing me to a dangerous ce... is this the Boss, er I mean, the Beast Dimension?"

    "No, this is our world."

 Chapter 208 Alpha Red Salamander

    ??? Days Ago

    As the roof of the cave, well, caved in, and a glowing red eye peered through the hole, the others started running in all directions, moring for safety¡ª safety that they''ve never gotten.

    The glowing red eye fired off a deadlyser beam that turned the cave into smithereens. The people who were left behind were killed as well, reduced to atoms before the beast gave off a monstrous shriek.

    And yes, the glowing red eyes that could cover the massive hole of the caved-in cave belonged to a beast, specifically, an Alpha Red Smander, known to only exist in the legends.

    "We''re going to be safe." A middle-ageddy called out, holding out her hand and handing a teenage girl some sort of device. "You have to go."

    "But mom!"

    "You have to go, otherwise all of us will die. Find him! Find the Legendary Summoner. He''s the only one who could save us."

    "You go, our dear Emma, I promise, I''ll keep your mom and your siblings safe."

    You''re the only one who could do this, the only one blessed with teleportation that could cross through dimensions."

    "I promise I''ll keep mom and dad safe, don''t worry Emma-nee," Ray sniffled as he rubbed his nose and eyes at the same time.

    "That doesn''t sound convincing, Ray," Norman muttered. "We''ll be waiting, Emma-nee,"

    With all the energy she could muster, Emma let out an exhale as adrenaline coursed through her veins. She was mildly panicking. ''What if I ended up in another world? Mom did say that this other dimension is deeply connected to our world so I can''t miss it but how does she know? Also, how am I supposed to feel it?''

    Whenever Emma feels as if she was in a bind, her dad would always tell her to calmly panic... this was different from panicking because calmly panicking is letting everything loose while still in the right state of mind. Panicking is different, and the state of calmness is on the opposite side of the spectrum. There''s a fine line between calm and panic and that''s where Emma needed to be.

    On that note, Emma released everything she has, making the portal asrge as it could be and peering into the other end as far as she could. She strained every muscle, every nerve, and every bone in her body, all the while consuming so much energy she never thought in her life was possible.

    And in the end, she managed to create thergest portal she could ever manifest. Unfortunately, the portal was created solely for her, not that there wereplications with traveling with multiple people, but because her parents specifically told her that she needed every ounce of her energy to make it to the other side. "It is impossible to bring all of us with you, you''ll die." Those were the words of her mother the night prior.

    "I swear I''m going to return. I swear on my life I''ll bring the Legendary Summoner here and save everyone!" She vowed, pounding on her chest before she stepped into the portal, disappearing for good.

    .....<sub> </sub>

    Back to the present,

    ''Is he really the Legendary Summoner? No, I doubt it, he''s just a kid.'' Emma muttered to herself as she stared at Satoshi who had been peering out of the cave, fascinated by the scenery of the presumed other world as per Emma''s words.

    As Emma thought deeper, she finally remembered one of the words that her mother told her, telling her that traveling through the dimensions messes up with time dtions a lot. That''s another reason why Emma was the only one who could travel through dimensions, and that''s because her portals never messed with the time. It was an extremely valuable skill that every portal user dreamt to have because it would most certainly give them the freedom to travel to even farther dimensions. If they were to risk traveling without that skill, they might find themselves in another dimension hundreds of years from now, and then return to their own dimension in the past without the hope of going back to the present.

    And there are a lot more intricacies when ites to traveling through dimensions, not just that. However, Emma didn''t have to worry about that because of her unique trait.

    That''s also the reason why she was convinced that Satoshi could never be the Legendary Summoner. If her portals don''t mess with time, then Satoshi is supposed to be a middle-aged man with an army of a hundred triple-S rank familiars. But no, the person in front of her was a teenager, a friend.

    "Emma! Emma! What are you spacing out for?! I''ve been calling out to you for ages. Are you all right? Are you tired?" Satoshi grabbed Emma by the shoulders and shook her back to her senses.

    p "Oh uh, yeah? What is it?"</anda>

    "What are we doing here exactly, why did you bring me here?"

    "Oh... that? Umm... " Emma wasn''t exactly sure why she risked bringing Satoshi to their world but she did so nheless, not because she needed him... but because she wanted to return the favor that Satoshi gave her.

    Well, returning the favor isn''t exactly what one would call it.

    With a guilt-stricken expression on her face, Emma pursed her lips as she pointed far ahead, averting her gaze from Satoshi as she did so. She fidgeted, then huped¡ª it was obvious that she was getting anxious.

    "Where are y¡ª whoa~! What is that?" Satoshi''s jaws dropped once again as his eyes sparkled at the sight of the beast.

    The beast was at least seven meters in height and twenty meters in length with a nice shade of red-orange and scarlet. Smoke came out of its body, as well as fumes of mes. At its front, it had a cute appearance, with its googly eyes and wide gaping jaws. If it were to bepared to a creature exclusive to Earth, it was more like an axolotl, except its as big as two buses and it had mes over its body.

    "That''s the Alpha Red Smander... the same Alpha Red Smander that destroyed our shelter and forced me to go to your world to ask for help." Emma narrated.

    "I''m giving it to you, Satoshi."

 Chapter 209 An Emergency

    "Are you joking me?" Satoshi hissed, his pupils darting as he nced towards Emma, and then to the Alpha Red Smander loafing around the ce. Fortunately, the smander didn''t have heightened senses or it''d have detected them by now. Or maybe, it just didn''t care at all since Satoshi and Emma were small fries in its eyes.

    "No, I''m serious... " Emma trailed off. "I mean... there''s nothing else I could give you except a powerful familiar, right? And I must admit, that one''s pretty powerful for a familiar."

    "You bet it is... but can we defeat it?" Satoshi asked himself.

    "What do you mean? I''ve seen how your superpower works, you just need to um... touch it with that me of yours, right?" Emma confirmed.

    "Yeah, but it''s got to hit. Also... there''s been a change in my superpower so I''m not sure if it would work this time around or not. In the off chance that it didn''t work... can you get us out of here in an instant?"

    Emma gasped. She certainly wasn''t expecting Satoshi''s superpower to not work. All this time, she thought that Satoshi''s unique ability had one hundred percent uracy but such wasn''t probably the case. She just assumed wrong.

    It took all of Emma''s energy to transport them to their world. Even if she tried her best, there was no way they''d be able to return... not anytime soon.

    Shaking her head, Emma''s face was drained with color as she realized what she had just done. It was stupid of her, almostughable, to bring Satoshi in such a dangerously life-threatening ce without even telling him a single word about it. And now, with no way out, she ultimately trapped the two of them in a ce abundant with beasts that could stomp a human effortlessly.

    "Sigh~ don''t worry," Satoshi brushed off the problem as if it were nothing serious. With a wave of his hand, he summoned Sera, the white ''teru teru bozu'' with halos on her head. She chirped cheerfully, d that she was summoned once again.

    And as soon as she got out, she immediately extended her hand in the air as shining light shone down on her. She giggled, then proceeded to hum such a calming song. In an instant, Emma''s energy was replenished¡ª no, she felt more energetic as ever. As for Satoshi, she expected that much from Sera, who had been upgraded as well.

    Nothing much changed on her appearance, except for the twelve halos on her head which had different sizes and rotated at different intervals. Her halos resembled that of cogwheels, and the way they moved in a rigid manner is totally befitting of one.

    "Dex, can you pull up her information real quick?" Satoshi called out, fully confident that Dex would be nearby.

    ? No one answered.

    "..."

    "That''s weird... Dex? Can you pull up Sera''s information real quick?" Satoshi was getting rather worried. This was the first time Dex didn''t respond to him. Why is it that he''s gone now when he was always beside him? Where did he go?

    All this time, Satoshi got used to Dex''s presence that he would always call out to him as if he were his personal assistant. But right now, it''s as if Dex was having thestugh. ''Let''s see how long he''llst without my help''¡ª something like that.

    "Is something wrong?" Emma asked. While she doesn''t know what the problem really is, she could tell that it''s got something to do with one of Satoshi''s familiars. She hasn''t seen Dex that much... nevertheless, she could tell that the familiar meant much to Satoshi since his face seemed more troubled than usual.

    "I think so... let''s not think about that for now. Let''s capture the Alpha Red Smander and go home."

    Satoshi clenched his teeth, wondering what went wrong. It was unusual for Dex to not follow him, especially now that he''s found himself in another dimension. There''s just no way that Dex would overlook that risk, he was better than that.

    "Sure," Emma nodded.

    Because of Dex''s absence, Satoshi didn''t know how to gauge the power of the Alpha Red Smander and how he''d go about attacking it. In the end, he decided to brute-force his way through it by summoning the Ice Empress.<sub> </sub>

    A gust of cold wind suddenly hit Emma and Satoshi in the face as a bone-chilling snowstorm appeared in front of them.

    Of course, the snowstorm didn''t go unnoticed and the Alpha Red Smander was already on the loose, shrieking a cute shriek as it ran with its stubby legs towards the snowstorm. Whatever it was, the Alpha Red Smander wouldn''t allow it to run free over its territory. It simply won''t allow it.

    Kiiaaahhhk~!!!

    "Eek!" Emma ducked, putting her arms above her head as the fright got the better of her. She did watch the Alpha Red Smander go on a rampage and ughter half the poption of their shelter¡ª her reaction was understandable, to say the least.

    "All right, let''s do this." With his Nailgun familiar, Satoshi flew in the air, shooting nails imbued with the element of water at the Alpha Red Smander.

    Kiieheuehuekk~!!!

    The Alpha Red Smander groaned in pain, its body started heating up.

    With ice spikes shooting in all directions, Ice Empress floated as she directed Alez and Pelez (the two ice bears) to attack the Alpha Red Smander. However, the heat that the smander emitted was too much for the ice bears and they melted in an instant.

    "It seems like I underestimated this Alpha Red Smander." Satoshi clicked his tongue.

    Meanwhile, the Alpha Red Smander continued getting hotter and hotter, engulfing the area in mes as the earth cracked in its might. Lava streamed down the smander''s back and the ground started spewingva as well. Pretty soon, the entire area was covered in hellish mes.

    "Droplet!" Satoshi screamed. "Ice Empress, produce as much ice as you can and feed it to Droplet!"

    Ice Empress nodded, this time backing out as shemanded the half-melted Alez and Pelez to retreat. As if on cue, Satoshi stepped forward, shielding the Ice Empress and the Droplet and buying some time for them while they charged up one forceful attack. With the Nailgun still summoned, Satoshi continued to fire off volley after volley of elemental nails, pushing the Alpha Red Smander back.

    [That''s Magma Field, an area of effect buff that powers up fire attacks and terraforms the area suitable for fire types. Sorry for thete response, Satoshi, there was an emergency.]

    "Oh, Dex! You came at the right time! I thought I lose you. Can you give me information on the Alpha Red Smander?" Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief. Forget the emergency, at least Dex is beside him once again.

    [As you wish, here''s the information for the Alpha Red Smander.]

    "Thanks!"

    [Master, I know it is impertinent of me to ask this to you but please hurry... you have to go back.]

    "What do you¡ª "

    [Earth... Earth is in danger.]

 Chapter 210 Alpha Red Salamander

    [Earth... Earth is in danger.]

    Satoshi felt chills running up and down his spine as soon as he heard what Dex''s next words were. Earth? In danger? What does that mean?

    And now that he thought about it, this was the first time that Dex actually sounded kind of panicky. Furthermore, the alien invasions, the appearance of dungeon spire, and even the escape of a notorious super viin didn''t count as a danger to Dex... but now he''s saying that Earth is in danger? What could possibly be worse than an alien invasion?

    [You read my mind, Satoshi, it is another invasion.]

    The Alpha Red Smander started spewing embers of mes with perfect precision and speed. Emma didn''t need to dodge anything since she has her portal going on for her but as for Satoshi who didn''t want to waste his energy integrating with Ghast, he had to use the Nailgun''s full potential just to dodge. At that point, he also realized that even if Emma didn''t have any energy to transport them back to Earth, he has Ghast with him who could do it instead. Then again, there''s the intricacy of space-time, and stuff while traveling through dimensions and that might mess with their return. ''It''s best to leave it to the expert then.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    "What made you¡ª ugh¡ª think that this invasion is worse than the previous one?" Satoshi almost lost his focus back there but he managed to dodge the projectile with a hair''s breadth to spare.

    [It is not just another invasion Satoshi, it is worse, way worse.]

    "All right then, if that''s what you think then it''s probably true. Emma! Let''s finish things up here!" Satoshi screamed.

    "Oum~!" Emma firmly nodded.

    Kiieeehkkk!!! With another ear-splitting roar, the Alpha Red Smander continued its vicious attack of magma, mes, and molten rock all at once. It was an all-out war of area of effects, with the Alpha Red Smander inching his way to victory and pushing Satoshi and Emma to their deaths.

    "Urk~!" Emma eximed as he directed one of the magma balls back at the Red Alpha Smander using her portal.

    "Just a couple more seconds, Emma, hang in there!" Satoshi said to himself, ncing towards his back from time to time as he tracked the progress of the Ice Empress and the Droplet who are preparing one of the most insane finishing moves ever.

    To be continued...

    ''Nah, that''s just not how it works, does it?'' Satoshi clicked his tongue. Finally, the Droplet had reached its maximum weight hold. In just a short span of time, the Ice Empress pulled through with creating as much hail and ice as possible, just so Droplet could turn them into their liquid state (water, duh) and merge with them, creating a powerful gigantic orb of water right at the top of the Alpha Red Smander.

    Anyone with the stupidest of brains could see what would happen next. And unfortunately, the Alpha Red Smander was too smart to not notice it either.

    Satoshi and Emma could''ve sworn that the eyes of the Alpha Red Smander were widened with shock and horror at the sheer sight of the pool of water on top of him.<sub> </sub>

    Kiiiahhhhkkk~~~!

    Sensing the danger at hand, the Alpha Red Smander. shrieked in despair as its eyes teared up a little bit. It just wanted to defend its own territory and now it''s about to get killed by a gigantic orb of water in all its glory, pureness, and beauty.

    Life shed before the Alpha Red Smander''s eyes as it teared up even more. He shrieked a second time and this time, the shriek sounded more like a wail, a desperate wail from the poor creature.

    .....

    The Alpha Red Smander was born different from its siblings. Even though there were hundreds, perhaps thousands of them, he stuck out like a sore thumb because of his size. He was easily ten to twenty timesrger than his siblings for some odd reason, and he hated it.

    He hated it to the core.

    He wanted to be smaller, to be a part of the family for once, to be able to y with them and be friends with them.

    But, nature is as weird as it is astonishing. There was no way for him to get smaller, and over the months, he just grew bigger and bigger...

    ... and bigger, and better! It reached the point where his siblings stopped growing but he continued growing, much to his dismay. He initially thought that once he reached a maximum age, he''d stop growing.

    Well, that''s not what happened, and he continued growing until he surpassed his parents, and then surpassed even the size of their home, their birthce. In the end, even his parents became afraid of him, afraid that he''d run out of control and even identally murder them and the other red smanders in the area.

    In short, he was indirectly told to go away, that no one needed him in the first ce.

    Everybody and their mom should be able to tell what would happen next because it''s as cliche as they go. The Alpha Red Smander went on a journey alone in search of his identity, and that''s when he became known as the Alpha Red Smander¡ª why? Because that was what everyone called him. Even the person who captured him as his familiar was the first person to call him by that name.

    Besides, it sounded pretty cool so the Alpha Red Smander adopted the name and continued roaming thend, free from the clutches and the pressure invoked by his own family themselves. Every time he remembers his difference, he''d shake his head. If only he wasn''t an Alpha, he''d not have to experience such hardships in life. If only he wasn''t an Alpha, he''d have probably hugged his dad by now.. and he only feels that every time his life was on the verge of death...

    Just like now¡ª

    ¡ª now that he was on the verge of death, that is.

 Chapter 211 Pyromander

    With another shriek, he watched in horror as the big orb of water descended upon him. There was no way he''d survive such a powerful attack. He''d be dead lizard meat!

    Fwoooosh!

    Grglrgrlgrglrglrgrlgr~! The Smander inhaled water and choked and gagged on it until ultimately, it fainted with its mes all extinguished.

    As his eyes slowly closed he caught a glimpse of Satoshi, who had been floating in mid-air with the use of his Nailgun familiar. For a moment, he remembered the time when he was captured by a summoner just like Satoshi, and he was told to do his bidding in attacking this world in this dimension. Even though it was against his will, the Alpha Red Smander was forced to do the summoner''s bidding. After all, he lost in the contest of might against the summoner and he was even captured. There was nothing he could do but obey.

    But now!

    With the help of Satoshi and his desire to get out of that bind, the summoner''s attachment to him had been cut offpletely¡ª right when Satoshi beat him fair and square in a contest of might. As his consciousness dwindled, he felt more at peace than usual. ''If I died here, then I''d have died peacefully. At the very least, I could finally put a stop to wreaking havoc... I''ve killed so many under the influence of that summoner... do I deserve to die peacefully?'' The Alpha Red Smander said to itself.

    "All right! Now we summon the blue mes. This should work." Satoshi said to himself.

    After he floated down to the ground, he began doing his weird ritual dance once again, summoning the Blue mes that would enable him to capture the Alpha Red Smander and make it stronger under his wing. "Uoooh~! Ah! Whoo!" He grunted, the Blue mes gettingrger andrger.

    Not enough!

    Not yet!

    Satoshi knew that his superpower had its own inconsistency and there was a good chance that the Blue mes won''t be enough to capture the Alpha Red Smander. If by any chance the mes weren''t strong enough, it will touch a nearby creature and make it his familiar instead. Satoshi couldn''t afford that. Judging by the sheer size of the Alpha Red Smander, he needed more willpower on that Blue me to bring it into submission.

    A good minute passed and the Blue me dancing around the palms of Satoshi''s hand grew to a size of a yoga ball, ever burning but its mes were as tranquil as ever, and the heat emanating from it was warm, not the usual heat of mes that could burn. "Whoo!" Satoshi voiced out, forcing the Blue mes to touch the unconscious smander.

    Fwooom!!!

    A sudden surge of energy emerged from the Alpha Red Smander as its eyes flipped open. It let out a thunderous shriek, and the mes it released was more intensepared to before. With a thud, the Alpha Red Smander got to his feet and walked toward Satoshi.

    Satoshi put up his hands, not knowing what to do. Did the Blue mes work? Did it not work? It was toote for him to ask those questions since the Alpha Red Smander caught him off guard. By the time he realized what was happening, the Alpha Red Smander''s face was already pressed against him.

    "Ouch! I''m going to burn to dea¡ª eh?" Satoshi let out such an embarrassing scream but nothing happened. Emma chuckled at him, much to his embarrassment.

    With a calm gaze and a gentle shove, the Alpha Red Smander pressed his forehead on Satoshi. ''''Thank you... for setting me free. I-I don''t think I deserve a second chance... after all those murders, and those wrongdoings I was forced to do... thank you, new master.''

    Somehow, the Alpha Red Smander transmitted a signal towards Satoshi''s head, allowing them to converse with one another.<sub> </sub>

    "I uh... I see! Hehe, wee to the team! From now on you''ll be known as Pyromander! How do you like that name?" Satoshi said, patting the Alpha Red Smander.

    The Alpha Red Smander didn''t transmit any signal, instead, it began cooing, almost like a purring out from a cat. Satoshi could tell that the new member of the team was satisfied with his new identity.

    "Satoshi, are you all right?" Emma asked. She seemed more beat up than Satoshi even though she was just on the sidelines.

    "Yes, I''m all right. Let''s go, can you make another portal for us?"

    Emma nodded. "Thanks to your familiar Sera, I can create another portal going back."

    "Nice," Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief. At the very least, the n worked and he snagged another powerful familiar for his team While its powers were somewhat simr to his other fiery familiar, Lighter, Satoshi was confident that the two of them won''t disappoint... and that they''d have unique traits and uses in the battlefield.

    .....

    "All right, it''s time for us to go," Emma called out to Satoshi who had been patting the head of the Alpha Red Smander all this time. She couldn''t believe that in such a short span of time, the two who once faced each other on the battlefield were already that close.

    "All right!"

    Once again, Satoshi hesitated to step foot inside the portal but he mustered all his courage to do so. It was as sinister as ever, and he could tell that Emma''s portals had gotten strongerpared to before, probably due to the buffs that Sera gave her.

    [Have her send us to the Dungeon Spire, Satoshi] Dex informed him in his brain.

    With a nod, Satoshi ryed the instructions. "Dex told us to go near Dungeon Spire. Can you do it?"

    "On it!" Emma gritted her teeth, controlling her portals even more. It hasn''t been that long since she got back to her world and now she had to leave again. While she hasn''t been able to locate her family, she could feel it in her bones that they are still alive. ''Mother, Father, I''ll be back again soon,'' She thought to herself as she stepped foot inside the portal with Satoshi.

    Fwoooosh!

    One moment, they were in the dimension where Emma came from, the next moment, they were back on Earth, specifically on the Sea of Japan where the Dungeon Spire spawned.

    But that wasn''t the only thing in the Sea of Japan.

    Right behind the Dungeon Spire stood a huge gate, bigger and more threatening than the previous gates that showed up a couple of weeks ago.

 Chapter 212 Another World

    The Gate was a swirling cloud of ck, rotating as if to swallow everything whole. From it came huge waves of energy, creating gusts of wind that blew on the sea with great intensity. Even Satoshi and Emma who were a distance away could feel the strength of the wind.

    On the shoreline were lines upon lines of reporters, focusing on the portal that suddenly appeared right behind Dungeon Spire.

    "I told you it was a double event! A double event!" One man dressed in ab coat started screaming at the reporters. "No one believed me but now look! I''m right! One disaster upon another with the intervals getting closer. I told you there would be two disasters back to back in two days!."

    The reporters ignored the man''s hysterical outburst and continued rying the news throughout Japan. Every news channel covered it, and youtube had the live stream on top trending for the whole world to know.

    "That''s a huge portal," Satoshi and Emma gazed in awe as the swirling mass continued to grow bigger.

    Once the portal reached a diameter half as tall as the Dungeon Spire, it started swirling even more intensely, changing its hue into a brighter shade of blue until it turned into a clear surface. Somehow, the raging energy emanating from the portal calmed down, turning into a peaceful water-like surface that had no animosity whatsoever.

    "It''s beautiful!"

    "Wow! Is that really a Gate."

    "And the appearance of the Gate has changed into... a blue color?!"

    "This is the first time a Gate has turned this way!"

    Suddenly, the scientist that was shouting about a double event started rushing through the reporters, toppling them over like dominoes. He was especially ted, and his face showed signs of excitement and enthusiasm. As soon as he got a clear view of the portal, he startedughing like a madman, extending his hands towards the sky.

    "IT''S ANOTHER WORLD! A PORTAL TO ANOTHER WORLD!" He eximed.

    And he wasn''t kidding. It is indeed a portal to another world, just like a few other portals that appeared on certain parts of the Earth. These portals tend to be harmless, well, seventy percent of the time that is.

    Portals with a clear blue hue tend to be dimensional entryways to another world much like Earth. Just like how Emma got to Earth from another dimension through her own portal, these portals provide two-way ess for two worlds¡ª a connecting line. Furthermore, these portals are natural phenomena, unlike Emma''s portal which solely relied on her energy and superpower.

    This wasn''t the first time that such a portal appeared on Earth, and that''s why the scientist knew about it. As to why he wasughing hysterically though, one could wonder why.

    With all themotion going on by the shoreline, Satoshi and Emma decided to peer closer to the portal. They knew what type of portal it was, not to mention that they were aware of the risks when venturing through the other side.

    Satoshi couldn''t help but feel as if everything that happened the past few days were all for this moment. His Familiars got a huge powerup, and then he finally got his Superhero License. Needless to say, he was more than fit to go into the portal, even without the authorities'' permission.

    "Let''s go, Satoshi said to Emma.

    While it is not advisable for a lone superhero to go on a mission by himself, Satoshi was confident that he could do it. Besides, he was more than excited to use his Superhero License for the first time, and that clouded his judgment all the more.<sub> </sub>

    Emma, on the other hand, fully believed in Satoshi, and that''s why she just nodded in response. Together, the two of them flew towards the portal without looking back.

    [Be careful, Satoshi, this dimension is farther than the world where Emma hailed from.]

    [You might lose consciousness as soon as you get to the other side.]

    "I''ll be counting on you, Dex," satoshi said, looking forward to the adventure beyond the portal.

    .....

    Currently, in the Dungeon Spire.

    The first ten floors were cleared in a sh, all thanks to the group of superheroes working well together under Tatsuki''s leadership. It is to be expected from the first ten floors since the enemies were cannon fodders¡ª too weak to even hold a candle against one superhero.

    "Compared to the other dungeons we''ve been to, this is a walk in the park." Xander Marino, also known as Technomarine, the number eighth superhero in the SAO Rankings, smiled from ear to ear, or rather, from gill to gill as he was transformed into a Great White Shark with two legs.

    For the other superheroes who saw him shapeshift for the first time, they were definitely weirded out. However, they didn''t speak a single word since they saw how he fought on the first ten floors. By definition, he really acted like a Great White Shark, mauling and tearing every monster in his path like a rabid beast.

    "Don''t waste your energy, Technomarine, we still have ny floors to go." Life Angel warned him, stealing a nce towards Plunder to see if he was going to agree with him.

    "That''s right. As for everyone, I suggest taking a break as much as you can. This is a battle of how long will our energyst." Plunder announced. "And Techno, don''t let your guard down, it''s going to go downhill real quick from here on out."

    "You don''t have to tell me." There was a low growl in Technomarine''s voice since he was currently in his shark form.

    p Click. ck.</anda>

    Click.

    As their team progressed to the eleventh floor, Plunder suddenly halted, raising his hand as a signal for everyone to stop as well. "Do you feel that?"

    "That''s sinister, all right." Death Angel responded, preparing his dark matter just in case something attacked them in an instant.

    "We have to be careful, that''s no ordinary energy." Plunder warned everyone, slowing down his pace as the team entered the eleventh floor.

 Chapter 213 Dungeon Spireâ€” Eleventh Floor

    The intimidating aura emanating from the eleventh floor was certainly iparable to the previous floors. As soon as Tatsuki entered the floor, he felt as if someone or something was choking him. The intense energy enveloping the ce, coupled with the bloodthirst that lingered is enough to make anyone kneel.

    "Calm Mind," Tatsuki whispered, activating one of the many superpowers he plundered. It allows him to calmly assess the situation and heightens his senses to superhuman levels. With this, he''d be able to act ordingly no matter the situation.

    With his heightened senses, Plunder''s eyes could see through the thick smoke and aura that emerged from the middle of the room. It had the form of a human, and yet its energy didn''t resemble human at all. Its elongated appendages were sharp on its tip, and it seemed to be breathing raggedly¡ª its exhales could be heard from one end of the floor to the other.

    "What''s that?" Light Angel went beside Plunder. He enveloped himself in his light superpower so the aura won''t dull his senses.

    "It''s a... I don''t know." Plunder replied. He couldn''t make heads or tails of the creature. "Still, there''s only one of it on this floor so we can approximate its power level."

    "It looks like a humanoid. It''s powerful, I can sense it." Death Angel continued. "It might take at least all of us working together in order to take it down."

    "Just one bite and that scrawny-looking humanoid are done for. Leave it to me." Technomarine pressed his fists together, signaling to the others that he was ready to charge whenever.

    "No, don''t be reckless, Techno," Stoon advised, finally stepping foot into the room along with the rest of the team. "We have to be cautious at all times. There''s still ny rooms left for us to clear."

    "All right, everyone, follow my lead." Plunder stepped forward. "I want the casters on the backlines and our strength types in front. The five of us in the Top Ten will take the lead. The healers will be behind the casters, ready at any time."

    "Yes, leader!" Everyone simultaneously saluted.

    "Now, I can''t emphasize this too much but, we have to conserve our energy as much as we can. Let''s try clearing the first fifty floors today!"

    "Ou!"

    The morale was still at an all-time high as Tatsuki and Technomarine charged forward, their bodies lowered so they could brace themselves for any attack that might blow them off their feet.

    "Superspeed, Regeneration, Superstrength, Force Absorption," Plunder started listing a couple of superpowers that he activated while charging at the unknown monster. He couldn''t let his guard down, and that''s why he activated every superpower he thought he''d need.

    "I''ll nk him," Technomarine said, transforming into a sea snake, slithering his way around the monster.

    Shiiiing~!

    The sound of a sword being drawn out of its scabbard resounded in the room as the monster awakened.

    One moment it was in the middle of the room, unmoving, the next moment it was gone.

    Fwoosh.<sub> </sub>

    "Geh, it''s fast!" Plunder eximed.

    Before he could react, the creature reappeared in front of him, delivering a sh with its right arm. Fortunately, Plunder had time to activate another borrowed superpower, Hardening.

    Ting!

    The sh connected, but Plunder wasn''t damaged at all. "You''re fast, but are you faster than me?" Tatsuki grinned, activating the superpowers Flicker and Hyperspeed at the same time.

    Technomarine, who was blindly charging at the monster, started his retreat after he realized the difference in their power level. Meanwhile, Plunder pressed on with the offensive, flickering and running at insane speeds as he tried to corner the monster.

    "Life Angel, let''s support our leader," Death Angel muttered to his brother, the two of them extending their hands while they prepared an area of effect skill.

    With dark matter and light energybined, the Life and Death Angel managed to nullify one another''s attacks, causing the area to be clear of mist and clouds. With this, Plunder would have a better gauge of where the creature was since the surroundings were finally devoid of disruptive clouds.

    "Hahha, look at him go, now that''s the number one in action," Technomarine uttered.

    Now that they got a good look of the creature, they could tell that it was from out of this world. It had the head of a sheep, and yet its body was humanoid in shape. It wore a brown cloak that fluttered about every time it moved, and its bloodthirstiness made the atmosphere heavier than usual.

    Even with that intimidating presence though, Plunder was going head to head with it, going even faster and faster, surpassing his limits in order to defeat the monster. The match was far from over and Plunder was expending more energy than usual...

    ... and yet, he was smiling. His grin disyed his enjoyment as the fight dragged on. ''What a formidable opponent! It''s been a long time since I''ve had this much fun!'' Plunder eximed inwardly.

    It wasn''t just Plunder who was getting faster and faster, even the sheep-head monster was getting faster. The fight was already too much for everyone''s eyes and it still intensified to the point that both Plunder and the monster were mere blurs that urred here and there.

    "Uwah, that''s fast," Stoon couldn''t help but mutter.

    Out of everyone in the room, only Dark Angel and Light Angel could keep up with the fight.

    "Take this!" Plunder gritted his teeth, throwing a punch at the monster.

    The punch was faster than a blink and yet the monster managed to lean its head sideways to avoid it, all the while returning the attack with two shes. Tatsuki leaped out of the way, twisted himself, and delivered a roundhouse kick thatnded right at the diaphragm of the monster, sending it skittering a couple of meters away, ultimately hitting the walls on the other side of the room.

    A groan was heard, followed by a thud as the sheep-head monster went limp.

    "You''re fast, but I''m faster." Plunder said, clenching his fist as he caught his breath.

 Chapter 214 Beast Tamers

    On the other side of the portal

    In the middle of the forest stood a portal, just like what the news had stated. Back at theb, the portal was described as stable, and that crossing through doesn''t entail any risks aside from physical disturbances.

    A father and son cautiously walked through closer, trying to figure out whether they''d believe the researcher''s words. So far, nothing weird had transpired, much to their relief.

    "Dad, do you see that?" The son asked, pointing right by the base of the portal. "It seems like."

    "Whoa~! Isn''t that an Alpha Red Smander?!"The father eximed at the top of his lungs, his eyes sparkling. "It''s the first time I''ve seen one!"

    .....

    A few hours ago

    Ti-ring! Ti-ring!

    Ti-ri-ri-riiiing!

    The morning sunlight shone through the half-opened curtains by the windowsill, beaming on a young teenager who was sprawled on the bed, snoring. Muttering something in his sleep, he started scratching his belly before rolling to his side. "Mhmhmm~" He mumbled right when he reached the edge of his bed.

    Thud!

    "Wah?!" The teenager woke up and rubbed his eyes in surprise.

    For quite a few minutes now, his rm clock had been going off but it took him a fall on the bed just to wake up. Dragging himself, he approached his rm clock and turned it off, yawning as he did so.

    Kruuooh!

    A strange creature walked on all fours and approached the teenager, licking his face. It had the appearance of a leafy sea dragon, except its light blue in color. With an enthusiastic purr, the creature nuzzled the young teenager just as he sat beside the bed.

    "Oh, Sarugaso, good morning! I see you''re as energetic as ever." The young teenager grinned, totally forgetting that he had a prior engagement the night before.

    "Ash? Ash?"

    "Yes, mom?" He called out, thinking that her mom was probably done cooking breakfast.

    "Don''t you know what time it is? You have to meet the Lead Researcher, right?" Her mom lightly berated from the way downstairs. "Don''t tell me you just woke up?"

    "Ah! Right! How could I forget!"

    Ash Grey, one of the continent-renowned Beast Tamers, had just gotten home from a long adventure. He was so exhausted when he got home that he overslept, overlooking his scheduled appointment with the Lead Researcher of Beasts.

    Due to copyright infringement, the creatures of this world were simply called Beasts¡ª mysterious creatures that freely roam the world. Every region and continent has its own exclusive Beasts which made the world a literal ball of adventure. This world is where Ash Grey grew up in along with his mom AND DAD. And right now, he was leading the dream as one of the Region Lead Researcher''s assistants. His task¡ª to study the Beasts, adventure with his own Beasts as a Beast Tamer, and aid in the Beast Research.<sub> </sub>

    So far, Ash Grey had been sessful with his adventures, traveling along with his firstpanion, Sarugaso, the Leafy Sea Dragon pokemo¡ª er, the Leafy Sea Dragon Beast. He had been to eight regions in total, participating in Beast Tamerpetitions on his way to bing the Beast Master. It was his life-long dream to be the Beast Master, just like his dad who was pretty famous around the world.

    Looking back to it now, Ash Grey could still remember the time when he got his first beast¡ª it''s as if it happened yesterday. Just like now, he also overslept back then right when the Beast Choosing Ceremony happened. The Beast Choosing is an annual event held by the Regional Lead Researcher. At this time, the Lead Researcher would pick out young teenagers with the potential to help with his research. And since Ash''s father was pretty famous in the industry, Ash easily got a rmendation and he got a free pass in the Beast Choosing Ceremony.

    However, he overslept, and the only Beast left just so happened to be Atran, the Leafy Sea Dragon Beast.

    Through his journey, Atran (along with the beasts that Ash managed to tame) became stronger, evolving into Pacifia, and then to Sarugaso.

    Sarugaso stared at Ash as he made his way downstairs, tailing him. Ash had trained Sarugaso to have stable footing onnd despite being a Water-type Beast and because of that, it didn''t trip on the stairs.

    "Oh, son, you''re here!" Jean casually waved to his son while sipping on his morning coffee. He was reading the newspaper just like any other generic dad in a morning scenario. "You and your oversleeping habits, I guess you haven''t heard the news?"

    "The news?"

    "Come on, dear, the two of you should eat breakfast first," Dahlia called out from the kitchen. "You were also called by the Lead Researcher, right?"

    "You mean Professor Oand, yeah? It''s got something to do with THE NEWS." Jean once again emphasized, piquing Ash''s curiosity.

    "News?! What news?!" Ash excitedly chirped. Just a few seconds ago, he was half-awake, drowsily walking down the stairs with a constant yawn. But right now, he was more than eager to go out and meet Professor Oand.

    "The two of you should eat first! Seriously, like father like son," Dahliamented with a warm smile and gentle gaze. It wasn''t every day that her husband and her son are home and that''s why she always cherished the time she spends with them.

    "By the way, when did you arrive, dad?" Ash asked, munching on a piece of toast while he held a hotdog on a stick in the other hand.

    "Yesterday afternoon, you were already asleep. You didn''t even hear me and your mom." Jean continued.

    "Hear what?" Ash cluelessly asked.

    "TALK! YOU d-didn''t hear us talk!" Dahlia panicked for a moment before ring at her husband.

    "Yeah, we wereughing out loudst night while watching aedy show. I''m surprised you didn''t wake up from all the noise." Jean agreed.

    "Oh, ah right! Uu~ I missed the show! Did you at least record it, dad?" Ash asked, hoping that his dad remembered to record the episode for him.

    "Of course, it''s caught in 4k," Jean responded, giving Ash a thumbs up.

    "Swell! I''ll watch itter! In any case, what''s the news about?" Ash couldn''t wait any longer. As he asked the question, he sidenced towards his mom, thinking that he''d disapprove of the conversation. To his relief, his mom just nodded along.

    With his wife''s approval, Jean answered. "Ah, that? Apparently... a portal appeared in our region. Professor Oand believed it''s a doorway to another dimension¡ª and there are new species of Beasts residing there."

    "Whoa~?! Really?!! Then we should go! I wonder which types of Beast I''ll meet over there!" Ash pumped his fists in the air.

 Chapter 215 Grens, Altered Types, Variants

    A vast and spacious dome in the middle of the city was the Research Lab of the Nichijou Region, exclusively owned by one of the most famous researchers of the continent, Professor Oand.

    Professor Oand is huge in stature, always wearing ab coat and his pleasant smile. His whole being exudes a kind atmosphere, which was probably what separated him from other Lead Researchers. Despite his towering figure of six foot six or a hundred and ny-eight centimeters, he was a gentle soul, able to befriend any and all beasts tamed by other assistants like Ash or Jean.

    "Good morning," He yawned as he entered the dome, greeting every personnel on-site as well as the beasts that freely roamed inside the dome. There were bags under his eyes

    "Good morning, Professor Oand," The personnel simultaneously greeted with a light salute before they proceeded to take care of the reserves inside the dome.

    "Now then," Professor Oand rxed on his chair in front of a huge monitor where anyone could see what he was working on. Professor Oand is a firm believer in shared knowledge and that''s why he never hid his works from everyone no matter how important it was. Even the current situation about the new Dimensional Portal appearing in the nearby forest was already known by everyone in the region, and that''s because he was the first one to confirm and announce its existence.

    Slide.

    The door to the dome slid open and Professor Oand turned around to smile at the neers. Usually, those who enter the Dome super early were up-anding Beast Tamers and he wanted to be the most friendly with them. That way, they won''t be hostile when ites to Beast Taming and it would also nourish an overall healthy rtionship with their fellow Beast Tamers. This is probably one of the few underlying reasons why Beast Tamers in the Nichijou Region are more peaceful and easygoingpared to other Regions.

    "Good morning! Oh! If it isn''t our very own Master Beast Tamer, Jean Grey, and his son the rising star of Nichijou, Ash Grey!"

    "Good morning, Professor." Jean Grey casually waved. As for Ash, he was already deep inside the Dome, ying with the plethora of Beasts that resided therein.

    "Let me guess, you''re here for the... " Professor Oand twirled his thumbs in the air.

    "Yes, for the new Dimensional Portal. We all know that this is not a new phenomenon and most of the time, these Dimensional Portals would lead to ces with new species of Beasts. Legendary and Mythic Beasts even appear here, that''s why we can''t miss exploring it."

    "That''s right! Take the Beast Dimension for example." Professor Oand got up from his chair and walked side by side with Jean Grey. "The Dimensional Portal to the Beast Dimension only appeared a couple of years ago and yet it haspletely changed our world. And not only that, it even changed the very core of our beliefs, pretty much altering the traditions of how we tame Beasts."

    "And you believe that this Dimensional Portal is something to that extent?"

    "Yes, I believe such is the case." Professor Oand cleared his throat before he continued talking. "And that''s why I''m assigning the exploration to you first, Master Beast Tamer Jean Grey."

    "Come on, Professor, I''m way too old to be called that." Jean Grey scratched his head in embarrassment. "If ever, someone from the next generation should im that title."

    "Indeed, there are a lot of promising new Beast Tamers today, huh," Professor Oand chuckled. "All right then, I''ll leave the Dimensional Portal in you and Ash''s hands."<sub> </sub>

    "You got it! Ash, let''s go." Jean Grey turned towards his son who was snuggling one of the Lussios in the reserves.

    "Right!"

    .....

    A few minutester, Jean and Ash got to the middle of the Urass Forest, one of the most notable forests in the Nichijou Region. Based on the professor''s reports, it is said that the Dimensional Portal could be found somewhere in the middle of the forest.

    Since the location of the Dimensional Portal was yet to be pinpointed, Professor Oak handed Jean a special device that detects waves of energy. With this, Jean Grey would easily get to the Dimensional Portal.

    Just in case, Jean Grey also brought one of his Grens with him.

    Grens, short for Grenades, are spatialpartments for Beasts that a Beast Tamer has tamed. Well, it was more like a portable portal wherein tamed Beasts could be summoned from. The Beasts aren''t actually with the Beast Tamer in his or her journey unless it''s summoned out. For many a time, the Beasts would usually stay in the Beast Tamer''s property, waiting to be called via Grens that they carried.

    This particr Gren that Jean Grey carried has ess to one of his most powerful Beasts, the Azure Blue Tiger, also called Pheross. The Azure Blue Tiger is one of the few tamed beasts from the Beast Dimension, and it also belonged to the family of Blue Lightning, an electric-type variant that produces blue lightning, which is twice more powerful than normal electric types.

    The Azure Blue Tiger is rare as it is, but Jean Grey managed to catch an Altered Type in the Blue Lightning Family. (Altered types are basically shinies for crying out loud.)

    Just like what the news implied, the Dimensional Portal was in a small clearing in the middle of the forest. It was a stable portal, just as Professor Oand had predicted. But still, that didn''t stop Jean and Ash from being cautious as they approached it.

    That''s when Ash noticed it, a huge figure right by the foot of the portal.

    "Dad, do you see that?" Ash asked, pointing right by the base of the portal. "It seems like."

    "Whoa~! Isn''t that an Alpha Red Smander?!"Jean eximed at the top of his lungs, his eyes sparkling. "It''s the first time I''ve seen one in person! And what''s more, it''s even an Altered Type!"

    "I''m going to tame it!" Ash called out. "Go! Sarugaso, I choose you!"

 Chapter 216 Beast Tamers

    "I''m going to catch it! Sarugaso! I choose you." With a wave of his hand, Ash called out the leafy sea dragon beast beside him, Sarugaso.

    Sarugaso cawed, crouching as it prepared for the fight. Its eyes were squinted as if it was looking forward to the battle.

    "Wow, to think that an Alpha Red Smander came out of that portal... the Beasts on the other side must be pretty strong. I''ll go check it outter but for now, let''s see what you''re made of, Ash!" Jean clenched his fist and fist-bumped his son before standing on the sidelines. Now that he thought about it, this was the first time that he''ll witness his son fight live and he was kind of pumped up because of that. ''You got this, Ash. I know you got this.'' He said to himself, smiling as he sat on a nearby rock.

    Seeing that the Dimensional Portal that appeared is a stable type, they have more than enough time to venture into the other side and explore it. In other words, the Dimensional Portal wasn''t going anywhere and it will forever be a part of their world.

    That''s why Jean Grey didn''t rush his son in trying to defeat the Alpha Red Smander.

    As for Ash Grey, he was confident that his Sarugaso could defeat the Alpha Red Smander because of their type effectivity. Sarugaso is of the water type and the Alpha Red Smander is of the fire type. It''s obvious who has the clear advantage here.

    "I wouldn''t do that if I were you."

    Suddenly, a voice spoke out, causing Jean Grey and Ash to pause. Wondering where the voice came from, Ash stopped his Sarugaso from attacking the sleeping Alpha Red Smander. As he did so, the Alpha Red Smander woke up. With a low growling sounding out of its closed mouth, it slowly turned around, facing Ash and his dad. Based on its expression, it was slightly pissed, its eyes turning into slits as it stared down at Sarugaso.

    When the Alpha Red Smander stood up in all its glory, Sarugaso realized just how small it waspared to the Beast. Cowering in fear, it retreated behind Ash as it almost peed itself. It began cooing in a frightened manner, closing its eyes as if it expected the worse to happen.

    "Who''s there?!" Ash screamed, assuming a fighting stance in front of the Alpha Red Smander¡ª as if he stood a chance against the giant.

    "Do you really want to burn this whole forest down? It''s not a good choice to rile up a fire type in the middle of the woods. Seriously, are you really a trainer?"

    "Who are you?"

    Two figures appeared from behind the Alpha Red Smander. One of them was a guy the same age as Ash, and he was patting the Alpha Red Smander. "You should think twice about fighting my Alpha Red Smander, it won''t end well with your Sarugaso. He may be a water type but he''s too under-leveled for my Alpha Red Smander."

    "Your Alpha Red Smander? You''re the beast tamer of that Beast?" Ash asked.

    Even if Satoshi didn''t exin to Ash that his Sarugaso was too under-leveled, he already knew it. The only reason why he took his chance in trying to attack it was that it was sleeping. He nned to sneak a powerful attack before it woke up, that way it would be easier to defeat the Alpha Red Smander once its awake and its HP was significantly reduced.

    That''s now how it went, however.<sub> </sub>

    "Apologies, young man, it seems like we''ve disturbed your Alpha Red Smander here. I''m Jean Grey, Master Beast Tamer of the Nichijou Region and this is my son, also a Beast Tamer." Jean Grey interrupted, walking towards Satoshi with his hand extended. Obviously, he was aware that Satoshi and Emma came from the other side of the portal. If they didn''t then they wouldn''t have been here.

    "Nice to meet you, I''m Midoriyama Satoshi. This is Emma Leisenberg."

    "I assume the two of you came from the other side of the portal?" Jean Grey continued.

    Satoshi and Emma nodded.

    "I see. In any case, we don''t want a fight. Had we known that the Alpha Red Smander is yours, we wouldn''t have attempted to tame it. Sorry about that." Jean Grey said, grabbing Ash by the head and forcing it to bow down.

    "It''s fine. We don''t want to fight either. I mean, we were hoping to get attacked as soon as we crossed to this dimension but who would''ve thought that we''d be weed." Satoshi continued, shaking Jean Grey''s hand to seal their peaceful conversation.

    "Follow me, I''m sure the Professor will be pleased to see you." Jean Grey gestured as he turned his back and walked forward.

    "Sure," Satoshi didn''t waste any time calling for the Alpha Red Smander and storing him inside the Orb Oboros.

    <o>,m "Whoa! Is that... Is that also a Beast?" Ash asked, seeing the White Orb that Satoshi was holding, floating on its own.</o>

    "Ah um... " Satoshi didn''t know how to answer. In a way, the Orb Oboros is a Familiar, but could it be considered a Beast? "I mean yeah, I guess."

    "So cool! Are there a lot of Beasts in your world as well? Are they strong?"

    Satoshi thought back, remembering all the animals he knew that exists in their world. Compared to the Alpha Red Smander, they weren''t particrly strong. Cats, dogs, mice... if ever, they exist only as pets. Sure there are wild animals that could rival Beasts but how strong are they really? Satoshi didn''t have the knowledge to gauge their potential as Beasts. "I don''t think so," Satoshi responded.

    "Aw, but seeing your Alpha Red Smander, I bet there are a lot of strong Beasts in your world. Man! I can''t wait to go there!"

    "We''re almost there, don''t be so nervous in front of the Professor even though he''s sure to ask questions." Jean Grey advised as the four of them exited the Urass Forest a couple of minutester.

 Chapter 217 Dungeon Spireâ€” Floor Twenty-One

    Satoshi couldn''t believe that he and Emma were actually in another world right now. After all, the atmosphere of the surroundings felt like it belonged to Earth. The only difference was¡ª there were unfamiliar creatures roaming the forest where they currently were.

    Once they reached the edge of the forest, they arrived at a city with a huge dome in the middle of it. Jean Grey exined to Satoshi and Emma the purpose of the dome, telling them that that''s where the Lead Researcher, Professor Oand, does his research. He didn''t need to exin what type of research the Professor was doing since it was obviously about Beast and Beast Taming in general.

    In that small time frame where Jean Grey led Satoshi to the Dome to meet Professor Oand, Satoshi was introduced to the lifestyle of this world. He came to know about the Beast Experts¡ª eight of them¡ª and how other Beast Tamers challenge them so they could qualify for the Beast Tamer Tournament. The Beast Tamers who qualified in the Beast Tournament then have a chance in challenging one of the Elite Eight, powerful beast tamers that are a level higher than Beast Experts. And if they were beaten, one could have a clear shot at challenging the Master Beast Tamer to steal the title from him. "That''s me," Jean Grey jerked his thumb towards his chest. "And that pretty much sums up the journey of a Beast Tamer. Still, only those who show potential in a Beast Tamer School would be chosen as one of the Professor''s Assistants. If you want to take a shot at bing the Master Beast Tamer, that''s one of the necessary steps."

    Satoshi and Emma nodded along as Jean Grey continued to exin the life of a Beast Trainer. While Emma was listening for the heck of it, Satoshi was actually taking everything in. He was just amazed that such a world existed, and furthermore, he couldn''t believe the fact that there were countless Familiars in this world, waiting to be a part of his team.

    "And here we are! The Dome!" Jean Grey extended his hands in the air as if presenting a masterpiece.

    "Oh, Jean, Ash, you''re back!" Professor Oand called out as the sliding doors by the entrance of the Dome opened. "And who''s this with you?"

    "They''re Beast Trainers, from the other dimension!"

    .....

    "Let''s stay here for now," Tatsuki said after they''ve settled on the staircase that leads to the twenty-first floor.

    p It was almost the end of the day and they managed to clear twenty floors without taking a single break. Compared to their previous dungeon runs, this particr dungeon was more challenging than usual. Tatsuki could clearly see that the difficulty level of the dungeon was over the top. It was just the twentieth floor and yet they could barely clear it with everyone''s help.</anda>

    Even the eleventh floor was hard enough for Tatsuki, it was a clear gauge of how formidable the monsters on floor twenty were. They should''ve been easy pickings, the golems they are, but they were too defensive and much faster than normal golems. When they managed to clear it, the healers and the staff-wielders already ran out of energy, and those on the front lines were severely wounded. Even Tatsuki could barely get up after the fight. For the second time in his career as a professional superhero, he had to expend every ounce of his energy, driving himself past his limit just to defeat floor twenty. (The first time was during the Boosting Incident when he almost lost his life fighting numerous viins with boosted superpowers.)

    "Is everyone all right?" Tatsuki asked. Of course, he already knew the answer, he just wanted to start up a conversation while they prepared for dinner.

    "Yeah, I''m still here," Technomarine responded, panting in-between breaths. "Those golems really did us in, huh."

    "Yeah, if it weren''t for Stoon here and his robot army, we''d have been wiped out." Light Angel pointed his mouth at Stoon who was sprawled on the ground, about to doze off due to exhaustion.<sub> </sub>

    "Please, if it weren''t for you and Death Angel here protecting me, I wouldn''t have been able to continuously control my army."

    "We''ve all worked hard. Our teamwork is pretty smooth as well. I''m expecting the same thing tomorrow. I know it would be hard but let''s try to aim for the thirtieth floor."

    One of the low-ranking superheroes, a man that goes by the superhero name Troppus, started passing bowls of stew toward Tatsuki and the others.

    While he was only a low-ranking superhero, not even in the top one hundred of the SAO Rankings, he decided to join the Dungeon Exploration to earn extra money. His little girl was sick and hospitalized, so he decided to join the crew. Of course, he was epted into the expedition, not because he was formidable, but because he''s a support-type and a team could never have enough support-type superheroes. Also, he''s well-versed in healing skills... and his cooking is pretty savory so that''s a huge plus.

    "Um... Midoriyama-san..." Troppus called out, pursing his lips. He knew just how powerful Plunder was and he thought to himself that he doesn''t even deserve to talk to him. Nevertheless, he just had to ask the question.

    "You can just call me Plunder, or Tatsuki," Tatsuki called out.

    "I''m sorry, but um, Tatsuki-san." Troppus hesitantly continued.

    "What is it?" Tatsuki patiently asked back. Based on Troppus''s expression, Tatsuki could tell that he has an important question in mind.

    "I heard the other high-ranking superheroes talk about it and I wasn''t sure whether to believe them or not. That''s why I decided to ask you... is it true that America is taking over Dungeon Spire if we can''t clear it in a span of one week?"

    "WHAT?! That''s ridiculous! Dungeon Spire is in Japan''s territory. They can''t just call the shots like that. You know what, don''t believe everything you hear in the SAO." Technomarine brushed off Troppus''s question.

    "That''s right, those are just rumors." Stoon put it more nicelypared to Technomarine''s way of speaking. "Those are just rumors right, Tatsuki?"

    Tatsuki shook his head before forcing a smile on his face. "No, the young man''s right." Tatsuki continued. "They really are taking over... if we can''t clear this Dungeon in one week, that is."

 Chapter 218 Rash Decision

    An hour or soter,

    The talk with Professor Oandsted for a couple of minutes but their stay in the other dimension dragged on for a longer time since Professor Oand wanted to take a glimpse at the Altered Type Alpha Red Smander that Satoshi owned. The researchers, as well as Ash and Jean Grey, observed the monstrous Beast, keenly amazed that such a rare Beast even existed in the first ce.

    Once that was said and done, Satoshi and Emma decided to head back home to report to the authorities that the other side of the portal is safe. From the other side, it may seem like the Dimensional Portal was a prelude to another dimension but such was not the case at all. It was just another world in a different dimension.

    "You can stop by at our school sometime, there are a lot of strong Beast Tamers there," Ash said just when Emma and Satoshi were stepping into the Dimensional Portal.

    "I''ll also talk to whoever''s in charge at your ce once I get to visit over there. Hopefully, we can reach an understanding when ites to coexisting together as neighboring worlds." Jean Grey said. "Who knows, maybe we can even arrange exchange students with your region and ours."

    "Take care,"

    "Take care,"

    After onest look at Urass Forest, Satoshi and Emma returned to their world. WIth one step, they found themselves in the Sea of Japan.

    ...

    "I''m surprised you didn''t act all that surprised over there. It''s your first time traveling to another dimension, right?" Emma asked.

    "Second, you brought me to your world, right?" Satoshi reminded him.

    "Ah, right. About that, I think our world, that Beast Tamer World, as well as the Beast Dimension, are all interconnected." Emma muttered. "It''s just a theory though."

    "You mean how they quickly recognized the Red Smander as a Beast? Yeah, I think so too." Satoshi continued.

    A cold breeze of wind touched their cheeks as Satoshi and Emma rode the White Lion. The view of thend from afar was calming, sort of therapeutic, that the two of them couldn''t help but rx. The day hasn''t even reached its end yet and they already felt exhausted. And with everything that happened thus far, no one could me them.

    Whuuoooohhhh~

    Their conversation was briefly interrupted by a loud horn that seemed toe from the shore. Curious, Satoshi and Emma squinted their eyes to get a better view. From the sound of it, one could tell that the horn came from a ship, specifically a battleship. "Why a battleship?" Satoshi asked himself.

    Then his eyes widened.

    Satoshi immediately thought of the worst-case scenario as the colors drained from his face. Even though he was hoping that such an event won''t happen, it was clear that the navy thought otherwise.

    "Emma, we have to go. This can''t happen." Satoshi voiced out. Without further ado, hemanded the White Lion to increase his pace as he zipped through the air.

    .....<sub> </sub>

    The Japanese Navy.

    After much contemtion, the government decided to send in the Japanese Navy and a portion of the Army to the other side of the Dimensional Portal. With the appearance of the Dungeon Spire and then the sudden appearance of the Dimensional Portal, the government in ordance with the Superhero Association Organization decided that they couldn''t take any risks. As such, they were determined to close down the Dimensional Portal with everything at their disposal.

    There''s a good chance that what was happening right now is a Double Event¡ª a scenario in which two catastrophes ur at the same time. If that really were to happen, the SAO was afraid that they wouldn''t be able to take it.

    That uneasiness, coupled with the pressure from America, made the SAO and the Japanese government decide without thinking.

    In just a few minutes, the Japanese Navy and Army were hastily assembled and called to the shore. Half an hour or soter, they were then deployed, expected to arrive by the foot of the Dimensional Portal¡ª ETA Five Minutes.

    It was such a bold move and a risky one at that. After all, there''s a probability that they''d damage the other world on the other side of the Dimensional Portal, and adding to that, the world might be a peaceful one at that. But then again, they''d rather have another world destroyed than the Earth, and that''s why both the government and the association of superheroes rashly decided to follow through with the destruction.

    They didn''t even consult one of the greatly respected members of the SAO. Fury.

    ...

    By the time Fury came to know about the decision, it was already toote. Themand had already been issued out and there was nothing he could do about it.

    In haste, Fury tried calling the higher-ups from the SAO but they were busy with the pseudo-invasion that they didn''t even bother answering his calls. He pounded on the table and started blurting one bad word after the other (which of course, are censored because this is family friendly). No amount of curses appeased him however, and in the end all he could do was helplessly watch from the shores. No one even listened to him when he started screaming. at the battleships that appeared on the shore.

    "Sir! Sir!" One of the SAO Personnel screamed as he came running to him.

    "What is it?! Now''s not the time. Can''t you see? They''re going to try and shut down the Dimensional Portal!" Fury snapped at the SAO Personnel who didn''t even do anything wrong.

    "But sir!"

    When Fury stole a nce towards the personnel, he then saw Technomarine, struggling to walk towards him. His pupils dted. "Technomarine?! What are you doing here?"

    As soon as he asked that, Technomarine fell down on the ground and coughed up blood.

    "Techno! Answer me!" Fury continued. "MEDIC! MEDIC!"

    "We... Plunder and the others... they''re too strong... we can''t..." Upon saying that, Technomarine lost consciousness.

    "Shi¡ª it''s one after the other. Curse this." Fury pounded on the ground as he clicked his tongue.

 Chapter 219 This Is Our Fight

    Dungeon Spire¡ª Thirtieth Floor

    It only took a moment, no a mere instant.

    The moment they entered the thirtieth floor, the air suddenly thickened as if some sort of unknown pressure pinned them to the ground. A cloud of thick smoke enveloped the entire floor, causing the others to blindly walk forward while Plunder took the lead. This was theirst floor for the day, and after this they could finally return to the surface and rest for tomorrow.

    "Don''t let your guard down, not even for a second." Plunder said in a hushed tone while briefly ncing behind him. Receiving a couple of nods, he pressed forward, anticipating a monster to take the jump on him at any second.

    Fwoooosh~! The smoke cleared as a light hissing sound could be heard from the corners of the room.

    Monsters in humanoid form, wearing red and ck robes surrounded the entire room while another monster in the shape of a giant orc sat on the throne on the other side. The robed-monsters had this frightening gaze and aura which was felt by the others as pressure. Plunder stopped short, extending his hand as a gesture that everyone else should stay behind him.

    That''s when the chant started.

    ...zan-bai... zan-bai...

    zan-bai...

    Slowly, the monsters on the edge of the room started dancing, waving their arms up and down in a rhythmic manner whilst chanting away the words Zanbai repeatedly. An intense gust of wind seemed to blow from above, pressing against Plunder and the others like a gravity manipting skill. Even with their current superpower, they couldn''t resist the gravity maniption at all. Grunting, the group was pressed on the ground, lying on it like sitting ducks about to be ughtered.

    ''What''s going on?!'' Plunder gritted his teeth in frustration.

    ... zan-bai... zan-bai...

    zan-bai...

    The chant intensified by the second, adding to the pressure that pushed everyone down, almost to the point where they felt like they were being ttened. At first, Stoon summoned his robot army to shield the others from the pressure but as it turned out, everyone was affected no matter what they did. In the end, all they could do was support each other. While the healers tried to heal, the casters tried to give the entire group physical buffs.

    "My power... it''s not working." One of the casters called out.

    "I... I can''t heal." A healer uttered.

    Seconds passed and the despair that everyone felt took a turn for the worst. Not only were they drained of energy, they also have no way of escaping the floor. They were stuck there, and the monsters didn''t give them a break at all.

    Crack!

    "Aghk~! My arm! My arm!"

    Crack!

    "Kiiheuukk!!! It'' hurts. I can''t breathe."

    Crack!<sub> </sub>

    The longer they were affected by the pressure, the more cracks they hearding out from each other. Their bones were reaching their limit, and due to theirck of energy, there was nothing they could do but wait for their bones to inevitably break. For the first time during the exploration, all of them felt utterly helpless.

    "So this is what the bestes down to. How disappointing."

    Gasp!

    "T-the... the monster... did it just talk?" It was getting harder and harder for everyone to breathe let alone speak. It took all of Tatsuki''s strength just to let those words out of his mouth.

    Stoon and the others nodded.

    Without waiting for a response, the giant orc-like monster stood up and approached the group. "Are these really the strongest?" Itmented before kicking Technomarine into oblivion.

    .....

    Back to the present.

    "Stop this! Right now!" Satoshi screamed from afar while doing a t-pose.

    Currently, Satoshi and Emma still hasn''t given their report to the SAO. In fact, there aren''t any exploration done to the Dimensional Portal aside from what they did. And yet, it seemed like the country was keen on getting rid of the Dimensional Portal altogether.

    That''s why Satoshi stood, or rather, floated in front of the battleships, trying to act tough in front of the countless cannons pointed at him. The group was a joint-partnership with the Japanese Government and the SAO, which made it more powerful than the usual army.

    Even after all that, Satoshi stood in front of the group, knees buckling.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, son of the Midoriyama Duo, I wouldn''t do this if I were you." One of themanders screamed via a megaphone. "Please step aside."

    "You can''t do this! There''s a forest on the other side of that portal!" Satoshi screamed back.

    "We don''t know what''s in there! And we can''t have another threat to our world while we''re dealing with a Dungeon!" Themander returned.

    No matter what themander said, Satoshi didn''t budge. Even Emma, who had been behind him this whole time, was beginning to get worried. With the two of them, there''s no way they''d be able to stand up against such a massive army. If they were regr people, sure, they''d probably fare well against them but no, almost ny percent of the group consisted of superheroes. If they''re not superheroes, then they''re probably supers¡ª a general term for those with superpowers¡ª who are part of the army.

    "Satoshi, maybe we should go. I''m sure they''ll changer their mind once they see what''s on the other side." Emma tugged at Satoshi''s sleeves and tried to persuade him.

    "No, they have no ns of going over to the other side. If they had any intention of peace, then they wouldn''t have brought that many battleships with them." Satoshi gritted his teeth. He dreaded to think of the bloodshed that would ensue if they allow the army to pass. "You don''t have to join me here, Emma. You can leave if you want, this is my fight."

    "No, this is our fight," Emma responded, standing atop the White Lion to get a better view of the army in front of her.

    And just then, a couple of superheroes started flying at them, determined to bring them down.

 Chapter 220 Left Behind

    Meanwhile,

    Even though there were only two people in the room, the rising tension couldn''t get any more intense as Fury red at Technomarine. He still couldn''t believe that the difficulty level of Dungeon Spire was as Technomarine stated.

    "Plunder... the number one superhero... was defeated?" Fury clenched his fists, trying to suppress the anger that rose up within him. Everything that he had worked hard for and nned went down the drain. Not only was the number one superhero dying in the Dungeon, the government and the SAO decided against his will to destroy the Dimensional Portal that didn''t mean any harm. And throughout all of these, he was as helpless as a newborn rat¡ª there was nothing he could do but stand in the sidelines and watch.

    "Sir! You have to see this!"

    Just when things couldn''t get any worse, one of the SAO Personnel ran towards Fury and Technomarine once again. Fury felt the urge to bash the personnel''s skull inn but he held himself back. "WHAT IS IT THIS TIME?!" That didn''t stop him from screaming, however.

    "It''s Midoriyama Satoshi, sir!" The SAO Personnel continued.

    With those clear-cut words, Fury didn''t need any further exnation. In haste, he got out of his tent, followed by the struggling Technomarine. When they got out, they noticed an imposing figure a couple of feet in mid-air, hovering right in front of the Navy on the other side. Since the Dungeon Spire is right by the middle of the Dimensional Portal and the shore, Fury conveniently got the view in the middle, overlooking Satoshi mounted on his White Lion and the Japanese Navy who now sent a couple of superheroes his way.

    "This kid!" Fury smiled from ear to ear. What was unexpected actually turned out for the better. With Satoshi buying him time, he''d be able toy out the groundwork of solving both issues at once. There was no one else to help him, or so that''s what he thought, but Satoshi came at the right time, providing him with a way of escape.

    "Technomarine! Can you move!" Fury clenched his fist as he ordered Technomarine.

    "Yes, sir,"

    "Then get on your backside and address the reporters with us! I want you to give them all the details regarding the situation right now! Leave no stones unturned! Tell them what''s going on inside the dungeon as briefly and as detailed as you can!"

    "On it!" Technomarine continued, dragging himself towards the eager reporters who were waiting with them by the foot of the Dungeon Spire.

    "After that, you tell the reporters to point the camera at Satoshi! They don''t need to ask questions, they just need to listen and they''ll get the viewership they want!" Fury continued.

    With a nod, Technomarine continued instructing the reporters on what to do. They set to work, asking for help from other superheroes who weren''t part of the expedition. With this broadcast, they''d be able to get some help for Plunder and his party who were trapped down below. And as for Satoshi, he just had to hold the Navy back before time runs out.

    "It all depends on you now, Satoshi." Fury continued.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    ? The sun was beginning to dip on the horizon when Yukine Shiroi (Satoshi''s childhood friend with the snow superpower) and Kurayami Kuroe (mind-reader in the same ss as Satoshi and Shiroi) decided to head home for the day. They didn''t have any particr ns for today but a new parfait stand showed up in the middle of Tokyo so they decided to visit it. And no, they didn''t visit it together, but they met each other on the way.

    With the new parfait stand discovered and with nothing else to do, the two of them headed home, talking about a wide range of topics that included gossip and school stuff.

    "And then did you know¡ª " Shiroi was about to say something when she stopped short, her eyes wandering towards one of the television inside a shop where they passed by.

    Curious, Kurayami Kuroe also looked at the television. News about the Dungeon and the appearance of the Dimensional Portal was being broadcasted and the reporters urgently started narrating something with Technomarine beside them. He was getting interviewed, and judging from his expression, something must''ve gone wrong in the exploration of Dungeon Spire.

    "Shiroi, look at the headline." Kuroe suddenly brought up, shakily pointing at the headline that shed on the bottom of the screen.<sub> </sub>

    [Number One Superhero, Plunder, Defeated?!]

    By now, a crowd of people started forming behind Shiroi and Kuroe as they watched the live news. They voiced out their concerns and worries as well as their uncertainties towards the situation. Layers uponyers of thoughts started invading Kuroe''s mind that she was beginning to get a headache.

    "Are you all right, Kuroe? Let''s get out of here." Shiroi worriedly asked, grabbing Kuroe by the arm as she dragged her out of the crowd. "Excuse me," She politely asked.

    "Oi! Isn''t that the son of the Midoriyama Duo?!" One of the watchersmented, causing Shiroi and Kuroe to look back at the live broadcast.

    And there he was, Midoriyama Satoshi in the flesh floating right outside the Dungeon Spire while addressing the battleships that seemed to be hovering by the shores of the Sea of Japan.

    "Satoshi? What is he doing there?" Shiroi asked herself.

    "Is he going to fight the Navy? No way." Kuroe muttered to herself.

    The camera then zoomed to Satoshi and his voice could barely be heard from the live broadcast. Fortunately, the shop owner was kind enough to turn the volume up so everyone could hear what Satoshi was saying.

    ...

    "Stop this! Right now!"

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, son of the Midoriyama Duo, I wouldn''t do this if I were you."

    "You can''t do this! There''s a forest on the other side of that portal!"

    "We don''t know what''s in there! And we can''t have another threat to our world while we''re dealing with a Dungeon!"

    ...

    Upon hearing that, Shiroi made up her mind as she dragged Kuroe out of the crowd. "Can you move, Kuroe? We''re going in." Shiroi told her.

    "We''re going in where? Where are we going? Wait... don''t tell me¡ª" Kuroe almost gasped.

    "Yes, we''re going to fight alongside Satoshi. If he''s up against that many superheroes, he won''t stand a chance." Shiroi reasoned out, but deep inside, she had another reason why she needed to be there.

    During the entire live broadcast, Shiroi noticed that there was someone else with Satoshi. It was none other than Emma Leisenberg, of course, and her presence somewhat made her feel a pang in her heart. (She was jealous, to say the least). That''s why she had to go there no matter what. There was no way she''d get left behind and let another girl fight alongside her childhood friend.

    "All right then, let''s go." Kuroe clenched her fists. "I will not doubt your resolve, Shiroi! Hmph!"

    "What are you talking about?" Shiroi cluelessly asked.

    "Did you forget? I can read your thoughts, hehh~" Kuroe responded, causing Shiroi''s face to redden in embarassment.

 Chapter 221 The Gathering

    As the day drew its curtains to a close, revealing the grey night sky falling down on the horizon while the sun dipped, Ayumu smiled to herself as she prepared dinner. "Emma and Satoshi for sure would be famished once they get home. I wonder where they went on their date."

    Ayumu pressed her hand to her mouth as she chuckled to herself. Of course, she knew that whenever Emma asks Satoshi out, her purpose was to know more about this world, not to go on a date with Satoshi. While she can''tin if Satoshi started liking Emma, she knew well enough that her son had set his heart already on someone else. Even if countless girls appear in his life, Satoshi wouldn''t be swayed from his decision.

    "But what if Emma started liking Satoshi first? If that were to happen... mmm, what should I do?" Ayumu muttered to herself.

    In the end, she brushed off all the thoughts in her head and proceeded to prepare dinner. She already marinated the ground beef, all it needed was a little bit of forming and a handful of seasoning. "Hamburg Steak, Hamburg Steak," She repeated to herself, singing as she continued on its preparation.

    Durun dun dun durun dun!

    Ayumu couldn''t mistake that sound for anything else. cing the chopping board on the counter, she rushed toward the living room to check what the news was talking about. The ''durun dun'' sound only happens when there''s a news sh or emergency news and this would be shown on every channel across the entire country.

    "What''s going on?" Ayumu pursed her lips, concerned.

    [Number One Superhero, Plunder, Defeated?!]

    The headline shed on the screen, making Ayumu gasp in shock¡ª not because she was concerned about her husband, but because the headline was too ridiculous. There was no one in Japan who could defeat her husband, and yet they were saying that he was defeated? Ayumu found it hrious.

    But before she couldugh her heart off, the news showed a brief picture of Dungeon Spire, and then one of the reporters started talking about how Plunder''s group was wiped out on floor thirty of the Dungeon. Once the reporter was finished with his statement, the news report then showed both Fury and Technmorine with each other, nning with the other reporters.

    She thought that the news sh was over when the logo of the news station shed on the screen. Just when she assumed that she received her fair share of shock that day, another news sh showed on the screen.

    This time, it was her son who was in the news. He was riding his White Lion familiar with Emma behind him.

    [Rookie hero versus the Army. Is defending the Dimensional Portal worth it?]

    ["Stop this! Right now!" Satoshi screamed from afar while doing a t-pose on the screen.]

    "No... Satoshi would never act recklessly. There must be a reason for this." Ayumu shook her head as she grabbed her phone and contacted Elimine¡ª superhero name Plume, Satoshi''s childhood friend, and Shiroi''s cousin.<sub> </sub>

    By car, it would take more than a few hours before Ayumu could reach the shores of the Sea of Japan. With Plume, however, she could get there in record time. That''s why she chose her over the family car.

    "Wait for me, dear... wait for me, Satoshi," She muttered to herself as she continued preparing for dinner, all the while waiting for Plume to respond to her emergency summons.

    .....

    Another hard day''s work at the construction site but to Onigashima Midori, it was all worth it. After all, today''s the day he got to receive his sry, his hard-earned money. Finally, he could treat his family to good food once again. With his three younger sisters and three younger brothers, he knew it would be hard to fit his tight budget into his sry but he was willing to do it. It''s not every day they get to eat good food, after all.

    Thanks to Midori and his parents doing part-time jobs here and there, they were able to get by. However, Midori didn''t want such a life of survival. He wanted his parents to take it easy, and more than that, he also desired for his younger siblings to get a better life, get good grades, and never think about starving again.

    Recently, there was an ident where his sister almost died. Fortunately, his healing superpower awakened within him and he was able to heal her just in time. Still, that didn''t change the fact that their standard of living was so low and it''s not optimal for her sister to live a lifestyle like that with her weak constitution and all.

    "That''s right, let''s just get two pizzas and some soft drinks. I''m sure they''ll like it!" Midori said to himself. Soon, he will get his superhero license and he''d be able to formally assist The Nurse. Once that happens, he could finally give his family afortable life.

    Durun dun dun durun dun!

    While buying pizza, Midori heard the familiar sound of a news shing from the television which prompted him to look. The first one was rming enough as it is¡ª a headliner that talked about the supposedly defeated party of the number one superhero, Plunder.

    "Satoshi''s dad. Oh no... what happened?" He asked, his eyes glued to the screen. He didn''t even notice that the pizza he ordered was already in front of him, and the worker behind the counter was waiting for him to pay for it.

    "It''s pizza time!" The worker repeated, saying the slogan of the pizzeria.

    "Oh ah, thank y¡ª Satoshi? What is he doing there?!" Midori''s payment was interrupted when Satoshi suddenly appeared on the screen, doing a t-pose and standing up against the Japanese Army and Navy.

    "Whoa, that kid is crazy," The workermented. He was also drawn in by the news sh and for a moment, he forgot that there were other customers waiting in line behind Midori.

    Midori didn''t waste any time paying for the pizza, grabbing the two boxes out of there, and heading straight home. "I''ve gotta go... there''s no way Satoshi can stand against the entire army like that." He said to himself even though he was unsure of what he could do to assist Satoshi. In any case, he wanted to help, and there was no one who could stop him from doing so.

 Chapter 222 Chief Of Naval Operations

    se no~ demo sonnan ja dame, mou sonann ja hora~

    "Hello?" Plume was just returning home after another day of undefeated streak by the Concrete Arena. Ever since her fated battle with her childhood friend Satoshi where the fight ended with a draw, she never lost a match since then. That''s why she was pleased with herself, and it was evident in her tone as she answered the phone.

    "Plume! Good thing you answered." On the other end of the line was Satoshi''s mom, Midoriyama Ayumu, sighing in relief when her transport finally replied. "Can youe pick me pick me pick me up here? Pretty please?" She asked, referencing a certain idol reality show which was a certified ssic back in the day.

    "Sure auntie, I just finished up with my shift. I''ll be flying over there now." Plume chirped before hanging up. She didn''t bother waiting for her aunt''s response since she knew she''d just lecture her about the Concrete Arena anyways.

    Even though she was in the middle of the crowd, Plume didn''t care about spreading her wings, shooting up into the air as she flew towards the Midoriyama Residence.

    ....

    The Chief of Naval Operations Eugen Hood, nicknamed the Sea Monster, is a force to be reckoned with at sea. Some even specte that he could climb into the top ten of the SAO with ease since his superpower deserves it.

    Water Creature Manifestation. This was what the articles about him called his superpower. Despite itsme-sounding name, however, his superpower is nothing short of impressive. With his superpower, he can transform water into any creature he has in mind, and that''s not limited to the creatures on Earth. He could manifest even the invaders from other worlds or beasts from the Beast Dimension. While the manifestations he could create wereposed of water, they pretty much retain the form and power of the original creature.

    Right now, Eugen Hood could very well be Satoshi''s worst enemy. Not only does he have more experience but his superpower could rival his summons as well. The masses weren''t lying when they said that Eugen Hod had a clear shot at bing one of the SAO''s top ten. Then again, he chose to be a part of the Navy instead of bing affiliated with the SAO.

    "You''re way over your head, Satoshi," Eugen Hood screamed back at him even though he knew that Satoshi just wouldn''t budge. [Eugen was the one who screamed at Satoshi when he told the Navy to stop whatever it was they were about to do.]

    To him, Satoshi was like an iron wall albeit a small one. Even though he may not look formidable, Eugen Hood knew he was a force to be reckoned with. There was no way he''d underestimate the son of the mighty Midoriyama Duo.

    ''I''ll gauge his power first, and then I''ll move in once I have a good grasp of his superpower.'' Eugen said to himself, ordering some of his men to attack Satoshi.

    .....

    Back to the Present.

    "Emma, you know what to do, right?" Satoshi didn''t waste any time charging forward, leaving Emma behind since she can fend for herself with White Lion as her mount.<sub> </sub>

    "Let''s go, White Lion," Emma muttered after nodding towards Satoshi. With a soft purr, the White Lion also charged but this time, it obeyed Emma''smands, not Satoshi''s.

    As for Satoshi, he used his Nailgun as his mount, flying smoothly through the air and blowing the enemies away who have some sort of wind superpower. Satoshi''s training finally paid off and he could pretty much control Nailgun without being overwhelmed by its superior speed. It''s not like he had full mastery over the Nailgun, but his connection towards it as well as his overall adaptability while fighting alongside it has increased to the point where he didn''t feel ufortable anymore. If one were to put it in simpler terms, their affinity had reached the bare minimum.

    If Satoshi were to summon Ghast and Sera right now, he could tell that he would in an instant. The superheroes that Eugen Hood sent him were actually weak¡ª to weak that they can''t even properly gauge Satoshi''sbat power.

    "So, you''re Satoshi, huh, the name''s Kaze Arashi, codename Windstorm." One of the supers said as he oted in front of Satoshi. "I know you''re the famous son of the Midoriyama Duo and all... but you''re no match for me."

    "You''ve got some good naming sense right there," Satoshi responded since Windstorm''s codename is actually just his name, literally. He couldn''t help but let out a chuckle.

    "Oh yeah? Let''s see who''s going to get thestugh."

    With a wave of his hand, Windstorm started controlling the air current, assisting the other supers with him while attacking Satoshi with powerful wind shes which were invisible to the eyes. Well, they shouldn''t be invisible but because of his almost perfect control of the wind, he could actually coat every wind sh with anotheryer of wind.

    Satoshi had to rely on Dex to enhance his senses even more but even then, he couldn''t dodge the attacks. As it turned out, Kaze Arashi wasn''t just all talk. No matter how fast Satoshi was, the wind shes seemed to reach him, cutting him where he least expected it.

    A minute hasn''t passed yet and Satoshi was already bloodied up. Every time he tried to counter the sh, Windstorm would just work his way around it andcerate him again. "This is no joke," Satoshi muttered to himself as another sh almost hit him squarely on the face.

    [Careful, Satoshi] Dex advised.

    Twisting his body, Satoshi started charging towards Windstorm, elerating faster and faster while he tried to get used to Nailgun''s maximum speed. If he were to get past his speed threshold, he knew that he''d be able to attack Windstorm before he even expected it.

    "I''m wind itself, Satoshi, there''s no way you can best me in aerialbat." Windstorm called out. "And also..."

    "... I''m not fighting alone."

    Bam!

 Chapter 223 Superheroes Arrive Late

    Bam!

    Confused as to what hit him, Satoshi started free-falling towards the water as he lost his bnce on the Nailgun. "What just happened?" He asked himself in bewilderment as he tried to crane his neck to look around, just so he could get a good grasp of his current situation.

    To his surprise, however, he didn''t see anything or anyone nearby. Whatever attacked him was there a moment and not there in the next moment.

    With swift movements, Emma opened up a portal, leading the White Lion into it and reappearing right under Satoshi before he hit the water. With a fluff of a sound, Satoshi fell on the fur of the White Lion, sinking right in since the White Lion was really fluffy. With a satisfied expression on his face for a split second, Satoshi got his bearings back, thanked Emma, and rode on his Nailgun Familiar once again.

    "Thanks!" Satoshi muttered, charging right at Windstorm so he''d be able to conclude whether the attack on him was a fluke or not. He could tell that it wasn''t a fluke, of course since Windstorm was smiling all throughout as he was caught off-guard... but he didn''t want to believe it.

    An attack that couldn''t be seen nor detected? Satoshi couldn''t imagine such a thing.

    That''s when he realized that after all this time, he had grown dependent on Dex for far too much, relying on him to inform him of the opponent and his or her attacks, relying on him to provide him with all the information he needed, and a lot of other things that Dex was capable of doing. Because of that, if there was something that Dex overlooked, Satoshi would overlook it as well.

    ''That''s not a good mindset. I''d die if I were to continue down that path.'' Satoshi said to himself, summoning the Ice Queen''s Spear/Staff so he could use it as a weapon alongside the nails that his Nailgun Familiar shoots.

    At first, Satoshi thought that he''d integrate with the Ice Queen and freeze the whole Sea over but then he realized that that would greatly affect the ecosystem of the sea, which would not be good in the long run. That''s why he decided to borrow her weapon instead and use it to fight Windstorm.

    "Pathetic, you think you can beat me after you got a spear from your spatial bag? Haha~ think again!" With a wave of his hand, another pair of tornadoes formed, going in the general direction of Satoshi to interrupt his attack and hopefully blow him away.

    ''As if that would work!'' Satoshi said in his mind as he increased in speed, his Nailgun synchronizing with hismands in a seamless manner.

    Compared to the wind pressure he unleashed before, the tornadoes weren''t all that great, and that gave Satoshi the thought that Windstorm''s probably getting more and more exhausted by the second.

    Bam!

    Satoshi was hit with another unknown attack, this time squarely on the head which almost left him unconscious. Unexpectedly though, Satoshi was prepared for it and he kept his eyes open.

    For a brief moment, there was a huge wave that followed him down before sshing right onto the water.

    ''What was that?'' Satoshi asked in mild confusion as he regained his bearings and charged at Windstorm once again. He started shooting Elemental Nails at him but the wind pressure he used was just too strong, blocking the nails or deflecting them altogether. As for the unknown attack that continuously pummeled him when he least expects it, he still didn''t know its source.

    Nevertheless, Satoshi didn''t back down. Even though the battleships of the Japanese Navy were inching closer towards the DImensional Portal, he and Emma continued their defense y, dealing with the flying supers who tried to capture them.<sub> </sub>

    If it hadn''t been for Emma and the White Lion, Satoshi would''ve been overwhelmed by now. Good thing she was with him when the unthinkable situation happened and up until now, she had been dealing with the other supers who tried to attack them¡ª and all the while, Satoshi focused solely on Windstorm.

    As Satoshi continued shooting nails at Windstorm while Windstorm continuously activated his wind superpower, Emma was busily dodging the attacks of the other flying supers,manding the White Lion as if it was her familiar. Their tag team was impable, and Satoshi couldn''t believe that Emma actually had the talent ofmanding familiars herself.

    Their tactic was simple¡ª while Emma created portals, the White Lion would shoot out pure blue lightning energy balls at the enemies. Some of them would hit while others would be deflected by the wind pressure that emanated from Windstorm. Then again, it provided Satoshi with all the cover he needed. Of course, those lightning balls that hit are one-hit knockouts, rendering the supers unconscious in an instant as they dropped into the sea like flies.

    "Emma, be careful of the water attacks. You can''t see them but you''ll be able to detect them." Satoshi warned her.

    Emma nodded, ducking from an attack that almost hit her head.

    .....

    Meanwhile, at the foot of the Dungeon Spire

    Fury made sure that the fight between Satoshi and the Japanese Navy was broadcasted live via the news channels where the exclusive reporters worked for. It''s a win-win situation for both sides¡ª while Fury asked for help, the news channels received higher ratings and more viewers.

    ''It won''t take long now... please, we need someone... anyone... '' Fury muttered to himself, clenching his fists to the point where blood started trickling from his palms. More than anything, he didn''t want Tatsuki to die¡ª

    ¡ª not on his watch.

    Fwoo~~~

    Shvooom!

    Just then, a sonic boom was heard, causing everyone to stop whatever it is they were preupied with. Even the heated battle between Satoshi and Windstorm came to a momentary halt as the sonic boom caught them by surprise.

    "Satoshi, why are you hogging all the fun by yourself?" Someone asked.

    It was none other than Plume, with Satoshi''s mom in tow, flying in like the hero who''s alwayste in the scene of action.

 Chapter 224 Class 3-1 â€” Assemble!

    When the sonic boom first reverberated all around them, most of the people on the scene weren''t sure how they''d react since it came so suddenly. Even the reporters who were stationed on the shoreline instinctively ducked, expecting some sort of low-altitude jet to appear.

    Most of the people were surprised, to say the least... most, except Fury.

    Even if Fury had his eyes closed, he could easily recognize who caused the sound. Then again, there was only one superhero who could cause a sonic boom in the entirety of Japan.

    Otomi Elimine, superhero name ''Plume'', ranked (undisclosed).

    "Hey Satoshi, are you all right back there?" Plume greeted in a friendly manner.

    "Mom? Elimine-nee? What are you two doing here?" Satoshi called out, joining them as they hovered in the sky.

    "Plume, drop me by the foot of the Dungeon. Look after my son for me." Ayumu tersely said, causing Plume to panic a little as she dropped her where she wanted to be.

    "W-what''s going on? Is everything all right?" Satoshi asked but no one listened to him. As the two of them hovered towards the foot of Dungeon Spire, Satoshi tried to wring information out of them by repeatedly asking questions. However, they didn''t respond¡ª it was the pr opposite of their friendly entrance.

    "Let mee with you," Plume asked.

    "No, I can handle this alone."

    "B-but" Plume muttered as she thought that even the number one hero was defeated. There''s no way Ayumu can handle whatever it is down the Dungeon.

    "Ten minutes, give me ten minutes. If I''m not back, then you cane." Ayumu heaved a sigh before turning to Satoshi.

    "Satoshi, I know that you''vee this far... and I know that you have a valid reason why you''re standing up against them alone." Ayumu began patting him on the head. "I''m proud of you."

    The reason why Ayumu spoke like that was that she felt like this would be her end. The media weren''t lying when they said that the number one superhero was defeated and he knew that. After all, Fury was in the scene and there''s no way he''d allow misinformation to seep into the public. Still, even with the odds ced against her, she knew she had to go. Or rather, she was the only one fitting to do so.

    If the number one and two superheroes couldn''t handle it, then there''s no hope for Japan to clear Dungeon Spire. As much as it would be a blow to Japan''s prideful guts, they''d have to relinquish their hold on the Dungeon and hand it to America.

    "..."

    Satoshi paused for a moment. He didn''t know what to say.

    After all, he had read hundreds of novels andics to know that what''s happening right now is a death g. Right now, her mom was talking to her as if she would die that day, and Satoshi was not allowing it.

    "Emma, can you hold them off for now? I''m going to the Dungeon with them." Satoshi asked, even though he knew all too well that Emma was incapable of doing it.

    Shshhshshhs~

    Before Emma could respond, however, the trickling sound of water freezing up suddenly caught their attention. Just then, WIndstorm was about to attack Emma but he stopped short, thinking that someone was sneaking from behind to attack him.<sub> </sub>

    When he turned around, he saw two figures hovering over the water. One of them was clearly affecting the other with his anti-gravity superpower, while the other extended her hands to turn the surface of the water into ice.

    A second or soter, they noticed that there was another figure right behind the two girls. It was a guy, and he was also floating.

    "Sorry we''rete, Satoshi," One of the girls said. "Shiroi and I encountered Midori here and he wanted toe along as well."

    For a moment there, Satoshi''s cheeks reddened as he saw Shiroi but he quickly regained hisposure and greeted them. "The three of you really arete," He responded.

    "We''ll hold them off, Satoshi, go save your dad," Midori said, flexing his muscles.

    "As if you can do anything. You''d be helpless without us." Kuroe said to Midori and she was right. If it weren''t for her using her psychic superpowers on him, he wouldn''t even be able to float, let alone fight.

    "Be careful, Satoshi," Shiroi muttered as she reached out and grabbed Satoshi by the hand.

    "I-I-I will,"

    "Can you please make it fast? I have my hands full here!" Emma screamed from above. She was the only one holding off the flying supers and Windstorm. And by the time she shouted, Windstorm managed to sneak an attack through her¡ª an attack aimed at Satoshi''s neck.

    Boom!

    "CRAZY EXPLOSION MURDER!" Someone screamed as an explosion was heard. The amount of wind pressure from that explosion alone blew Windstorm away, knocking his guard off in the process.

    "Sorry I''mte, Satoshi," Hiroshi muttered, rubbing his nose. "My dad gave me a lengthy lecture about failing the Superhero License Exam. I was about to take it again today when I heard the news."

    "Wee to the party," Satoshi responded, reaching out his hand to shake Hiroshi''s. "You do know that I''m up against our country''s Navy, right?"

    "I''m nervous, but here goes." Hiroshi exhaled a lungful of air. "You go get your dad. We''ll deal with these battleships in your stead."

    "Thanks!"

    Satoshi felt like tearing up when some of his ssmates showed up to support him. They could''ve chosen not to join but here they were, about to fight alongside him as hisrades.

    "Let''s go," Since Ayumu lost the only reason she had so she won''t take Satoshi and Plume with her, she decided to go along with it. With a wave of her hand, she signaled for the two to follow her into the Dungeon.

    "WAIT A SECOND!" Fury screamed at the top of his lungs, then his voice softened. "Before you do anything... you do know that it''s a crime to go against the country''s militants, right?"

    Ehrmm!

    "That''s why I''m going to issue out an order to all of you. In my name, I want all of you to stop our country''s Navy¡ª RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!"

 Chapter 225 Water Creation Manifestation

    The atmosphere above the Sea of Japan just got more intense as more reinforcements arrived for Satoshi''s group, aiding them in the mutiny they were doing ''against'' the government.

    In hindsight, the decision of both the Japanese Government and the SAO was rash, and if their reasoning were made public, then the citizens would find it rather absurd. After all, destroying a Dimensional Portal is moreplicated than it looks, and even if the Japanese Government were sure to limit the damages they would do when they attempted to destroy the Portal, it''s a different case on the other end of it.

    Meaning to say, that if a Dimensional Portal was destroyed, there''s a considerable probability that the world on the other side of it would be severely damaged. It was obvious¡ª the Dimensional Portal is a pure swirling mass of energy converging on its center. If the energy was repelled out and away, then that energy should affect something else due to the disruption.

    With the Dimensional Portal destroyed, not only would the Urass Forest be wiped out, but the entire Nichijou Region where Ash and his family lives would be erased from their as well. Heck, they might even be erased due to the sudden outburst of energy which would have simr effects as a nuclear bomb hundreds if not thousands of times better.

    That''s why it''s always advisable that the Dimensional Portals are left alone unless, of course, it was proven that the other side of it is a threat to their. WITH the exception that the other side of the Dimensional Portal is a threat.

    But how could the Japanese Government and the SAO consider it a threat when they haven''t explored the other side? Again, it was understandable since they were backed into a corner due to the Dungeon Spire appearing recently before the Dimensional Portal but such a decision was inexcusable. The topic of human lives is at y here, and if they aren''t careful, they could be causing a massacre without even knowing they did.

    Quite surprisingly, the masses were on the side of Satoshi on this one. They believed that such a harmless Dimensional Portal shouldn''t be dismantled just because of its potential threat.

    "They should at least assist the number one hero in the Dungeon Spire instead of attacking the Dimensional Portal,"

    p "Time and time again, Dimensional Portals appeared in our world and those looking like that are harmless,"</anda>

    "What would they gain from destroying such a passage to another world? It might even have resources that we don''t have here on our right now."

    "Look, if they''re short-staffed on explorers right now, I''m sure quite a lot of people would volunteer to explore the other side of that Dimensional Portal. It''s a real-life isekai, no one would say no to that sheet."

    "Yeah, what the other guy said. I''m sure hundreds of people would explore that."

    These people were the ones interviewed by the reporters who were at the shoreline, watching the battleships battle it out with the superheroes who came to Satoshi''s aid. They may not be as formidable as Satoshi but they managed to hold the fort just like what they intended to do.<sub> </sub>

    .....

    Eugen Hood, the Chief of Navy Operations, is the one in charge of this entire operation. And seeing a bunch of teenagers standing up to him gave him a great blow to his pride. He clenched his teeth to the point they chattered as he pounded his fists on the railings (he was standing by the edge of the battleship). "You know what... fine. Even if you''re not worth seeing my superpower, I''ll show you the difference between our abilities." Eugen Hood said to himself, tightening his tie and adjusting his marine cap before he stood on the railings.

    It was an unnecessary movement but it did the trick of attracting Satoshi''s four ssmates, as well as the other superheroes whom Eugen Hood sent to engage them inbat.

    Water Creature Manifestation.

    A ripple, and then a huge whirlpool appeared right in the middle of both sides, growing bigger and more ominous as seconds passed. A roar was heard,ing from the depths of the sea as the whirlpool got bigger and bigger. It was like a yawning chasm in the middle of the sea, threatening to swallow anything and everything that came near it.

    The supers who were part of the army knew what was about toe down and so they retreated without a second thought. They knew just how powerful Eugen Hood was and they don''t want to get caught in the crossfire of his superpower. On the other hand, Hiroshi and the others remained right in front of the Dimensional Portal, still defending it at all costs despite the pressure they felt from the ever-growing hole in the sea.

    A few secondster, the whirlpool on the sea wasrge enough that it could easily swallow a battleship at this point.

    the roars continued to grow louder, and there were multiple of them. There were grunts, whale calls, and roarsing from the hole all at the same time, and as if that''s not scary enough, the bottom of the huge whirlpool looked like a dark portal straight out of a horror science fiction.

    The first Water Creature Manifestation that came out was none other than a Knifehead (or at least it looked a lot like a Knifehead), one of the category threes in a certain series with giant beasts and giant man-powered robots fighting for the earth. The beast looked like a shark, a huge shark that has arms and legs and is easily five timesrger than a battleship. Its body was whollyposed of water.

    With a roar, the gargantuan monster stood face to face with Kuroe and the others, staring at them as if it was looking right into their very souls. Kuroe felt an intense bloodthirst from the beast even though she knew that the beast was just a manifestation in the water.

    Hiroshi''s group thought that they''d already seen everything, but before they could sigh in relief that there was only one monster, a huge tentacled monster came out, resembling a Kraken. And as if that wasn''t enough, three more gigantic monstrosities spawned behind the Knifehead, creating an army of giants that seemed impervious to small-scale attacks.

    "Now that''s more like it!" Hiroshi shakily said as he put his fists together.

 Chapter 226 Dungeon Spireâ€” Thirtieth Floor

    p It had been a few minutes since Ayumu, Plume, and Satoshi entered the Dungeon Spire, abyrinth full of monsters and treasures... or so that''s what the Japanese Government and the SAO thought as they sent in their number one superhero and his party. As it turned out, they were yet to find treasures in the Dungeon, and it was clear that the team they sent was absolutely under-leveled and short-staffed.</anda>

    And now they''re reaping what they sow. The number one hero''s party was defeated, and it was still ambiguous whether he was alive or not.

    "He''s alive, I''m sure of it," Ayumu muttered to herself as the three of them sped through the floors of the Dungeon. With her counterattack superpower, she easily negated the attack of other monsters. She literally plowed her way through to the thirtieth floor. Despite her counterattack superpower, Ayumu wasn''t immune to exhaustion. And traveling through twenty-nine floors whilst fending off monsters was pretty much exhausting for her. Fortunately, Satoshi was there, with his familiar Sera, who had been supporting them by giving them buffs throughout the journey.

    Still, Satoshi didn''t want to rely on Sera a little bit too much since they still needed her when they got to the thirtieth floor. She''s basically the premium healer of the group, and without her, there''s no hope of saving Satoshi''s dad and the others.

    As soon as they got to floor twenty-nine, the difficulty level of the Dungeon became much harder and it took all of Ayumu''s strength just to plow her way through the Dungeon. Of course, Satoshi and Plume helped as well but this was their first time in the dungeon so Ayumu had to cover for them from time to time¡ª Not like they needed covering, it''s just that Ayumu could get a little overprotective at times.

    But as a mom, no one could me her. Her team members were basically her son and her niece. If anything were to happen to them during this run then there''s no way she''d forgive herself. That''s why as much as she could, she tried to protect them.

    That''s also a good strategy on her part as well since the two of them could support everyone when they arrive on the thirtieth floor. Ayumu was aware that by the time they got to that floor, she''d had run out of gas, well almost. (The only reason why she had to go down the Dungeon was to confirm whether her husband was alive or not. She was moving based purely off of her emotions here, nothing more nothing less.)

    "We''re almost there," Plume muttered to everyone as she suppressed her breath. She was tied, but she didn''t want to show it to everyone.

    "Right," Satoshi responded. He wasn''t tired, just worried that the two members of his team were on the verge of exhaustion even though Sera was assisting them. It was clear that theycked physical training but Satoshi wasn''t going to insensitively mention any of that¡ª not until they were finished with their mission.

    From the staircase that led to the thirtieth floor, the three of them could hear grunts as well as a chant that seemed recognizable. The more they ventured deeper, the more they realized that the chant was actually a famous Japanese chant ''banzai''... except it was flipped out to ''zanbai'' which was an anagram for the word meaning ''misery''. Banzai was meant to be a positive cheer for someone, but what they were hearing was the exact opposite of it.<sub> </sub>

    Also, the atmosphere and the creepiness of their ritualic voice added anotheryer of uneasiness to the three as they finally stepped foot on the thirtieth floor.

    That''s when they noticed the huge orc and the throne behind him. The sides of the room were filled with humanoids donned red and ck robes. They were doing the banzai movement in an opposite manner as they continued to chant ''zanbai'' instead. ''I''m guessing they watched that ssic creepy animated series or something... what was the title... dark stories or something?'' Satoshi wracked his head but since the ss animated series he was trying to think of existed more than a millennia ago, he couldn''t remember most of the details.

    "DAD!" His thoughts were interrupted as he noticed his dad pressed on the ground. The moment the three of them entered the room, they too were affected by the intense gravity which caused them to lie t on the ground, helplessly.

    "SON?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Tatsuki eximed, his eyes filled with rage, worry, and everything in between.

    Thest thing he wanted to see right now was his son, and that''s the reason why he blurted out his question. For one, he didn''t want his son to see him lose, and second, he was about to die. There was no way he''d want his son to see something so traumatizing.

    While they were pressed down on the ground, Satoshi had a hard time looking around to see what the situation was.

    That''s when he realized that they just entered a massacre... and not just any massacre, but a one-sided massacre. A satisfiedugh erupted from the huge orc as he picked one of the superheroes who were near him. "Fools, actually walking in without regard to their lives." He muttered, eyeing Ayumu, Plume, and Satoshi who had just entered. While he did so, he squished the superhero he picked from the ground as if he was an orange. His blood and flesh juices started flowing from the gaps of the orc''s hand as he continued to chuckle manically.

    "Um... Plunder... " Troppus, who had been part of the support unit on Plunder''s party, started speaking as he turned his head sideways with hisst remaining strength. His energy had run out and since his body couldn''t take the gravity any longer, he was beginning to bleed out from his nose and mouth as he cried in despair.

    "I... I don''t feel so good." He continued, his face a jumbled mess of crying and bleeding at the same time.

 Chapter 227 I-Impossible...

    "I... I don''t feel so good." Troppus''s face was contorted to the point where one could tell he was on the verge of death. For a support type, it was a disgrace for someone to see his condition like that but he couldn''t do anything about it. As much as he hated to admit it, he had run out of juice, and it was only a matter of time before he would die along with everyone else in the group.

    "Troppus... no!" Tatsuki grunted.

    "Foolish humans," The Giant Orc this time picked up Troppus so he could squeeze him to death just like everyone else. For some odd reason, the Giant Orc was picking the weakest ones first and killing them in front of the strong ones. He called it getting rid of the side characters which greatly offended Tatsuki and the others.

    It was twisted, to say the least, but that twistedness was the reason why Tatsuki and the other top ten superheroes in the Top Ten are still alive. Their lives had been paid in blood with the other superheroes in their party¡ª a great blow to their pride and a hard-hitting realization that there would be times when they wouldn''t be able to protect or save everyone.

    Just a few minutes ago, their party was having a meal, conversing about clearing the Dungeon Spire and about their family. Tatsuki could even remember the times when Troppus and the others congratted him when they heard about his son passing the Superhero License Exam. They couldn''t be any happier, saying that the next generation of superheroes will be stronger, more formidable than them, and how they wished that they''d be able to recruit them as interns for their agency.

    And right now, those aspirations were lost, ground to dust¡ª their hopes and dreams dying along with them.

    Troppus was next in line, and his eyes twitched in horror as he came face to face with the Giant Orc.

    "What a funny-looking human," The Giant Orc chuckled to itself as he was about to squeeze Troppus.

    "NOOOO!!!" Pain could be felt in Tatsuki''s voice as Troppus struggled to get out of the Giant Orc''s grip. Despair filled his every being, and at that moment, Tatsuki felt like his life shed before his eyes. It was the same feeling he felt during the Boosting Incident where he almost lost his life.

    Being the support type he was, Troppus couldn''t do anything as he hung limply from the hands of the orc. He didn''t want to die, but it''s not like he''s got any viable options left aside from dying. ''Besides, my whole body is painful... too painful... it would be nice if I could die right now.'' Troppus wandered into the thought of giving up.

    Just then, a light shed before his eyes, and he saw his loving wife by the kitchen, waiting for him. He could almost smell the curry she was cooking. ''Do you want to eat first? Or do you want to take a bath first? Or maybe you want¡ª ''

    sh!

    The thought of his wife in thest fleeting moments of his life brought about his fighting spirit once again as he screamed with vigor. There was something in him that awakened which made him fight for his life a second time.

    "WAAAARGHHH!!!" He screamed at the top of his lungs. At that moment, one would''ve mistaken him for a strength-type superhero which wasn''t the case at all.

    "Don''t think superheroes die easily, you fool!" Troppus gritted his teeth as saliva and blood escaped his lips.

    "Dex, are you here?" Satoshi muttered as he tried to get up.<sub> </sub>

    ?

    [Yes, Satoshi, do you need anything?]

    "I want to know if I have enough energy to integrate with my familiars, right now," Satoshi asked.

    [A-a-are you sure about this, Satoshi?] Dex confirmed since he was able to read Satoshi''s mind. Based on Satoshi''s expression, Dex could tell that he was determined to do it.

    A light chuckle came out of Satoshi''s mouth since this was the first time he heard Dex panic like that. Since their minds were connected, Satoshi could also tell that Dex was deeply concerned about him. After all, what he''s about to do is something crazy.

    "So, do I have enough energy?"

    [A- er- um- sigh~... Yes, Satoshi, you have enough energy to pull it off. It will depend on your concentration but with your energy readings, you can sustain it for two minutes, at most.]

    "All right, that''s more than enough," Satoshi muttered before he mped his fist on the ground as he tried to fight against gravity. Just as he thought, it was no good.

    There was only one thing he could do.

    The first familiar he summoned was none other than Sera who was actually already with them. Satoshi figured that with Sera''s buff, he''d be able to have more control over his familiars once he integrated with them.

    "Oum~!" Sera gave off a squeal as she integrated with Satoshi, giving Satoshi the white and gold robe with a huge cor and giving him the halo.

    In that instant, Satoshi felt intense energy surging through his body. For a split second, he thought that his appendages would explode due to Sera''s sudden outburst of buffs. He almost lost consciousness, but he gritted his teeth and pulled through, sessfullypletely integrating with Sera just like he did before.

    The Giant Orc, who had been surprised by Troppus''s sudden act of courageousness, was caught off guard once again as Satoshi began to glow a nice white color. His handle on the gravity pressure was bing weak around Satoshi as the process of integration continued. "I-Impossible..." The Giant Orc said to himself which somehow reminded Satoshi of a purple guy who snapped his fingers.

    The glow surrounding Satoshi became even more intense until it suddenly shifted into a sinister glow. One moment, the light was pristine white, the next moment it had a certain tint of darkness to it, getting stronger and stronger until it turned into a nice shade of purple.

    It was obvious that Satoshi was about to integrate with Ghast next.

    ''One Integration down... Four more to go.'' Satoshi thought, smiling at the Orc¡ª his killing spree was about toe to an end.

 Chapter 228 Power Up

    ''One Integration down... Four more to go.''

    Upon saying that, huge energy suddenly burst forth from Satoshi, dispelling the gravitational force that pinned all of them down to the ground. In that instant, Satoshi integrated with Ghast for mobility, Sain for his chainsaw attack power, Ice Queen for hernce staff and her ice bears, thenstly, Lighter, for long-range attacks. All in all, Satoshi integrated with five of his familiars¡ª and this was the first time he was doing it.

    When Satoshi had finished the integration, he felt a crack in his mind which caused him to kneel for a couple of seconds. Just as he thought, the pure energy of five of his familiars was more than enough for him to handle and it won''t be long now before he lost control.

    "That''s why I have to finish this as fast as I can," Satoshi told himself.

    With the gravity gone, the Midoriyama Duo and the others were able to stand up, getting a good look at Satoshi who underwent such a drastic transformation in just a few seconds.

    Right now, Satoshi resembled that overpowered character in a novel with their elements all ver their body. Just like before, Satoshi still wore the white and gold robe and the halo that came when he integrated with Sera. However, half of the robe transitioned into a dark purple color as some sort of purplish haze floated on that side of his body. An Ice Lance Staff was on Satoshi''s hand as well, not to mention the huge cape and the sophisticated half mask he wore¡ª all of which came from the Ice Queen.

    Last but not least were the chainsaws and the spires of mes that floated on Satoshi''s shoulders¡ª these were Lighter and Sain integrating with Satoshi.

    "Son... what happened t¡ª"

    Fwoom~!

    Intense air pressure was suddenly felt even though Satoshi seemed like he didn''t move at all. Unbeknownst to them, Satoshi moved at insanely high speeds, cutting off the Orc''s arm so he would let go of Troppus who was on the verge of death. The only one who managed to see through his movements was Tatsuki¡ª who had activated all the superpowers he plundered while trying to get out of the gravitational force trap that they were in back then.

    Schchhlk~!

    "RARGHHHH!"

    The Gian Orc''s reaction was a second toote as his forearm spurted blood, cleanly cut by Sain who is now integrated with Satoshi.

    As mentioned before, Sain is the Chainsaw Familiar, and he was responsible¡ª as per Satoshi''smand¡ª for the cut to appear on the Giant Orc''s hand. As one of the few familiars that boasted offensive cutting power, Sain was proud that he didn''t disappoint his master. Of course, his pride was felt by Satoshi since they were integrated.

    With a swift floating motion while riding the Nailgun, Satoshi caught Troppus and settled him on the ground. "All right, now time to make this work..." Satoshi mumbled to himself before he held out his hand and said something at the top of his voice.

    "AREA HEAL!"

    Arge bubble appeared on the room, encasing his parents and the other superheroes on his dad''s party. In that bubble, a blinding light the size of a ping pong ball started shining, growing more intense as it got bigger. For a moment, Tatsuki and the others thought that they''d get swallowed by the light and they were a bit fearful as the light drew closer to touch them.<sub> </sub>

    However, when the light finally reached them, all they felt was warmth and tranquility. Furthermore, they could feel their energying back to them, almost giving them aplete recovery.

    ''I guess it should work since we''re talking about energy here. If I transfer some of my energy which was about to get out of control and give it to them while healing them, then not only will they recover their previous vitality but their superhero energy as well, right?'' Satoshi thought to himself and he was right on the money. Just as expected, his theory worked. He was finally beginning to understand the inner workings of his superpower.

    ...

    Troppus knew he hade face to face with death and no matter how much he struggled, nothing wille of it. Even if he fought with the Giant Orc as desperately as he could, that would only buy everyone a couple of seconds and at this rate, those few precious seconds weren''t enough. However, he still didn''t give up, continuing to struggle while gritting his teeth in order to alleviate the pain he felt as his innards were beginning to get squeezed.

    That''s when the burst of energy urred. It was more or less otherworldly energy, and somehow it felt quite sinister. For Troppus who had been working with energy all his life as a support hero, he knew that such energy is stronger than the Giant Orc himself.

    Tug!

    <o>,m </o>

    A tug, and then he felt his body lurch forward as the hand of the Giant Orc was cut clean. He was too shocked to even scream. During that fall, all he did was close his eyes as he awaited his unavoidable death.

    Tug!

    Feeling another tug, Troppus flinched, and he flinched a second time when light enveloped his whole body, making him feel better. ''White Light... WAIT...''

    ''WHITE LIGHT?! I''M DEAD?!'' Troppus screamed in his mind. While he was wondering whether he was dead or not, the white light continued to get more intense as he felt the pain leave his body. He concluded that he was really dead since he doesn''t feel pain anymore. ''It won''t be long now before I lose my consciousness...''

    "Are you all right?" Someone asked him, making his eyes shoot open.

    ''Who was that?'' He eximed.

    The moment he opened his eyes, he saw that the room they were in was empty... or rather, the monsters were dead. Even the Giant Orc who had been squeezing him a minute ago was unconscious on the ground, all bloodied up like a pile of useless meat.

    And there, in front of him, stood a monster with a full deck of equipped superpowers. One nce, and he knew that what stood in front of him was a monster.

    ''Strong... really strong...'' Troppus muttered inwardly.

 Chapter 229 Switcheroo

    Satoshi leaped sideways as the desperate Giant Orc got his bearings back and pounded on him with one of his intact fists. It was angry, no doubt, and it screamed an ear-shattering scream as it tried to catch up to him. Then again, it''s not like Satoshi would allow the Giant Orc to hit him. He didn''t waste any time mercilessly hacking and shing at the Giant Orc until it was reduced to bits.

    As for the humanoid-robed figures which were chanting by the sidelines, Satoshi dealt with them before they could even reorganize themselves. They couldn''t believe that a single human managed to tip the scales in an instant. They weren''t even losing, to begin with, and now the other party had won by andslide.

    ''Strong... really strong...'' By the time Troppus got back to his senses, Satoshi was already finished with the onught. Not a single monster on the thirtieth floor was left alive, and all of them miraculously survived even though they were this close to meeting with death.

    "Son..." Tatsuki weakly uttered as he steadied himself, helping those who were alive up to their feet.

    Some of the superheroes burst out in tears, imagining their loved ones'' reactions on the off-chance that they receive the news of their death. What would have been the greatest tragedy in the history of SAO was reversed by a rookie superhero who just got his license less than a day ago.

    "At this rate... we won''t be able to clear Dungeon Spire in one week."

    "At least we''re alive... the others weren''t so lucky..."

    "Chin up, you guys, we shouldn''t be showing such ungrateful faces towards our benefactor."

    "He''s right."

    "Yeah,"

    As the rest of the superheroes gathered around to bow at Satoshi, thanking him for saving their lives, Satoshi could already feel that he was nearing his limits. At most, there''s only one minute before he slips into unconsciousness.

    Without wasting another second, Satoshi opened a portal in front of everyone. "Please get in, this leads straight into the outside. And please help my ssmates, they''re fighting the Japanese Navy right now." Satoshi continued.

    "What do you mean, son?" Tatsuki asked. He was about to grab his son by the shoulders when his hands almost got burned by the pure energy that poured out from him.

    "Dear, let''s get out of here first. We shouldn''t let our son''s hard work go to waste. Every added second we stay here is just making it difficult for him." Ayumu softly muttered before leading everyone outside.

    Thanks to Ayumu''s words, the ''evacuation'' didn''t take more than twenty seconds, which gave Satoshi more time in his reserves. ''Let''s see here... Dex, how much time do I have left?''

    [Surprisingly, your control over your superpower was more refined than I thought. You still have, at most, five minutes before you lose control] Dex responded with a slight hint of surprise in his monotonous voice.

    "All right, that''s more than enough time," Satoshi said, closing the portal in front of him.<sub> </sub>

    "Now it''s time to clear this dungeon."

    .....

    A sh of sunlight greeted Tatsuki and his party the moment they came out of the portal that Satoshi made for them. Blinking twice, Tatsuki''s sight finally adjusted to the brightness of the surroundings. He and his party copsed on the ground the moment they touched the grass, too exhausted due to the insane amount of energy they expended during their Dungeon Exploration.

    They''ve only been inside the Dungeon for less than a day but to them, it felt like they haven''t seen the sun nor touched the grass in weeks. It was a pretty weird feeling that no one could get used to even though some of them had prior experience with going into Dungeons.

    When their sight finally got used to the intense brightness outside, what greeted them next was pure pandemonium as superpowers upon superpowers shed against each other in the middle of the Sea of Japan. It was like waking up from one intrusive nightmare to another, giving them no time to take a break both mentally and physically.

    "PLUNDER!" Someone roared from behind him. It was none other than Fury, teary-eyed as he tackle-hugged the number one superhero.

    "Fury, what are you doing? That hurts." Plunder was too exhausted that even his voice was bing a monologue. "In any case, what''s going on here? Can you exin what the current situation is right now? Satoshi just briefly told us about the Japanese Navy attacking his ssmates or somethi¡ª "

    That nagging feeling that Plunder felt suddenly caught up to him, causing him to instantly swivel his head as he scanned the area for a sign on behalf of a certain someone. His jaw dropped as his face paled in color. With a slow turn of the head, he stared straight into his wife''s eyes as if he had just seen a ghost... "Dear... where''s Satoshi?"

    Satoshi was nowhere to be found. Of course, he chose to stay inside the Dungeon after all. He figured he''d speedrun it before his timer runs out...

    ... or he dies first. Whichever the case, Satoshi''s action was pure foolish. However, it was a risk he was willing to take in search of the rumored treasures that lie at the lowest floor of the Dungeon.

    "SATOSHI? SATOSHI?!" Plunder was beginning to panic. As adrenaline coursed through his veins, he found the strength to stand up. He then desperately crawl-walked his way towards the mouth of the dungeon, seeking to enter it without a second thought.

    "Dear!" Ayumu rushed towards her husband, hugging him from behind. "You can''t enter the dungeon."

    "B-but our son!" Plunder continued, tears streaming down his cheeks.

    "Believe in him. We know how strong he is. We have to believe in him." Ayumu advised as she wore a stern expression on her face. "And right now, he''s depending on us to assist his ssmates. For now... we have to do what we can."

    As much as Plunder wanted to help his son down there, he knew that he would just be a burden for him since his energy was almost exhausted. "All right..." He conceded before asking Fury about the details.

 Chapter 230 Purple Hyacinth

    Sometimeter,

    "What? But why? How could they be so rash while dealing with a Dimensional Portal? How about the world on the other side?" Tatsuki reasoned after hearing the update from Fury. He couldn''t believe that the SAO and their government ultimately decided on destroying the Dimensional Portal despite the adverse effects it would have on both worlds.

    "I don''t know either. For now, I''m trying to hold them back. I heard from your son that they''ve been to the other side. Once he gets back from the dungeon, I''ll be sure to interrogate him with no holds barred. Then I''ll write a detailed appeal and get the citizens on our side. Once we can do that, they won''t have a choice but to take back their forces."

    "I get it. I have so many questions but I''m sure my son''s not moving into action with blindfolds on. I''m sure he has a n. The next best thing we can do is support him for now." Tatsuki said.

    "Flight. Superspeed."

    With a stiff salute towards Fury, Plunder flew upwards, targeting one of the monster creatures who had been continually harassing Satoshi''s ssmates. They''ve done the best they could, holding back, but it wasn''t enough and little by little, the Navy was pushing them deeper and deeper.

    "Hyah!" Midori screamed as he punched a tentacle. The monster he was dealing with looked like a Kraken but its defense and offensive power were nothingpared to the legend. Midori had already activated his Berserk Superpower but he''s still left to leave a dent in the Kraken''s tentacles. With the Kraken''s flurry of attacks, Midori countered without doing any damage. It was a standstill, to say the least.

    "Force Freeze," Tatsuki muttered, extending his hand at one of the tentacles that were about to hit him squarely on the stomach. As soon as he activated his superpower, a surfboard made of ice appeared on his foot, and simultaneously, a steady stream of ice beams shot out of his hands, freezing the Kraken''s tentacle in an instant.

    "Yoshi~!" Tatsuki said before turning his head to the floating Midori. "Are you all right back there?"

    "Whoa! It''s Plunder!" Midori''s eyes sparkled as if his eyes were reflecting a starry night. "Hold on do I have a- agh! I forgot to bring my notebook with me!" He eximed, hoping to get Plunder''s autograph even though he already owned one thanks to Satoshi.

    A tentacle suddenly whipped at Midori''s face. Fortunately, he managed to duck just in time, avoiding the tentacle by a hair''s breadth.

    "Come on, Midori, pay attention!" Hiroshi screamed below. Apparently, he was the one who deflected the tentacle so Midori won''t be hit by it.

    "R-right!" Midori muttered, looking upward towards Emma. Their gazes met and Emma created a portal for Midori to get into.<sub> </sub>

    "Nice, it looks like you don''t need my help here," Tatsuki said to himself even though the tentacle he just froze regenerated in an instant.

    Whomever it was behind the sea monsters, he was one powerful super. His control over the water was so refined, that even Tatsuki felt like he was fighting against the whole sea itself. "So there are hidden talents in the Navy as well. I guess I should pay them a visit sometime." He said to himself.

    Emma and the White Lion were having a hard time dealing with the sea monsters while supporting everyone else. However, she knew she had one job¡ª and that is to hold on as much as he could before Satoshi returns. After all, she promised him that she''ll take care of them while he was gone. Right now, Emma wanted to prove to Satoshi that he could count on her just as she counted on him so many times in the past.

    That''s why Emma went out of her way to maneuver through the monsters while attacking, deflecting, and counterattacking with her portals. She might not be one of the known superheroes in the group but she was way more shy than everyone else... even shier than Tatsuki himself.

    As the reporters watched in awe and silence, trying to figure out whether to side with the Japanese Government or the group of vigntes that helped protect the bnce in both worlds, they noticed the flying White Lion with a purple-haired girl riding on top of it. She was waving her hand each and every way as purple portals appeared everywhere. Her focus was impable, and whatever portion she missed, the White Lion would then cover for it, following through as if their minds were one hundred percent in-sync. With Emma''s shy moves and White Lion''s beautiful blue lightning attacks that sparkled on the aquatic battlefield, it was easy for them to attract the crowd.

    It didn''t take long before the entirety of reporters subconsciously pointed the cameras at her. They were so astounded by what they saw that no one even spoke, the reporters they were.

    Of course, those who were on the other side of the television screen were mesmerized by Emma''s movements as well. Their eyes were so glued to the screen that they didn''t even realize the reporters also weren''t saying anything. For a good two minutes, the majority of Japan was silent.

    With this sudden exposure, Emma was then nicknamed the ''Purple Hyacinth''¡ª this was the first time Emma''s superhero name came out.

    One of the cameramen who also fell in love with Emma''s move sets suddenly got back to her senses and signaled to her coworker to start speaking. "You''re a reporter, right? You should continue on with the report!" The cameraman pointed out, to which her coworker responded with a bow of apology.

    .....

    Meanwhile, way up above the skies by the troposphere, a certain man with white hair crossed his arms as his robe flitted on the jet streams that mercilessly blew on him. Albeit the strong winds, the man floated motionlessly, watching everything unfold down below. "What fools, creating a civil war while a Dungeon needs to be cleared." He muttered to himself.

 Chapter 231 Star Spangled

    Dungeon Spire¡ª sixty-ninth floor

    "Nice," Satoshi muttered under his breath as he dodged a fiery fanged wolf''s bite. It was only the sixty-ninth floor and the creatures he encountered were already much stronger than him. And with five of his familiars integrated with him, it''s only a matter of time before he exhausts himself and there''s nothing he could do but go back.

    After defeating the fiery fanged wolves on the sixty-ninth floor, he didn''t waste any time going to the seventieth floor. Right now, he was trying to cover as many floors as he could before America takes over. He heard it straight from his father''s party¡ª that if they couldn''t clear the dungeon in a week, then they''d have no choice but to renounce their ownership over the dungeon despite it being in their territory.

    "If I could, I should clear this out until the hundredth floor. But would I hold out until then?" With that question in mind, Satoshi gritted his teeth in frustration. "If only I had more control over my superpower tsk~!"

    Ever since Satoshi got his superpower, life had been smooth sailing despite the many unforeseen events that he encountered. Starting from the Slime Alien Invasion, then all the way to the Inter-High, and then to thetest Superhero License Exam, he didn''t have a hard time through it at all.

    But right now was different, way different from how he viewed the Dungeon Spire to be. He had seen countless news and watched countless videos about dungeons. And most of the time, the dungeons were easy to clear. Aside from the bosses every ten floors, the other floors were pretty much cannon fodder. That''s why he concluded that this particr dungeon would be the same as well.

    "Turns out I''m wrong," Satoshi said to himself as he arrived on the seventieth floor.

    [Master]

    Suddenly, Satoshi heard a small and kind of monotonous voice in his head, causing him to stop before he stepped foot into the seventieth floor. Just like any other floor, stepping into the room would cause the monsters inside to run rampant. Fortunately, Satoshi stopped himself just in time when he heard the voice.

    "Dex? Is that you?"

    [No, Satoshi, that''s the Cloak of Invisibility. He wishes to speak with you,] Dex responded.

    "I see. Do you need anything, Cloak of Invisibility?" Satoshi asked, pondering whether he should change its nickname since it was too long.

    [I have an idea. Would you like to hear it, master?]

    "Sure, go on," Satoshi responded.

    .....

    Meanwhile, way up above the skies by the troposphere, a certain man with white hair crossed his arms as his robe flitted on the jet streams that mercilessly blew on him. Albeit the strong winds, the man floated motionlessly, watching everything unfold down below. "What fools, creating a civil war while a Dungeon needs to be cleared." He muttered to himself.<sub> </sub>

    "Right then, let''s get this over with." The man tightened his tie and readjusted his ck gloves before he floated down.

    Just like everyone else, he was especially curious about the superhero who created portals while riding a white lion that shot out blue lightning. This was the first time he saw someone control a powerful familiar and he was surprised. "Familiars that strong are very rare if you ask me. Who would''ve thought I''d see one here? I wonder how she tamed it."

    As he continued floating down, he continued watching the confrontation. From afar he recognized one of the most skilledmanders in SAO and immediately recognized him. "I knew they''d assign for Dungeon Spire... I don''t think they''ll clear it though with their subpar superheroes in Japan."

    The man chuckled at the thought of their number one superhero¡ª Plunder. While he was strong and he could make his way to the top as one of the most formidable superheroes to ever exist in the world, he chose to be a pacifist. Not only does he plunder superpowers from criminals who deserved it, but he also goes as far as to ask permission and if the criminal says no, then he won''t plunder that criminal''s superpower. "Ridiculous." The man said to himself.

    Once he reached an altitude that was ideal for him, he wore a smirk on his face as he put his hand up, palm extended. "Output, sixty percent," He muttered to himself before bringing his hand down.

    The force from his palms was enough to make the waters of the Sea of Japan to concave, disrupting Eugen Wood''s control over his water creatures. That''s not all though¡ª as the others tried to recover from the sudden wind pressure that was brought down upon them.

    Emma and the others covered their faces as they were blown away by the wind. It took all of Emma''s focus and sheer power to teleport everyone while Kuroe stopped all of them from being blown away. As for the water creatures and the Japanese Navy as a whole, however, they didn''t meet the same fate. Since the battleships would take too long to steer, they received the full brunt of the tsunami caused by the wind pressure.

    It was a good thing though. After all, if the ships weren''t there, then the reporters by the shoreline and the citizens staying there would have faced the full brunt of the tsunami.

    In any case, it was a very calcted move and the man was more than pleased to see that his attack worked the way he thought it would.

    "Who was that?!" Eugen Wood eximed as he squinted his eyes into small slits so he could get a clearer look at the man floating by the sky.

    "Come on, are you seriously doing this right now? You have a Dungeon to clear, right? Why don''t you focus all your strength there instead of trying to break a harmless Dimensional Portal?" The man spoke.

    "Who''s that?" Hiroshi asked, curious.

    "What are you talking about? That''s him! You know! The one who appears on the television a lot!" Midori whispered.

    "Who?"

    "That''s America''s number one hero, Star Spangled." Midori continued.

 Chapter 232 Star Spangled Brief Backstory (8k Collection Special)

    The symbol of America and its top hero, Star-Spangled.

    Born and hailing in, of course, America, Jack S. Michael awakened his superpower at the tender age of five¡ª one of the early bloomers when ites to superpowers. It had been a major controversy back then since he was one of the few young people who awakened their superpowers before their teenage years. And with hall the buzz that social media had in America, he instantly became famous.

    In an instant, he was thrown into stardom, invited to many interviews at such a young age and he used that as leverage to be even more famous. Back then, his superpower was the simple augment-type superpower. It was nothing shy, to say the least.

    However, as the years go by, and with his poprity and identity on the line, he felt a huge pressure on his shoulders and that pressure made him strive to be a better superhero even more. In his teenage years, while everyone was just discovering their superpowers, he was already pushing himself to the bone¡ª surviving the jungle all by himself and training his mental strength through a series of death-defying tests.

    He was getting more and more frustrated at himself since his superpower wasn''t improving. Sure he got stronger but his growth was pretty normal for someone who awakened early. At this point, those who have awakened earlier had already shown great potential, and then there was him who never did.

    Even though the other early-awakened superheroes didn''t do half as much work as he put in, he still wasn''t better than them. Still, that just lit a fire within him and he continued to train, and train, and train, and train some more. He became obsessed with training to the point that a hundred push-ups, a hundred sit-ups, and a hundred squats were just warm up for him. He heard from someone that doing so every day would make him the most powerful superhero to ever exist but it didn''t work, unfortunately.

    Then, when he turned thirteen, things started looking up. Of course, when everything seemed bleak, all that one could do was look up and hope for the best and that''s what he did. Day by day, he continued training. Nothing seemed to work? He''d just continue training.

    When that clock struck twelve and he turned thirteen, he found a newfound superpower that changed everything there is to know when ites to superpowers.

    He didn''t even know it was possible but it was!

    That''s right, he awakened his second superpower.

    While he was sleeping, his body started to float and it was the ''paranormal activity buzz'' all over again. He didn''t even know that it was a superpower but apparently it was. All he knew was that he was possessed since his mother, Katherine, found out that he was floating and then his dad found out he was floating and then they started screaming their lungs out.

    In any case, it was a crazy night and the priest was called. But a couple of dayster he''d found out that it was actually just his second superpower acting up.

    He was back in the limelight again with lots of experts turning their heads to the aberrant he had be.<sub> </sub>

    The new wave of interviews and shows came flooding in, which motivated him even more to work hard and train. At that time he was introduced to youtube and he started vlogging his daily training and his overall day. He also went into gaming and he''d usually y gacha games just so he could whale for characters. At this point, he was living the life.

    But he wasn''t contented with just living the life. More than ever, he wanted to be a superhero, and a full-fledged one at that.

    He continued training.

    Autumn came and while he was out in the woods training his physical strength, he noticed that he could make his body lighter and heavier with his new superpower which he called ''Anti-Gravity''. He wondered if it was just his superpower ying tricks on him but it made him ask questions. He decided to explore his ''Float'' superpower, applying it to different parts of his body, trying to strengthen it,bine it with his augment-type superpower, and whatnot.

    As it turned out, the name he gave his superpower was actually the opposite of what his superpower could do. At first he thought it was just a simple superpower of making himself weightless, but who would''ve thought that he could actually affect the pull of gravity on himself?

    That may seem like a useless superpower since he could only alter the gravity pull on himself but to Jack, it wasn''t. And that''s because he had his augment-type superpower.

    "What if I put more gravity before I unleashed a physical move?" He wondered and that''s what he started trying to do.

    The few attempts didn''t work out well since he had a hard time synchronizing both his superpowers. But after a couple of weeks of training, he managed to pull it off, and the results were impressive.

    Way too impressive, in fact, that he became a licensed superhero at the tender age of fourteen¡ª something that never happened in the history of America and the overall history of professional superheroesbined. His physical attacks, powered up by his self-gravity, were too powerful that they became considered a national weapon. Even his p alone could wipe out an entire city if his output was at a hundred percent (and yes, it was tested out on a city before so they know how powerful it was. As to which city it''s [REDACTED])

    And then the rest was history. After bing America''s National Weapon, it was only fitting for him to be named the Number One Superhero of America. He achieved his life-long dream of bing a superhero at such an early age, had gone on countless missions, and saved millions of lives. He was the epitome of a superhero, or at least to America he is, of course.

    And yes, his middle name is ''Son''.

 Chapter 233 Reasoning Behind All

    With just one palm attack, Star Spangled garnered the attention of both Tatsuki''s party who was defending the Dimensional Portal, and the Japanese Navy who was determined to destroy the Dimensional Portal altogether without considering the livelihood of the people on the other side.

    Albeit his attack was to disrupt the infighting, it could be considered a direct confrontation with the Japanese Government. With that, it was easy for other people to misunderstand that Star Spangled was siding with Tatsuki''s party even though such wasn''t his intention at all.

    "Oh, Star Spangled, what brought you here?" Tatsuki casually asked, shaking the hand of a fellow number one superhero.

    In response, Star Spangled shook his hands as well as he wore a smirk on his face. "I see you''re still as soft as ever, Tatsuki." Star Spangled muttered. "You''re still not using your superpower to its full potential. Why? You could easily annihte this Japanese Navy. Why aren''t you doing it?"

    "You do know what you''re talking about, right?" Tatsuki gritted his teeth. Star Spangled grip on his arm was getting stronger. "This is the country''s government we''re talking about here. Even if I could, it wouldn''t look good if I suddenly go at it against them. Defending the Dimensional Portal is fine since it''s a form of self-defense but bringing the fight to them? Either I''m crazy or I''m asking for a death sentence if I were to do that."

    Star Spangled was already using his maximum strength enhancement and even applying gravitational pressure on his grip. Still, Tatsuki just wouldn''t budge. "Yeah, it''s an act of self-defense, you should totally bring the fight to them."

    "Look, that''s not how it works."

    After a couple of seconds of gritting their teeth and exerting unnecessary effort just for a mere handshake, Star Spangled finally let go of Tatsuki''s hand. He then confidently floated towards one of the Japanese Navy Battleships where Eugen Hood was located.

    As mentioned before, Eugen Hood is Chief of Naval Operations of the Japanese Navy. In other words, he''s one of the high-ranking officials who were tasked withmanding the navy. And as proven by his ridiculous superpower, he could actually contend with top heroes despite not being recognized as one since he never affiliated himself with the SAO.

    Meanwhile, Eugen Hood, who had been tensely awaiting orders while standing on the deck of the battleship, slightly panicked as he saw Star Spangled slowly float towards the battleship. He didn''t know how to react, and moreover, he had no idea whether Star Spangled was hostile or not. And it''s not like he could just fire at him willy-nilly. After all, he''s the number one superhero of America. Messing with him is pretty much asking America to mess with you. It was a simple equation, really, and it made it easier for Eugen Hood to understand the overall situation in a snap of a finger.

    Waiting for Star Spangled to make the first move, Eugen Hood stayed where he was, trying to act unintimidated while gripping the railings out of anxiousness. He gulped, swallowing his nervous saliva while maintaining the poker face he wore. Even though he was shaking in his boots, he chose and managed to stand his ground.

    Eugen Hood may be strong, but he knew the gap between him and Star Spangled and that''s why he didn''t act all high and mighty as he approached.

    Ring. Ring.

    Ring.

    Rummaging through his pockets, Eugen Hood finally found his phone which suddenly started ringing. It was a call from a higher-up so he immediately answered, temporarily averting his focus from the approaching Star Spangle to the phone call at hand.<sub> </sub>

    "Yes?"

    "Chief Eugen, don''t engage." The voice on the other side of the line spoke as concisely and as clearly. There was nothing Eugen Hod could do but say yes in response before he listened to the rest of the call.

    "Also destroying the Dimensional Portal is a futile venture. We weren''t expecting Midoriyama Tatsuki to go against us, not to mention that Star Spangled is also here. It would in our benefit if we withdraw. We''re receiving quite the bacsh from the people as well."

    "Yes, sir," Eugen Hood muttered before he heard a resounding click which ended the phone call.

    Once he brought down the phone and hastily put it in his pockets, Star Spangled arrived, floating down towards the railings and standing on top of it. He didn''t have to do something so unnecessary but it did the trick of showing off to everyone, which intimidated them in the process. Long story short, Eugen Hood wasn''t the only one who froze in ce.

    "Eugen Hood, correct?" Star Spangled extended his hand so he could shake it.

    Eugen Hood nodded and obliged with the handshake. His legs had turned into jelly now but he didn''t show his nervousness on his expression.

    "So, why is there a civil war in Japan on my arrival?" Star Spangled asked. "Is your contact around? I''d like to speak with him."

    "I''m afraid that''s not possible sir. And also, there seems to be a misunderstanding." Eugen Hood spoke with a stiff tone to his voice. "I was already told to withdraw since the higher-ups have changed their minds."

    "I see, and why exactly did they start this in the process?" Star Spangled sat on the railings with afortable expression on his face. "You see... I received some intel from the higher-ups as well. You wanna know why the Japanese Government is keen on destroying the Dimensional Portal?"

    For the second time, Eugen Hood gulped. He could feel bloodlust emanating from the Star Spangled as he brought his face closer to him. Star Spangled was already intimidating enough for Eugen Hood but now it was an altogether different feeling. Eugen Hood felt like he was about to be swallowed whole.

    "It''s not like they''re afraid of an invasion..."

    "They''re afraid of someone, the cowards they are." Star Spangled emphasized, grabbing Eugen Hood by the cor.

 Chapter 234 Theyre Afraid Of Someone

    "It''s not like they''re afraid of an invasion..."

    "They''re afraid of someone, the cowards they are." Star Spangled emphasized, grabbing Eugen Hood by the cor.

    Eugen Hood''s legs which turned into jelly suddenly froze up. In front of sheer power, he didn''t know how he''d act. He may be one of the high-ranking officers in the Japanese Navy but the person in front of him was so much more. If he were topare himself to Star Spangled, he''s but a speck of dust who wasn''t even worthy of getting into his radar.

    The icon of America, the number one superhero in that powerhouse of a nation, and to top it all off, his superpower could very well rival every top superhero in other countries. That was Star Spangled''s identity. It wouldn''t even be an understatement to say that he''s the number one superhero in the world.

    "Why did you grow quiet? With that superpower of yours, I thought you''d be more headstrong. I guess I expected too much from the Chief of Naval Operations, huh," Star Spangled then got down from the railings, cing his hand on Eugen''s shoulders. "Look, between you and me, I''d pull back if I were you. You wouldn''t want to mess with America over such a small matter, right? Leave the Dimensional Portal alone, those are my direct orders for you."

    Well, Eugen Hood didn''t really have that much of a choice. He found himself nodding along before he even realized that he was being led by Star Spangled. "I just received a phone call from my superiors, telling me to pull out. And that''s exactly what we''re going to do right now."

    "Great! Now that that''s settled, I''m going to meet up with Fury over there. Would you mind if you pull back now? I don''t want to deal with another country''s Navy if I could help it. It would justplicate things on both our ends, right?"

    With a nod, Eugen Hood turned around and ordered his men to withdraw. It didn''t even take a minute for the battleships to change their course as the fight drew to a close.

    "Now we''re talking." Star Spangled nodded in a satisfied manner before he rejoined Tatsuki on the other side of the battlefield.

    Tatsuki, Ayumu, and their son''s ssmates watched the entire exchange. Since they were too far away, they could only assume what Star Spangled and Eugen Hood were talking about. Even with Tatsuki''s enhanced hearing, he could only hear indistinct mutters so he didn''t bother listening further.

    A couple of minutester, they were surprised to see the entire Japanese Navy turning around and heading back to shore as if nothing happened. They were withdrawing even though Tatsuki hasn''t stepped in for a counterattack. Somehow, Star Spangled managed to manipte the Chief of Naval Operations into tucking his tail and running away.

    "What did you two talk about?" Tatsuki asked as soon as Star Spangled got back to them.

    "Nothing much, when I got there, their superiors already gave them the green light to withdraw so yeah, I didn''t do anything." Star Spangled shrugged. His gaze thennded on the five kids who were responsible for holding down the fort while Tatsuki and Ayumu weren''t there.

    The first girl had purple hair and was riding what seemed to be a powerful familiar. Star Spangled immediately recognized the White Lion. But what surprised him the most was that the White Lion was an Altered Type (it was exined in the previous chapters but yes, altered types are basically shinies.)

    "An Altered Type?! Young miss, you are very lucky," Star Spangled eyes sparkled as he rubbed the mane of the White Lion. "How did you tame him? Did you know that he''s an Altered Type?"<sub> </sub>

    "Altered Type? What''s that?!" Emma asked, wondering if it was a ng term that she didn''t know. She immediately made a mental note to ask Satoshi about it as soon as he got back.

    Star Spangled wanted to hit his head with a brick. ''Thisdy, she owns one of the rarest beasts in the world, not to mention that it''s even rarer because it''s an Altered Type... and yet she doesn''t know anything about it?!" Whilst thinking about that, Star Spangled then cleared his throat and patiently exined to Emma what an Altered Type is.

    "Altered Types are basically a beast of the same species but with a different set of colors. White Lions are usually grey in color but the White Lion that you tamed is pure white, hence it''s an Altered Type. But man, did you know that White Lion is already a super rare beast? Where did you find him? Like... which part of the Beast Dimension did you scour just to find him? So cool!" Star Spangled couldn''t suppress the urge of burying his face in the White Lion''s mane. As expected, it was so soft, so rxing, so soothing. At that point, Star Spangled didn''t want to ''un-bury'' his face from the White Lion''s mane.

    "That''s not hers, that''s Satoshi. And I was there when he tamed it." Shiroi muttered.

    Ayumu instinctively nudged at her husband, to which Tatsuki responded with a grin. They were both listening in to the conversation so they couldn''t help but smile at Shiroi''s statement. "She said they tamed it together. Pretty cool right?" Ayumu whispered to her husband.

    Clearing his throat, Tatsuki then whispered back. "I mean... we all know Satoshi''s going down the childhood route. Right now, we should just be quiet about it and wait. Let our boy handle his romance."

    In response, Ayumu''s eyes lit up and she clenched her fists in front of Tatsuki.

    "And where exactly in the Beast Dimension did you happen upon it, miss?" Star Spangled asked. "I''ve always wanted to tame a White Lion but I just couldn''t."

    Shiroi then thought back to when the Slime Aliens attacked Tokyo and she remembered what Satoshi told him. Whatever happens, she shouldn''t tell anyone the secret of his familiars. Because of that, she just shrugged in front of Star Spangled. "I can''t remember. But it''s right there by the Beast Dimension." Shiroi replied.

    Rumble. Rumble.

    Rumble.

    "..."

    Suddenly, the Dungeon Spire started rumbling and out came Satoshi, leisurely strolling from the main entrance of it. "Hey guys, what did I miss?" He asked as if he was just walking out of the park.

 Chapter 235 Statue Of Captivity

    A couple of minutes ago...

    ...

    [Master]

    "Dex? Is that you?"

    [No, Satoshi, that''s the Cloak of Invisibility. He wishes to speak with you,] Dex responded.

    "I see. Do you need anything, Cloak of Invisibility?" Satoshi asked, pondering whether he should change its nickname since it was too long.

    [I have an idea. Would you like to hear it, master?]

    "Sure, go on," Satoshi responded.

    The Cloak of Invisibility then started talking about his n, assuring Satoshi of its effectiveness and efficiency which Satoshi needed at that moment. Since there was nothing he could do but brute force his way through the Dungeon, it''s only a matter of time before his inevitable exhaustion would catch up to him. And by then, Satoshi would be left vulnerable to the monsters that lurked within Dungeon Spire.

    Somehow, the Cloak of Invisibility''s n removed all those factors in Satoshi''s speed run. With this n, Satoshi won''t have to worry about the monsters. He won''t have to worry about the time constraints that shackled him, and adding to that, he also didn''t have to worry about not clearing the dungeon. All these three were included in the Cloak of Invisibility''s simple yet effective n. Even Satoshi was surprised that he didn''t think of it.

    Then again, it was a question of whether the foolproof n would work or not. If it didn''t, then Satoshi won''t have any choice but to try to clear as many floors as he could before he resurfaced.

    "Good job, Cloak, now it''s time to implement this n. If this works then we have an effective run ahead of us." Satoshi smacked his lips in satisfaction as he wore his familiar, the Cloak of Invisibility.

    Just like all the other familiars that Satoshi owned, the Cloak of Invisibility also received a power up along with everyone else, turning it into an S-Grade Familiar with exclusive skills. And yes, the n that the Cloak of Invisibility suggested heavily revolved around one of these exclusive skills that it has in its arsenal.

    "Yoshi~ I''m ready." Satoshi muttered, covering his entire body with the oversized Cloak.

    "..."

    Total Erase.

    "..."

    Fwooooosh~!

    Total Erase, one of the Cloak of Invisibility''s exclusive skills, allows it to totally erase the presence of the wearer. From their energy output to their material body, everything would be erased to the point where no one would detect the wearer. This was the ultimate form of the Cloak of Invisibility''s Skill. And if their assumption is correct, then this skill would enable Satoshi to go to the hundredth floor without the dungeon monsters detecting him.

    "All right, here we go." Satoshi pulled the hood over his head before he proceeded deeper into the dungeon.

    It didn''t take long before he reached the ny-ninth floor. As expected, the Cloak of Invisibility really did erase his presence.

    Even without Satoshi engaging, he could feel the sheer amount of pressure that emanated from the boss on the ny-ninth floor.

    Judging by its appearance, it bears a close resemnce to the Statue of Liberty in America. Towering over ny-nine meters, the Dungeon Boss stood in the middle of the room, his hand extended towards the sky as he held a torch in hand. It wasn''t actually a torch, but a staff that looked like a torch. Motionless, the Dungeon Boss stayed in the middle of the room.<sub> </sub>

    As soon as Satoshi stepped inside the room, however, he tilted his head to the general direction of the entrance, totally sensing a little bit of Satoshi''s presence even though no one''s supposed to sense him. This made Hajime gulp as nervousness kicked in. He wanted to panic, but he knew that doing so would just give away his location to the Dungeon Boss.

    "I thought we wouldn''t be seen? Why is that Dungeon Boss looking over here?" Satoshi couldn''t help but ask under his breath.

    [Dungeon Boss¡ª Statue of Captivity.

    Height¡ª Ny-Nine Meters

    Grade¡ª SSS-Grade

    Skills: ???, ???, ???, ???

    Note¡ª Unlock additional information after defeating the Dungeon Boss and then taming the Dungeon Boss.]

    The window that popped up in front of Satoshi surprised him for a split second, causing him to flinch and almost lose his bnce. What surprised Satoshi even better wasn''t the window suddenly appearing in front of him though, but the fact that he could actually tame the wild beast and make it his own familiar.

    "Dex, is this really true? I can turn this Dungeon Boss into my familiar?" Satoshi asked.

    [Yes, Satoshi,]

    Satoshi couldn''t help but wear a smile on his face at the possibility of owning such a powerful familiar but still, he didn''t want to underestimate it. Right now, his goal was to clear the Dungeon Spire as fast as possible and if he were to fight with the Dungeon Boss, it would take longer than that.

    "Rx, Satoshi, right now let''s just go clear this Dungeon first and then attempt to tame the Dungeon Boss." Putting the Dungeon Boss at the back of his mind, Satoshi decided to walk towards the other end of the room wherein a huge gate could be seen. It was a gate with a height of one hundred meters.

    "Here goes," Satoshi muttered, grabbing one side of the door and trying to push it. With such a huge door, of course, it wouldn''t even budge no matter how much strength Satoshi exerted. Still, he wanted to try whether it would work or not.

    And apparently, luck was not on his side and the door was locked, shut tight.

    [I''m afraid you have to deal with the Dungeon Boss first, Satoshi¡ª that or you can try brute forcing your way through the passcode on the panel over there. It contains four digits and it may very well be the lock to the huge doors.] Dex suggested.

    Satoshi walked towards the other side of the doors and just like what Dex said, there really was a passcode lock propped on the wall there. It needs four digits. "This is easy, just like counting to a thousand, nine times," Satoshi said to himself as he input the first digit onto the passcode.

    [0001... Click... Error]

    [0002... Click... Error]

    [0003... Click... Error]

    [0004... Click... Error]

    Little did Satoshi know that it would take exactly one thousand tries for the passcode lock to open.

 Chapter 236 Blackhole Ingestion

    [0998... Click... Error]

    [0999... Click... Error]

    [1000... Click... Sess!]

    Satoshi''s mouth hung open in shock as the guessing game finally came to a conclusion. He was actually expecting to idle by for a couple more minutes when suddenly, the door clicked and now he could enter the treasure trove that will most likely exist on the other side of the door. After all, where else could the treasures be except behind this door which Satoshi worked so hard to open?

    "It worked! I can''t believe that worked!" Satoshi celebrated within, giving himself a nice pat on the back since he had the patience to brute force his way through the straightforward passcode lock.

    With that out of the way, Satoshi then pushed at the huge door, relying on his pure strength to inch it open. For a huge door that could fit the entire statue of liberty right side up, it was extremely light. For a moment back there, Satoshi thought of integrating once again with one of his familiars just so he could push it. But it was unnecessary since his teenage self alone could take care of all the pushing.

    "This sure is weird for a Dungeon..." Satoshimented as he went inside the room.

    Despite being dimly lit, Satoshi could tell tha the room was spacious. As he walked deeper into the room, he could feel a bone-chilling, spine-tingling feeling as if someone was staring at him, monitoring his every move. He shivered, still proceeding deeper and deeper.

    Wait!

    What if this is another Boss Room?!

    A lump formed on Satoshi''s throat as he tried to keep hisposure. Right now, nothing has happened yet but the sinister aura just continued to grow.

    [Be careful, Satoshi, there''s a strong beast lurking nearby]

    Dex''s warning just made Satoshi feel uneasy as he went deeper. Even the Cloak of Invisibility which was enwrapped on Satoshi was shaking and he could tell that even Dex was having the heebie-jeebies. In any case, whatever it was, there was a good reason why some of Satoshi''s familiar was afraid of it.

    Right then and there, Satoshi could''ve summoned his familiar Lighter to provide lighting for the room. However, Satoshi didn''t want to make a shy move since whatever it was that was in the room might take it as a threat. Even if he wanted to, he didn''t have any choice but to continue through the room, and hopefully, he''ll get to somewhere safe.

    ''Still, it''s awfully quiet in here.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    Cold musty air blew against Satoshi''s face, making him flinch since he assumed that someone just breathed in front of him.<sub> </sub>

    Feeling like he was about to get cornered, Satoshi decided to make a move by integrating with his fire familiar, Lighter, instead of summoning him. That way, he''d be the one to light the ce up and he''ll have more options if someone or something were to attack him by surprise.

    Satoshi waited, making himself the bait for whatever it was that was about to prey upon him. He couldn''t tell whether he should be scared or confident right now since he had no idea what the beast in question was. Nevertheless, he braced himself for what was toe.

    Nothing came.

    Even though there was an intimidating aura that revolved around the ce, nothing pounced on Satoshi. He already waited for a good two minutes but nothing unusual transpired.

    With nothing left to do, Satoshi decided to continuously shoot a spire of mes upward to light up the entire room. The glow from the mes illuminated the whole room, enabling Satoshi to see everything.

    Expecting to see a room devoid of anything, Satoshi was astonished to see that the room was actually filled with a lot of artifacts and treasures. While he didn''t know what to do with all of them, he decided to just keep all of them so he won''t have to worry about moneyter on in life. These treasures are actually enough to keep the economy of a country prospering or recovering if they were hit by a disaster. That''s a lot of money, and Satoshi wasn''t going to leave a single cent in the dungeon.

    Now that there weren''t any threats lingering about, Satoshi then summoned his most used familiar, Orb Oboros the storage familiar, and have him activate one of his recently-learned exclusive skills. "Orb Oboros, ckhole Ingestion!" Satoshi ordered.

    Orb Oboros then transformed into a huge snake-like monster with a huge mouth. Its mouth gaped open and stretched. It stretched as far as the four corners of the room before it swallowed everything. With this, everything in the dungeon is stored within Orb Oboros, just like all the other familiars who were with Satoshi right now.

    "Thank you, Orb Oboros," Satoshi said as he called Orb Oboros back, returning to his usual shape of a bag that was slung on Satoshi''s shoulder.

    However, there was one item left in the room. For some odd reason, Orb Oboros didn''t store it despite Satoshi''s clear instructions to swallow up everything. It left the item there for good.

    Satoshi walked towards the left item and realized that it was actually an egg¡ª a huge egg that was as tall as him with a nice shade of pitch ck on its shell. Now that Satoshi was actually in front of the egg, he realized that that was where the intimidating aura wasing from. The cold and chilling atmosphere that lingered around the room was emanating from the egg.

    Since Orb Oboros didn''t want anything to do with the egg, Satoshi decided to grab it and carry it out of there. Although it was a counter-productive decision, Satoshi knew that he couldn''t just leave such a terrifying egg behind. What if it was an egg of a strong beast? He''d have to hold onto it and tame it if that were the case.

    [Lev, I''ll hold onto the egg for now even if it''s scary... you have another thing to do, right?] Dex asked as metallic arms grew on his bottom part, grabbing the egg like a stuffed toy from a crane game.

    "That''s right, the Dungeon Boss. I''d have to tame it."

 Chapter 237 A Threat

    Due to the recent incident with the double event of the Dungeon Spire and the Dimensional Portal, most agencies closed down for a few days just so everyone could focus on trying to clear the dungeon.

    While Tatsuki''s party is the main one, they weren''t the only ones tasked with clearing the dungeon. In fact, most agency heads have been assigned a party to which they''d go in session so the dungeon clear would be as efficient as it could ever get. Tatsuki''s party would lead the expedition on the first day and as soon as they returned to the surface, the next group would then proceed where they left off. After that, the next group would then go until the lengthy round-robin was finished. By the time it reached back to Tatsuki''s party, they''d have plenty of rest and will be ready to go to the next floors, starting from where the others had left off.

    Still, that n didn''t hold out in the end because of the pressure that America pressed on Japan. They''ve only been given seven days and if they couldn''t clear the dungeon, then America would have to take over. Even though that was basically a ridiculous request, Japan knew that America could pull it off by spreading false rumors with the agenda of branding Japan as incapable of clearing Dungeons. If they were to do that, then it''s only a matter of time before the masses would follow along and go with the flow. Japan would then be stuck in a cold and hard ce with its only escape relinquishing the ownership of the Dungeon Spire.

    So the schedule was canceled, and it had been decided that only Tatsuki''s party would handle the dungeon which would be a lot faster. They might not get a moment''s rest but it was doable. After all, we''re talking about the number one superhero here. If he can''t do it then who would?

    Eye-Goddess sat behind her desk by the Heimdall Agency, sipping on a cup of coffee as she watched the news with unease. Just this morning, she woke up from a nightmare that warned her of a prelude to the future. And right now, that very future was happening in her very eyes.

    As someone from the top ten, Eye Goddess had always worked towards the benefit of the people, changing the course of destiny since she could peer into the future. However, she''d rather advise other people what to do than mess with the course of the future herself. Ever since that incident in the past, she had vowed to never personally intervene with someone''s future unless the world is in danger and she was the only one who could patch things up as the Eye Goddess.

    But recently, she had broken that self-made promise in herself, not because it was for her personal gain, but because the world was at risk of being threatened. She had no choice but to intervene, and in doing so, she had hoped that the future would now right itself to where the world won''t be destroyed.

    Last night, however, she experienced a nightmare that had warned her of her actions. In her nightmare, the exact opposite of what she wished for had transpired and the figure which was a threat to the world right now had already destroyed it, all because of someone''s influence.

    And this influence was something that could''ve been easily avoided if it weren''t for the double event incident of the Dungeon Spire and the DImensional Portal.

    As Eye Goddess watched the news, her eyes widened in shock and all the colors drained from her face. What she feared the most was already happening¡ª the missing gear in the clockwork had been ced, paving the way to the undesirable future that would eventuallye.

    "W-what is... what is the Star Spangled doing here in Japan?!" Eye Goddess screamed after muttering the first word of her exmation. She was dumbfounded. She couldn''t find herself to believe that one of the most impossible encounters to even happen was about to happen right in front of her eyes.

    "Impossible... no... this is not... this is not happening." Eye Goddess''s pupils dted in shock as she stood up from her desk and stormed out of the building, gging the very first taxi she saw.

    Then again, the past few weeks had worked on her favor. Not only was she able to scout Satoshi, he even joined the agency of his own free will. That alone was a win...

    ... but who would''ve thought that such a precaution wasn''t enough to avoid the encounter?

    "To the Dungeon Spire?"

    "I''m sorry, miss?" The taxi driver who was an old man adjusted his sses since he didn''t get what Eye Goddess was trying to say.

    Embarrassed, Eye Goddess shook her head and changed her response. "I''m sorry, I mean to the shinkansen." Eye Goddess continued.

    <o>,m "Aiyo~," The man said before driving forward.</o>

    "Wait for me, Satoshi," Eye Goddess said, gritting her teeth.

    .....

    At the same time,

    Satoshi positioned himself right in front of the Statue of Captivity and prepared himself for what was toe. Despite his power to upgrade anything and make it his familiar, he was perfectly aware that his superpower was inconsistent. And right now, the Statue of Captivity is probably one of the most if not the strongest beast he''s ever met. There was a good chance that his blue mes won''t work on it and because of that, he''s only got one chance¡ªone try¡ª in order to make it his familiar.

    Calming his nerves by breathing more slowly, Satoshi then extended his hand forward. Thanks to the Cloak of Invisibility guarding him with his life, the Statue of Captivity couldn''t detect him. This gave Satoshi more time to prepare so his superpower would have a higher probability of affecting the Statue of Captivity.

    "All right, here goes,"<sub> </sub>

    Without further ado, Satoshimenced with his weird dance once again, sticking his rear side out and extending his hand forward while jumping from one side to the other. He was really feeling it, and if there was someone else in the room with him, they''d have disowned him right then and there. His dance wasn''t lewd, to say the least, but it was definitely sloppy.

    The blue mes formed on his hand and they got bigger and bigger. Satoshi continued to pour energy from it. If he''s got only one try then he''d have to juice out every ounce of energy he has. That way it would have a higher chance of seeding. And on the off-chance that it didn''t work, then he won''t have any choice but to defeat the Dungeon Boss.

    Pretty soon, the mes in his hands were taller than him, and they glowed a nice bright blue and whitish hue. Satoshi was pleased with the result and he thought to himself that there was no way this wouldn''t work. The blue me was the biggest one he''d ever made so it''s highly unlikely to fail.

    With the blue mes at the ready, Satoshi reeled his arms back and tightened his core. "Raseng*n!" He screamed.

    At that moment, the Statue of Captivity noticed his presence, and its eyes glowed a nice shade of red.

    .....

    A few minutester,

    Rumble. Rumble.

    Rumble.

    "..."

    Suddenly, the Dungeon Spire started rumbling, and out came Satoshi, leisurely strolling from the main entrance of it. "Hey guys, what did I miss?" He asked as if he was just walking out of the park.

    Star Spangled didn''t know what happened to him but he suddenly activated his superpower, aiming it at Satoshi as soon as he came out. It was his body''s natural ability to sense danger that triggered such an instance. And his activation wasn''t the controlled one either. Since it was a surprised and unexpected activation, the energy output was set to one hundred percent, a full-powered gravity pressure attack that could tten a normal person in a split second.

    Ayumu and Tatsuki felt the pressure in an instant and they immediately tried to step in. However, their positioning and superpower activation were a split second toote and there was no way they could save their son from his unavoidable death. With desperation, the two of them rushed toward Satoshi.

    Boom!

    A cloud of smoke rose up from where Satoshi was standing. A huge crevasse then appeared once the smoke cleared, revealing the effect of gravity which condensed a portion of the Earth in an instant.

    "What the¡ª " Midori eximed as he saw everything unfold. As for Shiroi, Kuroe, and Hiroshi, they all felt the same pressure everyone felt which made them freeze in ce. That amount of energy output was enough to render them motionless. It was like a warning that one wrong move and they''ll end up dead.

    "....,"

    Everyone paused.

    "..."

    "S-Satoshi?" Ayumu muttered, her voice breaking.

    "..."

    "What was that for?! You looking for a fight, old man?!" Satoshi said out of the blue, suddenly appearing in front of Star Spangled while threatening to trade blows with him.

 Chapter 238 Civil War Conclusion

    Tatsuki''s energy poured forth as he lost himself. Fuming with anger, he charged at Star Spangled and pinned him to the ground. Tatsuki then unleashed a punch thatnded squarely on Star Spangled''s face. And he didn''t hit him once, he hit him a couple more times before he activated one of his plundered fire superpowers, shooting off an ember of me point-nk at Star Spangled''s face.

    A moment ago, it was Star Spangled who had been underestimating Tatsuki and his weak usage and implementation of his superpower but now he''s got his rear side handed to him on a silver tter as Tatsuki beat him on a one-sided fight. There was no contest whatsoever, and Tatsuki showed no mercy.

    All beat up and coughing blood from his broken lips and mouth, Star Spangled raised his hand in surrender. "I... I give up." He muttered.

    For the span of a minute, Star Spangled tried as hard as he could to retaliate but his superpower just won''t activate. At first, he thought that it had something to do with one of Tatsuki''s plundered powers but such wasn''t the case. IT was actually Ayumu''s doing. With her superpower ''Counter'', she had been countering Star Spangled''s attack all this time.

    As ast warning, Tatsuki grabbed Star Spangled by the cor. "I know that we''ve been to countless battles together, Star Spangled, but what you did is unforgivable. You tried to kill my son." After saying that, he dropped Tatsuki to the ground with a thud before walking away.

    Not only were Satoshi''s ssmates received their dose of shock, but even Satoshi was appalled at how the situation turned out. Of course, it was understandable that he''d have died if the attack connected, but it didn''t.

    Then again, his parents'' reactions were understandable. Any parent would''ve done the same if they were in their shoes.

    Star Spangled struggled to stand up. "I''m sorry about that, um Satoshi, I thought you were a monstering out of the Dungeon. Your energy level is over nine thousand." Before Tatsuki could say anything, Star Spangled bowed his head towards Satoshi since it was really an honest mistake.

    Tap.

    Tap.

    "Ah, I see all of you have finally gathered here." Fury came in the nick of time before another trouble ensued. "I just received a memo from the higher-ups, telling me that the attack was called off. I don''t know why they did that but it was probably due to the pressure of the citizens."

    "Furthermore, having Tatsuki as the face of the opposing group made the Japanese Government and the SAO look bad to the public. That probably yed a huge factor in their decisions."

    While Fury was updating them about the recent changes, Satoshi then extended his hand towards Jack Michael, aka Star Spangled, so the two of them could shake their hands. Star Spangled obliged, ending the unexpected feud between him and Satoshi''s father.

    A meeting amongst the groupmenced and they talked about the recent incident regarding the Dimensional Portal. Still, they had no idea as to why the Japanese Government along with the SAO attacked the harmless Dimensional Portal. The only thing they could do was try to guess whatever the cause actually was.

    Quite frankly, Star Spangled already knew the sole reason why but he didn''t bother telling anyone since it would only jeopardize the world beyond the Dimensional Portal even more. That''s why he kept quiet.

    A couple of minutester, Eye Goddess arrived by the foot of the Dungeon Spire where everyone was having a meeting. Just as she thought, the one and only Star Spangled was there. "Why is he here?" She asked herself as she seated herself between Star Spangled and Satoshi.

    ''If I don''t want ''that'' to happen, then I must get in the way as much as I can. I can''t let Star Spangled take Satoshi away no matter what!'' Eye Goddes said to herself, sticking close to Satoshi so Star Spangled wouldn''t have a chance to talk to him.

    "..."

    "Right,"

    "Now, about the Dungeon Spire. I''m afraid we won''t be able to proceed as scheduled." Fury heaved a sigh of disappointment. What happened inside the Dungeon was his responsibility. If it weren''t for him pushing Tatsuki''s party, they wouldn''t have overextended themselves. Fortunately, his wife and son swooped in to save the day. If it weren''t for them then Tatsuki''s party would''ve been erased.<sub> </sub>

    "So we''re going to stick to the previously decided schedule of using multiple parties and have them rotate in an efficient manner. I will also list out a couple of missions and post it on agencies so anyone could volunteer to join the dungeon exploration."

    "Also, Star Spangled is here, right? Would it be all right if we extend the deadline of the agreement? One month, give us one month and that would be more than enough time for us to clear this Dungeon." Fury continued.

    Everyone then stared at Star Spangled who was left to decide whether America would stick to the one-week deadline or not. While he may not be the president, Star Spangled actually has a huge influence in America. That''s why he could decide right then and there even though he was just a pseudo-representative. "I mean, after everything that''s happened I think it would be in America''s best interest for the deadline to be extended. We don''t want a war happening between our countries due to unnecessary pressure... and also, think of this as my apology for attacking Satoshi. Once again, I''m really sorry." Star Spangled bowed once again.

    "You attacked Satoshi?" Eye Goddess''s eyes widened in confusion as she received a nod from the Midoriyama, confirming that Star Spangled really did attack Satoshi. "Why would you do that?" She continued.

    "I thought he was a¡ª"

    "Good thing you didn''t hit him. You''d have long been dead by now." Eye Goddess brushed off herment as she turned towards Satoshi, giving him a warm smile. Even though she said that with full confidence, she was actually just kidding.

    However, Star Spangled didn''t take thement as a joke at all. Thinking about it now, Satoshi easily avoided his attack even though it came at him while his guard was down. Not only that, he was even able to prepare a counter¡ª assuming a fighting stance and calmly talking to him as if he had just done something minor. Judging from what transpired a moment ago, Star Spangled could tell that Satoshi was actually strong, perhaps stronger than both his parentsbined.

    As his eyes wandered around, he noticed the White Lion licking his paws while lying down by the corner of the spacious tent. ''Now that I think about it, they did mention that the White Lion was tamed by Satoshi, right? How strong is this kid?'' Star Spangled said to himself.

    .....

    With the incident reaching its somewhat underwhelming conclusion, the entire group headed home in one of the government-issued vans driven by Fury himself. Everyone was there including Star Spangled who felt really out of ce due to his unforgivable actions a few moments ago. No one brought it up again though so it didn''t really matter.

    A lot has happened in the span of two days. Even Satoshi started wondering how everyone could keep up with everything in the superhero world. It was only his first day in the field as a licensed superhero but things were already getting out of hand. One thing transpired after another, giving Satoshi no leeway to catch a break.

    Exhausted, he copsed on his seat, hoping that sleep would soon visit him so he could regain all the energy he expended. However, before hepletely dozed off, someone touched him by the shoulder, making him il around in surprise before turning his head in all directions. "Wha- where- what? Is it the end of the world?!" He sleepily asked.

    "Are you all right, Satoshi?" Shiroi then cupped her hands so she could whisper at Satoshi.

    Only then did Satoshi realize that they were actually sitting together!

    "Wah! Shiroi... san? What are y¡ª ah, yes, I''m fine. Why''d you ask?" Satoshi didn''t know what to do but he managed to regain hisposure while talking to Shiroi. For a moment there, his mind almost went nk after seeing Shiroi''s face so close to his.

    "Why were you left behind in the Dungeon a while ago?" Shiroi directly asked. "You cleared it, didn''t you?" Her eyes then turned into slits as she whispered in excitement.

    "What me? How can I even..." Somehow, Satoshi felt guilty. Before he could even utter the lie, he heaved a sigh epting his defeat before turning the other way towards the windows. (He didn''t turn away from Shiroi because he felt guilty, but because her face was too close and he couldn''t help but feel flustered.)

    "Yes, yes I did... well, I didn''t really clear it per se, but I managed to reach thest floor. Sigh~ it''s a long story." Satoshi continued.

 Chapter 239 Representatives

    Where am I?

    No, seriously, where am I?

    Thest thing that Satoshi recalled was dozing off in Fury''s van on their way home. He could''ve sworn that his head ''identally'' leaned on Shiroi''s shoulders as he... drooled?

    Shaking his head as violently as he could in order to forget the scene, Satoshi then refocused himself on the situation he found himself in.

    What greeted him as soon as his eyelids fluttered open was pitch-ck darkness that extended as far as his eyes could focus. At first, Satoshi vaguely assumed that he was in a different dimension and that he found himself here while sleeping. As to how he got here, he could only wonder, but maybe sleeping was one of the prerequisites in order to get here.

    Fwooo~~~

    A weird glow of faint blue light slowly came into view, illuminating the center of whatever room Satoshi stumbled upon. In the middle was a huge b of circr stone. Unrecognizable letters belonging to an ancientnguage of sorts were written all around the stone. Right in the middle of it was a gem that glowed a blue color.

    The faint blue light then glowed much brighter, intensifying as precious seconds passed. A part of Satoshi wanted to run and get away from the Dimension where he identally wandered in but another part of him wanted to stay and see things through. After all, it''s not every day that one wakes up to a horror setting and Satoshi was a bit curious as to how everything would turn out.

    Clearing his throat, Satoshi took a look around before cupping his hands to his mouth and shouting. "Hello? Is anybody home? I mean, this doesn''t look like a home at all but I didn''t wish to intrude. Also, forgive my disrespect if I ever did something disrespectful. I''m new to this kind of setting." He continued.

    That''s when the lighting of the room gotfortably brighter and he noticed that there were twelve other circr bs of stones around the original huge circle in the middle. On the twelve were twelve different creatures who sat in the middle of the circles.

    The first entity was a normalputer with arms and legs, and Satoshi immediately realized it was Dex. The second entity was cked out as if a game feature that hadn''t been unlocked yet. The third entity was blocked as well. And well, one would know the rest.

    "Dex, what''s going on?" Satoshi asked.

    "Dex? I am not Dex." Theputer then voiced out. "I am Dex 2.0."

    "Really funny Dex, so this room... is this like a meeting ce where all my other familiars gathered?" Satoshi asked. He then sat in front of Dex, right in the middle of the huge circle which was positioned at the center.

    "Yes... and no..." Dex then continued before heaving a sigh. Actually, he was just kidding about being Dex 2.0 when in all actuality, it was just him. "As you might''ve guessed, this is another Dimension and we were summoned here against our will. Still... it is pretty weird since it''s only our consciousness that got us here."<sub> </sub>

    "So I was really sleeping before all this happened." Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief since he finally understood a small portion of the entire circumstance. "Still, do you have any idea just how and why we were brought here?"

    "Funny you should say that." A voice boomed.

    Satoshi and Dex froze in their ce as an ear-shattering voice reverberated in the entire room, causing the two of them to impulsively flinch. Of course, they weren''t the least bit scared (even if someone asked them if they were genuinely scared they''d t out deny it) but the voice just had that powerful punch to it. Onement and Satoshi already told himself that he won''t mess with whoever owns that voice.

    "Hello, kind whoever you are, we don''t know how Dex and I got here but we humbly pay our respects to you." Satoshi immediately voiced out, cupping his hands and bowing in all directions before doing it a second time. By the time he reached his thirdp of bowing to every direction, the voice then spoke once again.

    "I''m right here, you don''t have to bow to all the representatives." The voice then continued.

    Now, even though Satoshi seemed like he was anxiously panicking, he was actually calm and collected. He had been to many situations where everything was unfamiliar to him so this current ordeal was just a normal encounter in life for Satoshi. Ever since he was born on Earth filled with major problems, alien invasions, dimensional portals, and otherworldly phenomena like dungeons, he became used to life. It was a life full of surprises and it was never boring, but Satoshi had adjusted to it in no time.

    That''s why waking up in the middle of the horror setting or waking up in what seemed like an indie game of sorts didn''t fluster him at all.

    "Where exactly are you... " Satoshi trailed off, squinting his eyes while scanning the dark room for the fourth time. (He still made another round of bowing down before stopping on his fourth rotation.)

    "Here. HERE!" The voice was getting rather impatient.

    Satoshi then listened to the voice a bit more carefully this time and that''s when he realized that the voice actually came from the ck entity beside Dex. It may seem like the entity was an unlockable character in a video game but it actually existed.

    "Ah, sorry, I thought you were a premium character that needed to be unlocked. Who are you? What is this ce? Where am I?" Satoshi returned the question back to the being who was beside Dex.

    "I am... I have no name, unfortunately." The shadow-like entity then spoke. "But I am what they call the Statue of Captivity. You''ve recently tamed me during your run to the Dungeon X-1022."

    The shadow-like entity then transformed into the statue that Satoshi tamed in Dungeon Spire.

 Chapter 240 Due Explanation

    "Oh! You were that statue! I see I see." Satoshi was speaking more casually than ever. "All right, now that you''ve answered my first question... it''s time you answer the other ones."

    "Satoshi, right? I don''t know where to start..." The Statue of Captivity then started fidgeting out of nowhere. For its sheer size, fidgeting seemed a little out of ce and it made Satoshi cringe really badly.

    "All right... what do you want? And please stop fidgeting, it''s going to rot my eyeballs." Knowing that the entity was actually one of his familiars, he knew that there was no way they''d turn against him. That''s why he now felt even morefortable conversing with them more than ever.

    "Dex... you were one of the representatives, right? Why didn''t you exin everything to master?" The Statue of Captivity then directed its gaze towards Dex who had remained quiet all this time.

    Without further ado, Dex responded as if he was waiting for such a question to be asked. "You''re right about that... but I didn''t think that Satoshi would get here this fast. Sure, I am the representative of this Dimension but his growth as the chosen one was just insane. I couldn''t even keep up."

    "Also, Satoshi had been preparing for the Superhero License Exam, does his daily training with his father so he could better control his physical capabilities as well as have a better vessel for his superpower, and to top it all off, he''s preparing for exams that would soon follow as soon as school break ends. Since I assumed it would take a long time before he meets another representative, I figured that I''d just keep everything to myself and just exin it to him when the opportune timees."

    "Still, Dex, it is inexcusable that you have kept the master oblivious to this fact. As a punishment, you''re going to exin everything in length and the other representatives won''t help you."

    "What other representatives? We''re the only ones here." As soon as Dex said something like that, he finally realized what the Statue of Captivity implied.

    I won''t exin anything since it''s a pain so you go do it by yourself. This is your punishment.

    A sigh left Dex''s mouth as he conceded. Just like what the Statue of Captivity stated, it was his own fault for not exining everything to Satoshi. But then again, he''s got his hands full studying Satoshi''s other familiars so he couldpile their abilities and send them to Satoshi.

    All this time, Dex had been working hard to assist Satoshi in any way he can. He was the only representative avable so he figured he''d have to do everything. In fact, it wasn''t because he was living the easy life rxing but because the other familiars didn''t botherpiling their own skillsets and abilities. Dex had to do everything by himself just so Satoshi wouldn''t have a hard time with his training.

    "Statue of Captivity, right? where were you when I was supporting the master? You were never there. None of you were. I was the one doing all the heavy lifting while you all, I don''t know... but yeah, if we''re looking for the guilty one here, then wouldn''t that be you who was never here in the first ce?" Dex then returned, smiling.

    The Statue of Captivity gasped as reality kicked in. Dex was right. It''s not like Dex didn''t bother exining¡ª but rather it was because he was the only representative avable that he had to do everything on his own.

    "I''m sorry, but just like every other representative... when we lost our master, we were basically roaming our own Dimensions without direction. You know how it was, right, Dex, before master found you."

    The conversation went on and on between Dex and the Statue of Captivity while Satoshi was left asking questions to himself. For one, he didn''t know what was going on. What is with all these talks about Dimensions, Representatives, losing a master, and everything else in between? Perplexed, Satoshi just couldn''t put heads or tails on the matter and he was left to scratch his head in confusion.

    "Um, Dex? Statue of Captivity?" Satoshi then spoke up, causing Dex and the Statue of Captivity to cease their useless banter regarding an information dump. They then bowed toward Satoshi.

    "Yes, Satoshi?" Dex and Statue of Captivity asked simultaneously.<sub> </sub>

    "Mind if you exin everything that''s been going on here? I have no idea what the two of you are talking about. And also, since when did you have a personality, Dex?" Satoshi asked out of nowhere which made Dex a little bit confused.

    "I''ve always had a personality, Satoshi," He simply responded. I Dex had a hand, he''d have been scratching his head in confusion as well since Satoshi''s question didn''t make any sense.

    "We''re sorry, Satoshi," Statue of Captvity then voiced out before waving HER hands towards Dex. (Also, as it turned out, Statue of Captivity is actually a girl and Satoshi just realized it a couple of seconds ago when her voice finally cleared up.)

    "Where do I start?" Dex then asked the Statue of Captivity. There were a lot of things to exin that he didn''t know where he''d start.

    "Just exin anything and we''ll go from there." Statue of Captivity responded.

    "All right."

    Satoshi could''ve sworn that Dex cleared his throat before he started speaking.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    The drive home was uneventful and probably one of the most boring events that day. Fury, who had been driving the van all this time, couldn''t help but constantly clear his throat so as to not drown in the boorishness of the drive. Of course, he was honored that the Midoriyama Duo, the Star Spangled, and even the Eye Goddess were in his van but nothing really happened. There were the asional small talks and the rest was filled with awkward silence.

    "And here we are, the Midoriyama Residence." Fury announced as if he was a taxi driver. (You read that in Samuel Jackson''s voice, didn''t you?)

    "Thanks, Fury, we really owe you a big one this time around," Tatsuki said with a smile while offering his hand to Fury.

    Fury dly shook Tatsuki''s hand in return.

    "Satoshi,e on, we''re ho¡ª" Before Tatsuki could finish his sentence, Ayumu lightly ced her hand on Tatsuki''s mouth.

    ? "Shh! Look!" Ayumu said with a giggle, pointing at Shiroi and Satoshi who were sleeping soundly together, their heads resting on each other''s.

    "Nice going there, Satoshi," Tatsuki thenmented before silently telling Ayumu to wipe off the drool on their son''s face. (And yes, the drool belonged to the two of them. Both Satoshi and Shiroi were drooling, not just Satoshi.)

 Chapter 241 Representatives, The Hall

    "Where do I start?" Dex then asked the Statue of Captivity. There were a lot of things to exin that he didn''t know where he''d start.

    "Just exin anything and we''ll go from there." Statue of Captivity responded.

    "All right,"

    Since Dex waszy enough to put off exining everything even though his reasons were valid, Satoshi allowed the Statue of Captivity to speak up first, telling it to ry everything it knows about the unknown dimension and then having Dex add to the exnation after it was over.

    "There are twelve representatives, scattered in different dimensions." The Statue of Captivity began exining as slowly and as detailed as she could so Satoshi would understand everything. "Representatives are like familiars, but they are of the higher rank due to their level of sentience and their usefulness to their owner."

    "This ce is called the Hall where representatives can be called by their owner and the only one who could ess this dimension is none other than the great summoner. So right now, you should well know that you''re the great summoner, Satoshi and that we representatives are already under yourmand."

    The sudden revtion caused Satoshi to back down a little bit as he tried to internalize everything. Him? The Great Summoner? It was a lot to take in but he wasn''t really that surprised. In fact, he was relieved that he finally understood what this entire situation was all about.

    "So, this is another dimension¡ª a hall where the representatives could gather on mymand. And also, Dex and you are two of the twelve representatives who exist in different dimensions... and this circumstance proves the fact that I''m the Great Summoner?"

    "Not really," Dex then cut off so he could add on to the information. "The Great Summoner was our previous owner hundreds of years ago in a different dimension... he''s your predecessor."

    "I see... now that makes much more sense," Satoshi muttered to himself even though everything didn''t make any sense at all. If he had the same superpowers as this Great Summoner, then that means he can learn more about his superpower if he looked into this Great Summoner that Dex and the Statue of Captivity were talking about.

    Then again, their exnation actually made a few things clear to Satoshi even though that wasn''t one of their intentions at all.

    For one, there are other representatives scattered in other dimensions. If Satoshi could locate them then that would make him more powerful and he would know more about the secret of his superpowers. Second, this hall wherever they were isn''t located in Satoshi''s dreams but was in fact a ce in another dimension where he could gather the other representatives. Now, even though the ce didn''t hold his other familiars, he was sure that there was another ce wherein his familiars could be called. He had been there a couple of times before, after all, and he even had the chance to talk to all of them at the same time.

    "Anything else I need to know before we get out of here?" Satoshi confirmed as he nced towards Dex and the Statue of Captivity as they continued their light bickering. They seemed to have differing opinions about something and at this point, Satoshi was too tired of entertaining them. The information dump they gave him was untimely, but it was more than enough since Satoshi was already exhausted, to begin with.

    After Dex and the Statue of Captivity informed him about a couple more things¡ª to which he didn''t bother listening at all¡ª it was finally time for the meeting to be adjourned and Satoshi at longst had the leisure to wake up.

    .....

    The faint sounds of chirping birds and the gentle touch of the morning sunlight greeted Satoshi as he woke up from his deep slumber. He impulsively stretched after feeling thefortableness of his bed and the steady blow of the air conditioning which he didn''t remember turning on when they arrived home.

    As he nced around the room, Satoshi was then forced to recall everything that happened before he had that weird dream in a weird ce with Dex and the Statue of Captivity. As far as he knows, they all arrived home and he fell asleep...

    ...

    "No, I fell asleep prior to that. I was still in the van with... yeah, Shiroi was beside me and I fell asleep." Satoshi said to himself, rolling on his bed as he subconsciously ced his hand on his chin.<sub> </sub>

    Deep in thought, Satoshi wondered why he didn''t wake up when they arrived home. He dozed off but there was no way he wouldn''t wake up when someone called him out. There was no way he''d remain sleeping with everyone else around him no matter how tired he was.

    And yet, that was exactly what happened¡ª and it could only mean one thing.

    "So... they didn''t wake me up at all?" Satoshi shook his head at the thought, the embarrassment getting the better of him. He imagined himself in his father''s arms as he carried him out of Fury''s van, into the house, up the stairs, and then gently putting him down on his bed. It was such a ludicrous thought that Satoshi wanted to bang his head on the wall and die just thinking about it.

    ''Why did they have to do that? Why didn''t they just wake me up? It would save them the pain of having to carry me... aarghh! Also, I''m already sixteen years old! Sixteen! I don''t need the others to see me in such a vulnerable state! Seriously, what were mom and dad thinking?!''

    His face turning a nice shade of red, Satoshi continued rolling on his bed, kicking the covers, and imagining each of his ssmate''s faces while all of that unfolded. Of course, it was just his own thought though and none of that actually happened.

    Ayumu and Tatsuki knew better than that, after all, and there was no way they could do that without being embarrassed themselves.

    Unbeknownst to Satoshi though, what really happened was that¡ª Kuroe was the one who carried him to his bed via her psychic powers. They wanted to wake him up, but he just wouldn''t budge. And so as not to disturb everyone who still had to go home before the day ends, Ayumu and Tatsuki decided to rely on Kuroe to carry Satoshi to his bed. Kuroe immediately obliged after the Midoriyama Duo asked her. It''s as if their request wasn''t even a question since she instantly agreed to it.

    ...

    It had been three days since then.

    ...

    For the past three days, Satoshi''s ssmates and acquaintances would stop over at the Midoriyama Residence so they could see if there were any improvements. They didn''t know what happened to Satoshi but they were aware that he hasn''t woken up. It''s not like Ayumu and Tatsuk wanted to publicize the matter but they just couldn''t help but talk about it in one of their interviews since it was weird Satoshi has not woken up yet.

    Maybe he only exhausted himself, or maybe something happened during the exchange between the Japanese Navy and him defending the Dimensional Portal... or maybe when he was left behind in the Dungeon Spire, something happened and it took a toll on his body. There were a lot of conclusions to be taken out from that day since a lot had transpired back then. But then again, Ayumu and Tatsuki couldn''t me anyone nor point fingers at any given situation since they had no idea while Satoshi fell unconscious.

    He just fell asleep in the van and that''s it.

    The one most worried out of everyone was none other than Shiroi who had been visiting every day just to check up on Hajime. On the second day, she was even crying her heart while holding Satoshi''s hand, pleading that he''d wake up soon. Ayumu and Tatsuki couldn''t help but shed a couple of tears as well as they watched Satoshi''s childhood friend bawl her eyes out.

    They were perfectly aware of how important Satoshi is to Shiroi. After all, her dad was a close friend of the Midoriyama Duo and he would sometimes tell them stories about Shiroi''s take on liking Satoshi. Even before Satoshi had superpowers, she was already emotionally invested in him... it''s just that she couldn''t bring herself to confess to him for fear that he didn''t feel the same.

    Today was the third day and Shiroi didn''t miss her chance to visit Satoshi again. This time though, she decided that she won''t cry and that she would remain strong and wait for Satoshi to recover. The doctors who came to check up on him already stated that he was just exhausted and that he would wake up soon. Shiroi resolved to believe them.

    After her usual greeting to the Midoriyama Duo, she was then led to Satoshi''s room and she entered without knocking.

    "Satoshi?" She asked in a low tone,

 Chapter 242 Wake Up!

    "Satoshi?" She asked in a low tone, fidgeting as she entered the room. For some odd reason, she was still a bit flustered even though this was her third time invading Satoshi''s personal space. He may be sleeping but the mere thought of him being in the same room as she was made her quiver.

    It was only for a split second but Satoshi managed to feign sleeping as soon as Shiroi entered the room. A momentter, he started berating himself for his actions. ''How could I pretend to sleep when she was right there? What if she says something out of nowhere and we''re awake?'' Satoshi''s thoughts ran like clockwork, tightly shutting his eyes and evening his breathing so it would seem like he was still deep in slumber.

    "Why aren''t you waking up... Satoshi?" Shiroi continued, on the verge of tears. This always happens but this was the first time Satoshi became aware of it. Sniffling, Shiroi started wiping off the stray tears that streamed down her cheeks. "Please, you have to wake up." She pleaded with her wavering voice.

    Satoshi couldn''t help but gulp as guilt overcame him. He''d missed the perfect timing of telling Shiroi that he was already awake, and because he backed down, there was no turning back. Right now, he was at the point where Shiroi shouldn''t find out that his sleep had already concluded. If she knew, who knows how embarrassed she''d get?

    Touch.

    Gently, Shiroi reached out her hands and patted Satoshi on his head, almost making him flinch. Fortunately, Satoshi was mindful of his every action so he was able to catch himself right at that moment. Still, it felt incredibly weird for Shiroi to be patting his head. It''s not like this was the first time she did so, but it was still weird nheless.

    "Yesterday, I passed the superhero license exam. I was very nervous, but I did my best. I wanted to catch up to you no matter what." Shiroi began, still resuming her touch on Satoshi''s ruffled hair. "You... you were strong Satoshi, even back then when you didn''t have your superpowers. At one point I even dreaded the thought of you awakening your superpower because if that were to happen... there was no way I''d ever catch up to you."

    "I... I''ve always looked up to you, Satoshi." Shiroi fidgeted. "Even when we were kids, I always thought that you were pretty cool. You didn''t have a superpower but you can stand up to anyone."

    "Nee~ remember when you stood up to our upperssmen who were trying to bully me? They may be girls but they had the advantage due to their superpower. Back then... I still couldn''t fully control my superpower so I was always hesitant to use it... and yet you protected me. All this time you protected me."

    "And now here I am, with my superhero license. It''s thanks to you that I was able to achieve this. It''s BECAUSE of you that I became who I am now. I''m always grateful, Satoshi... that''s why you have to wake up, so I can repay all my debt to you."

    "I... Honestly Satoshi I..." She started muttering.

    Satoshi gulped.

    He felt a lump in his throat¡ª his saliva swallowed at the wrong timing. It was the worst possible timing, and Satoshi could feel a huping out of his mouth. He tightened his core, his lungs, and tried not to utter a single sound as the hup was slowlying out. Satoshi tried to hold it in as much as he could... but it was to no avail.

    "I... I like y¡ª"

    Hup!

    "..."

    "..."

    Pause.

    "Ah!" Shiroi eximed after the pause which urred right after the hup.

    As for Satoshi, he continued pretending to sleep. Of course, if it had been something else, he would''ve been caught right then and there. But as luck would have it. It was just a hup. Even a sleeping person could hup from time to time. Some even talk or walk down the stairs when they''re sleeping so huping is not too far from the norm. Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief.

    ''What was she about to say? What is it? Come on Shiroi! Why did you stop midway!'' Satoshi screamed in his mind.

    .....

    A few minutes ago.

    Kana Kuroe seemed to have the same brainwaves as Shiroi since she also thought of visiting Satoshi before she headed to the agency where she was an intern. Satoshi was the very first friend she could make in the USA so she was also worried that he had been sleeping for three days. Even though exhaustion yed a huge part in his current condition, Kuroe was still concerned. What if he doesn''t wake up? What if something really did happen to him during his dungeon exploration alone? Kuroe started overthinking and after three days, she couldn''t hold back anymore.<sub> </sub>

    She had to visit Satoshi no matter what!

    As usual, because of her awkward self, she lingered in front of the Midoriyama Residence for a couple of minutes, dithering whether she should ring the doorbell or not. Her inner introvertive self was resurfacing once again and she couldn''t bring herself to ring the doorbell.

    ''Sigh~ this always happens.'' She said to herself, staying right in front of the gate to the Midoriyama Residence in hopes that someone inside would notice her.

    Fortunately, someone did notice her. It was none other than Ayumu whose eyes wandered towards the entrance and saw a figure there. Upon checking who the person was, she realized that she was one of Satoshi''s ssmates so she immediately opened the door and waved.

    "What are you doing there? Come on in." Ayumu warmly weed her, urging her toe inside and to not be shy.

    In response, Kuroe silently nodded, her wordless gesture conveying her gratitude. As if walking on eggshells, she went inside the house, muttering a soft "pardon the intrusion" before exhaling all of her nervousness out of her system.

    "You''re Kuroe, right? Thank you for taking care of our son in school." Ayumu formally said before she gently smiled at Kuroe for the second time. "If you don''t have anything to do, why don''t you stay for breakfast?"

    Kuroe nodded. "Thank you. Um... is Satoshi okay?"

    Hearing their son''s name, Ayumu and Tatsuki both shook their heads as their smiles were reced by a frown. "It''s been three days and he hasn''t woken up." Ayumu continued.

    This time, it was Kuroe''s turn to be confused. The mind-reader she was, she already knew that Satoshi was awake. Without further ado, she headed upstairs to where Shiroi was. She also knew that Shiroi was upstairs because she could read her mind.

    It was actually one awkward moment for Kuroe since she could sense Shiroi''s uncertainty from way downstairs. It was obvious that she was nning to confess, and Kuroe didn''t know what to feel about the matter.

    p When she entered Satoshi''s room, she wasn''t surprised to see Shiroi extracting her hand from Satoshi''s hair. That''s because Kuroe had already read what was in Shiroi''s mind and one of them was the thought of patting Satoshi''s head. She didn''t tell her outright about it though since that would just make Shiroi ufortable.</anda>

    Instead, Kuroe went inside the room without speaking another word.

    "Ah, Kuroe, you''re here," Shiroi said with a forced smile on her face.

    Kuroe waved her hands towards Shiroi, fully aware that Satoshi was actually already awake. As if on cue, Ayumu called for Shiroi downstairs, asking her if she''d be willing to help out in preparing breakfast. Shiroi agreed, and she immediately went downstairs.

    Seizing her chance, Kuroe then folded her arms in front of her before she cleared her throat. This time, Satoshi flinched, and Kuroe put on a smirk on her face as she went up to Satoshi''s bed. As far as she knows, Satoshi is actually ticklish on the sides. She intended to take advantage of it.

    ''Let''s see how long you can pretend.'' Kuroe said to herself.

    Kuroe then leaned in and whispered at Satoshi''s ears. "Do you wanna build a snowman~" She trailed off, but Satoshi just wouldn''t budge.

    At this point, Kuroe was ready to pin Satoshi down and give him a tickling of the lifetime. After inhaling a deep breath, Kuroe positioned herself and grabbed Satoshi by the side, running her fingers and poking him to the point that he squirmed.

    Satoshi was too shocked to react, to say the least, and his facade kept him from blurting out a chuckle. He started curling up, trying to hold back hisugh while trying not to move too much. But that just encouraged Kuroe even more and she started increasing the intensity of the tickle.

    "All right, fine, I lost." Satoshi wheezed, but Kuroe was merciless, she didn''t stop tickling Satoshi.

    "Hah! You think you can fake sleep, huh? Think again." Kuroe continued, gritting her teeth.

    Satoshi spat out saliva as a chuckle finally came out of his mouth.

 Chapter 243 Jean Grey And Jack Michael

    "Stop! Sto¡ª ahhahaha~" Tears starteding out of Satoshi''s eyes as he couldn''t control himself anymore. Theughter that he was suppressing for more than thirty seconds now finally came out of his mouth and he was left wheezing as the air escaped his lungs.

    "Hehhe~" Kuroe smirked as she emerged victorious. This was the first time she caught Satoshi off-guard and getting a ''one-up'' on him certainly felt good.

    "Hah. hah." Satoshi pretended to be exhausted but just before Kuroe could read his mind again, he swooped in and grabbed Kuroe by the sides, tickling her.

    "It''s payback time!" Satoshi announced, causing Kuroe to tear up as she threw down the towel. It was so sudden that Kuroe immediately startedughing hysterically.

    "Give! Give!" She repeated, but SAtoshi wanted her to experience her mercilessness¡ª a taste of her own medicine.

    After thirty seconds though, he stopped. The two of them panted as they sat side by side with each other by the edge of his bed. Kuroe seemed more than ted than usual, much to Satoshi''s confusion, but he didn''t take it to heart at all.

    "Wee back, Satoshi," Kuroe finally said, giving Satoshi a hug that he obliged. Of course, who wouldn''t oblige to a hug offer?

    "I''m back," Satoshi answered, returning the embrace.

    But just then, Kuroe reached to his sides once again. "Sore~" She continued.

    Satoshi also reached for her sides.

    "Let go."

    "No, you let go first."

    "No, you let go first."

    Well, it didn''t take long before the two of them gotpletely exhausted, and agreed to a truce before the two of them headed downstairs. Satoshi was beginning to wonder why his parents didn''t hear how loud he and Kuroe was back there. Unbeknownst to him, it was because Kuroe decided to enclose Satoshi''s room with soundproofing so as not to disturb anyone while she was messing with him. It worked out fine in the end and no one caught wind of the situation.

    As Satoshi reached thest step of the stairs, his face reddened. Thinking about it now, he and Kuroe were the only ones in the room back then... ''Wait... what just... did I...'' Satoshi''s thoughts became jumbled up as he thought about what just happened.

    Meanwhile, Ayumu and Tatsuki, as well as Shiroi who had been waiting for him, saw hime downstairs and they immediately rushed towards him, calling out his name as they embraced him. Stray tears started streaming from Ayumu and Shiroi''s eyes as they weed Satoshi''s recovery.

    "Ah, he''s awake," Another voice came from the dining area.

    It was none other than Kitamura Ayano, also known as the Eye Goddess. (For some odd reason, she still had some free time even though she''s an agency head.)

    "You woke up just in time, Satoshi, we''re about to have breakfast." Tatsuki greeted, ruffling Satoshi''s hair as he expressed his relief.

    "Wee back, Satoshi, I was beginning to get worried since you weren''t showing up for your internship. Crispwisp had been looking for you." Eye Goddess continued, referring to Satoshi''s partner back when he did his first patrol as an intern in her agency.

    "Ah, I see,"

    Meanwhile, another figure descended the stairs, rubbing her eyes as she sleepily muttered a good morning. "Goo'' morni''g" Aira said.

    p Her eyes then shot wide open as she saw Satoshi by the foot of the stairs, everyone gathered around him. Her footsteps quickened, producing a cute tippy-tap sound as she descended the stairs. She then clung to Satoshi''s back before wearing a satisfied smile on her face.</anda>

    "Good morning, Aira, did you sleep well?" Satoshi greeted normally,

    Aira shook her head and buried her face in Satoshi''s shirt before she started crying silently. Satoshi couldn''t even turn around to console her since she was clinging to his back as tightly as she could.

    .....

    Meanwhile, at the Beast Dimension

    "This. Is. Ridiculous!"<sub> </sub>

    Even though revered as the most powerful superhero in America, Star Spangled was still powerless when it came to the Beast Dimension. The weaker beasts were easy pickings, of course, but if he wanted to have a chance at taming the stronger ones, he''d have to step into their territory and try to subdue one while fending off a group. It was a difficult task, but he decided to risk it all in search of an Altered Type.

    "No matter how powerful that kid is... there''s no way he was able to capture an Altered Type so easily... did he get some help? No, that''s the only exnation for that oue." Star Spangled said to himself as one of the White Lionesses bit him on the arm, causing blood to splurt out like a messy job of a butcher.

    "His father is the number one superhero in Japan, after all, and it wouldn''t be too hard for him to create and lead a party into the Beast Dimension. With a huge party, subduing one Altered type White Lion would be rtively easier... but no, if such was the case, then it wouldn''t be long before someone leaked about it." Star Spangled continued his monologue. "Did the father and son duoe to the Beast Dimension by themselves? Yeah, that''s more probable... however, if they did go inside the Beast Dimension then surely someone knows about it? Howe I''ve never heard of any reports regarding the Plunder going inside the Beast Dimension?"

    "Whatever it is... I shouldn''t sweat out the small details. The end result is¡ª they managed to capture an Altered Type White Lion. There''s no way I can''t find one if I looked hard enough... and then there''s the matter of taming it. I can do this."

    The White Lionesses slowly circled Star Spangled,pletely cutting off his escape routes while putting pressure on him. He was nearing his limit, and it was only a matter of time before he, the hunter, bes the hunted.

    He clicked his tongue in frustration as he channeled his energy towards his fists, forcing one of the White Lionesses to the ground with his gravity effect. The other White Lionesses though saw this as their chance to leap onto him, and they were right by their judgment. Had they backed down, it would''ve provided enough opening for Star Spangled to get away. But since the exact opposite was what happened, Star Spangled was instead backed into a corner.

    Aghk!

    Star Spangled''s arm was bitten.

    Kiueuhkk!

    Star Spangled''s leg was bitten.

    It all happened so quickly that Star Spangled wasn''t able to recover. With his appendages immobilized, he couldn''t control his superpower anymore.

    And that was the end of him. That day, Star Spangled died alone, ravaged by the White Lionesses and bitten to death.

    ...

    Well, not really.

    ...

    Almost at the same time, another figure was roaming around the Beast Dimension. The figure didn''t have anything interesting to do back in his world so he decided to map out a portion of the Beast Dimension and try to tame rare beasts there. Together with hispanion, an Azure Blue Tiger which is also known as Pheross, they roamed thend of the Beast Dimension with the intent to tame at least one beast.

    "Wow, look at that Beast! It''s so weird!" The man said to himself, pointing at a fiery jellyfish that floated on the ins. Although this should''ve been amon sight in the Beast Dimension, this was the first time the man saw a fiery jellyfish so he was nheless surprised.

    "And that too! What is tha¡ª " The man stopped short as a cute slime was swallowed by the ground. Well, it wasn''t actually the ground since it was some form of a beast that lived underground and feeds on slimes.

    "Wow, that was a Coelefish, right? Who would''ve thought I''d see one in real life." The man said to himself, walking sideways so he would avoid the territory of the Coelefish.

    A momentter, the man found himself by the rocky mountains of the Beast Dimension. He didn''t hesitate to climb up despite the abundance of White Lions and White Lionesses there. Of course, with Pheross protecting him, he didn''t fear any of them...

    ... then again, the probability that there are stronger Beasts there was always high. That''s why the man still kept his guard up despite his urge to be adventurous.

    "Argh~! No, get away from me! You stupid White Lioness!"

    From afar, the man heard a familiar voice and his face suddenly lit up. Without thinking twice, he rushed towards the source of the voice.

    That''s where he found the Star Spangled, one-sidedly attacked by the White Lionesses.

    "Oh, Jack! Long time no see! What are you doing here?" The man greeted, waving his hand.

    "So you''re here, Jean Grey, how about you? Did youe to tame some beasts in the Beast Dimension?" Jack Michael, also known as the Star Spangled, greeted back. "First things first, can you help me out here? They''re going to snatch my arms and legs from my body at this rate."

    "Sure thing, let''s go Pheross!" Jean Grey ordered, extending his hand while Pheross charged forward.

 Chapter 244 Beast Dimension Excursion

    A few momentster.

    Jean Grey and Jack (Star Spangled) sat opposite each other by a makeshift campfire. With Jean Grey''s help, Jack escaped the feral White Lionesses and now they ate skewers together, catching up on their lives since they haven''t met each other for so long.

    And yes, this wasn''t the first time Jean Grey and Jack met in the Beast Dimension. That''s also the sole reason why Jack wasn''t the least bit surprised when Jean Grey came to his rescue. The two of them have met a couple of times in the Beast Dimension so they weren''tplete strangers to each other.

    "What are you doing here?" Jean Grey asked, casually handing Jack a skewer before digging into one himself. "Last time you were trying to catch a Slime, right?"

    Jack nodded. After receiving the skewer from Jean, he then handed him a cup of tea from his thermos. "Actually I''ve been looking into something else. I wanted to catch an Altered Type."

    Thement made Jean Grey''s eyes light up in excitement as he wore the biggest smile on his face. "Wait... are you going Altered Type hunting? You''re going Altered Type hunting, right? Which beast, in particr, are you going to hunt?"

    Seeing Jean Grey''s reaction also lit up a fire within Jack and he was more fired up than ever to start the hunt. "It''s a White Lion. I''m looking for an Altered Type White Lion. Of course, if I find an Altered Type of another beast before then, then I''ll catch it. I''m not really particr when ites to taming beasts but if I get to choose. I''d want to have an Altered Type White Lion."

    "An Altered Type White Lion, huh, this is going to be pretty hard." Jean Grey rubbed his chin. As someone who had been to the Beast Dimension a couple of times. He knew just where almost all the beasts are gathered. That''s why as soon as Jack mentioned the White Lion, he immediately went through the Beast Dimension map in his mind and marked the ce where White Lions could be found.

    "Yeah, I know how rare White Lions are. It would be next to impossible to find an Altered Type but I won''t give up." Jack clenched his fists. "I''ve seen an Altered Type White Lion in person. It''s as white as snow and it had the fluffiest mane in the world."

    "Whoa~! Wait?! If you''ve already seen one then why didn''t you tame it?" Jean Grey was almost frustrated more than he was surprised. "If I were you, I''d have stuck to taming it no matter what... even if I died!"

    A sigh came out of Jack''s mouth. He was crestfallen, to say the least. "Yeah, I''d have done so... if the Altered Type White Lion didn''t belong to someone else. You see, that White Lion I''ve encountered was already tamed, and it was tamed by none other than a kid... specifically my rival''s son."

    Jack didn''t stop there. He continued speaking. "Now, don''t get me wrong, the son was formidable in his own ways but there was no chance he tamed that White Lion alone. I think he had a help of a team of superheroes... but I haven''t found any leads so far."

    "Wow, that boy is lucky. An Altered Type White Lion is not something you get to see every day." Jean Grey continued. "But I wanna ask something... "

    "What is it?"

    "Its mane... was it really the fluffiest in the world?" Jean Grey skeptically asked. There was no way an Altered Type White Lion really had the fluffiest mane in the world. That was just an absurd im.

    "Yes! I''m telling you! As soon as I saw the White Lion and mustered the courage to bury my face in its mane... uwahhh~ it''s the most rxing feeling in the world. You''ll feel like your melting in its warmth andfortableness."

    "Whaaa~ I''d like to meet one." Jean Grey clenched his fists. "That''s it! I''ve decided! I''m going to help you look for an Altered Type White Lion as well!"

    "Yoshi~ I''ll be counting on you then." Jack didn''t waste any time extending his hand towards Jean Grey so he could shake it before he changed his mind.

    In return, Jean Grey obliged, and together, they started hunting down Altered Types in the Beast Dimension in hopes that they''ll find an Altered Type White Lion in the near future.

    .....

    A few dayster.

    Satoshi spun forward, unleashing a powerful punch toward his dad who had been dodging all his attacks ever since they started the training. He was getting rather desperate since the exercise entailed that he should hit his dad at least once. And as an additional hurdle, both of them were restricted from using their superpowers.

    "That''s some nice angle and eleration right there, Satoshi, but you should know to expect your opponents'' movements." Tatsuki pointed out, dodging to the right before ducking his head and charging forward,pletely avoiding Satoshi who had thrown his body into his dad so his attack would be much faster.<sub> </sub>

    There was no time to take a break. Without hesitation, Satoshi reached out his hand as he was falling headfirst to the floor. He then supported his whole body with his right hand, twisted his other hand, and abruptly changed his direction so he could charge at his dad once again before he could even take another step.

    Caught off guard, Tatsuki stepped towards the side and rolled forward,pletely avoiding Satoshi''s hands and legs that iled in a calcted manner

    "Not bad... not good either." Tatsuki continued.

    With a click of his tongue, Satoshi then went on all fours and encircled his dad, like a mad dog about to bite an unsuspecting victim. Tatsuki noticed the sudden shift in his son and he immediately put his guard up.

    However, before Satoshi could unleash his next move, the panel right above the superheroir opened, and down came Ayumu, who told everyone that it was time for breakfast.

    "And that''s a wrap. How many losses was it now?" Tatsuki said, extending his hand towards Satoshi. He then patted him on the head.

    "I''m going to win next time," Satoshi replied.

    Breakfast of eggs and toast was served. Aira and Emma, who were still staying in the house, ate together with everyone else. They''ve gotten used to the usual life as part of the Midoriyama Household and they couldn''t be morefortable with their adjustment¡ª especially for Aira who was used to the hard life in the slums.

    "One more week before the transfer exams, how are your preparations, Emma?" Ayumu asked out of the blue, pertaining to the transfer exams to the USA since Emma would want to study there in the next semester.

    "I''m ready. I''m going to aim for the top." Emma simply responded. Just like Satoshi, she had also been receiving superhero training from Satoshi''s mom and dad. That''s why she couldn''t be any more confident that she''ll get to the top.

    "I was also informed that there will be exchange students by next semester from America. It seems like top high schoolers wanted to experience life here in Japan. Keep your guard up, Emma, Satoshi, the world is wide and there are a lot of high schoolers stronger than you¡ª just like there are a lot more superheroes who are stronger than me."

    Emma and Satoshi nodded in response.

    "But before that... the two of you are going to the Beast Dimension, right?" Ayumu then asked, remembering that they had a schedule to go into the Beast Dimension.

    Emma nodded. "I managed to get a reservation for myself and Satoshi... but as it turned out some of his ssmates would also go."

    <o>,m "That''s nice, it''s like a mini get-together before school break ends." Tatsuki smiled. "Still, don''t be too over-excited in there, you''d never know when a strong beast will show up. I''ve been to the Beast Dimension a couple of times in the past and all I could say is... it isn''t really a friendly dimension."</o>

    Now that Satoshi thought about it, he was aware of the existence of the Beast Dimension for quite some time now, and yet he had never seen a lot of superheroes with Beasts. If there really are strong beasts in the Beast Dimension, then surely a lot of superheroes should''ve gone in and tamed some, right?

    But even now, Satoshi could count on one hand the number of superheroes who have their own familiars. "Dad, do you have a familiar with you?"

    "That''s right, why do you ask?" Tatsuki responded, much to Satoshi''s surprise.

    "Eh?! You have one? This is the first time I''ve heard of it though." Satoshi continued.

    "Well, you never asked. Besides, my familiar right now is staying with your grandparents, helping them out. And also, I''ve only recently tamed that beast." Tatsuki then answered.

    "Ah, so that''s why, what kind of beast is he?"

    "Ground Hound, a powerful earth-type beast from the Beast Dimension. Well, you''ll see him soon enough." Tatsuki said, reminiscing the time when he first tamed the beast. "In any case, the two of you should go. You can''t bete on your little excursion, you know."

 Chapter 245 To The Beast Dimension! (This Is Now My Most Viewed Novel Special!)

    "We''re heading out!" Satoshi said in a cheerful tone as he and Emma headed out the front door. This was the first time he''d be venturing to the Beast Dimension and he felt rather excited and apprehensive at the same time. Still, he had been looking forward to it ever since Emma booked a reservation.

    And yes, while the Beast Dimension can only be essed by a couple of people at the time, it was free to the public. Such a restriction was ced just so that not a lot of people would enter the Beast Dimension at once. After all, it is believed that the Beast Dimension is connected to a lot of different worlds. With the limitation in ce, the chance of meeting someone in the Beast Dimension would be pretty slim, thus providing more peace to the ones who were nning to tame some beasts.

    "Wait, Satoshi!" Tatsuki, who was also preparing to head out for the final day of conquering Dungeon Spire, called out to Satoshi as he was tightening the tie on his neck. He needed to appear formal in front of the people since there will be a couple of interviews before he dives back into the dungeon.

    Most of the time, Tatsuki would just wish his son to take care or to do his best with whatever endeavor he had. But right now, he purposefully called out to him as if he needed to say something of importance. That''s why Satoshi turned around.

    "Yes, dad?" He asked as Emma continued heading outside.

    "Be careful out there, son," Tatsuki warned, his forehead creasing as he wore a worried expression on his face. "There are a lot of unexpected things that could happen in the Beast Dimension. I didn''t want to tell you this but... a lot of unwarranted killings have happened in there, and sometimes the criminals wouldn''t even face the consequences."

    "Killings? You mean murder? Why?" Satoshi asked, also speaking in a low tone so Aira wouldn''t hear what they were talking about. She was busy watching a certain anime series (about a spy, an assassin, and an esper) that she didn''t even bother listening to anything else.

    "Because... beasts who are already tamed by someone cannot be tamed by another person. The only way one can get ahold of somebody else''s tamed beast is by killing that person,pletely severing the bond they had with their tamed beasts." Tatsuki exined. "And trust me when I say that there are a lot of people who would go through such lengths just for that."

    "You probably already know this but some of your familiars are beasts from the Beast Dimension¡ª just like your White Lion. That''s why, as much as possible, don''t use any of your familiars while you''re over there. Do you understand?" Tatsuki spoke with great seriousness. Even though his voice was light, Satoshi could feel a certain heaviness to it, warning him of the dangers that lurk inside the Beast Dimension.

    "Got it, dad." Satoshi nodded.

    "All right then, take care, okay? And if anything happens, make sure that you stick close to your guide. And on the off chance that your guide can''t handle the situation, just run the hell out of there with Emma, okay?" Tatsuki continued.

    "Yes, dad,"

    As Satoshi headed out for the second time, he was reminded of his father''s words back when he just discovered his superpower¡ª that he should try to hide it as much as he can since there will be people who would perceive it negatively. And also, he knew why his dad had told him to be careful.

    In the Beast Dimension, it ismon for people around the world to enter it. In other words, there''s a possibility that Satoshi would meet other people from other countries as soon as he enters the Beast Dimension. If he were to use his familiars over there, there''s a chance that they''ll target him.

    In Japan, it is easy for Satoshi to go all out and use his superpower since his father holds great influence as the number one superhero. Even if someone were to target Satoshi in Japan, his father could easily pull some strings to bring justice to that person or something along those lines.

    However, it is drastically different in other countries. Just like other number-one superheroes have little to no influence in Japan, Tatsuki also doesn''t have influence in other countries. If they were to target his son, there''s nothing he could do about it. Of course, he could bring it up to the SAO but it is up to the Japanese Government to decide about the matter.

    "I should be careful," Satoshi said to himself, catching up to Emma as they both stepped out of the front gate.

    "Ah, Satoshi, what did you and your father talk about?" Emma asked out of curiosity.

    "Nothing much, he told us to be careful¡ª that the Beast Dimension is more dangerous than we think."

    .....

    "Big brother! Wake up! Wake up!"

    Midori felt heaviness on his stomach, causing him to gasp for air as his eyes shot wide open. It was still early in the morning but Miya was already there to wake him up.

    "Ah, Miya, good morning." Midori greeted, grabbing his younger sister by the armpits and setting her by the bedside so he could get up. Apparently, she was sitting right on top of his stomach, that''s why he couldn''t breathe.

    "Big bro, shouldn''t you be preparing right now? You''re going to the Beast Dimension today, right?" Mayu, Midori''s other younger sister, spoke up just as she was passing by his room.

    "Midori, breakfast''s ready! I also packed your bento." Midori''s mom called out from the kitchen. "Get over here and eat before I drag you out of your bed."

    Midori''s mom may sound strict but he knew that his mom just says that. Deep inside, she would always express her love to her children by showering them with kisses and hugs. "Coming mom!" Midori answered back, heading out of his room as he made a beeline to the kitchen.

    .....

    "Hiroshi? Did you forget anything? Your toothbrush? Your toothpaste? Your deodorant? You need that so you won''t smell like sweat while you''re all having fun." Hiroshi''s mom called out, giving him a nice pat on the head just as he was putting on his shoes by the front door.

    "Come on mom, I''m not going on an excursion."

    "Hiroshi''s right, honey, they''re going to the Beast Dimension. Whaa~ to think that I''d l''d to see you go to the Beast Dimension. I couldn''t be any prouder." The teary-eyed Hiroshi''s dad sniffled as he rubbed his nose.

    "Dad, you say that every day," Hiroshimented once again as a warm smile stered on his face. "I''m heading out, mom, dad."

    "Take care, okay?"

    "Of course," Hiroshi said, slinging his bag on his shoulder as he headed out.<sub> </sub>

    ....

    "Oh, where are you going this early in the morning?" Kuroe''s dad asked as he got out of the bathroom and saw his daughter rushing out of her room.

    "Dad, we''re going to the Beast Dimension. Didn''t I tell you yesterday?" Kuroe answered, rushing to tie her shoces since she was runningte.

    "Ah, you did mention that. Take care, okay?"

    "Thanks, dad. I''m heading out!"

    "Have fun!"

    .....

    (What? I''m getting screen time?)

    (Yes)

    (But it''s been so long! I don''t know how to appear normal on camera!)

    (Don''t worry, just do what you usually do.)

    (But myst appearance was back at the Inter-High! And yes, I lost badly to that Midoriyama Satoshi~ sigh)

    (Just get on with it before I change my mind!)

    Taniguchi Kyou, a first-year high schooler at the Flowing Wave Academy (also known by his superhero name ''Saturn''), woke up on a normal morning, brushed his teeth, and headed outside,bing his bangs with his fingers. He kept on snickering at himself as if there was a camera pointed at him.

    "It''s a pretty good morning." He said to himself, smiling like an idiot.

    (Why do you have to describe me like an idiot?)

    (You look like one)

    (Argh, fine!)

    With a slow wave of his hand, Kyou addressed his parents in a stupid manner. "I''m heading out."

    Even his parents think that he''s stupid.

    (Shut up! I''m nervous, okay?!)

    (Fine fine)

    Just like other students his age, this would be the first time they''ll be going into the Beast Dimension. He couldn''t wait to get there and tame some beasts which would greatlyplement his superpower. Ever since he lost during the Inter-High Tournament, he never stopped training, hoping that one day he''d meet Satoshi once again and he''ll defeat him in a straightforward match.

    "Let''s go!"

    "Let''s go!"

    As Taniguchi Kyou pumped his fists in the air, hee across someone who also simultaneously pumped his fists in the air while yelling ''Let''s go!'' at the top of his lungs. It was none other than Aljier, a first-year high schooler from the Great Mountain Academy. For some odd reason, he also booked a reservation to go into the Beast Dimension as well.

    "Oh, it''s Saturn!" Aljier said, pointing at Taniguchi Kyou before extending his hands for a greeting.

    "Aljier, long time no see. Don''t tell me you''re going to the Beast Dimension too?" Saturn greeted back.

    "I will, the author said so." Aljier shrugged as he casually replied.

    "What do you mean?" Saturn asked as if he didn''t know what Aljier was saying. As he did so, he gestured at Aljier to stop what he was saying.

    (Shut up before I identally kill you in the next arc!)

 Chapter 246 Kim Jin Seok

    The Dimensional Portal that leads into the Beast Dimension was actually conveniently located in the middle of Tokyo, just a kilometer or so away from the Heimdall Agency.

    Since Satoshi was still undergoing an internship under Eye Goddess, he decided to stop by the agency, giving her a heads up that he''ll be missing out on the internship that day. Of course, he had already informed her a few days prior but he decided to give her a reconfirmation out of courtesy. Besides, he also wanted to greet Crispwisp who had been looking for him for a few days now.

    "After your trip to the Beast Dimension, make sure to head straight home. I''m sure your dad would want to celebrate the ''clear'' with the whole family. You don''t have to worry about the internship for today, think of it as your day off." Eye Goddess said, giving Satoshi permission to miss out on the internship for the whole day."

    "You''re going to the Beast Dimension? Do take care of yourself, Satoshi," Plume greeted just when Satoshi and Emma headed out of Heimdall Agency.

    A few minutester, the two of them found themselves by the foot of the Dimensional Portal. There was a huge crowd gathering there, awaiting their turn while enjoying the pop-up stalls that surrounded the Dimensional Portal. This section of Tokyo was known for its market diversity. After all, some of the products sold in the stalls came directly from the Beast Dimension.

    Things like smander scales, a variety of beast meat, and nts that could be found within the Beast Dimension were all avable there. Evenmon Beasts could be bought in one of the stalls that resembled a pet shop.

    "Whoa, who would''ve thought that this ce looks like this!" Satoshi eximed, admiring the sights and the items sold all around. The ce was more or less another dimension but in the real world. Satoshi couldn''t help but revel in the transformation of the ce.

    "Is this your first time here, Satoshi?" Emma asked.

    "Yeah, Even though I''ve lived all my life on the outskirts of Tokyo, I''ve never been to this ce," Satoshi answered. Of course, why would he venture into this ce when he didn''t have a shred of superpower within him? Back then, going to ces like this is just a pipe dream. But now it had be a reality.

    "Satoshi?" Someone called out from behind him.

    Kuroe quickened her pace as she waved her hand. Her casual dress fluttered at the slightest gust of wind, giving her the aesthetic of innocence.

    "Ah, Kuroe, you''re here. Are you also going into the Beast Dimension?" Satoshi asked.

    "Yeah, Shiroi, Fuuka, and Cherry are going too. We booked a reservation together." Kuroe responded.

    "Oi! You guys! Man, who would''ve thought that we''d be going into the Beast Dimension together? I was nervous when I reserved a spot for myself since I didn''t know what to do! Boy, I''m d to be with everyone here." Midori came up to them. He was too nervous that he left their house early. And up until now, he had been roaming around the area, trying to locate anyone who knows him.

    A couple of minutester, Taniguchi Kyou (also known as Saturn from the Flowing Wave Academy), Aljier (from the Great Mountain Academy), and Kobayashi Siril also joined the group. As it turned out, all of them just so happened to schedule their trip on the same day. Satoshi was surprised that he and Emma weren''t the only ones who''ll be going into the Beast Dimension that day.

    "All right, everybody''s here." Someone''s voice emerged from the Dimensional Portal and a figure came out of it.

    He was in histe twenties, with a semi-muscr build and stubble on his chin. His hair, ck with hints of purple, was a tad long for a male but it didn''t look shabby at all. He wore a huge backpack on his bag, a brown tattered bag usually carried around by porters in a Dungeon Exploration.<sub> </sub>

    "The name''s Kim Jin Seok, the number ten hero in Korea. Today, I''m going to be your guide into the Beast Dimension." He announced, jerking his thumb into the Dimensional Portal and beckoning everyone to follow him. "Now, let''s not waste any time. I still have a couple of groups to guide in the next few days so it would be pretty nice if we can finish early."

    Upon saying that, he went back inside the Dimensional Portal, and the rest of the group followed suit. Satoshi and his friends decided to stick close to each other since they didn''t know what to expect inside the Beast Dimension. As it turned out, this was everyone''s first time going there so they had no idea what they''ll find as soon as they stepped foot inside.

    The moment they entered the Beast Dimension, an intense wave of heat hit them squarely on the face, causing all of them to flinch. Shiroi, who was much faster to react to heat than everyone else, managed to enclose the group with a thin bubble made out of snowkes. "Is everyone all right?" Shiroi asked, hoping that she was able to react in time.

    "Yeah, thanks so much, Shiroi." Satoshi was the first one to reply. At first, he wanted to summon his familiar Windfan or the Ice Empress, but he remembered what his dad told him so he decided to hold them back unless he absolutely needed them.

    "How about us?" The other superheroes on the tripined as they grinned and bore the heat wave. There was nothing they could do but bite their lips since no one would help them with the heat at all. Even Kim Jin-Seok, who knew about the heat, couldn''t care less about everyone else.

    "Um, Sir Kim, right?" Someone asked, approaching Kim Jin Seok as sheepishly as she could while twiddling her thumbs. From her blond hair and blue eyes, it was obvious that she was a foreigner, probably someone from Europe. "I''m sorry but can you help us with the heat... we can''t take it." She asked.

    Kim Jin Seok heaved a sigh before he ruffled his hair. "Look, miss, I''m not paid enough to do this... I''m merely here as a guide, nothing more nothing less. If you can''t handle the heat, then the Dimensional Portal''s right there. You can go home now." He continued.

    "Hey! That''s not fair! The others have their own superpower to back them up but we don''t have anything of the sort! You''re the guide, you''re responsible for this!"

    "Yeah, you go tell them!"

    "Yeah, you''re not even handsome you cursed Korean!"

    A nerve appeared on Kim Jin Seok''s forehead as his eyes turned a nice shade of red out of anger. If he didn''t need the money and if he wasn''t there as a guide, then he''d have beaten everybody up and turned them into a bloody mess. But since he was there as a guide, there''s nothing he could do but allow them to badmouth him.

    Suddenly, an invisible space in the shape of a square appeared out of nowhere and surrounded everyone. It came from Fukushima Fuuka, a member of ss 3-1 with space and sound distortion as her superpower. The space prison she came up with blocked the heat as well as the sound from each side. Also, it was a vacuum space so there was no oxygen in it. "If they really wanted to go through with this, then they have no right toin. You don''t have to mind them, sir guide." Fuuka muttered, patting Kim Jin Seok on the back since he almost lost his cool.

    "Ah, oh... yeah... I''m really sorry about that." He sincerely apologetically said as he watched theiners go back into the Dimensional Portal. Since there was nothing they could do inside the vacuum space that Fuuka made, they were forced to go back to their country.

    "Well then, let''s move along and proceed with the excursion. Once again, I am your guide, Kim Jin Seok, and I''m really sorry about my unbing disy of emotions back there." He continued. "First, I''m going to talk to you about the different types of beasts that could be found around here, and then we''ll go through with everyone''s decisions. After that, we will group all of you ording to the beasts that you''re going to tame, and send you on your way to explore this section of the Beast Dimension. Of course, I wouldn''t send you too far since I''d have toe to your rescue if anything goes wrong."

    "In any case, just enjoy the experience, and even if you can''t find any beasts that suit you, that''s quite all right. You can always return at any time, and the rotation of where we''re going to explore always changes so you''re bound to find the right beast for you."

    Upon saying that, Kim Jin Seok then began exining the beasts in the area.

 Chapter 247 The Search

    "There are four main types of elements." Kim Jin Seok then began, pacing back and forth in front of everyone in the group. He always envisioned himself as a good teacher and he figured that he ought to act like one in order to give off a better impression.

    "Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the fire nation attacked... what? Does no one know the joke? Okay then ehrmm~!" After clearing his throat, Kim Jin Seok continued with the exnation. "These four main elements are subdivided into other elements but basically, these are the four types you need to learn first. There are also the Light, Dark, and Mystic types, as well as Lightning, Metal, Grass, and Poison¡ª but well these are all subdivisions of the four main elements¡ª except for the Light, Dark, and Mystic Types. These three types are one of the most powerful elements out there. As such, it is very hard to see a Beast with these three elements. They''re basically country-level threats so if you encounter one, please report it to me right away and the experts will deal with subjugating such a beast."

    "Back to the topic, it is possible for a beast to have two or more types. And well... that everything you need to learn about the beasts." Kim Jin Seok then paused for a few seconds before he continue speaking. "Next, we''re going to talk about the most important topic¡ª how do you exactly go about taming a beast?"

    "The first method is the easiest one and that is defeating the beast and forcing it to submit to your own rule. This is the most straightforward way of taming a beast. This is the bellicist approach."

    "The second method is moreplicated. This involves convincing a certain beast to submit to you without harming the beast. This is called the pacifist approach. In any case, these are the two well-known approaches when ites to taming a beast. There are a couple more approaches but they aren''t really that useful to beginners. That''s why I''m only telling you these two. If you want to know about the other approach, then just simply look it up on the or something."

    Satoshi and his group nced at each other before staring at Satoshi. They don''t really know what Satoshi''s superpower was but it''s a lot closer to the beast tamer superpower or something along those lines. If anyone knew about beast taming, it should be Satoshi¡ª or so that''s what all of them thought.

    "All right then. Now, for your first task, I want you to roam around the ce and look for a beast. You''ll then be tasked to tame that beast by using one of the two approaches I gave you. I don''t want any of you to group up, and I want all of you to be back here by lunchtime." Kim Jin Seok continued. "One of my acquaintances already set up a perimeter with a ten-kilometer radius so you don''t have to worry about getting lost."

    "Yes, sir!" All the superheroes in the group responded before turning around and heading their separate ways.

    "All right, now it''s time for us to go our separate ways," Midori said, ncing toward Shiroi.

    "You don''t have to worry about us, Shiroi. We can handle ourselves even without your snow superpower." Hiroshi said as everyone including Satoshi nodded.

    "Yeah, thanks for that though, we were able to adjust without getting exhausted" Taniguchi Kyoumented. Even though he wasn''t part of ss 3-1, Shiroi still aided him and Aljier from the heat.

    "A-all right then," Shiroi responded before she undid the snow shields that covered the entire group.

    "Satoshi! Let''s make this a challenge! Let''s see who tames the strongest beast and then let''s have a one-on-one!" Hiroshi then called out before separating from the group.

    "Great idea!" Midori and the others simultaneously said as they too detached themselves from the group.

    The others also went their own ways except for Shiroi, Emma, and Fuuka. They belonged to the few who didn''t know where to go so they kind of just ''existed'' right there, trying to decide which way to go. From time to time, they would look at Satoshi who seemed to be absent-mindedly staring off into the distance.

    "You know what, why don''t we stick together? At least we can help each other out." Fuuka suggested. "Are you in, Emma?"

    "Um, yes, sure," Emma answered. While she wanted to go with Satoshi, she didn''t want to hold him back so she decided to go with Shiroi and the others. That way Satoshi won''t worry too much since they''ll be together.

    ...

    ...

    "I see..." Satoshi finally spoke under his breath. Apparently, he had been conversing with Dex in his mind. To others, it seemed like he was staring off into the distance when in fact, Dex was giving him plenty of useful information. "So, I''ll really find that beast underground?"<sub> </sub>

    [Yes, Satoshi, based on my readings he''s really down there in his peaceful slumber.]

    "All right then, I''ll try to capture that beast... but just to make sure, it won''t go berserk if we wake him up, right?" Satoshi asked despite already knowing the answer to the question.

    [There''s always the possibility, Satoshi.]

    Satoshi scratched his head, wondering whether it was a good choice to wake the slumbering giant of a beast or not. He was kind of leaning toward thetter since it would be dangerous if he can''t handle the beast.

    [Since the beast is sleeping, we can always go back here in this ce so you don''t have to worry about anything, Satoshi. We can always go back.]

    "You''re right." Satoshi heaved a sigh. For now, he''d have to leave the supposed underground beast alone and stick to taming another beast instead. That way, he won''t cause unnecessary trouble and bring problems to everyone who was there in the area.

    When Satoshi finally finished talking to Dex, he realized that he was the only one left in the starting area. He quickly returned to his senses and walked away. Meanwhile, Kim Jin Seok was watching him and his suspicious actions, wondering why he didn''t react as enthusiastically as the others even though this was his first time here.

    "He probably thought about the entire situation first before searching for a beast to tame... what an interesting kid." Kim Jin Seok said to himself as he watched Satoshi trudge in the opposite direction. "I wonder if he''ll be able to pull through on the second part of this expedition."

    .....

    ''How many days has it been... it''s been so long... I can''t do this anymore...''

    "No, I can do this. I just have to stick to the n. That''s right! Stick to the n! Don''t give up, Star Spangled! You''re the one and only number one superhero of America. There''s no way you''d give up before you reaped the fruits of sess. Don''t give up! Aargh~ aargh~ don''t give up!" Star Spangled started screaming¡ª a poor attempt to psyche himself out as he continued looking for an Altered Type White Lion.

    It had been almost a week and he was yet to find a single Altered Type White Lion, let alone an Altered Type of any of the beasts that existed in the Beast Dimension. He was on the verge of giving up but he had gotten this far into the challenge. There''s no way he''d give up right now. Never... it will be a great blow to his pride if he did so!

    "You all right over there, Jack?" Jean Grey concernedly called out to Star Spangled. He could see Star Spangled slowly losing himself as his screams became louder and his actions became even more desperate. He had defeated hundreds of beasts and he still hadn''t tamed one. He just couldn''t find any Altered Type at all.

    "Yeah, I''m good," Jack said after defeating a couple of White Lions and Lionesses in the area. He didn''t injure any of them gravely, nor did he tame any of them. To him, they were al worthless since the only White Lion he wanted in his life was a shiny one¡ª an Altered Type one.

    "You''ve been looking for more than a few days now... Are you sure you can go on?"

    "Yeah, I''m fine. I can do this." He repeated for the umpteenth time before looking at his map. He still needed to go to a couple of areas where White Lions and White Lionesses abound.

    "Come on, you need a break." Jean Grey sighed. "Why don''t we head over to our world? Let''s go to our ce and grab some food, and refill our supplies. You''re tired, right? For now, let''s reset and start from prepping once again. After all, you need to be in prime condition if you finally encountered that Altered Type you''ve been searching for, right?"

    "Right... sigh~" Before Jack could continue what he was about to say, his face suddenly drained in color as he saw a huge figure flying from afar. It starteding down, screeching, aiming its beak at Jean Grey.

    "Jean, watch out!"

 Chapter 248 Im Stuck!

    The warning came a little toote for Jean since he was already pinned to the ground by the ck WInged Dragon that appeared out of nowhere. A vicious roar left its mouth, followed by a deafening screech that caused the beasts in the vicinity to run away in a scurrying manner.

    Not only was the ck Winged Dragon fast, but it was also one of the few beasts that were at the top of the food chain. Some even called it the guardian of the Beast Dimension, not because it was a literal guardian, but because everything yed out in the palm of its hand and it does whatever it wants. If it wants to burn down a portion of the Beast Dimension then it would do so without mercy. If it wants to annihte a group of beasts, then there was nothing the beasts in question could do but await their impending doom. It was always like that.

    That''s why most of the visitors that ventured into the Beast Dimension would always steer clear of the ck Winged Dragon. There was even an in-depth guide on the route of the ck Winged Dragon which is updated on a daily basis to lower the risks of anyone who''d identally run into the monstrosity.

    But for some odd reason, it was right there in front of Jean Grey, pinning him down! Jack Michael (Star Spangled) was confident that the ck Winged Dragon was nowhere near the vicinity and yet it was right there! In the flesh! In all its form and glory!

    "Impossible, but how? Did it deviate from its route?" Jack Michael''s mouth went agape as he watched Jean Grey helplessly lying on the ground with the ck Winged Dragon on top of him. It was not a pretty good sight to see that Jack Michael even thought about turning away from it.

    "Come on, Jack, help me outta here!" Jean Grey screamed in desperation as he grunted in pain. Fortunately, the ck Winged Dragon was kind enough to pin him with its talons and not with its stomach on top of him. Had that been the case, he''d have been squished to death, wrung like a cloth in a dryer as it bled water and blood.

    Thanks to Jean Grey''s call for help, Jack Michael managed to regain hisposure as he activated his gravity and super-strengthbo superpower in a futile attempt to push the ck Winged Dragon out of the way. "Come oooooon~!" Jack Michael screamed at the top of his lungs as he tapped into every cell in his body, drawing out his maximum potential and through-putting the most power he could let out. His energy drained by the second and adrenaline instantly coursed through his body, giving him two-fold strength, exponentially increasing his power output.

    Still, it was no match for the ck Winged Dragon. Somehow, the ck Winged Dragon was covered with this barrier of pure energy and no attack of Jack Michael could prate.

    For the first time in his life, Jack Michael felt helpless. His friend was right there in front of him, suffering, and yet there was nothing he could do about it. They''ve met with one of the final bosses of the Beast Dimension and in a snap of a finger, they''ve been put into an inescapable situation.

    "If I''d known I''d have summoned my trusty Azure Blue Tiger Pheross." Jean Grey muttered. He wasn''t always this careless, that''s why he was kind of surprised that this happened to him despite his usually careful nature. The only reason why he didn''t summon Pheross with him was that he didn''t want the White Lions and White Lionesses to flee in fear at his appearance.

    As it turned out, that decision backfired on the two of them¡ª with the end result of him being pinned to the ground by a ck Winged Dragon.

    "Sigh~ any moment now, Jack Son Michael, any moment now!" Jean Grey blurted out, calling Jack by his full name.

    "All right, all right!"

    For the second time, Jack activated his superpower and tried to break through the imprable defense of the ck Winged Dragon... but it was all in vain. In fact, his attack was way weakerpared to his first surge of superpower.<sub> </sub>

    He was simply helpless while facing such a powerful beast.

    For someone considered to be the number one superhero in America, he couldn''t quite believe that he was powerless in front of a dragon. ''Impossible! I''m the face of America, I''m the Star Spangled! Why can''t I handle myself in front of a beast?!'' He screamed in his mind.

    Well, there''s a valid and well-ced reason why the ck Winged Dragon was considered the final boss of the Beast Dimension. Even though the one and only Star Spangled can''t ept that irrefutable fact, there was nothing he could do about it. Nada.

    "Jack.. I''m probably going to die soon. Tell my family that I love them... and also!" Jean Grey started muttering as he groaned in pain. Apparently, the ck Winged Dragon was smarter than he thought and it slowly pressed more weight on him as time passed, savoring the murder that it was doing.

    "And also what?!" Jack asked in disbelief. He couldn''t take in the reality that his friend was dying in front of his very eyes.

    "And also... tell my son that I went out to buy some milk. Haha~ got ''im!"

    "Jean Grey! This is not the time to be joking around!"

    "What do you want me to do then? Wallow in despair and cry my heart out in front of my friend. I wouldn''t do that even if it kills me! Argh~!" Jean Grey responded, forcing a smile on his face but deep down he was gritting his teeth in pain.

    "Stop it with the dead jokes already." Jack pleaded as his eyes wettened with tears.

    Fwooosh~!

    Suddenly, out of nowhere, a column of unquenchable blue fire shot towards the ck Winged Dragon, catching it by surprise and causing it to fall out of bnce.

 Chapter 249 SS-Grade Black Winged Dragon

    The entire area was pretty much deserted when Satoshi got back to his senses. When he started aimlessly making his way in one direction, he wasn''t thinking about anything at all. There were no signs of intelligent life anywhere, not even beasts could be seen as he trudged his way through the vast arid ins.

    "Sigh~ why are there no beasts here? And where did everyone go?" Satoshi scratched his head in slight frustration. But then again, he didn''t resort to changing his directions since there was no use in doing so. He''s got a whole ten kilometers ahead of him. If he walked to and fro the rest of the way, surely he''d meet one or two beasts, right?

    Not really.

    With every step, Satoshi felt an inkling feeling that something was wrong with the ce. Not only were there no beasts nor people in sight, but he felt an annoying prickly feeling on his nape¡ª as if warning him of the danger that lurked nearby. It was an odd sense of instinct, giving him the chance to escape whatever was ahead of him. Still, being the curious teenager he was, Satoshi continued on, walking through the ins like a nomad in the middle of the journey of a lifetime. One step. Two steps. Three steps. There was nothing that could change Satoshi''s mind despite the ever-increasing feeling of the intense pressure the further he walked forward.

    "Dex, analysis." After fifteen minutes of walking in the same direction without seeing anyone or anything, Satoshi couldn''t hold back anymore. Something was definitely weird in the direction where he''s headed and he''s determined to find it out no matter what.

    Still, there''s no harm in asking a reliable entity like Dex so Satoshi brought the question up.

    [I''ve detected a huge influx of gravity up ahead. It is a hundred times stronger than Earth''s gravity. I presume someone with a gravity-type superpower is fighting a strong beast there]

    [I also detect arge creature, almost reaching the size of the Statue of Captivity. However, judging from its power, it is not a Representative. As such, it is not a threat to you, Satoshi.]

    "I see, thanks, Dex. I get it you mean we can take care of the situation by ourselves?" Satoshi confirmed. The words of his father still rang loudly in his mind and there was no way he''d disobey it unless absolutely necessary.

    [Yes, you can win against the beast... however, the beast is still strong, so you might want to keep your guard up at a

    all times, Satoshi.]

    "All right, I''ll be sure to remember that." Satoshi excitedly responded. At longst, he''d finally meet one of the beasts in the Beast Dimension. A huge part of him wanted to tame the monster no matter how weak Dex deemed it was. That''s why he still looked forward to weing it as his familiar.

    After checking and reconfirming that there was no one around him (even asking Dex if there are people or beasts nearby), Satoshi decided to summon one of his trusty familiars¡ª Ghast, the portal-maker familiar.

    "Ghast, I''m counting on you," Satoshi called out, giving it specific instructions to teleport him nearby to the specified location... and not to teleport him too near since the people there might be suspicious of his presence.

    "As far as we know, that person fighting the monster may be from another Dimension so we have to approach this with the utmost caution," Satoshi told Ghast even though it was more than enough tomand him using his mind.

    Ghast seemed to nod before it formed a purplish hazy portal in front of Satoshi. After bowing toward Ghast and not forgetting to thank him, Satoshi stepped foot inside the portal.<sub> </sub>

    Fwooosh~

    A cold gust of wind greeted Satoshi as soon as he got out of the portal, causing him to inadvertently shield his eyes to avoid dirt in his eyes. Just then, he heard a screech¡ª which was actually the source of the cold gust of wind and the intense aura that epassed the vicinity.

    "What was that?" Satoshi asked, seeing a ck figure from afar. Even though he asked the question, there was no denying that the beast in question looked like a dragon¡ª a ck dragon, to be exact.

    "Dex, do you have any information on that beast?" Satoshi asked since Dex hasn''t told him anything regarding the beast.

    [The beast is called the ck Winged Dragon¡ª one of the most powerful beasts in this portion of the Beast Dimension. Some could even say that it is the top predator in here. Its regr diet includes red smanders, as well as blue smanders. But sometimes, it would feed on other prey as well depending on its mood and taste.]

    [Its tough hide is immune to elemental attacks. It can only be damaged by physical attacks.]

    [Based on its stats, it is at least SS-Grade]

    "What? An SS-Grade?! And you''re telling me that I won''t have any problems with taking it down whatsoever?" Satoshi''s eyes went wide with shock.

    After all, the ck Winged Dragon is at least on par with his White Lion. And Satoshi knew in himself that if he tamed it, it would be even stronger.

    "Can we really take it down?" Satoshi asked for the second time since he wasn''t fully convinced in Dex''s confidence.

    [Yes, Satoshi, you''d be able to take it down with a bit of difficulty... but you can do it. I''m sure of it.] Dex assured him.

    While observing the ck Winged Dragon, that''s when Satoshi realized that it actually got someone pinned on the ground¡ª a person, grunting in pain. While that person was pinned, a second person was trying to fend the ck Winged Dragon off but his efforts were all for naught.

    Satoshi didn''t need any telling twice. At this rate, the man which was trapped between the ck Winged Dragon''s ws would die a painful death. And that would leave a bad taste in Satoshi''s mouth since he didn''t want to see anyone dying in front of him.

    With a wave of his hand, Satoshi summoned Lighter, his unquenchable mes familiar. "Lighter! I choose you!" He dered.

 Chapter 250 Uncoordinated Beast Subjugation

    With a wave of his hand, Satoshi summoned Lighter, his unquenchable mes familiar. "Lighter! I choose you!" He dered.

    Lighter immediately came out an orb of blue and whitish me that rested a few inches above Satoshi''s shoulders. Satoshi was surprised since Lighter seemed to be more powerful than before, its mes a nice bluish iridescent in color. Satoshi was mesmerized by it, but he didn''t let it distract him so much since there was a life that needed saving.

    Without a shred of hesitation, Satoshi ran towards the ck Winged Dragon despite its sheer size. Quite frankly though, Satoshi was scared out of his wits since the ck Winged Dragon seemed to be more intimidating and formidablepared to the Statue of Captivity. Still, Satoshi pressed on, swallowing every bit of anxiousness he felt and letting his adrenaline do all the heavy lifting. It was a somewhat ufortable feeling for Satoshi since he wasn''t used to being overpowered by a threatening presence.

    "Spires of mes, let''s go, Lighter!" Satoshi ordered.

    At that point, Satoshi was near enough to notice whom the two people were, immediately realizing that they were none other than Jack Michael, and Jean Grey.

    "Haah?!" Satoshi impulsively eximed, confused that the two of them were together.

    Just then, Lighter shot out an intense spire of me that pushed out the wind in front of it, causing an intense pressure that could rival the ck Winged Dragon''s aura. Like aser, the spire of me poured forth in a straight line, squarely hitting the ck Winged Dragon to the side and knocking it away. This gave Jean enough time to escape from its grasp and to summon Pheross, his Azure Blue Tiger Familiar.

    "You all right, Jean?" Jack couldn''t help but ask after heaving a sigh of relief.

    "Yeah, thanks to you." Jean Grey sarcastically answered before turning his head toward the kid who just saved them. "Look kid, thank you so much for your help." He muttered before recognizing who the ''kid'' was.

    When Satoshi caught up to them, Jean Grey and Jack Michael let out a gasp after realizing that the person who jumped to their aid was none other than Midoriyama satoshi.

    "Satoshi?" The two of them eximed, diving more into the state of confusion as they wondered why the two of them actually knew the kid.

    "How do you know him? Have you met him before?" Jack Michael asked, perplexed.

    "Yeah, you too?" Jean Grey returned.

    "He''s the owner of the Altered Type White Lion I was telling you about." Jack Michael stated.

    "WHAT?! He''s got an Altered Type White Lion even though he''s already got an Alpha Red Smander?!" An exmation came out of Jean Grey''s mouth. He couldn''t believe that such a young teenager really possessed two powerful familiars.

    "WHAT?! He''s got an Alpha Red Smander too?!" Jack Michael didn''t want to admit it but Satoshi was much more talented than he initially thought.<sub> </sub>

    An ear-splitting screech was heard from the ck Winged Dragon once again as it steadied itself. After staring at the Lighter and then at the three individuals in front of him, the ck Winged Dragon started charging as if its life depended on it.

    "This is no time to be conversing!" Satoshi warned, getting out of harm''s way thanks to the Nailgun that he summoned in a split second.

    The ck Winged Dragon took off into the air before shooting some sort of ck orb/energy ball from its mouth. Since Satoshi didn''t know what that orb''s effects were, he decided to dodge it. Jack Michael and Jean Grey opted to do the same thing as well since they could feel the sheer power of the ck Winged Dragon from that attack alone.

    After firing off such monstrous amounts of energy, the ck Winged Dragon elerated, appearing in front of Satoshi in an instant before charging another one of those ck energy orbs in its mouth. Satoshi was at point-nk range, and he knew that if he didn''t get out of the way, he''d be blown to smithereens... or worse.

    Satoshi had a split second to choose from whatever options he had. But one thing''s for certain¡ª he had to get out of the way as soon as possible.

    "Ghast!" Satoshi muttered. There was no time to lose, he immediately integrated with Ghast and stepped into the portal he created using him. He didn''t have any choice. Even though his dad carefully warned him not to show off his powers, he had to do so in order to stay alive.

    Fwoom~!

    Faster than a snap of a finger, Satoshi got out of harm''s way even before Jack and Jean could scream at him to get out of the way. Confused, they wondered how Satoshi managed to dodge that unavoidable eleration and attackbo of the ck Winged Dragon. They were caught off guard with it before so they knew how fast the ck Winged Dragon actually was.

    Adding to that, Satoshi seemed to have changed clothes out of nowhere. A few moments ago he was wearing normal casual clothes but right now, it shifted into a nice ck robe that suited Satoshi''s starkly ck hair and ck irises.

    "I... I have a powerful attack that could bring the ck Winged Dragon down." Satoshi didn''t waste any time telling everyone about the n since they didn''t seem to know what to do.

    Well, they probably do but they didn''t want to do anything since it would just result in an uncoordinated attack.

    "Ah, I understand." Jean Grey suddenly responded without asking Satoshi the specifics. "You told us that because it takes some time to load, right? We''ll hold off the ck Winged Dragon for you."

    "We won''t be able to hold it off for long though so you better make it quick." Jack continued.

    "All right, I''m leaving everything to you." Satoshi''s eyes narrowed as he pumped a fist in the air. Without further ado, he started charging his blue mes¡ª not the mes of his fire familiar Lighter, but the mes of his superpower that will hopefully allow him to tame the ck Winged Dragon.

    ''Dex, any chance that this won''t work?'' Satoshi inwardly muttered.

 Chapter 251 Female Black Winged Dragon

    ''Dex, any chance that this won''t work?'' Satoshi inwardly muttered. Even though his superpower was yet to fail him, his gut instincts still warned him about the ck Winged Dragon. In himself, he somehow felt like his superpower wouldn''t work on such a powerful beast.

    [It will work, Satoshi]

    "How can you be so sure, Dex?" Satoshi whispered. From a distance, he could hear Jack Michael and Jean Grey frantically shouting at him.

    "Hurry it up, Satoshi! We can''t hold it back any longer!"

    [Because you''ve already tamed an SS-Grade Beast. This means that you have a higher chance of catching a certain grade when you''ve already caught one.]

    "Just a higher chance, right? It doesn''t mean it''s a hundred percent chance." Satoshi reasoned but he still continued forming the bluish orb of mes on hand. "Lighter! Help them!" Satoshi screamed, calling on the lighter to aid the other two who were pushing the ck Winged Dragon back with great difficulty.

    The orb of me was a lot bigger now, almost as big as Satoshi in diameter. Still, Satoshi continued to pour everything he had into the me, tapping into every cell of his body and releasing every ounce of energy he could. This was a do-or-die moment. Either he fails miserably or seeds, there were no other options. That''s why Satoshi did all he could to increase the chances of him taming the wild beast.

    After a few seconds, Jack Michael and Jean Grey finally ran out of energy, jumping out of the way as the ck Winged Dragon went after the one with the most threat¡ª Satoshi. Even though it was the other two who attacked the ck Winged Dragon, it still felt that Satoshi was the most dangerous out of the three. He didn''t hesitate to charge at him at full speed, trying to stop whatever it was Satoshi was trying to do.

    Satoshi wasn''t having it though, he started doing his weird dance as he continued summoning the mes. Jack and Jean stared at him, a little lost.

    "What is he doing?" Jean asked.

    "No idea."

    The ck Winged Dragon started forming another energy ball in its mouth, intent to fire it at Satoshi. Just before it couldpletely form the energy ball though, Satoshi already shot the blue mes from his hand. "Haah~!" Satoshi eximed as if a powerful st was about to get released from his hands.

    Quite frankly, Jack and Jean saw that the blue mes were actually pretty big, that''s why they were expecting it to whizz past as fast as their eyes could see or maybe faster than that. To their utter surprise, however, the blue mes traveled at a snail''s pace, floating ever so slowly towards the ck Winged Dragon as if it wasn''t a threat at all.

    "To think that we''ve bet our lives on that attack..." Jack sighed as he imagined being mauled to death by the ck Winged Dragon.

    "Yeah... it''s superme." Jean agreed. They didn''t even have enough energy toin at Satoshi for such ame attack.

    Even the ck Winged Dragon looked disappointed as it stared at the attack like that. It didn''t know how to react at all. Instead, it stood there, looking at the blue mes as if it wouldn''t harm him in the least. However, the decision of the ck Winged Dragon worked in Satoshi''s favor. The moment it stared into the blue mes, it felt as if its soul was being sucked into the void.

    With its threatening aura continuing to grow, the blue mes mesmerized the ck Winged Dragon, rendering it immobile as it stared into it. The ck Winged Dragon had every opportunity to run from the slow blue mes but it chose not to. Its consciousness was already taken over by the blue mes.

    ''What''s this... why do I feel like I want to risk my life for that human child over there? Why do I feel like I''m falling for him?'' Apparently, the ck Winged Dragon was a female and it felt a keen desire to obey Satoshi even before the blue mes touched it. There was something in her that changed as soon as the blue mes hypnotized her.

    The ck Winged Dragon stood there, its shiny scales getting brighter and brighter as the blue mes approached it. Meanwhile, Jack Michael and Jean Grey were stupefied. They wondered why the ck Winged Dragon didn''t move a single inch at all.

    "Baka na~ what''s happening here?!" Jean Grey eximed. He couldn''t exin why the ck Winged Dragon was acting super weird.

    "I don''t know either... this is the first time I''ve seen something like this happen. Wait... does that mean that the kid''s attack worked?" Jack Michael raised his voice.

    "Sshhh~! Don''t make any unnecessary noises, we''re yet to find out of Satoshi''s attack worked or not. Right now, I can more or less guess that the ck Winged Dragon is currently in a trance-like state. We shouldn''t break that... otherwise the attack won''t work." Jean Grey continued.

    "I... I see..." Jack Michael responded, somewhat apologetic that he raised his voice out of nowhere.

    "Yes, let''s just take a step back and watch. I think we''re about to witness something spectacr soon." Jean Grey''s lips curved upward as his mood finally lightened.

    "I... maybe," Jack Michael didn''t know how to respond so he just shrugged it off and gave a one-word reply to Jean.<sub> </sub>

    ''Hahh~ what''s going on?! I''m really... why am I getting really... haah~ haah~'' The ck Winged Dragon started panting as the licks of the blue mes touched her. ''No! This shouldn''t be! I''m a proud ck WInged Dragon of the ck Winged Tribe! This can''t happen!''

    "Oh yeah, you probably don''t know this, Jack, but ck Winged Dragons are humans." Jean Grey suddenly pointed out. "That''s why it''s hard to tame one... they''re basically untamable... or something like that."

    "..."

    "..."

    The sound of crickets in the background started to y.

    "WHAT?!" Satoshi and Jean Grey eximed in unison.

    "NO, WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT!" Satoshi screamed, waving his hand towards the ck Winged Dragon as he panicked to his core. Had he known that the ck Winged Dragon was actually human, he''d have not shot his blue mes at it.

    The mes touched the ck Winged Dragon, engulfing her in blue mes. ''That''s weird, these mes, they''re not... they''re not hot at all. They feel warm and kind, and gentle... It somewhat reminds me of my mother''s hug... haah~ so warm.''

    "NUOOOOAHHHHH!!!" Tears came out of Satoshi''s eyes as he extended his hand in the air, all hopeless. Dread was written all over his face as blood came out of his eyes. He really was in anguish, and his despair couldn''t be described in words.

    Wahhhhhh~~~

    Fwoooooo~~~

    Flickering mes in the background, a ck Winged Dragon engulfed in mes, and a dying wailing Satoshi in front of it with his hands extended to the ck Winged Dragon. To anyone watching the scene, it would have looked like a crazy ritual was unfolding. To Jack and Jean, the spectacle looked as if it was straight from a novel about summoning.

    "Why did this have to happen?! Why?! Waaaahhh~~!!!" At this point, Satoshi had no idea if he was crying or screaming, or both. The only thing he had in his mind was that what he''d done was irreversible. If the human behind the ck Winged Dragon would die... then it''s his fault. Everything would be his fault.

    "No... it was Dex''s fault, why did he tell me that the ck Winged Dragon was SS-Grade... uuuuu~" Satoshi continuedmenting.

    The ck Winged Dragon was now engulfed in mes.

    It started reverting to its usual human form.

    There was only a split second left for Satoshi. "Think Satoshi, think!" He told himself, trying to get out of the sticky situation.

    Such was the way of crime, if one did a crime even though it was unintentional, their first instinct was to hide all the evidence and to try to get away from the scene as soon as possible. Satoshi felt the same thing. He was human, after all, and moreover, he felt all the more guilty that he used his superpower on a human by ident. It was on ident but the guilt was still there.

    "For now... I have to put the ck Winged Dragon inside Orb Oboros, and then I''d have to get away from here as soon as possible!" Satoshi''s eyes narrowed as the n started forming in his mind. Do note that everything he was concocting took only a split second. In other words, he was so panicked that adrenaline started filling his system up.

    "Orb Oboros! You''re connected to my mind so you know what to do. Hide that ck Winged Dragon and get it out of sight!" Satoshi ordered under his breath. Another thought then came to his mind.

    ''Wait... if the ck Winged Dragon disappears thanks to Orb Oboros... I can just act surprised! Yeah, no one will notice!'' Satoshi was delving further and further from his humanity. He was now thinking like a most wanted criminal.

    Fwooom~! The ck Winged Dragon disappeared from sight.

    And Satoshi, the smooth criminal he was, widened his eyes in surprise and hung his jaw down. "AH?! What happened? Where did it go?" He acted as dumbfounded as he could.

 Chapter 252 Instinct, Mystic, Valor

    The ck Winged Tribe had always lived in the Beast Dimension for generations. For humans they are, they are ranked at the top of the food chain, the most fearless, and the most ferocious of predators when ites to the beasts that reside there.

    For years, the ck Winged Tribe lived in peace and harmony. There were three main factions of the ck Winged Tribe. The Instinct ck Winged Tribe, the Mystic ck Winged Tribe, and the Valor ck Winged Tribe. Each tribe holds a particr core belief that is rted to the name of its tribe.

    Instinct relies on their own intuitiveness, relying on that ''battle dopamine rush'' in battle just like any berserker would. Mystic relies on analyzing their opponents before they make their moves. Andstly, the Valor tribe depends on their sheer strength.

    These core beliefs shed against each other, and the tribe had no choice but to duke it out. Three kingdoms went head to head with each other with no side backing down. The warsted for a couple of years and wouldter be called the Battle of the Three Kingdoms.

    But this is not the focus of this segment.

    Ryoko was born in the Valor ck Winged Tribe where everything relies on strength. Her dad was one of the most powerful ck Winged Dragon to ever exist. He had crystal scales and is said to be the most indestructible ck Winged Tribe member to ever exist.

    When he was young, he rose through the ranks, bing the head chief of the tribe in no time. He had a wife and a daughter, and they lived happily ever after¡ª

    ¡ª or so that''s how the story was supposed to go but... tragedy struck upon the Valor Tribe.

    p Fearing the rising power of Ru Ryu (Ryoko''s dad), the Mystic Tribe and the Instinct Tribe decided to ally themselves with each other, with the sole purpose of destroying the Valor Tribe once and for all. It was a horrid n, but they worked it out for the betterment of their tribes. After all, they knew that it was only a matter of time before Ru Ryu took over the entire ck Winged Dragon race.</anda>

    They devised a trap, and along with it, they kidnapped Ru Ryu''s wife and only daughter. It worked out perfectly, and Ryu was killed.

    However, the two tribes didn''t end it there. For fear that another Crystal Scaled ck Winged Dragon would emerge in the Valor Tribe, they made up propaganda that the Valor Tribe should be erased from the Beast Dimension at all costs. Well, it worked like any other propaganda and the Mystic and Instinct Tribe as a whole were convinced that the Valor Tribe should be annihted.

    Ryoko and her mom, who were imprisoned up until now, we''re finally released from prison, only to be taken to the center of the Valor Tribe and killed there. In a desperate attempt to rescue her daughter, Ryoko''s mom sacrificed her life and she managed to take Ryoko out of the tribes'' territory.

    Since then, Ryoko lived in hiding, surviving on red smanders and blue smanders since she didn''t have any choice. Sometimes, she would see a ck Winged Dragon passing through and she would hide in the shadows. For many years, she lived like that¡ª alone, inclusive, and afraid.

    She had no idea what happened to the Valor Tribe. For all she knows, she''s the only member of the tribe left.

    And then, one day, she saw Jean Grey and Jack Michaels, two humans who can''t transform like her. She wanted to talk to them, but they don''t understand a single word she said. They even attacked her, but fortunately, her scales were formidable, and she was able toe out of the situation unscathed.

    They were too panicked, too out of it that they started attacking her while she asked for help. She started getting angry, calling them mere humans, weak humans, and feeble humans. Even with their superpower, she still deemed them weak since they couldn''t transform into a ck Winged Dragon just like her. She thought they were mutations since all the humans she knows could transform into a ck Winged Dragon.

    The rest was history.

    .....

    The mes touched the ck Winged Dragon, engulfing her in blue mes. ''That''s weird, these mes, they''re not... they''re not hot at all. They feel warm and kind, and gentle... It somewhat reminds me of my mother''s hug... haah~ so warm.''

    "NUOOOOAHHHHH!!!" Tears came out of Satoshi''s eyes as he extended his hand in the air, all hopeless. Dread was written all over his face as blood came out of his eyes. He really was in anguish, and his despair couldn''t be described in words.

    As soon as the blue mes fully clothed her body, Ryoko felt as if her whole self was being sucked into another reality. She bit her lips and closed her eyes as tightly as she could, hoping that she didn''t die after touching those warm and gentle mes. A whimper came out of her mouth and she started to shudder in fear.<sub> </sub>

    From a distance, she could hear someone wailing, crying in despair as he lost himself. She couldn''t tell why but somehow, she knew who the person was. His name was Midoriyama Satoshi. Furthermore, she could somehow feel what he was feeling, not to mention see through his past and share feelings with him.

    "What''s this feeling?" Ryoko asked herself as she woke up, only to be greeted by powerful beasts. There was a Floating Four-Piece Nailgun, a white floating cute stuff toy with seven halos on her head, a ghost-like being that teleported here and there, and a few other beasts that were almost as strong as her¡ª if not on par with her.

    Even with all those distractions, her connection with the boy who was the same age as her, Midoriyama Satoshi, was still as strong as ever. She could feel everything he felt¡ª not intentionally though, but because Satoshi was sharing his feelings with her subconsciously.

    "Where am I? What happened?" She asked.

    To be fair, Ryoko had been to many ces before, but she''d never been inside a ce wherein familiars reside. But then again, she had enough experience with the unknown so she wasn''t particrly panicky when she suddenly found herself in it. Besides, Satoshi''s reassuring presence was there to ascertain her that everything was going to be all right. Her connection with him made her believe him, and that''s more than enough for her to retain herposure and tranquility.

    Compared to her times in the Beast Dimension where it was eat or be eaten, and where she should do everything to survive, the dimension inside Orb Oboros was far more peaceful. Ever since she escaped the ck Winged Tribes, she had experienced living in utter survival, but now, all those years seemed to pass by in the blink of an eye and she was calm.

    Satoshi''s White Lion approached her, nuzzling his head on her legs which tempted her to go down on her knees and bury her head in its mane. She fell asleep soon after that.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    "AH?! What happened? Where did it go?" Satoshi acted as surprised as he could, looking around in confusion while ncing toward Jack and Jean respectively as if to redirect his suspicions towards them.

    "I didn''t do anything. You?" Jean Grey asked while patting Pheross, his Azure Blue Tiger, on the head. It purredfortably.

    "What? Me? I didn''t do anything." Jack Michael repeated as the two of them started looking around.

    One moment, the ck Winged Dragon was there, the next moment it was gone with the end, disappearing in a snap of a finger.

    Before anyone started questioning him about what happened, Satoshi fell to his knees and sighed in relief, wiping an imaginary bead of sweat on his forehead. "Whew, we survived that one. That was scary." He muttered to himself, truly getting into the character of a helpless teenager.

    "Yeah, how could it disappear just like that?" Jack said, bewildered.

    "You know what, that''s enough excitement for the day, let''s get out of here for now. How about we stop by over at my ce by the Nichijou Region? It''s a clear shot via the Dimensional Portal that leads to our world." Jean Grey excitedly offered, his eyes sparkling like the starry night reflected on ake.

    "What? No, I have better things to do." Jack Michael said. "I need to do a quick run to my country, you know, paperwork... I''ve been ditching the lot of themtely."

    "What? Every single time I invite you, you''re always not avable." Jean Grey sighed. "How about you, Satoshi?"

    "I''m sorry, I need to meet up with my group. We''re currently on an excursion to the Beast Dimension or something like that." Satoshi said in a casual manner, relieved that they weren''t skeptical about him. "But hold on a second... let me take a couple of steps back and ask... you two know each other?"

    "Yep, we''re best buds, right Jack?" Jean Grey cheerfully dered, wrapping his arm around Jack''s neck.

 Chapter 253 HUMANS?!

    The area right behind the Dimensional Portal was the most boring ce in the Beast Dimension¡ª or at least, such was the case for the Korean Kim Jin Seok¡ª the number ten hero in Korea at the moment. A few minutes earlier, he already sent everyone to look for their own Beast and try to tame it. It was such a simple task that anyone could achieve off the bat. But because of that, others would bepelled to look for an even better beast to tame, eating away the entire morning that Kim Jin Seok allotted for everyone.

    During that time, Kim Jin Seok simply lingered there, waiting for the time to pass by so he could finally get to the exciting most looked-forward-to part of their Beast Dimension Excursion. But at the moment, he had nothing else to do but sit on a rock and contemte life. Had he known that he''d be assigned another group today, he''d have brought an additional power bank for his console... but since it was a sudden notice, he had no choice but to follow through with it.

    "If only number six didn''t get sick. Sigh~ why do I have to clean up their messes? I''m the number ten hero, you know... the number ten." He said to himself, but he didn''t voice it out as loud for fear that someone was eavesdropping on him.

    After looking around a couple of times, he heaved a deep exhale before lying down on the huge boulder of rock where he was sitting a couple of moments ago. If there really was nothing he could do, then he''d decided to at least get some extra hours of sleep before anything happens.

    ''Still, how many years has it been since I started working here...'' Kim Jin Seok said in his mind, looking up at the sky while admiring the myriad of stars that d the night. Compared to the view from the earth, the sky''s view here in the Beast Dimension was divine. It was beautiful and mesmerizing, and anyone who watched it would get their consciousness temporarily taken from them.

    Despite the slow run of time as he found tranquility while resting, Kim Jin Seok quite frankly didn''t feel bad at all. Instead, he absolutely enjoyed the quiet despite being bored out of his mind.

    ''I wonder what kind of beast they''ll bring with them this time.'' He muttered to himself, tapping on his arm as he listened to silence.

    Tap. Tap.

    Tap.

    The light pitter-patter of feet made Kim Jin Seok bolt upright. He feared that someone was sneaking up behind him but as it turned out, it was none other than Lydia Schwarz, one of the superheroes who participated in the exercise. She wasn''t the talkative type so no one in Satoshi''s group paid attention to her.

    "I''m back." She lightly muttered as a huge elephant-like beast came trotting down behind her.

    Just like her hair and eye color, the elephant was of the dark blue color, with hints of a darker shade on its four legs. A tusk with a nice shade of ashen grey grew from both sides of its trunk, giving it a more menacing image despite its cuddly appearance. Lydia rubbed the chin of the blue elephant before settling down, leaning on one of its legs.

    "That''s a... a Frost Elephant? An A-Grade Beast that hibernates underground during summertime, and reemerged on the surface to hunt during the winter. Amazing... this is the first time I''ve seen one." Kim Jin Seok said to himself, admiring the blue elephant that stood before him.

    If he had any authority regarding the trip to the Beast Dimension, he would''ve cut the exercise right then and there since it''s clear that Lydia won in terms of Beast Grade.

    It wasn''t mentioned before but just like Satoshi''s system, Dex, the world also uses a ranking system for the beasts captured in the Beast Dimension. There are two parameters set on how a beast is graded. One, its rarity¡ª if a beast is prettymon then it would have a lower grade. And two, itsbat capabilities¡ª if a beast has a wide variety of skills, then its grade would be higher.

    Starting from the lowest F Grade, these beasts are the mostmon beasts in the Beast Dimension, and taming them is pretty easy. From F Grade to B Grade, these beasts are prettymon, but taming them gets harder and harder the higher their grades are. A Grade refers to beasts who are powerful enough to go head to head with a low-ranked to mid-ranked superhero. And then there are the legendary S-Grade, SS-Grade, and SSS-Grade¡ª these beasts are basically the kings and queens of the Beast Dimension, able to go against a high-ranking superhero. Throughout history, there are only a handful of SSS-Grade Beasts discovered.

    Then again, despite the many attempts, no one had been sessful in taming these monstrosities.

    That''s why it''s already a feat in and of itself to tame an A-Grade Beast. At such a young age, Lydia managed to achieve just that, and she was alone to boot. Usually, some superheroes would require a party just to tame an A-Grade Beast.

    This also exins Kim Jin Seok''s mindset of cutting the trip to the Beast Dimension off. After all, no one could top what Lydia had achieved, and she was the first one to arrive, to say the least.

    "How did you tame the Frost Elephant? Did you use the Pacifist Approach or the Bellicist Approach?" Kim Jin Seok asked, his eyes sparkling as he disturbed Lydia''s peace.<sub> </sub>

    "I fought with it." Lydia simply answered. "Honestly, it''s not that impressive. I just happened to stumble upon a cave, then I entered it, and a horde of Frost Elephants was there. I fought the weakest one and tamed it."

    ''So she was lucky. Even those who wanted to tame the Frost Elephants had a hard time looking for their habitat.'' Kim Jin Seok said to himself.

    "I saw someone who caught something better than me though. I think it was a ck Winged Dragon." Lydia then brought up the topic out of nowhere.

    Kim Jin Seok hasn''t even recovered from the surprise of the tamed Frost Elephant when Lydia told him about the ck Winged Dragon. His eyes grew wide in excitement as his lips curved conspicuously upwards. "Someone caught a what?!" He eximed.

    .....

    In the end, Jean Grey and Jack Michael both said their farewells before they headed to their respective Dimensional Portals. They promised to hunt for an Altered Type White Lion in the near future and then went their separate ways.

    Of course, they insisted Satoshi that he show them his Alpha Red Smander and his Altered Type White Lion before they left. Needless to say, they were quite astonished by it. After all, it''s quite rare to see an Alpha, much less to see an Altered Type. But there it was, two of the rarest types of beasts to ever exist.

    With the excitement pretty much over, Satoshi finally had the time to rx and heave a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the two adults didn''t see his sleight of hand back there, and he was able to get away with taming the ck Winged Dragon albeit identally. Up until now, he still couldn''t believe that the ck Winged Dragon was actually a human.

    "I can''t believe I used it on a human. How could I do that!" Once again, Satoshi started overthinking, grabbing his hair as he tried to figure out a way out¡ª something that would undo the taming process on the ck Winged Dragon.

    [Satoshi, why are you contemting so much about adding another human to your team? Haven''t you done it already in the past?] Dex asked, mildly bewildered. Just as he mentioned, Satoshi had done it in the past so there shouldn''t be any problem with doing it again. This was also the reason why Dex didn''t stop him from using his superpower on the ck Winged Dragon.

    And judging from Dex''s line of thought, he was actually right.

    "What do you mean? Of course, I''ve never used it on any humans. If I had I wouldn''t react this way." Satoshi reasoned out, telling Dex that he was outright wrong with his usation.

    [Gabriel and the Ice Empress are humans... yet you never have a problem with them. Are there any particr reasons why? I don''t understand.] Dex continued.

    "..."

    "..."

    A pause, and then all the colors drained from Satoshi''s face as he internalized every word Dex told him. He never really thought about Gabriel and the Ice Empress up until now. All he thought was that they were monsters spawning in the gates... nothing more and nothing less.

    But based on Dex... they were humans? How could that be?

    "WHAAAT?!" Satoshi screamed, almost losing it at the bomb that Dex so casually dropped on him. "Are you telling me that... the two of them... they''re humans?!"

 Chapter 254 Lunchbreak

    Deep breaths, Satoshi, deep breaths. Heaving in and out, Satoshi tried to calm himself down as he summoned his new familiar, the ck Winged Dragon. Even though almost an hour had already passed, he was still in denial about the ck Winged Dragon being human, and he kept on repeating to himself that maybe, just maybe, Jack Michael and Jean Grey were messing with him¡ª that ck Winged Dragons aren''t humans but they are sentient beings like his other familiars.

    With that thought in mind, Satoshi somewhat regained hisposure, and he finallymanded Orb Oboros to release the ck Winged Dragon.

    RAARGGHHH~!

    "Cough, cough, I''m sorry I... did you want me to appear in my human form? You changed your mind halfway through the summoning so I wasn''t sure." Ryoko fidgeted as she stood in front of Satoshi.

    Apparently, this was the first time Ryoko got a good look at who her tamer was, and she was surprised to see that Satoshi was actually above average when ites to his looks. He had dark hair, and dark eyes which were formed into natural slits, giving him a wild look. And his eyshes... they were long,parable to girls her age. Ryoko was shocked. She was already thankful enough as it is (more on thatter) but now that she saw her summoner, she couldn''t help but feel honored. And his good looks? They were an added bonus to Ryoko''s mental checklist and it definitely gave Satoshi additional points as her summoner.

    "Kyun~" Ryoko let out a squeal as she took an interest in Satoshi. Was it because of her formed bond with Satoshi the moment she was tamed... or was it because Satoshi was totally her style? She could only wonder but right here, right now, Ryoko was certain that she wouldn''t mind spending her days with a tamer like Satoshi.

    "Gah! It really is a human!" Satoshi''s eyes widened before he dropped to the ground on a dogeza. There it was, the point of no return¡ª the ck Winged Dragon in her human form.

    "My name is Ryu Ryoko, I am a ck Winged Dragon of the Valor ck Winged Tribe. I express my sincerest gratitude for this newfound power. Allow me to assist you in battle." She formally introduced herself, bowing down in front of Satoshi with one knee on the ground.

    "Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi. I''m sorry I turned you into one of my familiars, I had no idea you were a human." Satoshi apologetically said. He had to tell her her case so she wouldn''t misunderstand everything in the future.

    "It doesn''t pose a problem, Satoshi-dono, you don''t have to apologize." Ryoko continued. "You''ve granted me new power, that''s why you have the rightful im to use it as you see fit. However, I would just like to ask one request from Satoshi-dono."

    "Yes? What is it? If you want freedom you can go." Satoshi continued, thinking that Ryoko probably didn''t want to be bound to him. Better to offer the freedom first than to get asked for itter on¡ª or so that''s what Satoshi believed.

    "No, I would never ask that, Satoshi-dono." Ryoko vehemently shook her head, outrightly rejecting Satoshi''s goodwill offer. "I just... I need to tell you something, Satoshi-dono."

    "You know what, in the long run, I''d feel weird if you keep calling me that. Just Satoshi is fine with me, we''re the same age, after all." Satoshi continued, referring to Ryoko''s basic information that he has in his head. ording to that, they were the same age, sixteen years old.

    "Y-yoroshi~~ Satoshi... um... it''s embarrassing~" Ryoko''s face flushed red as she hid her face on the cor of her skirt, pulling it up so Satoshi wouldn''t see her expression. It was a surprise for her when Satoshi, but she didn''t want to disappoint him so she called him just that. The embarrassment came soon after, making her flustered.

    "Um... yeah~!" Satoshi grabbed the hair on the back of his head and pulled as hard as he could. That way his secondhand embarrassment wouldn''t show. "In any case, what were you talking about? You said something about a request?"

    "Um... yes, about that." With the topic brought up, Ryoko then narrated her backstory, telling Satoshi everything about her past, including how two tribes betrayed theirs and eliminated their entire tribe in one fell swoop. If it weren''t for her mother sacrificing her wife just to save her, she wouldn''t have been alive right now.

    "For years, I''ve lived in pure rage and fury as roamed the ins of the Beast Dimension. I lost all my sense of purpose, and I was powerless to go against the two tribes that killed my parents and my entire tribe. But now, Satoshi, with the power that you''ve bestowed upon me, I will avenge my tribe... I will avenge my parents... and I swear on my life that I will forever be loyal to you, Satoshi. I will protect you with my life, and will never leave your side." She continued, bringing her fists together as she bowed a solemn bow.<sub> </sub>

    Taken aback, Satoshi shook his head and waved his hands. "No, you don''t have to go that far. I... I made you my familiar without knowing anything. If any, I should be the one thanking you for going with this arrangement." Satoshi bowed as well. "I look forward to working with you from now on, Ryoko,"

    "I vow to always be worthy of this honor, Satoshi-do¡ª ermm, Satoshi," Ryoko continued. "By the way, Satoshi?"

    "What is it?"

    ? "You called me to your spatial storage before you saw the form you''ve given me, right? I want you to see it!" Ryoko happily said. After all, the new form that Satoshi granted her through the taming process resembled her dad a lot.

    That''s right, she finally awakened the Crystal Scales that her dad had¡ª the legendary ck Winged Dragon known only to exist once every hundreds of years.

    "Sure, why not?" Satoshi obliged.

    .....

    A few momentster, the superheroes who went on the trip to the Beast Dimension regrouped, and the painstakingly long hours of boredom that Kim Jin Seok experienced were finally over. He pped his hands after seeing everyone seed in taming their very first beast. But then again, there were a lot of them who tamed red smanders and blue smanders¡ª which was understandable since they were prettymon in the area. (This is also the reason why Ryoko''s diet consisted of red smanders and blue smanders. She didn''t have any choice but to use them as sustenance. There was nothing else.)

    "All right, I see that you''ve worked your way to taming your first beast. I''m d that all of you passed the test." Kim Jin Seok announced after pping his hands to garner everyone''s attention. He then waved one hand to the crowd, giving another announcement.

    "And with that, it is now lunchtime. I''m hoping you all brought your lunch with you. I don''t have any to share." Kim Jin Seok continued,ughing in a low tone as he made his way to a secluded spot to eat his lunch in peace. That didn''t stop a couple ofdies from following him though. Describing him as good-looking was an understatement since he looked a lot like a certain Korean pop star from a famous boy band that globally shook the entire world in the past.

    "Satoshi!" Emma called out, waving her hands. She was with Shiroi and the other girls and they just made their way back. "I brought lunch."

    "Ah, right," Satoshi muttered as he gazed into the distance. His mind still hasn''t recovered from the fact that he used his superpower on a human. Not only that, the fact that he used it on humans prior to that without knowing actually made him question his superpower. If it worked on humans then it''s more powerful than he initially thought.

    "What are you thinking about, Satoshi?" Emma asked, thinking that Satoshi probably failed the test. After all, he didn''t have any beasts with him so that must mean that he didn''t catch anything.

    At first, she wanted to console him, but after realizing that he had a lot of powerful and formidable familiars in his possession, she thought that she didn''t have to do anything. Besides, Satoshi didn''t look like he needed some consoling.

    "So, what beast did you tame, Satoshi?" Shiroi asked while a cute mini penguin slowly sway-walked beside her.

 Chapter 255 Lydia Schwarz

    "So, what beast did you tame, Satoshi?" Shiroi asked while a cute mini penguin slowly sway-walked beside her.

    The penguin was the fluffiest penguin Satoshi had ever seen, and it was also one of the smallest ones. If it were to bepared to earth''s standards, then it would be ssified as a nestling. Furthermore, it''s fur had a shiny tint to it. Satoshi and the others then realized that even though the penguin had the same color palette as the penguins from the earth, the tips of its fur had a golden hue on it, making it look sparkly as it is cute.

    When Shiroi asked him the prying question, Satoshi had no idea how he''d respond. There was no way he could tell her that he caught a human¡ª the apex predator in that region. Even though they''d be aware of it sooner orter, Satoshi still couldn''t bring himself to tell her as well as the group. Some part of him felt guilty, despite Ryoko''s sincere feelings of gratitude.

    "I... I''m actually not sure..." Satoshi vaguely answered, scratching his head. He couldn''t really answer honestly because of Ryoko''splicated status as both a beast and a human.

    "Let''s see it then!" Hiroshi called out, beside him, a Red Smander was bobbing its head up and down.

    Before Satoshi could respond, a girl their age came up to them. She had a Frost Elephant with her, matching her cerulean hair and clear blue eyes. "You don''t have to show it, Satoshi. For anyone who doesn''t know, there will be a mini-tournament after lunch so we''d get to showcase our beasts." Upon saying that, the girl sat beside Satoshi before opening her bento, self-inviting herself to the group during lunch.

    "Aaand... you are?" Satoshi asked. Somehow, the girl looked oddly familiar but he couldn''t quite tell who she was. "I''m sorry, have we met before?"

    "Of course we did... but you probably don''t remember since we were small back then." The girl responded. "The name''s Lydia Schwarz."

    "Ah!" Satoshi pointed out as if a light bulb turned on in his head. He recognized who she was¡ª she was none other than Aquaborne''s daughter. "No wonder you look familiar. Your dad used to visit a lot back then."

    "Yeah, but it''s gotten busy ever since he became the number one superhero in our country, Switzend. I''ve seen you a couple of times in live streams, Satoshi, who would''ve thought you''d awaken your superpower at ater age." Lydia smiled before eating the onigiri in her bento box.

    "Y-you''re Lydia Schwarz?! And Aquaborne''s your dad? Wow so cool!" Midori burst out out of the blue, joining in on the conversation. "I''ve seen your dad on news channels, and he''s pretty cool! From what I can remember, he has the superpower called Water Integration, right? It allows him to transform himself to water, allowing himself to integrate with liquids."

    Unsurprisingly, Shiroi and the others know very little about Aquaborne (Joseph Schwarz) and that''s because no one actually knows the number one superhero of a country. Unless one''s a die-hard fan of superpowers and superheroes, they won''t even know much about the superheroes in other countries. As for Midori, it was by pure chance that he became a fan of Aquaborne, that''s why he knows about him.

    "So you came here for the Beast Dimension, right? Nice to meet you, I''m Emma Leisenberg." Emma mustered the courage to introduce herself. As someone who''s also the same age as Lydia, she thought that maybe introducing herself would be her first step in making friends. That''s how she got a tad bit close to Shiroi and the others,<sub> </sub>

    "Nice to meet you too," Lydia answered casually. "And no, I actually came to Japan as an exchange student... but... there will be an entrance exam in a few days'' time before I''m guaranteed a spot in school. You''re all studying in the USA, right? That''s where I''m going."

    "So you''re also transferring to our school, that''s great!" Shiroi chimed in, sitting with the group and scooting over towards Satoshi''s other side. "I guess Emma would havepany once she applies for our school as well."

    "Ah, right. I almost forgot about that." Emma continued.

    "By the way, Midori, what beast did you tame? I tamed a Red Smander, awesome right?" Hiroshi pumped his fists in the air while his Red Smander continued to bob its head up and down. No one knows why it does that but it looked cute so no oneined about the weird behavior.

    "Ah, me? Hehe..." Midori snickered. Just then, a nt-like beast came out from behind him.

    It had green vines that covered its entire body, and its eyes could be seen from within the thickest parts of the vines. It had a sinister red glow as eyes.

    This time, it was Kim Jin Seok who came up to the group. He realized that Lydia''s group was the biggest one there was so he decided to join them for a bit before lunch break was over. He just finished lunch and striking up a conversation would be nice with a full stomach. "That''s a Vinerinna, right? Wow, it''s the first time I''ve seen one."

    "You see, with the hot climate in this portion of the Beast Dimension, it''s hard to find a grass-type beast. I''m surprised you were able to find one. Funnily enough, ice types and fire types are moremon in areas like this." Kim Jin Seok continued.

    "So that''s how it was. I was wandering around when I suddenly fell into a deep hole. And there I found this beast. I figured I should try taming it so it could get us out of that hole." Midori responded, scratching his head as he chuckled. "Well, at least everything worked out in the end. I''ve got myself a tamed beast and I escaped from that pit."

    "An unexpected encounter that resulted in a destined meeting, huh? What a nice story." Kim Jin Seok nodded his head while tapping his finger on his arms. "Well, lunch break is already over so are you prepared for the next segment of this excursion?" He asked.

    Everyone knew what the next segment was going to be, that''s why they cheered a resounding ''yes'' before Kim Jin Seok announced themencement of the ''Unofficial Beast Tournament''.

 Chapter 256 Unofficial Beast Tournament I

    Kim Jin Seok assumed the position atop one of the huge boulders present in the area. After clearing his throat, he addressed everyone, telling them to listen up as he had an announcement to make. Of course, everyone was already aware of what he was about to say next so they eagerly gathered around him before he even spoke. He wasn''t the only one excited for the uing beast tournament, and it showed based on the enthusiastic reactions of everyone.

    "First, before I go into the details of this unofficial beast tournament, I''m sure that some of you wouldn''t want to join so... to anyone who doesn''t want to join, please raise your hands and you can go stand in the sidelines. This way, I''d be able to efficiently divide you into two groups and then assign your brackets after that."

    His announcement was met with sighs of relief since there were a number of participants who didn''t want to join the unofficial beast tournament. Either they tamed a weak beast or they just weren''t in the mood to fight¡ª those individuals backed down and stood on the sidelines in order to cheer for those who wanted to fight. They didn''t bother asking Kim Jin Seok if they could be excused early since they wanted to check what type of beasts would be fighting in that ring. In any case, they wanted more information on the beasts so the next time they visit the Beast Dimension again, they''d have a rough idea about what beast to hunt for.

    "Do your best, you guys!"

    "We''ll be cheering for you! Do well!"

    The cheers from the superheroes who didn''t join started reverberating from the sidelines, giving the participants the extra motivation they needed for the uing tournament. Of course, the spectators weren''t the only ones excited for this second segment.

    "All right, now we''ll set up the list so you''d know who your opponent will be. Please be informed that I''ll be drawing randomly just to be fair to everyone. I wouldn''t want all of you to choose which opponent you''d want since that would ruin the order of the beast tournament. Also... it would be an inefficient way to handle one so there''s that."

    After he spoke, however, one of the participants raised his hand for a question. It was none other than Satoshi, and he looked specifically troubled.

    "Yes? If I recall, you''re Midoriyama Satoshi, right? Son of the Midoriyama Duo? It''s nice to meet you, I''m Kim Jin Seok. I''m a huge fan of your parents!" Kim Jin Seok''s eyes sparkled. Ever since he saw Satoshi in the group, he''d wanted to strike up a conversation with him because he was a die-hard fan of the Midoriyama Duo. While he had plenty of chances to speak to him, he couldn''t bring himself to do so since he felt a bit timid.

    "Um... do you want their autograph? I''d get one for you after this if you want." Satoshi dly offered before he asked his question. "By the way... your offer about standing by the sidelines... does the offer still stand? I want to drop out from the tournament?"

    "Of course, you can go right now... if it''s not too prying... why would you want to drop out, Satoshi?" Kim Jin Seok curiously asked.

    Just like any other superheroes around the world, he''d seen Midoriyama Satoshi a couple of times on world news. He wasn''t famous in Japan alone, he''s also somewhat famous around the world due to his many feats. One particr video that Kim Jin Seok saw about Satoshi was his fight against the Slime Alien. Back then he wasn''t as strong and the fight was pretty much his debut. But he did rather well¡ª dealing with a monster that no one was able to defeat. Not even the Midoriyam Duo could hold a candle to that monster.

    ''And yet he wanted to drop out? Why? Did he run out of time? I did remember him straggling behind at first... but there''s no way he wasn''t able to tame a beast... no, maybe he only tamed amon beast? That''s a possibility.'' Kim Jin Seok wondered.

    Since Satoshi didn''t answer his first question, he decided to ask another one. "Satoshi, what beast did you tame? Is it all right if I asked?"

    "Um..." Satoshi''s voice trailed off. The main reason why he didn''t want to join the tournament was that Ryoko could easily defeat all the familiars everyone had. As mentioned before, he was at the top of the food chain. In fact, the tournament wouldn''t even be a challenge to her at all.

    Plus, she wasn''t really the type of person/beast to hold back. Based on the conversation Satoshi had with her, he could tell that she was a passionate individual and that passion would really be reflected in her fighting style. Satoshi didn''t want to see a familiar being defeated one-sidedly.

    "SATOSHI! What did you mean by that? You''re not going to join the tournament?!" Just when Satoshi was about to tell Kim Jin Seok that he didn''t want to show the beast he tamed, Hiroshi came up to him and grabbed him by the cor. He started rambling, spit spraying on Satoshi''s face as he did so.

    p "Um, I have my reasons." Satoshi vaguely replied.</anda>

    "Reasons my ass. Look at this! Look!" Hiroshi then pointed at his red smander, still bobbing its head up and down as if matching the tune of ievan polkka, a famous ssic Russian song. "That''s a red smander, probably the mostmon beast out here. But I''m still joining! No matter what beast you caught, Satoshi, don''t be embarrassed! You should join just like me!"

    "Yeah, you go kid! It isn''t your fault that you caught a weak beast!"<sub> </sub>

    "Come on kid! You can do it!"

    "We''re cheering for you!"

    Funnily enough, those who were cheering Satoshi were none other than the people who went to the sidelines, giving up on the tournament altogether. It was an ironic turn of events that Satoshi had to suppress his urge tough due to how ridiculous the scenario was.

    And during that time, Satoshi actually got an idea. Now that he thought about it, he had a lot of familiars stored in Orb Oboros. There was no rule that said he''d have to bring out the familiar he recently caught, he could use anyone in his barracks.

    Because of that, Satoshi changed his mind, all thanks to Hiroshi but for an entirely different reason. "Thanks, Hiroshi, I guess I''ll be joining the tournament after all. I also caught a Red Smander so I wanted to back out."

    "That makes the two of us. You don''t have to worry about losing, we''re in this together."

    Kim Jin Seok, who saw everything, was impressed by Hiroshi''s camaraderie as well as everyone''s support of Satoshi. It was a heartwarming scene, and he couldn''t help but tear up a little bit. ''So he managed to tame a red smander... I guess even one of the strongest superheroes has their own setbacks, huh.'' Kim Jin Seok said to himself as he cleared his throat for the second time.

    "I guess that settles it." Kim Jin Seok announced, grabbing a tablet from his pocket and projecting a holographic image in the air with it. "This is the bracket setup. There will be two brackets, and the winner of the two brackets would face off each other in the finals... honestly, it''s that simple." Kim Jin Seok sighed because he went through the trouble of hyping up the setup when there was nothing spectacr about it.

    "And let''s roll the dice!" With one click of a button, names began appearing on the lowest parts of the brackets. There were two groups, and the people in their respective groups were set up to face each other off.

    Even though Satoshi felt unsure of himself, he was confident that he''d be able to win a match as long as he wasn''t pitted against the ice types or water types¡ª specifically, Lydia Schwarz''s frost elephant, or Yukine Shiroi''s Fluffy Penguin.

    "I can''t wait to fight your red smander, Satoshi. Well, I''ve been able to bond with my red smander pretty quickly so I think we''ll be able to put up a good fight." He continued, patting Satoshi on the shoulder as if to console him.

    "We have Shiroi''s Fluffy Penguin in our bracket, so there''s a good chance you''ll fight her first before me though." Satoshi returned.

    But their words were thrown out the window the moment when the matchups were put up.

    And coincidentally enough, Satoshi and Hiroshi were going to fight each other first.

    "Are you kidding me?!" Satoshi eximed, not because he was afraid of Hiroshi''s red smander, but because he couldn''t believe the matchup. ''What are the chances?!'' He screamed inwardly.

    "HAHA! Be prepared to lose, Satoshi!" Hiroshi taunted him, immediately taking his ce on one side of the open area that Kim Jin Seok opened up for the unofficial beast tournament.

    "Sigh~ are you kidding me?" Satoshi scratched his head and positioned himself on the other end of the open field.

    "FOR THE FIRST BATTLE! GIVE IT UP FOR SATOSHI AND HIROSHI!" Kim Jin Seok announced.

    "By the way... where''s Satoshi''s red smander?" Lydia Schwarz confusedly asked Emma on the sidelines.

 Chapter 257 Unofficial Beast Tournament II

    "HAHA! Be prepared to lose, Satoshi!" Hiroshi taunted him, immediately taking his ce on one side of the open area that Kim Jin Seok opened up for the unofficial beast tournament.

    "Sigh~ are you kidding me?" Satoshi scratched his head and positioned himself on the other end of the open field.

    "FOR THE FIRST BATTLE! GIVE IT UP FOR SATOSHI AND HIROSHI!" Kim Jin Seok announced.

    Honestly, Kim Jin Seok felt relief when Hiroshi and Satoshi were paired up together for the first fight. It might probably be a stroke of luck but at least Satoshi would have a decent fight against another Red Smander. Had it been anyone else, he''d have lost big time and Kim Jin Seok didn''t want that. He wanted Satoshi to at least feel his bond with his Red Smander despite it being one of the weakest beasts to ever exist in the Beast Dimension.

    Hiroshi rubbed his nose as his red smander walked in front of him, screeching like a lunatic while turning around. It was a goofy red smander that even Hiroshi was a tad bit embarrassed by it. But that didn''t stop him from owning the red smander though. Wearing a straight face, he extended his hand towards Satoshi who stood on the other side of the open area, telling him to release his red smander so they couldmence with the first round of the tournament.

    "Where''s your red smander, Satoshi?" Hiroshi asked, taunting Satoshi as if that would do him well in the fight. To be fair, he was excited... that is until Satoshi started smiling.

    "One question though..." Satoshi pointed out, out of nowhere, as he essed Orb Oboros''s dimensional storage and got his Alpha Red Smander. "Why is your Red Smander so small?"

    Satoshi''s Altered Type Alpha Red Smander came out, screeching just like Hiroshi''s Red Smander did. However, its screech was more vibrant as it is intimidating. Its sheer size is probably fifty or more timesrger than a normal red smander, and adding to that, it gave off incredible heat from its body. Everyone on the sidelines felt the sheer power that emanated from Satoshi''s Red Smander.

    Everyone''s reactions to the Altered Type Alpha Red Smander were pretty much the same¡ª with all of them hanging their mouths in amazement. Even Kim Jin Seok was not excluded from the surprise that everyone felt, and his jaw dropped to the ground as well while his eyes almost fell out of their sockets. "That''s a... an Altered Type and an Alpha Type... what are the chances of that happening?!" He eximed, admiring the Altered Type Alpha Red Smander in all its form and glory.

    "Oi oi, are you kidding me right now?" Hiroshi''s mouth twitched as Satoshi''s Altered Type Alpha Red Smander approached his Red Smander. He could''ve sworn that his Red Smander peed himself as it stared at its giant counterpart.

    Satoshi''s Red Smander didn''t waste any time. With one p, Hiroshi''s Red Smander was sent skittering sideways, hitting its head on the ground a couple of times as it mercilessly rolled. Once it stopped rolling, it was already done for¡ª it had already lost its consciousness with its eyes a swirly doodly mess.

    Everyone gasped. Even Kim Jin Seok who was supposed to announce the results of the first battle on the first bracket was shocked and he paused for a few seconds before regaining hisposure. "Ehrhmm~ and the winner of the first match is¡ª MIDORIYAMA SATOSHI!" He screamed Satoshi''s name in the end.

    His sudden change in volume got everyone back to their senses and they exhratingly pped at the expected turn of events. It was so underwhelming to the point that it was actually exciting.

    "Oh no, my red smander." Hiroshi rushed towards his tamed beast and carried it. "What are you on about, Satoshi, you didn''t tell me that your Red Smander was a giant one... and it even had a nice vibrant scarlet, almost orangey color. That means it''s an Altered Type, right? Sigh~ how could you be so lucky."

    "I thought you were going to beat my red smander?" Satoshi responded, rubbing more salt on Hiroshi''s already salty wounds.

    "I didn''t know your red smander was a giant!" Hiroshi voiced out.

    ...

    ...

    In the second match of the first round, it was none other than Midori and his Vinerinna. Apparently, their opponent was another red smander and they won by the skin of their teeth. After all, Vinerinna is a grass-type and grass-types are weak against fire types. Even though Vinerinna was a rare beast and strong enough than most grass types, it still is weak against amon fire type which is the red smander.

    "So your tamed beast is an Alpha Red Smander, huh? Too bad mine''s the Frost Elephant." Lydiamented, once again seating herself beside Satoshi. "I''m in the second bracket and honestly, no one can defeat me over there. I''ll wait for you in the finals, Satoshi." She continued.

    "Um yeah... sure..." Satoshi muttered. After all, before he could get into the finals, he still needed to fight Shiroi''s Fluffy Penguin.<sub> </sub>

    As mentioned before, red smanders are weak against water types and ice types. That''s why the Fluffy Penguin is probably the red smander''s worst matchup. Compared to the Frost Elephant which only has one type¡ª ice¡ª the Fluffy Penguin has two types, which are ice and water. In other words, the Fluffy Penguin is a much more formidable opponentpared to Lydia''s Frost Elephant.

    The Fluffy Penguin and the Frost Elephant are both A-Grade Beasts, so they have a clear shot at beating the SS-Grade Altered Type Alpha Red Smander due to the convenient matchup.

    "AND THE WINNER IS¡ª" Satoshi''s line of thought was interrupted by Kim Jin Seok''s announcement of thest match in the second bracket. "And now, for the second round! We already have the matchups on the board!" He announced.

    Satoshi and his Red Smander were pitted against Midori and his Vinerinna.

    "MIDORI! AVENGE ME!" Hiroshi screamed from the sidelines as Midori took the opposite side of the open area.

    Satoshi also stood there as well, drooping his shoulders in the process since he didn''t want to stand out too much. That didn''t do much though since his Alpha Red Smander was too colossal for its size.

    "Honestly, I wanted to tap out since my Vinerinna won''t stand a chance against your Alpha Red Smander. But I figured that wouldn''t be half as fun. I might as well get the most out of this experience and help my Vinerinna grow." Midori said, patting his Vinerinna on its head. "Do your best out there, Vinerinna."

    Vinerinna squealed, then its red glowing eyes narrowed as it stared at Satoshi''s Alpha Red Smander.

    "All right then," Satoshi continued. He was overjoyed to know that Midori wasn''t backing down from the fight despite the type disadvantage, and that gesture gave him an idea. "How about this? I''ll let your Vinerinna try out three attacks. If you can knock out my Red Smander in those three moves, or rather, if you can deal a substantial amount of damage, then I''ll be the one to tap out."

    "Are you sure about this, Satoshi?" Midori grinned.

    "Sure,"

    "FOR THE FIRST BATTLE OF THE SECOND ROUND! GIVE IT UP FOR MIDORI AND SATOSHI!" Kim Jin Seok announced.

    "Vinerinna! Use leech seed!" Midori didn''t waste a single second as he unleashed his first attack. "Leech seed nts a seed on the target. After a target under the effect of Leech Seed takes its turn, one-eighth of its HP will be drained and the same amount of HP will be restored to the target''s opponent." Midori then announced, giving the textbook definition of the move.

    On the other hand, Satoshi''s Alpha Red Smander didn''t move a single millimeter, it just stood there, confident that the leech seed won''t affect it.

    And it was right on the money. As aforementioned, Satoshi''s Alpha Red Smander gives off intense heat from its body, which actually burned the seed thrown at it. Before the seed could even be nted, it was already reduced to ashes.

    "Tsk~ and here I was, confident that it would work," Midori said to himself. He only had two moves left and he didn''t know what else to do in order for Vinerinna''s attack to reach Satoshi''s Altered Type Alpha Red Smander.

    "Vinerinna! Use vine whip!" Midori called out, making Vinerinnash out some of its vines towards the Red Smander. As usual, the vine whips were reduced to ashes and Vinerinna screamed in pain since its vines were extensions of its body.

    "Last one... Vinerinna! Use poison sting!" Midori was getting desperate. Poison sting has a twenty percent chance of poisoning the target as long as the attack connects. Crossing his fingers, Midori hoped that the attack would at least hit Satoshi''s monstrous red smander.

    Just like Vinerinna''s first and second attack, the poison sting also didn''t connect. It was also reduced to ashes before it even reached the red smander.

    "I guess that''s a wrap." Midori sighed. "I forfeit."

 Chapter 258 Unofficial Beast Tournament III

    "I guess that''s a wrap." Midori sighed. "I forfeit."

    Even though Midori had a smile and a still expression on his face, he was somewhat aghast that not a single attack reached Satoshi''s Red Smander. It was simply outrageous¡ª unbelievable¡ª but it was the utter reality. There was nothing he could do about the oue of the match so he forfeited in the end.

    Vinerinna turned towards Midori and started grunting and growling as if it wasn''t pleased with the result. Midori could tell that Vinerinna still wanted to fight, and it wouldn''t stopining as long as it didn''t get its fill on a battle. "We have to go, we lost." Midori ignored Vinerinna''sints, giving it the nudge so it would get out of the open area.

    With a defeated aura surrounding it, the Vinerinna slowly walked beside Midori. Satoshi could''ve sworn that it heaved a couple of sighs because it lost before the match even started. Somehow, Satoshi even felt sorry for the Vinerinna, and had it not been for Kim Jin Seok calling in the next contestants, he would have asked Midori to give Vinerinna another chance at his Alpha Red Smander.

    The next couple of fights continued, getting more and more intense than usual as the unofficial beast tournament climbed up to its finale. While the first bracket had a couple of interesting matches, the second bracket was just a one-sided beating with Lydia Schwarz defeating every tamed beast it faced. Of course, the Frost Elephant was an A-Grade, so there was no question it''d be able to defeat a couple of red smanders who fall in the category of F-Grade or something of the sort.

    A couple of forfeits and winster, the quarterfinals finally arrived. Satoshi didn''t get much of a thrill with his quarterfinals fight since his opponent quit before the match even began. That''s why he was left with a feeling of emptiness as he joined the others on the sidelines and watched the quarterfinals on the second bracket unfold.

    It was time for Emma Leisenberg''s tamed beast versus Lydia Schwarz''s Frost Elephant.

    "Now that I think about it, I haven''t seen Emma''s familiar. Where was it hiding back when we were having lunch?" Satoshi wondered.

    "FOR THE FIRST QUARTERFINALS BATTLE OF THE SECOND BRACKET! LET''S GIVE IT UP FOR EMMA AND LYDIA!" Kim Jin Seok eximed, disrupting Satoshi''s line of thought.

    "Let''s go, Frost Elephant. We''re almost there." Lydia muttered under her breath while patting the Frost Elephant''s cheeks. In response, the Frost Elephant let out a squeal before it stepped forward.

    Meanwhile, Emma patted something on her shoulder, also whispering something to her tamed beast. Apparently, she caught an Invisible Flying Squirrel, a B+ Grade Beast which has the element of the wind itself."

    "Let''s win this," Emma also cheered her tamed beast on. For a brief moment, the Invisible Flying Squirrel showed itself, gliding towards the open area before settling right in front of Emma. It was ready to fight, and Emma was ready as well. This was the first time Satoshi saw his familiar, but he still had no idea as to what kind of familiar it was.

    "FIGHT!"

    "Frost Elephant, use ice domain!"

    "Flying Squirrel, use glide, and then air cutter!"

    "Frost Elephant, use def up!"<sub> </sub>

    "Flying Squirrel, keep on attacking!"

    Emma gritted her teeth, and Lydia gritted her teeth. They knew for sure that whoever wins in this match would get to fight Shiroi, who is the guaranteed pick for winning the second match. And then, after that, whoever wins would fight against Satoshi. Both Emma and Lydia didn''t want to pass up the opportunity, and that''s why the two of them never backed down.

    However, it was obvious that in terms of raw power, the Frost Elephant was better than Emma''s Invisible Flying Squirrel. The only thing going for the flying squirrel was its innate ability to disappear into thin air using its invisibility skill... but that''s about it. With the Frost Elephant''s keen sense plus its control over cold temperatures, it could easily pinpoint where the Invisible Flying Squirrel would attack, anticipating it and delivering a nice counter instead.

    And it didn''t take long before the Frost Elephant got too used to the Invisible Flying Squirrel''s movements, dodging its every attack while chipping away at the squirrel''s health points. It turned out just as Lydia had expected, and her quarterfinal win arrived in an underwhelming manner. The Frost Elephant just let out a blizzard at point nk range and Emma''s Invisible Flying Squirrel fainted in an instant.

    Another win in the bag, and it was time for Shiroi''s quarterfinals match.

    "You fought well, flying squirrel," Emma said, grabbing her tamed beasts and hoisting it on her shoulders like a sack of rice. She then shook Lydia''s hand and together they walked out of the open area.

    "That was a great match, you two," Satoshi greeted in an awkward manner. Frankly, he didn''t know what to tell them.

    "Thanks," Emma said with a smile.

    "So that''s an Invisible Flying Squirrel, huh, it looks pretty strong. Too bad it was up against the Frost Elephant." Satoshimented.

    Emma responded with silence, only staring at Satoshi with a suspicious look on her face.

    "W-what is it?" Satoshi asked with unease. Either Emma was looking straight into his soul or she was suspicious about something. In any case, her stare was a bit too ufortable.

    "You," Emma continued, squinting her eyes. She then leaned forward and whisper something at Satoshi''s ears.

    In response, Satoshi twitched and closed his eyes, afraid that Emma would p him in the face right then and there. Fortunately, Emma didn''t do such a thing. "So what beast did you exactly tame? I know for sure that it wasn''t the Alpha Red Smander since I was there when you tamed it."

    "Ah, that? Actually... " Satoshi''s voice trailed off before he exined what happened to Emma.

    "What?" Emma eximed, just when Kim Jin Seok announced the winner of the quarterfinal''s second match.

 Chapter 259 Unofficial Beast Tournament IV

    The reason why Satoshi easily told Emma his secret was because she knew a lot about him when ites to his superpower. Sure he could also tell Shiroi and the others about it but they''d act surprised, and everyone will act surprised, and then everyone will be aware of the secret. Satoshi didn''t want that, and he thought that Emma is a reliable confidant when ites to the ridiculousness of his superpower. Hence he didn''t hesitate to tell her that he actually tamed a human instead of a beast.

    It was time for the semi-finals.

    "And for the semi-finals of the first bracket, we have the favored Satoshi who is expected to win the entire unofficial beast tournament with his unusual Alpha Red Smander... and on the other side of the ring, we have someone named... what''s your name again, young kid?" Kim Jin Seok asked, embarrassed since he actually forgot the name of the young man who was going to fight Satoshi in the semi-finals.

    "It''s Gio. My name is Gio." The young man muttered, ruffling his hair as he smiled at Satoshi. "Be prepared to lose, Satoshi!" He taunted before turning toward Kim Jin Seok.

    "Excuse me, sir? Is it okay if I use another beast instead of the one I just caught? I figured this is all right since it''s an unofficial beast tournament after all, and you never specified that we could only use our recently-caught familiar.

    "Ah er, yes, you''re right about that. You can go ahead and use whatever beast you have... but it is preferable if you use the beast you recently caught since one of the unofficial tournament''s main goals is to get to know your beast a little better." Kim Jin Seok lengthily exined. Even though his underlying message was that it was frowned upon to use another beast, he didn''t actually dissuade Gio.

    With his approval, Gio sneered at Satoshi before calling one of his beasts. As it turned out, Gio is also a beast tamer hailing from America, and he wanted to test Satoshi''s mettle with his strongest beast.

    "Let''s go!" Gio called out as he pulled a dimension box from his pocket, throwing it in the air. A pokem¡ª er, a beast came out of the dimension box, screeching as to intimidate everyone whoid their eyes on it.

    The beast looked like a huge crab, except its body was made out of pure water and its appendages were made of ice. It was an Icewater Crab, water and ice-type beast which can be found in the Beast Dimension. The Icewater Crab tends to live its life buried in holes dug in thick ice, but if they were disturbed, they wouldn''t hesitate tosh out, utilizing their speed and their nimbleness. The Icewater Crab is one of the speediest beasts out there, not to mention that it has a type advantage over the Alpha Red Smander.

    "Now bring out your Alpha Red Smander, Satoshi! Whahaha~" Gio extended his hands in the air as he manicallyughed. Even though he hasn''t won yet, he felt as if he got the trophy under the bag.

    However, he got one thing wrong. Since this was Satoshi''s first time in the Beast Dimension, he immediately assumed that Satoshi only had one beast in his possession. He concluded that the Red Alpha Smander may be strong, but without any other options, Satoshi is bound to lose to a type disadvantage.

    Some of the audience who thought that only your recently-caught beast should be showcased started booing Gio at his underhandedness. They were inexplicably mad at him despite the fact that Kim Jin Seok already rified the rules of the unofficial beast tournament.

    Then again, he was ying dirty, and to the audience, he was perceived just as.

    "You can do it Satoshi! You can do it!" Emma cheered from the sidelines, shutting her eyes as she pumped her fists in the air. Even though she was a bit embarrassed about cheering for Satoshi, she still kept on, hoping that it would at least spur Satoshi and give him additional strength.<sub> </sub>

    "You know," Satoshi finally spoke, rubbing his nose to suppress the smile that was forming on his face. "If you wanted to use another beast in the fight then you should''ve said so. You do know that that rule also applies to me, right? Otherwise, it won''t be fair if you''re the only one who could use another beast."

    "I''ve seen your previous fights and your recently-caught beast¡ª I don''t know its name¡ª is pretty strong. I think if your beast fought my Alpha Red Smander head-on, it would have a hard time since your beast is also advantageous towards my Alpha Red Smander."

    "But you wanted to change things up so I''ll entertain you by doing the same thing," Satoshi continued.

    Quite frankly, it wasn''t Gio''s gestures or disrespect that made Satoshi slightly annoyed. In fact, he didn''t hold it against Gio since he''s also the type of person who wanted to win no matter what. Nevertheless, the reason why Satoshi felt a bit irked because of his pride as a beast tamer. Right in front of him was another beast tamer, and that beast tamer is taunting him, telling him that he would lose. Satoshi''s pride just couldn''t ept that, not when he''s also a beast tamer himself. It wouldn''t really affect him if he loses the unofficial beast tournament, but if he lost it against another beast tamer, it just didn''t sit right with him.

    Without saying anything, Satoshi''s smile became more evident as he stared at Gio. This made Gio a tad bit unsure of his decision, but his confidence was renewed due to the assurance that Satoshi actually only had one beast¡ª the Alpha Red Smander.

    "FOR THE SEMI-FINALS MATCH OF THE FIRST BRACKET! GIVE IT UP FOR GIO AND SATOSHI!" Kim Jin Seok announced.

    "Come on, are we just going to stand here forever? Bring in your Alpha Red Smander already." Gioined.

    Satoshi, however, had a different thought in mind. Without further ado, he grabbed Orb Oboros, putting the Alpha Red Smander back before he called out another familiar of his.

    "You do know that water types are weak to electric types, right?" Satoshi asked just as another one of his familiars came out from Orb Oboros''s dimensional storage.

    "..."

    "..."

    "Are you kidding me... are you kidding me right now?" Gio muttered to himself as Satoshi''s new familiar came out.

 Chapter 260 Unofficial Beast Tournament V

    If seeing one Altered type almost gave everyone a heart attack, then seeing two Altered types gave everyone more shock. It was a normal reaction, but Satoshi wasn''t expecting it at all.

    Gio, who already brought his Icewater Crab to the semifinals, knew that Satoshi''s Alpha Red Smander wouldn''t stand a fighting chance against it. But as it turned out, Satoshi actually had another familiar, another Altered Type that belonged in the family of Blue Lightning, an electric type variant that produces blue lightning which is twice more powerful than normal electric types.

    It was Satoshi''s White Lion, and he summoned it without a second thought, fully knowing that it could win. This was Satoshi''s way of intimidating his fellow beast tamer since he wanted to challenge him. There was no way he could back down after everything that Gio said.

    "You can change your beast anytime you want. I won''t change mine." Satoshi dered.

    With animosity in his gaze, Gio didn''t know what to do anymore. If he backed down now, then everything he said would mean nothing. Sure he had a ground-type beast, but if he were to bring it out, then Satoshi had already won.

    Suppressing all the nervousness he felt in every cell of his body, Gio shook his head and forced a smile on his face. "Hah, you think I''d change my beast? No, my Icewater Crab is more than enough to deal with your White Lion."

    Satoshi couldn''t tell whether Gio was bluffing or not since there was a hint of confidence in his voice. Even if he was nervous, he knew that his Icewater Crab is an A-Grade Beast. The White Lion is at least an A-Grade as well, so he still had a chance at winning.

    "START!" Kim Jin Seok announced since Gio and Satoshi already finalized their choice of tamed beasts.

    The White Lion let out a roar and a ck cloud formed in the sky, getting thicker and darker by the second as blue lightning appeared. A number of blue lightning hit the ground in the open area causing the Icewater Crab to start dodging even though the fight has just started. The White Lion hasn''t moved an inch from where it stood, but the Icewater Crab was already having a difficult time.

    "Freeze the area, Icewater Crab!" Gio screamed, giving his tamed Icewater Crab an order to which it promptly responded.

    As for Satoshi, he knew well in himself that his win was already guaranteed. If the Icewater Crab couldn''t afford to get hit by blue lightning, then it was way weaker than Satoshi had expected despite being an A-Grade Beast. Of course, he didn''t wear his confidence on his sleeves since that would just damage Gio''s pride as a beast tamer.

    "White Lion, don''t move. Just use Electric Field." Satoshimanded his White Lion. The White Lion turned towards Satoshi, nodding its head before blue lightning coursed through his body, enveloping him in a thin orb made out of electricity. The electric field was actually too thin that it was almost invisible to the naked eye. Still, the electric field''s power output rivaled its appearance since it could easily electrocute to death/kill a full-grown man in a split second. After all, the electric field actually amounts to several thousand volts.

    But then again, the White Lion has full control over its electric field so even if Satoshi were to touch it now, it wouldn''t harm him at all.<sub> </sub>

    Meanwhile, the Icewater Crab managed to find an opening through the bolts of lightning that rained down from the sky. Without a second to spare, it covered the entire field with ice. With this, the Icewater Crab''s mobility drastically increased since it could now glide on the ice. Dodging became much easier, or rather, it became child''s y for the Icewater Crab. This also means that the Icewater Crab didn''t have difficulty attacking White Lion either.

    "Hahha! You think you can win against me even with the type advantage?" Gio called out, just because he had no idea how fast the White Lion actually is. The White Lion wasn''t moving so he assumed that it was a slow beast.

    The Icewater Crab started going on the offense once it got used to the intervals of the lightning. Ice spikes, water beams, and other attacks starteding at the White Lion. But thanks to his electrical field, not a lot of attacks got through.

    "Just keep on attacking, Icewater Crab!" Gio eximed as the Icewater Crab increased in confidence. Since the White Lion wasn''t attacking at all, it began getting ahead of itself, increasing its pace when ites to attacking and leaving itself defenseless.

    With silence, Satoshi continued giving the White Lion mentalmands, telling it to continue holding on and just wait. The White Lion didn''t insist on counter-attacking since the Icewater Crab''s attacks didn''t actually amount to much.

    "Once he lets his guard down, we''ll attack at once. I mean... you can finish this fight in an instant, right? But you don''t have to. Let''s see how long he''d continue celebrating." Satoshi said to himself.

    The spectators who were cheering Satoshi on started getting anxious. They couldn''t quite put their finger around Satoshi''s decision to just stand there in silence while the White Lion tanked all the attacks. Somehow, they were starting to think that Satoshi was losing and that the White Lion really couldn''t retaliate in front of the Icewater Crab.

    "Satoshi you can do it!" Emma cheered from the sidelines.

    "Go Satoshi! Win against that tamer!" Shiroi too started cheering since she didn''t want Emma getting ahead of her.

    In Satoshi''s mind, he started running a countdown, telling the White Lion to fill the entire field with its blue lightning. It would be a split-second attack, but that would be more than enough to bring down the Icewater Crab and its boastful tamer. Satoshi didn''t want to just win, he wanted to win by andslide.

    "Now, White Lion," Satoshi thenmanded.

    FLASH!

 Chapter 261 Unofficial Beast Tournament VI

    p A strong sh of light, followed by a deafening roar emanated from the White Lion. It all happened in the span of a split second, but that''s all it took for the Icewater Crab to faint in an instant. The area of effect attack was too powerful and unavoidable to boot. Long story short, the Icewater Crab didn''t stand a chance against the White Lion. It struggled to stand but after a couple of seconds, its legs finally gave up and it fell sideways, its eyes spinning around¡ª a normal expression of a fainted beast.</anda>

    "Icewater Crab... lost? No way..." Gio muttered to himself. And there he was, thinking that he stood a chance against Satoshi and his White Lion. As it turned out, Satoshi just didn''t bother attacking at all, instilling a false hope within him which prompted him to gain confidence. In the end, the Icewater Crab had no fighting chance against an overpowered beast, and that fact only became clear when that split-second electric field attack transpired.

    "You''ve done well, Icewater Crab, get some good rest," Gio said to himself before he grabbed his Icewater Crab, scooping it up from its belly and carrying it out of the field like an oversized te. "It was a great match, Satoshi, I lost."

    "Sure, just challenge me anytime for a rematch." Satoshi greeted back. He could tell that Gio was strong, but he just got too ahead of himself during the fight.

    Since the match was over, Satoshi led his White Lion off the stage so they''d give way to the semi-finals of the second bracket. Quite frankly, Satoshi was looking forward to this fight more than anything since it involved Lydia and his childhood friend Shiroi. The two of them both have type advantages against the Alpha Red Smander so it would be quite an interesting fight to watch.

    With the open area cleared out, Shiroi walked towards one side of it. Her Fluffy Penguin was right on her tail, waddling as it made its way in the ''ring''. It let out a cute squeal towards Shiroi before facing the opposite side with its squinted eyes. It was more than ready for the match¡ª or so that''s what the Fluffy Penguin wanted to portray.

    "And now wee to the semi-finals of the second bracket! Please give them a round of apuse everyone. Shiroi with her Fluffy Penguin, and Lydia with her Frost Elephant!" Kim Jin Seok announced. His tone was a bit low in volume, probably because he was getting exhausted after all that screaming he did.

    "You''re Shiroi, right? I''m going to win." Lydia called out just as her Frost Elephant exhaled, frosting out of its mouth.

    "I''m going to win. I still haven''t had a rematch with my Satoshi." Shiroi responded, smiling at Lydia as she too challenged her. Her Fluffy Penguin let out another squeal, assuring her that it''ll do its best to win.

    Pause.

    But as soon as she said that, an awkward silence descended upon the entire group. Even Kim Jin Seok, who had been calm and collected all this time, hung his mouth open as he stared at Shiroi. He was still wondering if he heard Shiroi wrong but apparently, everyone had the same reaction so such was probably not the case.

    "What do you mean your Satoshi?" Lydia asked, giving Shiroi a suspicious gaze.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi averted his gaze from Shiroi. Even though he wasn''t the one who said it to her, he still felt oddly embarrassed. Besides, he never thought that Shiroi actually felt that way. He vehemently shook his head. "I must''ve heard wrong, right? Right?!"

    "Ah... eh?!" Shiroi finally realized what she said. Violently shaking her head, she waved her hand towards Lydia, outwardly denying what she just mentioned. "No, ah¡ª er, I meant... we haven''t had our rematch! I, uuu~ " She pouted, her face turning into a nice shade of beet red.<sub> </sub>

    "Ehrmm!" Kim Jin Seok cleared his throat as he finally regained hisposure, extending one of his hands forward while he assumed his position in the middle of the sidelines to overlook the match as the referee. "Let the fight begin!" He announced.

    In terms of experience, both Lydia and Shiroi were equal. That''s why everyone expected an equal fight and rightfully so. Furthermore, both the Frost Elephant and the Fluffy Penguin possess the water element.

    "Frost Elephant, use Ice Edge!" Lydia called out. The Frost Elephant stomped its foot on the ground, producing an ice field before ice spikes starteding out of the ice field, going forward with the aim to hit the Fluffy Penguin who was standing by the end of the open area.

    "Fluffy Penguin, jump then use water gun to propel yourself up!" Shiroi thenmanded, to which the Fluffy Penguin promptly nodded.

    "All right, now Frost Elephant, use ice breath!"

    "Fluffy Penguin, use water shield and then use peck!"

    Now, one might be wondering how Lydia and Shiroi were able tomand their tamed beast as if they were experienced beast tamers. This was because most of themon beasts in the Beast Dimension are already discovered. So one just needed to ess the and look up the beasts they tamed. There, they''d see most of the moves that the beast could use, as well as general information about them.

    The Fluffy Penguin''s Peck connected,nding straight on the Frost Elephant''s trunk. With a pained groan, the Frost Elephant staggered backward, but its fighting spirit was not yet quenched. Before the Fluffy Penguin could recover, the Frost Elephant shot another ice breath, which directly hit the airborne Fluffy Penguin.

    Khuuu~~~

    With a soft thud, the Fluffy Penguin fell on its back, sliding a couple of feet on the ice field after it fell.

    "Fluffy Penguin!" Shiroi called out. Meanwhile, the Fluffy Penguin struggled to get up. It started letting out a weak moan as it got back on its feet, swaying left and right since it was on the verge of losing its consciousness.

    "Hang in there, Fluffy Penguin!" Shiroi gritted her teeth, stealing a nce at Satoshi by the sidelines. ''No... I can''t afford to lose... not now...'' She muttered to herself.

 Chapter 262 Unofficial Beast Tournament VII

    Despite her strong urge to win no matter what, Shiroi could tell that her tamed beast, the Fluffy Penguin, had reached its limit. Right now, it took all of its strength to just keep standing, staggering left and right as it tried to maintain its bnce.

    "Looks like your Fluffy Penguin will lose consciousness soon, huh," Lydia muttered to herself. "Frost Elephant! Let''s finish this with a blizzard!"

    With a deafening roar, the Frost Elephant used one of its special ice-type moves, blizzard. The air circting in the open area suddenly dipped in temperature as swirling snow enveloped it. The Fluffy Penguin wasn''t that affected by the frigid winds, but by the small ice projectiles mixed in the blizzard. It was a continuous attack, and since the Fluffy Penguin was too weakened to even move, well, it didn''t take long before it finally reached its limit. With a weak moan, the Fluffy Penguin plopped on the ground, its eyes turning into swirly lines which signified his unconsciousness.

    Fluffy Penguin had lost.

    "And the winner of the second bracket''s semi-finals is... Lydia Schwarz and her Frost Elephant! Please give our tamers a round of apuse for showing us such a splendid fight!"

    An outburst of apuse and cheers erupted from everyone on the sidelines as the fight drew to a close. Dejected, Shiroi walked towards her Fluffy Penguin and patted it on the head. "You did well, Fluffy Penguin, I''m sorry for being such a bad tamer," Shiroi muttered to herself. After all, she only had herself to me for their loss. The Fluffy Penguin pushed itself to the limits, but the one that prevailed, in the end, was the Frost Elephant.

    "Good job, Frost Elephant, let''s win this whole tournament, okay?" Lydia said, patting the Frost Elephant''s side.

    Even though Satoshi wasn''t the one who fought against the Frost Elephant, he still felt Shiroi''s crestfallen demeanor. Walking up to her, Satoshi wore a smile on his face, hoping that that minuscule gesture would at least cheer Shiroi up even if it was just a little bit.

    "That was a great fight," Satoshi said, holding out his hand for Shiroi to hold. It took every cell of his being to suppress his embarrassment when Shiroi reached for his hand. His body jerked, but it was too sudden for it to be noticeable.

    "But I lost... and here I was, thinking we''d finally have a rematch." Shiroi sighed.

    "A rematch?" Satoshi asked, thinking that he missed something in the past.

    "Yep, remember back on the first day of school? We weren''t able to fight since we forfeited together." Shiroi pointed out, jogging Satoshi''s memories.

    "Ah, right! That happened." Satoshi said. "Well, we can always have a rematch next time. Your Fluffy Penguin would need lots and lots of training though."

    "I guess." Shiroi''s face brightened up a bit as she responded, much to Satoshi''s relief.

    ...

    Half an hourter,

    It was time for the finals, and everyone cheered louder than ever as Satoshi and Lydia entered the open area. Those who joined the excursion could leave at any time but they decided to stay just so they could see the entire event through. Also, they had no idea who was going to win so they looked forward to it even more.<sub> </sub>

    "And now, for the finals match! On this end, we have Midoriyama Satoshi and his Alpha Red Smander! Please give them a round of apuse!"

    The people were already pping their hands so they just increased the volume and intensity of their ps, hollering and cheering as they go. They were surprised that Satoshi didn''t use his Altered Type White Lion against Lydia''s Frost Elephant.

    "And on the opposite end, we have Lydia Schwarz and her Frost Elephant!" Kim Jin Seok continued his announcement.

    Simultaneously, Lydia also walked towards the opposite end of the open area, smiling at Satoshi for his ridiculous pick. He had every chance to use his White Lion but instead, he went for the Red Alpha Smander who was clearly at a type disadvantage against the Frost Elephant.

    "You should''ve picked the White Lion. Your Alpha Red Smander won''t stand a chance against my Frost Elephant." Lydia called out. "You already lost before the match even started."

    "Um... you do know that Ice melts in the heat, right?" Satoshi then returned. "You shouldn''t assume the best case scenario when ites to fights, you know."

    "FOR THE FINALS ROUND! ALPHA RED SALAMANDER VERSUS FROST ELEPHANT! START!"

    The cheeringing from the audience stopped and they held their breaths as soon as Kim Jin Seok announced themencement of the fight. Would Satoshi make the first move? Or would Lydia attack first? Everyone started wondering how the finals match would y out, so much so that they turned silent in eager anticipation.

    "Frost Elephant! Use ice domain!" Lydiamanded as the Frost Elephant let out a trumpeting sound from its trunk.

    Chilly air started surrounding the open area once again, enveloping it in a snowstorm soon after. Ice domain is an area of effect move that greatly boosts an ice-type beast. This move temporarily matches the domain with the ice typing, terraforming it to suit the beast. "Satoshi! You''d better do something about this, otherwise, your Alpha Red Smander would freeze to death!"

    "Alpha Red Smander, you know what to do," Satoshi muttered, patting the Alpha Red Smander by the tail. "Lydia, I think this will be an easy win for us so I''ll give myself a handicap."Satoshi suddenly announced, much to everyone''s surprise.

    Gasp!

    "A handicap?! Hahhaha~!" Lydia chuckled. "There''s no chance you could win right, and you''re giving yourself a handicap? Are you crazy, Satoshi?"

    "Call it crazy, but it''s you who don''t stand a chance against my Alpha Red Smander," Satoshi said. He couldn''t help but show off since Shiroi was watching by the sidelines, hoping that he''d win the entire unofficial beast tournament.

    "Interesting, then what''s the handicap?" Lydia smiled, fully aware that the longer Satoshi stalled for time, the stronger her Frost Elephant''s Ice Domain would be.

    "My Alpha Red Smander is more than enough to handle your Frost Elephant, so I''m going to turn around and close my eyes." Satoshi then proceeded to do just that. "I won''t give my Alpha Red Smander a singlemand... that''s my handicap."

 Chapter 263 Unofficial Beast Tournament VIII

    Lydia let out a long sigh, shaking her head as an evident smirk was written on her face. Obviously, Satoshi was totally looking down on her and her Frost Elephant despite his tamed beast having a clear type disadvantage. ''I''m going to prove him wrong for looking down on me.'' Lydia said to herself.

    "Frost Elephant, keep on using ice domain and then use blizzard!" Lydia then called out.

    Even though it''d be physically draining for the Frost Elephant to use these two moves at the same time, she still went through it just to increase the likelihood of inflicting damage on the Alpha Red Smander.

    At this point, Satoshi stepped backward and swiveled off his foot, turning around after giving his Alpha Red Smander the stare. In return, the Alpha Red Smander nodded towards Satoshi before facing the Frost Elephant, letting out a soft shriek that echoed in the area. With calmness, Satoshi sat on the ground, facing the audience before he closed his eyes.

    "Satoshi! What are you doing?! You''re going to lose!" Midori screamed from the sidelines. Hiroshi and the others also joined in on the frantic screaming but Satoshi t-out ignored them.

    Unbeknownst to them, Satoshi was actually kidding when he put the wager. Of course, there''s no way he''d be able to win against the Frost Elephant if he let his Alpha Red Smander do its thing. That''s why he stillmunicated with the Alpha Red Smander in his mind¡ª a two-way exchange that happened instantaneously.

    Meanwhile, the Alpha Red Smander was more than willing to fight even without Satoshi''s guidance. He thought that this may be a test put up by his master in order to prove his worth. There was no way he''d back down to the challenge even though the Frost Elephant was more formidablepared to him.

    Intense heat starteding out of the Alpha Red Smander''s skin, mixing in with the snowstorm that enveloped the entirety of his body. Intense steam started filling up the open area. ck smoke then billowed all over the Alpha Red Smander before the fire erupted, encasing his entire body with a shield made out of pure mes. Compared to the Frost Elephant, the Alpha Red Smander was expending more energy but it was way more stable. This was because the Alpha Red Smander was using only one move, while the Frost Elephant used two just so it could deal damage to its foe.

    ''Yup, just continue doing that,'' Satoshi assured his Alpha Red Smander in his mind, to which the Alpha Red Smander responded with a squeal that sounded almost like a purr.

    "Just let the Frost Elephant do what it could, and try to hold off on attacking until then. Once it seemed exhausted, you go on the offensive and unleash your most powerful attack. Show that Frost Elephant just how strong an Alpha Red Smander is."

    The Alpha Red Smander prided itself as an apex predator. Fighting amon Frost Elephant is an insult to him, and that''s why there''s no way he could possibly lose to it. After all, the Alpha Red Smander was the beast thatid waste to Emma Leisenberg''s homnd. That fact alone should prove how powerful it is.

    Just like how Satoshi predicted it, the Frost Elephant ran out of fumes much faster than expected. The Alpha Red Smander felt it as soon as the blizzard and the ice domain started losing their power.<sub> </sub>

    It was time for a counterattack.

    ''Alpha Red Smander, use your fire domain.'' Satoshi finally called out.

    Meanwhile, Lydia still hasn''t gotten over the fact that Satoshi faced her with his back during the match. She felt insulted, and her attention was divided between the match and Satoshi. That''s why she momentarily forgot about her Frost Elephant and didn''t give it a newmand.

    Everyone was taken by surprise when the Alpha Red Smander suddenly burst into mes. Its defensive strategy took a turn for the better andva immediately filled the entire open area, negating the ice domain that the Frost Elephant had. Because of that, the Frost Elephant was forced to back away since its ice attacks didn''t stand a chance against the sheer literal firepower of the Alpha Red Smander.

    The fight that was supposed to be interesting for a finale ended rather unexpectedly with the Frost Elephant tucking its tail and running as its body melted. It fainted in an instant, and the Alpha Red Smander was forced to withdraw its attacks since it might kill the Frost Elephant.

    Speechless, the spectators watched as the Alpha Red Smander returned to its neutral state while letting out a gurgle out of its mouth. Even though it didn''t understand the intricacies or the rules of the unofficial beast tournament, it knew that it had won, and it couldn''t be any more proud of itself.

    "AND THE WINNER OF THIS UNOFFICIAL BEAST TOURNAMENT IS¡ª!" Kim Jin Seok screamed, pointing his hand at Satoshi who still had his back to Lydia. "Midoriyama Satoshi and his Alpha Red Smander! What a splendid fight!"

    A smile appeared on Satoshi''s face as he stood up and dusted himself. "You did well, Alpha Red Smander." He muttered before returning the Alpha Red Smander inside Orb Oboros''s dimensional storage. "Now get some rest, you overextended yourself, right?"

    Even though it didn''t seem like the Alpha Red Smander was damaged, it actually almost lost due to the coldness that the Frost Elephant unleashed. Fortunately, the Alpha Red Smander won the waiting game and it pulled off a surprise attack. At that moment, if the Frost Elephant survived the fire domain that the Alpha Red Smander made, it''d have had a chance at winning the beast tournament.

    "That was a great fight, Satoshi. Your Alpha Red Smander was a formidable opponent for my Frost Elephant." Lydia said. There was no need to hold a grudge against Satoshi. After all, they were friends since childhood so they could be considered childhood friends (ah yes, the floor here is made out of floor). She didn''t harbor any ill-will when she lost. But then again, she did her best, and her Frost Elephant did the same as well. It was an honest loss, simply speaking.

    "It was a good fight." Satoshi returned.

 Chapter 264 Official Beast Tournament Invitation

    Kim Jin Seok approached Satoshi as soon as the unofficial beast tournament was over. "Congrattions, your Alpha Red Smander is really strong. Where did you find him?" Kim Jin Seok asked, extending his had for a celebratory handshake.

    "I caught it somewhere." Satoshi vaguely answered, obliging with the handshake while jerking his thumb to the back. He had no idea how he''d be able to exin that he actually got it from another dimension but that''s beside the point. At the very least, no one found out that the Alpha Red Smander wasn''t actually the beast he tamed during the entire exercise.

    "Altered Types are incredibly rare, you know, not to mention your beast is an Alpha¡ª which means it''s exponentiallyrger and strongerpared to its smaller counterpart. You and your Alpha Red Smander can go so far, Satoshi. As a beast tamer, I think you''re more than qualified to join the official beast tournament."

    "Beast tournament? What''s that?" Satoshi asked even though the answer to the said question waspletely obvious.

    "It is held every year in America." Lydia butted in. "I''m going to train my Frost Elephant and join the beast tournament. Although... I don''t think I''ll be able to join this year." Lydiamented.

    "That''s right, it''s a beast tournament held every year in America. But before that, there''s the beast auction where rare beasts are sold. This is one of the events which is famous around the world. Most beast tamers would gather in the beast auction in hopes ofnding a rare beast. From what I could remember, some Altered Types were soldst year." Kim Jin Seok said. "If you want to fill in your roster with rare beasts before joining the beast tournament, you should take a look a the beast auction first. Now that we''re on the topic, are you going to join the beast tournament, Satoshi?"

    Silence fell on the crowd as they expectantly stared at Hajime. Of course, they already concluded that Satoshi would join the beast tournament, considering that he and his Alpha Red Smander won the unofficial beast tournament spontaneously held here.

    "Ah er... I''ll think about it." Satoshi once again responded with a vague answer.

    "Yeah, you should definitely join, your Red Alpha Smander is strong, Satoshi," Hiroshi added while everyone nodded in agreement.

    Everyone except Lydia, who eyed Satoshi a little suspiciously.

    "What is it?" Satoshi asked, wondering if there was something on his face that caused her to look at him a bit weirdly.

    "I saw your tamed beast while you were in the process of catching it... and all I could say is that... it''s not the Alpha Red Smander at all." Lydia finally called out. She had been waiting for this moment, ever since Satoshi brought out the Alpha Red Smander.

    "What are you talking about?"

    "I saw it... it was a ck Winged Dragon, right?" Lydia continued. "I''ve seen one of them before. I saw you tame it." Lydia continued, giving Satoshi a squint.

    The silence that befell everyone was entirely differentpared to when they awaited Satoshi''s response about joining the beast tournament. Just like Lydia, they all stared at Hajime as if he had done something wrong.

    It was believed that the ck Winged Dragon is one of the rarest species of beasts in the Beast Dimension since they''ve only seen one in existence. That ck Winged Dragon is the apex predator of thatnd, and no one could touch it due to how powerful it was.<sub> </sub>

    For years, a few beast tamers tried the insurmountable task of taming the ck Winged Dragon but no one managed to do so. Of course, how could anyone tame a beast when it''s not exactly a beast? Then again, no one knew about the real identity of the ck Winged Dragon except a few select people.

    That''s why the ck Winged Dragon was deemed uncatchable. A lot of beast tamers who wanted a strong beast in their roster had already attempted to tame the ck Winged Dragon but they couldn''t do so. Some even almost died when they came face to face with such a powerful beast.

    "D-did you really catch the legendary ck Winged Dragon?" Kim Jin Seok asked. He couldn''t believe that someone managed to tame the uncatchable beast.

    "Yeah, I saw it with my own eyes. You can''t lie to us, Satoshi." Lydia then smiled. "Come on, you shouldn''t hide such glorious achievement."

    A sigh left Satoshi''s mouth. It''s not like he wanted to hide the existence of the ck Winged Dragon per se, but he''d rather hide her identity than reveal it to everyone else.

    "All right then," Satoshi told everyone as he reached towards his Orb Oboros. Before he summoned Ryu Ryoko (the ck Winged Dragon) though, he had to make sure that she was in her dragon form instead of her human form. That way they''d be able to hide her identity and not cause a panic towards the fellow beast tamers present.

    ''Ryoko, can you hear me?'' Satoshi asked.

    ''Yes?''

    ''I''m going to take you out for a little bit. Make sure you don''t revert to your human form no matter what, okay?'' Satoshi continued, hoping that Ryu Ryoko would at least agree to his wishes.

    ''Sure, I can do that.'' She responded.

    Without further ado, Satoshi called out for Ryu Ryoko toe out. He closed his eyes for fear that Ryu Ryoko woulde out in her human form and mess with him but fortunately, she came out as a ck Winged Dragon in all her form and glory.

    The massive size of the ck Winged Dragon caused everyone to step back a little bit as they admired its overwhelming presence. Ryu Ryoko, who was surprised to see so many people, let out a roar. ''Did Satoshi want me to show off?'' She asked herself.

    ''No, you don''t have to do that, Ryoko.'' Satoshi vehemently rejected the thought in his mind. "Still... why do your scales look a lot more different? Did something happen?"

    ''I awakened it when you brought me under your wing, Satoshi. That''s why I''m forever grateful to you. This is my true form, exclusive only to our bloodline.'' Ryoko continued.

 Chapter 265 Dungeon Clear/ Beast Dimension Trip End

    Now that the Unofficial Beast Tournament was over, everyone was finally allowed to go home. The girl''s group, Kuroe, Shiroi, Fuuka, Cherry, and their new friend Emma were gathered together as usual, while Satoshi was surrounded by Hiroshi, Midori, Siril, Kyou, and Aljier which consisted the entire boy''s group. (Everyone except Kyou, Aljier, and Emma, are members of ss 3-1).

    After Kim Jin Seok said his final words, the group headed into the Dimensional Portal out of the Beast Dimension. They found themselves once again by the foot of the Dimensional Portal wherein shops and stalls abound. Beasts and materials harvested from the Beast Dimension were sold here, and this is the usual gathering spot for beast tamers when theye looking for materials.

    "Let''s stop by a family restaurant. I''m famished after all that fighting." Shiroi suggested as she grabbed Fuuka and Cherry by the shoulders.

    "That''s a great idea! Let''s go." Hiroshi agreed, d that he brought some pocket money with him.

    "I''m sorry guys, but I''d better¡ª " Midori''s voice trailed off but Satoshi cut him off by patting him on the shoulder and giving him a thumbs up. It was a gesture that he didn''t have to worry about the money.

    And before anyone could say anything, Satoshi then raised his voice a little bit. "Everyone, let''s eat together. It''s my treat." Satoshi called out, much to everyone''s surprise. Cheers then erupted from the group before they followed Satoshi''s lead. Since he was the one paying the bill, they unanimously decided that he''d choose the restaurant where they''ll be eating.

    "Heyyy! Wait up!"

    Before they got out of the center where the Dimensional Portal to the Beast Dimension was located, they heard a familiar voice, calling out to them.

    It was none other than Lydia Schwarz. She ran towards the group, panting as soon as she caught up to them. "Why did you ~haah~ leave me?"

    "Shouldn''t you be going back to Switzend? What are you doing here?" Satoshi asked, confused.

    "Didn''t I tell you? I''m going to transfer to your school as an exchange student. In the meantime, I''m going to be staying here in Japan."

    "Would you like to join us? We''re going to grab some food." Satoshi then offered, to which Lydia nodded excitedly.

    "Japanese food?! I''m in!" She enthusiastically cheered as she assumed her usual position beside Satoshi. "Oh yeah, you still haven''t told me how you awakened your superpower... my dad said you only awakened it this year, right? How? What happened?

    "Ah, er, about that..." Satoshi wanted to deflect the topic but it was toote to do so since everyone had already listened in to the conversation. ''I guess there''s no getting out of this one.'' Satoshi thought to himself.

    .....

    "Ah~ ahchoo~!" Aquaborne sneezed before he rubbed his nose in frustration. "Someone''s probably talking about me."

    "And who might that be? I''m the only friend you got, you know." Tatsuki pointed out, chuckling.<sub> </sub>

    Aquaborne (the number one superhero in Switzend, superpower: water integration) and Tatsuki (Satoshi''s dad, also known by his superhero name, Plunder) were currently inside the Dungeon Spire, trying to clear thest five floors of the Dungeon. This was thest day wherein the Japanese would still have clearing rights to the dungeon. Tomorrow, the dungeon would belong to the Americans, and they''ll try to clear it. With Aquaborne lending his aid, Tatsuki and his team of top-ranking superheroes will try to clear the dungeon today, but if they couldn''t do it, then the Americans would help them.

    The reason why they weren''t rushing a bit too much was that the Americans had alreadye to the agreement with Japan¡ª that they would divide the spoils they find at the bottom of the Dungeon. However, both the Japanese Government and the SAO would like to avoid that oue as much as possible, that''s why they assigned Tatsuki and his party to push through in hopes of clearing the dungeon today. It was a win-win for everyone though since either oue would reward everyone, but Japan wanted to keep the dungeon all to itself since this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. It''s not every day that a dungeon appears in one''s backyard. It''s basically free money delivered right to one''s doorstep. It was only reasonable that Japan would keep everything in that dungeon.

    "Do you think we''ll be able to clear this Dungeon?" Aquaborne asked.

    "Of course, we''re already on thest floor, aren''t we?" Plunder responded. "Have some confidence in yourself. We''ve made it this far with our team. We can do this before the day ends."

    "Well, let''s just hope we can clear it by then," Aquaborne muttered to himself.

    The group, led by Plunder, held their breaths as they stepped into thest and final room. They were prepared for the worst, and they''d already activated their superpowers before they even reached the staircase that led to the one-hundredth floor. Would it be a huge golem? Or maybe an army of giant club-wielding orcs? Everyone thought of their worst experiences and worst monster encounters in order to mentally prepare themselves for what was toe. Tatsuki had it the roughest. As the leader of the group, he knew that he had responsibility over everyone in his team. What he feared the most was that one of them might die on thisst floor, and their deaths will be under their name. ''I''m going to protect everyone no matter what. I can''t afford to lose anyone here. We''re already on thest floor... after this... we can go home to our families.'' Tatsuki told himself as he nodded towards Aquaborne.

    The one-hundredth floor was unusually quiet, but that was to be expected since thest room almost always had one boss therein. This is the section of the dungeon where the final boss resided.

    "Staff-wielders! Illuminate the entire area!" Plundermanded, and the staff-wielders immediately used their superpowers to brighten up the entire room.

    "..."

    "..."

    Aquaborne and Tatsuki looked at each other. Every member of the party looked at each other in bewilderment.

    Nothing.

    There was nothing on thest floor.

    "What on earth..." Tatsuki muttered to himself as his confusion aggravated. The more he looked, the more it became evident that there really was nothing on thest floor.

    "Nothing... is this some kind of a sick joke?" Aquaborne asked out loud.

    Unbeknownst to them, someone close to them had already cleared the dungeon, and right now, they''re witnessing the aftermath of his actions, whether they liked it or not.

 Chapter 266 Permission Granted

    After spending time with everyone in a famous ramen restaurant, Satoshi and Emma separated from the group and headed home. They''d at least hope they''ll arrive home before dinnertime arrives. Right now, Satoshi could more or less guess that his dad is still in the Dungeon Spire, trying to clear it. He had somewhat forgotten the incident that transpired in Dungeon Spire so he didn''t tell his dad that he had already cleared it. At the very least, they won''t have to worry about the Americans taking a cut from the dungeon treasures since everything was in Satoshi''s possession.

    "And... why are you still here?" Emma asked Lydia who happily tailed them after they just ate. "We''re heading home, you know."

    "I''m heading over there too. My dad told me I''d be staying at Satoshi''s ce. We''re quite close, you know." Lydia pointed out, speaking in straight Japanese despite being a foreigner.

    "That''s my first time hearing about that... but if it''s your dad, I think that much is expected," Satoshi responded.

    "How about you? Why are you staying in Satoshi''s ce? I know that you''re not his cousin since I''ve met all his family members." Lydia casually retorted much to Emma''s surprise. Of course, Satoshi couldn''t deny Lydia''s words either since Lydia was speaking the truth.

    As for Emma, there''s no way she could tell Lydia that her world was destroyed by Gates and the beasts that spawned there. And now she had nowhere else to go but Satoshi''s ce. Pursing her lips, Emma continued walking beside Satoshi, uncertain of what to say.

    "Give her a break, Lydia, you do know she has her reasons, right?" Satoshi also didn''t know what to say so he just muttered what came to his mind first¡ª to which Lydia nodded without saying anything else.

    "..."

    "What?" Suddenly, they heard a voice from behind them. It was none other than Shiroi who happened to catch up with everyone just when Lydia brought up the truth behind Emma''s identity.

    .....

    An hour or soter.

    "What? You cleared the dungeon? All by yourself? No wonder there were no treasures on the hundredth floor." Tatsuki heaved a sigh of relief. At first, he thought that maybe the Dungeon Spire was some sort of borate prank made by someone else. But as it turned out, the dungeon was normal and Satoshi was the one who cleared it.

    It was already dinnertime and Tatsuki just got home. He wasn''t surprised when he saw Lydia sitting on the couch,fortably watching tv as she ate ice cream.

    "And the rewards?" Satoshi trailed off, hoping that he won''t have to renounce the rewards he worked so hard to get.

    "Technically... since you were the one who cleared it, all the rewards belong to you." Tatsuki continued. "Don''t worry about it, we won''t disclose that information to the SAO. Right now, Dungeon Spire is considered uncleared yet, so the Americans will try to clear it soon... well, you''ve already cleared it though so they''ll just be chasing their tails around."

    A few minutester, Ayumu called everyone for dinner at the dining table.<sub> </sub>

    Lydia was thest one to sit down since she had to finish her ice cream first. And once everyone was seated, Ayumu started handing bowls of rice to everyone. It was evident in her expression that she was ted. It had been more than a week since the whole family got together for a meal like this, and Ayumu couldn''t help but feel relieved and overjoyed at the same time.

    "So, what''s your n now, Satoshi? Next semester is about to start in school. You already have your license, right? And your internship is ongoing under the Heimdall Agency." Tatsuki casually asked. His question had the same approach as when he''d ask Satoshi how school went¡ª a typical topic over dinner.

    "Um... is it all right if I join the Official Beast Tournament?" Satoshi asked. He wasn''t sure whether he should join or not since it was happening in America. Besides, his father specifically warned him not to show off his powers (but then again, you''d only need a team of six tamed beasts at most so it wouldn''t really show Satoshi''s mysterious powers as an upgrader)

    "Sure, why not?" Tatsuki responded a matter of factly as he ate a mouthful of rice. "Your powers won''t be known to anyone since most people there are beast tamers. At most, they''d think of you as a fellow beast tamer so you don''t have to worry about being exposed."

    Now that Satoshi had received the green light from his dad, he made a mental note to register for the Official Beast Tournament. The tournament will happen at the start of the new semester so there will be conflicting schedules with school, but it could be considered an extracurricr so Satoshi was fairly certain that the school would allow him to attend the tournament.

    .....

    Once dinner was over, Satoshi immediately headed downstairs to the superheroir of his parents. There, Ryoko and his other familiars stayed. He felt bad having Ryoko stay in the superheroir but it''s not like he''s got much of a choice. He missed telling his mother about it, and now that his dad just arrived after an exhausting dungeon clear, he decided to just bring up the topicter on.

    Besides, it''s not like Ryoko disliked her ck Winged Dragon transformation. She was used to keeping her transformation indefinitely so doing it in the superheroir wasn''t that big of a deal. Besides, she could transform into her human form at any time and enjoy the facilities there.

    When Ryoko saw the lights open by the entrance to the superheroir, she immediately transformed into her dragon form. To her relief, it was just Satoshi, and she immediately reverted back.

    "I brought food. Sorry about this, I''m going to tell them as soon as I can."

    "That''s all right, Satoshi. I''m grateful that you''ve provided me with some form of living quarters. This is more than enough." Ryoko bowed her head.

    "But...." Satoshi didn''t know how he''d react to Ryoko''s reply so he just decided to keep quiet.

    "..."

    "Satoshi, you forgot to get food for your White Lio¡ª" Suddenly, they heard Tatsuki''s voice, speaking from behind them. He stopped short the moment he noticed the girl who was in front of Satoshi. "Wait a minute~" He trailed off.

 Chapter 267 Brief Introduction

    "Wait a minute~" Tatsuki trailed off as he looked at Satoshi with a suspicious gaze. While he didn''t want to assume anything, he did catch his son in the act¡ª bringing an unknown girl to the superheroir without asking permission from any of his parents. As much as Tatsuki wanted to hear a valid exnation from his son, he couldn''t help but assume something.

    And Satoshi''s guilt-filled expression wasn''t helping with the entire situation.

    Meanwhile, Ryoko respectfully bowed toward Tatsuki before she spoke. "I am Ryu Ryoko from the Valor ck Winged Tribe. My whole tribe had been eliminated by other tribes, and I escaped. Satoshi rescued me from the Beast Dimension."

    "You''re... a ck Winged Dragon?" Tatsuki asked, much to Satoshi''s surprise.

    Satoshi didn''t expect his dad to know anything about the ck Winged Dragon. When he confirmed Ryoko''s identity, he turned speechless. As for Ryoko, she simply nodded her head as she briefly stole a nce at Satoshi. She wondered if she answered correctly but seeing Satoshi''s reaction made her conclude that she did something wrong.

    Her eyes widened in surprise and she pursed her lips, not daring to say anything else.

    "I see... and why did you hide her, Satoshi?" Tatsuki heaved a sigh. "I''d have understood if you told me about her as soon as you could."

    "I was about to tell you, dad... as for mom, I missed the timing to tell her." Satoshi apologetically said.

    "You should have told us so she could join us for dinner. We already have a lot of visitors, one more wouldn''t hurt." Tatsuki pointed out. "In any case, here''s White Lion''s food. We''ll wait for you upstairs. I think Lydia is challenging Emma to a match or something. We might miss it."

    "Really?" Satoshi asked. The announcement was too sudden, and he could only conclude what happened that led to their match.

    After feeding his familiars and introducing Ryu Ryoko to his dad¡ª properly this time. Satoshi and Tatsuki headed upstairs to rejoin everyone. Ryoko tagged along as well, and it surprised all of them when they saw a girl about Satoshi''s ageing out of her superheroir.

    "And you are?" Ayumu asked, stealing a nce towards her son and her husband, wordlessly conveying to them that she needed an exnation. Satoshi had an even harder time exining it to his mom. Fortunately, Ryoko was there to fill in on the details and Ayumu immediately epted her into the family (as absurd as that may sound). Of course, anyone else would emphatize with Ryoko''s story. She did lose her parents and everyone she cared for and loved at the hands of the other two tribes.

    "You can stay here for as long you want, okay?" Ayumu said while wiping a stray tear from her eyes. Ryoko did mention something about avenging her parents, which meant that she was going to leave sooner thanter. Ayumu could tell just how deep Ryoko''s grudge was toward the other two tribes so she didn''t question her resolve. Who was she to stop someone''s revenge?

    Nevertheless, Ayumu wanted to convince Ryoko to stay with them. One more mouth to feed is not that big of a deal¡ª or so that''s what she said, the same thing that her husband said while Satoshi and Ryoko were still in the superheroir.<sub> </sub>

    "There''s another one?" Shiroi inwardly eximed, wondering how many girls would surround Satoshi before she could even confess her feelings to him.

    Pretty soon, Lydia and Emma finally headed outside for their fated match. Satoshi couldn''t tell what led them to fight each other but he could tell that they were too into it. As soon as they headed outside, Emma positioned herself on one end of the yard while Lydia stood on the opposite. Meanwhile, Ayumu started serving ice cream for everyone, treating their match as nothing more than a spectacle to enjoy.

    "I''m not going to hold back." Lydia Schwarz dered as she assumed a fighting stance.

    Emma also assumed a fighting stance, and the two of them stared at each other while waiting for someone to give them their signal. Tatsuki, Satoshi''s dad, decided to step up to the te and act as a referee for the match. "All right, everyone''s in position..." He casually said while eating a spoonful of ice cream.

    "Ready, go!"

    The atmosphere around the yardpletely changed as chilly air revolved around Lydia. Emma put her arms up as she nted her feet, surprised that Lydia was actually powerful. When she heard that her powers are ice-type and water-typebined, she thought that Lydia''s superpowers were actually weak and that she''d be able to deal with her without breaking a sweat. But now, Emma could tell that Lydia was a formidable opponent. She could very well be stronger than her when ites toparing their raw superpower.

    Without missing a beat, Emma immediately created a portal in front of her so winds wouldn''t directly reach her. Soon after, she stepped inside the portal and then appeared right behind Lydia so she could knock her unconscious.

    Emma didn''t hesitate. The moment Lydia was within arm''s reach, she brought her arms back in an attempt to punch her from behind. She knew that knocking her unconscious in a split second was the surefire way of winning this match.

    And that''s when it happened.

    For a brief moment, Lydia wore a smile on her face before she turned into a liquid state. With a plop, her body liquified, and she fell to the ground before sliding to the opposite side of the yard. After gaining a considerable distance from Emma, Lydia then reverted to her human form and continued her relentless attack of cold air.

    "Wow, her control''s amazing," Shiroimented after seeing Lydia''s clean transition from using her water-type superpower to shifting into her ice-type superpower. "She''s got two superpowers and yet she could use both pretty well."

    "Of course, she''s the heir to the Aquaborne superhero name after all." Tatsuki pointed out, smiling as he continued to watch Emma and Lydia''s bold disy of their superpowers.

 Chapter 268 Emma Versus Lydia Conclusion

    Meanwhile, in the Nichijou Region (Ash Grey and Jean Grey''s World)

    "That was a great fight. Your Pheross was strong enough as it is, just don''t hesitate on giving it amand next time. When ites to a fight, the dy of a split second could mean a win or a loss." Jean Grey pointed out as he shook hands with his challenger. He was the renowned beast master of the Nichijou Region so receiving a couple of challenges here and there was a usual everyday routine for him.

    "Thank you so much," The young man bowed down towards Jean Grey, taking all his words to heart before he headed out once again. It would be months before that young man challenges Jean Grey again but Jean Grey was already looking forward to it.

    While he received dozens of challenges in a single day, it''s not every day that someone challenges him with a Pheross. As mentioned before, Jean Grey''s partner was a Pheross, a blue lightning tiger. "That kid''s Pheross is strong, I was just lucky that he hesitated at such a crucial moment. Have I beencking in training these past few days? Nah, it''s probably just my imagination."

    Putting his arms behind his back, Jean Grey casually walked towards the city, heading home. He decided to make a quick stop by a famous family restaurant to buy some burgers. That way, his wife wouldn''t have to cook dinner and they''d get to spend more time together. "I wonder if Ash would wee a younger sibling." He joked to himself as he started whistling.

    Suddenly, his phone started ringing.

    "Yes, Jean Grey here, how may I help you?" Jean Grey lightheartedly responded.

    "We kidnapped your son. We''re sending you the coordinates. Go there if you don''t want us to kill him." The voice on the other end of the line threateningly said before he hung up. A split secondter, Jean Grey received the coordinates. The coordinates specified that it''s located in the Beast Dimension.

    "A trap? But why would they kidnap my own son? And what do they get for targeting me? I''m just a lowly beast tamer, you know." Jean Grey said to himself. He made a mental note that he wouldn''t stop by the family restaurant and instead head home.

    While the call did say that they kidnapped his son, he was inclined not to believe the words of the caller. He concluded that he should at least confirm whether his son was at home or not. If he''s not, then he won''t have a choice but to go to the specified coordinates.

    And on the off-chance that his son was at home, he''d try to tread the dangerous waters and still go to the coordinates. He won''t get himself into unnecessary trouble though.

    Without further ado, he summoned his partner, Pheross, and rode on his back. He made it home in record time and he was greeted by his wife. "Dear, where''s our son?"

    "He went to Professor Oand to get something. Why?"

    "Oh, all right." After saying his farewell to his wife a second time, he headed straight to Professor Oand''s research center.

    But Ash was nowhere to be found.

    "Wait... maybe the call was genuine. Did they really kidnap my son? But why? What''s their motive? Am I their target?" Jean Grey said to himself as he mounted on his Pheross once again. This time, he headed towards the Dimensional Portal that leads to the Beast Dimension.

    "I hope he''s all right."

    Before he got to the Dimensional Portal, he passed by Urass Forest. He was then reminded of his meeting with a kid named Midoriyama Satoshi and he remembered how he was a powerful beast tamer himself. "Should I ask for his help? I''m sure he''d help me out... right?" He asked himself, entertaining the ridiculous thought he had in his mind.

    He didn''t even think twice about his decision. Since time was of the essence, he decided to act on this notion and headed straight through the Urass Forest. No one has gone to the other side of the Dimensional Portal that leads to a called Earth. But right now, he was willing to try it before he headed to his kidnapped son.

    Quite frankly, this was how Jean Grey''s adventures usually go. He wouldn''t go towards a specific mission. Instead, he would derail from it¡ª just like what he''s doing right now. But then again, it''s not like what he thought was a bad idea. After all, the caller didn''t specify that he shouldn''t bring another person with him. All he said was that he had to show up to the coordinates specified.<sub> </sub>

    Heck, the caller didn''t even specify a time, that''s why Jean Grey decided to rush with cautiousness.

    The moment he entered Earth, he was met with a vast sea. He didn''t even bother summoning one of his water-type beasts. He continued riding on his Pheross''s back. Pheross easily ran through the water, arriving on the shore before he headed deeper into Japan. "Now, where can I find Satoshi..." he muttered to himself.

    Since he was at a loss for what to do, he decided to approach his problem as simply as he could. How? By asking passers-by if they know someone named Midoriyama Satoshi and if they know where he lives. It was already almost nighttime so he wasn''t sure whether he''d find someone who knows Satoshi before the sunpletely sets.

    "You mean the son of the Midoriyama Duo? I know him, but not personally." The first man that Jean Grey asked responded as if Satoshi''s name wasmon knowledge to everyone.

    "Uhm, do you know where he lives, by chance? I''m a friend, you see, and I just came here from another country. I wanted to surprise him." Jean Grey continued.

    "If you''re looking for the Midoriyama Agency, it''s in Tokyo. You can just go here and here," The man started giving Jean Grey directions on how he''d be able to get to the Midoriyama Agency.

    .....

    A few hourster, back at the Midoriyama household.

    The fight between Emma and Lydia was intensifying by the second and it reached a point where the two of them started darting all over the ce. Emma, with her portal superpower, made it her forefront goal to hit Lydia with any of her attacks, and this prompted her to teleport as fast as she could while trying to catch Lydia off-guard. As for Lydia, she knew she had to attack Emma while dodging her attacks so she had to shift and revert to her water form as fast as she could. To those watching including Aira, the two of them were like dimensional beings fighting a fight of death when in reality, they were just having a friendly bout.

    Once again, Emma'' appeared right in front of Lydia, and Lydia reverted to her liquid form. She then appeared behind Emma and shifted some of her water into ice spikes before firing it at Emma. Without missing a beat, Emma put up a portal, redirecting Lydia''s ice spikes towards her.

    This caught Lydia by surprise but she managed to react by shifting the ice spikes into water once again.

    At that moment, Emma appeared behind her and gave her a chop to the neck¡ª one of the signature moves that Tatsuki taught her during their training. She only needed one moment to catch Lydia''s physical form and by the time that opportunity came, she didn''t waste any time going in for the offensive. Every move she made led up to that moment and she was proud of the oue.

    Emma hadn''t been training under Tatsuki''s wing for nothing. If any, she''d learn how to fight from the very best, and that gave her a chance to win against an almost unwinnable opponent like Lydia.

    In a split second, Lydia was out like a light, falling forward as she slipped into unconsciousness. (She didn''t even realize that she already lost, not until she woke up a couple of minutester.)

    "That''s a splendid fight, Emma. I''m d that you were able to apply everything you''ve learned from me." Tatsuki congratted her, ruffling her hair as he did so. "You did miss a couple of openings but in the end, Lydia missed even more of your openings and that allowed you to win. You''re getting there, but you still need a couple of training sessions with me and my wife."

    With a cheerful nod, Emma thanked both Tatsuki and Ayumu for training her. She did feel bad for Lydia''s loss though, but she concluded that it was normal. All''s fair in love and war, or so the saying goes... and there could only be one winner.

    As the group headed inside, a familiar figure suddenly showed up right at their doorstep. "Hello? Is anybody home?" The man called out. "Is this the Midoriyama Household?"

    Tatsuki told everyone to head on inside since it was gettingte. He then approached the gate to greet the man calling for them. "Yes it is, how may I help you?"

    "Hello, sir Midoriyama, I''m Jean Grey... um, Midoriyama Satoshi''s friend. Is he home? I need to talk to him." Jean Grey continued.

 Chapter 269 Behind The Kidnapping

    With bated breaths, Jean Grey approached Midoriyama Tatsuki and extended his hands in a greeting. This was the first time Tatsuki met Jean Grey and he was oddly concerned that his son was friends with a middle-aged man. Then again, Jean Grey seemed like a good person so he didn''t send him away. Instead, he called Satoshi just when he was about to head inside.

    "Satoshi, your friend''s here," Tatsuki called out, garnering everyone''s attention as they stopped by the doorway.

    Emma and Satoshi immediately ran up toward Jean Grey to greet him. "Jean Grey-san? What are you doing here?" Satoshi asked out of concern since Jean Grey seemed like he was having a hard time. Whatever it was that he was going through, it was evident in the worried expression he wore on his face.

    "I need to talk to you," Tatsuki said under his breath. "Ash... he''s been kidnapped,"

    "Your son? Kidnapped? But why?"

    In the background, Tatsuki couldn''t help but listen in on the conversation since he missed the timing to walk away. Never did he think that Tatsuki had a son, and what''s more, he was kidnapped. The sudden turn of events left him in bewilderment as he intently listened. He still had no idea how Satoshi came to know the middle-aged man and at this point, he was too afraid to ask since the situation seemed rather urgent.

    "I don''t know. I received a strange phone call and a message that directed me to a certain coordinate in the Beast Dimension. They were prompting me to go there and rescue my son. I have no idea what their motives are since my family''s just simple and I''ve never had enemies all my life." Jean Grey seemed to be breaking out of character. His usual nonchnt attitude was nowhere to be found, and all that was left is a bag of nervousness that assumed Jean Grey''s form. It was obvious that he was worried about his son more than he was worried about his life.

    He was met with silence since Satoshi and Emma had no idea what to say next. Finding his timing, Tatsuki cleared his throat before he spoke. "Did you look for your son or did you go here as soon as you heard the news? It might just be a trap."

    Jean Grey shook his head, outrightly denying the im. "I checked our ce, and I checked the research center where he was supposed to be. He wasn''t at these ces."

    "I see, then that means the kidnapping is real. We have to go there right now. I''ll go with you." Tatsuki volunteered before saying a quick farewell to his wife and the other girls.

    "Let''s go, there''s no time to lose." Tatsuki continued. Kidnapping is not something he could just overlook, that''s why he volunteered to join despite being exhausted from the Dungeon Spire Clear he just did with his party a few hours ago. While he has no idea who this person is or how he came to be friends with his son, he just had to help no matter what. After all, he''s the number one superhero in Japan.

    "I''ming with you as well, sir," Emma said, joining the group. The only reason why she wanted to join was so she could spend more time with Satoshi, nothing more nothing less. Besides, she''s personally acquainted with Jean Grey and his son Ash Grey, so there''s that.

    "So, where are we going?" Tatsuki asked, going towards his car. "I''ll drive all of us there."

    Just then, Emma activated her superpowers, creating a dimensional portal right in front of everyone. "I can teleport us directly to the Dimensional Portal that leads to the Beast Dimension." Emma pointed out. "Or we can teleport directly to the Beast Dimension if that would be easier."

    "Wow, that''s a pretty convenient power." Jean Greymented, pping his hand as he admired the huge portal that swirled in front of them. "Let''s teleport inside the Beast Dimension and then we can work our way from there."

    "Ah right, you have that. I guess we don''t have to drive over there." Tatsuki chuckled. "Let''s not waste any more time. Let''s go."

    Without thinking twice, the four of them headed into the portal. One moment they were on Earth, the next moment they found themselves surrounded by barren wastnds. They''ve clearly reached the Beast Dimension in a snap of a finger, all thanks to Emma''s superpower.

    "Still, that was my first time going to your Earth. It''s pretty good. I even tamed a new beast." Jean Grey said out of nowhere before he pulled out a Gren (Pokeball for crying out loud) from his pocket. He then threw it on the empty field and a familiar beast came out.

    "A CAT?!" Satoshi screamed, wondering if the cat that Jean Grey tamed had an owner.

    .....

    Back in the Nichijou Region,

    "I''m home,"

    At first, Dahlia thought that her husband came back after looking for their son, Ash. But to her surprise, it was actually Ash who came entering by the doorstep. "Wee back, did you see your dad? He was looking for you."

    "Really? I didn''t see him." Ash responded casually before sinking his rear side on the couch and letting his beast partner Sarugaso sit with him while they watched tv. "Did dad say anything? Maybe he discovered a new beast?"<sub> </sub>

    "I don''t know, he seemed rather worried about you though. I wonder what''s up." Dahlia muttered, wondering why her husband seemed to be acting weird when he showed up.

    Unbeknownst to everyone, Ash wasn''t actually kidnapped. The reason why his dad didn''t see him was that he went to a nearby cafe to meet up with a friend after he had gone from the research center. It was weird timing not running into each other¡ª and in turn, Jean Grey was left with no choice but to go into the Beast Dimension and confront his son''s presumed kidnappers.

    "Maybe dad''s nning to go to the world beyond the Dimensional Portal? And he wanted me toe with him. Aww man~ I missed such an opportunity!" Ash grumbled under his breath. "I wonder what kinds of beasts exist in Satoshi''s world."

    While Jean Grey and his newly formed party was worried sick for Ash''s well-being, he leisurelyy down on the couch as a famous ssic song started ying on the television. Satoshi sang his heart out with the song, even using Sarugaso as a makeshift microphone when he did so.

    "To catch them is my real test, to train them is my cause~~~" He continued.

    ....

    Back at the Beast Dimension.

    After a couple of failed attempts jumping around the portals, the group finally arrived at the coordinates specified in the text message. Emma heaved a sigh of relief. Of course, she had no idea what to expect since she never explored the entirety of the entire Beast Dimension, it was only normal that they''d get lost a couple of times while trying to pinpoint the coordinates.

    "We''re finally here." Jean Grey said to himself not knowing what to expect. When they got to the specified coordinates, he was expecting a group of kidnappers to meet them, threatening them with his son before they get into a fight to the death.

    Quite honestly, Tatsuki was also expecting the same scenario since the threat seemed legitimate. But when they got there, there was only one person present.

    It was none other than Star-Spangled Banner.

    "Jean? Satoshi? Tatsuki? What are you all doing here?" Star Spangled seemed even more surprised than the four of them.

    "Jack? Why are you here?" Jean asked, referring to the Star-Spangled''s real name instead of his superhero name.

    "I was called here. I received a suspicious phone call and I decided to check it out."

    "A phone call? And here I was thinking that you kidnapped my son." Jean Grey heaved a sigh as if he was disappointed that Star-Spangled wasn''t the one who kidnapped his son.

    "What? Your son got kidnapped? By whom? Why didn''t you tell me?" Jack blurted out, slightly disappointed that his friend didn''t even inform him about something so serious.

    "I didn''t have enough time. I received a suspicious phone call and a message telling me to go here so I went. Along the way, I grabbed Satoshi and the others. I didn''t have the time to tell you anything."

    p.

    p.

    p.

    Silence filled the area as a lone figure started walking toward the group. He wore all-ck, and none of them could tell whether he was wearing a robe or he just grabbed a huge ck nket and put it on his back. A sinister smile was written on his face, and he didn''t stop pping even though he was already in in sight.

    "So you broughtpany, huh, Jean Grey and Jack S. Michael. I hope the two of you are prepared to die." He muttered as smoke filled his vicinity.

 Chapter 270 Beast Tamer Hitman

    "So you broughtpany, huh, Jean Grey and Jack S. Michael. I hope the two of you are prepared to die." He muttered as smoke filled his vicinity. He extended his hands as his sinister smile extended all the way up to his ears. There was something unnerving about the way he posed himself as the viin but no one in the group was bothered by it since he looked like he was trying too hard.

    "Who are you, where''s my son?!" Jean Grey screamed. He still maintained hisposure despite his raised voice but deep in his mind, he was afraid that something bad happened to his son. He didn''t want to think about nor assume anything but seeing that his son wasn''t there, then that could only mean that he was being kept somewhere private.

    "Who are you? What do you want with us?" Star-Spangled muttered. Somehow, the person in front of him was familiar, but he couldn''t quite put his finger around it. ''If only I could get a clear view of that man''s face. I''m sure I met him somewhere. But what does he want with us? He even went as far as to kidnap Jean Grey''s son... this is not going to end well.'' Star Spangled said to himself

    "What do I want? I do not want, I take." The man said as the smoke around him continued to grow and rise like a sentient being emerging from the ground. "Someone offer me money, I do their bidding. Hence, I take. I take the money, and I take the order and aplish it. It is very simple."

    "So you''re here to me and my friend. Why? And on whose orders?" Jean Grey asked as he reached towards his back to pull out a Gren. He was going to summon Pheross soon, his trusty, tamed beast partner. "I mean, if we''re going to die anyways and you''re quite confident with your kills, then you should at least tell us who ordered you to kill. That way we can die in peace... or something like that... look, you do get what I''m saying right?"

    Even though Jean Grey was pushing the man to let his guard down, he still didn''t. That smile on his face never disappeared as he continued conversing with the group.

    "Initially, I''d have told you who ordered the hit... but since you brought your friends along, I have no choice but to kill all of you without saying anything. I can''t afford to have one of you escape... and even if one of you did, well... it''s impossible for any of you to escape anyways but nevertheless, I''m not taking any chances, you see?"

    "What do we do, Jean Grey? Your call." Star Spangled muttered under his breath as he stole a nce at his friend. "Honestly, I don''t think we''re a match for this guy. If he can show up in front of us without wavering, I think he''s more powerful than we think. And also, he openly challenged me, the number one superhero in America, to a fight. That means he''s confident he could defeat me and all of us here without breaking a sweat."

    "He''s in the face of two number-one superheroes and yet he still didn''t run away, I do think that it''s just a facade. We have to be careful." This time, it was Satoshi''s dad, Tatsuki, who spoke.

    ''Dex, you''re here, right? Can you tell what kind of superpower this guy has?'' Satoshi said in his mind, hoping that Dex would at least be able to scan the mysterious man and tell them about his powers.

    [He''s a... He''s a Beast Tamer, Satoshi... and a powerful one at that. At your current level, I don''t think you''ll be able to fight him. Judging from his aura, I can tell that he has at least more than a hundred tamed beasts in his possession... not to mention...]

    ''Not to mention what?'' Satoshi repeated since Dex stopped midway through his words.

    [He has a representative.] Dex continued

    Thest sentence that Dex said in Satoshi''s mind sent chills up and down his spine. He knew what he meant by a representative. Dex is a representative, as well as the Statue of Captivity. If what Dex said was true, then that means the man is more powerful than him.

    For the first time ever since Satoshi got his superpowers, he became nervous. Right in front of him was a man that posed a threat to everyone. He was supposed to be the strongest ''tamer'' or ''upgrader'' out there... but as it turned out, there was someone stronger. Dex specifically said that the man was stronger so Satoshi was inclined to believe such is the case.

    Without missing a beat, Satoshi turned to his dad as well as to Jean and Jack. He wore a serious expression on his face as he pursed his lips in frustration. "Dad. Everyone. We have to go. This guy is strong." Satoshi said. "He''s a tamer, and he''s stronger than me." Satoshi continued.

    "You mean..." Tatsuki''s mouth gaped open as he realized what his son was saying. If he was really a tamer and what his son said was true, then all of thembined stood no chance against him.

    "A tamer you say?" Jean Grey asked. "So he''s a tamer, just like us, Satoshi?" Jean Grey asked a second time to confirm with Satoshi.<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi nodded in confirmation.

    "Eh, so he''s a beast tamer huh," Jean Grey muttered to himself.

    Suddenly, the aura that surrounded Jean Grey started to change and his expression somewhat rxed a little bit. For some odd reason, he was feeling more confident than usual. Compared to how he was a minute ago, right now he was as calm as an undisturbedke. "I guess you''re challenging me then?"

    "You are no match for me. I have a representative on my side." The man spoke.

    This time, it was Satoshi who wore a smug look on his face. His eyes turned into slits as he rubbed his nose. With confidence emanating from him. "A representative, you say?"

    Before the man could say anything, Satoshi summoned Dex and the Statue of Captivity. Everyone fell t on their rear sides as the monumental Statue of Captivity appeared. "Well, I have two representatives." Satoshi pointed out.

    Even though Dex had warned him that he stood no chance against him, he still took his chance to bluff since he had two representatives on his side.

    There was a clear change in the man''s expression as he stepped back a little bit. It was obvious in his bodynguage that he was a tad bit nervous. He wasn''t expecting anyone to have a representative, much less two of them. And that caught him by surprise.

    "Two representatives, you say? That''s impossible! You don''t just obtain representatives as if they are normal beasts, you form a contract with them after a series of grueling tasks and difficult quests! You''re bluffing, young man, this is preposterous!" The man continued.

    "Then why don''t you see for yourself?" Satoshi asked. "Your representative can speak, right? I''m sure it can recognize other representatives." Satoshi shrugged, really going all-in with his bluff. Of course, he spoke the truth when he mentioned that Dex and the Statue of Captivity are representatives. However, it''s still true that the man is stronger than Satoshi.

    ''I''m sure the representative knows that as well, but if his representative is the cautious type just like Dex here, then there''s no way he''d go through with this. Furthermore, dad, Emma, and I weren''t even supposed to be here. I''m sure he''d retreat for now.'' Satoshi said in his mind.

    [Be careful, Satoshi, there''s still a chance that he goes through with the attack... although, I don''t think we need to worry about that.] Dex warned.

    For a few seconds, the man paused. Satoshi could only conclude that the man was conversing with the representative in his mind, trying to confirm whether Satoshi was lying or not. His expression then shifted into a troubled one, indicating that the representative had already confirmed the fact. In response, Satoshi smiled as he brought back the Statue of Captivity inside the Orb Oboros once again and made Dex turn invisible. "I''m guessing you''ve already heard from your representative, right? What did it say?" Satoshi asked.

    Slowly, the smoke around them disappeared. "I think... I may have underestimated you a little bit." He began, turning around as he brushed his hands on his cape. "I will retreat for now. Make sure you don''t die before I kill you, Jean and Jack."

    In a snap of a finger, the man created a portal and stepped inside it, vanishing before everyone could even make a move. Satoshi''s bluff had worked, much to his relief, but the threat on Jean Grey and Jack Michael''s life was still there.

    And Ash Grey was still nowhere to be found.

    (¡ª Author here, I forgot to add a nice jokest chapter. Thank you for reaching this far into the novel! Cheers!¡ª)

 Chapter 271 Complaints, Complaints

    The thick hazy smoke that surrounded the area vanished along with the mysterious beast tamer. Everyone stared at the portal, wide-eyed, as the portal that the beast tamer effortlessly manifested closed up in an instant. Satoshi was the first one to let out a gasp before he heaved a sigh of relief. His bluff worked, and as he expected, the representative which was allied with the beast tamer was more careful than he initially assumed.

    Emma''s reaction was the pr opposite of Satoshi though. She was surprised that a beast tamer could actually use her superpowers and he had delicate control at that. Her gaze then shifted towards Satoshi and he wondered if Satoshi was as strong as the beast master they''d met. In terms of experience, she could tell that the beast tamer was better than Satoshi, but Satoshi holds an even greater potential since he upgrades every beast he tames.

    "How about my son?!" Their thoughts were then interrupted by the screaming Jean Grey as he lost hisposure. He was expecting the beast tamer to return his son but as it turned out, he didn''t do anything about it. In fact, he concluded that the beast tamer actually forgot that he kidnapped his son, and he left without addressing it. Just like that, in a snap of a finger, he disappeared from view and there were no signs of Ash Grey at all.

    Ring. Ring.

    Riiiiiing~!

    "I think you should take that, Jean." Jack Michael (aka the Star-Spangled, number one superhero in America) called out as they heard Jean''s cellphone ring from his pockets. Jean was so shocked about the recent turn of events that he didn''t even notice his phone ringing had it not been for Jack calling it out.

    "Ah, right," Jean muttered, answering the call before even looking at the name of the caller.

    "Hello, dear?" Turns out, it was Dahlia Grey who was calling on the other end of the line. "Ash just got home, apparently he stopped by somewhere after he went to the research center."

    "Is that so?" Jean heaved a sigh of relief as he jumped in ce. He couldn''t contain the relief that overcame him. "I guess I was worried for nothing. I''ll be heading home soon, would it be all right if I broughtpany? Jack and his friends are with me right now." Jean said to himself, smiling.

    "Sure, do you want me to cook dinner, or are we ordering takeout?" Dahlia calmly responded. She was used to her husband bringing Jack along so she didn''t worry about him bringing more friends.

    "We can just order, but it would be nice if they could all taste your cooking. Just cook what you can and then we''ll order on the way over there."

    "Oh, okay, see you soon. Love you," Dahlia continued.

    "Yup, love you," With a click, Jean hang up on the phone. His gaze then moved towards the group who were invited to breakfast out of nowhere. "And there you have it, apparently, we''re going to have breakfast at our ce."

    .....

    The man wearing the ck cape and the hood sauntered towards a building without speaking a word. His face wore the most serious of his expressions as a ck mist appeared beside him. Once he got in front of the building, his aura suddenly changed. His cape and hood shifted into a pristine white color. Even the smoke that rose beside him turned a nice shade of white. A split secondter, a huge white wolf appeared from the smoke, letting out a howl as it announced its presence.

    "It''s the hero White Mist!"

    "White Mist! Please look here!"

    "I''m here right now, live! And White Mist just showed up!"

    "It''s White Mist in the flesh! What is he doing here?"

    White Mist''s aura lightened as he raised his hands to wave at the people who flocked him in an instant. He pulled out a pen from his pockets and started giving out autographs as if that was a normal thing to do. A few moments ago, he was right by the Beast Dimension, trying to kill someone while arranging a false kidnapping. And right now, here he was, in the real world, in front of the Empire State Building.<sub> </sub>

    "Here you go. And here you go. And here you go." He repeated, calmly signing all the autographs. He was used to the attention so it didn''t really overwhelm him. After all, he''s one of the most powerful superheroes in America, his home country. He''s one of the Ten Men, a group of male superheroes that make up the top ten in America. In America, the rankings are separate for men and women so it''s easier to distinguish the ranks of each superhero easily. There were variousints from some people saying that the ranking system didn''t really work that well in favor of the female superheroes, and so the government then decided to separate the rankings altogether.

    This was what the masses wanted, and now that they have it, they couldn''t reallyin about it. Of course, it separated the rankings and made the gap between the male and female superheroes even further, but then again, there was nothing the majority could do since they asked for it.

    "Sir White Mist, the President is waiting for you."

    Unlike Japan, America is more streamlined when ites to dealing with superheroes. They weren''t under any associations, nothing of the sort. Instead, they''re directly under the American Government. This way, there won''t be opposing decisions when ites to superheroes and in turn, the government is responsible for everything rted to superheroes. While it has its pros and cons, it worked better than what the American Government expected so they stuck to the system.

    Still wearing the fake smile, a facade he always wore in front of the people, White Mist waved his hand to the people for a second time before turning around to go inside the Empire State Building. The President went out of his way to go here for a meeting, and as it turned out it was White Mist who''ll be meeting up with him.

    At first, the guards stepped forward to stop White Mist''s Wolf, but when the man who was ahead of White Wolf told them not to bother, they stepped aside and silently apologized. "The president had been waiting for you for at least half an hour now. Was there a miscalction? Did something happen? I''m pretty sure that task is simple for you, were you able to aplish it?"

    White Mist''s face contorted into a disgusted frown as he looked down on the man. "Are you seriously asking me that right now? Of course, something happened! Why else would be in a foul mood for?"

    "So you weren''t able to kill the threat? I thought you said you''ll be able to kill him easily. Perhaps you overestimated yourself a little bit too much?" The man continued asking.

    "I did not, in any way, overestimated myself. And I don''t need to tell you anything about the mission, thank you." White Mist angrily grunted as the man continued to lead him all the way to the huge elevator in the middle of the building.

    Before he got in, he gestured that White Mist should go inside the elevator first. White mist obliged at the offer. Without saying anything, White Mist walked ahead of the guy and got into the elevator, with his tamed beast wolf walking right behind him. They felt an incredible tug as the White Wolf got in but the elevator was able to endure the weight of therge wolf.

    "The president is waiting for you by the conference room. His meeting already finished half an hour ago so you can just go in without announcing your arrival." The man continued, writing something in his notebook as he conversed.

    White Mist nodded.

    Pretty soon, the elevator let out a loud ding as they reached their designated floor. White Mist, along with his wolf, walked out of the elevator and headed out before the man could even take the lead outside. Together, the two of them walked toward the room where the president was supposedly staying.

    Creak.

    "Who is it?" The president asked as White Mist used the tip of his shoe to push the door that led into the conference room. Seeing him enter with a sour mood, the president didn''t fail to greet him. "Ah, if it isn''t White Mist. How did your mission go?"

    "Mission? You''re calling that a mission? I almost got killed out there! I thought we were going to get rid of the threat along with Star Spangled?"

    "That''s right... ? You just repeated the information regarding the mission, yes." The president confirmed, confused as to why the White Mist was angry.

    "Then why on Earth is the number one superhero of Japan with them? I thought they were the only ones who knew each other?" White Mist pointed out, much to the president''s surprise.

 Chapter 272 Bug Catcher Ray

    "Then why on Earth is the number one superhero of Japan with them? I thought they were the only ones who knew each other?" White Mist pointed out, much to the president''s surprise.

    "And? You weren''t able to kill them, why? I''m sure killing two foreign superheroes is not out of the question, provided that your mission is top secret and no one else would be able to know." The president continued, sping his hands in front of White Mist. "They couldn''t possibly stop you, judging from the fact that you have a representative on your side."

    "Well, take me like a joke but... the kid..." White Mist bit his lips as his frustration leaked out from within his body. He then mmed the table in front of the president, his eyes filled with rage and murderous intent. "He has two representatives on his side."

    At the sudden unexpected information that White Mist divulged, the president bolted upright with a shock expression on his face. There''s no way that White Mist was lying to him right now since he seemed incredibly and genuinely frustrated. Something about what he said bothered the president since he knew just how powerful a representative could be.

    "Two. Representatives?" The president readjusted his tie as he sat back down, trying so hard to regain hisposure as he slowly breathed in and out. A puff of smoke came out of his mouth, indicating the utter coldness of the conference room. And yet, the two of them inside it sweated profusely. "I didn''t hear that wrong, right? You''re saying that someone out there has two representatives?"

    "That''s right! And it''s that kid! Tatsuki''s kid!" White Mist continued.

    .....

    There was always a first for anything, and to Tatsuki, such a notion wasn''t anything new since he had experienced countless firsts when he became a superhero. He could still vividly remember the first time he went inside the Beast Dimension, surprised that such a dimension existed. Flora and fauna differed from Earth and not to mention the pure sceneries that had never been touched by human hands. It was a literal new world with countless existences that weren''t known to humans until that day.

    Then there were the Gates and Dungeons¡ª things that should only exist in games and yet they appeared on earth, threatening its inhabitants. Every single time such a thing appeared, Tatsuki couldn''t help but feel a little small. Even though he was the number one superhero in Japan, there were still a lot of things unknown that could challenge his strength. And to think that such power existed somewhere in the universe, he could only hope to steer clear from it in his lifetime.

    But the moment he stepped inside the Dimensional Portal that led to the Nichijou Region (where the Grey family lives, along with beast tamers that are prevalent in their region), Tatsuki once again felt the smallness he used to feel whenever he encountered something new. A gasp came out of his mouth, followed by a huge smile that stered itself on his face and instantly shifted its expression from boredom to excitement.

    He looked around, there was nothing but trees. Regardless, the trees that existed in this forest were unlike anything Tatsuki had ever seen. He immediately approached the nearest tree and plucked out a branch sticking out from the rustling leaves. To everyone''s surprise, he pocketed the branch and proceeded to examine the leaves of the tree with his magnifying superpower. "Awesome! This is a new species of tree! Who would''ve thought I''d get to see one in my lifetime!" He muttered to himself.

    "That''s just amon tree in this forest though... it''s not particrly a new species." Jean Grey said as the group started walking towards the city.

    Everything in Tatsuki''s sight felt like it came out of a novel and he couldn''t express how happy he was when ites to seeing a brand new world.

    "Wha¡ª! So this is your city?! It looks so nice. What''s that big dome in the middle of it?"

    "That''s the Research Center where the professor researches about beasts. We can take you there after breakfast." Jean Grey pointed out.

    "I''ve been to this city many times now, and I''m still surprised by how normal it looked. Every single time." Jack Michael muttered to himself as he walked alongside Jean Grey. Together, the two of them led the way to the Grey household.

    The Grey household resembled a normal up-and-down house. With its wooden veranda and concrete build. Even its color was pretty normal, a speckled white color for walls and a somewhat bright orange brick roof. "And we''re here! Wee to our humble abode."

    This was the first time Satoshi and Emma saw the house where the Grey family resides, and they were a tad bit weirded out by how normal it looked. After all, this was a different world and the very definition of normal shouldn''t have existed there. And yet, everywhere they go, the city just screamed normal. They could totally rte to Jack''s words a moment ago.

    "Hoh, there''s a neer in town." Someone called out from behind Satoshi, impulsively making him turn around since he could tell that the person behind him was addressing him.<sub> </sub>

    "And you are?" Satoshi asked, confused. He had never met the guy before so he had no idea why he was talking to him.

    Rubbing his nose and trying to act all haughty and cool, the teenager who was more or less the same age as Satoshi pointed his bug-catching at him before he started doing his ritualic greeting. Putting his right foot forward, he waved the he carried before putting up a peace sign in front of Satoshi. "You''re new to this city but you still haven''t received a proper wee! Even if the beast master is your acquaintance, that''s unforgivable!"

    "That''s why, hehe, I took it upon myself to wee you! Give you the wee you deserve!" He said, clutching his chest as he pointed at Jean Grey, the Beast Master of the Nichijou Region.

    "Eh?" Satoshi had no idea what was going on, but it looks like the person in front of him wanted to give him a proper wee to the city, or something like that.

    "The name''s Ray. People around here call me Bugcatcher Ray but you can call me however you want." Ray introduced himself, doing a halfhearted pirouette before bowing toward Satoshi.

    "I''m Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi, nice to meet you, " Satoshi muttered, unsure of what to do next.

    "Cut it out, Ray, you don''t have a chance against Satoshi." Jean Grey called out, grabbing Satoshi by the shoulder. "Come on, breakfast''s getting cold, you know." Jean Grey continued.

    Before Satoshi could even ept or reject the ''wee'' that bug catcher Ray put out there, the door to the Grey household burst open, and out came Ash who rushed towards Satoshi with his eyes sparkling. Before Satoshi could react, he grabbed him by the hand and shook it. "Whoa! Satoshi''s here! And bug catcher Ray too! Are you guys going to have a beast battle? Sweet! I''ll act as the referee for you guys!"

    The whirlwind of excitement that went down in front of everyone then stopped as he fiddled with his phone. Just when Jean Grey and Tatsuki were about to tell them that they were going to have breakfast before the beast battle, Ash then pointed a thumbs up toward Satoshi and Ray. "Great timing you guys, the open field right by the park is actually free! We can go there and have our battle right now. I already reserved it!"

    Jean Grey was about to say something as he stepped forward, but as he was about to stop the three teenagers from going to the park, someone grabbed him by the shoulder, softly clutching it.

    "Let them be, dear. It''s been so long since I''ve seen our son get that excited over a beast battle. Let''s let them have their fun for now."

    The presence behind Jean Grey belonged to none other than his wife, Dahlia Grey.

    "I guess you''re right about that. Why don''t we go by the park and have a pic breakfast over there? I also wanted to challenge that Satoshi in a beast battle." Jena Grey said, his eyes screaming with enjoyment as he imagined an epic fight against the teenager. After all, he''d witnessed him summon two representatives in front of him. There''s no way he couldn''t challenge someone like that.

    "Take it easy, dear, you''re the beast master, remember?" Dahlia giggled before turning to Emma who was silently watching the whole thing unfold. "What''s your name, young miss?" She asked.

    "Emma, Emma Leisenberg." Emma responded.

    "Well then, Emma, why don''t you help all of us pack some food? We can head over to the park and watch the beast battle while eating breakfast." Dahlia requested.

    Since Emma didn''t know what to do, she decided to help out. Somehow, she found herself looking forward to the familiar Satoshi was going to use in the fight.

 Chapter 273 Beast Battle Commence!

    Surprisingly, the park was rather sizable, betraying Satoshi''s assumption that it was a miniature park with tracks around it. The park was located near the Urass Forest so the trees there were of the same species as the ones in the forest. Adding to that, the forest gave it a natural boundary as well as a tranquil feeling¡ª a feeling one would get when one stood by the edge of the forest.

    A cold gentle breeze lightly brushed agains Satoshi''s cheeks as he assumed his position on the opposite side of the field. This field was one of the few open areas wherein anyone can have a beast battle as long as they are mindful of their surroundings. After all, certain beasts could actually go out of control when a beast tamer wasn''t careful, hence the sign posted by the side of the field indicating that one shouldn''t leave their beasts unattended.

    There was nothing surprising about the two people walking into the open field to have a beast battle. This is just amon urrence everywhere in the NIchijou Region so the people didn''t bother looking at the general direction of Satoshi.

    Then again, there were those who actually look forward to the fight and would stay by the park just so he or she could witness one. Most of these types of people are interviewers, or beast tamers seeking inspiration from spontaneous beast battles. The small minority of this group included the beast tamers who are looking to fight other beast tamers.

    "I''m going to use three of my tamed beasts. We''re going to have a three-on-three fight and the one who doesn''t have any avable tamed beasts would be the winner. How does that sound, Satoshi?" Bug catcher Ray called out, raising his voice so loud that almost everyone at the park heard his announcement. He was a well-known trainer in the city since he only uses bug-type beasts, but no one particrly looked forward to seeing him fight so there was no audience.

    Frankly, Satoshi had no idea how the fight would go so he just nodded along at the conditions. He figured that he''d win anyways if he used his White Lion. He didn''t bother using his fire familiar Lighter, or his fire-type Alpha Red Smander since that would be unfair to his opponent. At the very least, White Lion is more in the blue lightning family which is of the electric type. Bug types aren''t particrly weak to electric and electric types aren''t weak to bug types either so this would be a fair fight with bnced advantages for both parties.

    "Ash," Satoshi called from the sidelines before Ash could officially announce themencement of the fight. Ash instantly nodded towards him before approaching him/

    "Yup? What is it?" Ash asked in a lighthearted manner, rxedly patting Satoshi on the shoulders as he eagerly waited for his question.

    "I... this is actually my first time having an official beast battle so..." Satoshi trailed off, averting his gaze from Ash in embarrassment as he scratched his head. "I have no idea how the beast battle would go. Can you exin the rules?"

    "Sure, why not. Everyone needs a little refresher from time to time. And the same could be said for beginners who had no idea how a beast battle goes." Ash shrugged before twirling his index finger in front of Satoshi. "Leave it to me."

    Without further ado, Ash then went on to exin the general rules when ites to beast battles. First and foremost, there was the quantity of the tamed beasts that one would use. The number of tamed beasts in the battle would be decided before the beast battle actually started. This wasn''t a rule, but more like an etiquette since it would be awful if someone used more tamed beasts than their opponent.

    The second rule was the type limitations. Some battles would require that you only use certain types of tamed beasts but that usually just happens in an official tournament. A casual fight wouldn''t implement such a rule.

    Third, there shouldn''t be any interruptions when ites to the fight. People stepping inside the ring, throwing grens at the opposing pokemon, and any form of foul y is frowned upon in a beast battle.

    "That''s way easier than I thought. I''m sure I''d be able to remember such rules. Thanks." Satoshi said, shing a thumbs up toward Ash before he headed back to his previous spot as the referee.

    "Now that that''s settled with... let''s have a fair battle between bug catcher Ray and Midoriyama Satoshi. I will be the acting referee for this beast battle, and if there won''t be any objections, let the fightmence!"

    "Go Scythewrath!" Bug catcher Ray called out, throwing out a Gren (as mentioned before, Gren is a type of dimensional storage that allows one to keep their beasts in their pockets. For theck of a better term and for easier understanding, a Gren resembles a Pok*ball in its functions... however, it looks more like a grenade than a P*keball.)

    Scythewrath is a bug grass-type beast that looks like a usual trilobite from Earth. However, it has two scythes as appendages and is more than three times the size of a normal trilobite from Earth. Aside from that, it has cute google eyes from the side of its face, giving it a nice cutesy vibe despite its threatening carapace. It let out a shrill growl as it hyped itself up for the beast battle.

    "AAAND! Bug catcher Ray brings out one of his favorite bug-type tamed beasts! His Scythewrath!" Ash announced, much to the surprise of everyone in the park.

    "Wow, that looks so cool and cute at the same time," Satoshi called out, pretending to rummage through his pockets for a Gren and then throwing it. "Let''s go, White Lion!" Satoshi called out.<sub> </sub>

    Due to the sudden announcement of Ash Grey as a referee, some of the park-goers that didn''t even bat an eye at the fight were suddenly interested. After all, it wasn''t every day that they see Ash Grey spectate and act as a referee in a fight. And when they saw that the entire Grey family was overseeing the match, they couldn''t help but wonder why. This was the first time they saw Satoshi in the city so they had no idea what kind of beast tamer he was. But judging from his appearance, he must''vee from a distant country.

    "Look, even our region''s beast master is watching. This fight is going toe down pretty well/"

    "I know right, why don''t we watch it? Ash Grey acting as the referee is a treat to watch due to his vast knowledge when ites to tamed beasts. It''s not every day we see ourselves in for a treat."

    "Mom, I want to see the beast battle, can we watch it?"

    "Oh, what''s going on? Ash Grey is supervising a match? That''s new."

    "Right? This is rarer than aet falling from the sky. We should watch this."

    Slowly, a crowd started forming around the open field wherein Satoshi and Bug catcher Ray was about to have their match. They somehow felt nervous as they saw the ever-growing crowd. A few secondster, the stalls that littered the park surrounded the open field as well, creating a spontaneous mini-festival right then and there.

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi asked, forcing a smile on his face as he felt his nerves get the better of him... just a little bit.

    "Wow, who''d have thought these people woulde to watch us." Bug catcher Ray said to himself, rubbing his nose. "Don''t you get all jittery on me now, Satoshi. We have a fight, right?"

    "You don''t have to remind me."

    Meanwhile, everyone started muttering, pointing at Satoshi''s White Lion as they realized that it was an Altered Type¡ª a rare urrence wherein a beast''s color is different from its normal counterpart. Some specte that ites from rare gics that allows a tamed beast to be slightly stronger than most of its counterparts. In turn, the Altered Types color would be different from the usual.

    "I''ve never seen an Altered Type White Lion before."

    "It looks so fluffy! I wanna touch it, mom!"

    "It''s beautiful, I''ve looked at it for hours now."

    "Yeah, it''s pretty. I wanna tame one someday."

    "Even though your tamed beast is an Altered Type, we all know that ites down to how you raised your tamed beast. My Scythewrath and I had beenpanions for years now, there''s no way we''d lose to your White Lion." Bug catcher Ray said.

    "AND ON THE OTHER SIDE! We have Midoriyama Satoshi with his surprising and rare Altered Type White Lion! This is going to be a really challenging fight since the type advantages are even in this match. An electric type against a bug type, interesting..."

    Ash then raised his hand in the air before he screamed at the top of his lungs. "LET THE BEAST BATTLE BEGIN!" He let out, prompting the spectators to cheer and yell as the fightmenced.

 Chapter 274 Mind Power!

    "Scythewrath, use agility!"

    With a nod, Scythewrath suddenly darted from one side of the field to the other, increasing in speed as it continued darting here and there. Its movements were erratic and sporadic, and even the White Lion had a hard time keeping up with his eyes.

    "Heh, how''d you like that? My Scythewrath''s agility had been honed to greater speeds since I''ve been hunting a lot of speedy beasts with it." Bug catcher Ray pointed out, extending his right hand towards the field while covering his face with his left. It was the usual expression of a beast tamer taking pride in his tamed beast.

    Even though the White Lion was slightly amazed due to the surprising ability of Sythewrath to change from one position to another. Even though the White Lion was leaps and bounds faster than Scythewrath, he was still amazed by how much it could move¡ª not that the White Lion was looking down on Scythewrath since he could tell just how much it had to practice to be that nimble. The White Lion was respectful enough to not scoff at the Scythewrath who was trying its best to do what it can.

    "White Lion, use lightning domain," Satoshi called out. Scythewrath may be nimble, but Satoshi knew the White Lion could still match it in terms of raw agility and speed. That''s why he decided to test it out by making his White Lion use his area of effect move, the lightning domain. This is different from the move electric domain since the electric domain just charges electricity in the air, while the lightning domain is actually lightning from the sky, shooting down on the field.

    The Scythewrath was surprised that the White Lion would use such an underhanded move, attacking the entire area without as much as batting an eye. Of course, such a skill wasn''t illegal since anything goes in a beast battle.

    "Scythewrath, keep on avoiding and then use string shot!" Bug catcher Ray called out.

    Scythewrath continued avoiding the lightning, and it was actually capable of dodging everything and even performing a counterattack. Of course, Satoshi just needed to mentallymand his White Lion to avoid the string shot attack, but he was impressed by the Scythewrath''s capabilities. He clearly underestimated how agile Scythewrath could get when it focused hard enough.

    This was what shocked Bug catcher Ray the most, his mouth gaping open as Satoshi''s White Lion dodged in an instant. Satoshi didn''t even have to say anything and he moved on his own.

    "What was that?" Bug catcher Ray asked himself in a perplexed manner. He then shook his head a split secondter since he almost fell into Satoshi''s trap. Right then and there, he almost forgot to issue amand to his Scythewrath!

    "Scythewrath! Keep on dodging no matter what but try to limit your movement and pace yourself so you won''t get tired." Bug catcher Ray said.

    Even the spectators, who were just there for the fun of it, noticed how White Lion dodged even though Satoshi never said anything. This was a rare urrence since most beast tamers would issue out amand and in turn, their tamed beast would execute it. If such a case didn''t happen, then that means the tamed beast doesn''t really listen to its owner.

    There were rare cases when trainers could feel and sense their tamed beasts to the point where they couldmunicate with their minds but such is a rare urrence. Throughout history, only a couple of beast masters could pull off such a feat as it required intense training and a deep love for tamed beasts.

    That''s why everyone in the crowd including Bug catcher Ray immediately assumed that Satoshi wasn''t like that. There was no way someone who just came here without prior experience with beast battles could have such an innate talent.

    With a light chuckle, bug catcher Ray scoffed at Satoshi. He could tell that he''d be able to win the beast battle without too much difficulty. After all, Satoshi''s Altered Type White Lion could be pretty powerful, but if it doesn''t listen to him then it might as well fight a losing fight.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi had no idea why a couple of spectators started shaking their heads while bug catcher Ray was lightlyughing at his face. Even Ash, who had been supervising the match as a stand-in referee, started shaking his head as he assumed what was going on.

    The only ones who didn''t react like them were Emma and Jack Michael (Star Spangled) since they had no idea what was going on. Jean Grey and his wife, Dahlia, also didn''t react like the others. In fact, they were shocked at the sudden revtion.

    "It looks like Satoshi is having a hard time reining his White Lion as the match progresses!" Ash announced. "How will Satoshi ovee this challenge?

    Satoshi incredulously looked at Ash. ''Me? Having a hard time controlling my White Lion? Since when?'' Satoshi asked himself in confusion.

    "Scythewrath! Use vines to tie the White Lion and then sr beam!" Bug catcher Ray called out and Scythewrath immediately attacked.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi was still deep in thought since he had no idea why everyone was frowning upon him. He didn''t even look at the battlefield, he just looked down and rubbed his chin with his hands. ''Did I do something wrong? What''s going on? What''s wrong with everyone? It''s not like I broke any rules, right?'' Satoshi said to himself.

    Just then, he received a signal from White Lion, asking him what he''d do since Scythewrath had already wrapped him with his vines and also preparing to st a sr beam on his face.<sub> </sub>

    ''Ah, that''s right! I''m in a fight!'' Satoshi said to himself, brushing his hands as if he was telling the White Lion to do what he wants. But unbeknownst to everyone, he actually gave the White Lion specific orders such as biting off the vines and then counterattacking with his lightning orb that he shoots out of his mouth.

    At that instant, the White Lion nodded its head before it bit off the vines that protruded out of Scythewrath''s body, forcefully removing it. After that, he opened his mouth and fired off a lightning orb just when Scythewrath was about to fire off its sr beam.

    Much to everyone''s surprise, the White Lion was actually a step early despite not receiving anymands from his master. Before Scythewrath could fire off its sr beam, it was already hit by the full st of the lightning orb.

    "And there it goes again! The White Lion running out of control!" Ash announced.

    "Huuh?!" Satoshi raised a brow as he let out an exhale in front of Ash. "What do you mean by White Lion is running out of control?"

    Everyone pretty much gasped at this point. Even though Satoshi had an Altered Type White Lion, they could tell that Satoshi had no idea what was going on. They totally gave up on Satoshi even though Scythewrath was in an even worse statepared to his White Lion.

    "I mean... your White Lion... it''s acting on its own, right?" Ash asked, confused.

    "Since when?" Satoshi returned. He simply doesn''t understand what Ash was referring to.

    While Satoshi was talking to Ash, bug catcher Ray gave a set of orders to his Scythewrath. "Scythewrath! Use razor leaf before they can make another move!" He continued.

    Scythewrath was nearing its limits since it was hit squarely by the lightning orb. But even then, it was able to respond to its owner, unleashing a flurry of razor leaves toward the White Lion. It was a pretty quick attack, and there was no way the White Lion could react just in time.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi received another signal from his White Lion as he was talking to Ash. Satoshi thenmanded his White Lion to use the move thunderbolt so he''d be able to deal with all the razor leaves at once.

    The White Lion obeyed.

    Once again, the crowd was shocked at the sudden turn of events... well, not everyone was shocked.

    Scratching his head, Jean Grey walked towards his son, Ash Grey, giving him a good whack on the head before he heaved out a long sigh. "Seriously, do your job properly." He told his clueless son. "You''re not giving out uratementaries, you know."

    Jean Grey then lightly pushed his son aside and sat in the middle of the field. "Um... basically... " Jean Grey muttered to himself.

    "You see that kid over there? I''ve seen him fight a legendary beast with my own eyes. And he doesn''t give out orders to his tamed beasts." Jean Grey began.

    "Now, you might think that his tamed beast is not listening to him but such is not the case. In fact, it''s the exact opposite." Jean Grey continued, pointing at Satoshi before he spoke again.

    "Tell me kid, is it easier to givemands to your tamed beasts out loud... or is it easier tomand them in your mind?" Jean Grey asked the ultimate question.

    "Um... it''s easier in the mind. When I blurt out mymands, the opponent would react to them easily. So I''d rather give outmands in my head." Satoshi casually pointed out.

    Everyone gasped at hisment.

 Chapter 275 Against The Beast Master

    It didn''t even ur in Satoshi''s mind that his reply could be deemed abnormal by everyone spectating. Ever since he had known the existence of beast tamers, he always assumed that all of them couldmunicate to their tamed beasts through their minds. But then again, it was only an assumption so Satoshi had no idea if it was amon thing or not.

    Apparently, it wasn''t all thatmon, hence the unfavorable reaction he got from everyone.

    Bug catcher Ray was surprised that Satoshi could say such a thing... this wasn''t because he didn''t believe what Satoshi said, but rather because he couldn''t believe he was fighting someone so powerful. ''It''s no wonder that Jean Grey is the one guiding him. Of course, he''d nurture someone as talented as Satoshi.'' Bug catcher Ray said to himself as he let out an exhale to mark him conceding. There was no way he could defeat someone with such an insane innate talent... but he''ll try anyways.

    "Scythewrath, it''s time to get serious." Bug catcher Ray muttered. "Use agility once again while using leaf tornado. Don''t let the White Lion hit you with its lightning!"

    Everyone, including Satoshi, eagerly watched as Scythewrath started darting here and there for the second time while using its move leaf tornado. Leaf tornado allows one to create a swirling pir of leaves that would shoot out sharp leaves in all directions, dealing a consistent amount of damage at anyone in the field. This is the reason why Bug catcher Ray ordered his Scythewrath to use agility. At the very least, he was sure that Scythewrath wouldn''t get hit by the leaves from the leaf tornado, and at the same time, the move will continuously deal damage to the White Lion.

    Now it alles down to who will fall first. The beast battle had turned into a waiting game wherein either Scythewrath would exhaust itself first, or White Lion would lose consciousness after too much damage.

    However, this was where Bug catcher overlooked something important. He didn''t take into ount the possibility of the White Lion being faster than Scythewrath. And since Scythewrath actually just produced a leaf tornado it was capable of dodging, the White Lion didn''t even have a hard time with it. It didn''t even break a sweat jumping from one spot to the other as it cleanly avoided the leaves that shot at him.

    Bug catcher Ray''s mouth hung open in amazement as he watched the White Lion move faster than his Scythewrath. From what he heard, this was the first time Satoshi fought in a beast battle, and yet, he seemed more proficient than him as a beast tamer. Despite having more experience, bug catcher Ray couldn''t help but admit the fact that Satoshi was better than him.

    "Now use a lightning orb to finish it off." As an ice cream on top (quite possibly a kick in the gut to bug catcher Ray) Satoshi voiced out thest move hemanded White Lion and it obeyed without dy.

    With a roar, the White Lion jumped up and swiped the leaf tornado, blowing it into nothingness. He then formed a lightning orb in his mouth and shot it straight at Scythewrath who barely reacted to the attack. A loud explosion then followed, and the Scythewrath fainted in an instant.

    "Scythewrath is unable to battle! The first round goes to Satoshi!" Ash Grey announced, his arm outstretched towards Satoshi.

    ...

    The second and third rounds went as expected¡ª with the White Lion sweeping through the entire team of bug catcher Ray. It was andslide victory for Satoshi which was totally surprising since this was his very first beast battle experience.

    p. p.

    p.

    To be fair, the spectators didn''t really ask much when ites to beast battles, but they were pleased to witness such a historic moment. It is rare to see a beast tamer who was too in-tune with his beast that he couldmand them in his mind. Beast Master Jean Grey was like that, an oddity, but who would''ve thought that the trainer he''d be watching over would also be like him?!

    Despite the ups and downs of the beast battle, the spectators actually started looking up toward Satoshi. They were wrong about the White Lion disobeying his master, and they were d that they were wrong. Regardless of what happened during the beast battle, the oue was final, and the spectators were more than satiated with the oue.

    "The two beast tamers, please step forward and shake each other''s hands. It is a good beast battle." Ash Grey announced, bringing both his hands together in a gesture for Satoshi and bug catcher Ray to greet each other a game.

    "It was a good match. You''re pretty strong, Satoshi." Bug catcher Ray greeted, reaching his hand out for a handshake.

    "It was a pleasure fighting you. Your tamed beasts are strong. With enough training, you''d be able to beat me in no time." Satoshi genuinely said, obliging with the handshake.

    "Please give our two participants a round of apuse as we draw the curtains for this beast battle." Ash Grey continued, bowing down towards the spectators who started pping on his signal.

    p. p.

    p.

    Amidst the group that gathered around the match, there was one guy who was just slowly pping all throughout the entire procession. Of course, there was an amicable smile on his face but what he felt was quite different within. He was welling up with excitement, and he couldn''t help but feel energized as he stepped forward to greet Satoshi before he could even step out of the open field.

    Feeling the atmosphere surrounding the important person, the spectators fell silent as their pping grew quiet. They watched with bated breaths as the man approached Satoshi, extending his hand to greet him just like how he shook hands with bug catcher Ray.

    It was none other than Jean Grey.<sub> </sub>

    "That was a great match, Satoshi, as expected from someone who came from another dimension." Jean Grey whispered since he didn''t want anyone hearing about Satoshi''s real identity.

    Satoshi didn''t even care about Jean Grey''s sudden change in his aura. He dly shook his hands while epting his congrattions with pleasure.

    "With that said... Ash?" Jean Grey then turned his head towards his son. "We still have time right? You''ve reserved this open field, right?" He asked in confirmation.

    Ash cluelessly nodded his head. He was confused as to why his dad asked him such an obvious question. Of course they still have time. He reserved the open field for himself, after all.

    "Nice, well then." Without further ado, Jean Grey cracked his head before walking towards one end of the open field. Meanwhile, Satoshi was still in position so it took him by surprise that Jean Grey actually went to the opposite side.

    "Um..." Satoshi trailed off as an extended quiet befell the park...

    ... followed by loud cheers from the spectators and the indifferent parkgoers alike. The entire park seemed to converge by the open field as Jean Grey stood by the opposite end of Satoshi. If what happened a few minutes ago resembled a mini-festival, then this would be considered a real bona fide festival with everyone in town celebrating it.

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi asked in bewilderment.

    "Whoa?! Is this for real?!"

    "No way?!"

    "The beast master is going to grace us with a fight?!"

    "WOW! This will be a treat!"

    "I''ve been waiting for this moment!"

    "Everyone be quiet! I''m calling the news stations real quick!"

    "Everyone, I''m a reporter, does anyone have a mobile phone? We have to livestream this online!"

    "It''s the Beast Master in the flesh! And he''s going to battle someone!"

    "LET''S GOOOOOO!"

    The cheers just got even wilder as the park got filled with people in an instant. Satoshi immediately felt the pressure weighing down on him like a block of iron descending from the sky. The park started to feel like a coliseum more than anything, wherein he was on the opposite end as a diator facing off with another diator. Satoshi felt like choking, but he remained quiet as he realized the situation he was in right now.

    The beast master of the NIchijou Region, or rather, the whole world, is challenging him for an official beast battle! Jean Grey didn''t have to say anything. Based on his actions, it was clear that he was outrightly challenging Satoshi to a beast battle.

    "A beast battle?!" Satoshi blurted out a tad bitte.

    "If you''ll be okay with fighting an old man like me, that is." Jean Grey said, letting out his Pheross.

    "But you''re not that old..." Satoshi trailed off.

    "Bring out your most powerful tamed beast. It will be a one-on-one beast battle. Whoever''s left standing wins. I''ll be using my partner, Azure Blue Tiger Pheross. I expect you to give it your best against a beast master, Satoshi" Jean Grey continued.

    Upon saying that, Jean Grey then threw out a Gren towards the open field and his partner Pheross came out with a growl.

 Chapter 276 Celestial Types, Unearthly Types

    Upon saying that, Jean Grey then threw out a Gren towards the open field, and his partner Pheross came out with a growl. Pheross almost had the same features as Satoshi''s White Lion but instead of being a lion, it''s a tiger (obviously!). But then again, both the White Lion and the Azure Lightning Tiger are part of the blue lightning type¡ª electric types that produced blue lightning which is twice the damage throughputpared to normal electric type attacks.

    "This is my partner, Pheross. I know he may look like a generic beast to you since Pherosses are actually quitemon in the Beast Dimension... but this one had been with me since I was a teenager. It''s strong, and we won''t lose against a beginner." Jean Grey said with utmost confidence as Pheross nodded its head along, totally agreeing with its master.

    Satoshi, who had been thrown into the situation suddenly, didn''t know what to do. The casual fight he had with bug catcher Ray was actually a prelude to a huge event and now he''s face to face with a beast master. It was a development he didn''t ask for but now it was delivered to him on a silver tter and he has no choice but to take the opportunity head on.

    ''It''s a beast master. In front of me right now is the beast master of this entire world, respected by a lot of people and is probably undefeated. He is going out of his way to challenge me to a beast battle so I should take on the challenge without holding back.'' Satoshi said to himself. There was no way he would win against a master like Jean Grey but there''s no way he''d back down from the challenge either.

    "I''m ready whenever you are, Satoshi." Jean Grey called out.

    As for Satoshi, he still had no idea whom to call. While the Statue of Captivity would have a higher chance at defeating Pheross, he didn''t want to reveal something as scary as a beast statue in front of everyone. Not only would it cause a panic, it would also make headlines globally and it won''t be long before he''d be targeted by the unknown bad guys again (like the strong beast tamer they encountered by the beast dimension just this morning)

    "Should I just go with Ghast? But Ghast is not that... yeah he''s not that useful when ites to offensivebat... and I don''t have any ground-type beasts either that couldbat Pheross. It would be nice if I could call Ryu Ryoko, the ck Winged Dragon... but now that I think about it, we were too rushed that I forgot to bring her with us...''

    ''And it''s not like I could use the Ice Empress... or Gabriel the summoner... both of them looked like humans and the people might think I''m cheating by calling them out. I guess I don''t have that much of a choice, huh.'' Satoshi heaved a sigh.

    And then a smile formed on Satoshi''s lips as he reached towards Orb Oboros, his spatial familiar. "I''m choosing you, all right? Don''t let me down. I''m counting on you. Let''s go Sera,"

    Sera, Satoshi''s only support familiar, went out squealing in excitement as she was chosen. Back inside the Orb Oboros, every familiar started debating on whether they''d be picked or not. That''s why Sera was overjoyed that she was the one who got picked from eveyrone. She immediately floated down on the ground and ran towards Satoshi, nuzzling his leg as she squealed in happiness.

    "Why, what is it, Sera? Are you that happy to be fighting?" Satoshi couldn''t help but feel rxed as he patted Sera on the head. The seven machine gears that floated on top of her head like halos started turning rapidly while she held Satoshi''s finger with her pudgy little hands.

    "Oum~!" She cried before twirling around.

    Meanwhile, the crowd couldn''t help but stare at Sera, falling in love with her instantly. As mentioned before, she looked like a teru teru bozu with slits for eyes and pudgy hands and legs that looked pillowy.

    "What kind of beast is that? It''s so cute?!"

    "Wow! What kind of beast is that? It''s so cute!"

    "Waghhh~ it''s so cute! I''M GONNA DIE!"

    "Has anyone ever seen such a cute beast?"

    "Too bad it''s going to get an ass-whooping from Jean Grey''s Pheross."

    "Is it just me or do you also feel bad for that cute beast? I don''t want it to get hurt."

    "It looks like an angel with those gears floating on its head like a halo."<sub> </sub>

    "That beast... it''s so cute it must be protected at all costs!"

    "All hail that cute angelic beast!"

    The only one who had a different reaction from everyone was Jean Grey, who looked at Sera as if he had just seen something scary. Of course, he had all the right to since he knew full well just what Sera is... or rather, what she may be. "That tamed beast... where did you find it?"

    Satoshi didn''t answer anything. He remained tight-lipped since he got Sera through unnatural means. Of course, there''s no way he''d disclose such important information.

    Jean Grey forced a smile on his face as hemanded his Pheross to be mindful of Satoshi''s tamed beast. Even though he had no idea what specific tamed beast Satoshi had, he knew based on certain features that it was very rare, perhaps even higher than a legendary when ites to its rarity.

    "I... I caught it somewhere." Satoshi vaguely answered, trying to whistle his way out of the topic to no avail.

    "I''ll be acting as the referee for this match." Ash then walked towards the center of the field, volunteering once again to be the referee of such a legendary match. Just like his dad, this was his first time seeing such an odd-looking beast. "But before I could supervise anything... may we ask what the name of your beast is, Satoshi?"

    A bead of sweat trickled down Satoshi''s brow as he tried to think up an answer. But then again, he couldn''t think of a valid exnation so he decided to just tell the truth. "Honestly, I have no idea what kind of beast this is... but I call her Sera, I based it on the word seraphim since she''s pristinely white and the first thing she reminded me of was an angel." Satoshi said. While he had no idea what angels look like, he still named his tamed beast after such a being.

    "Then it would be called Sera. And what is her typing? Do you know what her typing is?" Ash asked.

    "Typing?" Satoshi repeated since he couldn''t understand the question.

    "I mean, what element type is your tamed beast. My dad''s pheross over there is an electric type. How about Sera?" Ash asked.

    Once again, Satoshi decided to tell the truth. With a shrug, he responded. "Honestly, I have no idea..." He muttered.

    "So... an unknown tamed beast and unknown typing huh..." Ash trailed off but before he could speak anything, his dad cleared his throat and started saying something.

    "It''s a Celestial-Type Tamed Beast." Jean Grey muttered to himself. "A lot of you probably don''t know about this but in a region north of Nichijou, there are two elemental types who were discovered. This information hasn''t been publicized yet but now... I guess it''s bound to be publicized soon." Jean Grey began exining as everyone''s attention was directed toward him.

    "On that region, there''s a new legendary beast that had light-type moves, but these moves are unlike any other elements. And as you may have guessed, if there existed a legendary beast of some unknown typing, then there should be another legendary beast who could go head to head with it, right? That''s right."

    "Aside from that legendary beast with light type moves unlike any other, they also recently discovered a new beast which has dark type moves... however, its dark types couldn''t be considered dark types since it was more sinister... kind of like a curse. That''s why they gave these two beasts the nickname ''The Blessing and The Curse'' and they are the first two tamed beasts ever discovered to have the Celestial-Type and the Unearthly-Type. Celestial Types have light type moves while the Unearthly Types have dark sinister moves."

    "And I believe, that Satoshi''s tamed beast right now... is a Celestial-type... an undiscovered beast, and he''s the first one to ever tame one." Jean Grey continued.

    A long ''ooh'' could be heard from the crowd as they intently listened to Jean Grey. As for Satoshi, he was shocked that there were actually legendary beasts that had undiscovered typings. As it turned out, Sera wasn''t as mysterious as he thought, but that didn''t bring its value down at all, not in the least. Just like what Jean Grey mentioned, Sera is actually an undiscovered beast, and Satoshi was the lucky one to tame it.

    "So you were that special huh, Sera, you didn''t tell me." Satoshi muttered, once again patting Sera''s head as she squealed in pure glee.

 Chapter 277 A Freak Accident

    Pheross and Sera stood opposite each other, ready tounch an attack as soon as the signal was given to them. As for Jean Grey and Satoshi, the two of them didn''t budge an inch, also waiting for Ash Grey''s signal as the stand-in referee. This beast battle wasn''t just any other beast battle and Satoshi knew full well that Jean Grey is an experienced fighter. He should be more than cautious enough to not let his guard down, even if it was for a split second. After all, Jean Grey could easily take that to his advantage, the experienced fighter he is.

    "BEGIN!"

    Pheross immediately shot a blue lightning orb at Sera without Jean Grey giving it any order. As usual, the spectators were surprised that Jean didn''t say anything and Pheross moved on its own, even though they knew for a fact that Jean Grey could converse with his tamed beasts in his mind.

    In response, Satoshi also didn''t say anything. Instead, he also ordered Sera to buff herself up with her status effects. With a cheerful squeal, Sera flew up and gave off a bright yellow light, covering the entire open field with her buffs and debuffs at the same time. Satoshi was already satisfied with what she did, but little did he know, Sera could actually do more than give buffs and debuffs.

    As Sera descended to the ground, her in white body was suddenly covered with a whitecy dress, and the gears on top of her head became bigger as they rotated erratically. No sooner had she gone down, Pheross suddenly felt heavy.

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi asked. He could see the struggle in Pheross''s eyes but he didn''t bother letting Sera stop midway through her move activation. Her indirect attacks were pretty effective after all, so there was no need to interrupt her.

    Honestly, Sera''s transformation in terms of appearance was quite pleasing to the eyes, and it made everyone focus on her more instead of Pheross who was having a hard time standing. Unbeknownst to the spectators, Sera actuallyyered a couple of status skills on the field, giving Pheross the poisoned status, paralyzed status, burnt status, and rebuffing all his stats. It was a crazy mixture of debuffs that reduced Pheross into a weak tiger, or rather, a cub.

    "Pheross, are you all right?" For the first time during the fight, Jean spoke worriedly towards Pheross as he sensed his inner struggle. Gritting its teeth, Pheross turned around its owner and nodded. It can still go on, but at this point, it already took all of its strength to just keep its standing pose.

    "Pheross, I want you to push through a couple more seconds, and then once you reached ''that'', we can finally activate your special move." Jean Grey whispered towards his Pheross.

    ''Sera, do you know any attacks? If possible, we have to defeat Pheross right now. But if you don''t have any offensive attacks, just maintain a safe distance from Pheross and continue with the debuff, all right?'' Satoshi said in his mind,municating with Sera as she stood still. With a nod, Sera let out another cute squeal towards Satoshi as she proceeded to continuously debuff Pheross.

    Even though Satoshi gave Sera permission to attack, she wasn''t really expecting Sera to do anything. However, before Satoshi could think of another thought in her head, Sera nted her feet on the ground and locked her arms a little bit to the side.

    Sera then frowned, and then a bright white light started forming in her hands. From the looks of it, Satoshi thought that she was doing a poor imitation of a ras*ngan but such wasn''t the case. Sera was actually tapping into her innate celestial energy and forming it into a ball ofpressed energy. Sera then fired the ball toward Pheross.

    "Heh, just in the nick of time." Jean Grey muttered to himself as Pheross finally broke through his limit. "Now! Use Indomitable Guardian!"

    Indomitable Guardian is a tamed beast skill exclusive only to the blue lightning family. After withholding its attacks and enduring for a specific amount of time, a beast could activate this skill. The effects of this skill is mainly invincibility for a couple of minutes, as well as doubled stats regardless of buffs and debuffs ced on the tamed beast. It was a skill thatpletely counters Sera''s abilities, rendering them useless.

    ''Now, Pheross, use agility and then pin down Sera.'' Jean Grey said to his Pheross through his mind. Even though the indomitable guardian skill had a time limit, he figured it''d be more than enough to take down Sera. It would be a close fight, but he had already calcted how he''d e able to win.

    Before Satoshi could react, Pheross had disappeared from where he was standing, appearing behind Sera as she scratched her back with his retractable ws on his paws. It was a pretty swift attack, and Satoshi didn''t see iting at all!

    "SERA!" Satoshi screamed.

    As for Jean Grey and Pheross, they were relieved that the attack actually connected. If Satoshi reacted in a panicked manner, then that means Sera had been hit by the attack. And what''s more, it was a pretty powerful move since all of Pheross''s stats have been doubled at the moment.

    Dust and bits of rocks sprayed everywhere as Pherossnded the attack. Even though Pheross caught Sera off-guard, it still was relentless with its attack. It didn''t even worry about killing Sera with its powerful blow.

    ''Did I go too far? Eh?'' Jean Grey muttered inwardly as he forced a smile on his face. He then told Pheross to get out of there and not let his guard down. Pheross promptly obeyed, retreating back to its usual position.

    "SERA?!" Satoshi called out, wondering why he couldn''t see Sera when he could still feel his connection to her.<sub> </sub>

    Swish!

    The moment Pheross looked back, he saw Sera, standing right behind him. No one saw how she got there. Somehow, she just appeared right then and there in a snap of a finger. And what''s more, she was preparing another energy ball in her hand.

    "Mmuuu~!" Sera let out as she shot the energy ball toward Pheross point-nk. Satoshi could''ve sworn that Sera meant to let out a ''Kamehameha'' when the energy ball escaped her hands. At this point, Satoshi felt a slight annoyance emanating from Sera as she shot her energy ball. Satoshi had no idea why she was angry, but he could tell that Pheross''s attack caught her by surprise, and that''s why she got a little bit annoyed by it.

    Fwip!

    Boom!

    When the attack connected, there was a bleep as if dimensions were torn apart. The bleeping sound was then followed by a huge explosion that blew most of the spectators away. Pheross let out a scream of pure anguish as the attack connected...

    ... and then...

    AGHK~!

    Jean Grey suddenly coughed up blood as he impulsively knelt down. Something in his stomach hurt, and he felt like dying. For some reason, the attack that Sera shot at his tamed beast also affected him.

    The amount of wind pressure that urred from Sera''s attack brought about a rainy day in the park. And when the dust and rocks that flew all over the ce cleared up...

    Everyone gasped in surprise.

    There it was, Pheross, lying on the ground, with half of its body blown apart and al bloodied up. It was breathing raggedly as if it was on the verge of death. Pheross agonizingly look at his master as it tried to say goodbye... but it was no use, it could feel its life dwindling away.

    And apparently, Jean Grey''s connection with his tamed beast was so strong that he also felt the attack. That''s why he coughed up blood. A portion of the damage that Pheross took transferred to him thanks to that connection.

    "Oh no..." Dahlia was the first one to let out a reaction as she watched the dying Pheross on the ground.

    The second one to react was none other than Sera. For the first time in the entire series, Sera opened her slits of eyes and clear gold irises could be seen. She wore a shocked expression as she ran towards Pheross. kneeling on his head as she let out a couple of whimpers. It seemed like she was apologizing to Pheross for what she did.

    "Pheross! Urk~!" Jean Grey tried to crawl toward his tamed beast but he was injured as well. He helplessly reached out his hand as he watched his partner die before his eyes.

    A stray tear fell from Jean Grey''s eyes as his fond memory of getting Pheross as his first tamed beast from the professor started reying in his mind. Back then, he dreamed of bing a beast master. And now, a few yearster, he had achieved it. And all this time, Pheross was right by his side, assisting him and fighting for him. Through the hard times, they trained together and spent their years together as master and beast... no, as best friends.

    "Pheross... no..." Jean Grey called out. He could feel the connection he had with Pheross starting to sever. Pheross was dying. Of course he was dying, half of his body was blown apart after all.

    What started as a friendly beast battle between a beginner and a beast master turned into a bloodbath¡ª something that no one expected to happen in the middle of the park.

 Chapter 278 Jean Greys Backstory

    Chirp chirp.

    It was another day in the city. Sunny weather with a couple of grey clouds in the sky¡ª perfect and fine weather for beast taming. The weather couldn''t get any better that day, and for a certain someone, it was his most fateful day¡ª a day where his life would change in an instant and he''ll finally be able to reach out his hand for the dreams he had ever since he was young.

    Jean Grey''s eyes fluttered open as sunlight peered through the windows, invading his room and hitting him directly on the face. He squinted as soon as his eyes opened, and he wiped the morning dust off his eyes as he rolled on his bed. The drool on his pillow had already left its mark, and Jean Grey had to turn the pillow to its good side so he won''t have to smell the horrid smell of his saliva first thing in the morning.

    "Wake up Jean! You''ll bete for the beast choosing!" His mom called out from the first floor of their house.

    A familiar scent of Hamburg steak wafted into Jean''s room as he sleepily got up. After a stretch or two, he wore his slippers and headed downstairs. "Morning mom," He yawned, dragging his way towards the table before he settled down, leaning his head on the table as his sleepiness got the better of him.

    "Come on, aren''t you excited? You''re finally going to get your first tamed beast! You can finally go on an adventure!" Jean''s mom excitedly called out, grabbing Jean by the armpit and forcing him to lift his head up.

    "You just wanted some time alone, mom. Isn''t that the reason why you want me to go that badly?" Jean Grey muttered.

    "What are you talking about? Of course, I''ll miss you. It''s just that... you''re finally at that age huh. If your father were to see you right now, he''d be very proud." Jean''s mom said, wiping a stray tear off her cheeks before she served Jean a bowl of rice and a te of warm Hamburg steak.

    "Hamburg steak for breakfast? You really want me out of here asap huh, mom," Jean Grey joked. He knew all too well that his mom cooked his favorite food just because this may be hisst meal at home. Once he attends his beast choosing and he was chosen as a Beast Researcher''s assistant, then he''d be able to go on an adventure, documenting every beast he finds as he worked his way to bing a Beast Master.

    <o>,m "Come on, don''t say that." Jean''s mom cooed as she gave him a hug.</o>

    (And yes, Jean Grey''s dad is nowhere to be found. This is all for the sake of the plot. Maybe he got the milk and never came back, or maybe he died in his adventures as a beast tamer. Whatever it is, he''s missing in action, probably already dead. He hasn''t shown up for years now, and Jean Grey could barely remember his face.)

    "I''ll miss you too mom. I promise I''ll call everyday. I do have my trusty phone with me all the time." Jean Grey said, smiling as he savored his favorite meal.

    "Did you already decide what kind of beast you''re going to tame? If I recall, Professor Oand doesn''t just give three options for someone''s first partner, unlike all the other professors. There are a lot of, you know, beasts to choose from. And you know, your very first tamed beast is definitely one of the most important choices you''ll make in your adventure. It marks the start of your adventure, after all."

    "I''ll probably keep on soft resetting until I get an Altered Type." Jean Grey muttered to himself (referring to the old method of shiny hunting for a starter).

    "What are you talking about?"

    "You know, mom, dying choosing your first tamed beast until Professor Oandnds on an Altered Type Beast." Jean Grey said. He meant it as a joke, however. Just like his mom, he was also excited about his adventure. He doesn''t care whether his tamed beast is an Altered Type or not. As long as he could get his first tamed beast, he''d be able to catch an Altered Type sooner orter.

    "Thanks for the meal! Jean Grey announced with his mouth still full.

    "Wow, that''s fast." Jean Grey''s mom muttered before giving her dear son another hug. "I''ll miss you. I''ll hold you onto that promise, okay? You''ll call every day?" She asked, squeezing Jean Grey a little bit tighter to the point that he almost suffocated on her bosom.

    "Sure mom, I will, I promise." Jean Grey smiled before getting his signature cap from the drawer. "I''ll be going!"

    "Take care out there!"

    A beam of a smile formed on Jean Grey as he watched his mom from afar, waving by the veranda of their house as he headed to the Research Facility. Of course, why would his mom not worry about him when eighty percent of the Researcher''s assistants die due to some form of ident? After all, the Nichijou Region is home to a variety of wild beasts, and if one wasn''t careful, they could easily get killed while they were in the process of taming that said beast.<sub> </sub>

    However, Jean Grey didn''t head toward the Research Center. Instead, he headed deep into the Urass Forest. He had been eyeing a certain beast there and right now, he knew that the time hase for him to tame it. "After spending all my life savings, I managed to buy fifty Grens. With this, I can finally tame that Pheross." Jean Grey said to himself.

    After walking through the meandering path of the Urass Forest, Jean Grey finally found himself near a rocky cave wherein the Pheross lived. For a few months now, Jean Grey had been carefully observing the Pheross from afar, not daring to get close to it since it might kill him in one swipe. Ever since he first saw Pheross, he badly wanted to tame it. That''s why he decided to earn as much money as he could in order to buy Grens from the nearby shops.

    "My time hase." Jean Grey said to himself before he let out a scream¡ª a scream so loud that it disturbed Pheross''s sleep.

    As soon as Pheross came out of the cave he was in, Jean Grey threw a Gren at it, hoping that he''d be able to tame it just like that. It''s an immutable fact that a Gren has a three-percent chance of seeding. That''s why Jean Grey brought more than enough Grens with him. He knew he just had to catch that Pheross no matter what.

    Fwoooosh~

    Just as Jean Grey had expected, he couldn''t catch Pheross in one Gren. As soon as Pheross came out, Jean Grey threw another one. He perfectly matched the timing of when Pheross came out so it wouldn''t have the time to recover¡ª and dodge the Grening its way.

    "This should be easy... I shouldn''t lose my timing though since I''m going to get killed if that happened." Jean Grey shuddered at the thought of dying before he could even begin his adventure. That''s why he just had to focus really hard. If he persevered, surely he''d be able to sessfully tame Pheross.

    In a span of a few minutes, Jean Grey burned through his stock of Grens, throwing them one after another. By the time he reached the thirties, he was already sweating buckets. When he reached the forties, he felt as if he was going to faint due to nervousness.

    And then he reached his forty-ninth Gren, Jean Grey was exasperated. "Are you kidding me?!" He screamed.

    He only had one Gren left. "This is it... If I don''t catch it with this... then I''m probably the unluckiest beast tamer in the world." Jean Grey muttered to himself, kneeling down and offering a silent prayer before he threw hisst Gren.

    Ting.

    Ting.

    TING!

    Silence. Jean Grey stared at the Gren on the ground which sat motionlessly still. After burning all his Grens, he finally caught Pheross. At longst, after months of grinding for those Grens and after a painstaking effort of throwing fifty consecutive Grens, he was able to catch it.

    Jean Grey leaped in the air, doing a celebratory dance. "I caught it! I caught it! I caught it!" He screamed in the forest.

    "Jean? JEAN?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Someone called out from behind him. It was none other than Professor Oand. Apparently, he was heading back to his Research Center after taking a stroll by the forest. "You don''t have a tamed beast yet, right? You shouldn''t be venturing into the forest like that." He continued.

    Professor Oand then noticed the Gren lying on the ground, picked it up, and a Pheross came out of it, much to his surprise.

    .....

    "Pheross... no..." Jean Grey called out. He could feel the connection he had with Pheross starting to sever. Pheross was dying. Of course, he was dying, half of his body was blown apart after all.

    Somehow, his memories from when he first caught Pheross resurfaced in his mind, and he started crying his heart out.

 Chapter 279 A Persian Cat

    Pheross let out a weak moan as it tried to drag itself toward its master. It was dying, and it wanted to spend itsst moments with Jean Grey. However, he was doing a poor attempt at it since half of his body was already blown to smithereens.

    The entire crowd grew quiet as they watched the pitiful scene of the beast master and his partner in its final moments. It was heart-rending since some of them watched Jean Grey grow into a fine young man. They know just how many journeys and how many adventures they''ve gone through for their bond to grow like that. And now, they''re watching that bond dwindle until it was gone forever.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi''s mouth hung open as he watched in horror what happened to Pheross. And then he nced towards Sera. In return, Sera nced back at him. She had a hard time controlling her power since Pheross was strong. And now, this happened. Even Sera was shocked at the sudden oue of the match. She totally overestimated her opponent, thinking that he''d be able to tank a st from her pure celestial energy.

    "SERA!" Satoshi screamed. He didn''t even bother filtering out the volume of his cry. "WHAT WERE YOU DOING?!"

    Sera fidgeted, fiddling with her hands as she hung her head down low. She didn''t expect Satoshi to scream at her like that and she was shocked beyond belief. But then again, it was her fault that Pheross was dying. She muttered something indistinct, expressing her apologies to Satoshi.

    "Sigh, it''s all right. I''m sorry for screaming at you like that. You don''t have to apologize, all right?" Satoshi muttered, bending down as he patted Sera on the head. He stered a smile on his face so Sera wouldn''t feel bad. "Now, why don''t you heal Pheross?"

    "Oum~" Sera''s usual enthusiastic squeal was reced with a light gentle whisper as she nodded her head. A bright yellow light enveloped her and she ascended into the air for the second time. The bright yellow light that emanated from his body filled the entire open field. Some of its rays touched Pheross and immediately regenerated his lower body.

    A couple of secondster, Pheross was back to its usual self.

    Everyone gasped in disbelief.

    "That''s some insane healing powers... just what kind of beast is that?"

    "I know right... it may be cute, it may look angelic... but those powers are crazy."

    "And here I was, thinking that that beast is an offensive type. Turns out it''s an all-rounder."

    "Wait... does that mean that kid just now..."

    "I know right, he defeated the Beast Master."

    "Wha~ this is unbelievable! I mean... what?!"

    "WHAHAH! You all lost the bet, give me my money! I told you the child would win!"

    Jean Grey couldn''t believe his eyes. He was already preparing himself to say goodbye to his good ole'' Pheross. But in an instant, in a blink of an eye, Sera managed to heal him, even regenerating the lower body he lost. Jean Grey unleashed an incredible waterwork as he cried his heart out, hugging his Pheross. Even though he lost the match, he was just thankful that Pheross didn''t have to die right then and there. "I thought I lost you there, buddy."

    As for Pheross, he couldn''t be any happier, he let out a satisfied growl as he wagged his tail in glee. He was alive, and he didn''t have to say goodbye to his master. When he was in his lingering moments before death, Pheross couldn''t believe just how much sadness he had given his master at that point in time. At the back of his mind, he decided to grow even stronger so his master wouldn''t undergo such a state of sadness for the second time.

    "Jean!" Satoshi ran towards Jean Grey, grabbing Sera by the hand as they made their way toward them. "We''re so sorry. My tamed beast overestimated your Pheross and fired off a powerful st. I... It''s my fault, I didn''t even realize that my tamed beast is pissed. I... We''re really sorry."

    Satoshi lightly grabbed Sera''s head and put it down, implying that she should apologize in human form as well. Sera didn''t fight back, and she apologized to Pheross as well.<sub> </sub>

    "That''s all right, Satoshi... It was my fault for inviting you for a beast battle when you''re clearly inexperienced. I''m just... I''m just d that Pheross is alive, thanks and no thanks to you Sera." Jean Grey muttered, extending his hand towards Sera. "You''re pretty powerful, you know that. Cute. But super powerful."

    A squeal came out from Sera once again as she shook Jean Grey''s hand. She didn''t have to know what the gesture meant since Satoshi told her that it was a way of getting along with each other. Sera also walked towards Pheross and extended her hand, to which Pheross obliged by shaking it.

    At that very moment, Pheross vowed to be stronger. He realized that the world is indeed vast and there will always be someone stronger than him. He was getting toopetent with his rank since he was owned by a beast master. Furthermore, he got into the mentality that Jean Grey would always strategize and he just had to do the bare minimum. Now his mindset had changed. He had to strive to get stronger just as his master was striving to be the strongest in the world.

    "And we have a winner! Midoriyama Satoshi! A battle between a master and a beginner!" Ash announced, indirectly telling everyone to screw off and go somewhere else since the show was already over.

    "Sera, return."

    "Pheross, return."

    "That was a crazy fight! And you were able to beat my dad, the beast master! You''re pretty good, you know." Ash called out, putting his hand on Satoshi''s shoulders.

    "Yeah, but I still have a lot to learn. You saw what happened, right?" Satoshi said. "I''m new to this beast battle so I didn''t even think about the possibility that my tamed beasts could... well... could kill another tamed beast. I have to work hard so my tamed beasts would dial down their attacks."

    "That was pretty grotesque, all right. I agree." Ash continued. "But then again, I guess your training would be the exact opposite. After all, you need to train your tamed beast to act weaker while all beast tamers train their tamed beast to be as strong as possible. You''ve already got the potential to be a beast master. Why don''t you aim to be one, like me,"

    "I''ll think about it."

    The three of them went to the side of the open field where the rest of the group gathered. There, Dahlia silently ate her sandwich after handing one to Emma. Midoriyama Tatsuki (Satoshi''s dad) and Jack Michael (Star Spangled) also munched on their sandwich. They were trying too hard with their acting as they pretended that nothing happened during the beast battle. They couldn''t believe that Satoshi was able to beat the beast master, but then again, he was special. Even Tatsuki somewhat expected his son to beat the beast master, but he still couldn''t believe he was able to do that.

    "Your son... he''s pretty strong. Fortunately, he was able to heal my Pheross back." Jean Grey said, shaking Tatsuki''s hand as he settled down beside his wife. "Is he going to stay here in our world? He''s got the potential to rece me as the beast master."

    "That is up for my son to decide. If you want, why don''t you travel to our world, Earth? We''ll be having a Beast Tournament over there. It would be pretty cool if you coulde. You can even participate if you want."

    "That sounds nice. I have no idea what kind of beasts you have in your world so this would be a learning process for me. Sure, we''ll try to attend the Beast Tournament. I''ll bring Dahlia and Ash with me."

    "Sweet." Tatsuki said.

    The atmosphere between the group became warm after a couple of minutes. There were incidents wherein a beast would die in a beast battle so the urrence was not new to Jean Grey. But then again, this was the first time such a thing happened to him so he was a little bit shocked. ''I guess I still need to study about beasts more. There are a lot of things I don''t know about the wide variety of beasts in other worlds.

    While they were eating, Jean Grey suddenly stood up. "Ah right, I forgot to tell you guys. But when I went to your world, I managed to tame a beast. I forgot to show it to all of you back then so here we go."

    Without further ado, Jean Grey threw a Gren in the air and when itnded, a very familiar animal from Earth came out.

    "Isn''t that a... a Persian Cat?" Satoshi asked as heughed his heart out. Seeing an animal from Earth being tamed seemed a little bit ridiculous. Even Tatsuki had the same notion.

 Chapter 280 Beastmaster To Beastmaster

    A few dayster.

    "What is it? I don''t have the time." The man grunted, shooing his butler away before he could even continue what he was saying.

    "But sir I¡ª" The butler bit his lips. He was slightly frustrated that his master didn''t listen to him. No matter what his standing is, he shouldn''t be loafing around like that. He had a job to do¡ª or so that''s what the butler said to himself as he bowed towards his master and excused himself. A frown was etched on his face, and he stomped his foot when he walked away.

    "What''s his deal?" The man said to himself.

    The man, to say the least, is one of the top ten superheroes in America (well, technically, he''s in the top twenty since the rankings between men and women are separate). He is, as most superheroes call it, a beast tamer, and he''s considered the strongest beast tamer in the world. Of course, with that kind of rare title, he was bound to get fame and wealth. That''s why he was sitting by himself inside a huge mansion that was managed by his maids and butler. All he did the whole day was loaf around, watch tv, and eat wine and cheese.

    Every time he clicked on the channel, he eagerly anticipated his face shown on the screen. It''s only two weeks or so before the Annual Official Beast Tournament begins, that''s why he was watching the television. This was the only time of the year wherein he''d see himself on television. Despite the many feats he achieved throughout the year, somehow, he never appeared on the news. It was only on such an asion he''d found himself.

    And he lived with it, put up with it. He didn''tin to anyone that he never appeared on television. That would just make him look like a crybaby. Instead, he decided to look forward to the Annual Official Beast Tournament. Since he had been the running champion of the tournament for more than three years now, he knew that he''d show up when it was announced.

    It''s not like he was azy superhero, it''s just that... he finished everything he had to do so he''d be able to watch the television. He was like a kid who was interviewed on the local news, waiting untilte at night just to see the broadcast with him on it.

    It had been three days since he started this annual routine, and he still haven''t seen himself on tv. No wonder he was a bit furious.

    "SIR! SIR!" Meanwhile, the butler returned to the living room once again where the man was lying down on his couch. He was putting a mouthful of nachos in his mouth when the butler returned.

    "What is it, Sebastian? I told you, I''ve freed up my time so I could do this." The man continued.

    "It''s not that, sir! Someone... someone''s trying to challenge you to a beast battle!" Sebastian eximed.

    "A what?!" The man eximed, standing up on the couch and causing the bowl of nachos in his hand to spill everywhere on the floor.

    At the same time, the news about the Annual Official Beast Tournament was announced on television, and before Sebastian could tell the man the details of the match, the man then turned around to watch the announcement on tv.

    He looked happier than normal, watching with sparkling eyes as he watched the announcement.

    [Wee everyone, I''m (KONO DIO DA!) and I''m your host today. The most-awaited Annual Official Beast Tournament. Registration is up, we''ll be looking forward to the participants!]

    [This year, unlike any other year, the winner of the Official Beast Tournament would be awarded a rare beast! If anyone''s up for the challenge, please sign up now!]

    Click!

    There was a pause.

    The pausested for a couple of seconds as the man stared at the television. The announcement was over, and the next segment of the news was yed.

    The man couldn''t believe it! Not once did they show his face on tv.

    "WHAT?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW?" The man screamed his lungs out, stomping his foot on the floor. "AND HERE I WAS... WAITING FOR MY MOMENT! AAARGH!"

    Sebastian looked away as the man continued to stomp on the couch, ring up in anger as if there was no tomorrow. It took at least twenty minutes before he calmed down. He then kneeled on the carpet and gathered the nachos that fell from his bowl. He continued eating it.

    "Sebastian, who dared challenge me to a fight?" The man asked, his breathing ragged.

    "His name is Jean Grey. He''s a friend of the number one superhero, Jack S Michael. He gave me a cool this morning and scheduled a fight." Sebastian continued.

    "What did you say? Jean Grey?" The man''s brows furrowed. Of course, he''d recognize that name. A few days ago, that name was on the memo he received from the American Government and the Japanese Government. "This is interesting."<sub> </sub>

    "And? What did you say? Did you reject their invitation?" The man asked Sebastian.

    Sebastian fiddled with his fingers as he uneasily stood in front of his master. "Um... I did reject their invitation since you wanted to rest for today, sir. I did tell them that you have some matters to attend to and as such, you won''t be avable right now."

    "What are you talking about?! I''m perfectly free today! Call Jack, and then we can work out a schedule for this match. Heck, if the man''s avable tonight. I''ll fight him. We''ll fight by the American Dome. As soon as you called them and they agreed, call the management of the American Dome, and then we can work out a schedule tonight. They''d quickly say yes since my beast battles are quite popr. Hurry it up." The man continued.

    Without further ado, Sebastian nodded his head and turned around, rushing towards the door so he could quickly call Jack Michale for the schedule. He didn''t want his master to disturb him while he was calling someone, that''s why he went outside as fast as he could.

    Ring. Ring.

    Click!

    "Hello? Sir Jack Michael?"

    "Yes? Did White Mist agree to the beast battle? when would it be?"

    ...

    A smile appeared on White Mist as he continued eating the nachos he picked up on the floor. He then summoned his tamed beast¡ª a White Wolf he found in the Beast Dimension. This White Wolf is probably one of the most powerful tamed beasts he had in his possession.

    Of course, there''s another one, but that tamed beast is more like a partner than his beast. It was none other than the representative who allied himself with him. "So Jean Grey ising for me, huh? This couldn''t get any better." White Mist said to himself as he buried his face in his White Wolf''s fluffy mane.

    With this once-in-a-lifetime chance, not only would he be able to fight Jean Grey in public and be shown on television, but he''d also be able to target him as soon as the battle is over. The mission he was given would finally be over, checked out of his list.

    "This is going to be a long night, I guess."

    White Mist didn''t bother preparing for the fight since he knew that Jean Grey does not have a Representative on his team. The fight was over before it even began, and Whit Mist would be taking the victory with him. "Just you wait, Jean Grey... as soon as I defeated you, you''ll disappear from here... and then Jack Michael would soon follow you to your grave. I will eliminate you from this life." White Mist continued.

    A few minutester, Sebastian muttered a soft ''excuse me'' before he entered the living room once again.

    "Ah, Sebastian, did they agree to the schedule?"

    "Yes, sir. Oddly, they''re to the American Dome in the specified time, that is, three hours from now." Sebastian responded.

    "Nice, tell them to take it easy. I guess I have to travel over there right now." White Mist said to himself, clicking his tongue towards his White Wolf and riding on his back. "I''ll personally greet them myself. You don''t have toe with me, Sebastian, just watch the live stream on television. I''ll win anyways."

    Have a safe trip sir, Sebastian muttered, bowing down as the White Wolf started running. Sebastian truly believed that his master won''t lose, but somehow, he felt a nagging feeling in his stomach that made him a bit nervous.

    ...

    Currently,

    Click!

    Jack Michael nced towards Jean Grey and nodded his head. "He said yes, and what''s more, he wants to fight you tonight. You in?" Jack Michael asked.

    "In? Of course I''m in!" Jean Grey eximed as he jumped up and down. He couldn''t believe that the number one beast tamer on Earth would fight him. "I''m looking forward to this fight... I wonder how formidable Earth''s Beast Master is..." He said to himself, smiling.

 Chapter 281 Rychtyosaur And Orbroznar

    "In? Of course, I''m in!" Jean Grey eximed as he jumped up and down. He couldn''t believe that Earth''s number one beast tamer would fight him. "I''m looking forward to this fight... I wonder how formidable Earth''s Beast Master is..." He said to himself, smiling.

    Jean Grey couldn''t be any more happier. Not only would he be able to fight against the strongest beast master in Satoshi''s dimension, but he''d also be able to represent their world of beast tamers to an entirely different world. Spreading his love for tamed beasts was his long-time passion, and having someone from another world share that passion with him made him feel over the moon. He couldn''t help but look forward to the fight that would happen a couple of hourster.

    Since he had no idea what kind of tamed beasts he''d be going up against, he decided to carefully pick out a decent roster that would truly represent his title as the beast master. If he''s going to fight a beast master, then he should at the very least do what he can to be presentable and to be worthy of the fight. "Of course, Pheross would be on the team since he''s my precious partner... but as for the other five beasts..." Jean Grey rubbed his chin as he headed toward the Research Center where Professor Oand is stationed. He needed to ess the PC located in the research center so he could recall some of his stronger tamed beasts.

    This wasn''t mentioned that much before but the PC stands for Purged Conduit. The Purged Conduit is a different dimension that is interlinked with the Beast Dimension. These dimensions are exclusive for a certain beast, and it provided them with a small plot ofnd where their tamed beasts would be able to roam around. The Purged Conduit is basically the storage for familiars and every beast tamer could ess one as long as they have more than six tamed beasts. Even Satoshi has a Pruged Conduit, or so that''s what Dex told him. Then again, Satoshi didn''t want his storage familiar, Orb Oboros to lose its job of keeping everyone a call away. Even though Satoshi had more than six tamed beasts, he had plenty more in his pockets. And what''s more, Satoshi could fuse with his familiars, which puts him as one of the beast tamers that could break the rules of keeping only six beasts aspany.

    "How are your preparationsing along? Having a hard time filling up your roster?" Jack Michaels greeted from far as he entered the Research Center. Jean Grey then greeted him as usual, waving his hand before fiddling with the machinery wherein one could ept their Purged Conduit. It was one of the best inventions Professor Oand was able to create, and now it had helped everyone with all the space readily avable for a princess novel.

    "I wanted to go with a decent Grass type, Fire type, Water type beast mo but I''m having a hard time choosing one of them. I mean, all of them hold a special ce in my heart, and I don''t want to use one and not the other. Sigh~ this is why I hate this type of preparation. It would''ve been nicer if I could just bring everyone with him or something like that."

    "You do have those silly grenade things you use to tame beasts, right? There " Jack Michal said out of the blue. Of course, why wouldn''t he ask when such an obvious solution to the problem existed?

    "Even though we can technically hundreds and hundreds of the Grens with, there''s no way we can use any of the tamed beasts we have in our possession. It''s an unwrittenw of thend that only one could only use six tamed beasts at a time.

    "Just sort them out by their raw attack power and defense, and then pick the first three. You do know how to use that on that device, right?" Jack Michael continued. "That way you won''t have to worry about picking a weaker beast. I''m sure there is a function for that setting. Hold on, let me check." Jack Michael continued as Jean Grey stepped aside. After fiddling with his Purged Conduit, the first two on the list were none other than the legendary beasts that Jean Grey owned.

    "Rychtyosaur and Orbroznar, a fire water type tamed beast and a flying steel type tamed beast. These two are one of the most powerful tamed beasts in the entire world and I had the opportunity to catch them." Jean Grey smiled to himself as the memories of Rychtyosaur and Orbroznar resurfaced in his mind. After picking them, Jean Grey then got three more tamed beasts next to Rychtyosaur and Orbroznar so he''d be sure that whomever he picked would be strong.

    "I guess that''s enough preparation, huh? Why don''t we head back to your world, Jack Michael." Jean Grey was looking forward to going back to where the Midoriyama resided. This was his second time visiting the Earth and a special asion was specifically reserved for him. "So this White Mist guy, can you tell me more about him?" Jean Grey continued.

    "His partner is a huge White Wolf. Your Pheross won''t stand a chance against that fighter. And as for his other tamed beasts... umm... Honestly, I had no idea. I''ve never seen him use another tamed beast, to be honest. He does parade his tamed beast from time to time, and he''s pretty good at responding to situations when it calls for it. If he suddenly admits defeat, just don''t mind it. Sometimes he tends to react a bit wildly but he won''t mean anything he says whenever he losesposure. Overall, he''s a good guy, and he''s helped me in a lot of missions. The way hemands his tamed beast is super cool. He''s very coordinated. If I were you, I''d prepare for a group battle instead of an individual one.

    "All right then, I''ll keep that in mind." Jean Grey said. He breathed in and out as he tried to get in his gear. This is a very important fight for him. As a beast master, there was no way he''d let himself get defeated by the number one beast tamer in another world. He had already been beaten by a child, no less, a couple of days ago. Right now, he couldn''t afford to get beaten up again. He would lose face if that were to happen.

    "Do your best in the fight. Remember, your son''sing with you, right? It would be awful if you were to lose twice in front of him." Jack Michael teased. Throughout the years he''d known Jean Grey, he had never seen him get defeated, not even once. That''s why his fight against Midoriyama Satoshi was an eye-opener for him.

    "You should do your best too. When are you going to continue with that altered-type hunt of yours? You were trying to capture an Altered Type White Lion, right? What happened to that? A kid beat you to it?" Jean Grey called out, nudging Jack Michael by the side as the two of themughed together.<sub> </sub>

    .....

    The afternoon hade to an end and the hazy orange warm light that illuminated the neighborhood started to dissipate, rece by a certain coldness brought about by the night. One by one, the houses lit up, and the streetmps which were unlit before started shifting into bright light as their switches were automatically turned. The neighborhood had finally transitioned into the night, and with it came the peace, quiet, and tranquility that lulled most people to sleep.

    "You should take a bath, Satoshi, you reek of White Lion''s drool," Ayumumented, imitating a gagging sound as she pretended to throw up.

    Satoshi responded with a routinely ''yes mom'' before he slowly got off the couch. The smell of smoky steak that Tatsuki was grilling outside wafted in the living room, making Satoshi salivate. As he was about to turn off the television so he could head to the bathroom, the news then shifted into a spontaneous broadcast.

    [Just a couple of minutes ago, today. We''ve confirmed that the superhero White Mist, a member of the Ten Men in America, has challenged someone into a beast battle before the Official Beast Tournament even started!]

    [Are you sure this is not just a publicity stunt, Marie?]

    [I''m sure about it. We''ve confirmed from the number one superhero, Star-Spangled himself. Apparently, his friend is challenging White Mist into a beast battle]

    [Wow, a beast battle outside the Official Beast Tournament?! This is going to be exciting! I guess there''s one more thing we can look forward to before the main event starts!]

    [We just received another update from White Mist''s... butler? The fight will be tonight!]

    [Tonight?!]

    [Yes! Tonight! And what''s more, it''s happening in the American Dome! Can you believe that?!]

    [Wow, this is a real surprise party right here. Ain''t we all excited?]

    [And with that, please look forward to the live onsite report of the sudden beast battle!]

 Chapter 282 Hand-Holding?!

    The American Dome is thergest stadium ever built in America. This is also a historic monument for a lot of people since it had been built before superpowers appeared in the world. Well, it was more like a relic, but people still use it for beast battles or superhero tournaments from time to time. The American Dome had stood the test of time, and despite the fact that its use changed over the years, it still held true to its name as the American Dome. Before, some of the Olympics were held here. And now, it is used to hold events for superheroes and beast battles. There''s no better stadium than the American Dome, or at least in America there''s none.

    Just like any other day, the American Dome was filled to the brim with people. The superhero ser had just finished for the night, but the people who were in their seats didn''t move an inch at all. Their eyes were fixated on the middle of the field where a historical fight would take ce. Even though they had to pay extra just to reserve their spot for the next event, they did so without thinking twice. And those who couldn''t pay for their seats were paid for by none other than Jack Michael aka Star Spangled who is the number one superhero of the country.

    "It''s my best friend who''s going to fight so I''d like it if you all support him." He announced it a couple of hours ago.

    Of course, this prompted most people to not pay for their seats for the next fight, causing Jack Michael to almost pay for every seat. But then again, paying for the entire stadium itself is just chump change for him. That''s why he was bold enough to offer something like that.

    "Star Spangled said it himself. It''s his best friend who''s going to fight White Mist!"

    "Really? I wonder if his best friend is strong. Isn''t White Mist the current title holder of Beast Master? He''s never lost in the Official Beast Tournament, right?"

    "Yeah, but who knows? It''s Satr Spangled''s best friend we''re talking about here. He should be strong right?"

    "If he''s not strong, then Star Spangled wouldn''t announce something like that. You do know how it works in the field of superheroes, right? Connections, connections, connections."

    "That said, how strong could he be?"

    "I''m guessing he at least has a fighting chance of beating White Mist on a bad day. If not, then this fight wouldn''t even be possible."

    "Or maybe this is all just White Mist''s ploy. He probably wanted to make a bang before, you know, the Official Beast Tournament happens."

    "This fight is probably in ce to push him up the poprity rankings."

    "Whatever it is, I''m notining though. I got free seats and I could watch White Mist''s battle. My son''s a die-hard fan of White Mist and there''s no way we''re missing something like this for free."

    "That''s right! White Mist is the strongest IN THE UNIVERSE!"

    The reporter continued to go around the American Dome, interviewing anyone he came across so they''d have more air time during the special event. Both White Mist nor his challenger have not arrived yet, but there were a couple of performances held on the field while everyone waited for the fight. The people couldn''t be any more excited.

    "Wha~ there''s so many people. Our seats by the front seat, right?" Ash screamed at Satoshi. The surroundings were much louder than expected. Even Ash''s scream could barely be heard from the crowd.

    "WHAT?!" Satoshi screamed back even though he heard Ash properly. "YES!" He responded.

    Ash''s mom, Dahlia Grey, was there as well. The group consisted of the Midoriyama Duo, Emma, Aira, and the father-daughter duo that is Yukine and Shiroi. This was the first time Yukine (Shiroi''s dad) met the Greys, that''s why he was surprised that the dad, Jean Grey, was actually Star Spangled''s best friend. He could somehow rte to Jean Grey though since he too is best buds with the number one superhero¡ª of Japan.

    "I''m going to buy some drinks, do you want something, Satoshi?" Emma had to cup her hands on Satoshi''s ears and whisper so he''d be able to hear him.

    "I''ll go with you." Satoshi blurted out before he even thought about his words.

    A secondter, the spectators started flocking towards them, asking the Midoriyama Duo for their autographs before they even reached their seats. The husband and wife obliged, as per usual, and they told everyone to just head to their seats first.<sub> </sub>

    Shiroi found it the right time to stash Satoshi from the group. Without further ado, she grabbed Satoshi by the hand and dragged her from the crowd that continuously grew around his parents. "Let''s go, we might miss the fight." Shiroi smiled. Had she realized that she was holding Satoshi''s hands, she''d have blushed right then and there. But she was too preupied with the thought of spending alone time with Satoshi that she forgot to sweat out the small details.

    "A- eh?!" Satoshi''s face reddened with embarrassment but he didn''t let go of Shiroi''s hand. He bit his lips, hoping that Shiroi wouldn''t react to his exmation. It didn''t even ur to him that Shiroi probably didn''t hear what he said. The crowd was noisy after all.

    When they got out of the audience area, the two found themselves in a hallway filled with stalls upon stalls of food, drinks, and souvenirs. There was even a stall that sold goldfish scooping as if there was a festival going on. Satoshi found it weird, but he didn''t ask the stall owner any questions.

    By the time Shiroi realized that she was still holding Satoshi''s hands, it was already toote. They''d already walked a considerable distance from the exit and a lot of people had already seen them walk together with their hands intertwined. Holding hands is weird enough for them as it is, but letting go after being seen by a lot of people would be even weirder.

    ''Haah~! Satoshi''s going to think I''m weird. I just grabbed him by the hand and then... and then... ughh~ what am I even doing? What is he thinking right now? Do I look all right? Maybe he''ll find me weird. Uuuu~'' Shiroi panicked in her mind but she put up a poker face so Satoshi wouldn''t read her expression.

    Satoshi also had the same notion. That''s why he didn''t let go. And even when he tried to unsp his hand from Shiroi, she still held on to it, that''s why Satoshi had no choice but to oblige. Shiroi wasn''t the only one panicking in her mind. Satoshi was panicking as well, and his panic was twice as worse as Shiroi''s.

    "Eh? Shiroi? Satoshi? What are you two doing here?" Someone called out of the blue.

    It was none other than Kitamura Ayano, superhero name Eye Goddess. Apparently, she too flew over to America for a mission. Then the announcement about White Mist''s fight was broadcasted and she just had to see it.

    "Oh, is this a date? Sorry if I''m interrupting." Ayano put her palm on her lips in a mocking manner as she ''ho-ho''ed like an olddy.

    Shiroi and Satoshi responded with silence. They were too embarrassed to admit anything, and their hands still touching each other were not helping with the situation at all!

    "By the way, who are the two people behind you? I swear I''ve met the purple-haireddy before... but the red-haired one... hmmm..." Ayano then continued.

    Based on what she said, apparently, there were other people behind them. Herment made Shiroi and Satoshi turn around.

    Standing behind them were Emma and Aira who were both casually licking candy apples. Emma casually raised her hand as a greeting while Aira handed one candy apple to Satoshi.

    "Emma? Aira?!" Satoshi eximed. His shock made him let go of Shiroi''s hand. And in his shock, he apologized to Shiroi before grabbing her again by the hand.

    "EH?!" This time, it was Emma''s turn to feel flustered.

    That''s right, Satoshi, who had inadvertently let go of Shiroi''s hand, grabbed Shiroi''s hand again after apologizing.

    "Are you flirting with each other?" Aira asked in a monotonous tone, grabbing Satoshi''s other hand as if that was the normal thing to do in that situation (To those who had forgotten who Aira was, she is the red-haired child who can see through the future. She was rescued by Satoshi and Crispwisp at chapter 175)

    "Why are you shocked to see me? I was the one who brought all of us here, remember?" Emma teased. "Don''t mind Aira and I and just go on with your date." Emma continued, gesturing with her hand as if she was shooing them away.

    "AH! I remember you! You''re that girl who was riding the White Lion defending the Dimensional Portal, right? I also met you at that time, how could I forget." Ayano called out. "In any case, do you two want anything? It''s my treat."

    Before Ayano could react, Aira grabbed her by the hand after hastily finishing the candy apple she was eating (she already handed her other candy apple to Emma before she grabbed Satoshi''s hand). Now it looked like Satoshi had three girls with him, and Emma couldn''t help butugh at him as she trailed behind the group.

 Chapter 283 Challenger Vs Defending Champion I

    The American Dome which was already loud at this point had gotten even louder as everyone started cheering for both Jean Grey and White Mist. They were both more or less rted to the number one superhero, Star Spangled/Jean Grey, and that''s why the people looked forward to the fight more than they were expected to.

    Pretty soon, Satoshi and the others also already returned to their seat after that awkward moment by the line of stalls outside. They were able to buy food thanks to Ayano, the Eye Goddess, and her fluent English speaking skills. And now that they''ve stocked up on food and drinks, they can finally watch the fight without any disturbance¡ª aside from the loud cheers of the people around them.

    The first one to enter the ring was none other than the reigning champion of the Official Beast Tournament with almost ten consecutive wins on his belt, White Mist. As he walked inside the field with a confident and purposeful gait, he waved toward the audience with a huge smile on his face. He liked the attention, and this was one of the rare times when people flocked just to see him. How could he not relish the glory when it was readily avable to him?

    "This many people came for my exclusive match? How nice. I guess I should put a pretty good performance in front of them. Whomever my challenger is, I''m going to beat him ck and blue using my tamed beasts." White Mist said to himself as he summoned his trusty White Wolf. He paused in the middle of the field and petted his White Wolf, urging it to howl.

    With pride, the White Wolf let out a long and fearsome howl that echoed all throughout the stadium. Even though the people who were cheering for the two of them were so loud they drowned the noise of everything in the stadium, the White Wolf still managed to howl more dominantly than them. It was a threat as well as a performance from the White Wolf that he''s the superior tamed beast standing in the field.

    "Good job," White Mist said as he petted the White Wolf. He couldn''t get any more satisfied with the crowd and the way his White Wolf disyed how formidable it was.

    After bowing down a couple of times in the middle of the field, White Mist then headed to the right side of it, positioning himself just by a block wherein he''d stand while the beast battle went on. He wasn''t new to this kind of feeling, and that''s why he felt pity for his challenger. He may be Jack Michael''s friend, but that doesn''t mean he''s an expert when ites to beast battles.

    "I am, after all, the number one beast tamer in all of the world. And no one can beat me on my home court." He said to himself as he eagerly waited for his opponent.

    And yes, of course, he knew who his opponent was. It''s not like he tried to kill him a couple of days ago by the Beast Dimension alongside Satoshi and the others.

    The opening to the other side of the field, the left side, then opened, and out came a man who was no older than White Mist himself. He looked like a typical middle-aged man with ck hair and ck eyes and he waved to the crowd with pure confidence. To the spectators, it seemed like the challenger was more used to the crowdpared to the defending champion himself. After all, the challenger just walked as if he was in the zone. There was no shred of hesitation in his presence and the way he waved his hand was as if he was waving to a friend.

    But quite frankly, Jean Grey felt a tad bit nervous after seeing the crowd. He knew all too well that he doesn''t know anyone here, not to mention that this is his first time having a beast battle in an entirely new world. Aside from his family, and the other people who were with the Midoriyamas, he pretty much doesn''t know anyone.

    And also, the people here don''t speak hisnguage. He was surprised that they speak an entirely newnguage! He could understand Satoshi and the others properly since they have the samenguage, but the people in this country were weird, he couldn''t even converse with them.

    "That''s the least of my problems though. Right now I have no idea how strong my opponent is. He''s the Beast Master of this world so I shouldn''t let my guard down. I should safely assume that he''s on equal grounds with me. I should at least gauge his abilities for now and try to counterattack with the options I have." Jean Grey said to himself as he let out Pheross, the Azure Lightning Tiger, and his one and only partner.

    "Wow! It''s so cool!"

    "His tamed beast looks way more awesome than White Mist''s"

    "Yeah, White Wolfs are too generic when ites to animes and fantasy light novels."

    "The White Wolf may be powerful, but it looks way moremon than that tiger, right?"

    "Right, that White Wolf is ugly."

    The unnecessary hate directed at White Wolf pricked White Mist a little bit. As much as he hated to admit it, the Tiger in Jean Grey''s possession was really more appealing than his generic White Wolf. He clicked his tongue in frustration. The fight hasn''t even started yet and he''d already lost when ites to the appeal.<sub> </sub>

    "So you''re the Beast Master. I''ve always looked forward to challenging you." Jean Grey said, unaware of the fact that the person in front of him was the one who attacked his group back at the Beast Dimension.

    "I don''t know who you are, but you''re a friend of the Star Spangled. I know that I shouldn''t underestimate you. You''re powerful, aren''t you?" White Mist lied as naturally as he breathed. Of course, he knew who Jean Grey is. In fact, he''s got piles and piles of paper about his identity. He was, after all, nning to kill him one of these days.

    "I''m Jean Grey, an up-anding beast tamer. I look forward to having a rematch with you by the Official Beast Tournament." Jean Grey said, extending his hand and then taking it back since White Mist was actually farther than he initially thought. It would be awkward if he kept his hand up and White Mist woulde running across the field just to shake it.

    A person in ck then walked towards the field and positioned himself by the edge of it, overlooking the center of the field. He was the referee, and he looked like your typical referee with his ck cap, his ck and white striped shirt, and the ck whistle on his mouth.

    He let out a long whistle and then raised his hands towards the audience, gesturing that they should stop their unbearable screaming. After making sure that most of the audience wasn''t making any unnecessary noise anymore, the referee then put down the whistle and screamed.

    "On the right side, we have the defending champion, White Mist! On the left side, we have the challenger, Jean Grey. Let the fight begin!"

    "Pheross, you ready to fight?" Jean Grey said, petting his Pheross as it nodded its head. Everyone in the audience couldn''t help but think that Pheross''s mane must''ve been soft since Jean Grey kept on petting it. They were envious, no doubt.

    "White Wolf, I know you''re raring to go. Let''s add this to our consecutive wins, all right? I''m counting on you." White Mist said as White Wolf proudly stepped inside the ring.

    "Pheross, just have fun out there. We''ve been to many fights. This is going to be a piece of cake. We just need to take care of the nerves and do it like we used to." Jean Grey said as Pheross too stepped inside the ring.

    The intensity inside the field permeated the air, enveloping the audience with the feeling of anxiousness as they anticipated who will move first. Pheross and the White Wolf just stood on opposite sides, not daring to move. At the same time, they growled at each other while baring their teeth.

    "I wanted to cheer but somehow, the air got heavier for some reason."

    "I know right? Why do I feel more nervous than the challenger?"

    "Do you think he''s got a chance at winning?"

    "I''m sure he has. If he didn''t then he wouldn''t have challenged White Mist."

    As the air continued to get thicker and thicker, Jean Grey and White Mist started getting impatient. They were waiting for one or the other to make the first move but no one dared.

    "GO, CHALLENGER! YOU CAN DO IT!" Suddenly, someone screamed from the audience much to everyone''s surprise. They all turned around to see who it was.

    It was none other than the number one superhero of Japan, Midoriyama Tatsuki.

 Chapter 284 Challenger Vs Defending Champion II

    The sudden screaming from the audience''s seat rattled the two contestants. White Mist immediatelymanded his White Wolf to attack with an ice fang. At the same time, Jean Grey also gave his Pheross an order. However, he didn''t say his order out loud. Instead, he thought it, not giving White Mist any hints as to what his Pheross was about to do.

    Pheross jumped mid-air and fired a blue lightning orb toward the White Wolf. The White Wolf was well-prepared for the attack however since it had already activated its ice fang. It didn''t hesitate to bite off the lightning orb and crush it in between its teeth. Smoke rose from the mouth of the White Wolf as ice and lightning met. The vapor that filled the air felt warm, and it seemed to fizzle as the White Wolf let out an exhale.

    BOOM!

    Another explosion happened. A split secondter, the White Wolf flew in the opposite direction, whimpering.

    Apparently, as soon as Pheross shot off a blue lightning orb, it shot another one, and since the White Wolf was too preupied with the first one, it didn''t notice the second lightning orb and it hit the White Wolf squarely on the face. The impact was so strong that the White Wolf flew a couple of feet due to the explosion.

    "White Wolf?" White Mist called out, wondering why the White Wolf wasn''t able to deal with such a simple attack. Its ice fang attack should be more than enough to cancel the lightning orb, but the White Wolf suffered some damage. ]

    Pheross then charged at the White Wolf, giving it no time to rest. He then swiped his ws toward the White Wolf, ck swipes came out of the Pheross''s ws and traveled toward the White Wolf. His attack looked a lot like wind scythes, but it had a deep dark purplish color.

    "Ice fang!" White Mistmanded once again and White Wolf responded by biting all the dark wind scythesing at it. "And now use agility with your ice domain!"

    White Mist knew just how strong his White Wolf''s ice domain was. He knew that if he didn''t act now, they would lose, that''s why hemanded his White Wolf to use one of his special moves this early in the match.

    With a low grunt, White Wolf started moving rapidly in the field. It was like a blur, getting faster and faster while it activated its ice domain skill. Jean Grey could''ve sworn that the White Wolf was smiling just like how White Mist was grinning from ear to ear. The two of them were more than confident that thesebinations of skills would be the end of Pheross. But they thought wrong.

    "Don''t underestimate my Pheross." Jean Grey called out to White Mist who was smiling like an idiot. Without missing a beat, Jean Greymanded his Pheross to slowly approach the White Wolf.

    "Hoh, you''re approaching me? Instead of running away, you''reing right to me?" White Mist started muttering as he put up his hand on his face. He was referencing a certain quote from a certain series that had been insanely popr years ago.

    "Pheross, use your blue lightning domain, and then electrocute that agility freak with your thunderbolt." Jean Grey said, waving his hand and shrugging as if he wanted his Pheross to get it over with.

    Pheross''s eyes glinted as they charged toward the White Wolf. A looming dark cloud suddenly appeared on top of the stadium, getting thicker and thicker by the second. Pretty soon, the clouds then rained down bolts of lightning. The agility freak that is the White Wolf became confused since its overpowerful ice domain was getting canceled out by the blue lightning domain from Pheross. It was supposed to be the strongest, but now, Pheross was dominating it as if it was a mouse being chased down by a cat.

    White Wolf felt as if it saw the whole universe in front of it... or rather, it saw its entire life sh before its eyes as Pheross appeared in front of it, blue lightning coursing through its body.<sub> </sub>

    ? "White Wolf! Use mega awakening!" White Mist called out (mega awakening, for crying out loud).

    But it was already toote. Pheross had electrocuted the life out of the White Wolf. After thirty seconds, the White Wolf fell down on the ground, smokeing out of its body as its charred skin seemed to ke off its skin. Most of its prideful mane was gone, and it looked more burnt than electrocuted.

    "White Wolf?!" White Mist eximed as he rushed to White Wolf''s aid. White Wolf had slipped into unconsciousness, and its eyes became a doodly form of spiral, which is a sign that the White Wolf is unable to battle.

    "THE WHITE WOLF IS UNABLE TO BATTLE! THE FIRST ROUND GOES TO... THE CHALLENGER JEAN GREY!" The referee announced as people started cheering and hollering from the crowd. There was no one who booed Jean Grey since it really was a legendary fight. The area of effect skills that the two tamed beasts disyed were nothing short of extraordinary, and the way they moved all over the field was a sight to behold. Everyone was pleased watching the match, and even though they were saddened that the defending champion lost the first round, they were d that Jean Grey was actually a worthy challenger, not some run-of-the-mill friend of the number one superhero who''s actually super weak.

    "For the second round! please bring out your tamed beasts! As mentioned before, this is a three-round fight... so if White Mist loses the match... er or rather, if Jean Grey loses the match, then White Mist still has the chance to defend his title!" The referee swallowed his words back since he almost put more pressure on White Mist. This was White Mist''s homecourt, America, and there was no way that the referee should unspokenly side with the challenger. That''s just in formality/etiquette.

    "Go Rychtyosaur," Jean Grey was the first one to disy his tamed beast. It seemed like it didn''t even ur to Jean Grey that White MIst might summon a beast with a type-advantage against his beast but unbeknownst to everyone, Jean Grey had actually thought things through.

    The reason why he chose first was to put more pressure on White Mist. It was a given that White Mist should summon a tamed beast first since he''s the defending champion. It always works like that so the challenger would always have a chance to counter it. But now, Jean Grey turned the tables on White Mist, forcing him to go with the most irrational of decisions.

    Since he didn''t pick first, White Mist immediately thought that he shouldn''t pick someone or something with the type advantage against his challenger... but after thinking about it a little bit more, he realized that he should be free to do whatever he wants since one¡ª Jean Grey should''ve known the rules and he should''ve abided by it, and two¡ª Jean Grey actually won the first round so it would be fair if he wins the second round.

    The Rychtyosaur is a four-legged creature with water and magma flowing through it. Just from one look alone, White Mist already knew what kind of typing the Rychtyosaur. It''s water and fire typing, one of the greatestbinations of typing when ites to tamed beasts. After all, water and fire counter each other in the spectrum of type advantages and disadvantages. Having them together in one tamed beast means that it has fewer type disadvantages than most.

    "Jurah, I choose you!" White Mist screamed.

    Although Jurah looked like a robe of ck and red that floated emptily in the air, it is one of the most powerful psychic type tamed beasts out there. It is rumored that Jurah could easily kill a beast tamer if they let their guard down in their minds. It is one of the hardest beasts to tame in the entire Beast Dimension.

    "To think that you managed to catch a Jurah. I''m impressed. A psychic type is not effective against the water type or the fire type, but it sure does pack a punch when ites to its movability and area control. That''s a good choice, you picked a pretty challenging opponent for my Rychtyosaur. I might even lose this fight, seriously." Jean Grey said, rubbing his nose. After that win in the first round, he felt more confident, and now he started acting as if this was one of the regr matches he''d have between a challenger who wanted to take his title as beast master. That''s why he startedmenting and giving out pointers.

    The tides have changed. This time, it seemed like it was Jean Grey who underestimated his opponent. He immediately judged White Mist''s capabilities after seeing his White Wolf, and that''s why he let his guard down. It was an honest mistake, and Jean Grey could more or less tell that he might really lose this match if he wasn''t careful.

    "ROUND TWO! BEGIN!"

 Chapter 285 Challenger Vs Defending Champion III

    Jean Grey nodded his head and Rychtyosaur immediately spewed out magma from his back, enveloping the entire field with it. The grass that had been put in ce for the stadium was burnt in an instant, and only molten rock was left in its wake. Even from afar, the spectators could feel the heat from the magma as hot air rose from the ground vapor and smoke rose from the field as the magma got stronger. Jurah, White Mist''s second tamed beast, had no choice but to fly up in fear that the magma would burn its body made of cloth.

    The referee worriedly looked at the challenger Jean Grey and the defending champion White Mist since the heat from theva domain was getting more intense. He had already enveloped himself in a barrier he concocted himself thanks to his superpower, however, Jean Grey and White Mist still didn''t budge from where they stood. It''s as if they were unaffected by the intense heat.

    "If that''s the case, then, I guess I should just¡ª" The referee said to himself as he erged the barrier. The barrier covered the entire field. He, who was by the edge of it, was on the other side of the barrier. The spectators were outside the barrier as well, and the only ones who could feel the heating from Rychtyosaur were Jean Grey and White Mist.

    "Let''s see how long you canst." White Mist said. "Jurah! Use psychic on Rychtyosaur!" White Mist called out, once again extending his hands towards the field. "I bet you won''t evenst five seconds."

    In an instant, Rychtyosaur started floating from the ground. This worried Jean Grey a little bit since he knew that going out of bounds would also result in a loss. While he could sit back during this fight and let his Rychtyosaur lose, there''s no guarantee that he''d win the next match. That''s why he couldn''t afford to lose now. There was no way he''d let go of the chance of an easy win.

    ''Rychtyosaur, use hydropump! And then use methrower. Make sure to alternate so that Jurah won''t have time to recover. And try to burn it. I know it''s weak to fire.'' Jean Grey said in his mind.

    Before Jurah could throw Rychtyosaur out of bounds, Rychtyosaur struggled, and he started shooting hydro pump and methrower toward Jurah alternatively. At first, Jurah thought that it wouldn''t pose a problem if he didn''t dodge, but when it almost caught on fire because of the sudden methrower, Jura suddenly let go of the psychic since it had to focus on dodging.

    "Jurah! What are you¡ª never mind. Use psybeam!" White Mist ordered.

    As soon as Jurah dodged a methrower, it fired off a psybeam, which hit Rychtyosaur squarely in the face. A grunt came from Rychtyosaur''s mouth as it shook off the attack like a champ.

    But even though the attack connected, Jean Grey was still smiling. It seems like there are still some tricks up his sleeves. ''Rychtyosaur, use water room, and then use fire tornado.''

    Rychtyosaur nodded its head before it let out a soft growl. Water starteding from its feet, covering the entire magma domain in an instant. The water then continued to flow and then it flowed upwards after reaching a certain distance. Before they knew it, the entire field was entrapped in a room made out of water, and there was no way Jurah could get out of it since the water had be an imprable wall of raging liquid.

    "What on actual... this is... " White Mist muttered to himself. He had no idea that such a move was possible. This was the first time he witnessed someone using the water room skill before and it surprised him. The delicate control that Rychtyosaur had, it amazed him to no end. And even though he was already losing, he couldn''t help but admire the masterpiece that is the skill water room.

    "NOW! Rychtyosaur!" Jean Grey screamed.

    From the floor of the water room, small embers started lighting up, growingrger andrger as seconds passed. These embers then transformed into a huge streak of lines made out of fire, and they rose up to the ceiling of the water room. The vertical line of fire started raging, and then a dozen or more fire tornadoes appeared in the room.

    "I hope your Jurah doesn''t suffocate once the fire tornadoes burn up all the oxygen inside." Jean Grey warned, his lips curving upwards as he smiled.

    "Heh... I''ve been waiting for this moment. You see, my Jurah is not trapped in there with your Rychtyosaur, your Rychtyosaur is trapped in there with him." White Mist said with a confident tone in his voice. "Jurah! Use the forbidden move self destruct!" He screamed.

    For years and years, White Mist had been training its Jurah to endure its self destruct. After all, self-destruct is a move that knocks out both opponents in the field. It has a hundred percent sess rate, but White Mist knew that if his Jurah were to get more powerful, it would be able to endure the full brunt of a self-destruct attack. It took them many months of hellish training. But it was to no avail.

    The rules of the beast battles state that whoever faints first would be dered the loser. Jurah just had to float for a couple of seconds after the self-destruct. It just had to wait for its opponent to fall first so it could be dered the winner. This was how White Mist had gotten a win. Jurah is one of the most powerful tamed beasts he had in his possession because it always guaranteed him a win.

    White Mistmanded Rychtyosaur to shoot off a powerful methrower toward Jurah, hitting it squarely before it unleashed a powerful self-destruct which caused it to explode along with Rychtyosaur. The huge explosionpletely shattered the water room and the barrier that the referee put in ce.

    A billow of smoke rose up from the explosion, blocking everyone''s view of the two tamed beasts that duked it out with each other. The spectators fell silent as they rose from their seats, they were trying to take a peek through the smoke but they couldn''t see anything.<sub> </sub>

    When the smoke cleared, Jurah was still floating and Rychtyosaur was still holding his ground. They both haven''t fainted yet, but they were on the verge of it.

    White Mist clenched his fists, he had underestimated his opponent. Rychtyosaur was actually strong enough to withstand the full brunt of a self-destruct. Of course, that''s the bare minimum that Rychtyosaur could do since it''s a legendary beast.

    Thud.

    Thud.

    There was a pause before the referee started screaming. "A DRAW! IT''S A DRAW! Both tamed beasts are down!" The referee announced.

    On the huge televisions that broadcasted the fight, a rey was yed. And just like what the referee announced, it really was a draw.

    "A draw huh? It''s been so long since I''ve gotten a draw. You''re truly a worthy opponent. Our final battle will be legendary." Jean Grey said.

    White Mist let out a chuckle. "I too haven''t gotten a draw in a long time. I guess it alles down to thest round." White Mist continued.

    Suddenly, Jean Grey felt an intense power welling within White Mist. It was an unusual kind of power, one that he has never encountered before... but even then, the power seemed familiar.

    With a sigh, White Mist tried to focus himself as he essed the depths of his mind to connect to his one and only Representative. He couldn''t afford to lose thest fight, and that''s why he decided to risk it. Even though this might uncover his identity as their attacker a couple of days ago, he just had to do it. His image was on the line here, and he couldn''t afford to lose this match in front of so many people.

    "Let''s go Death Metronome." White Mist said.

    ck smoke started rising from behind White Mist and a mechanical pyramid appeared behind him. It was a somewhat huge pyramid, three meters tall, the pyramid was made up of cogwheels, and there was a hole in the middle of it. From the hollowed-out part of the pyramid, a pair of red eyes shone brightly, its sinister gaze fixated on Jean Grey.

    At first, Jean Grey was confused since the ck smoke was oddly simr to the guy that attacked them by the Beast Dimension. But then again, Jean Grey had no proof so he didn''t think about it too much.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    As Satoshi watched Whit Mist summon hisst tamed beast, he too felt an odd feeling of deja vu within him. Somehow, the tamed beast that came out of the ck smoke was familiar to him, he just couldn''t quite put his finger around it.

    [Satoshi, that''s the Representative Death Metronome. We''ve met him in the Beast Dimension before.] Dex suddenly pointed out.

    "You mean... he''s the one who attacked us back then and pretended to kidnap Ash? The White Mist did that?" Satoshi hissed

 Chapter 286 Uno Reverse Card

    It was thest round, and Jean Grey was yet to send a tamed beast out. The referee eagerly waited as he tried to guess what kind of tamed beast Jean Grey would summon.

    "Let''s go Orbroznar," Jean Grey said, summoning another legendary beast in his possession. Orbroznar is a steel and flying type (much like a certain beast that goes by the name Skarmory) "Don''t let me down all right?"

    Orbroznar looked more like a griffin than a bird, but its scales were made of pure metal and is almost impregnable. If the Death Metronome was a fire type, then it would have held a type disadvantage to the Orbroznar. Jean Grey still had no idea what Death Metronome''s typing was, but he was sure that Obroznar would be able to win¡ª not because of his tamed beast strength, but by the experience that both Jean Grey and Orbroznar have when ites to beast battles.

    "The third round of this epic showdown is finally here. The challenger has chosen a flying and metal-type tamed beast he called Orbroznar. As for the defending champion White Mist, he took out Death Metronome. Who will win this spicy battle?!"

    "BATTLE START!"

    Death Metronome didn''t waste any time producing a sound that is akin to a thousand bell ringing. A thousand bells were so loud that the spectators helplessly covered their ears in frustration. In the midst of that sound, the beautiful rhythmic sound of a gong reverberated, followed by a deep growling sound that seemed to seep into everyone''s skin.

    "Heh, I know what that is. That''s the Bell Curse, right?" Jean Grey smiled to himself. "Bell curse cuts the hp of a tamed beast to one, but in return, they put a curse on their opponent which would disable them from attacking your Death Metronome, am I correct?" Jean Grey asked.

    "That''s right. If your tamed beast attacks my Death Metronome, it will faint in an instant. And if you don''t attack my Death Metronome you''ll lose after a specified time. This is going to be a quick fight." White Mist said as a grin nted on his face. The tamed beast in his possession was none other than a Representative. And based on the rankings of tamed beasts, there was no way a legendary tamed beast could win against a Representative. Just like how a normal tamed beast wouldn''t be able to defeat a legendary tamed beast easily, it is near impossible for a legendary tamed beast to defeat a Representative, much less put up a fight against it. That''s why White Mist was more than confident that he would be able to win.

    Then again... Jean Grey is a beast master as well. There was no way he''d choose someone like Orbroznar if he knew that it won''t stand a chance against the tamed beast of the opponent.

    "Can you enlighten me again White Mist as to what''s the time limit of the curse? When will my um... when will my Orbroznar faint?"

    "Three minutes. If you can''t defeat my Death Metronome in three minutes, then your tamed beast would faint. This would be an easy win." White Mist continued.

    Everyone who was watching gasped in surprise as they realized just how powerful the Death Metronome was. It wasn''t mentioned before but the Death Metronome has three typings. It has metal, psychic, and fairy typings. The move Bell Curse, in particr, is a fairy-type move, but it could be easily countered if one had a focus band or something to that effect (if you don''t know what a focus band is, it is basically a held item or a tamed beast which negates fainting by leaving one hp to the tamed beast. This is a reference to pokemon for crying out loud)

    That''s why, usually, when ites to fighting fairy types, a challenger is allowed to give his or her tamed beast a held item so they could counter a possible bell curse from the opponent. BUT! It''s not like all fairy-types could learn the move Bell Curse. The only ones who could use such a move are tamed beasts who are legendary and they should have the fairy typing in order to use it.

    "I think... you missed a section on the conditions of that move. From what I can recall, you only called out half of the effects of the Bell Curse." Jean Grey continued.

    "What are you talking about?" White Mist said, faking a smile on his face as he shrug off Jean Grey''s statement.

    "Let me spell it out for you." Jean Grey cleared his throat. "Just like you said, the Bell Curse is a fairy-type move that reduces the user''s health point to one. But in return, the Bell Curse would inflict a curse on the opponent''s tamed beast. The curse''s effect is that the opponent wouldn''t be able to attack the user of the Bell Curse since they would faint in an instant... BUT! The user of the Bell Curse couldn''t attack the opponent as well because that would most certainly make it faint."

    "It''s a two-way curse, and your tamed beast is bound to faint as well. If I may say, this is an easy win for me." Jean Grey continued. "The time constraint as well as the curse wouldn''t affect my tamed beast. Even though it doesn''t have any held item that would make it so that it won''t faint... I know I can still win."<sub> </sub>

    "What are you talking about? You''re just bluffing, aren''t you? I can see a man''s bluff from a distance away. Don''t make meugh." White Mist called out back to Jean Grey as he let out a chuckle from his mouth. He was this close to winning, all he needed to do was wait.

    "No, I''m not... you see, Orbroznar is one of the most powerful legendaries out there." Jean Grey continued. "From the looks of it, it may look weak, but what you don''t know is that..."

    "Is that what?" White Mist asked as he awaited Jean Grey''s reply. He could tell that Jean Grey wasn''t lying but he still wanted to believe that he was, in fact, bluffing. There was no way that the Death Metronome would lose to a griffin-looking legendary. It was a ridiculous thought.

    "Well, Orbroznar actually has a second form. So... once its hp reaches zero, it bes twice as powerful and its hp would then get filled up once again. So technically, your Bell Curse skill would just work on half of Orbroznar''s hp. Whether you like it or not, the oue would be the same. There''s nothing you can do about it. You''ve already lost this match."

    "And there''s a sudden turn of events! Although the two beast tamers are just talking to each other, the intensity is still there. Is this what a high-leveled beast battle looks like? My eyes are opened!" Thementator called out (actually, thementator is also the referee).

    No way. No way.

    ''NO WAY!'' White Mist said to himself as he looked at Jean Grey''s confident face. "There''s no way I''m losing right now! There''s no way."

    Now that he thought about it, he actually brought it upon himself. Had he relied on the skills of the Representative alone, they''d have had a better chance at winning. But no, he just had to take the easy way out by using the Bell Curse and ying the waiting game. Now it backfired on him and his inevitable loss is just around the corner.

    "Death Metronome, you didn''t know anything about this?" White Mist asked as the Death Metronome spoke in his mind. It was surprised as well, to say the least, and it had also epted its loss before anything else happened.

    Once the three minutes were over, the Death Metronome was still standing since it still had its one health point with it. As for the Orbroznar, it started glowing a nice shade of red and blinding white as it shifted to its second form. "See? I told you." Jean Grey said.

    Orbroznar let out a roar as pure energy emanated from him. The Orbroznar that they saw a couple of moments ago had changed. Now, it looked like a griffin with double armor and diamond-colored skin. Compared to how it looked before, it was definitely a lot cooler now.

    The Death Metronome only had one hp at that moment, and the Orbroznar who was supposed to be unconscious by now had gotten twice as strong. One hit from the Orbroznar and the Death Metronome would faint in an instant.

    White Mist thought that he''d be winning the match, but what he did was put himself at a tight disadvantage. It was a slip-up that should never have happened... and in an official match, no less!

    "So, are we going to fight? Or are you going to... you know... surrender." Jean Grey taunted White Mist as he petted his Orbroznar. "I mean, it''s not toote to forfeit the match."

    "Forfeit? Never." White Mist smirked, putting up a false bravado despite his nervousness kicking in.

 Chapter 287 Orbroznar Skill Steal

    "So, are we going to fight? Or are you going to... you know... surrender." Jean Grey taunted White Mist as he petted his Orbroznar. "I mean, it''s not toote to forfeit the match."

    "Forfeit? Never." White Mist smirked, putting up a false bravado despite his nervousness kicking in.

    The rising tension in the open field continued to rise as the fight reached its climax. Neither Jean Grey nor White Mist was backing down. Even though Jean Grey could easily win the match and White Mist was at a huge disadvantage, none of them budged. They were intent on seeing the fight through no matter what the final verdict may be.

    Jurah is a Representative, just like Satoshi''s Dex and the Statue of Captivity. That''s why it had more sentience than the normal tamed beast. It was perfectly aware of the risks and the disadvantages it had against the Orbroznar, but even then, its spirit never wavered. Jurah had the same mindset as its owner. Both of them were not backing down. They''re betting everything on this match.

    As for Jean Grey, he felt a bit uneasy. He had experienced hundreds if not thousands of beast battles before, and he knew that the more desperate the enemy was, the more chances he or she had at winning. When one reaches that point where one''s got nothing to lose, they''ll go all in without thinking twice about it, and sometimes, that kind of offensive warfare would turn the tides of war and tip them to the desperado''s side. Furthermore, such a one-point focused decision almost always gives birth to a path of victory. Even though the Jurah that they were facing right now only had one hp, and it was on the verge of losing consciousness, Jean Grey was pretty certain that they still could lose.

    Even after all that, Jean Grey was aware that White Mist was going to continue on with the fight, and he had all the intentions to win.

    "Orbroznar, keep your guard up, all right. We don''t know what we can expect from this two. We should duke it out carefully, and at the same time, we shouldn''t give them a chance to turn the tides against us."

    Even though Orbroznar seemed to have entered its berserk mode, it still nodded as usual towards Jean Grey. As for Jurah, it just floated on the other side of the field, keeping its distance since it could faint at any given moment.

    "Jurah! Use shadow ball! Keep your distance from that Orbroznar!" White Mistmanded.

    In response, Jurah floated even more upward and started shooting shadow ball at Orbroznar. It was more than willing to keep its distance from Orbroznar but then again, there was no way it could escape Orbroznar forever. This tactic was put in ce just to stall for time, more or less. This will give White Mist more time to cook up a strategy to counter Orbroznar.

    ''Orbroznar, use fly and start using wind sh. Don''t let up with the wind shes. Just one hit. One hit is all it takes to defeat that Jurah.'' Jean Grey said in his mind.

    Without missing a beat, Orbroznar jumped upward, narrowly avoiding the shadow ball that came right at him. As soon as he was at a considerable altitude rtive to the American Dome, Orbroznar started attacking Jurah with its relentless wind shes.

    Jurah started the dodging game, and every time it found an opening, it would shoot a shadow ball. The exchange intensified, with their attacks getting faster and faster the more seconds passed.

    ''Hang in there, Jurah. Once his Orbroznar runs out of energy, you swoop in for the kill. You''re a representative, I''m sure you have more energy than that legendary tamed beast.'' White Mist thought in his mind and Jurah responded with a slight nod. It continued its defensive tactic, not giving Orbroznar a chance to hit it with his wind shes.

    The spectators, including the referee, were on the edge of their seats as they watched the legendary fight unfold. They couldn''t ask for more¡ª the stakes involved in this match were far too high. Even they couldn''t believe that Jurah only had one health point left. Just one hit, and it will slip into unconsciousness in a snap of a finger.

    "This is so nerve-wracking. I''m not even the one fighting but I feel so nervous for the two of them."

    "Those tamed beasts are strong. I''m already satisfied. Win or lose, this fight is fire."

    "I do think that the challenger¡ª was his name Jean Grey?¡ª yeah him. I do think that he has a chance at winning. His tamed beasts are pretty strong."

    "I''m here because the Star Spangled gave me free seats. I''ve enjoyed this fight, and I can''t wait to see more."<sub> </sub>

    While the exchange of shadow balls and wind shes continued, a couple of interviewers and reporters started going around to interview some people from the audience. The fight was about to end, and the interviewers and reporters were trying to get as much feedback as possible before the curtains were closed.

    Jean Grey felt his Orbroznar running out of energy and realized that White Mist was actually trying to stall for time until his tamed beast runs out of energy. At this rate, he''s going to lose. He decided to use Orbroznar''s special move.

    "Orbroznar... remember I told you that we won''t be using this move during the fight? I give you permission to use that move." Jean Grey suddenly said out of nowhere, much to everyone''s surprise. Throughout the fight, Jean Grey rarely talked, that''s why everybody was caught off-guard when he suddenly screamed at his tamed beast.

    Orbroznar kept on shooting wind shes but everyone noticed that it nodded towards Jean Grey for the second time.

    "Jurah! Keep on shooting shadow balls, don''t stop! We''re almost there!" White Mist said in desperation since he could tell that Jean Grey was about to pull something big. They were almost there, and there was no way they''ll miss their shot at winning.

    Suddenly, pure energy starteding off of Jean Grey as he stood on the other side of the battlefield. He wasn''t doing anything special, just standing there menacingly, but the power that emanated from him could be felt by everyone. Even the spectators who were eagerly waiting for either side to win noticed that there was a change in Jean Grey''s aura.

    ''Orbroznar, use skill steal.'' Jean Grey said in his mind.

    Skill steal is one of Orbroznar''s exclusive skills, and no one else could use that skill except him (ah yes, it''s like saying people die when they are killed). Well, Jean Grey had met a lot of tamed beasts in his life including legendary beasts and representatives but he''d never seen a single tamed beast that could use the move skill steal aside from his Orbroznar. The move skill steal basically allows a certain tamed beast to steal a skill of someone in the vicinity. Be it a human, or a tamed beast. The stolen skill could only be used by the tamed beast for ten seconds¡ª fifteen seconds if it goes beyond its limit¡ª and after that, an excessive amount of energy would be depleted.

    It was a very risky move, but Jean Grey had found an opening, and he decided to take it. Whatever happens after these ten seconds would determine the loss or the win of his Orbroznar. ''Orbroznar, on your mark.'' Jean Grey muttered.

    "Jurah! Use psybeam and agility! Avoid Orbroznar as much as you can!" White Mist screamed. He was getting more desperate by the second, and rightfully so. Just a couple seconds more and he''d be able to snag the victory from Jean Grey, and sweep the rug off his feet before he even realized what had happened.

    Orbroznar dodged the psybeam and then it closed its eyes. It started looking for a skill to steal in the spectators... or maybe it could steal a skill from Jurah.

    Then it found a very suitable skill... one that would increase the chances of them winning. When Orbroznar opened his eyes, he briefly nced towards Emma Leisenberg who was one of the spectators by the audience''s seats. He recalled that Emma Leisenberg was his master''s friend, that''s why he bowed towards Emma, briefly thanking her for the ability he copied from her, thanks to his move skill steal.

    Jurah, by now, was darting all over the field, trying to avoid everything or anything. Jurah was surprised that Orbroznar stopped and close his eyes, but even then, it didn''t stop dodging. It was doing its best to stall for time, and White Mist was quite proud of Jurah''s movements.

    One moment.

    One moment Orbroznar was hovering, the next moment, it disappeared. In a blink of an eye, Orbroznar disappeared and teleported right behind Jurah. He then shot out three wind shes which hit Jurah squarely on the back.

    With a weak stretched moan, Jurah floated down on the ground like a gliding piece of fabric, it theny t on the ground as it lost consciousness.

    Another gasp was heard from the audience.

 Chapter 288 Realizations, Plunders Backstory, And Grandparents

    One moment Orbroznar was hovering, the next moment, it disappeared. In a blink of an eye, Orbroznar disappeared and teleported right behind Death Metronome. He then shot out three wind shes which hit Death Metronome squarely on the back.

    With a weak stretched moan, Death Metronome floated down on the ground like a gliding piece of fabric, it theny t on the ground as it lost consciousness.

    Another gasp was heard from the audience.

    "And the winner... the winner is none other than the challenger himself, Jean Grey!" The referee announced as he raised his fists in the air. No one, not even him, had expected such an oue. Ever since the match started, he had assumed that Jean Grey would lose big time and that''s why he didn''t really expect anything from him. However, not only did he stand up to the challenge, but he also managed to defeat the defending champion by the skin of his teeth! It was a pretty close match, but it was obvious that he had won, kicking White Mist off of his throne as the defending champion.

    Jean Grey raised his fist in the air as his head tipped down toward the ground in a heroic position. This was one of the many poses he would assume every time he won a match, and today was no different. Not only did he win a beast battle, but he also managed to beat the best beast tamer from another world. He felt a great sense of victory in him, and of course, he had all his tamed beasts to thank for that said victory.

    "You did well, Death Metronome" White Mist said as he brought Death Metronome back and undid its summon.

    "That was a great fight." Jean Grey said, extending his hand so White Mist could shake it.

    .....

    A couple of minutester.

    News about the fight spread around the globe like wildfire. The defending champion of the Official Beast Tournament had lost and he had been kicked off his throne. Moreover, the one who kicked him out of that said throne was an unknown beast tamer¡ª a tamer who just came into the scene via the rmendation of Star Spangled.

    Jean Grey''s debut was met with cheers and interviews from reporters who came from different broadcasting stations. In just one instance, he became as popr as White Mist and he was held as the new champion of the Official Beast Tournament... well, even though this wasn''t really ounted for as part of the Official Beast Tournament, the people unanimously agreed that Jean Grey is now the champion¡ª much to White Mist''s disappointment.

    While White Mist was utterly devastated due to his loss, he felt a great sense of relief himself. Honestly, being the defending champion for the beast tournament was quite boring, and he had always wanted a challenge. Now, he was able to get rid of his boredom as well as the responsibility of being the defending champion. With this, he finally had a good reason and motivation to strive to get stronger. Jean Grey was now his goal.

    And during that exchange they had, White Mist had a change of heart. The American and the Japanese Government had given him a mission to eliminate Jean Grey and Star Spangled from this life. But now he realized that these two governments were requesting a ridiculous request. A man who had such passion for beast battles couldn''t be a bad guy, and White Mist told himself that he would deny the request that the American and the Japanese Government had given him.

    At first, when White Mist received the mission, he was told that Star Spangled had possibly allied himself with an enemy, a threat. And that threat is someone from another world, a threat that could endanger the world. That''s why he had to do some reconnaissance and try to engage the two in a fight. Even then, it''s as if fate was lending a hand since he was unable to get rid of them. And now that he realized that Jean Grey couldn''t possibly be an enemy to Earth, he decided that he''d apologize as soon as the interviews and the craziness of the fight''s oue had died down.

    But first, they had to take care of the interviews as well as the attention that everyone was showering them.

    "Jean Grey... I did pronounce your name right, right? Jean Grey?" White Mist called out before Jean Grey walked out of the field.

    "Yeah, that''s right." Jean Grey responded back with a smile on his face. During the fight, he realized that White Mist could possibly be their attacker in the Beast Dimension. Nevertheless, he didn''t want to cause a scene in the middle of the fight since there are a lot of people and they could get involved if he acted recklessly. That''s why he bought some time and opted to confront White Mist about it as soon as everything was over. Unbeknownst to him, White Mist was also thinking the same thing¡ª a good decision really, since the misunderstanding that they have with each other might escte and endanger everyone who was present.

    "I needed to talk to you about something, you know, catch up and clear a couple of things up. Would it be okay if we meetter on after the interviews?" White Mist asked.

    Jean Grey, who didn''t want to cause amotion as mentioned before, nodded along and agreed to White Mist''s demands. "Sure, I''d love that. The weird thing is, I also have a couple of things in my mind. We can talk about it over a couple of drinks, yeah?"<sub> </sub>

    "That would be satisfactory. If Star Spangled wouldn''t mind, he can join us as well. Oh and also, that guy... the number one hero of Japan. If he''d be able to join us for a round of drinks that would be nice."

    "I''ll bring it up to them." Jean Grey said before waving his hand as he was dragged to one corner to get interviewed by a couple of reporters.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    "Are you sure you can finish that? We still have plenty of time before bedtime. You don''t have to finish all that." Tatsuki concernedly brought up as he watched Aira holding a couple of candy apples in hand.

    "Aira is going to finish this," Aira responded as she licked the candy apples faster.

    "Slow down Aira, no one''s going to get your candy apples from you," Emma advised, even though he was eating dried noodles as if she hadn''t eaten for days.

    "You do know you don''t have the right to say that right?" Ash said. As for him, he had bought a couple of cotton candies for himself, downing it as fast as he could so he could buy another batch. Back in their world, cotton candies didn''t exist. This was the first time Ash tasted cotton candies and he had already fallen in love with them.

    "I wouldn''t be surprised if all of you get stomachaches." This time, it was Shiroi whomented. At the same time, she continued digging through her bag of fries.

    "You guys... er... hmmm..." Satoshi muttered to himself. He didn''t even know when to start. The three of them kept onmenting about their voracious appetite when they were all doing the same thing. Satoshi couldn''t help but sigh. Just seeing them eat already made him feel nauseated. ''Aren''t they enjoying this a little too much?'' Satoshi asked himself in his mind.

    "That guy''s your friend, right? He''s pretty strong." Tatsuki finally signed thest autograph he needed to sign before settling down beside Satoshi. "He''s a beast tamer as well, a little bit like your superpower. I wonder if he''s as strong as you. You should learn as much as you can from him before the Official Beast Tournament."

    Satoshi nodded as a smile stered itself on his face. "Dad?"

    "Yup?"

    "When you were young, what kind of special training did you do?" Satoshi asked out of the blue.

    "You mean... when I finally discovered my superpower? I just practiced day in and day out, that''s it. Whenever I''m not doing anything, I would go outside to practice my superpower. Did you know I was caught by the authorities once and was put in jail?" Tatsuki said. He just realized that he never spoke about this particr story to Satoshi. After all, back then, he was careful not to talk about superpowers that much since Satoshi didn''t have a superpower.

    "You went to prison?" Satoshi eximed, wide-eyed.

    "Yeah, I did. I was acting like a vignte, plundering superpowers off ofwbreakers while I tried to gauge the maximum amount of superpowers I could plunder. Well, I didn''t reach my limit, but the police caught wind of my vignte acts and they had to put me in jail. I was a minor back then so I was only put on hold for a couple of days before my mom picked me up."

    "You mean grandma?" Satoshi''s voice trailed off as he realized something. "Wait, grandpa and grandma are in America right now, right? Where exactly in America? Are we going to visit them?"

 Chapter 289 Apologies, Apologies

    Previously,

    Jean Grey and White Mist had an epic showdown by the American Dome. And Jean Grey won by the skin of his teeth, thanks to his strategy and his careful choices of beasts. White Mist, who had been the defending champion of the Official Beast Tournament had been kicked off his throne. His thoughts about Jean Grey had changed as well, and he intended to apologize to Jean Grey. After all, he was the one who targeted him and the American number one superhero Jack Michael. He didn''t know any details about them but he blindly followed the government in their pursuit of trying to eliminate the two from this life.

    .....

    White Mist arrived in front of a towering hotel, wearing a white tuxedo as he walked out of his limousine. He heaved a sigh, indicating his nervousness as he walked towards the entrance. The hotel was one of the most expensive hotels in America, and inside was a restaurant wherein he had invited everyone rted to the incident back at the Beast Dimension. This included the Midoriyamas, the Greys, as well as Emma, and the number one superhero of America, Jack Michael.

    A while back, White Mist received a call from Midoriyama Tatsuki, asking him if he could bring another person to the meeting. White Mist didn''t mind at all.

    "Wee to the Grand Hotel, sir," The two guards who stood on two sides of the entrance bowed towards White Mist as he entered the Grand Hotel. Even though they were die-hard fans of the one and only White Mist, they still acted as professionally as they could. They bit their lips, thinking that they just had the worst timing. If the two of them, weren''t working right now, they''d have pulled out a notebook or something so White Mist could sign it. They can''t afford to act unseemly though since the reputation of the Grand Hotel was on the line.

    White Mist pulled something from his pockets and handed it to the two guards.

    Before they realized what was going on, White Mist had already gone inside, waving toward them. When they looked back to their hands, they realized that White Mist had just handed them a framed signature of his. They held it close to their heart before bowing down toward White Mist. Apparently, he noticed that they badly wanted an autograph and he was proactive enough to give them.

    The encounter somewhat calmed White Mist. But the moment he entered the restaurant, the nervousness that temporarily left him came back, and it was twice the amount he experienced prior to entering the Grand Hotel.

    From afar, White Mist saw the faces of Jack Michael, Jean Grey, and Midoriyama Tatsuki. He felt as if his throat was choking itself as he walked forward. He assumed the head seat of the table, but before he did so, he bowed in front of everyone. "Thank you so much for epting this invitation. At first, I thought all of you won''t show up."

    White Mist then cleared his throat before his head turned towards Tatsuki. "Um... and your additional guest, who is it?" White Mist asked in a low tone.

    "Oh, she''s here." Tatsuki casually responded as he pointed at the little girl at the far end of the table. She was red-haired, and the first thing that White Mist noticed was the number of milkshakes she had already drunk. "Sorry about that, she said she wanted to taste all the milkshakes avable in this restaurant. I''ll pay for her drinks."

    "No that''s fine. Now that we''re on the topic. I should be the one apologizing to all of you. As you might''ve already guessed, I''m the one who attacked you... you know, back at the Beast Dimension." White Mist called out.

    "Hah! I knew it! See, I told you guys! You didn''t believe me." Satoshi eximed, pointing at White Mist as if he had just won a non-existent contest. "I knew something was up when that smoke came up from behind you!"

    "Wait, that was you?!" Jean Grey eximed. "You were the one who threatened me back there? Like, you''re the one who supposedly kidnapped my son?!"

    "What do you want?! Speak up if you don''t want to die!" Jack Michael, the number one superhero of America, raised his fists and pointed them toward White Mist. He wore the most serious expression on his face just so his threat would be as convincing as his words.<sub> </sub>

    "Rx, I didn''t mean any trouble. I was tricked back then. Allow me to exin everything over dinner." White Mist said.

    On his signal, the waiters who were waiting from afar brought the food. He had ordered a lot, more than enough for everyone. Everyone could tell that the conversation would be longer than they had initially expected.

    "And here I was, thinking that we''d be talking about beast battles. Who''d have thought you were the one who attacked us. While I did have some suspicions, I brushed it off since I was looking forward to the beast battle." Jean Grey muttered, reaching out his hand so he could grab a t-bone steak.

    "I''m sorry about that. Let me tell you all about it." White Mist began.

    White Mist started the story with the mission he received from both the Japanese and the American Governments. This was back when the Dimensional Portal to Jean Grey''s world opened somewhere in the Sea of Japan. The government wanted to bring the Dimensional Portal down despite the consequences it would incur to the other side. When a Dimensional Portal was destroyed, it would release massive amounts of energy akin to a nuclear bomb, and it wouldpletely destroy the other side of the Dimensional Portal.

    And yet, the Japanese Government was keen on destroying it. "Apparently," White Mist continued. "Your Japanese Government had been tipped by our government, and they said that a threat to the world existed on the other side of the portal. That''s why they were keen on destroying it no matter the ramifications."

    "I''ve heard about that. That''s why I just had to go over there and help. Apparently, the American Government was trying to eliminate my friend here, branding him as an alien or something."

    "I mean, technically we are aliens." Ash Grey pointed out.

    "In any case, your defense was sessful, and the Japanese Government had no choice but to back down on this one. However, their n to eliminate the threat didn''t end there." White Mist continued. "I didn''t know any better when the American and the Japanese Government gave me a mission."

    White Mist cleared his throat before he said his next words. "I... well, they told me that you, Jack Michael, had betrayed humanity and that you were siding with a cmity that will destroy the world. I was given the special mission to get rid of you as well as to get rid of the cmity. They were referring to Jean Grey, of course. I don''t know why they see him as a threat though."

    "Before I was sent out on my mission, I was given all the information regarding your family, Jean Grey, and they even tracked down the movements of everyone around you. That''s why I was able to fake kidnapping your son, and lure you straight into my trap." White Mist continued. "Back then, I really intended to kill you and Jack Michael... the American and the Japanese Governments gave me a mission, and as you know, Jack Michael, we are under the government despite being powerful enough to overthrow them."

    "So I went on with the mission... but I was surprised that you broughtpany with you. And not only that... who would''ve thought that your son, Jean Grey, actually has two representatives on his side. My Death Metronome told me that they really were representatives like him. I was surprised." White Mist let out a forced chuckle before taking a swig of wine. "That''s why I just had to retreat. I didn''t stand a chance against all of youing at me simultaneously."

    "Then we had our battle just a couple of hours ago. During that battle, I realized that you were a good person. I didn''t know any better. I shouldn''t have blindly attacked you without knowing the details first. And for that, I am sorry." White Mist apologetically said. "I mean... so what if you''re a threat to the world, Jack Michael and I could easily be branded as cmities as well but you were only branded like that since you came from another world."

    "I''m sorry for attacking you like that back there, and even going as far as to pretend that I kidnapped your son. From now on, I''ll make it up to you by making your stay here in America asfortable as I could. You''ll be joining the Official Beast Tournament, right?" White Mist asked. "And I presume, Satoshi is also joining, correct?"

    Jean Grey and Satoshi nodded in response.

 Chapter 290 Night Stay

    Since the night was gettingte and White Mist didn''t want everyone to exhaust themselves traveling back to their amodations (he wasn''t aware of Emma''s superpower which allowed everyone to travel everywhere they want without difficulty) he decided to book a couple of suites for everyone. As one of the top ten superheroes, booking a room for a couple of days in the Grand Hotel was petty cash for him. That''s why he didn''t mind it at all.

    After dinner, Satoshi and the others were about to head out to return to their respective ces when White Mist told them to stay. Of course, they couldn''t reject his invitation since he had already booked some rooms for them. The Grand Hotel is one of the world''s most prestigious hotels, so the invitation was always wee. Even Jack Michael who never bothered with any of White Mist''s invitations in the past decided to ept his invitation this time.

    In total, White Mist reserved a total of five rooms. He didn''t know how they''ll divide themselves among the rooms so he just decided to book five... and they were all suites to boot.

    In the end, they decided that Jean Grey and his wife would stay in one room, and the Midoriyama Duo would stay in the second room. The third room was taken by Emma, Aira, and Satoshi, and the fourth room would be exclusive to Jack Michael. As for the fifth room, the Yukines would be staying there but Shiroi insisted on staying with Satoshi and the others. That''s why Shiroi''s dad would be staying in that room.

    "I guess that worked out in the end. I hope you enjoy your stay here at Grand Hotel. I''ve reserved the rooms for at least two weeks so you can stay here until the Official Beast Tournament. You cane and go without any problems." White Mist pointed out before bidding everyone farewell.

    .....

    A few minutester, inside the suite where Aira, Emma, Satoshi, and Shiroi are staying.

    [And thest to leave this circle wins¡ª]

    Satoshi was lounging on the couch, watching a youtube video about a certain man who had been giving out ind after ind with his ridiculous challenges. Last time, he challenged someone to stay in a circle for more than two years in order for him to win an ind. It was weird and ridiculous but a lot of people seemed to like his content so he continued making it.

    "What are you watching?" Airaasked as she slowly approached Satoshi. While the suite was really high-quality, it was nothingpared to the Midoriyama Household. And since Aira couldn''t really go out without anyone supervising her, she was bored out of her mind staying inside the suite. And yes, she already went through every nook and cranny of the ce but she didn''t find anything interesting.

    That''s why she decided to just approach Satoshi and watch videos with him.

    "Oh, nothing much. Do you want to watch it with me?" Satoshi asked as he stopped lying on the couch to give Aira some space.

    Aira didn''t hesitate to sit on Satoshi''sp as she leaned her head on his chest. Satoshi didn''t find it in him to shoo Aira away since she was just a kid. They continued watching the youtube video.

    Meanwhile, Emma was enjoying the warm shower while Shiroi was in the tub, rxing on the warm water that caressed her entire body. The two of them were conversing with each other as if it was normal for two girls to bathe together even though they weren''t in the public baths.

    "When did you two meet?" Shiroi asked out of nowhere. She already knew that Emma wasn''t really rted to the Midoriyamas but she still had no idea how Emma ended up staying with them.

    "You should ask Satoshi that question. I''m sure he''d be able to answer that." Emma responded matter-of-factly as she started rubbing shampoo on her head. "And you don''t have to worry about me. I''m just close friends with him. You like him, right?"

    Emma''s eyes were closed since she was shampooing her hair, but she could already tell that Shiroi''s face was turning a nice shade of red. She smiled to herself.

    "Eh?!" Shiroi eximed. "What are you talking about? Satoshi and I... we weren''t... brbrrlblrbblrr~" Shiroi went down the tub and started exhaling. She didn''t know how to exin everything to Emma since she had been a little bit obvious during their entire time together.

    There was also the time when she held hands with Satoshi in the American Dome before the match between Jean Grey and White Mist took ce. Of course, anyone who saw that would misunderstand. ''But... why? Why didn''t Satoshi let go of my hand back then? Did he think that I would get lost in the crowd? That''s probably the case... right? Right?"''

    "How about you, when did the two of you meet, Shiroi?" Emma asked out of nowhere, returning her question back to her.

    Shiroi still hasn''t recovered from Emma''s words, and now she asked her how they met. It was a merciless onught and Shiroi had no time to calm herself down.

    "Ah... eh?" Shiroi asked, trying to buy some time but to no avail.

    "I mean, where did you two first meet? Or were you already friends when you were born?" Emma asked. She was aware that Yukino Yukine, Shiroi''s dad, is friends with the Midoriyama Duo. But that doesn''t exin Emma''s friendship with Satoshi at all. That''s why Emma just had to ask. She was especially curious as to how Shiroi developed feelings for Satoshi despite the fact that he didn''t have superpowers back then.<sub> </sub>

    "Um..." Shiroi bit her lips as her face turned an even darker shade of red.

    "We have enough time. I''m pretty sure Satoshi wouldn''t disturb us while we''re here." Emma assured Shiroi.

    "It all started when we were... four... five years old? No, four years old."

    .....

    (Author''s note: Yes, this is a backstory. You were expecting a backstory, right?)

    By the outskirts of Tokyo near the Midoriyama Household was a park that was frequented by the Midoriyama Duo. At first, this park was not that famous, but when people realized that the number one and two superheroes go there, it became a tourist attraction.

    Satoshi was still four years old back then. He had always liked ying by the sandpit, that''s why his parents would always leave him there while they sign autographs and meet with the people. At such a young age, Satoshi was already used to the attention that people gave his parents. It was all part of his daily usual life. He also learned to ignore the people around him every time he and his parents were in public. He didn''t really mind that his parents were famous. In fact, Satoshi even prided himself as their son and number one fan. He had always looked up to his parents starting from a very young age.

    After a couple of months, the excitement within the park had died down and the Midoriyama Family could now go there without worrying about the many people who were trying to get their autographs. And as usual, Satoshi was by the sandpit, making a sandcastle. He was already an expert when ites to making sandcastles. Even Tatsuki and Ayumi were impressed with the details that he put into his works.

    Sniffle~

    Sniffle~

    One day, while Satoshi was making a pce made out of sand, he heard a couple of sniffles from behind the bush. This bush was conveniently located beside the sandpit because the author said so. Curious, Satoshi decided to take a peek on the other side of the bush, only to find that there was a little girl there.

    It was none other than Shiroi.

    Satoshi didn''t say anything when he approached Shiroi. He silently grabbed her by the hand and led her out of the grassy areas of the park. He then led her to the sandpit. "You want to make a sandcastle?" He asked, gesturing for Shiroi to sit down opposite him before he continued making a sandcastle.

    In the end, Satoshi had no idea why Shiroi was there in the first ce. Furthermore, she also didn''t help with the sandcastle at all. She just stopped crying while she watched Satoshi build a sandcastle.

    .....

    "And that''s how you two met? That''s it? What were you even doing there?" Emma asked in confusion.

    "I... I don''t remember. I think I was lost. I got separated from my dad back then." Shiroi responded.

    "I see, so that''s how it was. That doesn''t exin why you like him though." Emma was relentless with her attacks.

    "Eh?!" Shiroi eximed under her breath.

    As the two of them got out of the bath, they noticed that Satoshi and Aira were watching something on the television. Satoshi decided to watch the video on the television instead of on his phone so Aira wouldn''t strain her neck looking up at the screen. That didn''t stop Aira from staying on Satoshi''sp though.

    "Looks like you''ve gotpetition." Emma teased, nudging Shiroi on the side before the two of them joined Satoshi and Aira on the couch.

 Chapter 291 Time To Sleep (Filler Episode)

    The full st of aircon caused Satoshi to sneeze in his sleep. His eyes immediately shot open, and he was greeted by the dark ceiling and the ceiling fan that spun slowly as if to lull him to sleep once again. For some reason, he was too exhausted for the day, even falling asleep on the couch while he was in the middle of watching the television with everyone.

    "Hmmm~"

    Satoshi, who was still half awake, froze up as he heard another voice nearby. It was a soft and gentle voice, almost like a whisper. In an instant, Satoshi immediately realized that it belonged to a girl, and that''s why he sat still, not daring to attract any unwanted attention.

    Hands then wrapped around Satoshi''s stomach, causing him to flinch. As soon as he looked down, he realized that there was a figure snuggling him. It was a small figure, so Satoshi was able to rule out Emma and Shiroi.

    It took at least a minute for Satoshi''s eyes to adjust to the darkness (he didn''t bother using his sense enhancement since he was still sleepy) and that''s when he realized that it was Aira who was hugging him. She was mumbling to herself, drooling over Satoshi''s shirt while rubbing her cheeks on it.

    "Eh? Aira? Why is she here? Why is she sleeping here?" Satoshi wore a shocked expression on his face as he lightly panicked. He turned around, wondering if Shiroi and Emma were still in the vicinity. Of course, if they were to see him on the couch with Aira, they''d most probably get the wrong idea.

    Satoshi slowly tried to push Aira away but her embrace was tighter than he had initially thought. After a couple of seconds, he stopped struggling and sighed in defeat. There was no way he could detach Aira from him.

    When he finally leaned back on the couch, the arm that had been wrapped around his neck suddenly got tighter, making him instinctively hold his breath. It had been a minute or so since he woke up, but this was the only time he noticed that Emma was right beside him, her right arm wrapped around her neck while her head rested on his shoulder.

    There was a certain heaviness on Satoshi''s right side as well. As it turned out, Shiroi was right there, also leaning on his shoulder. He gasped, almost choking on his saliva as he realized what was going on.

    Somehow, the four of them fell asleep together on the couch while watching the television. Satoshi felt a bit embarrassed since he hadn''t taken a bath. But there was nothing he could do about the situation, is there? He concluded that he''d feel bad if he identally woke the three of them up. That''s why he didn''t move. No matter how ufortable and dreamy the situation was, he decided to stay still, hoping that the three of them would soon wake up and free him from this scenario coupled with misunderstandings.

    "Let''s see. For now, I''ll just continue watching... and once I get bored, I''ll try to review all the stats of my familiars." Satoshi said to himself. It was never too early to prepare for the Official Beast Tournament. And right now, he actually doubted that he''d be able to defeat Jean Grey if he were to fight seriously.

    Despite the distractions surrounding him, Satoshi stayed still while he browsed through the information of his familiars. Dex, who had been summoned by Satoshi, stayed right in front of him, scrolling through the data himself so Satoshi won''t have to move.

    ...

    Aira stirred from her sleep, surprised that she actually fell asleep without realizing it. As she looked around, she noticed the same old wooden fan on the ceiling, slowly rotating as cold air blew against her skin. She shivered, snuggling closer to whatever warmth she was hugging.

    The first person she noticed was Emma who had been sleeping soundly while resting on Satoshi''s shoulder. She was deep in her sleep, not even disturbed by Satoshi''s untimely flinch when he realized that he was surrounded by girls.

    At first, Aira wanted to silently get down and remove her locked arms on Satoshi. However, it was so cold, and Satoshi felt pretty warm. That''s why she snuggled on him, positioning herself so that her body was leaning on Satoshi. Although Satoshi felt oddly ufortable, Aira felt as if she was being lulled to sleep. Slowly, she pressed her ears to Satoshi''s chest. She could hear his heart''s rapid beating as he panicked.<sub> </sub>

    A smile swept across Aira''s face as she dozed off for the second time. It was already morning, and the sunlight was already peeking through the curtains, beaming its light on the far side of the room. The morning hours didn''t stop Aira from falling asleep for a second time, though, since her position encouraged her sleepiness.

    ...

    Emma was actually the first one to doze off while watching television. She sat beside Satoshi, a nket wrapped around her feet. Before she knew it, she was already leaning on Satoshi''s shoulder as she fell asleep. Satoshi didn''t even notice it since he was too engrossed in the video they were watching. By the time Satoshi fell asleep, he still hasn''t realized that Emma was actually beside him this whole time, her body pressed against his arm.

    When Emma stirred awake, it was also already morning, and Satoshi was already awake. Well, she wasn''t sure if Satoshi actually fell asleep since he was still browsing a couple of things on Dex''s screen. With her eyes half open, Emma wondered if Satoshi actually slept. Well, he did, it''s just that he woke up a tad bit earlier than everyone else.

    Just like Aira, Emma decided to leave Satoshi alone. She was still sleepy so she continued leaning on Satoshi''s shoulders as she tried to get another round of sleep. This was one of the rare chances where she slept leaning on Satoshi''s shoulder. This chance was hard toe by as it is, and that''s why Emma decided to prolong the experience.

    Even though Satoshi looked like he was having a hard time trying to stay still, Emma still proceeded to sleep.

    ...

    Shiroi was thest one to fall asleep. Needless to say, she felt it was a bit unfair that everyone was sleeping on the couch except her. She felt a bit left out, and her pride just wouldn''t allow it if she slept on the bed alone. While everyone rxedly inhaled and exhaled in their sleep, Shiroi got up from the couch and tiptoed her way to the bedroom.

    And no, this wasn''t because she wanted to sleep there, but rather to grab a nket for herself before she slept beside Satoshi, on the right side of the couch.

    She was careful not to wake anyone up since it would be weird if they find her sneaking up on everyone. Slowly, she approached Satoshi, Emma, and Aira, all the while trying not to make any sound. She even held her breath for fear that her breathing might disturb one of them in their sleep.

    Once she found afortable position, she wrapped herself with a nket, putting a portion of it on Satoshi''s legs so he won''t feel cold in the middle of the night. With a satisfied smile on her face, Shiroi slowly leaned her head on Satoshi''s shoulders. Her face turned beet red as she did so. She was the one making the move and she was also the one who got flustered.

    When she woke up, she saw that Satoshi was already awake. ''Just a little bit more.'' She said to herself as she inched closer to Satoshi. Satoshi flinched, but he figured that Shiroi was still asleep, that''s why he didn''t bother moving away.

    Shiroi remembered the first time she met Satoshi and her smile got even brighter. Even back then, she already had feelings for him despite the fact that he never awakened any superpower. As it turned out, he was ate bloomer and his superpower was much more powerful than most. ''Now that I think about it, back then I was really surprised... I thought at first that he hid his superpowers from me. Ahh~ to think that Satoshi''s gotten this far in less than a year, as your childhood friend, I''m proud of you Satoshi.'' Shiroi muttered to herself.

    Satoshi who was pretending to be preupied with his studies about his familiars stole a nce towards Shiroi. At the same time, Shiroi smiled while she inched closer toward him. There was no doubt about it! She was awake! Satoshi was fairly certain that she was just pretending to sleep... but even then, he had no idea when was she already awake.

    With a sigh, Satoshi smiled to herself, letting Shiroi off the hook as she continued browsing through his familiars'' information. Unbeknownst to him though, Aira and Emma were also already awake, just pretending to sleep.

 Chapter 292 Integration Is Common?!

    It was the next day, and Satoshi felt as if he didn''t have any sleep. The moment the four of them walked out of the suite, one could tell that Satoshi was the only one who had a hard time sleeping. There were dark circles under his eyes. As for everyone else, they felt more energized than ever.

    "Oh, Satoshi, good morning!" Ash called out as he and his dad simultaneously got out of their room. "It looks like you didn''t get that much sleep. Are you all right?" Ash asked, noticing that Aira, Emma, and Shiroi looked fine.

    "Yeah, I''m fine... are you heading somewhere?" Satoshi asked upon noticing that Ash Grey and his dad, Jean Grey were wearing their beast tamer clothes as if they were going to train somewhere.

    "Oh, this? we''re going somewhere with White Mist. Apparently, he''s running a training camp for beast tamers nearby. We wanted to drop by and visit the facility." Jean Grey casually responded. "Oh, why don''t youe with us? You''re a beast tamer as well right?"

    The dark circles under Satoshi''s eyes seem to temporarily disappear as his face lit up. Thest thing he expected to know that morning was the information about a training camp for beast tamers. Satoshi clenched his fist in excitement. "I''ll go!" He blurted out before even asking permission from his parents and the others.

    "Perfect timing." Someone called out from behind. It was none other than White Mist, who was wearing nothing but shorts with a towel slung on his shoulders. "Why don''t we go? It''s just a walk in distance from here."

    "You''re going to walk outside... wearing only that?" Jean Grey asked the question everyone was meaning to ask.

    "Of course, we don''t have to go outside Grand Hotel to get there. We just need to walk in the open area in the middle of the Grand Hotel and walk to the other side of the pool. The back entrance to the facility''s there." White Mist pointed out as he walked forward, leading the way. "I''ll go to the pool for a quick dip. You guys can check out the training camp."

    Jean Grey and Ash walked right behind White MIst while Satoshi said goodbye to Emma and the others.

    "We were going to grab a quick bite. Take care out there." Shiroi bade farewell as Satoshi turned around. She could''ve sworn she saw Aira and Emma smirk at her the moment Satoshi left but she didn''t take it to heart. She concluded that it was probably her eyes just ying tricks on her.

    "Wait up!" Satoshi called out.

    The group of four boarded the elevator. They were surprised that White Mist actually had a huge constitution despite appearing on the thin side whenever he wore clothes. Apparently, he was used to wearing clothes a sizerger than him. This hid his bulk effectively and made him look thin.

    "You''re kind of on the scrawny side, Ash, you should eat more." White Mist teased, grabbing Ash by the arm, pulling him up, and hoisting him as if he was a little kid.

    "See? Takai~ takai~" White Mist continued.

    "I''m surprised you can speak Japanese," Satoshi said out loud. The moment he realized that his thoughts slipped out, he covered his mouth and was about to apologize.

    "I''ve visited your country a couple of times. It''s a good country, I really like your festivals and cherry blossoms." White Mist said. Even though he spoke simple Japanese sentences, he was quite proficient at them. Even his pronunciation was on point.

    "Ah, so ournguage is called Japanese in this world? Neat." Ashmented. "In any case, how are your tamed beasts, Satoshi? I''m pretty sure I haven''t met all of them."

    "I''ll show you some of themter," Satoshi said. He couldn''t tell why or how... but somehow, he felt as if he had met Ash before. Even their appearance almost looked identical as if they were long-lost cousins.

    "Nice!"<sub> </sub>

    "You should check out his Representatives. They''re pretty strong. That celestial tamed beast he had was pretty strong as well." Jean Grey recalled... and then his voice trailed off as he tried to realize something.

    "Wait... don''t tell me you also have an unearthly tamed beast?!" Jean Grey eximed out of nowhere the moment they got out of the elevator. This caused some of the people staying at the hotel to turn around and face him. Jean Grey instinctively hid his face in embarrassment.

    White Mist almost stopped short in his tracks as he listened to what Jean Grey said. As the previous number one beast tamer of the entire world, he was nheless curious if Satoshi really had an Unearthly Type.

    Recently, there were new discoveries regarding tamed beasts and White Mist just knew about it. Things like integration, as well as two new types of beasts, had already been discovered in the beast dimension but he still had little to no information regarding the new phenomenon and the new tamed beast types. That''s he was subconsciously drawn into the conversation that Jean Grey initiated.

    "I don''t know if I have one... but I do have another tamed beast that''s weird. I don''t know if it''s an Unearthly Type or just a normal tamed beast." Satoshi lied as naturally as he breathed when he referred to Ghast, his portal familiar. Of course, he was perfectly aware that his familiars weren''t normal... but there was no way he''d openly admit that. That would just unnecessarily attract everyone''s attention... which is not good in the long run.

    "I''m curious..." White Mist suddenly muttered as they now entered the open area. A couple more meters walk and they''d finally arrive by the back door that would lead to the facility where the training camp is held. "Do you know what integration is, Jean Grey? Ash? Satoshi?"

    "I know about it. Some of the trainers I''ve met can do it... but they cannot match my integration with Pheross." Jean Grey confidently said.

    "What? You already know how to integrate with your tamed beast?! I''ve only been able to do it recently... likest year." White Mist reacted as his eyes redirected themselves towards Satoshi. He was fairly certain that Satoshi already knew about that specific phenomenon, that''s why he just had to bring it up.

    "Eh? Integration? You guys can do it too?" Satoshi was more surprised than everyone. He thought he was the only one who could do it. As it turned out, he wasn''t. The phenomenon wasn''t exclusive to him. Just when he thought that his superpower had a niche that only he could have... his belief was shattered.

    ''So there were other people who could do it too, huh? I guess the world really is vast after all. There''s no way I''m the only one who''s this powerful.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    It was probably because Satoshi just woke up but he forgot one crucial thing about his superpower. His superpower wasn''t necessarily beast taming, but rather an upgrader... which had already worked on tamed beasts, machines, and humans alike.

    "So you can do it, huh? This is interesting. I guess I should hold off my dip in the pool for now." White Mist muttered to himself as he pressed his clenched fists against each other. "Would you mind having a spar with me, Satoshi? This would be pretty useful for the training camp for beast tamers."

    "Let me join in on the fun too! I still haven''t forgotten the time when you defeated me with that celestial tamed beast of yours. I guess now''s the right time to demand a rematch!" Jean Grey screamed at the top of his lungs as he pointed at Satoshi. Once again, he identally garnered the attention of everyone by the poolside.

    "What?! You lost against Satoshi?! Heh~ I guess that''s settled then." White Mist grinned from ear to ear as he continued leading the way. He was about to take a dip when they started talking about the new types of tamed beasts... and then there''s the topic about the integration as well. He wasn''t expecting Satoshi to be able to integrate with his tamed beasts. Even the middle-aged men in the training camp could only do so with great difficulty.

    Meanwhile, it totally flew from Satoshi''s mind that he could actually integrate with two or more of his familiars. This already made him one of the strongest beast tamers in the world. After all, at most, a beast tamer could only integrate with one tamed beast, and even then, it would deplete a considerable amount of energy if they do it.

    The back door to the facility where the training camp is held didn''t seem like a back door at all. In fact, it looked more like a grand entrance with its red carpet and the people in suits lined up to greet those who would go in. Even Satoshi felt a little bit embarrassed when the people drabbed in formal clothing bowed towards him in wee.

    "Come ine in, don''t be shy." White Mist amicably spoke as he opened the door for everyone. "This is going to be fun." He continued.

    "Just so you know, Satoshi," Ash muttered out of nowhere. "I could also integrate with my partner. I''m going to challenge you to match. Better look forward to it." He smiled before heading in.

 Chapter 293 Beast Tamer Training Camp

    The beast tamers at the training camp took a short break when Satoshi and the others entered. Everyone sitting on the floor or lounging around immediately stood upright and bowed towards White Mist as soon as they noticed his presence. He was none other than the ''sensei'' of every beast tamer in the training camp and that''s why they held him in such great respect.

    "Good morning everyone." White Mist greeted as he crossed his arms while walking towards the center of the vast room. This was themon area of the facility. The training grounds where all the training is done (obviously) were located in the next room after themon area. A little bit to the side was another door that led to the dorms where everyone are staying at the moment. There were two doors on each side. The girl''s dorm was on the right while the boys'' dorm was on the left.

    Before everyone paid attention to White Mist, he pped his hand so they would all be jolted awake. It was still early in the morning and no one had expected an early training today. That''s why most of them were staying by themon area. Some of them were reading manga, some were eating chips, and some were ying video games on their portable game consoles. It wouldn''t be an understatement to say that they were surprised when White Mist entered so suddenly.

    "I want a demonstration of Beast Integration. We have new people joining us today, and that''s why I need at least two of you for the demonstration. I''m sure that some of you have been practicing the next level of beast-taming, right? Those who could show decent control regarding beast taming will get to spend a night over at Grand Hotel." White Mist announced all of a sudden.

    The announcement made everyone drop their jaws in shock as they stared at each other. Sure they were working on Beast Integration butpared to White Mist who could control it, they were like newborn babies trying to walk and failing. Those who didn''t stand a chance at demonstrating decently didn''t even bother raising their hands despite the tempting reward. As for those who thought that they''d be able to pull it off, they raised their hands. Only three or four people raised their hands without hesitation. All four of them were a little bit older than Satoshi, approximately in their early twenties.

    "Oh, our new member is Japanese. Naisu tu meet chu. Ay am Shoyo." A guy in his early twenties spoke up as he extended his hands toward Satoshi. He thought that Satoshi was a fluent English speaker since he looked like one. Shoyo was actually Japanese, that''s why he had a hard time speaking in English when he greeted Satoshi.

    "You don''t have to force yourself, I can speak Japanese just fine," Satoshi responded, shaking Shoyo''s hand.

    "Oh sweet, and here I was thinking that you also speak English. See that ck-haired guy over there? He''s actually Japanese as well, the name''s Kageyama. But he could speak English just fine. I have a hard time talking to him." Shoyo jerked his thumb towards another guy who was frowning so weirdly. He didn''t seem bothered by the stares that everyone gave him.

    "All right, Shoyo, Kageyama, Tetsuya, Taiga, all of you demonstrate your beast integration. I''ll be the judge whether you''ll be eligible to spend a night in the Grand Hotel." White Mist said with amanding tone in his voice. Until now, he still crossed his arms as if that was the only position he knew while instructing everyone.

    Satoshi could recall that the person named Taiga was the one who raised his hand confidently back then, that''s why he was wondering if he was the number one student in the training camp. White Mist didn''t give them any hints though, since he wanted to leave them in suspense.

    "All right, whenever you''re ready." White Mist gave the signal.

    Even though Jean Grey seemed disinterested, he still keenly observed everyone who tried to integrate with their beast. His attention was also focused on the same individual, the one named Taiga.

    One by one, the four young men pulled out some form of dimensional storage apparatus from their pockets and summoned their familiar. Taiga summoned a tiger with fiery fur and he immediately set to work with his Beast Integration. He started doing some sort of weird dance or ritual where he jumped from one side to another before performing a twirl. It was a sight to behold, even Jean Grey who doesn''t usuallyugh chuckled when he noticed Taiga''s heartfelt presentation.

    Kageyama summoned a tamed beast that looked like a ck crow, except it has a dark aura surrounding it. As for Tetsuya, he summoned a tamed beast that looked like a snake made out of metal. He started integrating as well.

    "You ready, Hiyoko? You''re looking pretty orange as ever, huh, who''s a good chick?"

    Meanwhile, Shoyo summoned his tamed beast. It was a chick, but it was as big as a ramen bowl and it had a nice orange color to it. Satoshi couldn''t help but redirect his eyes toward Shoyo''s tamed beast since it was the cutest beast in the room. Moreover, it was fluffy, which is always a plus when ites to tamed beasts.

    A smile formed on Satoshi''s face as he watched Shoyo talking to his tamed beast. He could tell that Shoyo is specially bonded with his tamed beast. Even Jean Grey who had been silently observing Taiga averted his gaze from him and instead, he intently monitored the orange-haired boy with his orange-colored chick.

    "All right, are you ready, Hiyoko? Just as we practiced, all right? You don''t have to force yourself." Shoyo said, petting his tamed beast. (Hiyoko~ is actually the Japanese term for chick, and that''s why Shoyo kept on calling his tamed beast Hiyoko.)

    Shoyo extended his hand forward with his palms open. He then looked at his tamed beast who assumed the same position as well. "All right, se~ no~ Beast Integration!"<sub> </sub>

    "Kyu~!" Shoyo''s tamed beast let out a cute squeal as it started glowing.

    Shoyo started glowing as well and the glow got brighter, almost illuminating the entiremon area. When the glow had dissipated, Shoyo appeared with a fluff of orange covering his entire body. He looked like a chicken mascot, a fluffy chicken mascot.

    "What on earth Shoyo, you look stupid haha~!"

    "Are you a mascot? You should go outside and advertise the training camp."

    "What kind of Beast Integration is that?"

    Some of the trainees who were in the room started mocking Shoyo despite the fact that he was the fastest one to integrate with his tamed beast. A couple of secondster, Taiga followed. ming tiger pelt donned his head with the tiger skin extending all the way up to his arms and legs. His arm was covered with the paw of the tiger and his tail continued to burn brightly. Out of everyone who integrated with his beast, he looked the coolest.

    When Taiga sessfully integrated with his beast, everyone started cheering. There was a look of smugness on his face as he nced toward the general direction of Shoyo. He might be faster than him, but he definitely looked way cooler.

    Kageyama also turned out to be badass when pitch-ck wings appeared on his back. The integration wasplete and he turned out to be a man with ck wings. Tetsuya''s hair turned into metallic snakes when his beast integration was over, and once again, he also looked way cooler than Hiyoko.

    "What do you think? Pretty cool, right? Now I''ll show you mine." White Mist muttered to himself when he summoned his White Wolf. Once the Beast Integration wasplete, White Mist looked like a lycan or a werewolf. His Beast Integration was impressive, even Jean Grey was surprised.

    "What do you think? You can tell if someone''s pretty good at Beast Integration, right? Who''s the best student out of everyone here?" White Mist asked a little too excitedly. He just wanted to show off his training camp so Jean, Ash, and Satoshi would be more than willing to join the training camp.

    Without saying another word, Satoshi and Jean Grey pointed at Shoyo who had already lowered his head in a dejected manner. When he noticed that the two neers were pointing at him, his eyes sparkled as he bowed toward the two.

    "Haah? Clearly, it''s Taiga and his Fire Tiger who integrated with his beast better. Just look at it," White Mist argued, pointing at Taiga who proudly stood at the other end of the line.

    Jean Grey shook his head in response. "Sure it looked cool... but his beast integration is pretty low-leveled. Even my son can do a better job than him."

    "What did you say, old man?!" Taiga growled. He didn''t dare approach Jean Grey though since he knew that he had beaten White Mistst night.

    Upon saying that, Jean Grey then grabbed Taiga by the shoulders and positioned him right beside Shoyo. "Now I''m going to prove to everyone why Shoyo did a better job than this show-off." Jean Grey began as he summoned his Azure Tiger. "Pheross, use re."

    re!

    The moment the intense bloodthirst hit both Shoyo and Taiga, they both fell to the floor. The only difference was, Shoyo still had his beast integration activated while Taiga''s beast integration had been disabled in a snap of a finger.

 Chapter 294 Young Kids Challenge

    Pheross''s move ''re'' has another name to it. Most beast tamers call it ''intimidate'' or something along those lines. Basically, it allowed Pheross to release bloodthirst and release it toward his target.

    re!

    The moment the intense bloodthirst hit both Shoyo and Taiga, they both fell to the floor. The only difference was, Shoyo still had his beast integration activated while Taiga''s beast integration had been disabled. Shoyo fell down on his rear end just like Taiga but he was still in his beast integration. He was surprised, but that didn''t force him to deactivate his beast integration, much to everyone''s surprise.

    Jean Grey walked forward, offering his hand towards Shoyo and Taiga, prompting them up when they obliged. He then turned around and cleared his throat. "You see when ites to Beast Integration, it''s not about the looks, but rather how strong your connection is towards your tamed beast. There''s a reason why this is the second stage when ites to beast taming. And that''s because it is realistically impossible to integrate with one''s beast when they haven''t bonded enough."

    "Taiga, Tetsuya, and Kageyama, right? The three of you already formed that bond with your tamed beast... but you need to spend more time with them. That way, your bond will get stronger and you will be even stronger."

    Even though Jean Grey was a neer, he had already shown how reliable and how professional he was when ites to tamed beasts. After all, he''s the beast master of the Nichijou Region in their world. There was no way he didn''t know the basics of Beast Integration.

    "Wait... a-a-aren''t you that guy who defeated White Mist yesterday?!" One of the young men in the room eximed as everyone let out an ''ooh'' out of their mouth. They didn''t recognize him sooner but now that they took a good look at him, they could see that he really was the one and only beast tamer who defeated White Mist yesterday.

    "Yep, that''s him. He''ll be joining our training camp starting today all the way up to the Official Beast Tournament. How''s that?" White Mist pointed out before Jean Grey could evenment on what he said. Now, everyone''s expectations of Jean Grey went through the roof and he had no room to deny the suggestion.

    With a forced smile on his face, he scratched his head and turned to White Mist. "T-t-that''s right! But only up to the Official Beast Tournament, let me make that clear. Use this time to learn from me. One day, I''m sure one of you will be able to defeat White Mist."

    Everyone cheered, even Shoyo who was now standing beside Jean Grey felt a little small. He could tell that Jean Grey was an expert when ites to beast taming and there he was, integrated with a baby chicken.

    "All right then, now let me show you my Beast Integration." Ash volunteered, much to everyone''s surprise.

    As mentioned before, most of the people in the training camp were already in theirte teens and some of them were even in theirte twenties already. Only those who were on the veteran side could more or less integrate with their beasts... and yet this teenager imed that he could do it? Just the notion alone made everyone shake their heads since they couldn''t believe the preposterousness that came out of Ash''s mouth.

    The only three who didn''t scoff or chuckle under their breath were White Mist, Jean Grey, and Midoriyama Satoshi. They knew that Ash wouldn''t drop ament like that when he didn''t mean it. And as for Jean Grey, the reason why he looked a little bit tense was that he was expecting Ash to have improved.

    Thest time Jean Grey saw his son integrate with his beast was more than two years ago. That''s why he couldn''t miss this chance to observe everything. He''s fairly certain that he''d be able to give his son some sound advice.

    Without further ado, Ash Grey threw out a Gren in mid-air, and a seahorse-looking tamed beast came out. This was his partner, Sarugaso, and he had been with Ash ever since he started his journey to bing a beast master.

    Sarugaso let out a satisfied coo as it came out. He then nced toward his owner, Ash, before nodding his head. That signal meant that he was ready for the Beast Integration. Ash nodded in response when he got the signal.

    "Here we go!" Ash gritted his teeth as he closed his eyes. This was his way of focusing when ites to his Beast Integration.

    Ash''s entire body glowed a bright white color before it dissipated in an instant. As soon as the light vanished, Ash''s transformation could be seen. A smooth spiral of water covered his entire body, and he was wearing armor likened to the scales of his tamed beast Sarugaso. in his hand he held a spear, and his hair actually got longer and it turned into a nice shade of blue and green.

    "Are you Aquama¡ª" Someone was about toment something when another person grabbed him by the mouth to shut him up.

    "What are you saying? What if we got a copyright strike? Tsk~!" The other person hissed.

    "Oh sorry,"<sub> </sub>

    Normally, or at least when ites to everyone in the training camp who could integrate with their beasts, one could barely stand when they integrate with their beasts, much less movefortably. That''s why when they saw howfortable Ash was with his Beast Integration, their jaws dropped to the floor in puzzlement. They couldn''t believe that such a young kid could already integrate with his beast without difficulty at all.

    "Hahh~! How''s that, Satoshi, pretty cool right? I bet you can''t even integrate like me. How about you integrate with your beast right now and let''s have a match." Ash said, putting his hand on his waist as he challenged Satoshi

    "I believe I was the one who asked Satoshi for a beast battle first." White Mist pointed out as he cleared his throat. "You''d have to wait, Ash, or better yet, you can fight your dad soon after so everyone will be able to see our abilities in full disy. What do you say?"

    White Mist didn''t want to miss his chance of a beast battle with Satoshi, that''s why he just had to offer another alternative to Ash before he startedining.

    "You know what, that''s actually a pretty good idea. I haven''t had a beast battle with my young man here in so long. This would be like the old days when you used to challenge me every day, eh?"

    "I''ve been doing a lot of secret training ever since I went on my adventure. I''m going to beat you this time, dad." Ash said, his eyes sparkling in excitement. It was tantly obvious that Ash looked forward to the match morepared to his father.

    "Now that that''s settled, why don''t we all move towards the training room? I''m afraid this is themon area and we might destroy it if we fight here." White Mist said before he pivoted. He then walked towards the door by the far end of themon area where the training room was located.

    Everyone in the training center meekly followed their ''sensei'' but they were a bit concerned about the kid who hasn''t shown6 his Beast Integration yet. As far as they know, they didn''t have to fight against White Mist when they joined the training camp, and yet this kid was personally challenged by White Mist?

    "Will that kid be all right? He hasn''t spoken a word about it."

    "Maybe he was too nervous to speak..."

    "Isn''t this practically bullying?"

    "But you saw how powerful that kid called Ash, right? Who knows if that guy is just as powerful."

    "That''s right, it''s not like our ''sensei''s going to challenge someone who''s not a worthy opponent."

    "But what if White Mist just wanted to test his abilities? Aren''t you putting too much pressure on that kid?"

    Shoyo overheard the people who were talking under their breath. He immediately caught up to them, interrupting their conversation. "That kid, he''s strong. I can tell." He muttered.

    Everyone looked at him as if he didn''t know what he was talking about. However, Shoyo was confident that Satoshi was strong. ''A moment ago, both Jean Grey and he chose me over Taiga... I''m sure he''s an expert like Jean Grey.'' Shoyo said to himself.

    While their spections were running wild, White Mist positioned himself on the other side of the beast battle area. He wore a confident smile on his face as he pointed at Satoshi threateningly. From what he had heard, he was able to defeat Jean Grey in a match. That''s why White Mist was going to use his absolute best Beast Integration against him.

    "I hope you''re ready, Satoshi. I''m not going to use my White Wolf on this match. I''m sure you''ve seen the Death Metronome, right?"

    "WHAT?! HE''S GOING TO USE A REPRESENTATIVE AGAINST A KID?!" One of the beast tamers by the sidelines eximed.

 Chapter 295 Ghast, Beast Integration Battle

    "I hope you''re ready, Satoshi. I''m not going to use my White Wolf on this match. I''m sure you''ve seen the Death Metronome, right?"

    "WHAT?! HE''S GOING TO USE A REPRESENTATIVE AGAINST A KID?!" One of the beast tamers by the sidelines eximed.

    Satoshi had already seen the Death Metronome in action yesterday, and that''s why he knew just how strong it was. With one curse, it could be invincible to its opponent. And it was also pretty strong when ites to its dark or psychic-type attacks. Satoshi had no idea what kind of typing the Death Metronome had and he felt like it would be cheating if he just straight up asked Dex about it.

    For once, Satoshi wanted to experience a fight where he''d have to face someone head-on¡ª a beast battle where he won''t have any advantages whatsoever. He had used most of his advantages when ites to fighting but now, he didn''t want to. This is just a demonstration fight after all, and as much as he hated to lose, he also wanted to push himself to the limit.

    Some of his advantages include Dex''s perfect information gathering. Just one nce, and he could tell all the information about that tamed beast. And then there was his other advantage where he could actually integrate with his familiars. While everyone in the room could only integrate with one, Satoshi could integrate with two or more, that''s why he can easily defeat anyone who would fight with him.

    "Ash, Jean, you want to see my Unearthly Type Tamed Beast?" Satoshi asked as he assumed his position on the other side of the area where the beast battle will be held.

    Ash and Jean Grey nodded in excitement, their eyes sparkling.

    Without further ado, Satoshi pulled out something from his Orb Oboros as if he was getting some sort of Gren to throw. He was just acting though since all his familiars actually stayed in the storage space created by Orb Oboros.

    "Ghast, let''s do this. Let''s have fun, all right?" Satoshi muttered as Ghast appeared in front of him. He looked just like he did before, a violet entity that resembled mes... but upon further inspection, Satoshi realized that Ghast actually changed in his form. He was now the size of Sera, and he also had appendages just like her. As for his head, it was circr with two slits of red that appeared as his eyes. A dark aura surrounded him, and behind him, there were two sinister portals that screamed unknown energy. A ck orb also revolved around Ghast''s head, and an additional four orbs revolved around his appendages. His change in appearance almost shocked Satoshi, but then again, he was pleased that he was able to grow even though he didn''t do anything.

    For the past few weeks, Satoshi had been training his control over his beast integration so he was somewhat prepared for this beast battle. However, he stuck to his n¡ª that he won''t be integrating with two or more familiars. Doing so would result in an instant win, and that wouldn''t bid well for the beast tamers who were present.

    Satoshi didn''t feel the need to extend his hand and recite a couple of words... but he wanted to show off just a little. After all, it''s not every day he''d get to challenge the beast master of Earth. If any, he wanted to create a good impression in front of White Mist.

    Closing his eyes, Satoshi felt the intense energy emanating from Ghast. Meanwhile, Ash, Jean, and everyone else in the room stayed quiet for fear that they would break Satoshi''s concentration.

    Darkness cker than ck and darker than dark, I beseech thee,bine with my deep crimson.

    [The time of awakeningeth.

    Justice, fallen upon the infallible boundary, appears now as an intangible distortion!

    Dance, dance, dance!

    I desire for my torrent of power a destructive force: a destructive force without equal!

    Return all creation to cinders, ande from the abyss!

    This is the mightiest means of attack known to man, the ultimate¡ª]

    Satoshi had no idea what he was saying but he knew that it was a pretty good incantation of sorts. He heard it from a certain animated series that is now a relic due to how old it was. Still, it was a pretty good series. The incantation actually came from a certain ck-haired girl who only knew one attack-type magic... and since Satoshi was only using one familiar, he figured that it was a very fitting ritual.

    Ghast started glowing, but the shift was much faster than anyone else. As soon as Satoshi opened his eyes, he was already d in darkness. He was wearing a royal robe with pants that had ropes dangling on each side. From a distance, Satoshi looked like a royal. The dark orbs that revolved around Ghast''s head were now revolving around Satoshi''s. The additional four orbs were also present, revolving on each of Satoshi''s appendages.<sub> </sub>

    But the first thing that everyone noticed was Satoshi''s high cor. He certainly looked like a royal with a dark presence. In his hand, he held an orb, and beside him, the two portals continuously poured forth intense dark energy.

    "Awesomeeee!" Ash was the first one to break the silence when Satoshi entered the field. He couldn''t believe that Satoshi easily pulled out a Beast Integration. Even though he said a lot of things at the start, his transition was much faster than everyone else. Adding to that, he had the most beautiful beast integrationpared to everyone.

    "Now it''s my turn." White Mist called out as he summoned his representative, the Death Metronome. He then pressed his fists against each other and in that instant, he transformed into something even more appealing than Satoshi''s.

    He had a nice headdress on his head, a golden ornament that had the symbol of a snake. He wore what seemed like an ancient Egyptian pharaoh''s outfit, except the sheen on the gold was much brighter. Above his head, there floated two slits of red eyes which was one of the most defining features of the Death Metronome.

    White Mist didn''t waste any time stepping inside the beast battle area. As for Satoshi, he was already there, standing upright while holding the Dark Energy Orb in his hand. He was more than ready to fight against the number one beast master of Earth... well, he''s technically second-best since Jean Grey already defeated him... but to Satoshi, he still held the title of the strongest beast tamer since Jean Grey doesn''t belong to their world.

    "All right, since no one wants to... I''ll be the one to officiate this match. Before we go with the match, I would like toy down a couple of rules when ites to beast battles that involve beast integrations." Jean Grey began, clearing his throat.

    "First, no physical weapons are allowed. The only things allowed inside the field are your own clothes, nothing else. If there''s a chance that someone used a physical weapon or equipment... or anything physical that would give them the edge in the beast battle, the match would be over and the person in question will be disqualified."

    "Second, one could switch with their beast integrations during the match. And if one wanted to switch, they should raise their right hand and the match will be temporarily paused. It should be noted that beast integrations require a lot of energy, that''s why switching is almost never done in a match... but this could happen, and I''ve seen countless beast tamers pull it off. That''s why there''s a ruling like this."

    "Last but not least, if the referee thinks there''s foul y, he can stop the fight in an instant." Jean Grey announced. "Now that all this information is recited, we can start the match. Please assume your positions on both ends of the field."

    White mist and Satoshi stared at each other intently, ready to strike as soon as the signal was raised. They knew that the first attack would determine the flow of the match that''s why the two of them were more than eager to strike first.

    "BEGIN!"

    Since White Mist wanted to have a match that would be worth the watch, he didn''t use the Bell Curse as his first move. He decided to attack Satoshi with a psychic beam, stretching his hand and shooting pure dark energy toward him.

    However, Satoshi had been expecting White Mist to attack indirectly like that. In an instant, Satoshi disappeared from where he stood, and he reappeared behind White Mist. He shot a dark pulse toward White Mist but White Mist managed to block it by turning around and shooting a psychic beam to deflect the attack. Before Satoshi could disappear again, White Mist shot a dark orb toward him.

    It was as fast as a bullet.

    BOOOM!

    The dark orb caused an explosion that made everyone cover their ears. There was no way Satoshi would''ve survived an instant attack like that. Even if he could magically disappear and reappear, there was no way he could react that fast to an attack. Even White Mist was confident that Satoshi had already lost.

    Flutter.

    However, the moment they looked up, they saw Satoshi menacingly floating above the beast battle area. He managed to dodge the attack unscathed.

    "WHAT?!" Jean Grey eximed in confusion.

 Chapter 296 Ghasts Dark Orb

    Satoshi''s teleportation skills shocked White Mist since he was able to react to his attack despite the small window of time where he could react to it. Not a lot of beast tamers could dodge that Dark Orb and yet Satoshi did it with rtive ease. One way or another, White Mist could tell that Satoshi had been to hell and back when ites to his fighting skills. He was as talented as any superhero with speed-type superpowers.

    "What was that?"

    "He was able to dodge that in an instant?"

    "Is he even human? How could he do something like that?"

    The shock that White Mist experienced firsthand spread to the beast tamers who were present in the room. They were also watching the match with keen interest, that''s why they were surprised that Satoshi dodged something that was supposed to be impossible to dodge.

    Without missing a beat, Satoshi extended his hands and a dark portal appeared on top of the field. Dark energy beams started raining down on the beast battle area, relentlessly attacking White Mist. The attacks packed quite a punch and it left a couple of craters in the area. They could tell that one hit from those attacks would actually deal a considerable amount of damage. White Mist was aware of it, that''s why he tried so hard to dodge every energy beam that rained down upon him.

    Now that White Mist had witnessed Satoshi''s sheerbat prowess and his intricate control over his beast integration, he came to the conclusion that he was underestimating the kid. He was powerful, if not more powerful than him. White Mist couldn''t help but let out a chuckle as he increased his speed.

    At first, he had a hard time dodging the energy beams that rained down from above, but after a few seconds he was able to go with the rhythm, full adapting to the rain of energy beams, dodging all of them with rtive ease. At this point, White Mist had already decided that he shouldn''t underestimate the kid anymore. He was going to fight with full power and there was no way he''d give Satoshi a free win.

    Determination filled White Mist''s gaze as he activated the Bell Curse. Even though he had resolved himself to not use the Bell Curse, he still decided to use it since there was no way he''d be able to win against Satoshi with half his strength. Besides, he still had no idea whether such an attack would work against an Unearthly Type Tamed Beast. This is a good experiment, and it would help him with his tamed beast research in the long run.

    Satoshi felt the Bell Curse spreading around the entire field but he wasn''t bothered by it at all. While it was a bit threatening, Satoshi could feel that it didn''t have any effects on Ghast at all. The Bell Curse was a pretty overpowered move, but if it was ineffective, then nothing would happen at all. (Ah yes, it''s like the saying that goes¡ª people die when they are killed)

    Before White Mist could realize that the Bell Curse actually didn''t have any effect on Satoshi, Satoshi appeared behind him, forming a dark de on his hand and trying to stab White Mist with it. White Mist was able to elerate forward, dodging the strike by a hair''s breadth, much to his relief.

    He didn''t want to give Satoshi an opening so as soon as he elerated, he turned around and shot a couple of psychic beams at him. He knew that doing so wouldn''t hit Satoshi at all but it would at least upy him while he tried to figure out what Satoshi''s weakness is.

    In response to his attack though, Satoshi held out the dark orb he was holding and he stretched his hand. It''s as if he was holding the ball to protect himself¡­ and that was the point why he did that.

    In an instant, the Dark Orb transformed into a huge dark shield which deflected the psychic beams that White Mist shot at him. Satoshi then stepped forward as numerous amounts of portals appeared all over the field. He turned the entire field into a portal-infested room.

    The crippling feeling of fear came over White Mist as he watched the sheer amount of portals that appeared in front of him. There was something sinister about the dark portals that rendered him immobile for a few seconds. During that time-frame though, Satoshi was more than merciful enough to not attack him. His n had worked, and White Mist was already doubting his victory more than anything else.

    Provocation brought Satoshi a step closer towards victory. His next move after that was to confuse White Mist so he won''t be able to get his gears back together. If tangible attacks didn''t affect White Mist that much, Satoshi concluded that he would attack him mentally. That way it would take him a longer time to recover. This would give Satoshi more openings so he could snag a victory under the White Mist''s feet.

    "Look at that kid!"<sub> </sub>

    "Can you believe it?"

    "He can keep up with the number one beast tamer in the world? Who''s this kid?"

    "See? I told you guys, he''s a pretty good beast master." Shoyo proudly puffed his chest as if he was close to Satoshi. But then again, what he said a couple of minutes ago was right, that''s why he couldn''t help but feel sheer pride towards Satoshi.

    Apparently, even though Satoshi was quite famous in Japan, and he had already appeared in a lot of news reports, some Americans were still oblivious to his identity. That''s why they were surprised that he was able to go head to head with White Mist. If they had seen him in action, then this much wouldn''t have surprised them at all.

    White Mist stepped back a little bit when Satoshi turned away from him. One of the most basic rules when ites to fight was that one shouldn''t turn his back towards his opponent. But right now, Satoshi turned around as if he purposefully did so. This prompted White Mist to put his guard up instead of attacking his opponent. This was the second step towards Satoshi''s n of victory¡ª to confuse White Mist as much as he could.

    For at least a minute, Satoshi just stood there without doing anything. Quite frankly, he was waiting for White Mist to make a move but he didn''t do anything. In fact, he didn''t budge an inch from where he stood. He was just there, motionlessly still while waiting for something to happen.

    Satoshi chuckled. He had already seeded in the first two steps of his n.

    "Let''s y a game, White Mist." Satoshi called out before he disappeared into thin air.

    White Mist''s jaw dropped to the floor when he realized that Satoshi just disappeared into thin air. Everyone who was watching had the same reaction. Even Jean Grey who had been watching the fight closely was surprised that Satoshi disappeared from the field. He tried to use his enhanced senses, even linking his mind to Pheross so he would be able to borrow some of his senses¡­ but there were no signs of Satoshi.

    "Let''s y hide and seek. You''re it." Satoshi called out.

    Unbeknownst to everyone, Satoshi didn''t disappear what he did was surround his entire self with portals so his presence would disappear. He was still there though, standing on the very spot where he supposedly disappeared.

    Satoshi then stepped inside the portal but before he did so, he activated one of Ghast''s new skills. It was a skill called Portal Mimicry, and it allowed the user to produce clones of himself and control them with the user''s mind. This more or less resembled ''kage-bunshin no jutsu (shadow-clone jutsu)'' but one wouldn''t be able to detect which one''s real or which one was fake since all of the clones produced an aura simr to the user. For the opponent, every clone was real, and no matter how hard they tried to detect which one was real, they wouldn''t be able to do it. This was just one of the few new skills that Ghast learned after his power-up.

    By the time Satoshi reappeared... There were already a dozen of him. Each of them got out of a different portal, and they acted as if they were real. A sinister smile appeared on Satoshi''s face as he held out the Dark Orb in his hand.

    The Dark Orb had already shown its wide array of uses when Satoshi was able to transform it into a shield a couple of moments ago. Apparently, the Dark Orb had the ability to transform into any weapon. This was because the Dark Orb was actually concentrated pure dark energy that Ghast always feeds with his unearthly powers. This allows it to shift into any form, and Satoshi just had to think of something in order for it to change.

    White Mist couldn''t help but stare in bewilderment as the twelve Satoshis in front of him changed the form of their Dark Orb. All of them held out a different weapon in their hands, and they started charging at White Mist without hesitation.

 Chapter 297 Going For Second Round

    White Mist backed away as a copy of Satoshi holding a spear charged at him, repeatedly stabbing him with the spear which he dodged with great difficulty. Before he could recover though, Satoshi appeared beside him, shooting a pair of handguns that shot dark energy toward him. He tried blocking it, but the dark energy bullets pierced through his defenses and grazed his skin.

    A copy of Satoshi with a sword appeared behind him, smashing the sword on the field and creating a shock wave that sent White mist flying. White Mist activated the Death Metronome''s psychic abilities in order to stop his momentum, and he attacked the nearest Satoshi he found.

    This Satoshi was holding a shield. As soon as White Mist''s psychic attack hit him, Satoshi just prompted the dark shield up and the attack was deemed ineffective. No matter what White Mist tried to do, there was always a counterattack waiting for him. For a moment, he felt as if he was fighting the number one and two superheroes of Japan simultaneously.

    Not only was White mist outnumbered, but he was also overwhelmed by Satoshi''s overall power andbat abilities. He concluded that Satoshi''s power level was almost the same as his, but he had more control, thanks to the physical training he did back when he still hasn''t awakened his superpower. Sure Satoshi''s power was decent, but White Mist could see the hard work he put in order to achieve that level of control and dexterity.

    "He''s keeping up with White Mist." Kageyama''s pupils dted as he watched the fight (he was the beast tamer who integrated with a beast that looked like a crow a couple of moments ago)

    "Amazing," Tetsuya said, peeling his eyes so he''d be able to observe Satoshi''s movements. While he was a little bit older than Satoshi, he could tell that Satoshi was already an expert when ites to fighting.

    "I told you... that guy''s an expert. I guess there are a lot of stronger beast tamers out there... they just don''t get to be in the limelight. After all, a beast-tamer superpower isn''t exactly poprpared to other superpowers." Shoyo said, his chest still puffed as he proudlyplimented Satoshi.

    "He''s strong all right. And here I was thinking he''d be some sort of noob when ites to beast integration. If he could go head to head with White Mist at this age... who knows what kind of monster he''ll be when he grows up." Taiga pointed out.

    White Mist gritted his teeth in utter frustration as he tried to use every move, every skill that his Death Metronome had. He flew around, but Satoshi would just appear in front of him thanks to the dark portals he created all over the ce. And if he were to stay in ce, he''d be surrounded by twelve Satoshis. It was a pain in the rear end, but there was nothing he could do about it.

    "I''m getting nowhere." White Mist said as he deflected a Satoshi who was about tond a flying kick to his back. Another Satoshi appeared, throwing in a couple of shurikens toward him. One of the shurikens (it should be pointed out that every weapon that Satoshi and his clones used is made up of dark energy) hit him on the back. Fortunately, Death Metronome had enough foresight to create a psychic barrier behind him. Everything that White Mist did was purely defensive, and even with Death Metronome helping him out, they still couldn''t defend against the onught by yours truly.

    However, White Mist still had one sliver of hope left. Even though the fight may look bleaker than it appeared, White Mist knew that Satoshi had been expending ridiculous amounts of energy. If he yed the waiting game, then he''d be able tost longer than Satoshi. From what he knew, Satoshi had just awakened his superpower a couple of months ago... or so that''s what he heard from the rumors. If such was the case, then he should be able tost longer than him.

    "I have more experience than him... there''s no way he''dst longer than me." White Mist muttered to himself. As much as he hated to admit it, he had to y dirty and a little bit underhanded. Instead of going on the offensive, he decided to run away until Satoshi tires himself out. ''Sure his control over his superpower wasmendable, but I''m sure he hasn''t trained his stamina when ites to his beast integration.'' A smile appeared on White Mist''s face.

    With this, he''d be able to keep up with Satoshi.

    It didn''t take long before everyone in the room noticed what White Mist was trying to do. They could see right through his actions¡ª that he was just trying to buy time. Ash and Jean Grey also noticed White Mist''s y but they didn''t say anything at all. After all, even though what he was doing was a bit disrespectful when ites to the beast battle, there were no rules that said running away is illegal in a beast battle. Because of that, all of them just continued watching the match without saying a single word.

    Their respect towards White Mist dropped to disturbing numbers, however, since all he did was run away from the match.

    ...

    Roughly thirty minutester.<sub> </sub>

    "What on earth is this kid?!" White Mist said to himself. He had been running for roughly half an hour now but Satoshi was still unrelenting. His attacks didn''t let up, and White Mist couldn''t rest in the middle of the match. He nned to run away until Satoshi''s Beast Integration disappears... but as it turned out Satoshi had more stamina than he was.

    "I''m already at my limit... and yet this kid is still going... what on actual¡ª " White Mist muttered to himself when an Axe almost chopped his head off. He barely dodged the Satoshi who swung it, tripping him and running away.

    Another Satoshi appeared in front of him,sso-ing him and catching him with a rope made out of dark energy.

    In an instant, White Mist was surrounded by the twelve Satoshis. And yes, Satoshi didn''t call out his clones at all throughout the entire fight. That''s why White Mist didn''t find any opportunity to rest.

    "I forfeit." White Mist heaved a sigh as a smile appeared on his face. "You''re really strong, huh... you have more stamina than me... what kind of hellish training did you do to achieve such a high level of control and endurance?"

    Satoshi''s mind remembered the time when his parents electrocuted him via the superpower suppressor... that was what gave him the extra boost he needed (refer to chapter 165). Instead of the suppressor actually suppressing his superpower, it actually boosted it... which was a bit ironic, but Satoshi didn''t really see it as a bad thing.

    Satoshi called out his eleven clones and also called out his dark energy portals all over the field. He still didn''t undo his Beast Integration though, since he wanted to know what his limit was. This surprised White Mist more than ever¡ª it''s as if he was pped right on the face with Satoshi''s gesture. After all, he could barely hold his beast integration in forty-five minutes... but Satoshi far exceeded that and there was no sign of tiredness in his aura.

    "Ash? I challenge you to a beast battle." Satoshi called out, extending his hand towards Ash, inviting him for a beast battle. He just had a beast battle with White Mist and had won... and now he was asking for another beast battle without taking a break.

    "SWEET~!" Ash eximed as he went toward the opposite side of the field.

    "Sister~ sadistic~ surprise~ service~" Shoyo started singing out an oddly familiar tune after Ash interjected. He stopped singing in an instant though since no one joined him in the song.

    "Are you sure about this? Satoshi?" Ash said, integrating with his Sarugaso before Satoshi could say no. "If so... then allow me to take you on!"

    "Once again, I''ll y as the referee. Satoshi, are you sure about this?" Jean Grey concernedly asked from the sidelines. He was sincerely concerned about Satoshi since he could tell he was trying to overextend his beast integration.

    "I''m sure about this. I hardly feel exhausted at all. If I still feel all right, would it be all right if I challenge you as well?" Satoshi said,ying down another invitation of a beast battle towards Jean Grey.

    "If you say so, just don''t overestimate yourself, all right?" Jean Grey smiled, standing right in the middle of the sidelines before he raised his hand. "On the right side of the ring, we have Midoriyama Satoshi with his Ghast. And on the left side, we have Ash Grey, my son, with his partner Sarugaso. I''ve already stated the rules and regtions of a beast battle that involves beast integrations so I won''t repeat it anymore.

    "Without further ado, let the match BEGIN!"

 Chapter 298 Black Fog

    The beast tamers present in the room were more invested in the current fight than the previous one. While they were impressed that Satoshi was able to defeat White Mist, they were even more amazed that Satoshi could hold out his Beast Integration for another round. While they assumed that Satoshi would be able to hold out until the end, they have no idea how strong Ash actually is. That''s why they looked forward to the match.

    "So... Ash is Jean Grey''s son, right? That means he trained under a proficient beast tamer. There''s no way he''s subpar."

    "Let''s not forget, Satoshi challenged Ash as soon as his fight against White Mist ended. That means... he''s confident that he''ll win."

    "Satoshi''s already at a great disadvantage, but I still think he''d be able to win."

    As soon as the signal was given out, Ash immediately integrated with his tamed beast, Sarugaso. One moment, he was only extending his hand, the next moment, he was already wearing dark green armor and a viridescent scarf wrapped around his neck. In his hands, he held two daggers, and water appeared behind him.

    "I''ll attack first!" Ash screamed, charging at Satoshi without hesitation. In a blink of an eye, Ash cleared the entire field and appeared in front of Satoshi, shing him with a dagger.

    Fwip!

    In that split second, Satoshi was able to duck, dodging the attack with an inch to spare. He then transformed his dark orb into daggers and shed at Ash in response. With one swift motion, Ash did a backward somersault to dodge the attack,nding on all fours when he finally widened the space between him and Satoshi.

    Before he could rx, however, he felt the hair on his back rise up, which prompted him to crouch and roll forward. It was a good call since Satoshi was right there, swinging his dagger at his neck.

    "Gah~ that was close," Satoshi called out. He had expected that one strike to knock Ash unconscious, but he was more than elusive enough to dodge the blow.

    "That was close, all right. Why aren''t you using your clones though? Do you think that''d be more than enough to defeat me?" Ash asked out of nowhere. He was a bit disappointed that Satoshi wasn''t fighting him with everything he got... but then again, he just had to force all of his cards out by attacking him nonstop.

    "I didn''t want the fight to end. That''s why I''m fighting you on even ground." Satoshi simply answered as he pointed at the two daggers he wielded in his hand.

    "I''m quite well-versed when ites to using daggers in closebat, don''t be surprised if you lose," Ash said.

    Straining his ankle, Ash disappeared from where he stood and reappeared right in front of Satoshi. He had gotten even faster, and he didn''t waste any time shing at Satoshi''s stomach. It just so happened that Satoshi misread Satoshi''s attack. Instead of guarding his stomach, he guarded his face. To his surprise, Ash wasn''t aiming at his head at all.

    In that hundredth of a second, Satoshi activated his portal and got out of there, but the dagger still connected and he was wounded. Ash didn''t even hesitate to enter the portal where Satoshi disappeared into. Even though there was a chance that Satoshi would close the portal while he was halfway through, he didn''t hesitate. He figured that Satoshi won''t close the portal if he were to take the risk to go inside.

    Of course, Satoshi wouldn''t do that even if he was going to lose the match. If he were to close the portal, Ash''s body would be cut in half. While he''ll be able to easily heal him with Sera''s help, he didn''t want Ash to go through something so horrific.

    Seizing his chance, Ash relentlessly and repeatedly shed at Satoshi, swinging his dagger as if his life depended on it. He was faster than Satoshi had expected. He could keep up with Satoshi even after he slipped through a portal. And of course, Satoshi didn''t bother closing the portal for fear that Ash''s body will be cut in half.

    "I knew it, there was no way you''d recklessly close your portals if I was near you." Ash confidentlymented as he sidestepped and spun around, throwing his daggers at Satoshi.

    With a second to spare, Satoshi tucked his stomach in to avoid the two daggers that whizzed past. It was super effective, and the daggers barely grazed him. There was no time to rx however since the daggers that Ash just threw started following him as if they were homing missiles.<sub> </sub>

    Ash may be as fast as Satoshi, but his daggers were exponentially faster than his. This gave Satoshi a harder time keeping track of the daggers which were flying all over the ce. It took every ounce of his concentration to monitor them, and then there was Ash who was also right by his tail, trying to sneak in an attack once he exposed an opening.

    For once, Satoshi regretted not using his full power against Ash. He was more powerful than he thought. Clicking his tongue, Satoshi changed his weapons. Instead of creating daggers out of the Dark Orb, Satoshi created a shield to deflect the daggers. He then shifted to the spear, spinning it around to block the daggers who just turned around. After that, he did a screwdriver vault in midair before throwing thence at Ash.

    The attack came so unexpectedly that Ash wasn''t able to dodge it. Before he realized what was going on, the spear got him on the thigh and it stuck on the ground with a thud. He was trapped, leaving him defenseless against Satoshi''s attacks.

    Now that Ash''s movements were finally cut off, Satoshi created a portal and appeared behind him, catching Ash''s dagger and pointing it at his neck.

    The fight was over... and Satoshi had won.

    "Match Over! And the winner is... Midoriyama Satoshi and his tamed beast Ghast." Jean Grey announced as Satoshi retrieved hisnce and immediately healed Ash''s thigh wound using Sera''s innate ability. Before Jean Grey could rush to his son''s aid, Satoshi was already extending his hand toward him, prompting him to stand up.

    p. p. p.

    Everyone''s attention was redirected toward the man who approached the entire group. He was wearing a ck robe, his face hidden underneath the ck hood he wore. Behind him were other people who were wearing a ck hood as well. Judging from their unwee presence alone, Satoshi concluded that they were intruding.

    "Quite a lively crowd you got here, White Mist." The man in ckmented, approaching White Mist as if he was the boss around the ce. He extended his hand for a handshake, but White Mist just turned away, not daring to shake his hand.

    "How mean. And here I was,ing all the way from Thand to see you."

    "I have no business with you, ck Fog. It''d be best if you leave this ce. You''re not wee here." White Mist disrespectfully said as he pped ck Fog''s hand away.

    "Is that how you treat your beloved guests? I guess the White Mist faction only amounts to this much." The ck Fog muttered to himself as he released two tamed beasts. The tamed beasts that he showed everyone weren''t anything noteworthy. After all, the first one was a fire-typemon tamed beast, Red Smander, and the second one was a water-typemon tamed beast which is the Blue Smander.

    "What are you doing?" White Mist gritted his teeth as he held a Gren in his hand. If ck Fog wanted a fight, then he''d challenge him right then and there. Even though he hasn''t fully recovered from his fight against Satoshi, he knew that he had to stand up to ck Fog... otherwise what would his disciples think of him?

    "You don''t have to put your guard up. I just want to show you something... something really interesting I managed to cook up while I was out training with the elephants." ck Fog made funny faces as he spoke, totally mocking White Mist as if he didn''t know a thing or two about Thand.

    White Mist didn''t waste any time integrating with his tamed beast, the White Wolf. But before he couldnd a blow at ck Fog, ck Fog integrated with, not one, but two of his tamed beasts. Before White Mist could hit him, ck Fog appeared as a force of nature. Half of his body was covered in water while the other half was covered by fire.

    "Beast Integration with two tamed beasts?" Even Jean Grey was shocked since he hasn''t seen anyone achieve such a ridiculous feat.

    "Wha¡ª but how?!" White Mist eximed, his mouth wide open in utter shock.

    "I''m not the only one who can integrate with two tamed beasts at once in my faction, White Mist. I guess I look forward to the uing Official Beast Tournament." ck Fog said before turning around, leading all his men out of the training center without saying another word.

 Chapter 299 Dual Beast Integration

    "Dual Beast Integration?!" Jean Grey was the first one to exim as son as ck Fog and his band of brothers walked out of the training facility. As the Beast Master of the Nichijou Region back in their world, Jean Grey had never seen anyone who could do Dual Beast Integration.

    "There''s no doubt about it. That''s Dual Beast Integration." White Mist confirmed, nodding his head as nervousness settled in his mind. He had heard rumors that the ck Fog faction was doing some research about a higher level of Beast Integration but he didn''t pay attention to any of them. Rumors were just rumors after all and there was no way a Dual Beast Integration was possible.

    "Do you have any idea how to do it, Jean Grey?" White Mist tilted his head towards Jean Grey, hoping for an answer since he believed that Jean Grey had more experiencepared to him when ites to Beast Integration. "Anything? Can you perform a Dual Beast Integration?"

    "No, unfortunately, I can''t do it. While there were old stories from my world about Dual Beast Integration, I''ve never seen anyone who could actually do it. I guess the world''s pretty big after all. Who would''ve thought that something which existed in the legends was actually real." Jean Grey heaved a sigh as if his mind was just opened, he looked up as he ran countless simtions in his mind. If the ck Fog faction could do it, then he could do it too. They were just humans after all, and it wouldn''t be an understatement to say that their abilities weren''t that exceptional.

    If it were really that special, then only ck Fog would''ve been able to do it. But he specifically pointed out that he wasn''t the only one who could do it. "It''s back to square one for all of us. Dual Beast Integration is possible, we just have to figure out how to do it."

    "Aren''t you rmed? They might snag the title of beastmaster from under our feet." White Mist asked in a calm tone. He wasn''t really bothered by ck Fog''s provocation since he never cared about such a title in the first ce, but then again, he knew it would be a great blow to his pride if he officially lost that title to ck Fog when the Official Beast Tournamentes around.

    "We have what, two weeks before the Official Beast Tournament, right? Let''s prepare as much as we could before then. If we can''t perform a Dual Beast Integration, then I guess ck Fog would earn his right to take that title. I''m a beast master as well, and I never even thought about doing something like Dual Beast Integration. However, ck Fog persevered and he managed to pull it off. He''s already a better beast tamer than any of us here."

    "As much as I hate to admit it, you''re right. I guess he really did work hard to achieve something like that. With that said, we just have to work harder and surpass him, right?" With renewed resolve, White Mist clenched his fists. He was determined to train from scratch once again in hopes that he''d be able to integrate with two tamed beasts at once.

    "Isn''t that awesome, Satoshi? There are still a lot of things left undiscovered when ites to beast taming huh? I''ve read it in one of our history textbooks but our ancestors could integrate with two tamed beasts. I don''t know what happened but no one in our world could do it anymore... or maybe there are other beast tamers who could do it, they just don''t want to be discovered." Ash started talking about their region''s history but there was only so much he knew about it.

    "And here I was, thinking that we''ll finally be able to achieve the strongest form we can possibly have as a beast tamer. Turns out there''s another level after that beast integration. It was only recently when such a method was discovered, howe ck Fog and the others already know the next level?" When Satoshi turned around, he found an orange-haired guy who stood behind him. "I''m Shoyo, by the way, I guess I haven''t properly introduced myself, haven''t I? In any case, your fight was awesome. How were you able to master Beast Integration at such a young age?"

    Satoshi was surprised that he was as tall as Shoyo despite the fact that he was already in his early twenties. He didn''tment anything about his height though since that would be as rude as it is disrespectful. "I... I only awakened my superpower a few months ago... so I don''t actually know whether I''m a decent beast tamer or not," Satoshi wanted to act a bit meekly towards Shoyo and the others since they were better than him in terms of hard work. It didn''t even ur to him that he had just fought with White Mist and Ash Grey and he didn''t even break a sweat.

    "WHAT?! You''re already better than most of us here. I guess there really are beast tamers like you out there, huh? I should work harder. One day, I''ll get to integrate with two tamed beasts as well. It''s possible. I just have to work hard for it." Shoyo clenched his fist.

    "If you want, I can show you how to do it... but I don''t really know how to exin it myself... that''s why you can just make do with what I can show." Satoshi called out.

    Before he realized that he just said something out of the ordinary, Satoshi heard a still silence reverberating in the room. Every single beast tamer in the training facility looked at him as if he was an alien being showcased in a museum. It took him a couple of seconds before he realized that what he said was what everyone was hoping to hear all this time.<sub> </sub>

    That''s right, deep inside every one of them, they had hoped that someone in the group actually knows how to integrate with two tamed beasts. This was the main reason why White Mist just had to ask Jean Grey if he could do it or not.

    "Y-you... you really can do Dual Beast Integration?" Jean Grey approached Satoshi with his eyes wide with shock. Before Satoshi could react, Jean Grey grabbed him by the shoulder and shook him. "Can you really do it? Beast Integration?!"

    Satoshi nodded. Everyone nervously swallowed their dry saliva as they watched Satoshi reach into his bag (which is actually his familiar, Orb Oboros disguised as a normal bag at the moment) and he grabbed something. No one saw what Satoshi actually threw but what came out of the bag was none other than Sera... one of Satoshi''s most famous tamed beasts since it managed to defeat Jean Grey''s Pheross.

    Without further ado, Satoshi linked his mind to both Ghast and Sera, and before anyone could react, he was already done with his beast integration. Once again, he appeared as a ck-and-white-robed hero with Sera''s cogwheels revolving around his head and Ghast''s Dark Orb in his hand. A stronger power could be felt emanating from Satoshi even though he was just standing there.

    But that didn''t receive that much of a reaction. For a moment, Satoshi thought that everyone found his Dual Beast Integration less interestingpared to ck Fog. What he didn''t know, however, was that everyone was shocked beyond belief that he was able to integrate with a Celestial and an Unearthly at the same time¡ª Satoshi misunderstood it and so he decided to show off a little bit.

    Before anyone could say anything, Satoshi transformed the Dark Orb he was holding into a sword. The sword gave off a darker energypared to before. It seemed to emanate an even more potent power than what Satoshi previously had when he was just integrated with Ghast. Everyone was speechless... and Satoshi continued to misunderstand them.

    "I don''t know if I can do this without flinching but here goes." Satoshi breathed in and out in order to calm himself down. He was as nervous as everyone else in the room.

    On one hand, Satoshi was doubting whether he''d be able to follow through with his actions or not. On the other hand, everyone present held their breaths in anticipation since they had no idea what Satoshi was about to do next.

    Satoshi then brought his sword up. Against the light bulbs on the ceiling, the dark sword glinted with a mesmerizing purple sheen.

    SLASH!

    Without warning, Satoshi brought down the sword to his hand, cutting it cleanly. Everyone gasped, colors drained from their faces. But before they could take in the fact that Satoshi cut his own hand, Satoshi glowed a nice bright yellow color.

    His detached arm then floated and snapped back into ce as if nothing happened. Satoshi clenched and unclenched his left hand when it returned, and he heaved a sigh of relief. "That''s pretty much it, you canbine the powers of tamed beasts when you integrate with two of them."

 Chapter 300 Satoshis Training Camp

    A few dayster...

    Instead of Jean Grey or White Mist watching over the beast tamers who joined the training camp, it was Satoshi who took over, instructing everyone how to integrate with two of their tamed beasts.

    Quite frankly, Satoshi had no idea why he was given the task when he had no idea how to teach someone in the first ce. Then again, no one could perform a Dual Beast Integration except him, so he didn''t really have that much of a choice.

    The first one who showed considerable promise was surprisingly Shoyo. He was able to integrate with two of his beasts, but he could only do it in five seconds. After that, he felt so exhausted he could die.

    Jean Grey and White Mist were surprised since Shoyo was the first one to understand the fundamentals of the skill. The two of them may be beast masters, but they couldn''t hold a candle to Shoyo''s improvement. Satoshi surmised that it was probably because of their foundation.

    For years, they had a linear approach when ites to Beast Integration and their mind developed a subconscious habit that prevented them to integrate with two beasts. Satoshi indirectly told the two of them to learn from scratch despite the fact that he had no idea how to teach the Dual Beast Integration.

    Then again, Shoyo was able to do it. The others who saw Shoyo''s improvement got even more fired up. There was no way they''d let Shoyo leave them in the dust. Needless to say, Shoyo''s surprising level-up gave everyone the boost and the motivation they needed.

    Back to the present, it was the usual morning when Satoshi and the others headed to the training facility. They were still staying by the Grand Hotel, that''s why Satoshi didn''t have a hard time with his schedule (he did have to ask for a couple of days'' leave from his agency since he was still under the Eye Goddess by the Heimdall Agency. Eye Goddess didn''t even ask for specifics, she just allowed his leave as soon as he asked).

    Sitting in front of everyone, Satoshi closed his eyes to try to channel his energy towards all his familiars/tamed beasts.

    While he still had no idea how his powers work, he could tell that his tamed beasts were improving much faster than normal. The causes were unknown, but Satoshi concluded that his familiars continued to increase in power because he was subconsciously channeling his powers into them. Right now, he decided to give them his energy as much as he could in hopes that they''ll improve right before the Official Beast Tournament.

    What he didn''t know, however, was that his superpower wasn''t the main reason why his familiars were constantly improving. Inside Orb Oboros''s dimensional space for Satoshi''s familiars, everyone was having a st fighting against each other.

    That''s right, unbeknownst to Satoshi, his familiars were actually training deep within the storage space provided by Orb Oboros. And what''s more, they could fight without holding back since Satoshi''s energy immediately healed them up if something were to happen. They also don''t easily get tired because of the same reason. That''s why they could train as much as they could without worrying about getting tired or getting injured.

    And now that Satoshi transitioned into consciously feeding them energy from his superpower, his familiars got an even greater boon. Now, their powers constantly increased while they trained. This was one of the rare opportunities where they could get strong in a short span of time and they didn''t want to waste the chance.

    The fights between Satoshi''s familiars began once again.

    "Satoshi um... Satoshi-sensei?" Shoyo called him out of nowhere.

    "Yes?" Satoshi responded in a calm manner even though his concentration was interrupted by Shoyo/

    "How can you maintain your Dual Beast Integration for more than five seconds? Is there a trick to it?" Shoyo asked out of curiosity. He had been practicing for a couple of days now but he still hasn''t seen any noticeable improvements. Left with no choice, he finally decided to ask Satoshi for advice.<sub> </sub>

    ? Pressing his thumb on his chin, Satoshi thought about it for a couple of seconds while casually ncing towards the other beast tamers who were still struggling to integrate with two of their tamed beasts. "I think you canpare it to running and endurance. When ites to running, it is better to pace yourself rather than burn yourself out sprinting a couple of hundred meters. Dual Beast Integration works the same way as well."

    "For now, try to integrate with one of your beasts and adjust your power output. Get a feel for that power output and make sure you remember that when you perform a Dual Beast Integration. I guess... you should aim for ten percent power for both of them? You''ll be sure to see the difference if you do it... and also, you''ll be able tost longer."

    At first, Satoshi concluded that it alles down to innate talent... but then he remembered the time when he lost control of his Dual Beast Integration during the Inter-High Tournament. He didn''t want that to happen again, that''s why he trained in adjusting the power output of every familiar every time he integrates. It worked wonders, and not only did he get more control, but he was able to recognize his limits and adjust everything so he won''t exceed orck power output when ites down to it.

    He still couldn''t believe that he was teaching beast tamers about Dual Beast Integration though, but he decided to help out as much as he could.

    The other beast tamers who were near Satoshi when he gave Shoyo some advice decided to heed his advice. They stopped thinking about Dual Beast Integration first and instead tried to adjust their power output while integrated with one tamed beast. This didn''t even ur in their minds since they always aim for one hundred percent every single time.

    Jean Grey and White Mist also did the same. They didn''t want tog behind the new generation of beast tamers... their pride was on the line here, there was no way they''d allow themselves to lose.

    Even though everyone''s got two of their tamed beast out, Jean Grey decided to step back a little bit and retrieve his Azure Lightning Tiger. Right now, he was going to focus on integrating with Rychtyosaur, his steel and flying type tamed beast, one of the legendary beasts he used against White Mist during their official beast battle.

    "Work with me on this one, all right?" Jean Grey said, petting the Rychtyosaur under the chin before integrating with it.

    The Beast Integration was sessful, but Jean Grey wasn''t over yet. He decided to manually control his power output by suppressing his aura. First, he tried to suppress fifty percent of it. The steel wings on Jean Grey''s back started to shake as Jean Grey tread the thin line between maintaining and losing his focus. He gritted his teeth as beads of sweat poured from his forehead.

    ''Suppressing my power is harder than I thought... but this is not enough. In order to perform a Dual Beast Integration, I should be able to adjust my power output as soon as I think it. How unbefitting of a beast master... to think that my control over my tamed beast is still at beginner level.'' Jean Grey said to himself.

    Once his control stabilized a little bit, Jean Grey decided to let out a little bit of his aura. Now, his power output was at sixty percent... and as usual, he still had a hard time maintaining it. His mind then drifted to the time when Satoshi performed a Dual Beast Integration in front of everyone. His intricate control over his power level was beyond mastery.

    ''If I can''t do at least that much... then I shouldn''t be called a beast master.'' Jean Grey said to himself. Affirming his determination, Jean Grey continued to adjust his power level. He didn''t rest at all. Even when some of the beast tamers around him were sitting down and taking a little break, he kept at it.

    "There''s no way you''ll leave me behind, Jean Grey." White Mist called out, forcing a smile on his face when Jean Grey turned towards him. He was nearing his limit since he had integrated with Death Metronome. But just like Jean Grey, he continued pushing forward. ''If I can''t master adjusting my power output with precision, then I''m a disgrace as the bearer of the beast master title'' White Mist said in his mind.

    Seeing the two beast masters still standing after hours upon hours of training, the other beast tamers who decided to rest a little bit felt a little guilty. Without anyone telling them to, they stood up and bit their lips.

    There was no way they''d let the beast masters work harder than them. In fact, they were the ones who were supposed to work harder than the beast masters if they could ever hope to catch up to them.

    "That''s more like it." Satoshi said to himself as he stood up. After witnessing everyone''s grit, he felt fired up as well. He decided to practice along with them.

 Chapter 301 SS-Grade Sera

    The heat that emanated from the training room was intense even though it was somewhat cold outside. Ever since the ck Fog and his faction appeared at White Mist''s Dojo/Training Camp''s doorstep, everyone proceeded to train non-stop, even cutting their sleep so they could add more time to their regimen. The beast masters White Mist and Jean Grey didn''t feel like taking a break either, and they continued to train their Dual Beast Integration but to no avail.

    Even with their constant improvement in their power output control, they could still barely hold the Dual Beast Integration for a minute or so. And even then, they could only keep their Dual Beast Integration if they don''t move. The moment they take just one step forward, their Dual Beast Integration would deactivate, and they''d have to expend even more energy to reactivate it again.

    Satoshi noticed that Shoyo''s improvement was surprising. It would be an understatement to say that Shoyo''s actually a beginner when ites to being a beast tamer. He was a genius, and his improvements far exceeded the beast masters despite his young age.

    It had only been a few days since Satoshi took over the training camp, and ever since then, Shoyo had looked up to him as if he was his legitimate master. Not only would Shoyo go as far as to offer food and drinks to Satoshi, but he would also go out of his way to make himfortable, giving him a pillow to sit on whenever he wanted to sit down, and even following him around to take care of small inconveniences. On the other hand, Satoshi looked at Shoyo as if he was his friend, and that''s why he never felt ufortable with how he usually acted around him.

    As the sun dipped down westward, marking the afternoon, Satoshi felt a little bit suffocated inside the training camp. He couldn''t really go all out with his practice since there were a lot of people watching, and if he were to leave, the others would think that he was skipping his training. It would look bad since he had be everyone''s trainer against his will. Even though he somewhat hated being the ''acting leader'' he still decided to set a good example for everyone.

    That''s when Satoshi caught a glimpse of Emma by the poolside. She was with Shiroi and the others and they seemed to be having a good time, wallowing in the water and sshing at each other as if they were in the middle of a ro manga. Satoshi was d that Aira was enjoying herself even though he wasn''t there to look after her... and he could tell that Aira had grown closer to Emma and Shiroi.

    Satoshi excused himself from everyone. And before Jean Grey or anyone else could say anything, he went outside to meet up with Emma and the others...

    ... or so that''s what everybody thought.

    Apparently, Satoshi wanted everyone to think that he wanted to spend some time with Aira, Emma, and Shiroi... when in fact, he just wanted some time alone. He hasn''t let loose ever since they started training in the training camp. Quite frankly, Satoshi felt as if everyone in there was holding him back... but he didn''t say anything since they were eager to learn.

    Back in Tokyo, Satoshi had plenty of time to let his superpowers loose, especially when he does his special training with his dad. But now, there was no morning training, and every beast tamer in the training camp expects him to teach them. Satoshi felt a tad bit stressed, and he wanted to go somewhere where he''d be able to use his full power without anyone bothering him.

    As soon as he exited the facility, Satoshi called out to his familiar, Ghast, and he immediately asked him to teleport him to the Beast Dimension. In a blink of an eye, Satoshi found himself in an all-too-familiar ce filled with molten rocks and wastnds. The usual heat brushed against his skin and even though it made him sweat a little bit, he felt an odd sense of relief.

    Here, he was alone, and there was no one to bother him. He also didn''t have to look after a dozen or so beast tamers who were practicing the Dual Beast Integration. While he found their effortmendable, it actually took all of Satoshi''s patience to suppress his impatience (yeah, no doubt). There were times when he wanted to scream at them due to stress, but he managed to hold it off.

    "I knew it... right from the start I already knew it... I guess I really am not cut out to be a teacher." Satoshi said to himself.

    There was no one in the Beast Dimension aside from the beasts that freely roamed the area. Without hesitation, Satoshi let out a scream before he copsed to the ground. Now he felt refreshed, even though the heat from the molten rocks continued to gue him.

    For a couple of seconds, Satoshi just closed his eyes and rested there, ignoring the beasts around him. Thanks to his superpower, he could somehow sense the beasts that roamed all over the ce. That''s why he wasn''t worried if a stronger beast shows up. He''d simply get up and leave if something were to happen.

    Satoshi doubted it though. There was no way he won''t be able to defend himself against any beast. He was strong enough to integrate with all of his familiars at once so taking care of one beast should be rtively easy.

    "Finally, inner peace," Satoshi said to himself as he heaved a sigh of satisfaction. The drowning noise of the beast tamers who trained in his proximity was gone... and now he could rx without anyone judging his actions. "I wonder if this is what a master feels when his disciples always bug him or her... maybe this is what Master Sh*fu felt back then in that ssic and popr animated series about a panda."

    Slowly, Satoshi opened his eyes to slowly let his eyes adjust to the brightness of the ce. When he did so, he realized that Dex was staring right in front of him, floating above his face. "Ah, Dex, how are you doing?"

    [Satoshi, I have summarized all the information regarding your familiars/tamed beasts. You can view it at any time.]

    "Really? Thanks, you''re really awesome Dex." Satoshiplimented as he hoisted himself upwards. When he finally assumed a sitting position, Dex slowly descended beside him.<sub> </sub>

    From a third person''s viewpoint, Satoshi and Dex looked like a student with his retroputer beside him. "I guess I''ll take a look at it right now before anything else. I''ve already studied the White Lion''s skills and stats as well as the Nailgun''s... for now... can you put up Sera and Ghast''s stats?"

    [Of course, Satoshi]

    [Sera: SS-Grade

    Description: (All descriptions are based on the perception of Midoriyama Satoshi. Henceforth, this is a biased description) Sera looks like a cute teru teru bozu (look it up if you don''t know what a teru teru bozu looks like). She has seven cogs as halos floating over her head. Her main weapon is a staff, but she never uses it.

    Abilities:

    Area Debuff¡ª Debuffs specific targets in a wide radius. The effective area varies and it is unclear as to how much area Sera''s debuff can cover. (Sera''s debuff range from decreased movement speed, physical attack, attack speed, etc.)

    Area Buff¡ªBuffs specific targets in a wide radius. The effective area varies and it is unclear as to how much area Sera''s buff can cover. (Sera''s buff range from increased movement speed, physical attack, attack speed, etc.)

    Area Heal¡ª Heals specific targets in a wide area. One of the mostmon buffs that

    Heal¡ª HEAL!!! (No one should get this reference)

    Instant Regeneration¡ª Grants a specific target instant regeneration. Be it a lost limb, or a lost lower body, Sera can regenerate it in an instant as long as she has enough energy.

    Special Abilities:

    Locked ????

    Locked ????

    Locked ????]

    Click!

    Satoshi hasn''t even finished reading the entirety of Sera''s skills and stats information when Dex suddenly closed the window that appeared in front of him. Surprised, Satoshi turned towards Dex, expecting an exnation from him. He hasn''t taken a look at Ghast''s stats either, that''s why he found it weird that Dex closed it before he said anything.

    Just when Satoshi was about to ask Dex why he did that out of the blue... Satoshi felt all the hairs on his back rise up. His throat constricted and he felt like choking when incredible bloodlust enveloped his body. At that moment, Satoshi knew that there was a beast behind him, and it was unlike any beast that he met before. "Dex... mind exining what''s going on here?" Satoshi asked. He didn''t even dare turn around for fear that the beast was already closely staring at the back of his head.

    [I''m sorry, Satoshi... but I think... we just ran into a Representative]

 Chapter 302 Representative: Copycat

    "A Representative? Are you sure about this?" Satoshi eximed as his eyes widened. Now that Dex gave him the interesting news, his urge to not look behind him grew stronger. Without flinching, Satoshi stayed in ce, holding his breath for fear that the Representative behind him mightsh out out of nowhere.

    In haste, Satoshi summoned Ghast and integrated with him, teleporting a couple of hundred meters away from the ce. But even when he desperately attempted to escape the Representative, he still somehow felt the Representative''s presence behind him.

    When he turned around, he saw a familiar face... it was too familiar in fact that Satoshi helplessly fell backward. He couldn''t believe that the entity behind him had the form of a person. And even more so than that, the person that the entity assumed was none other than him.

    "Haah?" Satoshi asked as another Satoshi stared right at him. There was something about this Satoshi which was weird though. But even then, Satoshi could tell that the entity replicated him pretty well. From his small gestures to his looks... even the way he brushed his hair... everything was identical.

    "Dex, do I need to know anything?"

    [This is another one of us... we call her the Copycat... but other than that I have no information regarding her. I''m so sorry Satoshi, but I won''t be of help to you this time.]

    For the first time, Satoshi didn''t have any information regarding the beast in front of Satoshi. But then again, it''s not like Satoshi could rely on Dex all the time. This was one of those times and he intended to learn everything he could out of the opportunity.

    "So... no weakness... no nothing? All right, I''ll handle this one." Satoshi muttered to himself.

    [I''m sorry, Satoshi... but we Representatives don''t really know each other that well... I do know that Copycat can freely transform into anyone or anything. Would that suffice as additional information?]

    "Yep. I don''t need much. Based on her name... I can already more or less tell what''s going on here." Satoshi responded.

    Satoshi summoned Sera and Sain (his chainsaw familiar) this time, and he decided to perform a Trinity Beast Integration. Satoshi appeared as half Ghast and half Sera, but his clothes were made out of metal, and there were chainsaws shooting and retracting from his skin. He looked like an overpoweredst boss in an MMORPG but Satoshi wasn''tining. Right now, he needed to do everything he could to not lose against Copycat. It''s not every day that he gets to encounter a Representative so he fully intended to catch it.

    "All right, here we go again." With his lips curving upward, Satoshi extended his hands and chainsaws came out of them. This was one of the reasons why Satoshi really liked Sain as his familiar. It gave him a somewhat menacing form whenever he integrates with him.

    As soon as Satoshi found his chance, he strained his ankle and charged forward, pointing one of his chainsaws at Copycat. While he felt a little bit of difort since he was about to attack himself, he still went through with the attack. There was no way he''d miss such a good chance as this one.

    Surprisingly, Copycat didn''t react at all. She just stood there, looking at Satoshi while tilting her head like a confused dog. This didn''t shock Satoshi at all though. And by the time he covered the distance between him and Copycat, he struck at her with no reprieve, bringing down the chainsaw as if he fully intended to kill Copycat.

    Fwip!

    ng!

    Grzzzt!!!

    In a split second, Copycat changed into Satoshi''s current form, blocking the chainsaw with her pair of chainsaws. Satoshi had no idea how Copycat rivaled his physical strength, but right now, he put the thought at the back of his mind since another chainsaw flew towards his side.

    Sidestepping, Satoshi turned around and aimed the chainsaw at Copycat''s head. Copycat dodged and then tried to deliver a low kick to trip Satoshi up. It didn''t work though since Satoshi jumped up and tightened his core. He then twisted as he did a screwdriver motion in the air, bringing down both of his chainsaws in a spinning motion.

    The chainsaws hit the ground with a thud, but Copycat was nowhere to be found. Somehow, she managed to dodge Satoshi''s strike and also appear behind Satoshi as if she just teleported.

    "That''s impossible... how was she able to do that?" Satoshi asked, dodging another strike from Copycat. Left with no choice, Satoshi teleported somewhere to gain distance from her.<sub> </sub>

    But to his surprise, she appeared right behind him just when he teleported into the air.

    "What the¡ª" Satoshi was about to exim a bad word but before he could do so, he ducked his head to avoid the chainsaw teeth closing in on his neck¡ª this caused him to bite his tongue, making it bleed.

    "Dex, what was that about... I thought she could only copy someone''s appearance?" Satoshi called out. It didn''t take long before Dex spoke in his mind.

    [Satoshi, you have to get out of there... I didn''t know that Copycat was this strong.]

    [If she can copy you while you''re in a Trinity Beast Integration... then it is highly likely that she''s as powerful as you are, Satoshi.]

    [We have to retreat, for now, otherwise, she might kill you.]

    ''Isn''t it a little bit toote for you to be saying that?'' Satoshi screamed in his mind. He couldn''t take anymore since he was too busy dodging the forceful chainsaw shes that Copycat unleashed upon him. It took all of his concentration and utilization of his integrated familiars to stay on even ground against the formidable Copycat.

    Even with Ghast, Sain, and Sera, Satoshi could barely keep up with the Copycat. And he could tell that if he were to integrate with another beast, Copycat would only replicate it as they continued fighting. This would be disadvantageous for him since he would just expend more energy. As long as he didn''t subtract or add to his power, Copycat wouldn''t change either. That''s why Satoshi stayed at an impasse as the fight wore on.

    But there was another reason why Satoshi didn''t use Quadra or Penta Beast Integration... and it wasn''t because he was worried that he''ll run out of energy before Copycat did.

    The reason why, was because he was busy preparing a counterattack... one that would snag him the win he needed most.

    Right behind Satoshi, there was a small spark of blue me that emitted a faint blue glow. This spark of me was the very essence of his superpower, and he continued to feed it his energy. As mentioned before, Satoshi badly wanted to capture Copycat right then and there, and that''s why he was preparing this trick up his sleeve. As soon as he fed the blue mes enough energy (preferably as much energy as he used on the Statue of Captivity when he first tried to capture it) he would then attempt to catch Copycat off guard and strike her point nk with the blue mes.

    In order to do this, however, Satoshi had to feed off the blue mes behind him as slowly as he could so Copycat won''t be wary of him. And for this n to work, Satoshi needed as much time as he could. That''s why a Trinity Beast Integration was the limit for this fight.

    Satoshi continued to dodge, but he also engaged in the fight as much as he could. Even then, he found it hard to keep up with Copycat. As minutes passed, Copycat got even faster, and her moves became even more precise. She was getting used to Satoshi''s form and power... even Satoshi felt like he was fighting against himself.

    Dodge. Attack. Dodge. Dodge. Satoshi repeated the cycle as the blue mes in his back grew hotter. He kept the mes aspact as possible so Copycat wouldn''t notice it at all. There were times when she would suddenly appear in Satoshi''s blind spot but even then, she didn''t notice anything.

    Exhaustion slowly crept into Satoshi''s system but with it came the feeling of victory that was almost in his grasp. He was almost there... just a little bit more.

    For thest time, Copycat lunged, increasing her momentum towards Satoshi while she pointed the chainsaw at his neck. Satoshi leaned sideways in order to dodge the attack. This was the moment he was looking for. He watched as the teeth of the chainsaw held by Copycat lightly touch his cheek. It''s as if everything was in a slow motion. Satoshi could''ve sworn that he saw his reflection at the chainsaw that grazed his cheek.

    ''Now!'' Satoshi thought to himself as he grabbed the lick of blue mes behind him.

    Before he could act though, Copycat''s arms seemed to bend in a weird manner and before he knew it, Copycat was already behind him, hugging him close while the chainsaw she wielded was pressed against his neck.

    Satoshi gulped as Copycat licked her lips. She pressed the chainsaw closer... almost touching the delicate skin right above Satoshi''s adam''s apple.

    It was Copycat''s win.

 Chapter 303 Copycats Backstory

    Somehow, Satoshi felt weird since the one pressing the chainsaw on his neck looked like him. He knew for a fact that Copycat is a female based on what Dex had specifically told him... and now that he thought about that fact, he felt even weirder.

    In his mind, he concluded that a girl that looks like him was pressing a chainsaw on his neck. She was about to behead him, but he wasn''t the least bit afraid of being beheaded. Even though the gnarly teeth of the chainsaw caused his neck to blood, he still maintained hisposure, looking up at Copycat to see if she was going to follow through or not.

    In the end, he had already lost, and he was just waiting for Copycat to finish the job so they both can get over it already.

    Satoshi closed his eyes. Being beheaded by a girl wasn''t that bad... or so that''s what he told himself since he didn''t want to ept that he just lost to a girl. For a moment, he felt at peace, waiting for the moment when Copycat would kill her.

    Well, he wouldn''t die though since he was integrated with Sera. His head would simply just reconnect and regenerate... but then again, he''d feel the pain when the cut is executed.

    ng!

    Dumbfounded, Satoshi turned around to see that Copycat had dropped the chainsaws she was holding. She also reverted to her normal form as she stared at Satoshi''s blue mes. She didn''t go through with the killing and instead knelt behind Satoshi, poking the blue mes as if it was a curious object.

    "Wha... why?" Satoshi asked in utter confusion as he turned around, staring at Copycat who already assumed her true form.

    Copycat had the figure of ady, with the delicate right proportions here and there... however, her whole body was made up of a gtinous goo that made her look like a jelly sculpture more than anything. Her eyes wererge, and Satoshi felt as if his soul would get sucked right into it if he were to stare too much. Satoshi blushed when he averted his gaze, but he didn''t say anything.

    "You pass," Copycat softly spoke, her voice was as mesmerizing as her gaze. She stood up and extended her hand, palms up, towards Satoshi. "I swear loyalty to you, master."

    Satoshi was still just as confused, but he didn''t want to keep Copycat waiting. After grabbing the blue mes from behind him, Satoshi decided to put more energy into it before handing it to Copycat.

    Copycat felt a great surge of power oveing her as soon as the blue mes touched her skin. She closed her eyes, and she could feel her mind being connected to Satoshi. In just a single moment, she felt as if she''d known Satoshi ever since he was born. It was an odd yet pleasurable feeling. There was no regret in Copycat''s mind... she could tell that she had chosen a fitting master for her.

    A pleasant smile appeared on Copycat''s face before she bowed down toward Satoshi. The greetingpelled Satoshi to bow down as well, and together they greeted each other, not as enemies, but as allies.

    "I was just going through the motions but..." Satoshi decided to sit down so he and Copycat could talk to each other. "What do you mean I passed? Were you just testing? I thought you were going to kill me."

    [That''s where you''re wrong, Satoshi, Copycat never intended to kill you.]

    "What do you mean?" Satoshi asked. He was still perplexed at the overall situation. Furthermore, Dex hadn''t been talking while he and Copycat were in the middle of the fight. He found it a bit weird that Dex would choose to talk now.

    Before Satoshi could repeat his question, Dex appeared right beside him. "I didn''t want to interrupt, Satoshi... and had I interrupted your test, Copycat might''ve killed me instead... But don''t misunderstand, Satoshi, I knew for sure that Copycat never intended to kill you... even the Statue of Captivity will vouch for me."

    "That is correct, master... I never intended to kill you. There were a lot more others who wanted to capture me... but they all didn''t pass the test." Copycat answered, backing up Dex''s statement as if they talked about it.

    "So... you mean to tell me that our fight just now... you never intended to kill me?" Satoshi confirmed. Even though he felt an ominous bloodlust directed at him, Copycat denied that she intended to kill him. There was only one exnation for that¡ª Satoshi concluded that Copycat was actually a lot stronger than he thought.

    "Either way, wee to the team," Satoshi said, nodding his head. At first, he wanted to offer his hand to Copycat but he decided not to since she was a girl.

    In response, Copycat nodded back at Satoshi.

    .....<sub> </sub>

    XXXXX years ago,

    Before Copycat came to the Beast Dimension, she belonged to a race called the Copies. They are a race in another dimension that can copy any superpower they encounter. Because of how powerful they were, only those who have great potential were given an education. And once they pass a test, they would then be sent to another dimension where they could freely get stronger. This was the process of how a Copy could be a full-fledged citizen of their.

    And Copycat was no different. Born from a royal family as the first princess in line for the throne, she had her life set ahead of her. She was also extremely talented when ites to replicating skills, and that''s why only the best teachers were given to her. With the advantage of her status and her great talent, she soon became one of the most powerful Copies to ever exist.

    But that all came down to nothing when she met a certain Copy. His name was Fhruller, one of the most powerful Copies of their generation. Not only was he able to defeat Copycat one-on-one, but he was also born royalty, first in line to the throne of his kingdom. Just like Copycat, he was also extremely talented with great wealth backing him up.

    However, the reason why Copycat lost against him was not because of his great talent... but because of his great skill when ites to wooing women. Copycat who had never experienced real love before immediately fell for Fhruller. Copycat was lovestruck, and it didn''t take long before she decided to take Fhruller''s hand in marriage.

    As soon as the marriage was over, though, Fhruller showed his true colors. He never loved Copycat... but instead, he love someone else and he was already married to her. After throwing Copycat into the dungeon, he took over Copycat''s kingdom, and he ruled over it with an iron will.

    For a few days, Copycat cried her heart out for being betrayed... but what she wanted the most was revenge. Even though her love was pure, she was tricked, and there was nothing she wanted than for Fhruller to die. Rage born within her heart gued her, and she turned into a Copy who only wanted destruction.

    But what could she do? She was locked in the dungeon with no hope of escape.

    That''s when she constructed a devious n of ying with the heart of the guards stationed for her. She seduced them, and in turn, they were more than willing to set her free. The n didn''t work for a few days... it took weeks before Copycat was finally set free.

    ? And as soon as she was free, she contacted an underground contact to smuggle her into one of the Dimensions wherein she could get stronger. She couldn''t just take on Fhruller alone... not when she was still weak. That''s why she had to get stronger by copying more powers from another dimension.

    However, the contact had a little mishap, and the teleportation went a little haywire. Nothing was supposed to go wrong... but now everything went sideways once again. With onest scream, Copycat was sucked into the portal.

    A split secondter, she found herself in a very unfamiliar dimension. It was a room, and in front of him was a man dressed in ck with a flowy wide-brimmed hat on his head. His hands were sped together, and he cleared his throat before he spoke. "You want to get stronger... correct?"

    Copycat nodded.

    "Well then, I have a disciple... he''s plenty strong... and I guarantee that you''re going to get plenty strong when you''re with him. I''m going to send you over to the Beast Dimension." The mysterious man said.

    "Beast Dimension? Who are you? Your disciple?" Copycat had a lot of questions... but the man had promised her certain power. Steeling her resolve, she decided to ask him the only question that needed to be asked. "But... how do I find him? Your disciple, I mean."

    "He''s the chosen one... you''ll know when you meet him." The man then pointed at his heart, then towards Copycat''s chest.

    And in a blink of an eye, Copycat found herself in the Beast Dimension with only that vague clue as her hint.

    .....

    Back to the present,

    "I''m d I finally found you..." Copycat whispered to herself as she stole a nce towards Satoshi. She grabbed her heart, and a warm smile appeared on her face.

 Chapter 304 Midoriyama Grado, Midoriyama Lize

    In the end, Satoshi chose to stay inside the Beast Dimension for the rest of the day, totally skipping out on monitoring everyone with their training. Then again, he already took the time to teach them the fundamentals of Dual Beast Integration. He even pointed out their mistakes and how they could improve their training. At this point, the only thing that he could do is wait for their improvements toe to fruition.

    And Satoshi didn''t intend to wait all the time. If he did that, then he won''t improve.

    While thinking of a reason why he needed to get stronger, he realized that he had overlooked a lot of things that happened to him. His first goal of fighting alongside his parents has not happened yet, not to mention the fact that he promised Emma he''ll reim her for her. There was also the revenge that the ck Winged Dragon Ryu Ryoko sought, and even if she wanted to go through it alone, Satoshi took it upon himself to apany her. There were a lot of things that needed to be done... and there was just not enough time to prepare and get stronger.

    "Right now... I should focus on the Official Beast Tournament... and then we can work on improving ourselves. Ah right! I should also start looking for the other representatives... most of them probably serve their own masters by now, huh." Satoshi said to himself.

    Up until now, Satoshi was still lying down on the ground. As soon as his fight with Copycat ended, he resumed his rxed position on the ground. He was supposed to be training, but he figured out that the fight with Copycat was more than enough training for the day.

    Not knowing what to do, Copycat alsoy down beside Satoshi. She had no idea why Satoshi was lying down in the first ce though... but that didn''t stop her from copying him.

    "How does Ami sound?" Satoshi asked out of the blue.

    Copycat tilted her head sideways, wondering what Satoshi was talking about. In that same instant, Satoshi also tilted his head and the two of them locked with each other. Copycat''s face turned a nice shade of red as she slowly tilted her head back.

    "I uh... I mean, your name, Copycat, are you going to keep it?" Satoshi asked. ''Perhaps her name holds a special meaning in her heart... if she''s going to keep it, then I won''t mind at all.'' Satoshi continued his monologue in his mind.

    He totally forgot that his familiars are deeply connected to his mind... and now that Copycat was in close proximity to him, she could read every thought he had. At first, Copycat didn''t understand what Satoshi said out loud, but after sensing his thoughts, she understood that Satoshi wanted to give her a new name. She felt her heartbeat spike as her face turned a tad bit redder. "A-Amy''s fine." Copycat called out before Satoshi could retract what he blurted out a moment or so ago.

    "I... I see..." Satoshi trailed off. It was his turn to get flustered after he realized that Amy could read his mind right now. He stood up and turned away from Amy, hoping that he won''t have any weird thoughts while she was around.

    .....

    Somewhere in America,

    An old man slowly shuffled towards the living room, Huffing and puffing with every moment. Of course, he was only pretending to act like an old man. He was, in fact, in optimal health. Despite being sixty years of age, he could still move as if he was in histe thirties. Apparently, he didn''t really need to act like an old man, but he found it amusing that most people his age would act like one.

    When he got to the living room, he snapped up and a resounding crack could be hearding from his back. He heaved a sigh and then leaned on one of the cabs that stood beside the wall. He then opened one of its ss doors, pulling out a family picture that was faded to the point that it had turned yellowish. A satisfied smile appeared on his face as he nced at the young man in the picture who was holding a baby in his hand while he held his wife''s hand with the other. The old man stood beside his son, and his wife stood beside him.

    "What an old picture... I hope we can take another one next time. I wonder how my grandson''s doing." The old man muttered to himself.

    But before he could feel the nostalgia and begin reminiscing, he remembered one unchangeable fact that soured his mood. "That''s right... my poor grandson... he''s probably having a hard time isn''t he... I hope he''s not getting bullied at school."<sub> </sub>

    The old man dusted the picture frame that held the yellowish picture in ce. A stray tear fell from his eyes. He wiped it. Another one fell, and he wiped it again. Pretty soon, he was crying his heart out as he carefully ced the picture on the cab.

    "Tatsuki, I know you''re a strong superhero... I just hope that you take care of your son just like how you take care of the world. Your wife, I know she ys the part of taking care of both my son and grandson... but I can''t help but worry. That''s it! I''m going to Japan right now!" The old man clenched his fists and pumped them in the air.

    "What are you talking about, Grado? You say that every day," Lize, the old man''s wife, heaved a sigh as she lightly patted her husband on the back. "Now why don''t you mow thewn and clear the garden outside? We have visitorsing tonight."

    "Sigh... are those old bunch going toe here again for a barbecue party? Seriously, I''m going to burn all of them if they make a mess of thewn again... or should I just freeze them into oblivion? Blow them away? Drown them? Hmmm..." Midoriyama Grado said as he rubbed his chin. "Lize... cancel that barbecue party or whatever. I''m serious this time. I''m going to go to Japan." Grado continued, steeling his resolve.

    "Stop kidding, our son and his family areing to visitter. Do you want them to see thewn in such a sorry state?" Lize whacked her husband on the head before she walked away with a ''hmph''.

    The news shocked Grado, no less. For a couple of seconds, he just stared at empty air as if everything he heard was just a dream. He couldn''t believe that after all these years, his son and his entire family were finallying to visit. A couple of tears streamed down his cheeks as he sniffled. "I''ll finally get to meet my grandson... I hope he''s still as small as before. I want to carry him. Why didn''t they visit sooner?" Grado said to himself.

    "What do you mean they don''t visit? Our son visits us every year. As for Satoshi, he''s busy with his studies. You do know that he needs to work twice as hard in order to catch up to his peers right? All that because he didn''t have a superpower... seriously, what''s wrong with society today?" Lize muttered to herself as she heaved another sigh. Just like her husband, she also missed her son and her grandson dearly. Of course, she also misses her daughter-inw, but she misses her son and grandson more than her.

    "My grandson... I miss him so much... but he''s working so hard... I hope he''s doing okay." Grado sniffled.

    "How about you just take care of thewn first? And then we can prepare a nice feast for our grandson?" Lize calmly said. She could tell that her husband was just stretching out the time.

    Grado gulped. He knew that his wife meant business when she started talking calmly. He silently swallowed his saliva before he headed by the front door. As soon as he opened it, he headed outside and flicked his wrist.

    A strong gust of wind cleanly cut through the grass. In just a split second, thewn was mowed. After that, Grado then snapped his fingers and a small tornado appeared on thewn, gathering the cut grass. His refined control over the wind was so exemry that he didn''t even expend an ounce of his energy. With another flick of the wrist, the gathered cut grass floated toward a nearby garbage can

    Creak...

    Creaaaak...

    Before Grado could react, he was hit with a powerful force to the head. He fell down face-first onto the ground with a thud. The moment he heard the creak, he knew that his wife would react strongly... and now his face was half-buried on the ground.

    "What did I tell you about mowing thewn? Mow it normally! Look, you cut through the brick fence again!" Lize lightly reprimanded even though she was aware that her husband could fix up the fence in an instant with his superpower.

    "Heh~ I''ll fix it up right away, dear." Grado grunted as he stood up.

 Chapter 305 Hurdles Of A Reunion

    "Satoshi? Where have you been?" White Mist asked out of concern. While he was confident that Satoshi could fend for himself when the time calls for it, he couldn''t help but feel worried since he disappeared so suddenly.

    "I just needed to practice by myself. I preferred training alone to doing it with others." Satoshi responded.

    "I see... but where did you go? You disappeared into thin air... how did you do that?" White Mist asked. A secondter, his mouth opened into an o-shape. He remembered that one of Satoshi''s familiars could actually teleport, and that''s probably the exnation behind his disappearance.

    "In any case, thank you for your help. If it weren''t for you, we would still be feeling our way around that dreaded Dual Beast Integration. Your guidance really helped all of us a lot." White Mist bowed his head towards Satoshi. He may be deemed as the beast master, but there were still a lot of things he had to learn. For him, he wasn''t half as powerful as Satoshi and Satoshi was significantly younger than him.

    "The ck Fog faction... are they bad people?" Even though the question was worded a little bit weirdly, Satoshi just had to ask the question.

    "That I''m not sure... there were rumors that they practice some questionable stuff but they weren''t proven. I don''t know. However, this is the first time they''re joining the Official Beast Tournament. Aside from the information I heard from others, I have no clue if they''re evil or not." White Mist answered. "In any case, Jean Grey and I saw improvements in our Dual Beast Integration after following your advice. Who would''ve thought that we really didn''t have any control over our tamed beasts. We pretty much became beast masters by brute forcing our way through."

    "And that orange-haired kid... what was his name again, Shoyo? He''s pretty good. He can now walk around with his Dual Beast Integration activated." A forced chuckle came out of White Mist''s mouth. Even though he saw Shoyo with his Dual Beast Integration active, he still couldn''t believe that he was able to do it first before him and Jean Grey. Just the thought alone was ridiculous enough as it is, but there was irrevocable proof when they witnessed it with their eyes.

    Slide.

    "Satoshi? Oh, your back." Jean Grey spoke out as soon as he saw Satoshi. "You should probably head over to your parents'' hotel room... they''re looking for you."

    "Oh, all right."

    The remnants of the sun''s brightness lingered as the sunset came into view. The orange hue in the sky marked the end of the day, and the uing twilight which served as the day and night''s limbo crept in as Satoshi made his way back to Grand Hotel.

    As soon as he got to his parent''s room, both his mom and dad were already heading out. "Are we going somewhere?" Satoshi asked. He concluded that since they asked for him, they were probably going somewhere together.

    Shiroi and her dad were also there, as well as Aira and Emma (and as for Ryoko, the ck-Winged Dragon, and Amy, Copycat Representative, they werefortable staying inside the Orb Oboros, resting and training with the other familiars while Satoshi kept them there.). Satoshi felt oddly confused since everyone was leaving. Fortunately, he managed to get there on time, otherwise, they would have left without him.

    "Did you forget? We''re going to visit your grandparents today." Tatsuki said ruffling his son''s hair before he stepped forward. "It''s been so long since youst met your grandparents, they''re going to be surprised by how big you''ve grown." Tatsuki continued.

    Even though Tatsuki only knew what his grandparents look like in pictures, he still felt a bit nervous since this was technically his first time meeting them. Thest time he ever saw them was when he was still a baby, and frankly, he couldn''t remember what happened back then. He was a bit curious why they never visited his grandparents though after all these years.

    "Why are we visiting them now... and not before?" Satoshi asked out of the blue. At this point, the group had already reached the entrance of the Grand Hotel and they were waiting for a couple of cabs to pass by.

    "Because... well, there were circumstances... your grandfather could get pretty overexcited from time to time... you know... and if you were to meet him in your powerless self... " Tatsuki exhaled as he scratched his head. He could still remember the spartan training he underwent under his father. Honestly, he didn''t want Satoshi to experience any of that, that''s why they didn''t visit their grandparents all this time.

    Well, one of the big reasons why they didn''t visit was because Satoshi didn''t have any superpowers. If he were to get caught up in his grandfather''s antics, there was a good chance that he''ll die, that''s why Tatsuki decided not to show his dad his son.

    "You''ll like him. I''m sure of it." Upon seeing Satoshi''s expression of uncertainty, Tatsuki gave him the assurance he needed. He then nodded his head and opened the side door to the cab. "Get in, we don''t want to bete for the family dinner, don''t we?"<sub> </sub>

    Everyone nodded along before they rode their respective cabs. Now that Satoshi had gotten the assurance he needed, he kind of looked forward to meeting his grandparents for the first time. He had no idea why they were in America and why he hasn''t seen them in forever, but he knew that everything will fall into ce once they get to meet each other.

    .....

    The creases on Grado''s forehead continued to increase as he leaned by the outline of the front porch. As soon as lunch was over, he was already eagerly waiting by the porch, hoping that his son and his family woulde driving by the front. It was an understatement that he had been looking forward to the reunion.

    "You''re going to bore a hole through the front gate if you keep on staring at it," Lize called out from the front door, heaving a sigh. All the preparations for the family dinner were done, and even she couldn''t help but eagerly wait for their son''s family to arrive.

    Nighttime was already approaching, and there seemed to be no sign of them. By now, Grado was beginning to think that this was all just an borate prank by her wife and that he was being deceived big time. He turned around, only to see that his wife was staring back at him.

    "They really areing! I received the phone call this morning." Lize defended herself since she already knew what her husband was thinking. "Look, why don''t we check up on them... see if they really areing."

    "No, let''s just wait for a couple more minutes, and then if they really didn''t show up... we''re going to check up on them," Grado said, biting his lips since he was getting rather impatient. He already envisioned himself soaring through the air checking every nearby city for signs of his son and his family.

    Lize felt the impatience enveloping her body as well. Somehow, she couldn''t help but feel worried. Even though this wasn''t the first time their son went to America, they knew just how dangerous it could get in the country. One moment there was peace, and the next there were riots and people throwing Molotovs everywhere. Even after a couple of decades, the way of men still hasn''t changed when ites to their criminal impulses.

    "I''ll go reheat the food. It''s getting rather cold outside, dear, you should head back in and wait inside." Lize muttered. But after taking a peek, Grado already formed a small lick of me in his hand to keep him warm. Lize smiled to herself. Her husband was as stubborn as ever, in a good way, of course.

    Then the explosion resounded.

    And it wasn''t even a muffled explosion, it was an ear-shattering explosion that disturbed everyone in the entire neighborhood.

    "What''s going on?!" Grado asked himself in surprise as he activated his superpower out of impulse. In an instant, the four main elements of nature revolved around him, giving him the power of flight and projectiles that could be used for attacking. A thin condensedyer of air enveloped his entire body as a shield. Using it, he immediately levitated to check what themotion was all about.

    A Gate.

    A Gate appeared on the outskirts of the city!

    "Why now of all times?" Grado clicked his tongue as he free-fall''ed towards the scene. He immediately noticed the five gigantic dragon-like monsters that came out of the gate. They were at least a hundred meters tall, and they immediatelyid waste to the edge of the city as soon as they came out.

    The second thing he noticed though was a young man dressed in ck and white, holding an orb and a scepter in his hand. He was single-handedly fighting against one of the gigantic dragon-like monsters. And what''s more, the scales of victory tipped in the young man''s favor.

    "Wow, what a talented young kid." Grado couldn''t help but exim.

 Chapter 306 When Giants Collide

    With a bored expression on his face, Satoshi watched through the car windows, wondering why they had to ride a cab instead of just teleporting to where their grandparents are. He then realized that they couldn''t do that since Emma and he had never been to his grandparents'' house. If it were a different case, then they''d have easily teleported toward the front gate of the house.

    It''s been a long time since Satoshist rode a cab, but even though he wasn''t used to it, he felt at ease. The seats werefortable, and the usual rattle of the engine gave the cab a soft shaking, almost lulling Satoshi to sleep. The buildings, people, and city lights continued to whizz past Satoshi''s line of sight. It didn''t interest him that much though, so he closed his eyes.

    He didn''t even realize what happened next. The next thing he knew was the sudden lurch of the cab. This prompted him to activate his Beast Integration and integrate with Ghast. He teleported his entire family outside, thinking that they ran into someone or something.

    As soon as Satoshi opened his eyes, he saw his parents standing beside the cab, pulling out the driver who seemed to have hit his head on something. The other cars on the road had their doors open as well, and people were rushing from them, screaming and running as they go. Satoshi couldn''t help but notice the panicked look the people had as they ran in the opposite direction. From afar, he saw Shiroi and the others, wondering what themotion was all about.

    Since this is in the middle of the city, the crowdedness was more or less expected, but Satoshi wasn''t expecting such pandemonium to ur out of nowhere. Had he not reacted on time, they''d have been stuck in their cab for quite some time since an avnche of people were rushing out of there.

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi asked himself as he turned towards his parents.

    That''s when they noticed the lone gate that appeared in the middle of the road.

    The Midoriyamas, as well as the Yukinos, have seen their fair share of Gates before. Despite that, they were shocked to see this particr Gate. They''ve never seen anything like it. In fact, the Gate was never before seen in history.

    The gates seemed like cracks in the dimension, and the cracks pulsated as if they were alive. The cracks had a nice yellow and orange tint to it, just like the color of the sun, and it brightened the entire area, illuminating even the nooks and crannies of the building that lined up alongside the road.

    Screams and the hurried pitter-patter of feet drowned the low groans that came out of the cracks. They were akin to a whale''s sound, except thousand times more sinister. It wasn''t just Satoshi who felt chills running up and down his spine when the low groans invaded his ears.

    "Everyone, brace yourselves, this is a Gate. I don''t know why it looks like that though... but it really is a Gate." Tatsuki warned everyone. Almost everyone in their group didn''t even shift their feet. None of them were scared. Even Aira who had never seen a Gate up close all her life didn''t even budge... probably because she knew that she''d be safe, surrounded by high-ranking superheroes.

    Slowly, the cracks that appeared in the middle of nowhere continued to get bigger, and the pulsating seemed to increase their pace. The low groansing from the other side of the Gate became louder, even more sinister than ever.

    That''s when something starteding out of the Gate. It was huge, at least a hundred meters tall, and its skin was akin to shark skin or crocodile skinbined. A huge hand grabbed the edge of the cracks and started ripping it open, exposing its body and entire being. The low groan now became a shrill scream as one of the creatures from the other side of the gate came out.

    "What the hell... it''s a ka*ju?!" Tatsuki screamed out loud before he cleared his throat. Fortunately, no one heard him clearly, otherwise, he''d have been gged down for copyright purposes.

    The dragon-like creature that looked like a huge beast from a popr ssic science fiction movie, saw the people running about, and it immediately brought down its feet on some of them. It didn''t even think twice about squashing the people as if they were bugs, it just attacked as soon as it came out of the Gate. In total, there were six of them... but everyone knew there may be more where they came from.

    "Not on my watch!" Emma screamed, opening a portal on top of the people who were running. She then opened up another portal towards the head of the dragon-like beast, teleporting its feet toward its face.

    The people who were running didn''t stop. Tears fell from their faces as they screamed their hearts out in thanks.

    "Those who can fight, let''s hold them off as much as we can. Emma and Satoshi will handle the defense. Don''t let a single person die!" Tatsuki let out an ear-shattering scream after he activated one of his voice superpowers. He then flew upwards before transforming into a giant. Veins started popping out of his appendages and all his clothes were ripped to pieces (well not all of them, his underpants didn''t get ripped off due to plot armor).

    "Satoshi, we leave them to you, okay?" Ayumu called out before she nodded toward her husband and at Yukine, Shiroi''s father. The three of them started attacking.<sub> </sub>

    "Aira. I want you to stay behind one of my familiars, all right?" Satoshi turned around, summoning Ryu Ryoko, the ck-Winged Dragon. He didn''t have to exin what Ryoko had to do since their minds were connected.

    As soon as Ryoko was summoned, she nodded toward Satoshi and grabbed Aira. "Come on, we have to stay away from the battlefield. Onee-san will protect you."

    Meanwhile, Shiroi had no idea where the girl came from, but she didn''t ask any questions. This was her first time in actualbat so she didn''t know what to do. She just sort of lingered by the sidelines, afraid that her action might cause the casualty of others.

    "Shiroi, give Emma some support with your ice superpowers," Satoshi called out. He didn''t know what Shiroi could do but he was aware Shiroi would want to help instead of turning around. That''s why he gave her the order of staying with Emma. At least the two of them won''t find themselves in unnecessary trouble. And even if something were to happen, Emma will be there to cover for Shiroi.

    Satoshi didn''t waste any time summoning his two trusty familiars as well¡ª Gabriel, his summoner familiar who controls the Giant Phoenix, and Ice Empress who wields a spear and controls two giant Ice Bears that goes by the name Pelez and Alez.

    Just like Ryu Ryoko, the two of them didn''t ask Satoshi any questions they already knew what to do. Satoshi noticed that Gabriel and Ice Empress looked different from when hest summoned them but there was not enough time to check their stats and new skills. He trusted them, and in turn, they trusted their master.

    Ice Empress didn''t waste any time grabbing Pelez and Alez, making them transform into two mega-gigantic Ice bears that could rival the height of the dragon-like beasts. The two of them immediately engaged two dragon-like beasts. As for Gabriel, he summoned his phoenix which was much bigger than before. The phoenix rivaled the sheer size of the dragon-like beasts as well, much to Satoshi''s surprise.

    "Wow, who would''ve thought... how could they grow strong in such a short amount of time?" Satoshi integrated with Ghast and Sera. He then summoned Windfan and Droplet to support anyone who needed support.

    Satoshi disappeared from the ground and reappeared at the top of everyone. He floated right above the battlefield, activating a couple of Sera''s skills.

    Area Buff.

    Area Debuff.

    Everyone felt the power surge within, and the first thing that entered their mind was that it was Satoshi who did it. They weren''t wrong, since he basically glowed a nice golden color as he floated. Without further ado, Satoshi descended, shooting a dark energy beam at one of the dragon-like beasts, dealing major damage to its face. The dark energy beam actually pierced through its skin, making it groan in an unusual way.

    .....

    Grado immediately noticed the fight as soon as he arrived at the scene. He had no idea which superheroes are present in the scene but he could tell that they were doing a heck of a job at it.

    "Why now of all times?" Grado clicked his tongue as he free-fall''ed towards the scene. He immediately noticed the five gigantic dragon-like monsters that came out of the gate. They were at least a hundred meters tall, and they immediatelyid waste to the edge of the city as soon as they came out.

    The second thing he noticed though was a young man dressed in ck and white, holding an orb and a scepter in his hand. He was single-handedly fighting against one of the gigantic dragon-like monsters. And what''s more, the scales of victory tipped in the young man''s favor.

    Wow, what a talented young kid." Grado couldn''t help but exim. He watched in awe as the young man gracefully dodged therge projectiles that the dragon-like beasts threw at him. "That looks like a pretty sophisticated superpower." He continued.

 Chapter 307 My Grandson!

    Not only was Satoshi covering for everyone on the offensive side of things, but he was also taking care of the entire supporting role while defending everyone just in case they had any openings. It took a toll on his energy expenditure, of course, but Satoshi decided to do what he could before the superheroes arrive. If he didn''t step up to the te, there was no way that the four of them would be able to hold back the entire army of dragon-like beasts. Another reason why Satoshi had to overextend was because of Shiroi''s dad and his mom. The two of them could only hold the dragon-like beasts out because their superpowers are meant to take on the supporting role.

    If it were only one dragon-like beast, Satoshi would''ve easily taken care of it. But he still had to support everyone on the team so it was hard for him to even take on one. Fortunately, Gabriel and Ice Empress were doing easy work with the beasts. They didn''t need any back up at all.

    Even though the beasts were almost a hundred meters tall, their movement wasn''t sluggish at all. In fact, they could easily keep up with Satoshi''s speed if he didn''t integrate with Ghast. Their motor movement as well as their speed of sight allowed them to defend and attack withoutg, even managing to connect a couple of attacks here and there.

    And just when things couldn''t get any harder, another batch of these dragon-like beasts appeared from the portal. Now there were more than ten of them, and Satoshi had to engage four of them in a fight simultaneously.

    After dodging one of the dragon-like beasts''s arms, Satoshi teleported to the back of the second one, firing off a dark energy beam. He didn''t even notice that the fourth one was behind him, and it mmed him onto the ground. In one desperate attempt to save himself, Satoshi transformed the Dark Orb he held into a soft cushion, but that didn''t nullify the fall at all.

    There was no time to waste. As soon as he dropped to the ground, the third beast was already on top of him, positioning its legs so that it could crush Satoshi in its weight.

    St!

    As soon as Satoshi teleported, a shower of blood erupted in front of him, almost drowning him even though he was in mid-air. By the time he realized that another superhero had joined the fray, it was already toote. The third beast he was engaged inbat with... well, it was already dead. Its head was blown to bits and pieces as if someone put a sizeable grenade in its mouth and made it explode.

    When Satoshi finally recovered, three more heads popped off, producing a shower stter of blood and gore everywhere. Well, this was a better mess than dpidated buildings, so Satoshi couldn''t reallyin. He was bathed in blood though, but that''s beside the point.

    "Kid, you all right? That superpower of yours is pretty good. Good job hanging in there."

    The man who greeted Satoshi was a man in his sixties, and Satoshi could tell that he somehow looked familiar. He couldn''t quite put his finger around it though so he just nodded along. "Um... thank you, sir." Satoshi voiced out before the old man popped the head of another beast.

    With just an additional man in the team, the group was able to sweep the entire flock of dragon-like beasts. As for Grado, he was surprised to see his son and daughter-inw in the fight, and he more or less ruled out that the kid he met a minute or so ago was actually his grandson.

    ''No wait... that''s impossible... my grandson doesn''t have any superpowers.'' Grado said in his mind.

    On the pile of dead dragon-like beasts, Grado descended, slowly deactivating his powers and returning to his usual self. He didn''t want to believe that the kid he saw a moment ago was actually his grandson... and if he was really his grandson, then howe he has a superpower?

    Grado had a couple of questions in his mind but he didn''t know what to say so he just remained quiet. Without further ado, he approached his son and shook his hand. He was ted to see him again after all these years.

    "Son!" Grado called out, giving his son a bear hug and almost squeezing him to death. Even with Tatsuki''s abilities activated, his father''s gori-like strength still overwhelmed him.

    Tatsuki held his breath and tightened his core, but even then he still felt as if his back was about to snap. He groaned, and then he smiled when his father finally let go of him. He wasughing, patting his son on the back as he turned around. "I see that you''ve got yourself an apprentice, he''s pretty strong," Grado called out as he jerked his thumb towards Satoshi who was quietly lingering by the side.

    As of the moment, Satoshi still had no idea that the old man that came to his rescue a moment or so ago was actually his grandfather. He was preupied with admiring the bodies of the dragon-like beasts that he didn''t even realize his father and grandfather already reuniting with each other.

    Ayumu also approached her father-inw. With a bow, she greeted him and in turn, Grado also bowed toward her. It''s been so long since theyst saw each other as well, much longer, since it''s only Tatsuki who usuallyes to visit.

    One might wonder why Grado had no idea about his grandson when he had appeared on television multiple times. To be fair, Satoshi''s grandparents had been living on the outskirts of the city ever since they moved to America. And since they wanted to lead a simple life, they didn''t really update themselves with the news. Even the phone they used were ssdline telephones, and that''s why they weren''t even updated with current events.<sub> </sub>

    "What do you mean apprentice?" Tatsuki asked as he beckoned for Satoshi. Satoshi finally came back to his senses and he quietly approached his dad when he gestured for him toe.

    "Satoshi, you probably don''t recognize this old man over here but he''s your grandfather." Tatsuki introduced with a wide beam on his face. "And old man, how can you not recognize your own grandson even after all these years?" Tatsuki chuckled.

    "Eh? That''s my grandson? No that''s impossible... you said he didn''t have any superpowers?" Grado eximed as he looked at Satoshi with wide eyes. He couldn''t believe that the person in front of him was really his grandson.

    And how could he? All these years, he believed that his grandson was powerless and no matter how badly he wanted to train him. It won''t happen anymore. This was also one of the underlying reasons why Tatsuki never brought Satoshi to his grandparents during his visits... and Grado was aware of that as well. It was understandable though since he could get a little too overbearing at times when ites to his spartan training. He even lost count of how many times he broke Tatsuki''s bones when he was still young.

    Grado grabbed Satoshi by the shoulders and stared at him long and hard. He couldn''t believe it! His grandson awakened his superpowers and he could even rival the number one superhero of America. A stray tear streamed down Grado''s face, followed by another and another and another. Before he knew it, he was already bawling his eyes out in front of his grandson.

    As for Satoshi, he indifferently stared in the open air. He felt something different when he integrated with Sera a while ago that''s why he just had to check her stats.

    [Sera: SS-Grade

    Description: (All descriptions are based on the perception of Midoriyama Satoshi. Henceforth, this is a biased description) Sera looks like a cute teru teru bozu (look it up if you don''t know what a teru teru bozu looks like). She has seven cogs as halos floating over her head. Her main weapon is a staff, but she never uses it.

    Abilities:

    Area Debuff¡ª Debuffs specific targets in a wide radius. The effective area varies and it is unclear as to how much area Sera''s debuff can cover. (Sera''s debuff range from decreased movement speed, physical attack, attack speed, etc.)

    Area Buff¡ªBuffs specific targets in a wide radius. The effective area varies and it is unclear as to how much area Sera''s buff can cover. (Sera''s buff range from increased movement speed, physical attack, attack speed, etc.)

    Area Heal¡ª Heals specific targets in a wide area. One of the mostmon buffs that

    Heal¡ª HEAL!!! (No one should get this reference)

    Instant Regeneration¡ª Grants a specific target instant regeneration. Be it a lost limb, or a lost lower body, Sera can regenerate it in an instant as long as she has enough energy.

    Special Abilities:

    Locked ???? Unlocked! See more info!!!

    Locked ???? Unlocked! See more info!!!

    Locked ???? Unlocked! See more info!!!]

 Chapter 308 To Home

    Five years or so ago, the news about the appearance of Satoshi''s Alpha Gene was delivered to Grado, and he was ecstatic about it. Needless to say, the appearance of the Alpha Gene confirmed that Satoshi would awaken a superpower. The wait was arduous for Grado since he was more excited about Satoshi''s awakening than his parents. He wanted to train his grandson as soon as possible so he could follow in the footsteps of strong superheroes in their lineage.

    But after a couple of years, there were no signs of Satoshi ever awakening his superpower, and this disappointed everyone greatly. Of course, Satoshi felt the most pressure since he was the son of the number one and two superheroes. Being powerless meant that he''d got a massive target on his back. He became aughingstock, an insult to his parents. Some even said that his Alpha genes were probably fake, and at one point, Satoshi believed that such was the case.

    Satoshi was caught between a rock and a hard ce, and there was nothing he could do about it. He had no choice but to work his way to the top in terms of his physical strength. And it worked, somehow he managed to survive half of his teenage years just by relying on physical strength alone. During those years, however, Grado still hadn''t gotten over the fact that his grandson didn''t have a superpower. He wanted to go on a rampage andin to the researchers who confirmed that Satoshi had Alpha Gene. They might as well have given the kid a sense of false hope.

    With tears in his eyes, Grado proudly stared at Satoshi after grabbing him by the shoulders. No word left his mouth as he gave Satoshi a hug.

    "Hmph!" Satoshi let out an exhale as he felt the squeeze of his grandfather. The feeling of his back snapping in two reyed in his mind, but he didn''t panic. His physical capabilities were much better than his father''s; that''s why he was confident that he wouldn''t snap in two even if his grandfather used his full strength. (Satoshi was a beat toote in realizing that it was his grandfather in front of him... and that''s because Sera seemed to have unlocked new skills when he pulled up her status window).

    "You have a superpower! And here I thought that you wouldn''t awaken anything. I guess you were just ate bloomer, haha!" Grade guffawed after patting Satoshi''s shoulders. "Why don''t we go ahead and have dinner? Let''s have the authorities and the other superheroes handle this scene. I want to catch up with my grandson right here."

    As if on cue, Grado grabbed his grandson by the shoulders, and together, the two of them walked. A plethora of thoughts urred in Grado''s mind. He wanted to ask his grandson to awaken his superpower. The question at the forefront of Grado''s mind, however, was what Satoshi''s superpower was. He didn''t even notice him pull out the Ice Empress and Gabriel when they finished engaging the other beasts inbat. As for Satoshi, he simply reverted back to his usual form when he put back Sera and his other familiars into the dimension created by Orb Oboros.

    Silence befell the entire group as they gathered around Grado. There was nothing they could do, really, except wait. The roads leading to Grado''s house were blocked off by the pile of beast cadavers. Going around would take a long time as well, and by the time they got there, dinner would already be cold.

    "Everybody hang tight," Grado called out as he held out his hand. A soft breeze gathered in his palms until it became a condensed orb of wind. He then shot it upwards, and it eventually turned into a huge orb of wind with all of them inside. A smile of satisfaction appeared on Grado''s face as he controlled the wind capsule.

    The group didn''t know how to react. Even though Grado had a simple power of wind maniption (they had no idea that he actually had more powers), they were still in awe at his magnificent control. He didn''t let any of the wind movements go to waste, even going as far as to wrap portions of everyone''s body in the wind so they won''t fall out of bnce while they were in mid-air. It was a sophisticated approach to wind maniption that amazed everyone... except Tatsuki, of course.

    Meanwhile, Grado was still contemting the questions hovering inside his head. He badly wanted to interrogate his grandson, but he didn''t want to be disliked by him. Pursing his lips, he turned away from Satoshi, uncertain of what to say at that point in time. All this time, however, he still had his arm on Satoshi''s shoulder.

    "Grandpa?" Satoshi voiced out before he even thought about it. He figured that his grandfather was ufortable with him since he wasn''t speaking at all. He was a bit preupied with Sera''s power-up that he forgot he was there for a reunion. With that thought, Satoshi managed to initiate a conversation... all he did was call his grandfather, though.

    Somehow, Satoshi felt weird calling out his grandfather. This was the first time he ever did such a thing... or even if he had done it before, he couldn''t remember at all. Before he knew it, he looked down, self-conscious that he had called his grandfather out of nowhere.

    "Y-yes?" Grado asked as his face reddened. Hearing his grandson call him grandfather struck him right through the heart, and he couldn''t help but feel bashful. His grandson may be all grown-up now, but he still sees him as the little baby he held for the first time when he was born.<sub> </sub>

    "What''s your superpower?" Satoshi asked, his inner superhero fan mode unleashed. Even though he tried to act as calmly and collected as possible, one couldn''t help but notice the spark in Satoshi''s eyes when he asked that question.

    ? As soon as Grado noticed the sparkle in his grandson''s eyes, his eyes also sparkled. Underneath his bearded face, one could tell that he wore the same expression as Satoshi right then and there. He finally got a pretty interesting idea. Clenching his left fist, Grado gave himself a pat on the back as he heartilyughed in his head for being a genius.

    "I wonder... what do you think?" Grado responded.

    "Wind Maniption? Fire Maniption?" Satoshi asked.

    Grado shook his head. Leaving his grandson in the dark was more fun than he thought. It was the right decision not to answer him straight away. "You''ll find out soon enough." Grado vaguely answered.

    Some sort of electrifying sensation pierced through Tatsuki''s head when he heard what his dad Grado told his son. Somewhat, the nostalgic yet traumatizing feeling of receiving spartan training under his dad came back to him. He felt like throwing up. "Dad, whatever it is you''re thinking, you shouldn''t go through with it, okay? Let''s make this a normal family reunion as much as we can, okay?"

    "Rx, Tatsuki, I can handle myself just fine," Grado said, cracking his head.

    "No, not that... I mean... sigh~" Tatsuki conceded, heaving a sigh. It took him a second to realize that his son was plenty strong himself. For all he knows, his son is more of a musclehead than he was, probably because all he did was train physically when he didn''t have superpowers. He even began to wonder whether his son would be able to handle his grandfather''s training... but then again, he had seen his son achieve a lot of almost impossible feats. Going head-to-head with his old man is probably the simplest thing for him.

    The gigantic orb of wind that surrounded everyone started to dissipate, and before they knew it, they were already in front of a cozy-looking wooden house in the middle of nowhere. It had a sizeable porch, and around it was plot and plots ofnd wherein some sections were filled with mini-farm lined up with crops. Even without the presence of anyone by the front gate, they felt as if the house was inviting them all. It was afortable house, to say the least.

    "Wee; I guess it''s y''all''s first time here, right... except for my son Tatsuki of course. Come in. Come in." Grado amicably called out as he opened the metallic gate attached to the stone-walled fence. He gestured for everyone toe in, and everyone did so without thinking twice.

    "Please head on inside. My wife''s dying to wait to meet everyone. Come on, don''t be shy." Grado continued.

    And all this time, he still had his right hand tightly gripping Satoshi''s shoulder. Satoshi had no idea why his grandfather won''t let go of him but he didn''t think too hard about it. He concluded that his father probably wanted to spend more time with him and that''s why he didn''t let go of of his gori-like grip.

    After heaving another sigh, Tatsuki turned around and wished his son good luck before he led everyone inside the house.

 Chapter 309 Grandsons Mysterious Superpower

    Finally, Grado inadvertently let go of Satoshi''s shoulder as he walked forward. He assumed the position on one end of the field before turning around to face his grandson. On the other hand, Satoshi had no idea what his grandfather was doing, but he stayed in ce. He figured that his grandfather most likely had a surprise for him or something of the sort, and that''s why he was acting weirdly.

    shing a smile at Satoshi, Grado then manifested a condensed ball of air in his hand, shooting it high up in the air. Once again, the orb of air went up, exponentially increasing in size as it rose higher. The moment it reached its peak, it covered the entire field where Satoshi and his grandfather were in. While it kept them shielded from outside forces, it also protected the house from the two of them. This also blocked all the noiseing from either side of the wind territory.

    "Satoshi, I hope you''re ready," Grado called out. "I''m going to show you the sheer power of the Midoriyamas." He continued, unleashing his full power and almost blowing Satoshi away with it.

    Shielding his eyes from the rocks and debris that suddenly appeared in the air, Satoshi decided to integrate with his familiar Sain, his Chainsaw Familiar. As soon as he did so, Satoshi materialized a chainsaw in his hands and anchored it on the ground. His grandfather hadn''t done anything out of the ordinary... and yet he was already struggling trying to hold himself in ce.

    The transition that Satoshi made when he summoned chainsaws from his hand was too quick for the eye to see. For a moment there, the only thing that Grado saw was Satoshi manifesting chainsaws from nothing. Now he was even more confused as to what his grandson''s superpower was.

    ''I''ve seen a lot of weird superpowers before, but through all my years of experience, this is the first time I saw something that I couldn''t exin. Does my grandson have multiple superpowers? No, I''ve seen how he moved back then... he''s already got two superpowers... don''t tell me he has three?'' Grado''s thought process seemed to hit a wall, so he decided to unleash even more of his power to pressure Satoshi. For now, he decided to keep his distance from Satoshi so he''d be able to gauge his strength and true potential.

    What he didn''t know, however, was that Satoshi was just as experienced with fights and his instincts were more in-tuned to himself. That''s why he immediately realized that his grandfather was trying to gauge his power while keeping his distance. Of course, the first thing that came to Satoshi''s mind was that he had to close the gap between him and his grandfather.

    essing his Storage Familiar, Orb Oboros, once again, Satoshi now summoned his trusty White Lion, one of his most bnced familiars in terms of offense, defense, and overall speed. With this, Satoshi more or less assumed that he''d be able to cancel out his grandfather''s wind pressure, enabling him to approach him.

    Once again, Grado was left confused when blue mes suddenly erupted from his son''s body. White fur seemed to cover his neck, his wrists, and ankles, and the blue mes seemed to envelop his body, rising into licks as the fire got stronger. Satoshi charged forward, still holding two chainsaws in his hands. Satoshi twisted in mid-air before he flung himself up, 360-ing in mid-air before side-shing his grandfather with max-powered chainsaws. Grado confidently summoned a wall made out of rocks to block the attack, but Satoshi cleanly cut through it as if it were butter.

    With pupils dted, Grado only had a split second before he produced ayer of condensed air to block Satoshi. The shock made Satoshi pierce through the air, whizzing higher and higher until he almost hit the edge of the wind barrier. In one desperate attempt to reorganize his second attack, Satoshi summoned Ghast, his Portal Familiar, to integrate with him.

    In a split second, Satoshi disappeared from the air, reappearing behind his grandfather. Grado was surprised that Satoshi managed to teleport despite losing his bnce. Despite the surprise attack, however, Grado was able to defend himself, erecting a wall of water that froze in an instant in front of Satoshi.

    So far, Satoshi had seen his grandfather use the wind, earth, fire, and water elements, and he pretty much concluded that his grandfather had the four elements as his superpower. Still, he didn''t want to assume that that was everything his grandfather had up his sleeve. For all he knows, he could be hiding his most powerful of superpowers.

    To be on the safe side, Satoshi integrated with Sera before charging at his grandfather for the second time. He didn''t worry about holding back anymore since his grandfather could handle him just fine even at his full strength.

    As for Grado, he could tell by his grandson''s gaze that he didn''t intend to hold back anymore. And as such, he decided not to hold back as well. A smile spread across his face. The alone time he wanted to spend with his grandson is finally here, it was a dreame true and he wanted to savor it for as long as he could. He didn''t want the moment to end. Nheless, there was no way he''d give the victory to his grandson, not when he could help it. He might be his grandson but his pride just won''t easily give him the easy win.

    "I''m not going to hold back, all right." Grado called out as a sh of light erupted from where he stood. Even then, Satoshi didn''t stop charging at his grandfather. He knew that if he were to be indecisive in the middle of the match, certain loss will befall him.<sub> </sub>

    His grandfather was not holding back, and he wasn''t going to hold back either.

    Click!

    Before Satoshi knew it, he was enveloped with a bright light. He had been enveloped with a pristine white light before and usually it was Sera''s doing. But right now, the white light felt different. It felt too calm... too serene... and Satoshi couldn''t quite put a finger around it. His memory then drifted to Sera''s status window where he saw that she had unlocked three of her skills. ''Sera, are you using one of your new skills right now?'' Satoshi asked in his mind.

    Satoshi felt his heart rate going up as if it was a ticking time bomb. He felt the blood rushing through his veins, making them almost pop out, and what''s more, he felt incredible power welling within, and he couldn''t contain it as much as he wanted to.

    BOOM!

    A huge explosion was heard, and the windows of the house shattered as the wind barrier was eliminated. Satoshi felt weird, but it was a different kind of weird. It''s as if he had be twice as powerful as normal... no, a hundred times more powerful than normal.

    As for Grado, however, he felt something in his mind click when the explosion of bright light happened. Not only did the explosion cancel the wind barrier that he erected so he could protect their house from the aftermath of the fight, but he also felt as if he had lost his powers. He tried to activate his energy, but nothing manifested in his hand.

    And he wasn''t the only one who felt that way. People in a twenty-kilometer radius felt the same way as well. Even Tatsuki, who relied on his power so much, sensed that he had lost every power he had plundered altogether. Even his enhanced senses were lost. Ayumu, meanwhile, felt her most vulnerable right then and there. All of her superpower energy was gone, and her counterattack was momentarily lost.

    Then there was Aira, who could see the future from time to time. She felt as if her mind shut down for a moment, and for the first time in her life, she felt peace and quiet, with nothing disturbing her mind.

    "That was a pretty good skill... Energy Cancetion, huh. Good thing I still have onest trick up my sleeve." Grado muttered to himself as he extended his hand in the air. He positioned his hand in an open-grip as if he was waiting for the mjolnir t appear.

    For a moment, Satoshi even believed that the mjolnir would appear and lodge itself on his grandfather''s hand. Then again, that was just his expectation. He remembered a certain superhero with lightning powers who considered himself the strongest avenger or something, but there was no way that''s his grandfather so he shook his head and stopped his imaginations from running wild.

    FLASH!

    A sh of lightning broke the silence with its thunderous presence. The moment the light dissipated, Grado was already holding a weapon in his hand, and he was wearing a different costume unlike his casual outfit of an oversized long sleeves and jeans.

    He was now holding a trident, and his energy was filled to the brim, much to Satoshi''s surprise. "I told you, I''m not going to hold back against my grandson." Grado said as lightning cracked between his fingers.

 Chapter 310 Overprotectiveness

    "Ah, this brings back memories... lots of memories..." Tatsuki muttered to himself as he felt like throwing up. He clutched his stomach in hopes that he won''t spew anything out his mouth.

    Seeing his father''s ultimate form made him remember a couple of things from his childhood. That golden armor he wore, as well as the golden trident he wielded matched with his grey beard... it was something that traumatized him when he was a kid. Memories that he repressed started resurfacing in his mind and he couldn''t help but take pity on his son who was about to get beat up by his grandfather.

    Just like Satoshi who had never defeated his father in a fair practice match, Tatsuki also had never brought his father to his knees. He was superior to him despite his superpower being inferior. When Tatsuki came of age and he could finally register for a superhero license, he stopped training with his father. He finally thought to himself that he was free from all the training he''d have to suffer.

    In hindsight though, a major part of Tatsuki''s sess was all thanks to the hellish training he underwent with his father. Those ''memorable'' times were nothing but terrorizing, but Tatsuki easily climbed through the ranks of the Superhero Association Organization thanks to that. At one point, he even felt like his father should be on his pedestal as the number one superhero of Japan... but then again, how could he say such a thing?

    After all, his father was not even registered as a superhero. He was only regarded as a normal citizen, and even when he moved to America, no one knew that he already had superpowers. He kept his superpowers a secret, to say the least. Even though he was more powerful than most superheroes out there, he decided to keep a low profile... all for the sake of his son.

    People assumed that Tatsuki was a first-generation superhero... but such was actually not the case. This also made Satoshi a third-generation superhero.

    Tatsuki could still remember the time when he wanted to give up and just give his top spot to his father... however, his father gave him a couple of sensible words, telling him that it was his own achievement that let him achieve such a feat. Grado even pointed out that he never forced his son to train with him... and somehow Tatsuki realized that such was the case. Not once did his dad force him to train, he would invite him, sure, but he never dragged him to train.

    This realization only happened when Tatsuki was already the number one superhero in Japan... and this was also the same time when Tatsuki began visiting his parents more frequently. Around the same time, the bad news about Satoshi''s awakening.

    When the wind barrier cleared up and Tatsuki got a better view of his son and his father standing on opposite sides of the field, Tatsuki couldn''t help but feel a sense of pride. A stray tear fell streamed down his cheeks and he wiped it right away. However, he was too slow and his wife managed to see it. She smiled, wrapping her arms around his as they watched the fight continue through a broken window.

    "Isn''t this nice?" Ayumu gently whispered as she leaned on her husband''s shoulder.

    Currently, everyone still hasn''t eaten yet since they were waiting for Satoshi and Grado to finish the fight. This was the first time Midoriyama Lize (Satoshi''s grandmother) saw Satoshi with his awakened superpower. When the wind barrier cleared up, she couldn''t believe that Satoshi had a pretty cool superpower. Even though it didn''t stand a chance against her husband for sure, she could tell that her grandson was powerful.

    Somehow, she couldn''t believe it, so she adjusted her reading sses and headed outside despite how dangerous it was to be near the two. She sat by the porch, quietly admiring her husband from afar while proudly looking at her grandson from time to time. Just like her husband, she couldn''t tell what type of superpower her grandson acquired, but just from one nce, she knew that it had limitless potential.

    "I mean, if it looked that shy, then surely it is powerful... and he''s none other than the son of the number one superhero of Japan... not to mention that his grandfather trained his son to be that number one superhero," Lize said to herself with a smile.

    With his heart rate spiking due to nervousness, Satoshi stood still, wondering what his grandfather would do next. He didn''t want to show any sign of weakness in front of him so he tried to act as if he wasn''t out of breath. Even then, Grado could tell that his grandson was reaching his limit.

    Right now, Satoshi''s form was nothing but shy. He had his usual ck and white robe with a huge cor and a cape. A Dark Orb floated on his right side while a scepter of pristine white color floated on his left. He wielded two chainsaws, and portals could be seen from behind him. Twelve metallic cogs revolved on top of his head like halos, and fluffy fur coated his neck, wrists, and ankles. Blue licks of mes also appeared from time to time whenever he moved. He was integrated with Ghast, Sain, Sera, and White Lion, hence the shy transformation.

    Satoshi blinked.<sub> </sub>

    And at that moment, he found himself on the ground, eating dirt. He didn''t even see or feel anything. One moment he was putting his guard up, the next moment he was on the ground eating dirt. And when he stood up, he saw that his grandfather was still standing in the same spot where he was a split second ago.

    ? Unbeknownst to him, Grado actually used his instantaneous eleration to sneak behind Satoshi when he blinked. And then he hit him with his trident. Before Satoshi could recover, Grado went back to his spot to leave his grandson even more confused.

    "What the¡ª" Satoshi said to himself. His instincts kicked in and he told himself that he shouldn''t blink. In a snap of a finger, he came to the realization that his grandfather could elerate as fast as lightning, and that''s why he managed to attack him and return back to his ce in the blink of an eye.

    Without further ado, Satoshi summoned his trusty water-type familiar, Droplet. He then ordered Droplet to gather water and surround him with little droplets. Satoshi didn''t bother integrating with this particr familiar since it''s much more useful in its usual form. A few secondster, a couple of water droplets surrounded Satoshi¡ª this is what he''s going to use to anticipate his grandfather. If one droplet was disturbed, then Satoshi would immediately move out of the way.

    It was a pretty good strategy, to say the least... however, Grado had morebat experience than Satoshi so he could tell what Satoshi was doing. He raised his trident, and a low thunderous growl erupted from the sky.

    Streaks of lightning started shooting down from the sky but Satoshi dodged them easily using Ghast''s portal creation skills. The droplets that surrounded him also helped with his reaction time and he was simply untouchable.

    "Gotcha," Grado muttered to himself.

    As soon as Satoshi teleported to one ce, Grado was already standing there. Furthermore, he appeared right where Satoshi''s blind spot was. Before Satoshi could disappear Grado grabbed him by the shoulders, clenching it until it dislocated. The grip was so strong his fingers dug through Satoshi''s shoulder. Despite Satoshi''s impregnable defense and the beast integration that granted him more offensive and defensive capabilities, Grado still managed to dug his fingers through his shoulders. Satoshi screamed in excruciating pain as he brought the chainsaw toward his arm.

    Grado''s eyes widened. He couldn''t believe that his grandson was willing to part with his arm just so he would be able to get away from his opponent. Such a daring move was something that should only be done in a death match, and yet Satoshi was doing it right now. Without further ado, Grado blocked the chainsaw with his wind barrier, earth barrier, ice barrier, and me wallbined.

    "Grandson, what are you doing?" Grado called out as he let go of his shoulder. He didn''t expect his grandson to have trigger-happy impulses when he just wounded him a little bit.

    Despite Gradopletely letting go of Satoshi''s shoulder, it was already toote, Satoshi put too much force into his swing and hepletely cut his arm.

    Pupils dting, Grado''s mouth hung open, his jaw-dropping on the ground in shock. He couldn''t believe that his grandson just cut his arm like that. He was too shocked to even move.

    As for Satoshi, however, he finally saw an opening and he teleported right behind his grandfather. In that instant, his left arm grew back thanks to Sera''s insane regeneration ability. As soon as he stepped out of the portal, he pointed the chainsaw on his grandfather''s neck.

    The entire scenario happened all too quickly, it didn''t even take three seconds for everything to unfold. And when Grado came back to his senses, a chainsaw was already pressed against his neck.

 Chapter 311 The Chosen One

    Even though Grado could still escape the sticky situation, he chose not to since Satoshi cornered him fair and square. On the other hand, Satoshi thought that his grandfather would concede right then and there. After all, he was already caught off-guard, freezing up as soon as Satoshi pressed the chainsaw on his neck.

    For a couple of seconds, the two of them stayed still. Satoshi was at an advantage, but he didn''t budge even then. His grandfather might catch him off-guard when he moved, so he remained utterly still. He even went as far as to hold his breath, so he really won''t budge.

    A chuckle came out of Grado''s mouth as he deactivated his superpower. Raising his hand, he turned towards Satoshi. "I forfeit," He said. Despite his defeat, the sparkles in his eyes were evident, as if he was the one who won the match.

    Then again, Satoshi realized that his grandfather just gave him the win. He could''ve moved out of the way when he put the chainsaw on his neck, but he chose to stay there. A part of it was because he was surprised by Satoshi''s action. He did just cut his left arm off in front of his grandfather.

    "Teleportation, Regeneration, Blue mes... or was it lightning?, Dark Energy, and Metal Manifestation... How many superpowers do you have, Satoshi?" Grado eximed in delight as he again held his grandson by the shoulder.

    At this point, Satoshi had already reverted to his standard form, bringing all his familiars back to Orb Oboros''s unique dimension. "I... I only have one superpower." Satoshi called out.

    "What?!" Grado couldn''t believe it at all. It didn''t look like his grandson was lying, so that was probably the case. However, he couldn''t quite grasp what Satoshi had just said since he clearly witnessed Satoshi using a lot of different superpowers.

    "I am a Beast Tamer." Satoshi vaguely exined. Now, he still had not decided what to call his superpower, so he decided to stick with the basics. While calling his superpower a beast-tamer type, it''s not far-fetched from the truth itself.

    "So you''re a beast tamer... but a beast tamer could only integrate with one beast... right? Or was it two? I''ve seen someone who could integrate with two beasts... in any case, how many beasts can you integrate with at once?

    "I can integrate with all my tamed beasts," Satoshi answered. He didn''t feel like lying to his grandfather.

    "All of them? And right now, how many tamed beasts do you have?"

    "About fifteen of them..."

    "So, in total, you have fifteen overpowered superpowers... wow, who would''ve thought," Grado called out. "Tell me, grandson, did your dad train you how to fight?"

    Satoshi nodded. While a considerable part of his training was just him learning by himself, his dad did train him. It was only recently that he started receiving training from his dad, so Satoshi wasn''t sure whether hisbat capabilities were all thanks to his dad.

    Upon hearing Satoshi''s reply, Grado rubbed his nose with pride. "Of course, I taught your father how to fight... it is only fitting that he passes on the knowledge to you. How was it? Your grandpa''s pretty good at fighting, right?" Grado continued as he nudged his grandson''s side.

    As the two of them walked towards the house, Grado realized that Lize was actually outside by the front porch, sitting on one of the benches there while she watched the fight. Now that the fight was over, she stood up and decided to meet with the two of them halfway. "You took it too far. All the windows of the house are broken." Lize informed him. She tried to remain as calm as possible, but Grado could tell she was annoyed.

    Out of impulse, Grado stepped back, inadvertently letting go of Satoshi when he did so. Lize finally seized her chance to get close to her one and only grandson, giving him a warm hug before pulling her away from Grado. "Now, don''t be affected by your musclehead of a grandfather." Lize pouted, turning around.

    Even though Satoshi was significantly stronger than his grandmother, he felt a specific force from behind him urging him to follow her against his will. What he didn''t know was that her grandmother was actually using her superpower at the moment; he just couldn''t sense it.

    "You saw our fight, right? I''m going to train my grandson." Grado puffed his chest. "What do you think, Satoshi? Do you want to train under me?"

    "Yeah, keep acting like that, and you won''t have a son or a grandson to visit you." Lize pointed out. "Regardless... I thought our grandson didn''t have a superpower.. turns out he''s just ate bloomer." Lize warmly smiled.<sub> </sub>

    The first thing that greeted Satoshi when he entered his grandparents'' house was the old grandfather clock on the room''s left side. There was a piano beside it, and couches surrounded a small table in front of that said piano. It was a typical countryside setting, and Satoshi immediately feltfortable as soon as they entered.

    Even though this was the first time Satoshi met his grandparents, he already felt the familial bond he had with them. There was no need for introductions, nor was there no need to be ufortable around them. He felt right at home; somehow, he felt as if he had discovered another part of his identity that had been missing all these years.

    After all, it was only rtively recently that he learned about his grandparents'' existence. If it weren''t for their sudden trip to America, he wouldn''t even know that he has grandparents.

    "So, you''re a beast tamer, huh... power really runs in the family. How did you know you awakened it?" Lize asked.

    As soon as his grandmother asked, a specific familiar appeared in front of her, much to her surprise. It was none other than Dex. Satoshi summoned him since it would be easier to exin to him around. And since their minds were connected, Satoshi didn''t feel the need to voice out his order. In the blink of an eye, Dex reverted to his usual form¡ª that of a retroputer where Satoshi ys his game.

    "What?!" Grado''s eyes widened in surprise as he saw the familiarputer that Satoshi held in his hand. "Isn''t that myputer? Wow, who would''ve thought that it''s still up and running? This brings back memories." Grado said to himself, admiring the retroputer.

    "This is my first familiar." Satoshi then exined how a lick of me suddenly manifested in his hand, floating towards the retroputer. "And then it transformed into Dex before I knew it. He calls himself a Representative, which is one of the high-ss beasts out there. I still have no information regarding him... but he''s been with me since the official start of my awakening."

    Grado''s eyes were still fixated on the retroputer when it transformed back into Dex. He couldn''t believe that the retroputer he had when he was still a teenager would be passed onto his son... and now to his grandson. Somehow, he felt like he was part of Satoshi''s awakening and even prouder towards his grandson.

    "Wait... I''m curious..." Lize''s face turned into a slight frown as she trailed off. "Can you tell me the second beast you tamed?"

    Satoshi didn''t feel the need to hold back information, so he summoned his nailgun familiar, Nailgun. Four caskets made of shiny metal then floated in front of Satoshi. "It''s not really a familiar... it''s a nailgun I bought from a hardware shop."

    "And your third one?"

    Satoshi brought out his White Lion. Grado recognized it a little since Satoshi integrated with it during the fight.

    "I knew it..." Lize muttered. "Grado, remember those weird dreams you had in the past? The one with the... what was it... a ck man sitting behind a desk?" Lize asked.

    Everyone present in the room was currently preparing the table. Still, when the atmosphere suddenly got darker, all of them stopped what they were doing to listen. Grado felt a bit flustered when everyone''s attention was suddenly directed toward him. "Yeah, that was the dream I dreamed before I awakened my superpower," Grado replied.

    "Yes, that one... he told you something, right? Do you remember what he told you?" Lize asked another question.

    "No... I don''t think I¡ª"

    "He told you that he has chosen a disciple, right? And that disciple would be the chosen one, right?" Lize asked. "Come on, dear, you should know this better than I do... they''re your dreams!"

    "I... it was a long time ago. I''m surprised you still remember those. I only ever mentioned it once to you." Grado answered, scratching his head as he turned towards Satoshi. He shrugged, wondering what his wife was talking about.

    "I think... he''s referring to our grandson, Grado... whomever that person was in your dream." Lize then turned towards Satoshi, her eyes a clear greyish color that bore deep into Satoshi''s windows of the soul. "Our grandson, he''s the chosen one."

 Chapter 312 Meeting Of Managers, First Selection

    An hour or soter.

    Dinner finally came to an end, but Satoshi''s mind was still stuck at the time when his grandmother told him that he was the Chosen One. He had no idea what she meant by it, but it seemed like everyone in their family except him understood what his grandmother was referring to. This was the first time his parents, as well as his grandparents, talked about something involving him, but he couldn''t figure out what it was.

    Cleaning up, everyone started spending time with each other, talking as if they were at a normal family reunion (and in a sense, they were, in fact, at a normal family reunion). As for Grado, however, he decided to light up a bonfire and set up a charcoal grill. Dinnertime was over, but that doesn''t mean that the reunion was done. The night was still young, and the family reunion had just begun.

    While everyone was having a fun time talking to each other, Grado was lining up firecrackers outside. The bonfire was already alight, and he had already brought out a couple of bags of marshmallows.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi engaged in conversations here and there, but his mind still dwelled on what his grandmother said. It was fairly obvious that she wasn''t messing around when she said that, but what did she mean by me being a Chosen One? Satoshi still couldn''t quite put his finger around it.

    When Satoshi turned around, he realized that his grandmother Lize was actually standing behind him. She was holding a cup filled with hot chocte, handing it toward Satoshi with a pleasant smile on her face. "Are you still thinking about what I said a moment ago, dear?"

    Muttering a soft thank you, Satoshi received the hot chocte and took a sip of it. It warmed himfortably, and he nodded at his grandmother.

    "You shouldn''t think too much about it. For now, just focus on the Official Beast Tournament. You''re going to participate in that, right? After that, we can start unraveling the mystery of your grandfather''s dream."

    Satoshi still didn''t understand what his grandparents nor parents were saying. Then again, he could more or less guess that they also didn''t know the details, and that''s why they were as clueless as Satoshi. The man wearing a huge flowy hat and a ck robe was rted to Satoshi; Grado and Lize could tell... but as to how he was rted to him, they could only assume how.

    Seeing Satoshi''s troubled face, Shiroi decided to sit beside him, hoping that herpany would at least make him feel at ease. She awkwardly stole a nce towards Satoshi, drinking her hot chocte as she shifted her gaze in the opposite direction. A sigh left her mouth as she fidgeted. "Are you all right, Satoshi?" Shiroi asked.

    Averting his gaze from Shiroi, Satoshi scratched his head before he responded with a soft yes. He suddenly remembered the time when he held hands with Shiroi, and somehow the memory made his face redden a little bit.

    "You''re special, Satoshi, even if you''re grandparents were talking about you being chosen... that doesn''t take away all your effort. You were incredible enough as it is, even without your superpower." Shiroi continued.

    Before Satoshi could say anything, though, Grado entered the house with a huge grin on his face. "The bonfire''s ready. Let''s eat some marshmallows and light up some firecrackers, yeah?" He excitedly called out.

    .....

    Somewhere,

    A man with a stylish mustache bnced a ck cane on his hand made out of dried wood. He wore a satisfied smile on his face as he stood up, adjusting the cor of his robe. Recently, he had been feeling rather delighted since the development that he expected just got even better and better. He couldn''t ask for a better situation.<sub> </sub>

    "Sir Draco, I''m here on behalf of Alfheim. The meeting is bound to start soon." The one who spoke looked like a butler, with his ck hair and the tuxedo he wore that matched his hair color. His expression didn''t shift one bit when he spoke, and he seemed indifferent to Draco, who was about to respond.

    "Right, right, right." Draco brushed off the heads up as he stepped out of the room with a light skip in his steps. He was feeling more energetic than usual, probably because everything he wanted to happen yed out in a satisfactory manner, and it was only a matter of time before everything would be ready.

    "Sir, I hope you take this matter seriously... the other Managers are already more than prepared, and you''re yet to reach the minimum requirement before the deadline." The man that looked like a butler pointed out as he opened the door for Draco.

    "Don''t worry about it, the butler; we''re right on schedule. Now, it might seem like nothing much was happening... but I can assure you that he''ll be ready... when the timees, he''ll be ready." Draco said these words with a sparkle in his eyes, but even then, the butler didn''t respond at all.

    The butler couldn''t believe Draco''s outward behavior. In fact, he found it ridiculous that Draco was acting like that. His reputation was on the line here, and one small mistake and he''ll disappear from existence... but even then, he still acted as if he was having the time of his life. The butler couldn''t help but sigh in disappointment. ''It won''t be long before I''m assigned to another Manager. Seriously, why doesn''t he just take this job seriously?'' The butler said to himself, clearing his throat before following right behind Draco.

    "But sir, looking at it objectively... he''s not prepared." The butler continued.

    "He will be prepared. Don''t worry about it." Draco continued. "You just need to have a little patience, and everything will fall into ce. We can''t rush these things, you know... as you mentioned before, this is of utmost importance; we can''t just overlook a few details and be done with it."

    Upon saying that, Draco walked through the hallways of the huge building. His room was right behind him, and just like any other room, it was identical to others. The huge building had a couple of branches that led to other rooms as well, and these rooms converged into one room where all the Managers could meet with ease. The number of the Managers in total remained a mystery, but Draco knew there were more than seven of them. He hadn''t met every Manager out there in existence, but he knew that they were preparing for that specific moment as well, just like him.

    The room at the very center of the structure where everyone was present is called the Manager''s Office... and this is where every manager was tasked to go whenever there was a scheduled meeting. Usually, these meet-ups were there just so every manager could unt their progress. These meetings are also a good indicator for a manager if they are falling behind or not. After all, those who were way ahead of the others would announce it, they wouldn''t just keep it to themselves. These were the very essence of the meetings.

    Draco is one of these so-called managers as well... and even though he was new, he decided not to rush through the process. He started the same as everyone... but even then, he was a lot slower than the rest. He really focused on the process rather than forcing results to happen, just like any other manager out there. But then again, he''s a new Manager, so he still had no idea whether what he was doing was all right or not. Regardless, he chose to believe in himself rather than relying on other Manager''s processes and whatnot.

    "Why am I not surprised?" A man with white long hair and a semi-muscr build sarcastically spoke up as he shook his head. He was waiting by the entrance of the Manager''s Office, shaking his head the moment he saw Draco appear at the far end of the corridor. "You''rete. Again. You shouldn''t ignore these meetings, Draco... you know that."

    The man wore a white robe, and he held a huge scepter on his hand made out of white metal. He was none other than Alfheim, the man who called for the meeting.

    "Come on, we all know you just called this meeting because the deadline''sing up. Why don''t you just leave us alone... we''''re trying to prepare here as much as we can." Draco informally answered, scratching his head as he entered the Manager''s Office. There were already a couple of high-ranking Managers in there, making him feel a little bit inferior to all of them. "This is why I hate attending these meetings..." Draco muttered to himself.

    "Now that everyone who needed to be present is present... let''smence this meeting of Managers." Alfheim pped his hand before he assumed his seat. "The First Selection is bound to start soon, I hope all your preparations are going well."

    "Yeah, right, of course, all our preparations are going well... I mean, we lower-ranked managers have limited interventionpared to you guys... how is this even fair?" Dracoined, but he was only answered with a long dragged silence that filled the Manager''s Office.

 Chapter 313 Yun Zhe The Beast Tamer

    Somewhere in Thand.

    A young man with no hair, wearing a yellow robe and an orange vest, walked up to a temple that seemed to be closed off from strangers. As soon as he was in front of the temple, he tightened the red scarf that he wrapped around his waist, reassuring himself with the gesture that he''ll be allowed entrance to the ce.

    Two men d in full armor stepped forward, holding a spear in front of the young man and creating a cross in front of the entrance. Their grave expressions implied that they meant business, but they didn''t faze the young man.

    "I''m Yun Zhe... and no, I''m not from Thand... but I want to join the ck Fog Faction." Yun Zhe said with a confident tone in his voice. He didn''t dare take a step back when the two guards came up to him to block his way. When it came down to it, he was confident he''d be able to hold his own against the two.

    "ck Fog is not taking disciples at the moment. Please leave; the disciples are busy preparing for the Official Beast Tournament." One of the guards spoke with a strong Thai ent. As he did so, he retracted the spear he pointed to the ground. He didn''t want to pressure the young man any further since he seemed to be only in his teens.

    With one nod from the other, the other guard also retracted his spear. A smile formed on his face when he realized that they could easily kick the brat out with a ridiculous request.

    "But... the ck Fog Faction teaches that they''ll ept any disciple as long as they have the talent and are eager to learn, right?" Yun Zhe continued, wearing a doubtful expression on his face as he stared at the two guards. If that''s what the Faction Leader teaches, then it is not up to the two guards to block him and deny his request to ess the grounds.

    "Yes, that is correct... but after the breakthrough that everyone just had during their training under ck Fog, the requirements to being epted to the faction got updated... and well... we don''t think that you''ll be able to pass the requirements seeing that you''re still a kid.[" One of the guards pointed out, twirling his thumbs in the air as he did so.

    "That''s right. It''s not like we are going against the Faction Leader''s orders... it''s just that we don''t think you have enough talent to be epted to the faction. I hope you understand; please go home." The other guard continued.

    Yun Zhe was not having it, however, and he continued wearing a doubtful expression on his face as he stood in ce. Despite the guards'' minimal efforts to shoo him away, he didn''t budge.

    A Chinese baby abandoned on the east coast of Thand, Yun Zhe was picked up by an old man who is a first-generation superhero. Ever since the old man awakened his superpower, he had had weird dreams about having a disciple. That''s why when he found the baby stuck on a rock facing the beach, he immediately picked him up and imed him as his own. A ne on the baby showed the name Yun Zhe. Being reasonable, the old man named the baby after what was etched on his wooden ne.

    The old man was unsure what the wooden ne''s name meant, but he decided to name him after it anyway. He didn''t know that the two characters were his parents'' surnames.

    Since then, the old man has looked after Yun Zhe, taking him in as his son and his disciple and teaching him everything he needed to learn about the world and his superpower. He was a beast tamer and had the innate ability to use the beast tamer''s unique ability to integrate with beasts. Even the old man was surprised since he had never seen anyone use beast integration before. At that point in time, there were already beast tamers, but they were nowhere as good as Yun Zhe. Yun Zhe far surpassed them all in terms of pure talent and skill.

    When a portal to the beast dimension appeared on Earth, many superheroes started going there to grab a familiar for themselves. As for Yun Zhe, he had already mastered beast taming. His first tamed beasts were Bengal tigers, two of them. They were actually the guardians of the forest where the old man stayed, and Yun Zhe managed to tame them without sparing significant effort.

    The change brought about by the Beast Dimension swept the entire world. Official Beast Tournaments were held, but they were only exclusive to the countries with dimensional portals towards the Beast Dimension. America and Thand were the first ones to have portals appear right by their doorstep... that''s why beast tournaments becamemonce in their countries.

    On one of Yun Zhe''s daily training, he came upon a beast tamer who was also training in the forest. He didn''t disclose his name... he only called himself the ck Fog.

    ...

    Back to the present,

    The two guards stared at Yun Zhe, and Yun Zhe stared back at them as if he owned the ce. He didn''t want to show his true power to the guards since he was testing them. He wanted to know whether the guards were actually blocking other people from joining because of their biased views... and such was the case.<sub> </sub>

    "Should we kick him out for real?" One of the guards whispered at the other guard.

    "No... we can''t really hurt someone... and it''s not like he''s doing anything wrong." The second guard whispered back. It didn''t even ur to them that Yun Zhe could hear them clearly.

    Yun Zhe cleared his throat, attracting the attention of the two guards. He closed his eyes, acting as if he was someone important. Well, he was someone important. It''s just that the guards didn''t know about his real identity. "I want to meet the Faction Leader."

    "What are you saying, brat? You can''t meet the Faction Leader. He''s busy right now, training the disciples for the uing Official Beast Tournament happening in America." The first guard didn''t have to give out all this information, but even then, he still told Yun Zhe everything he knew. Deep inside, he didn''t want to kick the young man out, but he also didn''t want to disturb the Faction Leader.

    "Then, let me go in, at least. I want to join the ck Fog Faction as a disciple." Yun Zhe continued.

    "Young man, just go home. We don''t have time to waste when ites to the likes of you." The second guard continued.

    "Fwip~!" Yun Zhe let out a loud whistle. And to the guards'' surprise, two tigers appeared from behind the trees.

    The two tigers menacingly approached the two guards. In response, they integrated with their tamed beasts, hoping they could fend for themselves if the tigers attacked. The first guard integrated with a water-type tamed beast, while the second guard integrated with a fire-type.

    As for Yun Zhe, he closed his eyes and integrated with the two tigers. Fur appeared on his appendages, and two tiger heads were jaw-locked on his head. It didn''t even take him a couple of seconds to use Dual Beast Integration. In a split second, he was already integrated with them.

    This surprised the two guards. In terms of talent alone, he far surpassed the two of them. And here they were, judging the young man based on his appearance. But what surprised them even more was that the young man managed to use Dual Beast Integration without the guidance of their Faction Leader. As far as they know, only those who were taught by ck Fog could activate Dual Beast Integration.

    "Who are you..." The first guard asked, his question trailing off when he caught a nce of their Faction Leader, who was just exiting the temple.

    The second guard also noticed ck Fog walking out of the temple, and he, too, was surprised. Pupils dted, the two of them locked arms with each other to block ck Fog''s view. They didn''t want him to misunderstand the situation, so they hid it.

    "Ah! ck Fog!" Yun Zhe called out, waving his hand as if he was close to ck Fog. Unbeknownst to the two guards, Yun Zhe and ck Fog were actually close friends.

    In fact, it was Yun Zhe who trained ck Fog. He was the one who personally tutored ck Fog so he''d be able to activate Dual Beast Integration.

    "Master Yun Zhe!" ck Fog eximed as he ran towards the entrance. "You came! I thought you didn''t want toe to our faction."

    "I changed my mind. I want to join." Yun Zhe dered.

    "What?! You''re really going to join?!" ck Fog excitedly eximed. "Then take my position as Faction Leader. You''re the one who taught me the ways of beast taming, after all." ck Fog continued.

    "This kid?!" The two guards simultaneously eximed. They couldn''t quite understand the exchange that was happening between Yun Zhe and their Faction Leader ck Fog right now.

 Chapter 314 Preparations Preparations

    "I changed my mind. I want to join." Yun Zhe dered.

    "What?! You''re really going to join?!" ck Fog excitedly eximed. "Then take my position as Faction Leader. You''re the one who taught me the ways of beast taming, after all." ck Fog continued.

    "This kid?!" The two guards simultaneously eximed. They couldn''t quite understand the exchange that was happening between Yun Zhe and their Faction Leader ck Fog right now.

    The two guards stood still, their jaws hanging down and touching the ground as they tried toprehend the scene in front of them right now. The young brat they were trying to hold off was receiving the utmost respect from their master. It''s as if the young man right there was someone important, and their master exuded the aura of great admiration.

    "Why did youe all this way, master? You should have told me that you wanted toe... I''d have picked you up from your abode." ck Fog said as he grabbed Yun Zhe by the shoulder. "Come in,e in; I''m going to show you around." ck Fog offered, pushing Yun Zhe inside the premises before he could decline the offer.

    Yun Zhe remained quiet, waving his hand at the guards still standing by the corner of the entrance. They couldn''t believe that the young brat they were trying to shoo all this time was actually someone talented. Even though they were just guards, they felt a little bit ashamed of themselves for acting so out of ce.

    "I guess you really shouldn''t judge a book by the cover, huh..." The first guard trailed off, watching ck Fog and Yun Zhe go inside the temple as if they were having the time of their lives.

    .....

    The day before the Official Beast Tournament.

    "That''s it. Go a little more to the right. Now swing with full force! Nice, you''re getting the hang of it."

    Satoshi teleported towards his dad, Tatsuki, appearing a little bit to his right, angling himself so he''d appear right at his father''s blind spot. He then threw a good punch, using the White Lion''s strength as he integrated with him in a split second.

    The sudden shift in Satoshi''s attack and his superb power output caught Tatsuki off-guard. Before he knew it, he was sent skittering on the ground, rolling a couple of meters before he got his bnce back. He sprang up and put his guard up. "I knew this would happen... Now I regret bringing you over to visit your grandfather right there." Tatsuki clicked his tongue, but a smile was evident on his face.

    "See? You don''t have to activate your Beast Integration all the time. Once you get the hang of it, you can even show up on the battlefield with no one with you, only ever activating your Beast Integration when you''re going to make a specific move. Not only would this lessen your energy expenditure... it will also help you sustain your pace, making youst longer in the fight." Grado pointed out, slowly pping his hand as he watched the fight unfold in the front yard.

    "Right, let''s have another round, shall we?" Tatsuki asked. He didn''t want to prolong the inevitable since he knew all too well that Satoshi and Grado weren''t yet satisfied with one bout. In fact, he didn''t even have to ask for a second round since it was already a given.

    "All right, I''ll be acting as the referee again," Grado said, pping his hand once as he signaled for the two to assume the opposite sides of the yard.

    Heaving a despondent sigh, Tatsuki activated a couple of his plundered superpowers before the match even started. Things such as physical strengthening, quick reflexes, and a couple of buffs would allow him to go head-to-head with his son. Of course, he still had a trick up his sleeve; he didn''t want to show it during the first round.

    "All right... so the fight would still be fair; I''d still be coaching Satoshi right there. I''ve already trained you enough, right, Tatsuki? You don''t need any supervision." Grado smirked as he spoke, hitting a nerve.

    "I''m ready."<sub> </sub>

    As instructed, Satoshi only stood on his side of the field. He didn''t even bother integrating with his tamed beasts just yet. After all, the limitations set in ce were the purpose of the practice. Grado was trying to simte a time when Satoshi had depleted his energy, and he could only use Beast Integration for a few seconds. With this premise in ce, Satoshi was not allowed to go full force at the start of the match.

    But then again, Satoshi was already connected to his familiars, so even without the Beast Integration activated, he could still ess some of their basic stats. For example, his heightened senses were thanks to Dex, who shared his skill with his master. Right now, even if Satoshi closed his eyes, he could detect the slightest movement in the wind, giving him the power to pinpoint where the attack came from.

    Nevertheless, pinpointing an attack was only half the process. In the split of a split of a second, Satoshi had to decide how he''d receive the attack. Would he deflect it? Block it? Dodge it? Those questions continuously gued his mind the moment the practice match started.

    He couldn''t time his attack and hoped the enemy would act as expected. He had to actually read his enemy''s mind and try to anticipate how much of it was true or not. This was difficult, of course, but Satoshi knew he just had to rely on his instincts for it to work.

    "BEGIN!"

    Satoshi closed his eyes.

    Meanwhile, Tatsuki had no idea what his son was up to. He immediately activated one of his recently plundered superpowers¡ª metal tentacles. In a snap of a finger, Tatsuki''s arm turned into a whip monster with metallic tentacles attached to his arms.

    He didn''t waste any time swinging a couple of the metallic tentacles into the air. The metallic tentacles lengthened, whipping at Satoshi at varying speeds. for a moment, Tatsuki wanted to withdraw his attacks since there was a good chance his son might get killed by his attack. But after seeing Satoshi''s first two dodges, he just had to up his game a little bit more.

    Satoshi leaned back, almost at a ny-degree angle, as a metallic tentacle whipped on his chest area. He then jumped to the other side, dodging three tentacles at once who whipped past his arms and legs. After that, Satoshi charged forward, crouching as low as he could as two other metallic tentacles whizzed past his head by a hair''s breadth. Even Grado, who had been watching from afar, gulped when he saw just how close the dodge was.

    Had Satoshi not been able to dodge those, his head would''ve flown straight off his stump of a neck.

    Without missing a beat, Satoshi did a screwdriver vault in midair, grabbing one of the tentacles and hoisting himself up. He activated his Beast Integration skill in a split second, integrating with Sera and Ghast instantly.

    In a split second, he instilled a paralysis condition in his father and teleported behind him. Even though his training under his grandfather had onlysted for two weeks and today was thest day, Satoshi seemed like he had gleaned everything from his grandfather''s lesson. The way he moved was way different from before. He was more purposeful and didn''t hesitate between his attacks. He also learned how to rely on his instincts more, allowing him more freedom to think during the fight. Satoshi described it as being on autopilot, where his body reacts to all the attacks, and he doesn''t have to think about it at all.

    But before Satoshi''s attack could connect, he saw his father smile sinisterly. It was only a brief moment, but Satoshi immediately felt the threat that emanated from his father.

    At that moment, Satoshi felt some sort of pressure from his fist. His attack was about to connect, but he chose to retract it. However, he was a step toote since his father''s defensive measures activated, and he was sent flying to the edge of the yard.

    "What was that?" Satoshi asked in surprise, even though he already knew what had happened. In that instant, he felt as if he had failed tond an attack on his grandfather... but weirdly enough, he was fighting against his father this time.

    "You... that''s uncalled for, Tatsuki." Grado clicked his tongue as he beckoned for his son and grandson toe towards him. Just like Satoshi, Grado also failed to realize that Tatsuki plundered his superpower right then and there. And the reason why Satoshi was sent flying was that Tatsuki used condensed air to shield himself from Satoshi''s attack.

    "I guess that''s it for your training, grandson." Grado said with a smile, ruffling Satoshi''s hair. "Now go and make us proud during the Official Beast Tournament."

 Chapter 315 There Are No Accidents

    Day of the Official Beast Tournament

    The first light peeked into the horizon, shining through the clear ss windows of the room where Satoshi was staying. It was a normal room with a bed, a bookshelf, and a desk. Even though this was his dad''s old room (this is where his dad stays whenever he visits his parents), Satoshi felt as of he was home, and he was able to sleep soundly despite the fact that it was almost the Official Beast Tournament.

    Ow that the fated day hade, Satoshi couldn''t help but feel all the more prepared. He had received intense training from both his grandfather and dad, and all those preparations had given him the confidence boost he needed.

    While he had no idea how strong the other contenders were, he knew that he could at least put up a good fight. Besides, he could integrate with all of his familiars. Even Jean Grey and White Mist, who were both beast masters, couldn''t even integrate with two tamed beasts

    Satoshi got out of his bed and stretched a couple of times before dropping down on the floor for a couple of push-ups. He wanted to wake himself up before he got out of his room, and push-ups proved to be a great way to do just that.

    With a grunt, Satoshi got up and inhaled and exhaled a couple of times before he headed toward the door. He pumped himself up as if he was already backstage at the stadium where the Official Beast Tournament would be held.

    However, as soon as he opened the door, he saw his grandfather Grado standing before him. Satoshi almost fell on his rear side, but he caught himself. He had no idea why his grandfather was waiting for him behind the door, though.

    "Good morning, my grandson!" Grado greeted as if it was normal for him to stay behind his grandson''s room.

    "Good morning." Satoshi let out as he yawned.

    Even though Satoshi had already stepped forward, his grandfather didn''t move an inch. He just stood there as if he was expecting something from his grandson.

    Not knowing what to do, Satoshi moved forward and gave his grandfather a hug. He didn''t know if that was what his grandfather was expecting, but he seemed rather delighted about it.

    "No, I''m here to give you something," Grado muttered, but he reciprocated his grandson''s hug nheless. The smile he wore didn''t leave his face even when Satoshi had already let go of the hug.

    "Here you go, something that will probably help you win the tournament. I went through thick and thin I side the Beast Dimension just to catch that beast. Your dad helped too, and he was the one who provided me with the Green to catch it." Grado enthusiastically said.

    That''s when Satoshi noticed that his grandfather''s arms were actually bandaged up, and even his chest area had a couple of bandages. "What kind of beast did he fight for him to get those injuries?" Satoshi muttered to himself, epting the Gren with utmost gratitude.

    After saying his thanks, Satoshi headed into the living room, realizing that breakfast was already prepared. No one ate by the table, though, and his parents were packing the food as if they were going on a pic¡ª and they were. They nned to eat the feast while they were watching Satoshi fight in the stadium.

    As per usual, the fight will be happening at the best stadium in America. That much was to be expected. And for the past few days, updates about the Official Beast Tournament continued circting in the news while many workers improved the stadium before the uing day. They made sure that the American Dome is at its peak performance since there will be hundreds of thousands of people attending. At the very least, they wanted the American Dome to be more weing than before.

    "Are you ready? You should probably take a bath before we go. Your grandmother will fix you right up so you look dashing in front of the camera." Grado asked after catching up to his grandson. He ced his hand on his shoulder, prompting him to go take a shower before anything else.

    As discreetly as he could, Satoshi nced at his dad, wondering if they''ll approve of his dad''s decision. To Satoshi''s surprise, his dad nodded, implying that his mother was actually pretty good at making someone look good. As he turned around to head toward the bathroom, Satoshi decided to believe in his dad, fully trusting him that they won''t embarrass him in his moment. Besides, he didn''t detect any lie from his dad.

    Satoshi mindlessly walked towards the bathroom, opened the door, and headed inside. Before he got to the bathtub, he was already wearing his birthday suit. He exhaled with satisfaction as he submerged his entire self. "I''ve already mastered everyone''s skills and abilities... now I only have to wait for them to unlock their special skills so I can get even more powerful."

    Before Satoshi couldpletely rx, however, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him. It was a girl wearing nothing but a bath towel. Satoshi couldn''t even tell where she came from, and due to the fog that conveniently covered the shower area, he couldn''t tell what the girl was up to.

    Even from behind the steam, Satoshi could tell that the girl was fidgeting. She then grabbed something by the sink and approached Satoshi, who was in the bathtub. Satoshi didn''t waste any time submerging his head in the bathtub since he didn''t want the girl to notice him. Also, he had no idea what to do in that certain situation so his first impulse was to go down and hold his breath. Surely, no one would find him if he just stayed submerged, right? Right?!<sub> </sub>

    Of course, not!

    Redness briefly appeared on Satoshi''s face as he finally took in what was outrightly transpiring right now. He couldn''t believe that something so lucky¡ª er, something so ridiculous- was actually happening in front of him. Then again, his impulse, born from his actions, caused him to be in an ufortable position.

    Satoshi continued to hold his breath.

    .....

    The intense rays of the sunlight shed through the windows, hitting Shiroi straight in the eyes and causing her to wake up. She stirred and rolled to the edge of the bed before heaving a sigh. Subconsciously, Shiroi wiped off her drool and continued to mutter sleepily.

    She was losing her internal fight... and that''s because she convinced herself that the rm had not rung yet. Even though the sun shone brightly outside on a cloudless sky, she still didn''t want to wake up.

    Eventually, though, she got up and walked out of the room. She didn''t even bother checking the living room or checking the chicken. She headed straight to the bathroom to take a bath. This was an important day for Satoshi, and she didn''t want to miss it. And because of that, she also decided to dress up and really give Satoshi the support he deserves.

    She went inside the bathroom without even knocking. Just like Satoshi, she removed all her clothes, and by the time she reached the shower room, she was already butt naked.

    Her awareness of her surroundings was at the lowest of lows... she didn''t even notice the girl taking a shower beside the bathtub. She just went into the bathtub as if she owned the ce.

    And just like Satoshi, she also exhaled satisfactorily as she felt the warmth of the water envelop her body. She didn''t even notice the guy curled up on the other side of the bathtub.

    Satoshi was still holding his breath.

    Meanwhile, the mysterious girl turned to the side, wondering why someone had just entered the bath without knocking. Of course, she knew that Satoshi was inside, and she was waiting for her to get out of the tub so she could scrub his back... but what surprised her was the girl who absent-mindedly went to the bathtub without noticing the two notable presences in the room.

    "Um... excuse me?" The girl asked, causing Shiroi to turn to the side...

    ... only to notice that there was a girl in the bathroom. She had jet-ck hair, and her slender body and skin werepletely exposed. Shiroi blushed, and she covered her eyes before she shamefully turned away. "Haah~ I''m sorry!" She panicked.

    Knock. Knock.

    Before she could recover from the shock of seeing the girl in the bathroom, a knock was heard on the door. "Satoshi, I left your change of clothes in front of the door. You forgot to get it." Lize, Satoshi''s grandmother, called out.

    By then, Shiroi was confused. No, Satoshi was not in the bathroom; why did his grandmother call him?

    Satoshi couldn''t hold his breath anymore. He surfaced and gasped for air.

    And that''s when Satoshi and Shiroi''s eyes locked. They stared at each other as if they''d just seen the end of the world take ce right before their very eyes.

 Chapter 316 To The Official Beast Tournament!

    The two of them had their gazes interlocked for a couple of seconds. With no one budging an inch, the two of them didn''t dare look anywhere else. Even though they could see some parts of each other''s body in their peripheral vision, they still didn''t risk averting their gaze. Besides, ny percent of their bodies were covered by water, so they couldn''t see each other''s physiques.

    It was an extreme case of Schrodinger''s Cat. Was that his chest? His stomach? His legs? Both of their body parts seemed to be seeable and unseeable at the same time. Even Satoshi was having a hard time imagining clear images in his head.

    Adding to that, the water in the tub was at the right temperature, making Satoshi revert to his sleepiness. The longer he stayed, the more his mental fortitude weakened. He wanted to get out of the bathtub and douse himself in cold water... but right now, he couldn''t... or rather, he shouldn''t get up.

    "Uhm..." Satoshi trailed off. He wanted to ask why Shiroi jumped in the bathtub when someone was clearly in there.

    Unbeknownst to him, Shiroi was used to being alone at home. And even after two weeks of staying at someone else''s house, she still wasn''t used to havingpany at home. For the past few days, she had been intricately careful, so she won''t make a blunder... but now that this was thest day they''ll be staying here, she let her guard down, resulting in this awkward scenario as a result.

    Mustering all her strength, Shiroi was the first one to turn away, covering every delicate part of her body as if Satoshi could see everything. She let out a squeal under her throat since she could tell what Satoshi would say next. In return, Satoshi turned away as well, and he didn''t say another word.

    Satoshi and Shiroi stayed there for the next half hour, not daring to speak to each other. They had all the time to ask the other to close their eyes so the other one could get out of the bathtub... but the two of them were too disoriented to think of such a simple solution. Their sleepiness also affected their mental state as well. In other words, they couldn''t think straight, making the situation even worse than it already was.

    The ck-haired girl who was patiently waiting for Satoshi to get out of the bathtub couldn''t take it anymore. Her patience was already running thin as it was, and now it had totally run out. She did take her time wrapping the towel around her bust and thighs before she confronted the two lovebirds.

    "Master, how long are you going to stay there for?" She called out.

    As it turned out, the girl was no other than Ryu Ryoko, Satoshi''s ck-Winged Dragon Familiar. She had been waiting for Satoshi to get out of the bath so she could wash his back. In fact, she had been nning to do something like this for the past week; she just couldn''t gather enough courage to do so.

    And now that it was the final day, she decided to just go through with it no matter how embarrassing it would be.

    Then out of nowhere, a girl intruded into the bathroom. Of course, since Satoshi''s mind was interlinked with his familiars, some information about him would get leaked out. In turn, Satoshi would easily glean information from his tamed beasts, but at what cost? Because of this special skill, Ryoko knew that Shiroi was actually Satoshi''s childhood friend. And based on her movement, she could also tell that Shiroi fancies Satoshi.

    "Master, aren''t you going to the Official Beast Tournament? You''ll bete at this rate!" Ryoko called out. She wasn''t usually this aggressive, but Satoshi''s passiveness made her snap. Without any warning, she grabbed Satoshi by the hand and pulled him up.

    "NO, WAIT!" Satoshi screamed since his third leg was about to resurface out of the water. If Shiroi sees it, he couldn''t tell how he''d be able to recover from the shock.

    The impulsive scream reached all the way to the nooks and crannies of the house. Currently, Grado is rxing in his seat, drinking a nice cup of hot chocte while reading the morning newspaper. The front page announced the first day of the Official Beast Tournament, and once again, he felt joy swelling up within him. He couldn''t contain the pride and glee he felt towards his grandson.

    When he heard the scream, he immediately bolted upright, knocking the cup of hot chocte he had just set down on the small table. In a split second, he was already in front of the bathroom, forcing open the door before Satoshi could warn him of the misunderstanding that he''d assumed as soon as he saw the scene.

    At the same time, Shiroi panicked when she saw that Ryoko was trying to pull Satoshi up. Out of impulse, she reached out her hand and grabbed Satoshi by the shoulder. The sudden jerk she felt in her body made her fall forward.

    Fortunately, she was able to keep a good portion of Satoshi''s body under the water. But unfortunately for her, the momentum caused her to fall on Satoshi. Chest-to-chest, the two of them fell back into the water.<sub> </sub>

    Satoshi caught a glimpse of something, but there was no way he wouldment about it. As for Ryoko, she, too, was dragged down, and her upper body almost dipped into the bathtub when Satoshi went down once again.

    "GRANDSON! Are you all right?!" Grado called out, his heart beating rapidly. He didn''t even bother turning the knob or sliding the door. He just pushed it open as if the door wasn''t even there. Splinters of wood shot everywhere as soon as Grado forcefully opened the door.

    That''s when he saw the scene. A plethora of thoughts urred in his mind, and in that split second, his mind reached a certain level of enlightenment... or so, that''s what Grado told himself. It''s as if he''d seen the very view that no man shouldn''t see, and he felt rather guilty about it.

    For the first time in the span of two weeks, Satoshi watched in horror as his grandfather wore a hundred different expressions at once. It shifted from surprise to calmness, to eptance, to a smirk, and then to a hint of redness. He then innocently scratched his head and turned away, letting out light chuckles here and there as if he didn''t just see Satoshi and two other girls in the bathtub.

    "Of course, my grandson''s all grown up after all... and he needed to let out some stress before the actualpetition... Of course, of course, of course. As his grandfather, I shouldn''t conclude that this is uneptable. Times are changing, and with the times, everyone''s behavior is changing as well... of course, this is normal... no... I should just stop thinking." Grado muttered to himself before he turned around to prop the broken door up.

    "I didn''t see anything! You can go ahead and continue." Grado voiced out. "Oh, and also, don''t forget to use protectio¡ª"

    "GRANDPA!" Satoshi screamed at the top of his lungs. He couldn''t believe that his grandfather just had to enter at the most misunderstood moment.

    "Everyone! Satoshi is fine; he''s just taking a normal shower, that''s all. You don''t have to worry about him. Now, where am I... oops! I guess I spilled my hot chocte, hahha!" Grado was noisier than usual, but he didn''t say anything regarding Satoshi''s unexinable situation. Grado clearly saw his grandson with two other girls in the bathroom, and even when he was reading the newspaper, he couldn''t help but think of the scene he witnessed.

    ...

    "I''m sorry!" Satoshi was the first one to voice out his apology. Even though he clearly knew that it was Shiroi''s fault for stumbling inside the bathroom without prior notice, he felt as if it was his sworn duty to apologize first. Besides, he was the guy here and should at least bear the responsibility for the misunderstanding that his grandfather witnessed.

    "No, I should be the one saying sorry..." Shiroi let out. She missed the chance to ask who the girl was (she could''ve sworn that she had met the girl before, though, she just couldn''t remember her name).

    "Let''s just get this over with." Ryoko heaved a sigh. "You can go ahead and continue what you''re doing, Shiroi. And don''t misunderstand, my master likes you a lot. I''m just here to repay my debt. There''s nothing wrong with washing his back. Don''t misunderstand." Ryoko pointed out.

    Of course, there were many things wrong with washing someone''s back, but Shiroi could more or less feel Ryoko''s sincerity, so she just nodded. When Satoshi got out of the bathtub, he quickly wrapped a towel around his waist.

    .....

    "Everyone ready?" Tatsuki asked as he started the van he rented. It was now time to go to the American Dome.

    Satoshi and Shiroi nodded along with the others, but the redness on their face made them stand outpared to the rest. Meanwhile, Grado was trying to suppress a smile from appearing on his face.

 Chapter 317 Disciples Meeting

    The American Dome

    A light and festive air filled the surroundings of the American Dome, adding to its already monumental presence in the middle of the city. As mentioned before, the American Dome is America''srgest Dome located in the city of New York. This is where significant tournaments and sports are held, granting it the title of one of the most famous stadiums in the world.

    When Satoshi and everyone else arrived at the American Dome, he suddenly felt slightly light-headed. He knew he had a clear shot at rising to the top, but even then, he felt like he was about to go through a trial of some sort. This should be an easy clear for a tournament, but Satoshi felt intense pressure welling up within him.

    "Feeling nervous? That''s just normal. This is your first official tournament here in America, so you''ll feel nervous. The entire world''s watching you, after all." Grado patted Satoshi on the back.

    "Let''s meet at the finals," Ash said, puffing up his chest. Even though he knew that White Mist and his father, Jean Grey, were going to join the Official Tournament, he still had clear confidence that he''d survive until the finals.

    "Right, thanks," Satoshi muttered under his breath as he heaved out an exhale. This is it, the moment he was waiting for. As a beast tamer, this is his debut¡ª a debut that the entire world would watch. Just thinking about it gave Satoshi the shivers.

    "That''s right. You don''t have to feel nervous, son. You''re a Midoriyama, show them what a Midoriyama''s made of." Tatsuki encouraged him, stretching his hand for a fist bump. "Do your best out there."

    Satoshi nodded.

    There were two lines by the entrance of the American Dome¡ª one for the spectators and one for the participants. Satoshi lined up with the participants going through a few security measures. Waving his hand, Satoshi greeted his parents before he headed to his personal waiting room.

    "Satoshi, wait!" Shiroi called out, pushing through the crowd so she could catch up to Satoshi. She then handed him something. "We''re all rooting for you." She bashfully said before turning away.

    "Hoh hoh hoh," Grado, Tatsuki, and even Shiroi''s father, Yukine, started ''hoh hoh''ing as if they already knew what was going on. Once Shiroi regrouped with them. However, they cleared their throats and acted as if nothing had happened.

    "I told you, my son''s going down that route." Tatsuki proudly said.

    "As expected of my grandson." Grado rubbed his nose while nodding his head.

    "As expected of my daughter." Yukine also started rubbing his nose. Obviously, he approved of the development that was going on between his daughter and Satoshi.

    ...

    With all themotion happening right outside the American Dome, Yun Zhe knew that he''d be able to blend into the crowd and that no one would recognize him. He decided to join the ck Fog Faction. And just a few days ago, ck Fog registered him as a participant in the Official Beast Tournament.

    He had to take care of many things, such as passports and visas, but ck Fog helped him through the process, giving him a clear pass to America.

    Currently, he was riding a limousine while eating some cheese and grapes. He didn''t feel that nervous at all. In fact, he was confident that he''d be able to bring the title of the beast master home.

    After all, he had seen the fight between White Mist and Jean Grey. He didn''t even feel threatened by them. To him, they were just small fries waiting to be stomped on like a bug. He didn''t say it out loud, but he more or less concluded that White Mist and Jean Grey were weak. "I''m a Disciple, and there''s no way I''m going to lose against these guys."

    "We''re here, sir Yun Zhe." The driver of the limousine, who''s also a member of the ck Fog Faction, nodded his head towards Yun Zhe.<sub> </sub>

    "All right. My time hase. My debut to the world as the strongest Disciple and the strongest beast tamer. I''m going to crush everyone and climb to the summit." Yun Zhe said to himself. He wasn''t usually this talkative, but even then, he wanted to pump himself at least up before participating in the tournament.

    The limousine was parked in front of the American Dome. In that instant, a couple of personnel wearing ck suits lined up all the way to the entrance of the American Dome. Suddenly, a hug white gori appeared out of nowhere, carrying a red carpet. The white gori then rolled the red carpet all the way up to the entrance.

    "Wee! Co-leader of the ck Fog Faction, Yun Zhe! We wish you the best of luck for the uing Official Beast Tournament!" The entire two lines of people in ck suits screamed their lungs out as soon as Yun Zhe stepped out.

    Everything outside the American Dome seemed to have taken a halt when Yun Zhe appeared. Not only did he have the grandest of entrances, his prestige as the co-leader of the ck Fog Faction also took everyone by surprise.

    Actors, actresses, superheroes, political figures, and important people alike couldn''t evenpare to his wee. They were taken by surprise, in a good way, of course. Such an important figure appeared out of nowhere, and they were the first ones to witness his arrival.

    In other words, Yun Zhe''s n of keeping a low profile backfired against him. And now, he was the center of attention. Even those who were patiently lining up decided to step out of the way, making way for Yun Zhe as he walked nearer to the entrance of the American Dome.

    "Wee, sir," The security guards by the entrance even bowed toward Yun Zhe, much to his surprise.

    Everything went by in a sh, like some sort of odd routine that Yun Zhe got used to in a snap of a finger. He was already way past the security checkpoint, but he still couldn''t fathom the grand entrance exclusively for him. He felt greatly embarrassed, but he didn''t botherining to everyone who showed up for the grand entrance. He knew they were just doing as instructed, but that didn''t mean he didn''t feel ufortable throughout the process.

    "Master! Master! Master!" ck Fog called out from behind, catching up to Yun Zhe and locking arms with him. "How did you find the grand wee? Was it to your liking? I was the one who came up with the setup. Was it nice? Seeing you walk up the steps of the American Dome is so awesome! Finally, the world will know who is the strongest beast tamer out there."

    "I''m not used to being the center of attention... but if it made an impact, I think I just have to get used to it. You''re right; this is my debut. I should show off as much as I can." Yun Zhe muttered to himself as his eyes were filled with determination.

    "See you in the finals, master." ck Fog pressed his fist on his palm before bowing down toward Yun Zhe. "My waiting room is right beside yours, master. Just call out to me if you ever need anything. I assigned one of my disciples to assist you. Please don''t hesitate to give him an order."

    Yun Zhe nodded, muttering a soft thank you before he headed inside the waiting room. When he got inside, he noticed that a young man, not much older than him, was sitting by the couch, breathing in and out as if trying to calm himself. "Isn''t he my attendant? Why is he sitting sofortably on the couch?"

    Then again, Yun Zhe didn''t bother telling his attendant off. He figured that the young man was probably tired after running a couple of errands a few moments ago during his grand wee. Besides, Yun Zhe didn''t feel the need to have an attendant, so seeing the young man act like someone his age made him feel morefortable.

    "If ck Fog found out that you were cking off, he might bite your head off. Rest easy, though. I''m not going to rat you out. You can rx as much as you can." Yun Zhe called out, sitting beside the ck-haired young man and patting him on the shoulder. "Still, I''m surprised that you''ve been epted to the ck Fog Faction despite your young age. You must be someone talented."

    "I''m sorry?" The ck-haired man asked. He was surprised to see someone in the waiting room with him... and what''s more, the unfamiliar teenager was actually acting all giddy-giddy with him even though this was their first meeting. "I''m sorry. Should I know you?"

    "What?" Yun Zhe was more than surprised. He couldn''t believe that someone from the ck Fog Faction didn''t know who he was.

    "And also, this waiting room should be... shouldn''t this be exclusive to one person? Wait... did I go to the wrong waiting room?" Satoshi eximed, bolting upright and heading towards the waiting room door. He double-checked the number written there, and to his relief, he was in the right room.

    "I''m sorry, what are you talking about? Aren''t you my attendant?" Yun Zhe asked.

    "What? Me? Since when?" Satoshi returned in shock.

 Chapter 318 Representative: Primordial Excalibur

    Yun Zhe stood up, confused, as he stared at Satoshi. He had no idea why there was another person in the waiting room who was supposed to be exclusive to himself. And furthermore, this person even denied that he was his attendant. Yun Zhe knew that the person was assigned to the room to assist him, but he was even denying the job given to him.

    "If this is some sort of borate prank then you can stop now. You don''t have to do anything. You can just stand there by the corner and not bother me while I try to focus on the fight." Yun Zhe said as he headed towards the couch in the middle of the waiting room. He gestured his hand in a weird manner, trying to shoo Satoshi away from the couch.

    "Excuse you?" Satoshi asked out of surprise. To him, it was Yun Zhe who was intruding in his space. This was his waiting room, exclusively for him. He shouldn''t be inclined to share this room with another person especially if that person didn''t even belong herein in the first ce.

    "I said just don''t bother me. You''re assigned as my attendant and you don''t even want to do your job? At the very least just don''t bother me. I have to focus on this fight. This Official Beast Tournament is my debut as the beast master. And I want to show the entire world how strong I am... stronger than the current beast masters who couldn''t even integrate with their beasts properly." Yun Zhe muttered to himself.

    Even with everything he said, Satoshi didn''t budge at all. Ironically, had Yun Zhe asked him properly, he''d have given him some space on the couch. But he didn''t like how Yun Zhe was as demanding as an unfed baby, so he adamantly refused to leave his spot.

    This angered Yun Zhe even more. He was on the verge of actually integrating with one of his tamed beasts just so he''d drive Satoshi out of the room. However, he didn''t want to cause a scene and it would leave a bad taste in his mouth if he made a bad first impression on everyone on his debut. Maintaining hisposure, he stayed where he was, standing menacingly in front of Satoshi, patiently waiting for him to get out of the way.

    ''I''m sure he knows who I am. I don''t have to point out that I''m ck Fog''s master, the one who taught the leader of the ck Fog Faction how to integrate with two beasts. I don''t have to repeat myself. I''m sure he''d get intimidated soon enough.'' Yun Zhe said to himself, proceeding to stare down at Satoshi as if he was some dirt on the ground that needed to be removed.

    "What are you doing?" Satoshi asked. He could feel a little bit of killing intent emanating from Yun Zhe but he wasn''t at all rmed. Even if he picked a fight right then and there, Satoshi knew that he''d be able to handle himself just fine.

    Yun Zhe, on the other hand, was already ring up deep inside. He couldn''t tell why this person from the ck Fog Faction was acting as if he was some sort of a bigshot. He couldn''t understand why that person wouldn''t budge at all, running his patience thin and driving him to the edge.

    "You... I"m only going to say this once. Move and don''t bother me." Yun Zhe asked.

    "You''re the one who''s bothering me. If you don''t want to be bothered then don''t bother anyone." Satoshi curtly responded, clicking his tongue in between his breaths. It wasn''t just Yun Zhe who was beginning to get impatient. Satoshi too was being driven to the edge and he was almost at boiling point. If Yun Zhe makes a wrong move, Satoshi wouldn''t hesitate to counter with full power. He doesn''t care if he hurts Yun Zhe during the fight.

    Then again, Satoshi told himself that he wouldn''t go as far as to give him an injury if they went after each other''s throats. At the end of the day, he could tell that this teenager in front of him is also a beast tamer. He didn''t want him to participate in the Official Beast Tournament with only half his strength.

    [Satoshi, be careful... this guy... he''s got a representative]

    ''What?! This teenager? Are you sure about that?'' Satoshi asked in his mind, his eye twitching when he heard Dex''s voice in his head. The news certainly did surprise him but this wasn''t the first time he met someone with a representative so the experience wasn''t anything new to him.

    [Judging from his innate energy level, I''d say its more than nine thousand] Dex continued, keeping a straight tone in his voice even though he was referencing an old joke from a certain animated series ssic.

    ''What are you talking about?'' Satoshi asked, wondering why Dex was speaking in jargon.<novelnext>  </novelnext>

    [What I mean is... this teenager is not that simple. He''s as strong as you... if not stronger than you.]

    This was the first time Satoshi heard Dex say it so obviously like that. Without further ado, Satoshi reached inside his Orb Oboros, preparing to summon Ghast at a moment''s notice. He was expecting Yun Zhe to be a somewhat above-average beast tamer, but he couldn''t believe that Yun Zhe turned out to be a big shot. He has a representative, and Dex even specifically stated that he was just as strong as Satoshi.

    If worsees to worst and they really have to fight, at least Satoshi didn''t have to hold back.

    For a brief moment, Satoshi released a little bit of killing intent, directing it at Yun Zhe since he was acting like a threat. Yun Zhe misunderstood this small gesture and before he could think twice, he was already integrated with two of his Bengal Tigers which he kept inside Grens (greens are storage spaces used to keep tamed beasts in another dimension).

    Of course, Satoshi also took Yun Zhe''s beast integration the wrong way and he immediately teleported to the corner of the room, integrating with both Sain (his chainsaw familiar) and Droplet (his water-type familiar) while keeping Ghast out in the open. He didn''t want to integrate with him for now since he didn''t need it at all.

    The reason why Satoshi chose both Sain and Droplet was because of their difference in their states of matter. Sain is metallic in nature, and his chainsaws can both be used offensively and defensively. As for Droplet, it provided Satoshi with everything hecked. Since Droplet is a water type, its resiliency was akin to a superhero who''s an expert at water maniption.

    And furthermore, Satoshi also knew that both Sain and Droplet have increased in rank. He hasn''t checked their overall stats but he could tell that they were more powerful than before.

    "If you want to fight, then bring it on," Satoshi called out. Usually, Satoshi would want a situation to be resolved as peacefully as he could but right now, he couldn''t help but feel like wanting to give this Yun Zhe a lesson. Not only did Yun Zhe look down on him, but he also ordered him around as if he was his assistant. Satoshi felt it right in the nerve, and that''s why he couldn''t overlook his actions that easily.

    "As expected from someone in the ck Fog Faction. So you can use the skill Dual Beast Integration huh. But can you do this?" Yun Zhe said, summoning yet another tamed beast which was in the form of a huge broadsword. This huge broadsword had a yellow hilt with gold and white engraving on it. A huge red gem shone on the top part of the hilt right. There was also a hint of a cloud etched on the de of the great broadsword.

    The broadsword floated in front of Yun Zhe, and then it turned into a bright white light. "Primordial Excalibur. I need your strength." Yun Zhe muttered to himself.

    In an instant, Yun Zhe turned into a knight in full armor with his armor having the same color as the Primordial Excalibur. He also held a broadsword in his hand, putting it behind him. Aside from the tiger hide he wore on his back, he also had full armor on. Satoshi could tell that he was able to sessfully perform beast integration with three beasts, also called Trinity Beast Integration.

    "Then how about this," Satoshi called out, summoning Sera and the Ice Empress and integrating with them. In an instant, he turned into a man covered in ice armor. There was an ice spear strapped on his back, but Satoshi preferred dual-wielding the chainsaws provided by Sain. A formless shield of water surrounded Satoshi, and a couple of machine cogs rotated at the top of his head.

    "To think there was such a talent like you in the ck Fog Faction. I''m honestly surprised. I''m not even mad at this point. Seeing someone activate the Quadra Beast Integration other than myself is a breath of fresh air." Yun Zhemented.

    "As I said, I have no idea what you''re talking about." Satoshi heaved a sigh before charging at Yun Zhe, chainsaws zing.

 Chapter 319 A Light Scuffle

    There was no need for words since the two of them had already activated their Beast Integration. One moment, Yun Zhe was standing on the other end of the room; the next moment, he appeared in front of Satoshi, swinging his fists which transformed into a tiger''s paw.

    Amongst all the beast tamers Satoshi fought, this was the first time he encountered someone who could go head-to-head with him. It took Satoshi a split second to react to the attack, but he still managed to guard against it nheless.

    As soon as Yun Zhe''s attack connected, the burst of power from his fist almost sent Satoshi flying. He pulled back his arms, preparing for the next attack so Satoshi won''t be able to recover.

    However, Satoshi manifested chainsaws on his feet, anchoring himself on the ground and taking in the full brunt of Yun Zhe''s attack. It broke both his arms, of course, but it healed instantly, thanks to Sera. The attack also didn''t injure Satoshi that much since Droplet helped absorb most of the damage.

    "You didn''t even budge. But both your arms are broken. You''re a real feisty one, aren''t you?" Yun Zhe said with a smile; his fist was already prepared to unleash another punch.

    Satoshi was expecting such an oue, however. He created a portal behind Yun Zhe and punched as hard as possible. Yun Zhe didn''t see the attack at all, and Satoshi broke his right arm before he could even unleash his punch.

    A grunt came out of Yun Zhe''s mouth as he gritted his teeth in pain. His forearm was broken in two, and it didn''t even take a split second for Satoshi to break it. "Howe... both your hands were broken?"

    No response. Satoshi appeared right behind Yun Zhe and unleashed another punch. He didn''t want to attack him with an area-of-effect since that would destroy the entire room. Besides, he initiated with a punch, so Satoshi more or less figured out that he wanted a fistfight.

    However, it won''t be a simple fistfight since both of them activated their Beast Integration. Satoshi just went head to head with Yun Zhe even though he could tell that Yun Zhe was as strong as him.

    Once again, Yun Zhe wasn''t able to guard Satoshi''s punch, and he was hit right by his obliques. He grunted for a second time wincing in pain. As mentioned before, Satoshi didn''t want to underestimate Yun Zhe, so he didn''t give him any openings.

    While Yun Zhe was wincing in pain, Satoshi disappeared and reappeared in front of him, giving him a good punch right by the sr plexus. Yun Zhe''s eyes widened, and he kneeled on the ground. Oxygen was squeezed out of his lungs, and he wheezed.

    "What? How? Impossible!" Yun Zhe muttered to himself. That window of time when he lost his concentration gave him his loss. In that instant, his beast integration was deactivated.

    Because he assumed that Satoshi is his attendant, he concluded in his mind that Satoshi was probably weaker than most in the ck Fog Faction. In other words, he clearly underestimated Satoshi. Even when he saw that Satoshi could integrate with a lot of tamed beasts, he still thought of him as inferior.

    And that''s how he met his defeat. If he had put his guard up the entire time, he would''ve been able to win against Satoshi.

    "Even though you''re just an attendant... tell me, what''s your rank in the ck Fog Faction?" Yun Zhe asked as he stood up. He didn''t want to fight anymore. He just wanted to sit down and take a rest.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi was kindhearted enough to heal Yun Zhe''s injuries. At the end of the day, both of them are participants in the Official Beast Tournament. Furthermore, Satoshi wanted to have a rematch with him. No holds barred. That''s why he gave him another chance after what happened a moment ago.

    "As I said, I have no idea what you''re talking about. I don''t belong to the ck Fog Faction... well... I do belong to the White Mist Faction, technically speaking... but that''s just because they coerced me to be their teacher." Satoshi pointed out, scratching his head. "How about you? What''s your deal?"

    "Figures, there''s no one as strong as you in the ck Fog Faction. If you were, then I should''ve heard about you before I got here." Yun Zhe muttered to himself. "Now that you said it... I guess we''re more or less the same, huh? I''m also the one who taught ck Fog everything he knows about tamed beasts. You''re pretty strong; you managed to injure me even though I integrated with three of my tamed beasts."

    "I guess I know who I''m going to fight in the finals. By any chance... that Primordial Excalibur of yours... could it be that he''s a Representative?" Satoshi couldn''t help but ask.

    At first, Yun Zhe''s eyes widened. But when he remembered how formidable Satoshi was during their exchange, he wasn''t surprised anymore. He exhaled before he nodded his head. Before Satoshi could add to what he was saying, he pulled out a Gren from his bag and summoned his Representative, Primordial Excalibur.

    "This here is mypanion and my very first tamed beast. I was lucky because he chose me due to my fighting capabilities. I wouldn''t have gotten this far as a beast tamer if it weren''t for this guy." Yun Zhe said, patting the Primordial Excalibur''s hilt as he nodded. "I''m surprised you know about Representatives. Let me guess, that tamed beast of yours with mechanical cogs as halos on her head... she''s a Representative?"

    "You mean Sera?" Satoshi asked, summoning Sera. Sera let out a cute squeal as she rubbed her cheeks on Satoshi''s leg. "She''s a cute one, isn''t she? She''s not a Representative, though."<novelnext></novelnext>

    "What she''s not? Then how about that chainsaw tamed beast of yours?"

    Satoshi shook his head, enjoying the little guessing game Yun Zhe was ying.

    "WHAT?! Then... that tamed beast of yours that looked like a violet-hued ghost... is that a Representative? He''s pretty strong." Yun Zhe asked. His eyes were about to pop out of their sockets while he waited for Satoshi''s reply.

    "No. I didn''t use any of my Representatives during the fight. Now that I think about it... I never used my Representatives whenever I activated my Beast Integration. It just never urred to me." Satoshi responded.

    "YOU''RE KIDDING?! You managed to injure me even without using a Representative? Don''t tell me... are you also a Disciple?" Yun Zhe asked.

    "A disciple? What''s that? I don''t think I''m one." Satoshi responded.

    "Never mind that. In any case, you''re pretty good. What do you say about joining the ck Fog Faction?" Yun Zhe asked, extending his hand toward Satoshi. "I''m Yun Zhe, by the way. Nice to meet you."

    "Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi. The pleasure''s mine. I guess I won''t have to hold back during the finals." Satoshi said, returning Yun Zhe''s handshake. "And no, I''m afraid I won''t be able to join your Faction."

    "Understandable." Yun Zhe said.

    Knock knock.

    There was a pause, followed by the two of them staring toward the door. It was Yun Zhe who stood up to greet who was at the door, though.

    When he opened the door, there were two people standing right behind it. Yun Zhe had no idea why they were there, so he just waited for them to speak up.

    "I''m sorry I waste, sir Yun Zhe. I lost the paper with your waiting room number, so I had to go back to sir ck Fog to ask him." The first person, a guy wearing all-ck, bowed down toward Yun Zhe in greeting.

    "That''s all right." Yun Zhe muttered as he let the guy in. His eyes then drifted towards the second person¡ª ady who was wearing a blouse and a skirt. She seemed to be a worker in the American Dome.

    "Sir, I''m sorry. There''s been a mix-up with the waiting rooms; I''m afraid we assigned two people to one room. We''re really sorry." The girl exined, also bowing down towards Yun Zhe.

    Seeing that he was also part of the concern, Satoshi stood up and approached both Yun Zhe and the girl. "That''s all right. You can just assign one of us to another room. Things happen. We don''t mind." Satoshi answered.

    The girl heaved a sigh of relief since the two participants were friendly. She was still a bit nervous, though, since she had only told them the first half of the problem. "But kind sir... the thing is... there were no more waiting rooms avable."

    "That''s all right. The two of us can stay together in one room. It won''t be a problem. We just have one request, though."

    "Yes sir, please say it." The girl asked.

    "Can we call housekeeping? We kind of left a mess on this room." Yun Zhe said, pointing at the room where he and Satoshi had their light scuffle.

 Chapter 320 Disciple Dream, Initial Selection

    At first, the young girl was shaking in her boots when she sheepishly approached the door. And when she finally found the courage to knock on the door, she closed her eyes.

    Knock knock.

    Her eyes shot wide open in shock when she heard a couple of knocks. "But I didn''t even knock yet..." She muttered to herself as her eyes shifted to the side.

    That''s when she noticed a man dressed in all-ck standing beside her. He was the one who knocked on the door instead of her.

    For a couple of seconds, the young girl just stared at the man as if it was already the end of the world. She was perfectly aware that behind those doors were two beast tamers who could instantly pin her on the ground. And they have every right to be angry¡ª or so that''s what the young girl told herself. After all, the management was the one t fault for mistakably assigning two beast tamers in one waiting room.

    And what''s worse, there were no vacant waiting rooms anymore. Either one of them would give the other party the waiting room, or a fight would ensue. Quite frankly, the young girl didn''t want any part in this. She would''ve avoided the situation if she were to seen iting.

    Unfortunately, she was just new to the job, and the higher-ups decided to assign such a difficult service to her. It''s not like she couldin since she hasn''t proven herself as an employee of the American Dome. That''s why she was given such a difficult task.

    Of course, she has her superpower, but she could more or less guess that it won''t be enough to deal with the beast tamers behind the door. She''s just a regr employee while these guys arepeting in the Official Beast Tournament.

    When the door creaked open, the girl just stood there. She wasn''t ready to face the two beast tamers. Deep inside, she wanted to kick the living daylights out of the guy who knocked on the door. But as it turned out, he was actually an assistant for one of the beast tamers. When she came to realize that, she felt a little bit empathic toward him. The two of them were both employees, after all, working under ridiculous bosses.

    "Sir, I''m sorry. There''s been a mix-up with the waiting rooms; I''m afraid we assigned two people to one room. We''re really sorry." The girl exined, also bowing down towards Yun Zhe. She couldn''t help but bite her lips, fearing that she''d get a beating as soon as she said what he had to.

    Seeing that he was also part of the concern, Satoshi stood up and approached both Yun Zhe and the girl. "That''s all right. You can just assign one of us to another room. Things happen. We don''t mind." Satoshi answered.

    The girl heaved a sigh of relief since the two participants were friendly. She was still a bit nervous, though, since she had only told them the first half of the problem. "But kind sir... the thing is... there were no more waiting rooms avable."

    "That''s all right. The two of us can stay together in one room. It won''t be a problem. We just have one request, though."

    "Yes sir, please say it." The girl asked.

    "Can we call housekeeping? We kind of left a mess in this room." Yun Zhe pointed at the room where he and Satoshi had their light scuffle.

    ...

    With the ce cleaned up and with anotheryer of apologies from the management itself, Satoshi and Kazuichi were finally left to their own devices. Satoshi returned to his seat on the couch, waiting for the announcement of the brackets for the Official Beast Tournament. As for Yun Zhe, he decided to grab a bite first, assuming his position behind the counter.

    "Do you want to eat anything? I only have ramen." Yun Zhe asked casually, to which Satoshi nodded in response.

    A couple of minutester, Yun Zhe sat beside Satoshi with two bowls of cooked instant ramen in hand. He handed one bowl to Satoshi before giving him chopsticks. "When did you start? Being a beast tamer, I mean."

    "This year, you?" Satoshi casually answered. The two of them were like good old friends who hadn''t seen each other for quite some time. Despite the fact that they had just met today, their light scuffle a moment ago brought them closer together.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "This year? And you''re already this strong?!" Yun Zhe eximed, almost spilling the bowl of ramen he was bncing with one hand. "But then again... if you were thiste, then that means you can''t be a disciple."

    "A disciple?" Every time Yun Zhe would bring up the word, Satoshi couldn''t help but ask him about it. He had no idea what Yun Zhe meant about being a disciple, but it seemed somewhat rted to his innate strength as a beast tamer. Hence, Satoshi''s curiosity was piqued.

    "Yes, so a couple of years ago... sixteen years ago? A strange phenomenon happened to a few superheroes out there. It wouldn''t have been brought to light, but there were many superheroes who experienced the same phenomenon. This phenomenon is called the Disciple Dream, and only those who were chosen were given this dream." Yun Zhe started his exnation.

    "And?"

    "The funny thing is, those who received this dream weren''t given anything. In fact, they don''t gain anything from the dream itself." Yun Zhe continued. "The dreams varied. Some mentioned their rtive bing a disciple. As for me, my adoptive grandfather received the dream, telling him to get a disciple and he''ll be powerful."

    "So it''s like an inheritance, huh?" Satoshi asked.

    "That''s right." Yun Zhe ate a mouthful of ramen before proceeding. "The phenomenon died down, but a few years back, it rose up once again. When the Dimensional Portal to the Beast Dimension first opened on Earth, those who were granted the disciple title were more attuned to taming beasts."

    "As for me, though, I''ve already found what my talent was ever since I was a kid. That''s why I was able to grow at such insane speeds even without the guidance of a beast tamer."

    "And these people are joining the Official Beast Tournament right now?" Satoshi asked. The underlying fact in Yun Zhe''s exnation sent chills down his spine. If what Yun Zhe said was true, then there should be more beast tamers who are as strong as him in this tournament.

    "That, I am not sure. When the link between the Disciple Dreams and Beast Tamers surfaced, those who were granted the title disappeared from the scene. It seemed like they decided to hide their true abilities instead of showing the world just how strong they were. Or maybe... I was so detached from the world that I didn''t know where they were. In any case, these people might even be stronger than me."

    "So there''s a good chance that they''re going to debut here in the Official Beast Tournament, huh? But why now? You''re also going to debut, right?" Satoshi asked. Somehow, the two of them had the same mindset about debuting in the Official Beast Tournament.

    "I think it''s because... the Initial Selection is bound to happen soon. I''ve only been told about it by my grandfather, so I don''t know the details but apparently... there will be a tournament where the Disciples would duke it out." Yun Zhe continued. "There are many disciples, so I''m sure not all of them would join the Initial Selection... but the price for the Initial Selection is pretty good... or so that''s what my grandfather told me. I''m going to join."

    "I see, so you''re trying to get as much experience as possible before the actual thing. That''s nice." Satoshimented. "This is my first Official Beast Tournament, and I wanted to debut by winning first ce. Then again, I''m not sure if I''d be able to do it... seeing that there are a lot more beast tamers who could be as strong as you."

    "You''re already plenty strong... and your tamed beasts could even rival Representatives, so I think you have a clear shot at winning this. I won''t be surprised if you encounter some beast tamers with Representatives with them, though. As far as I''m concerned, having a Representative as a tamed beast is a clear indication that that person is a Disciple... or at least, there''s a huge chance that that person''s a disciple."

    "As for you, are you really sure that you''re not a disciple? Can you summon your Representative? I want to see it." Yun Zhe continued.

    "I have two... but the other one won''t fit in here, so I''ll just show you the other one," Satoshi said. "He''s actually in this room all this time."

    In an instant, Dex appeared out of thin air. This time he assumed the appearance of a modernputer.

    "A System-Type?! WHAT?! Are you really sure you''re not a Disciple?!" Yun Zhe almost screamed his lungs out in utter astonishment.

 Chapter 321 Sinister Zither, Hero Disciple

    "A System-Type?! WHAT?! Are you really sure you''re not a Disciple?!" Yun Zhe almost screamed his lungs out in utter astonishment.

    Unlike Satoshi, Yun Zhe actually did his research on Representatives. Hence why he was able to figure out that Dex was a System Type at first nce. That information didn''t take any credit from Dex''s significance, though. And Yun Zhe was still just as surprised despite being aware of it.

    "Look here, Satoshi, a System Type is one of the most powerful Representatives out there. My Representative is a Defensive Type which gives me the additional attack and defense. There are many more types of Representatives out there, but I''m pretty satisfied with what I have."

    The two continued conversing about Representatives and Tamed Beasts. Yuuta was actually surprised that there were a lot of things he didn''t know about tamed beasts and representatives in general. During their conversation, Satoshi also realized the innate nature of tamed beasts¡ª that they''re constantly seeking ways to be stronger. He could finally exin the strange phenomenon of them leveling up out of nowhere and bing formidable. As it turned out, they were training inside the dimension created by Orb Oboros.

    While they were getting too into the topics of training and their own ways of bonding with their tamed beasts, the television screen propped on the wall suddenly turned on, and an announcement shed on the screen. Satoshi and Yun Zhe immediately stopped what they were talking about. They knew that the announcement involved the Official Beast Tournament, so they decided to pay attention no matter what.

    [The Official Beast Tournament is finallymencing! Please look forward to your brackets. It will be posted soon.] The letters on the television read.

    "Here we go. Are we going to be in the same division... or not? Fifty-fifty." Yun Zhe muttered, crossing his fingers since he didn''t want to fight Satoshi before the finals. He could more or less guess that Satoshi is capable of reaching the finals. And to himself, as biased as he was, he knew that he could go head-to-head with Satoshi as long as he didn''t underestimate him.

    "I hope not. That way, we can have a rematch in the finals." Satoshi responded, to which Yun Zhe smiled. They were thinking the same thing; that much was obvious.

    When five minutes had already passed, Satoshi and Yun Zhe both held their breaths since the brackets were about to be posted. The two of them felt as if they were entering their first match. That was how nervous they were while they waited for the announcement.

    Gulp.

    Three...

    Two...

    One...

    The pairings were finally posted, and Satoshi immediately scanned the name of more than a hundred participants. Yun Zhe did the same thing, still crossing his fingers in hopes that he won''t be in the same division as Satoshi.

    "There! Right there!" After a few seconds, Yun Zhe eximed as if he had just seen something memorable. His eyes then lit up as he looked at the other side of the list. His eyes then darted from the list and then to Satoshi, then back to the list again. Before Satoshi could ask him what was going on, Yun Zhe grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him violently.

    Satoshi felt as if his head was about to fly from his neck. "Wha- what... why?" Satoshi almost bit his tongue as he spoke.

    "Your name! It''s on the other side! We''re not in the same bracket! We have a chance of seeing each other in the finals." Yun Zhe said, finally letting go of Satoshi as he clenched both his fists. He seemed more fired up than usual as he extended his hand towards Satoshi, his fist still clenched. "No, I''m sure of it. I''ll be able to get to the finals. I''ll see you there, Satoshi, my rival."

    Satoshi nodded as he fist-bumped Yun Zhe''s fists. He had no idea why Yun Zhe was acting like that. It''s not like he was going anywhere for him to be saying such words.

    "You better get going. You have someone to defeat!" Yun Zhe continued, patting Satoshi on the shoulder.

    Up until now, Satoshi still hasn''t seen his name on the list. That''s why he had no idea that he was actually the first match happening that day.

    "What are you talking about?" Satoshi asked, confused.

    "You''re up! You''re the first on the list. You''ll be fighting someone named Hero Disciple. I''m pretty sure that''s his superhero name. Why''s he using his superhero name on the Official Beast Tournament?" Yun Zhe said to himself. "Well, in any case, you''d better get going, Satoshi. You have the fight to win!"<novelnext></novelnext>

    After checking the list and confirming that he was actually the first fight of the day, Satoshi nodded toward Yun Zhe and headed outside. Orb Oboros and Dex were right beside him as he exited the room. And even though he felt a tinge of nervousness deep within, he felt assured that Dex and every one of his familiars was on his side. This time, he didn''t intend to lose.

    On his way to the grand stage in the middle of the American Stadium, Satoshi was wondering why he was in the first match. There were more than a hundred participants, so that means he had less than two percent in being part of the first match. "But then again, this is my debut fight. I''m going to show everything I''ve learned up until now. This should be an easy win." Satoshi muttered to himself, pumping himself up before the fight.

    Meanwhile, the Hero Disciple was already standing opposite the stage. He was wearing tights, and a cap fluttered on his back. A mask was pulled on his face with a stark bright red and bright blue color. The letter ''Z'' was written on his chest as if it meant something (quite frankly, it looked like a poor attempt at dressing like a certain powerful superhero whose weakness is a particr rock.)

    "Satoshi, eh? Can''t say I don''t know the kid... but this should be an easy win for me." Hero Disciple said to himself, puffing his chest and crossing his arms in front of him. For someone who knows of Satoshi''s identity as a beast tamer, he sure seemed confident.

    As soon as Satoshi appeared on the screen and appeared on the field, quite a huge portion of the audience started screaming and cheering for him. Satoshi didn''t expect such a reaction at all, so much so that he flinched the moment the cheers erupted.

    His ears reddening, Satoshi made his way towards the grand stage. He was prepared to fight, but somehow he felt oddly weirded out by the strange costume the Hero Disciple wore.

    "Ah! Satoshi! Finally, our battle will be legendary!" Hero Disciple said, raising his fist in the air as he let out a growled roar. "I know who you are... and I also know that I can defeat you. I don''t even have to do anything to defeat you." Hero Disciple smirked as he pulled out a Gren from his pockets. He then threw it and a weird creature came out.

    The creature didn''t look like a creature at all. It was a floating zither and a dark energy emanated from it. Satoshi could tell from one look alone that the floating zither was not an ordinary tamed beast. The power he sensed from the zither was close to the energy level of a Representative.

    [Satoshi...] Dex suddenly spoke out in his mind.

    "Yes? What is it?" Satoshi asked back, almost flinching a second time after hearing Dex''s voice in his head out of nowhere.

    [Don''t be fooled. That''s a Music-Type Representative called the Sinister Zither. You might think it''s weak, but it''s hiding its true nature. Its ten times more powerful than it seems. Also, don''t be surprised, but that tamed beast is actually a Representative. That guy wants you to underestimate him, but it won''t work.]

    "How would we be able to defeat it?"

    While Satoshi was talking to Dex in his head, the acting referee of the match was put in a rather awkward situation. Hero Disciple was still bbering about his tamed beast and how he''d be able to win, but no one was actually listening to him. Even thementator''s patience was running thin since Hero Disciple kept on interrupting him.

    [You have to... h h h~] Dex exined as the countdown began. Dex was fairly certain that the Sinister Zither was much stronger than him, that''s why he didn''t hesitate to control the situation so it would tip on his master''s favor.

    "Now, who are you going ot start with, huh? Huh?!" Hero Disciple taunted.

    "..."

    "..."

    "START!" The referee screamed just so the Hero Disciple would pay attention to the signal.

    SLASH!

    Before Satoshi could even integrate with any of his tamed beast, he saw himself falling on the ground. His body was cut int two, and he watched in horror as his upper body fell while his legs remained upright.

 Chapter 322 Octo

    The sudden bloodshed that ensued as soon as the match started greatly shocked the entire audience body. They simultaneously gasped as they saw Satoshi''s body being cut cleanly in half. It didn''t even happen in a hundredth of a second. Everything happened all at once, as if the man had pre-nned the attack before the signal was even given.

    Silence then filled the entire American Dome as Satoshi''s body, from the stomach up, slid towards the ground, and he fell. Some of his guts spilled the moment his upper body slipped and plopped to the ground like a useless pile of meat.

    "What happened?" Satoshi perplexedly questioned as his eyes looked up towards the open ceiling of the American Dome. Beyond the ceiling were the stars. A cloudless sky greeted Satoshi, with the new moon barely showing off its shine around its edges.

    For once, Satoshi felt peaceful and light-headed at the same time. He was losing a lot of blood. And yet, somehow, he felt a certain tranquil deep within. It''s as if his heart found a disturbing state of peace and quiet that blocked everything in his brain.

    "Wait... what''s going on... why can''t I¡ª" Blood flowed from the edges of Satoshi''s lips as he tilted his head towards the side. From afar, he could see his parents trying to suppress themselves from going to the stage and stopping the fight at all costs. His dad, Tatsuki, covered Aira''s eyes while Shiroi and Emma clenched their fists until they bled. Their eyes were tearful, and they constantly prayed for Satoshi to get up and do the impossible. As for Satoshi''s grandparents, Grado and Lina were already rushing down the stairs toward the nearest edge of the audience seats. If Satoshi''s life reached a critical level of endangerment, they were ready to swoop in and save him at a moment''s notice.

    "It''s weird... I can''t contact my familiars. My mental link is gone." Satoshi muttered to himself as his consciousness dwindled.

    Meanwhile, Hero Disciple just stood there, pping his hand. Satoshi could''ve sword that he caught a glimpse of a mantis-like tamed beast right behind the Hero Disciple, appearing and disappearing as if it was on camouge.

    "I guess a simple psychic-type attack that blocks mind links and a speedy attack is all it takes to defeat one of the strongest beast tamers out there." Hero Disciple said, approaching Satoshi like a predator waiting for his prey to bleed out and die slowly.

    "Cough~, so that''s what it was. No wonder..." Satoshi coughed out blood, but he still hung on to his consciousness. While he had no idea how he''d get out of such a sticky situation, he knew there was a chance he could escape.

    "You might as well forfeit this match. I''m sorry to say, but you''re no match for me." Hero Disciple said.

    Satoshi coughed out blood a second time before he gritted his teeth. Before Hero Disciple could continue with his convincing, Satoshi forced himself to wear a smile on his face. He chuckled. "And why do I need to forfeit this match when I''m going to win anyways."

    His deration reverberated throughout the entire American Dome, sending chills up and down everyone''s spine as he let out a significant amount of bloodthirst from within. Satoshi exuded the false bravado of winning the match; somehow, everyone misunderstood it.

    "Let''s see how long you canst."

    Before Satoshi could even move an inch from where he was lying down, Hero Disciple revealed the tamed beast he was integrated with. Satoshi was right; it was actually a praying mantis in camouge.

    Aside from the Sinister Zither that Hero Disciple summoned. It was the one responsible for blocking Satoshi''s link with his tamed beasts.

    The invisible praying mantis lifted one of its jackknife ws, bringing it down like a sword about to take one''s life in a snap of a finger. Satoshi already saw himself getting pierced through the heart in his imagination, and that''s why the only thing he did was close his eyes and activate his power.

    It was hisst desperate attempt to counter the move of the praying mantis.

    Ting!

    .....

    For a moment, Dex was distracted by the appearance of the Representative called the Sinister-Zither that he forgot to take immediate action when the referee signaled themencement of the match. Before he could react, Dex found himself in a dark ce somewhere. He concluded that he was teleported out of the American Dome.

    There was no time to figure out what was going on, and Dex immediately realized that he was transported into another dimension. His second realization was what rmed him the most since he also realized that Satoshi was in danger. Despite the fact that he lost his mind link with Satoshi and that he had no idea what was happening to Satoshi at the present, he could feel deep inside that Satoshi was in grave danger.

    [I have to get back. I have to get back as soon as possible.] Dex repeated to himself.<novelnext></novelnext>

    One of the innate abilities of a System-Type Representative was their power to connect with other tamed beasts. Right now, even though he couldn''t connect to Satoshi''s mind, he knew that he''d be able to connect with the others. He figured that they should at least know where Satoshi was, or at least one of them is still linked to Satoshi.

    The moment he reconnected with everyone, however, he realized that they, too, were transported to different dimensions. Thankfully, Ghast managed to bring everyone together in less than thirty seconds, thanks to his portal creation ability.

    ''We have to get back. Our master''s in danger.'' White Lion spoke in his mind. Since Dex was connected to everyone, all of them couldmunicate their thoughts.

    ''But how do we go back?'' This time, it was the Ice Empress who voiced out her worries. She was actually transported to a dimension where eternal mes were burning. Her life was almost extinguished, but fortunately, Dex and Ghast were quick enough to rescue her from there.

    [It''s easy. With Ghast''s help, we should be able to pinpoint Satoshi''s current location right now. I''m going to give you administrative ess to my mind, Ghast. It''s all up to you. Based on our location and based on the dimensions where we were previously transported, you should be able to find our way back to Earth.] Dex continued.

    ''Now that I think about it... where''s Statue of Captivity?'' Droplet thought.

    ''Droplet didn''t lose his link to Satoshi, or so that''s what I want to believe right now. At the moment, I can''t mind link with him. Let''s just hope for the best.''

    With Dex''s knowledge and Ghast''s expertise in crafting portals, they were able to find a roundabout way of teleporting to Satoshi''s side. First, they must hop from one dimension to another, retracing their way from when they were transported in a thousandth of a second. Once they get to the Beast Dimension or the Dimension where Emma came from, they''d be able to teleport beside Satoshi at once.

    ''I got it. Let''s go. I''m not going to give everyone a break. If you want to puke, just puke.'' Ghast reminded everyone as he created the first portal.

    ...

    Once they passed through the second to thest portal, Ryu Ryoko vomited first, then Sera. The third one to vomit was the Alpha Red Smander, followed by Gabriel and the Ice Empress. it seems like no one was immune to the dimension-sickness that happens when one frequents teleporting.

    ''We''re almost there.''

    Fwoop~

    The silence that filled the dimension suddenly turned opposite when everyone was greeted with the noise. The Cloak Of Invisibility, instructed by Dex, covered everyone so the audience won''t be surprised when more than a dozen tamed beasts showed up out of nowhere.

    When they got back to the scene, however, they saw that one of Hero Disciple''s tamed beasts was already in the process of stabbing Satoshi through the heart. But before anything could happen, a small tamed beast came out of nowhere, blocking the praying mantis''s attack and getting stabbed herself.

    The tamed beast in question was a small octopus, royal purple in color. It had a cute disposition. That''s why it seemed like an act of abuse or bullying when it was stabbed straight through.

    ? Satoshi was nearing death, and on hisst couple of breaths, he decided to use his power to im the cute octopus as his own. It was given to him by his grandfather before they got here, but he hasn''t linked with it, nor has he tamed it because he was too focused on his debut.

    Who would''ve thought that such an underdog of a tamed beast would actually save him in a pinch? "I leave it to you, Octo." Satoshi continued, giving his new familiar a nickname.

    Octo glowed brightly, and then Satoshi didn''t waste any time integrating with his new familiar. In a split second, his lower body immediately connected with his upper body, and his energy was replenished instantly. As it turned out, Octo had high regeneration, and it was even boosted thanks to Satoshi''s superpower.

    "Sweet~" Satoshi muttered under his breath, still tasting the residue of the blood he coughed up a few moments ago.

 Chapter 323 Overwhelming Victory

    "Sweet~" Satoshi muttered under his breath, still tasting the residue of the blood he had coughed up a few moments ago.

    WHOAAAAHHH!

    Exhrating and intense cheers could be hearding from the audience as they realized the upset that had just happened. A couple of seconds ago, Satoshi was lying down on the ground on the verge of death. No, he was supposed to be dead by now. But before anyone could stop the match, before anyone could forfeit, and before Hero Disciple brought down his finishing blow, Satoshi summoned a weird-looking tamed beast that looked like a cute octopus.

    That octopus then integrated with Satoshi. Right before another blow was dealt by the invisible praying mantis, Satoshi arose as if from the grave. His body was d with ck strips of cloth that tightly wrapped all over his body. A stylish skirt wrapped around his legs, and tentacles could be seen growing from his lower back. His left eye turned a lovely red and ck color, and red veins could be seen growing on the edges of his eyes. His hair also turned a pleasing shade of white and ck, and he smiled a sinister smile as if he was possessed by something other than the cute octopus. (To anyone who still didn''t get the reference, he looks like someone with a ''kagune'' right now.)

    "What is this power?" Satoshi asked himself in wonderment. His body felt much lighter than usual, as if he''d grown wings on his feet. His breathing evened out, and the bloodthirst that emanated from deep within escaped all at once, causing Satoshi to feel like an apex predator.

    Quite frankly, Satoshi felt stark naked right now since the ck strips of cloth that covered his entire body felt weightless. It was ufortable, but in a way, it gave Satoshi the freedom he needed to optimize his speed and agility to inhuman levels.

    "A cute octopus like that... it didn''t seem that strong. But can you rival a representative right now? After losing a lot of blood?" Hero Disciple asked as if he still had the edge in the fight. He didn''t want to show Satoshi that he felt rather nervous. He was too afraid that he even integrated with Sinister Zither before he knew it.

    "You''re calling this cute?" Satoshi said, licking his lips. He then crouched low, feeling every tentacle that grew behind him. Weirdly enough, he could feel every part of it. He could tell that each tentacle contained an immeasurable amount of pure power.

    "Let''s try one tentacle right now," Satoshi said, mming one of the eight tentacles on the ground.

    BOOM!

    A sizeable crater appeared where Satoshi was standing a split second ago. Satoshi disappeared, reappearing in front of Hero Disciple, elerating in an abnormal manner and unleashing an attack with another tentacle.

    Satoshi had to react with a snap of a finger. When he hit one tentacle on the ground with a hundred percent of its power, he zoomed in the air faster than the speed of sound. If it weren''t for the ck strips of cloth that protected his body, he would''ve snapped on all the wrong joints due to the whish.

    Still, even with such an insane eleration, Satoshi managed to react on time, thanks to his reaction speed. Tightening his core, he essed another tentacle behind him, whipping it towards the Hero Disciple.

    Even after all that, Hero Disciple still saw through Satoshi''s attack, blocking the tentacle with one of the jackknife ws of his praying mantis tamed beast.

    The attack connected, but the tentacle Satoshi used for his attack was cut cleanly in half. He flinched as the pain shot to his head. He didn''t stop his relentless attack, however. The moment hended, he elerated towards Hero Disciple without reprieve. The thought of backing down never urred in Satoshi''s mind. He just kept charging and attacking with his tentacle.

    As for the Hero Disciple, he kept on blocking and cutting Satoshi''s tentacles. Thanks to integrating with his representative, he could keep up with Satoshi''s fast-paced attack. He was evenughing under his breath since he had already cut Satoshi''s tentacles more than twenty times.

    He could tell that Satoshi had a vast pool of pure energy, but at the rate, he was going, it would get depleted soon. Regeneration expends much energy, after all, and Satoshi had been regenerating his tentacles as soon as it was cut.

    "Faster! FASTER! FASTER! IS THAT ALL YOU CAN DO, BEAST MASTER?!" Hero Disciple screamed at the top of his lungs as he sidestepped the moment Satoshi unleashed another attack. Because of Satoshi''s miscalction, the Hero Disciple managed to get around him, cutting all his tentacles instantly.

    "Gah~!" Satoshi let out a painful interjection as he copsed on the ground. Blood poured forth from his mouth, ck blood in the color of octopus ink. This didn''t stop him from regenerating all his tentacles, though.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Satoshi copsed, not because he was running out of energy, but because he felt more rejuvenated the more damage was inflicted upon him. Even with ck inking out of his mouth, he smiled, wiped the ck juice which smeared his face, and stood up as if nothing had happened.

    The tentacles protruding from his lower back felt more sinister than usual, more powerful. And for the first time during the entire fight, Satoshi remembered that the small octopus was actually a gift from his grandfather. He then recalled the bandages that were wrapped all over his grandfather''s body. If the mini octopus could injure his grandfather, whom he couldn''t defeat in a single practice match, it just goes to show that it was far more formidable than it seemed.

    "I hope you''re prepared to lose, Hero Disciple. I don''t know what underhanded tricks you have under your sleeves, but I''m sure I could defeat you with one tamed beast." Satoshi dered.

    "Then don''t mind me for going all out." The Hero Disciple said, summoning another tamed beast. Satoshi had no idea what kind of tamed beast he summoned since he immediately integrated with it.

    Satoshi could more or less tell that the tamed beast was an Unearthly Type, though, based on its emitted dark energy.

    [Satoshi, we''re back. I''m sorry. I didn''t expect the Sinister Zither to cut off our mind links. If it were any ordinary people, they''d have fainted from shock. It truly is an underhanded attack.] Dex announced.

    "Dex! I''m d you''re back. I thought I lost all of you..." Satoshi gleefully eximed as he heard Dex''s voice in his head. In that instant, he also gained ess to all his familiars. Satoshi was surprised that the Statue of Captivity was actually right behind him, and he didn''t even sense it. It just goes to show that the Statue of Captivity was that powerful. It could even mask its presence despite its sheer size.

    [Looks like we didn''t have to swoop in, Satoshi. We''ll watch by the sidelines while you take care of that guy. We know for a fact that you can take him down. We''ll just have to wait for our turn during the second round.] Dex continued while all the other familiars nodded behind him in agreement.

    In any case, they were d that nothing bad happened to their master while they were gone. They did feel a tad bit guilty since they allowed such a thing to happen, but there was nothing they could do about it. Sinister Zither is a Representative, after all. Without Satoshi with them, they don''t stand a chance against it.

    "Right, I won''t let you down, guys." Satoshi rubbed his nose. "Let''s go, Octo."

    "Now we''re talking." Hero Disciple said. He was well aware that Satoshi had regained his mind link to his other familiars. That''s why he was expecting Satoshi to unleash his full power.

    By now, Hero Disciple had already epted his defeat. He knew that if he fought against Satoshi fair and square, he wouldn''t stand a chance of winning.

    Before Satoshi could charge toward Hero Disciple, something in his mind clicked, and it seemed like his new familiar, Octo, was telling him something. He felt the tentacles behind him stretch and unstretch. "Right, why didn''t I think of that?" Satoshi muttered to himself as he took a step back.

    The audience watched in anticipation as Satoshi continued retreating. They had no idea why Satoshi was backing down instead of charging at the Hero Disciple. Nevertheless, they couldn''t take their eyes off Satoshi.

    That''s when some sort of ck wings appeared behind Satoshi, and they started shooting ck blobs of ink toward the Hero Disciple. Countless tentacles also grew behind Satoshi''s back. These tentacles shot towards the Hero Disciple, stretching indefinitely as they pummelled and harassed the Hero Disciple like a vague representation of a questionable anime genre. It didn''t take long before Hero Disciple was ''overwhelmed'' by the tentacles, and he was powerlessly pushed out of bounds.

    "AND THE WINNER FOR THE FIRST MATCH IS¡ª" The referee yelled out.

    "MIDORIYAMA SATOSHIIIII!"

 Chapter 324 The Mans Grass-Type Army

    Loud cheers erupted amongst the crowd once again as Satoshi emerged victorious from the fight. He was cornered to the point where he was on the verge of losing, yet he could turn the tides of the battle and win. This was only the first round, but the entire audience didn''t expect such a development to ur this early.

    As soon as the match ended, Tatsuki and his wife, Ayumu, were the first ones to go down the stage to check up on Satoshi. He was hurt really badly during the match, and even when he had regenerated most of his damage, they couldn''t help but worry, the doting parents they are.

    "Are you all right? That guy, if dad didn''t stop me, I''d have knocked the living daylights out of him." Tatsuki said, clenching his fists as he looked at Hero Disciple, who was being transferred to a gurney and being rolled out of the grand stage.

    "I''m as frustrated as you are, dear, but if we''d had stepped in, we would''ve ruined our son''s debut. At the very least, father-inw did the right thing by stopping us." Ayumu muttered under her breath after she heaved a sigh. She then grabbed Satoshi by the head and kissed him on the forehead. "You sure you''re not hurt anywhere? The Nurse is somewhere in the crowd. I can find him for you and tell her to tend to your injuries."

    "I''m fine, mom," Satoshi tried to convince his parents, but they still checked his limbs and stomach in front of the audience to make sure that he was all right.

    "Do your best out there, son. That was a close one, but we know you have a chance to win the tournament." Tatsuki patted his son on the back before he flew back to his seat with his wife.

    As for Satoshi, he proceeded to the stadium exit and headed toward his waiting room. A smile formed on his lips as he felt the lucky charm in his pocket. He thought that maybe Shiroi''s cheers reached him, and that''s how he managed to snag a win against the Hero Disciple.

    "Still, I didn''t expect the Hero Disciple to be that strong. If it weren''t for grandpa''s tamed beast, I''d have died for good." Satoshi muttered to himself. "Still, isn''t it illegal to remove someone''s mind link? If it were anyone else, they''d have fainted from shock. At least they don''t have to worry about that now that the Hero Disciple is out of his game."

    When Satoshi got to the training room, he saw that Yun Zhe was right outside, standing in front of the waiting room while talking to a girl.

    "Is Satoshi inside?" The girl asked.

    "Why? Are you one of his fans? You shouldn''t disturb him, you know." Yun Zhe scratched his head as he tried to shoo the girl away gently.

    "No, I''m not... I''m his... " Shiroi trailed off. She was about to tell Yun Zhe that she was Satoshi''s childhood friend, but she could tell that Yun Zhe won''t believe her.

    ? "Shiroi? What are you doing here?" Satoshi asked as he walked up to the two.

    "Ah, your girlfriend? You should''ve told me sooner. You cane inside. I''m cooking another batch of ramen if you want." Yun Zhe casually concluded as he opened the door and gestured for the two of them to enter.

    "No, I''m¡ª" Shiroi tried to deny what Yun Zhe just assumed. However, Yun Zhe couldn''t be bothered to listen since he headed straight to the kitchen area of the waiting room where his assistant was waiting. The two of them then proceeded to cook the second batch of ramen for the day.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi led Shiroi to the couch, they didn''t talk all that much, and a faint shade of red could be seen on their face. They were affected by what Yun Zhe just blurted out, causing the atmosphere between them to be awkward.

    "By the way, great job out there, Satoshi. I thought you were going to lose against that Disciple, but you managed to pull through. As expected of my rival." Yun Zhemented, initiating the conversation while he continued cooking. "In any case, why do you have the Kraken with you?"

    "The Kraken?" Satoshi asked, clueless as to what Yun Zhe was referring to. It didn''t even ur to him that the tamed beast he used during the fight was an octopus.

    "Yes, you know, the tamed beast you used during the fight. It''s one of the most powerful beasts out there. It''s a triple-s grade beast, but no one bothered catching it since it''s a pain. Last year, I remembered the White Mist Faction and the ck Fog Faction trying to capture that beast, but the two groups were unsessful."<novelnext></novelnext>

    "You were lucky. I have no idea how you managed to tame that monster, but it was worth the catch, right?" Yun Zhe smiled. He then proceeded to say more information about the Kraken and how it was almost impossible to tame it.

    Apparently, the Kraken is actually a general of an army. It leads an entire army of smaller Kraken, most of which are S-Grade, or even SS-Grade. For a single person, it''s already hard to go head-to-head against one S-GRade. That''s why facing an army of Krakens proved to be very difficult. Even thergest Factions couldn''t even get close to the leader of the Kraken.

    "Your strength is the real deal if you were able to catch the main one. Judging by how strong your Kraken was... you were able to tame their leader, huh." Yun Zhe continued.

    Satoshi''s mind then drifted back to his grandfather''s injuries. Now he knew how he got those wounds. He couldn''t help but tear up at the sacrifice that his grandfather did, all so he could show his support to his one and only grandson. And quite frankly, it was all thanks to his grandfather that he was able to win his first match in the tournament. ''I guess I should thank my grandfatherter. If it weren''t for him...''

    "I... I brought some food." Shiroi spoke out of the blue, interrupting Satoshi''s line of thought. Before Satoshi could say anything, she unwrapped the bento box she was carrying and gave one to Satoshi.

    As if on cue, Yun Zhe was also done cooking ramen, and he set two bowls in front of Satoshi and Shiroi. "Eat up. As a proud ramen chef, I can assure you that it tastes good." He puffed his chest as he informed them.

    "Itadakimasu."

    "Itadakimasu."

    .....

    Somewhere in the Beast Dimension.

    A man wearing a familiar green hat and a tunic robe made his way to the water biome in the Beast Dimension. He had done everything he could to prepare for the fight that was about to ensue. And judging from the expression on his face, it was evident that he expected to win such a battle.

    Everything went as scheduled. He managed to tame an army of Grass-Types, and he would be using that army to go against the infamous Kraken Army. The preparation took months, but the man knew that he could still make it in time for the Official Beast Tournament. "The pair-ups were already announced, right? I''ll be fighting in the middle rounds, so I still have an hour or so before my match. Heh~ that''s more than enough time to swoop in and capture one of the most problematic beasts in the Beast Dimension."

    "Man, I''d be really popr if I pulled this one off. Not that I''m not popr, but I''m going to get even more popr." The man continued, tapping his boots before getting his signature dagger out of its casing. He then raised his dagger to pose for no reason. "Now, I''m ready!"

    Without further ado, the man then summoned all his tamed beasts right by the shores of the water biome. He knew that this fight would really expend a lot of his energy as a beast tamer, but it was all worth it. At the end of the day, he''lle out of the Beast Dimension with another tamed beast in tow. And that tamed beast would be none other than the boss of the Kraken Army, the triple-s grade Kraken that no one has ever tamed.

    Just the thought of capturing the boss of the Kraken Army made the man smile. As he grinned from ear to ear, he pointed his dagger forward and screamed at the top of his lungs. "ATTACK!!!"

    Usually, the moment someone or something stepped on the water, the Kraken Army would be summoned. That''s why the man expected hundreds of Kraken toe out all at once as soon as he charged. To his surprise, the water waspletely still even after he and his Grass-Type Army charged ever forward.

    His jaw dropped in shock as he realized that the Kraken Army was nowhere to be found. "What''s going on?!" He muttered dejectedly as he copsed on his knees.

 Chapter 325 The Hunt

    A clear vast oceany in front of the man and his Grass-Type Army. It was a surreal view, one that was tranquil, peaceful, and really breathtaking. And yet, despite the picture-perfect scenery in front of him, the man was utterly disappointed. Here he was, looking for a fight, and yet there was nothing there. The Kraken Army was once a formidable attraction in that area and was nowhere to be found.

    It was obvious that they''d dispersed for good. But how? The man could only think of one thing that could happen. Of course, someone was able to tame the supreme leader of the Kraken Army. Nevertheless, the man still couldn''t ept the fact that the Kraken Army had already been defeated. Something like that should''ve made the news right now. But no, he hasn''t heard anyone ever iming that they''ve defeated the Kraken Army.

    "Maybe it was someone else from another dimension? No, that''s impossible. No one''s capable of such a feat unless I know him or her. Or maybe... the person who defeated the Kraken Army is just like me... A Disciple." The man continued.

    "No, wait... it''s possible. If that person is a Disciple... then that exins his behavior. He wouldn''t gain anything from announcing such an incredible feat. After all, we Disciples arepeting for the same price. If we can rise to the top, then nothing else matters." The man heaved a sigh as he turned around to face his Grass-Type Army.

    Heaving a sigh, the man decided to recall all his tamed beasts, and he sat in front of the open ocean, listening to the soft waves that crashed upon the shore. He still had at least half an hour before his destined first match in the Official Beast Tournament, so he still had some time to kill.

    "I guess I should just rx for now. There was no way I could''ve foreseen such an oue... Besides, right now, I can''t do anything about it. I guess I should just let it all go and rx. It''s not like it''s the end of the world if I don''t have the boss of the Kraken Army. My Representative is more than enough to sweep through the Official Beast Tournament. This is my debut tournament, and I''m sure I''m going to win." The man said to himself, clenching his fist as he pointed it towards the sky in some form of salute.

    He then let himself fall to the ground. As hey down and looked at the sky, he wondered what awaited him at the Official Beast Tournament. He was a strong beast tamer, and no one could rival him. That''s why he was confident in himself.

    What he didn''t know, though, is that there are a lot more Disciples in the Official Beast Tournament. To each their own, with the same ambition as him and with the same drive to win no matter what.

    .....

    A couple of hours ago.

    Usually, Grado would wake up at first light and kiss his wife on the forehead before heading out to prepare some coffee. He would brew his own coffee and then head outside by the porch to watch the sun peer through the horizon with its intense bright gaze illuminating a portion of the world.

    The prospect of the universe had always fascinated Grado, and that''s why he would always spend a small amount of time during the mornings to meditate and calm his mind. The quietude of the rural area helped with his peace of mind.

    This was how Grado''s morning was usually gone. But today was oddly different. For the first time in a few years, Grado decided to wake up a little early, brew his coffee, and watch the world while the sun had not yet appeared. It was already bright, but Grado didn''t wait for the day''s first light.

    Lize, who had never seen her husband act like that, was concerned. This was the first time her husband had broken her habit, which worried her. Even though it was still early, she also got up to apany her husband by the porch as he drank his early morning coffee.

    "You''re awake." Grado greeted, scooting over to the side to give space for his wife. He could already tell what his wife was thinking, so he didn''t ask any questions.

    "Are you going to do something? Are you going somewhere? It''s unusual for you to be waking up this early. Is something bothering you, dear?" Lize asked concernedly, grabbing Grado''s hand and squeezing it.

    "Yes, I''m going somewhere. You know I''m strong, right? Way stronger than my son and my grandson." Grado began, taking another swig of his cup of coffee. "There''s something that only I could do right now... and that is to give my whole support to my grandson. That''s why I need to go somewhere, tame a beast that would aid him in his future battles." Grado continued.

    It had been more than fifty years since Lize and Grado first took the oath in front of the altar and exchanged their vows. That''s why Lize knew her husband all too well. Once he decided to do something, there was nothing she could do to stop him. Of course, Grado never did anything ridiculous, but Lize would still worry. "Then... take me with you. With the two of us, the chances of winning will be higher, right?"<novelnext></novelnext>

    "No, honey, you know that it alles down to my pride as a man, right? You''ve given our son and grandson all the support they needed. All these years, I couldn''t do anything for them. I couldn''t even do anything for my grandson because he didn''t awaken his superpower. But now that fate has given him a second chance... I''m going to give him my full support. This is my mission as his grandfather; I hope you understand."

    "Then, let me at least prepare sandwiches. You''re bound to get hungry while hunting that leader of the Kraken Army, right? You need all the energy you can get." Lize stood up and dusted her skirt before she headed inside.

    "Wha¡ª but I never told you that I would be hunting down the¡ª how did you know?" Grado''s face reddened in embarrassment. His wife had seen right through him. Just as he thought, a woman''s intuition is really something formidable.

    "I''ve known you for more than fifty years. I already spend a significant portion of my lifetime with you. It''s only fitting that I could read your mind from time to time." Lize wore a smile as she headed inside.

    ...

    A few minutester, Grado already did all his preparations. As he was tying his shoces by the front porch, Lize appeared behind him and hugged him before giving him a basket for lunch. "Take care of yourself out there."

    "Of course, I''ll be back before breakfast. This should be easy." Grado muttered to himself as he activated his superpower. Apressed ball of air surrounded him. Rocks, embers, and orbs of water swirled around him as he floated upwards. When he reached an optimal altitude, he flew even faster, aiming for the Dimensional Portal by the center of New York City.

    It didn''t even take him a minute to get there. As soon as he arrived, he showed his identification to the person in charge and was let in without another word.

    The sudden change in the atmosphere gave Grado a thrill as he took a deep breath. "Now it''s time," Grado muttered to himself, his eyes turning a nice shade of blue as he leaped forward. A crater formed where his feet were a second ago, and he shot through the air like a loose cannonball.

    From a distance, Grado could already sense the multiple entities near the Water Area of the Beast Dimension. Underneath the shallow waters of the open ocean resides the Kraken Army. Everyone knows that for a fact. Even then, Grado had no hesitation inside as he continued charging toward the ce.

    The Kraken Army emerged before Grado could even reach the edges of the beach. Of course, with his killing intent seeping out of him, it didn''t surprise him that the Kraken Army came to greet him. Grado didn''t decelerate, though. In fact, he charged even faster.

    The first Kraken that appeared brought down its tentacles at Grado, but Grado pierced straight through, cutting the Kraken''s tentacle and prating the Kraken''s body, making it explode with blood, gore, and ck ink.

    This enraged the entirety of the Kraken Army, and they raged as they tried to team up against Grado. However, Grado was cutting through them as if they were semi-melted butter. He didn''t even bat an eye when he continued murdering the Krakens.

    KIAAHHKKKKK~!!!

    An ear-piercing shriek could be heard from the furthest part of the ocean. It was none other than the leader of the Kraken Army. However, the shriek didn''t sound like a signal for an attack, so Grado decided to stop his attacks.

    And he was right for what he did. The moment the Kraken Army heard the shriek, they also stopped their rage.

 Chapter 326 An Adventure

    The shriek turned out to be amand from the leader of the Kraken Army herself, and it dampened the rage of the other Kraken who was blindly attacking Grado. Their rampant and erratic attacks suddenly came to a halt which surprised Grado.

    In response, Grado stopped his attacks as well. And he floated toward the leader of the Kraken Army while holding back his killing intent. He didn''t want to agitate the leader of the Kraken Army since it had gone out of its way to cease its attacks.

    The leader of the Kraken Army was thergest Kraken that Grado had ever seen. It was twice the size of a regr Kraken and estimated to be at Triple-S Rank. Grado even doubted if he''d be able to take it down by himself. But then again, he was already there at present. There was nothing he could do but press forward and hope for the best. At the very least, Grado was confident that he wouldn''t die. After all, it would take more than the Kraken Army for him to get killed.

    With a light gurgling sound, the leader of the Kraken Army stared at Grado with eyes that seemed to peer through the depths of his soul. Its eyes were mesmerizing, almost majestic as if belonging to royalty. Grado was drawn to its eyes, but that didn''t cause him to put his guard down. Despite the utter harmlessness of the leader of the Kraken Army, Grado still didn''t dare risk.

    "So... you''re a queen, huh. I knew it." Grado muttered to himself, kneeling down in front of the Kraken like a knight returning from a long journey. He then scratched his head before pointing towards the Kraken Army. "I''m sorry, I charged in and killed one of your kin," Grado added.

    The leader of the Kraken Army shook her head as if telling Grado that he didn''t have to me himself. Of course, everyone knows that the ocean part of the Beast Dimension is home to many ferocious water-type beasts. And the famous group by the shoreline is none other than the Kraken Army. Grado''s actions were understandable, and the leader of the Kraken Army was willing to overlook the death of her kin in order to appease Grado.

    Before Grado could ask anything, the Queen raised one of her tentacles and beckoned for him to follow her. Of course, Grado didn''t have that much of a choice but to willinglyply. While he had no idea where the Queen was going nor why she was telling him to go with her, he still proceeded to tail her as she made her way underwater.

    Curious, Grado enveloped himself withpressed air before going down so he won''t drown. Meanwhile, the Queen continued to dive deeper and deeper into the water, approaching an opening from afar that seemed to be a cave.

    The Queen entered the cave with Grado in tow. As soon as they entered it, Grado immediately felt the sudden dip in temperature, causing him to shiver despite being covered withpressed air.

    Together, the two of them ventured deeper until they reached a clearing where it led upwards. Apparently, the cave goes deeper and then up towards a cavity where there is no water.

    The Queen surfaced, followed by Grado, who didn''t even get wet, thanks to his superpower. Up until now, he still had no idea why the Queen was leading him somewhere. ''Is she going to execute me? Maybe? I have no idea. But then again, it wouldn''t hurt if I were to follow her rather than go against her. If that were to happen, I''d be left with no choice but to annihte the entire Kraken Army.'' Grado shook his head. It was all needless killing. That''s why if he could avoid it, he would.

    He will do anything if the Queen agrees to be his tamed beast.

    Once they reached the dead end of the cavity, the Queen turned around, beckoning for Grado toe closer. Grado hesitated at first, but after contemting for a couple of seconds, he approached the Queen as he led him to the narrowest part of the cavity.

    "Whoa... are those..." Grado almost eximed the words that came out of his mouth. In front of him were a couple of small Kraken, wandering about the cave while they tried to bnce themselves. They were no bigger than Grado''s hand. "Are these your young?" Grado asked the Queen even though he had no idea whether the Queen could understand humannguage or not.

    To his surprise, though, the Queen nodded, letting out a soft gurgling sound. All her younglings then teetered towards her, gathering in front of her like little soldiers in an army. Grado could''ve sworn that they were saluting their mother.

    Grado awkwardly stood there as the Queen let out a series of gurgles, while her young responded with the same gurgles but in a high-pitched tone.

    They seemed to be having a debate since the young Krakens were also gurgling amongst each other. It''s as if they were in a heated conversation. Grado found it cute, though, since they were gurgling at each other like babies.

    In the end, one young Kraken stepped forward, and the Queen picked him up without a second thought. The other young Krakens fell silent as they watched their mother take their sibling away. No oneined, though, since the discussion had alreadye to an end.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Thinking that it was time for him to stand up and address the Queen, Grado adjusted his clothes before approaching the Queen again. Grado more or less could tell that the Queen was going to do something, but as to what it was, he could only wonder.

    Before Grado could act, however, the Queen extended one of her tentacles. On its end stood the young Kraken he picked up. The young Kraken let out a gurgle as it stared at Grado.

    "Aren''t you a happy little one?" Grado smiled as he gently rubbed the soft cheeks of the young Kraken. It responded with a soft purr before jumping onto Grado''s hand.

    "What? You want toe with me?" Grado asked, surprised that the Queen was willing to give up one of her younglings just so he won''t continue with the bloodbath. However, the Queen shook her head and extended her tentacles towards Grado''s pocket.

    She then grabbed two Grens from Grado''s pocket. After doing so, she pressed one of the Grens against her youngling, and then she pressed the other Gren on herself.

    Grado watched as the two Grens dropped to the ground. He was surprised that the Queen would willingly give up her throne and agree to be a tamed beast. She even brought one of her younglings with her.

    "That''s it? But how? Why? I didn''t even get to do anything." Grado scratched his head in confusion as he looked at the two Grens and then at the group of young Krakens gathered on the far end of the cavity. "What do I do now?" Grado asked as he sat on one corner of the cavity.

    A couple of secondster, a group of Kraken entered the cave and took the young ones with them. They didn''t do anything to Grado. They just nodded along before they left.

    Unbeknownst to Grado, the Queen had willingly given up her throne and passed it to one of her older sons, the mainmander of the Kraken Army. It''s only a matter of time before the Queen passes the throne to her son, that''s why no oneined when she finally did it.

    Also, she decided to go with Grado because she wanted to have an adventure of her own. Ever since her husband, the King of the Kraken Army died during one of the raids by the White Mist Faction. She had been cooped up ruling over the Kraken Army. Quite frankly, she was getting tired of it. She wanted to go out and explore the world.

    But after contemting about it, she figured she''d be lonely by herself, so she decided to bring one of her younger sons with her. All of them were unwilling to go except for one. That was more than enough for her.

    "Look here, Queen, I''m not going to be your tamer. My grandson will. I''m sure that you will like him. He''s stronger than me and will be going on more adventures than I am. I''m already old. You don''t have anyints about that, right?" Grado asked a few minutester once he returned to the surface.

    The Queen nodded.

    ...

    Half an hourter, when Grado finally returned home, he stood in front of Satoshi''s bedroom. As soon as Satoshi opened the door, he was supposed to put two Grens in Satoshi''s pockets, but he could only put one. That''s why he decided to give the second Gren to Satoshi.

    And until now, Satoshi had no idea that the Queen of the Kraken Army was in his pocket.

 Chapter 327 Link And The Guards

    "What''s your name?"

    "Link."

    "That''s it? Your name''s Link?"

    "Yep, one name. Link."

    A man in a weird outfit stood in front of the entrance to the American Dome, scratching his head in bafflement. As far as he knows, he had already introduced himself to the guards in front of him, but they were just as confused as he was.

    The man was wearing a tunic robe, and he wore a green hat on his head. On his left hand was a small dagger, and his sandals were tightly wrapped around his ankles all the way up to his knees. It was obvious that he was no ordinary man. Nevertheless, that didn''t give him a free pass inside the American Dome.

    "Sir, do you have a ticket with you? Perhaps some money for the entrance fee? We can''t just let anyone in without any of those. Besides, the American Dome is full." One of the guards calmly exined, waving his hand in a harmless manner toward Link and hoping that he would at least show them some money.

    "As I said, I''m a participant! Do I need to pay so that I could fight? I''m scheduled for the next fight, you know." Link retorted, scratching his head even more furiously as he clicked his tongue.

    "Sir, please understand we can''t just let you in without verifying your identity first." The guard continued.

    "As I said, I''m Link! I already registered for the Official Beast Tournament! Even my name''s on the roster!" Link raised his voice, his patience running thin. However, he didn''t cause a scene since that would just be regressive for his overall goal of entering the American Dome.

    Therge screen in front of the American Dome continued to show the fight between Yun Zhe and another beast tamer who didn''t seem to be noteworthy. Currently, Yun Zhe was toying with his opponent, and everyone watched in amusement as he put on a show. There was a difference between putting on a show while bullying the other party and putting on a show while letting the other party be part of that said show.

    Yun Zhe was pretty skilled at including his opponent in the show he portrayed in front of the audience. That''s why even when the opponent was on the losing end, he still had fun with the match. The audience enjoyed spectating, the opponent enjoyed the fight, and Yun Zhe ultimately won in the end. It was a favorable match for all parties, and everyone was happy.

    "You have to let me in! My match is starting soon!" Link was now screaming his lungs out as he watched the live stream with slight anxiousness. He bit his lips as his legs just wanted to act against his will and charge straight through.

    "But sir, we¡ª"

    With eyes almost bulging out of their sockets, Link watched as the live stream announced the next match. And then, there he was, right on the screen, wearing the same weird clothes that he was wearing right now. He heaved a sigh of relief as he pointed at himself. "See! That''s me! Right there! RIGHT THERE! You have to let me in!"

    The live stream then shifted into a bird''s eye view of the American Dome while thementator startedplimenting Yun Zhe on his fight. There was a slight change in schedules due to a mix-up in the matchups. That''s why Yun Zhe''s fight urred earlier than expected. For the umpteenth time, thementator apologized to those watching before he talked about the match.

    The two guards by the entrance then turned towards Link, shaking their heads. They then started chuckling to themselves as they stared at Link, who was panicking right in front of them. "I''m sorry, but we can''t really let you in. Either you have to pay up or stay here for good and get disqualified by default.

    "So that''s how it is... huh..." Link muttered to himself as he unsheathed the dagger from his waist. Ever since he arrived by the entrance of the American Dome, he found it weird that the guards didn''t let him in despite his valid reason. Of course, he knew beforehand that he didn''t have to pay for the entrance fee as long as he was participating in the Official Beast Tournament. He was confident that he wouldn''t have to bring any amount.

    But now, that rule seemed to have changed. Now he has to pay an entrance fee or stay outside. Obviously, the two guards are targeting him, preventing him from entering the American Dome, so he won''t be able to participate in his match.

    "I get it. You''ve been paid by one of my enemies, huh? Who is it? Is it my opponent in the first round?" Link muttered. At the same time, he summoned his entire Grass-Type Army behind him. If they weren''t going to y fair, then he didn''t have to y fair either.

    "Sir, you do know that going against the rules would absolutely put you out of the Tournament, right?" The guard smiled a sinister smile as he summoned one of his tamed beasts. It was an Unearthly Tamed Beast that looked like a dark horse.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Your Grass-Type Army is useless against our supreme power." The other guard, a woman, summoned a fiery bird that looked like a red and orange phoenix.

    Together, the two of them integrated with their unusual tamed beasts. Link took a step back since he had no idea what to expect next. Upon one nce, Yun Zhe could more or less tell that he stood no chance against these two guards. Even if he were to use his entire Grass-Type Army, they would lose in an instant.

    Nevertheless, Yun Zhe had another trick up his sleeve. He never revealed it to anyone since this was his ultimate skill, and he took a personal oath upon himself that stated that he would only use this trick when he was about to make his debut. ''When that timees, they wouldn''t even see iting.''

    "If you want a fight, then a fight it is you''ll get. " Link said to himself. There were still five minutes before his matchmenced. That''s more than enough time for him to defeat the two guards who were getting in his way.

    "This mighte as a surprise to you, but we are taught by a Disciple. You who aren''t even a Disciple won''t win against us. We won''t allow it. " The first guard confidently voiced out as heughed out loud. He may be weaker than your regr disciple, but he knew his way in beast-taming skills such as Beast Integration.

    "If defeating you here is what it takes for our master to get to the second round without any difficulty, then I''ll dly go through it." The woman said, acquiescing to the first guard''s deration.

    "Then, bring it on!" Link said, lifting the dagger to the sky. "Crimson Dagger, I''m going to need your help for a bit."

    What seemed to be a regr dagger that Link carried around turned into a nice shade of dark crimson. An unknown power seeped out of the dagger that transformed before the two guards even reached him. The blood-colored thread then manifested by the tip of the dagger, enveloping Link with it until he was wearing aplete blood-colored ninja costume. His headband fluttered in the air as he assumed the natural position of a ninja. the dagger in his hand became longer, and blood shurikens appeared on his other hand.

    "Crimson Dagger?! A Weapons-Type Representative?!" The first guard eximed, stopping halfway as he admired Link''s transformation. "Impossible! So you''re a Disciple?!"

    "Your boss? Whomever he is... he picked the wrong enemy. He should''ve fought with me fair and square without relying on such underhanded tactics. The des of the Crimson Dagger don''t turn a blind eye to injustice. Prepare to be cut down!" Link screamed at the top of his lungs.

    Afterimages of him then appeared everywhere as he elerated at such insane speeds. Blood shurikens and kunai knives started flying around, hitting the two guards in their blind spots one after another. Link didn''t relent... he continuously attacked them without giving them a window to counterattack.

    ...

    Ady with long ash-colored hair walked towards the stage, confident that she won''t have to exhaust herself on the first round. She had already assigned her faction the task of disqualifying her first opponent.

    And she did so without even knowing that her opponent was actually a Disciple... just like her.

    "Just ten more seconds and it would be my default win." She muttered to herself, trying to hide her excitement as the countdown reached its final numbers.

    Three.

    Two.

    BAM!

    A figure wearing a dark red ninja costume burst through the entrance to the Grand Stage. He was panting, and a cloud of dust scattered behind him as he decelerated and stopped short. "I''M SORRY I''M LATE, EVERYONE! JUST HAD A COUPLE OF HICCUPS!" Link announced as he calmly touched his wrists.

    "Now, let''s start this match. Thanks for the warm-up, mdy." He taunted.

 Chapter 328 Crimson Dagger

    The girl knew that the two guards stationed by the entrance of the American Dome could very well rival even the weakest of Disciples. She was genuinely surprised that her first opponent was actually stronger than her students. If it took him less than five minutes to defeat her men, then surely he''s got a Representative on his side.

    "Who are you?" The woman asked with a skeptical gaze while she examined Link up and down.

    "Shouldn''t you introduce yourself first before anything else?" Link pointed out as he reverted back to his human form. The red ninja costume adorned over his body suddenly disappeared, showing his actual weird outfit for the costume.

    To put it in simpler terms, Link looked like he was from the early 1800s. And that was more than a millennium ago. Chuckles could be heard emanating from the audience, but Link paid it no mind.

    "I''m sorry, I''m Jana, Jana Alexis. And what might your name be, fellow Disciple?" Jana wore a mesmerizing smile on her face as she extended her hand toward Link.

    Swish~

    In a span of a split second, Link disappeared from where he stood, reappearing in front of Jana and shaking her hand in return. Of course, Jana managed to follow his movements with her sight. She wasn''t the least bit surprised when Link appeared in front of her.

    "Nice to meet you. It''s nice to see a fellow Disciple here. Will this also be your debut fight?" Link asked out of curiosity.

    After gently letting go of Link''s hand, Jana nodded her head. Unbeknownst to her, all the other Disciples also had the same mindset. They''ve been hiding their innate ability as beast tamers for years. That''s why this Official Beast Tournament would solidify their standing as a Disciple right before the Selection Process. Then again, they had no idea that other Disciples would also join this Official Beast Tournament.

    "I see. I see. I guess it''s the same for everyone, huh? No wonder you tried to disqualify me before the match even started." Link shook his head in minuscule disappointment. He could somewhat understand the sentiment, so he was only slightly disappointed.

    "I didn''t want to bother with weaklings... but seeing that you managed to beat two of my students, I guess I should at least acknowledge your abilities as a beast tamer," Jana responded, trying to defend her underhandedness.

    "Now, let the eighth round of this first bracketmence! Link versus Jana, START!" The referee announced, bringing his hand down in a chopping motion while the audience cheers got louder. Thementators also started talking casually to each other as Link and Jana stood on both ends of the Grand Stage.

    "Before anything else... Can I ask you a question?" Link raised his hand, stopping Jana before she could even take a step forward. "By any chance, were you the one who defeated the Kraken Army?"

    Jana raised an eyebrow. "What? What are you talking about?"

    Everyone, even those with no background in beast taming, knows what the Kraken Army was. It was one of the most formidable groups of tamed beasts that no one could take down. Both the ck Fog Faction and the White Mist Faction had already tried to subjugate the Kraken Army before, but they stood no chance against it.

    "Never mind, if it wasn''t you, then that''s one less thing to worry about." Link shrugged.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Wait, are you serious? Was the Kraken Army really defeated?" Jana worriedly asked. Based on Link''s expression, she could tell that he wasn''t kidding. Nevertheless, she found it hard to believe that the Kraken Army was defeated right under their noses.

    "Yup, before your students fought me, I went to the Beast Dimension to attempt to capture that beast... but it was already gone. I think someone had already defeated it and tamed it."

    "And are you sure about this?" Jana doubtfully confirmed.

    "Who knows?" Link casually spoke as he grabbed a couple of Grens in his pocket. "Why don''t we start, aye?"

    Without further ado, Jana nodded, summoning an Alpha Red Smander and an Alpha Blue Smander out of nowhere. "Sure, let''s get this over with."

    "Alpha Smanders, huh? I guess you''re really looking down on me. Are you sure you don''t have to use your Representative?" Link licked his lips. He had already nned to use his Representative, the Crimson Dagger.

    However, seeing that Jana didn''t even bother to use her Representative, Link felt a little guilty about his decisions. "But what should I use? It''s not like I have other tamed beasts aside from my Grass-Type Army."

    Because of his obsession over defeating the Kraken Army and taking their boss as his tamed beast, he concentrated too much on building up his Grass-Types. Currently, all his tamed beasts are all Grass-Types, and only his Representative could actually counter the Alpha Red Smander that Jana fused with.

    Jana had all the right to look down on Link since she had already gotten some intel about him. She knew that he only had Grass-Types with him, and that''s why she was taunting him to use his Representative.

    The Dual Beast Integration was sessful, and Jana transformed into a powerful beast tamer wielding both fire and ice. She floated as a blizzard of both snow and fire enveloped the entire Grand Stage.

    .....

    The Official Beast Tournament wasn''t really that big of a deal when it came to the Managers. But seeing that most Disciples were already gathered there, trying to prove themselves to the Managers, they had no choice but to watch over them.

    In a building somewhere in another Dimension, a room was well adorned with gold and silver. In the center of it was a round table with a pristine thick white cloth draped. Gathered around were the Managers who were quite proud of their Disciples, and they watched the Official Beast Tournament with great anticipation.

    "I''m guessing this is the first time our Disciples will be meeting each other, right?" A man with white long hair sped his hand. He was the first one to speak on behalf of their gathering.

 Chapter 329 Crimson Dagger, Stretch

    The Managers have an unspoken rule amongst themselves that they would never reveal their Disciple to one another unless necessary. This was because they didn''t want their Disciples to know that there were other Managers and Disciples just like them.

    In actuality, it all came down to the pride of the Managers. They wanted their Disciples to perceive them as someone above everything, and having others like them would downgrade their image.

    However, with all the Disciples in close vicinity of each other, it''s only a matter of time before they realize that there are other Disciples like them. Of course, there were already Disciples who were aware of such a fact, but there were those who were on the other end of the spectrum¡ª those who had no idea that they were Disciples in the first ce.

    "You finally chose your Disciple, right? Is he joining the Official Beast Tournament?"

    The man d in all ck shrugged as he tipped his hat. "Who knows, but there''s one thing I''m going to tell you. He may bete in the game, but he''s stronger than any of your Disciples."

    "What a bold statement. If he was stronger than any of our Disciples, then why don''t you show us who he is? Then we''ll see if that Disciple of yours is better than our chosen ones or not."

    A chuckle left the man''s mouth as he leaned forward. "Where''s the fun in that?"

    .....

    An imposing figure floated atop the Grand Stage, waving her hand as balls of fire and ice rained down on the ground. No matter how fast or agile Link was (in the end, he decided to integrate with Crimson Dagger), he couldn''t dodge everything. Moreover, he was running low on fumes and hadn''tnded a counterattack on Jana yet.

    It was obvious that Link had no excuse when it came to the fight. It was his fault that he couldn''t fly; even if he did, Jana had a counter. As mentioned before, every tamed beast that Link owns is all Grass-Type. Even his tamed beast capable of flight are Grass-Types, and Jana would just easily burn his wings made out of leafage as soon as he integrates with his beast.

    That''s why all that Link could do was run around and tire himself out while Jana camped in mid-air. It was obvious that he was losing.

    "This is an embarrassment." Link said to himself as he continued throwing kunai knives and shurikens, but it was to no avail. Jana would either dodge them or burn them.

    "I guess it''s time to use my special move." Link muttered, summoning the Crimson Dagger in his hand.

    When the Crimson Dagger manifested, he held it by the handle and pointed it downward. He didn''t want to use this move since it would expend a lot of energy. Then again, what choice does he have? It''s either he ys all his cards right now, or he''ll lose in an embarrassing manner.

    "Crimson Dagger. Stretch." Link said as he stabbed Crimson Dagger on the ground.<novelnext></novelnext>

    In an instant, Link was propelled upward as the Crimson Dagger grew longer. With his momentum throwing him straight at Jana, Link pulled on the Crimson Dagger and brought it up his head.

    Now, Jana was almost below him. Putting his entire weight into his attack, he brought the Crimson Dagger down, aiming to cut Jana in half.

    The surprise caught Jana off-guard, and she almost didn''t react in time. Ever since the start of the match, he had looked down on Link, thinking that she would win the match. But now, she wasn''t quite sure.

    Fortunately, she managed to avoid the attack by a hair''s breadth. She gasped as she floated away.

    However, Link was waiting for that to happen. He had been carefully watching, scrutinizing Jana''s every move so he''ll be able to counter her when the time came. He wasn''t actually ying the losing game; he was ying the waiting game.

    Tightening his core, Link spun in mid-air and transformed his Crimson Dagger into smaller kunai knives and shuriken. The first attack didn''t hit, but the second attack hit home. He scratched Jana everywhere, and even deep wounds appeared on her body as his knives and shurikens did their work.

    With a desperate attempt to get out of Link''s range, Jana floated away even faster, but the shurikens and knives chased after her while Link trailed behind. He continued swinging his sword and propelling himself upward, confusing Jana since she had to watch out for multiple attacks.

    "I have no choice." Jana gritted her teeth as she felt her Dual Beast Integration wavering. She had been integrated for too long. If this fight took more than five minutes, she was well aware that her Dual Beast Integration would deactivate, leaving her defenseless.

    There were only two options left for her. Either she admits her defeat, or she could go back on her word and actually use her Representative. Well, she could stall for time, but it was obvious that Link would oust him. In terms of energy, she had no energy, and it was only a matter of time before shepletely exhausted herself.

    Link''s relentless attack eventually reached her, and she fell on the Grand Stage with a resounding thud when Link brought down his upsize Crimson Dagger. Now their positions were switched. It was Jana who was on the ground while Link stood on the handle of his Dagger, looking down at Jana as if she was dirt on the ground.

    Fwip~!

    In a split second, the Crimson Dagger returned to its original size, and Link appeared right in front of Jana, pointing the Crimson Dagger at her neck. Link assumed that this was the moment Jana''s Dual Beast Integration would deactivate, and he was right.

    At that moment, Jana expended all her energy and reverted back to her usual self. Link pressed the dagger on Jana''s neck. "You lost. Surrender now before things get ugly."

    "Jokes on you," Jana whispered as she was enveloped with a blinding light.

 Chapter 330 Twelve Representatives

    The awkward atmosphere between Satoshi and Shiroi continued to grow the longer they sat together. On the other hand, Yun Zhe was kind enough to give them the space they needed so they could talk together. He could tell that the awkwardness came from both parties withholding their feelings for each other, so he decided not to meddle with them.

    Currently, the fight between Jana and Link was still ongoing; by now, Satoshi had already realized that they were both Disciples. Not only could they integrate with more than two or three of their tamed beasts, but their overall strength and proficiency in fighting couldn''t be underestimated either. They were strong, way stronger than him. In retrospect, he just awakened his superpower a couple of months ago, and it''s only been a couple of weeks since he entered the world of beast-taming.

    For the second time in Satoshi''s life, he felt like a fish stuck in shark-infested waters. Sure, he''s got limitless potential, but the way things are right now, he''s bound to lose before even reaching the finals. It was only because of sheer luck that he snagged a win in the first round.

    Meanwhile, Shiroi fidgeted in her seat. She realized that Satoshi was having a hard time, seeing that he almost died during the first round of the Official Beast Tournament. She wanted to offer some words of encouragement for him, but she couldn''t bring herself to speak. Something in her mind stopped her from saying anything. And now that silence was prolonged between them, she couldn''t speak.

    Knock. Knock.

    Everyone in the room flinched when they heard the knock. Satoshi was the first one to snap back to reality and walk towards the door, peeking through the peephole before opening it. He was surprised to see that Hiroshi was there. His uncertain expression made Satoshi believe that he had just knocked in the spur of the moment.

    Click!

    After swinging the door open, Satoshi looked up and down at Hiroshi before gesturing for him toe in. "Why are you here?" Satoshi asked. Even though it came off as a rude question, Satoshi was just surprised.

    "Oh, I''m not the only one. Everyone''s here. Our entire ss. You didn''t know anything about it?" Hiroshi asked. "Your parents were the ones who took us here, though."

    "What? Really?!" Satoshi eximed. "So the entire ss is here?"

    "Yup, we''re all seated near your parent''s seats. In any case, have you heard the news? Apparently, the Queen, the leader of the Kraken Army... it was already caught by someone." Hiroshi brought up out of nowhere. "You heard what that guy, Link, said during the beginning of their fight, right? That the Kraken Army was gone. Some superheroes went there for confirmation that what he said was true. As it turned out, someone, or a group of someone, had already defeated the Kraken Army."

    "WHAT? Are you sure about this?!" It wasn''t Satoshi who was surprised by the news, but Yun Zhe. Even Shiroi had no idea what Hiroshi was talking about, so she just sat there in silence while keenly listening to the topic. "You mean, one of the most formidable groups of beasts in the Beast Dimension had already been defeated? Even the White Mist and ck Fog Faction couldn''t take it down. You''re saying that someone did it without announcing it to the world?"

    Hiroshi nodded. These past few days, he had been reading quite a lot of material regarding beast taming. It was only fairly recently that he was introduced to the world of beast taming, which interested him a little bit. He realized that he could level up his overallbat ability if he were to master beast taming. After all, beast taming is not exactly a superpower but a skill. Anyone could be a beast tamer, but not everyone could master the art of beast taming.

    At the moment, Hiroshi was still catching up with a lot of beast taming materials. Surprisingly though, he has more knowledge when ites to beast taming than Satoshi. He even knew what the Disciples are, but he brushed it off as mere conspiracy theories.

    He thought like that because the entire ck Fog Faction had mastered Dual Beast Integration. If anyone could do it, then it''s not extraordinary. Well, he''s bound to change his mind the moment Satoshi integrates with all his beasts.

    "The reason why the Queen currently rules over the entire Kraken Army was that the ck Fog Faction... or was it the White Mist Faction? In any case, one of these Factions identally killed the King of the Kraken Army. They didn''t even tame it... what a waste." Hiroshi continued.

    "If it''s unknown who managed to catch the Queen of the Kraken, there''s only one exnation for it." Yun Zhe said, sping his hand as he leaned closer to everyone. "A Disciple tamed it. And in turn, the entire Kraken Army scattered because of that... or maybe he managed to tame the entire Kraken Army. That might be the case. If it''s a strong Disciple then nothing''s impossible."

    "A Disciple? Pffft, seriously, you believe that nonsense?" Hiroshi suppressed hisugh as he amusedly looked at Yun Zhe.

    "What do you mean?" Yun Zhe could tell what Hiroshi was thinking, but he still decided to give him the benefit of a doubt by confirming.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "I mean... Do you really believe that nonsense? It''s a conspiracy theory." Hiroshi brushed it off as a mere theory, which really hit Yun Zhe''s nerve.

    "It does seem like a bunch of crap... but I tell you, Disciples are real. Managers are real." Yun Zhe''s words were straightforward, and Hiroshi could tell that he wasn''t joking when he said these. "Didn''t you see the fight between Satoshi and the Hero Disciple? Did you see what kind of tamed beast the Hero Disciple had? That''s a Sinister-Zither, a Music-Type Representative. I''m guessing you know what a Representative is, right?"

    Upon hearing the word ''Representative'', Hiroshi''s eyes widened in shock. "You mean... Representatives are real?" Hiroshi asked as his gazended on Satoshi.

    Satoshi nodded. "They''re real. I have two of them." Satoshi casually pointed out. It wasn''t because he wanted to brag about it, but he just found it a little annoying that Hiroshi wouldn''t believe Disciples exist, and yet he''d selectively believe that Representatives do.

    "Two of them?! What?!" Hiroshi eximed. "Representatives are supposed to be super-powerful tamed beasts that existed for millennia. Some would even call them beast guardians because they''re a lot more stronger than legendary beasts. And you''re telling me that you have two of them?"

    Satoshi nodded for a second time.

    "Then, let me see it!"Hiroshi crossed his arms. "If you really have a Representative, then let me see it."

    Before Satoshi and Yun Zhe could say anything. Hiroshi rummaged in his bag and pulled out what seemed to be a tattered piece of a book. The book seemed rtively knew, but it was torn here and there, probably because Hiroshi kept on flipping through its pages.

    "This right here is the book of Representatives. If your tamed beast is in here, then it''s a Representative." Hiroshi said. "Now, let me see your Representative."

    "Uhm." Yun Zhe cleared his throat as he pointed at the book. "You do know that that book is written by... it was written by one of the first Disciples, right? And also, that book is extremely, extremely outdated." Yun Zhe asked, to which Hiroshi''s face reddened in response.

    "In any case, if what you''re saying is true... then it should be here." Hiroshi continued.

    "Well, I can''t really bring my Representative out. It''s going to st through the roof if I were to do that." Satoshi continued. "My Representative is called the Statue of Captivity. The other one is called Dex. I''m pretty sure they''re not written there."

    "Wait... hmm...." Yun Zhe muttered to himself as he scanned his memories about the book of Representative. A few years ago, he had a copy of the same book, so he was aware of its content. He knew that there were Representatives written there that should be seeable at present.

    After a couple of seconds, Yun Zhe''s eyes lit up, and he pointed at therge screen that showed the fight between Link and Jana Alexis. A smile swept across his face as he smugly stared at Hiroshi. "Book of Representative, page three. There''s an entry there describing the Crimson Dagger. Come on, read it."

    Confused, Hiroshi went to page three, and he started reading the entry for Crimson Dagger which was written there. "A Weapons-Type Representative that is said to have descended from a Dimension where weapons are sentient. The Crimson Dagger is one of the most powerful Weapons-Type Representatives to ever exist. It could change its form at will and erge and shrink depending on its master''s wishes."

    "Now, look at the screen. That''s the Crimson Dagger right there. We know what Representatives are, and they exist in this world. In that sense, shouldn''t it be believable that Disciples exist as well?"

    Before Yun Zhe could continue his argument, Satoshi raised his hand. "Excuse me, there are more than twelve Representatives in this book. I thought there were only twelve?" Satoshi asked out of nowhere.

    "Twelve?" Yun Zhe''s eyes widened in surprise at Satoshi''sment. That was thest thing he was expecting to hear from Satoshi.

 Chapter 331 Scarlet Scythe

    "Where did you hear that? Did someone tell you that, by any chance?" Yun Zhe asked out of nowhere, ignoring Hiroshi altogether as he focused wholly on Satoshi.

    Satoshi was startled at Yun Zhe''s reaction since he was justying out what he had heard from Dex himself. He had no idea that what he said was something crucial to the Disciples. "I... It''s a long story." Satoshi called out. He didn''t want to tell Yun Zhe about the enclosed space in an unknown dimension that he found in his dreams. Right now, he barely scratched the surface when ites to Disciples and Representatives. Therefore, he concluded that he shouldn''t just reveal important information without knowing anything.

    "Then again, having twelve Representatives is a myth. One can only have two or three at most. Only the Chosen One can have twelve Representatives." Yun Zhe brushed off the topic as soon as he got interested in it.

    Just then, a sh of light erupted on the television screen, which was broadcasting the Official Beast Tournament live. Satoshi and everyone else in the room flinched as the room was bathed in light. If it was that bright through television, one could only wonder how bright it was on the Grand Stage.

    .....

    At that moment, Jana expended all her energy and reverted back to her usual self. Link pressed the dagger on Jana''s neck. "You lost. Surrender now before things get ugly."

    "Jokes on you," Jana whispered as she was enveloped with a blinding light.

    The light shed in an instant, and then it disappeared. Jana, who swore not to use her Representative on the first round of the fight, decided to use it. However, upon witnessing the true prowess of Link and his Representative, the Crimson Dagger, firsthand, Jana was backed into a corner. If she didn''t use her Representative right then and there, she''d lose.

    When the light dissipated, Jana reappeared, wearing a white trenchcoat and a cap that hid half of her face as she tilted down. Her striking scarlet-colored lips and bright red hair were the first details that Link noticed.

    FLAP!

    Link''s gut instincts told him to back away, and back away he did. The moment he reached the far opposite end of the Grand Stage, a resounding p could be heard from Jana. Red wings grew on her back, and she carried what seemed like two scythes in her hand. The scythes emanated red smoke, and its energy was immeasurable. Despite their sheer size, almost as tall as Jana herself, Jana swung them menacingly, sparing little to no effort.

    "The Scarlet Scythe.... impossible..." Link muttered to himself.

    Not only was the Scarlet Scythe a Weapons-Type Representative, it was also far superior to the Crimson Dagger. Throughout the past, there were instances when the Scarlet Scythe showed up, and Link had been monitoring it along with other known representatives. Still, it greatly surprised him that Jana managed to tame such a powerful Representative... or maybe she was chosen by it. Link could only wonder.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Crimson Dagger, Stretch!" Link felt a nagging feeling in his stomach, and he figured an imminent danger was about to happen. Because of that, Link decided to use his Crimson Dagger. Whatever it was that he felt in his gut instincts, he acted upon it by putting his feet on the handle of the Crimson Dagger and instructing it to stretch.

    ng!

    There was no way Link could''ve seen the attack. In an instant, Jana threw one of her scythes toward Link. The action was faster than sight, and the color of the Scarlet Scythe really blended well in the surroundings that Link didn''t even see it cutting through the air. By the time the Crimson Dagger stretched and Link was standing above it, a resounding ''ng'' was heard as the scythe hit the Crimson Dagger''s de. Link felt the Crimson Dagger shaking, and he almost fell from where he stood. Fortunately, the Crimson Dagger was hooked on the ground, and it didn''t tilt nor lose its bnce.

    "That was a good reaction. However, it''s not enough to match me and my Scarlet Scythe. You''re WAY TOO SLOW!"

    Upon saying that, Jana disappeared mid-air, causing Link to panic a little. Relying solely on his instincts, Link pulled the Crimson Dagger from the ground and swung it sideways. He figured that Jana would attack him frontwards, so he expected to hit one or both her scythes as he swung his Crimson Dagger blindly.

    To Link''s surprise, he only hit empty air the moment he swung his Crimson Dagger. He felt the urge to swivel his head, but he knew that doing so would just distract him. Instead, he turned his gaze here and there, darting his eyes in every direction in hopes that he''d catch even the minuscule movements in the air.

    His actions bore fruit, much to his relief. From his peripheral vision, he noticed a shade of reding at him at insane speeds. Without further ado, Linkmanded his Crimson Dagger to retract, and he blocked the oing shade of red with it. He was thrown in mid-air, but he wasn''t hit by the attack.

    "You''re pretty good," Jana muttered as a chuckle escaped her lips. She disappeared for the second time, and Link was left on the defensive again.

    Despite his seemingly disadvantageous position, Link didn''t panic at all. He could tell that he still had the chance at winning. The longer Jana stalled for time, the more he''d get used to her speeds. The only thing that LInk was confident it was his speed and agility. There was no way Jana, or anyone else, could match him once he got used to it.

    "You''re pretty good as well. But you made the wrong choice, running around like that." Link said to himself.

    His desperation drove him even more to a corner. In hisst attempt to counter Jana and her Scarlet Scythe Representative, Link decided to integrate with another tamed beast of his. "Don''t let me down, all right?" Link muttered.

 Chapter 332 Grundauge, The Golden Spoon

    Grundauge is probably one of the most useless, tamed beasts that Link had in his possession¡ª or so that''s what he thought when he first captured it in the deepest forest near his hometown. It was nothing unusual, just a green monster with onerge eye. At that time, LInk wasn''t as formidable as he is right now, and he only caught Grundauge because he was practicing his beast taming abilities.

    The aforementioned tamed beast was fast, and it darted all over the ce as it tried to escape Link. However, Link persevered, and the moment Grundauge let his guard down, Link used every ounce of his speed to catch up to it and made it submit to him. This was the first time Link tamed a beast without the help of his Representative, the Crimson Dagger, and it was also near this time when Link realized that he had a knack when it came to speed and agility.

    During the first few months when he first captured Grundauge, he was unsure whether he should integrate with it or not. After all, it looked hideous. It resembled an alien, or rather, it resembled a mythical creature that was unpleasant to look at¡ª the Beholder. But then again, Link told himself it would be a waste of resources if he didn''t train his beast integration with this tamed beast.

    "Besides, this is the first tamed beast that I caught without relying on my Representative. It would be a waste if I didn''t use it." Making up his mind, Link decided to integrate with Grundauge for the first time.

    That was also when he realized Grundauge would be hisst trump card. His one and only tamed beast are hidden under his sleeve, ready toe out when he finds the right time to strike at his enemy.

    And that time was now. He had finally found a way to defeat Jana.

    "Don''t let me down, all right?" Link muttered.

    Link watched as a blur of red continued to cut through the air like a force of nature descending upon him from the skies. Hepared it to lightning, except the lightning was red, and it could cut him in half if he weren''t careful.

    With minimal movement, Link summoned Grundauge, getting its Gren (Gren is a smallpartment shaped like a grenade used to store tamed beasts in a spacious dimension) from his pockets. He didn''t hesitate to integrate with it before Jana couldnd another attack.

    ...

    Meanwhile, in another dimension.

    The Managers encircling the round table grew rather indignant about the current fight happening in the Official Beast Tournament. Theypletely forgot the fact that one of the Managers just taunted them, telling them that his Disciple was the strongest among their Disciples.

    "This is cheating! I''LL TELL YOU! THIS IS CHEATING!" One of the Managers pounded his fist on the table, pointing at the Manager who was bncing a dagger in his hand.

    "The Beholder, really? You really just handed your Disciple a legendary on a silver tter, huh." Another Manager pointed out. He was the man with the white hair, and he acted ratherposed despite the fact that he was boiling with rage deep inside. "Where''s the growth in that? You''re just going to feed your Disciple with a golden spoon and expect him to be the strongest?"

    "It would''ve been exinable if you let him capture the Beholder using his strength. But no, you froze the Beholder in ce so he could tame it? What utter bull¡ª"

    "Enough!" The Manager, d in ck, slightly raised his voice just so everyone could hear him. This caused the entire circle of Managers to stop talking and concentrate on him.<novelnext></novelnext>

    He cleared his throat.

    "Whether he did so to help his Disciple. It doesn''t matter. While it is an unspoken rule that we cannot meddle in the affairs of our Disciple, there''s a fine line between guiding them and giving them the golden spoon." He continued. "However! It is also clear that this Link had done everything he could to try and capture the Beholder. Helping him out is something that can be considered meddling... or guidance¡ª both of which are two sides of the same coin."

    The Manager in ck then leaned forward and eyed every Manager one by one. Some of them cleared their throat, some averted their gaze, and some gulped since they already knew what he was about to say next. "Now, let me ask you this. If we report this to him... can all of you be sure that you never did the same thing? Can you stand in front of him and raise your right hand, swearing an oath upon your name as Manager that you never meddled in the affairs of your Disciple?" He continued.

    "If you can do that, then I challenge you to tell us right here and now that you''ve never meddled in the life of your Disciple."

    It was clear that not all of them had a clean te. Only a handful of Managers raised their right hand in a gesture of an oath. The Manager in ck smiled. Those who raised their hands didn''t care either way, but those who wereining loudly couldn''t even bear to raise their hand, even if it was just pretend.

    "There''s your answer. Shall we continue watching?" He offered, still confident that his Disciple would win even without his help or guidance.

    ...

    The moment Link integrated with Grundauge, there was no way Jana could stand a chance against him. He watched in slow motion as Jana flitted about in the air. Of course, he still acted oblivious until the right moment when Jana would finally unleash her attack.

    Link watched as Jana swung both her scythes, aiming at his head in an attempt to kill and behead him. "I guess this is another way of getting rid ofpetition before the Initial Selection." Link muttered to himself, pointing the Crimson Dagger toward Jana''s neck at point-nk range. The slightest of movements would absolutely kill Jana, and Link watched with great pleasure as he pictured Jana''s head separating from her neck.

    "Crimson Dagger, Stretch." Link said without a modicum of hesitation.

    Fwip~!

    Everyone watched in horror as Jana''s head was severed. For a couple of seconds, the crowd watched in silence, petrified by the murder that just ensued. Of course, Jana was also shocked, and her lingering consciousness watched as Link smiled in a sinister manner toward her.

    But that wasn''t enough.

    Link stepped forward and aimed his dagger right at Jana''s heart. Her head was already severed, but he still chose to pierce her heart. An act of killing her twice. "Let''s just say you picked the wrong enemy?" Linkmented as he followed through with his unjustifiable act.

 Chapter 333 Interrupting The Fight

    "See? What did I tell you? What are you going to do now?" One of the Managersined, pointing at the live-stream broadcast. It was apparent that she was adamant about the entire situation, but she tried her utmost to suppress her anger.

    "This is what happens when you give your Disciples the golden spoon. They lose control. At his level, he shouldn''t have been able to control the Beholder." Another Manager heaved a sigh. "I guess that Disciple is dead. We can''t do anything about this."

    The other Managers knew that they couldn''t do anything about the current situation, so they, too, just sighed in utter disappointment.

    Well, all of them did sigh except for thedy Manager, who raised his voice a couple of seconds ago. Initially, she had no intention of revealing who her Disciple was. But now, she was about to witness that her Disciple was about to get killed in front of him... all because an irresponsible Manager indirectly caused his Disciple to lose control.

    (The two disciples referred to here are Link and Jana. Because Link''s Manager gave him the Beholder/Grundauge when he was not yet ready, the Grundauge took control of him, and now he''s about to go on a rampage. Jana had already been defeated, but it seemed like Link had the intention to end her life right then and there.)

    "You''re going to kill my Disciple, you¡ª" The Manager gritted her teeth in great fury as he grabbed Link''s Manager by the cor. She was fuming, and every cell in her screamed of murder.

    With everything that happened leading up to that moment, Link''s Manager finally realized the effect of what he had done. Because he was too meddlesome, he caused his Disciple to lose control. And now, another Disciple was going to pay for his shoring. While Managers always wanted to get rid ofpetition, they never intended for their Disciples to kill each other. That''s why Link''s Manager felt a horrible taste in his mouth as he apologetically bowed his head toward Jana''s Manager.

    He was sorrowful, but nothing he could do could bring back what was about to happen. No matter how much he apologizes right now, he will never be able to bring back the life of a dead Disciple. "Do what you must. At least let me atone by receiving your wrath."

    Both eyes of Jana''s Manager turned bloodshot as she brought her right arm upward, pointing every finger towards his neck. "Allow me." She hissed.

    Before she could bring down her arm, the Manager d in ck appeared in front of her, blocking her strike before hitting the Manager''s neck. He then clicked his tongue. "You shouldn''t do this, sweetheart. Look, your Disciple is safe and sound." He continued, pointing towards the live broadcast.

    .....

    Back to the American Dome, Official Beast Tournament.

    Link stepped forward and aimed his dagger right at Jana''s heart. Her head was already severed, but he still chose to pierce her heart. An act of killing her twice. "Let''s just say you picked the wrong enemy?" Linkmented as he followed through with his unjustifiable act.

    Without batting an eye, Link pushed his hand, envisioning Jana''s pierced heart as his grin widened in a creepy manner. But before the Crimson Dagger could touch Jana''s skin, something blocked it, causing Link to fall back in bewilderment.

    ng!

    "Looks like we barely made it in time, master." Ryu Ryoko spoke as she turned around. Her arm was partially transformed to her dragon form, and her crystal scales shone against the powerful headlights that shed all around the American Dome.

    "I guess. Fortunately, we were able to react in time." Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief as she walked toward Jana''s severed head. He didn''t waste any time putting her head back in ce and healing it in a split second. Fortunately, Jana''s body still had the lingering effects of Beast Integration; otherwise, she would''ve died the moment her head was severed.

    "Oi, what''s the big idea? She had already lost. Were you really going to kill her?" Satoshi already knew the answer to the question, but he wanted to give Link the benefit of the doubt. That''s why he just had to ask.

    A couple of moments ago, Satoshi and everyone else in the training room witnessed the climax of the fight unfold. That''s why when he realized that Link was really nning to end Jana''s life, he immediately summoned Ghast, Sera, and the ck Winged Dragon Ryu Ryoko to help him with the rescue. Of course, killing someone was frowned upon in the Official Beast Tournament. But if it had already happened, then there''s nothing anyone can do about it.<novelnext></novelnext>

    That''s why Satoshi didn''t hesitate to act out of impulse, saving Jana before her life was cut short right then and there.

    "One less Disciple for me to think about during the Initial Selection. Out of my way, you fool." Link''s pupils dted as he licked the sharp des of the Crimson Dagger. Satoshi couldn''t help but feel a little bit disgusted since he knew that the Crimson Dagger was a Representative. ''Did he just lick his tamed beast?! DID HE JUST LICK HIS¡ª?!'' Satoshi eximed in his mind as his eyes widened in disbelief.

    "If you want to kill her, then you''d have to go through me." Satoshi returned, prompting his fists up in a fighting stance as if they were going to have a melee match. "I know you badly wanted to reduce yourpetition in this Initial Selection whatever. But right now, this is an Official Beast Tournament. A lot of people are watching, and a lot of children are watching. Blood and gore are fine, but killing someone is way beyond the boundary of a tournament."

    "So? What are you going to do about it?" Link continued, his face contorting into an even creepier expression as time went on. Satoshi could barely look him in the eye due to how he looked. If one didn''t know any better, one would probably think that LInk is possessed by some sort of evil spirit.

    And he is indeed possessed, except the one possessing him right now is none other than his tamed beast, Grundauge.

    "Crimson Dagger, Stretch." Link muttered, pointing the Crimson Dagger toward Satoshi.

    At the same time, Satoshi decided to integrate with Sera. His initial treatment for Jana was already done, and he was relieved that Jana managed to survive. As the Crimson Dagger erged and continued to grow towards Satoshi, Satoshi didn''t budge an inch. He stood there, willing to tank the attack as if it were nothing.

    It didn''t take long before the Crimson Dagger pierced through Satoshi''s stomach. Blood escaped Satoshi''s mouth as the attack connected. However, he firmly remained in ce, asserting dominance on the battlefield. "Do you think this much could hurt me?" Satoshi asked as he spat out blood.

    "Ryoko, get Jana out of here. I''m going to take care of this little son of a¡ª" Satoshi''s words were cut short when Link suddenly retracted the Crimson Dagger, revealing a gaping hole in his stomach where he was just stabbed.

    Fortunately, thanks to Sera''s insane regenerative abilities, Satoshi''s fatal wound closed up in an instant. Everyone in the audience was shocked to see that Satoshi had enough energy to achieve such a feat so easily. Of course, they''ve already witnessed the phenomenon during Satoshi''s fight against the Hero Disciple. Seeing it for the second time was an entirely different experience for the spectators though.

    "Regeneration, huh? Not too shabby. But can youst against st my onught of attacks?!" Link taunted Satoshi even more,manding his Crimson Dagger to stretch for the second time. This time, he aimed to pierce Satoshi''s head.

    This time, Satoshi dodged by teleporting toward Link''s back. And as soon as he did, he aimed to chop Link''s neck with his hand wanting to knock him unconscious. Satoshi forgot one thing, though¡ª the fact that Link boasts his speed and agility.

    Satoshi''s attack came in slow motion towards him since he was still integrated with his tamed beast, Grundauge, also known as the Beholder. He dodged the attack with ease, straining his ankles and turning around as he delivered a punch to Satoshi''s sr plexus.

    The attack hit, and Satoshi reacted to it a little toote. By the time he teleported out of the way, Link had already given him two punches to his stomach. "Your rear side is so slow, a sloth can easily catch up to it." Linkmented.

    Link was already there when Satoshi reappeared on the far end of the Grand Stage, and he swung the Crimson Dagger right at Satoshi''s neck. Satoshi dodged by ducking. This didn''t stop Link from changing the trajectory of his strike. Now he struck downwards just when Satoshi dodged.

    "Crimson Dagger, Stretch." Link called out, just before Satoshi could teleport.

    When Satoshi came about, another gaping hole on his stomach could be seen, and he vomited blood.

 Chapter 334 Janas Backstory I

    Throughout the decades, inteary attacks and alien invasions have be a regr urrence on earth. No one was shocked when a vige or so would be reported in the news, wiped out with little to no survivors. Alien invasions could be stopped, of course, but that didn''t mean there weren''t any consequences. Sometimes, entire viges would be deleted, and there''s nothing the superhero agencies could do about it.

    After all, superheroes aren''t omnipotent or gods, and it''s normal for them to be helpless in specific scenarios. Of course, there will always be hate when ites to heroes with subpar results, but that would more or less be overlooked, given the overall sess rate of superheroes when ites to fending off invasions.

    Five Years Ago, a simr invasion happened in a vige on the shores of Japan. It was a small vige spanning over three hectares ofnd. Since a forest surrounded the vige, civilization was cut off from it, but it''s still well in its time since a road leads to a nearby city.

    It all started when the entire vige noticed a metallic ship descending towards the sea. It didn''t look alien, so the people assumed that there was nothing to worry about. The ship looked like it was built by humans, and despite its weird color and shape, the people didn''t mind it at all. They figured that it was probably a space cruiser making an emergencynding nearby¡ª this is a regr urrence around the world, so the vigers didn''t bother reporting it to the authorities, much less the Superheroes Association Organization.

    ? Then tragedy struck.

    ...

    "Gasp!" Jana bolted from her bed as cold sweat trickled down her neck. She was breathing heavily, her eyes darting all over the ce as if she was in a daze.

    When the door creaked open, Jana opened her mouth in an attempt to scream. While her surroundings looked like her room, she was convinced that she was still in her nightmare. She should''ve been used to it by now, but she just couldn''t do it. Her nightmares would always entice her to scream her heart out. And this time, it was no different.

    A head then peeked out of the door, and it was none other than her mom. She had the same ck hair as Jana, and her eyes had the same big pupils, making her look cuter than she already was. Seeing her daughter''s expression prompted her to enter her room and give her a warm embrace of assurance. She knew that her daughter had been having nightmares, but she could do nothing but calm her down when she woke up.

    "Are you all right? You looked like you''ve seen a ghost." Jana''s mother asked, gently stroking her hair.

    "It''s getting nearer, mom. Every time I dream... it''s closer..." Jana whimpered.

    "How close is it this time?" Jana''s mom whispered in her ear, hugging her even tighter.

    "It was right on my face. Right here, a few inches close, it''d have touched me." Jana exined.

    "You''re awake now. You don''t have to worry about it, okay? Now, why don''t we head to the kitchen? Your father cooked breakfast this time."

    Hoisting her daughter up, she then assisted Jana to the dining area. There, her husband looked back, holding a spat in his hand as he greeted both of them with a good morning. It was obvious that he enjoyed cooking for both his wife and daughter. He was preparing a feast.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Aren''t you cooking a little bit too much, honey? Can we even finish all that?" Jana''s mom said, apanying her husband to cook after assisting Jana to sit down. Giving her husband a peck on the cheeks, she then grabbed the bowl of eggs, beating them while her husband deep-fried some karaages.

    Even though Jana had little to no clue about what her dad was cooking, she could tell that he was cooking something delicious based on the smell. The fragrance that enveloped the house smelled homey and somehow calmed Jana a little bit. She took a whiff of the aroma that wafted in the air. A smile was written on her face.

    "Your dad''s going to Tokyo today." Jana''s dad said, flexing his biceps at his daughter. "Apparently, the Superhero License Test is bound to happen soon. I''m going to apply. I can feel it! This is the year for sure!" He continued, clenching his fist.

    "How many times have you taken the Superhero License Test, dad? Isn''t this the third time?" Jana didn''t mean anything bad by herment. She just stated the fact that her dad had already failed twice. But then again, she didn''t mind her dad''s enthusiasm at all since he was happiest when talking about superheroes.

    "This time, for sure! I''m going to be a superhero. Just you wait. Once I get my first paycheck, we''re all going to move to Tokyo!" He continued beforeughing out loud.

    "So that''s why you were cooking a lot. You wanted this to be an advanced celebration?" Jana''s mom teased, to which her dad responded with a shake of his head.

    "No, no, this is just so you won''t miss me while I''m gone. I''m a better cook than you, remember, honey? Our Jana''s going to miss my cooking while I''m gone." He teased.

    "I won''t." Jana pretended to act all serious as she took a sip of water. She couldn''t disagree with her father, that''s why she pretended to be disinterested in the topic.

    FLASH!

    FLASH! FLASH!

    The sudden sh of ck and white made Jana feel a little dizzy. She managed to keep herself together, but that''s after she dropped her ss of water on the floor. The ss shattered into tiny pieces as it hit the ground, causing both her parents to flinch.

    FLASH!

    Jana gasped as another sh of ck and white invaded her eyes. This time, the sh went by a little longer, and she recognized the figure standing in front of her while the shing of light urred.

    "It''s... it''s here..." Utter terror was written on her face as she panicked, muttering the words under her breath.

 Chapter 335 Janas Backstory II

    FLASH!

    The figure was a lot clearer now, and Jana was sure that her nightmares had manifested in the real world. She had no idea how something so ridiculous could happen. Nevertheless, she knew for sure that her nightmare hade to haunt her, not just in her dreams but in reality as well.

    "It''s... it''s here..." Utter terror was written on her face as she panicked, muttering the words under her breath.

    "It''s here? What are you talking about, dear?" Jana''s mom concernedly asked as she approached her daughter. As expected, they didn''t notice the figure in front of Jana, which asionally showed itself through quick ck-and-white light shes.

    "What is it, my daughter? Is everything all right? Are you still not feeling well? You can talk to me about your nightmare if you''re still bothered by it." Jana''s dad softly offered.

    "As if that would help. Don''t you remember? Thest time you did that, you just went on and on about your nightmare instead of giving her words of advice. Do you think she''d take you up on your offer after that?" Jana''s mom whispered to her dad while the two of them looked at her.

    "But... isn''t that how conversations work? When someone shares something, you share something of equal value. I figured that would help her think about something else instead of focusing on her recurring nightmare."

    "In any case, are you all right, my daughter?" Jana''s dad asked.

    "DON''T COME NEAR ME!" Jana screamed at the top of her lungs, surprising both her parents at the same time.

    "Look here, young miss. You can''t go around talking down on your dad like that." Jana''s dad said as he slowly but cautiously approached her. Just like Jana, he, too, had no idea what was going on. That''s why he proceeded with utmost caution.

    "PLEASE! DON''T COME NEAR ME!" Jana pleaded, her voice cracked mid-sentence. Her eyes were beginning to water as the first drops of tears dropped from he gaze. That was the time when Jana''s dad realized that Jana was looking straight ahead.

    Even though he was a little bit to the side, she still looked ahead with that panicked expression on her face. It was a face filled with despair. Jana seemed to have been looking at someone else.

    "She can''t see us right now. Jana, are you all right?" This time, Jana''s mom was panicking a little bit due to Jana''s frightened expression. She could tell that her daughter wasn''t joking, and something was really unfolding in her eyes for her to let out a bloodcurdling cry like that.

    Another sh, and this time, the figure was already right in front of her face. Jana could see her dream happening right now, and she couldn''t do anything but stare fixedly at the creature in front of her. She even forgot to breathe due to how scared she was.

    In a desperate attempt to wake her up, her dad decided to ignore her pleas, charging toward her and knocking her out of the way. He figured that there was probably something threatening her at point-nk range for her to say something as ridiculous as that, and that''s why he risked knocking her over. "Are you all right?" He asked his daughter as he propped her up.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "DAD! BEHIND YOU!"

    Without hesitation, his dad decided to kick empty air. To his surprise, he hit something. As his gaze focused, he realized a figure was in front of her daughter. That figure flew towards the kitchen as soon as he kicked it, and its camouge seemed to glitch out as it did so. A portion of the kitchen turned hazy, and then a static could be heard.

    "Honey, let''s get out of here!" Jana''s dad screamed as he grabbed his wife by the hand. The three of them rushed outside, only to find that the entire vige was already in shambles.

    As it turned out, the figure that Jana sees in her dreams is actually a premonition of what is toe. The figure in her dream was actually an alien¡ª representing the group of aliens which was about to touch down on Earth for their invasion attempt. And the reason why that said alien seemed to appear nearer in her dreams was that the invasion was almost upon Earth. Jana finally understood the hidden meaning behind her dreams. Even though she couldn''t ept what was happening right now, she had no choice but to take it all in.

    The aliens looked so ck they could bepared to the darkness under the bed (for crying out loud). And every time they move, they release static, causing bright shes of ck and white here and there. Their hands shoot out projectiles that seem to kill people in one shot.

    The Alexis family continued to run towards the forest by the edge of the vige. They didn''t bother heading towards the road since they could tell that it was already cut off by the aliens. At the very least, they should be able to hide behind the lush trees of the forest.

    Jana watched in horror as people she knew died one by one. Her eyes witnessed the merciless killings of the aliens that should''ve only existed in her dreams. She was frustrated. There was nothing she could do but watch while her dad dragged her out of harm''s way.

    "Get it together, my dear daughter!" Jana''s dad eximed. "I know what you''re thinking right now... and all I can say is... you should never think that way. If you''re weak and helpless, then survive to see another day. That way, you''ll have a chance at getting stronger when the sun rises the next time."

    BOOM!

    .....

    A dream?

    When Jana came to, the floodlights that brightly shone on the Grand Stage greeted her. Out of impulse, she raised her palms upwards before turning her head sideways. She clearly remembered being beheaded by Link. ''Am I dead?'' She asked as she saw a figure holding her head.

    It was a teenager she didn''t recognize, but she felt the warmth of his hands to the touch.

    "Ryoko, get Jana out of here. I''m going to take care of this little son of a¡ª"

 Chapter 336 Murder

    The sudden oue of the Official Beast Tournament match between Jana and Link shocked everyone, including most superheroes who were watching from the spectator''s seats. They were extremely bewildered and disturbed upon witnessing the audacity of a certain participant. Despite the thousands upon thousands of people watching, he didn''t hesitate to attempt murder in front of them.

    As for the rest of the spectators, they weren''t surprised at all. In fact, they were convinced that the management behind the Official Beast Tournament was carefully monitoring the fight. There was no way they''d allow a murder to happen right when there were kids in the audience.

    Only one person didn''t take his chances. He was the only one who managed to think properly when unexpected development urred. The moment Link swooped in for the kill, he immediately appeared in front of him, rescuing Jana while simultaneously engaging Link inbat. He wanted to talk some sense into Link since he could tell that he didn''t have control over himself. But then again, the rescuees first, so he brought Ryu Ryoko, the ck Winged Dragon, along.

    "Crimson Dagger, Stretch." Link called out, just before Satoshi could teleport.

    When Satoshi came about, another gaping hole in his stomach could be seen, and he vomited blood.

    However, his wounds immediately closed up, and he charged at Link without hesitation. This time, he didn''t bother attacking Link with physical attacks. He summoned his reliable familiar, Nailgun, and shot at Link with everything he could.

    Link wasn''t about to go down so easily, though. He dodged and parried the nails without breaking a sweat. Using the Crimson Dagger''s stretchiness and retraction to the best of his ability.

    Satoshi flew just a couple of feet above the Grand Stage, mercilessly shooting down at Link as he swung his Crimson Dagger around. When he extended it, he let the momentum carry him before retracting it to its usual form. With this strategy, Link was able to smoothly transition from one movement to another without wasting any of his movements. He was like a well-oiled machine, functioning at exceeding capacities and keeping up with Satoshi''s attacks.

    ''As expected of someone who''s got a Representative on his side.'' Satoshi thought to himself. He was amazed by how Link responded to his erratic attacks. Even though his movements didn''t seem human, it was efficient, and not one nail hit its mark.

    "What a monster," Satoshimented.

    Clearly, he has the advantage over Link since he can fly around and keep his distance. Whenever Link tries to attack, Satoshi would just teleports somece else. Thanks to his portal creation ability, no matter how fast Link could get, he could never rival Ghast''s instantaneous speeds. Still, Satoshi couldn''t get close to Link either, thanks to his insane reaction time and speed.

    Right now, the two of them reached an impasse. Not one of them could get the advance on the party since they were both busy keeping their guard up, attacking each other while solely focusing on the defensive.

    "Aren''t you getting tired?" Satoshi asked, wondering why LInk was still running around despite being exhausted.

    "How about you? Aren''t you exhausted? You should tap out now. It''s never toote to back down." Link called out, taunting Satoshi even more. "You do know that you don''t stand a chance against me, right?"

    "Who said?" Satoshi smirked.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    Every event organizer in a certain room in the American Dome was there, including White Mist, who made the Official Beast Tournament possible. They were well aware of the situation that unfolded in the Grand Stadium, hence the sudden meeting regarding the problem.

    "So, what are we going to do? Are we going to let them fight as they please?"

    "There are certain procedures when ites to matches in the Official Beast Tournament. Picking a fight in the middle of the Grand Stadium shouldn''t be allowed. We should pull out the two of them from the tournament."

    "I disagree. While it is inexcusable for the son of the Midoriyama Duo to interfere, we are all aware that he did so because a participant''s life is in danger. We shouldn''t overlook that fact when ites to finalizing our verdict."<novelnext></novelnext>

    "That''s right. The reason why Satoshi interfered with that battle was clear. There shouldn''t be a debate here. Let''s stop the fight and then apologize to all the spectators before resuming the Official Beast Tournament. While I do agree that Satoshi''s reason is valid, it is true that he interfered in the match. Breaking the rules... we should mete a proper punishment for him."

    "I disagree."

    Before a member of the event organizer continued speaking, White Mist stood up and showed the Official Beast Tournament live stream on hisptop. A smile of satisfaction was written on his face as he started exining his opinion on the matter.

    "As you can see... we are not inclined to give an apology to the audience. It''s obvious that they''re enjoying themselves. Also., we shouldn''t think too hard about this." White Mist heaved a sigh as he sank back into his seat. "Think about it. We need an intermission right now, right? The first round is bound to finish soon. Let''s leave the floor to Satoshi and Link. Once the intermission time limit is met, we can stop the fight."

    A sinister smile then appeared on White Mist. "With this, we don''t even have to exin Link''s weird behavior. We can just write it off as mere acting for the intermission."

    There were nods of approval from the event organizers, but what made White Mist sigh in relief was the appeased expression on the face of the main head himself. As it turned out, he was pleased with White Mist''s suggestion. "That would work. Let''s proceed with that. I guess let''s just wait until Satoshi brings down Link, and then we can end the intermission, quote unquote."

    "In any case, Link seemed pretty formidable for a beast tamer. How can you be so sure that the son of the Midoriyama Duo could take him down?" He asked.

    "Ah, that? Easy. I believe Satoshi could easily handle such a powerhouse. He''s my master, after all. As the beast master, I still have a lot to learn. To tell you the truth, it was Satoshi who taught me the ways to Dual Beast Integration."

    "Oh really? Interesting. I look forward to fighting him." The head of the event organizer muttered to himself.

    ...

    Satoshi leaned to the side as the Crimson Dagger stretched for the umpteenth time. He dodged it by a hair''s breadth, but it still cut a portion of his cheeks, causing him to bleed out. Then again, he didn''t have to worry about it since his wounds healed instantly, all thanks to Sera.

    Gritting his teeth, Satoshi teleported right below Link without wasting another second, crouching as he prepared his fist. The moment he appeared in front of Link, he delivered a punch to his chest.

    But Link was quick to respond. Before the punch could connect, he reverted the Crimson Dagger to its original form, blocked the attack, and then swung the Crimson Dagger whilemanding it to stretch. Satoshi barely had enough time to bend backward just to avoid the swinging giant of a weapon.

    After a somersault, Satoshi changed his trajectory, flinging himself toward Link while remaining as low as he could. Without thinking twice, he integrated with the Ice Empress, and his summoner familiar, Gabriel, in hopes that their additional strength would aid him in catching up to Link''s insane reaction time.

    A spear made of Ice appeared on Satoshi''s hand. The dark orb that floated near Satoshi (it was Ghast''s dark orb that could transform into any weapon) also changed into a spear. He then rushed towards Link, swinging the spears wildly as if to intimidate him.

    Link didn''t think twice about swinging the Crimson Dagger as he aimed for Satoshi''s neck. However, Satoshi easily deflected it, and he continued rushing. For a brief moment, Link panicked, and he lost his footing. That moment made him lose his focus, which caused his Dual Beast Integration to deactivate.

    Despite Grundauge taking over Link''s mind, there was only so much it could do once Link ran out of energy. And to be fair, Link had been fighting for quite some time now. His energy was already severely depleted, and now he experienced the grave consequences of it.

    Satoshi''s momentum carried him all the way toward Link. Just like what Link did, he, too, aimed at his neck. He wasn''t expecting Link''s Dual Beast Integration to deactivate, though. That''s why it was already toote for Satoshi when the spears touched Link''s neck, and his integration was simultaneously deactivated.

    Everything seemed to happen in slow motion as Link''s face contorted due to the pain he felt. At the same time, Satoshi watched in utter horror as he decapitated Link.

    And with his Dual Beast Integration deactivated, Satoshi knew all too well that Link wouldn''t survive the beheading. In other words, Link was a hundredth of a second close to dying.

 Chapter 337 Luke Skyrunner

    Before that hundredth of a second passed, Satoshi impulsively shut his eyes tight. He was about to be a murderer in front of everyone. At this point, there''s no way he could face his parents with a clear conscience. He overestimated Link''s power, thinking that he was just as powerful as him. Well, he was, but his energy reserve was significantly less than Satoshi''s... and that led to his inevitable demise.

    ''Please, someone... anyone... stop this... I can''t stop it!'' Satoshi thought to himself, hoping that a miracle would ur at that very moment. He didn''t want to be a murderer, and furthermore, he didn''t want to do it in front of hundreds upon thousands of people. Just the mere thought gave him severe anxiety.

    ng!

    "Right, that''s enough." An unfamiliar voice called out.

    Satoshi felt his spears hitting an imprable metal, causing his hand to stop its follow-through in an instant. Every joint in his body vibrated as soon as his attack was stopped.

    Opening his eyes, Satoshi noticed a man in front of him. He was in histe twenties, wearing a white robe that looked more like a yukata. His long white hair shimmered against the floodlights, and his gaze was gentle, thanks to the white pupils in his eyes.

    "And that ends our intermission. Please look forward to the next match." The man announced as all cameras pointed at him. After raising his hands in the air, he bowed down before grabbing Satoshi and Link off the stage.

    This was when Satoshi noticed the gauntlet that the man wore. No, it was more like a part of an armor set. The gauntlet had a yellow sheen to it, almost gold, but its dominant color was silver. There were chinks in some parts of it, and Satoshi realized that it must''ve been his fault.

    "I''m sorry for damaging your armor. It must''ve been expensive." Satoshi apologetically said.

    The man turned around and let go of Satoshi''s hand. Judging from the fight, he concluded that Satoshi had already expended considerable energy. But seeing him walk straight made him realize that he still hasn''t expended enough. ''He was able to damage Wormtongue''s armor. This kid''s pretty good.''

    "Don''t worry about it." The man brushed it off as if it was nothing. "This is, Wormtongue, my tamed beast. As you can see, I''m currently integrated with it."

    In response, Satoshi nodded. He couldn''t believe that the man in front of him had managed to block such a powerful attack. Satoshi put all his force into it, but he blocked it without breaking a sweat. ''Is he a Disciple too? He''s strong, probably stronger than Link.''

    "Anyways, I should thank you for what you did back there. It would''ve been bad news if a murder happened in the Official Beast Tournament. That would really tarnish my name as the main head of the event organizers." The man exined. "Thanks to your intervention, we were able to hide the fact that this Link here got out of control. You''re probably wondering why I announced your fight as an intermission, right? We didn''t want to cause a panic... although some people in the audience could probably tell that it was far from being an intermission."

    "Pardon me, I haven''t introduced myself. The name''s Luke, Luke Skyrunner." Luke said, extending his hands towards Satoshi.

    Satoshi incredulously looked at the man. Based on his expression, Satoshi couldn''t tell whether he was joking or not. After all, his name seemed really familiar. "Shouldn''t it be Skywalker? Never mind." Satoshi asked, shaking his head.

    "I get that a lot. My father probably thought the same thing. That''s why he named me Luke. Quite an amusing name isn''t it." Luke let out a chuckle.

    "More like, out of this world. I''m sorry, that was ame joke." Link spoke behind them.

    "You''ve finally snapped out of it, huh? You should rein in your tamed beast a little bit more; otherwise, they''ll go on a rampage, and you won''t be able to control them." Luke advised, patting Link on the shoulder. "It''s easy to deal with a tamed beast, but not when you''re integrated with them. The moment you activate your Beast Integration, you and your tamed beast actions fall solely on you. If your tamed beast is a cold-blooded killer, and it killed while you''re integrated with it... you''re the one responsible for it. I hope you remember that next time."

    "And another word of advice, don''t take the easy way when ites to beast taming. I''ve seen countless beast tamers ruin themselves because of that." Luke continued.

    Once he was done talking, he gestured for the two of them toe inside his office. Link and Satoshi were surprised that they''d already walked a long way from the Grand Stage and were now on the farthest corner of the American Dome. This was the office of the owner of American Dome.

    As it turned out, Luke Skyrunner was actually American Dome''s owner. The reason why not so many people know him is that he preferred keeping a low profile. Right now, the people only know him as the event organizer, whereas he''s actually the American Dome owner himself.<novelnext></novelnext>

    The office was spacious, almost two times the size of a basketball court. Both walls to the side were filled with books, and a staircase led to the second floor, which was filled with even more books. In the middle of the room was a sofa set surrounding a small table where a Newton''s cradle sat in the middle of.

    "Have a seat." Luke gestured before seating himself as well.

    Confused, Link and Satoshi stared at each other before sitting down. They had no idea why Luke invited them to their office in the first ce. Initially, they thought that he''d lead them to their respective waiting rooms, but now, they''re here¡ª and they had no idea what Luke wanted to talk about.

    "Ehrmm... you''re probably wondering why I brought you here." Luke began. "But before all of that, I need to talk to you, Link."

    Link fidgeted in his seat as he intently listened to Luke. He was fairly certain that Luke was going to bring up what happened in the Grand Stage a moment ago, but as to what he specifically wanted to discuss, he could only wonder.

    "I''m banning you from using the Beholder in your future battles. If you don''t want to ept this term, then you can kiss that first ce goodbye. What I mean is... either you give up on using the Beholder, or I disqualify you right here, right now." Luke continued.

    .....

    Jana''s Backstory, continued.

    The Alexis family continued to run towards the forest by the edge of the vige. They didn''t bother heading towards the road since they could tell that it was already cut off by the aliens. At the very least, they should be able to hide behind the lush trees of the forest.

    Jana watched in horror as people she knew died one by one. Her eyes witnessed the merciless killings of the aliens that should''ve only existed in her dreams. She was frustrated. There was nothing she could do but watch while her dad dragged her out of harm''s way.

    "Get it together, my dear daughter!" Jana''s dad eximed. "I know what you''re thinking right now... and all I can say is... you should never think that way. If you''re weak and helpless, then survive to see another day. That way, you''ll have a chance at getting stronger when the sun rises the next time."

    BOOM!

    The explosion made Jana and her mom instinctively duck, but they didn''t slow down. It was a different case for the dad, however, since he turned around¡ª only to find that there was an alien right on their tail. And that said alien fired a projectile that sounded like a bomb.

    Thanks to his superb reflexes, he managed to see the bomb in mid-air, aimed at the three of them. He had no idea what the projectile would do, but he could tell that it was dangerous. If he didn''t do anything, all of them would die.

    Without hesitation, Jana''s dad decelerated, aiming to catch the projectile. Or, if worsees to worst, act as a shield so his wife and daughter wouldn''t get affected by it.

    BOOM!

    Jana and her mom only had a split second to react. When the second explosion was heard, they already thought of the worst thing that could happen. Then they heard a soft ''plop'' on the ground as if a lifeless body just fell down.

    "Dad!" Jana eximed, running over to her dad. Her mom followed suit, but she was too disoriented to even let out a shout.

    Apparently, the projectile was actually a small bomb. And it exploded the moment it hit her dad''s arm. When they came to, their dad was already lying on the ground, his arm blown to bits. The explosion knocked him unconscious.

    DAD! Jana screamed a second time. But this time, she woke up from her dream and found herself on a hospital bed.

 Chapter 338 Deal Or No Deal

    "Oh, you''re awake." The Nurse, Nishimura Haruka, asked as she sat by the edge of the bed. "You passed out after consuming almost all your energy. Fortunately, someone jumped in to save you."

    The vivid images of the dream Jana just had still lingered as she heaved a sigh of relief. It was a traumatizing moment for her, but it was also the time when she received her awakening as a Disciple. "That person... who was he?" Jana asked out of curiosity, referring to Satoshi, who jumped in to stop Link from killing her.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, you should thank himter, all right?" Haruka muttered before standing up. She then reached for a bottle sitting on her desk."Here, drink this. It will replenish your energy."

    After muttering a soft thank you, Jana drank from the bottle without thinking twice. It didn''t take long before she fell asleep for the second time.

    ...

    Back at Luke Skyrunner''s office,

    While Linkpletely understood what Luke was talking about, he just couldn''t agree with it so easily. After all, Grundauge/ The Beholder is currently his second strongest tamed beast. Without it, his overallbat power would be drastically reduced. Besides, every single tamed beast he has in his possession is all Grass Types. Without Grundauge with him, he''d only rely on the Crimson Dagger.

    "All right." After a minute of contemtion, Link conceded, going with Luke''s request. At the end of the day, Luke is the event organizer, and it''s his call whether he should kick out a participant or not.

    A smile formed on Luke''s face as he sank onto his seat. He didn''t want another murder scene to happen during the Official Beast Tournament. That''s why he just had to call off Link''s usage of Grundauge. He could tell that Link received outside help when it came to taming the Beholder. If only he caught the Beholder with all his efforts, then he shouldn''t have any problems in making it submit.

    But after seeing Grundaugepletely take over Link''s body, Luke could tell that Link did the bare minimum when it came to taming the beast. That, or someone simply gave the tamed beast to him. Other than that, Luke couldn''t think of any other exnation.

    In other words, he was inclined to believe that Link wasn''t the original owner of the Beholder.

    "You both are Disciples, right? Are you going to participate in the Initial Selection?" Luke asked. It was obvious that he possessed knowledge regarding the Disciples and the Managers. Link wasn''t surprised, of course, since he somewhat concluded that Luke, too, is a Disciple.

    Otherwise, Luke wouldn''t have been able to predict Satoshi''s attack. Not only did he manage to predict it, but he also stopped it without breaking a sweat.

    Link immediately nodded his head in response to the question. As for Satoshi, he shook his head, which perplexed Luke even more.

    "What? You''re clearly stronger than Link over here... and my gut instincts are telling me that you may even be stronger than me. And yet you''re not a Disciple? Are you telling me that you''re just a regr run-of-the-mill beast tamer? Because if you say that, there''s no way I''d believe it."<novelnext></novelnext>

    Right now, Satoshi was already aware that he could very well be a Disciple. But there''s no way that he''s going to reveal that information willy-nilly. He''s still a novice when ites to knowing about Disciples and Managers. That''s why he proceeded with caution. As far as he knows, Luke might be an enemy... heck, Link could be an enemy. Satoshi had his doubts since he still didn''t know the two too well. Even Yun Zhe and the Hero Disciple, Satoshi still don''t rust them that much.

    Even though he clearly saw that Satoshi denied his usation, Luke still believed in himself¡ª that Satoshi was a Disciple. A chuckle came out of his lips before he stood up. His gaze thennded on therge screen in his office where the live stream of the Official Beast Tournament was being broadcasted. The first round of matches was almost over, and he was d that there were no incidents adding to what Link had caused a moment ago.

    "Well, I guess we''ll know soon enough whether you''re a Disciple or not. I''m rooting for you, Satoshi. I''m rooting for you all the way to the finals." Luke continued, waving his hand in a gesture of dismissing the two.

    Link and Satoshi stood up on his signal, excused themselves, and headed out of Luke''s office. Quite frankly, Luke''s presence was quite intimidating, almost overwhelming. Fortunately, the two of them maintained theirposure throughout the conversation. Both Link and Satoshi relied heavily on their instincts when it came to fighting; that''s why they could immediately sense that Luke was bad news. They weren''t even engaging him inbat, and yet they already felt threatened.

    "Right this way, sir." A personnel appeared out of nowhere, telling Link and Satoshi to follow him. The two of themplied since they knew they''d probably get lost if they were to wander around.

    "In any case, I should thank you, Satoshi. I''d have already killed someone if it weren''t for you." Link rubbed his nose.

    "You shouldn''t thank me, you know," Satoshi responded. "If it weren''t for Luke, I''d have killed you."

    "What, no way..." Link trailed off.

    Indeed, Satoshi was telling the truth. Had Luke not interfered, Satoshi would''ve cut his neck clean. Just remembering it made Satoshi shake his head in disappointment. While he couldn''t believe that Link couldn''t control his tamed beast... he was one as well. At that brief moment, he got too rxed within himself, unleashing more power than he could control.

    "Um,"

    Surprised to hear another voice, Link and Satoshi stopped short in their tracks, only to find that there was a girl following them for quite some time now.

    "Jana?" Link recognized him in an instant. He also immediately figured out that she probably wanted to talk to Satoshi. Without further ado, he bowed down toward Jana, saying his apologies before going his own way. "Please, take your time. You wanted to talk to him, right?" Link asked.

    Jana nodded, facing Satoshi as the redness on her face became more evident.

 Chapter 339 Cherrys Disappearance

    "Achoo~!" Shiroi sneezed out of nowhere, causing Aira and Emma to flinch. "Excuse me, someone''s probably talking about me."

    "That, or Satoshi''s probably talking to another woman right now," Emma muttered to herself. In her home, they have a different belief when ites to someone sneezing. She didn''t say it out loud, though, since she didn''t want Shiroi to overthink. Initially, she had thought of teasing her, but then she opted to remain quiet since nothing good woulde of it.

    On the other hand, Aira heard everything and stared at Emma with her mouth in the shape of an ''o''. Seeing her facial expression, Emma immediately vehemently shook her head, fully knowing that Aira was this close to telling Shiroi what she had just said.

    "I heard all that. Where''s Satoshi right now?" A voice then spoke behind them, and then a hand rested on Shiroi''s shoulder, making her jolt out of nowhere.

    "Kuroe? Cherry? What are the two of you doing here?" Shiroi asked as familiar faces greeted her back. Although it hasn''t been that long since they''ve seen each other in school, a lot has happened in a short time frame that Shiroi felt had been a long time.

    "Oh, that? Everyone''s here. Satoshi''s dad basically flew all of us here as a surprise. Where''s Satoshi? And who''s this kid?" Kuroe asked, even though she had already read her mind and already knew her name.

    Since Aira, too, had some psychic powers as her superpower (she can take a peek at the future, but it consumes much energy), she could tell that Kuroe was also some sort of psychic. That''s why her initial response was to put her guard up.

    "Don''t worry, kid; onee-san here won''t eat you." Kuroe teased, pointing at Cherry. "She might eat you though, so be careful, all right?"

    "Eeh?!" Cherry eximed in surprise, ncing towards Aira, Emma, and then back at Kuroe. She fidgeted before bowing down toward the group. "Nice to meet you. I''m Sakura Cherry.

    Her nervousness seeped out of her body, and everyone felt it. Even Aira, who was putting her guard up, totally underestimated this girl, Sakura Cherry. Aira even concluded that the girl was no match for her, and her lips curved upward as she thought about it.

    "You shouldn''t think that way, young miss," Kuroe put up her index finger and shook it. "This girl... she''s scarier than me."

    "Oh, so that''s where you were. We''ve been looking everywhere for you guys. Turns out you''re seated in front of us." Midori greeted, scanning all the familiar faces on the row of seats. "Why don''t we visit Satoshi by the waiting room? Shiroi, lead the way! You already know where it is, right?"

    "What?" Shiroi asked, shocked that Midori was right on point. "How did you..."

    "Come on, you probably already visited him a couple of times already. Come on, lead the way. Let''s cheer him on so he''d win this tournament by andslide. Right, Hiroshi?" Midori said, putting his arm around Hiroshi''s neck.

    "Never mind that. I''ve also been to Satoshi''s waiting room. I''ll lead you guys there. Don''t disturb him too much, though. There''s another guy with him in his waiting room." Hiroshi pointed out. "Apparently, there was a mix-up with the distribution of the rooms. That''s why they had no choice but to put the two of them in one. He seems like a chill guy, though."

    "Then, what are we waiting for? Let''s go!" Midori raised a fist in the air while raising his voice at the same time. A couple of spectators nced in his direction, ring at him since he was causing an unnecessary scene. Muttering a soft sorry, he then repeated his exmation. This time, he toned down his volume by a lot.

    "Are~ arere~? Where''s Cherry?" Kuroe said in surprise. She was the first one to notice that Cherry had already separated from the group.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Yare yare daze~" Midori heaved a sigh. "I thought we talked about this, Kuroe. You were supposed to keep an eye on her."

    "Ah shoot, here we go again." There was a certain panic in Hiroshi''s tone as he started looking around. "Guys, let''s spread out. We have to find her before she causes another trouble."

    "I agree. Let''s visit Satoshi after we''ve dealt with this. There''s no telling what Cherry''s up to this time." Midori agreed.

    "You mean, Sassu. Cherry''s pretty easy to deal with. Sassu, on the other hand, she''s on another level of crazy."

    "I''m sorry, you guys. I got distracted for a little bit, and now..." Kuroe trailed off. She panicked a little bit that she couldn''t read Cherry''s mind at all when Sassu took over her consciousness. That''s why she couldn''t find her using her superpower.

    Fukushima Fuuka (sound maniption and space distortion is her superpower) patted Kuroe on the shoulder. "We also didn''t notice her go... so it''s all our fault. For now, let''s look for her."

    Without further ado, everyone, including Shiroi and Emma, spread out to look for Sakura Cherry (right now, it was Sakura Sassu controlling her body, though).

    .....

    Meanwhile, by the hallway right outside the Grand Stage.

    "Here you go," Satoshi handed Jana a ss of frappe, to which she muttered a soft thank you. Together, the two of them headed toward the tables and chairs by the end of therge hallway. A lot of people were already there, conversing and eating with each other while taking a break from the fighting happening inside.

    "I, um, I wanted to thank you... for saving me." Jana bashfully said before taking a sip from her frappe. "Your sister... she watched over me while I was unconscious. I''m sorry, she should''ve been enjoying the Official Beast Tournament if it weren''t for me."

    "Ah, you mean, Ryoko?" Satoshi asked. "Don''t worry about it. I doubt that she has any interest in the Official Beast Tournament. Besides, we didn''t jump to your aid expecting a thank you. We''re just relieved that nothing happened."

    "I actually... Satoshi, right?"

    "Yes?"

    "Are you a Disciple too?" Jana asked out of nowhere.

 Chapter 340 Against All Odds

    Sniff sniff~

    The moment Sassu took over Sakura Cherry''s body, she immediately scanned the entire American Dome, hoping to find Satoshi''s life force. (Sakura Cherry has two identities, herself and Sassu. While Cherry is usually gentle and soft-spoken, Sassu is wild and erratic, almost always causing trouble wherever she goes and pleases.)

    It didn''t take long before she detected where Satoshi was. And without prior warning to her ssmates, she headed alone, rushing through the crowds of people so that she could get to Satoshi''s location in record time.

    Now that she thought about it, it''s been so long since shest saw Hajime. She missed her a lot, evident in her excited expression as she quickened her pace. At the very least, she wanted to be alone with Satoshi, even for a couple of minutes, before their ssmates found their whereabouts.

    She had already shown her interest in Satoshi, even straightforwardly telling his parents that she liked him. However, she was well aware of the fact that Satoshi liked Shiroi. That didn''t stop her from liking him, though. So far, she still hadn''t heard about their rtionship advancing¡ª she was fairly certain that she had a chance, seeing that Satoshi and Shiroi weren''t dating yet.

    "I''m almost there." Sassu excitedly muttered to herself.

    She didn''t even care about the group of people who were busily checking out the stalls. Without hesitation, she plowed right through them, even knocking a couple of people to their feet, causing their food to fly all over the ce and making a mess out of everyone in the vicinity.

    Angryints filled the hallway, but Sassu couldn''t care less. Right now, the only thing foremost in her mind was seeing Satoshi and catching up with him. While she still had no idea what they were supposed to talk about, she still went through the motions as if that was the only thing she could do at the present.

    The nearer she got, the more excited her expression became. And once she reached the end of the hallway, she finally saw what she was looking for.

    Satoshi was right there, sitting across the table with another girl. Based on his expression, he seemed to be having a difficult conversation with her. ''No way, is she threatening her? How dare she!'' Sassu said in her mind as she clenched her fists in utter frustration.

    Based on observations alone, she could tell that the girl was bothering Satoshi (such was not the case, though, Sassu was just overreacting since Satoshi was in the presence of another girl she didn''t know). And now that that conclusion nted itself in Sassu''s brain, she reacted instantly to it.

    Notwithstanding the fact that there were many people there to witness the events, she still decided to cause a scene. The nearer she approached Satoshi, the faster she got, shoving people out of the way as she gritted her teeth. At this point, she had already reached the conclusion that Satoshi was in danger and that she was there to save him in the off-chance that he wouldn''t be able to defend himself.

    But she knew. She knew that Satoshi could more or less stand up to everyone with how powerful he''s gotten. Even his normal tamed beasts could go head to head with legendaries if Satoshi integrated with them. However, her delusions got the better, and she attacked without thinking twice.

    Once she reached a safe distance, she jumped up and sliced the air with her fingers. The life force she had carefully sucked out of every person she met came out at once, and it cut through the air as she went with the motions. "Hyah~!" She eximed as the energy cut through the table, causing both Jana and Satoshi to jump out of the way for fear that they were being attacked by something far more sinister.

    "What was that all about?" Satoshi eximed as he stared in the general direction of where the attack came from. At first, he couldn''t tell whether there was an enemy attack or not since the attack caused panic, and people started running out of the way. However, when his gaze finallynded on Sakura Cherry, who was standing there like a menacing beast, he finally understood why.

    A sigh left Satoshi''s mouth as he concluded that it was nothing serious. Then again, she attacked the two of them out of the blue so he figured that there was probably some sort of misunderstanding.

    "Master, are you all right? I''m sorry I wasn''t able to detect the attack before it happened. I thought that she was just rushing towards the toilet, but as it turned out, her aim was to attack you. Uneptable." Ryu Ryoko, the ck-Winged Dragon, gritted her teeth as half of her face became covered with crystal armor. She was ready to engage Sakura Cherry (Sassu) right then and there.

    Without further ado, Ryu Ryoko''s arm then transformed into a dragon''s limb covered in diamond scales with a darker tone. "I think that''s not a good... idea..." While Satoshi was talking, Ryu Ryoko had already left his side, and she could be seen charging at Sassu without the slightest hint of hesitation. Her eyes turned a nice dark red color as she brought her arm towards Sassu.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "How dare you attack master," She growled.

    Shing~!

    The moment her hand touched Sassu, though, her transformation was undone in an instant. She had no idea how Sassu managed to do that, but it certainly caused her to take a couple of steps back. Sassu didn''t move an inch, yet shepletely canceled her transformation as if it were nothing. "What on... how did that..." Ryoko muttered to herself as she turned her head towards Satoshi.

    ''No, this time I''m going to protect Satoshi. This is only a small gesture in return for his kindness. I should not fail on this undertaking.'' Ryoko said to herself, transforming her hand a second time and imbuing more energy into it. She assumed that her attack probably had weak energy, which was why Sassu easily got rid of it.

    However, she didn''t know that no matter the attack, Sassu could always cancel it thanks to her life force superpower. She could absorb every ounce of energy poured into the attack with just one touch. And in turn, she would use that energy to fuel her superpowers.

    For the second time, Ryoko charged at Sassu.

    ''If you want to win, Ryoko, then you have to get around Sassu''s life force superpower. She can suck the life force out of anything she touches. Once she touches you, it''s game over. Right now, she''s just ying around, but if she gets serious, you can get deleted in an instant.'' Left with no choice since he couldn''t really stop Sassu at the moment, Satoshi decided to give Ryoko some advice since she was currently fighting with her.

    Upon hearing Satoshi''s advice, Ryoko didn''t stop rushing. Instead, she changed her direction the moment she got a wee bit closer. And while Sassu was trying to figure out what her next move might be, she fired an energy beam from her mouth, aiming it at Sassu.

    It was a point-nk shot, and Sassu shouldn''t have dodged it. Nevertheless, Sassu pulled through and dodged the attack by a hair''s breadth in a split second. As soon as she jumped in mid-air, she shot a couple of shes toward Ryoko. The shes seemed to be wind shes, but after a second look, Ryoko realized that they were condensed life force energy shooting from the palms of her hands and manifesting into shes in the air.

    The shes came at incredible speeds, but Ryoko managed to dodge them thanks to her response time. As thest sh approached her, she twisted around and then shot another beam at Sassu.

    Sassu who wasn''t expecting Ryoko to attack as soon as she dodged was caught off guard and the attack connected. It wasn''t enough to knock Sassu though. With her patience running thin, Sassu jumped the gun and dashed towards Ryoko using her life force. In a snap of a finger, she disappeared and reappeared in front of Ryoko, determined to touch her and drain her of her life force until she lost consciousness.

    Shiiing~!

    "You all right?" Jana asked as she blocked Sassu''s touch. After watching their fight unfold, she realized that Sassu''s superpower revolves around some sort of energy. That''s why she interfered when Ryoko was about to be touched. She figured that Sassu intended to drain her energy away, prompting her to defend in her stead.

    And yes, Jana had already integrated with her Representative, the Scarlet Scythe. But as soon as Sassu touched it, her Scarlet Scythe lost all its energy, canceling out her beast integration and leaving her defenseless.

    A smile formed on Sassu''s lips as she reached toward Jana. This time, she aimed to drain Jana and Ryoko''s life force and get the fight over with.

    "That''s enough, Sassu," Satoshi called out, appearing in front of Sassu. Instead of Jana and Ryoko, Satoshi was the one touched and drained of his life force.

 Chapter 341 To The Second Round

    It wasn''t a surprise, but Satoshi had actually spoken a split second toote. He thought Sassu would stop dead in her tracks when he spoke out of nowhere. However, Sassu reacted a little bit toote. The moment Satoshi spoke, she had already touched him. instead of Jana and Ryoko. And she had the full intent to drain all of their life force.

    Meaning to say, Satoshi received twice the full brunt of Sassu''s attack.

    Satoshi''s eyes widened in surprise when he rushed to Jana and Ryoko''s aid. She knew that it would only take Sakura Cherry a split second to drain the life out of them, and now that he was the one touched, he expected to die right then and there.

    However, two seconds passed, and Satoshi was still conscious. Even then, Sassu has not yet removed her hands from his chest. Instead, she gripped him by his t-shirt and pulled him towards her. A satisfied smile appeared on her face as she buried her face in Satoshi''s chest, mping her two hands behind Satoshi before he could even react.

    "Got you~" Sassu sang, rubbing her cheek on Satoshi''s chest.

    A couple of secondster, Midori and the others finally arrived at the scene after being informed by Kuroe that there was amotion by the end of the hallway inside the walls of the American Dome. They figured that the panic was probably caused by Sassu.

    They were right on the money.

    The group sighed in relief when they noticed that Sassu was burying her face in Satoshi''s chest. Just as they thought, only Satoshi could appease the rollercoaster of the girl that is Sassu.

    "Phew~ and here we are, thinking that we''d have to deal with the authorities in the aftermath. Good thing no one got gravely injured... or worse, dead." Midori pointed out, panting. All of them ran all the way, and that''s why they were so out of breath.

    "That could''ve ended worse... Fortunately, Satoshi stepped in just in time." Sumire (superpower, status effect based on her eye color) muttered as her eyes glowed a nice yellow. She was ready to inflict a status effect on Sakura Cherry just in case she still hadn''t controlled herself. Her yellow gaze corresponds to the paralysis status effect. Then again, Sumire was just d that her eye color wasn''t purple or gray today.

    "Keep your guards up. Sassu''s still the one conscious right now. I know because I still can''t read her mind." Kuroe muttered, keeping her distance from Satoshi and Sakura Cherry.

    Suddenly, Sassu looked up with her pupils dting. Even though Satoshi wasn''t the least bit afraid, seeing the sudden shift in Sassu''s expression made him flinch. He badly wanted to let go of the hug, but he didn''t do it. As much as his body screamed to struggle from her embrace, Satoshi held the urge in. He knew that sudden movements would highly likely trigger Sassu. If that were to happen, he''d be the first to suffer since Sassu stuck to him like glue.

    Despite the inner panic, Satoshi kept still, even reciprocating the warm hug that Sassu gave him.

    The moment Sassu looked up, Satoshi sensed the change in her. It was a subtle change, but Satoshi noticed it right away. It''s as if Sassu''s character changed in a snap of a finger, and she opened her mouth in shock. As she took in what was currently happening, she turned towards Midori and the others, wondering why they were all gathered there in the first ce.

    ''Wait, thest thing I remembered was... that''s right! I was in the audience seats with everyone, conversing with Midori and the others. What happened? What am I doing here? And why am I hugging Satoshi... argh~! I don''t want to let go, but this is really, really, really embarrassing!'' Cherry screamed in her head as she buried her face in Satoshi''s chest. This time, it wasn''t because she wanted to express that she liked Satoshi.

    She just... she just didn''t want to be seen by everyone. Or rather, she couldn''t even bring herself to look everyone in the eyes after the bold move she pulled off. ''Please, don''t look!'' Cherry muttered to herself before redirecting her shamefulness towards Sassu, her other consciousness.

    "Sassu?! What were you doing? Why am I hugging Satoshi right now?" She asked, even though she wasn''t expecting an answer.

    Slowly, she let go of Satoshi and sheepishly walked toward the group. While doing so, she didn''t forget to bow her head towards Jana and Ryoko since she was well aware that she attacked them out of nowhere, courtesy of Sassu, of course.

    "Oh, you''re back."

    "d to have you back, Cherry. You''re getting bolder and bolder by the second," Kuroe greeted, patting Cherry on the back as she stood beside her.

    "Uuuuu~" Cherry pouted, unaware that Kuroe was expressing her jealousy at that moment.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "O-oh! How are you guys?" Satoshi asked, waving toward the group in an awkward manner. He didn''t do anything wrong, per se, but he felt like he was just caught red-handed. "What are you doing here?"

    "Your dad''s surprise. He flew us all the way from Japan. We came to cheer you on."

    Everyone, including Cherry, nodded along.

    "Second round''s about to start soon, right? Shouldn''t you be preparing right now?" Hiroshi asked out of nowhere.

    Silence then filled the air while Hiroshi''s sightnded on the frappe that was ''coldly'' sitting on the table. He held his breath, fully knowing that it wouldn''t take long before Midori noticed it. His head slowly turned towards Midori who didn''t seem to notice that they were interrupting something.

    Phew~!

    The moment he sighed, however, Midori pointed towards the table where the two frappes were sitting. He didn''t notice it because Hiroshi nced at it. The reason why he saw it was that the ice in the drink suddenly decided to make a cking sound out of nowhere. "Oh~! I guess you''re talking about something? We interrupted something, didn''t we?" Midori forced a chuckle out of his mouth as he scratched his head.

    "Come on, you guys, let''s head back. We can talk to Satoshiter.," Midori continued, gesturing at everyone to go with him.

    "But why do we have to... " Shiroi trailed off, wondering why Midori suddenly started acting weirdly.

    "Let''s go, can''t you see? They''re on a date together!" Midori whispered to Shiroi before he led the way back to their seats inside the American Dome.

    "Ah, here we go again," Kuroe muttered to herself as she turned around, following the group. She softly waved her hand toward Satoshi, and Satoshi waved back in return. Kuroe''s face turned red as she turned away.

    "B-but," Shiroi stammered, but Kuroe grabbed her by the hand and led her out of there along with everyone else.

    "Come on, we have to go. And no, they''re not on a date." Kuroe pointed out before Shiroi could say anything. This caused Shiroi to turn red as she looked down at her feet. Then again, it was sort of expected for Kuroe to say something like that. After all, she can easily read the minds of everyone there.

    Satoshi smiled as the group wished him luck before they headed back inside the American Dome. There were only a few minutes before the second round starts, and Satoshi was looking forward to his next match. As usual, he had no idea what to expect from the uing match but based on the previous matches, he more or less assumed that he''d be facing another Disciple. If not on the second round, then the rounds after that. There''s also a good chance that he''ll be facing Ash or Jean Grey... or maybe White Mist or ck Fog. In any case, the road toward the champion is a long and bumpy one.

    For now, though, his conversation with Jana was far from over. With themotion settled, Jana returned to her seat. and Ryoko decided to catch up with Shiroi and the others since she didn''t want to disturb her master during a serious conversation. As much as she wanted to say, she knew that it would only make the situation more awkward than it already was. That''s why she joined Shiroi''s group even though she hasn''t met most of them.

    "Back to your question, I guess." Satoshi casually called out as he, too, sat down and sipped on his frappe.

    Jana expectantly looked at Satoshi. She was convinced that he was a Disciple, and he couldn''t deny it otherwise. Well, she already expected Satoshi to deny it, and she wasn''t falling for it.

    "To be honest, I only learned about Disciples today from another participant in the Official Beast Tournament. I don''t think I''m¡ª" Satoshi answered.

    "..."

    [And the winner of the final match is none other than ck Fog! It seems like the crowd-proimed beast tamer, Jean Grey, lost against a dark horse!] The announcement suddenly rang throughout the whole stadium, interrupting what Satoshi was supposed to say.

 Chapter 342 Voting Session

    Recess, a couple of minutes before the second round,

    As it turned out, Ash Grey, Midoriyama Satoshi, and White Mist managed to get to the second round. As for Jean Grey, he was unfortunate enough to be paired with ck Fog, and he was defeated in an instant. Even with his beast integration, he didn''t stand a chance against ck Fog, who could simultaneously beast integrate with three beasts.

    "I guess I still have a lot to learn as a beast master, huh," Jean Grey muttered to himself, heaving a sigh as he exited the Grand Stage. He couldn''t help but feel slightly embarrassed since he lost in the first round of the Official Beast Tournament. But what''s happened already happened... and the only thing he could do right now is to ept his inadequacy.

    Thinking about it, Jean Grey finally realized his failure and wrong perspective regarding beast taming. Back in his world, he was the strongest and easily achieved the benchmark of bing a beast master. No one can rival him when ites tomanding tamed beasts; for years, he reigned supreme in his region.

    That achievement gave him thecent attitude he had when it came to beast taming. He didn''t seek to improve himself and instead decided to stay on his level, thinking that it was enough. No one can defeat me; I''ll improve myself once there''s someone who can rival me both in skill and strength.

    Excuses. Excuses. Jean Grey let out an exhale of disappointment that was unequivocally directed at him. If only he had put in extra time in his training and tried to better himself in the past; if only he didn''t settle for less, then he''d probably have a fighting chance right now.

    He was just a frog in the well, barely seeing the sky as he looked up. It was his fault that he lost in the first round. There was no one he could me but himself.

    When he got to the line of stalls that sold all sorts of snacks by the halls of the American Dome, he tried to put on the best expression for himself since he didn''t want his son to see him in such an awful state. He lost for the first time in two decades, and it struck a chord in his heart.

    Nevertheless, that event gave him the push he needed to improve his beast taming abilities. Indeed he was strong, even being able to climb up to the top with the bare minimum of skills. He''s got the talent, but he needed the drive right now. And s, he finally found it thanks to the loss he suffered.

    "Dad! That was a superb fight." Ash approached his dad in a cheerful manner, extending his hand while he grinned from ear to ear. The moment he saw his father walking out of the Grand Stage, he was unsure of what expression to wear.

    As far as he knows, this was his dad''s first loss. Ever since he was young, he never saw his dad suffer a defeat. There were stories, here and there, about his father''s past, but those losses happened back when his father still hadn''t imed the title of the most powerful beast tamer in their region.

    That''s why this was an entirely new experience for Ash as well. He couldn''t believe that his father had lost to someone. It wasn''t all that surprising, though, since his dad had already unofficially lost to Satoshi... and it even happened in their home court (in their world).

    "Oh, son," Jean Grey greeted, ruffling his son''s hair. He seemed cheerful as well, but deep inside, he was contemting the fight he just had. "Congrattions on getting to the second round. Now go make your father proud."

    "That was a great fight. You don''t have to beat yourself up. It was obvious that we''re no match for ck Fog." White Mist said with an unchanging expression on his face. As much as he hated to admit it, ck Fog really was stronger than any of them. He even doubted that Satoshi was stronger than ck Fog since ck Fog had more experiencepared to him.

    "I''m over that, beating myself up, I mean. It''s a bitter pill to swallow, but... the reality is that I''m weak. I got so focused on my strength and achievements that I forgot to take time to improve myself." Jean Grey muttered, rubbing his nose. "It''s only been a week or so since we got introduced to Dual Beat Integration. We should''ve pushed ourselves harder while we still had the time. And now we''re behind a couple of ces in the race of beast taming."

    "You''re right about that. The beast tamers this year are scary. Did you see Satoshi''s fight? That was a nailbiting experience. I couldn''t believe you managed to survive that." White Mist called out to Satoshi, who was standing beside him.

    "And then there''s the fight between the Crimson Dagger and the Scarlet Scythe. That was one hell of a fight as well. That Crimson Dagger almost killed the girl as well. Fortunately, Satoshi wasposed enough to intervene and stop the needless killing." Jean Grey said. "You do your best out there, kid. We''re all rooting for you." Jean Grey continued, pointing his fist towards Satoshi for a fist bump.

    Satoshi obliged, and he nodded toward Jean Grey as if he''d be able to fulfill what he wished.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "How about me, dad? Aren''t you going to give me some words of encouragement?" Ashined, to which his father nonchntlyughed before ruffling his hair for the second time.

    "You don''t need any. I''m sure you''ll be able to pull through in all of your fights. If everything goes well, you''re going to fight the ck Fog in the third round. We''ll look forward to that fight." Jean Grey said.

    "In the meantime, don''t lose during the second round, all right? Let''s all meet on the fourth round or something." White Mist said, extending his hand. Ash and Satoshi returned the handshake in response.

    As soon as they all shook hands and cheered each other for the uing second round, the announcement for pairings for the second round was announced. Everyone expected the matchups to be the same as the announced brackets during the first round. But what they didn''t know was that the event manager of the Official Beast Tournament actually had a little bit of a surprise for them.

    Instead of the usual pairings moving up the brackets, the brackets were actually erased altogether. Thementator started talking about the changes in the second round, emphasizing that the changes would bring more excitement to the audience.

    Of course, it received positive responses, and thementator and the event organizers received the heads up to follow through with the n.

    An animation was then shown on the live broadcast of the Official Beast Tournament. The picture disyed on the screen was the pairings on the first round. It was then torn to pieces, and two tabs suddenly appeared on the screen.

    "And now we''re going to have the new rules for the second round of the Official Beast Tournament! With that, I, yourmentator, will back down from his seat for now and leave the floor to the head of the event organizers. Please give Luke Skyrunner a wide round of apuse!" Thementator continued as the scene on the live stream shifted to a live camera pointing at a desk with a microphone prompted in the middle of it.

    Satoshi and Yun Zhe immediately recognized the ce since they had been there a couple of moments ago. Luke Skyrunner was actually in his office, speaking to the audience as he announced the new arrangement for the second round.

    "Mic test. Mic test. Hello hello? Everyone? Can you hear me clearly?" Luke cleared his throat. "As you can tell, there are two sections on the screen right now. that''s right, instead of having a fixed matchup from the first round to thest round, we''re going to have a game of chance. It''s always fun, right? ying a game of chance."

    "These two sections on the screen would show two names. But here''s the catch!" Luke Skyrunner enthusiastically pointed out. "The audience gets to pick the first name of the matchup! On your devices, I request all of you to input the name of the beast tamer you want to see fight in the first round!"

    "As for the second name, it will be randomly generated by theputer. Interesting, right?! Without further ado, LET THE VOTING BEGIN!"

    Pause.

    Suddenly, another person appeared on the screen. He was one of the event organizers under Luke Skyrunner. After saying something, he exited, and Luke Skyrunner was left wearing a shocked expression on his face. He then screamed.

    "Our team just had a great idea! The first name will now be randomly generated, and the second name will be chosen by the audience. How does that sound?" He announced.

    This time, the audience frantically screamed their cheers even louder than before.

 Chapter 343 Black Fog Vs. Satoshi

    A drone swooped in towards the Grand Stage in the middle of the American Dome, then rose up to have a bird''s eye view of the audience. A panoramic view of the American Dome exterior was then shown on the live stream, and the announcement about the recent changes for the second round.

    "Let the voting begin!"

    The first slot on the screen started scrolling through the names of the participants, all thirty-two of them that were left. The name then continued to scroll until it eventually slowed down. The names of the participants were clear now, and the people gasped since there were a couple of familiar names on the screen. Even Satoshi and Yun Zhe saw their name as it slowed down, and they gulped in anticipation.

    Ting!

    A familiar name appeared on the screen. It was none other than the winner of thest match, ck Fog. As it turned out, the randomly generated name, chosen by theputer, was ck Fog, and the people started cheering like madmen. He was one of the few participants who was a fitting candidate to win the finals.

    When the second slot started rolling forward, the crowd grew quiet. Even Luke Skyrunner, temporarily taking over thementator''s job, suddenly felt chills up and down his spine as he watched the crowd. There was a certain heavy atmosphere revolving around the Grand Stadium as the voting session began.

    Together with the audience, Luke Skyrunner watched with eager anticipation as the people tried to pick ck Fog''s enemy.

    Even without looking at the audience, Satoshi could more or less feel the stares of the people boring down on him despite the fact that he was in his waiting room. It was impossible for the audience to see him, yet he felt as if they were watching him intently.

    The polls started going up in number as more and more audience pressed their vote. It wasn''t surprising when people saw that only two names were on the board. Midoriyama Satoshi and White Mist.

    "I knew it," Satoshi muttered to himself as he and Yun Zhe watched the live stream together. This was only the first voting, and Satoshi could already tell that he''d be picked more often in theter rounds if he won''t be chosen right now. He''d rather fight ck Fog in the first round than continuously experience the churning feeling in his stomach every time the voting session begins.

    "Well, if you get picked, it''s obvious that you''re going to win. The people may be cheering ck Fog on right now, but he''s weaker than I am. You''ll easily defeat him. Honestly, I''ll feel bad if you ever get chosen. The people''s expectation of my student is so high. How sad." Yun Zhe heaved a sigh as he shook his head.

    "There''s no guarantee yet, and I think White Mist is going to get chosen..." Satoshi''s voice trailed off as he realized why Yun Zhe said that. ck Fog is a household name when ites to the Official Beast Tournament. Moreover, there were already plenty of times when ck Fog and White Mist fought with each other. Of course, the people would pick someone new, or rather, there''s a good chance they''d pick someone other than White Mist.

    And seeing that there were only two names on the screen, Satoshi had already concluded that he was going to be fighting in the first round.

    "As you may know, ck Fog is the current dark horse for this tournament. For years, he had been challenging White Mist here and there, and their fights were always close." Luke Skyrunner began as the percentage of the votes continued to increase.

    "But right now, he had proven himself to be a better beast tamer in this Official Beast Tournament. We all know that Jean Grey defeated White Mist by andslide during the exhibition match two or so weeks ago. And that very Jean Grey, who was unofficially crowned as the beast master, was defeated by ck Fog. There are only two names on the board right now..."

    "Correct! It''s more or less safe to assume that ck Fog will be fighting one of them, right, Luke?" The othermentator chimed in, his eyes glued to the huge screen in the middle of the stadium.

    "I heard White Mist had undergone intense training since he lost to Jean Grey. I''m sure he''s really eager to get his title back. It would be the match of the century if we were to see the two of them fight. White Mist and ck Fog had been rivals for years. Would this year finally end their prolonged rivalry?"

    "We can''t overlook this young up-anding star, Midoriyama Satoshi. Apparently, he''s the son of Japan''s number one and number two superhero, also known as the Midoriyama Duo. And during his first match, did you see how he managed to fend off the Hero Disciple? That was one of the most intense fights I''ve ever seen in all my years of organizing the Official Beast Tournament."

    Thementator nodded; the numbers were reaching their maximum, and the timer that would indicate who would fight against ck Fog was in its final seconds. A majority of the audience held their breath as Satoshi''s name and White Mist''s name evened out and sat at fifty percent.

    They had equal votes. It alles down to thest few votes that would be put in before the five seconds were up.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Five... Four...

    Three... Two... One...

    There was a sudden spike in the votes, followed by a series of gasps as the timer ran out. The two names on the board, which both sat at fifty percent, finally separated¡ª with one name having more votes than the other.

    Sitting at forty-nine percent was White Mist, then Midoriyama Satoshi rose up at fifty-one percent. He had overtaken White Mist in total votes, making him the first match in the second round.

    Satoshi wasn''t the least bit surprised. He had already mentally prepared himself for the match that would soon happen. It was just the second round. There were still three or four more rounds after this before they reached the finals. To Satoshi, this was just another stepping stone for him.

    ck Fog or whatever, Satoshi had already decided to win and sweep through the first rounds. Once he gets to the finals, that''s when he''d reconsider using his full power as a beast tamer.

    "Heh, I knew it. Now, don''t you go beating him up too badly, all right? You''re going to answer me if something bad were to happen to him." Yun Zhe reminded Satoshi while patting him on the back. Deep inside, he felt a bit nervous that Satoshi would be fighting his student. He clearly didn''t stand any chance. But on the side not, he also felt excited about the match. While there was little to no chance that ck Fog would be able to ovee Satoshi, Yun Zhe couldn''t wait as to what he going to do once he backed into a corner.

    The desperation would surely make it possible for ck Fog to reach greater heights. Furthermore, when ites to years of using his superpower and hisbat experiences, Satoshi was no match for ck Fog¡ª or at least that''s what Yun Zhe assumed since Satoshi looked weak underneath. What she didn''t know, however, was that Satoshi had also been training, albeit physically. This natural superpower of his snagged him in the top fifty of everypetition he participated in. Without the superpower, though, he was easily bullied, but that didn''t get to him. In his mind, he was too focused on making himself stronger so he could at least have a fighting chance if someone were to gang up on him.

    And now that he had awakened his superpower as an Upgrader, his physical strength now greatlypensated for hisck of control when ites to his superpower. Long story short, Satoshi couldn''t be underestimated, either.

    "I''ll be going." Satoshi firmly said, letting out an exhale before he headed out of the room. "Ryoko, are youing with me?" Satoshi asked, thinking that Ryoko might not want to go with him.

    Ryoko enthusiastically stood up, to his surprise, walking towards Satoshi''s side before she gestured for him to start walking. Somehow, Satoshi was expecting such development to happen, but he realized a little toote that Ryoko would follow through with the image Satoshi had in his mind.

    "Let''s go," Ryoko called out, locking arms with Satoshi.

    "Don''t hurt him too much, all right?" Yun Zhe called out just as the door swung shut.

    "Ou~" Satoshi answered. Together the two of them headed toward the Grand Stage.

    Meanwhile, ck Fog confidently strode to the center of the Grand Stage. He was sure that Satoshi was a strong participant, but even then, he believed tha he''d be able to win the second round nice and easily.

    "So, I''ll be fighting you, huh, Midoriyama Satoshi?" ck Fog said, extending his hand, to which Satoshi replied with a handshake.

    "Let''s have a great match," Satoshi said, seeing the referee as he skittered to his original ce by the center of the Grand Stage.

    BEGIN!

 Chapter 344 Gladiaros, Hezna, Vaiter

    Previously, ck Fog only showed his Red Smander and Blue Smander during his confrontation with White Mist. And during his fight against Jean Grey, he only ever used his Red and Blue Smander when he activated his Dual Beast Integration. In other words, ck Fog hasn''t shown his cards yet, and this made Satoshi worry a little bit.

    While Satoshi was still unsure whether ck Fog is a Disciple or not, he could tell that he was indeed strong. He didn''t even break a sweat when he fought against Jean Grey, whereas Satoshi barely won a round against him. It was clear that ck Fog still has a lot of tricks up his sleeves and Satoshi knew he wouldn''t think twice about using them when he''s backed into a corner.

    Just to be on the safe side, Satoshi put his guard up as he stood on the other side of the Grand Stage. He didn''t feel nervous at all regarding the match, but he felt oddly challenged by ck Fog since he too could use Dual Beast Integration easily. There''s a good chance that he could use Trinity Beast Integration, or even Quad Beast Integration.

    "So, I''ll be fighting you, huh, Midoriyama Satoshi?" ck Fog said, approaching Satoshi and extending his hand, to which Satoshi replied with a handshake.

    "Let''s have a great match," Satoshi said, seeing the referee as he skittered to his original ce by the center of the Grand Stage.

    "You''re a Disciple, right? I can tell..." ck Fog said as a smirk stered itself on his face. "But then again, I''m going to win this match and climb up to the third round. You''re a mere stepping stone for me. Jean Grey, I could tell that he''s not a Disciple since he didn''t even have a Representative. That''s the reason why he lost against me."

    "I''m not a Disciple... or at least, I''m not sure if I''m a Disciple or not since I only recently awakened my superpower," Satoshi replied, returning the same smirk that ck Fog wore for him. "Don''t be too quick to assume that you''re going to win though. I fought against the Hero Disciple during the first round and even stopped Link from rampaging. From what I deduced, both of them were Disciples... " Satoshi''s voice trailed off. He didn''t bother continuing what he was going to say since he already got his message across.

    "I''m no Disciple either, but I''m going to bring you down, Satoshi." ck Fog called out, pointing his index finger toward Satoshi before bringing his thumb down to the ground. He was like a kid taunting a grownup for a fight.

    "Your master, Yun Zhe, told me not to defeat you too much. He sends his regards." Satoshi said with a smile.

    "..."

    "..."

    Switch!

    "Whoa~ it looks like there''s some intimidation going on over the grand stage. What do you think, Luke?" Thementator asked as the camera switched to them.

    "Ten minutes? No, maybe five or six minutes. I can tell that this match won''tst past that." Luke Skyrunnermented as he intently watched Satoshi. ''Now, show me what you got, Satoshi, Disciple of¡ª''

    "Well, I guess this is one fight we should intently watch. Without further ado, let''s start the match!" Thementator raised his voice, interrupting Luke''s thoughts.

    The camera then switched towards the view of the referee who stood still by the edge of the Grand Stage. He raised his hand. "Second round. First match. Midoriyama Satoshi versus ck Fog. Let the match begin!" He announced with a straight face while simultaneously bringing his hand down.

    "diaros, I''m relying on you on this one, all right?" ck Fog said to himself as he summoned what seemed like a man in full armor. Its red eyes seemed toser at Satoshi when it nced in his direction.

    In that split of a second, Satoshi immediately felt the bloodthirst emanating from the tamed beast.

    diaros was more of a human than a tamed beast, much like Satoshi''s familiar, the Ice Empress, who has pseudo-human features. Its legs and arms were made of metal, its golden sheen shining against the bright floodlights of the American Dome. A helmet covered half of its head like a masquerade mask, and its hands were in the shape of a de. "Whoa, that looks like a pretty cool tamed beast," Satoshi muttered to himself.<novelnext></novelnext>

    As soon as he muttered that to himself, he felt a spark in his mind, almost as if one of his tamed beasts was calling out to him. He wasn''t wrong though. Someone really was calling for him from within the dimension that Orb Oboros set up for all of Satoshi''s familiars.

    "Are you sure you want to fight alongside me? This is going to be your first fight, you know, your debut fight." Satoshi asked out of curiosity.

    ''It''s all right, master. I''ve prepared myself for this moment. I will be even stronger in this fight, all so that I can proudly present myself as your sword.'' The voice in Satoshi''s head spoke with a soft and gentle voice, clearly the exact opposite of her character. Even until now, Satoshi could still remember how she managed to corner her using his own superpower, even reaching the point where she pressed a chainsaw on Satoshi''s neck before he was forced to admit defeat.

    "If you say so... but if you were to fight with me... we''ll win this fight in a snap of a finger." Satoshi stated. "Do you want to fight him by yourself... or do you want me to borrow your powers?"

    ''I''ll fight with you, Satoshi. I''m sure I can win alone, but I''d rather fight with you than fight alone. Besides, aren''t they fighting together as well?'' Copycat asked.

    "You''re right. At the very least, I should return the favor, right?" Satoshi said.

    While Satoshi and Copycat were conversing in his mind, ck Fog had already finished his beast integration with his diaros. He then proceeded to summon two more of his legendary tamed beasts and integrate with them.

    "Come out, Hezna, Vaiter," ck Fog screamed as he threw two more Grens into the field.

    At first, Satoshi thought that ck Fog would be summoning a dragon or something like that. But when the silhouette of the tamed beasts came out, Satoshi realized that Hezna and Vaiter looked the same as diaros. The only difference was their exterior. While diaros has a golden metallic skin, Hezna has a ck charcoal skin and Vaiter has a sheen akin to diamonds. Satoshi immediately concluded that the three of them, diaros, Hezna, and Vaiter, were part of the same circle of legendary trios.

    Satoshi was contemting whether he should attack ck Fog while he was in the middle of his beast integration or not. His gaze, whichnds on the audience from time to time, detected that the audience wanted to see some real action and they couldn''t wait anymore. Some of them were even frowning since it was taking ck Fog a bit too long to integrate with his beasts. But then again, it wasn''t every day that they get to see a Trinity Beast Integration so they didn''tin.

    In the end, Satoshi concluded that he shouldn''t do something so underhanded. Sure he''d win by andslide if he were to interrupt ck Fog''s beast integration, but that wouldn''t look too good in his image. Technically, he could already attack ck Fog since the match had already started, but that kind of action is frowned upon by the ethics of the match. At the very least, he should wait for ck Fog to touch up his beast integration before he makes a move.

    "Why is Satoshi just standing there? Shouldn''t he attack right now? The longer he waits, the more advantageous that ck Fog would get." Midori asked, leaning towards Hiroshi as he spoke.

    "Sure, but would you call that a match? We''ve known Satoshi for quite some time now, and one thing he never fails at is putting on a show. I''m guessing he''s waiting for that ck Fog to reveal all his cards before he engages him inbat." Hiroshi responded.

    "Still, I couldn''t believe that beast integrating with two beasts is possible, let alone three beasts." Hiroshi continued. Up until now, he''s never heard of anyone beast integrating with two beasts. That''s why he was at awe when he first saw it during the first match of the first round (when Satoshi fought against the Hero Disciple).

    The audience held their breaths as ck Fog continued his beast integration. Sweat trickled on his forehead as he raggedly breathed. It was taking every bit of his concentration to beast integrate with his three beasts, but he knew he should at least do that much if he wanted to stand on even ground against Satoshi.

    "He''s still not attacking, huh," ck Fog muttered to himself as he forced a smile toward Satoshi.

    As if on cue, Satoshi reached inside his bag (which was his familiar, the Orb Oboros) and pulled something out of it. He then summoned a tamed beast that was never seen before.

    "Copycat,e out," Satoshi muttered under his breath.

 Chapter 345 Timed Defense

    "Copycat,e out," Satoshi muttered under his breath.

    A girl with blue skin and a proportionate body appeared before Satoshi. She had big googly eyes and a listless presence epassed her. The way she posed with her leg in front of the other made her appear more mesmerizing than usual. And since her clothes were the same color as her skin (to top it all off her clothes were skin-tight), her body was really defined. In a snap of a finger, she attracted the eyes of almost the entire audience.

    For some odd reason, the audience started cheering for Satoshi, screaming their lungs out as they pumped their fists in the air. Well, the ones cheering were mostly men so Satoshi could more or less tell why they were doing that. He couldn''t help but turn away from the audience, dreading to see the reaction of his peers, much less his parents. He didn''t want them to misunderstand, but now that he thought about it, that sentiment was already toote forfort.

    "Heh, so you also have a humanoid tamed beast, Satoshi. I can''t say I''m impressed. You won''t be able to defeat me with such a weak-looking tamed beast. I don''t know where you found her, but she''s no match for my trio."

    "Well, let''s see how it''ll go. I''m pretty sure I don''t even need to show you my true power. You''re going down today, ck Fog." Since ck Fog went through the effort of causing a scene where he taunts Satoshi, Satoshi decided to return the favor so they could entertain the spectators a little bit more. This was all so their fight would be even more interesting.

    It took another minute or so before ck Fog finally finished his Trinity Beast Integration. While he was thankful that Satoshi didn''t interrupt his beast integration, he couldn''t bring himself to say it since that would be embarrassing. The audience was watching their every move, after all, and addressing the elephant in the room would just make him look worse.

    Seeing that ck Fog was done with his integration, Satoshi extended his hand toward Copycat and in an instant, he was integrated with her. It didn''t look like he underwent a beast integration though since Copycat copied Satoshi''s form. That''s why right now, Satoshi still looked like the normal Satoshi even after sessfully integrating with Copycat.

    ck Fog now looked more like a mecha than a normal beast tamer, with his full-armored body having the color of ck, diamond, and gold. He''s got a full helmet as well, and a myriad of des and weapons were attacked to his back, ready for deployment at a moment''s notice. "I hope you''re ready, Satoshi. You shouldn''t have let me finish my Trinity Beast Integration. You''re going to regret that haughty decision of yours." ck Fog said as he pulled out what seemed like a photon greatsword from behind him.

    "Hyah~!"

    Satoshi could''ve sworn that ck Fog had thrusters on his legs since a powerful st of air erupted from behind him. The moment he charged at Satoshi, he elerated, and his momentum allowed him to swing the photon greatsword he was holding. It glowed a brilliant color of yellow as he swung, causing Satoshi to flinch due to the brightness. That didn''t impede Satoshi''s defense, however, since he managed to block it¡ª

    ¡ª using only his hand!

    The moment the photon greatsword connected with Satoshi''s hand, a ''clinking'' sound was heard, almost as if the greatsword hit something metallic. ck Fog retreated by jumping backward. And as soon as he got his footing back, he rushed towards Satoshi once again, this time slicing the photon greatsword sideways.

    In his mind, he was beginning to wonder how Satoshi managed to dodge his sword without using anything. He didn''t sense Satoshi activating any of his superpowers nor did he detect energying out from his body. Despite all that, Satoshi was able to block his strike using his hands alone. That was simply impossible. If it were any other normal person, no, even if that person has a superpower, there''s no way they could block the strike without suffering any damage.

    "Color me surprised, how did you block that?" ck Fog asked out of curiosity while swinging his Photon Greatsword a second time. As soon as it hit Satoshi though, he grabbed the handle with his other arm.

    To Satoshi''s bewilderment, the photon greatsword separated into two. ck Fog then pivoted and struck Satoshi''s right side twice, hoping that he won''t be able to block the attack on time.

    However, the surprise attack didn''t faze Satoshi at all. In fact, ck Fog could''ve sworn that he saw Satoshi smiling while he was swinging his dual sword. The attack was almost there, it was about to hit Satoshi on the sides. Before that could happen though, Satoshi lifted his hand up and blocked the attack with his forearm. It was just a normal guard in boxing, but Satoshi totally stopped ck Fog''s attack.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Silence befell the crowd before loud cheers erupted. They were sure that Satoshi would be hit by the strike, but when they noticed that Satoshi was unscathed, they cheered him on in utter excitement.

    "Wha¡ª but, but how? That''s impossible! There''s no way your hand could block that. What are you doing?" The longer the fight wore on, the more worried ck Fog became. He couldn''t exin any of Satoshi''s actions, nor could he exin his defenses. If this continues on, ck Fog knew that he''d be ying right into Satoshi''s trap.

    "It''s apany secret. You don''t have to know." Satoshi said, crouching down low before delivering a blow on his sr plexus.

    The air was knocked out from ck Fog''s lungs as he wheezed in pain. He couldn''t believe that such a normal punch prated his armor and even gave him enough damage. By the time he got back to his senses, he was already on the ground, wheezing in pain. "That was just a normal punch... you didn''t even use your superpower nor your tamed beast''s superpower... but how... how could that be so strong. Haah~!" ck Fog''s eyes widened in confusion as he stood up.

    "I guess you''re really slow. If you were a tad bit faster, you would know the secret behind my attacks." Satoshi called out, taunting ck Fog even more so he would go rampant.

    "AARGHH~! This is impossible!" ck Fog''s eyes turned bloodshot as he hack and shed at Satoshi. It was a continuous flurry of attacks that expended his energy at a rapid rate. But he couldn''t care less. Right now, he just wanted to bring Satoshi down with him. And he couldn''t do that if he took any breaks.

    Up until now, Satoshi still hasn''t attacked ck Fog seriously. Even the punch was pure intimidation instead of an attack. Still, ck Fog took it the wrong way, and now he''s going down the path of exhausting himself.

    As for Satoshi, he continued his defense, blocking every attack that ck Fog unleashed. This only riled ck Fog up even more since Satoshi was parrying his attacks with his pure physical prowess.

    Little did ck Fog know that Satoshi was actually doing something different. In fact, Satoshi was activating Copycat''s superpower every time he blocks ck Fog''s attacks. It''s just that, Satoshi activates it the moment ck Fog''s attack hits. It was a pretty precise blocking technique taught by his grandfather, and it costs little to no energy at all. Right now, Satoshi was training his timing when ites to activating his superpower. That way he''d be able to conserve as much energy as he could.

    Every single time the attack hits, Copycat would copy ck Fog''s power as well as his Trinity Beast Integration. In turn, this would cancel the attack, and then Satoshi would revert back to normal as soon as the attack was over.

    "Take this!" ck Fog screamed. He was running out of options, and his patience was running thin as well. As soon as he struck Satoshi with his Photon Sword, he grabbed two short words from his back and shed at Satoshi. As if that wasn''t enough, he jumped back and aimed his back at Satoshi. Projectiles in the shape of missiles and rockets then fired off toward Satoshi. There were at least fifty of them.

    BAM!

    The explosion caused intense wind pressure to rise, up, causing the hair of the female audience to rise up. Since the shot was taken at point-nk range, there was no way Satoshi could dodge the explosion (unless of course the beast integrated with Ghast at thest minute). ck Fog was fairly certain that the attack was connected. And for the first time during the entire match, he felt like he''s gotten an advantage over Satoshi.

    When the smoke cleared up, however, Satoshi was still standing, dusting himself off and taking off his t-shirt which was torn to shreds. "Is that all you got? You went through all the trouble with your Trinity Beast Integration and you can''t evennd a decent attack." Satoshi clicked his tongue.

    "How about this, I''m just going to stand here and you attack with all you''ve got. If you can make me kneel, then I will dly forfeit the match." Satoshi challenged out of the blue.

 Chapter 346 Black Tornado Of Death

    While the challenge only came out of Satoshi''s mouth by ident, ck Fog took it as an insult and was severely offended by it. Up until recently, he''s never heard the name of the kid. And he underestimated him, thinking that there was no chance of him winning against his superb beast taming skill.

    Turns out, he couldn''t hold a candle against him. Satoshi''s minimal power was far superior to his, and there was no denying that fact.

    Regardless, he took Satoshi''s challenge as an offense against him. In front of so many people, Satoshi was making fun of him despite it not being his intention at all. Gritting his teeth, ck Fog decided to hit Satoshi with everything he''s got.

    Grunting, ck Fog grabbed the photon greatsword from his back and equipped it on his hand. He didn''t simply wield it, he attached it to his arm so it won''t fly off if he let go of it. Since he was a full mechanoid at the moment, it wasn''t hard for him to affix the photon greatsword to his hand.

    Next was his shortswords. Upon attaching the photon greatsword to his right hand, He put the shortswords parallel to the greatsword''s de. To everyone''s surprise, the shortswords floated and orbited the greatsword.

    As if that wasn''t enough, ck Fog also grabbed a cube from his back. This cube was ck, and there was no shine to it at all. However, when he pressed it on the tip of the photon greatsword, the cube seemed to melt and coat both the photon greatsword and the short swords. ck energy emanated from the new weapon which was created from the fusion of three different equips. Satoshi gulped, this was more than he had expected.

    "Don''t chicken out on me now, Satoshi." ck Fog called out as ck streaks of lightning sparked from the weapon. the orbiting short swords elerated until it was merely a blur, and then a ck orb began forming by the tip of the greatsword.

    Another gulp, but Satoshi didn''t move from where he stood. He braced himself, hoping that he''d be able to survive the attack. He asked for this, and it wouldn''t look good if he backed down now after screaming out a challenge like that.

    "Just in case, I''m'' going to summon Ghast and teleport the attack. The Cloak Of Invisibility should do the trick. They won''t be able to see the portal as long as the Cloak of Invisibility covers it." Satoshi muttered to himself.

    ? ''No, I can take it!'' Copycat called out in Satoshi''s mind, almost as if she was referencing a certain musclehead superhero in a certain famous superhero franchise back in the day. She seemed more fired up than usual, much to Satoshi''s bewilderment.

    What Satoshi didn''t know was that Copycat heavily relies on the opponent''s power in order to be stronger herself. In other words, she was only as strong as the superpower she copies. That''s why when she noticed that ck Fog was preparing such a powerful move, she just couldn''t help but feel excited. It was another powerful move in her arsenal.

    It didn''t take long before ck Fog''s attack was ready. He was confident that it would at least damage Satoshi. If it wasn''t enough to make him kneel, then all he needed to do was shoot him as many times as he could. After all, Satoshi explicitly said that he was just going to stand there without attacking. And now that he''s underestimating ck Fog, ck Fog took it as his chance tounch a surprise attack that would one-shot Satoshi.

    "This is a tournament, Satoshi. Don''t expect me to go easy on you even if you told me that you wouldn''t dodge." ck Fog screamed. "Take this, ck tornadoooooo~ of death!"

    With his voice turning into a weird screeching noise, ck Fog shot the most powerful beam Satoshi had ever witnessed and it was really shaped like a tornado. The ck tornado shot towards Satoshi with intense force, almost causing him to fly due to the wind pressure. However, he held his ground and brought his arms up. If he could tank this, then there''s nothing he should fear.

    In his preparation, Satoshi briefly caught a glimpse of ck Fog. He was smiling, smirking as if he had just preyed on his first prey. It was certainly not the expression of a sane person, but rather a murderous one with all the intent to kill.

    "What is going on inside his head? Is he crazy?" Satoshi asked.

    ''Don''t worry about this, Satoshi, I can handle this.'' Copycat whispered in Satoshi''s head almost as if she was whispering in his ear. Her voice was calm, like a gentle breeze on a winter morning, and it somehow calmed Satoshi a little.

    "Sure, I''ll leave it to you. I wouldn''t have been able to tank that if it weren''t for you." Satoshi muttered to himself.

    ''Who said we''ll be able to tank this?'' Copycat asked out of nowhere. Satoshi could only imagine her raising an eyebrow while she spoke.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Her words somehow made Satoshi nervous. If what Copycat said was true, then what could they do now? Where was all that reassurance when she said that she could handle it? Satoshi was bbergasted. He almost wanted to jump out of the way.

    The ck tornado of death came closer, and Satoshi gulped for the fourth time while staring at the tornado himself.

    "I''m gonna die, you''re gonna die, we''re all gonna die." Satoshi gritted his teeth as he tightened his core and all the muscles in his body. He had no idea why he was doing that, but he figured that was the only way to at least get out of the sticky situation.

    "I''m kidding, Satoshi, hehe~ this much is nothing." Copycat chuckled after teasing Satoshi. The moment the tri-attacknded on Satoshi, he felt something weird in his stomach.

    It was the same attack as ck Fog, but it was more powerful. Other than that, it was rotating in the opposite direction than ck Fog''s ck tornado of death. Satoshi had no idea how he was shooting such a beam from his stomach but since it looked identical to ck Fog''s no one really noticed, much to his relief.

    And the only one who noticed such an attack was he and the representative Copycat, who was the one behind the attack. As usual, Satoshi couldn''t exin how he managed to counter that with the help of Copycat. He couldn''t even believe the crazy amount of energy he expended just in that instant.

    All''s well that ends well however since Satoshi''s energy was replenished thanks to his enhanced energy absorption skill granted to him by Copycat. He had no idea that he was granted a skill, and he still hasn''t realized that Copycat had gotten stronger thanks to that.

    What followed was another explosion, and then the gasps and cheers from the crowd started getting fiery. Some of them were expecting Satoshi to pull off a hat trick and defeat ck Fog in an instant. Some of them even thought that Satoshi would y underhandedly and snag the victory off of ck Fog''s feet. The minority believed that Satoshi would forfeit the match.

    But none of that options were avable inside the auction, let alone the betting stations and casinos.

    In any case, while the people watching were having mixed feelings about the match, the attack had finally faded away and Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief. He was barely scratched by the attack, much less badly injured. Even the audience was genuinely surprised since they''d already expected Satoshi to fall to the ground and be brought out of the Grand Stage via a stretcher.

    ck Fog thought the same thing as well, that''s why he was smiling from ear to ear when the attack was finally over. He expended over seventy percent of his remaining energy and he felt the attack hit Satoshi squarely on the stomach. He couldn''t feel any happier.

    His expression slowly shifted into despair and wonderment when he saw Satoshi standing in front of him, however. He didn''t have a scratch on him, and it seemed like he didn''t expend any energy at all. Even the cute white familiar he saw during the first round was nowhere to be found just like any of Satoshi''s familiar.

    Satoshi stood true to his word. Not only did he tank an attack without breaking a sweat, he also didn''t use another tamed beast in the process.

    "What the¡ª" ck Fog clicked his tongue. He had run out of patience.

    Before Satoshi could say anything, ck Fog prepared another attack. This time, he went plus ultra and expended more than a hundred percent of his energy (he only had a minuscule amount of energy left but he overextended himself, even going as far as to using his life force for the attack).

    "Don''t dodge, you hear me!" ck Fog screamed, shooting off another ck tornado of death. This time, it was five times stronger than the original one.

    The attack connected, and one of them fell on the ground, unconscious. The match was over.

 Chapter 347 Chop To The Neck

    Quite frankly, Satoshi found ck Fog''s naming sense to be ridiculous. It was a powerful attack, that''s for certain, but giving it the name ''ck tornado of death'' didn''t really sit right with him. Then again, naming it ''ck beam'' or ''dark tornado'' was a bit simplistic for such a formidable attack.

    "ck Fog is unable to battle, Midoriyama Satoshi wins!" The referee let out an ear-piercing whistle before raising his hand. The match was over.

    As the smoke rose up, clearing the Grand Stage where the fight ensued, everyone saw ck Fog''s body sprawled face-first on the ground as if he was dead. Apparently, he had expended all his energy, and the toll of Trinity Beast Integration on his body rendered him unconscious and immobile. Satoshi could only wonder how many days he won''t be able to move.

    He could do something about it by using Sera, sure, but he didn''t bother healing him up. After all, Satoshi also has to prepare for the next rounds. He couldn''t just waste energy like that when the fights were bound to get harder and harder.

    Seconds passed, and the first-aid team finally arrived on the Grand Stage, pulling a stretcher behind them. At one point, the Official Beast Tournament started using humanoids when ites to pulling an unconscious participant from the stage. But after receiving negative reviews about it, they reverted back to using their first-aid team. In hindsight, it looked more humane for people to pull someone out instead of robots. Even though robots were pretty useful in their instant diagnosis, they couldn''t rece humans just like that.

    Satoshi didn''t really have any ns after the match so he waited for the medics to take ck Fog out of the stage before he exited himself. He received another round of apuse while Luke Skyrunner and the othermentator started talking about the match. When he returned to his waiting room, Yun Zhe waved at him while he stuffed himself with potato chips.

    "Ever had potato chips before? They taste pretty good." He called out.

    "You sure you''d be able to fight with all that potato chips stuck in your stomach?" Satoshi greeted back as he sat on the other end of the couch. He was somewhat tired, surprised that ck Fog almost managed to drive him to a corner despite being severely under-leveled.

    "I can manage. Good job out there, by the way. It was a pretty good match."

    "Your student... he ran out of energy before I could do anything." Satoshi pointed out, grabbing a handful of chips when Yun Zhe offered him some.

    "He tends to overextend sometimes. I can''t me though. That was an unwinnable match, the least he could do was put on a show just like you did."

    "Figures," Satoshi said back before hey down on the couch. "Break a leg on your match."

    "You don''t have to tell me." Yun Zhe snickered.

    .....

    The next round, as it turned out was Ash against White Mist himself. One could just say that no one actually paid attention to the match since the two of them only used Beast Integration. It seemed like the audience''s standard when ites to Beast Integration rose up by a notch during this year''s Official Beast Tournament, that''s why those who couldn''t do it were already removed from the audience''s list. There was even one point where the audience didn''t vote for anyone since the fitting candidates couldn''t Dual Beast Integrate.

    Back to the match between Ash and White Mist, it was pretty obvious who won. Ash didn''t have a Representative after all, and White Mist has one. Ash was lost by andslide, which was understandable. It would''ve been ridiculous if Ash clutched it, and people would probably say that the fight was rigged. Fortunately, the fight ended as expected with White Mist victorious. Death Metronome did easy work with Ash''s Sarugaso. It was a pretty one-sided fight.

    What followed after that was a montage of beast tamers fighting with their Beast Integration. There were some who managed to achieve Dual Beast Integration like Shoyo, for example (Shoyo is the orange-haired kid belonging to the White Mist Faction. He has an orange chick-like tamed beast as his partner). Then there''s the rumored powerhouse and fan favorite named Kim Jin Seok. Apparently, he''s a Korean beast tamer who is pretty famous in America due to his good looks. He''s also the one and only guide who assisted everyone, including Satoshi, when they first entered the Beast Dimension.

    He didn''t expect any of the people there to join the Official Beast Tournament. That''s why he was surprised to see that Satoshi was there, and he even managed to reach the third round like him, no less.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, huh, is he a Disciple as well? I''ve never heard of him before. That''s quite surprising, considering that I know most of the Disciples." Kim Jin Seok muttered to himself as his gazended on Luke Skyrunner who was overlooking the Grand Stage from thementator''s box. A smile spread across his face as he nodded toward him, Luke Skyrunner also nodded in response.<novelnext></novelnext>

    .....

    "We had a couple of interesting matches today, won''t you say?" Thementator was still in high spirits despite talking for hours now. It was alreadyte in the night, and yet there was no sign of tiredness in thementator''s voice.

    "That''s right, but it''s bound to get even more interesting in the third round. That''s all I can say for now." Luke Skyrunner hinted as he winked at the drone which hovered in front of them. "Just like the second round, we have a surprise for the audience... it''s also something that the Official Beast Tournament has never done in the past. I hope you like it."

    "Without further ado, let''s proceed to thest match. Since there are only two participants left, they can juste up so we can get this over with." Luke Skyrunner announced, to which the audience cheered loudly.

    Even those watching behind the screens in thefort of their own homes cheered as thest match for the second round was announced. After the third round would be the quarterfinals, there would be a break of one day before the semi-finals and finals happen. It wouldn''t take long before the year''s beast master would be crowned once the event was over.

    What was surprising was that some of the candidates for that prestigious title were already eliminated. No one knows what would happen next and they were all at the edge of their seat.

    "And for the final round, we have Yun Zhe. Apparently, he can perform a Dual Beast Integration as well. This would be an interesting match. What do you think about his performance, Luke?" Thementator asked before he introduced the other candidate for the finals.

    "He certainly shows promise. In my opinion, I do think that Yun Zhe is still hiding his true abilities. Time will tell for sure... but I''m fairly certain that he''s on par with Midoriyama Satoshi and those who could Dual Beast Integrate with ease as well." Luke responded, sping his hands together. While everyone was brushing off thest match of the second round, he was looking forward to it.

    After all, he knows that Yun Zhe is a Disciple as well, one of the strongest out there.

    "And as for ourst name in the roster, his name is ire. To be fair, I thought this ire is a girl, his name is a tad bit confusing." Thementator scratched his head as he looked at the name for the second time. He was hoping that he didn''t misread the name, otherwise there would be hate directed at him on some social media tforms.

    "You read that right. Apparently, his parents gave him his grandparents'' names, ire Kent... you can''t deny that it''s a pretty good naming process." Luke Skyrunner waved his hand off, assuring thementator that he read the name correctly.

    A couple of secondster, Yun Zhe appeared on the Grand Stage, waving his hand. The crowd went wild upon seeing him... well, most of them were members of the ck Fog Faction so it wasn''t that surprising. When ire Kent entered the scene, the crowd was still going wild, and he mistook it as them cheering for him.

    In fact, the only reason why he managed to reach the second round was that his opponent was on the weakest side of the spectrum. He was just lucky that he was paired with someone so weak. Before waving back to the crowd, he adjusted his sses like a certain protagonist of a ssic animated series.

    The referee positioned himself soon after, announcing their names before raising his hand.

    Just as he raised his hand, Yun Zhe also raised his. It was a weird gesture but it did the trick of silencing everyone, including thementators. "One second." He announced, just when the referee brought down his hand to start the fight.

    "BEGIN!"

    Fwoosh!

    One moment, Yun Zhe was standing on the opposite side of the Grand Stage. The next moment, he was behind ire Kent, delivering a chop to his neck. ire fell unconscious shortly after, marking the end of the final match of the second round.

 Chapter 348 Top Sixteen

    A self-imposed, ridiculous challenge¡ª that was the one second was all about when Yun Zhe blurted it out. It was a pretty impossible challenge that shouldn''t have happened. No matter how high-leveled someone was, winning over a beast tamer in under one second should have only been a thought. But for Yun Zhe, it was the reality, and he did it in front of everyone the moment the referee signaled themencement of the match.

    Technically, Yun Zhe won, but it shouldn''t have been allowed due to how he did it. It was inly clear that ire was still not yet prepared when the signal was given, and Yun Zhe took advantage of that fact. In the end, this was what gave him his win in the second round of the Official Beast Tournament.

    Then again, it''s not like it was Yun Zhe''s fault that ire wasn''t ready. The signal was already given, and Yun Zhe attacked ire without breaking a single rule of the tournament. It may have looked a little bit questionable, but he won fair and square.

    ire was the one at fault here, in simple terms. Had he paid attention to the signal, or at the very least, put his guard up before the start of the match, he wouldn''t have lost so easily like that.

    And just like that, the second round was over, and ire tasted defeat before he even felt the pressure of the match. At the moment, he couldn''t feel anything at all since Yun Zhe knocked him out cold with a nice chop to the neck.

    As for the crowd, they had no idea whether they should boo or cheer Yun Zhe on. In the end, the majority of the spectators decided to p their hands as the verdict was passed. Yun Zhe had won his match, and ire lost¡ª that was the bottom line of the result.

    While the echoes of the audience''s ps resonated in the Grand Stage, Yun Zhe waved his hand towards them before grabbing his right wrist with his left. He put a lot of force on that attack that his right hand stung a bit. "At least I won... didn''t expect that to work though. I''m pretty sure that if it were someone else, he or she would probably be able to react on time. If it were Satoshi, he would''ve pped me back before I even attacked, and then he''ll proceed to integrate with his tamed beasts in a split second while I do the same."

    Yun Zhe was aware that his surprise attack wouldn''t have worked on Satoshi, much less every other candidate who survived the second round... or at least, that''s what he assumed since deep down inside, he felt a tad bit guilty that he cut ire off before he got to enjoy the atmosphere of the second round.

    Making a mental note that he should apologize to ire for his needless demonstration of strength, Yun Zhe headed to the exit of the Grand Stage. He walked towards the waiting room, shuddering at the thought of receiving Satoshi''s reaction to his underhanded tactic.

    When he got to the entrance of the waiting room, he breathed in and out for a couple of seconds first. And then, he swung the door open while wearing his futile attempt of a poker face. Satoshi, who was sitting by the couch, his back towards the door, turned around with a hrious smile on his face. Obviously, he was teasing Yun Zhe for being a show-off on the stage.

    "One second, my butt, you just wanted to show off. Poor ire, his moment was stolen from him before it even started. How will you make up to him now?" Satoshi unleashed another attack before Yun Zhe could say anything.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Heaving a sigh, Yun Zhe copsed on the couch, waving his hand in front of Satoshi. "I know, I know... I got carried away. But he should''ve been able to defend against that attack though... it''s not like my attack was insanely fast... nor was it unexpected."

    "But no one does that. Normally, they give the opponent some time to settle first before they strike. I digress though since anything goes when ites to a fight. Moreover, this is the Official Beast Tournament we''re talking about here. If one were to join it with such a half-hearted attitude, they''re bound to lose like that." Satoshi said back.

    At the end of the day, what Yun Zhe did was not against the rules despite it being questionable. So as mentioned before, it was ultimately ire''s fault that he lost.

    "I wonder what they have in store for us for the third round." Yun Zhe muttered after clearing his throat. He was trying to divert the topic from his show-off blunder.

    "Probably another surprise with the audience involved... that or we''re going to fight in pairs. This is still the third round and there are still sixteen of us left." Satoshi responded.

    It was probably confusing for some people that there are only sixteen people left in the third round. After all, there were at least more than a hundred participants who joined the Official Beast Tournament. There was no way that there were only sixteen people left on the third round, it just doesn''t add up.

    The reason for that lies behind the fast-paced setting of the Official Beast Tournament itself. Because beast tamers have little to no time to prepare in between rounds, they were forced to retire due to exhaustion. After all, it''s not like all of them have a healer in their team of beast tamers like Satoshi. A rookie mistake, but it happens every single year. There were a number of participants who would exhaust themselves in the first and second rounds to the point where they wouldn''t be able to continue anymore.

    "Top sixteen huh, for us first-timers, this is not bad." Yun Zhe said to himself. "But I''m aiming for the number one spot. You too, right?" Yun Zhe asked extending his arms towards Satoshi while forming his hand into a fist.

    Satoshi bumped his fist in response and smiled. "Of course," He confirmed.

 Chapter 349 Left Unguarded

    When the announcement for the third round was posted on the live-stream television, Satoshi and Yun Zhe''s eyes widened in disbelief. While they were expecting a surprising twist for the third round, they weren''t expecting such a normal oue at all.

    "Paired battles... called it. I knew they were going to choose that." Yun Zhe''s eyes twitched as he scanned the matchups for his name. He couldn''t believe that the third round involved something he was inherently bad at¡ª teamwork.

    "This would be fun." On the other hand, Satoshi was grinning from ear to ear like an idiot. He had the exact opposite reaction to Yun Zhe since he believed that he was actually decent when ites to working with someone.

    Finally finding his name amongst the list of sixteen participants, Yun Zhe was oddly surprised that he was partnered with someone familiar. He felt like he had just won a constion prize though since there was no way he could work with someone no matter how familiar he was with that person.

    After all, he was raised in the woods by an old man. Growing up, he got used to solitude, and he never really did outgrow that personality of his. Even now, despite having an entire faction under him, the ck Fog Faction, he still preferred working alone. He did that by passing his teachings to ck Fog and in turn, ck Fog was the one who handles the entire ck Fog Faction. There was no doubt that he was more than capable of leading the ck Fog Faction, but he chose to stay in the shadows as a secret master or something of the sort.

    "Wow, who would''ve thought? To think that he managed to pull through to the third round. There was no way that was just pure luck." Satoshi smiled to himself as he looked at the name of the person he was partnered with.

    ...

    There was still at least half an hour before the third round starts. ording to the schedule, this was thest round for the day. The quarterfinals, semi-finals, and finals would happen the day after. In the past, everything happened right after the other, but that led to anticlimactic fights since the participants were already tired to the bone. Hence it was decided that the quarterfinals leading up to the finals would be separated, and it would happen on the next day so the participants would have time to rest even if it''s just a little bit.

    It was getting rather stuffy inside the waiting room so Satoshi decided to head out to the stalls in hopes that he''d run into someone he knows. After all, his entire ss was there was well as his family. He''s bound to run into them if he wanders around. And if that didn''t happen, then he could just go to their seats and catch up with them.

    After a couple of minutes, Satoshi ran into Midori. He was eating ramen in front of a very famous ramen stall. ncing sideways, he noticed that Satoshi was waving at him, and he immediately stood up to greet him.

    "Hey," Satoshi greeted. He didn''t really know how to open up a conversation since this was Midori they were talking about.

    "Ah, Satoshi! Long time no see! I''m kidding, haha~!" Midori enthusiastically greeted back.

    "Congrattions on your win. I knew you could do it. That ck Fog sure is strong though. I saw him defeat Jean Grey as if he was ying with a kid. Wait... if Jean Grey defeated the beast master White Mist... and ck Fog defeated Jean Grey during their fight in an Official Beast Tournament... and then you defeated him... does that mean you''re the beast master now?" Midori pointed out out of nowhere before grabbing him by the shoulders.

    "I''m just curious... but how many tamed beasts do you have at the moment, Satoshi? Fifteen? Twenty? I''m sure you have more than that."

    Satoshi started gesturing at himself. "About neen... I think... if I didn''t miss anyone..." Satoshi trailed off.

    "Wow, you have a lot. And here I am, with only one tamed beast." Midori continued. "In any case, is there any chance I can meet... you know..."

    As Midori muttered to himself, he began fumbling with his thumbs as if he was too shy to continue what he was saying. He coyly looked at Satoshi like some weirdo, causing Satoshi to flinch and step back as Midori went on.

    "What are you talking about? Who?" Satoshi asked, confused. This was the first time he saw Midori act bashful and it didn''t really sit well with him. Rather, he found it a bit off-putting¡ª no, it was very off-putting.

    "You know... who was that again... I think you called her Copycat. Is there any chance I can see her?" Midori asked. There was no harm in asking, after all, but his reputation went down by a notch from Satoshi''s point of view.

    "Dude." Satoshi gave Midori the look before turning away.

    "I''m kidding, I''m kidding!" Midoriughed out loud as he tightened his grip on Satoshi''s shoulder.

    ...

    Meanwhile, in another dimension,

    A tense atmosphere enveloped the Managers who were gathered by the round table. It was certainly a miracle, no, one can even call it a once-in-a-lifetime event.

    The man with long white hair stood up and pounded his fists on the table. "Who was it?!" He snapped

    No one answered his question, but some of the Managers flinched when they heard his voice. This was the first time he snapped, after all, and everyone was not used to seeing the calm and collected Manager lose his temper.

    Gritting his teeth, he returned to his seat, but not before ring at everyone in the vicinity.

    "You should rx, Gandalf," The man d in all ck teased as he waved his hand in the air. The name of the white-haired man wasn''t actually Gandalf. "You do know that getting angry won''t do anything, right? Besides, it''s not like anyone here broke any rules. You left it unguarded, and now someone got it."

    "And even if you knew who it was... what are you going to do? It''s not like you can kill a Disciple as you please." The man tipped his hat as he wore a satisfied smile on his face.

 Chapter 350 Shoyos Discouragement

    When Satoshi first looked at the matchups for the third round, he already expected to be in the first fight and Yun Zhe in thest fight. That''s why it didn''t surprise him when he saw that he was in the first match. It was a running trend of the Official Beast Tournament and at this point, it didn''t shock him at all.

    To his relief, his group wasn''t matched with someone he knew, which was a good thing since he wanted his acquaintances to reach the fourth round. If they were to win the third round together, then the quarterfinals would be like a tournament among friends and acquaintances.

    He also wasn''t surprised when he realized that Yun Zhe was still in the mix. After all, he did promise to see Satoshi in the finals. Of course, he''s got the skills to back up such a promise.

    "And then the ne went babam~! And I gripped my seat, thinking that we were about to crash. The rattling was insane, you know, so I thought that we were all going to get marooned on an ind in the middle of nowhere. Then the pilot announced that it was just turbulence, whatever it was." Midori continued bbing about his first time on the ne. As usual, Midori didn''t pay attention to him.

    "By the way... you remember I also have a tamed beast with me, right? I left it at home since I didn''t have a Gren with me. As it turns out, there''s this thing called Grens that allow you to store your tamed beast when you''re going somewhere." Midori went on, and this time, Satoshi paid attention since the topic was about tamed beasts. "Honestly, I actually don''t know what my tamed beast is called but I know for sure that it''s a grass type. With that said, how do you, you know, activate that skill called Beast Integration? I''ve seen other participants do it... it''s like fusing with your tamed beast and using its power as your own, right? How do I do it?"

    For once, Midori was asking a legitimate question, that''s why Satoshi felt a bit of seriousness within before he answered his question. Clearing his throat, Satoshi then patted Midori on the shoulder. "If you want to know, I can teach you," Satoshi said, giving him a thumbs up. "You''d have to wait until after the Official Beast Tournament though... we can have a couple of lessons before the new semester starts."

    "Ah, that''s right! We still have school. For some odd reason, I forgot that we''re still going to school once the break''s over. Sigh~" Midori heaved a sigh before he looked Satoshi straight in the eyes. That drastic change in his gaze made Satoshi flinch and look away.

    "By any chance... how does it feel to beast integrate with a tamed beast like your Copycat?" Midori asked, blowing smoke out of his nose. "Does it feel like, she''s on your back or something? Or maybe it feels like a hug? What is it?"

    "Dude." Satoshi gave Midori a condescending stare as if he was some sort of a hopeless case. Midori responded by letting out a chuckle.

    "Eh, Satoshi?" Hiroshi called out, appearing out of nowhere while eating a candy apple. "Shouldn''t you be preparing for your match? You''re first on the roster, right?"

    "Ah, right! I figured I''d step out of the waiting room and take a break. I guess I should go back now. Who would''ve thought that a lot of time has passed already." Satoshi said, ncing toward Midori.

    "As expected of Midori, his mouth can run off for hours on end. It''s simply a waste of time." Hiroshi let out an exhale before grabbing Midori by the shoulder. "Hora~ you shouldn''t bother Satoshi right now, he''s got a match to win. We''ll be cheering for you."

    "I''ll be going then," Satoshi nodded along before heading back to the waiting room.

    On his way back, Satoshi decided to search for the stall which sold candy apples. Somehow, he wanted to eat one before the match began, thanks to Hiroshi who showed up holding one. ''Now that I think about it... I never really go to festivals back then since I had to train my body double time just to keep up with everyone. When was thest time I ate a candy apple?'' He asked himself. Then he realized that his nostalgia was useless since he ate one three weeks ago.

    Even then, he decided to buy one. After going around the stalls for the second time, he found the stall he was looking for. And by pure chance, Shiroi was there, buying a candy apple as well.

    "Eh, Shiroi? What are you doing here?" Satoshi asked since he was caught off guard. And now that he thought about it, he just asked a ridiculous question. After all, what could a person be doing in front of a stall if he or she''s not going to buy anything?

    "Satoshi, there''s only five minutes left before the match starts... are you here to buy a candy apple as well?" Shiroi confirmed while ncing at the two candy apples she bought. "This is thest of the batch, you can have one."

    "No, it''s all right. I can buy¡ª" Satoshi stopped short as his face reddened in embarrassment. Of course, there won''t be enough time for him to get another one since the store owner was still waiting for the second batch to arrive.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "T-thanks," Satoshi muttered, getting the candy apple from Shiroi.

    "Ganbatte~ Satoshi," Shiroi cheered before turning away.

    "Ou~" Satoshi''s voice trailed off as he watched Shiroi disappear into the crowd. Smiling, Satoshi then turned around and headed back to the training room.

    Before he arrived there, however, he noticed a familiar figure sitting by the corner of the hallway. There was no way Satoshi wouldn''t notice the striking orange-colored hair sticking out of his head. With a hair color like that, he was bound to stand out one way or another.

    At the same time, the announcement of the first match reverberated all over the American Dome. It was time for the first match.

    ...

    Unlike the other beast tamers in the White Mist Faction, Shoyo wasn''t the least bit discouraged to join the Official Beast Tournament. Thanks to Satoshi who had been guiding the entire faction and teaching them the ways of Dual Beast Integration, thebat power of the entire group rose sharply. However, two weeks wasn''t enough time and they knew that they couldn''t stand on even ground against the ck Fog Faction.

    Nevertheless, Shoyo decided to sign up for the Official Beast Tournament. In the end, he was the only one who signed up. And by a stroke of luck, he managed to reach the third round without any problems. So far, one could say that he''s on par with White Mist since the two of them were still in the tournament.

    Shoyo was actually celebrating his hard-earned spot in the Official Beast Tournament... that is until he saw the pairings. If it were any other person, he would''ve brushed the pairing off. But as it turned out, he was actually teamed up with Satoshi, the one and only beast master whom he looked up to.

    For once during the entire Official Beast Tournament, Shoyo felt like backing down. He wanted to just forfeit his participation in the match since he knew that he''d just pull Satoshi down. Compared to the others in the White Mist Faction, he was decent. After all, he could already control his Dual Beast Integration albeit only for five minutes or so.

    Compared to the participants in the tournament, however, Shoyo felt like a kid challenging an adult in an arm wrestling contest. Some of them could even perform a Trinity Beast Integration, and they didn''t have any difficulty keeping that skill activated for more than ten minutes. There was no way he could match against any of them.

    He knew Satoshi was strong, but no matter how strong he was, he''d be up against two high-leveled beast tamers. There''s just no way he could take two people at once, and then there''s him as deadweight as well.

    "If I back down... would they let someone else take my ce. I''m sure Satoshi-sensei would understand." Shoyo muttered to himself as he sat down by the corner of the hallway. He couldn''t even bring himself to walk toward Satoshi''s waiting room so they could go together for their match.

    Then the announcement of the first match resounded throughout the hallways, and Shoyo''s shoulders flinched up as he heard it. Nervousness crept up within him, and he forced himself to stand up... but to no avail.

    "Shoyo? What are you doing here? We have a match, remember?" Satoshi questioned, seating himself down beside Shoyo. "Are you feeling all right? You''re not sick, are you?"

    Shoyo shook his head. "I''m sorry. I''ll just drag you down if I participated. A teammate like me would surely make you lose... and I know that it''s an important tournament for you, Satoshi-sensei." Shoyo continued.

    "What are you talking about? It would drag me down even more if you didn''t participate. I''d have to go up against two people at once. Come on, we only have three minutes." Satoshi said, pulling Shoyo up before he could continueining.

 Chapter 351 Never Gonna Give You Up

    Shoyo looked up at Satoshi with pleading eyes. While he wanted to participate in the third round of the Official Beast Tournament since he''s reached this far, he also didn''t want to disappoint Satoshi. For once, there was someone who believed that he''s got the talent to be a top-tier beast tamer. He didn''t want to ruin his image to that person.

    Nevertheless, the setup was not in his favor. It would''ve been fine if Satoshi was never in his team. Heck, it would be fine if Satoshi was his opponent. But as it turned out, he was his ally, his partner. Out of all the sixteen participants in the third round, he was paired with the one he never wanted to be paired up with.

    "Come on, get up. The tournament''s not going to win by itself. Besides, now that you''re with me, going head-to-head with our opponent would be child''s y for you. You can even take them on with just my support. You''re stronger than you think, Shoyo, don''t underestimate yourself."

    Still wearing a disappointed expression stered on his face, Shoyo nodded. Forcing himself onto his feet as Satoshi prompted him to stand up. He wanted to give up, but how could he when Satoshi was counting on him?

    .....

    It was a pleasant day by the yground, and the early morning breeze was just beginning to blow its warmth, making the trees rustle their leaves. The sound of children''sughter could be heard echoing by the yground, mixed with the asional murmur and chucklesing from adults who frequented the ce as well.

    As usual, Shoyo was alone by the sandpit, trying to build a sculpture of his dad''s tamed beast by himself since no one bothered to y with him. At such a young age, he already had a dream to be a beast tamer like his dad. Although he was told that being a beast tamer is not an easy task and that there was still no guarantee whether his superpower wouldplement beast taming or not, he still wanted to be one.

    His father wasn''t a strong beast tamer, not in the least bit, and he was barely given missions due to how weak and irrelevant he was in the superhero world. But even then, Shoyo looked up to him as if he was the most powerful man he''d ever known. Not once did he see his dad as weak.

    However, that weakness soon led to his demise. During the Boosting Incident where most superheroes were wiped out by powered-up viins, his dad met his end. He died protecting a shelter that was about to be infiltrated by the viins. And he stood his ground even when his team was greatly outnumbered.

    His dad fought valiantly,manding his army of tamed beasts while trying to stop the advance of the viins. His efforts weren''t in vain though, since he was able to buy some time before high-ranking superheroes arrived. But at what cost? He died in the field of battle, and Shoyo and his mom were left in the world.

    Alongside his dad were his other tamed beasts who also fought to the bitter end, risking their lives as they followed the will of their master. Some of them died, and some of them were severely injured. Amongst all the tamed beasts his father owned, only one survived, and it was an egg, no less.

    Either all of his dad''s tamed beasts returned to the Dimension where they were transported by their Grens, or they died in the field of battle. In any case, the only thing Shoyo could salvage was a bright orange egg which his father kept encased in an incubator at home.

    He would always remember the words of his father whenever he looks at the orange egg. ''So what if you''re not talented? Most of the time, it''s us the hardworking ones who save the day.''

    Those words were like scars etched in Shoyo''s heart. He vowed that he''d live by the words of wisdom his father had given him. He decided upon himself to really pursue beast taming and follow in his dad''s footsteps. No matter how talentless he was when ites to beast taming, he vowed that he''d never give up on his dream.

    And so he entered the White Mist Faction in hopes that he''d learn more about beast taming under the expert himself. Thanks to White Mist''s generosity, joining the White Mist Faction didn''t cost anything, and Shoyo was able to practice under the beast master without worrying about the cost. B

    The longer he practiced, the more he realized that he wasn''t really cut out to be a beast tamer. Even then, he forced himself to move forward, putting in more hours, more blood, sweat, and tears in order to at least catch up to his dad.

    He watched with utter disappointment and a heavy feeling of inferiority as all the other beast tamers improved in record time. And it didn''t take long before he was the only one left behind. Regardless, he continued with his training.

    And then the long-awaited day came a couple of weeks ago. When Shoyo returned home, he was surprised to see his mom standing by the doorway, smiling and all. At first, Shoyo was beginning to doubt that his mother was seeing another man, but when she turned towards his direction and saw him, she enthusiastically waved her hand before rushing toward him.

    She delivered the good news.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "The egg! That egg in the incubator your father left behind. It''s opened! You have to see it!" His mom voiced out, sping her son by the cheeks before giving him a kiss on the forehead.

    Her mother''s reaction didn''t shock him at all, and he sprinted toward the incubator without a second thought. Due to some obvious reasons, he was beginning to feel down in the dumps already. But upon hearing the good news from his mother, he couldn''t help but feel fired up.

    When he got to the special room where the incubator was located, he was surprised to see that the egg had cracked, and the egg shellsy on the surface of the incubator. Despite the fact that he''d already heard everything from his mom, he was still genuinely surprised.

    "Is that a chick? It''s so small, is that really a tamed beast?" Shoyo muttered to himself. He was aware that the creature in front of him was really a tamed beast, but it looked super weak. After all, it bore a great resemnce to a chick.

    "Wow, it''s cute... but can it fight? Of course, it can, tamed beasts are like animals... they do have instincts, I think." After convincing himself that there was nothing wrong with the orange-colored chick in front of him, he decided to take him off of his cage so they could practice the essence of bing a beastmaster.

    "I''m counting on you," Shoyo muttered to himself as he gave the little chick a couple of orders. The little chick nibbled at its wings before it looked back toward Shoyo. It didn''t take long before the small chick grew on him, and that''s when his life as a beast tamer began.

    He found himself training, practicing, and even when there are already no people in the dojo where the master resides, he continued burning the midnight oil just so he could improve on his control as a beast tamer. Ever since then, he was thankful that someone helped him with his dream. There were still no improvements¡ª or so that''s what she thought.

    Then came Satoshi whoplimented the activation of his Beast Integration. And then it was all history from there.

    ...

    And now back to the present, Shoyo still couldn''t believe that he was partnered with Satoshi. He couldn''t hide his nervousness and excitement at all... but there was also a sense of anxiety and insecurity dwelling deep within him. Of course, Satoshi was strong, and he felt like he would just drag him down if he were to fight with him.

    "Are you just going to stand there? We only have thirty seconds before we get disqualified, you know," Satoshi said.

    "Let''s go. I swear I''m going to do my best so I won''t drag you down with me. I''ll at least take down one of them while I''m at it." Shoyo psyched himself up as Satoshi nodded with pride in his eyes.

    Without further ado, Satoshimanded Ghast to create a portal so the two of them could step in there. That way, there was no chance that they''d bete.

    "Now, let''s get this over with," Satoshi said, pushing Shoyo into the portal before he went through it himself. They were greeted by the audience in an instant, and Shoyo felt like cowering in fear upon seeing the great number of spectators.

    "I promise... I won''t let you down." Shoyo said, extending his fist towards Satoshi.

    "Ou~ I''m counting on you," Satoshi muttered, reciprocating the fist bump.

    At the same time, the referee shouting themencement of the match was heard, and the first match of the third round has begun.

 Chapter 352 Satoshi And Shoyo

    "We made it in time!" Tetsuya panted as he tried to catch his breath. He got so preupied with work that he forgot the Official Beast Tournament was happening today. As soon as he got to the foot of the stairs leading up to the entrance of the American Dome, he rested his hand on the guard rails before proceeding.

    After finally catching his breath, he looked around, only to see that Taiga and Kageyama were there with him. They were scratching their heads and fidgeting as if they didn''t belong there. He wondered why they were idling about outside when they could''ve gone inside to watch the match.

    "What are you guys doing here?" Tetsuya asked, thinking that they were too embarrassed to go inside.

    He was right on the money. The two of them were really embarrassed to go inside. As it turned out, Shoyo would be fighting the first match of the third round, and they couldn''t bring themselves to go inside and cheer him on after what they did.

    They backed out from registering for the Official Beast Tournament at thest minute. And now, they were too ashamed to face Shoyo since he managed to survive until the third round.

    Tetsuya''s question was received with an awkward silence. The two of them continued to fidget while they guiltily averted their gazes from Tetsuya. They all did the same thing, but Kageyama and Taiga were the only ones who felt guilty about what they''d done.

    "Don''t tell me..." Tetsuya heaved a sigh as he turned away from his fellow White Mist Faction members. He couldn''t believe that they were thinking about something so minuscule, insignificant. For one, it was their choice that they didn''t join the Official Beast Tournament. While they did back down from the promise they made beforehand, there was nothing they could do about it now since it was already done and over with.

    In hindsight, they''ve already broken their promise of going together in the Official Beast Tournament, the least they could do is attend and cheer Shoyo on since he was the only one who didn''t back down like a coward.

    "Come on, we''re going to miss Shoyo''s match at this rate," Tetsuya said, grabbing Kageyema and Taiga''s shoulders and dragging them up the stairs. "If you feel bad about it, then we should just cheer him on. I mean... that''s the only thing we can do to make amends."

    From a distance, a familiar figure stood, leaning on one of the pirs that supported the outer beams of the American Dome. He rubbed his nose with pride as he watched the trio make their way up the stairs. He was none other than White Mist. "I guess I didn''t have to step in. They''re going to grow into fine beast tamers... someday."

    After saying his monologue like an old man on his deathbed, he headed back inside the American Dome to watch the match starring Satoshi and Shoyo. Greeted with loud cheers, White Mist headed back to the waiting room to mentally prepare for his match.

    ...

    Back to the present,

    Without further ado, Satoshimanded Ghast to create a portal so the two of them could step in there. That way, there was no chance that they''d bete.

    "Now, let''s get this over with," Satoshi said, pushing Shoyo into the portal before he went through it himself. They were greeted by the audience in an instant, and Shoyo felt like cowering in fear upon seeing the great number of spectators.

    "I promise... I won''t let you down.." Shoyo said, extending his fist towards Satoshi.

    "Ou~ I''m counting on you," Satoshi muttered, reciprocating the fist bump.

    At the same time, the referee shouting themencement of the match was heard, and the first match of the third round has begun.

    Apparently, Satoshi and Shoyo were up against members of the ck Fog Faction. It wasn''t an understatement to say that the ck Fog Faction dominated the entire Official Beast Tournament since most participants in the third round belonged to that said Faction.

    Obviously, they were strong, even rivaling White Mist in his prime (White Mist himself can hardly activate his Dual Beast Integration), and Satoshi knew he shouldn''t underestimate them. But then again, he was fairly certain that he and Shoyo would easily win this match. He couldn''t be bothered to ask for their names.<novelnext></novelnext>

    As for Shoyo, the doubts in his mind continued to pile up, muddling his thinking. There was still a part of him that couldn''t believe he was partnered with Satoshi. And that disbelief made him freeze up on the spot.

    The cheers of the audience rang in his head like the sound of beating drums, and he choked as the referee brought down his arm¡ª a signal that the match had alreadymenced. His gaze thennded on Satoshi, who was standing right behind him.

    A few seconds ago, he promised Satoshi that he wouldn''t bring him down... but now he was beginning to doubt his words. He was up against members of the ck Fog Faction. There was no way he could fight head-to-head with them.

    "Rx, Shoyo, you shouldn''t think about it too much. You do know that I''m your teammate, right? There''s no way we can lose against them. If any, you can take the two of them on with minimal help. Come on, snap out of it." Satoshi said, patting Shoyo on the back before he gestured that he look towards the audience.

    At first, Shoyo had no idea what Satoshi was implying but he turned towards the audience anyways. That''s when he noticed Kageyama and the other members of the White Mist Faction, standing together, cheering him on.

    Of course, while that was happening, the ck Fog Faction were already preparing for their Dual Beast Integration. They didn''t waste any time activating it as soon as the match started. A snicker came out of their mouth as they watch Satoshi and Shoyo talk to each other.

    "They''re wasting their time. Right now, they should''ve activated their Dual Beast Integration." The first member said.

    "Heh, then this is going to be an easy win for us." The second one grinned.

    In under a minute, the first member hadpletely activated his Dual Beast Integration. Satoshi and Shoyo had no idea what his tamed beast was but he came out as a giant charcoal-colored golem with dark spikes on his back. Lava flowed from his mouth and his back glowed a nice bright red color as if he was ready to explode. As for the second member, he had the same look as the first one, except that he was red in color. Apparently, the two of them have the same tamed beast as their partner, and only their second tamed beast was different from each other.

    "Listen here, Shoyo. I have no idea who your second tamed beast is... but I know that your tamed beast that looks like a chick is strong. I want you to integrate with that first and then integrate with the second one. Don''t worry about the time. You can take as long as you want." Satoshi instructed him. "Well, it''s not like you''re going to need time activating your Dual Beast Integration though."

    As if on cue, Satoshi summoned Sera, and she immediately floated above the Grand Stage. With a squeal, she filled the entire Grand Stage with a sparkling golden shower of light. "Now, do your thing, Shoyo," Satoshi said.

    "H-hai~!" Shoyo gulped as he integrated with his partner, the puffy chick that came out of a tamed beast egg his father left behind for him. To his surprise, he managed to integrate with it in a snap of a finger, and he didn''t even feel like he was losing his concentration as he did so.

    "Now, your second tamed beast."

    Before Satoshi could say anything else, Shoyo nodded as he threw a Gren in the air. Meanwhile, their opponents had already begun their attack... but instead of aiming for Satoshi and Shoyo, they aimed for Sera since they could tell that she was some sort of a debuffer.

    When the Gren opened, a powerful tamed beast came out of it. It looked like a monster straight out of the depths of the abyss. It looked like a griffin or a chimera all rolled into one. However, its body seemed like it was pieced together. Its wings were in tatters, and its'' body had different textures and mismatched proportions. Its head was akin to the skull of a prehistoric aquatic dinosaur. And to top it all off, its eyes were red glows, peering from the cracks and holes of its face.

    "What is that?" Satoshi asked as Shoyo integrated with it.

    While their opponents showed their wings and started targeting Sera who floated above the Grand Stage, Shoyo had already finished his transformation. He was like a Frankenstein made out of different body parts of tamed beasts, and he let out a sinister roar before charging towards their opponent.

    "What on actual¡ª" Satoshi trailed off as he watched Shoyo take the initiative to attack.

 Chapter 353 Doping?

    It was obvious that the two members of the ck Fog Faction prioritized their attacks wrong. But then again, no one could me them since they reacted appropriately when the threat appeared. This threat was none other than Sera whom Satoshi summoned as soon as the matchmenced. They knew powerful Sera was, that''s why they didn''t waste any time summoning their wings and flying up to where Sera was in order to take her down. They could more or less tell that they''ll lose if they let Sera run loose.

    However, what they did actually backfired on them. Because they focused too much on Sera, they didn''t realize that Shoyo were already working on their strategy of beast integrating while Sera bought time for them. More specifically, Shoyo began to squeeze out all his strength and concentration in order to bring out his maximum potential.

    Gritting their teeth, the two opponents flew all over the ce, their patience running thin as Sera continued to dart around in the air. She was like a mosquito, and the two members of the ck Faction couldn''t even hope to catch up to her. To them, everything went ording to n but for some odd reason, Satoshi and Shoyo were beginning to leave them in the dust.

    "You''re not getting away!" The first opponent screamed as he reached out his hand to try and catch Sera in mid-air. However, Sera dodged his hand by a hair''s breadth and he was all the more annoyed.

    As for the second opponent, he was trying to corner Sera, but to no avail. No matter how much they tried to capture her, she was simply uncatchable.

    When they finally stopped darting around while trying to keep up with Sera''s agility and speed, they realized that they''d fallen straight into Satoshi''s trap. The colors were drained from their face as they saw Shoyo with hisplete Dual Beast Integration.

    "What is that..."

    "I have no idea."

    "Is that even a tamed beast? It looks like a failed science experiment."

    "No, it looks like a mix-and-match of corpses of tamed beasts. Wow, who would''ve thought that a tamed beast could look so gross?

    While the two of them conversed under their breaths, they realized that Satoshi still hasn''t activated his Dual Beast Integration. They heaved a sigh of relief as they concluded that they still have a chance in defeating Satoshi and Shoyo.

    ? inly, Satoshi and Shoyo were looking down on them, underestimating them, and that gave them the confidence boost they needed at that very moment. For now, they decided to ignore Sera and instead, focus on either Satoshi or Shoyo. They were both experts when ites to Dual Beast Integration. Going against two beast tamers is rtively easy for them, especially when one of the beast tamers was unprepared... just like right now.

    Or so that''s what they thought.

    In a split second, the two beast tamers charged ferociously toward Satoshi and Shoyo. They pretended to aim for the two of them when in fact they were only aiming for Shoyo. From what they could remember (back when the ck Fog Faction came in contact with the White Mist Faction), Shoyo was the weakest of them all. They knew that there was no one in the ck Fog Faction who could rival them when ites to their Dual Beast Integration.,

    That''s why, even though Shoyo could activate his Dual Beast Integration, they knew that he wouldn''t be able to control it. And they were probably right. Shoyo didn''t have enough experience to actually hold his Dual Beas Integration that long.

    Well, they overlooked one thing. And that is¡ª Satoshi was on the team with him.

    As they charged toward Satoshi and Shoyo, they were beginning to doubt whether they were doing the right thing or not. Some part of them wanted to stop in the middle of their tracks and just turn away but it was toote for them to do so. For some reason, Satoshi just stood there as if everything was going as nned for him. He just stood there menacingly as if the two members of the ck Fog Faction were falling straight into his trap.

    Graarrgh!

    With a deafening and p indistinct roar, Shoyo swung p his tattered wings toward the two opponents, making them flinch since they didn''t know what was going toe next. They almost closed their eyes as they flinched, fortunately, they managed to catch themselves before that happened.

    Dark spikes started firing off here and there as if they were bullets fired from an automatic gun. The dark spikes seemed to emit dark energy. And since the two of them had no idea what effects these dark spikes have, they decided to dodge all of them.<novelnext></novelnext>

    To be fair, the dark spikes were just extensions of Shoyo''s body. In other words, the dark spikes he shot at them were just hair, and they didn''t do anything except wound or graze the skin. Of course, if they were to get hit squarely by it, it would perforate their skin in an instant.

    "Are you all right? Shoyo?" Satoshi asked since he had no idea whether Shoyo still has control over himself or not. After all, when ites to Dual Beast Integration, there''s a small chance that the beast tamer would lose control. Satoshi had experienced such a phenomenon a couple of times in the past so he knows how it is. That''s why he was worried that Shoyo was going to experience the same thing.

    If worsees to worst, Shoyo might not be able to rein himself in and he might even attack Satoshi when that happens. In that scenario, it wouldn''t be a two versus two match anymore. Rather, it would be a three versus one match.

    Satoshi was still confident that he''d be able to win against such a matchup though. That''s why he didn''t stop Shoyo while he kept the two members of the ck Fog Faction at bay. He was doing an exceptional job at it, firing off dark spikes at them while he dodged their attacks.

    In the first ce, the two opponents couldn''t even get near Satoshi and Shoyo. They were too focused on dodging the dark spikes that they were beginning to retreat. Shoyo was really doing his job at keeping his distance from them as well. Satoshi figured that he wouldn''t have to step in.

    "So what are we going to do now?" The first one asked as he activated his skill and fired off fireballs at Shoyo from his mouth.

    "I don''t know! We have to get as close as we can! Tsk~ how can one beast tamer be this strong?" The second one clicked his tongue in frustration before he extended his hand outward, firing off a beam toward Shoyo.

    Meanwhile, Shoyo was beginning to shake his head as he tried to not lose consciousness. Even with Satoshi and Sera backing him up, he couldn''t help but expend more energy than normal. He could tell that he was slipping into unconsciousness. And it wouldn''t take long before he lost control.

    Graargh!

    Another roar came out of Shoyo''s mouth. This time, he pped his wings and flew upward before unleashing a powerful dark beam that swept the entire Grand Stage. Even the shield that enveloped the entire Grand Stage vibrated violently as it almost broke from the powerful attack. The spectators held their breath, crossing their fingers that the barrier would hold on and they won''t be hit by the dark beam that Shoyo mercilessly unleashed.

    Fortunately, the two members of the ck Fog Faction managed to dodge the dark beam with half an inch to spare. Despite not being hit by the dark beam, they could feel the intense energy swirling within it. That''s why they still felt anxious seeing such a powerful beam in front of their eyes.

    "We would''ve died if we got hit by that."

    "That would''ve been bad. Really really really bad."

    While they were having a hard time dealing with Shoyo, Satoshi continued to support his teammate. He wanted Shoyo to know his limits and as such, he didn''t dare step in despite the fact that he was on the verge of losing control.

    The only thing Satoshi did was instruct Sera to continue supporting Shoyo. He didn''t buff him in any way or give him some sort of an easy way out. The only thing he instructed Sera to do was help strengthen his hold on his skill activation. That way he could give him a helping hand when ites to his Dual Beast Integration.

    "I guess we have no choice. We have to do this if we are hoping to win against the two of them."

    "Are you sure about this?"

    With a resolute nod. One of them pulled something out from their sleeves and popped it in their mouth. He did it so quickly that nobody noticed at all... or so that''s what he thought. Satoshi actually noticed him do something underhanded.

    "A pill? What for?" Satoshi asked himself as the second one also popped a pill in his mouth.

 Chapter 354 "Im Not Ready!"

    On the verge of losing control over his Dual Beast Integration, Shoyo pushed past his limits and flew upwards, attacking their two opponents with his dark energy beam that shed out of his mouth. The recharge time of the beam was too slow, however, and the two opponents managed to dodge them without much difficulty.

    His attacks were not in vain, however, since the two opponents were also running low on fuel. It wouldn''t take long before their Dual Beast Integration would deactivate, hence they decided to finish the match as soon as possible.

    With their chances of winning going down by the second, the two opponents decided to reveal their hidden trump cards¡ª a set of mysterious pills that they hid in their sleeves (quite literally a trick up their sleeves, for crying out loud).

    "A pill?" Satoshi asked himself, wondering why the two of them were eating something in the middle of the match. "What on earth are they doing?"

    As far as he knows, there were no rules that banned eating during the match. While Satoshi had no idea what the pills were all about, he couldn''t just t-out use them of cheating or anything along those lines since he didn''t have any proof. Besides, the two of them popped the pills in their mouths so fast that Satoshi concluded he was the only one who saw them.

    No one from the audience reacted when the two ate their pills, nor did Luke Skyrunner and thementator say anything about it. Because of that, Satoshi decided to dismiss what happened and continue with the fight.

    Well, not like he was doing anything aside from supporting Shoyo on the sidelines.

    Suddenly, an intense wave of energy started emanating from their two opponents, and their movements became even faster. Previously, they could barely dodge Shoyo''s energy beams, but now, they dodged them with ease. Sparing little effort, the two of them flitted about in the air while harassing Shoyo with their sneaky attacks.

    Fireballs. Wind shes. Earth spikes. Their attacks started raining down on Shoyo without reprieve, and there was no sign of them stopping even when Shoyo was already being backed into the corner. Their overall improvement in terms ofbat ability wasn''t even minimal¡ª it was so noticeable that the audience was beginning to wonder how they managed something nearly impossible.

    Had the audience known that they actually took pills that aided their energy, they would''ve stormed Luke Skyrunner''s office andined about it.

    "Who would''ve thought... to think that they''d resort to something so underhanded. Hang in there, Shoyo," Satoshi muttered to himself.

    Some of the audience were starting to get rmed as they watched the fight unfold. As seconds passed, they could tell that Shoyo was fighting a one-sided fight, and it wouldn''t be long before their two opponents could snag the victory from under their feet.

    Even then, Satoshi couldn''t be bothered to interfere. He just stood there by the edge of the Grand Stage, supporting Shoyo on the sidelines and hiding behind his shadow.

    "And it looks like Shoyo''s bound to lose this battle! Why hasn''t Satoshi stepped in? Do you have any idea, Luke?" Thementator asked with a hint of panic in his voice. Quite frankly, he found it ridiculous that Satoshi wasn''t doing anything at all.

    Everyone had already witnessed his capabilities in the previous match. And most of the audience was aware that he could easily perform a Trinity Beast Integration. But he still hasn''t made his move, and thementator just had to bring it up.

    "That''s right! You have to fight properly, Satoshi!"

    "He''s probably just taking his time to rest so he could be prepared for the next round."

    "Show us a better fight! You suck!"

    ? "Don''t leave it to your teammate! You have to fight as well!"

    Some of the audience were beginning to hurl insults at Satoshi, and some even mocked him for hiding behind Shoyo. Of course, a majority of the audience still sided with Satoshi regarding the matter, since they could tell that Satoshi had a n in mind. I

    "To those who areining, I can see why you see this match as uninteresting. However, the Official Beast Tournament is not a shy tournament. There will be highlights, that much is certain, but there will also be times like this where strategy and positioning are more noticeable." Luke Skyrunner began.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "If you''re part of the crowd who areining about this match, put yourselves in Satoshi''s shoes. He is controlling such a powerful tamed beast while supporting Shoyo. One might not notice it at first nce but he''s also the reason behind Shoyo''s sessful Dual Beast Integration. Without his support, Shoyo wouldn''t have been able to keep his Dual Beast Integration for this long..."

    "... there''s also a chance where he''d lose control and go berserk... or deplete his energy reserves and faint in an instant. Judging from the energy that Satoshi''s emitting right now, an expert beast tamer could more or less guess that he''s doing more than his fair share of supporting his teammate."

    There were a series of ''ooh''s and ''aah''s from the audience after Luke Skyrunner finished his monologue.

    Right when thementator was about tomend Satoshi and Shoyo''s opponents for their impable teamwork and their intricate control over their energy expenditure, Shoyo had reached his limit. And Satoshi had no choice but to teleport him to the side as soon as his beast integration was deactivated.

    "You should get some rest, Shoyo. You''ve exceeded my expectations." Satoshi said. At the same time, he recalled Sera andmanded her to look after Shoyo and heal him back up to full health.

    Apparently, the reason why Satoshi didn''t interfere with Shoyo''s match was that he wanted to see how far Shoyo can go just by his mental toughness alone. Since Satoshi was stabilizing his energy and his control over his Dual Beast Integration, Shoyo could''ve maintained that skill activated for an indefinite amount of time. However, his control over his beast integration didn''t just rely on his energy and his aided control... his mental toughness also had something to do with it as well.

    His body would''ve been capable of seeing the fight to the bitter end, but his mind gets exhausted as well. That''s what Satoshi wanted to see¡ª whether he could go beyond his limit and ovee his mental exhaustion or not. Satoshi wasn''t expecting Shoyo tost as long as he did though. He really did all he can so Satoshi wouldn''t be disappointed.

    "Satoshi-sensei... I''m sorry I couldn''t defeat them. I''m sorry for being a burden." Shoyo gritted his teeth in frustration. It only took a couple of seconds (thanks to Sera''s healing) for him to regain consciousness. His body was still fatigued, however, that''s why he couldn''t get up at all.

    "What are you talking about? Obviously, you won''t be able to do it. In terms of experience, they''re way better than you when ites to Dual Beast Integration. Moreover, there are two of them and only one of you. You were both outssed and outnumbered... and yet you managed to keep them at bay." Satoshi smiled.

    "You have room for improvement. I guess I''ll double your lessons once this match is over." Satoshi called out as he stood up and dusted himself. As he looked up, he noticed that their two opponents had already digested the pills they ingested. And now their bodies increased in bulk and the energy that oozed out of them was tripled.

    "So those were boosting pills, huh... I guess they''re really going all-in for the win here." Satoshi muttered to himself, making a mental note that he should give Luke Skyrunner a heads-up about their opponents'' actions.

    For one, boosting pills were already discontinued and made illegal after the Boosting Incident. Hence, their actions were illegal, and Satoshi concluded that they should be brought down because of that.

    He could''ve given Luke Skyrunner a heads-up a little bit earlier, but that would automatically disqualify their opponents and make them the default winner. Satoshi didn''t want that. He wanted to fight against the two of them and render them powerless. He wanted to prove that they didn''t stand a chance against him in the first ce, and even with the help of doping, they still couldn''t hope to win.

    ''Ryoko, are you there?'' Satoshi asked. ''I need your help.'' Satoshi muttered as he summoned Ryoko.

    Ryoko boasts in both defense and offense, that''s why Satoshi figured that she was the best choice for this match.

    ''Wait master, I''m not¡ª'' Satoshi didn''t hear the rest of the words since he already pulled her out of the dimension crafted by his familiar, Orb Oboros. After the incident with Sakura Cherry, Ryoko decided to go to that aforementioned Dimension so she could have some peace and quiet. The American Dome was unbearably loud for her, after all. And the first thing that Ryoko did after going there was stop by the hot spring and rx.

    "..."

    "..."

    The moment Ryoko showed up in her undergarments, everyone gasped in disbelief, including their two opponents.

    "Eh?!" Satoshi''s right brow twitched as Ryoko bashfully looked at him before changing into her dragon form.

 Chapter 355 Superiority

    "Eh?!" Satoshi''s right brow twitched as Ryoko bashfully looked at him before changing into her dragon form.

    Silence befell the entire audience after they gasped in disbelief. This was supposed to be a family-friendly tournament, but when Ryu Ryoko showed up in questionable clothing, they were beginning to doubt that such was the case.

    While her clothes weren''t too revealing, they were certainly a feast for the eyes since she was proportionate to boot. Even Satoshi who didn''t expect such a thing to happen, bashfully looked away as Ryu Ryoko shifted to her dragon form. He wasn''t the one in undergarments, but he felt the embarrassment Ryu Ryoko felt nheless.

    "Ano~ sorry about that," Satoshi muttered under his breath. "I should''ve been more mindful..."

    ''Mou~ you should have listened to me. What if I showed up without anything on?!'' This was the first time Satoshi witnessed Ryoko lose herposure, which made him feel mildly ufortable. After all, it was partly his fault that it happened.

    ''I''m sorry, I''ll make it up to youter.'' Satoshi responded, hoping that his words would somehow appease Ryoko.

    ''You''d better...'' Ryoko trailed off, bashfully looking away.

    Meanwhile, the two opponents didn''t even bother to sneak up on Satoshi for an attack. Typically, taking some sort of boosting pills would make someone lose control but in this case, the two of them took pills that weren''t as effective as the original ones produced during the Boosting Incident. The effects of the pills may be significant, but it wasn''t as deleterious to the body as they should. That''s the reason why the two of them were still capable of deciding and thinking for themselves. They didn''t lose their reason at all.

    Furthermore, they were perfectly aware that Satoshi had given them time so they could seed with their Dual Beast Integration. That''s why they decided to give Satoshi some time so he could prepare as well. A favor for a favor. Despite their cheating mindset, they didn''t go as far as tounch an hical surprise attack.

    "Let''s go, Ryoko," Satoshi muttered, ignoring the awkward silence that filled the entire American Dome.

    Luke Skyrunner and thementator he had with him had a lot of things to say about the matter. But they figured that they''d rather remain silent than change the viewership ratings to 18+.

    In a split second, Satoshi integrated with Ryu Ryoko, and he wore a diamond armor that covered his entire body and the upper part of his head. His armor was made of Ryoko''s dragon scales, and his arm had Ryoko''s ws for a weapon. "Get some rest, Shoyo, this will all be over soon," Satoshi mumbled before charging upwards.

    At this point, Shoyo had already recovered, more or less, thanks to Sera who focused on healing him more than anything else. Even with his energy replenished and his stamina back at one hundred percent, Shoyo didn''t bother jumping into the fight a second time since that would be unfair to their opponents. Besides, he realized that Satoshi was just testing him all this time, forcing him to exceed his limits and give his all in the fight.

    Not once did Shoyo doubt that Satoshi would lose against the two. Regardless of their recent power-up, Shoyo believed that Satoshi could easily defeat them. Shoyo remained where hey down, and hefortably rested as he watched Satoshi''s full disy of power.

    "You think you can win against us? You''re only integrated with one beast... you don''t have a chance against us." The first one muttered as he suddenly appeared behind Satoshi before throwing in a hundred wind shes his way.

    With a quick wave of his dragon ws, Satoshi deflected and parried all the wind shes. He didn''t even bother to look back toward the second opponent who shot a spire of me at him. He knew that Ryoko''s imprable scales would be able to block the attack.

    Their diversion tactic seeded and the attack connected. The spire of me that could melt even the strongest of metals shot at Satoshi with full force, and blinding brightness filled the entire grand stage as diamond and fire met. Satoshi didn''t budge an inch despite the powerful attack, and the two opponents smiled to themselves as they assumed that Satoshi would fall any second now.

    When the brightness dissipated and the audience could look straight into the grand stage once again, they were expecting a beat-up Satoshi on the verge of losing consciousness. The two opponents also foresaw the same thing.<novelnext></novelnext>

    However, to their surprise, Satoshi came out of the attack unscathed.

    "What in the¡ª " The second opponent didn''t finish what he was about to say. In a snap of a finger, Satoshi appeared behind him, spinning his body as he tightened his core. With one quick sh, he flung the second opponent to the ground.

    It was so sudden that even the audience didn''t notice Satoshi''s movements. The next thing they heard was a thud as the second opponent elerated downwards. A crater was formed, or rather, the grand stage was split in two the moment he hit, and Satoshi remained floating above as he overlooked the second opponent.

    That wasn''t enough to knock him unconscious though since the adrenaline and the boosting pill he took were now working at maximum effectiveness. The first opponent didn''t waste any time shooting continuous wind shes at Satoshi in hopes that he could stall for time while his ally recovered.

    Satoshi appreciated their genuine effort to keep him at bay. Because of that, he decided to attack the first opponent this time. He repeated the same tactic¡ª elerating towards him faster than the speed of sight, appearing in his blind spot, and kicking him downward.

    Just like his ally, he was also flung to the ground, falling on top of his ally while another crater appeared on the grand stage. The impact caused the two''s lungs to release all their air, and they wheezed in pain.

    "He''s strong... but with the way he''s using his beast integration, I don''t think he''d be able tost without wasting his energy. We just have to oust him." The first opponent whispered to the other as the two of them helped each other up.

    Satoshi descended downwards, hitting the ground with a thud as he nailed a superheronding. "What? I barely even started." Satoshimented.

    Loud cheers were once again heard from the audience as Satoshi slowly walked toward his two opponents. They haven''t forgotten about Ryoko who appeared on the stage before transforming into a dragon, but they figured that Satoshi was bound to exin what happened after the match was over. That''s why for now, they put the thought at the back of their minds and instead decided to relish the first match of the third round.

    "Looks like Satoshi is driving his opponents into a corner. What do you think will happen next, Luke? At this rate, Satoshi is bound to exhaust himself first, right? He''s dealing with two opponents after all." Thementator finally found his voice and he startedmentating once again. Luke too had snapped out of it and he reverted to his usualmentary.

    "No, I don''t think so." Luke simply answered as one side of his lips curved upward into a smirk. "From what I could deduce based on Satoshi''s previous match... I don''t think that integrating with one beast is difficult for him. That''s why there''s no way he''ll exhaust himself first."

    "Also, let''s not forget the fact that currently, Satoshi is only integrated with one beast while his opponents are integrated with two. That fact is easily overlooked since he could easily keep up with his two opponents." Luke Skyrunner pointed out.

    "That''s right! I forgot about that! I only assumed that he''s integrated with two tamed beasts since he can go head to head with them."

    "Y-you!" The first opponent screamed, charging at Satoshi as he unleashed a stable wind sh in his hand. He continuously fed it with energy so it won''t disappear, and he used it as a sword to spar with Satoshi. As for the second opponent, he began firing fireballs at Satoshi to impede his movement. As usual, their teamwork was impable even when they were severely disadvantaged.

    The two of them were fast, thanks to their integrated tamed beasts which boast a surprisingly high speed. But even after all that, Satoshi effortlessly weaved through their attacks, dodging everyst one of them while counterattacking himself. He spun in the air as three continuous wind shes were thrown at him, and while doing so, he kicked the fireballs in his vicinity and redirected their trajectory toward his two opponents. His two opponents may be speedy, but Satoshi''s overall stats were pretty high so it didn''t matter at all. In terms of attack, defense, and speed, Satoshi proved to be superior.

    "I guess it''s time to wrap things up," Satoshi muttered to himself, jumping in mid-air and pinning the first opponent to the ground using only one hand. He then used his other hand to fire a point-nk dragon beam at his opponent''s face, rendering him unconscious in an instant.

    "Eek~!'' The second opponent eximed as he raised his hands in the air. He didn''t want to experience such torture so he decided to just forfeit the match.

 Chapter 356 Kim Jin Seok And Link

    When he was thrown to the ground, the first opponent thought that that could very well be the worst thing to happen to him. This was the third round, and he was already beaten to the point where he was on the verge of death. He was still conscious though, so he was confident that he''d be able to oust Satoshi even when they haven''tnded a single blow on him.

    With renewed energy, the first opponent got even more fired up than usual, going out of his way to cover his ally while attacking Satoshi mercilessly. He didn''t care if he fatally hit Satoshi. In fact, he even used his full power which was unleashed by the boosting pill he took a couple of minutes ago.

    There he was, on the edge of losing control over his Dual Beast Integration while his energy was recklessly depleted by the first. Despite the obvious advantages he had over Satoshi, however, he still couldn''t catch up to him, much to his despair.

    And then what he feared the most happened. In that instant, Satoshi disappeared right when they thought that they had him cornered. He then shoved the first opponent''s face into the ground before pinning him. "Wha¡ª wait?! TIME! TIME OUT!"

    "I guess it''s time to wrap things up," Satoshi muttered to himself. He then used his other hand to fire a point-nk dragon beam at his opponent''s face, rendering him unconscious in an instant.

    "Eek~!'' The second opponent eximed as he raised his hands in the air. He didn''t want to experience such torture so he decided to just forfeit the match.

    Satoshi was about to go all in on attacking the second opponent. But when he realized that he had already forfeited the match, he stopped moving, returning back to their side of the grand stage beforemanding Sera to wake up the first opponent.

    The first opponent''s eyes shed wide open as soon as he was healed by Sera. With fear in his eyes, he returned with his ally to their side of the stage as he quaked in his boots.

    "And the winner of the first match of the third round is... Daidai Shoyo and Midoriyama Satoshi!" Thementator announced.

    At the same time, the referee who was standing by the mid-sidelines of the grand stage walked to the center. He then pointed his hand towards Satoshi and Shoyo''s group before waving his hand in a gesture that the match was officially over. The entire crowd started cheering and screaming their lungs out while they threw some gifts toward the Grand Stage. While this is a somewhat normal urrence in the Grand Stage, Satoshi couldn''t help but feel a little bit embarrassed since this was his first time receiving such gifts after a match.

    Before he walked away, he decided to prompt up Shoyo before bowing towards the audience. It was to show his gratitude for the gifts they threw for them and to portray his respect for their patience. After all, he stalled for time in the match, making it somewhat boring in its initial parts.

    "It''s over... I survived..." Shoyo muttered some reassurance to himself since he knew he botched the match. He averted his gaze from Satoshi as he heaved a sigh. If only he had been a tad bit stronger, he''d have been able to easily deal with their two opponents while receiving minimal help from Satoshi.

    "Don''t worry about it. You did well." Satoshi said, patting him on the back before the two of them exited the grand stage. In the end, the two of them won, there was no need to fret over small details and minor mistakes done during the match. For now, what they should be worried about was theing fourth round which was going to happen the next day.

    As they were heading back to their respective waiting rooms, Satoshi caught a familiar face pass by, causing him to whirl around in surprise. At the same time, the person passing by also recognized Satoshi and he turned his head as well. "It''s you! Kim Jin Seok, right? So you''re participating in the Official Beast Tournament too!" Satoshi greeted.

    "Ah, if it isn''t Midoriyama Satoshi. That was quite a spectacle you showed up there, eh? Who was the girl who assumed the dragon form? Is she a ck Winged Dragon? From what I know, ck Winged Dragons are supposed to have ck scales right... unless of course, they were chosen... well, never mind, you know all that stuff anyways. In any case, good luck with getting into the fourth round. I can''t wait to fight you."

    Satoshi nodded his head, extending his hand towards Kim Jin Seok to which he obliged with a handshake. There was no uncertainty in Kim Jin Seok''s eyes, that''s why Satoshi knew that he was confident he''d be able to easily snag a win during this third round.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "I wonder what kind of tamed beasts Kim Jin Seok has..." Satoshi trailed off. The moment he got back to the waiting room, Yun Zhe greeted him with another bowl of ramen. As usual, Shiroi was already there, eating another bowl while waiting for Satoshi toe back.

    Seeing Satoshi almost made her choke on a noodle. With embarrassment written on her face, she turned away and silently coughed.

    "By the way, that guy, do you know him?" Out of nowhere, Yun Zhe asked a question while pointing at the live stream which was being broadcasted on the television. He was pointing toward Kim Jin Seok, and his expression wasn''t really that pleasant.

    "Isn''t that¡ª " Shiroi''s eyes widened as she recognized the person on the live stream. His striking ck hair, sharp jawline, and prepossessing face were easily identifiable, that''s why Shiroi immediately recognized him as well.

    "Yes, he''s the guide who lead us around the Beast Dimension when it was our first time there. I never would''ve thought that he''d fly all the way from Japan... or was it Korea... to America just to join the Official Beast Tournament" This time, it was Satoshi''s turn to purse his lips. "Seeing that he''s a guide back then... I can''t underestimate him. He may be stronger than me when ites to control... but my energy reserved and buffs are much better than him."

    "You should be careful of that guy. He''s strong. I think he''s a Disciple... and not only that. I do think that he is under one of the most powerful Managers out there." Yun Zhe exined before sipping a mouthful of noodles.

    "Now, let''s see..." Satoshi mumbled as the referee who''ll be officiating the match had already taken his position.

    Without further ado, the referee raised his hand. Simultaneously, the crowd fell silent as they awaited for the fight to unfold. No one cheered except when they first showed up. As the referee brought down his hand, he raised his voice and screamed. "Begin,"

    "Oh, who would''ve thought that I''ll be on the same team as you? Two Disciples together against two lowly beast tamers. What do you think? Isn''t this pretty awesome? You should save this happening in your mind so you won''t forget how much fun you''re having right now." Link said, patting Kim Jin Seok on the back.

    "Now that I thought about it... what kind of beast tamers are you going to use? I''m going to support you from the sidelines." Link asked. It should be mentioned once again that Link couldn''t use his representative at the moment due to the condition that Luke Skyrunner set before him (refer to chapter 337)

    I''m banning you from using the Beholder in your future battles. If you don''t want to ept this term, then you can kiss that first ce goodbye. What I mean is... either you give up on using the Beholder, or I disqualify you right here, right now¡ª these were Luke Skyrunners words during that emergency meeting. Because of that, Link was given a handicap that cannot be reversed. After all, he''d receive an instant disqualification if he rejected that ruling.

    "You know what, you can just do your thing. I can handle myself just fine. Be it two, or three, or a dozen, I''ll be able to cut them off so easily like melted peanut butter." Kim Jin Seok was already aware that Link wouldn''t be able to take on their opponent alone. "Still, I''m quite disappointed with you. To think that you''re a Disciple? I can''t even notice. Not only can''t you control your own tamed beast... you also can''t control your energy expenditure properly, making you lose control, physically."

    "You can do whatever you want, all right? Just don''t get in my way. If you can do at least that much, then I can guarantee you a nice spot in the fourth round." Kim Jin Seok teased.

    "Oh please, I can take them on just fine. you don''t have to worry about me." Link wore a smirk as he bnced a Gren in his hand. "In fact, you can just rest easy. I''ll handle everything from here. Just so you know, you''re not the only one who can fight two beast tamers at once."

    "I''ll show you." Link licked his lips as their third-round match finally began.

 Chapter 357 Jessie And James

    Notwithstanding Kim Jin Seok''s straightforward hatred towards Link''s overall character, he still recognized his strength. Sure, he was capable of taking care of their two opponents without breaking a sweat, but he wanted to see whether Link is a man of his word or not. Judging from how confident he was when it came to his words, he wanted to how Link would manage when ites to fighting two opponents at once.

    After all, he had a hard time when he fought with a certain goal during the second round. There was no way he could deal with two beast tamers who could easily activate their dual beast integration.

    "You can do whatever you want, all right? Just don''t get in my way. If you can do at least that much, then I can guarantee you a nice spot in the fourth round." Kim Jin Seok teased.

    "Oh please, I can take them on just fine. you don''t have to worry about me." Link wore a smirk as he bnced a Gren in his hand. "In fact, you can just rest easy. I''ll handle everything from here. Just so you know, you''re not the only one who can fight two beast tamers at once."

    "I''ll show you." Link licked his lips as their third-round match finally began.

    With a purposeful stride, Link walked towards the stage while waving toward the audience. He was a natural when ites to his expressions, which made Jin Seok assume that he was used to the attention. Unbeknownst to him, however, it was quite the opposite. It wasn''t because he was used to people looking at him, it was because he had always simted being famous in his head, and now he was living in the moment.

    Click!

    Fwoooosh~!

    A couple of gasps were heard after the silence befell the entire grand stage. Kim Jin Seok and Link, who was already jittery since the match was about to start, almost activated their dual beast integration. Fortunately, they managed to keep theirposure even when the power went out.

    "What''s going on? Shouldn''t the American Dome suppose to have backup power, or a generator or something? This shouldn''t be happening right now, right?" Link muttered under his breath. He didn''t raise his voice since he was intently listening to his surroundings. If by any chance, he detected some suspicious movements, he''d immediately activate his dual beat integration and deal with it.

    "Yes, I figured... maybe this is a part of a show? There''s no way the American Dome would lose power like that. This might be a setup." Kim Jin Seok answered.

    The silence got even heavier as seconds passed. Cautiously, Kim Jin Seok and Link also waited. The referee still hasn''t raised his hand tomence the fight so they decided to y the waiting game.

    sh!

    Suddenly, two spotlights sh towards the other side of the grand stage, causing Kim Jin Seok and Link to flinch due to the instantaneous brightness. There were two figures in the middle of the spotlight, ady and a man.

    "Prepare for trouble!"

    "And make it double!"

    The first two lines were enough for the crowd to go wild. Of course, everybody knew where the lines came from. It was from a famous animated series that had existed way back when. And of course, this is the Official Beast Tournament so it was only fitting that someone referenced a certain beast taming animated series. And it wasn''t just the audience who started cheering for the neers, even those who were watching in thefort of their own homes began cheering in their own way, totally getting the reference that the two were roleying as.

    For one, thedy wore a long wig with a purplish red color to it. As for the man, he wore blue hair as his wig. And of course, their performance would all be for nothing if they didn''t wear their own costume. Speaking the part and ying the part shoulde hand in hand, and that''s what they intended to do.

    "To protect the world from devastation,"

    "To unite all peoples within our nation,"<novelnext></novelnext>

    While the spotlight tracked them as they moved, they proceeded to continue with their lines while striking a pose here and there. For some reason, those who were watching began feeling nostalgia... or rather, they felt connected to the distant past. Of course, the adults who watched the series when they were children, teared up as they remembered their childhood and their parents who watched the show with them.

    "To denounce the evils of truth and love,"

    "To extend our reach to the stars above!"

    "Jessie,"

    "James,"

    While the audience started cheering, Kim Jin Seok and Link could only feel cringe as they watched the entire scene up close. It would''ve been nice if they were part of the audience, but they weren''t. Jessie and James were only dozens of steps away from him, they could very well be talking to each other now that they think about it.

    Apparently, even though Jessie and James (and this was their real name, mind you) were both parts of the ck Fog Faction, they''ve never met each other at all. After all, James is always out and about, doing his covert operations in the beast dimension under the orders of their leader, ck Fog. As for Jessie, she was always by the dojo/shrine of the ck Fog Faction where she constantly trained her dual beast integration and sparred with other beast tamers.

    It was all based on the pure chance that the two of them were paired up for the third round. And after introducing each other''s names, they realized that they could pull off something that''s never been done in the past. The idea came from Jessie, of course, since she was a die-hard fan of that certain animated series.

    "Team rocket sts off at the speed of light!"

    "Surrender now, or prepare o fight!"

    "Meowth''s the name!"

    At first, no one knew who spoke the third line, but when the lights of the American Dome returned and thementator continued his monologue, they realized that he was the one who blurted out the missing passage in their y. With the surprising performance over, the audience hollered and screamed their cheers while Kim Jin Seok and Link looked at each other as if they''ve seen everything.

    "You know what, you go take care of them. I''m sitting this one out." Kim Jin Seok muttered as he returned to their side of the grand stage. He then turned around and sat cross-legged.

    At the same time, the referee finally raised his hand and gave the signal to start the match. "Begin!" He screamed, bringing his hand down before he ran away toward the edge of the stadium. One thing he learned during the previous matches of the Official Beast Tournament was that it''d be in his good judgment to stand as far as he could from the grand stage. After all, the fights were actually getting a little bit out of hand, and he wanted to be in a safe ce if things got a little dicey.

    "All right then. I guess it''s time for me to show you just what I can do. I''m plenty strong myself." Link said as he adjusted both his wrists with his hands. He couldn''t help but steal a brief nce towards one of the windows by the audience seats. Catching a glimpse of Luke Skyrunner, he nodded his head before he stepped into the ring.

    "Oh hoh hoh, what is this? It seems like our candidate Kim Jin Seok is sitting this one out!" Thementator almost screamed at his mic. For once, Luke Skyrunner almost wanted to smack him on the head since he spat all over the mic. "Why is he doing this?!"

    "I guess they reached an agreement, huh," Luke Skyrunner breathed in and out so he could hide the annoyance in his tone. If there had been two mics in the booth, then he wouldn''t have minded if thementator spat on the mic. Heck, it would''ve been fine for him if he spat on the mic as much as he could.

    However, there was only one mic, and Luke Skyrunner couldn''t help but feel disgusted when he needed to speak. In the end, he decided to wipe the saliva off the mic before while he continued speaking. "Personally, I do think that either Link and Kim Jin Seok alone is more than enough to take care of team rocke¡ª er, I mean, Jessie and James. And by the way, to those who are wondering what their real names are... it''s Jessie and James."

    "I, I see," Thementator trailed off. As for him, he wasn''t sure whether Link could take care of two opponents at once. Furthermore, he still had mixed feelings regarding his performance during the second round. While the audience was tricked that his murderous intent was just an intermission number, thementator knew otherwise.

 Chapter 358 Piece Of Paper

    Satoshi subconsciously raised an eyebrow while watching the performance. It was certainly original, but to him, it was childish. But then again, the audience had a positive response to it so he digressed. A sigh left his mouth as he remembered that he was also connected to that certain animated series. After all, he was named after the protagonist of that show... courtesy of his dad who named him when he was born.

    "Do you think that Link guy could win? I''ve seen Jessie and James''s performance during the second round. They''re certainly not subparpared to Link." Yun Zhe asked, sinking into the couch as he sipped on his canned drink.

    "Without the Grundauge (his tamed beast which is also known as the Beholder), I don''t think he''llst. But who knows, he was severely put at a disadvantage during the second round since Jana used a fire-type tamed beast."

    "I guess... but it looks like that Korean wouldn''t be fighting. Look at utter disrespect, turning his back from the fight and sitting down. Is he that confident that Link would be able to take care of them?" Yun Zhe heaved a sigh, but he didn''t dwell too much on it. After all, he''s got his own fight to worry about.

    Knock.

    Knock.

    This time, Satoshi was not surprised anymore when he heard a knock on the door. His full experience with the Official Beast Tournament was filled with nothing but surprises. Another knock on the door is not enough to shake him up anymore.

    "That''s probably for you." Satoshi gestured, pointing his lips towards the door as another set of knocking was heard.

    Knock.

    Knock.

    "All right," With a grunt, Yun Zhe stood up to greet the person who was by the door. He wasn''t expecting any visitors, but he decided to open the door for the person in question since Satoshi didn''t have any intention of standing up.

    "Who is it?" Yun Zhe asked before peering through the peephole. A girl stood by the door, and Yun Zhe immediately knew that she was looking for Satoshi. After all, he''d never interacted with a girl before, except in a training match or a fight. So there''s no way a girl would go looking for him.

    Yun Zhe turned around. "Satoshi, it''s for you." He called out. Without saying another word, he opened the door to let the girl in.

    It was none other than Jana Alexis.

    Compared to her fidgety demeanor an hour or so ago, she was now enveloped with a strong presence as she walked toward Satoshi. "I have to go, and I''m not going to waste any time. Here you go." Jana said in a rush, handing Satoshi a piece of paper that had one word written on it. "I can''t exin anything to you right now, but please don''t lose it. You''ll understand why I''m giving you that paper."

    "Huh?" Satoshi was befuddled but he received the piece of paper anyways.

    Confirming that Satoshi was already clutching the paper as if he was holding onto it for dear life, Jana pivoted and headed out the door.

    "Oi~! What are you doing?! That''s against the rules!" Yun Zhe suddenly raised his voice, much to Satoshi''s surprise. Unbeknownst to him, Yun Zhe actually caught a glimpse of what was written on the paper, and that word was enough to trigger him.

    "What do you mean? I simply handed him a paper. I didn''t tell him anything about it. Besides, he''s going to need it." Jana continued, her face still wearing that constant serious expression.

    "No, what I''m saying is... he''s not a Disciple! You can''t just hand out invitations like that!" Due to his panic, he blurted out something that he shouldn''t have. And upon realizing what he had just done, his eyes widened in surprise as he covered his mouth. "You didn''t hear anything, Satoshi," He mumbled.

    "I''m a disciple, you''re a disciple, and Link, too, is a disciple. He''s stronger than any of us, so what rules him out as one? And even if he wasn''t, I''m sure that my... yes, I''m sure that she''ll be more pleased to have him on board, even if he wasn''t a disciple." Jana exined. Unlike Yun Zhe, she didn''t lose herposure, that''s why she managed to withhold some of the words that Satoshi shouldn''t hear at that moment.

    "Still, this goes against the rules! If your Manager finds out... no... if another Manager finds out..."<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Then you''d better keep it a secret. Trust me on this one, Yun Zhe, he''s our only hope." Jana continued before exiting the room.

    "What''s going on?"Satoshi asked, but Yun Zhe just heaved a sigh in response before returning to his seat.

    "Don''t get me started. There are a lot of things wrong... I just can''t tell you everything since that would be against the rules." Yun Zhe shrugged.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    While Kim Jin Seok calmly sat on their side of the grand stage, Link had already activated his dual beast integration. He decided to integrate with one of his grass-type beasts, which looked like the bark of a tree and specializes in defense. As for his second tamed beast, he opted for mobility¡ª a tamed beast that looked like a bug, with leaves as its wings.

    With his dual beast integration out of the way, Link looked like he came straight from medieval times with his hardened wooden armor, paired with a wooden sword and shield to match the aesthetic. Wings grew out of his back as well, and it looked like a lush branch of a tree filled with leaves and flowers.

    As for Jessie, she integrated with a snake tamed beast, which specializes in speed and poison attacks. And her second tamed beast was another snake, which has the special skill petrify. This skill allows her to temporarily stun her enemy if he or she made eye contact with her¡ª a pretty nifty support skill that works every single time.

    On the other hand, James integrated with a grass-type tamed beast that looked like a venus fly trap. His second tamed beast had the appearance of smoke... and once he integrated with the two of them, he transformed into a haze of smoke with vinesshing out from it. It certainly looked like bona fide dual beast integration, seeing that his two tamed beasts didn''t match their themes at all.

    "So, he''s not going to fight us? What a waste." Jessie mumbled as she turned her head toward James. Her appearance was certainly not family friendly, since her lower body was reced with that of a snake, and his upper body had skin-tight clothing, which really entuated her proportions.

    "I don''t think he''s going to back down that easily. There''s no way a beast tamer of his caliber would rely on someone who''s clearly weaker than him. I think he''s testing us." James muttered to himself.

    Meanwhile, thementator and Luke Skyrunner were beginning to see patterns of the third round. This was just the second match and yet two consecutive pairings were already simr to each other. Thementator heaved a sigh since there were only three participants fighting on the grand stage, much like what happened in the first round.

    "I guess we should''ve done a one-versus-two match, seeing that these participants want that kind of setup." Thementator muttered, forgetting that the mic was still on.

    "But it sure does spice things up a little bit. I''m fairly certain that there are a lot of beast tamers out there who wanted to experience such a scenario as well."

    "Based on the first two rounds, I guess that''s how it is."

    Without further ado, Link screamed his lungs out as he elerated toward Jessie and James. While he only had a wooden sword and shield with him, he was confident that he''d be able to keep up with the two.

    That''s when Jessie nodded at James before she made a move. As soon as Link was within five meters, Jessie crouched as she slithered toward Link. Her eyes were fixated on his gaze, waiting for that right moment when she could petrify her with her pseudo-medusa skill.

    The reason why it was only a pseudo-medusa skill was that her skill doesn''t activate as soon as their eyes meet. She has to activate it manually. In other words, her petrify skill was an active instead of a passive skill.

    And while this gives her a lot of control over her overall fighting style, it also limits her effectivity as well. After all, she had to make a conscious decision every single time she has to petrify someone. It might work when they''re only fighting one opponent, but fighting two or more is greatly disadvantageous for her.

    With Kim Jin Seok not participating in the match, Jessie knew that this was her moment. As Link closed in, a creepy smile stered on her face as her long tongue lewdly slipped out of her mouth.

    "I got you now!" She cackled as soon as Link''s gaze and hers connected.

 Chapter 359 Coming In Clutch

    What happened next was a scene out of every medusa movie out there... in fact, it was a very realistic depiction of such a scenario.

    Neither a sh of light nor a sudden outburst of energy leaked out of Jessie when she activated her ''petrify'' skill. Instead, there was a simple pause, as if time momentarily stopped the moment their gazes connected.

    The creepy smile on Jessie''s face was overwritten with a satisfied one as she licked her lips with her tongue. Her widened eyes turned into slits due to her smile, and she slowly slithered towards Link who had been frozen mid-run.

    In that split second, Link actually felt the ominosity that leaked out of Jessie, and he was able to activate his skill. He was a step toote, however, and his skill didn''t fully activate when he was hit with the petrification. Branches and leaves grew out of his sword and shield, seemingly trying to envelop him... but unfortunately, it didn''t work out since he misjudged Jessie''s attack.

    "Wow, it worked," James muttered as he wrapped Link inside a capsule made out of his vines. "Now it''s time to suffocate him."

    This time, it was James who wore a creepy smile. With the help of his tamed beast which looked like smoke, he fed the interior of the capsule with poisonous haze. That way, Link would suffocate and fall unconscious while not being able to move.

    Undoubtedly, it was an underhanded move, and it also sounded more like torture the more Jessie and James thought about it. However, this was the strategy they came up with, and they didn''t want to underestimate Link''s ability at all. That''s why they resorted to such tactics.

    In any case, Link did not have a good time inside the encasement filled with poisonous smoke. Sure, he can''t move due to the petrify skill, but that doesn''t mean he couldn''t breathe. At first, he tried to hold his breath as much as he could, but it was all for nothing. His lungs gave up after three minutes and he inhaled the smoke.

    ''Am I going to lose like this? No, there''s no way! After all that talk...'' Link said to himself as his consciousness dwindled. If he could move his head, he would''ve stolen a nce towards Kim Jin Seok... and had he done that, he would''ve seen the disappointment on Kim Jin Seok''s face.

    Link gritted his teeth in frustration. ''No, there must be some other way! I can''t lose like this.''

    Even though he was about to faint, Link still didn''t lose hope. He knew there was a way out of the predicament he was in. Deep within, he thought of using Grundauge, his tamed beast which was banned by Luke Skyrunner since he couldn''t control it. However, he knew that using Grundauge meant that he''d be disqualified. This may be a two-versus-two match, but that didn''t mean he couldn''t be disqualified if Kim Jin Seok wins in his stead.

    And that''s when it came to him... it was such a simple solution and yet it took him this long to think about it. Without wasting another second, he decided to call out to one of his tamed beasts in a desperate attempt to perform a Trinity Beast Integration. While this wasn''t the first time he attempted such an advanced skill, he knew that he was still inconsistent at it.

    Nevertheless, he''s got no other choice but to go through with it. This was hisst chance at redemption and he didn''t think twice about taking it.

    ''Rassio, I know you can hear me right now. You''re a grass type and a psychic type... I''m calling you out of your Gren. I need your help.'' Link''s vision faded as the poison continued to spread through his body. His breathing became ragged, and it took all his focus to keep himself awake.

    To his relief, a sh of light appeared near his pocket, and he heard a certain noise in his mind that told him that Rassio heard his plea. He closed his eyes, letting go of his consciousness and instead focusing on Rassio so he could integrate with him. If this works, then not only will he be able to cancel his petrified state, but he''d also get rid of the poisonous smoke and then activate his healing ability to remove the poison from his body.

    ? Three seconds.

    Five seconds.

    Ten seconds.<novelnext></novelnext>

    It was but a mere ten seconds and yet Link felt like an eternity as he scoured through his mind to look for his link with Rassio. Regardless, it seemed like luck was on his side, and he managed to find the connection and strengthen it to the point where the Trinity Beast Integration was possible.

    While that was happening inside the poisonous prison where James trapped Link, both James and Jessie were celebrating with each other. The verdict has not been finalized, and yet they were celebrating as if Link had already been defeated.

    "What a shocking disy of teamwork! It seems like Link had gotten himself in an inescapable pinch. It had been four minutes and there was no sign of him getting out... is this really the end for him?" Thementator almost screamed at the microphone, but then he remembered how he had previously violently spat out saliva. That''s why this time, he controlled himself.

    "No, I''m sure he''ll be able to escape. Such a flimsy trap is not enough to contain an experienced beast tamer." Luke Skyrunnermented in a calm manner as he slowly tapped his finger on the desk. He felt uneasy since there was a good chance Luke would use his beholder tamed beast once again. If that were to happen, then there''s a good chance that James and Jessie''s life will be endangered.

    After all, even though Luke threatened to disqualify him if he used his uncontroble tamed beast, there was no way he could do that. There were no rules that stated he had the authority to disqualify someone unless there was a valid reason for it. Going berserk is not grounds for disqualification.

    There was a good chance that Link would disregard his threat and use the beholder right now... but Luke wanted to believe in him, as crazy as that may sound. ''If you have a modicum of pride as a beast tamer, I''m sure you won''t resort to using such an erratic tamed beast. You''ve got this, Link. This is your one shot at redeeming yourself after that poor performancest round.'' Luke said in his mind.

    Shiiing~!

    A sh of light, followed by an explosion, caused most of the audience to jump out of their seats in surprise. They thought Link had already been finished, but after seeing the explosion, they realized that such wasn''t the case at all. Some of the audience even started thinking that Link was just biding his time in the vine capsule.

    What came out of the capsule was Link with apletely new look. Aside from his wooden set of equipment and wings made out of branches and leaves, there were also dark leaves revolving all over his body. ck and purple smoke could be seen seeping out of his body, and both his eyes were covered in ck mes. These mes acted like goggles or a mask, and they blocked Jessie''s view on his line of sight.

    "Phew~ I can''t believe that worked." Link muttered to himself. "That was a pretty good surprise attack though."

    It was at this moment, Jessie and James knew they messed up. Here they were, thinking that Link was already unconscious. And just when they were about to undo the vine prison and attack Kim Jin Seok, Link just had to escape. And not only that, it seemed like Link had gotten a power-up while he was inside the encasement.

    Unbeknownst to them, though, Link was still on the verge of losing consciousness... not because he was still poisoned, but because it took every cell of his body to control his Trinity Beast Integration. One momentarypse of losing focus is more than enough to cancel his skill.

    Still, Link yed the part of someone stronger than both Jessie and Jamesbined. Despite him nearing the edge, he still presented himself as advantageous. With a flick of his wrist, he swung his sword, and an outgrowth of branches and leaves shot out of it, hitting both Jessie and James before they could even react.

    As soon as they were thrown into the air, Link retracted his sword and extended his arm in the air. Some form of dark energy in the shape of two giant hands appeared. Link then brought his arms down, causing the giant hands to m his two opponents onto the ground.

    Jessie and James hit the ground with a thud. While they were still disoriented, Link dug his hand into the floor of the grand stage, and in an instant, vines started appearing everywhere, tying both Jessie and James and pinning them to the ground.

    "Now, for my final move... life force drain..." Link clicked his tongue as the vines started sucking out the life energy of his opponents.

 Chapter 360 Wrathful Comeback

    "Oi, oi oi!" With his jaw dropping to the ground, thementator stood up from his seat and put the mic closer to his mouth. "Link turned the tables in less than ten seconds! What an upset!"

    Due to the sudden attack that flung Jessie and James into the air and mmed them to the ground, they lost their concentration and their dual beast integration was canceled. In fact, they almost lost consciousness when they hit the ground with a thud. And before they could recover and start all over again, Link had already tied them up good with the vines that came out of his hands. He squeezed them to the point where their joints were bent to their limits and their bones cracked at the weight of the vines forcefully pressing down on them.

    "Urk~!" Jessi grunted, stealing a nce at James who was suffering just like him. No matter how hard she tried to activate any of her skills, nothing happened. For some odd reason, she felt more exhausted the more she attempted to expend her energy. It was even worse when she tried to use her superpowers to break free.

    "Don''t do anything, he''s using some sort of energy drain on us," James used all his strength to warn Jessie since she was already panicking.

    While the energy drain was ongoing, the audience was on the edge of their seats while both thementator and Luke started talking about the usability of Link''s aforementioned skill. No one talked about it but everyone was worried since Link didn''t seem to be deactivating his skill any sooner.

    And Jessie and James who were receiving the full brunt of the attack were beginning to shrivel up as all the life were drained out of them. They weren''t grunting in pain anymore, now they started screaming as if they were being tortured to death.

    Little did everyone realize that Link had finally snapped. He had lost control over his Trinity Beast Integration and now his limiter was automatically removed, causing him to disy more power than normal. A sinister grin appeared on his face as if he was evil incarnate, and he stared down at Jessie and James, seemingly enjoying the excruciating pain they were in. A chuckle could be heard under his breath as he continued with the attack.

    "Oi, don''t you think that''s about enough?" Kim Jin Seok asked, slowly approaching Link. A couple of moments ago, he felt an evil aura emanating from Link. All the hairs on his back stood, causing him to turn around. That''s when he realized that Link had finally lost it, and he was slowly killing both Jessie and James.

    Link whirled his head towards Kim Jin Seok, the sinister smile was still etched on his face¡ª a grin from ear to ear that showed almost all his teeth. Even with his contorted appearance, Kim Jin Seok was still unfazed. He was confident that he could do easy work on Link if he were to attack him. Nevertheless, he didn''t want to needlessly rile up Link, that''s why he tried to look and sound as calm as possible, all the while approaching him in a slow manner so he won''tsh out as per his reflex.

    "Shut up, you useless coward." Link growled as his head leaned sideways. He then turned away from Kim Jin Seok as he continued draining the living daylights out of his two opponents.

    Now, for a normal superhero (or a beast tamer for that matter), it was normal to gall unconscious as soon as they expended most of their energy. The same could be said when they lost control of their superpower or skill. This was the normal bodily response since the body couldn''t take the extra workload imposed on it.

    However, for Link, it was different.

    The normal bodily response didn''t apply to him at all. In fact, what applied to him was the exact opposite. Link was also not aware of this special skill of his... which allowed him to go past his limit, but his sanity would suffer in return. Whenever he loses control, an impulse would be sent to the brain which causes his body to release adrenaline.

    This response causes Link to temporarily lose his mind while he fought like a wounded animal. Some called this rare bodily response a ''dazed state'', or in simple terms ''drunken state'' or ''berserk state''. Whatever the term was, it affected Link greatly. Just like what happened during his fight against Jana in the first round, he lost control once again,

    BAM!

    As soon as Link turned away from Kim Jin Seok, he felt a great force on the back of his head. Apparently, Kim Jin Seok grabbed him by the nape and forced his face onto the floor. A resounding ''bam'' soon followed as Link''s face was buried on the grand stage. At the same time, he lost his grip on both Jessie and James.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "What did you say? Useless coward? Say that again." Kim Jin Seok gritted his teeth as he mmed Link''s face on the floor for a second time. "Say it!"

    As Kim Jin Seok continuously mmed Link''s face on the ground, some of the audience mumbled amongst themselves, wondering whether they should side with Kim Jin Seok or with Link. On one hand, Link somewhat deserved the treatment he was getting right now since he almost killed Jessie and James in cold blood. On the other hand, Kim Jin Seok''s violence was also getting out of hand. And the bloodied face of Link was disyed a couple of times towards the audience every single time he lifts his face, then m it on the ground again.

    Catching their breaths, both Jessie and James crawled out of the way in hopes that they won''t be part of the one-sided beating that instantly came to pass. They were worried that maybe Kim Jin Seok would also direct his wrath toward them. That''s why they moved as far away as possible.

    Fortunately, James was not as disoriented as Jessie. He was in his right mind to summon another tamed beast of his which specializes in healing and health regeneration. "I''m counting on you, all right," James mumbled as he summoned his tamed beast.

    It didn''t take long before the two of them, Jessie and James, had enough energy to sit down. And while they were trying to replenish their energy, they watched as Kim Jin Seok kept Link''s face on the ground.

    Fwooosh~!

    Much to Kim Jin Seok''s surprise, the brat he was holding down suddenly disappeared, and he reappeared right in front of Jessie and James. Licking his lips, Link summoned his vines once again. This time, it was evident on his face that he fully intended to kill the two.

    All the colors drained from Jessie and James''s faces as the vines enwrapped them once again. They barely recovered their energy thanks to James''s tamed beast, and now they were going to lose it all again... probably for good since they were going to die.

    "I''m not done talking with you." Kim Jin Seok gritted his teeth as he appeared in front of Link. This time was different. Instead of grabbing him by the nape, he grabbed him by his face and mmed the back of his head on the ground. A stter of blood formed where Kim Jin Seok smashed his head.

    Kim Jin Seok was not yet done, however. This time, he smashed both Jessie''s and James''s heads on the ground. They were instantly sent to the dreand, and victory was finally given to both Link and Kim Jin Seok.

    There were plenty of chances where Jessie and James could''ve forfeited the match. They even went to great lengths just to replenish their energy. Kim Jin Seok figured that they really wanted to win the match, and were probably waiting for their opportune moment toe so they could snag the victory from them.

    Because of that, Kim Jin Seok had no choice but to knock them both out before he dealt with the troublemaker that is Link.

    As soon as both Jessie and James were out ofmission, the referee raised his hand and thementator announced who the clear winners were. Meanwhile, Kim Jin Seok was still not done with Link. With his hand transformed into a huge beast w, he grabbed Kim Jin Seok by the face before dragging him out of the grand stage. He didn''t forget to make a bow toward the audience before he headed to the exit.

    "You''reing with me." Kim Jin Seok said. It seems like his fury was not yet appeased. His eyes shone a clear intent that he wanted to beat up Link until he was ck and blue.

    Kim Jin Seok''s eyes then glowed a nice purple glow as he created a portal in the middle of the grand stage. Before anyone could react, he threw Link inside the portal. He also went inside it, and the portal closed as soon as jumped in.

 Chapter 361 Head To Head

    The development of the second match of the third round was certainly as unexpected as it was interesting. The audience watched as a one-versus-two match transpired, followed by a beast tamer going out of control, and then followed by his teammate manifesting a portal from out of nowhere and going inside it.

    A minute or so had already passed and yet the audience remained quiet as their gazes were fixated on the grand stage. They had no idea where Kim Jin Seok brought Link, and they were more than curious to know as to how he was beating Link up.

    In retrospect, after such a performance like that, there''s no way the audience would be pleased to see that both the winners disappeared after going inside a portal. The entire premise was interesting, at least, but the audience was more interested in a beating that they''d actually see, rather than a beating happening in a secluded area. As mentioned before, the audience, or rather a majority of them, epted the fact that Link really needed a beating. They wanted to watch the one-sided beating not because they were into pain, but because they wanted to see Link get the punishment he deserved.

    Link may be a good guy, but his overall character when ites to his beast taming fighting style... well, not a peter of it wasmendable.

    "And that''s the second match for this third round. We''ll have a five-minute break before we announce the third match! I hope you all enjoyed that second round. It was cut short, but it was a surprising win for both Kim Jin Seok and Link." Thementator tried to sound as chirpy as he could, but the disappointment was still evident in the tone of his voice.

    ps were heard from the audience, but they were almost inaudible since not a lot of people pped. Seeing the audience''s negative reaction, thementator turned towards Luke for ideas. He felt as if he had failed as amentator just because of one negative response.

    "Please look forward to the third match. I''m sure that it would be as predictable as the first and second matches. Also, we''re going to do our best to look for Kim Jin Seok and Link. Hopefully, we can find them before the end of the day... and hopefully, the two of them are still fighting so we can include it in the rerun of the current live stream.

    Upon saying that, Luke then stood up and got out of the booth where thementator was stationed. He decided to go look for Kim Jin Seok and Link in the meantime while they waited for the third match. There were plenty of locations where the two of them could''ve gone, but Luke knew that it would be easy for him to track them down.

    After all, he''s got plenty of experience when ites to portals. That''s why tracing one end of the portal to its other end is just child''s y for him. As soon as Kim Jin Seok and Link teleported out of the stadium, Luke was already hot on their trail, tracing the faint energy emanating from the closed portal and focusing on its other end where it was connected. It was just a split second but it was plenty of time for an expert like Luke. In that really short span of time, he managed to pinpoint their general location.

    "I believe they are in the beast dimension. But why did they teleport all the way over there?" Luke asked himself, scratching his head as he too created a portal and teleported out of there.

    ...

    "They went to the beast dimension, right?" Yun Zhe muttered. He didn''t even need to trace the faint energy that the closed portal emitted. As soon as the dimensional portal was created, Yun Zhe instantly concluded that they were going to the beast dimension.

    "Right," Satoshi answered without thinking. As someone who frequently uses portals, Satoshi could tell that that''s where they were headed.

    "I''m going over there, see what they''re up to." Yun Zhe pointed out, jerking a thumb towards his back before he created a portal, thanks to a certain tamed beast of his.

    Satoshi immediately realized that Yun Zhe was indirectly inviting him. He stood up and volunteered to go with him before he stepped inside the portal.

    Needless to say, the beast dimension is nothing but tiny. Even though they concluded that Kim Jin Seok and Link went over there, they had no idea where exactly they spawned. That''s why as soon as Yun Zhe and Satoshi got to the beast dimension, they started teleporting here and there, searching high and low for their presence.

    It didn''t take long before they found them, though, since Yun Zhe skillfully darted everywhere as if he knew the beast dimension like the back of his hand. Even Satoshi was speechless at his masterful disy of teleportation.

    As it turned out, Kim Jin Seok and Link teleported right in the middle of a rocky barrennd. Kim Jin Seok stood on one side, his one hand transformed into a huge gauntlet that looked like a monster''s w. As for Link, he was still in his Trinity Beast Integration. His back was hunched as his head leaned sideways, showing his deranged nature as his uncontroble side got the better of him.

    "I won the match while you sat there doing nothing. I have the right to call you a coward." Link said in a low voice before vines came out of his fingertips. He aimed at Kim Jin Seok''s blind spots while he charged at him.<novelnext></novelnext>

    With his giant ws, Kim Jin Seok easily tore through the vines before delivering a decent punch right at Link''s sr plexus, sending him flying.

    Link was unfazed by the attack, however, and he did a somersault before pping his wings in the air. Extending his hands, Link started shooting a flurry of dark leaves toward Kim Jin Seok.

    At first, Kim Jin Seok assumed that Link was using razor leaves or something along those lines. That''s why he opted to dodge the dark leaves. As soon as one of the dark leaves got into close proximity, it exploded. Despite their small size, the dark leaves actually packed a decent punch.

    It was evident from Kim Jin Seok''s expression that the dark leaves did some significant damage. He didn''te out of the attack unscathed. Once the onught was over, Kim Jin Seok was left holding his side which took one of the many explosions caused by the dark leaves. Blood escaped his mouth as he coughed.

    "You can''t even defend against my attack. You really are a useless coward." Link smirked.

    "Y-you!"

    ...

    Meanwhile, Luke Skyrunner himself teleported to the beast dimension in hopes that he''d be able to witness a legendary fight between Kim Jin Seok and Link. He was fairly certain that the two of them would be evenly matched since their performance during the second round could bepared to each other.

    When he finally caught sight of them, however, he was surprised that Kim Jin Seok was pretty beat up. Even with his superior abilities and formidable tamed beasts, Kim Jin Seok was losing against Link who was currently running amok. Somehow, Link''s erratic movements and total disregard for his life were what gave him the advantage against such a careful fighter as Kim Jin Seok.

    "If only he could harness such fearsome power. He''d be a pretty intimidating beast tamer." Luke said to himself, pulling out his phone as he recorded the fight. Not only did he record the fight from one angle, but rather, he made full use of his portal creation and teleportation skills to record the fight from different angles. It would be a fine addition to the video that they''re going to post on youtube as soon as the Official Beast Tournament was over.

    Just as he teleported to a certain hidden side of the area, he realized that there were two more people present. He immediately recognized them as Satoshi and Yun Zhe¡ª both were top candidates to be the finalists, that''s why Luke recognized them right away.

    "What are you two doing here?" Luke couldn''t help but ask as he joined them on their spot behind a huge boulder.

    "Ah, it''s just Luke." Yun Zhe brushed off his presence as if he was a nobody. "We just happened toe here since we figured the two of them would be bashing their heads together here."

    "That''s a rude greeting, as expected of a certain someone''s disciple," Luke said, sitting beside Satoshi.

    "As if, your manager couldn''t even hope to beat mine. The only reason why he''s ranked higher was because of his looks." Yun Zhe continued.

    "Eh?!" Satoshimented. It seemed like there was some sort of bad blood between the two.

    "Heh, that''s riching from someone who never had the looks in the first ce." Luke returned.

    "Well then... why don''t we go at it, right now? Let''s see who''s the better disciple?" Yun Zhe challenged before calling out his two tiger partners.

 Chapter 362 Rescue Mission

    "Stop it, you two," Satoshi calmly asserted, standing between the two and intercepting their intense gazes. There was already one chaotic match happening in the area and it would be a real pain dealing with it¡ª having two chaotic matches would be a headache.

    "Sigh~ all right then. There''s no way I''m going to waste my energy fighting you and then getting stomped on by Satoshi." Luke Skyrunner shrugged as he smiled. While he was confident that he''d be able to go head-to-head with Satoshi in a serious match, he was uncertain whether he''de out victorious or not. It would be a pretty close match though¡ª or so that''s what he assumed would happen.

    "I guess, right now we have to deal with those two. We can hold off on our matchter." Yun Zhe acquiesced and the challenge was withdrawn. For some reason, the two of them reached an agreement after hearing a mere few words from Satoshi.

    Just then, their peaceful exchange was interrupted by a screaming from Kim Jin Seok. At that moment, the three of them turned their heads, only to see that Kim Jin Seok was already tied up and pinned to the ground with thicker vinesing from Link''s arm. He grunted and struggled, but it was all in vain as the vines continued to constrict his movements and squeeze him even tighter.

    "Well, that was surprising. And here I was, thinking that Kim Jin Seok would win. He''s stronger than Link, after all." Yun Zhe clicked his tongue, he was obviously disappointed that his predictions were incorrect.

    "He underestimated him so much. Link is a formidable opponent, and his craziness is just one of his core strengths. However, Kim Jin Seok''s level-headedness overlooked that, and now he''s suffering the consequences." Luke Skyrunner heaved a sigh. He had already foreseen that Kim Jin Seok would lose this match way back when he acted so smugly during their two-versus-two match.

    The fight was inevitable since their personalities shed, but Kim Jin Seok should''ve easily won such a match since he was way stronger than Link. No matter where one looked at it, it was fairly apparent that Kim Jin Seok brought the downfall upon himself.

    Satoshi and Yun Zhe couldn''t agree more with Luke''sment. Link was supposed to lose, but right now, he looked sofortable as he overpowered Kim Jin Seok with minimal effort. As he floated in the air with his wings of branches and leaves pping, he held Kim Jin Seok down with the vines protruding from his hands.

    The vines then received more energy from Link, and they weremanded to activate their life-force drain skill which enabled them to suck the life out of Kim Jin Seok. Kim Jin Seok screamed as he felt something excruciatingly painful envelop his body. In his weakened state, there was no chance he''d be able to struggle free from the vines.

    One moment, he was on the winning side, the next moment, the scales of the match had tipped in Link''s favor. And now there was nothing he could do but resign.

    Link was not having it, however. He saw the path to victory and he was willing to take it... even if it meant murdering Kim Jin Seok in cold blood. In hindsight, it was Kim Jin Seok''s fault for riling Link up. And now that he was out of control, there was no one there who could stop him from killing the Korean.

    Just like what happened to Jessie and James during their match against Link, Kim Jin Seok started shriveling up as the vines continuously drained his energy. As seconds passed, he got weaker and weaker until he could barely lift a finger.

    "Um..." Satoshi trailed off as he nced toward Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe who were still watching the entire thing transpire... both of them unfazed by the contorted face Kim Jin Seok was wearing as he let out a dying scream.

    "You have that tamed beast of yours right? Was it a Celestial? Yeah, it was a Celestial Tamed Beast." Yun Zhe said out of nowhere as he addressed Satoshi. He was still staring at Link and Kim Jin Seok as he spoke.

    "Yeah," Satoshi responded, not knowing why Yun Zhe asked something off-topic.

    "Good, now we wait." This time, it was Luke Skyrunner who spoke. Somehow, he was on the same page with Yun Zhe while Satoshi was left hanging as to why he was asked the question.

    "Shouldn''t we stop him? I mean... at this rate he''s going to kill Kim Jin Seok. It would leave a bad taste in my mouth if we were to see him die."<novelnext></novelnext>

    Nodding their heads, Luke and Yun Zhe smiled at each other before they stepped out in the open. "We''ll go deal with that crazed maniac over there. You stand by and swoop in to save that shriveled-up human over there, all right?" Luke Skyrunner said.

    "Remember, he''s still got the Crimson Dagger. He''ll be forced to use that once we attack him." Yun Zhe continued as he integrated with two of his tigers.

    "You don''t need to tell me." Luke Skyrunner then summoned a tamed beast that looked like a staff with dark energy. One look and Satoshi knew that his tamed beast was an Unearthly Type. "On my count of three. One... Three!"

    Since they were already out in the open, Link already knew that he''s already found somepany. He didn''t let go of Kim Jin Seok though since both Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe didn''t seem like they were going to attack him. But then again, he was cautious enough to put his guard up just in case they attacked. Hence, he summoned his Crimson Dagger.

    "I knew it." Yun Zhe muttered.

    As soon as Luke Skyrunner screamed ''three'' at the top of his lungs, he raised the dark staff he was holding at the top of his head and immediately integrated with it. In a split second, Luke Skyrunner''s clothes changed, and he was now wearing a ck tuxedo and a top hat. The staff he was holding turned into a twisty-looking cane with a glowing purple orb on top of it. A sinister energy seeped out of the orb, and a low ominous sound of wailing could be heard from within.

    "Crimson Dagger, Stretch," Linkmanded, pointing the Crimson Dagger towards Luke so he could pin him to the ground.

    With a wave of his hand, Luke Skyrunner smiled as he let the Crimson Dagger hit him squarely on the chest. Satoshi was about to scream since Luke Skyrunner didn''t bother dodging, but what happened next made him drop his jaw in surprise.

    As the Crimson Dagger stretched all the way toward Luke Skyrunner''s chest, it passed through as if Luke Skyrunner was just a hologram. The Crimson Dagger stuck to the ground with a thud, cracking the barren ground as it continued to stretch. Meanwhile, Luke Skyrunner just stood there, unfazed, while the Crimson Dagger passed through his body.

    "Yun Zhe, you better do your end of the deal, all right." Luke Skyrunner calmly requested as he walked away from the Crimson Dagger. At the same time, Link ordered his Crimson Dagger to retract, confused as to why it just passed through Luke Skyrunner as if he was some sort of ghost.

    "All right then." With a grunt, Yun Zhe jumped up and swiped at the vines that took Kim Jin Seok captive. While Kim Jin Seok had a hard time cutting those ropes, Yun Zhe did so without even breaking a sweat. He swiped at the vines and tore them off as if they were paper.

    For the first time during the entire time he was tortured, Kim Jin Seok could finally breathe. If it weren''t for his tamed beast and his considerable control over his dual beast integration, he would''ve died by now. Fortunately, he managed to hold on for dear life until his rescuers appeared. He heaved a sigh of relief as he closed his eyes. He was this close to death, but now he would survive.

    What he didn''t know, however, was that both Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe have been there ever since the matchmenced. And of course, while his life was drained out of him, the two of them were watching as if they were watching a sports show on the sidelines. They could''ve jumped in a little earlier so he won''t have to suffer, but they chose not to.

    After all, at the end of the day, it was Kim Jin Seok who brought the situation upon himself. Both Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe wanted him to learn his lesson so he won''t repeat it in the future. Then again, the two of them just wanted to see him suffer since he deserved it¡ª as to whether their behavior was evil or not, one could only wonder.

    "You all right?" Satoshi finally caught up to Kim Jin Seok, summoning Sera with him so he can replenish his energy¡ª just enough so he won''t die, of course.

 Chapter 363 Instant Defeat

    Despite being on the brink of death, Kim Jin Seok managed to hang on until Satoshi came to his aid. For a moment back there, he felt his consciousness fading as his soul tipped to the side of death. But before he couldpletely cross over that fine line between life and death, he felt warmth enveloping him, and his energy was replenished at the minimum.

    "You all right?" Satoshi asked with a hint of concern in his voice. While he didn''t know Kim Jin Seok personally, he felt a slight connection with him since he was the one who guided him when he first ventured inside the Beast Dimension. Also, he seemed like a good guy albeit being a spontaneous person who reacts based on his emotions, mostly.

    When Kim Jin Seok finally got back to his senses, he realized that Satoshi appeared right when he needed help. Somehow, Satoshi and the other two with him predicted that they''d teleport right where they did. "Satoshi, right? What are you doing here?" He asked, surprised that they managed to arrive on time.

    "Well... I''m sort of on monitoring duty. I mean, we can''t really leave Link on his own devices due to his erratic nature. He''d caused more than his own fair share of troubles, after all... and we wouldn''t want another attempted murder to happen during the Official Beast Tournament." Satoshi exined as he stopped Sera from healing Kim Jin Seokpletely.

    As mentioned before, Satoshi decided to only heal Kim Jin Seok by the bare minimum. That way, he''d be able to save Sera''s energy without disregarding someone who needed her skills.

    "Thank you for that. Here I was, thinking that I''d be able to defeat Link. I clearly underestimated him. I guess I brought this upon myself. Had I not irked him in some way, he wouldn''t have reacted like that."

    "Hey, do you have the time, Satoshi? Can you get that Korean out of the way? We can''t really unleash our power with the two of you in the way." Luke Skyrunner grimaced as he parried another vine that whipped at him at insane speeds. Thanks to his unearthly tamed beast, he managed to fend off the attack and counter at the same time.

    "Ah, right," Satoshi muttered to himself as he summoned his portal familiar, Ghast. After manifesting a portal, he then grabbed Kim Jin Seok by the armpit and hauled him through the portal. There were only mere seconds before Kim JIn Seok could react, that''s why when he finally screamed in confusion, he was already deep inside the portal.

    One moment, he was in the Beast Dimension, lying down on the ground while he got some rest after that exhausting fight. The next moment, he was in afortable airconditioned room, lying down on the couch as he fell on it with a soft thud. He immediately recognized the room to be one of the many waiting rooms located inside the American Dome.

    "That''s pretty neat." He muttered to himself as the portal on top of him disappeared in a snap of a finger. He didn''t even have the time to ask Satoshi about his portal-creation superpower. Instead, he made a mental note, telling himself that'' he''d bring the topic up when he finds another opportunity to talk to the beast tamer prodigy, Midoriyama Satoshi.

    ...

    Back in the Beast Dimension,

    Now that Kim Jin Seok was out of the way, both Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe could finally unleash their full power while the fight head to head against Link.

    "Crimson Dagger. Retract. Stretch." Link barely had time to react when Luke appeared behind him. In an instant, he retracted his Crimson Dagger, making it shrink, and then he grabbed its de beforemanding it to stretch. In one swift motion, he managed to dodge Luke by elerating toward the ground while the Crimson Dagger stretched.

    "And where do you think you''re going?" Yun Zhe called out as he swiped at Link without reprieve. As Link elerated to the ground, Yun Zhe stood midway through his trajectory, causing him to decelerate in a panic. That didn''t do anything though since he had already reached his peak eleration.

    Without thinking twice, Link tried to block Yun Zhe''s ws, putting his arms up as he tried to guard himself.

    His defense wasn''t enough to cut Link offpletely, though. Using his ws, Yun Zhe cut through Link''s wings and vines as if they were butter. Yun Zhepletely caught Link off guard, and his ws left huge gaping wounds from his side all the way to his neck.

    Before he could recover, Link felt himself being suspended in the air. Dark chains wrapped around his arms and legs while his entire body was encased in dark energy. He tried to squirm but it was to no avail. The dark binds that held him were strong.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Crimson Dagger. Stretch!" In a desperate attempt to get out of the dark energy prison, hemanded the Crimson Dagger to stretch.

    Oomph! With the Crimson Dagger''s hilt positioned right on Link''s stomach as it stretched, it pushed Link out of the prisonpletely. All the air was squeezed out of his lungs in return, and he felt cramping in his diaphragm. Adding to that, his back was also covered in scars since he broke through the dark energy prison with his back.

    Blood spurted out of Link''s mouth as he coughed. It was worth it though since he managed to get out of the dark energy prison. Clicking his tongue, he continued his onught by summoning more vines and madly swinging them around.

    Luke and Yun Zhe felt the desperation in Link''s attacks. But even then, they couldn''t find any openings anymore. Link was simply regenerating vines faster than they could cut them, and if they were to take a break, they knew that they''d be overwhelmed by his attacks.

    "Hey, Luke, got any ideas?" Yun Zhe asked as sweat trickled from his forehead. He was weaving all over the vines, cutting and parrying them without taking a breather.

    The same could be said for Luke. Despite the fact that he seemed more rxed than Yun Zhe, it was obvious that he was backed into a corner. He was conserving his energy, but it wouldn''t take long before he runs out of it... and then absolute defeat awaits him.

    "Honestly, I have no idea. At this rate, we''d need really need a fire-type tamed beast with us." Luke responded, dodging a pair of vines that shot from behind him.

    "Why don''t you use your teleportation? You know, your unearthly tamed beast could handle that, right? I mean, you could easily teleport all his vines out of the way and then we can attack him." Yun Zhe continued.

    "It''s not that simple. Even with a powerful tamed beast, there''s no way I could create so many dimensional portals at once. At most I can create five but that would be useless. Link would just regenerate his vines and then we''re back to square one again." Luke exined, much to Yun Zhe''s disappointment.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi just sat beside the rock, watching the two of them deal with Link. He couldn''t believe that the two of them couldn''t handle someone who wasn''t even thinking about his moves. After hearing Luke''s exnation, he understood where they wereing from. Unlike him, they don''t have arge pool of energy reserves. Meaning to say, they couldn''t just waste energy like that.

    The reason why Link could go berserk without thinking about his energy expenditure was that he''d already gathered a lot of energy from his previous fights against James, Jessie, and Kim Jin Seok. With that energy, he could go out of control as much as he wants without worrying about the repercussions or running out of energy just like his opponents.

    "Satoshi, can''t you do anything about this guy?" Yun Zhe finally asked, turning his head towards Satoshi before jumping out of range of the vines. He''d finally reached his limit, and there was no way he could jump into the sea of vines again.

    "If I didn''t have any duties to carry out during the Official Beast Tournament, I''d have finished this in one fell swoop..." Luke finally gave in as well, getting out of the vines'' range as he tried to catch his breath. He also undid his beast integration.

    Seeing that his opponents had finally given up, Link decided to go on the offensive. This time, he was the one who approached the two, intending to tie them up and suck their life energy out.

    "Ghast, Sain, you know what to do," Satoshi spoke, summoning two familiars at once. He didn''t even bother to integrate with them, he just let them attack Link so he would stop his frenzy.

    In an instant, countless portals appeared all over Link, cutting all of his vines off. And before he could recover from the surprise attack, countless chainsaws protruded out of his body, severely wounding his entire body as liters of blood gushed out of his system.

    "Aghkk~!" Link let out a literal gut-wrenching scream.

 Chapter 364 Orb Oboross True Form

    The third round of the Official Beast Tournament was approaching its climax as the second to thest match was about to start. This was the best time for thementator to hype the audience up, and he did a splendid job at it, screaming at the audience while putting out information about the beast tamers duking it out in the third round.

    Quite frankly though, he was just stalling for time since Luke Skyrunner was nowhere to be found. He couldn''t believe that he had just up and left without notifying him. And now, he was left alone tomentate on the match. Adding to that, if something were to happen during the match, he has to take care of it. Hence he tried so hard to buy some time until Luke Skyrunneres back.

    One of the guards who were patrolling the American Stadium knocked on the door of the box where thementators are located. He didn''t wait for someone to signal him inside but opened the door without hesitation.

    "Where is¡ª" The guard called out as he peeked his head out of the door. Apparently, there was a minor scuffle by the hallways of the American Dome where the stalls were located. He''d already dealt with it, thanks to the other guards who were patrolling the area. The reason why he had to knock was to inform Luke about what happened.

    "He''s not here." Thementator calmly responded. This was the fifth time a guard knocked on the door to inform Luke about minor scuffles. A sigh left his mouth as he gave the guard the look, implying that he close the door and not bother him.

    A few moments ago, when Luke Skyrunner was still present, no guard knocked on the door. In fact, no one was looking for Luke when he was there. And now that he was gone, a bunch of guards started looking for him. Thementator couldn''t help but think that this was all intentional and that the security just wanted to bother him from time to time.

    And then the timer had run out. It was time for the third round tomence. Thementator had no choice but to announce the start of the match. Even though he was filled with anxiousness due to Luke''s absence, he decided to proceed with the match. He had been stalling for so long that the audience was on the verge ofining. Without further ado, he called for the four participants for the third round.

    ...

    Meanwhile, back at the Beast Dimension

    In an instant, countless portals appeared all over Link, cutting all of his vines off. And before he could recover from the surprise attack, countless chainsaws protruded out of his body, severely wounding his entire body as liters of blood gushed out of his system.

    "Aghkk~!" Link let out a literal gut-wrenching scream.

    Satoshi''s instant onught worked, and he defeated Link in an instant. It was debatable that Luke and Yun Zhe drove Link to exhaustion, that''s why Satoshi easily took him down. But in retrospect, Satoshi didn''t even lift a finger. He let his tamed beast do the work for him and they took care of Link without breaking a sweat.

    Coughing up blood, Link fell down on the ground as the chainsaws protruding out of his body continued spinning. He tried to pull one of the chainsaws out but he was unable to do so. There was no way he could stop the chainsaws which instantly appeared all over his body.

    He had no choice but to go the roundabout way in terms of recovery. Instead of trying to pull out the chainsaws, he tried to heal himself while the chainsaws continued to torment him. That too didn''t work. He continuously exhausted himself while he tried to keep himself alive.

    As for Satoshi, he just watched from afar. Despite the fact that it was his tamed beast''s doing, he couldn''t help but feel a little upset in his stomach since there was too much blood spurting out of Link. But right now, he couldn''t stop the attack since Link was still in his rage mode. As long as Link was still conscious, Satoshi decided that he won''t call off the attack.

    But instead of giving up, Link continued to go past his limits, keeping himself awake in a desperate attempt to fight back. Deep inside, he felt like he would die if he loses consciousness, that''s why he kept himself awake. It was a bad choice though since Satoshi''s decision would backfire on him.

    Eventually, Link resigned to his fate and slipped into unconsciousness. Just to make sure though, Satoshi didn''t call off the attack until he was sure that Link wouldn''t wake up for the second time and attack him.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Orb Oboros, I need you," For the first time since Satoshi got Orb Oboros as his tamed beast, he only ever used its dimensional skill to keep his tamed beasts in another dimension where they could livefortably. The dimension that Orb Oboros created was like an oasis, and that''s why none of the tamed beastsined about their captivity. Even Ryoko and Copycat preferred staying there rather than in the real world, just because it was significantly better than anything on Earth.

    Orb Oboros then floated up, assuming his real form for the first time as well. Much to Satoshi''s surprise, Orb Oboros was actually a huge white snake. It only looked like a ball since it was wrapped around itself all the time.

    Satoshi didn''t have to say anything since Orb Oboros already knew what it had to do. Opening its mouth, it released an invisible capsule that imprisoned Link inside. The capsule was another one of Orb Oboros''s skills¡ª a skill wherein Orb Oboros traps one in another dimension. In this dimension, time was stopped, so Link had no way of waking up or doing anything shady.

    "Thanks," Satoshi muttered as Orb Oboros reverted back to its orb shape.

    "No, thank you," Yun Zhe spoke out of nowhere as he approached Satoshi. "We would''ve been at a longer impasse if it weren''t for you."

    "You''re right about that. Good thing you were here to aid us. Now, we should head back. I''m guessing the third match has already started." Luke Skyrunner said, opening a portal in front of them. The portal was muchrger and more stable than the portal that Ghast creates. Then again, Luke could only put up a handful of portals while Ghast could do way more.

    "And you can bring Link with you. I''m not going to take care of that troublemaker anymore. Wait til our Manager hears about this." Luke Skyrunner muttered to himself.

    As the group entered the portal, they appeared inside Satoshi and Yun Zhe''s waiting room. They figured that teleporting there wouldn''t cause a panic, hence Luke chose the ce.

    When the portal finally closed, marking the end of the situation, both Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe sighed in relief as they copsed on the couch. After thanking Satoshi for the second time, Luke Skyrunner headed out of the door while Yun Zhe returned to his usual ce by the kitchen.

    "I''d better go. By now, I''m sure our dearmentator is getting nervous. Can you monitor Link for me?" Luke didn''t wait for Satoshi''s response. Instead, he shut the door behind him and headed to the box to continuementating.

    Yun Zhe, on the other hand, started cooking another bowl of ramen. "Fourth round may be happening tomorrow, but I need to refuel as early as tonight. By the way, what''s that in your pocket? It''s been bothering me for a while now since you never took it out." Yun Zhe brought up out of nowhere, pointing at the bulge in Satoshi''s pocket.

    Now that it was brought to his attention, Satoshi realized that there really was something in his pocket. Curious, he reached into his pocket and grabbed what was in there. At first, he thought that it was a grenade, and he almost threw it to the other side of the room. A secondter, he realized that he was in fact holding a Gren. "I almost threw it... Grens really look like grenades huh,"

    "No shoot, that''s why they were named Grens in the first ce." Yun Zhe''s curiosity was also piqued and he came up to Satoshi, stopping his preparations for the next batch of ramen. "What''s inside?" He asked.

    "I don''t know, this is the first time I''ve seen this. What kind of tamed beast is it... or maybe it''s empty." Satoshi muttered to himself as he brought his arms up, intending to throw the Gren to see what was inside.

    Before he could release the Gren, however, Yun Zhe reached out his hand and stopped him. "What are you doing, are you crazy? We don''t know what''s inside that Gren. What if it was bigger than our waiting room? It''s going to demolish this part of the American Dome, you know." He hissed.

    "Ah, right," Satoshi said, retracting his hand and summoning a portal to the Beast Dimension.

 Chapter 365 A New Member

    "You have great talent, kid, but if you can''t harness that talent of yours, then you''re no different from a rabid beast." A man wearing a dojo outfit sat beside a young boy, patting him on the head. The man stood almost seven feet tall. As he reached his hand to brush the hair of the young boy, his hand snugly fit on the boy''s head.

    "But... I can''t control it... My power is scary. I don''t want to use it anymore. I hurt all my friends." The young boy sniffled, holding up his hands and grabbing the old man''s hand on his head.

    "That''s normal. You''re still young. There''s no way you can control such a potent superpower. Heck, it''s possible that you won''t be able to control your superpower when you grow up. That''s just how it is when ites to a superpower like yours." The old manughed, ruffling the young boy''s hair even more.

    "But if I can''t control it... then I can''t use it." The little boy pouted.

    "Who said you can''t? Before you can learn to control your superpower... you muste to love it. Use it to your heart''s content! Fight until you''re the strongest! Once you reach the summit... you''d already know how to control your superpower.

    Upon saying that, the old man grabbed the boy by the head and pulled him up, causing him to stand. He then gave him a slight nudge on the back. "Now, hop along, young man. I have some visitors stopping by a couple of minutes from now. You should hurry along."

    The boy nodded, hopping down the steps that led to the foot of the mountain. As he turned around, he saw his master, waving his hand toward him before looking at the sunset. A smile appeared on his face. He had decided to live by his master''s words¡ª that instead of hating his superpower and suppressing it, he would use it to the fullest until he''ll be able to control it.

    As the old man watched his student go down the steps leading to his dojo, his lips curved upward in a satisfied smile. "My time hase." He muttered to himself.

    That was thest time the young boy saw his master.

    .....

    When Link finally woke up, lingering memories about his childhood and his master were still in his mind. A stray tear flowed down his eyes as he tried to stretch his hand.

    To his surprise, he couldn''t move his body, not even an inch. And what''s more, he was suspended in the air as if some sort of invisible force held him in ce. He tried to struggle but to no avail. He even tried activating his superpower or summoning his Representative, the Crimson Dagger. Whatever he did was useless.

    "What''s going on? Where am I?" He asked himself. He recognized the room since it looked identical to his waiting room... but he had no idea whose waiting room he was currently in.

    Because there was nothing he could do about the present, he decided to stop struggling, taking his time to rest while he waited for someone to set him free.

    ...

    Satoshi and Yun Zhe arrived in the Beast Dimension soon after, bringing with them the mysterious Gren that Satoshi found in his pocket. He wasn''t the only one who was excited about the tamed beast inside the Gren, Yun Zhe too, expectantly watched as Satoshi bnced it on his hand.

    "Don''t let your guard down, Satoshi. The tamed beast inside that Gren might be very powerful. You have to be ready to engage it inbat, just in case." Yun Zhe muttered, to which Satoshi nodded.

    Without further ado, Satoshi threw the Gren, expecting a small tamed beast toe out. After all, it would be cliche if a gigantic tamed beast came out of the mysterious Gren. As the Gren hit the ground, it opened, and a sh of light illuminated the vicinity<novelnext></novelnext>

    Then a low growling sound was heard, sending chills up and down Satoshi and Yun Zhe''s spine as they took a couple of steps backward. They made the right decision since the tamed beast inside the Gren was actually monumental in size.

    "What on actual¡ª" Yun Zhe let out an exmation as the brightness dissipated. A huge tentacled monster appeared in front of them. Its gaze was fixated on Satoshi as it slowly slid towards him.

    "Whoa~" Astonishment filled Satoshi as he took another step back. The sheer size of the Kraken made him nervous, but Satoshi was used to seeing gigantic tamed beasts. The Alpha Red Smander and his Statue of Captivity were some of his gigantic tamed beasts. That''s why he was used to it.

    Before it couldpletely approach Satoshi, the leader of the Kraken Army bowed toward him, pledging her allegiance as one of his tamed beasts. Satoshi didn''t have to say anything since their minds were already connected. It was a rare case of the tamed beast acknowledging its master before the master could do anything. Hence Satoshi could alreadymunicate with the Kraken Army''s leader even without using his superpower on her.

    "Why do you have the leader of the Kraken Army with you? So you were the one who caught it?" Yun Zhe almost screamed at the top of his lungs as he did a weird dance while observing the giant tamed beast.

    "I uh... I didn''t know." Satoshi muttered to himself. It didn''t take long before he realized that it was his grandfather who tamed the beast, however. After all, he was the one who gave him the baby Kraken. ''But when did he put it in my...'' Satoshi thought to himself.

    In the end, he decided to use his superpower on the Kraken Queen, fully aware that it would give her a boost when ites to her overall stats.

    "Wow, if you use that during the fourth round... you''re bound to win by andslide." Yun Zhemented. Even he wasn''t sure whether he could take Satoshi down if he integrated with the Kraken Queen.

    After conversing with the Kraken Queen in his head, Satoshi opted to send her inside Orb Oboros''s dimension instead of putting her back in the Gren. That way she''d have afortable stay while traveling with Satoshi as one of his tamed beasts.

    A couple of minutester, Satoshi opened up a portal so the two of them could go back to the waiting room. There, they saw that Link was already awake. They didn''t bother to send him out of his prison though since there''s a good chance that he''ll go berserk again. After all, Satoshi did heal him enough so he wouldn''t die.

    "So... what are your ns after this, Satoshi? Oh, wait... Jana did give you a heads-up, right? I guess you can look into it as soon as this Official Beast Tournament is over. Well, what she did was against the rules, but I can''t really argue with her point. You''re a fitting candidate as a Disciple after all." Yun Zhe muttered, giving Satoshi a bowl of ramen after he was done preparing one. For some reason, it became automatic for him to cook for Satoshi as well every time he wanted to cook for himself.

    "Thanks... what is this about Disciples and Managers anyway? Is this some sort of contest? What exactly do you do as a Disciple?" Satoshi asked out of curiosity.

    "Sorry, Satoshi, I can''t really go to the specifics when ites to this topic. My standing as a disciple might be revoked if I talked about it with someone who is not a Disciple." Yun Zhe continued. "All I can say is that... you''ll know everything in time. Just hang on to the piece of paper that Jana gave you. And then, once the Official Beast Tournament is over, you can start digging up information about Disciples and Managers. Don''t hesitate to contact me if you''re stuck though. It would be nice if you can join us before the Selection starts."

    Satoshi had no idea what Yun Zhe was talking about so he simply nodded along before he started eating the ramen he was given.

    "In any case, I''m sure you''ll know what to do once you see what''s written on that paper. Just don''t look at it for now. It''d be best if you focus on the Official Beast Tournament first." Yun Zhe advised.

    As soon as he said that, the third match of the third round was finally over. Yun Zhe immediately slurped his ramen since he only had ten minutes left before his match starts. "Fourth match... why am I alwaysst?" Yun Zhe asked himself as he walked closer to the television. He wanted to double-check whether his teammate was really the same person.

    He grinned. There was no mistaking it, he was really teammates with that certain someone. "I guess this will be easier than I thought." He muttered to himself, chuckling.

 Chapter 366 Final Stand-Off

    With the number of significant changes in the Official Beast Tournament, White Mist actually felt a hint of anxiousness for the first time in his life. He sped his hands and breathed air inside, trying to calm himself before he walked towards the grand stage which would decide his fate of surviving another round or not.

    Over the past few years, White MIst stood at the top of the food chain. He was the apex predator of beast tamers and no one could defeat him. Not even ck Fog, who had deemed him as his rival ever since he founded his faction, couldn''t even step in his shadow. He was simply unbeatable, and his control over his tamed beasts was unmatched.

    He was sessful, living off of the prize money he won every single time at the Official Beast Tournament. Some even counted the tournament as bullying since no one could dare hope to win against the beast master.

    With thisfort came a decrease in people''s interest in White Mist. He may be one of the top ten superheroes in America, but he was as popr as someone who''s in the top one hundred. Fewer and fewer people woulde to the Official Beast Tournament and the same could be said of its participants. No one could defeat him so why bother trying? And if someone were to catch up to him, he''d simply stomp him since he had all the time to improve on his skills. Even this year, he was looking forward to the same oue since no one coulde close to defeating him.

    Then came a challenger who dared him with a one-on-one match. The challenger wasn''t even famous, nor was he well known. And the first time he met the challenger, he simply looked like a regr dad. He remembered targeting the challenger before since the government said he''d be a threat to their country... but now that he got a good look at him, he couldn''t believe that someone so simple-looking could actually be a threat.

    In the end, there was no need for him to refuse such a face-off. Besides, it would be a good PR for the uing Official Beast Tournament. It''s not every day someone knocks on his doorstep to challenge him, so he willingly epted.

    As it turned out, he was just a frog in the well, and he was severely defeated by the unknown person he underestimated. Before he could recover, the ck Fog Faction came knocking at his doorstep as well, showing them how advanced they were when it came to their beast integration and he was left biting the dust. He had a mere two weeks to catch up to the group... but there was no way he could do it.

    And as if to rub salt in his wounds, he found out that a mere kid in Japan who awakened his superpower a couple of months ago was actually stronger than anyone else. He was the real apex predator, and he could easily integrate with a number of his tamed beasts while a regr beast tamer couldn''t even hope to integrate with one. Even White Mist had a hard time integrating with the two.

    And now these newfound thresholds became the new norm for the Official Beast Tournament. Members of the ck Fog Faction were doing dual beast integration here and there, and they were winning. The current round was even saturated with members of the aforementioned faction, and they were proud of it. White Mist could imagine ck Fog,ughing in the background as he looked down on White Mist and his fallen faction. The gap between the two was so wide, White Mist already gave up on trying to catch up.

    Right now, the only thing that was on his mind was to survive the third round and hope that he could put up a good fight in the fourth round tomorrow.

    "I guess you''re my teammate, huh? Are you nervous?" Yun Zhe asked, patting White Mist on the shoulder as he stood by the mouth of the entrance to the grand stage.

    "Not really. I just want this to be over. Here I was, thinking that I stood at the top when I was merely a predator in a small food pyramid, akin to rats in a rat-infested ecosystem." White Mist clenched his fists as he let out an exhale.

    "You''ve done well to get this far, young kid. Let''s win this and go to the third round." White Mist said. Instead of Yun Zhe encouraging him, he was the one who encouraged Yun Zhe instead¡ª which was ridiculous considering that Yun Zhe was leaps and bounds stronger than him.

    Had White Mist watched Yun Zhe''s previous matches, he''d have known that he was as strong as Satoshi. He was too focused on image training in his waiting room that he had no idea how Yun Zhe performed in his previous matches.

    "Of course, we''re going to win this. I''m still looking forward to my finals match with Satoshi." Yun Zhe said as a smile appeared on his face.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Satoshi? You mean, Midoriyama Satoshi? Heh, dream on, kid." White Mistughed it off as if Yun Zhe just said something ridiculous.

    Yun Zhe was almost offended by White Mist''s grant shrug, but he managed to maintain hisposure as he snorted. "Oh, I haven''t introduced myself, have I?" Yun Zhe muttered to himself as he extended his hand toward White Mist. "I wonder how your faction is holding on against mine?"

    At first, White Mist had no idea what Yun Zhe was talking about. He still extended his hand to return the handshake though, and in response, Yun Zhe cleared his throat before he introduced himself. "The name''s Yun Zhe, ck Fog''s master and the behind-the-scenes leader of the ck Fog Faction."

    Thest few words that Yun Zhe threw at him echoed in his ears for a couple of minutes before they finally sank into his mind. Yun Zhe watched with amusement as White Mist''s jaw slowly dropped while his eyes slowly widened. It was a priceless reaction, to say the least.

    "Y-you... you are..." White Mist stuttered as Yun Zhe let go of his hand.

    Meanwhile, White Mist and Yun Zhe were both called to the grand stage. Once again, the audience started cheering wildly, expecting a grand finale for the final match of the day. Yun Zhe got out with a satisfied grin on his face, waving here and there towards the spectators while examining the other side of the grand stage where their opponents woulde out.

    Then there was White Mist, frozen in ce even though his name was already called. He couldn''t believe that such a young kid was actually ck Fog''s master. He was at least in histe teens, but he was confident with his words that White Mist couldn''t actually refute his ims. Adding to that, there was no way a young kid would say something like that without knowing about the ck Fog Faction first. It was obvious that he was speaking the truth, and White Mist was in denial about it.

    "Come on, old man, you''re going to miss the match if you keep standing like that." Yun Zhe called out, retracing his steps so he could drag White Mist out and show them to the crowd.

    At this point, White Mist couldn''t even find the courage to show his face in front of the people. Up until two weeks ago, he was standing at the top, and now he was at the ''bottomest'' of bottoms. It was such a big drop from his previous ranking that he felt ashamed of himself. ''I should have put in the extra effort... now look at me. I got toofortable with my standing that it pulled me all the way to the ground.'' White Mist said in his mind as he mustered his courage to fake a smile and wave in front of his people. At the end of the day, this was his moment, and he was the one who made the Official Beast Tournament possible.

    He should be acknowledged for that, at least.

    "And on the other side of the grand stage, we have another dark horse for this official beast tournament. He calls himself the hooded man, and he''s never integrated with his beast in the previous round. His identity remains a mystery but you shouldn''t be suspicious of him. Personally, I know him, so that should say a lot about who he is." Thementator let out as a mysterious hooded man came forward.

    No one really paid attention to him in the previous rounds since he never did anything shy. He also never integrated with any of his beasts, that''s why the audience was a bit curious as to how he managed to reach the third round. Then again, his skill as a beast tamer couldn''t be underestimated since he made it this far without showing off.

    "A disciple against a disciple, huh... I wonder who''d win..." A familiar face muttered to himself underneath the hood.

 Chapter 367 Seras Second Formâ€” Cheru

    The mysterious hooded man never once lifted his hood, giving the people just a clear view of his chin which was totally unfamiliar to them. And as mentioned before, he also didn''t use his beast integration in the previous rounds, that''s why no one has seen his face.

    "A disciple against a disciple, huh... I wonder who''d win..." A familiar face muttered to himself underneath the hood.

    As White Mist and Yun Zhe walked toward the grand stage, they noticed that the hooded man still had no modicum of intention when ites to removing his hood. He just stood there, menacingly, with his arms crossed on his chest. His teammate arrived soon after, wearing the same hood as him but unlike the mysterious hooded man, his teammate just looked stupid with the jacket on.

    "Let the fight begin!" The referee called out without further ado, chopping his hand forward before running towards the edge of the grand stage.

    Yun Zhe was the first one to step forward, smiling toward White Mist as he summoned his Representative, the Primordial Excalibur.

    The Primordial Excalibur was a huge weapon, almost as tall as Yun Zhe, and it emitted threatening energy with off-colored sparks surrounding it. Everyone watched in anticipation as they waited for Yun Zhe to integrate with this particr tamed beast. "Leave it to me. Unlike the first two rounds, we''re going to fight as a team, all right? Let''s set aside our Factions, for now, we have to win this match."

    Since White Mist had no other choice but to agree, he just nodded his head and summoned his Representative. This was what gave him the edge during the second round and won him the match. "Death Metronome, I''m counting on you, all right?"

    Even though White Mist was still inexperienced when ites to dual beast integration, he can go head to head with a beast master thanks to his Representative. If it weren''t for Death Metronome, he would''ve lost the second round.

    "Nice, we''re going to win this. I''m sure that two representatives would win against any normal tamed beast." Yun Zhe said to himself as he grabbed his Primordial Excalibur and wielded it.

    Right now, Yun Zhe decided to just wield his Representative Primordial Excalibur first. Even though this was the third round and his final match for the day, Yun Zhe knew he couldn''t just waste his energy by integrating with his Representative. He''d have to test the waters first and then activate his beast integration the moment he finds his window to victory.

    And with White Mist with him, Yun Zhe knew that their victory is certain. There was no way they''d lose since the opponents didn''t seem to have any Representatives with them.

    "Two Representatives... and they''re going to attack us, tiring us out before they integrate with them. That''s a pretty clever and straightforward strategy." The mysterious hooded man said, his lips curving into a smile. Without further ado, he extended his hand and threw a Gren towards the center of the grand stage.

    "You''re part of the ck Fog Faction, right? Can you activate your dual beast integration?" The hooded man asked his teammate who nodded along in response. At that moment, the hooded man had the same thought as White Mist and Yun Zhe¡ª that they were going to win the match.

    Tension was beginning to build up in the grand stage as the Gren released a blinding light that temporarily illuminated the entire grand stage. When the light dispersed, a weird but graceful tamed beast appeared in the middle of the grand stage. It let out a squeal before looking around.

    Meanwhile, inside Satoshi and Yun Zhe''s waiting room, Satoshifortably sat on the couch. He was trying so hard not to doze off since he couldn''t possibly miss Yun Zhe''s match. He''d already seen his epic performance during the second round so there was no way he''d miss his next match. It was obvious that Satoshi was sleepy, but he forced his eyes to remain open as he continued watching.

    His soul was immediately woken up when a somewhat familiar tamed beast appeared at the center of the grand stage. "It looks like Sera, but taller... what on earth is that thing?" Satoshi muttered to himself as his eyes widened in surprise. He couldn''t believe that the resemnce of the tamed beast to his Sera was so uncanny.

    "Dex, do you have any idea what kind of tamed beast that is?" Satoshi asked, pointing at the television while he leaned forward. He assumed that Dex was somewhere nearby so he addressed him without thinking twice.

    [I believe that''s a Cheru, Satoshi]

    [It''s the second form of Sera. However, it should be impossible for someone like him to tame one since a Cheru is a Celestial. In the natural order of the world and the beast dimension, Celestials and Unearthlyiesshouldn''t exist unless they were sent here, or were transported. I believe that Luke Skyrunner is not a regr beast tamer.]<novelnext></novelnext>

    "So, he''s just like me? He has ess to strong tamed beasts but we have no idea where he gets them... wait a minute..." Satoshi trailed off as he reviewed what Dex just said in his mind a couple of seconds ago. "What did you just say?" He asked as if he didn''t hear what Dex just told him.

    [What is it, Satoshi?]

    "Did you just say that the man underneath that hood is... Luke Skyrunner?" Satoshi asked as he suspiciously looked at the empty air. As usual, he had no idea where Dex was hiding, but he could tell (thanks to their connection in his mind) that Dex was nearby.

    [Yes, that man wearing the hood is undoubtedly Luke Skyrunner. There''s no doubt about it, Satoshi]

    "What?! So the mysterious hooded man was actually... Luke Skyrunner all along?" Satoshi almost screamed his lungs out as his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. The jacket he was wearing was a tad bit baggy, no wonder Satoshi didn''t recognize him at all.

    "Dex, tell me one thing... Yun Zhe is strong, right? And White Mist is decent since he''s got a Representative with him. But what about Luke Skyrunner? Is he stronger than the two of them?" Satoshi asked. Based on the one and only tamed beast he sent out on the grand stage, Satoshi could already more or less guess that Luke was a formidable beast tamer. But he just had to ask Dex since he wanted to make sure if Luke was a threat or not.

    [He is strong... but I can''t specifically gauge a person''s power level, Satoshi.]

    [If I were topare the two, I can give a rough estimate. Luke Skyrunner is stronger than Yun Zhe... but it''s only by a small margin. That small margin can be ovee with pure skills andbat abilities alone so if we put all that into ount. I can say that this match can go either way.]

    "So this is going to be a close match, huh," Satoshi muttered to himself.

    While all that was going on, Link was still inside hisfortable transparent capsule. He wasn''t struggling anymore, he just simply give up while hey down inside the capsule that imprisoned him. He could still hear sound from outside so he didn''t have any problems watching the live stream. "When are you going to let me out, Satoshi?" He asked... but Satoshi never looked in his direction, nor did he acknowledge his presence in the room.

    ...

    Back at the Grand Stage,

    Luke Skyrunner extended his hand and flipped the hems of a jacket as if he was the main protagonist. He then grabbed another Gren from his pocket and summoned another tamed beast. This tamed beast was another Celestial... or at least that''s what it looked like since it had a graceful presence and it had a pristine white color.

    The second tamed beast that Luke Skyrunner summoned looked like a cloud with two dots for eyes. Luke Skyrunner grabbed it by its tail and held it in his hand like a piece of oversized marshmallow. "Cheru, you know what to do."

    Just like what Sera does, Cheru let out a squeal before it floated to the top of the grand stage. It then swung his hands in a graceful manner as if she was doing a dance in mid-air, and then sparkles of tiny specks of light came down on the grand stage.

    "Why do I suddenly feel heavy?" Yun Zhe asked himself as he tried to bnce the Primordial Excalibur on his hand. It didn''t take long before he realized that Cheru was actually debuffing him while buffing the opponents at the same time. "So that''s why you summoned that tamed beast first. How convenient."

    "I''m going to take care of that. Death Metronome, nullify the debuffs. We''re going to fight fire with fire." White Mist called out as Death Metronome also floated upwards, fighting Cheru on her ying field while everyone prepared for the first strike.

 Chapter 368 Underneath The Hood

    A drone swooped in on the middle of the grand stage, getting a clear shot of both Luke Skyrunner and White Mist as they charged at each other without thinking twice. On one hand, Luke wielded a weapon that looked like a piece of a cloud while on the other hand, Yun Zhe wielded a huge sword.

    Obviously, the sheer size of the Primordial Excalibur was massivepared to the cloud-like weapon. But then again, Yun Zhe didn''t let his guard down as he nted his feet to aim for the first strike. After all, he had no idea what the cloud-looking weapon could do.

    Then there was White Mist who had been trailing behind Yun Zhe. He figured that he was going to assist Yun Zhe for now with his Death Metronome. But just to make sure, he decided to integrate with his tamed beasts White Wolf and Jurah. If worsees to worst, he was going to engage the other hooded man in a fight since he was lingering in the background as well.

    In any case, the buffs and debuffs went unnoticed by the audience but both the Death Metronome and Cheru were fighting their own battles in their own respective field. To be fair, a tamed beast is nothingpared to a Representative, but because Cheru was pretty formidable, even the Death Metronome was having a hard time nullifying its buffs and debuffs while it tried to assist Yun Zhe and its master on the battlefield. The audience kind of assumed that the two of them just floated in mid-air, unperturbed by their masters... but they were doing far more than that.

    A cheer erupted from the crowd when the action finally ensued. Due to the Primordial Excalibur''s sheer weight, Yun Zhe had to lean forwards and backward before he swung his tamed beast with all his might. His tamed beast wasn''t supposed to be this heavy, but thanks to Cheru''s debuffs, he was having a hard time wielding it.

    Streaks of red lightning coursed out of the Primordial Excalibur and a thunderp was heard. The power that shot from the Primordial Excalibur was certainly stronger than what Luke had anticipated, but he continued charging anyways.

    Luke leaned to one side, crouching down low so he would force his body to elerate forward. He was able to dodge the red lightning by a hair''s breadth. He heaved a sigh of relief. For a moment back there, he thought that he wouldn''t be able to dodge it. Then again, he was confident that he wouldn''t suffer that much damage if he were hit by the red lightning.

    With a grunt, Yun Zhe lifted the Primordial Excalibur up before striking it on the grand stage. His action caused an absurd amount of energy to leak out of the Representative, causing an area-of-effect red lightning to shoot from where he stood while simultaneously producing an earthquake.

    Since the Primordial Excalibur was heavy, Yun Zhe''s attacks were slow yet powerful. He had no choice but to resort to such an attack since Luke Skyrunner was getting ufortably close.

    The red lightning crept right above the ground like vinesing out of the Primordial Excalibur. Even White Mist had to step back since he was in the range of such a powerful attack. This didn''t dissuade Luke from charging at Yun Zhe however, and he continued pressing forward as if his life depended on it.

    Before the red lightning hit him, He jumped forward, somersaulting in mid-air while keeping his gaze locked on Yun Zhe. Seizing his chance, Yun Zhe integrated with his tamed beast tigers and quickly transformed his hands into ws. He aimed for Luke''s throat while he was still in mid-air.

    There was no chance Luke could dodge his attack as he was suspended in mid-air.

    However, Luke had his own fair share of experience when ites to fighting beast tamers. Even when he jumped, there was no way he''d leave himself open like that.

    As Yun Zhe reached his ws to grab Luke, Luke swung his cloud-like weapon at Yun Zhe.

    The cloud-like weapon immediately stuck to Yun Zhe''s ws, and Luke used it as leverage to jump a second time in the air and close in to attack Yun Zhe.

    Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe came this close, face to face, as Luke finally reached him within arm''s length. In an instant, Yun Zhe summoned his dark staff and recalled his cloud-like tamed beast. The reason why he recalled it was that he was going to integrate with it.

    A second passed, and Luke Skyrunner''s aura changed as the familiar dark staff appeared on his hand. Before hended on the ground, he pointed the dark stuff on the ground,pletely canceling out the red lightning that coursed through it. And then he created a portal as Yun Zhe swung his ws at him.<novelnext></novelnext>

    BAM!

    Yun Zhe didn''t even realize what hit him. One moment, he was swinging his giant ws at Luke, the next moment he was hit by something hard squarely on the stomach, and he fell on the ground wheezing as the air was sucked out of his lungs.

    Apparently, Luke created the portal not because he wanted to teleport himself somewhere, but because he wanted to teleport Yun Zhe''s attack right back at him. It worked well, and Luke had a goodugh at his ingenuity as he dusted himself off.

    While he wasughing though, a psybeam hit him directly on his back, causing him to let out a grunt as he fell to the ground. Right at that moment when he let his guard down, White Mist found the opening he needed. Since he was already integrated with his Jurah, he didn''t need time to prepare for such a powerful attack.

    "And Luke goes down! I guess that''s an instant payback for him. What a close match!" Thementator called out as he bolted upright, almost throwing his chair due to his excitement. It should be mentioned that he already knew Luke''s identity before he revealed it. That''s why he was excited despite the fact that he was currently alone in his box,mentating.

    "Wait... Luke? Luke Skyrunner? What are you doing here?" Yun Zhe asked in bewilderment as he finally realized who was behind the hood. It was none other than Luke Skyrunner, who would have thought!

    "Got you, didn''t I?" Lukeughed as he got up and dusted himself. "And that''s impable timing as always, White Mist. I wasn''t expecting the attack. I could''ve easily dodged it if it weren''t for Luke over here who punched himself like an idiot."

    "Thanks, I wasn''t expecting to hit you though. Maybe you''re the stupid one here." White Mist teased as he braced himself. He figured that Luke might attack him at any moment, that''s why he didn''t let his guard down even though they were just conversing at the moment.

    "It all went ording to keikaku." Yun Zhe rubbed his nose as he told White Mist that everything went ording to n. Quite frankly though, there was no n, and Yun Zhe just said that to save face.

    "And you, what are you doing over there? You''re plenty strong, right, and I''ve already given you all the buffs you needed. Don''t you think you should be helping me instead of standing around like that?" Luke Skyrunner pointed at his teammate, telling him off since he wasn''t doing anything.

    In his defense though, everything was happening so fast that he couldn''t find the right timing to join the fray. It wasn''t just Luke Skyrunner who was moving like a water strider on still water, even Yun Zhe and White Mist were fast enough.

    "Just help me out here. Help me, help you. We have a match to win, you know." Luke muttered. "Anyways, I''m not holding back anymore. Let''s fight this out until one of us is left standing." A grin appeared on his face as he extended his hands in the air.

    "White Mist old man, you go deal with that bag of nerves over there while I go stall for time. Once you defeat him, let''s team up and defeat Luke together." Yun Zhe barely had enough time to tell White Mist the n. As soon as he was done speaking, Luke was already right in front of him, swinging the dark staff on his hand and attacking him with dark energy.

    At that point, Yun Zhe was left with no choice but to integrate with his Representative. He didn''t think twice about activating his Trinity Beast Integration (he had already integrated with his two Bengal tigers, and now he integrated with his Representative) since he couldn''t dare underestimate Luke. As far as he knows, he''s one of the strongest beast tamers on the, even stronger than him and quite possibly Satoshi.

    "Old man?" White Mist asked but he decided not to think too much about it. Without further ado, he shot another psybeam towards Luke Skyrunner''s teammate before using psychic on himself and floating towards him. If they had any hope of winning this match, White Mist knew he had to defeat the second opponent as soon as possible.

 Chapter 369 Fourth Match

    The second opponent had already integrated with his beast but he figured that he wouldn''t be able to fight head-to-head against the beast master even with his dual beast integration. That''s why he decided to recall his tamed beast and integrate with two of his most powerful ones. There was no need for him to save his energy since it would all be for nothing if they lose the match anyways. He had no other choice but to go through with such a risk.

    And he wasn''t the only one who decided to go all out. Even Luke Skyrunner, White Mist, and Yun Zhe, never intended to hold back since everything was on the line for this match.

    As soon as White Mist caught up to their second opponent, he extended his hand and tried to control him with Jurah''s psychic abilities. The second opponent barely dodge the force, and he whipped his legs in an erratic manner as he approached White Mist. In that instant, he summoned his tamed beast that specializes in speed, and then for his second tamed beast, he summoned his one and only legendary beast nicknamed the chimera due to its striking resemnce with the mythical creature.

    Yun Zhe and Luke Skyrunner were also engaged in their own little war, counterattacking and parrying each and every strike as they continued to sh. One of Yun Zhe''s ws snapped, and it was flung toward White Mist who was just about to attack the other opponent. In a split second, he flinched, but not before the w dug into his cheeks.

    Just before he attacked the second opponent, however, White Mist got pinned on the ground as a head of a snakeshed out and bit him on the shoulder. "Aghk~!" He let out a scream as he fell to the ground, a crater forming right behind him.

    Before he could struggle to break free, strong ws then dug into his other shoulder, and he lost his concentration. White Mist watched in horror as something grotesque appeared in front of him. His right arm had the form of a lion and his left arm had the appearance of a snake. A scaled taleshed behind his back, and wings grew on his back. His face, which was previously hooded, now had a mask of porcin.

    "The name''s Joe, and I''m going to defeat you, beast master." The second opponent called out, a malicious grin appearing on his face as if he fully intended to kill White Mist while pinning him to the ground.

    While his appearance was tolerable and was in no way creepy, White Mist felt chills up and down his spine as Joe spoke. Overwhelming power seeped out of Joe, and it threatened White Mist who had been doubting his power and title as beast master all this time. In terms of psychological warfare, White Mist had already lost by andslide.

    Without further ado, Joe started feeding poison on White Mist, thanks to his left hand which was in the form of a snake. "The chimera''s poison does have an antidote... but I''m not going to give it to you until you forfeit. You only have a minute until you die, beast master... what''s it going to be? Are you going to forfeit, or are you going to die? It''s your choice."

    Joe had gotten the upper hand, but to his utter confusion, White Mist didn''t look defeated at all. A few seconds ago, he seemed like he was going to be defeated but right now, Joe could tell that White Mist had not given up. A smile was written on his face despite the fact that he was flinching in pain.

    The poison was already coursing through his bloodstream and yet he still found the leisure to smile. That action was a little bit disturbing for Joe.

    And then White Mist startedughing. It wasn''t even a weak and nervous chuckle, but a bout of raucousughter which surprised everyone, even Yun Zhe. "You think you''re the only one who''s got the upper hand? If you know who I am, then you know Death Metronome''s powers, right?" White Mist pointed out. "I have this skill that reflects the damage to my opponent. If I''m going to die in a minute, then I''m taking you with me."

    "Are you sure about that? You do know that the chimera poison doesn''t work against me. If you''re going to reflect the damage, then it won''t have any effect on me. And either way, you''re going to die... and I''m going to team up with Luke over there and bring down Yun Zhe." Joe continued.

    "I''m not talking about its effects, Joe... I''m talking about the result of the inflicted damage." White Mist felt the poison in his system, causing his organs to spasm. However, he still maintained his calm demeanor. Despite the pain he felt, he still held on, fully knowing that he''d be able to bring down Joe with him no matter what happens. "If the end result is me dying, then you''re dying with me."

    "Jokes on you, that''s exactly my intention. I''m confident that Luke can easily defeat Yun Zhe. If you die now, you''re going to lose. I, on the other hand, have contingency ns. I''m not going to die after I get rid of you."

    White Mist could tell that Joe wasn''t kidding when he said that. For the first time during the match, he felt totally defeated. As seconds passed, he took a nce towards Yun Zhe who seemed to be having a hard time against Luke Skyrunner. There was no way he''d be able to win if Joe teams up with Luke.

    "I guess it''s time for you to show my ultimate move. You leave me no choice." White Mist mumbled to himself as his entire body transformed into a White Wolf. He then grabbed Joe by the shoulders and hugged him as tight as he could.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Are you going to push me out of bounds? You do know I could fly, right?" Joe spoke but there was a certain shakiness in his voice. His nervousness didn''t stem from White Mist''s desperation, but from his vice-like grip that he couldn''t struggle out of.

    "Not really." White Mist muttered, turning his head a second time towards Yun Zhe. Up until now, he still couldn''t believe that he wasn''t the strongest beast tamer in the world anymore. He was reduced to the level of a mere disciple in the ck Fog Faction. Hepelled himself to put a smile on his face as he tightened his hold on Joe.

    And with one final nce, he nodded his head toward his teammate Yun Zhe, before pulling off a suicidal technique.

    Self Destruct!

    It was one of the most basic strategies when ites to beast tamer matches. If one was severely under-leveled, they''d just have to go with the ways of the kamikaze. "Tenno heika banzai~ you son of a¡ª"

    BOOM!

    The explosion was beyond anything that anyone had ever witnessed. A cloud in the shape of a mushroom rose up from where the explosion ensued, and the intense shockwave that was produced by the explosion was enough to rock the seats of every spectator. Then they heard a crack, and images of broken ss suddenly appeared all throughout the grand stage.

    CRASH!

    Screams were heard from the audience as the shattering of ss was heard. Apparently, the explosion was so strong that it broke the barrier that surrounded the grand stage. In all the previous years of Official Beast Tournaments, this was the first time it happened. What White Mist did was far beyond any power that everyone had ever witnessed. It was the ultimate attack, but at what cost?

    An updraft was felting from the mushroom cloud. The warm air caused clouds to form above the grand stage, and a shower ensued.

    Amidst the rain, two bodies lie unconscious in the middle of the grand stage. Fortunately, Joe and White Mist were still in their beast integration form, that''s why they didn''t really die when the explosion struck. It did leave them unconscious, however, but they didn''t die.

    In an instant, the Nurse was brought to the grand stage and she immediately gave White Mist some first aid since he was poisoned. As it turned out, Joe was actually lying. The poison, although incurable, wouldn''t kill White Mist in a minute. It would actually take effect in five minutes or so.

    And ass for Luke Skyrunner and Yun Zhe, they too were affected by the explosion, but Yun Zhe managed to create a shield right before White Mist activated his self-destruct. In that instant wherein White Mist nodded towards Yun Zhe, Yun Zhe understood what he implied, and he managed to save himself just in time.

    Luke Skyrunner wasn''t the same, however. He also caught the brunt of the explosion, and it sent him to the other side of the Grand Stage. While he would''ve been able to guard himself against such an attack, he wasn''t expecting someone to activate some sort of self-destruct skill and it caught him off-guard. The explosion wasn''t enough to knock him out, but it did send him out of bounds.

    "AND THE WINNER OF THE FOURTH MATCH IS¡ª" Thementator, with a shaky voice, screamed at the mic. "WHITE MIST AND YUN ZHE!"

    As soon as the announcement was heard throughout the entire American Dome, Yun Zhe staggered, and he fell to the ground with a thud. He wasn''t knocked unconscious, but the shock from the explosion damaged his eardrums, and he fell to the ground before he realized it.

 Chapter 370 Living In The Present

    To be fair, Link didn''t choose to be imprisoned in the transparent encasement but now he had kind of assimted with it. It didn''t bother him at all that he couldn''t get out of the case, and he actually feltfortable at the moment. There were a couple of times when he dozed off as well while watching the final match of the third round.

    "I can''t believe they won. That Luke Skyrunner is no joke." Linkmented as he turned his head towards Satoshi.

    On the other hand, Satoshi also got used to Link being in the room. He was tasked with monitoring the berserker so there''s nothing he could do about it actually. After all, he''s the only one who could easily handle the time bomb that is Link. He was more than ted to know that the final match was over, now he could finally free Link without worrying about his mental state.

    A few minutester, Yun Zhe arrived in the waiting room with bandages on his head. As to why he was wearing bandages, Satoshi could only wonder, and he didn''t bother asking why.

    "That was a close match. I can''t believe you won." Link muttered in greeting as Yun Zhe copsed on the couch. He was severely bruised, but fortunately, he was only left with superficial injuries.

    The Nurse, who was actually called to oversee the event, prioritized healing Yun Zhe''s ears since that was the one that suffered the most. It was a severely different case for Joe, Luke Skyrunner, and White Mist, however, since they suffered worse injuriespared to Yun Zhe.

    "Yeah, it was a close call... I have White Mist to thank for this win. We never stood a chance against that Luke Skyrunner guy." Yun Zhe responded, stealing a nce towards Satoshi who wasfortably watching the live stream. "I bet he''s on par with you, if not stronger than you, Satoshi." Yun Zhemented.

    "Now we''re down to the top eight, huh," Link heaved a sigh. "And when do I get toe out of this thing?" He interjected, knocking on the encasing that contained him.

    "We''ll let you out once the all the spectators got home. Seriously, you should rein in your superpower a little bit more. You''re plenty strong, but you can only go so far with such an uncontroble characteristic." Yun Zhe said.

    At the same time, Satoshi finally ordered Orb Oboros to release Link, and Link fell rear-side first on the floor as the capsule disappeared in a snap of a finger. Rubbing his butt, he got up and approached Satoshi. "I''m confident I''ll be able to control my superpower one of these days. Just you wait, Satoshi. We''re going to have an even match." Link said before exiting the waiting room. He was tired for the day, and he headed straight to a nearby hotel so he could get some shut-eye in preparation for tomorrow.

    "I''m heading out as well, Satoshi, I need to recover for tomorrow. Thatst fight took a toll on me." Yun Zhe waved his hand. He just got back to the waiting room and now he was heading out. "See you in the finals, Satoshi." He continued before closing the door behind him.

    "I guess I should head out as well." Satoshi said to himself while watching the live streame to a close. One by one, the audience started heading out of the American Dome, excited for the next and final day of the Official Beast Tournament.

    The next round is bound to happen a few months from now so there was really no need for thementators and the personnel to go home. Instead of shutting off the live stream, however, they nned a couple of minutes intermission while they rest for an hour or so. And then, what would follow is a broadcast regarding the top eight contenders who will be present in the uing fourth round.

    There was nothing left for Satoshi to do except meet up with his family and friends as they head home. At first, Satoshi wondered if his family would throw a barbecue party and he hoped that it wouldn''t happen. He was drained out, to say the least, and he wouldn''t enjoy such a celebration even if it were directed at him.

    ? Creak.

    "Ou~ son!" Midoriyama Tatsuki beckoned for Satoshi. As soon as he got out, he was met with everyone who actually walked all the way to his waiting room to pick him up. "Great job out there." Heplimented him, ruffling his hair as he put a hand on his shoulder.

    "Did you see my surprise gift? I hope you liked it." Midoriyama Grado, Satoshi''s grandfather, patted his pockets as he smiled at Satoshi.

    Quite frankly, Satoshi had a lot of questions regarding his grandfather''s conquest but he decided to save it up forter. He went through hell and back just to tame such a powerful tamed beast, and although Satoshi was excited to hear everything from him, he decided to suppress his excitement since they''d have plenty of time talking about it after the Official Beast Tournament.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "Satoshi-sensei!!!" Shoyo pushed his way towards Satoshi as he gave him a hug. Snots and tears were all over him as he spoke. "Shank you sho mush~ sniff~" He cried. Even until now, he still couldn''t believe that he reached the quarterfinals.

    "That''s dirty, you know," Satoshi let out, pushing Satoshi out of the way while he tried to continue hugging him. During this time, Satoshi noticed some familiar faces in the crowd aside from his ssmates.

    "I was dragged by White Mist so I can''t really decline." Yun Zhe reasoned out.

    Link, Luke and the others had a somewhat identical reason to Yun Zhe, and together, the group traveled back to the Midoriyama''s Residence aka, Satoshi''s grandparents'' house.

    .....

    The night sky right above the field was sprinkled with stars and not a cloud could be seen. A cold breeze blew right over the field, almost snuffing out the barbecue fire which Plunder was growing. The nearby trees swayed back and forth with the breeze, producing a steady rustling sound of its leaves while the night grew deeper.

    Satoshi, who was sitting right by the front porch, swung his legs while he contentedly looked up at the sky. It''s not every day he gets to have a quiet night so he decided to enjoy it to the fullest. At the back of his mind, he was half-expecting another gate or dimensional portal to open nearby since that had always been the case whenever he tries to rx. There was also a good chance that another breaking news would be heard in the television, but there were no news of a disaster so far. Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief.

    "Great job out there," Kuroe (Satoshi''s ssmate, she has psychic and telepathic superpowers) called out, sitting beside Satoshi as she gave him a cup of warm chocte. She could still remember the time when Satoshi approached her as if it was just yesterday. Even though she could read his mind, he still wasn''t afraid of her, and that gave birth to a friendship that Kuroe cherished.

    "You too... wait what?" Satoshi responded a little too automatically since most of the people who greeted him like that were part of the Official Beast Tournament.

    Kuroe chuckled. A quick read of Satoshi''s mind told her that he wasn''t thinking about anything at all. He was in the present, enjoying the sceneries of the night while taking in the cold night air. "Ehrmm! How are you feeling sir? Getting to the quarterfinals of one of the most iconic tournaments and all?" Kuroe randomly started acting like an interviewer, pressing an imaginary mic towards Satoshi.

    In response, Satoshi cleared his throat and grabbed the mic. "Honestly, it feels surreal. A couple of months ago, I never could''ve dreamed of getting this far. This all feels like a dream. I''m going to do my best tomorrow. I won''t tantly say that I''d win the finals since that might trigger a g or something, but I''ll certainly do my best."

    "Ehrmm, so in your opinion, who''s the most troublesome opponent you could fight in the quarterfinals?" Kuroe asked.

    "Either... Luke Skyrunner or Yun Zhe. But in my opinion, I wouldn''t want to fight against that guy Shoyo. He might be a tad older than me, but I''ve watched him exponentially grow while I was training him. I want to see how far he''d be able to go during this Official Beast Tournament... that''s why I personally wouldn''t want to be pitted against him." Satoshimented.

    "So you consider him a disciple, huh," Kuroe wore a pleasant smile on her face since everything that Satoshi said was what he thought in his mind.

    "Well then... if I ever get my first tamed beast... will you take me in as your disciple, Satoshi?" Kuroe asked out of nowhere.

    "Of course, I''ll dly show you the ropes." Satoshi said without hesitation.

    "Hah! Kuroe no fair!" A familiar voice called out as a figure flew towards Satoshi, embracing him out of nowhere. "Hogging him all to yourself, no fair!" It was none other than Sassu who took over Cherry''s body once again.

 Chapter 371 Pillar Of Flame!

    The faint rustling of the trees and the wake-up call of the birds frolicking in the yard was what greeted everyone''s morning. The barbecue night was a sess, and most of them who attended opted to ept the invitation of sleeping over. It waste at night anyways, and Satoshi''s grandparents were more than willing to lend the unupied rooms to everyone.

    Of course, Satoshi was forced to share a room with Hiroshi, Midori, Shoyo, and Yun Zhe. And to top it all off, they all had to share onerge futon.

    The girls had it better though. Since there were a lot of them, Satoshi''s grandparents kindly gave them two rooms, and they shared them amongst themselves.

    Satoshi''s eyes fluttered open as the first sunrays shone through his window. Up until now, his room still felt a little different since he wasn''t used to staying in here. It''d been two weeks or so, but the atmosphere of the room still didn''t belong to him, and that''s why he felt weird.

    Adding to that, there were three other people with him. One of them, Shoyo, has his leg on top of Satoshi''s stomach, and Hiroshi and Midori were both clinging to Satoshi as if their lives depended on it. In other words, they were squeezing him tightly.

    That didn''t bother Satoshi though, what bothered him was the drool that was on the corner of Midori''s lips, and it was bound to fall on his shoulders any second now.

    Then there was Yun Zhe, having a peaceful time by the corner of the room, his face nted by the corner where the walls and floor met.

    "What a nice way to start the morning." There was sarcasm in Satoshi''s voice as he spoke, and he shook his head as he tried to struggle from their grip. They were gori-level strong when ites to their cuddles though, and that''s why Satoshi had no choice but to go with a rather unorthodox way of freeing himself.

    Summoning his familiar, Ghast, which specializes in dimensional portal creation, Satoshi didn''t think twice about integrating with him and then teleporting out of there. He did so in a split second, and with such refine control that he didn''t even touch both Hiroshi or Midori.

    Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief. For a moment back there, he thought that he''d teleport a potion of Midori and Hiroshi''s body... and it wouldn''t have ended well if that were to happen. It would be a bloodbath, and everyone would be screaming and panicking.

    After observing Hiroshi and Midori scoot closer to each other to hug themselves instead, Satoshi tiptoed towards the windows and opened them, letting in the fresh morning breeze as it blew on his hair. He smiled a satisfied smile as he watched the scenery in the distance. There were two mountains on the horizon, and the sun was peeking from its valleys.

    Satoshi grabbed a phone from his pocket, taking a picture of the scenery... not really. The reason why he grabbed his phone was to take the embarrassing picture of Hiroshi and Midori who were hugging each other as if they were lovers. It took all of his being to suppress hisughter as he pressed the shutter.

    Click!

    A sh of light shone on Hiroshi and Midori. Apparently, the sh was on, and it woke them up in an instant. It took Satoshi a mere split second to realize that he messed up. He quickly pocketed his phone before Hiroshi and Midori realized what was going on.

    "Um, good morning, you guys." Satoshi awkwardly said as Midori and Hiroshi opened their eyes and looked at each other.

    At first, they were still half-asleep so they didn''t realize what was going on. But seeing themselves hugging each other made them wake up in a snap of a finger, and they instantly let go of each other, even pushing each other as they scampered back to their feet.

    They then realized what the sh of light meant, and their gazes fell on Satoshi who was guiltily averting his gaze from them. His lips turned into a snout as he tried to whistle his way out of the situation. Only empty air came out of his mouth.

    "Satoshi, it''s not every day I ask you for a favor... but this time I''m going to have to ask you for a favor... by force!" Hiroshi called out, grabbing Satoshi by the cor and pushing him out the window.

    Since Hiroshi was a little bit enraged, Satoshi allowed him the push, and the two of them rolled on the ground. He could''ve easily dodged the surprise attack easily since he was currently integrated with Ghast, but he chose not to since he assumed that that little gesture would appease Hiroshi even if it was just a little bit.

    "Come on now, can''t we talk this out?" Satoshi held his hand in the air as he tried to reenact a criminal in front of the authorities. However, he couldn''t hide the smile on his face after remembering the absurdity of how the two of them hugged each other.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "No, we can''t. Negotiations are out of the window after that camera sh, Satoshi." When Midori hopped out the window, he was already twice his size, and his muscles bulged out of his shirt. There was a glint of anger in his eyes, and bloodthirst emanated from his body, seeping out of it like smoke from a chimney.

    "Hiroshi, let''s work together. We might not stand a chance against Satoshi alone, but right now, there are two of us and only one of him. There''s no way he''ll defeat us." Midori muttered to Hiroshi, to which Hiroshi responded with a nod.

    Hiroshi licked his lips as he put his palms on the ground. "I''ve been waiting for this moment, Satoshi. This is a special move I concocted when you severely defeated me during that first day of school. I perfected this move with the aim of defeating you one day. And that day is today!"

    With a grunt, Hiroshi pressed his arms deeper into the ground. The ground gave way to his hands, andva started rising up from it.

    Underneath Satoshi''s feet, the ground started cracking, and he felt a tremor that shook his body violently.

    Even with the obvious danger in front of him, Satoshi didn''t move an inch. He stood still, like a scarecrow in a field, waiting for Hiroshi to unleash his special move. While he felt rmed that Hiroshi was about to unleash such a powerful move, a part of him wanted to see it through, hence he didn''t budge an inch.

    "Feel my wrath! Hellfire!" Hiroshi screamed.

    In an instant, the ground gave way andva burst out of the ground. It''s as if Hiroshi just created a makeshift volcano in someone else''s yard.

    "What on actual¡ª oi, Hiroshi, you do know that Satoshi still has to fight in the Official Beast Tournament right?" Midori called out, but his expression said the opposite. He was actually celebrating deep within as he imagined Satoshi getting defeated by Hiroshi.

    As the ground gave way and molten rocks poured out of the hole, theva continued rising upward converging a couple of stories above and trapping Satoshi in the middle of it. Hiroshi let out bouts ofughter as he celebrated his foreseeable victory. "How do you like me now, Satoshi?" He eximed, cackling.

    "Now burn!" Midori also joined in on Hiroshi''sughter as they watched the pir of me in front of them. They still assumed that Satoshi was in the middle of the pir, and they continuedughing at the thought.

    At this point, the intense heat was felt all over the house, waking everyone up including the two sleepyheads in Satoshi''s room, Shoyo, and Yun Zhe. Half asleep, everyone in the house decided to walk out to the front porch to see what was going on.

    The heat was certainly unnatural, but it didn''t rm anyone at all since Midoriyama Grado (Satoshi''s grandfather), for one, has the element of water and he could easily get rid of the fire. There''s also Midoriyama Tatsuki (Satoshi''s father) who''s got a couple of water-type superpowers in his arsenal.

    When all of them came out, they expected pandemonium, but what they saw was something oddly different. While it didn''t surprise them at all that two teenagers wereughing wildly in front of a pir of fire, they considered contacting the mental institute for Hiroshi and Midori.

    "Oh, Satoshi, I didn''t notice you there. What are they doing?" Tatsuki flinched when he saw his son standing beside him.

    "They''re probably offering a sacrifice or something. I have no idea." Satoshi shrugged.

    What Hiroshi and Midori didn''t know was that the momentva starteding out of the ground, Satoshi had already teleported himself out of harm''s way, and he had been safely lounging by the front porch, watching the two of them and their idiocy.

    SPLASH!

    Suddenly, a huge wave of water crashed onto the pir of me, extinguishing it in an instant. "What are you two doing this early in the morning?" The familiar voice of a girl asked as she stood by the front gate.

 Chapter 372 Quick Flight

    Kitamura Ayano (the number six hero in Japan''s SAO Rankings and also known by her superhero name, the Eye-Goddess) was too used to peering into the future that it didn''t bother her at all. Whenever something of importance would happen, she wouldn''t even be surprised anymore. It''s be a way of life for her¡ª a part of her life that she chose to ept ever since she had awakened her superpower.

    At the tender age of twelve years old¡ª which is a year earlier for children tomonly manifest their superpower¡ª Kitamura Ayano woke up one night in a cold sweat, and her fever was through the roof. She couldn''t remember if she was brought to the hospital or not, but she clearly remembered suffering a severe headache and falling into unconsciousness.

    During that time, she had a weird dream where the earth was swallowed by a huge-eating monster and she watched in horror as everyone she knew died. It felt so realistic that the moment she woke up, she immediately told her parents about it. Her parents brushed it off, thinking that she was probably just seeing things since she was delirious.

    Three days after, a satellite photo of what seemed like a huge alien approaching Earth was all over the news, and Ayano told her parents that that was the alien she saw in her dreams. While what she said was something straight out of aic book, her parents decided to call SAO and tell them about their kid''s foresight. Ayano''s parents didn''t have superpowers, that''s why they never expected Ayano to have one.

    As it turned out, what Ayano saw in her dreams was true, and the government barely had time to react to the-sized monster. It was defeated before it opened its mouth, and everyone watched the satellite videos about the monster. It was like it came from a certain science fiction movie.

    The next day, Ayano had another dream. It was a normal day wherein she goes to her middle school and spends time with her friends. She concluded that the future has changed thanks to her, and that''s how she came to the realization that she just manifested her superpower.

    And since then, the Superhero Association Organization has relied on Ayano''s prescience, registering her as a hero before she was even of age. It''s not like Ayano was unhappy about the situation though. Ever since she came to know about superheroes, she wanted to be one. She was a bit unhappy that her parents didn''t have any superpowers. After all, it decreased her chances of awakening a superpower.

    When SAO approached her for her superhero license, she was more than willing to get registered, and that''s how her life as the superhero Eye-Goddess started.

    ...

    These past few days, Ayano had been having the same recurring dream whenever she sleeps at night.

    It starts with a normal day in her agency. She wakes up, grabs a cup of coffee from the nearby coffee shop, greets her subordinates good morning, and then returns to her office with nothing unusual happening.

    But everything would change as soon as she turns the television on. News about the downfall of America shed on the screen and it was brought about by a certain familiar superhero. The news showed a live stream broadcast of America in ruins. The army and almost every superhero in America were mobilized and they fought a single person who easily swatted them like flies.

    The lone entity who was behind the downfall of such a powerful country was someone familiar, and Ayano watched in horror as that person smiled at the screen.

    It didn''t take long before that person attacked the next country over, which was Russia. After destroying Russia, he goes down and obliterates China and the superheroes therein. He continued sweeping through until he reached Japan.

    And as soon as that person reaches Japan, Ayano would turn around and watch from her window as a bright light appeared in the distance. The explosion would then cut her dream short, and she would wake up in a cold sweat, vividly remembering the evil smile that that familiar person wore.

    Today wasn''t any different.

    Breaking out in a cold sweat, Kitamura Ayano bolted from her bed with bated breaths. She reached to her side of the bed, grabbed a water bottle, and drank from it. The time read two minutes past five in the morning¡ª every single time he dreams about that catastrophe, he would wake up at exactly the same time, which greatly disturbed her.

    "I need to go to America. This isn''t working." Kitamura Ayano muttered to herself. She didn''t bother taking a bath. As soon as she got up from her bed, she put on her long sleeves shirt, wore pants and shirt, and then hopped on her ck shoes before going out of her room.

    She wasbing her hair when she got to the lobby of her agency. After scanning the lobby for a potential travel buddy on her way to America, she came across a familiar face who was sitting on one of the couches by the lobby.

    The girl had blue hair and the brightest of cerulean irises in her eyes. She had fair white skin and a light blue dress thatplemented her hair color. Swinging her legs as shefortably sat on the couch, she sipped on her frappe with a satisfied expression on her face.

    It was none other than Lydia Schwarz, the one and only daughter of the number one superhero of Switzend Joseph Schwarz, also known by his superhero name Aquaborne.

    Ayano didn''t waste any time approaching the youngdy. "Lydia Schwarz, right? Are you waiting for someone?" She asked.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Lydia shook her head. The reason why she went to the agency was that she wanted to see superheroes at work. The next semester for high schoolers in the United Superheroes Academy was only a week away, that''s why she wanted to learn from actual licensed superheroes before her transfer as an exchange student was made official.

    "I''m assuming that you''re familiar with Midoriyama Satoshi, right? He was the one who brought you here and introduced you to an apprenticeship." Ayano asked.

    Despite not knowing why the Eye-Goddess was asking her such an obvious question, Lydia shook her head in response. Of course, she was familiar with Satoshi. They''ve known each other since they were young, after all. She even considers him as his childhood friend, which was valid since they really were friends during their childhood years.

    "Then you''reing with me," Ayano said, gesturing for Lydia to stand up ande with her.

    Perplexed, Lydia obliged with the vague request. She stood up and followed Ayano. Without wasting another second, she turned towards the back exit of the agency''s building, which led to the parking lot.

    Click!

    One of the ck sedans parked in the parking lot started shing its headlights. Ayano went towards it and opened the door. "Get in," She ordered while staring at Lydia.

    Lydia nodded her head. She still had no idea where they were going, but she figured that the Eye Goddess wouldn''t bring her somewhere sketchy. That''s why she didn''t think twice about following her along. She found it a tad bit weird though since the Eye-Goddess didn''t say anything, nor did she hint at their destined location.

    "I''ve already taken an inordinate amount of time in disregarding the future I''ve seen. It''s about time I acted on it." Ayano told Lydia as she floored the gas pedal, causing the ck sedan to elerate out of the parking lot and into the highway.

    While Lydia had no idea where they were going, she could feel the urgency of the situation since Ayano was driving right by the speed limit of a hundred and twenty kilometers per hour. There were a couple of times when Lydia wanted to ask what was going on, but seeing Ayano''s tense expression made her purse her lips instead.

    "Oh, I haven''t told you yet, have I? How does America sound?" Ayano asked out of nowhere just when they got to Haneda Airport. After throwing her car keys to the chauffeur, she shed her superhero license towards the ticket booth and got herself airline tickets for two¡ª destination: America.

    "Eh?!" Lydia let out as she realized that she just followed Ayano to a flight to America.

    "You''ll like it there. Besides, we''re going there to meet your childhood friend. Nice, right?" Ayano nudged at her, winking.

    .....

    Back to the present.

    Midori and Hiroshi, who were expecting Satoshi to be trapped inside the pir of fire, continuedughing their hearts out as they extended their hands towards the mes, seemingly worshiping it. Theirughter was heard throughout the neighborhood.

    "Oh, Satoshi, I didn''t notice you there. What are they doing?" Tatsuki flinched when he saw his son standing beside him.

    "They''re probably offering a sacrifice or something. I have no idea." Satoshi shrugged.

    SPLASH!

    Suddenly, a huge wave of water crashed onto the pir of me, extinguishing it in an instant. "What are you two doing this early in the morning?" The familiar voice of a girl asked.

    "Lydia? Eye-Goddess? What are you two doing here?" Tatsuki asked, recognizing the familiar faces by the front gate.

 Chapter 373 Sprinkle Of Motivation

    Lydia, who had been preparing for his transfer to the USA as an exchange student, had no idea what they were doing in America in the first ce. That''s why when Satoshi''s dad asked them about the purpose of their visit, she helplessly stole a nce towards Ayano (Eye Goddess) in hopes that she will answer in her stead.

    "We came to watch the Official Beast Tournament," Ayano mumbled a matter of factly before entering the premises of the Midoriyama residence. After a quick bow of greeting towards Satoshi''s grandparents, she greeted both Tatsuki and Ayumu before approaching Satoshi.

    Then there was Lydia, who had no idea what to do so she just approached Satoshi and hid behind his back. "Ah, right, so you came here to watch the quarterfinals for the Official Beast Tournament, right? Shouldn''t you be preparing for your transfer? I heard there''s going to be a mock battle for your entrance test."

    "I was preparing for it... until the Eye Goddess dragged me out of nowhere and before I knew it, I was at the Haneda Airport, boarding a ne to New York City." Eye Goddess whispered towards Satoshi.

    "Lydia, long time no see," Emma came up to Lydia, bowing towards her in greeting. Lydia did the same thing, wondering who Emma was at first, and then she remembered that they actually met when they went to the Beast Dimension for the first time. ''Ah, she''s the one who''s also transferring to the USA at the same time as me, right?'' Lydia said to herself.

    While everyone was getting acquainted with each other, Tatsuki grabbed the Eye Goddess by her arm, pulling her to the side so he and his wife could talk to him. The husband and wife both wore serious expressions on their faces, which led the Eye Goddess to believe that something was wrong and that''s why they had to talk.

    "What is it?" Ayano asked as she was cornered by the top two superheroes of Japan.

    "Tell us the truth... you didn''te here for the Official Beast Tournament, right?" Tatsuki asked. Despite his tense countenance, he spoke with a clear and calm tone in his voice.

    "If you came across another bad future, you should tell us. Don''t keep it all to yourself. Your power alone might not be enough to deal with that trouble when ites, you know." Ayano concernedly pointed out as she twirled her index finger in the air. There had been plenty of asions when Ayano would show up in other countries without prior warning, and most of the time, something bad was bound to happen.

    That''s why when Ayano appeared suddenly on their doorstep, Tatsuki and Ayumu assumed the worst. They knew just how powerful and urate Ayumu''s foresight is, after all, and they''d witnessed plenty of incidents that came true after Ayano warned the world about it. Today was no different, or at least that''s what Tatsuki and Ayumu assumed.

    "Even if I told you... " Ayano heaved a sigh. "I still don''t have all the details. At the moment, I only ever had premonitions in my dreams, the only difference was that the same dream was recurring every night. That''s why I came here to check things out. I have no idea when it will happen... but it certainly won''t be happening soon." Ayano continued.

    "I see... so that''s the case. So you came here just to check up on things? If that''s what it is then that''s good. But if ever you need our help, just tell us, all right?" Tatsuki continued.

    "How about you just stay here with Lydia? We have enough rooms!" Ayumu offered out of nowhere, sping her hands as her lips curved into a smile. "Besides, it''s been so long since we''ve had a meal together."

    "Then, I''ll kindly take you up on your offer, Ayumu-san," Ayano said, responding with a smile as she slightly bowed her head towards Ayumu.

    "I guess you''re staying with us, Lydia. How''s your Frost Elephant? Did you bring it with you?" Emma asked about Lydia''s tamed beast. Thest time she saw the cute elephant tamed beast was when they held the unofficial beast tournament after all.

    "I always bring it with me. How about your Invisible Flying Squirrel?" Lydia asked.

    "I keep it with me as well. Want to have a rematchter?" Emma answered with a challenge as a smirk appeared on her face.

    "Oh, are we going to have a part two of the unofficial beast tournament? Then count me in and my Vinerinna!" Midori interrupted out of nowhere. Apparently, he had already recovered from the pir of me being extinguished. At the back of his head, however, he felt like he was forgetting something important.

    ''Well, if I forgot about it then it''s probably not important.'' He muttered in his mind.

    "Then count me in and my red smander as well! Let''s have a great matchter!" Hiroshi called out as well, also forgetting about the photo that Satoshi took a couple of minutes ago. The distraction caused by Ayumu and Lydia made him temporarily forget the embarrassing photo.<novelnext></novelnext>

    "You''re going to hold an unofficial beast tournament?! That sounds so cool! Let me in on it too!" Yun Zhe voiced out.

    "What? But you''re on the same level as Satoshi. We can''t let you join." Midoriined. "You, Satoshi, and Shoyo over there are not allowed."

    "Eh?!" Shoyo eximed. He wasn''t expecting to hear his name since he didn''t n on joining in the first ce. But now that Midori rejected his participation, he felt like he should join the unofficial beast tournament as well.

    "Why not? It''s good practice. Besides, I''ve been honing my skills as a beast tamer as well, don''t think I can''t go head to head with you guys." Lydia brushed her light blue hair as she stole a nce at Satoshi.

    "Then it''s settled then, let''s have an unofficial beast tournament once the Official Beast Tournament is over. I''ll be the referee." Midoriyama Grado raised his hand, volunteering for the referee role since he felt like it would be fun.

    .....

    A quick breakfast, and then the group headed back to the American Dome. This time, Satoshi''s grandparents decided toe and watch their grandson live. They couldn''t believe that Satoshi managed to reach the quarterfinals even though he had only recently awakened his superpower as a beast tamer of sorts. Even if he loses right then, Grado and his wife Lize was more than proud of him already.

    A few minutester, after saying bye to everyone, Satoshi headed to his assigned waiting room. He decided to head there earlier than normal so he could mentally prepare himself for the uing quarterfinals.

    While he was confident in his capabilities as a beast tamer, he still felt a modicum of nervousness in his system. After all, this was the first time he ever joined a tournament wherein he could envision first ce. It was well within his grasp, and he decided to reach for it no matter what.

    Satoshi paced back and forth in his waiting room. This time, Yun Zhe was not there, and he was all by himself. It felt a bit weird but Satoshi didn''t dislike the peace and quiet at all. ''With this, I''ll be able to focus on my matches more.'' He said to himself as he reviewed every potential opponent in his mind.

    Five out of eight beast tamers who managed to reach the quarterfinals were friends if not acquaintances of his. Satoshi believed that there was a good chance he''ll fight one of them.

    "Out of five of them... I guess I should watch out for Yun Zhe. He was strong enough to defeat Luke Skyrunner even if it was just a stroke of luck. Luke Skyrunner is stronger than me... so there''s no telling what would happen if we were pitted against each other during the quarterfinals." Satoshi said to himself.

    "Then there''s that troublesome beast tamer Link. Up until now, I still have no idea what his surname is... maybe his surname is Link as well? Who knows?" Satoshi mumbled. "In any case, it''s hard to predict him once his screwse loose, but I should be able to put up a fight and defeat him."

    "Shoyo as well... I should look out for that kid. He may be weaker than me, but I''ve seen his improvement over the past two weeks. He''s certainly someone I shouldn''t underestimate."

    "Honestly, Satoshi, you shouldn''t overthink it. Just go out there and give your best in every fight." Emma spoke out of nowhere, causing Satoshi to flinch. One moment he was all alone in his waiting room, the next moment, Emma was right there with him.

    "Emma?" Satoshi asked, even though he wasn''t surprised that she appeared out of thin air. Her superpower is portal creation after all, just like his familiar Ghast.

    "You remember when we first met, right? The readings told me that you''re the strongest, right? That should be more than enough proof, right? Don''t overthink too much, you''re going to be fine." Emma said, standing up and patting Satoshi on the shoulders.

    Before Satoshi could say anything, Emma leaned in and gave him a peck on his right cheek before she disappeared into her portal. "Do your best out there, Satoshi," She bashfully muttered, her face flushed red.

 Chapter 374 Quarterfinalsâ€” Satoshi Vs. Shoyo

    When the clock struck nine, the continuation of the Official Beast Tournament was finally on its way. Thementator was back in his box,mentating along with Luke Skyrunner who only managed to reach the third round.

    The matchups were then shown on the screen, and the audience cheered more zealously than usual. It was the much-awaited quarterfinals, after all, and some of them even camped outside the American Dome just so they could enter as soon as the doors opened.

    "Oh, you''re all here. The barbecue was funst night, I thought you were going to drink the night away or something." Jean Grey greeted them after taking their seats right behind the row where the Midoriyamas sat. His wife and son were there as well, and they were already well-acquainted with the group since they did have a get-togetherst night.

    "Jean Grey, good morning," Tatsuki greeted back, waving his hand toward Jean and Ash.

    "Your son''s still in the standings, right? We came to cheer him on." Jean continued as his gazended on the grand stage in the middle of the field. Even though he wasn''t participating in any of the matches, he felt an incredible amount of pressure emanating from the grand stage. This was the real deal, and he was there to witness the birth of a new beast master.

    Jean Grey looked up just when the matchups were posted on therge screen in the middle of the stadium right above the grand stage. He grinned, thinking that the matchups were as expected.

    ...

    Meanwhile, back in Satoshi''s waiting room.

    Satoshi wasn''t expecting the matchups to be predetermined since thest two rounds had random matchups. But after seeing it stered on the screen, he too felt the pressure of the Official Beast Tournament. ''I''m really in the quarterfinals, aren''t I?'' Satoshi said to himself.

    For some odd reason, he was on the first match along with someone he knew. While he was confident that he''d be able to win the match, he was fairly certain that they''d have a great match against each other. In terms of his opponent''s life story, it''s pretty cliche that he''d be fighting Satoshi, but Satoshi still looked forward to it.

    "Who would''ve thought... out of the eight people here, we''d be fighting against each other," Satoshi muttered to himself.

    The indistinct cheers of the audience as well as the muffled voice of thementator echoed in Satoshi''s waiting room, adding to his anxiousness as the match was about to be announced.

    Shoyo wasn''t doing any better either. Pacing back and forth inside his waiting room. Just like Satoshi, he heard the audience cheering with eager anticipation for the first match of the quarterfinals, and it gave him butterflies in his stomach. Ruffling his strikingly orange hair, Satoshi broke down on the couch, sping his hands together in a praying stance as he pursed his lips.

    Honestly, he wasn''t nervous because he was pitted against Satoshi, but because he didn''t want to disappoint him. By the time he saw Satoshi''s name opposite his, he had alreadye to an eptance that this was how far he could go. He didn''t regret it at all though¡ª going up against his teacher and all that. In fact, he was even thankful that he would be fighting him instead of some other beast tamer in the quarterfinals.

    It did give him some mixed feelings though since he didn''t want to disappoint Satoshi. After everything he''s taught him the past two weeks, even relying on him during the third round. He wanted to give it his all so he''ll be proud of him.

    "He was the only one who believed in me, even back at the training center of the White Mist Faction. Everybodyughed at me, but he didn''t. And he even taught me everything I needed. I''ve gotten this far, I can''t disappoint him now." Shoyo muttered to himself as sweat trickled from his forehead.

    Then the announcement came, and Shoyo steeled himself to stand up and exit his waiting room. It was time for the first match of the quarterfinals.

    Satoshi, on the other hand, heaved a huge exhale before he got out of his waiting room as well. With a purposeful stride, he sauntered towards the grand stage.

    The time hase.

    Albeit the grand stage looked a lot like it did yesterday, Satoshi couldn''t help but see it in a different light due to the choking atmosphere of the quarterfinals. Shoyo had it worse since he knew that everyone would be watching his defeat.

    Gulp.<novelnext></novelnext>

    When Shoyo caught sight of the grand stage right in front of the illuminated entrance to the stadium, he felt his nervousness getting the best of him. Nevertheless, he continued to step forward, thinking that he would be giving Satoshi a disservice if he were to tuck his tail and run.

    On the other hand, Satoshi was looking forward to his match with Shoyo. His anxiousness was still there, but he didn''t dwell on it too much. And even though Shoyo was weaker than him, he didn''t make it an excuse to go easy on him. There won''t be any underestimating going on in this match, not if Satoshi can help it.

    "Here we have Midoriyama Satoshi with a clean win streak up to the finals!" Thementator called out even though what he said was pretty obvious. "And on this side we have Shoyo! Just yesterday, these two are on the same side, fighting together in the third round. But now, they found themselves against each other. Oh, how the turns have tabled¡ª er, I mean, how the tables have turned!"

    "Throughout the entire Official Beast Tournament, Satoshi has been defeating opponents left and right with ease. While we don''t know for sure if he''s going to win this match or not, I can ascertain that he''ll definitely give us an interesting match." Luke Skyrunnermented as he grabbed the mic from thementator''s hands. "Shoyo also had an exemry performance in his previous matches. He had been lucky all throughout the Official Beast Tournament, and it looks like his luck has not run out even until now."

    "His improvement is really noticeable. But the question is, will he be able to catch up to Satoshi? Or will luck y a part in his performance and snag him the win?" Thementator said, his eyes glistening.

    At the same time, the referee who had been silent this whole time stepped forward and beckoned for Satoshi and Shoyo to step into the middle of the grand stage. "Please step forward and give each other a handshake." The referee continued.

    This was the first time the opponents were signaled to shake each other''s hands, which furthermemorated the fact that they were already in the quarterfinals. Satoshi was the first one to move, and Shoyo quickened his pace after seeing that Satoshi was already in the middle of the grand stage.

    "Let''s have a great match." Satoshi extended his hand.

    "Let''s have a great match," Shoyo repeated, forcing a smile on his face before he walked back to his side of the grand stage.

    "Both beast tamers, get ready." The referee called out, raising his hand.

    Another gulp was heard from both Satoshi and Shoyo as the tension continued to rise up. Everyone who was watching, be it the live stream or in person, knew that once the referee brings her hand down, the match willmence.

    "Ready! Let the battle begin!" The referee brought his hand down and ran toward the edge of the grand stage.

    Shoyo didn''t waste any time summoning his chimera-like tamed beast. "Buy me some time, all right?" Shoyomanded as he started integrating with his chick tamed beast. Now that he was actually in a match with Satoshi, he felt his throat constricting. All the pressure was on his shoulders since he knew he couldn''t fail on his beast integration.

    "Don''t let me down, partner," Shoyo sped his hand as he integrated with this chick tamed beast. The chick squealed, and Shoyo sessfully integrated with it.

    As for Satoshi, he immediately called Ryu Ryoko (who was actually in the audience so he had to summon Ghast and teleport her to the grand stage. Satoshi also made sure that she was in her ck Winged Dragon form since everyone would be surprised if she wasn''t) and she was the one who''d go up against the frankenstein/chimera tamed beast that Shoyo summoned. As for his first beast integration, Satoshi went with his Alpha Red Smander, going back to the basics while he attacked Shoyo.

    Even though Shoyo was the first one to act when it came to their beast integration, Satoshi was still a step faster than him. By the time hepleted his beast integration, Satoshi was already in front of him, shooting a spire of me at his face, point-nk.

    "Aghk~!" Shoyo barely had enough time to block the attack, and his hand was burnt in the process.

    "Always be ready, Shoyo, if you''re beast integration is taking too long, you should have another backup n." Satoshi pointed out, staying in ce as he waited for Shoyo to get his wits together.

    "H-hai~!" Shoyo called out, shaking off the attack as he prepared to counter.

 Chapter 375 EXPLOSION!!!

    "H-hai~!" Shoyo called out, shaking off the attack as he prepared to counter.

    Spitting the dust that somehow got in his mouth, Shoyo stole a nce at Satoshi. He intended to attack him without him noticing. Even if it was almost impossible to do that, Shoyo took it upon himself to risk it all. He couldn''t afford to y it easy. After all, there was no way he''d have a clear shot at winning if he doesn''t take any chances.

    nting his hand on the ground, he twisted his forearm and unleashed a powerful low kick, aiming at Satoshi''s ankle. Physically, it would''ve been an impossible feat for Shoyo who was never the fit type, but thanks to his beast integration with his chick tamed beast, he managed to pull the attack off, and he was even faster than he''d expected.

    The sudden attack certainly caught Satoshi off-guard, but he was still faster than Shoyo. Before the kick could connect, Satoshi jumped in mid-air, while aiming both his hands toward Shoyo''s face. Not only did he dodge what Shoyo unleashed, but he also managed to transition to his counterattack as he did so.

    "methrower," Satoshi muttered to himself as his palms lit up a bright red-orange color. And then an explosion of intense raging ze shot out from Satoshi''s arms and aimed right at Shoyo. It seemed like he wasn''t going to let Shoyo take a break from his continuous onught.

    ''Fire Cannon!'' Shoyo uttered in his mind before he opened his mouth. A ball of me shot out from his lips, and it caused an explosion that sent the two of them skittering backward.

    BAM!

    At that moment, Satoshi managed to react just in time, blocking the explosion with his hands. Apparently, his entire body was fireproof thanks to being integrated with the Alpha Red Smander, but that doesn''t mean he was immune to an explosion. When the explosion connected, he was also sent flying, just like what happened to Shoyo who was behind the suicidal attack.

    "Are you crazy?" Satoshi let out a chuckle as he stood up, pointing his hand downward before shooting another round of methrower from his hand. Before he knew it, he was spinning in mid-air as his methrower propelled him forward.

    In an instant, he covered the distance between him and Shoyo, grabbing him by the head. "st Burn," Satoshi muttered, his pupils dting as he locked eyes with Shoyo.

    "st Burn!" Out of desperation, Shoyo didn''t defend against the attack altogether, but instead, he put his arm on Satoshi''s chest and unleashed the same move as well.

    When Satoshi and Shoyo''s gaze connected, Satoshi assumed that he would see pure fear in Shoyo''s eyes. But what he saw instead surprised him. There was a fire lit in his iris, and he was smiling.

    Both attacks connected, but this time, Satoshi and Shoyo were rational enough to not get blown away. Causing another explosion in the opposite direction, the two of them barely budged when they were hit with each other''s attacks. Shoyo received more damage, however, since Satoshi sted his face.

    "Good. If you can''t dodge it, take it like a champ. But make sure you counterattack." Satoshi called out. He had no idea why he was suddenly lecturing Shoyo, but it made the fight more interesting. Furthermore, he was having a lot of fun, and he didn''t want anyone to ruin it by telling him what to do.

    "Yes!" Shoyo responded as he ducked. In one swift motion, he extended his hands towards Satoshi, causing another fiery st with his special move fire cannon. The explosion gave him enough distance from Satoshi so he could buy some time.

    That didn''t work though, since Satoshi easily wed through the explosion aiming another st at Shoyo''s face.

    "Fiery Kick," Shoyo mumbled. Just like what Satoshi had taught him, he didn''t bother dodging the attack since it was already too close forfort anyways. Instead, he leaned back and whipped his right leg at Satoshi. A short burst of fire came out of Shoyo''s right leg, causing his kick to elerate.

    Everything seemed to go in slow motion as another explosion sted Shoyo in the face (headshot!) and in return, Shoyo managed tond a kick toward Satoshi''s side. As usual, both of them were sent flying, but they recovered in no time at all and they were at it again with their continuous attacks.

    It was a beautiful presentation of fire versus fire. On one hand, Satoshi relentlessly attacked Shoyo, giving him tips and pointers whenever he could. And on the other hand, Shoyo was barely defending and attacking, but the fire in his eyes was still there. Neither side held back during the match. It''s as if the audience wasn''t even there. They just exchange blows one following the other, as if they have their own little world.

    Even thementator was mesmerized by their masterful disy of fire versus fire, so much so that he was speechless all throughout their exchange. The cheers of the audience had died down as well, and they strained their eyes as they tried to watch every single action Satoshi and Shoyo took.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Satoshi ducked as a spire of me shot right above his head. He dodged it by a hair''s breadth, and he felt the intensity of the mes the more he approached Shoyo. Extending his hands to the side, Satoshi also shot a beam of fire toward Shoyo, but Shoyo dodged it by jumping upward.

    Since being in mid-air exposed him a lot, Shoyo clenched his hand, creating a fire whip in his hands before whipping it in all directions. Satoshi didn''t bother shooting at him. Instead, he summoned his Cloak of Invisibility and dwelled in the background.

    A couple of ''oohs'' were heard from the audience as Satoshi disappeared in an instant.

    BAM!

    With a grunt, Shoyo fell down on the ground as an explosion hit him from behind. He quickly scampered to his feet, finally realizing that Satoshi had turned invisible. ''This wasn''t part of the n.'' Shoyo said in his mind as he gritted his teeth. He was already at a disadvantage as it is, but now the gap between him and Satoshi had drastically widened.

    "You have to improvise. Your opponent won''t adjust for you. You have to adjust for them." Shoyo heard Satoshi''s voice somewhere, but he couldn''t pinpoint exactly where. For a moment, he panicked, shooting a fire cannon in a random direction and hitting only empty air.

    BAM!

    Another explosion hit him, this time, right in his face. Shoyo felt stuck, but he still hasn''t given up. In his mind, he kept telling himself to focus, but that didn''t help at all, so he stopped doing it.

    ''What can I do? I can''t see him. There must be another way.'' Shoyo muttered to himself as he tried toe up with a solution. Of course, the first thing that he could''ve done was use some sort of thermal vision to locate Satoshi. But since the grand stage was so hot, it wouldn''t have worked anyways. Besides, the Cloak of Invisibilitypletely erases Satoshi''s presence, so there was no way the thermal vision would''ve worked even under normal conditions.

    BAM!

    When Shoyo was hit for the third time, he finally came up with a solution. Well, it was more of a defensive option than a solution. What he did was surround himself with wisps of mes all over his body, and if one of them were on the verge of going out, he would attack in that direction.

    There was also a hidden function to the wisps of mes that he manifested, but there was no way he would tell Satoshi what it was. He finally reached enlightenment when ites to using his tamed beast''s abilities.

    ''Come on... Satoshi-sensei... where are you?'' Shoyo thought in his mind as a smile appeared on his face.

    As for Satoshi, he could more or less guess what Shoyo was up to. The small wisps of mes pretty much gave out what he was trying to do, and Satoshi already knew how he''d be able tobat it. ''So you''re going to pinpoint my location by using your wisps as your sense of touch? That''s a pretty good strategy, but not good enough.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    After he sneaked towards Shoyo, Satoshi reached out his hand towards the opposite side, touching one of the wisps of mes. Shoyo''s eyes suddenly shot wide open and he fired a fire cannon in that direction.

    However, that wasn''t the only thing that happened.

    The moment Satoshi touched one of the wisps of mes, the other wisps were affected by it, sort of like a chain reaction. As it turned out, every individual wisp was actually a part of a greater whole¡ª a huge explosion.

    BABAM!

    Before Satoshi could react, an explosion was unleashed all throughout the grand stage. The explosion could even rival the one that White Mist had caused during the third round.

 Chapter 376 THE WORLD EATER

    A mushroom cloud which was iparablyrger than the one that White Mist had caused rose up above the grand stage, causing yet another updraft as an intense pressure of wind blew at the audience. Everyone ducked for cover while some cheered as loud as they could due to the intensity of the match. Nevertheless, the damage that the explosion caused was nothing like ever before.

    Even thementator who was seated safely in his box was thrown out of his seat as the wind pressure destroyed the ss window that separated him from the rest. Fortunately, he was the only one who got knocked down, and all of the equipment used for the live-streaming broadcast is still working. As for Luke Skyrunner, he simply sat there, not budging, as the wind blew against him. At first nce, it might seem like Luke Skyrunner was unfazed by the wind pressure, but upon closer inspection, one would see that he nted both his feet on the concrete floor just so he won''t be blown away.

    Seeing Luke Skyrunner''s professionalism, thementator hurriedly stood up and brushed himself off. After propping his chair up, he seated himself. "What a fight! Now, let''s see who survived the explosion! Will the underdog finally im his victory?!"

    Fwoosh~!

    After the destructive scenario that urred on the grand stage, the smoke finally started clearing up, marking the end of the explosion. The spectators who stooped down to avoid the wind pressure hesitantly returned to their seats, all the while straining their eyes so they could get a better look at the aftermath of the explosion.

    The first thing that everyone noticed was the huge ck Winged Dragon that stood immobile in the middle of the grand stage. She was none other than Ryu Ryoko, who engaged Shoyo''s tamed beast inbat after hearing Satoshi''s request. Honestly, their fight didn''t have that much of a screen time on the live stream broadcast since everyone was too focused on the fight between Satoshi and Shoyo. Hence, some of the spectators were surprised to see that the ck Winged Dragon was actually still in the match

    Ryu Ryoko''s diamond scales shone against the sunlight, flooding the grand stage with shimmering sparkles of illumination akin to the myriad of stars on a cloudless night. Her innate skill allowed her to revert and shift into her diamond scales or ck scales as she wishes. And right now, she had decided to shift into her diamond scales in order to protect Satoshi from the explosion.

    Upon further examination, the audience realized that the ck Winged Dragon was actually covering someone with her wings. Her head drooped low, and her wings were shaped in a form of an enclosed space right in front of her.

    "Are you all right, Satoshi?" Ryu Ryoko asked. A couple of seconds ago, she almost lost herposure due to Shoyo''s suicidal move. Thankfully, she was quick enough to act, covering Satoshi with her wings and transforming into her diamond form in order to block the explosion.

    "Yep, thanks," Satoshi casually replied as he nced up. Ryu Ryoko''s dragon face grinned upon hearing Satoshi''s replied. The two of them heaved a sigh of relief.

    As Satoshi looked down at the ground, he saw Shoyo, lying face down and unconscious. He gave it all he got in the fight, and in the end, he had no choice but to use his ultimate move after being backed into a corner like that. Satoshi had no idea what type of move he unleashed, but it was certainly powerful enough to blow the entire American Dome if the barrier was not in ce.

    For a moment back there, Satoshi even assumed that Shoyo would severely injure himself, or worse, he''ll kill himself. That''s why he was surprised to see that Shoyo didn''t even suffer a single cut or bruise. He just fainted due to having all his energy drained out of him.

    "And... Shoyo bites the dust, quite literally! What a masterful performance from our two underdogs right here! Let''s give them a round of apuse everyone, Midoriyama Satoshi and Daidai Shoyo!"

    It was certainly a breathtaking match, and Satoshi didn''t regret giving his all. After all, he was just reciprocating Shoyo''s sentiment. And judging from the calm expression that Shoyo wore while he was unconscious, Satoshi could tell that he didn''t regret going up against him either.

    "That was a great match, Shoyo," Satoshi muttered to himself as he summoned Sera. After a few seconds, Satoshi helped Shoyo regain the bare minimum of his energy, and he could finally rest at ease knowing that Shoyo was not in a critical condition anymore.

    ...

    The second match was between Jin Seok and another beast tamer who belongs to the ck Fog Faction. Of course, Jin Seok won by andslide. And as for the third match, it was between White Mist and another beast tamer of the ck Fog Faction. It wasn''t that surprising that the ones who got to the top four were all acquaintances with Satoshi.

    During the thirty-minute break before thest match of the quarterfinals, Satoshi, along with his ssmates and friends, decided to visit Yun Zhe and Link before they fought against each other.

    As it turned out, Yun Zhe was actually not in his training room, but he also paid a visit to Link as well. This made it easier for everyone to wish the two of them all the best in their match.<novelnext></novelnext>

    The reason why Yun Zhe decided to talk to Link before the match was that he didn''t want to deal with his berserk mode. In his past matches, he had gone out of control and it was always Satoshi who dealt with him. He should''ve been disqualified due to his murderous actions, but Luke Skyrunner who was managing the Official Beast Tournament decided not to. Besides, Link didn''t really break any rules. And furthermore, it was actually normal for a beast tamer to lose control so in a sense, Link was fighting fair and square despite running amok.

    "Just don''t make me deal with you. I don''t want to go against someone crazy." Yun Zhe muttered, sitting on the couch as Link handed him a sandwich.

    "I''m sorry but I can''t guarantee that. After all, I''m in it to win it. There''s no way I''ll go there on that grand stage without giving it my all." Link muttered to himself as he pumped a fist in the air. He was more fired up than ever. Then again, after this match would be the semi-finals. If he could at least get there, then that''s more than enough proof that he''s a reliable disciple.

    "Then, let''s settle this on the stage, a Disciple against a Disciple." Yun Zhe said, turning his back as his name was called to the grand stage.

    "Ou!" Link responded. There was no way he''d let Yun Zhe win. This is his final chance at redemption, after all.

    .....

    In another dimension,

    The Managers gathered at the round table continued to watch the Official Beast Tournament with great eagerness. Now that they were already this far into the matches, they could more or less tell whose Disciple is who, and most of them were starting to conclude the guessing game that existed in the round table. They were surprised that the new faces could actually go head-to-head with the older Disciples. This just goes to show that their innate talent was superior to their previous generation.

    Tap. Tap. Tap.

    Footsteps could be heard from the hallways right outside the room wherein all the Managers are gathered. Since the Official Beast Tournament is only held once a year and is considered one of the most iconic events for Managers, they were a bit irked by the disturbance.

    SLAM!

    Without prior notice, the huge doors leading to the room with the round table mmed open, and a man wearing a t cap with a feather on the side. Just from his headwear alone, the Managers could already tell that he was a Messenger.

    "I just received a report... it seems like, time is running short. The World Eater has chosen its next target." The messenger ryed. He was panting, seemingly out of breath after running all the way to Manager''s location.

    "WHAT?! But it wasn''t supposed to happen in a few years'' time! What are you talking about?!" The Manager with long white hair stood up and swiped his hand sideways. "And didn''t you know what happened thest time we had to deal with the World Eater? It was a massacre!"

    "Rx, previous records show that the World Eater is definitely getting stronger. We barely have time to keep up but we''ve always dealt with it, right? Every single time, we''ve managed to push it back. Let''s hope that we can do it again." Another Manager spoke up. Even though he was speaking rather calmly, the nervousness was distinct in his voice.

    "And? How many years do we have before the World Eater wakes up?" The Manager wearing all ck asked the messenger. "Three years? Five years?"

    "I''m afraid it''s shorter than that. Our readings show that the World Eater is bound to wake up in three months." The messenger bit his lips as he spoke. Even he felt bad delivering such terrible news.

    "WHAT?!" The Managers eximed in unison.

 Chapter 377 Exodia: The Forbidden One

    Link and Yun Zhe finally got to the grand stage, looking at each other as their enthusiasm leaked out of their eyes. This was one of the moments they''d been waiting for as beast tamers and now it was finally happening.

    "Brace yourself, Yun Zhe." Link said as his tamed beast, the Crimson Dagger, appeared out of nowhere, and now it rested on his hands.

    "I should be saying that, Link." Yun Zhe muttered to himself as he summoned the Primordial Excalibur. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth¡ª in this case, it''s a weapons-type against a weapons-type, not to mention that the tamed beast that apanied them were both Representatives.

    Once again, the wildness of the crowd had gotten even more evident as Link and Yun Zhe stood still on the grand stage. While it was thest match of the quarterfinals, it was also the precursor of the semi-finals, and that made the audience cheer even harder. After all, both Link and Yun Zhe are both unknown in the world of beast tamers and this was the first time they showed up for the Official Beast Tournament. Both of them are really talented, but only one of them is bound to rise to the top and attend the semi-finals which will be happeningter that day.

    "On one side, we have the rising talent from China, the man the myth and the legend himself called Yun Zhe. He had shown to be a formidable beast tamer, with strength on par with the beast master himself."

    "And on the other side, we have yet another talent from who knows where, also a new face in the world of the Official Beast Tournament and yet he had established his presence with his literal crazy skills as a berserker, Link Link! And yes, to those who are wondering what his surname was... it''s Link, I''m sorry to disappoint you guys."

    "And now, let''s hear a couple of words from Luke Skyrunner himself." Thementator suddenly called out to Luke Skyrunner. If one were to remember what his connection was with the two, one should be reminded that he lost to the two of them. (One during the time when Link went on a rampage and he had to stop him in the Beast Dimension, and the second time when Yun Zhe and White Mist defeated him during the third round)

    Of course, thementator had no idea about the first incident, that''s why he unintentionally rubbed salt in Luke Skyrunner''s wounds when he asked for his opinion regarding the two. Without further ado, Luke Skyrunner cleared his throat as one of the drone cameras focused on him while he spoke.

    "Ehrmm, as someone who participated in the Official Beast Tournament this year as well, I have witnessed both of their strengths firsthand. They truly are formidable opponents, and while I hate to see one of them go in this fight, there can only be one winner. Let''s give it up for Link and Yun Zhe," Luke Skyrunner averted his gaze from the camera as he boorishly dragged his words while cheering the two of them on.

    That didn''t affect the way the audience cheered for them though. Even Satoshi, who had seated himself beside the Grey family, started screaming his lungs out as he cheered both of them on with great gusto.

    While the spectators showed their support through their cheers, the referee made his way toward the center of the grand stage. Like one of the many tense moments he had, the referee nervously looked Link and Yun Zhe in the eyes before gesturing for them to step forward. ''Why do I even have to do this? I am not paid enough to do this.'' He muttered in his mind.

    Link and Yun Zhe drowned out the noise of the audience and they approached each other with bloodlust emanating from their very beings. The referee gulped before he spoke. "To officially start this match, I would like the two of you to shake your hands." He muttered, almost slipping in his words. Even though he wasn''t the one fighting against them, he could feel the intense pressure that leaked out of them like supernatural powers forcing him to kneel. He choked in their presence.

    "Let''s have a great match," Link was the first one to speak up, extending his left hand in a futile attempt to assert dominance over Yun Zhe.

    As for Yun Zhe, he extended both his hands and shook Link''s left hand. There was no way he''d let Link defeat him even during the handshake. "I''m looking forward to defeating you. Let''s have a great match."

    Surprised by Yun Zhe''s response, Link''s face contorted to an evil smile before he walked away.

    "Both participants at the ready?" The referee didn''t even bother looking at them when he raised his hand. "Let the battle begin!"

    Before the referee could even get out of the grand stage, Link was already on the move. He summoned one of his tamed beasts which granted him wings made out of leaves and branches (the same tamed beast he used during the second round). He didn''t waste any time charging toward Yun Zhe, using his wings to propel himself as he elerated forward.<novelnext></novelnext>

    While doing so, he hurled the Crimson Dagger toward Yun Zhe. "Extend!" He called out.

    Everything went by slowly as Yun Zhe immediately integrated with his Representative, the Primordial Excalibur, and another one of his tamed beasts, the Golden Armored Bug. This time, he became fully armored, wielding a greatsword and a huge shield in his hand. Despite the powerful force that Crimson Dagger outputted, Yun Zhe easily deflected it by pressing his shield against it.

    Since the Crimson Dagger wasn''t really stopped, it continued flying with its trajectory drastically altered. Simultaneous screams were heard from the audience as the Crimson Dagger bounced on the barrier before falling to the ground.

    Yun Zhe wasn''t wasting any of his movements. While Link was still charging at him, he extended his hand and pointed the greatsword he was wielding toward his direction. "Dash," He mumbled.

    Even though he didn''t take any step forward, Yun Zhe''s entire body dashed forward at insane speeds, meeting Link halfway. With Yun Zhe''s speed, it would have been easy for him to hit Link.

    However, Link''s speed should not be underestimated either. The moment he met with Yun Zhe, he leaned sideways, barely avoiding the greatsword which grazed his cheek. In that split of a second, he extended his hand and integrated with his beast that granted him hardwood gauntlets.

    Scratch!

    The attack connected, but it only destroyed Yun Zhe''s armor instead of wounding him. Even then, Yun Zhe was surprised that Link could achieve such a high-level attack in a split second. Yun Zhe maliciously grinned. "You almost died back there with your foolish move. You don''t fear death, do you?"

    "Not really, I fear death just like any other regr person. But then again, I''ve faced death in the face countless times. That''s why I can keep a cool head and move without hesitation. Besides, I let my adrenaline do all the work... sometimes a little too much." Link answered, picking up the Crimson Dagger and ying with it. He was ready for the second attack.

    "As expected of someone with a berserker superpower. I guess I don''t have to hold back then." Yun Zhe said as he summoned two more tamed beasts in his possession.

    The first one looked like a small tapir with a steel halo on its head. It''s a steel and ground-type tamed beast that is known for its metal halo that could slice anything, even diamond. No one had seen such a tamed beast before but Yun Zhe named it the Steel Tapir (pretty typical). The second one looked like a flying fairy with metal wings and metallic armor. As usual, this is also the first time people saw such a tamed beast and Yun Zhe named it the Steel Fairy.

    "Behold, I reveal to you my most powerful trump card! I call it Exodia the Forbidden One... honestly there are just four of them but you get the point." Yun Zhe shrugged hisst sentence since not a lot of people got the reference. Upon saying that, he extended his hands and integrated with his Steel Tapir and his Steel Fairy.

    Yun Zhe lit up, and people watched in eager anticipation as they told themselves that they were there the moment history was made. This was the first time they ever noticed someone do a Quad Beast Integration and it made their eyes sparkle. In retrospect, this was also the first Official Beast Tournament where they witnessed a Dual Beast Integration and a Trinity Beast Integration... but these two just paved the way for Quad Beast Integration to happen.

    When the brightness diminished, Yun Zhe was now floating in the air. He still wore his gold and white full armor, and he still wielded the greatsword and shield. This time though, gold and white metallic wings now appeared on his back, and a huge halo hovered right behind him. "I hope you can keep up with me, Link." Yun Zhe taunted.

    "You bet I can." Link confidently gritted.

 Chapter 378 Crazy For Crazy

    Yun Zhe flitted through the air as if he was as light as a feather. Despite the fact that what he wore looked heavyweight, he wasn''t having any difficulty maneuvering in the air at all. It was thanks to the steel ring that floated behind him as well as his steel things. Not only did the two provide him with the ability to fly, but they also stabilized his flying abilities as well.

    "Are you just going to stand there? If you don''t make a move, nothing will happen, you know." Yun Zhe spoke up, smiling underneath his helmet.

    At first nce, one could tell that Yun Zhe has the advantage here. Not only did he easily integrate with four tamed beasts at once, but he was also controlling them without difficulty. Compared to Link who was currently integrated with only two of his tamed beasts, he was way more formidable. And this match could easily be concluded with hisndslide victory if Link wasn''t careful.

    However, that was just how one could perceive it at the surface. Link, who had only integrated with two tamed beasts, had decided to stall for time. If he could seed in his strategy, then this is his win.

    It was a given that integrating with four tamed beasts at once will expend more energypared to when it''s just two tamed beasts. With an additional tamed beast in the beast integration, the energy expenditure will exponentially increase. Right now, Yun Zhe was spending more energy than Link, and if he were to run out of energy before Link did, then it''s his sure defeat.

    "Crimson Dagger, Extend." Linkmended his Representative, riding on the dull side of its de as it extended upwards. He aimed it right at Yun Zhe so he didn''t have to catch up to him as soon as he got in mid-air.

    "What a joke." Yun Zhe said dashing sideways andpletely avoiding Link before he could even engage him inbat.

    Riding his momentum, Link ordered Crimson Dagger to retract and it returned to its hand in a snap of a finger. He then changed his trajectory and aimed where Yun Zhe was floating for a second time. "Crimson Dagger, Extend." He muttered a second time.

    This time, he was faster. Yun Zhe was just about to decelerate when Link gave his secondmand. And now, he was charging toward Yun Zhe at insane speeds thanks to his momentum.

    Link didn''t sweat it out too much, though, nor was he intimidated by the green-haired kid who wore weird clothes. Once again, before Link could reach him, Yun Zhe dashed sideways, gaining distance as if to endlessly annoy Link.

    "You have to do better than that, Link." Yun Zhe provoked him even more as he extended his hand and waved at him toe with all he''s got.

    Gritting his teeth, Link elerated once again but to no avail. He tried the fourth time but the same oue ensued. There was no way he could catch up to Yun Zhe... not without integrating with his Representative Crimson Dagger as well.

    "Faster Link, faster." Yun Zhe teased.

    Even with his great advantage over Link, Yun Zhe never once thought of letting his guard down. This was Link he was talking about after all, and there''s no way he won''t be able to take advantage of a small window of weakness if Yun Zhe were to show it. Link may be weaker than him at the moment, but Yun Zhe had witnessed Link''s power first-hand during thest couple of rounds. There was no way he''d give him a chance to catch up to him.

    Quite frankly, the fight was really boring since all that Link did was try to reach Yun Zhe so his attack would connect. And then there was Yun Zhe who seemed to be ying a ridiculous game of tag. No one could see through his helmet since it covered his entire face, but the audience assumed that he was stupidly grinning behind it.

    He was, after all, making fun of Link since his speed couldn''t hope to match up to his.

    A minute ago, Link was confident that he''d be able to stall for time and have Yun Zhe run out of energy before he swooped in for the kill. But now, he was beginning to doubt his surefire n. At this rate, he was the one who was going to run out of energy, and what''s worse¡ª he was being yed like a fiddle and it was only a matter of time before the audience makes fun of him.

    Either he tried to y along with Yun Zhe''s antics without the certainty that he''d run out of energy first, or risk it all and fight Yun Zhe with the best he could. Link could tell which choice was better. He wouldn''t be able to take it if he made a fool of himself and the audience would remember him as someone who kept on chasing his opponent.<novelnext></novelnext>

    Link clicked his tongue in frustration as he returned to the ground while holding the Crimson Dagger. He had no other choice but to integrate with the Crimson Dagger. That was the only way he''d be able to catch up to Yun Zhe. He had no other choice... this was the only way.

    "Don''t back down on me now, Yun Zhe, you drove me to do this." Link evilly smiled as he nced toward Yun Zhe who was stillfortably floating in the air.

    Link took a deep breath before he put Crimson Dagger on the ground. All this time, he had been putting a limiter on himself so he won''t go on a rampage. As it turned out, his berserker mode is always activated, and he was just putting in the conscious effort to tone it down.

    However, right now he was reaching his limit. Yun Zhe had been making a fool out of him and it didn''t bid well on his temper. He was warned time and time again not to show his berserker mode since it was really dangerous, but now he couldn''t care less. If Yun Zhe couldn''t handle it then it''s his fault for drawing it out.

    "Prepare yourself, you self-proimed Exodia The Forbidden One or something." Link called out, extending his hands towards his Crimson Dagger. At the same time, he decided to let out his inner beast as he made the decision to fight in his berserker mode.

    A bright light illuminated Link during his transformation. At this point, Yun Zhe was fast enough to interrupt his beast integration but he didn''t do anything of the sort. He thought that doing so would be ying dirty and the audience might think badly of him.

    Little did he know... had he done so, he would''ve been victorious right then and there.

    As the light dissipated and Link was revealed to wear ck and red light armor with the Crimson Dagger in hand, Yun Zhe braced himself since he could feel an intense bloodlust emanating from Link. For a moment, he thought that Link had finally lost it.

    He was right on the money.

    Fwip~!

    A sonic boom so fast that it sounded like an instant blip appeared where Link was standing a split second ago. The next moment, he was right behind Yun Zhe, wildly swinging the Crimson Dagger toward him with all the intent to kill. He wasn''t even aiming for the body or the head where his armor and helmet were. He was aiming for the neck, and he was grinning ear to ear as he did so.

    "Die." He gritted as he swung at Yun Zhe''s neck.

    Yun Zhe was fast, but at that moment, he froze. There was something about Link''s aura that caused him to be immobile and he couldn''t dodge the attack at all. He watched as the Crimson Dagger extended in front of him, pressing him downward.

    Albeit being in berserker mode, Link still had enough reason to stop himself from killing Yun Zhe. He could''ve easily swung at Yun Zhe''s neck and he would''ve died right then and there, but he stopped himself. Instead, hemanded the Crimson Dagger to extend and it ballooned in size. Instead of decapitating Yun Zhe, the Crimson Dagger pressed down on Yun Zhe, flinging him to the ground.

    The impact caused a cloud of smoke to rise up from the grand stage. By the time it cleared up, Yun Zhe was seen lying down on the grand stage as it was cracked in half. He coughed, and blood spat out of his helmet. The attack really took a decent chunk of his health points, and he almost lost his Quad Beast Integration in the process.

    "How do you like me now, Yun Zhe," Link called out, smiling. A moment ago, it was Yun Zhe who was provoking him but in an instant, the tip of the scales have changed and it was now Link who was at the advantage.

    "Good job, I thought you relied on your craziness again. d to see you''re still controlling yourself." Yun Zhe stood up and brushed it off as if it was nothing. It was evident on his bloody helmet and armor that he was on the verge of losing though.

 Chapter 379 Follow Follow

    "Good job, I thought you relied on your craziness again. d to see you''re still controlling yourself." Yun Zhe stood up and brushed it off as if it was nothing. It was evident on his bloody helmet and armor that he was on the verge of losing though.

    A smile swept across Link''s face as hended on the ground. Since there were plenty of chances when Yun Zhe just dodged him instead of attacking him, he decided to give him some time to get himself together before he attacked for the second time. Right now, he was the one at an advantage, and Yun Zhe was the one at a disadvantage.

    It was surprising to think that just a couple of moments ago, it was Yun Zhe who was winning. Right now though, he was more bloodied up than Link.

    Still, that wasn''t enough to make Yun Zhe panic since he was still in control. He may be losing, but he didn''t let that get the better of him. After all, in a match, especially in something like an Official Beast Tournament, there are a lot of things that could happen and he could turn the tide of the battle in his favor if Link had a single misstep. That''s why Yun Zhe still hasn''t given up yet.

    Fwip!

    For the second time, Yun Zhe heard the sound of a whip, and Link once again disappeared in front of him. Compared to his first attack, Link was even faster. He barely had the time to react to his attack when he reappeared.

    From a third-person perspective, one would easily notice that Link wasn''t really moving fast. However, if one were to say that to Yun Zhe, he would scoff at how ridiculous thement was. He could barely see Link whenever he disappears, and it''s not like he was using portals either. There was only one exnation for his movement and that is¡ª because he was faster than sight.

    Little did he know, Link was actually ying tricks on him. Thanks to the Crimson Dagger''s illusionary ability, he could make it seem like he was disappearing in front of Yun Zhe when in truth, he never hid at all. He also moved normally, but to Yun Zhe, it didn''t look like that at all.

    The moment Link reappeared in front of him, Yun Zhe stepped back and guarded himself against the attack. He gritted his teeth. Even when Link disappeared and reappeared, he was able to keep up with him. He was getting used to his ''speed''.

    Even Link was impressed that Yun Zhe actually blocked his attack. He grinned. "Crimson Dagger, extend!"

    Without warning, the Crimson Dagger which was sessfully blocked by Yun Zhe started gettingrger, pressing down on him as he tried to bear its weight. When it finally reached twice its size, Yun Zhe leaned to the side and redirected the Crimson Dagger to his other side, barely pushing it out of the way but he still managed to do so.

    At the same time, Yun Zhe''s self-heal finally worked, and the wounds he suffered due to Link''s powerful attack slowly closed up. There was little he could do with the damage he suffered internally, but then again, he didn''t bother healing too much since that would just drain his energy a little faster.

    As for Link, he felt like he was going beyond his limit as well. He wasn''t used to integrating with his representative Crimson Dagger for an extended period of time, and now he was feeling the exhaustion catching up to him. He didn''t want Yun Zhe to notice that he was getting tired though, so he held his breath, trying to even it out while suppressing his panting.

    "You out of breath already? I was just getting started." Link called out as Yun Zhe lit up for a couple of moments and his wounds seemed to have disappeared.

    "Same here, don''t you dare tap out right now. We still haven''t gotten to the main course of the battle." Yun Zhe called out, clenching his fists as he wrapped it around the hilt of his greatsword and the handle of his shield.

    "Says the one who''s currently more drained than I am." Link retorted as he forced a smile on his face.

    ...

    Meanwhile, by the audience seats.

    Satoshi couldn''t help but grin from ear to ear after seeing how intense Link and Yun Zhe were fighting. "I''m surprised that Link still hasn''t gone berserk even after all that. Usually, when he was driven into a corner, he would rely on his berserker superpower to plow his way through victory. I guess he''s learning how to control it as time goes on." He muttered to himself as he popped a mouthful of popcorn in his mouth.

    The semi-finals are bound to happen in a few hours'' time. Nevertheless, he didn''t feel that pressured at all. Sure there was a chance that another candidate would catch him off-guard and defeat him, but right now he didn''t dwell on it too much. Right now, he was more invested in the present, watching Link and Yun Zhe''s fight as it unfolded in front of him.

    After an exchange of blows, the two of them stopped fighting and started talking amongst themselves. Satoshi was fairly certain that the two of them were nearing their limits, and it was only a matter of time before one or the other runs out of energy. The quarterfinals were bound to end soon.

    "Who do you think would win, Satoshi?" Ash Grey asked out of nowhere, nudging him with an elbow as his lips curved upwards.

    "Personally, I think that Yun Zhe guy would win. But the more I watch this fight... the more I think that Link is slowly catching up to him. If he doesn''t act soon, Link might sweep the rug off his feet and im his victory." Jean Greymented out of nowhere, joining in on the conversation.

    "Hands down, Yun Zhe would win. There''s no doubt about it." Satoshi dered as if he could see right through the future. He didn''t waver when he blurted it out, causing the father and son to believe that Satoshi was telling the truth.

    Kitamura Ayano, who had already seen a few seconds into the future, stared at Satoshi with slight panic written on her face. She couldn''t believe that Satoshi could predict what could happen in the future even without her foresight superpower.

    "How did you know that, Satoshi? I''m surprised." Ayano muttered, leaning towards Satoshi so no one else would be able to hear their conversation.

    "I didn''t," Satoshi responded as a matter of factly. "It''s just that, Yun Zhe promised to meet me in the finals. There''s no way he''ll break that promise, not if he could help it. Besides, Link still hasn''t understood the full potential of his superpower. He''s still holding himself back, and that''s the reason why he won''t win this time around."

    And Satoshi was on point. Right now, Link still had great difficulty using one hundred percent of his abilities as a berserker. He didn''t want to risk losing control, and that fear caused him to hold back. In retrospect, it was his own fault for not practicing control a little sooner. It seems like he got too used to relying on his berserk mode and winning all the time, that''s why he never once considered reining it in¡ª adding to that, he also didn''t think too much about utilizing his berserk mode to its full potential since he believed that he was using it the right way whereas he had been using his skill wrongly after all this time.

    Another exchange of blows happened on the grand stage. This time, Yun Zhe came on top. One look, and Satoshi could tell that Yun Zhe was going to win the match sooner orter. Both of them were at their limits, the only difference was, Yun Zhe was more in controlpared to Link.

    Upon seeing the confident expression on Yun Zhe''s face, Satoshi stood up and stretched himself. He nned to make a quick trip to the bathroom before he ordered more food. It was already lunchtime, after all, and he needed all the energy he could get before his semi-finals match.

    "Where are you going?" Kitamura Ayano (Eye-Goddess) asked when Satoshi stood up. For some odd reason, she had a skeptical look on her face.

    p¦Á§ád¦Á §«?¦Í¨º1,§ã¨°§® "The restroom... ?" Satoshi trailed off. He wondered why the Eye-Goddess was keen on knowing where he was headed. "Oh, and I''m going to grab food. Do you want me to get you anything?" Satoshi asked.

    Ayano''s expression shifted from being skeptical to looking rather concerned. Before Satoshi could say anything, she also stood up and followed right behind Satoshi. "I''ming with you."

    "You''re going with me? To the restroom?" Satoshi joked. He knew what Ayano implied when she said she wasing with him¡ª they were going to get some food.

    "Yes, to the restroom. Now lead the way, Satoshi." She continued.

    "Eh?!" Satoshi eximed.

 Chapter 380 First Contact

    Satoshi gulped before his lips twitched into a half-smile. He couldn''t tell whether Ayano was joking or not. But if it wasn''t a joke, then what is it? Satoshi''s train of thought started running beyond the speed limit as he turned around to lead the way. There was no way Ayano was keen on going with him to the bathroom. There''s just no way.

    "What?" Lydia Schwarz, who had been sitting beside Ayano, overheard the conversation and it took her a couple of seconds to take in what Ayano implicated when she mentioned going to the bathroom with Satoshi. Before she came back to her senses, she was already standing, attracting the attention of the nearby spectators since she got to her feet in a sh.

    As she turned her head to get a glimpse of the other people around her, her face turned a nice shade of red before she followed Ayano. She stayed a close distance on her rear. She didn''t have the slightest of idea why she began following Ayano and Satoshi to the restroom. By the time she came to the realization that she was intervening in something secretive, she felt like going back. However, she was too far gone into the situation that she decided to follow through with it no matter the repercussions that lie ahead.

    Of course, with her suspicious tailing, it didn''t take long before Satoshi and Ayano noticed her. The first one to turn around was Satoshi who had no idea why Lydia opted to follow him to the restroom as well. ''No, maybe she was just going to buy some food with the Eye Goddess. There''s no way that the two of them would go to the restroom with me, right?'' Satoshi felt a hint of nervousness in his head as he stole a nce towards Lydia.

    "Are you going to follow us to the restroom as well, Lydia?" Ayano asked out of the blue, causing a couple of heads to turn their way since she said it as if it was just a normal topic in a typical day. Even Satoshi felt second hand embarassment when he haerd what Ayano asked Lydia.

    Meanwhile, Lydia drooped her head as she tried to hide her embarassment. She didn''t respond to what Ayano asked of her. However, it was clear based on her intentions that she really meant to follow the two of them.

    "What on earth is going on?" Satoshi asked himself under his breath as he deliberately put his hood on to hide his face from the people passing by. His dder screamed of a toilet break so there was no way he could wait for both Ayano and Lydia to stop following him before he goes to the restroom.

    "In the first ce, what did they want with me? What do they intend to do to me in the restroom? Don''t tell me... are they going to threaten me?" Satoshi''s thoughts was even more unpredictable than a the weather. There were plenty of things he should''ve thought first but the first thing that urred in his mind was ckmail.

    "But why? I can''t remember ever offending the Eye Goddess... let alone Lydia. Or maybe this is one of those rare moments where I did something without realizing and now they''re out for my blood. Whichever the case, I have to put my guard up and ask for an apology if necessary." Satoshi carefullyid out his n despite the fact that he felt like walking straight into an inescapable trap.

    As he neared the toilet, he slowed down his pace in hopes that both Ayano and Lydia would change their minds if he bought more time. The resolute expressions on their faces said otherwise, however, and Satoshi could tell that they were really keen on following him inside.

    "But why? What''s wrong with them?" Satoshi couldn''t help but adress the elephant in the room. Regardless, there was no answer to such a ridiculous question and now the inevitable hase.

    Before Satoshi could enter the bathroom though, Ayano grabbed him by the rest, almost causing him to fall the other way. However, his momentum was more than sufficient to push him inside.

    Fearing that she''d be left behind, Lydia managed to grab onto Ayano the moment she caught Satoshi by the wrist. Despite bracing herself for the sudden force of momentum that prompted her forward, she still fell to the front as if some sort of mysterious force was pulling all of them inside the restroom.

    Satoshi was the first one to perceive the great force that sucked him into the restroom. He almostlet out a scream, but he immediately realized that his voice was muffled. Adding to that, instead of finding himself in the bathroom, he found himself in an empty vast space filled with nothing but darkness. Satoshi''s spections led to one thing¡ª that they were teleported somewhere against their will, and now they had to wait for what''s toe.

    This also made him somewhat understand why Ayano wanted to follow him into the restroom. Since she''s the Eye Goddess herself with one of the most powerful foresight in the world, there was no doubt that she was able to see through the future. And the best route she saw in the future was when she followed Satoshi inside the unknown dimensional portal. It all started making sense now.

    p¦Á§ád¦Á-¨¾?¦Í¨º¦É¡¤§ã¨®§® Quite frankly, Satoshi was close to the mark. The reason why Ayano decided follow him wasn''t because she knew the future. In fact, it was quite the opposite. In alternate futures, Ayano saw Satoshi going inside the dimensional portal alone. And upon doing that, a great catastrophe soon followed.

    Another alternate future was witnessed by Ayano when she decided to go through the portal instead of Satoshi herself. However, she couldn''t get any information inside the dimensional portal. While it could mean a lot of things, Ayano immediately concluded that the materials beyond the dimensional portal wasn''t of Earth''s. That''s why she couldn''t peer through it inside.

    One, she could let Satoshi go inside the portal or two, she can go through the portal herself, saving Satoshi in the process. However, both endings were filled with uncertainty. That''s why Ayano chose the third option. She decided totch herself onto Satoshi before he disappeared into the void.

    Somehow, the n worked, and she managed to change the future with such minimal alteration. Whether her decision proved to be good or bad is now up to the future''s uncertainty. After all, she didn''t n to get this far. Herst bout of effort to apany Satoshi proved to be sessful when she assumed that it wouldn''t.

    The vast emptiness gaveoff an eerie feeling to the three of them. Not only was the ce endless with minimal lighting, they also had no idea where to get resources. If they stick together, it would take a far longer time to get the basic necessities they outght to have.

    "Why are we here, just to suffer." Satoshi asked himself. He certainly was unlucky. Not only did he get teleported out of nowhere, his spot in the semi-finals and finals of the Official Beast Tournament would be a pending disqualification if he didn''t get there on time.

    "Ghast, let''s get out of here." Satoshi didn''t waste time summoning his trusty friend Ghast, who could create dimensional portal that could lead anywhere.

    To his surprise, he felt genuine fear oozing out of Ghast as he meekly floated towards Satoshi''s back and hid there. Whatever it was in the room with them, it''s far more powerful than Ghast when ites to creating dimensional portal or just creating dimensional portals in particr.

    "What are we dealing with here, exactly?" Satoshi muttered as his legs buckled. He needed to pee. He needed to pee really badly.

    "I think it''s some form of alien. They might be nning to invade the Earth for a long time now. If not, then there''s no way they sent these many scouts without us ever noticing them. I guess they''re bound to invade earth soon enough." Ayano answered a matter of factly.

    "In ny case, this was the first time Ghast was overpowered in his game. Who would''ve thought that there''d be someone stronger than Ghast." Satosi said to himself as he apologized to Ghast for saying something so sharp.

    "What do we do now?" Lydia asked. She didn''t ask to be here, in the first ce. She was just dragged into the situation because Ayano was acting weird. Had she known that something like this would happen, she wouldn''t have grabbed Ayano by the wrist before they gut socked inside.

    Suddenly, bright lights flooded the entire room, causing the three of them to flinch. A door from afar opened and in came a man oddly familiar to Satoshi. He wore ck robes, a ck spear and a tome. He seemed to be more excited than Satoshi to be here than anyone else.

    "Your Satoshi, right? RIGHT?" The man enthusiasticall eximed. "Oh wait, pardon my introductions, the name''s Bucky Barnes. Don''t ask me, that''s my real name. I''m your Manager."

 Chapter 381 Manager Bucky Barnes

    "Your Satoshi, right? RIGHT?" The man enthusiastically eximed. "Oh wait, pardon my introductions, the name''s Bucky Barnes. Don''t ask me, that''s my real name. I''m your Manager."

    The man grinned as he lightly touched his somewhat lengthy flowy hair which had a nice blond on it. His messy stubble was one of the most dominant features on his face, and his semi-muscr build exuded pressure and great strength. Aside from that, he also had a recurring theme of ck. Down to the socks he wore underneath his ck pants, and down to his shoes which were newly shined. He bnced a ck cane on his hand as well as a ck hat on his head.

    Tipping his hat, he waited for Satoshi to respond to what he just said. For the past two weeks, he did nothing but closely monitor Satoshi to see how he was holding up. And as expected, he had exceeded everyone''s expectations including his. It''s not every day that they get to see someone grow in terms of their superpower in just a short span of time. In a sense, this made Satoshi an aberration in terms of beast taming.

    "My Manager? I don''t recall ever having joined a group, much less a boy band." Satoshi responded. Somehow, he forgot the term Manager even though Yun Zhe had exined the concept to him on numerous asions. He tried to wrap his head around the situation but it just didn''t make any sense. He didn''t have a hint of recollection when ites to having a Manager.

    "In a sense, yes. Let''s just say I, for one, chose you as part of my team." Bucky Barnes exined, totally ignoring the sharp stares he received from Ayano and Lydia.

    "So, you''re a Manager, huh? If you really are his Manager, then why did you go to such great lengths in kidnapping us?" Ayano asked, stepping forward before pulling Satoshi behind her. There was no way she would allow the kidnapper to be in close proximity to Satoshi, not if she could help it.

    "Pardon me, I assume that was rude of me to spirit you away from your dimension." Bucky Barnes tilted his head downward in a sincere apologetic manner before he proceeded to exin the situation. "The reason why I had to resort to something so underhanded was that... I can''t go to your dimension. Even if I wanted to, there''s just no way I''d be able to go there and personally speak to you."

    ¦Ñ¦Á§ád¦Á §«?¦Í¨ºl(§ã¨°m) "As you probably already know..." Bucky Barnes turned away, trying to find the right words that would make it easier for Satoshi to understand. He stole a nce, then hesitantly bit his lips. He could tell that Satoshi had no idea what he was talking about.

    While he knew that Satoshi did have a decent understanding of Disciples, he also assumed that Yun Zhe had exined what the Managers are. However, it was painstakingly obvious that Satoshi had no idea about it.

    "Well, let''s just start with the basics of basics. There are Disciples, and there are Managers." Bucky Barnes began. This was the time he realized that he was exining it to Satoshi and two other people who aren''t even Disciples. If anyone knew what he was doing right now, he''d be demoted in an instant¡ª it''s not like he cared about being demoted.

    "You already know what Disciples are... the term is pretty straightforward so I don''t need to exin the concept." He continued. "As for Managers, they are the ones who choose their Disciples. There are only two rules when ites to being a Disciple. One, they must choose their Disciple before he or she was born. And second, they should assign a guardian to watch over the growth of that Disciple."

    "We can choose anyone we want, and since you were the son of the two most powerful superheroes in your home country, I decided to choose you. Even though I could tell that you won''t have a superpower in the future, I believed that you will prove to be a powerful Disciple. And I was right, you really are someone worthy of bing my Disciple."

    While Bucky Barnes inwardly celebrated, Satoshi fell into a state of silence as he realized what the man was talking about. It all started making sense now. First, he waste when he awakened his superpower, and second, he was chosen by this Manager person while he was still in the womb. This exined the dream that his grandfather had... and it also exined why his grandparents kept telling him that he was the chosen one.

    "I... I see..." Satoshi dejectedly muttered to himself.

    After all, it was too good to be true. The past few months felt like a blur. It felt like a prolonged good dream that gave him everything he ever wanted. There was no way that that dream manifested because of his hard work... he finally understood what was going on¡ª or at least, that''s what he told himself.

    ''So this wasn''t my superpower... I was just lucky I was chosen. It''s like winning the lottery before you were born... how nice.'' Satoshi said in his mind. While his thoughts were essentially true, he found it rather disappointing. Everything wasn''t a result of his hard work, it was all a result of a certain someone who ced his bets on him before he was born.

    Ayano and Lydia, who had known Satoshi ever since he was a kid, also thought the same thing. These past few days, they witnessed Satoshi''s passion when ites to tamed beasts first hand, and they were happy for him. He had a rough childhood, but now he was finally living the life he''d always wanted.

    And now they just had to learn that all of these were actually someone''s choice instead of Satoshi''s. Of course, they''d feel despondent about it.

    "Why do you all look so sad?" Bucky Barnes asked, genuinely concerned. He wasn''t even in the middle of his exnation yet and they were already in low spirits. "Was it because of anything I said?"

    "How are we supposed to believe you, you fraud!" Lydia suddenly snapped out of nowhere, much to Satoshi''s surprise.

    As for Ayano, she had a much calmer approach. "If what you''re saying is really true... you said that Satoshi was chosen... that he was supposed to not have any superpower. Why didn''t you just keep that to yourself instead of saying it out loud?"

    Bucky Barnes had no idea why they were quite adamant when he was just trying to exin a few things to them. After hearing them out, though, he realized that he said something that Satoshipletely misunderstood. Somehow, it flew right past his brain and he didn''t even think about the consequences brought about by his heavy words.

    "Ah that... I didn''t say that he didn''t have any superpowers. I said... I couldn''t tell whether you''ll have a superpower in the future. Was that clear enough?" Bucky Barnes pursed his lips as he apologetically looked at Satoshi. "In other words, I never did expect you to have a superpower, nor did the other Managers expect you to awaken one. After all, we aren''t gods, we''re just mere Managers. There''s no way we could have predicted the future or something."

    "What I''m saying is... I chose you even though you weren''t supposed to have superpowers. It also came as a surprise for me when you awakened your superpower, you know, so don''t be dejected. That''s your power, I didn''t grant you anything. All I ever gave you was a blessing. Ask any other Managers out there, it''s beyond our capabilities to bestow a superpower, we can only bestow blessings. Blessings only ever boost the superpower that you already possess, and it gives you a certain affinity to beasts. That''s about it."

    "Why did you have to word it like that then?" Ayano pouted as she grabbed Satoshi by his head and hugged him to her chest.

    Satoshi didn''t resist, as his face sank on the two pillows¡ª well, it''s not because he liked it, but because he still hadn''t gotten over the fact that he was chosen. If what he was saying was true, then it truly was like winning the lottery... or rather, it was like winning the lottery twice. His absent-mindedness prompted Lydia to hug him as well. For some odd reason, she didn''t want to lose to Ayano.

    "I''m sorry about that. In any case, the reason why I called you out here was to warn you about something." Bucky Barnes muttered. "An evil force ising to your dimension. It''s known as the World Eater. At this rate, your entire world will be destroyed if we don''t step in."

    "The least we could do is warn you of the impending doom, and lend you our aid by gathering the Disciples at an earlier date. The First Selection is scheduled wayter, but we''re going to push it earlier than expected. I hope you prepare yourself before then." Bucky Barnes continued, patting Satoshi on the head.

    "My time''s up, talk to Yun Zhe about everything I said but don''t tell him I told you. As I mentioned before, we Managers cannot directly intervene in your dimension''s affairs. That''s it, I wish you all the best in the Official Beast Tournament. As your Manager, I''ll be closely watching, adios~"

    One moment, the three of them were in an unknown space, the next moment, they were back in the middle of the restroom. A couple of men who were in the urinals flinched upon seeing three people show up in thin air.

 Chapter 382 To The Semifinals

    Bucky Barnes didn''t speak anything about it, but he had essentially broken the rules, and there was no going around it. But then again, he knew that it must be done, or else their dimension won''t have the slightest chance of surviving. To him, it was worth breaking the rules and risking a demotion than leaving his Disciples and their particr dimension alone.

    With a satisfied smile on his face. He stretched his hands and controlled the spatial dimension he had put up so that he could have an audience with Satoshi. He was aware that his control over space was iparably refined than his fellow Managers, and that''s why he was confident that he won''t get caught just like that.

    "All the best to you, Satoshi." He muttered to himself as the room changed from an empty space into his usual room. As soon as he did that, he copsed on the couch and tried to rx. Despite being fairly certain he won''t get caught, he still felt the nervousness creeping up from behind him. There was no way the higher-ups wouldn''t know about it... and he knew it was only a matter of time before they became suspicious of his actions.

    "Now... where were we again?" He scratched his head as he bnced the staff on his hand. He had been gone from the gathering for far too long. In fact, he expected another Manager toe knocking on his door any moment now.

    Rap. Rap.

    Just as expected, someone came to pick him up. It was none other than the Manager with long white hair, donning a pristine white robe. "What are you doing here? The semifinals for the Official Beast Tournament are about to start soon. Aren''t you going to watch?" He asked.

    Even though he had already expected someone to pick him up, he was still surprised that someone did go out of his way. And it was none other than the strongest Manager himself. "You didn''t have to, I was just about to make my way there. In any case, are there any updates on the World Eater?" Bucky Barnes managed to remove suspicions on himself by smoothly changing the topic.

    "I see," The white-haired Manager rubbed his chin as a sinister smile appeared on his face. "Well, at the moment, we are aware that the World Eater is finally awake... or rather, we''ve already confirmed that it''s moving through dimensions as we speak. While we''re still not sure whether the prediction could be true, we also couldn''t rule out the fact that the higher-ups'' predictions have been spot-on in the past."

    "At this rate... their dimension is going to be destroyed... and there''s only so much we could do to help them." He continued.

    "Why are you smirking like that?" Bucky Barnes asked. Every time the white-haired Manager smirked, just like what he was doing right now, there was always something behind it. That''s why he just had to ask since it had already piqued his interest.

    "Well, I find it rather interesting that you''re taking this Official Beast Tournament seriously. So... who''s your Disciple?" The white-haired Manager asked as Bucky Barnes walked out of his room.

    Acting as if he had been caught red-handed, Bucky Barnes averted his gaze from him but he continued walking towards the room where the other Managers were gathered. "I''m telling you nothing." He blurted. His voice had a hint of nervousness in it, and the white-haired Manager had already caught wind of it.

    "You know what? After observing you and your reactions while watching the Official Beast Tournament, it''s easy to know who it was. Although I''m not a hundred percent sure that my guess would be correct... well, I''m pretty confident it is whom I think it is." He said, crossing his arms as he leaned forward. He wanted to see what expression Bucky Barnes was wearing. After all, he kept on turning his head away from him while they made their way to the room.

    "And who do you think it is?" Until then, Bucky was fairly certain he was messing with him. But now, something about his voice told him he wasn''t kidding. There was a good chance he already knew who his Disciple was.

    "Well, there''s this kid who had been rising up... defeating every single Disciple in the Official Beast Tournament as if he was crushing bugs under his feet. He never broke a sweat, and his battles were all one-sided. He''s undoubtedly the best beast tamer in the Official Beast Tournament... amongst the Disciples, I doubt that he''s the best, but there''s room for that argument if he wins the Official Beast Tournament by andslide."

    "There''s another beast tamer who had also caught our attention, and I''ve decided to recruit him as soon as possible. There''s a good chance that he''s already someone else''s Disciple, though... if he already did, I''ll find it hard to believe that he''s your Disciple. I heard that Yun Zhe guy talked to him about being a Disciple, but he had no idea what the term even meant. If that''s the case, then there''s no way he could be someone''s disciple, right? With that talent of his, though, I think he''ll be a great Disciple."

    "You''ve been bbering for too long. I stopped listening. So, who''s your guess? Who do you think is my Disciple, then?" Bucky Barnes asked, also crossing his arms and imitating the white-haired Manager''s gestures.

    "I already said his name... it''s that kid Yun Zhe, right? He''s your Disciple?" He asked, smiling.

    The tension rose between the two as their stares got into a deadlock. At first, Bucky Barnes didn''t want to admit that it was true... but after contemting it for a couple of seconds, he came to the realization that it would be better to tell the truth. It would be a great misdirection since everyone would believe what he said, and they won''t pry into any details when ites to his other Disciples.

    While it ismon knowledge that Managers could have more than one Disciple, most Managers don''t really reveal the names of all their Disciples right off the bat. "Well, you got me. But I don''t get why you Managers make a big deal out of whose Disciple is who." Shrugging his shoulders, Bucky Barnes went ahead of the white-haired Manager, rejoining everyone in the meeting room, iming his seat.

    "I knew it... they even have the same characteristics." The white-haired Manager chuckled.

    With this, there was no way that they''d ever assume Midoriyama Satoshi is already a Disciple.

    .....

    One moment, the three of them were in an unknown space; the next moment, they were back in the middle of the restroom. A couple of men who were in the urinals flinched upon seeing three people show up in thin air.

    Before Lydia could see anything that would scar her mind, Satoshi had already covered her eyes. She flinched, not because she was in the men''s bathroom, but because Satoshi was standing too close, his body was pressed against her back. The redness on her face became evident as they walked out of the bathroom.

    As for Ayano, she was slightly jealous of Satoshi''s rtionship with his childhood friend. She was embarrassed too, but there was no one who covered her eyes when they got out.

    "Ah- ! Don''t tell me," Satoshi muttered as he pointed a finger toward Ayano.

    "W-what is it?" Ayano asked, avoiding Satoshi''s line of sight in a bashful manner. She had assumed that Satoshi was about to ask her something embarrassing.

    "You saw what would happen in the future, and that''s why you followed me to the restroom. Was that it?" Satoshi asked, heaving a sigh of relief. At the very least, there was nothing weird with their actions.

    "Hmph!" For some reason, Ayano ''hmph''ed before she headed towards the stalls. Apparently, she couldn''t believe that Satoshi made her feel embarrassed for nothing.

    ...

    With the Official Beast Tournament entering the semifinals, the hyped atmosphere that enveloped the entire American Dome had reached its peak. There was still an hour or two lunch break before the semifinalsmenced, but most of the audience didn''t budge from their seats. They stayed glued to it while they patiently waited for the announcement of the semifinals.

    Meanwhile, the huge television screen in the middle of the American Dome showed the four contestants who would be participating in the semifinals. The first one on the list was a Korean named Kim Jin Seok, who had been matched up with weaker opponents, making it an easy climb for him toward the top four. There was nothing worth noting when it came down to it. Sure he could use the Dual Beast Integration, but he doesn''t have a Representative.

    Then there was White Mist, who, by a stroke of luck, managed to reach the finals despite having difficulty with his Dual Beast Integration. Even the audience was amazed at his luck.

    As for Satoshi and Yun Zhe, everyone already assumed that they would be the ones dominating the finals. No one questioned it.

    Pretty soon, breaktime hade to an end and themencement of the semifinals finally came.

 Chapter 383 Penta Beast Integration

    All throughout the Official Beast Tournament, Satoshi had always been ced in the first match, and somehow, he was getting really used to it. While Luke Skyrunner and thementator insisted that the matchups were randomly generated by aputer, the audience assumed otherwise. After all, there was no way someone would get that many ''firsts'' without someone rigging the matchups or something.

    Of course, there was no way that the event organizers would rig the matchup, but they couldn''t refute the usations since that''s what really happened. Somehow, Satoshi was always on the first match in all the previous rounds. That''s why, for the first time during the Official BEast Tournament, the event organizers brought it upon themselves to rig the matchups.

    As usual, Satoshi was in the first match, and he was matched against a certain someone named Yun Zhe. There was no doubt that the audience who had been waiting for the two of them to go head to head against each other would be so invested in their match.

    The event organizers wanted to milk their rivalry as much as they could, and that''s why they rigged the matchups. Instead of putting Satoshi in the first match of the semifinals as per the choice of the randomly generated matchups, they decided to put Satoshi in the second match.

    Furthermore, they also changed the matchups by putting Satoshi against Kim Jin Seok and putting Yun Zhe against White Mist. If anyone were to find out that they rigged the matchups just so they could peak in viewerships, they''d be frowned upon by the country, or worse, they''d be frowned upon by the whole world. Regardless, they went with the n. There was no turning back now since it had already happened.

    With this, the final matchups ended with White Mist and Yun Zhe in the first match and Satoshi against Kim Jin Seok in the second match.

    .....

    With the cornucopia of questions in his head, coupled with a bunch of conclusions that he thought up while contemting what just transpired in the men''s restroom, Satoshi paced back and forth, trying to wrap his head around the recent events.

    A part of him didn''t want to believe that a man named Bucky Barnes just so happened to be a Manager, and he went out of his way to warn him of the grim future that Earth has. Then again, there''s a big part of him that convinced his mind to every word that the suspicious Manager ryed to him. There was no way he''d just outright say something as a joke. If any, the destruction of the entire world, no, the entire dimension cannot be considered a joke.

    In one way or another, what Bucky Barnes said will most likely happen, and the reason why he warned Satoshi out of all people was because of his potential.

    "So I only have three months... at most... but why? Why do I need to do something about this?" He muttered to himself while he paced back and forth in the waiting room. "Ah, I knew it! I should probably tell the SAO about it, surely, they''ll believe me, and they''ll do something about it. There''s no way I can fight against this supposed World Eater all by myself."

    Heaving a sigh, Satoshi copsed on the couch as he watched the live stream of the semifinals. Everyone was focusing on the match, everyone except him. He didn''t want to think about the information that his Manager gave him... but his mind just defaulted into thinking about it; he couldn''t help it.

    "I''ll just tell Yun Zhe about this. I won''t tell him where I got the information, but I''m going to talk to him about it. Surely, he knows a thing or two about this World Eater." Satoshi muttered to himself.

    ...

    Back at the grand stage in the middle of the American Dome.

    Butterflies settled in White Mist''s stomach as he lingered by the entrance to the grand stage. He breathed in and out, trying to calm his nerves as he stole a nce towards the audience who had been cheering their names. The pressure was finally catching up on him, and he felt a tad bit nauseated.

    If it weren''t for his luck, he wouldn''t have gotten this far. There was something about that fact that made him feel guilty. Somehow, he managed to get to the semifinals even though he had great difficulty controlling his Dual Beast Integration. He knew that he didn''t deserve to be in his current spot, but he had no choice but to ept it. He didn''t really have that much of a choice, though.

    "Get it together, White Mist. You''re in the semifinals, for Pete''s sake." He muttered to himself with bated breaths.

    Luke Skyrunner and thementator were having a st describing both White Mist and Yun Zhe before they were given the cue to enter the grand stage. While all that was going on, White Mist was on the verge of shaking in his boots.

    "Allies during the third round, and now they''re back in the same grand stage as enemies. Let''s give it up for Yun Zhe and White Mist!"

    Three minutes had passed, and Yun Zhe and White Mist were finally called in. Putting up a false bravado, White Mist wore a smile on his face as he confidently walked in with a purposeful gait. He waved his hand towards the audience, trying his best not to stare too much at their expressions since it would just mentally affect him and his overall performance.

    As for Yun Zhe, he, too, started waving toward the audience, but he had a calmer smile on his face. He was going to win this match; he was sure of it. The match is basically over at this point.

    "Let''s have a great match." White Mist was the first one to greet Yun Zhe.

    "Sure, let''s have a great match."

    With the formalities out of the way, the referee once again assumed his position by the edge of the grand stage before he gave them the signal to start. He could feel the intensity of the two contestants even when he had already distanced himself from them. ''this is going to be a great match.'' The referee muttered to himself.

    "Start!"

    "Death Metronome, Jurah, White Wolf, we''re going to win this together, all right? I''m counting on you." White Mist didn''t hesitate to summon three of his most formidable, tamed beasts. He wasn''t going to stall for time. This was his only chance of winning, and he was willing to give it all he got in order to have a chance at getting to the finals.

    "You''re going to pull out all the stops, huh? Then don''t mind if I do too."

    "Primordial Excalibur, Golden Armored Bug, Steel Tapir, Steel Fairy. You know what to do, right?" Yun Zhe asked, summoning his Representative as well as his three other tamed beasts for his signature Quad Beast Integration.

    "No, you won''t!" White Mist immediately integrated with his Death Metronome, putting a curse on the nearest tamed beast. He managed to put a curse on the Primordial Excalibur.

    A satisfactory smile formed on White Mist''s face as he realized that he had lucked out. Not only did he sessfully curse one of the four tamed beasts that Yun Zhe needed for his epic transformation, but he also got the strongest of them all, the Primordial Excalibur.

    He wasn''t the only one smiling, though. As it turned out, Yun Zhe was also smiling. In fact, he was even on the verge of bursting his lungs out fromughter.

    "Bell curse cuts the hp of a tamed beast to one, but in return, they put a curse on their opponent, which would disable them from attacking your Death Metronome. Also, there''s a time constraint on the curse, so my Primordial Excalibur would faint either way." Yun Zhe exined as he pulled out another tamed beast from his possession.

    "But the thing is... your Death Metronome can only use the Bell Curse once a day, right? And I hate to break it up to you, but... the Primordial Excalibur is immune to curses." Yun Zhe continued. "Let''s go, Ghoulst; help me out here."

    Before White Mist could recover from what Yun Zhe had just said, Yun Zhe summoned the final piece for his epic transformation. Apparently, the Quad Beast Integration is child''s y for Yun Zhe, and the fifth tamed beast of the Exodia: The Forbidden One had finally surfaced.

    "This is the fifth tamed beast that wouldplete my transformation." Yun Zhe announced, putting forth his hands toward five of his tamed beasts.

    "Behold! Penta Beast Integration!!!"

    Bright light once again enveloped the grand stage, but it was even brighter than ever before. The striking blind light filled the entire dome, causing the people to turn away or cover their eyes because it stung.

    By the time the light dissipated, Yun Zhe could be seen floating in mid-air with his usual mecha transformation. As usual, he had the mecha wings, the gigantic mecha steel ring behind him, and the sword and shield paired with his armor.

    This time around, though, a ghastly shadow appeared behind him, its shadowy smoky hands outstretched as if hugging him from behind.

    "What on... Penta Beast Integration? Is such a thing even possible?" White Mist''s eyes widened as he despaired, looking at Yun Zhe, who overpowered him in all the right ces.

 Chapter 384 White Mists Comeback

    Adding salt to his inconceivable wounds, the drone cams started circling around White Mist from afar, focusing on the slightest changes in his expression. They were like bullies, waiting for White Mist''s downfall before they pressed down on him mercilessly.

    "What on... Penta Beast Integration? Is such a thing even possible?" White Mist''s eyes widened as he despaired, looking at Yun Zhe, who overpowered him in all categories.

    At first, White Mist''s face was filled with hopeful eagerness as he was able to act first. There was a moment when White Mist had assumed that the possibility of a victory could be achieved. After all, he managed to summon his trusty Representative, the Death Metronome, and he managed to curse his opponent''s Representative. It was all going well...

    ... it was all going incredibly well until Yun Zhe revealed one of his hidden trump cards. As it turned out, his Representative, the Primordial Excalibur, wasn''t affected by curses at all.

    White Mist''s path to victory vanished in an instant. One moment it was seeable; the next moment, it was nonexistent. With that shred of hope gone, White Mist''s face shifted from a rigid smile to straight-up despair.

    Helplessness overcame him as he stared at the all-powerful Yun Zhe in front of him with his Exodia: The Forbidden One transformation. He was aware of the reference, and he knew that once such abination was activated, there was no going back.

    In simple terms, he had already lost before the fight had even started.

    White Mist looked up at Yun Zhe, barely managing to regain his tranquility while heavily breathing in and out. As for Yun Zhe, he patiently waited for White Mist to react. Even though he could''ve just knocked down White Mist right then and there, he still waited.

    He wanted to have a decent fight against him, and besides, there was no way the audience would find it eptable if he were to attack White Mist before he could even prepare.

    "I''m not going to wait all day, old man. It''s either you integrate with your tamed beasts, or you forfeit." For one, Yun Zhe absolutely despised a forfeit. That''s why he was patiently waiting for White Mist to act. But then again, there was nothing he could do if White Mist decided to forfeit.

    In the face of great power, one would just stare in awe without questioning its legitimacy. White Mist was experiencing such enlightenment, and he gulped to reenact, swallowing his pride before he raised his hand to forfeit.

    With the time pressure on him, coupled with the audience who held their breaths while waiting for his next move, White Mist turned away from Yun Zhe as he inadvertently closed his eyes in frustration. There was no doubt about it...

    ... his era... his era had ended. The curtains had finally been drawn on his reign as the beast master of the Earth. It was time for him to humbly step down and give way to the new generations of beast tamers who hade a long way and had be superior to him.

    Clenching his fists while raising his hand, White Mist was about to forfeit the match.

    "Oi~?!! WHAT ARE YOU UP TO, OLD MAN?! DON''T TELL ME YOU''RE GOING TO DISAPPOINT EVERYONE AND FORFEIT?!" A familiar voice screamed from the audience.

    White Mist and Yun Zhe stopped short as the man continued speaking. He was none other than Jack S. Michael (the number one superhero of America who goes by the superhero name Star Spangled). Apparently, he had been staying undercover within the crowd since he didn''t want all the attention to be directed at him.

    "LAST TIME I HEARD, YOU''RE STILL THE RENOWNED BEAST MASTER! DON''T GIVE UP TOO EARLY, YOU OLD FOOL! SHOW THEM WHAT A BEAST MASTER IS ALL ABOUT!"

    "ARE YOU GOING TO FIGHT OR NOT?!" He screamed for thest time.

    Meanwhile, the audience, who had a different mindset, finally realized what was going on. For thest couple of years, they had considered White Mist to be the most powerful, most formidable beast tamer in the entire world.

    But now, they''ve gotten too used to the new generation with their dual beast integration here and there. Undoubtedly, they had overshadowed White Mist''s presence, but that didn''t give the audience an excuse not to support him.

    At the end of the day, White Mist is still one of the top ten, an American Superhero who has taken care of countless catastrophes with his superb skill as a beast tamer. He was there when the country needed him, but now that he needed the country to support him, they were nowhere to be found.

    A change of heart soon swept all over the audience. It was all thanks to that heartfelt speech (or scream)ing from the number one superhero. Starting from one spectator, who was holding a newspaper right beside Star Spangled, stood up and started chanting White Mist''s name.

    Then another one stood up, pumping his fist while cheering for White Mist as well. The chain reaction soon reached the farthest corners of the audience, and a majority of them started cheering for the former beast master.

    "White Mist! White Mist! White Mist!"

    And yes, White Mist''s name is really White Mist. He''s one of those superheroes who used his real name as his superhero name. It''s not at all weird during his generation, but then again, it''s extremely outdated for a superhero name these days. (It still sounds rather cool though, a fitting superhero name for a beast tamer)

    Even Satoshi and the others who had only known White Mist for a couple of weeks started cheering for him as well (Satoshi was still in his waiting room, but he joined in on the fun).

    "Would you look at that. It looks like you still have a lot of fans, old man." Yun Zhe turned around to face the audience, who had been chanting his opponent''s name. He didn''t feel at all bad about it.

    After all, if the cheers were enough to get White Mist to fight, then it had done its job. White Mist would get the redemption he deserves, and Yun Zhe would get the fight he wanted. It''s a win-win situation for the two of them.

    White Mist''s expression softened as he rubbed his nose. He tried to hide his bashfulness, but it leaked out of his face. "I''m sorry. Could you wait for me for a couple of seconds? I swear I''m going to give you all I got." White Mist asked such an absurd request.

    "Old man, I''ve been waiting for you for more than five minutes. Can''t you hurry it up?" Yun Zhe called out, extending his hands towards the audience while cheering for White Mist''s name as well. He figured he''d chime in while waiting for the beast master to sort himself out with his beast integration.

    "Ready whenever you are, old man." He continued.

    "Working on it."

    White Mist started with his most stable beast integration¡ª the White Wolf. Throughout the years, the White Wolf had been his partner in most of his missions, and he had activated beast integration countless times with it. That''s why he was confident that the beast integration wouldn''t deactivate even when he attempted a Dual Beast Integration.

    "Satoshi did say that I shouldn''t focus on one tamed beast but rather focus on two at the same time... man, I hope I seed properly this time." White Mist muttered to himself.

    This time, he used the Beast Integration on his Death Metronome and Jurah. He figured that he''d do both of them at the same time since it would be more unstable if he integrated them one by one. He had seen Satoshi integrate with three of his tamed beasts at the same time, and that gave him the inspiration to try it.

    Grunt.

    Holding his breath, so much so that he was about to burst, White Mist tried to keep everything under control. His mind felt like it was going to split open, and his head had turned a nice shade of red while the beast integration went on. Of course, no one saw such an embarrassing sight since he was illuminated with a bright light while all that was going on.

    Everyone shortly stopped chanting White Mist''s name while the transformation took ce. They were well aware that White Mist could hardly perform the Dual Beast Integration, and now he was attempting a Trinity Beast Integration. His actions screamed of failure, but everyone wished that he''d seed deep inside.

    Even Yun Zhe, who had been watching the entire process from up close, had hoped that White Mist would seed. Because if he didn''t, then he won''t be able to fight against him just as he had wanted to all this time.

    Then the brightness dissipated. White Mist looked oddly different. He was covered in fur, and the head of the White Wolf wasfortably nestled on his head. His arms were long and slender, which was one of the main features that Death Metronome was supposed to have. And on his chest was a burning ck wisp of me that danced with the breeze.

    He had sessfully activated the Trinity Beast Integration.

    "Now we''re talking." Yun Zhe''s lips curved upward as he brought his arms up in a defensive stance.

 Chapter 385 The Fight Of Surrender

    White Mist was sessful with his Trinity Beast Integration, but the instability of his transformation was still getting to him. Nevertheless, he was ted that the beast integration was sessful. It may not be his first time integrating with tamed beasts, but it is undoubtedly his first time integrating with three tamed beasts at once.

    "Good job pulling that off for the first time." Yun Zheplimented as he slowly descended on the grand stage. He didn''t bother rushing White Mist since he was still unstable. If he attacked him by surprise now, he''d lose right then and there without putting up a fraction of a fight.

    Apparently, it was already keeping White Mist every bit of his consciousness to keep up with the Trinity Beast Integration. He tried too hard to put up a front, though, since he didn''t want to make it too apparent that he was struggling.

    Yun Zhe knew how hard it was to integrate with three tamed beasts for the first time. He actuallymended White Mist for doing it on his first try. There was no doubt that he had the talent for beast taming, but he didn''t have the right prior experience, and that''s why the new generation left him behind.

    Straining his lower back, White Mist crouched on all fours in preparation for his speedy attack. There were plenty of chances when Yun Zhe could''ve attacked him, but he didn''t take any of that chances. In fact, this made White Mist a bit hesitant to attack Yun Zhe first since he had disyed such high-level sportsmanship. It was the semifinals, and he still had the gall to act like that.

    Yun Zhe immediately noticed White Mist changing his stance, and he, too, braced himself for the impact. Underneath the helmet Yun Zhe was wearing, he was smiling from ear to ear. This was what he had been waiting for. The moment White Mist''s attack connects, themencement of the fight can finally happen.

    A mysterious aura surrounded White Mist as he utilized the power of his legendary tamed beast Jurah. Yun Zhe couldn''t pinpoint what White Mist was doing, but he could tell he was going to attack soon.

    Jurah has psychic typing, which is why it''s instrumental in offense and defense. Right now, though, White Mist decided to employ Jurah''s skills purely for defense. This would give Death Metronome and the White Wolf freedom regarding offense.

    Slowly, an invisible barrier enveloped White Mist while he continued crouching. No one could see nor detect the barrier since it was constructed out of thin air, thanks to Jura''s psychic capabilities. Even Yun Zhe, who had been monitoring White Mist''s slight gestures, couldn''t tell what he was doing.

    White Mist''s n worked better¡ª much better than he had initially expected.

    Meanwhile, the audience unanimously decided to stop holding their breaths since White Mist took too long with the suspense.

    "Hah!" White Mist suddenly screamed as his hind legs dug to the ground before he sprung forward. His insane burst of speed created sonic booms, and a crater was left behind where he was standing a split second ago. In an instant, he cleared the distance between himself and Yun Zhe andshed out both his arms in an x-scissor attack.

    Yun Zhe was fast. In fact, even Satoshi was overwhelmed by his speed just by watching his fights. And yet, not only did White Mist catch up to him, but he also managed to attack him. And the attack connected!

    A low grunt was hearding from Yun Zhe as he brought his shield up to intercept the attack. That didn''t stop him from flying backward in the air, though, since the attack was more explosive than he thought.

    Then again, this was what Yun Zhe expected from the first attack. He suffered an attack, but not a single scratch or chink was found on his shield or his armor. The attack was powerful, sure, but it wasn''t substantial enough to pierce through his armor.

    Instead of being rmed by the attack, Yun Zhe actually felt delighted by the turn of events. Now he can finally go all out, and White Mist can finally properly put up a good fight. He let his momentum carry him backward before he flew upward, unsheathing the Primordial Excalibur and shing it toward White Mist.

    "Triple sh!" Yun Zhe called out. There was no such thing as a triple-sh attack, but he figured it would look much nicer if he were to yell it as a signature move. After the first sh, Yun Zhe spun around and delivered another sh and then another. Three wind des traveled through the air.

    Just like White Mist, the wind des also created sonic booms as they pierced through the air. White Mist sidestepped and somersaulted twice, barely avoiding the wind des by the skin of the teeth.

    "Primordial beam of death!" Yun Zhe screamed a second time, extending the Primordial Excalibur and pointing it at White Mist. A powerful crimson-colored beam then shot out of the tip of the greatsword, and it burst forth toward White Mist.

    Utilizing the White Wolf''s instincts this time, White Mist dug his ''hand ws'' to the ground and charged forward, performing what seemed to be a screwdriver vault in midair. He increased in speed, and the beam singed the hair on his back as he spun. Once again, he dodged the attack by a hair''s breadth before he nned a counterattack.

    "Invisible wall." White Mist said to himself, prompting an invisible wall behind Yun Zhe using Jurah''s psychic abilities. This way, White Mist cut off one of Yun Zhe''s paths of escape, limiting him from going sidewards if he were to attempt to dodge the attack.

    "Curse Beam!" White Mist continued, his hands transforming into long slender hands resembling a puppet''s hands. This was one of Death Metronome''s hidden skills, and White Mist had never used it before. After all, this was so powerful that it could instantly kill his opponent.

    That''s why, even when his title as a beast master was at stake during the fight against Jean Grey, he didn''t use such an attack. The Bell Curse was already overpowered as it was, but the Curse Beam was even more so.

    This was the first time Yun Zhe had heard of such an attack, and he wore a confused expression on his face while he observed White Mist''s next move. As soon as his hands transformed into paper-like slender appendages, his hands then shifted into the shape of a cannon, and a beam shot out from it.

    The beam was unlike any other. Even the audience could sense the sinister presence behind the ck smoky beam that shot out from White Mist''s hands. The ck smoke gave it the illusion that it was a slow beam, but it was much fasterpared to White Mist''s supposed ''primordial beam of death''.

    Yun Zhe was also a victim of the illusion, and he wasn''t able to dodge the attack. In reality, he was even a step toote to detect such a powerful beam.

    The steel ring behind him could manifest a dimensional portal and teleport him somewhere nearby in an instant, not to mention his great shield, which can block any attack without difficulty. Yun Zhe wasn''t able to use both of these, and he received the full brunt of the Curse Beam.

    "AND YUN ZHE''S HIT! FOR THE SECOND TIME, WHITE MIST CAUGHT UP TO YUN ZHE! UNBELIEVABLE!" Thementator shrieked at the microphone as his saliva flew out in multiple directions.

    "He''ll live through that." One random audiencemented.

    "Yeah, he''s got full armor; there''s no way such a beam could pierce through that."

    "Yep, there''s just no way. From the start, White Mist was already at a disadvantage. One attack or two wouldn''t matter that much."

    "You saw how Yun Zhe tanked those shes a moment ago, right? This attack wouldn''t pierce through, I''m sure of it."

    "You''re right. Still, White Mist''s putting up a good fight. I want to cheer for him all the way."

    "Me too."

    "Me too."

    As the audience debated whether the attack would pierce through Yun Zhe''s armor or not, White Mist was already smiling to himself. The attack had gotten through, and Yun Zhe clearly underestimated it since he didn''t bother putting up his shield or prompting a dimensional portal in front of the attack.

    What White Mist didn''t know was that Yun Zhe made a mistake in gauging the beam''s distance, which is why he couldn''t act. In other words, it was White Mist''s lucky break.

    The attack connected, and the beam hit Yun Zhe squarely in the chest. Still, the audience brushed it off, telling themselves that the attack wouldn''t do any damage.

    White Mist''s smile grew wider. He was this close to chuckling.

    And then... Yun Zhe started screaming. It wasn''t just one''s typical scream when one got hurt, it was a scream of agony, a scream of excruciating pain.

    The audience gasped in utter disbelief.

 Chapter 386 A Sudden Upset

    It was a scene straight out of a horror movie as Yun Zhe started screaming. His agonizing cry reached the farthest row of the audience, giving them shivers. The nearer audience had it worse since they could clearly see Yun Zhe helplessly spasming in mid-air. He had his full armor and shield at his disposal, but those were deemed useless by the ''Curse Beam'' that shot out of White Mist''s hand.

    Curse Beam, while it seemed like an attack that was named by a three-year-old, it was one of the most potent tricks up White Mist''s sleeve. He had never used it in a fight because of how dangerous it was. It could kill the opponent in one hit¡ª such was the deathly nature of the Curse Beam.

    However, Yun Zhe was an overwhelmingly formidable opponent. Never in the history of beast tamers did anyone achieve a Penta Beast Integration. And yet, Yun Zhe pulled it off effortlessly. It was a walk in the park for him.

    And that''s the reason why White Mist considered using the Curse Beam attack in the first ce.

    The Curse Beam is prative in its nature. Like any other attack at Death Metronome''s disposal, the Curse Beam affects the natural order of life, giving it the unique characteristic of ignoring anyone''s additional defensive statuses. Simply put, the Curse Beam could damage the opponent directly while piercing through any defense.

    White Mist didn''t bother exining the attack to Yun Zhe. It had connected, and Yun Zhe suffered severe damage because of it.

    In a snap of a finger, the fight that heavily favored Yun Zhe began tipping in White Mist''s favor. White Mist was winning, and victory was now in in sight as White Mist wrapped it up.

    Once the attack dissipated and Yun Zhe was seen in in sight. Another series of gasps erupted from the audience as blood outwardly sprinkled from the gaps between Yun Zhe''s armor. It was indeed a cursed beam since it had left Yun Zhe bleeding all over.

    A blood pool started forming underneath Yun Zhe as he slowly descended. Despite his sorry state, he kept his head up, and his posture remained as straight as a stick. He didn''t want the audience to take pity on him even when he had been suffering. He wanted to curl his whole body up, but he fought the urge since he didn''t want to appear unsightly in front of the audience.

    "That was a pretty powerful attack you got there, White Mist." Yun Zhe''s hoarse voice was evidence of his bloodied state. Mustering all his strength, he prompted the Primordial Excalibur on his shoulder while he steadied himself. It took all of his being to remain standing.

    "You took it like a champ, though. Are you all right?" There was a hint of sarcasm in White Mist''s voice. His n had worked, and victory was well within his grasp for all he knew.

    Yun Zhe coughed as his body almost tipped forward like a teetering building. Instead of using the Primordial Excalibur to right himself, he took a step forward to regain his bnce. The attack sure did a number on him, but he could recover if he bought enough time for himself.

    "I thought I could take it. I clearly underestimated that beam. Who on earth names such a powerful attack with a ridiculous term?" Yun Zhe shrugged as if he wasn''t coughing blood as he spoke.

    The parents who were watching even had to step in and cover their children''s eyes since the gore was not something they could stomach themselves. But as usual, the children got even more curious and started wing their parents'' hands to get a glimpse. The blood was well censored in the live stream, so they didn''t worry about the underaged on that end.

    While stalling for time, Yun Zhe evened his breathing while focusing on his Primordial Excalibur''s healing properties. In essence, the Curse Beam severely damaged him and put a curse within his body that stopped his regeneration abilities. Because of that, he had to rely entirely on his Representative, Primordial Excalibur, to eliminate the curse and begin the healing process.

    "I guess this puts at an even ground, huh? Your current level is approximately the same level as me in this sorry state." A smirk appeared on Yun Zhe''s face as he removed his helmet. (Well, he didn''t really remove it. It just disappeared since he wanted it to.)

    "You know... I''m sorry about this, Yun Zhe, but I''m the one winning this match." White Mist proimed, charging at Yun Zhe for the second time. He could tell what Yun Zhe was trying to do at that moment, and he decided to stifle it.

    "Well, I thought it''d work. At least I tried." Yun Zhe muttered to himself as he threw his shield at White Mist.

    The white shield with gold engravings initially had a typical shape of an escutcheon. But after throwing it in the air, it began spinning at an rming speed, and then it changed shape. What was once an escutcheon shape then shifted into a perfect circle, and it elerated through the air faster than White Mist had anticipated.

    "What the¡ª " White Mist called out as he extended his hands (still in the shape of Death Metronome''s creepy elongated hands). Since he couldn''t dodge the shield anymore, he decided to catch it and throw it back.

    But that''s where he messed up. As it turned out, the shield had a will of its own, just like all the other equips that White Mist had, thanks to his beast integration.

    As soon as White Mist reached his hand, the shield spun even faster and its edges turned into a de of sorts. Now it resembled a buzz saw more than a shield.

    Kishchsck~!

    It was hard to describe the sound of flesh being torn open together and bones shattering into little pieces. Some of the audience stood up at the barbarism of the attack, and thementator let out a timely scream as soon as the ''shield'' connected with White Mist''s flesh.

    The shield was supposed to be caught by White Mist, but it spun even faster and cut through White Mist''s palm straight through his forearm. In the process, it popped his elbow. His radius and ulna didn''t get away from the cruelty either since they were shattered to pieces as well.

    Now it was White Mist''s turn to scream as the pain shot from his hand to his brain. The shield could''ve cut his hand through, but to everyone''s surprise, it took a sharp turn to the left and cut White Mist''s other hand before returning to its owner.

    As White Mist''s face contorted into a squeamish expression, it was White Mist who smirked this time.

    "It looks like you''re not worthy of catching the shield." Yun Zhemented as he caught the shield by its edge. It stopped spinning right before Yun Zhe caught it, causing White Mist to snort at the unpredictability of the projectile.

    "Curse Redo," White Mist grunted.

    Before Yun Zhe could attack for a second time, White Mist muttered another skill that Death Metronome had. His hands, torn to shreds, suddenly started spinning (it looked like it was spinning but was actually regaining its previous state.)

    A split secondter, White Mist''s hands returned to normal. It didn''t even look like he suffered any significant injuries from the shield attack.

    Or so it would seem.

    "That hurt." White Mist muttered as he clenched and unclenched his fist to intimidate Yun Zhe. While it may look like White Mist wasn''t struggling at all, he was actually in a way worse state. Compared to what everyone assumed, he really did suffer major injuries from the attack.

    The only reason it didn''t look that way was his skill, Curse Redo. Curse Redo allows the user to return to his original state in a limited time. Curse Redo works by putting a curse on the user and redoing what happened in the past. In this case, the curse redoed the injury. That doesn''t mean the injury was gone, but it temporarily alleviated its effects.

    White Mist only had three minutes left before his skill deactivates. Once that timer ends, there was no way he''d be able to defeat White Mist with a bludgeoned right hand.

    The fight was finally in its gunp. On one end was Yun Zhe, who was doing way worse than White Mist because he was bleeding all over. And then there was White Mist, who was at a disadvantage since he could only attain Trinity Beast Integration. On top of that, his hand was shredded to pieces, and he only had three minutes before it reverted to that injured state.

    Nod.

    Nod.

    For some reason, White Mist and Yun Zhe nodded at each other. They have decided to pour their everything into one final attack. This finale would dictate whether one or the other was victorious or not.

    White Mist and Yun Zhe started screaming at the top of their lungs.

 Chapter 387 Without Holding Back

    A mesmerizing aura of gold and white suddenly erupted from Yun Zhe. His raw power leaked out of his body as he screamed. The energy contained within his tamed beasts was running rampant as he finally prepared onest attack to end the match for good.

    The same went for White Mist. Joining Yun Zhe''s chorus, White Mist''s scream filled the grand stage along with Yun Zhe''s warcry. Together, the two of them brought all their cards to the table. There was no turning back. Whoever unleashes a more powerful attack will be the one to bag the trophy. That''s all there is to it.

    Compared to Yun Zhe, White Mist was enveloped with a grayish aura. Right now, he was utilizing everything he had. A defeat awaited him if he couldn''t pull this attack off.

    White Mist was already in a pinch (he could barely control his Trinity Beast Integration), but he didn''t think about his disadvantages at all. Right now, he was just as fixated on his opponent as how the audience was fixated on the match.

    WAGGGHHH~

    GRAAAGGHH~

    A couple of secondster, the two of them stopped screaming. They locked eyes with each other as they firmly gripped their weapon of choice. On the one hand, Yun Zhe wielded an ominous-looking staff, courtesy of Jurah and its mastery over psychic abilities. On the other hand, Yun Zhe adjusted his grip on the Primordial Excalibur. He dreaded the thought of his hands slipping as he dealt the final blow to White Mist.

    The wind pressure emanating from the two created tornado-like gusts that blew right at the audience. It was just harmless wind. That''s why the barrier didn''t stop it from seeping through and giving the audience a more engaging experience.

    "May the force be with you," White Mist muttered under his breath. He was ready to unleash his do-or-die attack.

    "You too." Yun Zhe responded, gritting his teeth.

    "No, you''re supposed to say it back... you know what, never mind." White Mist shook his head before bringing his hand up. The staff on his hand started glowing, and ck smoke oozed out from it.

    "See you on the other side." Yun Zhe muttered.

    "You too." White Mist returned, wondering why Yun Zhe said another punchline when he was the first to express his.

    "No, you''re supposed to say it back." Yun Zhe sighed.

    After their exchange, Yun Zhe put up the Primordial Sword and nted his feet on the ground. The time hase for their attacks to sh.

    Yun Zhe was the first one to move. Straining his ankles, he pressed his foot on the ground, creating yet another crater on the grand stage as he elerated forward. At thest second, he decided to wear his helmet since his face would embarrassingly contort if he didn''t.

    As for White Mist, he, too, started charging at Yun Zhe even though he didn''t need to. He wanted to act shy for the hype, so he charged at Yun Zhe.

    Yun Zhe screamed.

    White Mist screamed.

    As soon as they shed in the middle of the grand stage, a ''grand'' explosion urred,parable to White Mist''s explosion during their tag battle on the fourth round.

    BABAM!

    .....

    "Do you want to be my disciple?"

    "Um, no? What are you talking about? Why would I be your Disciple?"

    "I know it''s weird. But I should have asked your parents first. That said, you didn''t have any parents. Fortunately, they permitted me to talk to you directly. Usually, it''s not allowed."

    "Ouch, thanks for reminding me that I don''t have any parents."

    "I''m not reminding you anything. I''m just stating the fact. In any case, kid, are you in or not?"

    "Me? A disciple? Of course, I''m out. You''re probably going to sell me off or something."

    "I''m in your dream. How could I sell you if I can''t meddle directly in your life? Talking to you is already a stretch as it is. Look, if you want in or out, tell me. But just so you know, once you denied my offer, the other Managers would bug you to no end until you epted one of us."

    "What a pain... so I get to suffer in my dreams as well? Wow, can''t I get a break?"

    "That''s why I''m asking you, are you in or not?"

    "I... I''m not sure. If you''re talking in my dreams, then that means your legit. Are you a superhero? Are you going to open up an agency and recruit me?"

    "Well, based on Earthly standards... yeah, something like that. I''m recruiting powerful children like you who''s got the potential to change the world. And then I''ll be giving you blessings and stuff. It''s more like a buff or a power-up, not really a blessing. I''m not a God."

    "But I don''t have a superpower. How do you know if I have the potential or not?"

    "You were chosen. And it''s our duty as Managers to look after you."

    "Chosen? For what?"

    "To change the world? To save the world? In any case, you were chosen to do good with your superpower. If you don''t want that, then just say you''re out."

    "So if I said yes, I''ll be stronger in the future and have the power to save the world? If I work really hard, would I be strong enough to protect everyone?"

    "It depends on how much effort you put in. But yes, if you say yes, you''ll have the strength to protect those you want to protect. With my guidance, you can even be powerful enough to save the world if it falls in danger. Then again, it''s not like a kid like you would understand what I''m talking about."

    "I''m old enough. I''m in middle school."

    "Sure, kid, so you''re in, right?"

    White Mist nodded.

    "All right, you''ll be seeing¡ª wait, no¡ª you''ll be seeing more of me from now on. Congrattions, you''re now officially my Disciple. The name''s Bond, James Bond."

    "James Bond? Like the spy?"

    "No, James Bond, like the spy."

    White Mist could''ve sworn that the Manager, who called himself James Bond, smiled at him. When he woke up the following day, he was greeted by the Director himself. The reason was that he was one of the few children who hadn''t awakened any superpower yet. That''s why they''d have to undergo physical training in the morning. Those who had already awakened their superpowers were sent to hero schools so they could further their development there.

    This was one of those days when White Mist was more motivated than usual. The dream gave him the drive he needed.

    A few dayster, he would awaken his superpower as expected.

    .....

    Back to the present,

    It was a long-forgotten memory, and somehow it surfaced just when their attacks collided. Yun Zhe''s Primordial Excalibur sword shes against White Mist''s overpowered Curse Beam.

    BABAM!

    Silence soon followed the explosion as the audience peeled their eyes out to be the first ones to witness who the victor would be. Thementator and Luke Skyrunner directed the drones nearer so they''d be the first ones to announce the results before the audience started screaming.

    When the smoke finally cleared, everyone saw White Mist and Yun Zhe still standing. Their clothes were reduced to tattered rags, and there was blood all over their body, but they were both standing. Their beast integration was forcefully deleted, and they were on the verge of losing consciousness.

    The only reason they were still standing was that the adrenaline coursing through their bodies had peaked. Also, their willpower was giving them the extra push they needed.

    "That was a great fight." White Mist didn''t say it to Yun Zhe even though it seemed like it. He said to himself,mending his performance. He did not give up until the end and pulled through even when he was immensely disadvantaged. At the end of the day, he deserved the pat on the back, courtesy of him.

    "It was." Yun Zhe breathed heavily as he responded.

    Thud.

    With a smile stered on his face, White Mist gloriously fell on the battlefield. His willpower had run out first, and he lost consciousness. This marked the end of the semifinals, granting the trophy to Yun Zhe who was still standing.

    A few secondster, Yun Zhe''s knees gave in as well and he felt a little dizzy due to blood loss. He didn''t faint but was on the verge of doing so. By the time the medics arrived at the scene, Yun Zhe couldn''t walk anymore, and he had to be escorted out of the grand stage.

    "That was a great fight, all right." Yun Zhe smiled to himself. Albeit having his hands on the shoulders of two other people, he still had difficulty walking.

    Looking back at the audience, who was still dead silent, he raised his fists in the air¡ª the mark of victory.

    This snapped the audience back to the present, and they started screaming while thementators announced the winner.

 Chapter 389 Cheering You On

    "Elimine-san? What are you doing here?" A familiar voice asked her out of nowhere, causing her to turn around in surprise.

    It was none other than Satoshi.

    Out of impulse, she averted her gaze from Satoshi and bashfully hid her face with her hair. While she initially came to the American Dome to cheer Satoshi on in his match, she was not ready to see him all of a sudden. There was no way she could exin to Satoshi that she went there for him.

    "Elimine-san? Elimine-san?" Satoshi called as he leaned to the side. There was no chance he''d mistake Elimine for someone else, but he was beginning to doubt himself at this point. Elimine was trying to avoid his gaze after all.

    After clearing her throat, Elimine-san acted clueless as she turned her head. Once again, her eyes met Satoshi, stering a smile on her face as if this was her first time seeing Satoshi.

    There was no doubt in Satoshi''s mind anymore. Elimine was really there with him.

    "Ah, Satoshi, what are you doing here?" Elimine returned Satoshi''s question with another question. Obviously, she wanted to change the topic, but she had already expected Satoshi to shut her down and ask her again why she was there in the first ce.

    "I''m going around checking some of the stalls before my next match. When did you arrive?" Satoshi asked, handing Elimine the candy apple he initially bought for Aira.

    "Uhm... this morning?" She cleared her throat for the second time. It was definitely suspicious since she had been looking left and right as she spoke.

    Then again, Satoshi didn''t think that much about her actions. He was just surprised that she was here when she should''ve been in the agency.

    With a slight bow, Elimine epted the candy apple and started eating. Subconsciously, she stood beside Satoshi, urging him to walk while she followed. Since Satoshi was still taking a stroll around the ce, she figured she''d just apany him.

    As for Satoshi, he assumed that Elimine wanted to look at the stalls, but she couldn''t bring herself to do so. That''s why he didn''t think twice about apanying her. He had time to kill before the match.

    "Elimine-san, are you here to cheer me on?" Satoshi teasingly asked, hoping to get a reaction from her. Of course, there was no way she came all the way to America to cheer him on, she must''ve wanted to watch the Official Beast Tournament live.

    "What? No... well, I dide for that, but I also wanted to¡ª" Elimine-san choked on her saliva when her gaze locked on something.

    There, right by the end of the line of stalls was Ayano, Lydia, and Aira, walking together. They were eating the same candy apples as her.

    "Eek~" Elimina-san let out as she turned around. It was toote, however, since she was already seen by the three. No matter what she did, it was already over, she had been found out before she had the time to exin herself to Satoshi.

    "Eh? Isn''t that... Elimine? What are you doing here? Shouldn''t you be at the agency?" Ayano (superhero name Eye Goddess, seventh rank in the SAO rankings) couldn''t believe her eyes. She had to squint as the three of them approached Elimine and Satoshi.

    "Ah~ it''s Plume!'' Lydia added. There was no mistaking the silvery wings attached to her back.

    "Plume?" Aira trailed off while licking the candy apples. Who knows just how many candy apples she had consumed just on that day?

    Clearing her throat once again, Elimine mustered her courage before looking at Ayano and the others. She had no excuse for skipping work that day. However, she believed in herself that her actions were justified.

    In hindsight, Ayano and Lydia were also supposed to be in the agency, but they skipped work and flew toward America just to watch the Official Beast Tournament live. In other words, the two of them did it first, and Elimine was just following in their footsteps. If there was someone to me, then it was the two of them for starting this chain of skipping work.

    "It''s unfair... the two of you flew straight here without even telling me, that''s why I was forced to follow you. It''s not like I fully intended to skip on work." Elimine twiddled her thumbs before she continued. "Besides, my only task for today was to report to you in the delegation of tasks for the recruit. In that regard, I wasn''t skipping work. I went all the way here for the report." She was quick on her feet when it came to cooking up a reason.

    "Oh, so you''re here for the report, huh? Where is it?" Ayano asked, challenging Elimine''s credibility. While she hasn''t looked into the future to see the oue of this situation, she was confident that Elimine didn''t bring any report with her.

    For Ayano, it was easy to tell that Elimine flew from Japan all the way to New York as soon as she found out about their whereabouts. It couldn''t possibly have urred in Elimine''s mind to bring a report.

    "The report? O-of course, I have it with me." Elimine defended herself as she rummaged through her pockets. She always brings her phone with her. And just this morning, she double-checked to see if she uploaded her report to her device before leaving home. Her confidence was not misced, not in the least.

    Without wasting another second, Elimine rummaged through her pockets. She just needed to show the file to Ayano and get it over with.

    All the color drained from Elimine''s face as she realized what had happened. No wonder Ayano had a confident expression on her face (Elimine and Ayano were not on the same page, however).

    ''From the start, she knew... she knew about this!'' Elimine said to herself as she touched all her pockets. There was no sign of her phone!

    "Where did it go?" Elimine worriedly asked herself. She wasn''t concerned about the phone whatsoever. At present, she was more worried about losing face in front of Satoshi, more than she was concerned about the location of her phone.

    ''Don''t tell me¡ª'' Elimine looked at Satoshi as her mouth turned into an o-shape. ''Did I... Did I drop my phone while I was flying through the Pacific Ocean? What?! No way!''

    "Ayano-san, can I borrow your phone for a bit," Elimine said, stretching her hand towards Ayano.

    "Ayano-san?" Ayano asked. It had been so long since Elimine called her with such honorifics. Usually, she would address her as Eye Goddess or as Ayano.

    "Um, sure?" She mumbled, lending her phone to Elimine before asking what was going on.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi and Aira just stood there, shrugging at each other since they had no idea what was going on. Lydia, on the other hand, more or less assumed that Elimine had dropped her phone somewhere, that''s why she wasn''t in the dark.

    Elimine typed away at Ayano''s phone. Fortunately, she always kept her phone''s location tracker activated. This wasn''t the first time she had dropped her phone somewhere while flying, after all.

    ''Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?'' Her brows furrowed as the loading icon on Ayano''s phone appeared. A secondter, it showed the location of her phone, and she gasped.

    It was halfway through the Pacific Ocean, just as expected.

    "Ah, I knew it." Elimine heaved a sigh as she gave Ayano back her phone. There was no way she''d be able to retrieve her phone. It was probably in the deepest depths of the sea at this point. "I did have the report with me... but it seems like I dropped my phone somewhere."

    "Somewhere? Pfft~" Ayano almost choked as she suppressed a chuckle froming out of her mouth. As for Lydia, she managed to piece two and two together, and she beganughing.

    "You know," Ayano wiped a tear from her eyes. She was on the verge ofughing her heart out. "You dropped your phone somewhere? I think that''s an understatement."

    "How many candy apples have you eaten now, Aira? You shouldn''t eat too much sweets, you know." Satoshi lightly reprimanded Aira since he had no idea what Elimine and Ayano were talking about.

    In response, Aira held out three of her fingers before she nodded at Satoshi.

    "If you wanted toe with us that much, you should''ve told us." Ayano then grabbed Elimine by the shoulders. "We''re taking this one with us, Satoshi. You should go and prepare for your uing match."

    "I''d have said yes if you had told me in the first ce." Elimine pouted. "Ah, by the way, I''m looking forward to the finals, Satoshi. You''ve gotten this far, I''m sure you''ll be the one to step on the finals. Ganbatte~" Elimine continued, pumping her first while Ayano dragged her out.

    "Ganbatte~" Aira repeated, waving her hand at Satoshi before she rejoined the group.

    "Sure," Satoshi smiled. It was a chaotic moment for him, but he was just d that all of them were there to cheer him on.

 Chapter 388 This Is Unfair

    Finally, the first round of the semifinals hade to an end. The audience reverted to their usual quietness while waiting for the second match. They all knew Kim Jin Seok and Midoriyama Satoshi shouldn''t be underestimated, but they weren''t sure which would win.

    On the one hand, there was Satoshi, who had clearly shown his capabilities by efficiently performing multiple beast integrations without difficulty. Then there was Kim Jin Seok, who fought alongside Link, and he managed to tame down the berserker beast tamer. Then again, it''s not like the people witnessed his insufferable defeat in the beast dimension after he dragged Link away. Had they seen a single footage of that one-sided beating, they''d immediately change their minds and ce their bets on Satoshi.

    There was still time before the decisive match between Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi came to pass¡ª roughly half an hour or so. Due to the damages that White Mist and Yun Zhe brought upon the grand stage, the second match had to be postponed for a long time so they could repair all the damages, including the breakage and cracks on the barrier that protected the audience from friendly fire.

    Waiting in the waiting room gave Satoshi a suffocating feeling. In the end, he decided to walk back and forth between the stalls lined up by the interior of the American Dome. It''s not like he wanted to meet someone he knew over there. He just wanted to be surrounded by the noise to blockade the anxiousness in his head.

    Kim Jin Seok might be more formidable than him for all he knows. That little performance he did while trying to stop Link''s rampage must have been fake, and he had been hiding his strength all along. Based on what Yun Zhe had told him, Kim Jin Seok is possibly another Disciple. He might have a Representative (tamed beasts significantly stronger than legendary tamed beasts) in his possession.

    But what was weird about him was his confidence. Every single match, he was oozing with confidence. And even when he was backed into a corner, he would miraculously pull through. He was holding back in all his previous matches, hiding his true strength and waiting for the right moment to reveal his power. He was a dark horse among all the dark horses, and he had gained considerable support from the audience.

    For fun, Luke Skyrunner put up a poll during the break, making it more interesting for the audience. It was a voting session on which candidate was more likely to win the second match of the semifinals. Fifty-one percent voted for Satoshi, while forty-nine percent voted for Kim Jin Seok.

    Satoshi found the entire event amusing. He couldn''t believe he had gotten this far on his official debut as a beast tamer. Not every day could one say that they reached the semifinals after joining apetition for the first time. And while he stayed on that train of thought, he began thinking about his brief meeting with the Manager who called himself Bucky Barnes.

    "So... I guess there''s a lot of mysteries regarding Managers and Disciples, huh. And what is this World Eater anyways? I should talk about it with the Eye Goddess; she seemed to know something about it." Satoshi vehemently shook his head. Right now, he should be thinking about his uing match with the mysterious Kim Jin Seok instead of thinking about something so problematic.

    Bzzt.

    Bewildered, Satoshi turned around, thinking that someone was staring right at him. Somehow, his danger sense activated while he was in the midst of the crowd, and it caused him to swivel his head without thinking. What was even weirder was that there was no one behind him. Not even an acquaintance was present in the vicinity.

    Weird.

    Shaking his head, Satoshi decided to walk towards one of the stalls that sold candy apples. He had no idea why he went there but bought a candy apple anyways. His purchase reminded him of Aira, who had a sweet tooth. And after much contemtion, he decided to buy her cotton candy before the match began.

    ''I could''ve sworn someone was looking at me.'' Satoshi muttered in his head, keeping a close eye on his peripheral vision just in case the person staring at him would show up.

    .....

    A couple of hours ago.

    It was supposed to be a typical morning for a certain young woman named Otomi Elimine (superhero name Plume). Because she pulled an all-nighterst night, she woke upte the next day, which was perfectly understandable since she didn''t set the rm in the first ce.

    It was prettyte, eight o clock in the morning. She had just woken upter than usual.

    As the sunlight peered through the gaps in her room''s curtains, she stirred from her slumber and stretched her body. Her folded wings fluttered as she did so.

    Wiping the drool off her face, she got up and headed to the bathroom to prepare for the morning. She needed to report to the Eye Goddess first thing in the morning regarding allocating missions to the recruits. She checked the time, she still had an hour before her usual time-in at the agency.

    She did not want to rush first thing in the morning, but on the off-chance of an emergency, she could fly straight to the agency, cutting her travel time by a lot.

    After a quick breakfast of eggs and toast, she headed outside, walking towards the main road to g down a taxi. Everything went usually, and she couldn''t wait to get home after the day so she could watch the recorded fights of the Official Beast Tournament (that''s precisely the reason why she woke upte¡ª she had been watching the fights while cheering for Satoshi behind the television screen)

    A couple of minutester, she finally arrived by the foot of the agency. After paying the taxi driver, she walked up the flight of steps and headed towards Eye Goddess''s office. She was a bit early but thought Eye Goddess wouldn''t mind since she wasn''t the type of person to be fussy about schedules. "Besides, it''s not like she''s busy in the mornings," Elimine said to herself.

    "Pardon the intrusion." She called out before opening the door to Eye Goddess''s office. She was rtively close with Eye Goddess, but that doesn''t mean she could act all giddy during work hours.

    There was no one in the room.

    "That''s weird?" Elimine muttered to herself as she slowly approached Eye Goddess''s desk. She patiently waited for her to return in five minutes, thinking she just went out of her office for a quick bathroom break.

    She still didn''te back.

    At this point, Elimine wondered if there was an emergency she didn''t know about, so she headed to the bathroom to check. There were no signs of Eye Goddess anywhere.

    Finally, she returned to the reception area to ask one of the receptionists. One of the receptionists gave her a curious look before informing her that Eye Goddess left early in the morning to go to America, apanied by one of the new interns named Lydia Schwarz.

    "What?!" Elimine eximed before storming out of the agency. She could only think of one reason Eye Goddess went to America on such short notice, and she was a tad bit enraged by it.

    p¨¤§ád¨¢-¨¾?¦Í¨º¦É.§ã¨®§® "How unfair. Why didn''t she bring her with me? I also wanted to see Satoshi live." She sniffled. However, as soon as she got out of the agency, she jumped upwards and started flying. She has her passport in her pockets, and it''s not like this was her first time flying to America.

    On such rare asions, Plume decided to wear her specialized armor for flying long distances. This would cut her travel time by half and protect her from being mistaken as an ICBM flying from Japan to America.

    Driven by her rage, she pierced through the skies, intending to arrive in New York City in a record time of five hours.

    .....

    It took her a total of four hours and fifty-ish minutes before she arrived in America. The airport weed her and only asked for her passport and verifications before letting her in. While it''s not every day someone woulde to America through the power of flight, it wasn''t unusual.

    After another short flight to the American Dome, Elimine let herself in, hoping that the match between Kim Jin Seok and White Mist still hasn''t started. To her relief, she was just in time, and she even came across Satoshi, who was walking in the middle of the lined-up stalls.

    She was about to call out his name but hesitated at thest second. How could she exin her sudden appearance?

    That''s why when Satoshi turned around, she hid. At this point, she decided to continue cheering her childhood friend on by the sidelines.

    "Elimine-san? What are you doing here?" A familiar voice asked her out of nowhere, causing her to turn around in surprise.

 Chapter 390 Updated Matchups

    With renewed determination, Satoshi walked towards the corridor to his waiting room. The second match of the semifinals was bound to start soon, and he had already resolved himself to win by andslide.

    Kim Jin Seok had the same sentiment as well. Currently, he was staying in his waiting room, sitting cross-legged on the couch while he tried to meditate. Until now, he still had no idea what kind of power Satoshi had. He had watched his youtube videos plenty of times in preparation for this match, but there was no sign of him integrating with his beasts anywhere. Adding to that, his performance throughout the Official Beast Tournament was exemry.

    And yet, even after all that, Kim Jin Seok could tell that Satoshi was still hiding most of his strength. After all, he didn''t have any difficulties with his opponents, even when some of them could easily activate dual beast integration and more.

    "For now, I should expect the worse. He''s going to be a tough opponent, for sure. To think that I was the one who guided him when he picked his first tamed beast in the beast dimension... and now he''s standing on the same stage as me, possibly stronger and more formidable than me. How the turns have tabled... er, I mean, how the tables have turned indeed." Kim Jin Seok said to himself, smiling.

    Nevertheless, at the end of the day, he''s still a Disciple with a strong Manager backing him up. Moreover, he has the guidance of a Representative. There was no way he could lose to someone who had just started beast taming. "He may have a Representative in his possession as well... but that doesn''t mean he''s got the one up on me. I''m going to win this match and go all the way to the semifinals and defeat Yun Zhe."

    No one should tell Kim Jin Seok that Satoshi has three Representatives in his possession¡ª namely, Dex, Stat (Statue of Captivity), and Amy (Copycat). And to top it all off, he''s got the Queen of the Kraken Army in his possession, as well as the Ice Empress and the Beast Summoner Gabriel. If Satoshi called all of them into the grand stage and unleashed hell on his opponent, there was no way Kim Jin Seok would stand a chance at winning. It would be a thousand times more effective if Kim Jin Seok were to kowtow (dogeza) in front of Satoshi and beg him to give him the win. That probably has a higher chance of getting a victory.

    A couple of minutester, Midoriyama Satoshi and Kim Jin Seok started walking toward the grand stage. Their names were just announced, and the semifinals were bound to begin soon. The audience still had the same energy level as they were this morning, which added to the hype and the overall atmosphere of the American Dome.

    "We''re finally on the second match of the semifinals. How do you think this will turn out, Luke?" Thementator asked, handing the microphone to Luke Skyrunner. After the constant reminders that he should calm down whilementating, he finally found his groove, and he didn''t spit on the microphone that much anymore.

    "Before we start the semifinals, we''ve received a few heads up from the event organizers. I mean, it''s already a given that I''m the head of the event organizer. Still, after talking about it during the short break, I think we have to put certain restrictions on the Official Beast Tournament from this point forward and add another rule." Luke cleared his throat after announcing something so shocking to the entire world.

    "As you''ve witnessed during the first semifinal match, one of our contestants easily managed a Penta Beast Integration. It was truly an earth-shattering moment, and I couldn''t be any prouder after witnessing such a historical event in this Official Beast Tournament. However, this has led to discussions regarding the Official Beast Tournaments moving forward."

    "This year''s Official Beast Tournament, we''ve witnessed major improvements in beast taming. With the appearance of Dual Beast Integration, Trinity Beast Integration, Quad Beast Integration... and now Penta Beast Integration. We''ve decided to change a couple of rules."

    "First, the Official Beast Tournament will only handle up to the maximum of Trinity Beast Integration, except for the finals, where you can integrate with as many tamed beasts as you can."

    "And second, there will be separate brackets for the Official Beast Tournament from now on. Of course, the standard Official Beast Tournament will still be present along with its new rules, but there will be tournaments for beast tamers who could only achieve a single Beast Integration and Dual Beast Integration."

    "In that regard, you can expect the Official Beast Tournament to ur three or more times in a year. Also! Anyone can join the lower brackets if they stick to the rules of only integrating with one tamed beast for the Beast Integration bracket and two tamed beasts for the Dual Beast Integration Bracket."

    At first, Luke Skyrunner had assumed that the people would take the decision negatively since it was such a drastic change. But then again, they really need to implement such changes since it would be unfairpetition if they didn''t. And what better time to announce such a change than now, just when the Official Beast Tournament is finally transitioning to the finals? There was no better time than now.

    Silence filled the entire American Dome as soon as the lengthy announcement was said. Of course, the announcement was broadcasted live all across the globe as well, in case people missed the announcement in real time.

    As if on cue, Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi entered the grand stage, waving their hands toward the audience while rigid smiles were glued to their faces. They weren''t given the heads-up regarding the recent announcement, but they figured it was the best time to show themselves so the audience wouldn''t think that much about the changes.

    And they were right on the money. The moment they appeared on the grand stage, the audience started cheering for them,pletely forgetting the announcement which had just been broadcasted. Well, not like the people could care either way. The majority of the spectators are avid fans of the Official Beast Tournament, and they wouldn''t mind a change or two if that would mean a more bncedpetition.

    Besides, it would be better if Official Beast Tournaments didn''t ur once a year. There will always be something to look forward to three times a year, and it didn''t seem bad at all. In other words, the audience was okay with the changes. They were already knowledgeable enough to know that bnce should be implemented when necessary.

    "Thank you so much for your understanding. Now let''s enjoy the second match of the semifinals together." Luke Skyrunner slightly bowed her head towards the camera drone floating right in front of him.

    "Please step forward." The referee asked. "And please confirm the three tamed beasts you''ll use." The referee continued.

    Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi couldn''t go by the new rules. With slight hesitation, they reached into their pockets (Satoshi was acting since his tamed beasts were stored in the Orb Oboros) to summon their tamed beasts. As mentioned, there will only be three tamed beasts for the semifinals, and if one uses more than three, they are immediately disqualified.

    "Alpha Red Smander, Kraken Queen, and Ice Empress. I''ll be relying on the three of you." Satoshi said to himself as three tamed beasts appeared behind him.

    "I''ll be relying on you too, guys." Kim Jin Seok said, summoning three tamed beasts as well.

    While the rules didn''t state that the two of them should reveal which tamed beasts, they''ll be using. They summoned them out anyway for transparency. It would''ve been more advantageous if the two of them kept their tamed beasts in their Grens and then showed the referee which tamed beasts they''ll be using.

    In a sense, the new rules regarding the Official Beast Tournament had given Kim Jin Seok an advantage¡ª or so that''s what he thought to himself. He was reasonably sure that Satoshi could activate Trinity Beast Integration or more. But now, with the fixed rule that they could only use three tamed beasts at once, Kim Jin Seok knew that he''d get an even greater chance at winning.

    GASP!

    "It''s the Leader of the Kraken Army!''

    "Whoa~ it''s so big."

    "That''s what she sa¡ª I''m kidding. I know, right? It''s pretty big, right? Wow!"

    "Yeah, wow. Just wow."

    The audience started talking amongst themselves regarding the Leader of the Kraken Army. They were surprised that Satoshi was the one who captured her. The rumors were true, somebody did tame the Leader of the Kraken Army, and it was none other than Satoshi behind it.

    "Um, Satoshi? Are you sure about this?" Kim Jin Seok asked out of nowhere just when the referee signaled for them to shake each other''s hands.

    "Wha are you talking about?''

    "You''re not going to use any Representatives... or legendary tamed beasts for that matter? Are you going to give me the win on purpose? Come on, Satoshi." Kim Jin Seok called out after noticing that Satoshi''s choice of tamed beasts was pretty subpar.

 Chapter 391 Kim Jin Seoks Team

    Kim Jin Seok smiled at Satoshi after he asked the question. This was advantageous for him since he only had three tamed beasts in his possession. Based on Satoshi''s previous fights, he was well aware that Satoshi had more than three tamed beasts. In fact, out of everyone in the Official Beast Tournament, Satoshi has the most tamed beasts in his possession.

    In response, Satoshi nodded his head as his lips curved upward with full confidence. His countenance exuded the uncertainty that he would win, which bothered Kim Jin Seok a little bit.

    Even the audience watching the initial preparations for the match could tell that Satoshi''s choices were not that good in terms of his pool of formidable, tamed beasts. They watched his previous fights, and they knew that Satoshi had stronger options. Then again, they could digress since Satoshi had the Kraken Queen in his possession. They have no idea how strong she is in a fight, but her army has never been defeated in the past, so she should be strong.

    Well, the Queen of the Kraken Army could be considered legendary as well, but officially, in the list of tamed beasts, Krakens are considered rare tamed beasts. So even if their leader were stronger than all of them, she''d still bebeled as a rare tamed beast at most.

    p¦Á§ád¦Á-¨¾?¦Í¨º|¡¤§ã¨®§® "And how about you? Are you sure about your choices?" Satoshi asked after Kim Jin Seok released his only three tamed beasts in his possession. One of them was a Representative, and two of them were legendaries.

    Kim Jin Seok''s Representative is an oversized bird with blue electricity. Its wings had a wingspan of three stories, just like his other tamed beasts. As for the other two legendaries, they are oversized birds as well. One had blue mes, while the other had ice floating all over its body.

    In other words, Kim Jin Seok had three monumental birds as his tamed beasts. One of them is an electric type, the other is a fire type, and thest one is an ice type. It''s such a cliche and well-rounded team. And just from looking at his tamed beasts alone, Satoshi could more or less guess that Kim Jin Seok is actually pretty powerful. He was probably on par, if not better than Yun Zhe¡ª or at least that''s what Satoshi thought to himself.

    Murmuring, the audience stared back and forth at Satoshi''s team and Kim Jin Seok''s team. Just one nce was enough for their inexperienced eyes since Kim Jin Seok''s team looked infinitely stronger than Satoshi''s. Of course, deep within, they doubted that Satoshi was going to lose, but at this rate, there was no way he won''t have any difficulties in the uing fight.

    Some of the audience started screaming towards the grand stage, warning Hajime of his choices. They pleaded that he change the tamed beasts he picked. They started calling out for Sera, or Ghast, and more of Satoshi''s tamed beasts, but Satoshi didn''t listen to them at all.

    He had already made up his mind, and there was no one who could change his decisions. He firmly held onto the choices he opted for, not even batting an eye towards the audience who didn''t respect his decisions.

    Of course, not everyone was against Satoshi''s choice. Some of the audience who had seen Satoshi pull through in each and every match started defending him, telling the other audience that they were just being selfish due to their requests. One side started yelling about their disapproval, while the other side started yelling about respecting Satoshi''s decisions.

    And yes, chaos had already ensued between the spectators. Instead of a heated match on the grand stage, there was a heated match in between the audience.

    Luke Skyrunner and thementator remained silent in their box while trying to gauge the situation''s overall effect. After much contemtion, they decided to stay their hands off of the event for a bit. They knew that they could easily hype one side or the other, but that would look really bad in the live stream. Right now, what they could do was let the audience argue amongst themselves since it would rein in more viewers online. It was good PR, and Luke Skyrunner wasn''t against it.

    Then there was the referee, who had been waiting impatiently in the middle of the grand stage. Because of the audience''s argument, he didn''t know whether he should start the match or not. After all, doing so would put the audience''s attention on him. And at that moment, he didn''t want any of their attention whatsoever. That''s thest thing he wanted to garner¡ª after all, he had his hand was full dealing with all the risks in the grand stage. He didn''t want additional problems in his already unstable state of mind.

    "Looks like you''re pretty popr, Satoshi." Kim Jin Seok jerked his thumb towards the audience as a smile spread across his face. While he was a tad bit jealous that the audience''s focus was all on Satoshi, he didn''t really show his envy in his expression. He had already made up his mind that he''d release every bit of feeling he had in the match. Right now, the audience''s reactions were nothing to him.

    "I''m not throwing the match, or anything. I just have full trust over my tamed beasts. I''m sure that they''ll give me the victory and propel me straight to the finals." Satoshi continued.

    "Are you sure about this? Last time I heard, you have at least two Representatives. If you had chosen them, then you''d have stood a chance against me. But no, you just had to choosemon tamed beasts¡ª as if they could stand up against a Representative." Kim Jin Seok shrugged. "In all my history of tamed beast battles, I''ve never heard of a tamed beast winning against a Representative. The difference in strength is just that wide. Even a legendary would have a hard time going head to head with Representative."

    Satoshi chuckled. He knew that Kim Jin Seok''s words weren''t empty at all. After all, he''s a guide in the beast dimension, and he''s probably had that profession for many years. Long story short, he had the experience and witnessed countless tamed beast battles to know that what he was saying was the cold hard truth.

    "I''m giving you another chance, Satoshi. You can pull out one of your tamed beasts and rece it with a Representative. I''m giving you this chance so we can have a fair match. If you don''t want to change your roster, you''re basically telling me you''re throwing the match. What would it be? Satoshi?"

    His points were valid, that much was true, but Satoshi stood firm on his decisions. He looked back and saw the Alpha Red Smander, the Kraken Queen, and the Ice Empress nodding toward him. They more or less got the gist of what Kim Jin Seok was saying, and because of that, they nodded their heads¡ª implying that they would always agree to Satoshi''s decisions, whatever they may be.

    Satoshi felt their feelings in his mind since they were connected telepathically. Their feelings conveyed that they were d to be first picks and that it was a great honor to serve him¡ª that they were d that Satoshi trusted them a lot even though they weren''t legendaries or representatives.

    And that was enough for Satoshi. Those genuine feelings that he felt from his tamed beasts told him that he would stand by his choice no matter what. A smile appeared on his face. This time, it wasn''t a smile of full confidence but a smile of genuine respect that proved his affinity with his tamed beasts.

    Kim Jin Seok could tell that Satoshi had decided. Crossing his arms on his chest, he waited for Satoshi to pull out one of his tamed beasts and rece it with a Representative. Even the audience, who had been arguing back and forth, had heard what Kim Jin Seok said, and they, too, looked at Satoshi in anticipation.

    With the eagerness building up in the entire American Dome, no, in the entire world, while they waited for Satoshi, a momentary state of quietness and tranquility filled the air. Satoshi turned around and nodded his head.

    Gasp!

    Everyone gasped as Satoshi bowed at a ny-degree angle toward his tamed beasts. "No, it is an honor for me to be fighting alongside you three. I''m not going to rece any of you. The moment I chose the three of you to fight with me, I''ve already decided that we''d win it together. If you''re with me, then step forward. We''re going to go straight to the finals, all right?"

    The Alpha Red Smander, the Kraken Queen, as well as the Ice Empress, all stepped forward and bowed their heads as well.

    "Now, can we start? I think the audience had waited long enough for this second match. Let''s get this over with, already.'' Satoshi turned around and faced Kim Jin Seok before he continued his monologue. "And about what you said... that regr tamed beasts can''t defeat a Representative? Well, there''s always a first time for everything."

 Chapter 392 No Holding Back

    For a full second, Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi locked eyes with each other right when they were done shaking their hands for a great match. With urgency, the referee ran out of the grand stage before giving the signal for themencement of the match. He didn''t even wait for Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi to return to their respective sides of the grand stage. He was just so nervous that he messed up the timing of the signal¡ª not that it greatly affected the match, but it gave the two participants a unique start to the match.

    There were no words spoken between Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi as they looked at each other. Taking a step back, the two instantly integrated with their tamed beasts without telling twice, and they shed with each other in a single breath, not giving the audience time to recover from the messed up timing of the match.

    One moment, Kim Jin Seok was a normal beast tamer, ring down at Satoshi while squinting his eyes. He was taller than him, allowing him to look down on Satoshi. The next moment, he was covered in a nice tri-colored plume¡ª a mixture of blue, yellow, and orange. On his head was a helmet that looked like the head of a fowl, and the beak part covered the whole upper part of his head. And on his back were three pairs of wings, having the respective colors of his plumage. He looked like a birdman¡ª or somewhere along those lines.

    Without missing a beat, Kim Jin Seok unleashed a punch toward Satoshi. But Satoshi caught it in an instant. While his tamed beasts may be subpar to Kim Jin Seok since they weren''t legendaries whatsoever, Satoshi''s beast integration was nothing but mediocre.

    He wore the same icy armor as the Ice Empress, giving everyone the illusion that Satoshi had a sexy slender body. Fortunately, the armor didn''t have boob bags, or it would''ve appeared extremely misleading.

    Despite his icy cold appearance and the freezing temperature surrounding him like a shield of frost, an arc could be seen above Satoshi''s head. This arc was scarlet red, andva seemed to drip from it, falling on the ground and Satoshi''s ice armor. This caused steam to rise from Satoshi''s body, giving the appearance of a melding of ice and fire.

    On his hand, Satoshi wielded an ice spear, and tentacles came out of his back like certain ghoul-like features from a very popr animated series in the past. He looked like a monstrosity, a marvelous monstrosity.

    Effortlessly, he caught the punch that Kim Jin Seok directed at him. To counter the strike, the tentacles on Satoshi''s back extended and pushed Kim Jin Seok out of the way.

    Just from that punch alone, an intense wind pressure spread across the grand stage, producing a powerful upwind that stirred the barrier.

    Kim Jin Seok smirked as he caught one of the tentacles that flew right at him, squeezing it and detaching it from Satoshi. While it might have hurt a little bit, Satoshi''s tentacles were regenerative in nature, so he didn''t have to worry about losing one of the many tentacles. At this rate, though, he could tell that his tentacles would easily be countered if that was the only mode of attack, he was going to use.

    To widen the gap between them, Kim Jin Seok flew upward before spreading his six wings like an iconic symbol in Egyptian hieroglyphics. Ice, fire, and lightning started mercilessly raining down on Satoshi.

    The sudden downpour of projectiles was too sudden that Satoshi almost couldn''t react in time. He swung the ice spear in his hand, spinning it like a shield, blocking the projectiles that shot down at him.

    Of course, it couldn''t block all of it since there were just too many. Adding to that, every projectile packed a punch, so it took a significant amount of effort for Satoshi to deflect them. As for those that he couldn''t deflect, he just avoided them, stepping backward as he did so.

    "That''s a neat trick you got there. But how about this?" Kim Jin Seok smiled as his wings changed their position. Their tips started converging in front of Kim Jin Seok, creating a cone shape, or was it a cylinder?

    FWOOOSH!

    A beam of pure energy shot from the tip of Kim Jin Seok''s wings and pierced through Satoshi''s ice spear in an instant. Had it not been for Satoshi''s quick reflexes, he would suffer an insane amount of damage. Jumping sideways before rolling on the ground, Satoshi dodged the beam by a hair''s breadth. It was a close call.

    In return, Satoshi formed ice spikes in the air and hurled them at Kim Jin Seok. As if that wasn''t enough, he started forming embers in the air, throwing them like fireballs at Kim Jin Seok in response to his long-range attack.

    To everyone''s surprise, Kim Jin Seok didn''t bother dodging his attacks. He simply floated there without any intention of moving out of the way. Obviously, he was looking down on Satoshi''s attacks, which is why he wasn''t rmed by them.

    Shiiing~

    The sound of swords being unsheathed from their scabbard filled the air as Kim Jin Seok stopped his high-energy beam attack. But instead of the beams disappearing altogether, they separated into six different beams, eaching out of the tip of his wings. Those beams cut off Satoshi''s ice and fire projectiles, rendering them useless as they flew in mid-air.

    After dealing with Saoshi''s projectiles that never connected, he started firing the six separate beams toward Satoshi. They were all as powerful as the high-energy beam that he had attacked Satoshi with a moment ago, and that''s why Satoshi had no choice but to dodge every single one of them.

    To steer clear of the beams, Satoshi had to dart around and swerve left and right in a weird dance so that he wouldn''t sustain any significant damage. Even then, it was a difficult achievement to pull since the six beams were faster than him. Pretty soon, Kim Jin Seok got used to Satoshi''s movements and speed, and he was able to hit Satoshi with the beams a couple of times.

    Since Satoshi didn''t have that much of a choice (he was going to get hit no matter what he did), he decided to sacrifice a couple of his tentacles. However, his tentacles were so squishy that the beams just pierced right through them. One of the beams hit the joint on his shoulder. Another shot him through the liver, and thest one got him on the knee. By the time Kim Jin Seok was satisfied with his attack. Satoshi was already in a worse state than expected. He clutched the side of his stomach while his left hand limply hung due to the injury on his shoulder.

    In his previous matches at the Official Beast Tournament, Satoshi always managed to pull through, and he always overcame his injuries thanks to his Celestial Type tamed beast called Sera. But now that he doesn''t have her in his roster, he was more ss cannon than expected. Except for the first round, where he almost died, Satoshi had no difficulty tanking more powerful attacks. However, he seemed to be having a hard time dealing with Kim Jin Seok''s regr attacks when he was expected to deal with them just fine.

    Even the audience who had be fans of Satoshi due to his outstanding performance was beginning to get concerned. Something was wrong with Satoshi on this particr match¡ª or maybe, Kim Jin Seok was just that formidable.

    Gaining more confidence, Kim Jin Seok engaged Satoshi in closebat. Instead of relying on his long-range attacks, he now opted to abuse Satoshi hand to hand.

    He was already aware that his speed was superiorpared to Satoshi''s. That''s why he should be fine going head-to-head with him in his field of expertise.

    A lightning bolt appeared on Kim Jin Seok''s hand. He brought the lightning bolt down on his descent, aiming it right at Satoshi''s head. Satoshi was almost caught off-guard, but he managed to block the attack with his ice spear.

    When the two weapons collided, a spark and an explosion ignited, sending Satoshi backward. He skidded on the ground, but he stabbed the grand stage with his ice spear to stop himself from going out of bounds.

    Before he could recover, Kim Jin Seok was already hot on his tail, swinging the lightning bolt a second time. Satoshi rolled sideways but was too slow, and the lightning bolt cut him on the cheek. He cringed in pain, but he was able to get up before Kim Jin Seok attacked him again.

    Kim Jin Seok had already noticed that Satoshi''s speed had drastically dropped.

    As soon as he got up, Kim Jin Seok elerated faster than sight while pointing his lightning bolt forward. He was confident that Satoshi would be able to dodge the attack. After all, Satoshi was able to pull through in a lot of tight spots in his previous matches. If he could do it before, then he should be able to do it again.

    However, Kim Jin Seok overestimated Satoshi. In short, Satoshi could not dodge the attack, and the lightning bolt hit him straight through his heart. A look of surprise and despair appeared on Satoshi''s face as he vomitedrge amounts of blood from his mouth.

    It was Kim Jin Seok''s win.

 Chapter 393 Kraken Queens Abilities

    However, Kim Jin Seok overestimated Satoshi. In short, Satoshi could not dodge the attack, and the lightning bolt hit him straight through his heart. A look of surprise and despair appeared on Satoshi''s face as he vomitedrge amounts of blood from his mouth.

    It was Kim Jin Seok''s win.

    From the audience, Tatsuki and Ayumu gasped. Even Tatsuki''s parents (Satoshi''s grandparents) gasped in surprise. A majority of the audience started gasping as well.

    The fight had just started, and Satoshi had already sustained an unexinable amount of damage. The reason why it was unexinable was that he should''ve been able to tank it. But no, as soon as he was hit, an injury was inflicted on his body, and he couldn''t recover from it.

    One could only wonder whether it was the doing of Kim Jin Seok''s tamed beasts or Satoshi was just that weak. And now that Satoshi had been stabbed through the heart, the match was already over.

    "That was dangerous," Satoshi mumbled as he gurgled the blood free-flowing from his mouth. Instead of being afraid that he would die at any moment, he seemed to be making light of the situation. He even found the leisure to chuckle while casually talking to Kim Jin Seok.

    "Boy, you crazy as..." Kim Jin Seok responded, not noticing that Satoshi had already taken hold of his lightning bolt.

    Securing Kim Jin Seok on the spot, Satoshi then brought the ice spear and stabbed Kim Jin Seok in the shoulder. To everyone, it might seem that Satoshi''s attack was pointless, but if they were to look closer, they would know that Satoshi was winning.

    The fight hasn''t ended yet. Satoshi may look like he is losing right now, but the winner has yet to be decided. Satoshi still had a clear shot at winning this second match despite being severely injured.

    Sure, he was on the verge of death, but he wasn''t dead yet.

    "If you want to win, you should be as crazy as me." Satoshi continued, pushing the icence through Kim Jin Seok''s shoulder.

    Due to the frost that covered the icence, Satoshi easily froze Kim Jin Seok''s shoulder and pierced it. His skin and muscle cracked as they turned into frozen meat, and a few secondster, his entire left shoulder had frozen, and there was nothing he could do about it.

    While Kim Jin Seok could''ve easily dodged the attack since he was much faster than Satoshi, he didn''t do anything. His left shoulder was a small price to pay for victory. Instead of dodging the attack, he pushed the lightning bolt in his hand through Satoshi''s chest, burying it even deeper until it poked through Satoshi. Pretty soon, the lightning bolt protruded out of Satoshi''s back.

    "I can''t watch this," Ayano said to herself, turning away. As the seventh superhero in SAO Rankings, she had been sent to multiple disaster areas, and the sight of blood never fazed her. But seeing Satoshi dying on the grand stage made her close her eyes. If it weren''t against the rules, she would''ve jumped in to save Satoshi. He would be instantly disqualified if she were to intervene.

    "What kind of diator match is this?" Grado huffed as he stood up. He was ready to plow through everyone and get to his grandson before something worse happened to him.

    "Rx, he''s going to be all right. Satoshi''s got this under control." Lize, Satoshi''s grandmother, and Grado''s wife, gently tapped her husband on the shoulder.

    "How could you say that? Our grandson was just stabbed through the heart. While the Nurse could heal him after his heart stopped... the pain he had to endure must be imaginable. I took a stabbing through the heart once before, and I sure as heck didn''t enjoy every second of it." Grado responded.

    "He would be healed after the match, of course, but there was no way he wouldn''t feel that excruciating pain beforehand. It would feel like his heart is being wrung dry... my poor grandson."

    "He''s got this. I''m sure he does. My son had trained all his life for this. Even before he awakened his superpower, he was already physically strong. Countless times had he driven his body to the limits. And now, I''m sure he''ll pull through this and win the match. I''m sure. I''m sure." Tatsuki kept on muttering to himself as he clenched his fists. A few secondster, his fists began to bleed because he clenched them hard. He wanted to jump in and get his son out of there. He wanted his son to forfeit so the medics could tend to him.

    But at the end of the day, Tatsuki knew just how important this fight was to his son. If he wins this fight, he''s going straight to the finals. As much as he wanted to intervene and save his son as a father, he couldn''t do it. Satoshi had already put so much on the line. There was no way he would ruin all that by disqualifying his son.<novelsnext>please visit </novelsnext>

    "You can do it, son. You can do it." Ayumu sped her hand in prayer. She couldn''t bear to watch her son suffer, so she closed her eyes. As the number two superhero in the SAO Rankings, it would''ve been easy for her to go down there and push Kim Jin Seok out of the way. But just like her husband, she knew how important this was for their son. The best they could do was sit back and watch... and suffer.

    The stare-down between Kim Jin Seok and Satoshisted for half a minute before Kim Jin Seok deliberately retreated. The frostbite on his shoulder was now spreading toward his chest, and his left arm was too numb that he felt like it was going to fall off at any second. He had no choice but to let go since Satoshi wasn''t willing to do so.

    Satoshi grinned. Even though he was bleeding all over, he smiled at Kim Jin Seok as if he was the one winning.

    In return, Kim Jin Seok also smiled at Satoshi before he charged at him for the second time. Even with all the injuries inflicted upon him, he was still as speedy as ever. Satoshi couldn''t follow his movements since he was moving faster than sight.

    Everyone was on the edge of their seats since it seemed like it would be a close fight. Satoshi was seconds away from dying, and Kim Jin Seok looked like he was minutes away from freezing. Regardless, the two engaged each other inbat as if nothing was wrong.

    Relying on Ice Empress''sbative skills and his instincts, Satoshi barely pinpointed where Kim Jin Seok would attack. He blocked from above, then behind, then he sidestepped to the left before leaning backward.

    As for Kim Jin Seok, he was jumping all over the ce, seemingly moving faster and faster as panic got the better of him. He could now feel his lungs freezing, and it was getting harder and harder for him to breathe.

    ''No, I won''t lose. As long as Satoshi falls down first, I''ll be dered the winner. I just have to hold on until then.'' Kim Jin Seok said to himself.

    Since the close-range attacks weren''t working, he switched to long-range once again, firing beams at Satoshi. This time though, Satoshi cleanly dodged them as if an elusive target in a shooting range. There were no gaps in Satoshi''s movements.

    Of course, as an expert yer in the famous game Laser Fingers, Satoshi could dodge all of these without much effort at all. The only reason why he couldn''t avoid them before was that he was faking everything.

    Right from the start, he had been faking that he was weaker than Kim Jin Seok.

    Because of that, Kim Jin Seok started underestimating Satoshi when he should''ve overestimated him. But no one could me him for falling for that ruse. After all, even the audience was deceived.

    "Impossible... but I stabbed him through the heart? How?!" Kim Jin Seok thought out loud.

    "Heh~ do you think stabbing me right through the heart would kill me?" Satoshi asked.

    Satoshi''s arm had healed in an instant, and all his injuries had disappeared. Previously, his appearance depicted a losing beast tamer, but now there was no injury in his body as if he had turned back time.

    Apparently, one of the Kraken''s unique skills was insane regeneration. Also, Satoshi had not told anyone, but he could move his organs within his body. Of course, he couldn''t move them too far, but he could push them slightly to avoid a knife, for example.

    Besides, now that he had integrated with the Kraken Queen, he possessed three hearts. Even if his heart was stabbed, his two hearts could still do their job and keep him alive as long as he didn''t deactivate his beast integration.

    And there was no way Satoshi would reveal those trump cards to his enemies. He considered saying it out loud so that he could see Kim Jin Seok''s despair. But after thinking about it, he chose to keep it a secret from everyone.

    "I-impossible." Kim Jin Seok''s eyes widened as he continued hisser-like attacks.

 Chapter 394 Back And Forth

    At first, Kim Jin Seok had confidently concluded that Satoshi was rtively weaker than him, and because of that, he made one fatal mistake¡ª he fought on the same level as him.

    There were plenty of chances wherein he could''ve taken the opportunity of beating Satoshi down, not letting him have a moment''s rest while he pretended to be weak. But he chose not to. Somehow, his subconscious defaulted into fighting on even ground as Satoshi. It wasn''t in terms of underestimating or overestimating him, but leveling himself with Satoshi as if that would give him the victory.

    As for Satoshi, he was doing better than Kim Jin Seok despite acting like he was inferior to him. The reason for that was¡ª he already knew how strong Kim Jin Seok was as a beast tamer, which is why he never underestimated him. Of course, one could debate that the two of them were approximating each other''s strength, but it was apparent Satoshi did better than Kim Jin Seok in that regard.

    Kim Jin Seok had already used everything in his arsenal in hopes that he would defeat Satoshi. With the mistaken thought that victory was well within his grasp, he had gotten too excited, and it brought about his downfall.

    As for Satoshi, he had been keeping his pace while hiding his strength. If it were any other beast tamer, they wouldn''t have been able to pull off what Satoshi just did. Satoshi was far superior to any beast tamers out there regarding skill and instincts in actualbat.

    This was probably why beast integration was well-suited for him right from the start. After all, beast integration utilizes a tamed beast''sbat abilities and uses them as one''s own. Satoshi was known to be a genius in terms of his physical prowess, and this never failed him even when he didn''t have a superpower back then.

    After weaving through the countlesssers that mercilessly rained down on him, it was time for a counterattack. Satoshi wielded the icence and pointed it at Kim Jin Seok, who was still floating atop the grand stage.

    Previously, Satoshi''s ice spikes couldn''t even rival the beams that shot out from Kim Jin Seok''s wings. But now, such wasn''t the case. Not only were Satoshi''s ice spikes stronger than before, but they alsopletely shut down the beams as they bounced off of them. The ice spikes whizzed through the air like missiles aimed to put down the airborne target.

    Just like before, Kim Jin Seok thought that he''d be able to shoot down the ice spikes. He was wholly mistaken, and by the time he realized that he couldn''t counter the ice spikes, it was already on his face, and he couldn''t dodge them no matter how fast he was. Well, he could circumvent some of them because of his speed, but hundreds of ice spikes flew toward him.

    "Aghk~!" Kim Jin Seok groaned before he slowly descended to the ground. If long-range doesn''t work anymore, he would have a better chance at short-range.

    But then again, he had already been shut down by Satoshi plenty of times while they were in close-quartersbat. The only reason why Kim Jin Seok attempted another brawl was that he couldn''t ept his defeat.

    Wielding the lightning bolt a second time, Kim Jin Seok shed at Satoshi''s head.

    With a sidestep, Satoshi strained his ankle, using it as a pivot point so he could turn around. To an untrained eye, it seemed like the lightning bolt had passed through Satoshi''s body. But in reality, he had dodged it by spinning. Before Kim Jin Seok could prepare for another attack, Satoshi didn''t hesitate to lunge at Kim Jin Seok, aiming his spear at his other shoulder.

    Because of the frost inflicted by the ice spear, Kim Jin Seok''s left hand was still out ofmission. That''s why this time, Satoshi aimed at his right shoulder. He''d freeze both of Kim Jin Seok''s arms if his attack seeded. He wouldn''t have a chance in close-quartersbat if that happened.

    Kim Jin Seok had sensed what Satoshi was nning to do. That''s why he leaned back before the attack connected. However, his reaction was toote. While he could''ve managed to steer clear of the attack, hepletely underestimated Satoshi''s reach, and Satoshi was able to stab him anyways.

    The stab should''ve been deeper, but Kim Jin Seok caught the ice spear''s de with his bare hands out of desperation. Well, it was more like an impulse than a desperate attempt to avoid getting frozen.

    "You used your right hand. Are you sure you won''t freeze because of that?" Satoshi asked. To begin with, he was already aiming for Kim Jin Seok''s right arm, so him catching the de with his right hand had done what Satoshi sought to do.

    "Not yet... I''m not yet done. I''m just getting started." Kim Jin Seok gritted his teeth as the helmet that covered the upper part of his face tightened, causing him to flinch. He jumped backward, trying to widen the gap between himself and Satoshi.

    Sensing that Kim Jin Seok was up to something, Satoshi didn''t allow him to distance himself. He charged at him, this time aiming the ice spear at his heart while shooting countless ice spikes at him. His tentacles also worked overtime, mming on the ground to give Satoshi the needed speed boost.

    Nevertheless, Kim Jin Seok was a step ahead of Satoshi and activated his skill before Satoshi could catch up to him.<novelsnext>please visit </novelsnext>

    Fwoooosh~!

    The ice spear was about to pierce Kim Jin Seok a second time, but before it could, a pir of me, ice, and lightning covered Kim Jin Seok. The skill instantly broke Satoshi''s ice spear, and he had to manifest another one with the help of the Ice Empress''s skill.

    "AND KIM JIN SEOK ERUPTED INTO FLAMES!" Thementator screamed while the audience started cheering for Kim Jin Seok.

    One moment, they''ll be cheering for Satoshi. Then they''ll be rooting for Kim Jin Seok to win the next moment. At this point, both of them had no idea whose side the audience was on.

    "I guess it''s thanks to you, Satoshi. Because you''ve driven me into a corner, I gained insight into beast integration and managed to draw out the real power of my tamed beasts." Kim Jin Seok said.

    As the fire dissipated, Kim Jin Seok stepped forward, his body glowing a mesmerizing shade of blue. Three shades of blue shrouded his entire body, representing the blue mes, ice, and blue lightning from his tamed beasts.

    "So you were able to level up during the fight? That''s nice." Satoshi returned, trying to brush off the fact that Kim Jin Seok had gotten stronger while he was on the verge of expending a good chunk of his energy.

    There was also the scene when Kim Jin Seok broke his ice spear, which shouldn''t have been possible at his power level. Right now, Satoshi could tell that Kim Jin Seok really did get stronger. This time, there was a good chance that he could go head-to-head with him.

    Every single injury that Kim Jin Seok received had also been erased, thanks to this power-up, and it''s as if the fight had reset back to square one¡ª with Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi as good as new.

    "I''m looking forward to this match." Kim Jin Seok muttered. Somehow, he thought it would be fitting to repeat their greeting right in the middle of the match.

    "Likewise." Satoshi nodded.

    Instead of his usualser beams, Kim Jin Seok now utilized the innate abilities of his tamed beasts. Ice, fire, and lightning danced in his palms, pulsating and shifting into different shapes as he charged at Satoshi. Meanwhile, Satoshi just wielded an ice spear.

    There was still one more card hidden under Satoshi''s sleeves. At the moment, he had no intention of using it. He would leave it for the finale when he''s already sure he''ll defeat Kim Jin Seok.

    A trident appeared on Kim Jin Seok''s hand, and he brought it down. To deflect the attack, Satoshi swung his ice spear.

    Once again, it broke instantly, but it deflected the trident, which could''ve decapitated Satoshi in a sh. Without a moment to spare, Satoshi created another ice spear before Kim Jin Seok struck him. He blocked it again, and the ice spear dissipated in the air.

    This happened who knows how many times, with neither side backing down on attacking and counterattacking. With Kim Jin Seok receiving an untimely and lucky power-up, Satoshi was at a disadvantage once again¡ª or so that''s what the spectators thought since his ice spear kept getting destroyed.

    But Satoshi had not revealed why he kept using such a fickle weapon. He was looking for a single opening, and then he''ll strike.

    While the clock ticked and a beautiful orange-colored hue filled the skies as the sunset approached, both Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi were still at an impasse, with neither side forfeiting.

 Chapter 395 To Win, Or Not

    With neither side backing down, the audience watched as Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi inevitably fell into exhaustion. Since they were almost evenly matched, it had be a fight to see who''d run out of energy first. It was clear that both of them were exhausted, but one could only wonder who was more likely to drop out first.

    They were on the verge of deactivating their beast integration, but neither side backed down. Of course, they can''t afford to give up now since this was the semifinals. One more push and the finals would be waiting for them.

    Shifting from close-range to long-range, Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi were literal beasts on the grand stage. Satoshi mmed the ice spear on the ground and a shockwave of ice and snow shot at Kim Jin Seok. It was supposed to send him backward but he used his six wings to dispel the attack. He swung his trident, and an insane beam of fire, lightning, and ice elerated towards Satoshi. Satoshi barely dodged it, and then he charged at Kim Jin Seok without reprieve. He didn''t bother guarding himself since Kim Jin Seok would need a cooldown after such a powerful attack.

    And Satoshi was right. Kim Jin Seok had to step backward before he prepared another attack. In the meantime, they entered into a brawl. Kim Jin Seok punched Satoshi before trying to stab him with the lightning bolt. Satoshi dodged, whipping his hand andnding a hook right at Kim Jin Seok''s cheek. The strike disoriented him a little bit, giving Satoshi the crucial opening he needed to stab Kim Jin Seok''s other shoulder with the ice spear.

    This time, instead of using the usual disposable ice spear he created with the Ice Empress''s powers, he summoned the real ice spear that belonged to the Ice Empress, giving Kim Jin Seok the frostbite.

    At first, Kim Jin Seok thought that he''d be able to block the attack or destroy the spear. In his previous attempts, he managed to easily break the ice spear that Satoshi wielded. That''s why, this time, he was still confident that he''d be able to shatter the ice spear before itnded on his shoulder.

    Krschchksch~!

    A steady crunching sound could be heard as Kim Jin Seok''s shoulder turned to ice. His entire arm froze in an instant, and it broke off like a piece of broken pottery, shattering on the ground as it did so.

    "What?! How?!" Kim Jin Seok asked. With his entire right arm out ofmission, he only had his left hand left. It took him a torrential amount of energy just to activate the innate skill of his tamed beasts and healing all his wounds from the fight already took a toll on him. Now, there was no way he''d have the extra energy to regenerate his limb. If he wanted to win, he had to make do with just his left arm.

    Notwithstanding the arm that he had lost, Kim Jin Seok still came at Satoshi without any thought of retreating. If he backed down now, then it will all be over for him. That''s why he continued hitting Satoshi with his trident in hopes that one of his attacks would hit.

    Despite his ridiculous effort to corner Satoshi, he couldn''t evennd a hit on him. Somehow, Satoshi''s ice spear now was more durable than it had been before. This brought him to the conclusion that Satoshi probably manifested the ice spear with the remaining energy he had. That''s the only exnation he could think of at that moment.

    But such was not the case. Unbeknownst to him, Satoshi had been hiding the real ice spear all along. He only brought the real ice spear if he was confident enough that his attacks would hit Kim Jin Seok. This was the only way Satoshi could conserve his energy. Every little bit of energy counts, hence Satoshi held back whenever he could in hopes that Kim Jin Seok would run out of energy first.

    And his n worked.

    Instead of Satoshi being backed into a corner, it was Kim Jin Seok who got cornered. With only his left arm at his disposal, it didn''t take long before Satoshi found another opening, cutting off his left arm with the same technique and leaving him armless.

    "To think that I''d be reduced to this state while fighting you. You really are amazing, Satoshi." Kim Jin Seok said. He tried to utilize his energy to regrow his arm but he couldn''t do it. As it turned out, he overestimated the amount of energy he had left, and he was left with a measly amount before he realized it.

    "It''s my loss." Kim Jin Seok said, deactivating his beast integration atst.

    "..."

    "..."<novelsnext>please visit </novelsnext>

    "AARGHHH~!" The moment he did that, his shoulders exploded with blood.

    It was a scene straight out of a horror movie as the red liquid spurted out of the stump on his shoulder. Now that his beast integration had been deactivated, the skills of his tamed beasts had left his body as well. If not taken care of, Kim Jin Seok would bleed to death.

    At that point, the audience didn''t have the leisure to cheer for Satoshi. While he had just won the match, they could tell that now wasn''t the right time to be celebrating. Kim Jin Seok was on the verge of death, and it would be bad news if he were to die on the grand stage.

    "I''m going in." The Nurse appeared out of nowhere. She addressed Tatsuki since she knew that he has the flight superpower in his plundered abilities. In response, Tatsuki nodded and grabbed the Nurse by the waist. He started flying towards the grand stage.

    Meanwhile, the referee had already waved to the medics to get there as soon as possible. If only he had a healing superpower, he''d have been able to perform first aid on Kim Jin Seok.

    The first few seconds of the gruesome scene were aired but Luke Skyrunner was sensible enough to turn off the live stream and show a ''we''ll be right back'' message. They couldn''t just show someone''s death live since that might destroy the reputation of the Official Beast Tournament for good.

    Now that the match was over, Satoshi immediately summoned Sera so he could regain his energy back. He figured that Kim Jin Seok wouldn''t die in a sh so he decided to take care of himself first before anything. This wasn''t because he hated Kim Jin Seok, but because he didn''t want an ident to happen if his energy was to get depleted and he goes out of control.

    After taking care of that, Satoshi asked Sera to heal Kim Jin Seok and grow his arms back. In a snap of a finger, Kim Jin Seok became better. Not only did he grow his arms back, but he also regained a portion of his energy as well, thanks to Sera. Even before the medics got to the scene, Kim Jin Seok had alreadypletely recovered.

    "Thanks for that. You really won that match, huh? I was no match for you." Kim Jin Seok forced a smile on his face. He already regained his energy, but he still found it difficult to move due to the muscle pains he had.

    Despite the fact that he recovered, he still had to be wheeled out by the medics from the grand stage.

    .....

    It took exactly ten minutes before the live stream was resumed. Luke Skyrunner stepped up on the te to exin what happened since he figured thementator wouldn''t be able to exin it better than he. Now, with all that said and done, the audience finally had time to celebrate Satoshi''s win, and they couldn''t help but look forward to the finals. This was thest event for today, and before the night hade to a close, there can only be one winner of the Official Beast Tournament.

    There were debates about whether the finals should be moved to the next day or not but Luke Skyrunner shut down the idea. This setup had remained unchanged for the past couple of years and there was no way he''d change it this year. Besides, this was part of the challenge. If the two candidates for the finals couldn''t match up to this aforementioned expectation, then they should have prepared more beforehand.

    The finals were happening tonight, and that was final.

    Since there was still time before the finals, Satoshi found himself wandering the line of stalls once again. He couldn''t help but go back to this ce since it wasfortable therepared to his waiting room. Besides, it helped take his mind off of the revtion that he had encountered a moment ago. The premise of Disciples and Managers was still new to him, but it was undoubtedly real and it was only a matter of time before he got dragged into that world.

    "What are you thinking about?" Emma appeared beside him out of the blue, interrupting his thought process.

 Chapter 396 Turn Around

    "What are you thinking about?" Emma appeared beside him out of the blue, interrupting his thought process.

    One moment, Satoshi was relishing his solitude amidst the crowd of spectators. The next moment, Emma showed up beside her, grabbing him by the hand before he could ask her what she was doing by the stalls.

    Speechless, Satoshi bowed towards Emma in greeting before he asked her. "Ah, Emma, what are you doing here?" He trailed off, averting his gaze from the pair of softness that pressed against his arm.

    Back there, he almost choked out his saliva after feeling something on his arm. While this was not the first time Emma grabbed her like that, this was definitely the first time she put her guard down and got closer to her. It was too close forfort, but there was no way Satoshi would bring it up. After all, it would be a great blow to his pride if he was the only one conscious of it.

    "Nothing. I went to the waiting room, and you weren''t there, so I opened my portal and went here." Emma replied, heaving a sigh.

    Even without her usual chatty exnation, Satoshi could tell that something was bothering Emma. She wasn''t her usual self; to top it all off, it seemed like she was looking far off into the distance.

    Because of that, Satoshi just let her be. And together, the two stopped by from one stall to another. If she didn''t want to talk about it, then Satoshi would just let him be. They''d already spent a significant amount of time together, and the least he could do as a friend was act as a shoulder she could lean on.

    "Ah, by the way, congrattions on reaching the finals," Emma turned away as soon as she mentioned the finals. At that moment, she remembered what she had done in the training room before the semifinal match, which embarrassed her a little bit. That was the first time she had acted so forwardly towards someone, and she couldn''t get used to the feeling.

    Her mind kept on reying the scene as if to torture her, and she continued to grow redder and redder as time passed.

    "Are you all right? You''re red as a beet." Satoshi asked. He immediately assumed that Emma had a fever. That was the only likely exnation for why she turned red in an instant.

    Without thinking too much about it, Satoshi pressed his forehead on Emma''s (no, Satoshi didn''t press his head on Emma''s chest!). And just as he thought, Emma was really burning up.

    "Wow, that''s a pretty high fever. Are you sure you''re all right?" Satoshi asked, tightening his hold on Emma''s arm so she won''t trip and fall if she were to get dizzy.

    "Er, yes. I''m fine." Emma responded, but she clearly wasn''t doing okay.

    "Let''s get you to the infirmary." Satoshi continued, assisting Emma with every step.

    .....

    A couple of minutes ago.

    A white-haired girl walked along the aisle that led to the line of waiting rooms where all the participants were staying. Most of them were already empty, or rather, only four were currently filled since the semifinals had just finished.

    Nevertheless, Shiroi walked forward. In hand, she clutched a bento wrapped in a pristine white scarf, hoping to give it to Satoshi after congratting him for reaching the finals.

    Since Satoshi was usually alone in the waiting room, Shiroi tried to calm herself down first before she knocked on the door. Just when she was about to do so, the door opened. And out came a girl who seemed to be the same age as her.

    "And you are... ?" Shiroi had no idea who the girl was, but judging from the fact that she came out of Satoshi''s room, she must be a friend or an acquaintance.

    She was a petite girl, prepossessing, but her beauty couldn''t match Shiroi''s. For a moment, Shiroi froze in front of the girl, her mind going through the motions of assuming what had happened in the room since Satoshi was usually alone there.

    "If you''re looking for Satoshi, he''s not here," Jana responded, answering the question that gued Shiroi''s mind instead of answering the one she blurted out. "I''m also looking for him. I need to tell him something important."

    "Something... important?" Shiroi''s mind clicked, and she concluded that the girl would probably confess to Satoshi. Now that she had gotten a better look at the girl, she realized that she was one of the beast tamers participating in the Official Beast Tournament. From what she could recall, the girl was defeated by Link, and Satoshi jumped in to interrupt their fight since Link had gotten out of control.

    "Yes, something important. Do you happen to know where he is?" Jana asked.

    Shiroi shrugged, hiding the bento behind her since that would give away her purpose for visiting. "She''s probably wandering around the stalls like usual. I''m also looking for him."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    With a nod, Jana left Shiroi and walked out of there. As for Shiroi, she also walked out, hoping to find Satoshi before anyone else did. Somehow, her intuition told her that a lot of girls were looking for him, which bothered him a little.

    Walking towards the stalls, Shiroi started searching for Satoshi. They were childhood friends, so she was confident that she''d be able to spot him in the crowd. A minute or soter, he spotted Satoshi, and she ran toward him.

    Before she could call out to him, a figure suddenly appeared beside Satoshi. It was none other than Emma, and Shiroi instantly recognized her.

    For some reason, Emma was leaning too much toward Satoshi, even going as far as to grab her arm and press it against her chest. Emma felt a pang in her heart and interrupted their conversation by revealing her presence.

    In her mind, she practiced multiple times how she''d approach the two of them. ''Should I act cheerful? Or casual? What am I supposed to do here?'' She contemted while stealing a nce at the bento she was holding.

    There was a wall of people between Shiroi and Satoshi, and she felt like she couldn''t ovee it. After all, it would be weird if she just showed up out of nowhere, just like Emma did a couple of seconds ago. She had no choice but to watch from afar, waiting for the best moment to approach the two.

    And then Satoshi pressed his forehead against Emma. It was quick, but Shiroi saw otherwise. Because of the people passing by, she only noticed Satoshi leaning toward Emma before pulling away.

    WHAT?!

    Emma couldn''t believe her eyes. She had to pinch herself to ascertain that she wasn''t dreaming. Well, more like she wanted everything to be a dream... but it wasn''t. While she didn''t see what Satoshi did, she immediately assumed he kissed her.

    After all, what else would a guy do if he were to lean his face toward a girl''s face? There''s only one exnation for it.

    Shiroi''s mouth hung open in disbelief as she turned around. She then covered her mouth and walked away. She couldn''t believe that Satoshi was brazen enough to do something like that in public.

    But then again, who was she to question what Satoshi did or did not do? She wasn''t his girlfriend or anything, and she never confessed that she liked him.

    A stray tear fell from Shiroi''s eyes as she walked away, totally misunderstanding what had just transpired.

    Somehow the air surrounding Shiroi started getting colder, thanks to her superpower activating due to the intense emotions she felt within. Because of that, people who were passing by started avoiding her.

    Shiroi told herself that there was no way she could go back to her seat after that. Everyone would ask her why she was crying, and she didn''t want to deal with any of that.

    Instead, she found a nice quiet corner and tucked herself over there. It was right beside a vending machine, a pretty secluded spot. She quietly cried there, thinking Satoshi had chosen Emma over her. And she couldn''t me anyone but herself, holding off her confession in hopes that Satoshi would do it first.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    A man dressed in ck casually strolled through the crowd, whistling an unfamiliar tune while he scanned the faces of every person that passed by. He was looking for someone.

    From afar, he noticed a familiar face, no two of them, but he only aimed for one since he stood no chance against the other.

    Unsuspected, Jana walked amongst the crowd, looking for Satoshi. She didn''t even notice the man who was looking at her all this time. He was wearing an evil grin on his face.

    Tug!

    Before Jana could react, the man grabbed her by the arm. "Found you," The man gruffly muttered before opening a portal and shoving Jana inside. In an instant, the two of them disappeared from the crowd.

    It would be a couple of hourster before someone realized that Jana had been killed, but not before the finals of the Official Beast Tournament was over.

 Chapter 397 You Murderer

    ''No wonder.''

    ''No wonder she has been acting weird ever since this morning. So she was suffering from a fever, huh, and a pretty high one at that.'' Satoshi told himself, bashfully stealing nces from Emma, who had been leaning her whole body on him. She still clutched Satoshi''s arms, hence the redness on Satoshi''s face.

    Once they reached the infirmary, Satoshi put Emma on the bed. There was no one by the nurse''s office, and then he realized that the Nurse was probably in another infirmary in the building, tending to Kim Jin Seok, who was gravely injured during their match.

    Emma started breathing heavily, and her breathing became ragged as well. Satoshi was surprised that she was able tost this long, enduring the pain while acting as if she was all right.

    "What did you do," Satoshi mumbled, procuring a wet towel and putting it on Emma''s forehead. It was good that she was already sweating profusely, but at this rate, Satoshi had to tend to her sweat; otherwise, she''d be drenched before she knew it.

    Satoshi gulped. There was no way she''d wipe Emma''s sweat off. ''Why are you thinking about that, Satoshi?! Just take care of her in the meantime. We''ll deal with anything as we go along.'' Satoshi berated himself, getting the urge to p himself after thinking of somethingscivious.

    "Satoshi?" Emma weakly groaned.

    "What is it?"

    "Water."

    "Water?" Satoshi confirmed before getting water from the nearby water dispenser. It was cold, but he knew Emma wouldn''t mind drinking cold water.

    Emma rxedly eased herself onto the bed with a deep exhale, closing her eyes as she did so. She nced at Satoshi, who was worriedly staring at her, and a smile appeared on her face.

    For some reason, her mind drifted to when she first met Satoshi. Back then, she was desperate and asked for Satoshi''s help to save her world. He managed to defeat one of the main threats that gued their vige. But that wasn''t enough. One of these days, Emma had to return and rid her world of the beasts that were unleashed to destroy her world.

    And in order to achieve that, she had to grow stronger. She couldn''t just rely on Satoshi forever. If she kept on being dependent, then there was no way she''d save her world.

    Nevertheless, she found herself dependent on Satoshi most of the time, making her feel a modicum of guilt. But one thing that crossed his mind was how kind Satoshi was. He neverined, even though she had been on the receiving end of Satoshi''s generosity.

    "Why are you smiling like an idiot? You know you have a fever, right?" Satoshi asked, dipping the towel in cold water once again before pping it onto her forehead.

    "Hehhe~ it''s nothing." She responded. "Do you remember that time? When I appeared out of nowhere?"

    "Oi, don''t say that. You might trigger a death g if you continue speaking about that." Satoshi warned her, gently covering her mouth before she spoke another word.

    Emma nodded, grabbing Satoshi by the hand and putting it on her chest. She had no idea why she did that, but it made it easier for her to breathe after doing so. As for Satoshi, she averted her gaze from Emma, his face turning into a nice shade of bright red due to the suppleness he felt on the palm of her hand.

    "Ah, right! From time to time, you visit your home, right? How was it? Have you gotten rid of most tamed beasts?" Satoshi asked. "You know, if you need any help in your subjugation, or taming, you can tell me. I''ll find the time to go with you."

    Emma felt the urge to decline Satoshi''s offer since she had troubled him enough already. But after pondering about it a little deeper, she realized that the opportunity was too hard to pass up. After all, she''d be able to spend some alone time with Satoshi if she obliged.

    "Sure, I''ll tell you next time." She continued.

    ...

    Meanwhile, in an unknown dimension,

    After seeing a familiar face, Jana turned around, only for the young man to grab her by her hand before teleporting her into an unknown dimension. Everything around her went by in a sh, and it all happened so suddenly that it was already toote by the time she could react.

    One moment, she was in the midst of a crowd by the halls of the American Dome. The next moment, she found herself in a dimension that resembled a desert. It was barrennd as far as the eye could see, and she had no idea whether she was still on Earth.

    "Jonathan?! What are you doing here?! I thought our master banished you?!" Jana gritted her teeth in frustration as she summoned her Scarlet Scythe.

    "Oh, Jana? You''re here; what a coincidence." Jonathan unwrapped the bandage on his wrists. His guard was totally down, implying he had no reason to be wary of Jana.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "What do you want from me? Why are you doing this?!" Jana called out, immediately integrating with her Representative. She was at the ready, watching every movement Jonathan made so she could brace herself.

    "Nothing much. I just wanted to catch up. How are you doing? You''re as beautiful as always, you know." Jonathan continued.

    "If this is about your banishment, know that Yun Zhe and I had no say in it. Even if we wanted to let you stay, our Manager''s decision was final." Jana reasoned out, almost choking on her breath since she could sense overwhelming power enveloping Jonathan. "And after what you did... after you killed them... there''s no way we''ll let you stay. Even if our Manager asked for it, we can''t be with the likes of you. You murderer."

    "Wow, you''re hurting my feelings here. Couldn''t you just say that you miss me? Then again, you and Yun Zhe had something going on, so... I guess you don''t want me in between?" Jonathan said.

    Swish.

    Jana detected Jonathan''s movement, but it was faster than anticipated. Before she could swing her Scarlet Scythe, Jonathan instantaneously appeared in front of her, blocking her Scarlet Scythe with his fingertip.

    "You know, I''ve always wondered why no one could beat me. Even before I was told about my potential, even before I was told that I''m a Disciple, no one could defeat me." Jonathan heaved a sigh.

    "You should''ve seen the surprised look on my face when I realized I''m not the only Disciple ever to exist. I thought I could finally fight to my heart''s content at that moment. I thought the Disciples were special."

    "I felt that they were the most powerful people on the. But no... the lot of you are weak. I barely touched the others during our fight, and they exploded like cluster bombs. How? How can all of you be so weak?"

    While Jonathan was rying his monologue, showing no shred of remorse, Jana decided to make a move. She swung with all her might, using her Scarlet Scythe''s ability, knowing that the strike would hit Jonathan. He was standing too close to her, so there was no way he''d be able to dodge it.

    Swish!

    "I see. You''re still as weak as ever. How can all of you be considered Disciples when you''re this weak?" Jonathan asked, snapping his finger and deactivating the wind de produced by the Scarlet Scythe.

    "What do you want?" Jana repeated.

    Up until now, Jonathan still didn''t answer Jana. His expression darkened, and he snapped his finger a second time. "Now that I think about it... the First Selection is bound to happen soon. I guess I should take my rightful spot as a Disciple."

    Fwoosh~!

    Straining his ankle, Jonathan charged at Jana without reprieve, forming his hand into a de and aiming it right at Jana''s heart. It wasn''t supposed to be like this. Somehow, a part of him still wanted to stop. He knew that it was never toote to look the other way and spare the girl in front of her.

    ''No... their spirits won''t rest in peace if I''m weak. I can''t be weak. I can''t afford to be weak.'' He repeated in his mind.

    Taking a step back, Jana realized what Jonathan intended to do. It was quite faint, but she sensed a hint of killing intent from Jonathan. Once again, she swung her Scarlet Scythe, using everything she had to ensure that her attack would connect.

    ng!

    Jonathan''s hand hit the dull side of the Scarlet Scythe. He extended his hand and snapped his finger a second time.

    In an instant, Jana was forced to deactivate her beast integration, and the Scarlet Scythe fell from her grip. Seizing his chance, Jonathan continued his attack.

    Squelch!

    The sound of squelching flesh and broken bones was heard. Mortified, Jana looked in horror as Jonathan pierced her chest and grabbed her heart, holding it out before squeezing it, blood dripping from his hand.

    "For a moment back there, I thought your heart would be cold. What a surprise, it''s warm." Jonathan still had that darkened expression as he watched Jana puke blood before she copsed to the ground.

    "I''ll send Yun Zhe your regards, you murderer," Jonathan muttered before throwing her squeezed-out heart right on her face.

 Chapter 398 You Kissed?!

    With an effortless wave of his hand, Jonathan transferred Jana to another dimension, intending to surprise Yun Zhe as soon as the Official Beast Tournament had concluded. There were plenty of ways he could''ve disposed of the body, but he opted not to since he wanted to show everyone that Jana was dead.

    Slowly, his lips curved upward, and an ominous chuckle came out of his mouth. But before he could fall deeper into his maniacal state, he realized that Yun Zhe didn''t do anything wrong to him. He bit his lips in frustration. "In hindsight, Yun Zhe''s better off without her. I''ll keep her body far away; no one will ever know."

    The thought of their master briefly appeared in his head, and he realized that by the time he got rid of Jana, their master would probably be aware of what he had done. There was no escaping the consequences of his actions, but at least he was able to aplish what he set out to do.

    "Even if this means death, I''ll dly ept it. With this, their souls could finally rest in peace." Jonathan mumbled to himself before he teleported back to the Official Beast Tournament.

    And as if nothing had happened, he walked towards his respective seat, hoping he won''t get to meet Yun Zhe before the finalsmenced. That would be the most awkward and fateful event ever to ur¡ª or so that''s what Jonathan said to himself.

    Jonathan looked at his hand. There was a golden ring fitly wrapped around his index finger. Before taking another step, he adjusted the ring, rubbing his skin.

    It wasn''t that noticeable, but if one were to look closer, one would immediately notice Jonathan trembling with every step.

    ...

    "So this is the infamous candy apple, huh? It''s glistening, and it looks wonderful! Ahhh~ I wonder how it''d taste!" Yun Zhe drooled while saying his monologue about the candy apple. He wiped his salivating lips with his hand before bringing the candy apple closer to his mouth.

    From his peripheral vision, he noticed a certain man who was at least as tall as him. His build was not unusual, but somehow, Yun Zhe felt like he had met the man in the past.

    "Is that who I think it is? No, that''s impossible. There''s no way he''ll show his face after all this time." Yun Zhe incredulously spoke to himself as he pushed his body through the crowd. He intended to call the attention of the young man d in ck.

    "If that''s really him, then he''s got a lot of exnation to do." Yun Zhe gritted his teeth in slight frustration after remembering the traumatizing event that had transpired a few years back.

    Grab!

    The guy in front of Yun Zhe flinched, but before Yun Zhe could see his face, he vanished in thin air, leaving only his ck hooded robe, which Yun Zhe tightly clutched. "What?" An exmation came out of Yun Zhe''s mouth. He didn''t even detect any usage of teleportation. Somehow, the young man vanished without a trace of energy.

    "Who was that?" Yun Zhe muttered to himself, still half-convinced that it was Jonathan whom he''d seen.

    Yun Zhe shook his head. Now was not the time to think about a particr murderer in the past. For now, he had to focus on the fight ahead of him. "Finally... it''s time for my much-awaited fight against Satoshi, huh? This is going to be fun." He told himself, finally taking a bite of the candy apple he was bncing on his hand.

    Eh?!

    "Why is this so tasty?!" He screamed in delight, finishing the candy apple in an instant.

    Meanwhile, Jonathan had appeared in his seat, breathing heavily. That was a close call. Had he not listened to his instincts, he would''ve been seen by thest person he wanted contact with. Fortunately, he decided to teleport before turning around. It was a good call.

    ...

    Shiroi had been utterly dejected after the misunderstanding, but she knew she just couldn''t sit around and do nothing after contemting it. Right now, she had to know whether Satoshi was going out with Emma. It was up to her to get to the bottom of things. After all, Satoshi had not told her anything about it.

    She finally mustered the courage to confront Satoshi about it. If they were going out, then she should''ve been the first to know since she''s his childhood friend and all. "Also, d-d-d-didn''t we hold hands... why did we hold hands if he''s already dating someone? Mou~!"

    Fueled by her jealousy, or rather, her rage due to Satoshi''s disloyalty, she finally reached the infirmary, where she saw Emma and Satoshi go in. She pouted, grabbing the sliding door handle with the full intent to shove it open.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    But before she could do so, she felt nervousness creeping from within her heart. She began wondering why the two of them had to go to the infirmary when they could spend time together just fine without going there in the first ce. After a couple of seconds, Shiroi''s face became ghostly pale before it transitioned into a nice shade of red.

    Needless to say, her thoughts had finally gone wild, and she began imagining things that shouldn''t be allowed in a general audience novel such as this one. Filled with embarrassment, she covered her face with her hands before copsing to her knees.

    "E-e-eh?! What are they going to do inside? Are they going to k-k-kiss?!" Shiroi muttered to herself, nervously swallowing her saliva before she grabbed the sliding door handle a second time.

    "I shouldn''t d-do this but... I have to! They can''t do it in the infirmary! I have to stop them no matter what." Shiroi told herself. Mustering her courage, she slowly opened the door to the infirmary, taking a peek inside.

    Just as she thought, Emma and Satoshi were really inside the infirmary. One of them was lying down on the bed. No matter how much Shiroi strained her eyes, she couldn''t see who was lying down and who was standing. After all, the bed was covered with curtains on all four corners.

    "What are they doing?" Emma muttered to herself.

    That''s when the shadow of the one standing leaned in. As for the one lying down, he or she stayedpletely still. Emma''s eyes widened.

    "No, what are you doing sneaking by the entrance?" A voice of ady suddenly addressed Emma, causing her to stumble forward, hitting her head on the edge of the sliding door, which was partially open.

    The voice was from none other than Nishimura Haruka, also known as the ''Nurse'', her superhero name.

    Haruka was clearly ring at Shiroi, and like a lost puppy, Shiroi averted her gaze, rubbing her forehead since she had hit it pretty hard.

    "Come on, let''s put an ice pack on that forehead of yours. You have lovely silken white hair, and it would look bad if you got a lump on your forehead." The Nurse muttered, helping Shiroi to her feet and leading her inside.

    Shiroi finally got a clear view of the two people covered by the curtain. To her surprise, Satoshi was leaning down on Emma to adjust the wet towel on her forehead. "Eh?!" She let out as Satoshi opened the curtain and greeted the Nurse.

    "Haruka-san, you''re just in time. My friend Emma here got a fev¡ª Shiroi? What are you doing here?" Satoshi cut himself short upon noticing that Shiroi was also in the room. He didn''t expect her to appear out of nowhere; hence he was caught off guard.

    "I-I-I could ask the same thing!" Shiroi blurted out before she even thought about what she would say. "I t-t-thought you were doing something indecent after you¡ª"

    Shiroi''s eyes widened, and she covered her mouth before she could say another word. Meanwhile, Satoshi had plenty of questions in his mind. He had assumed that thest thing Shiroi would call him was indecent, yet here they were.

    "Indecent? Me? Wha¡ª why?" Satoshi let out as his mind went into overdrive. He had no idea how Shiroi came to that conclusion, and the more he tried to think about his recent actions, the more he got confused.

    "Eek~ Tsumetai~" Shiroi eximed after the Nurse pressed the ice pack on her forehead.

    With her free hand, the Nurse grabbed Satoshi by the ear before pointing at the ice pack. "You hold it. The two of you can wait outside by the line of seats there. Your friend here''s burning with fever. It''d be preferable if she could rest in a quiet ce. The two of you lovebirds should bring your quarrel somewhere else."

    "Lovebirds?!" Satoshi eximed, letting out a huge exhale as he spoke.

    "Yes," The Nurse nodded before pointing at Shiroi. "And you, you misunderstand a lot of things. You didn''t see the kiss, right? So why were you assuming that they kissed?" The Nurse pointed out out of nowhere.

    "Kissed?! What?!" Satoshi screamed, cutting off the Nurse''s fuse short.

    Before they could react, the Nurse had already shoved them out of the infirmary. "I hope you won''t raise your voice in the hallway. If I hear you... well, let me just warn you that it won''t end well for the two of you." The Nurse smiled, slowly sliding the door shut.

 Chapter 399 New Representative!

    "I knew it. Right from the start, I knew you''d be my opponent in this final bout. I hope you won''t disappoint me, Satoshi. " Yun Zhe greeted, slightly lowering his head at Satoshi in a formal greeting.

    Finally, the Official Beast Tournament was about to end, and it had amounted to a showdown between two young beast tamers, Midoriyama Satoshi and Yun Zhe. Nothing was holding them back anymore. It all came down to who would emerge victorious¡ª because whoever it was between them, he''d be crowned as the new ''Beast Master.''

    One of them would im the grand title while the other would suffer for being second ce.

    "We''re finally back,dies and gentlemen!" Thementator was as energetic as ever, addressing the audience. As for Luke Skyrunner, who was supposed to be with thementator, well, he fell asleep in the booth.

    The camera drones had a field day putting his sleeping face up in the live stream.

    Once again, the referee walked into the middle of the grand stage, going through the ritual of the match. He gestured towards Satoshi and Yun Zhe, telling them to shake hands.

    Unlike the semifinals, there will be no limit on how many tamed beasts a person can use during the match. Of course, it wouldn''t be fair if the first participant had twenty tamed beasts while the other had a hundred.

    That''s why¡ª just like in all the previous finals¡ª the referee had to confirm how many tamed beasts they''d use during the fight. While there was no limit to how many tamed beasts they would settle for, both parties needed to agree on the headcount of their tamed beasts.

    "You can decide." Satoshi extended his hand, gesturing to Yun Zhe that he could choose the number of tamed beasts they''d be fighting.

    "Are you sure about this? Then again, you have more tamed beasts than me. I guess I''ll settle for six. Would that be okay?" Yun Zhe asked.

    Since the two of them badly wanted to hurry along andmence the match, Satoshi agreed instantly. Before walking into the stage, he had already decided which tamed beasts he''d use. Well, more like he had decided which ones not to use since they''d break the meta of the Official Beast Tournament.

    Surprisingly, the first one on Satoshi''s list was not a Representative but a normal tamed beast he had tamed inside a specific gate. This tamed beast had human-like features, and he could summon familiars, just like Satoshi. It was none other than Gabriel.

    "I''m sorry, Gabriel, but you have to sit this one out for now," Satoshi mumbled once again under his breath. He was relieved to hear in his mind that Gabriel was okay with it.

    "You already know which ones I''m going to choose, right?" Yun Zhe called out five of his tamed beasts, which he used during the semifinals. Obviously, he was going to use theirbination of skills in their fight, and Satoshi was not at all surprised by his decision.

    After all, Yun Zhe was pretty formidable when he had that transformation that paid homage to a certain powerful entity in a certain card game.

    "Since this is the finals, I''m going to bring everything to the table as well." Satoshi continued, smiling.

    The first spot belonged to Dex. Now that Satoshi had thought about it, this was the first time he was going to use Dex in a match. In the past, Dex just existed in the background, helping him with his decision and giving him information about his tamed beasts. He was efficient at his tasks and helped out a lot whenever needed.

    Notwithstanding his achievements, Satoshi was well aware that he could be so much more. Dex is a Representative, after all. And while there''s a possibility that he''s not suited forbat, there''s a chance he is. That''s why Satoshi decided to risk it.

    Besides, Dex would really help ry information about the opponent''s tamed beasts when it came down to it. A saying goes, ''knowing the enemy is half the battle.'' If he could get more information on Yun Zhe''s tamed beasts, especially their weaknesses, it would more or less guarantee their victory.

    "Stat (Statue of Captivity), Amy (Copycat), Sera, Ghast," Satoshi went on calling for his familiar''s names. There was no shred of hesitation in Satoshi''s heart. Now that he managed to climb this high up, there was no way he''d fight half-heartedly. If winning meant he needed to use the bestbinations of his tamed beasts, then so be it.

    However, before he could call out to his sixth familiar (Ryu Ryoko, unsurprisingly), a tamed beast appeared right before Satoshi. At first, Satoshi didn''t recognize it since he had never seen a tamed beast that looked like it. But after a couple of seconds, he recognized it, and his jaw dropped to the ground as he did so.

    It was the Scarlet Scythe.

    Somehow, the Scarlet Scythe managed to cross dimensions and appear right before Satoshi¡ª or so that''s what Jonathan (Jana''s murderer) thought. Unbeknownst to him, the Scarlet Scythe followed him back to Earth to choose a new master.

    "S-Scarlet Scythe? Satoshi, why do you have the Scarlet Scythe..." Yun Zhe''s pupils dted as he suspiciously stared at Satoshi.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I... I don''t know. It suddenly appeared in front of us, didn''t you see?" Satoshi continued. "In any case, I''m going to summon the ck Winged Dragon as my sixth¡ª"

    Swish!

    The Scarlet Scythe had a striking bright red color across its handle. Its de had a deep ck shade on it, but the sharp edge of it was matted with scarlet. A sinister aura enveloped it as it swung mightily towards Satoshi''s neck, barely stopping before its tip touched Satoshi''s carotid artery.

    "Use me. I have deemed you worthy of bing my new master." The Scarlet Scythe called out. Even without sound amplification, its voice echoed throughout the entire American Dome.

    "What is it talking about, Satoshi? Didn''t the Scarlet Scythe belong to Jana? What''s going on?" Yun Zhe asked, his face still as pale as a ghost. He couldn''t believe what was happening now, so much so that he pinched himself to see whether he was dreaming.

    He wasn''t dreaming.

    "Why do you need a new master? Don''t you have a master already?" Satoshi asked.

    It''s as if time had stopped for everyone. Grave silence filled the entire American Dome as they watched the preparation for the finals unfold. This was undoubtedly an event they weren''t expecting.

    And, of course, everyone was familiar with the Scarlet Scythe. After all, Jana''s fight against Link was one of the iconic moments in this year''s Official Beast Tournament.

    There was a pause, and the Scarlet Scythe responded in its monotonous voice just like usual. "My master has been killed."

    Gasp!

    Everyone gasped, with Yun Zhe being the loudest. He couldn''t believe that someone had killed Jana in the middle of the Official Beast Tournament. "B-but how... I saw her this morning. She was perfectly fine. Just how..."

    That''s when Yun Zhe''s mind drifted to a certain someone. Before the finalsmenced, he figured his mind was ying tricks on him when he noticed a familiar face.

    But now that he thought about it, he might have been correct. The person he saw before he went to the grand stage was Jonathan. There was no mistaking it.

    "Jonathan..." Yun Zhe muttered to himself as he gritted his teeth.

    "What?! Are you sure about that?!" Satoshi blurted out before he thought about it. It was a foolish question to ask since the proof was right there. There was no way the Scarlet Scythe would choose a new master if its master weren''t out of the picture in the first ce.

    "Will you be my new master?" Scarlet Scythe asked a second time. At this point, Satoshi would just be doing everyone a disservice if he rejected an offer that is once in a lifetime.

    "Then..." Satoshi extended his hand toward the Scarlet Scythe. Because a huge crowd was watching his every move, he decided not to do his crazy dance to summon his blue mes. Just thinking about it already made him feel embarrassed.

    A fickle blue me appeared in his hand''s palm, making him heave a sigh. He was aware that the taming might not work if the blue me was weak. That''s why he had to make the fire stronger and more potent.

    And in order to do that, he had to do his dance.

    Getting rid of his embarrassment, Satoshi started his ritual. He remembered getting a weird look from Shiroi when she first saw it, which made him cringe. Regardless of the thought, he continued with the dance until the me in his hand was sizeable enough.

    During the entire ''ritual,'' everyone remained quiet. They had no idea what Satoshi was doing, but it was pretty interesting. Even those watching the live stream couldn''t take their eyes off the screen while they watched Satoshi''s weird dance. (After this, the infamous Satoshi dance will be viral on the inte)

    Once the deed was over, Satoshi extended his hand to Scarlet Scythe. "Wee to the team, Scarlet Scythe." He greeted, his blue mes touching the Weapons-Type Representative.

 Chapter 400 Defenseless Strategy

    With the taming process sessful, Satoshi weed the Scarlet Scythe to his team with open arms. At the moment, he finally had four Representatives in his party, which should''ve been impossible for a normal trainer.

    This was mentioned by Yun Zhe before but apparently, even the most talented beast tamer could only tame two to three Representatives at the maximum. That was the set limit throughout history. But then again, a year ago it was widely epted that the maximum tamed beasts a beast tamer could integrate with is one. That''s it. But this year it was proven wrong. As it turned out, one could integrate with as many tamed beasts as they could as long as they have the mental capacity and control.

    "Wow, your team is pretty scary." Yun Zhemented but he was not in the least bit fazed by it. He was plenty strong as it is, and he knew that in terms of control, he was better than Satoshi. This underestimation of Satoshi''s power led him to believe that Satoshi couldn''t possibly defeat him.

    "You''re team is pretty solid as well. I''ve seen your fight during the semifinals. It was pretty one-sided." Satoshimented. He could tell that Yun Zhe was used to his team, and that''s why he was capable of integrating with five of them all at once.

    "Are you sure about adding the Scarlet Scythe to your team? Can you even integrate with the Scarlet Scythe? I''m sure you can''t. There''s no way you can integrate with a tamed beast after it joins your team, much less when we''re talking about a Representative." Yun Zhe confidently muttered.

    "Hoh, are you sure about that?" Satoshi said, smirking.

    Nevertheless, Yun Zhe perceived Satoshi''s words as mere false confidence. It was impossible for someone to integrate with a tamed beast they haven''t bonded with. That''s why Yun Zhe was really confident that Satoshi won''t be able to integrate with the Scarlet Scythe.

    "Then again, that puts us on equal ground. I can only integrate with five of my tamed beasts at the moment. So I''ll only be using five of my tamed beast while I bench my sixth one." Yun Zhe continued.

    Honestly, it''s taking all of Yun Zhe''s mental strength to keep his Penta Beast Integration stable. That''s why he didn''t have the capability ofmanding another tamed beast on top of that. It''s not like he had a choice when it came to leaving his sixth tamed beast... it''s just that he couldn''t really do anything else if he activated his Penta Beast Integration.

    "I see. Well, let''s see if what you''re saying is true." Satoshi responded with the same blind confidence¡ª or so that''s what Yun Zhe thought he was doing.

    Seeing that the two were done riling each other up, the referee finally found the time to start the match. After raising his hand, he brought it down and yelled. "FIGHT START!" He then dashed all the way to the side of the grand stage in hopes that he won''t be caught in the crossfire while the match started.

    Seizing his chance, Yun Zhe immediately extended his hand and called out for his five tamed beasts thatpleted his ''exodia'' transformation. His sixth tamed beast was actually a fire smander¡ª a literal ceholder since they''ve decided on six tamed beasts for the finals match.

    As for Satoshi, he realized that Yun Zhe was still doubting him, just like the people in the audience who were skeptical about the appearance of the Scarlet Scythe. There was still debate whether what the Scarley Scythe said was true or not, but the majority more or less assumed that its owner, Jana, was really dead. Yun Zhe, on the other hand, decided not to believe everything, trying to be sanguine about the entire situation. Since he has not heard from his Manager that Jana was really dead, he decided not to dwell on the thought too much. If something earth-shattering (for him) as Jana''s death was to happen, then he was confident that his Manager would tell him about it.

    Right now, he still hasn''t heard a single word from his Manager regarding the topic, so he assumed that the Scarlet Scythe simply chose another master since Jana was not capable of taming it or something along those lines. Still, there was a nagging feeling deep within him that said Jana was really dead.

    "Let me show you something," Satoshi called out, snapping Yun Zhe back to reality.

    At that moment, Yun Zhe had alreadypleted his Penta Beast Integration. As usual, he looked like an unstoppable entity with his full-armor mecha and the wings and steel ring on his back.

    "Then show me."

    Without hesitation, Satoshi ran toward Yun Zhe, elerating at full speed. Simultaneously, he ordered all of his familiars to stay where they were.

    Filled with bewilderment, Yun Zhe had no idea why Satoshi was defenselessly charging at him. ''Is this some sort of a mind game? What did he intend to show me?'' He asked himself in confusion. Regardless, he didn''t get out of the way while Satoshi approached him. He couldn''t beat the living daylights out of him without him approaching, after all.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    And then he jumped.

    Now, Yun Zhe was perfectly convinced that Satoshi had no idea what he was doing. He simply charged at him and then jumped like a madman without any sign of attacking or defending at all. Even the audience started screaming at Satoshi¡ª that he''ll lose by andslide if he keeps it up.

    Even then, Yun Zhe was level-headed enough to defend against any surprise attack. ''I believe Satoshi wouldn''t move so carelessly like that without a n. He should be nning something... but what did he want to show me?'' Yun Zhe asked himself.

    There was a brief sh, followed by the nking of metals.

    When Satoshi was within arms reach of Yun Zhe, his body lit up in a split second. One moment, he was as defenseless as a newborn fawn, the next moment he was wielding the Scarlet Scythe and had sessfully integrated with it. The scarlet and ck armor that instantly enveloped Satoshi stood out more than Yun Zhe''s steel armor.

    In that instant, Yun Zhe managed to block Satoshi''s strike with the Scarlet Scythe. A smile appeared on Yun Zhe''s face. Previously, he wasn''t sure whether Satoshi was taking the finals match seriously or not. But now, he was fairly certain that he went to the finals to win and not to y around.

    "Now we''re talking." Yun Zhe grunted, pushing Satoshi out of the way before using the Primordial Excalibur on him. Another ng was heard as both weapons connected, driving home the fact that the Primordial Excalibur and the Scarlet Scythe are more or less equal in terms of durability.

    Some of the audience stood up in disbelief when they realized that Satoshi had easily integrated with the Scarlet Scythe. It should''ve been impossible since they never had any bond in the first ce, but Satoshi pulled it off, impressing everyone. Luke Skyrunner had to rub his eyes before hemented on Satoshi''s achievement. For a moment, he thought he was dreaming. Never in his life did he expect to witness such a smooth integration between a beast tamer and a tamed beast.

    "What was that?"

    "That''s impossible, right?"

    "Even if it were possible, I''ll still find it hard to believe."

    "This Satoshi kid, he may be the best beast tamer to ever live."

    A man hung his mouth open in shock as juice flowed from his mouth. Some of the audience started screaming, and those who were calling out that Satoshi was throwing the match, well, they were put in their ce and they kept quiet for the rest of the match.

    Without missing a beat, Satoshi integrated with Sera and Ghast, giving him the much-needed support needed so he could go head-to-head with Yun Zhe. Ghast provided Satoshi with instant teleportation, and Sera gave him all the buffs he needed. She also provided him with the ability to fly, so he won''t have to worry about Yun Zhe kiting him from in mid-air.

    "That was quite a performance, but I''m just getting started." Yun Zhe dered. This time, he was the one who charged Satoshi while pointing his Primordial Excalibur upward. Once he caught up to him, he smashed his greatsword right on Satoshi''s face.

    Satoshi was quick to react, however, and he teleported out of the way, nking Yun Zhe and swinging the Scarlet Scythe with his bodily momentum. From the corner of his eyes, Yun Zhe saw Satoshi''s attack as if it were in slow motion. With his thought, he activated the gigantic steel ring that floated behind him. It started spinning rapidly, protecting his six as his other shield.

    "I''m just getting started as well," Satoshi responded. This time, he deactivated his beast integration after he descended to the ground. And then, he smirked at Yun Zhe while dusting his shoulders.

    "What are you doing?" Yun Zhe asked, appearing in front of Satoshi in an instant while he was defenseless. He proceeded to mercilessly lunge at him with the greatsword, intending to cut his body in half.

 Chapter 401 Out Of Bounds

    Satoshi dodged the blow leaning forward into a crouch. Tightening his core, he brought his feet to the side as heshed out at Yun Zhe''s blind spot.

    Before his attack connected, though, the giant steel ring on Yun Zhe''s back blocked the attack, and Yun Zhe was alerted of it without receiving any damage. Because of his excellent control over all his individual tamed beasts, Yun Zhe had constructed the perfect defense. If Satoshi wanted to breach through it, he had to use more of his tamed beasts and integrate with them¡ª that was the only choice.

    Somehow, even with his beast integration deactivated, he could still keep up with Yun Zhe''s normal attack. The audience screamed in delight as Satoshi gave them an overwhelming performance. As for Yun Zhe, he suffered a significant blow to his pride.

    "Who would''ve thought deactivating your beast integration would throw me off my game? You''re pretty slippery, Satoshi, real slippery." Yun Zhemented. Even though he was embarrassed in front of the crowd, he didn''t feel all that bad. It just meant that he had to take this fight seriously, or he would lose big time.

    "Are you nning on fighting me without your beast integration? You do know that that''s in suicide, right?" Yun Zhe stated the obvious as he disappeared from view.

    No matter Satoshi''s response, Yun Zhe had decided to give him everything he''s got. Whether or not he integrates with his tamed beast in thest second, it''s not his problem. He would obliterate Satoshi without mercy and win the match.

    Unbeknownst to him, though, this was what exactly Satoshi was waiting for. It was at this moment Satoshi knew... that Yun Zhe had messed up.

    As soon as Yun Zhe charged at Satoshi, Satoshi instantly integrated with one of his most overpowered tamed beasts. It was none other than Amy, also known by her Representative alias, Copycat.

    "I''m leaving it to you, Copycat," Satoshi said in his mind as his entire body grew in size. Before he knew it, he was blocking Yun Zhe''s attack with the same greatsword he was using.

    With a resounding ng, Yun Zhe''s attack was deflected, and he flew a couple of feet from the point of impact. Because Satoshi had integrated at thest second, Yun Zhe had no idea what had happened at all.

    He shook his head as he tried to get rid of the ringing in his ears. When he finally returned to his senses, he noticed something oddly familiar on the other side of the grand stage.

    It was a mecha, as tall as him, holding a greatsword and a shield. Confused, Yun Zhe rubbed his eyes, thinking that he was dreaming. Somehow, an entity that looked like a mirror image of him was standing right there. "What on actual¡ª Satoshi?! Is that you?!" Yun Zhe almost screamed his lungs out as he finally solved the mystery.

    Staggering, Yun Zhe steadied himself with his greatsword while taking another look at Satoshi. He looked just like him. And judging from the impact earlier, it was apparent that their power level was more or less the same.

    "What is going on?" Yun Zhe asked.

    "Well, don''t get convinced yet," Satoshimented, stepping forward while pointing the greatsword upward. It was undoubtedly a heavy greatsword, and Satoshi failed toprehend how Yun Zhe could swing it so effortlessly. Nevertheless, he decided to try it out, imitating Yun Zhe''s movements as he did so.

    To Satoshi''s surprise, his body moved pretty well despite its size. When his eleration finally stopped, He was right in front of Yun Zhe, bringing down the greatsword at his head, leaving him no choice but to block the attack.

    Their speed was now on par with each other, so there was no way Yun Zhe could''ve dodged the attack, even though he had already seen iting. Left with no choice, he brought his greatsword up and shielded himself to block the attack. He also propped his monumental shield, just in case the attack went through, and he needed an extrayer of blocking.

    Satoshi grunted as the entire weight of the greatsword shifted him forward. Using his momentum, he unleashed the attack without reprieve. At the very least, Satoshi hoped that he would leave a chink on the de of Yun Zhe''s greatsword.

    KABOOM!

    An intense wind pressure rose from where the attack connected, blowing against the barrier and making it rattle, much to the audience''s sheer terror. Despite the powerful attack, both Satoshi and Yun Zhe were left unscathed. They were surviving each other''s attacks like champs.

    In retrospect, this much was to be expected from a fight between two evenly-matched opponents. If the two of them gave their all in a single blow andnded it simultaneously, there was a great chance that the attack would nullify each other. That''s just how it is when both attacks are more or less identical to each other.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Once again, Satoshi and Yun Zhe flew in the air. It wasn''t the attack that sent them flying, but the wind pressure from their connected attacks.

    Fortunately, the two of them were still on the grand stage. If one of them had flown right outside it, it would''ve been an immediate disqualification¡ª that would have been devastating if it were to happen. After all, Satoshi and Yun Zhe were already in the finals. Losing because the other party sent you out of bounds is probably the worst experience a beast tamer could ever have.

    The attack was not for nothing, however.

    Satoshi learned the secret behind Yun Zhe''s power in that single attack. He had also understood why he could freely move despite the weight of his armor and equipment.

    With his adept fighting ability, Satoshi had finally learned the secret. "So it was all about using my momentum and fluidly connecting my attacks, right?" He muttered to himself. His years of experience fighting those with superpowers while he was unawakened slowly returned to him. His fighting instinct, honed to perfection throughout his early teenage years, now resurfaced in his mind.

    Satoshi felt the clench on his wrist and the fiber on his forearms leading to his biceps. Hists contracted and expanded as he breathed, and his core tightened at his will. His legs were ready to burst with power, and his feet were firmly nted on the ground with no strike putting him out of bnce.

    Leaning his back, Satoshi activated his muscles to bring the greatsword up. He then constricted his obliques as he brought the greatsword sideways, intending to strike Yun Zhe to the side.

    As for Yun Zhe, he stepped back and stomped his right foot on the ground, bringing down the greatsword and aiming at the top of Satoshi''s head. At the same time, he ced his shield to the side, blocking Satoshi''s attack while he counterattacked.

    ''Here we go; I hope it works.'' Satoshi prayed as he twisted his ankle, causing his obliques to cramp and stop short.

    With the uneven momentum of the greatsword, Satoshi struck with a wave-like motion on his hand. He didn''t intend to dodge Yun Zhe''s attack on the head. He had seen it, but he had decided to take a risk and not avoid it. He was confident that his attack would connect before Yun Zhended his blow.

    To everyone''s surprise, Satoshi''s greatsword seemed to wave as he struck it sideways. Because of its weird motion, the greatsword managed to steer clear of the shield and hit Yun Zhe to the side.

    Yun Zhe''s face puffed up as he held his breath. Since he couldn''t do anything but tank the hit with his entire body, he just let it happen.

    Another wind pressure rose in the air as the strike connected Yun Zhe was sent skittering to the side, bouncing a couple of times on the ground before he regained his bnce. Without a second to spare, Yun Zhe brought down his greatsword to the ground. Somehow, he was able to stop himself from flying out of bounds. Had it not been for his quick thinking, it would have ended differently for him¡ª or rather, the finals would have ended for him.

    Whoo~~~

    The screams of the audience filled the air as the match momentarily stopped.

    "That was a good match." Satoshi bowed toward Yun Zhe before he deactivated his beast integration. He then walked towards his tamed beasts as if the match was already over.

    "W-what are you saying? I''m still standing, Satoshi. This fight is not yet over!" Yun Zhe called out as he slung the greatsword on his shoulder. "I''m not going to give up, not until I win. "

    Without saying another word, Satoshi pointed at Yun Zhe''s feet. He then proceeded to recall his tamed beasts one by one, much to Yun Zhe''s surprise.

    It took him another second before he finally looked at his feet. His eyes widened in utter shock.

    Yun Zhe... he had crossed over the line. What he feared the most had happened¡ª he had lost the finals match after being sent out of bounds.

 Chapter 402 First Integration, Killer And Winner

    "And we have a winner!" Thementator screamed, marking the end of the Official Beast Tournament as everyone cheered with a standing ovation. It was truly a remarkable match, full of twists and turns, but it was an enjoyable ride. At the end of the day, the audience got to enjoy the tournament and the beast tamers got the chance to show what they were capable of on stage. Despite the many hups that urred throughout the Official Beast Tournament, Luke Skyrunner (the owner of the American Dome and the head manager of the event himself) was content with the way the tournament came about.

    Wide-eyed, Yun Zhe stared at his feet, to the point where one could almost see him boring a hole through them. After a couple of seconds, however, Yun Zhe epted his loss.

    To him, it was a one-sided fight in the first ce since he had a hard time against a single tamed beast. When he slowly looked up, his gaze shifted towards the four tamed beasts that stood idly by at the corner of the grand stage, namely: Dex, Ghast, Sera, Scarlet Scythe, and Stat. It drove the nail home that Satoshi did defeat his Penta Beast Integration with one tamed beast .

    "I really lost by andslide, didn''t I?" Yun Zhe muttered to himself. He dusted himself off before he walked towards Satoshi. By then, he had deactivated his beast integration. "That was a great match, Satoshi." He said, extending his hand.

    "It was a great match." Satoshi continued, returning Yun Zhe''s handshake. "This is kind of off-topic but... should I really keep this guy over here?"

    With a problematic expression written on his countenance, Satoshi pointed at the Scarlet Scythe who silently floated in-line with his other familiars. Somehow, he just appeared out of nowhere and insisted that he was now his master. It wasn''t such a bad deal so Satoshi went along with it. But now that he thought about it, it seemed rather suspicious since¡ª just like Yun Zhe¡ª he had seen Jana just this morning.

    "He had already chosen you as his master. Also, I don''t have a say on whether you keep him or not. For now, let''s look for Jana, and once we''ve confirmed what happened, you can decide after that." Yun Zhe muttered. "I''m thinking that the two of them just had a falling out. It''s quite normal for a beast tamer and a Representative to argue some of the time since they both have sentience."

    "I see. Let''s look for her now." Satoshi offered.

    "No, that would be weird. For now, let''s wait for the Official Beast Tournament to end, and then we can talk about looking for her." Yun Zhe advised.

    "..."

    "..."

    Suddenly, Satoshi felt a stinging pain in his head as memories started flooding in. Undoubtedly, they were memories of the Scarlet Scythe right when Jana was killed. The words of the killer rang in Satoshi''s ears as he called Jana a murderer after killing her. He also saw how the killer wielded some form of dimensional travel so he could send Jana''s dead body somewhere else.

    Satoshi fell to his knees as a throbbing headache urred in his head. The headache wasn''t due to the fact that the memories were flooding his mind, but because he could feel the pain that the Scarlet Scythe felt when his master had been eliminated. It was excruciating, and Satoshi felt like his heart would break if this went on.

    "Oi, Satoshi, are you all right? What''s going on?!" Yun Zhe screamed as he grabbed Satoshi by the armpit before he fell down. But just like Satoshi, he didn''t have enough strength to keep himself up, that''s why he almost fell forward when he tried to assist Satoshi. "Oi, Satoshi? What''s going on? Answer me. Medic? MEDIC!!!"

    The picture was something that the audience did not expect at all. Satoshi was the winner, and yet the loser was the one who was calling the medic for the winner. It was a plot twist that they''d never encountered in the past, and it made them rethink the Official Beast Tournament.

    Just when the medics started rushing in, Satoshi continued tob through the Scarlet Scythe''s memory. After the murder had happened, Scarlet Scythe went invisible and followed the murderer back to the American Dome. It continued following the killer until the killer reached his seat.

    That''s where the memory stopped. And for Satoshi, the memory was more than enough for him to figure out who the killer was.

    Before the medic could prop Satoshi to the gurney, he stood up and integrated with Dex. In that instant, Satoshi heard a voice in his head that told him to integrate with him, and when he did so, it was none other than Dex. He was surprised about Dex''s offer, but what surprised him, even more, was the fact that this was the first time he''d ever integrated with Dex.

    For the first time ever since Dex had be his personal assistant, his information system, he had never integrated with him. And now that he did, the transformation was beyond what he could imagine.

    A robotic helmet on his head appeared, and a shining glow then illuminated the center of his chest before a crystalline metallic substance emerged from the glow and started spreading all over his body. A striking color of ck and white appeared on the substance as they hardened into a full metal suit with defined aesthetics.

    The medics, along with Yun Zhe and the majority of the audience, gasped as they witnessed Satoshi''s sudden transformation. Those who were old enough to know the reference started whispering amongst themselves.

    "Ho¡ª isn''t that iron man?"<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Wait? Really? An iron man form with beast integration? Wow, that''s crazy!"

    "Avengers assemble, am I right?"

    "No shoot! That''s a pretty good transformation!''

    While the people were whispering amongst themselves and the movement of the spectators stilled, Satoshi heard a voice in his head. It was none other than Dex.

    [Satoshi, can you still hear me?]

    [If you want to find the killer, you can begin scanning the crowd. I will find him for you.]

    Just when Satoshi looked up, countless squares appeared on his visors, and they marked every face on his line of vision. Satoshi slowly turned as he scanned the crowd while thinking of the features of the killer. "Jonathan. I think his name is Jonathan." He muttered to himself.

    Unbeknownst to him, Yun Zhe could still hear him even though he was talking through his helmet. Upon hearing the name, Yun Zhe''s ears perked up before he went in front of Satoshi. "Satoshi, did you just say Jonathan?" He confirmed.

    But Satoshi wasn''t paying attention to him. Just when Yun Zhe was starting to put two and two together, Satoshi flew into the audience.

    After scanning hundreds upon hundreds of faces, Satoshi had pinpointed where the killer was, and he honed in on him like a homing missile. He had no idea how strong he was, but it was unforgivable that he killed someone in cold blood. No matter what justifiable reason he had, he had killed a person, and Satoshi wouldn''t let him get away with it.

    However, Satoshi didn''t take into ount the barrier that surrounded the entire grand stage as soon as he flew up, he was immediately deflected by the barrier. The barrier started glowing a nice shade of yellow where he hit, and the vibration that it caused made the audience panic a little bit.

    Despite Satoshi''s impulsive actions, the audience didn''t leave their seats at all, they were curious as to why Satoshi was acting that way, and they intended to stay so they could witness what was about toe down.

    A glow appeared on the palm of Satoshi''s hand and he felt an iprehensible amount of power well within it. For the second time, Satoshi flew upward. This time, he locked his shoulders and elbows into a punching position before unleashing a powerful punch at the barrier.

    booOOOOM!

    There was a dy in the sound as the barrier bounced from Satoshi''s strike. However, the amount of force was too much for the barrier to handle, and it vibrated so powerfully before it gave in.

    It wasn''t even a powerful explosion. It was just one punch. And yet, Satoshi was able to destroy the barrier.

    At this point, the audience knew that something was up, and Satoshi was acting wild. Some of them started panicking, but those who were right in front of Satoshi were too scared to even move. He was like a monster in full-metal armor, and the way his visor glowed scared them to the point that their feet were glued to the ground.

    Satoshi flew toward one of the audience, grabbing him by the throat before bringing him up.

    "What is going on?! Why is Satoshi acting this way?!" Thementator couldn''t help but ask. As it turned out, he didn''t mute his mic after the fight.

    The man that Satoshi had picked up didn''t struggle at all. In fact, he smiled. "Ou, Satoshi, quite an introduction you got there. I''m Jonathan by the way... I guess you already knew that, huh?"

 Chapter 403 Jonathan Vs. Satoshi

    Recognizing Jonathan''s face, Yun Zhe nowpletely understood why Satoshi was acting that way. Then again, that didn''t mean the audience understood Satoshi''s actions. To them, Satoshi was merely going berserk and attacking a person in the audience.

    After Dex integrated with him, Satoshi could feel the overwhelming power that resided within Jonathan. It was an instantaneous realization so there was nothing he could do but continue on with the attack. He had already grabbed Jonathan by the throat which marked themencement of a fight. There was no way he could retreat, not after he put on quite a show in front of thousands of spectators.

    Without a shred of hesitation, Satoshi made full use of his thrusters and rolled in the air, smashing Jonathan towards the grand stage so they won''t have to fight near the spectators. While he was uncertain whether he could defeat Jonathan or not, Satoshi still went on with the attack.

    "Ah, nice to meet you as well." Jonathan stood up from the crater that formed after he was thrown to the ground. He dusted himself, unscathed.

    Turning around, Jonathan realized that there was another person on the grand stage. "Yun Zhe, long time no see." He greeted before forcing his palm right on Yun Zhe''s chest. Hepletely caught him off-guard.

    Just when Yun Zhe came back to his senses, a powerful force palm hit him squarely on the chest, and he flew straight to the other side of the grand stage. The wall that separated the audience from the stage broke in an instant, and Yun Zhe spat out blood as he felt all of his ribs break. He gasped for air, but his lungs had been ruptured. As he slumped to the ground, Yun Zhe started losing consciousness.

    While most of the audience was frozen in ce, Midori jumped into the fray to rescue Yun Zhe. Fortunately, he was sent to his side of the American Dome, and Midori didn''t have to go the long way to get to Yun Zhe.

    "You''re not going to die." He muttered to himself as he extended his hand to Yun Zhe''s chest. Slowly, Midori could feel Yun Zhe''s ribs slowly returning to ce. The only thing he needed to watch out for were the ruptures in Yun Zhe''s lungs. Aside from that, he was confident that Yun Zhe wouldn''t die on his watch.

    BAM!

    Jonathan jumped from where he was, charging at Satoshi who was still in mid-air. As soon as he was within arm''s reach, he threw a punch, aiming at Satoshi''s lower jaw so he could knock him in an instant. Even with his beast integration, Jonathan was positive that he''d be able to knock Satoshi with enough strength.

    Besides, he could fight head-to-head with Satoshi. He''s got a powerful superpower after all.

    Before Jonathan could reach him, however, he clenched his chest and a powerful beam of light shot from his chest. Without thinking twice, Jonathan continued his advance and he tanked the beam of light with his bare body.

    To everyone''s surprise, Jonathan didn''t receive any damage from the attack. Furthermore, he was able to approach Satoshi, unleashing a punch at his jaw.

    Satoshi dodged the attack by a hair''s breadth. At the same time, he reeled in his leg and struck Jonathan with a kick. Jonathanpletely blocked it, and he grabbed Satoshi''s legs and threw him onto the grand stage.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    It took all of Grado''s patience to stop himself from butting in on the fight. Just like his son, Midoriyama Tatsuki, he badly wanted to fight with Satoshi but they knew it would just mess up everyone''s timing if they jumped in without a n. Adding to that, there was no way that their wives would just let them go. After all, they were more aware of the situation than the two of them.

    "Do you know who it is, Tatsuki?" Grado asked his son, nudging him with his shoulder as the two of them peered from the edge of the audience''s section.

    "No, I haven''t met him before. Perhaps an old rival? Or maybe... no, that couldn''t be possible." Tatsuki muttered to himself while shaking his head. For a moment back there, the thought urred to him that Jonathan was probably the person who killed the participant named Jana. But after thinking about it a little bit more, he felt bad that he assumed something so evil, and as such, he put the thought at the back of his mind.

    To him, Jonathan looked like a young kid in histe teens, nothing more nothing less. He would be surprised to know that he was actually the person who killed the girl.

    The sh between Jonathan and Satoshi continued in the middle of the grand stage and at this point, Luke Skyrunner was sensible enough to erect another barrier. That''s the least he could do regarding the unpredictable situation.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Seeing that the barrier was up for the second time, the audience returned to their seats so they could enjoy the match. This was like the desert of the Official Beast Tournament¡ª a bonus fight/performance exclusive to those who were present in the American Dome. The official live stream for the Official Beast Tournament had ended rather prematurely, that''s why some of the audience decided to live stream it themselves.

    "Is that everything you got? You won''t defeat me if you keep on eating dirt like that." Jonathan chuckled, adding salt to the wound that he inflicted upon Hajime.

    For some reason, Jonathan was able to negate Satoshi''s attacks despite how powerful he was. At this point, Satoshi still only had one tamed beast in his beast integration (Dex) because he saw no point in adding more. After all, Jonathan didn''t even use any of his superpowers. He just fought with Satoshi using his raw power.

    Even with such a huge advantage, Satoshi found himself being backed into a corner. Somehow, Jonathan was pushing him back, knocking him off his feet every single time he tried to attack or counter. Not only was he well-versed in closebat like Satoshi, but he was also way better than him¡ª which was surprising, considering that Satoshi was considered by most as a pretty talented martial artist even before he awakened his superpower.

    But now it was different. Satoshi was the one using his superpower while his opponent was keeping him at bay despite not activating any of his skills.

    "Kono~!" Satoshi eximed, adjusting his thrusters at maximum output. He began darting around in the air like a stinging bee, moving here and there in an erratic manner.

    Still, Jonathan could keep up with his attack. He even countered a couple of times while parrying all of Satoshi''s attacks. A smile appeared on his face as he knocked Satoshi to the ground for the third time.

    "You can do better than that. Get up. Aren''t you a Disciple?" Jonathan continued. "I thought Disciples are meant to be stronger than the regr human. Even without using superpowers, you should be able to go toe to toe with me, you know."

    Gritting his teeth, Satoshi unleashed a kick, using his hand as leverage so he could unleash another pair of leg strikes while spinning in the air. One of his attacksnded directly on Jonathan''s face, and a clean cut run across his cheek. Blood slowly flowed out of it, and Satoshi felt a sense of aplishment afternding the attack.

    ''Now I just have to push forward.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    This time, it was Jonathan who unleashed the kick, but Satoshi was expecting it. Even though his movement was faster than sight, Satoshi was able to dodge his kick by crouching to the ground. At the same time, Satoshi crunched his abdomen before springing upward. He brought his fist up, targeting Jonathan''s third leg.

    The attack connected, and Jonathan hmph''ed in suffering as he fell on his knees. Quite frankly, he was never expecting Satoshi to attack him over there since that should be considered a literal low blow. However, Satoshi couldn''t care less and attacked it anyways.

    "That''s unfair." Jonathan mumbled as he looked up at Satoshi.

    As for Satoshi, he intended to get rid of Jonathan once and for all, aiming his palm at his face while charging a powerful beam.

    "Not happening." Jonathan smiled before he snapped his finger.

    Next moment, Satoshi felt a cool breeze all over his body. It took him a second to realize that Jonathan had forced him out of his beast integration.

    "How did you d¡ª" Satoshi didn''t even finish his question. Before he knew it, Jonathan had kicked him straight at the chest, sending him flying right beside Yun Zhe. He coughed up blood in that instant, and he clutched his broken ribs as he winced in pain.

    "Well, I guess it''s time for me to escape. That was a good fight, Satoshi, almost made me want to spare you." Jonathan turned around as he waved his hand. "See you in the First Selection."

    And just like that, Jonathan constructed a portal and stepped inside.

 Chapter 404 Emmas Home Planet

    As the dimensional portal slowly dissipated into thin air, the crowd shifted into a state of silence. The two finalists were down on the ground, more beat up than they initially were after the Official Beast Tournament concluded.

    One could assume that the two of them were exhausted to the point where they were drastically weakened, but other skeptics said otherwise. Then again, they weren''t believed by the majority who were convinced that the two of them were deserving finalists.

    Throughout the history of the Official Beast Tournament, this was the first time the awarding ceremony was canceled on that day. It happened the next day after Satoshi and Yun Zhe had enough rest. They were beaten up, after all, and it wouldn''t look good in the public''s eye if they had to attend the awarding ceremony on their condition.

    And to those who were wondering the semifinalists were both given the award for third ce. Kim Jin Seok and White Mist were both in the same position. There were debates about whether they should''ve fought for third ce but the majority epted the oue so the debate reached its conclusion before the next day had arrived.

    With that, the Official Beast Tournament had ended, and it was time for the Midoriyama Family (and everyone else except for Satoshi''s grandparents) to return to Japan. The new semester for school was bound to start in two weeks'' time, and Emma and Lydia wanted to prepare as much as they could before then.

    The Star Spangled (the number one superhero of America) was generous enough to lend Midoriyama Tatsuki (Satoshi''s father and the number one superhero of Japan) his private ne. And with that, the group had a luxurious flight going back to Japan. It was surprising how all of them fit inside that ne, considering that there were new arrivals on thest day of the Official Beast Tournament (namely, Lydia Schwarz, Nishimura Haruka (the Nurse), and Otomi Elimine (Plume)).

    ...

    Approximately two weekster, two days before the new semester.

    On a in another dimension, Satoshi and Emma sat in front of a makeshift campfire as they camped for the night. It was almost nighttime, and Satoshi¡ª with the help of Dex who was looking up recipes for an easy-to-cook stew¡ª was mixing a number of vegetables in a pot with boiling water. It had been five days since they''d arrived at Emma''s home, and Satoshi still wasn''t used to the two moons which constantly revolved around the.

    Countless stars and distant gxies illuminated the skies. Just from one nce, Satoshi could tell that he wasn''t on Earth. The skies were far brighter than it was on Earth, Satoshi couldn''t evenpare the two.

    "Hopefully this turns out good. I''m not a good cook, but I did follow the recipe and your instructions to the letter, Dex." Satoshi muttered to himself as he continued stirring the pot.

    Pretty soon, the stew started simmering, and Satoshi could smell the savory fragrance of the stew. He heaved a sigh of relief as he smiled contentedly. "Now we''re talking." He uttered.

    "You''re getting the hang of it. That''s nice." Emmaplimented him, handing him a bowl and chopsticks. "On our first night, you were a total beginner. You didn''t even know how to cook rice properly."

    "That, thatment right there... it can be taken out of context, you know." Satoshi felt Emma''s words straight to his heart. Even though it wasn''t true, he felt a tad bit hurt.

    "You shouldn''t say something like that, Emma." Another person heaved a sigh as she stuck a bunch of fish on sticks right around the campfire.

    "Ah, Shiroi, how did the training go?" Satoshi greeted just when Shiroi arrived at camp. "Were their tamed beasts strong?"

    Shiroi heaved a sigh, kneeling down as she patted her tamed beast, Ice Penguin. She then nodded to Satoshi in response. "Yeah, they were strong. I was surprised that they couldn''t defend this world. We lost every single match. Isn''t that right, Ice Penguin?"

    As Shiroi rubbed the lower part of its beak, the Ice Penguin started cooing in delight. It was still small as ever. Ever since Satoshi first saw it, it never grew.

    "We are strong. Even our power to create dimensional portals was pretty strong." Emma continued, recalling the memory of the first night when the invaders attacked. "But when those aliens attacked, bringing with them powerful tamed beasts, we stood no chance against them."

    "The World Eater, right? I heard Satoshi mention it once or twice." Shiroi continued. "In any case, we''re almost done with the subjugation. We only need to defeat one beast and then we can go home... isn''t that right?"<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    To be fair, Shiroi wasn''t supposed to be included in this journey. After all, Emma took it upon herself to restore her own world and eliminate the potential threats of powerful tamed beasts there. A few months ago, she initially came to Earth so she could recruit the most powerful beast tamer/superhero alive, and her device pointed at Satoshi. She had asked him for help, and Satoshi was willing to help out.

    But on the day they were supposed to go, Shiroi caught wind of their n and she insisted oning along. There were a couple of rejections¡ª mainly from her dad¡ª but her insistent attitude paid off and she was allowed. This trip was supposed to include Emma and Satoshi, but Shiroi came as well.

    For the past few days, Satoshi had been going around Emma''s home. With the help of Emma and Shiroi, he started taming the other powerful beasts and letting them live freely. This way, they''d act as guardians of the home instead of terrorizing it. It wasn''t really a subjugation, per se, but Satoshi wanted to call it that despite the cruel meaning behind the word.

    Thanks to these experiences, Satoshi was able to train his superpower as well as challenge his ability as a beast tamer. At present, he had tamed at least twenty legendary beasts, and all of them were now guarding Emma''s home.

    This doesn''t mean that Satoshi didn''t havemand over them. In fact, he could summon any one of them at any given time and they would wholly obey Satoshi''s orders. At the moment, they weremanded to roam around their designated area while guarding the people who lived there.

    Since they were all legendaries, Satoshi had a hard time with some of them but they didn''t really pose that much of a challenge. With the right information regarding these legendaries, Satoshi was able to tame them. It was all thanks to his trusty System-Type Representative Dex who was the mastermind behind the plethora of information Satoshi received.

    And now, with only two days left before Emma''s ''enrollment'' to the United Superheroes Academy, there was only one threat left before they could go back home. Rumors said that it was the strongest out of all the beasts Satoshi had to tame so far.

    It looked like a gigantic snake d in purple smoke, and it emitted purple lightning¡ª or so that''s what the description goes. It was at least twice as long as the Statue of Captivity, and it was rumored to stay atop the tallest mountain on the. There, an endless thunderstorm existed, and that particr tamed beast fed off of that thunderstorm in order to get stronger.

    "I''m sorry, can you repeat that again, Dex?" Satoshi just put a spoonful of stew in his mouth when Dex spoke, and now his mouth hung open in slight shock as the potatoes and carrots slipped from his lips.

    "It''s a Representative. It''s called the Quasar Lightning Snake, or a Quasar Snake, and it''s a Representative." Dex simply stated in his usual monologue tone.

    "A Representative? What''s that?" Emma and Shiroi asked simultaneously, they then looked at each other after the jinx and then back at Satoshi.

    "It''s a beast that''s a scale stronger than any other legendaries out there. There are only a limited number of Representatives to exist in the entire universe, and to think that there''s one right here..." Satoshi trailed off.

    At first, he had thought that this entire mission would be easy. Dealing with legendaries and pseudo-legendaries is easy, and he had done it without breaking a sweat. This was the reason why he was able to aplish so much in just a couple of days. But now, Dex was telling him that thest beast he had to tame was actually a Representative? Two days just won''t cut it. He''d need at least a couple more days to get more information regarding the Representative. And after that, he''d be able to formte a n.

    "What are you talking about, Satoshi? You were able to take me on without knowing anything about me. I''m sure you can tame this snake just fine." A voice behind Satoshi spoke.

    It was none other than Amy (aka Copycat, thetest Representative that Satoshi tamed).

    "Of course, you didn''t intend to kill me from the start. If you were serious, you''d have eliminated me from this life, right then and there." Satoshi responded.

    "I''m sorry who''s that?" Shiroi asked. This was the first time she saw Copycat and she was bbergasted.

    As for Emma, she just had a straight face while she continued eating. She was used to seeing Satoshi''s familiars pop up here and there that it didn''t even surprise her anymore.

 Chapter 405 Mount Etna

    "A-A-Amy, was it?" Shiroi suspiciously looked at the Copycat up and down as she called her by the name that Satoshi gave her. She couldn''t believe that such a seductive tamed beast existed. The more she looked at her, the more she was convinced that Satoshi had ulterior motives when taming her.

    Her gaze made Amy ufortable even though she was already wearing clothes. Previously, she didn''t bother wearing any clothes but Satoshi convinced her to do so since her figure was pretty curvaceous, and heads will turn if she were to reveal herself in public. While it did impede her transformation a little bit, she decided to stick to Satoshi''s principles.

    "We''re setting off at first light tomorrow, right? Hopefully, the weather would be clear." Satoshi said to himself, heading back to his tent.

    Amy also stood up and headed to the same tent where Satoshi was going. Shiroi was quick to act, unhesitantly grabbing Amy by the arm before she could take another step.

    Surprised, Amy turned around, wondering why Shiroi grabbed he when she also wanted some early shut-eye.

    "Don''t tell me you''re going to sleep with him?" Shiroi asked such a misleading question that Emma almost choked on the carrot she was chewing.

    "Sleep with him? Yes. We need to get up early tomorrow, right?" Amy confirmed. Even though she could easily send Shiroi flying with her superpowers, she didn''t do anything of the sort. She was aware that her master holds Shiroi close to her heart so offending her would also offend Satoshi. If it weren''t for that, Shiroi would''ve experienced an embarrassing defeat and more.

    "You''re not sleeping with him." Shiroi continued, still unaware of the misleading phrases she was saying. At this point, Emma was already holding her breath while trying too hard to suppress her chuckle.

    "Ah," Amy let out a single note of exmation before returning to her seat. Unlike others, she wasn''t as dense. She was aware that Shiroi was acting out of jealousy at the moment and that''s why she didn''t argue with her anymore.

    But then again, that didn''t stop Amy from teasing her. A smile briefly appeared on her face before she spoke. "But... we''ve always slept together." Amy trailed off, twirling her nonexistent braids as she looked away.

    Unlike Shiroi, Emma immediately noticed what Amy was trying to pull off. Before she said anything, though, she had to swallow the mouthful of stew in her mouth, otherwise, she might spray it on someone if she startedughing.

    "Y-y-you''ve always slept..." Shiroi was shocked to her core. With her face turning a nice shade of paleness, she shakily pointed a finger at Amy. "H-h-how can you say that?"

    Emma calmly sipped on the tea that was brewing by the side of the stew. She let out an exhale before speaking. "Well, by your definition, then Satoshi and I always slept together as well" Emma continued, much to Shiroi''s confusion.

    "W-w-what are the two of you talking about?" Shiroi continued. This time, she was pointing a finger at Emma.

    "The three of you should sleep now. We need to wake up early tomorrow." Another voice spoke, interrupting the three who were in the conversation, when they turned back, they noticed that a girl wasing out of Satoshi''s tent. She had ck hair, and her phoenix-like eyes seemed to stare into each of their souls.

    Amy and Emma weren''t surprised by her appearance, nor did they misunderstand where she wasing from. After all, on the surface, she came out of Satoshi''s tent, but in reality, she emerged from the dimension which was constructed by the Orb Oboros. It did look like she wasing out of Satoshi''s tent though, and that''s why Shiroi was surprised.

    "Ryoko?! Ryoko, what are you doing?" Shiroi eximed. Before she could do anything though, Ryoko weirdly stared at her before heading back into Satoshi''s tent.

    "That''s my cue, goodnight everyone," Amy called out as she waved her hand. She also headed inside Satoshi''s tent and into the dimension constructed by Orb Oboros.

    "And that''s that, goodnight." Emma teased as she too followed into Satoshi''s tent.

    "Mou~!"Shiroi eximed.

    .....

    The distant coos of birds were what woke Satoshi up. By the time his eyes opened, the tent was already flooded with sunlight. It was already midday, and the girls were already preparing breakfast. A yawn left his mouth, and he rolled a couple of times inside the tent before doing his usual push-ups.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    It was ironic since he woke upte when he was the first one to hit the sack. He felt a modicum of embarrassment as he got out, sheepishly making his way to the circle of rocks that acted as chairs.

    After a quick breakfast, the three of them made their way to the tallest mountain on Emma''s home. This mountain was known as Mt. Etna and was known to be the tallest mountain, as well as the most active volcano in this world. I

    Only after they got to the location did Satoshi find out that the mountain is also a volcano. "Sorry, I guess I forgot to mention that," Emma said as they teleported by the foot of the mountain.

    Just from one nce, Satoshi could tell that the mountain was taller than Mount Everest back home. His geography lessons back in the day were all starting toe back to him and he could''ve sworn that there''s a volcano on Earth that goes by the same name, Mount Etna (and he was correct. In the past, Mount Etna was considered the most active volcano on Earth. But at present, the most active volcano is in the Southeast Asian country called the Philippines. Ever since the year 2069, this volcano, called the Mayon, had been erupting nonstop, producing a steady outflow ofva which made the volcano bigger.)

    "So this is Mount Etna. It looks more formidable than I thought." Satoshi said to himself. Despite the clear sunny day, the top of the volcano had an ever-urring storm cloud. It was a constant thunderstorm.

    "I guess there was no use hoping for a clear day when it''s stormy all year at the top of that mountain," Satoshi muttered to himself before turning towards Emma and Shiroi. "So, what''s the n?"

    From the depths of the thick cumulonimbus cloud, the vague shape of the titan snake could be seen. Satoshi couldn''t help but let out a gasp as he admired the view from the foot of the mountain. Even from this distance, the snake already appeared to be big. He could barely process how much bigger the snake would look once they approached it from a short distance.

    Silence befell Emma and Shiroi. Of course, they had no n. Even if they did, all those ns were thrown out of the window the moment they saw the sheer size of the Quasar Lightning Snake. It was bigger than they thought, and there was no way they''d be able to deal with it.

    "You know what, it would be best if I take care of this on my own. At the moment, can I ask you for a favor, Shiroi?" Satoshi asked.

    "Sure, what is it?" She asked.

    "Can you teach Emma some basic skills when fighting? Also, teach her the proper etiquette when fighting against someone in a tournament setting. I''m sure there will be matches in their initial test when they process their enrollment sh transfer. It would be bad if she got rejected because of poor sportsmanship."

    Upon asking that, Satoshi popped a thumbs up towards them beforemanding Ghast to construct a dimensional portal in front of him.

    "Satoshi," Emma called out.

    "Yes?"

    "Be careful out there. We''ll be waiting for you." Emma and Shiroi simultaneously said before Satoshi stepped inside the portal. They were well aware that going with Satoshi would just be a burden for him. After all, they were rtively weaker than him in terms of physical strength or superpower. While they felt a bit guilty, they knew that this was the best option. It would be bad if they dragged Satoshi down while dealing with the Quasar Lightning Snake. His attention would be divided after all if the two of them were present.

    "Well then, let''s get you ready for the new semester, Emma. I hope you can keep up." Shiroi called out as an Ice Domain suddenly appeared on the ground.

    Emma jumped and created a ''blocked'' portal as a tform to stand on. "I should be the one saying that. There''s no way you can keep up with me." Emma returned, a smile appearing on her face.

    ...

    ...

    Fwooosh~

    Before Satoshi fully stepped inside the dimensional portal, he already felt the intense wind pressure and the deafening sounds of thunder. He was walking straight into a thunderstorm with nothing but his familiars to support him. "This is scarier than I thought... but there''s no turning back now." Satoshi said to himself, steeling himself as he stepped forward.

 Chapter 406 Representative Face-Off

    The gigantic outline of the Quasar Lightning Snake was threatening enough even when viewed from the foot of the mountain. Coming face to face with the monstrosity was indescribable to Satoshi. There were plenty of chances for her to get out of the mountain and just back down from the uing head-on match against the Quasar Lightning Snake. However, it''s not every day that Satoshi got to meet a Representative, that''s why he didn''t hesitate at all.

    An intense thunderstorm surrounded the mouth of the volcano, giving it an even hellish picturesque. No one who stood here and saw the thunderstorm got toe out alive, thanks to the Quasar Lightning Snake''s good eyesight and an exceptional sense of smell.

    Even with all these cards stacked against him, Satoshi didn''t back down at all. The dimensional portal that Ghast had set up was still behind him. There were plenty of chances for him to go back, but not once did he turn around.

    Bolts of lightning poured forth from the dark gigantic cloud, hitting the mouth of the volcano and disturbing theke ofva that almost overflowed from its mouth. Scorching heat could be felt even from a distance, and yet Satoshi moved forward. Thanks to his familiar, Droplet, Satoshi didn''t have to worry about burning to death, or drying up and withering away. He was well hydrated, and the heat didn''t bother him the least bit at all.

    A sinister aura filled the air, coupled with the appearance of the Quasar Lightning Snake''s body sections. It was twisting around the cloud which provided him with ample cover from Satoshi''s sight. It was obvious that Quasar Lightning Snake had taken interest in Satoshi, that''s why it didn''t drive him away.

    Satoshi had also taken an interest in the Quasar Lightning Snake. The two of them had taken an interest in one another, and they could feel it in their bones. Even though Quasar Lightning Snake could easily get rid of Satoshi, somehow it felt a little different when it came to Satoshi.

    What Satoshi didn''t know was that the Quasar Lightning Snake had a strong instinct, and its instinct was telling him to take it easy since he was a powerful beast tamer. Of course, Satoshi had no idea about this since he couldn''t feel it to himself.

    The sky darkened, and when Satoshi nced up, a huge shadow had covered the sky. It wasn''t as noticeable to summon if they were located by the mouth of the volcano, but Satoshi immediately felt the heaviness in the air. The huge shadow belonged to none other than the Quasar Lightning Snake, and Satoshi couldn''t help but roll forward to avoid the shadow. It would have been easy for the Quasar Lightning Snake to stop flying, ttening itself on the ground and burying anything on it with its body.

    This was the reason why Satoshi had to roll forward and get out of the way. Nothing was stoping the Quasar Lightning Snake from letting gravity take over its body and mming its body on the side of the volcano.

    Upon dodging, Satoshi didn''t have that much of a choice but to integrate with one of his tamed beasts. Since he had no idea how strong the Quasar Lightning Snake was, he didn''t think twice about integrating with Amy. That way, he''d be able to copy how powerful the Quasar Lightning Snake was before it even attacked. This would also provide him with a better way of counterattacking before everything went out of hand.

    Satoshi didn''t show it that much but he was scared. The Quasar Lightning Snake wasrger than he had thought, and no one was stopping it from bing ruthless. It''s a Representative, after all, and there''s just one of him who was trying to stand against the gigantic snake.

    A muffled growl was heard from the sky as Satoshi stopped in mid-air. For the umpteenth time at that point, the Quasar Lightning Snake had disappeared from view, hiding in the thick cumulonimbus cloud like a coward trying to make the first move. Deep inside, Satoshi felt the urge of screaming at the mad snake, but he figured that doing so would probably just rile it up and so he decided against it.

    At the moment, the Quasar Lightning Snake was giving him mercy. He didn''t want to overextend and challenge that mercy by throwing insults at the powerful being. There were plenty of opportunities to do so, but Satoshi''s instincts told him otherwise.

    All these years of fighting those stronger than he had honed his instincts to the point where he could sense danger. Right now, his instincts told him that he shouldn''t do anything to the Quasar Lightning Snake. In fact, his instincts were screaming at his mind to get out of there and turn the other way. But how could Satoshi do that when the fate of Emma''s home was in his hand.

    Even when his instincts decided against it, there was no way he could back down from this challenge. After all, if the Quasar Lightning Snake was left unattended, history would repeat itself and Emma''s home would undergo another end-of-the-world scenario.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    It had already taken Satoshi many sleepless nights just to return this world back to normal (with the help of Emma and Shiroi as well) and now that the final obstacle from peace was right in front of him, he was going to back down? Satoshi wasn''t letting that happen.

    He had already steeled his resolve to defeat the Quasar Lightning Snake no matter what, and he was going to follow through with it even if it meant getting seriously injured.

    After calming down his mind a couple more times. Satoshi slowly formted a n to take down the wild beast. At teh end of the day, the Quasar Lightning Snake is just a tamed beast, nothing more, nothing less. It may be a Representative, but Satoshi had faced his fair share of Representatives in the past. This would just be another win on his belt...

    ... or maybe this was hisst conquest, and he''ll gloriously lose in front of the majestic beast. Satoshi shook his head. There was no point in thinking about such negativity. He had already gotten this far, and two days from now, the new semester of school starts.

    "I shouldn''t think about any of that... otherwise I might trigger my death g and die," Satoshi said to himself, shaking his head as he stod by the edge of the volcano''s mouth. At this point, he had alreadye up with an ingenious n to trap the Quasar Lightning Snake and force it to surrender. It was a crazy idea, but Satoshi was more or less inclined to think that it would work.

    If it didn''t, then there''s nothing else left to do but get out of there and do a tactical retreat. On the off-chance that happens, Satoshi was well aware that Emma''s home would reach the point where no one would be able to save it. He was certain of it.

    After much preparation and a lot of instances were Satoshi was going in circles, he finally settled by the edge of the volcano''s mouth, overlooking the beach at the foot of the volcano. From afar, the expansive blue ocean could be seen, and Satoshi didn''t stir as he stared at the view while focusing on the midday sun that sat still in the sun.

    One moment, the sky was clear, the next moment, a thunderous p was heard, and the Quasar Lightning Snake had finally appeared in front of Satoshi. It was white, pristine white, and its scales seemed to sparkle and shine at the sunlight that it was bathed in. It had clear red eyes, and a red gem was on its head as if resembling a third eye.

    The Quasar Lightning Snake hissed, and Satoshi remained unmoving as he stared back. This was a staredown, obviously, and Satoshi didn''t want to break his eye contact at all cost since that would be the decisive moment. Once the Quasar Lightning Snake did the slightest of movements, Satoshi decided to strike in that instant.

    And that one strike would be the difference between life and death. If the Quasar Lightning Snake gave him mercy, or maybe it acted not as aggressive, then he would win.

    But if not, then a full-blown fight would ensue, and Satoshi feared for the people living in this world. Of course, with the amount of Representatives he currently has in his arsenal, there was no way he was at a disadvantage against the Quasar Lightning Snake.

    However, the more he thought about it, the more it made sense that he had all the right to be nervous. No one could defeat this beast. Not even the best fighters nor beast tamers could defeat it.

    Grargh~!

    Letting out a snarl, the Quasar Lightning Snake formed a powerful beam on its mouth, aiming it at Satoshi. Seeing the massive preparation for the attack, Satoshi got back to his senses and went with his n. This was the moment he was waiting for.

 Chapter 407 Man-To-Beast Conversation

    As soon as Satoshi disappeared from view, Emma prepared a couple of portals around her since there was a good chance Shiroi wouldunch a surprise attack. She was right on the money. In an instant, Shiroi sent out a couple of ice spikes her way before she started charging.

    Emma jumped into one portal, trying to nk Shiroi who had attacked her without a signal. That''s the only thing she could do since she was severely disadvantaged against Shiroi. While Shiroi''s superpower can be used for offense and support, her superpower was purely support type. That''s why even if she could get near Shiroi, she won''t be able to attack without getting hurt. The only thing she could do was keep her at bay.

    However, Emma knew that that was not what Satoshi wanted. She was aware of how powerless she was against offensive types, but if she remained that way, then she stood no chance against her would-be opponents on the school''s testing day.

    That''s why, for the past few days, she had been undergoing special training. Her superpower was probably one of the most dangerous superpowers to ever exist, and she used that to her advantage. Her training consisted of teleporting objects as close to their size as possible. That meant, if she was going to teleport a ball, then she should create a portal with the same shape and almost the same size as that ball. If she wanted to go head-to-head with other superpowers, she should get at least that level of control.

    Shiroi was not aware of her training, but she didn''t let her guard down either. The moment Emma showed up behind her, she erected an ice wall behind her, cutting Emma off.

    That didn''t stop Emma, though. Thanks to her fast reflex, she managed to create another portal through the ice wall before she aimed a punch at Emma''s neck¡ª her blindspot.

    It was a perfectly timed attack, and Shiroi was hit squarely on her chin before she realized that an attack wasing right at her. Apparently, Emma manifested a mobile dimensional portal and have it appear on Shiroi''s neck. Since Shiroi was running forward, she had to control the portal by moving it forward, just so it wouldn''t damage Shiroi''s neck. This level of precision was sophisticated enough that Shiroi didn''t notice it, and Emma was able to pull it off.

    Her control was better than she thought.

    What Shiroi didn''t know as well was that Emma had been training under Tatsuki''s wing for the past week. That means, she had the same regiment as Satoshi when ites to their father-son training. Of course, she couldn''t keep up, but she had drastically improved thanks to those training.

    Shiroi softened hernding by creating a pile of snow under her. She then rolled sideways before Emma could deliver another punch to her stomach. This wasn''t the first time she fought Emma, but she could tell that she had drastically improved ever since theirst fight. Not only was she more precise in her portal creation, she was also pretty resilient with her attacks and movements, able to adjust in an instant as if it was pure instinct.

    Emma punched straight, but Shiroi jumped forward despite the punch being in front of her. Somehow, her intuition told her that Emma won''t be punching with such an obvious punch, and she was right. Emma''s punchnded where Shiroi''s cheek was supposed to be.

    "Great dodge," Emma called out, creating another set of dimensional portals around them before disappearing into one.

    As for Shiroi, she summoned hundreds of ice spikes and shot them through the portals, thinking that that would destroy them. Well, the portals disappeared as soon as some of the ice spikes passed through¡ª however, it wasn''t purely because of Shiroi''s ice spikes in reality, it was actually because some of them managed to hit Emma while she was jumping through the portal.

    This was one of Emma''s weaknesses¡ª her portal can be used by other people unless she closes them after usage. Still, there''s always one correct side of the portal, Shiroi just got lucky that she was able to aim at the right side.

    Grunt.

    Emma came out of one of the portals with ice spikes piercing through her body. She was hit on the shoulder, on the stomach, and on the legs. Before she knew it, she fell on her knees and her wounds bled all over. A pool of blood formed on the ground, and Emma couldn''t actually remove the ice spikes on her body since they pierced her right through.

    "Do you forfeit?" Shiroi asked, keeping her distance from Emma. She was aware that Emma could easily teleport towards her and give her a hard time if she let her guard down. That''s why she remained vignt even though it was clear that Emma had already lost.

    "Forfeit? Why would I?" Emma forced a smile on her face as she extended her hand. With her remaining strength. She created a set of portals and surrounded Shiroi with them.

    One portal appeared right on her neck, and another portal on her waist. There were also portals on each of her appendages, rendering her immobile. In an instant, Shiroi tensed up. She could tell that if she made one wrong move, she was going to get cut... or worse, chopped to pieces.

    The tides immediately turned towards Emma even though she was in a worse state than Shiroi. "One wrong move and you''ll get chopped. How''s that?"

    "This is not enough to make me forfeit," Shiroi refused, forcing a smile on her face even though her wrists and ankles already bled due to the portals touching her skin.

    "Are you sure about that?" Emma''s consciousness dwindled since she had lost a lot of blood. "You do know that if I lose consciousness... my portals are going to close automatically, right? Do you really want to say goodbye to your hands and legs? Do you want to win this fight in three separate pieces?"<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Emma''s breathing had be ragged, and her vision dimmed a little. Any second now, she was going to lose consciousness. Of course, she lied about her portals closing automatically when she faints. They would just disappear in mid-air if she passed out.

    "A draw then... how about a draw?" Shiroi asked, falling prey to Emma''s lies. While she wasn''t sure whether Emma was lying or not, she didn''t want to risk anything.

    A smile appeared on Emma''s face as she extended her hand, exchanging a handshake with empty air. She had epted Shiroi''s offer. "I''ll take it." She continued. Simultaneously, her dimensional portals vanished into thin air, leaving Shiroi unscathed.

    Even though the fight ended in a draw, Emma was more injured than Shiroi. In terms of winning, one could argue that Shiroi bested Emma.

    "I, um... I''m sorry about the ice spikes. I didn''t realize they were going to go through your portals and hit you." Shiroi apologetically said as she gently removed the ice spikes while using her frost to cover the wound and heal them with her ice-healing skill.

    "That totally caught me off-guard. I guess I have to watch out for that in my future matches." Emma said, letting gravity pull her into a lying position. "I wonder how Satoshi''s doing right now."

    "Yeah... but I''m sure that he''s going to pull it off. Before the two days are up, we''ll see him descend the mountain with the Quasar Lightning Snake." Shiroi confidently responded.

    "Hopefully," Emma smiled, agreeing with Shiroi.

    ...

    The stormy atmosphere was very fitting for the legendary battle that was about toe down. Satoshi faced the Quasar Lightning Snake, a titan representative that was exponentiallyrger than him. At the moment, he had no idea how he''d go about the confrontation. However, he was fairly certain that it was only a matter of time before he found the weakness of the snake. He''s got Dex on his side, and formidable familiars who would help him without question.

    "Dex, are you sure you don''t have any information regarding this snake? Judging from its name... it''s an electric-type beast, right?" Satoshi confirmed as he spoke with the corner of his lips. Currently, the Quasar Lightning was staring at him, right down to his very soul, as it continued hissing. That''s why Satoshi couldn''t move at all.

    [Quasar Lightning Snake is a Celestial Type, Satoshi, that''s why it''s called quasar lightning.]

    "Yeah, right." Somehow, Satoshi felt like Dex was making fun of him, but he didn''t take it to heart.

    ''To think that this snake is actually a Celestial Type. This is going to be more difficult than I thought.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    "..."

    "..."

    "You are?"

    To Satoshi''s surprise, the Quasar Lightning Snake spoke to him. "I''m Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi." He responded, almost choking on his saliva as he did so.

    "I see... and what made youe all the way here and join me in my dull presence?" The Quasar Lightning Snake continued.

    "Um... I''m here to tame you?" Satoshi responded with a question, wondering why the Quasar Lightning Snake even bothered to talk to him.

 Chapter 408 Taming Successful?

    After a somewhat long gaze, the Quasar Lightning Snake scoffed at Satoshi before it cleared its throat. Satoshi could tell that it was suppressing its urge tough while trying to be respectful in front of him.

    Of course, the Quasar Lightning Snake didn''t believe that Satoshi would be able to tame him. He''s one of the most powerful Representatives out there, and there was no way he''d allow a child to tame him.

    Throughout the years, a handful of people tried to tame him but none seeded. During that time, the Quasar Lightning Snake was going all over the dimensions, trying to find a nice quiet corner for himself where he could stay without being a bother to anyone.

    Shaking his head, the Quasar Lightning Snake tried to forget a certain memory but he couldn''t. He heaved a sigh before turning to Satoshi for a second time. At this point, Satoshi had no idea why the Quasar Lightning Snake was acting weirdly, but he decided to not ask anything.

    "Well then, if you''re really keen on taming me, then let''s battle it out. Of course, I''m going to take it easy on you since you''re just a child. But be warned, I''m still formidable even if I hold back." The Quasar Lightning Snake said as it floated backward a little bit.

    Nodding his head, Satoshi immediately integrated with a certain familiar which surprised Dex. He had not integrated with this tamed beast before, and now he''s doing it. This scenario certainly surprised Dex since he didn''t expect Satoshi to do something out of the norm.

    "Orb Oboros, I''m counting on you," Satoshi called out as his usual sling bag disappeared from view and integrated with him. For a moment, Satoshi was a tad bit afraid that Orb Oboros would let go of his created dimensions the moment he integrated with him. But fortunately, something like that didn''t happen. Satoshi didn''t have to worry about his other familiars being out in the open while he was fighting with his dimensional familiar, Orb Oboros.

    The beast integration was sessful, and Satoshi didn''t appear as different from before. He still appeared like the usual Satoshi, except that his body would glitch everywhere from time to time. "This is weird... but I''d be able to get used to this," Satoshi muttered to himself as he nced at the palms of his hand.

    It''s as if his hands were osciting at a rapid pace while disappearing and reappearing at the same time. Curiously, Satoshi put his hands together to see if they would touch. To his surprise, both his palms passed through each other. His mouth hung open in delightful shock as he nced back toward the Quasar Lightning Snake.

    "Neat trick, but you won''t win against me."

    Before Satoshi could refute what the Quasar Lightning Snake said, it prepared an intense beam from its mouth, shooting it off in a snap of a finger. Satoshi barely had time to react, so he just closed his eyes and hoped for the best. This was the first time he saw such a quick beam attack and it totally caught him off guard.

    Satoshi flinched. He could certainly feel the heat of the beam attack passing through his body.

    Wait, passing through?

    As soon as the beam shot off from the Quasar Lightning Snake''s mouth, Satoshi shut his eyes tight as he assumed the worst. But now, Satoshi felt like he was still alive. Mustering his courage, he opened his eyes.

    Simultaneously, the Quasar Lightning Snake stopped its attack, certain that Satoshi would''ve been obliterated to nothingness by now.

    However, Satoshi was still alive, and he didn''t suffer any damage. Somehow, the powerful beam just passed through his body without harming him. "Oh, you were just trying to scare me, is that it? Is this part of your test?" Satoshi asked, unconvinced that the Quasar Lightning Attack didn''t do it on purpose.

    His reaction irked the Quasar Lightning Snake a little bit since he gave his all when he shot that beam. He couldn''t understand how a human managed to slip through the beam without getting damaged. It wasn''t just any particr beam, after all, it was a beam made from the pure energy of a Celestial Type. That''s why there was no way a human coulde out of it unscathed.

    "Heh, interesting." The Quasar Lightning Snake called out as it fired another beam. Even though he couldn''t feel any animosity from Satoshi, he still felt like he was insulted due to how confidently Satoshi asked him about his attack.

    This time, the Quasar Lightning Snake let out an even more potent beam. He wanted to see whether Satoshi''s invincibility wasn''t a fluke or not.

    The results were the same. After his attack, Satoshi came out unscathed.

    While all these were going on, Satoshi was slowly learning the abilities of Orb Oboros. It was more powerful than he thought, and it could even rival the strength of some of the Representatives he knew.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Nevertheless, there was a drawback in Orb Oboros''s strength. Most of his skills were purely for support. In other words, Orb Oboros is not an offensive tamed beast, but a pretty powerful support just like Sera. As such, it was too much of Satoshi to ask him to battle it out with the Quasar Lightning Snake.

    From the depths of his mind, Satoshi could sense the uncertainty within Orb Oboros. Despite how formidable it was, to the point that it made Satoshi pseudo-invincible, it still doubted its innate capabilities. "I got this one, Orb Oboros. We''re going to win this." Satoshi muttered, giving Orb Oboros a pat on the back as thanks for lending him its power.

    The Quasar Lightning Snake was a tad bit enraged now since his attacks didn''t hit. With a grunt, it struck Satoshi with its tail.

    Despite its size that could rival any skyscraper on Earth, it moved pretty fast. Satoshi dodged its tail whip by a hair''s breadth. As soon as he found an opening, Satoshi threw a spatial orb at the Quasar Lightning Snake. The spatial orb was invisible, so it was near impossible for the Quasar Lightning Snake to dodge it. As soon sa the attack connected, the spatial orb expanded, teleporting a small chunk of the beast''s body and making it bleed.

    Of course, to the Quasar Lightning Snake, it was just a small chunk. To it, the attack felt like a bite of a mosquito. It didn''t hurt, but it was annoying to the core.

    In an instant, the Quasar Lightning Snake flew toward the cloud which surrounded the mouth of the volcano. Satoshi had no idea what it was doing there but he assumed that it was probably trying to power up.

    He was right.

    As soon as the Quasar Lightning Snake disappeared from view, a couple of lightning could be seen happening inside the cloud, followed by numerous ear-splitting thunder. Well, Satoshi had nothing else to do but brace himself for the uing attack. This was going to be the final showdown between him and the Quasar Lightning Snake.

    A few secondster, the Quasar Lightning Snake came down from the cloud, its body filled with electricity and it was glowing like a bright light bulb. It opened its mouth and lightning shot out of it. Satoshi barely had time to register what was happening and he started dodging and parrying the lightning with spatial orbs.

    Once the lightning area-of-effect attack was over, the Quasar Lightning Snake managed to get behind Satoshi and squeeze him, constricting his body on him as he drained the life out of him. At the same time, he activated another bout of lightning attacks.

    Bzzt. Bzzt.

    The sound was mild, but Satoshi felt his every being electrocuted. He tried to scream, but no sound came out.

    Fwish~!

    Left with no choice, Orb Oboros took over Satoshi''s body and teleported him to another dimension before teleporting him back to where the fight was. There was no time to lose.

    As soon as he locked eyes with the Quasar Lightning Snake, Satoshi extended his hand and trapped the beast in an enclosed dimension. He then squeezed his hand as much as he could, trying to bear the weight of the Quasar Lightning Snake without letting it escape.

    the enclosed dimension startedpressing, getting smaller and smaller as the Quasar Lightning Snake was squeezed to death. If it doesn''t forfeit, it''s going to die.

    "What''s going on?!" The Quasar Lightning Snake eximed as blood spilled from its mouth and the sockets of its eyes. It was a pretty mortifying thing to look at.

    Satoshi didn''t n on killing the Quasar Lightning Snake though. Furthermore, the reason why he was able to pull it off was that he caught the beast by surprise.

    Without further ado, Satoshi used up all of his energy to manifest the blue mes that would tame the Quasar Lightning Snake. The moment the enclosed dimension broke, Satoshi shot the blue mes at the Quasar Lightning Snake, and it connected.

 Chapter 409 Way Back Home

    Emma and Shiroi, who were waiting by the foot of the mountain, heard themotion even from afar. The shrieks of the Quasar Lightning Snake were more deafening than usual, and the skies seemed to sing its chorus with the lightning and thunder.

    "Do you think it''s over?" Shiroi worriedly asked, turning her head at Emma who was casually sitting on a huge boulder.

    "I think so. The storm''s calming down a bit." Emma pointed at the mouth of the volcano where the ck storm cloud was beginning to dissipate a bit. "It''s bound to be over soon."

    "Aren''t you worried... Satoshi might be in trouble." Shiroi anxiously asked, pacing back and forth while looking at the volcano from time to time. As much as she wanted to assist Satoshi, she didn''t have any teleportation ability that would get her to the mouth of the volcano in an instant.

    If she had to, though, she wouldn''t think twice about scaling Mount Etna.

    "He''ll be fine. Satoshi''s much stronger than you think." Emma shrugged as if she couldn''t care less. Unbeknownst to Shiroi, however, Emma was peeking from her dimensional portals from time to time to check up on Satoshi. The reason why she wasn''t that uneasy was that she was already aware of the oue of the fight.

    Satoshi was able to tame the Quasar Lightning Snake, and he was on his way down the volcano. Since she was aware of that, there was no point in her worrying over nothing. Emma found it amusing that Shiroi was worrying over Satoshi so she decided not to say anything until Satoshi

    ...

    "You look different."

    Since this was thest day Satoshi could get to explore Emma''s home, he decided to scale the mountain on foot instead of teleporting to where Emma and Shiroi were. It wasn''t every day that he got to take in the dewy air while going down the mountain.

    Beside him was the Quasar Lightning Snake, who took a smaller form to keep up with Satoshi''s pace. "I can adjust my size at will... but you''re right about one thing. I feel different than normal. Was it because of your blue mes? What was that?"

    As the two of them spend their time taking in the picturesque scenery of the mountain, untouched by human civilization, Satoshi exined how his superpowers worked. Well, more like he exined what he knew about his power. Until now, his power still remained a huge mystery even though he had already used it a couple of times in the past.

    "So that''s why... that''s why I feel so much power brimming within me. If this is the perk of being your tamed beast, then I would''ve agreed to it, no questions asked." The Quasar Lightning said. "I knew about your tamed beast, the one you nicknamed Orb Oboros. In one dimension, it is said to be one of the weakest beasts to ever exist since it could only store small objects in its spatial dimension. I couldn''t believe that your Orb Oboros could contain even the great Quasar Lightning Snake himself. If we were to go in my dimension, I''d be aughingstock."

    "So, you''re not originally from here? How did you get here? I''m pretty sure that you don''t have any teleportation abilities." Satoshi asked.

    "I don''t know. Our dimension... was attacked by a powerful beast tamer. I have no idea what happened to our world. When I woke up, I was already in this dimension. It was total chaos out here. I had no idea what to do so I just stayed here, by this volcano." The Quasar Lightning Snake narrated.

    "I see," Satoshi could tell that the Quasar Lightning Snake wasn''t lying. Just like how Emma''s home was invaded by an unknown attacker, the Quasar Lightning Snake''s homnd was invaded as well. Both of them were victims in this case, and Satoshi couldn''t help but think that there was only one entity behind these things. After all, the invasion seemed to be premeditated, and it was more than sessful.

    ''Could it be the World Eater?'' Satoshi muttered to himself.

    A few minutester, Satoshi reached the foot of the mountain without even realizing it. Emma and Shiroi ran up at Satoshi, stopping in their tracks when they noticed that the Quasar Lightning Snake was right there.

    "Is it just me or did the Quasar Lightning Snake get smaller?" Emma asked out of curiosity, approaching the beast and poking its head.

    "Watch it!" The Quasar Lightning Snake eximed in annoyance before floating behind Satoshi. It was a cute gesture, and Emma and Shiroi were enamored by it.

    "I guess that''s thest of them. Are we ready to head back? You still have to prepare for the entrance exam of sorts, right?" Satoshi asked Emma.

    Emma nodded and without further ado, created a dimensional portal that led straight to the Midoriyama household''s doorstep.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Aren''t you going to say goodbye to your family first, Emma?" Shiroi asked since they were already there and all.

    Shaking her head, Emma forced a smile on her face. "I already did. Besides, I could alwayse back here whenever I like." She continued. It was all thanks to Satoshi who got rid of all the berserk beasts on her home. It was solely thanks to Satoshi that the once again experienced peace, and the dangers of the beasts werepletely eliminated.

    "All right then,"

    They didn''t even bother packing their things since Orb Oboros took care of everything. It only took one wave of Satoshi''s hand for all their things to be packed. And then the three of them stepped into the portal, finding themselves, right in front of the Midoriyama household.

    ...

    It was early in the morning, and Tatsuki was rxedly sipping on his morning coffee while watching the usual morning news. It had been a week since his son went to another dimension with Emma and Shiroi, and he couldn''t help but feel worried.

    Of course, he didn''t show it in a superficial sense since doing so would just worry his wife all the more. Even now, he couldn''t help but think about his son''s well-being. He knew his son was strong, but that didn''t stop him from worrying.

    Suddenly, he felt an instant spike of energy in the vicinity, causing him to perk up and look around. From the window, he saw a familiar dimensional portal, and he heaved a sigh of relief. "It seems like everything went well with their subjugation," Tatsukimented.

    "Are the children back?" Ayumu asked, rushing from the kitchen and then peering through the window.

    At the same time, the trio came out of the portal, still in their outdoor clothes.

    Ayumu''s face lit up in an instant, and she rushed to the door to greet her son first. As soon as Satoshi heard the door open, he was tackled by his mother who hugged him tightly. "Wee home!" She greeted, giving Emma and Shiroi hugs as well.

    "Did you get thin? Why do you look so dirty? Did you have a hard time?" Ayumu cooed, bombarding her son with multiple questions before he could even breathe from her hug. "I''ve already cooked breakfast. Come inside." She beckoned excitedly.

    "I''m back," Satoshi greeted back, seeing his dad sitting on the couch while nodding his head towards him in greeting.

    The atmosphere of the Midoriyama household changed in an instant. With the arrival of Satoshi and his party, the somewhat mundane atmosphere changed into a lively one. Ayumu vibrantly set the table for six people, gesturing that the three of them sit down and eat first before doing anything else like taking a shower.

    Emma, Satoshi, and Shiroi didn''t reject the offer since they were starving. Due to their hectic schedule while trying to subjugate every berserk beast on Emma''s home, they barely ate a proper meal. And quite frankly, Satoshi missed his mom''s homecooked meal.

    "Don''t rush, there''s plenty more where that came from," Tatsuki advised after he saw Satoshi stuffing his mouth with karaage.

    Emma and Shiroi were no different. They were holding back though since they didn''t want to have a bad impression on Satoshi''s parents.

    "Goo'' mo''nin~" A light tip tap of foosteps could be heard descending the stairs. A couple of secondster, Aira could be seen sleepily walking down the stairs while rubbing her eyes. She woke up due to themotion, but she hasn''t realized yet that Satoshi and the others have returned.

    "Ah! Big brother! Emma-nee~" Aira called out before hugging Satoshi. "Wee back!"

    "You woke up quite early today, Aira. Good morning." Ayumu greeted, handing Aira a small te before pulling out Aira''s chair for her.

    With the whole family gathered around the table after a week, Tatsuki felt a wave of relief washing over him. He was d that his son was all right, but he also knew deep within that these peaceful days wouldn''tst long, Even though he had no idea about theing World Eater, he could tell that something wasing, and it''s going to be a serious threat to their dimension.

 Chapter 410 A Foreigner?

    "No, Lucy... no..."

    Jonathan woke up in a cold sweat while holding his hand up into the sky. His breathing had be ragged, and the scenes of the dreams in his mind reyed a couple of times even though he was already awake.

    The sunlight peered through the wooden decks on top of him, which partially covered him from the heat. The sand seeped between his toes as he stood up, and he felt like getting another hour of sleep but he knew he had to be on time for the important event.

    "Lucy...'' Jonathan heaved a sigh.

    From a distance, the sound of the waves hitting the shore invaded his ears, making him remember painful memories of the past. He shook his head before slinging his backpack on his shoulders. He had been sleeping under this wooden deck bridge for a couple of days now. The ufortable feeling of sand against his back, he had gotten used to it.

    As the sunpletely peered from the horizon, Jonathan made his way into the city. Fortunately, he came from another dimension, and there was no proof that he was the one who killed the girl. That''s why no one is currently hunting him down, except for two people¡ª Satoshi and Yun Zhe.

    Then again, he knew that they wouldn''t be a problem since he was stronger than them. Satoshi was formidable, sure, but he could handle him just fine.

    "I''ve already avenged them... and yet I still feel this way. Is this how she felt back then?" Jonathan forced augh from his mouth as he tried to forget the girl he killed. And yet, the memory of him killing her reyed in his mind, coupled with the traumatic memory he had in the past.

    "I guess this is payback for what I''ve done. But even if I could go back in time, I won''t change anything... what she did was unforgivable. No excuse could justify what she did... that''s why she had to die." Jonathan had undergone a feeling of hatred, guilt, and justification in under a minute, but that didn''t remove the sick feeling he had in his stomach.

    Groowl~

    While walking through the city, a couple of stalls caught Jonathan''s attention, and he wanted to buy food for himself. However, he didn''t have any money. He clutched onto his stomach, stered a grin on his face, and continued walking.

    There was the option of stealing. And for him, stealing ought to be easy since he could open dimensional portals just like Emma and Satoshi. But at the moment, he didn''t feel like doing a crime. After all, he still felt a tad bit guilty after murdering someone despite her not being so innocent.

    He curled his back, thinking that hisining stomach would be heard by the crowd. Feeling a little bit embarrassed, he drooped his head and increased his walking pace as he made his way to the United Superheroes Academy.

    "Oi, kid, are you all right?" A stocky man in histe thirties suddenly grabbed Jonathan by the shoulder, causing him to flinch.

    Without thinking twice, he immediately unleashed a punch right at the man. That''s when he realized that the man behind him was actually a regr human. ''Oh shoot, there was no way he''d survive this punch.'' Jonathan said to himself as he tried to pull out his punches.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    But it was toote, he had unleashed his full power before he knew it, and the momentum of the punch traveled straight into the man''s stomach.

    Jonathan could already imagine the man''s stomach exploding, with his innards and blood sshing all over the ce as his body became a fountain of red. He could already see himself getting escorted into a superhero prison and serving his life sentence, all the while eating jail food every day. Then again, it wasn''t too bad. At least he got to eat every day instead of staying underneath a deck for days while hoping he could get his next meal the next day.

    All those thoughts urred in Jonathan''s mind in less than a split second. Once he got back to reality, his punch was already a millimeter away from the man''s stomach.

    Swish~!

    Suddenly, a strong gust of wind hit him straight in the face. And the man blocked his attack with an open palm. With a grunt, the man caught Jonathan''s arm. He felt his arm twisting due to Jonathan''s forceful punch, but he held his ground.

    "Sheesh, you scared the hell out of me kid. Don''t you go punching anyone like that, all right? If it had been another person, they''d have died." The man scratched his head as he let go of Jonathan''s fist. He then started shaking his hand as if he was dancing a traditional dance.

    "I-I-I''m sorry!" Jonathan called out as his stomach growled a second time. "It was reflex... I''m sorry." He repeated, averting his gaze from the man before he bowed his head in sincere apology. More than anything, he was just d that the man was able to catch his punch and live.

    ''Wait... he was able to catch my punch and live?! A normal human could do that?!'' Jonathan''s eyes widened as his gaze shifted back to the man. He couldn''t believe that such a regr-looking man could do that. Even with a superpower, he should''ve suffered decent damage.

    "I''m Ivan Ivanov. What''s your name?" The man said, extending his right hand for a handshake¡ª this was the hand he used to catch Jonathan''s punch. (See chapter 4)

    "Jonathan Ainsworth," Jonathan muttered, shakily shaking the man''s hand.

    "That was a pretty unique introduction, don''t you think?" Ivan lightly said, reenacting the punch before putting his hand once again on Jonathan''s shoulder. "By the way, I couldn''t help but notice... your stomach''s been grumbling non-stop. That''s no good, you know."

    Embarrassed, Jonathan clutched his stomach, silently telling it to shut up so he won''t get embarrassed further.

    Ivan then stopped and took a closer look at Jonathan. This made Jonathan feel a little awkward even though he was aware that Ivan didn''t mean any harm.

    "Kid... you''re not from around here, are you?" Ivan suspiciously asked.

 Chapter 411 Entrance Test!

    "Ready?" Satoshi hopped into his shoes and opened the door for Emma. Judging from his enthusiasm, it seemed as if he was the one transferring to another school since his excitement didn''t rival that of Emma''s. He was looking forward to the matches more than her and it showed on his face.

    "Can Ie with you?" Aira cooed, grabbing Satoshi by the hem of his shirt as she gently tugged on it. Even though Satoshi hadn''t said anything, she was already pouting. She knew that she couldn''te, but she asked anyways.

    "Of course. I mean, it''s not like I can stop my parents froming. Emma and I are just heading there first to fill in some paperwork for her transfer." Satoshi responded, patting Aira on the head. From her smile, Satoshi could tell that she was pleased with his answer.

    Emma was still in her usual get-up, eating toast with peanut butter as she made her way to the front door. She did pack her uniform in her bag since she opted to wear casual clothes to school. It would be pretty weird if she were to wear her uniform during the matches, after all.

    With a nod, Emma also wore her shoes, and the two of them headed outside. After waving at Satoshi''s parents, Emma quickened her pace and caught up with Satoshi. The two of them walked together side by side.

    "I hope the practice you had back there with Shiroi gave you some idea about your future matches. Shiroi has one of the most practical superpowers in offensive matches like the ones you''re going to have as part of the ''entrance'' exam. I''m quite sure you''ll get in though. You''ve been practicing under the number one superhero, after all. It would be bad if you were to lose a match." This was Satoshi''s roundabout way of pressuring Emma. It was D-day, and he wanted to tease her a little bit.

    "You really have to go there, huh," Emma said, inhaling and exhaling the moment Satoshi mentioned her training under his father''s wing. Nevertheless, she was looking forward to the high schoolers she was going to meet. She felt a tad bit anxious, evident on her face, but she was overall excited.

    "Of course, you''re pretty skilled with your dimensional portals so winning should be easy for you." Satoshi smiled.

    The United Superheroes Academy was a walking distance from the Midoriyama household, so Emma and Satoshi opted to walk instead of riding in a car. This was a good warm-up for Emma and it was also a good time for her to clear her head before her uing matches. It was fairly evident that she was nervous. This was her first official match on Earth, after all, and doing something for the first time on foreign soil really gets in the nerves sometimes.

    As they neared the school entrance, Satoshi couldn''t help but look back to when he had his first match at the United Superheroes Academy. A few months had passed since that time, but Satoshi could remember it as if it was yesterday. He reminisced about awakening his power that night and thening up with a good idea the next day by visiting the hardware store.

    And as if on cue, the hardware shop came to view just when they turned a corner. Satoshi remembered running into the shop and asking the shop owner for a Nailgun. Until now, Nailgun is one of his most powerful familiars and he would always remember how he tamed it. Satoshi smiled. He was sure that Emma was somehow feeling the same nervousness he felt back then.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "This was where I got my first familiar, after Dex, of course." Satoshi narrated, telling Emma his story.

    One of the guards on duty saluted at the two of them as they neared the entrance. With a slight bow of greeting, Satoshi and Emma entered the school premises. The school seemed livelier than before, probably because there were more people than usual. Not only that, a lot of foreign exchange students were there, which made the school grounds resemble a formal conference instead of the usual entrance exam.

    Despite the fact that Satoshi was a student in the said school, seeing a lot of foreigners in a familiar ce made him feel out of ce.

    "What are you spacing out for, Satoshi? Don''t tell me you''re more nervous than I am?" Emma called out, patting Satoshi on the back. It was payback for his unnecessary pressure earlier.

    Satoshi sheepishly walked through the crowd so he could meet with the Principal who was situated by the front entrance of the school building. He was seated behind a table, and he officially handled the registration of all the students who were taking the ''entrance'' exam of sorts that day.

    The paperwork for transfer was already done, or that''s the case for almost everyone. As for Emma, she still had to process a couple of things, like her guardian, for one.

    It didn''t take long before Satoshi saw the familiar faces of his peers. They too felt the same nervousness he felt after seeing a lot of foreigners on the school premises. That''s why they were huddled together in one corner, trying to figure out who was who while looking at each of the faces of the transferees and foreign exchange students. It didn''t take long before Satoshi noticed them. They weren''t particrly the somber bunch so it was hard to miss them.

    Satoshi ran towards them after he guided Emma to register with the Principal. A couple of ''good mornings''ter, the sound of murmurs was heard from the crowd, attracting Satoshi and the others'' attention.

    Apparently, everyone was instructed to clear the school grounds since the entrance exam was about to start. The students who were fighting against each other could be seen shaking in their boots, well, some of them, since it was finally time for all of them to face off.

 Chapter 412 Transfer Students

    Jonathan stared at the old man and the old man stared back at him. He was smiling, a gentle smile that made him look harmless despite his stocky build. Once again, he grabbed Jonathan by the shoulder before heaving a sigh. As he stared far off into the distance, a memory urred in his mind and he couldn''t help but reminisce about it.

    "You don''t have to say anything, kid. I''m sure it''s hard for you." Ivan mumbled as if he was talking to himself when in fact he was addressing Jonathan in a pitiable manner. It was unavoidable for him to take pity on Jonathan since he somehow saw a reflection of himself from him. "When I was young, my parents moved from Russia to here, and I found it really hard to adjust. I don''t know where you''re from and I''m probably only projecting my past onto you but I could tell... you''ve traveled far to get here... and you wanted to make ends meet."

    It was fairly obvious that Ivan''s emotions were easily swayed. Just seeing a young man wandering on the street was enough to make him feelpassion toward him, and it was probably for the better.

    Unbeknownst to Ivan, Jonathan could totally rte to what he spoke about. There was a bit of truth in his speech and Jonathan felt a certain connection to his words. Before he knew it, he was walking beside Ivan while nodding his head.

    He didn''t juste from another country, but from another world in another dimension. And while it would be easy for him to use his teleportation skills and steal, he didn''t want to do it. ''I''ve done enough wrong by murdering that person, I don''t want to add to my crimes.'' Jonathan thought to himself.

    Groowl!

    Jonathan felt embarrassed as hisining stomach made another cry of its hunger. Chuckling, Ivan patted Jonathan on the shoulder before he spoke. "Sounds like you''ve been starving. Tell you what, I''m about to have some lunch myself, you cane with me if you want."

    While Jonathan hated to steal (which was ironic considering that he was merciless enough to murder someone in cold blood, guilty or not) he wouldn''t decline a generous offer. With a nod, he followed Ivan. The two of them walked together to his shop.

    From afar, Jonathan saw arge structure that had the symbol of the USA on it. It was like the Parthenon in Greece, or what''s left of it, except that it didn''t have any pirs but it appeared just as historic. Jonathan gazed in awe as his mouth hung open.

    "That''s the United Superheroes Academy. Pretty neat, right? On that note, do you go to school? If you''re nning to, then that''s your aim right there. Only the best of the best superheroes can enter that school." Ivan exined.

    "Yeah, I''m actually transferring here... it''s just that it hasn''t been official yet." Jonathan smiled. He couldn''t help but think of everyone''s reaction when they unexpectedly see him in the flesh.

    ...<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    The school grounds were filled with noise ever since the first light. Guardians, students, and instructors alike littered the ce, conversing with each other. A light atmosphere hung in the air while all of that was going on.

    Even Satoshi, who hadn''t seen his ssmates in a long time, was catching up to them, talking about their past endeavors during the past few weeks. There were a lot of things to catch up on and the new semester is enough time for them.

    Once the announcement was issued, however, the light atmosphere suddenly became heavy. The guardians, who were talking to the instructors as if they were catching up with their friends, suddenly turned quiet as they led their children to the waiting rooms. As for the transferees, they couldn''t help but bite their lips in nervousness as they walked with their parents. There were only a couple of notable transferees who felt confident about the pseudo-entrance test of fighting other candidates, and one of them was Lydia Schwarz.

    "Do your best out there." Satoshi patted Emma on the shoulder. Shiroi also did the same before Emma walked with the others toward her respective waiting room. Heaving a huge exhale out of her mouth, she steeled her resolve. This was her moment, and she had prepared more than enough for this.

    As for Satohi and Shiroi, they joined their ssmates in the audience''s seats which were located on the upper floors of the coliseum overlooking the arena. It was finally happening.

    "Ladies and Gents, it''s your friendly neighborhood Knighthawk here! I haven''t been getting that much screen timetely but here we are!" A voice boomed all throughout the coliseum. Satoshi looked up to see a box protruding out of the audience seats. Knighthawk was seated there with Sai Tama, the head director/principal of the United Superheroes Academy. It was hard to miss him since his bald head reflected the sun.

    "Today, we''re going to witness your superpowers in these exhibition matches. We have superheroes on standby if anything goes wrong, and we have the Nurse, waiting by her office if someone''s gravely injured. Do your best future students of the USA, and may the odds be ever in your favor." Sai Tama said, saluting with his three fingers in the air as if to reference a famous novel series in the past.

    "And may the odds be ever in your favor!" Knighthawk had no idea what that meant but he jumped on the bandwagon, doing the salute as well before announcing the first matchup. "And now, for our first match... we have someone who''s pretty well-known to us by now. She was one of the handful of superheroes who defended the dimensional portal located by the sea of Japan. With a round of apuse, let us wee, Emma Leisenberg!"

    Satoshi''s eyes widened as he leaned onto his seat. "Emma! He''s on the first match!" He repeated, turning towards Shiroi and Kuroe who were sitting beside him.

    "And as for her opponent... we don''t know anything about him but here he is! Let us wee, Jonathan Ainsworth!"

    "Jonathan?! No... it couldn''t be... it''s just a coincidence, right?" Satoshi muttered to himself, peering into the entrance to the arena to see if the Jonathan mentioned was the Jonathan he encountered.

 Chapter 413 To The Second Round

    "Haap~!"

    "Hu-haap~!"

    "You have to be precise, don''t justsh out without thinking. Every move, calcted."

    Bending her knees, Emmashed out with a low sweeping kick. In response, Tatsuki jumped up and somersaulted in the air. Hended hand-first on the ground, bncing himself on his left hand while grabbing Emma''s leg with the other. Gaining his foothold, he pulled Emma towards her before reaching out to her neck.

    Emma knew that her defeat was inevitable, but she remembered Satoshi''s dad''s words. Her movements should be calcted. In a split second, Emma let the momentum carry her toward Tatsuki. With the way Tatsuki''s hands were positioned, she knew he would grab her by the neck so she covered it with her left hand. She then clocked her right arm and punched blindly.

    It took one moment for Emma tond a punch right at Tatsuki''s diaphragm. It wasn''t enough to make him keel over, but it was enough to stop his attack. A smile appeared on Tatsuki''s face as he stood up, offering her hand to Emma who was down on the ground. "That was a splendid hit, now you just got to get more power in there, and boom."

    Emma was so out of breath that the only thing she could do was nod in response. From her peripheral vision, she saw Satoshi standing by the sidelines, pping his hand. There had been countless moments wherein she''d watch Satoshi brawl against his father and they would always take hits one after another to the point that it looked easy. As it turned out, it wasn''t. After all, the only thing she could do after weeks of training wasnd a singleme hit.

    Once she had enough rest, Satoshi then positioned himself in front of her, telling her that it was his turn too. This was his regr schedule in her morning training.

    .....

    The crowd broke into cheers as the first contestants showed up for their exhibition match. While this was nothingpared to the Concrete Arena, or the Official Beast Tournament, this was still one of the few events that people look forward to annually. And to think that this would happen twice in a year was a nice treat for them.

    As it turned out, the referee was actually someone pretty familiar. It was none other than Plume, the mascot of the Concrete Arena who didn''t have any losses under her belt. With a wave of her hand, she walked towards the center of the coliseum, smiling at Emma as she did so. There were only a couple of times when she met Emma but she was aware that she was a good kid (Plume thinks of her as a kid when she was only a couple of years older).

    As soon as she reached the center, she took flight with her pristine wings, bringing down her hand in a chopping motion.

    "Start!" She announced, flying to the side as Emma and Jonathan braced themselves.

    In a snap of a finger, Emma and Jonathan disappeared, and portals appeared all over the stage. Everyone gasped in disbelief as Emma and Jonathan jumped from one of their respective portals to another, trying to catch up to the other while keeping their distance at the same time. It was a wild goose chase, and it was fairly obvious that they were unnecessarily draining their energy in order to outwit the other.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Jonathan was the first one to break through first. Relying on his instincts, he was able to grab Emma by the hair, pulling her down into one of his portals. Sensing that she''d lose if she were to let Jonathan have his way, Emma teleported herself, disregarding the lump of hair that Jonathan grabbed from her. ''It will grow back.'' She muttered to herself, forcefully smiling.

    One thing that Emma learned from Satoshi and his dad was that she should always look for a counter even if she was at a disadvantage. That''s why, the moment Jonathan grabbed her by the hair, he trapped him by opening two portals¡ª one for her escape, and one to cut off Jonathan''s hand.

    Of course, Jonathan won''t expect it since Emma had already opened one portal to get away. He figured that she wouldn''t cut his arm off. To his surprise though, Emma was more heartless than he thought, and she really went through with her intrusive thoughts of cutting his arm off.

    To counter the portal, Jonathan had to open another portal and get his arm out of there before it was teleported into nothingness. Sure it would be easy to regrow his arm back with the medical technology they have today, but it would still be just as painful and Jonathan didn''t want to go through it.

    Fwoosh~!

    A sudden rise of wind pressure appeared on the stage. As the audience ducked for cover, all the dimensional portals that manifested hadpletely disappeared and vanished into thin air.

    "You''re pretty good. I''d say your control over my dimensional portals is as good as mine." Jonathanmended, pping his hand as he slowly walked towards Emma. Before Emma could say anything, he snapped his fingers, and a devious smile appeared on his face.

    Emma didn''t wait. As soon as she got her pace back, she tried opening up a dimensional portal to catch Jonathan by surprise. It didn''t seem like he was going to open one of his portals anytime soon so Emma took her chances.

    Fwip~!

    The colors drained from Emma''s face as she ran into thin air. She tried to summon a portal but nothing happened. Confused, she extended her arm for the second time, thinking that she was probably just out of it or something of the sort.

    Nothing happened. Somehow, her powers weren''t working!

    "Heh," Jonathan casually walked to Emma with his arms up. It''s as if he was inviting Emma into close-quartersbat, which was weird considering that this is an exhibition match featuring their superpowers.

    "It''s time for the second round." He announced.

 Chapter 414 Jonathans Superpower Negation

    Jonathan''s words echoed throughout the arena, even making their way to the official recording of matches via camera drones that roamed around the coliseum. These camera drones were responsible for recording videos and posting them on the official video channel of the United Superheroes Academy.

    No one had any idea what Jonathan meant by the second round, but they were certainly looking forward to it. Little did they know that the second round would be as uneventful as it could get.

    Without saying another word, Jonathan sprinted towards Emma, increasing his speed as he did so. Unbeknownst to everyone in the coliseum, all powers were currently negated in the arena at that moment. This was due to one of Jonathan''s special powers¡ª superpower negation.

    Aside from his dimensional portal superpower, he could also negate all superpowers in a given area. Of course, it also negated his superpowers but he was trained for that. This was the reason why he was in his prime physical condition.

    But what he didn''t know was that Emma is in her prime physical condition as well. If any, he was unlucky that Emma is fighting her in the first round of these exhibition matches.

    As soon as he was within arm''s range, he clocked his fist and unleashed a punch at Emma, who cleanly dodged it by leaning back and taking a single step backward. Using her momentum, she also readied her fist and hooked Jonathan, aiming at his lower jaw.

    Jonathan was surprised that Emma could move so smoothly despite being severely disadvantaged. Since she is a girl, and it seemed like she never had any prior training with martial arts, Jonathan assumed that it was only a stroke of luck that she was able to dodge his punch.

    Because of that, Jonathan still had full confidence that he would win. Grinning, he lunged forward, this time, aiming a powerful strike right at Emma''s sr plexus.

    Once again, though, Emma was able to deflect the attack by blocking it with her forearm.

    "That won''t work. I got you now." Jonathan called out. He was confident that the force of his punch would be enough to break the bone on her forearm. He felt sorry for her but he had to go through this if he ever hoped to win the exhibition match and prove that he was a worthy candidate as a transfer student.

    However, his punch didn''t break anything. In fact, he felt as if he punched a bricked wall. Flinching in pain, he backed down, wondering why his attack didn''t break through the girl''s defenses.

    Even though Emma looked like a frail girl, underneath her skin was pure muscle, honed to its full potential thanks to her training. She may appear as if her bones could break at any moment, but that was all an illusion.

    "H-how?" Jonathan asked himself, looking at his knuckles which had their skin peeled off. At first, he wondered whether Emma had some sort of physical buff activated but that was impossible since he had negated all types of superpowers in the first ce. The second thought that urred in his mind was that Emma was cheating... but that was also impossible, considering that he didn''t detect any external interferences or anything of the sort.

    "It''s my turn," Emma muttered to herself.

    Just like Jonathan, she was a bit uncertain of Jonathan''s physical capabilities. The moment her dimensional portals didn''t activate, she knew that something was wrong with her power... and Jonathan had something to do with it.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    And then Jonathan attacked with his fists instead of using his dimensional portals. That''s when Emma came to the conclusion that he had negated all the superpowers in the field, including his superpowers. "For a moment back there, I thought I''d lose. If he could deactivate my superpowers while using his superpower... that would be pretty bad."

    However, luck was on Emma''s side. Even with all of these disadvantages presented to her, she knew she was on edge against Jonathan. The exact moment she knew that was when Jonathannded his sr plexus punch¡ª instead, it hit Emma''s forearm and Jonathan was the one damaged by it.

    One thing was for sure. Emma had the upper hand when it came to their physical abilities. This left Jonathan with two things: either he forfeits the match since there was no way he''d win, or he deactivates his skill and he''d have to fight Emma with his dimensional portals and hope to win. However, thetter option was a bit disadvantageous for him since activating his superpower negation drained a lot of his energy. In terms of energy, Emma had also gained the upper hand.

    Jonathan hadn''t realized any of that though. Right now, he was surprised that Emma was physically stronger than him.

    Seeing the victory right in front of her, Emma crouched low and dashed toward Jonathan. There was no way she''d give him a break after he showed him what he can do.

    Without hesitation, Emma struck with a punch. It was a feint, however, and she managed to throw Jonathan off. In one smooth motion, she twisted her core and unleashed a kick right at Jonathan''s ribs, sending him skittering sidewards.

    Before Jonathan could scramble back up to his feet, Emma caught up to him, grabbed his arm, and dislocated his shoulder.

    "Aargh!" Jonathan screamed.

    There was no other choice.

    Before Emma could do anything else to him, he snapped his finger a second time and activated his dimensional portal. Even if it meant draining his energy, he just had to get out of that sticky situation no matter what.

    Deactivating his superpower negation also meant that Emma''s abilities won''t be sealed anymore. And it was only a matter of time before Emma caught up to him, overpowering him with her fluid control of superpower and her masterful physical fighting prowess.

    The chasested another minute or so, but at this point, everyone knew what the oue of the match would be. As Emma stood in front of Jonathan who had exhausted all his energy, Jonathan heaved a sigh before saying the words that would end the match.

    "Sigh~ I lost." Jonathan exhaled, sitting on the ground before he fell into unconsciousness.

 Chapter 415 Personal Recruitment

    Jonathan couldn''t believe it.

    As it turned out, there was someone who was more proficient in actual physicalbat than him. This was certainly not what he was expecting from his first opponent, considering that he was in the top percentile when ites to physical prowess.

    "I was just unlucky. To think that I''d be put up against her. This sucks." Jonathan muttered to himself, scratching his head as he walked out of the arena. Even though he didn''t have any personal attachments to the United Superheroes Academy, he badly wanted to attend it. But now that he had lost, there was nothing he could do but walk away.

    Celebration erupted amongst the crowd as the curtains to the fight were drawn to a close. Sai Tama and thementator started narrating what had happened as best as they could before they announced the next match. Then again, they had a hard time exining what just happened since the fight was more unorthodox than they had hoped.

    Meanwhile, Ivan eagerly watched the live broadcast of the match. He wasn''t at all surprised to be informed that Jonathan was enrolling/transferring to the United Superheroes Academy. After all, most children his age would dream of attending such a prestigious school at least once in their lives.

    Once the match was over, Ivan pped at the live broadcast with a soft smile on his face. It was a great fight. Jonathan lost, but it was still a great fight nheless. "He did well... the matchup was not in his favor but he still put up a good fight. I''m sure the school''s management would take that into careful consideration."

    A man walked into the hardware store, interrupting Jonathan''s monologue. He ran up to the man, asking if he could assist him in any way. For now, he''d be waiting for Jonathan toe back to the shop.

    ...

    "Wait up!" Emma shouted.

    Right before Jonathan could enter his waiting room, Emma caught up to him, calling out his name. Jonathan didn''t look back, though. Instead, he lifted his hand and waved in response.

    Feeling that it was the right time to approach him, Emma quickened her pace and caught up to Jonathan, who only entered the waiting room to get his bag. "Do you need anything?" Jonathan asked, a smile on his face.

    "How did you learn to fight like that?" Emma asked, her eyes sparkling. Had she known that she was talking to someone who killed another person in cold blood, she won''t have had that excited expression on her face.

    "It doesn''t matter. I lost." Jonathan pointed out, heaving a sigh. "I should be the one asking you that. Where did you learn to fight like that?"

    "In any case, I''m sure you''ll pass. The exhibition matches are only there to showcase our superpowers. I''m sure you''re getting in." Emma encouraged. "In other words, don''t leave yet."

    Jonathan let out a lungful of air before turning away. "I''m not leaving. I just need to stop by somewhere. I can''t believe my first opponent is someone with the same superpowers as me... and she was better than me despite having only one superpower."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "See you around." Jonathan continued.

    "Sure." Emma returned.

    After taking a couple of steps forward, Jonathan noticed that there was a person in front of him. He was familiar, but he couldn''t quite put his finger around it. He was ofnky build, dressed in formal clothes, with a bald head. "Jonathan Ainsworth, right?" He confirmed approaching Jonathan while extending his hand.

    It took Jonathan a moment to realize that the person in front of him was none other than the head director of the United Superheroes Academy. He should''ve recognized him a little sooner due to his signature bald head, but he was too caught up in his loss to think properly.

    Jonathan nodded in response, returning the handshake that Sai Tama offered. He had a firm grip, and Jonathan could tell that he was holding back when he shook his hand. "You did pretty well on your match."

    "Are you going to tell me I failed before I even got out of here?" Jonathan asked. He didn''t peg Sai Tama to be the kind of person who rubs salt in wounds. However, he couldn''t help but assume such was the case since he brought up his loss before he could even say anything.

    "No, no," Sai Tama grinned, grabbing Jonathan by the shoulder as they got out of the corridor. Finding themselves on the school grounds, Sai Tama stole a nce at Jonathan before he continued what he was going to say.

    Somehow, Jonathan didn''t struggle from Sai Tama''s grip. Based on the heavy hand on his shoulder, he was fairly certain that Sai Tama was crazy strong. Every being of his body screamed at him, telling him to run from Sai Tama. Fortunately, he was reasonable enough to not panic.

    "Then what is it?" Jonathan went on.

    "I''m here to tell you in advance that you passed." Sai Tama said. "Superpower cancetion? That''s a pretty nifty superpower. No one noticed it, but you''re capable of canceling superpower in a limited area, right? Of course, that includes canceling your superpower as well. To top it all off, you have dimensional portals as your second superpower. That''s bound to be useful."

    "Are you sure you should be saying that? Wouldn''t that be unfair to those who lost... or to those who couldn''t get in?" Jonathan asked. He didn''t want to garner unnecessary attention at himself, especially when he only had one goal that prompted him to apply to the school.

    "I''m the head director, the principal of this school. Besides, you''re not the only one who''d be epted. There are plenty of experts who are judging everyone''s performances at the moment. I''m quite confident that you''ll pass."

    Patting him on the shoulder, Sai Tama then headed back to the box to continue hismentating duties. He waved his hand, stealing another nce at Jonathan. "See you on the first day of the semester." He called out.

 Chapter 416 Lydia Schwarz Vs. Marie Pettigreen

    "Are you sure about this, Lydia?"

    "Yes, dad,"

    "All right then, if this is what you want, and I don''t see any harm in this, then I''ll back you up." Joseph Schwarz gently smiled as he put his hand on his daughter''s head. In the past, it was his idea for Lydia to move to Japan, wherein she''d be able to cultivate her superpowers more. But now that she was willing to go through with it, he became a tad bit concerned about her sudden change of heart.

    First off, Switzend is andlocked country, and it wouldn''t be beneficial for Lydia in the long run if she were to stay here since her superpower is connected to water. Secondly, the country didn''t have an education system focused on superheroes; that was why there were only a number of superheroes therein. Adding to that, registering as a superhero in such a neutral state as Switzend is a pain on the rear end, and Joseph Schwarz didn''t want his daughter to go through suchplications when she decided to be a superhero in the near future. Long story short, Japan is a more advantageous choice, and it was essentially Lydia''s second home. That''s why Joseph Schwarz suggested that she continue her studies over there.

    What he didn''t know, however, was that Lydia had been keen on going to Japan right from the start. She was looking forward to spending more time with Satoshi. The only reason why it seemed like she didn''t like to go was that... she didn''t want to make it obvious to her dad.

    But now came her most challenging trial yet¡ª the entrance exam, which involved exhibition matches.

    Back at the present, Lydia sat on a single seat inside her waiting room, breathing in and out as she tried to calm her nerves down. While this wasn''t the first time she''ll be disying her powers in front of arge audience, this was the most anxious she felt. She was aware that her superpower should be interesting enough for her to get in. Of course, her superpower was shy enough, but she wanted to disy it even more beautifully. That way, she would not only ace the entrance exam but also be one of the top transferees.

    From the walls of the waiting room, Lydia could hear the muffled sounds of the cheering audience, waiting for the next match to happen. Pretty soon, her name was called, and she walked up the arena with a rigid pace. She was too nervous, and she didn''t know why.

    Lydia may appear as one of the most confident out of everyone in Satoshi''s group, but deep inside, she wasn''t. It was just a farce, a false bravado she puts up so she wouldn''t be teased with her reservedness. With bated breaths, she managed to get up from the arena. In front of her was another transferee. She had green hair, which was odd, but what was even odder were the vines that grew from the girl''s arms. She was smiling, grinning from ear to ear.

    ''Why is she activating her superpowers? The match hasn''t even started yet?'' Lydia asked herself.

    Once again, Plume walked into the middle of the stage, wondering the same thing. Of course, it wasn''t illegal to activate your superpowers before the match, but that would be disadvantageous since it would expend unnecessary energy. Then again, it may be advantageous for the girl since her superpower might take some time to activate. That''s why she activated it beforehand.

    "Both sides at the ready? Start!" She signaled before flying out of the way.

    "The name''s Marie Pettigreen. How about you?" The girl asked, smiling. Despite her evil eyes and cunning smile, her voice was warm and gentle.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Lydia reminded herself not to judge the book by the cover. She seemed like a nice kid. Then again, there was no way Lydia would underestimate her just because she sounded harmless. "I''m Lydia, Lydia Schwarz."

    "W-w-wait, you''re Lydia Schwarz?! The daughter of Joseph Schwarz and the younger sister of¡ª" Marie Pettigreen went on. Before she could finish what she was saying, though, Lydia cut her off.

    With a flick of her wrist, Lydia formed a drop of water on her palms and shot it through the air like a speeding bullet. It whizzed past Marie''s face, leaving a hole where her green hair was. "Wha¡ª wait! I wasn''t ready!" She eximed.

    "Why don''t we start the match? We have all day to talk to each other. Let''s just finish this one first." From her peripheral vision, Lydia could see Satoshi''s smiling face. She could tell that Satoshi was mouthing a cheer, and she got a tad bit embarrassed.

    Seizing her chance, Marie shot the vines from her arms, aiming at Lydia''s neck while she wasn''t looking. What she didn''t know, however, was that Lydia was proficient in fights. That''s why she dodged the vines easily by bending over backward. She then rolled smoothly on the ground, forming her hand into a gun and shooting small water bullets at Marie.

    Lydia finally found the right answer to her conundrum earlier. There was one thing she could do so she could perform a show without disregarding her battling capabilities.

    After firing off a couple of water droplets at Marie and leaving her ''vine''y arms perforated, Lydia positioned her hand as if she was bncing something on her shoulder. A huge ball of hardened water then appeared right in front of her, and she shot it. Her action made it seem like she was shooting a bazooka right at Marie.

    That''s right, she was reenacting modern weapons with her water attacks.

    Two water swords appeared on her hand, and she cleanly sliced the vines that got ufortably near. Once she got another clear shot, water spikes appeared in the air, and she pushed them forward with a swish of her water swords.

    Fortunately, Marie was reflexive enough to block them, but not without suffering some serious damage to her vines. Her reach was exemry, but her defense was all over the ce.

    Gritting her teeth, Marie decided to retract her vines and formed even fewer vines. This time, she strengthened each of her vines so they won''t be cut easily. "I won''t go easy on you anymore... I''d like to ask for your dad''s autograph after this match though."

    "Sure, would you like my autograph as well?" Lydia exhaled. There was a pause in their attacks as they tried to catch their breaths.

 Chapter 417 Desperation To A Draw

    Lydia ducked once again before hurling a set of water spikes from her fingertips. Another set of vines came out of the ground, causing her to jump up while she swung her hand with purpose. To some, it appeared as if she was iling around, but a secondter, they began to understand what she was doing as a scythe appeared in her hand, cutting the vines before they could close in on her.

    "Well, if you win, I might get an autograph. But I doubt it." Marie Pettigreen called out, smiling. Behind her smile was the confidence that she would win against Lydia.

    Somehow, Lydia was holding her ground against Marie even though she was severely disadvantaged. Theck of water in the Coliseum, coupled with the slightly higher temperature of the morning heat, was getting to Lydia. Fortunately, Lydia''s control over her superpower was far superior to Marie''s. That''s why she managed to keep up with her.

    Meanwhile, Marie was undergoing a noticeable transformation while she continued to fling her vines at Lydia. Her hair had gotten thicker than normal, and her legs shifted into an aesthetically green color. More vines shot from her hair and appendages. Even her legs turned into vines and continued to dig their way to the ground.

    "Finally," Marie Pettigreen uttered under her breath.

    Compared to Lydia, Marie''s superpowers work the opposite way. Her special skill, photosynthesis, allows her to extract energy directly from the sun. In other words, the hotter the day was, the stronger her superpowers became. If it were nighttime, Marie''s superpowers would''ve been absolutely dampened. But since the sun had just risen, it was the most optimal time for Marie to use her superpowers. She was her most powerful if it was daytime, the pr opposite of Lydia, who relied on the presence of water in order for her to fully utilize her superpower.

    A number of vines came out of the ground, shooting at Lydia and causing her to jump up. With a grunt, she used her scythes to sh through the vines.

    Thack~!

    To her surprise, the vines didn''t suffer any damage at all. In fact, her scythes barely cut the vines that came at her. What was even more surprising was that she felt her energy drained the moment her attack connected. ''That''s weird... I''m sure I didn''t exert that much energy when I struck those vines.'' Lydia said to herself.

    Apparently, one feature of Marie''s passive skill was that it drains water from the surrounding area. And since Lydia''s superpower is mainly controlling water, it was absorbed by the vines when the attack connected.

    ''This is not going well. This is not going well at all.'' Lydia furrowed her brows as she continued to talk to herself. Marie is basically her pr opposite, her weakness, and at this rate, she was going to lose.

    In a split second, her gazended on Satoshi and the others who were part of the audience. Even though it didn''t help at all, it gave her the small motivation she needed to push forward. Marie was right. She didn''t stand a chance against her. If she wouldn''t do anything different, she''s bound to lose.

    And losing will decrease her chance of sessfully transferring into the school.

    Marie shot more vines at Lydia. This time, she intended to constrict her movement by surrounding her with vines. And as if that wasn''t enough, she continued her barrage of vines with the intent of stabbing Lydia. "Are you exhausted, Lydia? You can just say so. It would save both of us the trouble if you forfeit."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Not happening," Lydia called out.

    At this point, her scythe had been reduced to the size of a small dagger. It looked more like a miniature sickle than a scythe. Moreover, Lydia was on the verge ofplete exhaustion. Even then, the fire in her eyes was not yet extinguished. She was determined to win no matter what.

    With another hit, Lydia finally realized why Marie was significantly stronger than her. Stealing a nce up above, she noticed the sun, which was almost directly on top of the Coliseum. Her water scythe had be even smaller, and she was reaching her limit.

    That''s it!

    A grin appeared on Lydia''s expression. When Marie attacked her again with her vines, she didn''t bother counterattacking. Instead, she dodged all her attacks, relying purely on her physical capabilities and totally suppressing her urge to use her superpower. If her hunch was right, then there was still a chance for her to win the match.

    It didn''t take long before Lydia found her pace, and she was dodging Marie''s attacks like a pro. It was a gripping fight, and the audience could tell just how close it was. They couldn''t help but hold their breaths in avid anticipation. No one could tell whether Marie or Lydia would win. Whomever it was who would rise up as the victor didn''t matter, though, since the match was a feast for the eyes.

    Once she got her momentum back, Lydia found the opening she needed. Before Marie''s next round of attacks urred, she extended her hand toward the sky. With her remaining energy, she controlled the existing water in the air, condensing them at the top of the Coliseum and blocking the sun from contact with Marie.

    The changes could be seen in an instant. Marie''s vines were severely reduced, and her attacks became sluggish. She gritted her teeth in frustration.

    However, Lydia was in the same ce as Marie. Both of them had already exhausted their energies, and their fight was near pointless since they could barely walk and attack each other. For a good minute, the two of them stood face to face each other, panting.

    Then they both screamed and charged at each other like battle-crazed entities. Plume could foretell what would happen if she let it continue, and as a referee, she had the split-second decision to stop the match before they hurt themselves even more.

    Fwoom~!

    Before they could reach out for each other''s throat (or each other''s hair), Plume descended in the middle of the arena, holding out her hand in an attempt to stop the match. "That''s it. This fight is now over." She announced, her firm voice echoing in the Coliseum.

 Chapter 418 Surprise Exhibition Match

    Plume''s scream reverberated throughout the entire coliseum. However, that didn''t stop Marie and Lydia from charging like predators at each other''s throats. Due to their depleted energy and adrenaline coursing through their veins, they acted based purely on instincts alone, and everyone could see it.

    Before both of their attacks connected, however, the two of them fell t on their faces. They''vepletely depleted their energy. Plume didn''t even have to stop their attacks since the two of them fainted at the same time.

    It was a draw.

    There was a slight pause among the audience before they started cheering their lungs out. Even Satoshi and his peers started screaming as they cheered for the participants. It''s not that they were d that the two of them fell into unconsciousness, but it was because they poured everything they had into that fight. It was pretty obvious that the two of them had passed. There was no way they won''t pass after that intense exhibition match.

    "Wha, that was pretty good. It would''ve been perfect if we had popcorn." Midorimented, leaning forward to get a good view of Satoshi since he was talking to him.

    "Did someone say popcorn?" Hiroshi called out, appearing with a bag of popcorn tucked in his arm.

    "Sweet!" Midori eximed, reaching out his hand.

    In response, Hiroshi pulled out the bag of popcorn and slyly smiled at Midori. "Get your own bag. I paid for mine right outside the coliseum."

    ...

    Two hourster.

    There were only a couple of notable matches during the entire exhibition match/entrance test. Nevertheless, that didn''t stop the audience from enjoying the match. Aside from Emma and Lydia''s match, there were a couple of superheroes who stood up above the rest. One of them is a boy named Allen Barry, and he calls himself unbeatable in terms of his speed. There were also others who had pretty unique superpowers, but they weren''t a cut above the rest. That''s why the audience was skeptical about whether they''d pass or not. Then again, it''s not like everyone who applied would be epted to the school. It was already widely known to the world that the eptance rate of the United Superheroes Academy is pretty low.

    "Thank you so much for attending this entrance test for our dear transferees. The results will be out in a couple of minutes. For now, please enjoy the rest of your lunch break with an exhibition match from our number one first-year student." Knighthawk announced as amentator. He briefly nced at Satoshi, but he didn''t seem to notice it since he was busy talking with his peers.

    Apparently, he was a bit invested in the conversation he was having with Hiroshi and Midori, who kept on asking him questions about his tamed beasts. They were interested in bing beast tamers themselves, and Satoshi was all for it. Besides, Satoshi didn''t view himself as the number one first-year student. That''s why the announcement flew over his head. It was in one ear and out the other.

    As for his peers, they also didn''t perceive Satoshi as the number one first-year. Well, to be fair, they weren''t really listening to the announcement, so they also missed it. The only one who didn''t miss the announcement was Emma, but he didn''t dare bring it up since no one seemed to talk about it.

    "Who''s going to fight with the top first-year student, you ask? Well, it''s none other than our principal himself!" Knighthawk started pping his hand, leading the crowd and prompting them to follow him. It didn''t take long before the crowd erupted into cheers.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Seeing Sai Tama fight is always a feast for the eyes. That''s why everyone was keen on seeing it despite the fact that it was just an exhibition match. The crowd started yelling and pping, attracting the attention of Satoshi and his peers who weren''t listening. They looked around, thinking that they had missed something. And at this point, Emma couldn''t tell them anything since it was already toote.

    While the crowd started wilding with their cheers, a figure appeared from the top of the box where thementator and Sai Tama were. The figure then jumped as if it was doing a freefall dive to a pool a couple of stories down. On his descent, he somersaulted thrice beforending a perfect, textbook superheronding. The impact was just right as well, providing a decent amount of dust in the air.

    The figure belonged to Sai Tama. As he got up, he flicked his hand, and the dust scattered over the entire stadium. He dusted himself off and pointed at Satoshi, who was still talking to Midori and the others.

    Sai Tama''s imposing presence was enough to silence the audience. His index finger pointed to a person, and so the spectators followed where he was pointing, and they saw a young kid who was still in his teens. They recognized the teenager, of course. After all, he had aplished a number of feats in just a few months.

    "Oi, Satoshi," Hiroshi called out, pointing his lips towards the arena in the middle of the coliseum. "I think the principal''s calling for you."

    "What? Why?" He asked. inly, he wasn''t listening when they announced that he''d be doing an exhibition match.

    "I don''t know, man. Honestly, I wasn''t listening while they were talking." Hiroshi shrugged, looking at the others who also had no idea what was happening.

    "..."

    "..."

    "Um... I think you''re going to have an exhibition match with the head director." After a pause, Emma finally found the courage to speak. Her voice trailed off.

    "What? Me?! Why?" Satoshi''s eyes almost popped out as he pointed at himself.

    "Come down here. Don''t worry, I''ll hold myself back just likest time." Sai Tama pointed out, waving at Satoshi who had no choice but to go through with the exhibition match.

    It was the finale of the entrance tests, after all, and ultimately, it was a match solely for the audience''s enjoyment. In hindsight, the moment the exhibition match was announced, it left him no choice but to fight.

 Chapter 419 Undefended

    The match announcement was all too sudden¡ª a literal surprise for the otherpetitor. Satoshi had little to no preparation. The only preparation he had for the match was the time interval going to the center of the coliseum.

    Cold sweat ran through Satoshi''s hands, and the frigid coldness of the halls leading to the outside arena gave him shivers. He subconsciously rubbed his shoulders, trying to calm himself down for the inevitable match that was staring him in the face. Satoshi was well aware of just how strong the principal was, not to mention that he was one of the few superheroes who were actually estimated more formidable than his parents. There was more than meets the eye behind that bald head and the normal appearance of the principal, and Satoshi knew it too well.

    Like any other licensed superhero, Satoshi had his own fair share ofbat experience. Nevertheless, his circumstance was nothingpared to the principal. For the first time, Satoshi felt the most nervous at that moment.

    "Who am I going to use? Should I rely on speed? Which familiar should I integrate with? Should I integrate now?" Satoshi asked himself. Despite his nervousness, he was still level-headed. He calmly assessed the situation, all the while screaming in his mind.

    Once he got to the end of the hallway, a st of warm air hit him directly in the face. The arena stared at him as if it was the abyss, gazing up at an unsuspecting entity peering down at it. Satoshi took in a huge breath, making his lungs puff out until it was on the verge of popping (or so that''s what he''d imagined).

    "All right. I''m just going to wing it. If I want a fighting chance at victory, then I shouldn''t expend too much of my energy at themencement of the match. I should just counteract everything he threw at me... and then wait for an opening, so I could counterattack. You can do this, Satoshi. You can do this."

    After the much-needed pep talk, Satoshi gave himself a pat on the back as he stepped into the arena. Right there was the school''s head director/principal, Sai Tama, smiling as he pped his hands in tune with the audience.

    At that point, Satoshi felt like he was facing the final boss himself. He couldn''t even defeat his dad in a no-holds-barred fight. And now, he was going to face off against someone who was on the level of his dad, if not higher.

    "Whatever, let''s do this." Satoshi said to himself, integrating with Ghast (dimensional portal familiar) and Sera (buffs and debuffs familiar) as soon he stepped into the ''ring'' himself. Just in case, he also kept the Kraken Queen and the Ice Empress at the forefront of his mind. Who knows when he''d need it?

    "I hope you''re ready, Satoshi." Sai Tama said, cracking his head before he slowly walked toward Satoshi. His level of intimidation was not in the leastughable¡ª or at least, that''s how Satoshi perceived it.

    "Please go easy on me, sir." Satoshi forced a smile on his face as he lifted his hands up with uncertainty.

    "BEGIN!" Plume''s voice echoed in the background as she gave the signal to start the fight. She couldn''t help but look away from the arena, though, since she didn''t want to see Satoshi getting one-sidedly beaten up.

    Once the matchmenced, Satoshi jumped up. He didn''t want to get caught off-guard at the very beginning. Simultaneously, he manifested dimensional portals all around him. All of the portals led to different portions of the arena, giving him an escape route just in case Sai Tama took the jump on him.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    His intuition was on point. The moment the signal was given, Sai Tama jumped forward, his fists locked and loaded. No sooner had he jumped did Satoshi appear right behind him. The two of them were reading too much into each other psyche''s that they were already thinking three or so moves ahead of time.

    Of course, Sai Tama was half-expecting Satoshi to do something so unorthodox such as nking. Twisting his core, Sai Tama used his momentum to his advantage and swerved a one-eighty. Before Satoshi could reach him, he was already facing Satoshi.

    Krzzrrtt~!

    Sai Tama unleashed another punch, creating a crazy disturbance in the air enough to summon a wind vortex. In response, Satothi closed his eyes and shielded himself from the wind vortex. Nevertheless, he was also expecting Sai Tama to counter, that''s why he set his backup n in motion.

    The moment he came out of the dimensional portal, Satoshi summoned the White Lion right where he previously was. He made sure that whatever happened, he would be able to blindside Sai Tama.

    A sessful counter. The moment Sai Tama turned around, White Lion let out a roar, and a bolt of blue lightning appeared from the sky, hitting Sai Tama directly on his bald head. It was a clean hit, and Satoshi inwardly celebrated since he assumed he had done decent damage at Sai Tama.

    The blue bolt of lightning did more than damage Saitama, though. In fact, the force was enough to m his face onto the ground, leaving a crater where his head was partially buried. Smoke rose from his head, and a burn mark could be seen right where the lightning hit him.

    It was at that moment Satoshi decided to overextend. Since Sai Tama was down on the ground, he figured that now was the best chance to attack him. There was no way he would give him the slimmest of chances to counterattack. With that in mind, Satoshi teleported right on top of Sai Tama, summoning his Nailgun. A barrage of nails hit Sai Tama point nk.

    To some, it may seem like a cruel thing to do, attacking someone while he couldn''t defend himself. In hindsight, it was Sai Tama on the receiving end, so this mindset shouldn''t even apply to him. That''s why the people didn''t even flinch when they saw Satoshi''s low blow.

    Ting. Ting. Ting!

    What happened next was enough to drain the colors out of Satoshi''s face. As the nails rained down on Sai Tama''s skin in full force, they just bounced against his skin. It''s as if his skin was made of a substance stronger than metal. "How on earth?!" Satoshi eximed before Sai Tama turned around and grabbed him by the neck.

 Chapter 420 A Sudden Upset

    Satoshi was well aware of the Nailgun''s maximum capabilities. He knew just how powerful every piece of nail it fired from its casket, how it could pierce through anything he willed it to. And well, Sai Tama wasn''t exactly the opponent that Satoshi would hold back on. He was a formidable superhero, and this prompted Satoshi to attack him with full force.

    Despite all that, the nails seemed to bounce off his skin. Satoshi''s confidence dwindled. Because at that moment, he was fairly certain that he had caught Sai Tama off guard. In doing so, he left a lot of openings on himself that second when he counterattacked, and Sai Tama wholly took advantage of it.

    eaglesnov?1,§ão§® "That was pretty good, Satoshi, but you have to do better than that if you want to defeat me." Sai Tama smiled to himself as he held Satoshi by the neck, raising him up.

    Then again, Sai Tama didn''t squeeze the life out of Satoshi. He just held him there as he iled helplessly in the air. Out of desperation, Satoshi teleported himself out of Sai Tama''s grasp. He was careful enough not to cut off Sai Tama''s hand when he teleported out of there.

    As soon as he got out, Satoshi turned around. This time, he wasn''t stepping on any breaks anymore. Before Sai Tama could make another step, Satoshi summoned the Kraken Queen and Sain (his chainsaw familiar), integrating with them. Tentacles came out of his lower back, and chainsaws appeared on all his appendages.

    "T-that''s... wow," Sain muttered to himself. He couldn''t believe that in such a short span of time, Satoshi had be a powerful beast tamer, almost to the point where no one could match him. Then again, he wasn''t just anyone; he was the head director of one of the most prestigious superhero schools in Japan.

    Countless tentacles shot at Sai Tama, weaving and piercing the air in a whipping motion. There was no way he could dodge all of them, so he stepped sideways and prepared for the worst. Once the tentacles closed in on him, he started dodging and parrying each one of them. Every attack connected, but Sai Tama deflected them rtively easily as if he was swatting flies.

    Closing in on Sai Tama, Satoshi continued iling his tentacles and regrowing those that were cut off. It didn''t take long before the entire arena was filled with wriggling tentacles, sshing about here and there like separate entities. Once he was within arm''s reach, Satoshi started iling his appendages with his tentacles, pressuring Sai Tama both with his tentacles and chainsaws.

    Although Knighthawk was supposed to be giving real-timementary on how the fight was transpiring, he didn''t speak a single word. He was too shocked to even utter anything. Unexpectedly, Satoshi was keeping up with Sai Tama. Toe to toe, they fought with neither side backing down.

    On one hand, a portion of the audience couldn''t believe that a first-year could execute such movements in a high-leveled exhibition match. And on the other hand, there was a portion of the student body who felt pressured, knowing that a first year was better than them. Both sides stopped cheering. They were too engrossed in the match that they just hung their jaws open while their eyes were fixated on every second of the match.

    "We only had like... one month break from school, right? Right?" Hiroshi asked, turning toward Midori and Kuroe, who were seated to his right. They nodded in response, wondering why Hiroshi asked something so obvious.

    "I mean, we''ve seen how he fought during the Official Beast Tournament, right? He was already pretty proficient as a beast tamer back then." Shiroimented, turning over to Hiroshi. "He''s gotten stronger since then."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "You know something, don''t you?" Sakura Cherry skeptically raised an eyebrow at Shiroi¡ª to which Shiroi responded by guiltily averting her gaze. "I knew it! No wonder we couldn''t reach any of you this past week!"

    "Eh?! So that''s why Satoshi wasn''t avable this past week? Where did you go? Did you go to a secret mountain to train or something? Did you train the ninja way?" Midori asked, swinging his hand all over the ce with a vague imitation of ninjutsu hand signals.

    Meanwhile, Kuroe just stared at Shiroi. Since the question was already asked, there was no way Shiroi could stop her thoughts from leaking out. It only took Kuroe a single second to read what was inside Shiroi''s head, and she smiled at herself. "So you went to Emma''s dimension. That''s pretty cool, why didn''t you bring me with you? I''ve never been to another dimension." Kuroe whispered.

    "It was an emergency," Shiroi whispered back, almost as if she was hissing at her.

    "Riight~ you should''ve called me! I wouldn''t wanna miss out on an adventure, you know." Cherry called out, popping her head between Shiroi and Kuroe while they were talking. It only took them a moment to realize that they were talking to Cherry''s alter ego, Sassu.

    "Guys, focus on the match!" Out of nowhere, Kobayashi Siril appeared from behind the group. He was well aware that he didn''t have that much of a screen time, so he hopped into the scene and interrupted everyone''s conversation. (Kobayashi Siril, superpower: Dragon Form)

    Somehow, Sai Tama was deflecting all of Satoshi''s attacks no matter how fast he was. Satoshi was already debuffing him as it is, thanks to Sera. Furthermore, he was attacking Sai Tama on all sides, thanks to Ghast, who manifested dozens of dimensional portals all over the arena. It was like twost bosses fighting each other, with all the tentacles, portals, and everything in the arena.

    With every second, Satoshi was bing more and more precise with his attacks. To a novice, it would seem as if he was pushing Sai Tama to the edge since he was always in a defensive stance. But from an experienced perspective, one could tell that both of them were evenly matched.

    And then came the upset.

    Somehow, even with all the attacks going on around him, Sai Tama managed to step forward and grab Satoshi by the neck again, mming him on the ground before he could even react. Satoshi was putting up a good fight as it is. However, Sai Tama made it look so easy by pinning him on the ground like that.

    "That was a great match. If I didn''t take you seriously, I''d have lost." Sai Tama smiled to himself as he prompted Satoshi up and raised his hand.

 Chapter 421 Scrubbing Backs.

    "You need more oomph; that''s it! That''s it! Now tighten your core a little bit more and nt your feet before swinging."

    Huaap~!

    Haap~!

    Beads of sweat sshed as Satoshi continued honing his fighting techniques under his dad''s guidance. Today was no superpowers day, which meant that they''d be physically training their bodies to the limits. Tatsuki called it the ''de-load'' of training since today focused solely on the main part of a superhero¡ª that is, their physical bodies.

    "Nice. Every swing, every attack, focus on every fiber of your muscles. Don''t just blindly swing when you''re cornered. If you keep up with the training, you''ll see that a maximum strike wille instinctually when you''re in a fight."

    Nodding his head, Satoshi proceeded to heed his father''s relevant advice while he swung his fists a couple more times. Today, he could focus more on his training without distraction since Emma was busy preparing for her first day of school.

    eaglesnov?1,§ão§® After working up a sweat, Satoshi headed out of his parents'' superheroir and hopped into the bath. He could tell that he really overextended on that training. His muscles spasmed and screamed despite his ample amount of rest before jumping into the warm bathtub.

    A satisfied exhale left Satoshi''s mouth as he sunk into the bath. Unbeknownst to him, he was too out of it that he didn''t even turn on the lights to the restroom, much less lock the door as soon as he got in.

    The warmth of the tub was just at afortable level, and it lulled Satoshi to sleep. Before he could drift into unconsciousness, however, the lights in the bathroom snapped on, and he flinched, iling his appendages in the bathtub, disoriented.

    When he turned around, however, he saw that Emma was right there, holding a nket on her front. She wasn''t wearing anything. It took Satoshi a split second to turn his head away before he could see anything. "W-w-what are you doing?!" Satoshi hissed, his face reddened in embarrassment. In hindsight, he shouldn''t be the one feeling awkward since his entire body was practically submerged in water. Unless Emma had good vision, she''d have seen Satoshi''s body, but such was not the case.

    "What are you doing sleeping in the bathtub? You do know that we''re going to bete if you don''t rush, right?" Emma called out, casually striking up a conversation with Satoshi as if that was the most normal thing to do in a bath.

    "Ah, right, I''ll get out. Can you pass me the towel?" Since Emma wasn''t making a big deal out of stepping into the bathroom, he opted to match his energy while keeping his head turned away from Emma. He didn''t want to identally swivel his head and see Emma in the middle of covering herself with an undersized towel.

    Reluctantly, Emma wrapped her entire body with the towel she was holding before handing Satoshi a towel. Since it was clear that Satoshi had fallen asleep while in the tub, she was fairly certain that he hadn''t taken a bath. After all, she was well aware that Satoshi had a habit of jumping into the tub when he was exhausted.

    "I''m getting out. Don''t fall asleep in the tub." Satoshi reminded her. However, before he couldpletely step out of there, Emma pulled her inside a second time and prompted him to sit on the shower chair. Confused, Satoshi didn''t struggle and just let Emma do her bidding.

    "You haven''t taken a shower, haven''t you?" Emma asked, sort of imitating Ayumu''s voice while cing her hand on her hips.

    Satoshi was even more befuddled. "What? Why?" He asked, looking up and seeing Emma''s body tightly wrapped with a towel. As for him, his lower body was wrapped with a towel as well.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I knew it." Emma heaved a sigh. "Let me wash your back for you."

    "And why would I..." Satoshi trailed off. Before he could finish his sentence, Emma deliberately started scrubbing his back.

    "Just stay still," Emma muttered. She was just as embarrassed as Satoshi, but she kept herposure pretty well, even wearing an imprable poke face while scrubbing Satoshi''s back.

    For once, Emma noticed that Satoshi actually had plenty of scars on his back. Not only that, underneath his clothes were pure hard-beaten muscles, with lots of bruises and discoloration here and there. Somehow, Emma felt like she had just uncovered a secret that Satoshi had never told anyone.

    "Where did you get all this? Were you a punching bag back in the day?" Emma asked, thinking that her words were ridiculous, that there was no way what she just said could be true. If anything, Satoshi''s superficial were his battle wounds.

    "It''s hard to say I wasn''t..." Satoshi let out a chuckle. "I told you before, didn''t I? It took me until half a year ago to manifest my superpowers. Previously, I was used to being beaten up by children my age. It''s not like I don''t put up a good fight, though. Then again, there''s only so much a powerless kid can do when facing uncontroble power. We had this conversation before, you know."

    Emma nodded her head. Of course, they already had this conversation in the same setting, no less. But she couldn''t help but bring it up again now that she got an even better look at his battle scars.

    "Well, I guess this iste... but congrattions on winning the Official Beast Tournament. I couldn''t find the right time to say it. I guess now''s a good time." Emma let out, deflecting the subject so Satoshi wouldn''t feel as awkward with her examining him so closely like that.

    "I should be congratting you. You did well in that exhibition match and all. Granted, it was your first officialpetition of sorts, and you didn''t get the jitters." Satoshimented. "Do you want me to wash your back for you in return?" Satoshi jokingly asked, fully knowing that Emma would t-out reject his offer with a violent reaction in the mix.

    To his surprise, though, Emma just smiled as she rinsed his back. "I thought you wouldn''t ask. I need to look my best on my first day of school, so do a good job at scrubbing my back, ''kay?" She responded with a hint of bashfulness in her voice.

    "What''s that got to do with your first day of school? It''s not like you''d show everyone your back on the first day of school, Emma." Satoshimented, but he decided to scrub her back in return anyways.

    While they were swapping seats, a soft pitter-patter could be heard from the outside. And before they could react, the door to the bathroom mmed open as an unsuspecting Aira walked in, holding her skirt.

    "I need to pee."

    Emma and Satoshi looked at each other as if they were just caught red-handed.

 Chapter 422 Formal Welcome

    After telling Aira to pee in the other restroom, Emma and Satoshi hastily washed each other''s backs before they hopped out of the bath. There were a couple of close calls and slips here and there, but nothing much happened. Emma and Satoshi wore straight faces as they got out of the bath. Fortunately, Satoshi''s parents were in the kitchen prepping an early breakfast. It would''ve caused a huge misunderstanding if one of them saw the twoing out of the bath together.

    Unbeknownst to them, Ayumu and Tatsuki were aware of their shenanigans. Of course, it''s not like the house was a castle. It was pretty easy to notice where someone was because the house wasn''t that sizeable. And also, Aira wasn''t, particrly the silent one.

    Once breakfast was over, Emma and Satoshi said their farewell before heading outside. Just like usual, Satoshi nned on riding the school bus. The only difference this time was that Emma would be apanying him to and from school.

    As soon as they got out, however, they noticed Shiroi waiting by the corner of the street. She was tapping her heels by the second, growing rtively impatient as time passed. The moment she noticed Emma and Satoshi walking towards her, though, her demeanor lightened, and she ran up to them with a vibrant smile, greeting them a good morning.

    "Good morning, Shiroi; you''re up early." Satoshi teased.

    "I''m always up early," Shiroi called out, defending herself while she tried toe up with aeback. Since nothing came to mind, she decided to change the topic instead. "It''s the school bus who''s not up early. What time is it? It should''ve been here by now, right?"

    "Yeah," Satoshi responded, looking at his phone to confirm the time. As for Emma, she just stood there in silence since she had no idea what she should be doing on the first day of school on Earth.

    "Speaking of time.. where''s Hiroshi and Midori? Did you see them?" Satoshi continued. "They should be here by now."

    As if on cue, a figure appeared from the corner, running towards the three of them. The figure belonged to Midori, and he was holding a piece of toast in his mouth.

    "Hey guys," He said in a muffled tone before he bit down on the toast. It took him one single bite to finish it, which made Satoshi wonder why he held it in his mouth while running in the first ce.

    "Good morning."

    "Good morning." Midori greeted back, his eyes shifting towards Emma, who was silently standing beside Satoshi. "I see, so you were epted as a transferee, huh, congrats!"

    eaglesnov?1,§ão§® "Thanks," Emma responded.

    Pretty soon, Hiroshi arrived and greeted the group as well. As it turned out, he was too excited about the first day of school that he couldn''t sleep a winkst night. It was already morning when he fell asleep, and that exined why he woke upter than usual.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I checked the list of transferees online. You know Lydia''s opponent, the girl called Marie Pettigreen? She also got in. Figures, it would''ve been a waste if the USA didn''t ept someone with that kind of superpower. It''s pretty nifty if you ask me. Oh, and of course, Lydia got in as well. Also, that guy named Jonathan Ainsworth, who had the same superpowers as Emma here, he also got in."

    A couple of minutester, the school bus finally arrived at the stop. The driver apologetically exined that the vehicle had a t tire on the way here, and he had to manually fix it himself. He wasn''tte or anything, though, so there was no need for him to apologize.

    ...

    The trip to school was uneventful, except for Midori''s usual morning ramblings and the asional reminder for him to keep quiet. Once they got to school, it felt like another year to everyone. Even though their break was only a month in duration, it felt a tad bit longer since a lot of things transpired during that time. Satoshi was most heavily affected by it. To him, it felt like he was now in his second year of high school.

    Countless students poured in the school gates while the guards stationed on both sides continuously eyed them. The cacophony of greetings and indistinct sounds could be heard from the crowd, increasingly getting louder as more and more students came in. It didn''t take long before the entire school grounds were filled to the brim with students. And even then, students continued pouring in.

    It was the start of a new semester, after all, and every student was required to attend the orientation day (or were they?).

    This time, every teacher made sure that their students wouldn''t miss the orientation day. As much as they didn''t want to think about it, they were reminded of the previous semester when no one attended the orientation day, and the principal almost gave a speech to a literal empty crowd.

    Even the school faculty members contributed to this event, closing every door and window of the school so no student would enter the premises before the principal was done with his speech. That''s why the school grounds were filled to the brim with students, no one could enter the school building at the moment.

    A stage was erected right by the edge of the school grounds, and a few secondster, the principal appeared, walking with a purposeful gait as he approached the stage. He was more than astounded to see that everyone attended the orientation day this time. ''It may seem that the teachers have learned from their mistakes. This is how it should be, a normal and uneventful first day of school."

    After scanning the entire crowd, Sai Tama cleared his throat and grabbed hold of the voice amplifier in front of him. He greeted the crowd.

    "A pleasant morning, everyone. I''m d that all of you here chose to attend the orientation day. This is a great viewpared to the previous semester, where I stood in front of an empty crowd. With that said, I would like to formally wee all of you to the second semester of highscho¡ª"

    KABOOM~!

    Before Sai Tama could finish his formal wee, an explosion erupted in the middle of the crowd, creating a ripple-effect and causing multiple students to fly in all directions.

 Chapter 423 School Grounds Confrontation

    The explosion sent the other students hurtling in multiple directions. If it were any other regr explosion, they would''ve been able to defend themselves from it. However, the explosion was all too sudden that they weren''t able to brace themselves. It was an embarrassing sight to see, and the students who were caught up in the explosion were ashamed of themselves. The moment they picked themselves up, they couldn''t look anyone in the eyes due to how ashamed they were.

    Once the cloud of smoke settled in, two figures appeared in the middle of everything. It was easily recognized that the two of them were the cause of the explosion.

    On one side was a familiar face. He was none other than the runner-up of the Official Beast Tournament,ing in a close second from the newly-crowned beast master Satoshi. Yun Zhe. On the other side was another familiar face. He was none other than the new transferee who lost against Emma Leisenberg during their exhibition match the day prior, Jonathan Ainsworth.

    "You! Why are you here?!" Yun Zhe called out, gritting his teeth as he integrated with his Representative, the Primordial Excalibur. He was seething with rage, and it was evident from his facial expression and the way he wielded his sword in a threatening stance.

    Everyone immediately recognized who he was, and they couldn''t believe that someone who was at least as famous as Satoshi was in their school as well. Even the principal was surprised, frankly, because he was supposed to be having this moment with the entire school. Now that moment was instantly stolen from him, sweeping him off his feet as the rug was metaphorically pulled underneath him. He was so bewildered that he froze for a good minute, watching everything unfold while everyone''s attention was taken away from him.

    "Ah, Yun Zhe, long time no see." Jonathan casually spoke even though his new uniform was in tatters. For a split second, he was utterly outraged by Yun Zhe''s wee. It had only been yesterday since he got his own uniform, and now it was ruined.

    In hindsight, it''s not like he could me Yun Zhe for his actions though. He did something unforgivable, and no amount of reasoning or justifiable reasons could change what he had done. At the end of the day, he killed a person. Of course, he had a good reason as to why he did so... but that didn''t exempt him from the guilt he felt even until now.

    He had gotten his revenge, but at what cost? Sure, he did avenge someone, but he couldn''t help but feel regretful for doing something so evil. The moment he stooped that low, there was no excuse for him.

    "Long time no see?! Do you hear yourself, Jonathan? Seriously?!" Yun Zhe called out, swinging the Primordial Excalibur he wielded and causing massive damage to the school grounds.

    "What do you want me to say? Sorry? For what? It''s not like I did anything to you." Jonathan reasoned, dodging Jonathan''s attack by a hair''s breadth.

    "As if you didn''t. You were the sole reason why we were the only two left! And now you killed her? You murderer." Yun Zhe snapped.

    Before he could unleash another powerful attack, however, a student stepped into the fray. He was too fast that no one saw him at all. One moment, Yun Zhe was swinging the Primordial Excalibur. A split secondter, a student appeared in front of him.

    "Bro, you got to chill out. This is his first day. Do you want him to get expelled? I mean, he just got here. Us transferees worked our butts off to get here." The student reasoned, putting his fist on Yun Zhe''s chest as if that was enough to hold him back.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "And you, mister. You are not a student of this school, I presume?" At the same time the kid appeared in front of Yun Zhe, Sai Tama also appeared right beside him.

    Even the transfer student was surprised since he didn''t see Sai Tama''s movement at all. His speed rival the transfer student''s, and he may even be faster than him.

    At that point, Satoshi realized that the principal was holding back when he fought against him. If they were to fight at full power, he''d have lost big time. "Did... did the principal just use me for advertising this school? I mean... howe I didn''t realize that until now?!" Satoshi muttered to himself.

    Principal Sai Tama then cleared his throat before he continued talking. "I don''t know if your ims are true or not... but murderer or not, this student is under my wing, under this school. If you dare threaten the safety of the school, I would no choice but to eradicate you."

    A moment ago, Satoshi was willing to jump in the middle of it all so he could stop the fight. He was relieved that the principal and another student had stepped in. At least he didn''t have to do anything.

    ''I guess I''ll just talk to Yun Zheter. Still... that Jonathan is the same Jonathan who murdered Jana, right? If I''d recognized him, I''d have eliminated him right then and there. I guess I have to put that provocation on hold for now, or else the principal wille after my neck.'' Satoshi said to himself.

    Fwooosh~!

    "I''m sorry about that. It seems like there was a slight misunderstanding between these two. Oh, and I''m their guardian. I''ll give Jonathan and this guy a good talking-to." A man drabbed in ck clothing appeared, causing Sai Tama and the transfer student to flinch.

    One thing''s for sure, this man was definitely faster than them.

    It was none other than Bucky Barnes. "Now, if you''ll excuse us. Please disregard this issue." With a wave of his hand, Bucky Barnes reverted the school grounds to how it once was before he disappeared with Yun Zhe.

    "W-what just happened?" Satoshi asked himself, perplexed. Unsurprisingly, he wasn''t the only one who asked that same question.

 Chapter 424 Bucky Barness Dimension

    Sai Tama felt his blood pressure rise up as he stared at Bucky Barnes from the toes of his feet to the top of his head. There was no way he wouldn''t be angry after everything Bucky Barnes did, interrupting his precious spotlight like that. But then again, it''s not like he could straight out attack him in the middle of the crowd. What would that tell the students¡ª that the principal of the United Superheroes Academy had a short fuse?

    Despite the urge to engage Bucky Barnes in a fight, Sai Tama decided to hold himself back as he exhaled deeply. It took him a couple of seconds before he finally calmed down, and by the time he did so, Bucky Barnes was already long gone, vanished into thin air.

    Now that he thought about it, however, he realized that Bucky Barnes exuded a threatening presence. Sai Tama could tell that Bucky Barnes was far stronger than him. It was an undeniable fact.

    Suddenly, another dimensional portal appeared in front of Sai Tama, and the head of Bucky Barnes peeked out of it, much to everyone''s surprise. "Um, excuse me, I''m taking Jonathan as well if you don''t mind?" Bucky Barnes asked with a straight face, but his voice fluctuated as if he was asking for a favor.

    And since Sai Tama wanted to show a good reputation in front of his students, he decided to nod his head and give Bucky Barnes permission to take Jonathan with him. "Sure, just please make sure that he won''t miss his first ss." Sai Tama said with a rxed tone.

    "Once again, if you''ll excuse me." Bucky Barnes called out, smiling as he beckoned for Jonathan toe with him. "Oh, and also, would you mind if I took Satoshi as well? I kind of need him at the moment."

    Sai Tama had had enough of Bucky Barnes''s presence. At that point, he wanted tosh out at him for taking his sweet time. However, he had a reputation to hold up¡ª that''s why he just nodded it off. This time, he was the one to nod at Satoshi, gesturing for him to go with Bucky Barnes so they could scoot out of there.

    "Thanks, I''ll bring them back as soon as I can. I deeply apologize for the disturbance." Bucky Barnes said in a light-hearted manner. As soon as Satoshi jumped into his dimensional portal, it closed, leaving everyone in the school grounds bewildered.

    A silent gust of wind passed through the crowd, emphasizing the awkward pause that befell everyone. Five secondster, Sai Tama got back to his senses and he cleared his throat. "Now, where were we?" He asked, heading back to the stage so he could proceed with the orientation. It''s as if nothing happened, and he continued speaking.

    ...

    Meanwhile, in another dimension.

    Since Satoshi was thest one to jump into the dimensional portal, he was also thest one to admire the picturesque view that greeted him as soon as he opened his eyes. A gasp of awe escaped his mouth while he gazed at the scenery, and Jonathan and Yun Zhe was no different.

    The scenery was unlike any other they''d seen. They were standing in the middle of a huge metallic circle that floated in empty space. This metallic circle had some sort of runic symbols running through it in circles. Satoshi had no idea what they meant, but they seemed to be important.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Structures with a metallic sheen littered the entire circle. As for the sky, it was grayish ck, and countless auroras filled its beauty, enveloping the myriad of stars with a nket of many colors.

    "Whoa~, am I right?" Bucky Barnes let out, shaking his hand in front of him as he teased the trio. "Oh, now that I think about it... the three of you haven''t been here before, right? Wee to our dimension.

    Now that Satoshi got a good look at the sky, he noticed that there were other circles floating all over the ce as well. These circles have different sizes. And judging from its unclear shadows, he concluded that there were different structures on top of the circles as well.

    As it turned out, these circles were part of a systematic ce, and these circles orbit a huge at the bottom of it. The reason why Satoshi and the others couldn''t see this was that it was a dark rocky, barren. They could see the mother star though, a bright blue orb from afar, shining through the skies as the closest star.

    "Wee to my humble abode. I guess this isn''t the time for greetings. We all know why we''re here, right?" Bucky Barnes sped his hands together as he addressed the three.

    Honestly, the trio had no idea why they were brought here in the first ce. Satoshi had an inkling though, that they were summoned because of Jana''s death. From what he could remember, she was also a disciple of Bucky Barnes.

    Upon seeing the confused expression of the three, he turned around and let out a slight chuckle. He wasn''tughing because he found the situation funny, but because this was the first time he saw all three of them confused.

    "Well, let''s talk about this. Follow." He said signaling for the three of them to follow him as he walked towards a structure located in the middle of the circr tform where they were. "Wee to my house. And yes, if you think we Managers don''t have normal lives... then you thought wrong. We have lives too, you know."

    "You have a wife?" Yun Zhe asked out of nowhere. For a moment, he forgot about their circumstance, also forgetting that Jonathan was right beside him.

    "I wish. Why must you hurt me in this way, Yun Zhe." Bucky Barnes responded. Once they got to the front part of his house, he opened the door for all of them. "Now, don''t be shy. Come in. We have a lot of things to talk about."

    "If you''re going to talk to us about Jonathan, then we''re all for it. But he murdered someone in cold blood. I for one won''t forgive him." Yun Zhe crossed his arm but he stepped forward anyways.

    "You don''t have to. Once youe to realize what really transpired, once you realize what really went down that led to her death... you don''t have to forgive him. Forgiveness is... unnecessary." Bucky Barnes continued, stering a smile on his face.

 Chapter 425 Reliving A Memory

    Once they got inside Bucky Barnes''s humble abode (or so that''s how he expressed it), they came to a realization that the house wasn''t humble at all. Despite its small stature from the outside, it was pretty spacious interior-wise. Some sort of space-warping was present inside the structure, and it enabled the area to seem bigger than it was.

    "Does anyone prefer... a light breakfast or a heavy one?" Bucky Barnes asked with a smile on his face. Despite his light demeanor, he was actually prepared at all times to jump between Jonathan and Yun Zhe, just in case they got into another fight. As for Satoshi, he didn''t worry about him too much since he was the most rational out of the group.

    "A heavy breakfast..." Jonathan was the first one to reply, guiltily averting his gaze from Satoshi and Yun Zhe. He felt like he didn''t belong to the group, and yet he wanted the situation to be known so he would feel wee. While it may take some time for the wound between him and Yun Zhe to heal, he hoped that they would be friends just as they were once was.

    "Same here. I need another round of breakfast, or else I won''t make it past lunchtime." Satoshi said. Since he could feel the heavy atmosphere descending upon the two, he decided upon himself to lighten up the mood by speaking in a casual manner. It seemed to have worked since Yun Zhe rxed a bit when Satoshi spoke.

    "Heavy it is. It''s still the same thing, though, whichever you choose. It''s just the portion of the meal that would differ from each other." Bucky Barnes exined. With a wave of his hand, he led everyone to the dining area, where food was already prepared. Heaps of pancakes, eggs, and bacon could be seen on the table.

    "Help yourselves. I made this extra special for the three of you. We don''t exactly have these types of food in our dimension, so I had to get them from Earth before everything else." Bucky Barnes exined. He seated himself first before beckoning for the others to sit with him as well.

    "Please take your seats. It would be rtively easier to exin all these and talk about these over a hearty meal, don''t you think?" Bucky Barnes didn''t bother waiting for the trio to take their seats. He started eating, grabbing three stacks of pancakes and a couple of sunny-side-up eggs, putting them on the side of his te before squeezing a generous amount of ketchup on top of it. His pancakes were drenched in honey a couple of secondster, and then he proceeded to eat.

    Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe didn''t bother saying another word. A few secondster, they seated themselves as well. Not before long, they proceeded to eat at Bucky Barnes''s pace.

    From the corner of his eyes, Bucky Barnes watched in relief as the three started eating. He didn''t n to feed them a hefty amount of meal at first, but after thinking about it, he decided to do so just so he could calm their nerves. Seeing their satisfied smiles, he couldn''t help but smile. For now, they''ve forgotten about their strife against each other, and it brought a smile to Bucky Barnes''s rxed expression.

    "Now, let''s proceed to the matter at hand." Bucky Barnes said, sping his hand to direct everyone''s attention to him. Upon seeing the trio''s stares, he then nodded his head toward Jonathan. "Before anything else, though, I need to talk to Satoshi and Yun Zhe first... would that be all right, Jonathan?"

    After a few seconds of contemtion, Jonathan nodded his head. Without wasting a second, he stood up and excused himself from the room, telling everyone that he would be roaming outside in the meantime.

    As soon as Jonathan headed outside and closed the door behind him, Bucky Barnes cleared his throat and extended his hand to the two of them. "I want the two of you to hold my hand. I''m going to show you something."

    "Um... is it toote to be praying right now? We already ate." Satoshi reasoned. What Bucky Barnes said flew right past his brain.

    "We''re not going to pray. I''m going to show you something. It''s quite hard to exin, so I''ll just show it to you. You''ll understand once you see it."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Reluctantly, Satoshi and Yun Zhe grabbed Bucky Barnes''s hand, listening to his request. The moment their skin touched, however, Satoshi felt as if his mind was stretching and squeezing at the same time. Yun Zhe felt the same, and he couldn''t quite put his finger around it.

    Before the two of them knew it, the scenery changed before them, and a peaceful grasnd was presented right before their eyes. The grasnd was more beautiful than any picture Satoshi had seen, and he gazed in awe and wonder as he admired the view.

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi asked.

    "Right now, we''re reliving a certain painful memory. After we''re done watching this life movie, you''re going to understand everything." Bucky Barnes said.

    That''s when Satoshi and Yun Zhe noticed that the three of them were right there, holding each other''s hands as they floated over the grasnd.

    "Jonathan!"

    Satoshi and Yun Zhe''s ears perked at the mention of Jonathan''s name. Their head then turned to the edge of the grasnd where a young teenager was running. She wore a thick skirt and a scarf on her head. Her white hair was tied into a ponytail, and she ran through the grasnds with grace, all the while wearing a smile on her face. Her face brightened up at the sight of Jonathan, who was sitting by the edge of a front porch.

    "Lucy, look at you, running around so early in the morning. Where do you get that energy?" Jonathan greeted, patting the empty space beside him and prompting Lucy to sit there.

    "I''m d to see you as well. What are you doing?" She asked, setting the basket beside Jonathan.

    "Just... taking a breather. How about y¡ª"

    In this memory, Jonathan wasn''t the only one who cut himself short while he spoke. Even Satoshi and Yun Zhe gasped in horror as they saw the brutal scene that unfolded before their eyes.

    That''s because... before Jonathan could return his question to the girl, she was stabbed right through the heart... and what stabbed her was none other than the Scarlet Scythe, wielded by none other than Jana herself.

 Chapter 426 14,000,605 Dimensions

    While Jonathan strolled through the weird floating circle ofnd, Satoshi and Yun Zhe listened in to Manager''s story. Upon seeing the not-so-hidden memory of Jonathan, they realized that his actions were a tad bit justified since he practically witnessed someone being murdered in front of him. Well, while the murder was taking it too far, Satoshi and Yun Zhe kind of understood Jonathan''s actions after putting themselves in his shoes.

    As it turned out, however, there was another side to the story¡ª one that Satoshi and Yun Zhe wasn''t expecting at all. Apparently, Jana''s parents were killed by invaders from outer space and driven by her rage, she had chosen the path of revenge. One misunderstanding led to another, and it led her to kill Lucy right in front of Jonathan. Despite her wrong actions, she didn''t feel any remorse. In fact, she even believed that Lucy and her entire family deserved to die.

    And yes, she killed the entire family of Lucy as well, not to mention that she murdered the entire vige, only sparing Jonathan because he was a Disciple just like her. Even during the Official Beast Tournament, Jana still felt like she had done the right thing, and she had nned another genocide right after the Official Beast Tournament.

    Somehow, Jonathan knew what was bound toe down, and that''s why he stepped in to stop Jana herself. Of course, it was at a cost of killing her. He was well aware that he wouldn''t be able to stop Jana by conventional means. That''s why he decided to end it once and for all. Had he not done so, Jana would''ve undergone another killing spree, and another vige would''ve been wiped out from the face of the Earth.

    "Wow..." Satoshi trailed off as his gaze slowly redirected to Yun Zhe, who was quietly sitting beside him, chewing on a piece of bread while he twiddled his thumb.

    "Don''t¡ª" Yun Zhe let out the first word, but Satoshi interrupted him before he could say anything. Of course, Satoshi already knew what he was about to say; that''s why he cut him off.

    "You really didn''t know? I thought you and Jana were close?" Satoshi calmly asked, getting another piece of toast and piling up a number of sunny-side-up eggs and bacon on top of it before shoving it in his mouth. "I mean... you shunned Jonathan from your little group, right?"

    "Don''t ask me. As far as I know, he killed everyone else. Every Disciple under Bucky Barnes had been murdered by Jonathan... all of them except me and Jana." Yun Zhe let out before heaving a sigh. Satoshi could tell that he was disappointed in himself since he fell for Jana''s trickery. "I mean... now that I saw what happened, and there was proof that Jana really did kill every Disciple... then I guess I was in the wrong..."

    "Well, you''re not entirely in the wrong, Yun Zhe. The reason why I didn''t say anything was because... Jonathan did kill a couple of my Disciples as well... granted that they were followers of Jana herself. Man, that was such a shitshow back then. No wonder I was shunned from the circle of Managers. Until now, they still view me as the evilest and cruelest Manager to ever exist, all thanks to my Disciples who just couldn''t get along." Bucky Barnes shrugged his shoulders before he heaved a depressed sigh.

    "I guess an apology''s due. I''ll go out and apologize." Yun Zhe said, lightly pping both his cheeks with his hands before he stood up. He regretted doing that soon after since his hand was oily from the sunny side up and the amount of butter and honey from the pancakes.

    "Sure, take your time. Time exists a little differently from this dimensionpared to Earth''s. An hour here is a minute over there, so... you literally have all the time in the world to talk to Jonathan and patch things up." Bucky Barnes continued. "Hopefully, this is thest time an incident like this happens. I can''t deal with another genocide or murder of my Disciple."

    With a quick bow, Yun Zhe headed out of the house, leaving Satoshi with Bucky Barnes. Silence immediately filled the atmosphere as the two continued eating. They didn''t really have anything to talk about, so they just decided to fill their bellies before Jonathan and Yun Zhe arrived. Particrly, Satoshi made a mental thought that he would finish most of the food before the two of them got back. It would be a fun prank to y since there was nothing else to do.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "So... the World Eater is bound to appear in your dimension in three months, right?" Bucky Barnes brought up out of nowhere, causing Satoshi to stop stuffing himself as he stared at him, his curiosity piqued.

    "Yes... or so that''s what you said. What exactly is the World Eater? And how do we stop him?" Satoshi asked. So far, Bucky Barnes only briefly exined who the World Eater was¡ª a dimensional phenomenon that travels through the dimensions and swallows it whole. It was a literal destroyer of dimensions, or so that''s what Satoshi could gather from what Bucky Barnes had initially told him.

    "It is the World Eater... countless worlds have already been destroyed by the World Eater. No one knows where he manifested or which dimension he originally came from. But one thing''s for sure... no matter how much you tried to stop him... there''s no stopping him." Bucky Barnes said, his face turning into a saddened expression as he gulped down a cup of coffee. "I didn''t mean to make you feel dejected or anything like that... it''s just that, in all my years of being a Manager... I''ve only ever seen one dimension who managed to stop the World Eater."

    "Only one? Out of how many worlds?"

    "Fourteen million, six hundred and five." Bucky Barnes muttered. Even though he spoke of it so casually, Satoshi felt the weight of his words.

    "So you''re saying that... out of that fourteen million six hundred and five dimensions... only one survived the World Eater''s onught?" Satoshi almost mmed the table as he eximed. "What? How?!"

    "Honestly, I don''t even know. I don''t even know why we still exist as Managers when everything we''ve done led to the same oue." Bucky Barnes heaved a sigh.

    "But with this... now we know that our dimension still has a chance at winning. Do you happen to know which dimension survived the World Eater? If it''s all right, I''ll teleport straight through there into one of my dimensional portals and ask them for help." Satoshi asked.

    "That''s the neat part... the only dimension to survive the World Eater''s onught is..."

    "Is what?" Satoshi''s eyes widened, his ears perking up as he intently listened to what Bucky Barnes was about to say next.

    "It was your dimension... roughly six thousand years ago." Bucky Barnes continued.

 Chapter 427 Erasure Of Worlds

    "It was your dimension... roughly six thousand years ago." Bucky Barnes continued.

    A couple of seconds passed before Satoshi was able to internalize what Bucky Barnes just told him. His eyes widened in utter amazement as he stood up, mming his palms on the table. The sheer force rattled the tes and utensils, and Bucky Barnes almost jumped out of his seat upon witnessing Satoshi''s surprised reaction.

    "What?! So all these dimensions didn''t stand a chance against the World Eater... and you''re telling me that prehistoric Earth managed to drive off these invaders?! How on Earth? They don''t even have guns yet back then!"

    Chuckling, Bucky Barnes rxed in his seat, amused by Satoshi''s reaction. "Of course, they didn''t have guns yet. And it wasn''t just Earth who drove off the World Eater. It''s your entire dimension." Bucky Barnes continued.

    "I see, that makes sense," Satoshi muttered to himself as he got another helping of toast, bacon, and sunny-side-up eggs. Before he could take another mouthful, however, he turned towards Bucky Barnes for the second time with the pupils of his eyes dted.

    "Wait... how did you know about this? Were you alive since then? Wow..."

    It didn''t take long before Jonathan and Yun Zhe entered the house for the second time. Their gazes portrayed that they had gotten over their previous bad blood. No one spoke as they returned to their seats, and this gave Satoshi the opportunity to update them on what he and Bucky Barnes were talking about while they were gone.

    "And to answer Satoshi''s question, no, I wasn''t alive back then. I''m not that old, you know." Bucky Barnes calmly responded as the trio looked at him in disbelief.

    "Then, how did you know about that event? How did you know that our dimension really did drive off the World Eater?" Satoshi incredulously asked. Somehow, Bucky Barnes was hiding something and they badly wanted to know what it was.

    "Of course, I knew about it through the historical records. You do have historical records on Earth as well, right? It''s not like we don''t have them here in our dimension." Bucky Barnes exined.

    "Then... that means... we just need to take a look at those records and we''d be able to drive the World Eater a second time." Satoshi excitedly said. "No, we can even n ahead and get rid of the World Eater once and for all. I''m sure that once we find his weakness, we''d be able to defeat him."

    "Oh, now we''re getting somewhere." Yun Zhe continued, redirecting his stare at Bucky Barnes as if to imply that he get those historical records so they could take a look at them.

    "Yeah, now we just need those records and then we can formte a n with all the other Disciples." Jonathan also agreed.

    Bucky Barnes let out a sigh before he stood up. "Well, if you want the records that badly, I''d dly give them to you... but just so you know, it won''t help you with anything."

    Without saying another word, Bucky Barnes excused himself for a couple of minutes before he headed outside. Meanwhile, Jonathan, Satoshi and Yun Zhe stared at each other while they contemted on Bucky Barnes''s words. Surely he didn''t mean thest words he said. There was no way that the historical records won''t benefit them at all.

    "..."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "..."

    "So... um... how was the situation with, you know, Jana''s murder and all?" Satoshi brought up since the two of them seemed to avoid the topic.

    "It''s all water under the bridge. Although... I still don''t stand with Jonathan''s method, I''ve decided to forgive and forget." Yun Zhe let out a simple answer.

    "You don''t have to say it. I don''t condone my actions either. It''s just that, I didn''t have that much of a choice back then." Jonathan let out, heaving a sigh.

    A couple of minutester, Bucky Barnes came back, bncing a thick book in his hands. Judging from the amount of dust that had umted on its covers, the three of them could tell that it had been a long time since the Managers took a peek inside.

    "Here it is. Once you''ve scanned through the entire record, you''ll know what I mean when I said those words." Heaving yet another sigh, Bucky Barns chucked the heavy book at Satoshi.

    Upon catching it, Satoshi immediately scanned through the records. It didn''t take long before he saw the entry where the World Eater tried to destroy their dimension, and he started reading everything. Jonathan and Yun Zhe joined in on the reading session, and together, the three of them learned a couple of information regarding the World Eater.

    As it turned out, the World Eater is the most powerful entity across dimensions. If it had ess to the dimensions where the Managers reside, then it could easily destroy that ce in a matter of minutes. Ever since time immemorial, it had been swallowing up dimensions, feeding off of their energy as it continued to grow stronger. It was an unstoppable force, a literal force of nature that swallows everything in its way.

    However, one dimension didn''t sumb to its curse. As written in the book, their dimension really did stand up against the World Eater. Their dimension, called the Alpha Dimension, was filled with inhabiteds, and these inhabitants all rose up together and formed an alliance to defeat the World Eater.

    The D-Day came, and the entire Alpha Dimension fought against the World Dimension to the bitter end... In the end, with the help of all the inhabitants, they won... but at what cost?

    Every inhabited in the Alpha Dimension died, and only one was left alive. Out of the hundreds of thousands ofs that existed in the Alpha Dimension, out of the innumerable inhabitants that filled the Alpha Dimension, only one survived.

    The Alpha Dimension did survive the onught, but at what cost?

    Dumbfounded, Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe closed the book. Everyone died, and only Earth was left.

    And now the World Eater is back for vengeance, and there was no way they could ever hope to stand against him.

 Chapter 428 Calm Before The Storm

    Approximately two minutester, Satoshi and Jonathan reappeared in the crowd, surprising everyone after teleporting out of nowhere. Everyone''s reaction was a bit stifled though since they didn''t want to interrupt the principal''s main event as he spoke for the orientation.

    "You were gone for two minutes... is everything all right?" Shiroi scooted towards Satoshi and Jonathan, leaning on his shoulder as she spoke. The sudden skin contact made her face redden a little bit, but she didn''t show her embarrassment too much since Satoshi might catch wind of it.

    "Aside from everyone being deleted except Earth? Everything''s all right." Satoshi responded, to which Jonathan nodded his head in agreement.

    From a couple of feet away, Kuroe stared at Satoshi, her expression aghast. She couldn''t help it but she identally read everything in Satoshi''s mind, and now she seemed more worriedpared to everyone else who were aware of the World Eater.

    Once the principal was done with his orientation, everyone in ss 3-1 gathered and headed to their ssroom, led by Knighthawk who didn''t speak a single word on the way. Everyone in the ss foudn it weird since Knighthawk was well known for his loudmouthedness. But now, he was unusually quiet, except for the asional smile on his face.

    "Why are you smiling, sensei?" Midori, being the other loudmouth of the ss, waspelled to ask since he found it weird.

    "I wasn''t smiling." Knighthawk reverted to his usual stoic expression as he cleared his throat. All of them could''ve sworn that he was smiling, but he didn''t want to talk about it for some odd reason.

    Unbeknownst, to them, though, Knighthawk had something nned for his entire ss. It wasn''t the usual superpower assessment though, but something entirely different.

    It had only been a few weeks since they were gone from school. However, seeing the ssroom once again brought about nostalgia for the previous semester. Even Satoshi couldn''t help but feel emotional since he hade a long way from when he didn''t have any superpowers.

    "Everyone, take your seats. Well, I say that but all of you won''t be sitting for long." Knighthawk began, chuckling as he addressed his entire ss.

    Upon sitting down, Knighthawk then proceeded to his seat. After thinking about it, though, he decided not to sit down. Instead, he stood in front of everyone. "Now, before we start the ss. I would like to wee the new students to this ss. Emma Leisenberg and Jonathan Ainsworth. Please step forward and introduce yourself."

    Emma stole a nce towards Satoshi. In their world, it wasn''t normal for someone to introduce himself in front fo the ss. Emma got used to her teachers introducing everyone else to each other so this was a new experience for her. "What do I do?" She mouthed. Although she wasn''t knew to the concept of introducing oneself, doing it in front of her peers was a different topic altogether, and just thinking about it made her heart sink as butterflies filled her stomach.

    As for Jonathan, he was calmer than Emma had thought. Just like Emma, Jonathan was from another dimension, and since he never went to school (in their dimension, there was no need to go to school since everyone studies at their own leisure) he had no idea how to introduce himself. Then again, he was used to introducing himself since he had been to a couple of dimensions before getting here.

    Without waiting for Emma, Jonathan headed in front. "I am Jonathan Ainsworth, the heir to the throne of Ainsworth Kingdom and the one and only son of King Ainsworth. I am from a different dimension, but let me be perfectly clear, I am human. I don''t demand respect, nor do I demand that you be my subjects. I won''t demand respect as well since it should be earned by the person in question."

    "As for my hobbies, I like singing," Jonathan said with a serious expression on his face.

    Kuroe and Satoshi were the only ones who saw through his introduction. Everything he said was a lie, and yet he said it with a serious face that everyone believed what he said.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "You sing? Why don''t you sing for us!" Midori called out before Satoshi could say anything.

    "Make it quick. We have another introduction on hold." Knighthawk couldn''t care less. Indifferently, he waved his hand as he spoke.

    "Very well. When I came here, I immediately searched for a famous song. That way, I could sing something that all of you would understand." Jonathan cleared his throat. "I''ll be singing the song called ''My Toes, My Knees''. Here I go."

    "My toooeeess, my kneeeesszz..."

    What followed next was a series of screeching noises that no one found pleasant. Jonathan''s singing grated everyone''s ears, and Knighthawk had to put a stop to it since he was singing so bad their ears almost bled.

    "That is all." Jonathan muttered, bowing down as if he was proud of himself.

    "All right, now let''s hear it for Emma Leisenberg. Please make it quick." Kngithhawk continued after Jonathan returned to his seat.

    "Ey, is it true that he''s a prince? He doesn''t look like one." Midori leaned in, whispering to Satoshi.

    "I have no idea. You should ask him after ss." Satoshi responded. From his peripheral vision, he saw Kuroe chuckling, she shook her head, implying that Jonathan was lying about that part.

    "Well..." Satoshi shrugged in response, just when Emma assumed her position at the front.

    "Um, I''m Emma Leisenberg. I''m pretty good at fighting, and my dimensional portals can even take you to another dimension. We can go to the Ainsworth Kingdom if Jonathan says yes." Emma said in one breath, smiling at Satoshi before he returned to his seat.

    ''Turns out, you''re better at introductions than I thought.'' Satoshi thought to himself, quietly pping his hand to congratte Emma.

    "All right! Now that that''s out of the way. I would like all of you to direct your attention here in front." Knighthawk began. This was the moment he was waiting for. "Pleasee in!" He called out.

    Two senior students entered the ssroom, followed by a series of gasps from Satoshi''s ssmate. Even Satoshi was amazed that these two students were in their presence.

 Chapter 429 Heroes Versus Villains

    Since most of the senior students were already professional licensed superheroes, they would always be working in their agency most of their days, and the school allowed it since experience as a hero couldn''t possibly be learned in school.

    Most senior students would already be part of agencies, and rarely would they go to school to attend sses. In fact, their schedule was so out of ce that they could rarely be seen in school. They were like the school''s urban legends due to how disconnected to the school they were.

    "My name is Alliya Lufine."

    "My name is Arcane Bishop."

    The two fourth-year high school students introduced themselves in a calm manner while they slightly bowed toward everyone in greeting.

    "Whoa, it''s Light Wing and Dark Matter." Satoshi blurted out before anyone could say anything. While their identity as superheroes wasn''t well-known, Satoshi knew all about them since he studies superheroes in his free time.

    The reason why they weren''t widely known was that they chose to stay low-key as superheroes. In Japan, the were the strongest fourth-years, and they didn''t want that title for themselves despite it being the truth. That''s why they don''t appear on the news that much, and their cases were kept private except for a couple of missions that couldn''t stay under the radar.

    "So you know who we are. Interesting." Arcane Bishop''s eyes narrowed as he stared at Satoshi. Just like how Satoshi knew who he was, he was well aware of Satoshi''s identity as well. They were the exact opposite, after all. While he was the one who stayed in the shadows, Satoshi stayed in the spotlight.

    Even Light Wing knew who Satoshi was, and she was somewhat interested in Satoshi. A smile appeared on her face. Now she looked forward to the uing event, and she was excited about it.

    "Now, we''re going to have a practical course of heroes versus viins. I''m sure you''ve had it in your past schools since it''s quitemon here in Japan." Knighthawk exined.

    "Heroes versus viins? What''s that?" Emma asked, turning towards Satoshi since she had no idea what to expect on the aforementioned activity.

    Even Jonathan, who didn''t reallye from Earth, was clueless, and he also looked at Satoshi in hopes that he would exin it.

    "I already got permission from the principal. We have a ride going to the Concrete Arena." Knighthawk announced. He then told everyone to put on their superhero attire and assemble by the front entrance of the school.

    "See you then," Bishop called out, waving his hand as he followed Knighthawk out of the ss. Lufine did the same, all the while smiling at Satoshi up until she got out of the ssroom.

    "Oi, Satoshi, you know who they were? How?" Midori asked. As soon as their teacher disappeared, Midori and everyone in s gathered around Satoshi since he seemed to know who they were.

    "They''re Dark Matter and Light Wing. They''re the strongest fourth-years in our school, and also, work undercover as superheroes. That''s why their identity isn''t that well-known."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "And we''re going to y heroes versus viins with them? Wow, we''re going to die, aren''t we?" Hiroshi chimed in.

    "Hopefully not, they seem like nice people." Emma felt like she had to add into the conversation.

    "What do you mean? They''re undercover superheroes because they aren''t particrly nice. In my world, those who are undercover are criminals. I don''t know how it is in your world but there might be simrities." Jonathan said without thinking.

    "You''re really not from Earth? I thought you were kidding during your introduction." Midori said, looking at Jonathan as if he was some sort of alien.

    "We should probably hurry up, the school bus''s waiting outside," Kuroe announced, which made everyone rush out of the ssroom in an instant.

    Obviously, the changing rooms for boys and girls were separate, that''s why the ss divided into two groups the moment they reached the changing rooms. Recently, Satoshi had the time to change up his superhero attire a little bit. Instead of wearing the usual shirt and pants, he decided to wear a hoodie on top of it. Of course, his signature cap was still there, just in case he needed extra protection from the sun (an unnecessary reasoning).

    "So those guys... what are their superpowers? Do you happen to know, Satoshi?" As usual, it was Midori who asked the question. While his talkative phase toned down a little bit, he still couldn''t help but strike up a conversation here and there whenever the atmosphere gets too quiet.

    "Based on their names... I''m guessing their powers are rted to darkness and light, right?" Hiroshi guessed.

    "More or less." Satoshi responded.

    When the group got to the school entrance, they noticed that Knighthawk, as well as Bishop and Lufine, already boarded the school bus. They took the front seats, and they beckoned for the entire ss toe in so they could finally head to the Concrete Arena.

    This wasn''t the first time they''ve been to the Concrete Arena so they weren''t particrly excited for the trip. However, this was the first time they''d be having the heroes versus viins ss. Thest time they had it wasst year during middle school, and it was one of the most memorable events they experienced.

    Well, for Satoshi, it was a different experience. Back then, he still didn''t have a superpower, that''s why he was thrown around like a ragdoll during the ss. Somehow, he was reminded of the time when his hand was severely twisted he couldn''t hold a utensil for a month.

    It didn''t take long before they arrived in front of the Concrete Arena, and everyone felt like they could jump out of their seats at a moment''s notice. It didn''t even ur to them that they''d receive a one-sided beating during the ss since their memories from their previous heroes versus viins was enjoyable.

    "We''re here," Knighthawk announced, grinning from ear to ear as he stole a nce towards his entire ss.

 Chapter 430 A Hostage Scenario

    Heroes versus viins is a self-exnatory game where one side acts as the viin, and the other would act as a hero. Usually, this practical training is set up with two people on each side. One side would y the role of the heroes and act like the superheroes they deemed to be one day, and the other side would portray the roles of viins and embrace their inner antagonists.

    "And let me guess... we''re going to do this with Light Wing and Dark Matter," Midori mumbled under his breath as the group walked inside the Concrete Arena.

    Satoshi and the others nodded along since it was pretty obvious that such was the case. They really were going against two of the most powerful fourth-year students in SAO. While this wasn''t the first time that something like this happened in school, this was a new thing for their ss, and they couldn''t help but feel nervous.

    "No matter what happens, I''m not going to lose." Hiroshi said, clenching his fists. A part of him wanted to be grouped with Satoshi but after thinking about it, he kind of wish that it wouldn''t happen. Not only would he perform behind Satoshi''s shadow if it came true... he would also be a helpless side character.

    "You don''t even know their superpowers. I''m sure you won''t stand a chance against them no matter how powerful you were. As for me, I just want to get this over with as soon as possible. There''s no way I''m staying in the ring with the two of them. There''s a reason why they''re undercover superheroes. You know, undercover people are as ruthless as theye." Midori let out a lengthyint.

    "I agree with Midori on that one. Back in my world, those who are called undercover are criminals. They hide because they have something to hide, and most of the time it''s illegal." Jonathan nodded his head along. No one agreed with Midori on the matter except him, but he stood by his word nheless.

    "Whatever it is, this is going to be a good experience for us." Shiroi spoke a matter of factly, stealing a nce at Satoshi who seemed to be out of it.

    At the moment, Satoshi''s mind trailed off to the subject of the World Eater. Even Jonathan couldn''t help but think about it but he didn''t show his concern that much. Still, it made sense that what the historical records said was urate. After all, there was apparent damage all across the universe, and nearbys have been destroyed as if a war had taken ce.

    "All right. For now, I want all of you to divide yourselves into two. And then we can begin the exercise." Knighthawk suddenly announced the moment they got in the arena.

    An exhale came out of everyone''s mouth as they noticed the city center which was propped in the middle of the Concrete Arena. Everyone was aware that the city center was just a life-sized replica of a real one, and yet it was carefully constructed as if it existed right then and there.

    Since Satoshi wasn''t listening, he didn''t realize that someone already crept to his side, grabbing him by the arm. Satoshi didn''t even bother turning around since he was fine with teaming up with anyone. At first, he assumed that the person beside him was either Emma or Shiroi since they matched each other''s heights.

    However, the moment he stole a nce to his side, he recognized that the person was none other than Fuuka. It had been so long since he interacted with her that he almost forgot his name. From afar, Kuroe could be seen chuckling as she read Satoshi''s confused mind.

    "Mind if we teamed up?" Fuuka asked. Despite her clingy actions, she acted as casually as she could towards Satoshi.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Not really," Satoshi said. Meanwhile, he already noticed Emma and Shiroi teaming up with each other. He was d that Fuuka came up to him, otherwise, he''d have a hard time finding a partner for the current exercise.

    "All right, now that you''re all geared up and teamed up, we''re going to draw lots. Bishop and Lufine are going to be the first team, and they''re either going to be heroes or viins. We''d choose their roles by flipping a coin, and then once we''ve decided their roles, that''s when we''re going to draw lots."

    No one spoke, so Knighthawk continued his exnation.

    "There will be certain scenarios in each exercise so all of you won''t experience the same thing. The scenario would be random as well, and it would be picked by the machine and shown on that huge television up top. That''s it for my instructions... and may the odds be ever in your favor." Knighthawk tipped his imaginary hat before turning to his ss.

    Without further ado, Knighthawk grabbed a coin and flipped it. itnded on tails. "All right. I guess we''re going to have Bishop and Lufine as the viins this time around. I wonder who''s going to be the heroes this round?"

    The lots were drawn, and a number was shown in front of everyone. It was the number three, and everyone looked at each other to see if they had the number or not.

    "I guess it''s us," Satoshi muttered calmly as he stepped forward. While his thoughts were still muddled because of the uing threat to the world, he didn''t let that faze him. With a resolute expression on his face, he turned towards Fuuka. "Let''s go, we''re going to win this." He continued.

    "Now, what would be the scenario this time?" Knighthawk rubbed his chin in excitement as he looked up.

    The sound of a rolling roulette reverberated within the halls of the Concrete Arena. A blur of images appeared on the huge screen. Five secondster, it slowed down, and the scenario was finalized.

    It was a hostage scenario.

    "A hostage scenario it is!" Knighthawk announced to the empty seats of spectators as if he wasmentating on an event. "Viins, you have a minute to prepare. A hostage will be readily avable for you. As for the heroes, be prepared to hear the details of the scenario during that minute."

    Fuuka and Satoshi nodded determinedly.

 Chapter 431 Sideswiped

    Light Wing and Dark Matter assumed their positions by the far-end dpidated structure. Just like other professional superheroes out there, they have a significant amount of experience when ites to heroes versus viins exercise like this. That''s why they weren''t the least bit fazed when they heard what the scenario was all about.

    And as an added bonus, they were given the viin role. For a superhero, this was one of those times when they could go all-out without thinking about the damage they could unleash. Usually, they''d need to hold back or withhold some of their strength while dealing with viins in order to portray themselves as good people.

    Even their public actions are all under scrutiny, and they had to act like the samaritans they are in order to continue their image as a hero. While this wasn''t rooted in their personality, they had no choice but to do it. After all, people''s expectations can only go so far when you act like an asshole in the streets.

    This was one of the reasons why Light Wing and Dark Matter decided to act as undercover superheroes. Only those who were die-hard fans of them would be able to recognize them. And those people don''t have to exin themselves whenever they did something questionable.

    While superheroes do everything they can to uphold an image, undercover superheroes give viins their due payback. For someone who could do damaging and fatal crimes, their punishment should be given to them before they go behind bars.

    "His name is Satoshi, right? Midoriyama Satoshi. I''ve heard about him. If any, he''s probably the strongest first-year here." Arcane Bishop (Dark Matter)mented as his lips curved upward. Based on what he read from the readily avable student information, Satoshi''s records were pretty weird.

    Not only was most of his information withheld by the school, his superpower was also not listed with the Superheroes Association Organization. This meant that his superpower was so formidable that he wanted to keep it a secret. Also, this meant that a rtive of his is pretty high up in the SAO Rankings.

    After all, SAO would generally not brush it off when a person tried to hide his or her superpower. In hindsight, it is absolutelypletely legal for someone to not disclose their superpower to the government. However, there were repercussions for such a decision. These repercussions were usually given by other agencies or superheroes, not the government.

    "Yeah, I''ve read his achievements. Also, I''ve seen him on television a couple of times. Remember the Official Beast Tournament? He won the title this year, and he''s still a first-year at that. Watching him fight didn''t solidify what his superpower is. If any, it just left me confused." Alliya Lufine (Light Wing) responded with additional information. They certainly should keep their guard up during this exercise,

    "It''s some sort of summoning superpower, right? Beastmaster superpower? He''s pretty good. I''ve seen how he moved, and he''s definitely trained by someone awesome." Dark Matter couldn''t help but feel in awe while talking about Satoshi. He could tell just how much hard work and diligence Satoshi had in order to achieve peak human performance.

    "For someone who''s got a world-ss superpower, he certainly didn''t overlook his physical prowess and physical training. What a living cheat code." Light Wing heaved a sigh. It was obvious that she was nervous about the uing heroes versus viins exercise.

    Once they got to the building where they were instructed to go to, they saw a young child eating a lollipop there. She had red hair, and she looked like she was four or five years old. Dark Matter and Light Wing looked at her and their eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

    "What the¡ª how could anyone look so cute?!" Light Wing squealed, reaching out for the little girl''s cheeks. Before she could pinch her though, the girl stepped to the side to avoid her hands.

    "I know right? Whose child is this?" Dark Matter asked. Rarely does Dark Matter agree with Light Wing''s opinion, but this time, he was in total acquiescence.

    "I''m Aira." The little girl simply introduced herself.

    "Aira, huh," Dark Matter wore a creepy smile as he reached out his hand to pat the little girl''s head. In a split second, he was already way into character as a viin.

    But Aira knew what Dark Matter was supposed to do, that''s why she dodged him way before he reached out his hand. Dark Matter flinched, and then his eyes fluttered as he tried to figure out what was going on. Somehow, Aira was able to read into his movements before he did it. As an undercover superhero, it was a huge blow to his pride.

    "HEROES VERSUS VILLAINS, START!" Knighthawk announced from afar.

    ps from the entire ss could be heard from afar before it died down intoplete silence. The atmosphere turned heavy as the exercisemenced.

    "Little girl, you''reing with us." Dark Matter ordered, gesturing for the little girl to follow them. For all he knew, the little girl didn''t want to be touched, and he didn''t want to risk another blow to his pride when she dodges him again.

    To their relief, Aira followed suit, no questions asked.

    ...

    Meanwhile, Fuuka and Satoshi were still by the edge of the arena. While they felt a modicum of nervousness in them, they knew that they''d nail the exercise. Their superpowers were destructive, that''s for sure, but that wouldn''t impede their rescue since their control was top-notch.

    "You ready, Fuuka?" Satoshi asked under his breath. Up until now, he still wondered why Fuuka picked him when there were a dozen students in their ss.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Nodding his head, Fuuka signaled that they enter the arena. As soon as they did so, camera drones started flying all over the ce, recording the entire exercise so Knighthawk would be able to properly grade it in the near future.

    "I''ve located them. They''re by the destroyed building over there." Fuuka said a secondter without hesitation. Thanks to her space and sound maniption, she was able to detect sound waves with minimal effort. Just from taking in all that information, she was able to pinpoint the exact location of the viins and the hostage.

    "It''s a small child. A little girl. She''s the hostage." Fuuka whispered after she had gathered more information just by listening in. "What''s the n, Satoshi?"

    Somehow, Satoshi was amazed that Fuuka was able to gather all that in less than a minute. Also, he felt like her assessment was urate since there was no hesitation in her voice.

    "You''re... you''re pretty good. Where did you learn to control your superpower like that? Seriously, your information will help us a lot." Satoshi said. He was already well aware of how easy the exercise would be, but he didn''t expect it to be this easy.

    "You could pinpoint their location in real-time, right?" Satoshi confirmed.

    "Yes," Fuuka bashfully replied.

    "Then this would be fairly easy. Just follow my n, we''re going to clear this exercise without breaking a sweat." Satoshi said with utter confidence in his voice.

    ...

    Back at the destroyed building.

    "You think they''re going to charge at us, guns zing? Or are they going to sneak past us?" Dark Matter asked. He was bored to death since all they needed to do was defend the building while looking after the little girl.

    With his superpower, it would be easy to get all the information he needed in a specified location. As for Light Wing, she was near invincible as long as there was light. And there''s always light, so she''s always overpowered.

    "I don''t know. Satoshi seems like a pretty good tactician. They might attempt to sneak up on us. However, they won''t be able to sneak up on us." Light Wing said with utter confidence.

    Before Dark Matter could say anything, however, a horn resounded all over the Concrete Arena. And in that situation, this could only mean two things: One, that Fuuka and Satoshi had surrendered, or two, they were able to clear the exercise and Dark Matter and Light Wing had no idea about it.

    The little girl was clearly still in front of them, so there was no way that Fuuka and Satoshi cleared the exercise. Dark Matter and Light Wing let out a chuckle which turned into wildughter.

    "Hah~! We were overthinking things!"

    "They gave up before the challenge even started. What cowardice!"

    "They are a disgrace as heroes. Seriously, how could they give up without trying."

    "Either way, it''s a win for us. Let''s head back and prepare for the next round."

    As Dark Matter and Light Wing were preparing their funny faces at Satoshi and Fuuka, they turned towards Aira and beckoned for her to go with them."Come on, the round''s over. We''re heading back." They called out.

    Before Aira could say anything, however, an announcement was heard all throughout the arena.

    "FUUKA AND SATOSHI SUCCEEDED IN RESCUING AIRA WITHOUT CAUSING A SCENE NOR ALERTING THE HOSTAGES! PERFECT POINTS!" Knighthawk screamed his lungs out. He couldn''t believe what had just transpired no matter how many times he reyed the recording of the exercise.

 Chapter 432 Tricked, Backstabbed, Bamboozled

    "FUUKA AND SATOSHI SUCCEEDED IN RESCUING AIRA WITHOUT CAUSING A SCENE NOR ALERTING THE HOSTAGES! PERFECT POINTS!"

    Dark Matter and Light Wing stopped short in their tracks as they turned around. Heartbeats spiking, they nervously checked if Aira was still with them.

    And she was. She was right there!

    "H-how on actual¡ª what happened? Is this a joke? Are we getting pranked right now?!" Arcane Bishop (Dark Matter) eximed as he continued staring at Aira. Using his superpower, he tried to check whether there was something imprecise about Aira... however, his check-up confirmed that it was the same person.

    "My superpower is not detecting any discrepancies as well. I think they''re ying a joke on us." Light Wing calmly said. For a split second, her confidence dwindled. But now, it was renewed, and she was determined toin at Knighthawk for going with the joke.

    When they got to the gathering of the ss, however, things didn''t go just as they had predicted. As it turned out, Knighthawk did not announce anything as a joke. Everyone was taking the exercise of heroes versus viins seriously, and it was them who seemed unprofessional about it.

    ...

    A couple of minutes ago,

    Upon hearing the n firsthand, Fuuka skeptically leered at Satoshi. His n was too good to be true that she wasn''t convinced it would work. However, she had seen Satoshi in action plenty of times, and she knew just how many times he''d pulled off ridiculous stunts such as what they were bound to do right now.

    "Are you sure about this, Satoshi? is this really going to work? Really?" She asked.

    "Yes, but that would depend on you. However, I can assure you that I could do everything I said. Rest assured, I''m capable of such things." Satoshi said with a resolute expression on his face. For the n to work, he first had to convince his teammate that it would certainly work.

    "All right. I''ll trust you on this one, Satoshi. I picked you because I trust you... and I''m sure you''ll be able to pull it off." Fuuka continued, her face reddening as she said something slightly embarassing. "Regardless, we should have a n B, just in case our n goes sideways."

    "We''re going to use our full power and brute force our way through the exercise. That''s our n B. Now, are you ready?" Satoshi asked, his poise exuding absolute confidence.

    "Ou~ let''s do this." Fuuka continued.

    Without further ado, Satoshi summoned his familiar ''Cloak of Invisibility''. He put it on himself and beckoned for Fuuka to go with him. Fortunately, the Cloak of Invisibility was big enough for the two of them. However, they have limited space of movement but that didn''t make Fuuka the least bit ufortable.

    In fact, she even grabbed Satoshi by the arm¡ª not because she wanted some skinship, but because she had to do it so her superpower would have the precision she needed. After all, the next part of n included using her superpower on herself and Satoshi.

    The Cloak of Invisibility could pretty much block everything from the outside. Even the most sophisticated detection superpower wouldn''t be able to see through the Cloak of Invisibility. However, Satoshi knew just what Dark Matter and Light Wing were capable of. That''s why he asked Fuuka to add in anotheryer of protection so they could really proceed undetected.

    Activating her superpower, Fuuka altered the space around them, just enough to make sure that they won''t be seen. Adding to that, she also put up a sound barrier around them. This would block out any noise they make.

    Meanwhile, everyone who were watching them saw that they disappeared. Even the camera drones couldn''t detect where they were. That''s why Knighthawk decided to just watch Dark Matter and Light Wing instead.

    And even then, they weren''t able to witness the insanity that Fuuka and Satoshi pulled off right in front of them.

    "We''re almost there..."

    "We''re here." Fuuka announced.

    Nodding his head, Satoshi reached out for the door and opened it. The two of them sessfully infiltrated the viin''s base. It didn''t take long before the two of them were in front of Aira. Apparently, she was the one acting as the hostage.

    "Wow, they managed to convince her? How much sweets did she ask this time around?" Satoshi muttered to himself.

    "It''s your turn, Satoshi. Go do your thing~" Fuuka leaned in and whispered right on Satoshi''s ear, tickling him a little bit.

    "All right."

    Satoshi summoned another familiar of his, specifically, a Representative. Her name was none other than Amy¡ª Representative name, Copycat.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Long story short, Satoshi instructed Copycat to transform into a clone that looked exactly like Aira. He then swapped the two of them, bringing the real Aira with them while leaving Copycat with Dark Matter and Light Wing. Satoshi specifically instructed Copycat to stay silent and listen to Dark Matter and Light Wing until he told her to stop.

    And Satoshi could order her whenever since their minds were interlinked with each other.

    Just like that, Fuuka and Satoshi managed to rescue the hostage right under the nose of the kidnappers. He yed them like fools, and Fuuka couldn''t help but chuckle a little bit since their n had worked.

    "How did you think about that? I mean... you did have a lot of tamed beasts under you, but how could youe up with a n just like that?" Fuuka asked out of curiosity. She still whispered at Satoshi even though they''ve already exited the ''viin''s'' hideout.

    "It''s fun, right? Besides, it''s the safest route." Satoshi answered simply. "In the past... I didn''t have any superpower, so I always cook up a way to win without expending most of my energy. Everyone else got a superpower, so I have to defeat them in the battle of the minds. If I can''t do that, then I''d most certainly suffer a defeat. That''s just how it was."

    "I see..." Fuuka mumbled. "For me, I awakened my superpower in my teenage years, and my mom and dad didn''t expect me to inherit both of their superpowers. I was already pretty strong back then... but in my opinion, you''re way stronger than me, Satoshi."

    "Not really, remember you defeated me in a practice match before the Inter-High Tournament," Satoshi recalled.

    "That was a long time ago. I''ve seen you fight in the Official Beast Tournament. You''re way too powerful, everyone didn''t even stand a chance." Fuuka returned. "In any case, you''re plenty strong."

    A chuckle came out of Satoshi''s mind as his cheeks reddened a little bit. However, after seeing Aira with one of her eyebrows raised, he coughed and guiltily turned away.

    "Satoshi-nii, did I do well?" Aira asked. Usually, she calls Satoshi big brother or something close to that. This was the first time she called him Satoshi-nii, and it surprised Satoshi a little bit.

    "Yes, you did great." Satoshi smiled, patting Aira on the head. He didn''t even notice the smug look Aira expressed when she stared at Fuuka.

    Once they got to the entrance/exit to the Concrete Arena, Fuuka and Satoshi removed the ''Cloak of Invisibility'' and showed everyone that they were already there. Everyone jumped a step back in surprise. Even Kuroe who could read minds didn''t even notice they were already there.

    It was a sess. They were able to fool both the audience and the viins at the same time.

    But what surprised their ssmates and homeroom teacher the most was the fact that Aira was in front of them. Their eyes did a double take on the live stream up on the huge television screen up top of the arena. Clearly, it could be seen that Aira was still with Dark Matter and Light Wing, casually sitting there as if nothing happened.

    "What''s going on?" Knighthawk asked in utter bewilderment, rubbing his eyes to see if he was dreaming or not. Everyone''s expression confirmed that he wasn''t the only one seeing things, and it calmed him down a little bit.

    "We''ve infiltrated the viin''s hideout, sneaked out the hostage, and reced the hostage with one of my tamed beasts," Satoshi reported. "In case the hostage realized that something went wrong, my tamed beast can deal with them. Also, we''ve rescued the hostage with the intention of prioritizing her life and informing the authorities about the viin''s hideout."

    Somehow, Knighthawk believed what Fuuka and Satoshi ryed. After all, he was well aware that Satoshi could aplish such a feat. There was no doubt in his mind that that was exactly what they did.

    "FUUKA AND SATOSHI SUCCEEDED IN RESCUING AIRA WITHOUT CAUSING A SCENE NOR ALERTING THE HOSTAGES! PERFECT POINTS!"

    ...

    Back to the present,

    "What''s the meaning of this?!" Dark Matter asked, slightly raising his voice just enough to disy his superiority. "Do you think this is a joke, Knighthawk?"

    "What do you mean?" Knighthawk asked.

    One look is all it took for Dark Matter and Light Wing to realize that maybe... just maybe, they were in the wrong. However, Aira was also with them, there''s a good chance that Fuuka and Satoshi were bluffing.

    Fwooosh~!

    Before Dark Matter and Light Wing could add to what they were about to say, the Aira beside them seemed to transform into a liquid. And then she reverted back to her usual blue self as Copycat.

    One quote rang in Dark Matter''s mind as his gazended on Light Wing. ''We''ve been tricked... we''ve been backstabbed... and we''ve been, quite possibly, bamboozled.''

 Chapter 433 Bank Theft Auto

    The wless execution and teamwork of Fuuka and Satoshi impressed everyone. Even Kuroe and Shiroi who were confident that they''d be able to ace the test now seemed a little doubtful. There was no way anyone could top Fuuka and Satoshi''s performance. It was perfect.

    "NEXT! Midori, Hiroshi, please step forward." Knighthawk announced, directing everyone''s attention to the gigantic live-stream television at the top of the Arena.

    An animation of a roulette appeared, and it began spinning before stopping at a certain word. Knighthawk and everyone nodded their heads in confirmation before the word was announced. "Bank theft it is. As for the roles... let''s flip the coin!"

    The coin was flipped, and Knighthawk grabbed it in mid-air before putting it on top of his palm. "It''s heads. This time, Hiroshi and Midori will be the viins, and Bishop and Lufine will be the heroes."

    Bishop and Lufine still hadn''t recovered from the emotional damage they received during the first round. They fell for the trickeries of two teenagers and it was a pretty severe blow to their pride as undercover heroes. While they prided themselves as shadow-like heroes, two teenagers managed to sneak past them without them knowing. It was a reality check, to say the least.

    "We''re not going to fail this time, Lufine. We''re going to go all out even if it meant injuring these two." Bishop said under his breath. Of course, injuries are a part of the exercise, but this time, they were going to pull out all stops.

    "You said it. We cannot lose on this next round no matter what. Otherwise, I''ll really retire as a professional superhero." Lufine muttered to herself, dejected by their loss.

    They weren''t the only ones with the same sentiment though. Meanwhile, Hiroshi and Midori were also trying to figure out how they''d win against Dark Matter and Light Wing. Based on their determined expressions alone, they knew that they were pretty serious this time around, and they weren''t going to take it easy despite it being a lowly heroes versus viins exercise.

    "Don''t worry. We''ll just have to work together. Win or lose, as long as we performed well, we''re going to get a passing grade." Hiroshi said, giving Midori a bit of constion since they were fairly certain that they''d lose.

    "Let''s go, Hiroshi, you can do it. Midori, break a leg... or two." Jonathan called out as if they were already close friends. Apparently, he felt a bit awkward with the silence so he decided to cheer the two of them on.

    In response, Hiroshi and Midori nodded their heads, giving Jonathan a thumbs up before they headed inside the arena. Just like before, they were directed to a certain location where the heroes versus viins would take ce.

    At first, they expected the ce to be aughable replica of a bank. But as it turned out, it actually looked like a legitimate bank. Hiroshi and Midori were impressed, and they stepped forward, thinking that the exercise wouldn''t start any time soon.

    Before they could take another step, however, Knighthawk gave them a signal to stop. Hiroshi and Midori froze right on their step, and they turned around.

    "The moment you enter the bank, the exercise willmence. Also, you''ll be given two minutes before the heroes will arive on the scene. That''s it for the instructions and may the odds be ever in your favor, Hiroshi, Midori." Knighthawk announced. His voice alone indicated that he was having fun.

    And indeed he was. This was one of the very few times where he could watch his students get defeated and he won''t have to worry about legal repercussions. That''s why he chose this exercise out of all the other exercises avable.

    Hiroshi and Midori did a double take as they nervously swallowed their dry saliva. They almost made a mistake before the exercise evenmenced. Fortunately, Knighthawk was lenient enough to warn them before they did something wrong. They heaved a sigh of relief.

    "Are you ready, Hiroshi? What''s the n?" Midori pursed his lips as he asked. He felt rather nervous since all of their ssmates were watching. One mistake and they were aware that everyone would tease them about it in the near future. Just like Fuuka and Satoshi, the two of them were determined to wlessly achieve victory.

    "We''re going to go in, grab the money, and then we go back. We need to get to the group and not get caught... so we have to think about that as well." Hiroshi responded, putting a thumb on his chin as he tried to figure out what to do.

    ''What would Satoshi do in this situation?'' Hiroshi pondered, and then he started shaking his head. Right now, he shouldn''t think about what Satoshi would do, but rather think about what he should do.

    "And what can you do? You can go berserk, right? And you also have some sort of healing superpower?" Hiroshi asked.

    "Yep, that''s about it. And you can control fire and rock, right? I wonder how that would be useful..." Midori said to himself.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Currently, Dark Matter and Light Wing waited for Knighthawk''s signal. They were still unsure whether they should stay right where the group was, or go where Hiroshi and Midori were as soon as they entered the bank. Either way, there were a lot of openings, and the viins could easily slip past them if they spread themselves around too thin.

    "Why is this harder than I thought... I don''t remember the heroes versus viins being this hard in the past." Dark Mattermented.

    "It wasn''t... also, you''re just overthinking things. Remember, we''re fourth-year high school students. One of us could easily take on two of them. Don''t think about defending one spot or the other, we''re capable enough to defend both." Light Wing calmly returned as he patted Dark Matter on the shoulder.

    "Then... since you have better mobility, you can go and chase after them. I''ll create a dark matter barrier here and prevent them from ever stepping near the group. We can do this... and this time, we''re going to win." Dark Matter firmly dered under his breath.

    ...

    "I have a n." Midori finally said. "Do you know that famous movie... the one where they stole gold from underground?"

    "You mean... we''re not going to steal gold from the entrance? Of course, this would also not alert anyone since they wouldn''t see any theft urring. What a great idea." Hiroshi said, and then his face shifted into a troubled expression. "But how do we escape? It wouldn''t take long before the heroes find out about what we did, and then they''de running at us."

    "Then... we''ll just bulldoze our way through the ground. I can do at least that much... you''ve got to help me out with your fire and earth maniption though... or better yet..."

    From the live stream, Hiroshi and Midori could be seen going to another location. They then started digging on the ground. Thanks to Midori''s super strength and Hiroshi''s control over earth, they were able to do quick work on a tunnel. They then jumped into the tunnel and headed towards the underground part of the bank.

    Meanwhile, Dark Matter and Light Wing were already ushered inside the arena. They had no idea that Hiroshi and Midori were currently digging a tunnel. However, they were confident that they could find the thieves in no time using their superpowers, that''s why they weren''t the least bit worried.

    In a split second, Dark Matter already pinpointed where Hiroshi and Midori were. He was surprised to detect them underground, but that didn''t matter.

    "Let''s go." Dark Matter signaled as Light Wing nodded in response.

    Together, the two of them started sprinting toward the mouth of the tunnel. Aside from Light Wing''s above-average human capabilities, the only thing she could do with her superpower is to detect people around her and shine a blinding light at someone. As for Dark Matter, he could use every single shadow to jump from one ce to another, and this gave him the edge whenever he had to cross long distances.

    Then again, he couldn''t breathe nor see while he was teleporting through one shadow and another, that''s why Dark Matter was heavily reliant on his senses and his built-in, geo-positional system chip in his brain. He could also use dark matter as his superpower, but its too destructive so he always resorted to not using it.

    "We got them." Dark Matter called out as he jumped inside the tunnel. Light Wing followed suit, lighting up the way with her glow.

    It didn''t take long before the heroes and viins met. Hiroshi and Midori hadn''t even gotten a single bill from the bank, and they were already caught red-handed.

    "Put your hands up on the ground, surrender now, and receive a lighter sentence." Dark Matter announced. This was a new experience for him since he was used to jumping the gun and pinning down a criminal before he could defend himself.

    "Now!" Hiroshi screamed as Midori bulked up in size.

    There was no way the viins were going down without a fight!

 Chapter 434 Midoris Self Sacrifice

    Midori ballooned in size as he let out an enraged scream. He blocked the entire tunnel, giving Hiroshi a way of escape as he dug up towards the bank vault.

    Since Dark Matter and Light Wing couldn''t get out of the tunnel unless Midori got out of the way, they either had to retrace their footsteps or just get out of there via Dark Matter''s superpower (which allowed him to teleport into a shadow).

    However, since everything was dark in the tunnel, Dark Matter would have a hard time differentiating between the shadows even with his GPS chip. Not only would he have a hard time getting out of the tunnel with his superpower, but he would also get lost underground if he weren''t careful.

    Somehow, Hiroshi and Midori''s n really messed with Dark Matter and Light Wing albeit unintentionally. If it were any other scenario, they''d have defeated the two viins without difficulty. Then again, they just had to be crazy enough to think of digging a tunnel.

    Adding to that, Dark Matter and Light Wing were too confident in themselves that they didn''t bother researching what superpowers everyone had before the heroes versus viins exercise. Had they done their research, they would havee up with a way tobat Hiroshi and Midori''s specialty.

    It didn''t take long before Midori noticed the tense expression on Dark Matter and Light Wing''s faces. They made the right choice of digging a tunnel. A smile appeared on his face. He would remain in here until Dark Matter and Light Wing decided to push him out of the way.

    "I''m sorry... I wouldn''t have done this but you forced me to. No hard feelings, Midori." Dark Matter said as he took up a stance of putting both hands on top of each other. Swirling darkness began to form on his palm, and itpressed until it formed an orb.

    "HIROSHI! ONCE YOU GET THE MONEY, CREATE MORE TUNNELS! THEY WON''T CATCH YOU!" Midori eximed as he gritted his teeth. Even with his berserk and healing superpower, he was fairly certain that he wouldn''t survive a hit from that dark orb on Dark Matter''s palms.

    And his instincts were right on the money. The dark orb was made from pure dark matter, and one hit from it would be enough to send him into oblivion a couple of times over. Of course, Dark Matter was careful enough to lighten its throughput, but even then he wasn''t sure how many injuries Midori would suffer from one hit.

    Muttering a prayer under his breath, Midori activated both his superpower, hoping that every ounce of it would give him a better chance at survival.

    "I won''t st you if you just move out of the way." Dark Matter called out. "I''m giving you onest chance."

    Even with the obvious threat ced in front of him, Midori still didn''t budge. "Are you prepared to lose?" Midori asked instead, smiling in the face of adversity.

    They were going to win this no matter what. So what if he got sent to the hospital? Surely the Nurse would be able to heal him in no time. Besides, he wanted to tell a cool story to his siblings... and as far as he knows, losing isn''t cool.

    "Are you prepared to die?" Dark Matter said.

    Driven into a corner, Dark Matter didn''t care anymore. He was going to st Midori into smithereens. As long as he sted him with enough force to destroy his appendages, surely he would give up.

    Once again, Dark Matter should have done his research. At this point, he was sure that Midori have some sort of strengthening superpower. If only he had known that he had regenerative superpowers as well.

    Instead of lightening his attack, Dark Matter made the dark orb bigger. Nervously, Midori gulped his saliva. He still didn''t budge an inch.

    "Come on, Dark Matter. We''re wasting time." Light Wing hissed.

    "On it."

    ...

    As soon as Hiroshi emerged from underground he grabbed the two bags of money put inside the vault. Upon getting it. He decided to make a couple more tunnels as per Hiroshi''s orders. As someone who was adept in fire and earth maniption, his sense of direction underground was pretty good. That''s why he didn''t have to go above ground to check where his location was.

    BAM!

    From afar, he heard an explosion, but Hiroshi kept running.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    BAM!

    BAM!

    BAM!

    More explosions. Hiroshi gritted his teeth but he didn''t stop. He created more tunnels, and he ran even faster. He knew that once he reached the group, the exercise would be over.

    "Midori, hang in there. Don''t give in." Hiroshi muttered to himself. Despite the fact that he slightly hated Midori''s noisiness, he still hoped that Midori wouldn''t get hurt that much. He was willing to sacrifice himself in order for the two of them to pass. That sentiment alone was enough to push Hiroshi to do his best.

    When Midori was sted with the dark orb, he felt the pain rattle his brain, and he almost lost consciousness. However, his entire body was running into overdrive and the appendages which came off immediately regenerated. Midori was exhausted, but he still maintained his stance. There was no way Dark Matter and Light Wing would get past him.

    Next, Light Wing shed a brilliant light on his eyes, and it disoriented him. However, his healing superpower enabled him to regain his sight in just a split second.

    "You''re really not going to budge, huh." Dark Matter said, smirking. He sted Midori with another dark orb.

    And another.

    And another.

    Even after all that, Midori still didn''t budge. He was on the verge of losing consciousness, and he could tell that one more hit would be enough to kill him. Dark Matter prepared another dark orb, this time it was asrge as his head.

    "I''m die, thank you forever," Midori muttered to himself, referencing a certain famous line from the past. He really was going to die, he could feel it.

    Midori closed his eyes and epted his fate. Whatever happens, he knew that the Nurse would be able to bring him back. If the Nurse can''t, then surely, Satoshi would be able to heal him with his familiar named Sera. This was the main reason why Midori wasn''t afraid to get injured. It was an unhealthy mindset, but it brought him the victory they needed.

    Fortunately, before Dark Matter could release the dark orb from his hand, a beep was heard from the group. Dark Matter and Light Wing stared at each other with dumbfounded expressions on their faces. In the process of it all, they totally forgot that they were dealing with a second person who was already desperately trying to get away. In other words, they''d forgotten about the existence of Hiroshi, all because they were too busy dealing with Midori who wouldn''t let them pass.

    "It''s the viin''s win! The students are on a roll today." Knighthawk announced with a slightly disappointed expression on his face. Initially, he came up with the exercise in order to ''bully'' his ss and teach them a lesson that there are other people stronger than them. But right now, it seemed to be having the opposite effect.

    "Che~ they got us real good." Dark Mattermented as he stopped the dark orb. Light Wing heaved a sigh in response.

    "Oh... we won?" Midori weakly uttered before he fell forward. His regeneration was enough to heal himself, but his exhaustion was a different matter altogether. He couldn''t get up anymore, and hey there in the tunnel like a piece of smi.

    "Yes, you all right? Get up, we''re bringing you to the Nurse." Dark Matter said as he and Light Wing grabbed Midori by the shoulder and painfully dragged her out of the tunnel.

    "Why didn''t you dodge? You didn''t have to force yourself, it was just an exercise." Dark Mattermented as he wore an expression of pity. Midori was not in a good state, and it might take two or more days for him topletely recover.

    "Well, if I can''t do it in practice, then it would be harder for me to do something heroic in real life." Midori forced a smile on his face as he stared at Dark Matter and Light Wing. "And trust me when I say... we''ve got a lot of heroic superheroes in our ss. If I can''t do at least this much, then I won''t be able to keep up with them."

    Midori''s words hit close to home, so much so that Dark Matter even regretted bringing up what he just said. Undeniably, what Midori did back there was pretty heroic even as a viin. ''If I were to encounter a scenario like that, even I''d salute that viin right then and there.'' Dark Matter thought to himself.

    "Your ss... you have a pretty strong ss, Midori." Light Wingmented, epting their loss as the heroes who couldn''t stop a simple bank theft.

 Chapter 435 Blinded By The Lights

    Another loss.

    It was a well-deserved victory for both Hiroshi and Midori since they went above and beyond their limits in order to surpass the two undercover superheroes. Also, Midori almost died back there, but he didn''t mention anything about it. He was immediately taken to the Nurse since he needed some time to recover.

    Quite frankly, Dark Matter and Light Wing could tell that ss 3-1 was not to be underestimated. At first, they were optimistic about sweeping the ss with one victory after another. But now, they''ve taken a disheartening defeat, two consecutive defeats, to be exact. Their pride was at breaking point, and it was only a matter of time before they started questioning their skill level as fourth-years and as undercover professional superheroes.

    "Emma and Shiroi, the two of you are next. Now, let''s see what kind of scenario you''ll encounter this time." Knighthawk spoke in a crestfallen manner. He briefly stole a nce towards Dark Matter, implying that he do a better job this time around.

    Dark Matter clicked his tongue in response, but it was too soft that no one heard it except Light Wing.

    A head-on fight. The next scenario would be a head-on fight between heroes and viins.

    "And there we have it! Now, who will be on the side of the heroes? Who will be on the side of the viins?" Knighthawk asked as he grabbed a coin from his pocket. He then mmed it on the ground as if he couldn''t care less which side was which. "This is a two versus two fight! Who cares about heroes versus viins?"

    Without further ado, Knighthawk instructed the two parties to get in there and start throwing hands. The rules were simple. It would be a two-versus-two fight and whoever surrenders or gets knocked out first would be deemed the loser. In a fight, it didn''t matter whether one side was the viin or the hero. The victor would be the one to get away.

    "Are you ready?" Shiroi asked as the two of them walked into the arena. This would be their first duo battle together so Shiroi was a bit nervous about what could happen. Then again, she was aware that Emma trained under the best of the best¡ª namely Satoshi''s parents¡ª that''s why there was a good chance that they''ll be able to pull it off.

    "Yes, we can win this." Emma clenched her fists as she smiled at Shiroi. "Don''t go down before they did, okay? Or else I''ll win the bet."

    "I''m going to win the bet, Emma." Shiroi smiled back, extending her hand at Shiroi for a fist bump.

    Meanwhile, Dark Matter and Light Wing were also having their own conversation. "That purple-haired girl is the transfer student, right? What was her superpower again?"

    "I''m not sure... but the white-haired one is Shiroi. The only reason why we came across her name was because of our research about Satoshi. I''m pretty sure she maniptes ice... and a little bit of rain... I think." Light Wing muttered.

    "To think that we''d have a face-off during heroes versus viins. This is very disadvantageous for us since we''re used to sneaking at our opponents. A direct confrontation won''t bid well for us undercover superheroes." Dark Matter let out. He could already foresee the third loss on their streak of losses.

    "We can do this. As long as we use our superpower properly."

    "Of course... but it''s not that simple."

    ...

    "You won."

    "You too." Hiroshi greeted them back as Satoshi and the others greeted him with congrattions.

    "Is Hiroshi all right?" Kurogami asked. He was only slightly concerned for Midori since he could tank a few hits himself.

    "The Nurse said he needed to rest for the whole day. If he was any other person, he would''ve died right then and there. That Dark Matter guy doesn''t know how to pull his punches." Hiroshimented. "But we won, so I can''t reallyin."

    "Do you think Emma and Shiroi would win?" Fuuka asked. For some odd reason, she was still beside Satoshi, sticking to his side even though the exercise was already over.

    "I don''t know... but there''s a good chance they could win. That Dark Matter guy has the same superpower as mine. His is just more powerful. As for Light Wing, the only thing she could do is cause a distraction with that shing light of hers¡ª or maybe she was just hiding her superpower. I don''t know."

    Satoshi stole a nce at Kurogami. Just like Kuroe, Kurogami is usually quiet. But this time, he was talking more than usual. Apparently, Kurogami had no screen time for a couple of chapters now, and that''s why he was relishing his screen time as much as he could by talking a lot.

    "Dark Matter can move from one shadow to another, and he could also use dark matter to shoot beams and energy orbs at his enemy. His control over his superpower is a tad bit janky though, that''s why he couldn''t use it that much." Satoshi exined.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "As for Light Wing, she is the pr opposite of Dark Matter. Her light could temporarily blind the enemies, and her super detection skill is especially useful for espionage missions. Other than that, she''s as harmless as a dove."

    "If Emma and Shiroi could work their way around Light Wing''s superpower, then there''s a good chance they could win this match, right?" Kurogami continued. "As for me, I can easily defeat those two inbat, even if theye after me at the same time."

    "Really? Then why don''t you show us your ways, shadow guy. We know you can''tst five seconds against those two at their full power." Hiroshi scoffed at Kurogami''sment. It didn''t take long before most of the ss also found Kurogami''sment a little ridiculous.

    Only Satoshi and Kuroe found hisment feasible.

    "Then let me show you. If we''re next after Emma and Shiroi... then I''m not going to run away. I''m going to take the two of them on with or without Jonathan''s help." Kurogami dered, his eyes fiery with enthusiasm and excitement.

    "If you''re going to take them on, then I''ll do it with you. They''re weak. I can easily defeat them without lifting a finger." Jonathan said.

    This time, everyone didn''t chuckle or said another word. Jonathan said it with so much conviction that they were more or less convinced by his words.

    "All of you, focus." Jonathan cleared his throat and garnered everyone''s attention in an instant. "The match is starting."

    ...

    "Since there was no one to facilitate the match. I''ll act as the referee. Let me repeat the rules. If one side is unable to fight, then the match is over. Forcing your opponent to surrender is also allowed. And also, killing is not allowed. I''m sure you won''t break that rule... but I just had to say it again." Knighthawk exined before raising his hand.

    "At the ready... start!"

    Once the signal was given, Shiroi immediately erected an ice wall in the middle of the arena. At the same time, Light Wing let out an intense sh of light that should''ve blinded Shiroi. However, because Shiroi acted faster than her, the light bounced off the ice wall and it temporarily blinded Dark Matter instead.

    "What on actual¡ª" Dark Matter eximed as his eyes stung.

    "I''m sorry." Light Wing forced an apology out of her mouth.

    On the other side of the ice wall, Emma created a dimensional portal that led to Dark Matter and Light Wing''s nk. She didn''t have to say a word to Shiroi since the two of them jumped into the portal in a snap of a finger.

    As soon as they appeared behind Dark Matter and Light Wing, they noticed that they were a bit confused. Emma and Shiroi didn''t expect the ice wall to return their attack on them.

    There was only one thing left to do.

    Nodding at each other. Emma manifested a portal in front of them which led to a dozen more portals scattered throughout the arena. "Flurry of ice spikes!" Emma screamed.

    Shiroi didn''t need any telling twice. She started firing a barrage of ice spikes at the dimensional portal.

    The other portals flew above the arena, aimed right at Dark Matter and Light Wing. A momentter, countless ice spikes started firing off at all the portals, pouring forth on the two undercover superheroes while they tried to defend themselves.

    "This is your fault, Light Wing. Why did you have to sh some light on them? Now I''m incapacitated." Dark Matter grimly said, forcing his eyes open but he still couldn''t see anything.

    He knew that he could cancel out every portal with his superpower, but right now, he couldn''t just fire off without seeing anything. His superpower could easily destroy anything, that''s why he should be extra careful while using it.

    "Then, let''s surrender now. At this rate... we''re going to die." Light Wing let out a pained moan as more ice spikes pierced her appendages.

    "Not yet! A couple more seconds! We can''t surrender!" Dark Matter desperately screamed.

 Chapter 436 Dark Matter And Light Wings Backstory I

    "Not yet! A couple more seconds! We can''t surrender!" Dark Matter desperately screamed.

    Obviously, Dark Matter and Light Wing were on the verge of losing, but there was no way they''d ept a third loss after everything they''d been through. They were fourth years, and they hold the esteemed title of the strongest. If their strength only amounted to three losses, then they might as well quit their jobs as professional undercover superheroes.

    What''s the point of being the strongest when you would be severely defeated by a first-year high schooler? It''s like ying chess with a baby and losing.

    The friendly fire was one of the worst mistakes that Light Wing could''ve made, and she deeply regretted it. As for Dark Matter, he was way past the ident. At the moment, he had enhanced his senses so he could detect some of the ice spikes directed at them. Despite losing his sense of sight temporarily, he was able to dodge more ice spikes than Light Wing.

    At first, Emma and Shiroi were confident that they''ll be able to win the match. Not only was Dark Matter out ofmission, but Light Wing was also mentally exhausted as well. In terms of overall status, Emma and Shiroi should be winning.

    However, they couldn''t seem to break through the desperation of Dark Matter and Light Wing. No matter how hard they hit them with the ice spikes, they just wouldn''t budge. Wounds have decorated their body, but they still found the strength to keep on dodging. Apparently, their adrenaline was doing all the work for them.

    "We have to finish this now," Emma called out. "Don''t you have other attacks aside from ice spikes?"

    "I can produce a blizzard or a storm... but that wouldn''t do anything. In terms of offensiveness, the ice spikes are the most effective ones." Shiroi responded.

    "Then, continue on firing. I''ll aim the ice spikes for you. If we''re driven into a corner, I''ll use my trump card and force them to surrender." Emma continued. "Don''t worry, we''re going to win this."

    Dark Matter muttered a quick prayer, and as if on cue, his eyesight had returned. A smirk appeared on his face as he teleported to the nearest shade, bringing Light Wing with him.

    Their sudden disappearance caused Emma and Shiroi to turn their heads around as they tried to search for them. The moment their eyesnded on them, however, Light Wing shone a strong light at them.

    Fortunately, Emma was quick to act, and he propped a dimensional portal in front of her, directing the light in their direction. The counterattack almost caught Dark Matter and Light Wing off-guard, but they were able to close their eyes due to the dy of the attack.

    "Let''s go," Emma called out, pushing Shiroi into a portal as the two of them spawned in a random part of the arena. Thanks to Shiroi''s ice superpower, they were able to blend their temperature with the area around them. Also, Emma''s dimensional portal hid them from Dark Matter if ever he tried to search for them with his detection skills.

    "What''s this trump card of yours? Do you think you can use them now?" Shiroi whispered, swiveling her head around while thinking that Dark Matter and Light Wing could appear out of nowhere.

    "It''s pretty risky. I''ve done it before... That''s why I know that this would work." Shiroi whispered back. But then again, she didn''t want to resort to her trump card since she felt nervous using it. She was sessfulst time, only because it was beginner''s luck¡ª or so that''s what she thought.

    "All right. I also have a n." Emma continued.

    ...

    "Come on out!" Dark Matter screamed. "If you''re going to fight, then fight us fair and square."

    "Yeah! Come out!" Light Wing seconded.

    Even though there was a break between their fights, Satoshi and the others still felt the tense atmosphere surrounding the arena. It was calm before the storm, and the storm was at its tipping point.

    Knighthawk grew rather impatient as seconds passed. However, before he could scream at Emma and Shiroi toe out, they appeared out of nowhere. Their faces were calm and collected, almost as if they had a good rest before the second confrontation.

    "You finally came out."

    Shiroi didn''t respond. Instead, she flicked her arm and ice spikes started appearing on the ground, moving towards Light Wing and Dark Matter at a rapid pace. Dark Matter was almost a step toote in responding to the attack. Fortunately, he was able to charge a dark orb on his hand and he shot it at the oing ice spikes.

    However, that was just a misdirection. Shiroi already knew that the attack won''t connect. With a nod, Emma created a dimensional portal right underneath Dark Matter, sucking him inside the portal and trapping him in a box with dimensional portals on all sides. These dimensional portals were one-sided, all except for one. The other one was directed to the sun, giving Dark Matter no leeway to teleport.

    "I''ll hold him off. You deal with Light Wing." Emma said.

    The n had worked.

    Now that they''ve separated Dark Matter and Light Wing from each other, it was finally an easy picking. Light Wing also felt as if she was driven into a corner. Without Dark Matter supporting her, she couldn''t face anyone in a head-on battle. Her superpower was meant to be for support or sneak attacks. A direct confrontation was the direct opposite of those things.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "You can surrender now, Light Wing," Shiroi asked, her eyes turning a nice shade of white and blue as she activated her innate ice superpower. Without waiting for an answer, she raised her hand to the sky, summoning a blizzard that entrapped Light Wing inside it.

    Long story short, Emma and Shiroi utilized their power so they could trap Dark Matter and Light Wing in their weakness. Dark Matter was trapped in a light-filled space, while Light Wing was caught in the middle of a raging blizzard.

    As seconds passed, Dark Matter knew that he couldn''t teleport anywhere anymore since everything was too bright. He had no idea where he was, and if he tried to teleport outside the box made out of dimensional portals, he might end up somewhere in the middle of the universe¡ª which was not ideal since he had no idea how to go back.

    Then there was Light Wing, whose only use was to sh people with bright light. Slowly, she sumbed to the frostbite that ate away at her flesh. At this rate, she was going to get mummified in ice.

    It was another loss for Dark Matter and Light Wing.

    .....

    Three years ago,

    "I- I like you!" Lufine mustered all her courage to ask her senpai out. It was a cliche confession¡ª putting a love letter in his locker, and then calling him to the huge tree by the back of the school where most of the school confession took ce.''

    "I''m sorry, Lufine, I''m engaged." Her senpai responded, scratching his head before forcing out augh from his mouth. He then left without saying another word.

    Engaged?

    Engaged?!

    Lufine remembered every single time her senpai helped her out, evenplimenting her here and there and it made her feel special. They were pretty close, but not once did he tell her about being engaged. It was a pretty dirty move, and it left Lufine crying by the tree.

    From afar, Arcane Bishop watched as the confession took ce. Ever since their first year as high school students, Bishop and Lufine had be close friends. But what Lufine didn''t know was that Bishop liked him ever since, and he was just slowly building his way to a confession.

    Bishop felt a tug at his heart when he saw Lufine cry. Mustering his courage, he walked up to Lufine handing her a handkerchief. "Stop crying, you didn''t deserve him anyway. He''s sick. He should''ve told you he was engaged. Anyone would misunderstand his flirting." Bishop let out. "That kind of guy doesn''t deserve your tears. Get up."

    Before Arcane Bishop could say another word, he heard augh a couple of meters away. Since his enhanced senses were always activated, he recognized the voice, which belonged to the guy that dumped Lufine.

    Using his superpower, he teleported to a nearby shadow. There, he saw the guy meet up with his peers. He wasughing his heart out.

    "And I won the bet. See? I told you she''ll fall for it." The guy confidently said as he puffed his chest out.

    "Hah~ she even believed your lie of being engaged. HAHA!"

    "Here you go, five thousand yen."

    "Sigh~ here you go, five thousand yen."

    "Sweet!" The guy eximed.

    At that point, Bishop''s eyes dimmed, and he charged at the guy without reprieve. He punched him straight in the face, and before the guy could activate his superpower, he shot a dark energy beam at both his shoulders. Now he couldn''t move any of his arms.

    "What did you just say?" Bishop asked as he punched the guy a couple of times in the face. He meant every punch he unleashed, and pretty soon, the guy was beaten up to a pulp. His friends didn''t bother jumping in for fear that they might get in trouble as well.

    Once the confrontation was done, Bishop got up, dusted himself, and wiped the blood off his fist. He walked towards Lufine, who was watching from afar. Just like Bishop, she overheard what the guy just said. She couldn''t believe that she fell for a crappy guy like him.

    "Come on, let''s head to the cafeteria. Lunch''s on me." Bishop offered, grabbing Lufine by the hand and dragging her out of there.

 Chapter 437 Dark Matter And Light Wingâ€™s Backstory II

    Wearing a poker face that hid every ounce of his feelings from Lufine, Bishop turned away, averting his gaze as the two of them headed to the cafeteria. He was still holding her hand, and at this point, he didn''t want to let go.

    ''Her hands are so soft!'' He screamed in his mind as his face reddened a little bit.

    Once they got to the cafeteria, Bishop couldn''t contain his embarrassment any longer, and he naturally let go of Lufine''s hand just when they were about to choose from the menu. She ordered a box of fried chicken, and Bishop ordered a curry for himself.

    Sniffling, Lufine tearfully ate every fried chicken she had. After finishing everything, she ordered another box of chicken and ate it whole herself. Bishop couldn''t help butugh inwardly as he watched the hrious Lufine stress eating. It was like watching something do a mukbang after a breakup.

    "You''reughing, aren''t you?" Lufine sniffed, pointing a drumstick at Bishop who was doing all he could to suppress hisughter.

    Without warning, Bishop took a bite off the drumstick and he denied Lufine''s allegations. "I''m not even¡ª I wasn''t even smiling." Bishop defended himself.

    "No, you''reughing. In your mind." Lufine was convinced that Bishop was making fun of her in his thoughts. They''d been friends for so long, and he knew just what tickled Bishop''s funny bone.

    This was the first time Lufine mustered all her courage to confess to someone, and she was instantly shot down. When she put herself in Bishop''s shoes, he couldn''t help but find the situationughable as well. After all, she knew that Bishop witnessed the entire exchange.

    Anyone who saw something so embarrassing wouldugh their hearts out, no questions asked.

    "No, you wereughing. See? Your lips are curving upward. Stop denying it." Lufine pouted as she bashfully turned her head away. "But still..."

    Bishop leaned in closer since Lufine seemed like she was about to say something important. Her face reddened a little bit, and he knew that whatever Lufine was about to say, she was just going to say it once.

    With minimal movements, Bishop reached into his pockets and rummaged for his phone. He almost dropped it in the process, but fortunately, he managed to get ahold of it. While focusing on Lufine, he blindly navigated through his phone lock and his apps.

    "T-thank you, Bishop... you... you were pretty cool back there." Lufine twirled a finger on her hair as she spoke.

    A split secondter, though, her expression shifted into embarrassment and she continued eating the rest of the chicken she had. However, Bishop wasn''t satisfied. He leaned forward and spoke. "I didn''t hear what you said. Can you say it again?" He asked.

    His conniving smile led Lufine to believe that he was up to something, so she turned her head away. "I''m not repeating it. You''re just going to tease me."

    "Come on, please? I really didn''t hear it." Bishop raised his right hand as if he was saying an oath. He wanted to convince Lufine that he really didn''t hear a word she said.

    Lufine wasn''t having it though. She knew that her voice was loud enough and Bishop heard it clearly.

    After a couple of seconds, Bishop leaned back and continued eating the curry he ordered. "Well, if you''re not going to repeat it... then I''m going to make you repeat it." Bishop spoke calmly as if he really had the power to make Lufine repeat what she just said.

    "I''m not going to repeat it. And you can''t make me." Lufine returned, swinging a drumstick around as if it was her very own makeshift weapon.

    "What, you didn''t know? I have the power to make you repeat what you said." Bishop continued.

    "Don''t be ridiculous. I know what your superpower is. You don''t have any mind control abilities. If you did, you''d have used it in the past." Lufine brushed off Bishop''s statement as if it was irrelevant.

    As if on cue, Bishop wore a smirk as he raised his phone up. "Who said I don''t?"

    With one press of a button, he yed the recording of Lufine, putting it on a loop to further embarrass her.

    [T-thank you, Bishop... you... you were pretty cool back there.]

    [T-thank you, Bishop... you... you were pretty cool back there.]

    [Thank you¡ª ]

    Hearing the recording, Lufine almost fumed as she dove forward and tried to reach for Bishop''s cell phone. However, Bishop was quick to react, and he managed to retract his hand before Lufine could reach it. Lufine growled, and she ran around the table in order to pin Bishop and confiscate his cell phone.

    "Give it!" Lufine hissed since she didn''t want to cause amotion. If there were only two of them in the area, then she''d have screamed her lungs out right then and there.

    Bishop let out augh, and with his quick reflexes, he swung his hands around so Lufine won''t be able to reach it. He was relieved that the n worked, and he was able to distract Lufine from her heartbreak. Then again, there was no way he was going to delete that recording of hers. He had already saved it online, just in case Lufine managed to grab his phone and delete it.

    After all, his phone password was Lufine''s birth date, and it would be easy to guess should Lufine get ahold of it.

    "Delete it!" Lufine hissed a second time.

    This time, she managed to grab Bishop''s phone, but then she realized that she didn''t know Bishop''s password. She tantly asked for it with a smile on her face.

    m!

    The doors to the cafeteria swung open and in came the man that dumped Lufine along with his friends. His face was swollen in all the wrong ces, and there were welts on his head. His nose also bled due to Bishop''s punches.

    "BISHOP!" He screamed as soon as he entered the cafeteria.

    Thompson, the student who got beat up by Bishop, was pretty popr, and his superpower was one of the best as well. He was an honor student, and his reputation was solid in front of the teachers. However, no one knew that he and his gang were actually troublemakers, and now his true colors were starting to show.

    White goo covered his arm, and he reached out to Bishop as soon as he was within arm''s reach. Fortunately, Bishop was quick enough to act, and he dodged the grip in the nick of time. Simultaneously, he grabbed Lufine into a princess carry and jumped out of the way, setting her down before he engaged Thompson inbat.

    "Look at him, ying the hero," Thompson said, gritting his teeth. No one messes with him, and whoever did it would pay a hundredfold.

    The once peaceful cafeteria filled with students turned into pandemonium as students got out of the way and those behind the counter ducked for cover. Students near the entrance to the cafeteria got out of there in a sh since they didn''t want to deal with Thompson once he activated his superpower.

    His superpower, Goo Armor, gave him the ability to summon an entity which was called White Goo. This goo could cover his entire body, providing him with armor and enhanced senses, as well as near indestructible skin. It was a superpower that excelled both in defense and offense.

    "I don''t want to fight, Thompson," Bishop called out, slowly backing away while Thompson approached him.

    At this point, he had fully activated his superpower. His entire body was now covered with the white goo, and his voice became deeper, more muffled since he was speaking through the goo.

    "You started this, Bishop." He called out. He remembered his trip to the nurse''s office and how he was warned by the superhero Nurse herself to not get into fights. However, he wouldn''t be able to rest easy, fully knowing that a student got the better of him.

    He had no choice but to engage Bishop inbat. This was for his pride as a man and as a superhero.

    "Then let''s finish this," Bishop called out.

    At this point, he didn''t care anymore. He was going to use his full power against Thompson because he knew that he would do the same. As a man, and as an uing superhero, Bishop couldn''t just back down from the fight as well.

    Besides, Lufine was watching. He couldn''t show his bad side in front of her.

    A dark orb appeared on Bishop''s hand, and he shot a couple of them at Thompson. As for Thompson, he mercilessly charged at Bishop, pping his dark orbs away since his armor could repel them.

    Bishop didn''t stop attacking.

    And Thompson didn''t stop with his charge.

    "GRAGGHH!"

    "AAGHHH!!!"

    As the two of them faced each other, throwing a punch right at each other''s faces, a figure appeared in front of them, smacking both of them on the head.

    WHACK!

    "If you''re going to fight like kids, then don''t do it in the cafeteria. We have the coliseum beside the school. I''ll dly officiate the match if you''re going to be hell-bent on taking on each other."

    The person who stopped them was none other than Principal Sai Tama. Upon hearing the details of themotion, he personally stepped in to stop the ruckus.

 Chapter 438 Two Minutes And Swap

    With their third loss, Arcane Bishop somehow recalled the memories they had a couple of years back when they were still first years. He felt nostalgic as he nced at Lufine who was still greatly affected by their third loss.

    A smile appeared on Bishop''s face as he realized just how far they''de. Of course, it had only been two years since they were first years. How could they expect to win against them most of the time when their age gap was this close?

    Seeing Bishop smile confused Lufine a little bit. How could he smile so genuinely like that after they lost big time?

    Then again, Lufine assumed Bishop didn''t feel that bad about their loss because she was the sole reason for their defeat. If she didn''t temporarily blind Bishop like that, then they''d have a greater chance at winning. But

    now, they lost, and it was her fault.

    "I''m sorry." Lufine pursed her lips as she apologized. She knew that he wouldn''t me her for her mistake. However, she couldn''t help but put the me on her because of what happened.

    "What do you mean?" Bishop asked. It was both their fault that they lost, so why was she ming herself? "Don''t worry about it. We lost because they were pretty good. We underestimated them, that''s why we lost."\

    There was no time to contemte their incapabilities though since the third round was bound to start. This time, they were going to fight the Jonathan and Kurogami pair. At this point, they already made the effort to research what superpower they have.

    Furthermore, they need a n in order to get the upper hand. There was no way they''d let a bunch of first-years defeat them for the third time.

    For Kurayami Kurogami, they were aware that his power was just like Arcane Bishop''s, except he was more offensive and he had more control. If it were a one-on-one battle, Bishop knew that he would lose against him. However, this was a tag team and there were two of them.

    The one thing that they were wary of was Jonathan. Not only was his superpower not registered in the Superheroes Association Organization, but they also had no idea what his fighting style was. Then again, they were aware that his superpower was somewhat simr to Emma Leisenberg''s¡ª teleportation.

    "We just need to deal with Jonathan. As for Kurogami, I''ll do my best to go head-to-head with him. We''re going to win this." Bishop whispered at Lufine, to which Lufine nodded in response.

    "All right, I got your back, Bishop." Lufine returned with renewed determination.

    Jonathan and Kurogami stepped forward. Compared to the first three teams, they were as calm as ake. It''s as if they knew that they were going to win this round just like the first three teams who bullied the fourth-years.

    "I give you two minutes. You defeat them. If you can''t, then I''m stepping forward." Jonathan whispered to Kurogami.

    "Sure. I''ll defeat them before the two minutes are up." Kurogami dered. There was no way Dark Matter could win against him. And even though Lufine had an advantage over his superpower, he could pull his own weight against her.

    Tension began to rise up as the scenario of the match was being decided. Knighthawk gave Dark Matter and Light Wing a raised eyebrow since they were getting bullied by a bunch of first years. They had lost three times in a row when they were supposed to win three times

    This time, instead of reacting negatively about it, Dark Matter just shrugged his shoulder before nudging at Light Wing. It''s as if he had epted his three consecutive losses and was now looking forward to the next match.

    "Then, let''s roll the dice, what would it be, this time?" Knighthawk announced as theputer picked a random scenario for the next match.

    One versus one.

    "It''s a one versus one!" Knighthawk raised his voice as he pumped a fist in the air. "Whenever heroes and viins fight, a one versus one is the mostmon scenario. Sometimes, a viin would challenge a hero for revenge, or sometimes a hero would challenge a viin to get his point across. In any case, this is the mostmon trope in heroes versus viins."

    "Now, pick your order, and proceed to the clearing in the middle of the arena." Upon saying that, Knighthawk then turned towards his ss. "Follow me, we''re going to watch this fight from the sidelines."

    "Two minutes, all right. If you can''t defeat him in two minutes, you have to surrender the match." Jonathan told Kurogami. He then extended his hand so Kurogami would shake it.

    At first, Kurogami hesitated since he had no idea whether he could defeat one of them in two minutes. But after a few seconds of contemtion, he reaffirmed his determination and shook Jonathan''s hand. "If I don''t defeat one of them in two minutes, I''m going to surrender. A man never backs down on his word."

    "Well said," Jonathan said.

    Everyone watched this exchange, and they couldn''t help but be surprised at their friendship. This was the first time the two of them met, and yet it seemed like they were close friends already who had known each other for years.

    Kurogami smiled and shook Jonathan''s hand. He then turned to Knighthawk and announced that he was going first.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    There was no backing down now.

    Since their interaction happened while they were walking towards the clearing, Dark Matter and Light Wing also heard it. They were a bit offended that the two of them were making a bet with each other, which implied that they weren''t taking the fight seriously.

    "I''m going first," Dark Matter said with a tense expression on his face. If they weren''t going to take it seriously, then he''d be the one to do the job. After all, there was no way he''d miss the opportunity to win the fourth match.

    While it appeared that he was taking advantage of the situation, he couldn''t care less. They needed a win no matter what, and if this was what it took to win, then he was going to take the chance.

    "No, I''m going first. His element is the opposite of mine. I''ll just stall for time until he gives up. I''m one hundred percent sure that he won''t even get near me." Light Wing called out.

    Quite frankly, she was willing to go first since it would be aplete win for him. Besides, she badly wanted to make up for her mistake in the previous match.

    "All right then, if that''s what you want. Give us the first win, all right?" Dark Matter cheered as he patted Light Wing on the shoulder.

    Kurogami and Light Wing walked towards the clearing.

    And as usual, it was Knighthawk who officiated the match as a stand-in referee. "Ehrmm, I''m not going to repeat the rules. If one side is unable to battle, or if one side surrenders, then the match is over. It''s as simple as that."

    Kurogami and Light Wing put up their hands in a fighting stance as Knightawk raised his hand. He was about to give the signal.

    "Ready... start!"

    When the signal was issued, Light Wing produced an intense sh of light that filled the entire clearing. Kurogami impulsively raised his hand in a poor attempt to block his sight against the brightness.

    As someone who dwells in the shadow, he was extremely sensitive to light. That''s why all he could do was block the light while he was pushed back due to the brightness.

    "Aghk~!" Kurogami screamed but there was nothing he could do about it. Before he waspletely pushed out of bounds, he removed his shirt and wrapped it around his eyes. This will help block most of the illumination, and it will give him a better chance at winning.

    All this time, Kurogami was keeping track of the time in his head. A minute had passed.

    Now that he was a bit resistant to light, he walked towards Light Wing, who gave off an even better brighter light out of desperation. Kurogami felt like his eyes were going to bleed but he kept on.

    With every step, he got nearer and nearer. And after fifty seconds, he was now in front of Light Wing. Of course, since Light Wing was too focused on shining an intensely bright light at Kurogami, she couldn''t move an inch. One minimal movement is all it takes for her to lose concentration.

    Fifty-five seconds.

    Kurogami was finally within arm''s reach of Light Wing. With one final push, he closed the distance and grabbed Light Wing by the neck. Light Wing choked, but that didn''t stop her from shining down on Kurogami.

    Two minutes.

    With a sigh, Kurogami let go of the grip, and he raised his hand as he turned towards the audience. "Two minutes had passed. I surrender." He announced.

    It was clear that he was going to win if he had given himself ten or fifteen more seconds. But then again, he didn''t want to back down on his word, so he surrendered when he couldn''t do the job in under two minutes.

    Jonathan smiled as he walked towards the stage. "I thought you were going to extend your time. I''ll take it from here." Jonathan continued.

    But before he could take a step inside the stage, Dark Matter moved forward and swapped with Light Wing. "You''re going to fight me. I''m swapping with Light Wing. You can fight her after you defeat me." He dered, assuming his position on the stage.

    "Either way, it doesn''t matter. I''m going to win." Jonathan confidently spoke.

 Chapter 439 Knocked Down And Out

    The rules specified that as long as an opponent wasn''t knocked out or didn''t surrender, he could swap out with his teammate and still fight in the next match. It was like a tamed beast battle, and Dark Matter decided to use that rule in order to gain an advantage against Jonathan and Kurogami.

    At first, he thought that Kuorgami was going to win since he managed to grab Light Wing by the neck. However, to his surprise, Kurogami really did drop out of the match as soon as the two minutes were up. He could''ve swapped with Jonathan just like Dark Matter did... but he didn''t.

    He was a man of his word. He said he was going to surrender the match when he couldn''t defeat Light Wing in two minutes. And that''s what he did.

    "You''re going to fight me. I''m swapping with Light Wing. You can fight her after you defeat me."

    "It doesn''t matter. I''m going to win anyway."

    Upon saying that, Jonathan also assumed a fighting stance as he and Dark Matter stared at each other.

    Things were heating up, and the entire ss 3-1 couldn''t help but feel the heavy atmosphere that befell the arena. They were about to witness a legendary match, and it excited them a little bit.

    Knighthawk didn''t want to postpone the match any longer. Without further ado, he walked forward and raised his hand, giving the signal that the match had started. "Start!" He screamed.

    Dark Matter didn''t waste any time teleporting to Jonathan''s shadow. As he was in the middle of that, he threw a punch, aiming at Jonathan''s lower back. If the punch were to hit, he''d have knocked the breath out of Jonathan''s lungs.

    It was the perfect n, and Dark Matter had pulled it off plenty of times in the field. There was no way he was going to fail now.

    The teleportation was sessful, and he unleashed the punch at Jonathan''s back. To his surprise, Jonathan didn''t move at all. It''s as if he was expecting Dark Matter to sneak behind him, and he was ready for it.

    Jonathan''s weird response made Dark Matter rethink his attack. However, he still went through with it, thinking that Jonathan was just bluffing.

    Well, Jonathan wasn''t bluffing at all. Before Dark Matter could touch Jonathan, Jonathan put up a portal on his back, leading straight to Dark Matter''s jaw.

    Pwe~

    Dark Matter looked like a fool as he punched himself. The punch connected to his jaw, and he almost knocked himself out.

    "You!" Dark Matter forced a smile on his face. He waspletely fooled by Jonathan''s trickery. And he could only me himself for punching himself.

    Without further ado, Dark Matter stepped back and prepared a dark orb in his hand. As long as he kept his distance, he could shoot at Jonathan without worrying about getting hit himself. For the new n, he was going to keep his distance and use his superpower to his advantage.

    Once again, Jonathan saw through his actions, and he activated his second superpower.

    Superpower Nullification.

    Dark Matter''s lips curved into a smile as the dark orb in his hand grew in size. But before he could propel it at Jonathan, it vanished into thin air. Utter shock was written on Dark Matter''s face as he tried to activate his superpowers but to no avail.

    Somehow, his superpower just didn''t want to cooperate, and he couldn''t use it anymore. "What''s going on?" Dark Matter asked himself. For the third time, he tried to manifest a dark orb on his hand, he then tried to create a dark beam. But nothing happened.

    This time, it was Jonathan who smiled, and he approached Dark Matter while clutching his fists.

    "What are you doing, Bishop?" Light Wing asked from the sidelines since she could tell that something was wrong.

    As soon as Jonathan was within arm''s reach, he threw a hook, and Dark Matter barely dodged it. Jonathan brought his body forward, lowering his point of bnce and throwing another hook. This time, the hooknded squarely on Dark Matter''s obliques.

    Dark Matter grunted in pain.

    As someone who had ackluster superpower, Dark Matter trained his body in order to keep up with criminals who are better than him. However, he didn''t focus that much in physical training, that''s why in terms of pure raw power and strength, Jonathan had the upper hand.

    Since his superpower was not working, and Jonathan was challenging him to a physical match, he decided to go head-to-head with him. Pretty soon, Dark Matter raised his fists up in a guard position as he inched closer toward Jonathan.

    Jonathan didn''t challenge him to a boxing match though. Before Dark Matter could react, Jonathan lunged forward and grabbed him by the head, he then curled his body forward and nted a knee right on Dark Matter''s face.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Of course, his knee easily slipped through Dark Matter''s guard, breaking his nose. Jonathan caught Dark Matter by surprise, causing him to stagger as he held his broken nose.

    Even with his pitiable state, Jonathan didn''t give Dark Matter a single break. He nted his feet on the ground and turned around. The momentum enabled him to execute a perfect roundhouse kick, and he hit Dark Matter on the temple.

    The attack was perfect, and Dark Matter was knocked out in an instant. He fell on the ground as his eyes rolled back and only the whites could be seen.

    To add salt to the wound, Jonathan bowed down at Dark Matter''s unconscious body before returning to the center of the arena. He eyed Light Wing who was preparing to go inside the arena.

    "Winner, Jonathan!" Knighthawk called out as the personnel of the Concrete Arena rushed in to get Jonathan out of the way.

    They sent him straight to the Nurse who was idling around in the clinic. There, she was watching the live stream of the match, and she was prepared for the confinement of Dark Matter.

    Hic~

    Hic~

    Due to nervousness, Light Wing developed a fit of hups as she slowly stepped into the arena, shaking in her boots. She had no idea what happened to Dark Matter. Also, she didn''t want to find out what happened. She was going to fight as much as she could, but she knew she couldn''t win against the person in front of her.

    She may be a fourth-year, but Jonathan was scary enough for her despite being a first-year.

    "Match start!" Knighthawk announced before Light Wing could mentally prepare herself for the match.

    She looked at Jonathan with sheer terror written on her face. Without thinking twice, she held her hand up, and she tried to use his superpower on Jonathan.

    To her despair, her superpower didn''t work. Now, she confirmed that the deactivation of their superpower was all because of Jonathan. Her pupils dted as she watched Jonathan approach. She had no idea what Jonathan was about to do, so she froze in ce.

    For the first time ever since she became a professional superhero, she felt despair. Fear had ovee her, and she couldn''t budge an inch from where she stood. In her mind, she screamed at herself to move, but her body didn''t listen.

    Jonathan grabbed her by the hand. "Come on." He calmly said as if that was the most normal thing to do at his opponent.

    Since Light Wing was afraid of Jonathan, she meekly followed her. However, when he held her hand, she felt as if her heartstrings were tugged. Her face reddened as her feet finally moved. Jonathan continued to walk away as he clutched Light Wing''s hand.

    "Eh?!" Light Wing let out a single exmation, surprised at Jonathan''s assertiveness. This was the first time someone grabbed her by the hand like that, and it felt nice.

    Light Wing didn''t feel any pressure emanating from Jonathan, so she figured that Jonathan wasn''t going to attack her. In turn, she hung her head down as she tried to hide her embarrassment. She realized that holding hands with someone is embarrassing.

    "I don''t have a phone. But I''m going to get one. Until then, hold onto your contact info for me." Jonathan coolly said as he gently led Light Wing to the sidelines.

    Honestly, Jonathan was attracted to Light Wing the moment he first noticed her. That''s why he made a move on her when they finally met in the arena.

    And honestly, Light Wing found Jonathan''s assertiveness attractive. She nodded her head after she was asked to give him her contact number in the future.

    Once they reached the edge of the arena, Jonathan gently nudged at her, pushing her out of bounds. "I''ll contact you." He called out, shing a smile at Light Wing.

    Once again, Light Wing hung her head down. It didn''t even ur to her that everyone was watching their entire exchange.

    In the background, Satoshi and all the guys were furiously taking notes. Jonathan was as smooth as butter when he talked to Light Wing. They made a mental note to ask Jonathan for rtionship advice as soon as their sses were done for the day.

    With that, the fourth-years experienced their fourth loss.

    And Light Wing wasn''t evenining.

 Chapter 440 Hide And Seek

    For the fifth round, Kana Kuroe and Sakura Cherry teamed up against Arcane Bishop and Alliya Lufine. Since the first four groups managed to win against the fourth-years, Cherry and Kuroe felt needless pressure as they stepped forward.

    The two of them couldn''t help but steal nces at their ssmates who made the exercise especially difficult for them. Now they had to step up to the te and try to win as well.

    "I got you, Cherry," Kuroe whispered even though she was also not sure whether they''d survive the match or not. In a way, she wanted to reassure herself by telling Cherry that she''s got her back.

    "We can do this." Cherry clenched her fists. If it came down to it, she would just use her superpower and drain the two of them of their life energy. Her superpower was dangerous, but she was willing to use it if driven into a corner.

    Dark Matter and Light Wing were already down in the dumps. If thisst team could defeat them in thisst match, then that would prove their inferiority to the first years. They didn''t want that to happen, that''s why they were so desperate for a win this time around.

    "All right, if both sides are ready, then we''re going to pick the scenario¡ª" Knighthawk was getting tired of all the results. It should''ve been a one-sided beating in the favor of fourth-years instead of the other way around. Right now, he just wanted to get this over with and move on to their next ss.

    "Since this is thest one, let me pick the scenario," Knighthawk said, thinking that he could unknowingly give the fourth years an advantage so they could at least win once. Quite frankly, it was an underhanded tactic, but Knighthawk didn''t care.

    "The fifth scenario for today is... hide and seek. The location would be the destroyed building in the middle of the arena." Knighthawk exined. "The hiders would be given two minutes to hide wherever they want, and the seekers would be given ten minutes to look for them."

    Knighthawk made a bold risk. He purposefully gave the seekers ten minutes so the hiders would lose. "The hiders would be... Cherry and Kuroe... and the seekers would be Bishop and Lufine." Knighthawk announced.

    Before anyone couldin about his decisions, Knighthawk raised his voice and continued speaking. "Both sides at the ready. As soon as I gave the go signal, the hiders would go in and hide. Bot sides at the ready... Go!"

    Satoshi and the others stared at Knighthawk as if they were looking at a criminal caught red-handed. They immediately realized what Knighthawk was trying to do, and they couldn''t believe he had the audacity to pull something like that. In any case, at least he didn''t tantly put Cherry and Kuroe at an absolute disadvantage.

    Then again, hindering them like that was really plucky of him.

    "Ten minutes? This is ridiculous." Hiroshi hissed as he expressed his displeasure. They could tell that Knighthawk wasn''t pulling any punches anymore, and his purpose for this exercise clearly showed.

    "Yes, but knowing Cherry and Kuroe, I know they can win this. Let''s just hope that Cherry would rely on her other personality. It would be a clear win for them if she did." Kurogamimented. "In any case, that was a great match, Jonathan, it seems like I have a lot to learn from you."

    In response, Jonathan puffed his chest as he patted Kurogami on the back. "You did great, you were really a man of your word. And for that, I salute you. Anyway, what do you mean by her other personality? Does she have dissociative identity disorder?"

    Everyone in the ss nodded, much to everyone''s surprise.

    "Apparently, she had an ident of her superpower going out of control when she was a kid. She almost killed someone... or did she kill someone?" Kurogami asked, to which everyone shrugged in response.

    They didn''t want to talk about it.

    "I see. Wow... I guess I''m not the only one who¡ª never mind." Jonathan mumbled to himself. "What is her superpower anyways?"

    "She can manipte life energy," Shiroi replied. Up until this time, she would asionally nce at Fuuka who was sticking close to Satoshi.

    Fuuka didn''t notice her though. She was too focused on Satoshi that she didn''t notice Emma nor Shiroi stealing nces at him.

    "Life energy? So she could technically... suck the life out of you?" Jonathan asked.

    "Absorb. Absorb the life out of you. Don''t say something like that, Jonathan." Hiroshi lightly told him off.

    In all honesty, though, Jonathan had no idea that what he said was inappropriate. Back in his home, the expression meant something different. On Earth, it had a different meaning.

    "That''s a pretty neat superpower. Her touch is literally deadly." Jonathanmented.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    A minuteter, just when Cherry and Kuroe were looking for a ce to hide, Midori returned to the group. He was walking slowly, and his usual energy wasn''t there. This was the first time they saw Midori in such a sorry state, but they weren''tining since he was unusually rtively quietpared to his usual self.

    "What did I miss?" He asked, sitting down as he heaved a sigh. The treatmentsted longer than he had thought. Fortunately, though, there wasn''t anything life-threatening in his injuries. He was discharged as soon as he regained a little bit of energy.

    Everyone briefed him about what happened so far. He was surprised that he didn''t miss a lot of happenings.

    ...

    Currently, Cherry and Kuroe were having a hard time looking for a suitable hiding spot. They''ve scoured the entire ce with the help of Kuroe''s psychic superpower and they still couldn''t find a good ce. They were aware of Bishop and Lufine''s detection skills. And they knew that they wouldn''tst ten minutes during this hide-and-seek.

    "What do you think? Should we just give up?" Kuroe asked Cherry, who was on the verge of panicking.

    While the clock ticked, her expression turned worse. The pressure they both felt was eating away at them. They couldn''t afford to lose no matter what.

    Suddenly, on the verge of her breaking point, Cherry had no choice but to rely on her other self. In a split second, Cherry fainted, and Sassu took over her body.

    As soon as she closed her eyes, a faint smile appeared on her face, and she turned to Kuroe with an aura of confidence in her. "You, you can read minds, right? Are you thinking what I''m thinking?" She asked.

    Kuroe nodded her head. To think that there was a simple solution to their current predicament. They were too panicked that they weren''t even thinking properly. "Yes, that would work. Sassu, you''re a genius! Who would''ve thought that we can do something like that!"

    Sassu almost flinched in front of Kuroe. Up until now, she had witnessed Kuroe''s mind-reading skills and psychic abilities. She still hadn''t gotten used to it though.

    "All right. We should get on with it. We only have thirty seconds left."

    Without further ado, the two of them headed towards a more conspicuous spot, and then they gave each other a high-five. This was going to be a foolproof n, and there was no way Bishop and Lufine would be able to find them.

    Time''s up!

    As usual, Bishop and Lufine didn''t know what to expect. But then again, they were aware of their superpower so they wouldn''t be taken by surprise. Whatever they did, they''ll be able to find them since their detection skills were top-notch. There was no way that a bunch of amateurs could hide from them.

    They were undercover superheroes. It was their job to infiltrate and smoke out criminals hiding in shady ces. This was the perfect scenario for them.

    Even though they felt guilty since Knighthawk gave them an advantage, they were willing to go through with it. They have to win no matter what.

    And this time, they were going to win.

    Confidence welled up within the two as their ten minutesmenced. They have plenty of time to look for the hiders, and not only that, there was no way Cherry and Kuroe could hide from their detection skills. No matter where they hid inside or outside the building, they wouldn''t get away.

    "Let''s go, Lufine," Bishop wore a serious expression as the two of them used their detection skills.

    First, they scanned the entire arena to check whether the two were outside. They didn''t detect any lifeforms outside. This meant that they''d need to look for the two inside the destroyed building.

    Smiling, the two of them checked the interior of the building, scanning every floor with their detection skill. Their brows scrunched up as they checked every floor.

    Once they reached the top floor, they were bbergasted. They didn''t detect a single person in there!

    "What on... where exactly did they hide? Are they cheating?!" Bishop asked. He was on the verge of losing hisposure.

 Chapter 441 Clean Streak

    Cherry and Kuroe held their breaths as Bishop and Lufine passed by. This was the turning point of their n. Due to her anxiousness, Cherry almost gasped in shock, but fortunately, Sassu took over her body once again and she was able to remain herposure at thest second.

    Kuroe heaved a sigh of relief. For a moment back there, he thought that Cherry might give away their location. They were hidden pretty well, sure, but a brief spike in emotions or a sudden noise is bound to give away their location.

    "That was close, am I right?" Sassu teased, nudging at Kuroe who was sitting right beside her.

    "Don''t move too much. I''m trying as hard as I could... to think that I have to do this for ten minutes." Kuroe hissed as sweat trickled on her forehead. She was having a hard time keeping her superpower in control, and Cherry was not helping since she was pestering her.

    "Come on, if you have the energy to snap at me like that, then surely you have more energy in reserve."

    "I don''t. I''m barely keeping it together as it is." Kuroe answered back. And he was.

    Meanwhile, Bishop and Lufine passed by a second time as they patrolled around the dpidated building. They still wore their usual confident expression since their detection skills were iparable to a majority of superheroes out there.

    They just need a split second. Once they detected their presence, they would immediately teleport toward them and catch them off-guard. It was do or die for the two because this was thest match. They have to win no matter what. Otherwise, they will lose face in front of all the fourth-years they represented.

    Honestly, Dark Matter and Light Wing weren''t really renowned superheroes back in their earlier years. It was only in their fourth year when they began to shine. Then again, they have severepetition in the world of superstar superheroes, so they chose to be undercover superheroes instead.

    Not a lot of superheroes prefer to be in the shadows. They''d rather be in public saving the day than dwelling in the dark where their deeds go unnoticed. This gave Dark Matter and Light Wing the edge and it didn''t take long before they became one of the few undercover superheroes who had a pretty high sess rate in their mission.

    Right now, they were reminded of the past. And they couldn''t help but recall their actual ranking when ced beside renowned superheroes. It was because their deeds go under the radar that they could continue being mysterious. But if they were in public, there was no way they could go head-to-head with a lot of superheroes.

    After the second round, they smiled at each other, thinking that they''d caught Cherry and Kuroe now. Since they couldn''t detect them outside, they decided to scour the entire building. They just need one chance to get them. Just one chance.

    Cherry and Kuroe held their breaths for a second time as Bishop and Lufine approached the entrance. They were right there! Sitting beside the door like rats hiding from a feral cat. They covered their mouths and eased their heartbeats while their eyes were fixated on Bishop and Lufine.

    One wrong move and their location would be exposed.

    Fortunately, Sassu''s intricate control over Cherry''s superpower gave them the advantage. With her precise output, she was able to change the life energy around her,pletely blocking Bishop and Lufine''s detection skill.

    After all, how could they detect two people when they were technically not there? Sassu made sure that she hid her and Kuroe''s life energy from the two, and she did it expertly. Whenever Bishop and Lufine scanned their general area, they couldn''t see anything.

    "They''re not here, where did they go?" Bishop asked, turning to Lufine with a slightly worried expression on his face. Right now, he felt a tad bit concerned that they hadn''t detected the two. They''d already scanned the outside twice, and now they''ve scanned the first few floors of the dpidated building and there were still no signs of them.

    "They should be here. We scanned the outside, and they weren''t there. Unless they were hiding somece else... this is thest ce they''ll be." Lufine assured her teammate.

    Kuroe''s jaw dropped as he read Lufine''s mind. She was acting concerned and her face showed an expression of anxiousness and worry. However, it was just a front.

    In truth, she was actually thinking about Jonathan. She was thinking about how assertive he was, asking for her number and grabbing her by the hand like that. In her mind, she was squealing. That was the first time someone treated her like that and it really shot her through the heart.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "What the¡ª" Kuroe wanted to blurt out a bad word but she realized that this was for the general audience. Usage of bad words was limited in this novel so she swallowed her words and shook her head instead. She couldn''t believe that Jonathan''s tactic worked, and he was able to attract Lufine''s attention like that.

    As for Bishop, his thoughts were a different matter altogether. He was thinking about Lufine. Everything in his mind was filled with Lufine and how he liked her. There were a hundred or so confession scenarios in his brain and he was still trying to choose which one to use.

    Here and there, the thought of the heroes versus viins exercise would pop up in Bishop''s head, and he would think about the first four losses they experienced. He would then think about the past, and then his thoughts would wander to Lufine again. It was a vicious cycle, and Kuroe wanted no part of it.

    "Kuroe, focus!" Sassu muttered. At the moment, she was still in control, and Cherry was cheering in the backlines. She was now the subconscious instead of the other way around.

    "I am focusing. It''s just that their thoughts are kind of distracting." Kuroeined.

    One might think that Cherry and Kuroe were sitting out in the open and technically they were. Their exact spot was right beside the entrance to the building. To the naked eye, one could see that they were just idling by where they were but for some odd reason... Bishop and Lufine couldn''t see them.

    Even the drones and camera who were closely watching the entire time, while producing a live feed outside, showed that Kuroe and Cherry were really just sitting there. As for the audience who were keenly watching the stream, they couldn''t help but watch the entire thing with growing frustration in their mind.

    Cherry and Kuroe were right there! Howe Bishop and Lufine were oblivious to them? It''s as if they''ve be ghosts themselves!

    Just watching the live stream made Knighthawk furious, and he wanted to tear his clothes and scream at the two fourth-years who looked so stupid right now. They did two rounds outside and yet they didn''t see the two inside. They spent quite some time on the first floor of the building... and they didn''t even see them!

    If it were only allowed, Knighthawk would''ve given them a good p on their faces due to how idiotic they appeared.

    "Sassu... er, I mean... Cherry is using her superpower to hide their life energy. That means they couldn''t be detected by unconventional means like signal, thermal, and night vision. As for Kuroe, she''s responsible for tricking Bishop and Lufine. With her psychic skills, she put up and maintained a barrier around them that formed some sort of illusion." Satoshi began exining.

    Hiroshi and all his ssmates turned towards him as he continued exining. "Since we''re watching through the cameras, and since Kuroe isn''t directing her superpower at us, we can see them clearly. But for Bishop and Lufine, they''re practically invisible. To think that they were able tobine their superpower like that. This is awesome." Satoshi excitedly muttered to himself.

    Everyone thought that he was talking to them. But quite frankly, Satoshi was talking to himself. It was his ownmentary, a monologue that reflected his inner passion when ites to superpowers.

    "Still, that would take precise usage of their skill, right? If they were really doing that, then they have to be in sync. Not only that, they had to be constantly aware of the fluctuations and all the other external things thate into y. For example, wind pressure, dust particles, and even their own breathing." Hiroshi exined.

    He too was a great fan of superpowers, and when ites to nerdy stuff like this, he could finally go head-to-head with Satoshi after months of careful research and exposure to superhero stuff online.

    "Kuroe could read minds, right? She''s in sync with Cherry''s mind because she''s technically in her mind." Satoshi continued exining.

    At this point, Knighthawk gritted his teeth in frustration. Time was almost up, and Bishop and Lufine still had no idea where Cherry and Kuroe were. Even though they were right there!

    Another loss. A clean win streak for the entire ss 3-1.

 Chapter 442 First Day Of School

    Last night,

    "You passed the exam?!" Joseph Schwarz eximed.

    It was the night after the exhibition matches in the United Superheroes Academy were over. At first, Lydia was still unsure whether she passed the exam or not. However, she received confirmation that night and she was over the moon.

    Then again, it was a given that she would pass the exam. It''s just that, she thought too low of herself and assumed that there was a possibility of failure. Even her dad who was calling her right now knew that she would ace the exam. Not once did he doubt his daughter''s performance.

    "That''s good. Wait til your mum hears about this. She always wanted toe back to Japan, right? She''ll probably insist on flying over there as soon as possible." Joseph said with a smile on his face. "Well then, I need to go. You take care of yourself, okay?"

    After exchanging greetings, Lydia put down the phone and headed to her bed. She was too excited to sleep for the night. No matter what she did, her eyes remained wide open.

    To distract herself, she checked and rechecked her bag a couple of times, neatly arranged her uniform for tomorrow, and put everything she needed by the side of her bed. It was past twelve already, and she still felt energized.

    Usually, she would be asleep by ten in the evening. However, today was different. She was too excited to even remain on her bed.

    A brief nce at the clock told her to sleep. It was already 1 am in the morning. She didn''t listen to herself though. Instead, she headed for the kitchen and cooked a couple of meals for tomorrow. She made sure to prepare two bentos, reserving one bento for Satoshi and the other one for herself.

    Although she was aware that Satoshi never forgets his lunch, she prepared a bento for him anyway. If he didn''t want to eat it, then he could take it home... or something like that. Just the thought alone enlivened her even more, and she enthusiastically prepared hamburg steaks and a couple of side dishes for tomorrow.

    "And then... I can just cook rice tomorrow." She said to herself.

    Satisfied with what she did, she returned to her room and stared at the clock for the second time. It was one thirty in the morning. Even though her body screamed with exhaustion, she still couldn''t sleep a wink. She justy there, wide awake, while thinking anding up with activities they might do in ss.

    Her thoughts would wander to things about Satoshi as well. Just the thought of being ssmates with him would redden her face.

    Two o''clock.

    Three o''clock.

    By the time four o''clock came, Lydia felt that her eyes were too heavy. However, she still couldn''t sleep. She was too excited about their ss that the night wore on without giving her any rest. At this point, Lydia decided not to sleep anymore, just await the few hours left before she headed to school.

    And then she fell asleep.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    It was almost five in the morning and she finally fell asleep!

    By the time she woke up, it was already ten in the morning. She was dazed at first, and then she remembered that today was their first ss. Her eyes widened in surprise as she rushed her preparation. It took her twenty minutes to prepare, and she was out of the house by then.

    "How could I fall asleep?!" She berated herself as shebed her hair. Using her superpower, she manifested a puddle of water on the ground, and she rode on top of it like a skateboard. This was the fastest transportation to school at the moment, and she couldn''t afford to waste any more time.

    "Excuse me, excuse me!" She repeatedly called out to the passers-by every time she passed through.

    Less than ten minutester, she arrived at school and rushed through the main entrance. She then headed straight to ss 3-1. She got lost a couple of times, but she finally got there... and it didn''t even take her a minute to search for the ssroom.

    There was no one there.

    "Howe there''s no one here?" She asked in confusion, as she rubbed her eyes. Initially, she thought she was dreaming, but after a minute or so, she came to the realization that the entire ss probably went off-site to train in their first ss.

    She heaved a sigh. Just then, one of the teachers passed by, Red Velvet.

    "Ah, unfortunately, they went to the Concrete Arena for some inbat training. You''re an exchange student, right?" She asked. "If you want, you can join us in our ss for now while you wait for them. They''re bound to return soon... uhm... probably before lunch break."

    Since she didn''t want to wait alone in ss, she decided to go with Red Velvet for now. At the moment, she was going to teachbat basics to her ss, ss 3-4. And then, if they have time, she was nning to pair them up for some light sparring.

    The headcount of ss 3-4 was an odd number, though, so she was d that Lydia missed her first ss. It would be nice if everyone get to participate in some light sparring.

    ...

    The heroes versus viins exercise was an utter failure, and Knighthawk wanted to dig a hole in the ground to crawl into due to the embarrassment he felt. He badly wanted to me the losses on Dark Matter and Light Wing, but at this point, the only one he could me was himself.

    Since it was time to head home, Knighthawk gave his ss a couple of pointers about the exercise so they could take home a couple of lessons and be more aware of their weaknesses and strengths. After that, he decided to do some quick attendance so that no one would be left behind.

    A quick check on his list revealed that he was missing one person. "She wasn''t there this morning... maybe she missed the first ss?" Knighthawk asked himself as he saw Lydia''s name on his list.

 Chapter 443 Seating Arrangement War

    When ss 3-1 finally got back after an eventful heroes versus viins exercise in the Concrete Arena, they were met by Lydia who was waiting alone in the ss. She didn''t mention anything about joining the other ss since they were bound to know about itter on.

    "Lydia?" Satoshi was the first one to greet her, approaching her with a lightened expression on his face. This morning, there was no sign of Lydia anywhere so he assumed that he didn''t pass the entrance exam or the exhibition match. Still, that sounded a bit ridiculous since it was Lydia they were talking about here.

    As it turned out, she just overslept, and she missed the first ss of the second semester.

    "I was too excited, I couldn''t sleepst night," Lydia exined with a bashful expression on her face.

    After exchanging greetings with everyone else, all of them returned to their respective seats.

    "WAIT! Before that..." Knighthawk called out, stopping everyone in their tracks. They were about to sit down when Knighthawk stopped them so they thought that his announcement was probably important.

    As much as they disliked Knighthawk as their homeroom teacher, they didn''t want to disrespect him. That''s why they waited for him to finish talking before they assumed their seats.

    Without further ado, Knighthawk cleared his throat and grabbed a box from underneath his desk. He held the box in front of everyone, and then another smile appeared on his face.

    "The exciting part''s not yet over, ss. Last ss, we had a pretty good exercise and I''m sure you''ve learned a lesson or two from your upperssmen." Knighthawk began. Even he wasn''t sure about what he just said. After all, the fourth-years had a clean losing streak back then.

    "This time, we''re going to do something even more exciting. And no, we''re not going to have another superhero exercise... we''re going to have an event that would determine your feelings for the entire second semester. So brace yourself, this is going to be fun."

    Everyone in the ss was well aware that Knighthawk''s definition of fun differed from their definition so they didn''t expect anything from his words. However, when he put the box on his desk and beckoned for Midori to step forward, they couldn''t help but look forward to what was going to happen next.

    Curious, Midori stepped forward, and Knighthawk continued speaking. "In my high school years, I always look forward to this event. That''s why we''re going to make it fun."

    As Knighthawk continued to speak, Midori inserted his hand into the box and fished for a sheet of paper. Satisfied with what he picked, he retracted his hand, and read what was written on the paper.

    A bold number one was written on it.

    "One?" Midori asked, and that''s when he realized what was going on.

    The seats were being shuffled, and they were currently choosing seats.

    "Yes, you''re going to pick your seats for this second semester," Knighthawk announced. "However, there''s a catch! If you want a certain seat, then you can ask that student to exchange it with you. And since it would be no fun if they just agreed or disagreed... we''re going to make it a one versus one match! The loser has to give up his seat!"

    "Ooh~" Hiroshi let out.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    For the first time, they agreed with their homeroom teacher. This was going to be fun.

    Hiroshi went next, and as if it was some sort of a weird coincidence, he picked the number two. It gave him a reason to challenge someone for his seat since he didn''t want to be beside the noisy Midori.

    As for Midori, he already seated himself. He was pretty satisfied with his cement because it was at the front, and it was beside the window.

    The others followed suit. Satoshi got the ninth seat, which was the window seat on thest row. It was the protagonist''s seat, and no one dared challenge Satoshi for his seat.

    In front of him was the fifth seat, and Lydia was seated there. She was all right with her seat since she was near Satoshi.

    As if by fate, Shiroi managed to snag the tenth seat, which was right beside Satoshi, beside her was Kana Kuroe, and the twelfth seat was upied by Jonathan.

    On the sixth seat was Emma, and she enviably nced at Lydia and Shiroi who were significantly nearer than Satoshi.

    Knighthawk then leaned forward, and then with a smirk on his face, he ced his hand on his desk and announced the next phase. "Now, you can go ahead and challenge each other. We''ll meet in the school coliseum once you''ve decided on your opponent."

    The first one to stand up was Hiroshi (second seat), and he walked up to the person on the fourth seat. It was upied by Sakura Cherry. "Cherry, I want to switch ces with you," Hiroshi said. He just wanted to get away from Midori, that''s why he opted to challenge Cherry.

    "And be seated beside Midori? No way." Cherry shook her head. However, she couldn''t just reject a challenge, so she epted the fight.

    Emma (sixth seat) also stood up, and she challenged Shiroi who was right behind her, on the tenth seat. Kurogami (eighth seat) also stood up and challenged Midori just for the fun of it.

    "All right, now let''s head to the coliseum!" Knighthawk pumped his fist in the air. He was convinced that everyone was done challenging each other.

    Before everyone could step out, however, Fuuka walked forward. She approached Satoshi. "I challenge you for the protagonist seat, Satoshi," Fuuka asked. She was seated in the third seat.

    "Um, sure," Satoshi mumbled. He was genuinely surprised that someone challenged him for the ninth seat.

    Lydia also walked up to Satoshi and then grabbed him by the arm. "I''m also challenging you for the ninth seat! I''m sure you''ll defeat Fuuka so I''m challenging you in advance."

    He had no idea why they were challenging him, but he couldn''t just back down from the challenge. "Um, sure..." Satoshi said once again.

 Chapter 444 Cherry Versus Hiroshi

    It hadn''t been an hour since ss 3-1 got back from the Concrete Arena after an exhausting match with Dark Matter and Light Wing. And now, they were outside the school once again, heading towards the coliseum for the fated Seating Arrangement Battles.

    "Is this how the first day of school usually goes?" Lydia asked out of curiosity, whispering at Satoshi. She still held Satoshi''s arm tightly to her chest, and it made Satoshi''s face redden a little bit.

    "No... usually it''s more rxed than this," Satoshi responded, clearing his throat as he tried to maintain hisposure. He and Lydia were childhood friends, just like Shiroi, but he didn''t see Lydia that way.

    However, her charms were slowly prating Satoshi''s heart, and it was working. Just like Shiroi, she liked Satoshi ever since they were kids, and by the looks of it, she was more aggressive than Shiroi.

    From afar, Shiroi watched as Lydia stuck close to Satoshi like glue. She clenched her fist since she couldn''t do anything about it. If she walked up to him and grabbed him by the arm, it was a clear sign that she was jealous.

    That''s why she just bore with it. It frustrated her to no end but there was nothing she could do about it.

    To her surprise, though, another rival walked up to Satoshi, clinging onto his other arm as if that was the most normal thing to do on a Monday.

    The girl in question was none other than Sakura Cherry... no, it was actually Sassu, taking over Cherry''s body and flirting with Satoshi. But seeing that Cherry was not against it, Shiroi concluded that Cherry liked Satoshi as well.

    "You''ve got more rivals than you think, Shiroi." Kuroe leaned in and whispered at Shiroi, teasing her even further.

    At this point, Shiroi was backed into a corner and she made a mental note that she would invite Satoshi out on a date as soon as school was over.

    But before everything else, the fate of the seating arrangement was in their hands, and only the powerful ones could get what they want.

    "Oh, and another thing... you can actually... challenge anyone as many times as you can. We have the entire day for thispetition." Knigthawk grinned. "However, you can''t challenge the same person twice."

    Once the seating arrangement was shuffled, everyone got to have a second chance at changing their seats.

    They arrived at the Coliseum. And at Knigthawk''s signal, Cherry and Hiroshi stepped in the middle of the stage. Themotion garnered the other ss''s attention, and it brought them to the coliseum with their respective sses.

    As Cherry and Hiroshi prepared for their fight, the coliseum slowly filled up with spectators. Even Principal Sai Tama became interested in the activity and he made sure to live stream it on the official youtube channel of the school.

    It didn''t take long before the parents and other people in the vicinity went inside to watch the match.

    "What the¡ª" Hiroshi eximed upon seeing the audience seats get filled up. He felt a few of his nerves getting the best of him.

    "All this, just for a change in the seating arrangement." Sassu licked her lips. Shepletely took over Cherry''s body before the match so she was perfectly ready for it. Turning around, she waved at Satoshi like a dog wagging its tail at its owner.

    "Yeah... this would determine our spots in the second semester. Of course, everyone''s going to work hard on this." Hiroshi forced a smile on his face.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    From afar, the other teachers were nodding at each other. They were taking notes since Knighthawk''s idea was pretty good. It was a way of wasting time while pitting their students against each other. This could also be considered training so no one would question their ways.

    Knighthawk was a genius... well, quite frankly, he was justzy.

    Then again, this was the first day of school so there won''t be any sses just yet. Kighthawk was going out of his way to make his ss''s first day interesting.

    "Just likest time, I''ll be monitoring the match as the referee," Knighthawk announced. "All right, if both sides are ready... on my mark... FIGHT!"

    Hiroshi didn''t waste any time raising his hand, creating an earth wall between him and Sassu. As for Sassu, she activated her superpowers and touched the ground, cutting off Hiroshi''s life energy and nullifying his earth wall.

    As the walls came crumbling down, Sassu lowered her center of gravity and sprinted towards Hiroshi.

    Panicking, Hiroshi threw a couple of fireballs at her, but she cleanly dodged all of them, even doing a couple of screwdriver vaults in the air just to show off.

    Sassu''s proficient control over her body gave her the confidence she needed to close in the distance. Just one touch and Hiroshi would lose.

    Hiroshi was aware of Sassu''s superpower. That''s why he made a mental note in his mind that he shouldn''t be touched no matter what.

    Sassu wasn''t the only one with proficient control over his body. Recently, Hiroshi had been undergoing physical training so he could at least shorten the gap between him and Satoshi.

    With one touch of desperation, Hiroshi fired a couple of fireballs at Sassu''s head, but she lowered her body even more and swiped her hand. She was aiming to touch Hiroshi and drain him of his energy.

    Hiroshi grinned and jumped in mid-air. Before Sassu could touch him, he fired some fireballs and redirected his trajectory away from Sassu.

    He twisted in the air, avoiding Sassu''s hand. Now his body was upside down, and he shot mes from his hand, pushing him away from Sassu.

    Unfazed, Sassu waved her hand and the mes disappeared. She charged at Hiroshi who seemed to be thrown off-bnce. However, Hiroshi didn''t want to lose no matter what, so he directed his palms at the ground before he shot another spire of mes.

    The momentum caused him to roll on the ground a couple of times before he stood up and built up another earth wall. He then climbed on top of it.

    "So, you''re just going to run away?" Sassu called out, putting her hand on the earth wall, and just like before, it crumbled down as she nullified the traces of Hiroshi''s life force in it.

    The audience held onto their armrest as they carefully watched the match. They couldn''t believe that such a high-leveled match was being performed by two first-years.

    They couldn''t help but perceive Knighthawk in a new light... even though he didn''t do anything. He just continuously wanted to get a one-up from his ss.

 Chapter 445 Emma Versus Shiroi

    The atmosphere of the Coliseum was heating up as Cherry and Hiroshi continued their match. It was an even scrimmage, but a few experienced superheroes could tell that Cherry had the upper hand.

    After all, she wasn''t that exhausted and her movements were carefully executed which allowed her to have minimal movements.

    As for Hiroshi, his movements were wide and overly exaggerated. He was firing fireballs here and there, and putting up earth walls to block Cherry.

    In hindsight, he didn''t have any choice. Cherry was just too strong for him. He couldn''t touch her, and he couldn''t let her touch him either. If one of those options were to happen, then he would have his life force drained out of him... and then it''s game over.

    He couldn''t believe that his attacks just wouldn''t connect because his life force was imbued in the projectiles he sent at her. She would easily nullify them, and there was nothing he could do about it.

    Ten minutes had passed, and Hiroshi was still relentlessly attacking Cherry while keeping his distance. He was nearing his limits, however, and before he knew it, he fell on the ground due to fatigue.

    "In a battle of stamina, you can''t win against me, Hiroshi. My superpower is the very definition of stamina itself." It was Sassu who spoke. Up until now, she still had control over Cherry''s body.

    Hiroshi gritted his teeth as he mmed his fist on the ground.

    It was his loss.

    He bit his lips and turned away. "It''s my loss. I surrender." He announced.

    Cheers could be heard from the crowd as the normal seating arrangement war turned into a professional tournament. Hiroshi couldn''t believe that such a huge crowd formed in a couple of minutes. He walked towards the group, feeling rather dejected.

    "Cheer up, Hiroshi," Sassu patted him on the back before supporting him as he walked. "You almost got me there, if you had moved more offensively, you might have defeated me. You were too focused on defending and keeping your distance, that''s why you lost."

    "Yeah, I guess I still have a lot to learn." Hiroshi forced a smile on his face. Today''s fight had been an eye-opener for him. He didn''t win, so that means Sassu got to keep her seat. But then again, he learned a thing or two from the match so it wasn''t for nothing.

    "And Sakura Cherry gets to keep her seat! Now, onto the second match!" Knighthawk screamed, getting into his character as amentator as he gave the go-signal for the second match.

    Emma and Shiroi stepped forward. This wasn''t the first time they were going to have a match together, but to them, it felt like the first. After all, they''ve grown since theirst encounter.

    "As an added rule... you cannot use a tamed beast in this match. Even if your superpower is rted to tamed beasts, it cannot be used. This is to make it fair for those who don''t have a tamed beast yet." Knighthawk added. He was aware that Shiroi has a tamed beast that resembled a small penguin. That''s why he made up such a rule.

    However, Shiroi wasn''t nning on using her tamed beast in the first ce.

    Apparently, Knighthawk just wanted to put up such a rule so Satoshi would have a hard time in his match. Everyone in ss 3-1, and a few dozen people in the audience, could clearly see Knighthawk''s intent, and it frustrated them a bit.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Then again, he was the teacher, and he was the one who arranged the exercise. That''s why he could put up such rules.

    "Without further ado, let''s start the match!" Knighthawk continued.

    Emma and Shiroi were concerned for Satoshi as well... but they have their fight to worry about. Without further ado, Shiroi created an intense blizzard that filled the entire stage. She was going to impair Emma''s vision and disrupt her movements with the blizzard, and then attack her when she slipped up.

    On the ground, Shiroi also created a couple of ice spike traps which would activate the moment it detected the slightest movement excluding the wind pressure of the blizzard.

    "Hoh-" Emma let out. While Shiroi was preparing for her attacks, she was also creating a couple of portals here and there to aid in his movement. She knew she couldn''t directly counter the blizzard. Furthermore, if she let Shiroi do her thing, then she would freeze to death before she couldnd a decent attack on her.

    But recently, Emma realized something. It was a revtion of the usage of her superpowers.

    At face value, her superpower was just mere portal creation, but if she pinpointed where the other end of the portal would lead it could aplish anything. She had done it in the match against Dark Matter and Light Wing this morning, so she was confident that she''d be able to do it now.

    "Now, it''s my turn." Emma grinned as she raised her hand in the air.

    A crack in the dimension appeared on top of the Coliseum, and it turned into a dimensional portal. Because of the blizzard that enshrouded the entire arena, Shiroi couldn''t see the dimensional portal which was directly on top of her.

    The dimensional portal grew in size, and it didn''t take long before it filled the entire open ceiling of the Coliseum.

    At this point, Shiroi had no idea why Emma was not attacking her. For her n to work, she should charge at her and attack her physically.

    But Emma did the opposite, and Shiroi became a sitting duck while she agonizingly waited for Emma to jump into action.

    "Now, experience the blizzard... desert style," Emma announced.

    As the portal on top of the Coliseum opened, it led directly to a certain where a continuous sandstorm urred. The sandstorm seeped through the dimensional portal and directly blew at the blizzard.

    The change in wind pressure shifted to Emma''s advantage, and her sandstormpletely nullified the blizzard. What''s more, it blew Shiroi away as well since she was caught off-guard.

    Shiroi caught herself before she was thrown out of bounds, but before she could regain her bnce, a dimensional portal appeared in front of her, and a powerful spire of water came out of it, pushing her out of bounds.

    "What?!" Knighthawk eximed, wide-eyed. He was so surprised at Emma''s sophisticated use of her dimensional portal that he forgot to announce the winner.

 Chapter 446 Midori Versus Kurogami

    Knighthawk paused for a couple of seconds as he assessed the situation.

    Not only was Shiroi thrown out of bounds, but she was also mercilessly defeated. At first, Emma was at a disadvantage but shepletely turned the situation around with her overwhelming skill and unorthodox use of her superpower.

    Even the audience was amazed at how well Emma fought. Such precision and skill in using her dimensional portal was pure skill. They couldn''t imagine just how much time and effort she invested in her superpower for it to be like that.

    Without further ado, Knighthawk raised his hand and dered Emma the winner. "The fight is over, and the verdict is... they''ll be exchanging seats!" Knighthawk announced.

    This has caused a little bit of discussion amongst the audience. Up until now, they had no idea why the mini-tournament was held.

    But after a couple of discussions here and there, as well as rification from Knighthawk himself, they realized that all of these was just to decide the seating arrangement for the ss. Some of the audience chuckled, but some were intrigued since it was really a novel idea.

    "And now... for the next match." Knighthawk continued, looking at his ss who was casually positioned by the edge of the stage where the fight was held. They didn''t bother going into the waiting rooms since it wasn''t a formal tournament anyway.

    Midori and Kurogami walked forward even though Knighthawk hasn''t said their names. They were eager to fight each other since it would just be an exhibition match.

    Frankly, the two of them didn''t care about the measly seating arrangement, they were just there to fight and challenge each other to the limits. That''s about it.

    "I thought you wouldn''t ept my challenge. Don''t expect me to go easy on you, all right?" Kurogami puffed his chest as he spoke with a clear voice. There was no hint of pride in his voice. He was there to challenge Midori, nothing more nothing less.

    "Of course, a man doesn''t back down from a challenge." Midori recited. He hasn''t realized it yet but he was already heavily influenced by Kurogami. "I don''t expect you to go easy on me either. I''m not going to hold back."

    "Sure thing," Kurogami responded as he assumed a fighting stance. He then extended his hand and gestured for Midori toe at him whenever he was ready.

    Knighthawk''s lips tilted upward as he watched Midori and Kurogami with their eagerness to fight. He had seen a lot of crazy things in his ss and he knew just how crazy these two could get. Deep inside, he was rooting for both of them, and he expected them to pull out all stops so he could watch a thrilling match.

    "Ready... Fight!"

    "I have been working on this move for too long... but now... I think I might be able to pull it off." Kurogami said as he put up his hand in front of him. "Kage b*nshin no¡ª" He called out.

    Multiple shadows appeared on the ground, and since he could teleport into any shadow and appear there, he forced his mind to teleport at all the shadows. There were three shadows in total, and three of them appeared on top of that shadow,

    This technique required an unbending will and a strong mind that wouldn''t crack under pressure. He needed to concentrate on his three other clones, or else his skill would deactivate.

    Just putting up three clones severely depleted his energy, but it did the trick of showing off.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    The audience went wild after seeing the signature move of a certain ninjutsu user of a popr animated series. They immediately recognized the move. Some of them even started shouting the iconic name of the move since they were too amazed by it.

    "Hoh~ interesting," Midori said as he clocked his fists. "I''m also working on a signature move of mine... I''m sure you would recognize it in a sh."

    Without saying anything, Midori rushed at Kurogami and his three clones. All three of them jumped at once before they fired shadow balls at Midori.

    Midori cleanly dodged all of them while closing in on the distance. He moved like a snake, weaving through the stage while waiting for an opening.

    It took all of Kurogami''s concentration to keep his clones. But after a couple of minutes of running around, he got used to controlling all three of them. Their moves be smoother, and he managed to keep his distance from Midori.

    Midori smiled at Kurogami''s insane improvement. "I guess it''s time for me to make a move, huh,"

    While Kurogami was darting around here and there, Midori stopped in the middle of his tracks, and he activated his berserker superpower, making him balloon in size.

    Everyone could tell that he was about to unleash a powerful move since he tucked his right fist.

    A swirling vortex of air or pure energy gathered in Midori''s hand and it continued to exponentially grow in power.

    Kurogami backed away after sensing the sheer amount of pressure that emanated from Midori. He had no idea what he was about to do, but he could tell it would be a crazy move.

    "Detroooit Smaaa¡ª" Midori screamed. It was an iconic move from an iconic superhero animated series in the past, and everyone knew what it was.

    After all, it was a move that could supposedly release enough wind pressure that it could change the weather.

    The upward wind pressure blew Kurogami away, and he immediately lost control of his clones. They disappeared in an instant.

    As for the audience, they felt the sheer power of the punch that Midori unleashed. Soon, clouds began to form on top of the Coliseum, and a slight drizzle filled the entire stage.

    "Oi oi~ are you kidding me?" Kurogami picked himself up. He couldn''t believe that Midori managed to pull it off.

    The crowd went even wilder, they started screaming the name of the iconic move. Midori waved back at the crowd before turning his attention back to Kurogami.

    "We''re just getting started." Midori grinned.

 Chapter 447 Home Court

    Without further ado, Midori unleashed another punch, sending a shockwave at Kurogami.

    As for Kurogami, he seemingly teleported from one end of the stage to another, sending a shadow beam at Midori before returning to his original position.

    Midori dodged with a crazy somersault, and then he unleashed a kick this time. He was about to say ''full cowl'' but he knew that copyright infringement was no joke so he didn''t shout the name of another iconic move.

    Kurogami blocked the kick, but he underestimated its power and he was sent flying.

    Fortunately, before any part of his body touched the ground out of bounds, he vanished from one shade and appeared on the stage.

    Technically, not a part of his body touched the ground so it couldn''t be ruled as a loss for him.

    Since Midori had ample time to prepare, he unleashed a hundred percent of his Berserk superpower. He didn''t want to prolong the fight anymore.

    As soon as Kurogami reappeared on one of the shades, Midori was right on his face. This caused Kurogami to panic, and he teleported to another shadow on the stage.

    But as soon as he reappeared, Midori was right in front of him for the second time. This was when he realized that it wasn''t a coincidence.

    Midori was really keeping up with his speed.

    Of course, how could Midori not go head-to-head with him when there were only a handful of shadows in the middle of the field?

    Effortlessly, Midori just had to anticipate where Kurogami would pop up, and then he would rush there. ''As soon as I catch him off-guard, I''ll punch him so hard he''ll see stars.'' Midori said to himself as he continued his hrious game of whack-a-mole.

    Except there was no whacking involved, just a peek-a-boo here and there.

    The intimidation made Kurogami slightly panic, and it didn''t take long before he slipped.

    As soon as he teleported on one end, he decided to fire off a shadow ball in the hopes that he would catch Midori off-guard.

    But Midori was expecting him to attack. In fact, he had been looking forward to it so he could finally make his move.

    There was a brief pause when Kurogami stopped in front of Midori. In a split second, he fired off a shadow ball straight at Midori''s chest.

    BABAM!

    The attack connected, and it created an explosion that should''ve sent Midori keeling over backward.

    To everyone''s surprise, Midori simply tanked the attack and punched Kurogami on the sr plexus. It was a clean punch, and Kurogami wheezed in pain as he copsed on the ground.

    "A clean hit!" Knighthawk announced from the sidelines. He was surprised that Midori managed to endure Kurogami''s attack.

    Quiter frankly, it wouldn''t have been possible for Midori to get out of that attack unscathed. He was actually hurt, and he broke a couple of his ribs. However, thanks to his insane healing ability, he could heal the damage he suffered.

    In hindsight, though, he wasn''t free from the pain of broken ribs. He felt it to the core, and for a moment he thought he was going to die since he couldn''t breathe.

    But he pushed through and punched Kurogami before he fell on one of his knees. "That hurt." He let out.

    "Same here," Kurogami honestly replied as he continued wheezing in pain.

    Midori wasn''t going to give him enough time to recover though. Without missing a beat, he charged forward and delivered a hook aimed at Kurogami''s head.

    Kurogami disappeared and reappeared by the corner of the stage.

    The audience could tell that Kurogami''s superpower was pretty good. However, they didn''t like his way of fighting. It was cowardly since he always kept on retreating like that.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Even the other superheroes found his fighting style a bit of a pain. It was annoying, but it worked.

    "Fight him!"

    "You keep on going back!"

    "Why you chickening out?"

    "What a coward!"

    They couldn''t cheer for Midori either since he was just a musclehead who charges frontally at the enemy. It was a barbaric fighting style, and it didn''t work in the professional superhero setting.

    Either way, the fight was interesting. Who cares if they didn''t want to cheer either side?

    Rumble. Rumble.

    While Midori and Kurogami traded blows, the skies slowly darkened.

    It was going to rain.

    A hint of panic appeared on Midori''s face as he lowered his point of bnce and charged at Kurogami even faster. This time, he managed to catch him off-guard, and he headbutted Kurogami, sending him flying.

    Kurogami''s head was shaken up, and his right temple bled due to the impact.

    Seeing that it was about to get out of hand, Knighthawk stepped forward with the intention to stop the match. But before he could raise his hand, he noticed that Kurogami wasn''t the least bit fazed.

    To top it all off, he was smiling.

    Wiping the blood before it dripped on his eyes, Kurogami charged at Midori.

    At this point, a light rain ensued, and the entire ceiling of the Coliseum was covered in rain clouds.

    "This is my win," Kurogami announced.

    As soon as his punch connected, he disappeared. He then reappeared behind Midori and punched him on his side.

    Before Midori could recover, Kurogami vanished once again, reappearing right at Midori''s blind spot as he cleanly delivered a low kick.

    His movements got faster and faster until he was just a blur.

    ''What''s going on? Kurogami wasn''t like this at the start of the match.'' Midori asked himself. No matter where he looked, he couldn''t see where Kurogami was, nor could he sense his presence.

    It''s as if he was fighting with a shadow.

    That''s when he realized that he indeed was fighting with a shadow. Now that thick clouds covered the sky, everything below was covered in shadows. Kurogami could now freely spawn anywhere he wanted.

    Midori came to the eptance that he was ying on Kurogami''s home field.

    A shadow ball here, a shadow beam there, an uppercut, Kurogami relentlessly attacked Midori, not giving him a split second of a break so he won''t have time to heal himself.

    This one-sided beatingsted for five minutes before Midori finally raised his hand.

    "I forfeit." He announced.

 Chapter 448 Back To Square One

    The entire audience cheered so enthusiastically after the sudden upset of the match. They couldn''t believe that such a shift in the weather would give Kurogami the greatest advantage.

    If it weren''t for that, he would''ve lost big time. After all, Midori had more sustainability thanks to his berserker and ultra-healing superpower.

    In the midst of the people who were cheering, there was one student who was screaming his cheers louder than the rest.

    It was none other than Hiroshi who lost his match during the first round of the ''seating arrangement tournament''.

    Since he lost his match, he had no choice but to stay in his seat right beside Midori. But now that Midori lost, that means he would be beside Kurogami instead.

    Hiroshi''s opponent, Sakura Cherry, pouted when she realized what just happened. That would put Midori right behind her, and she regretted winning that match.

    Then again, they could still challenge another person after this round so Cherry could still challenge someone else and exchange seats with him or her if she wins.

    "On second thoughts... I''m sure my ssmates would challenge each other. I guess I won''t challenge anyone then. They''re bound to switch ces and it might put Midori on a different seat." Cherry said to herself.

    But if there was no one who would challenge anyone after the first round of matches, then Cherry would be left with no choice but to challenge someone else.

    ...

    After a quick intermission break, Fuuka and Satoshi walked towards the center of the stage as the crowd went wild for the umpteenth time today. This time, they were really screaming since Satoshi was a famous student in the United Superheroes Academy.

    The majority of the spectators were looking forward to seeing Satoshi fight.

    There were also familiar faces in the audience, and it didn''t surprise Satoshi when she saw them.

    Right on the front seats were his parents. Aira was there too, keenly watching Satoshi as he walked to the center of the stage.

    Satoshi rubbed the tip of his nose to hide his embarrassment. There was no way he could lose now. His parents were watching after all.

    For a moment, he remembered the first time when he fought in this very Coliseum. At that time, he was just a novice when it came to using his superpower. And he only had his familiar ''Nailgun'' back there. That was also the first time he won, and it was his proudest moment in front of his parents.

    Satoshi couldn''t help but smile as he assumed his position on one end of the stage.

    "P-p-please take care of me!" Fuuka said out loud as if she was asking Satoshi out on a date.

    "O-ou~" Satoshi didn''t know what to say, so he let out an exhale in response.

    From afar, two men wearing a pair of suits sat down right behind the Midoriyama duo. They wore sunsses despite the light drizzle of rain.

    Just like the Midoriyama duo, they closely watched the match.

    Fuuka noticed them as well, and she turned away before they noticed that she was looking at them.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Once again, Knighthawk raised his hand before he gave the signal to start the match. A smile appeared on his face.

    "Once again, let me remind everyone that the use of tamed beasts is not allowed in the matches," Knighthawk said.

    The audience started booing Knighthawk but there were some who wanted to see Satoshi fight even without his overpowered superpower. It didn''t take long before the booing died down, and the majority of the audience became even more invested in the uing match.

    As for Satoshi, he briefly nced at his parents and forced a smile on his face. It had only been half a year since he discovered his superpower. Now, he was reminded of his own powerlessness once again.

    After all, without his tamed beasts, he was just an ordinary human. There was no way he could win against Fuuka who was adept in sound maniption and spatial maniption.

    "I''m going to try my best. If anything, I''m sure I''ve grown these past few months. I haven''t stopped training my body to the limit." Satoshi muttered to himself.

    Finally, Knighthawk brought his hand down. "Fight start!" He announced.

    Fwip~

    Fwip~!

    The first thing that Fuuka and Satoshi did was jump a step backward to avoid any surprise attacking from the other party.

    As soon as he did so, Albrecht brought his center of gravity even lower by crouching down. This gave him mobility since he''d be using all of his four appendages to propel himself in any direction.

    This was the first time Fuuka saw such a technique and it bothered her a little bit. But that didn''t stop her from putting a couple of sound traps and spatial traps in the air. If triggered, these traps would explode either with a deafening sound or a space explosion which would eat away at a certain portion of the air.

    Any part of Satoshi''s body would disappear in an instant if he were caught in a space trap. As for the sound trap, it was enough to shatter Satoshi''s eardrums and send him flying.

    "Bring it on." Albrecht gritted his teeth as he charged forward. On his way forward, he grabbed a handful of sand on the ground.

    With his keen sense, which he owned during his physical training, he was able to dodge a couple of traps here and there. It was easy enough to dodge since the traps didn''t move at all, and it takes Fuuka a full second to put another trap in the air. That was more than enough time for Satoshi to sense it and avoid it.

    From the audience''s perspective, it might seem like Fuuka was just waving her hands around while Satoshi danced on the battlefield. It was a boring match, so Knighthawk decided to give an exnation.

    "Fuuka is an expert in space maniption. She''s setting up traps that could obliterate space, and Satoshi is dodging all of them." He ryed.

    Once he was only a couple of steps from Fuuka, Satoshi twisted his core and hurled the handful of sand and dust he collected.

    It triggered a lot of sound and spatial traps. His gesture should''ve sent him flying, but he crouched low enough to avoid all of the traps.

    To everyone''s surprise, it was Fuuka who was sent flying. Fortunately, she managed to catch herself before she flew out of bounds. Satoshi used her traps against her.

    "I had to do what I could... otherwise I''d lose." Satoshi grinned at Fuuka beforeunching another counterattack.

 Chapter 449 Headfirst

    A sudden burst of excitement filled the crowd when they saw the fight. At this point, everyone was already aware that Satoshi wouldn''t be using his tamed beasts in the match.

    In other words, he''s pretty much powerless going against a high school superhero. It was the greatest entertainment for everyone watching the match.

    Then again, most of them felt bad for Satoshi. At the end of the day, controlling his tamed beasts is his superpower so telling him not to use it goes against the rules of a superhero tournament. Some of them even thought ofining but they knew they couldn''t.

    This wasn''t your regr tournament after all. And most importantly, it was Knighthawk''s ss they were talking about here. It was his ss, his rules.

    Principal Sai Tama also had no say in the matter. And quite frankly, he was a bit curious as to how Satoshi would deal with a powerful superhero without the help of his tamed beasts.

    There was a brief pause before Satoshi and Fuuka jumped back into action.

    The crowd held their breath when Satoshi and Fuuka started moving again. On one side, Satoshi kept his center of gravity as low as he could, walking on all fours like a water strider on a stillke.

    As for Fuuka, she maintained her distance from Satoshi since she knew just how dangerous she was when ites to raw physicalbat. She''d lose in an instant if she let Satoshi close in on her.

    Even though Satoshi used her own attack against her, it still didn''t discourage her from using the same tactic.

    In fact, she even propped more sound and spatial traps in the air to limit Satoshi''s movements even more. It''s as if shepletely forgot what just happened a moment ago.

    ''Oi~ are you kidding right now?'' Satoshi asked himself as he forced a smile on his face.

    "What are you doing?" He asked.

    Fuuka sensed the anxiousness in Satoshi''s voice, and he put up even more traps in the air. At this point, Satoshi couldn''t even move from where his location was.

    On the off-chance that there''s a chain reaction, Fuuka would be able to react in time. As for Satoshi, he''d really be caught up in the explosion. He might even lose a couple of limbs and die.

    But Fuuka wasn''t taking her chances. She was going to win no matter what.

    Shepletely overestimated Satoshi though. After all, her superpower could easily kill a superhero, let alone a powerless person.

    Still, this didn''t force Satoshi to use any of his tamed beasts. He was going to win of his own ord.

    [Let me help you, Satoshi]

    "No, I''m fine, I can do this," Satoshi said, firmly rejecting Dex who spoke in his mind. "But if something goes sideways... call out to Sera right away."

    [Roger that, please take care of yourself, Satoshi]

    "Of course,"

    Meanwhile, the audience grew exceptionally worried for Satoshi since he was forcing himself. In hindsight, they believed that he had done enough to prove his capabilities. Backing down from the fight wouldn''t put him in a bad light at all.

    In fact, a majority of the audience already held him in high regard. A single match wherein he was severely disadvantaged wouldn''t change their perception of him.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Ayumu and Tatsuki, Satoshi''s parents, clenched their fists. Deep inside, they hoped that Satoshi would just ept his defeat and back down from the match.

    However, a small part of them wanted him to win.

    After all, he had worked so hard in his early years just to go head-to-head with superheroes. If all those hard work amounted to nothing, then why did he have to work so hard for it? What was the point of achieving peak human abilities when it would lose against a superpower?

    "Is big brother going to win?" Aira asked out of nowhere.

    Surprised, Tatsuki stered a grin on his face and patted Aira on the head. "Of course, he''s going to win."

    Back on the stage, Fuuka could already see victory well within her grasp. Without further ado, she prepared a powerful sound beam on his palms. A single shot from that beam would trigger all of the traps, and she knew it would be more than enough to knock Satoshi down.

    If he had a contingency n, then he should use it right now. Otherwise, he was going to lose.

    It seemed like all hope was lost for Satoshi. Knighthawk, who was watching from the sidelines, was prepared to raise his hand if the fight goes out of hand. He wanted to test Satoshi''s capabilities, so much so that it didn''t even ur to him the subject of repercussions.

    If Satoshi got gravely injured due to this match, he will bepletely liable for it.

    And at this point, he couldn''t just stop the match since doing so would put him in a bad light. He had the nerve to restrict Satoshi, and now he was going to stop the match?!

    Just like Satoshi, Knighthawk was trapped. Deep inside he wanted Satoshi to forfeit.

    The majority of the audience also wanted Satoshi to forfeit as well.

    Before they could say anything, however, Fuuka already fired her sound beam. She didn''t do it because she wanted to win no matter what. She did it because she noticed that Satoshi still had that determined expression on his face.

    He hasn''t given up yet!

    What Fuuka didn''t know was that Satoshi''s keen sense allowed him to differentiate where the sound traps and spatial traps. As soon as Fuuka fired her sound beam, Satoshi propelled himself forward.

    It took a split second for the space trap to activate, so Satoshi had enough time to get himself into a spot where the sound traps were.

    Everyone gasped when Satoshi jumped. They thought he had finally gone. They thought he''d finally gone crazy.

    Even Fuuka was shocked, all the color drained from her face when she noticed that Satoshi did a suicide dive headfirst into her traps.

    "NO!" She screamed.

    But it was toote.

    BOOM!

 Chapter 450 Sacrifice For Victory

    There were plenty of defeaning explosions that urred in the school coliseum in the past year. However, this particr explosion shook everyone to their core. When Satoshi jumped forward, they were expecting him to disappear since the spatial traps could easily eat his body away in an instant.

    For a moment, Fuuka thought that she had just killed Satoshi. After all, he jumped at her without hesitation.

    A chain reaction then urred, and the traps went out all at once.

    But surprisingly, Satoshi aimed right where the sound traps were, and he did well to cover his ears to avoid the destruction of his eardrums. The intense sound did damage his skin though, creating scratches and shes when they hit.

    That opening was enough for Satoshi. The moment the traps went out, Satoshi''s mind then put out all his thoughts, and the only thing he had in his mind was the countdown before all the traps went out.

    "1.16 seconds... and done!" Satoshi said.

    Without even opening his eyes, he already knew where to charge.

    Satoshi sidestepped, and then he charged forward without restraint. One moment, the explosion urred, the next moment, the smoke in front of Fuuka was disturbed, and out came Satoshi seemingly unscathed.

    "I got you," Satoshi muttered as he punched Fuuka straight into her sr plexus. He punched her just enough to knock the air out of his lungs. He was especially careful not to break any of her ribs.

    "Kahk~!" Fuuka gasped as she curled on the ground. She could tell that Satoshi was holding back. Although she gave it her all to defeat her, he still held back against her.

    "I... forfeit." She said. It wouldn''t look good for her if she continued fighting. After all, Satoshi went out of his way to go easy on her.

    "Satoshi jumped where there are more sound traps, and then he timed his attack pretty well so the girl wouldn''t recover. Not bad... not bad at all." Tatsuki muttered to himself as he heaved a sigh of relief. It was pretty obvious that he was ready to charge into the stage, though, since his wings and his superspeed was activated.

    "You didn''t have to jump in there, dear. I knew our son would handle it." Ayumu smiled, patting her husband on the back. Honestly, she was also panicking a couple of seconds ago.

    The audience erupted into cheers at the unexpected oue of the match. They were too sure that Satoshi would lose, and yet he was able to turn the tide of the match to his advantage.

    Fighting against a formidable foe without using your superpower is outstanding enough as it is. But Satoshi was able toe out victorious as well.

    "Winner! Midoriyama Satoshi!" Knighthawk called out.

    Once the smoke cleared up, it was obvious that Satoshi had received more damage than everyone initially thought. His clothes were torn to shreds, and there were countless shes on his skin. Blood slowly dripped from the shes, which just goes to show that the wounds were deeper than they appeared.

    "Are you all right?" Satoshi asked, extending his hand towards Fuuka who was still wheezing on the ground. It didn''t hurt as much anymore, but she still felt her loss deep within.

    When she looked up, she noticed that Satoshi was bleeding everywhere. Her eyes went wide and she shook her head. "What are you talking about? Look at yourself, you''re more beat up than I was." Fuuka bit her lips in slight frustration. "I''m sorry... I didn''t hold back."

    "It''s fine," Satoshi said, grabbing Fuuka by the hand and propping her up.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Quite frankly, Satoshi could''ve summoned Sera right then and there to heal his wounds. But he wanted to spend more time with the shes on his body. They were literal battle wounds, and they looked pretty cool. Hence he didn''t party ways with them just yet.

    When Satoshi and Fuuka walked off the stage, their ssmate congratted them for such an epic fight. The atmosphere within the ss was light, even though Satoshi looked like he just arrived from war.

    "Wow, you''re more sculpted than I thought." Hiroshiplimented.

    "Lock this image in your mind, everyone, it''s not every day we get to see Satoshi without his shirt," Midori announced.

    A couple of steps from them, Kuroe was busy taking pictures with her phone, she knew that the girls in ss would pay money just for these priceless pictures. And well, she was nning to keep some of it for herself.

    "In any case, you have another fight after this, right? Are you still going?" Hiroshi asked.

    "Of course, he''s going. A man never backs down from a fight." Kurogamimented, nodding his head as he took a peek at Satoshi''s abs.

    In response, Satoshi nodded his head and summoned Sera. Technically, he was allowed to summon his tamed beast since the fight was over.

    Without further ado, hemanded Sera to heal him. It didn''t take long before Satoshi''s woundspletely disappeared. He had to get new pair of clothes though since Sera couldn''t really heal torn clothing.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    "To think that he won against Fuuka. I guess there''s still hope." The man in a suit mumbled, adjusting his sses as he addressed the other man beside him.

    "But we can''t just ask him to help us... right?" The other man replied. "And his parents is the top superheroes of the country. What reward could we even give him? Perhaps... it would be better if we ask someone else."

    "No, I''m sure he will say yes. We just have to y our cards right."

    "And? How do you propose we do that?"

    "J-just... I don''t know either, but we have to do it..."

    "Right,"

    "Right, of course,"

    The two men deeply exhaled before they stood up. They''ve seen enough and now it was time for them to leave. After all, it would be bad if that person saw them within the crowd.

 Chapter 451 Lydia And Satoshis Childhood

    More than a decade ago,

    Midoriyama Satoshi. Three years old.

    Satoshi could barely remember the time when he first met Lydia. During that time, he was still three years old, and Lydia was only a couple of months younger than him.

    Both of them haven''t awakened their superpowers yet, which meant that they crossed paths without any prejudices against each other.

    They met like any other childhood friends. Apparently, their parents were pretty close when they were in high school. Joseph Schwarz was one of the top students of USA back then. As for Midoriyama Tatsuki, he never really cared for ranks... but he got the number one stop anyways.

    "And that''s how it is. I''ll be spending half a month undercover. Things are brewing by the border of, you know, that country." Joseph Schwarz muttered.

    Back then, Joseph Schwarz was still not the number one superhero of Switzend. In fact, he wasn''t even in Switzend during that time. That''s why he didn''t y the pacifist role when it came to international conflicts.

    "And this is your kid? Sure, she can stay. We have our own little ball of energy right here, another one wouldn''t make that much of a difference."

    From the corner of the door, Joseph peered towards the living room and he saw Satoshi, ying around with his blocks. It was a game where you''d have to put a certain shape to its corresponding hole. However, Satoshi found azy way of doing it, and he kept on putting all the shapes into one hole.

    "He looks like you," Josephmented as his gazended back on Tatsuki.

    "Of course he does, same with your daughter, he looks like you."

    Lydia listlessly looked up when Tatsuki raised his voice a little bit. She had no clue what all the excitement was about, but she noticed a boy her age in the living room.

    She waddled towards Satoshi even before her dad tried to stop her.

    "Hoh, looks like they''ll get along." Ayumu sped her hands together as she watched the two bundles of joy about to interact with each other.

    It was a slow process for Lydia since she could hardly walk. But a few secondster, she found herself staring down on the sitting Satoshi.

    "Why don''t you go in, see how your daughter acts before you go." Tatsuki offered, to which Joseph obliged without further prodding.

    "Is your mission... top secret?" Tatsuki asked while the three of them watched the two kids.

    "Y-yeah, and it''s an emergency mission. That''s why I had to leave her here.My wife''s on a different mission, that''s why we couldn''t look after her. This was the first time our missions ovepped with each other so we can''t really do much about it." Joseph exined, heaving a sigh.

    "It''s all right. Your daughter''s in good hands. Besides... look, they''re getting along quite well." Tatsuki pointed out.

    Well, he said that but all they did was stare at each other.

    Satoshi had no idea why a strange girl was looking down on him, and he decided to stare up at her as well. He didn''t want to break his eye contact since that would mean he lost.

    For two minutes, the two of them stared at each other without twitching. On one hand, Satoshi craned his neck upward. Even though his neck hurt, he continued staring into Lydia''s eyes.

    As for Lydia, she was staggering to keep herself upright. This was the first time shested two minutes standing up, and it exhausted her.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Before the three-minute mark hit, Lydia finally broke her stance and she fell on her rear side. Satoshi let out a giggle as he pped his hands.

    He won, and he was celebrating.

    The Midoriyama Duo and Joseph Schwarz misunderstood the situation though. They really thought that Lydia and Satoshi were getting along.

    They weren''t.

    Lydia pouted as she tried to smack Satoshi on the head. However, Satoshi leaned back to dodge her p, and it frustrated her. She let out a gurgle before leaning in and grabbing the block that Satoshi was holding. It was the cylindrical one.

    Satoshi was furious, he reached out and tried to grab the toy from Lydia''s hand, but Lydia wouldn''t let go of the block. Satoshi started gurgling andining in his own babynguage.

    Lydia wasining in her ownnguage as well, and it was almost turning into a full-blown fight between toddlers.

    Satoshi tried to grab the block a second time, but Lydia was quick to act, she mmed the block sideways to hit Satoshi on the temple.

    "Oops~" Joseph said as he used his superpower to surround Lydia''s hand with water. This stopped her from hitting Satoshi. "It''s not nice to hit a friend, Lydia."

    Confused, Lydia looked at her arm which was covered in water. She recognized it and her gaze shifted to her dad who was approaching her.

    Lydia finally realized what she was about to do and she hung her head in a drooping manner. Seeing her reaction, her dad let go of her hand.

    With an apologetic expression on her face, she handed the block to Satoshi.

    Seeing that she was about to cry, Satoshi shook his head and he handed her the box with holes instead. He didn''t want to get the block anymore, he just wanted to console Lydia and y with her instead.

    "See? They''re getting along just fine." Tatsukimented as he mmed his knee and startedughing.

    .....

    Back to the present,

    Lydia and Satoshi stepped forward into the ring after the Nurse made sure that Satoshi was back in full health. Then again, the Nurse did warn him to drop the fight, but Satoshi didn''t want to back down, not when there was a huge crowd who was waiting for his second bout.

    "Satoshi, remember when we were three years old..." Lydia trailed off as a smile appeared on her face.

    "What? You still remember that? I thought I was the only one who remembered that." Satoshi smiled. It was a nostalgic story, one that his parents repeated to him even when he grew up.

    "Well, I''m not going to lose, Satoshi, I''m not going to hold back either." Lydia dered.

    "Go ahead," Satoshi responded, assuming a fighting stance as Knighthawk gave the signal tomence the match.

 Chapter 452 Pinned Down

    As usual, Satoshi was going to fight without using superpowers. Knighthawk made sure to remind him about it before he gave the signal to start the match.

    Unperturbed by the cheering crowd, Lydia and Satoshi stared at each other without budging. They were trying to sense the littlest of movements in order to gain the upper hand.

    As someone who admired Satoshi ever since they were young, Lydia knew just how powerful Satoshi was even without his superpower. And now that he had awakened, he had grown to be more confident.

    One wrong move and she knew that she''d lost against Satoshi.

    Then again, she didn''t really care about winning or losing. She only wanted to have a match with Satoshi since it''d been a long time since they actually fought.

    While she felt a bit disappointed that Satoshi won''t be fighting at full power, she still wanted to go through with the match nheless.

    Satoshi twitched to the left side, and Lydia immediately jumped towards her left, shooting water toward Satoshi to lightly obstruct his vision.

    Without missing a beat, Lydia rolled on the ground and pressed her hand on the ground, she was going to detect water from the deepest parts of the ground and control it.

    "No you won''t," Satoshi gritted his teeth as he threw himself at Lydia.

    At first, Lydia thought that her first attack worked since Satoshi went to the side. However, she underestimated Satoshi''s agility and speed. Before her attack even hit, Satoshi had already dodged and he charged at Lydia.

    Satoshi''s movements were smooth, and there was no movement wasted when he threw himself at Lydia.

    Honestly, if Satoshi didn''t know what Lydia was about to do, then he''d have lost right then and there. However, he had seen the technique of Lydia one too many times, and that''s why he had formted a counter for it.

    If Lydia was sessful, she''d be able to fill the entire stage with water. And since she could actually be one with water, she''d be invincible once the attack hit. Of course, this technique was weak against electric-type superpowers, but right now Satoshi was as powerless as a newborn fawn.

    Before Lydia could do anything, Satoshi was already on top of her, holding both her hands on top of her head with his right hand. He held Lydia by the shoulders using his left hand, and his entire body was on top of her, with his legs pinning her legs to the ground.

    "Eh?!" Lydia let out as her pupils dted. She had a full-on view of Satoshi on top of her, breathing heavily while he pinned her down.

    Struggling, Lydia couldn''t get out of Satoshi''s grasp, and it didn''t take long before she became embarrassed. It was a provocative position, after all, and there were a lot of people watching.

    A soft ''ooh'' was heard from the audience as they tried not to think too much about the situation. The Midoriyama Duo who were watching in the front row instinctively covered

    Aira''s eyes so she wouldn''t see what was going on.

    Aira tried to push their hands away but they held their ground. She was curious as to why Satoshi''s parents didn''t want her to see their match.

    "Yarashii~" Kuroe teased, and she said it just loud enough for Satoshi to hear it in the background.

    Shiroi, who was also on the sidelines, was a tad bit jealous, and her face reddened with rage. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Then there was the rest of the guys who started cheering for Satoshi even louder.

    At this point, Satoshi realized what he was doing, but he didn''t want to let go of Lydia since he would most certainly lose.

    In the beginning, he didn''t have any chance. But now that she was immobile, he had a chance at winning. There was no way he''d let go of that chance.

    "Uhm~" Lydia''s face reddened as she bashfully turned her head away. This wasn''t what she was expecting but it certainly made her heart skip a beat.

    "Give up, or else we''d remain like this for a long time." Satoshi forced out of his mouth. He was getting embarrassed as well, but he had to make sure that Lydia would forfeit the match first before he let go.

    "All right, all right," Lydia pursed her lips. This wasn''t the ending she expected, but what could she do? It''s not like she could attack Satoshi after all that.

    Besides, she was powerless right now, and there was no way she could overpower Satoshi.

    Well, there was the option of shooting him water point-nk, but Satoshi was sturdy enough to tank a couple of hits.

    And also, Lydia realized that she couldn''t really hurt Satoshi.

    She let out an exhale.

    "I forfeit," She muttered to herself.

    There was no cheering from the audience. After all, they expected a full-blown fight but what they got was two teenagers flirting with each other on stage. They had no idea how to react to that one.

    But at the end of the day, Satoshi won his second match by overpowering his opponent with brute strength. That feat alone wasmendable, and the audience started cheering despite theck of action.

    "Winner! Satoshi!" Knighthawk said.

    As soon as it was announced, Satoshi let go of Lydia and he extended his hand to help him up. Blushing, Lydia obliged and she held Satoshi''s hand.

    This moment made her loss worth it. It also reminded her of her admiration for Satoshi. A smile stered on her face as the two of them walked out of the stage. Amidst the cheering and the screams of the audience, Lydia cherished their moment together. It''s as if they were the only ones on the stage that day.

    Since that was thest match, the audience assumed that the matches were over. However, Knighthawk walked into the middle of the stage to announce something.

    "Now that the first round of matches is over... let''s proceed to the second round!!!" He screamed at the top of his lungs. "If you''re not satisfied with your seating arrangement, then you can challenge someone else... as long as you haven''t fought that person in the first round!"

    Once again, the audience went wild at the announcement, and everyone started cheering a tad bit louder.

 Chapter 453 Second Match Starts!

    While the audience waited for the second round, everyone in ss 3-1 sat down in a circle while they tried to get some well-deserved rest. Satoshi had it the hardest, and he felt like he''d reach his limit any time soon.

    Fortunately, they were given half an hour rest so the audience could go out for a bit and take a break as well. In hindsight, this wasn''t enough time for the entire ss to rest, but it did give them ample opportunity to challenge each other.

    "If anyone''s going to challenge me, go ahead," Satoshi casually said, breaking the silence as he exhaled heavily. He was fairly certain that his ssmates would challenge him in the second round since he wouldn''t be using his superpowers.

    But to his surprise, no one spoke when he offered it. They all kept silent as they turned away.

    Apparently, after his disy of superior physical power, they didn''t want to challenge him anymore since it would be a great embarrassment if they lost to someone who wasn''t even using his superpower.

    While some of them had a good chance at winning, they didn''t want to risk it since Satoshi disyed a superior superpower towards them. They were confident that they''d be able to surpass Satoshi since his superpwoer was not allowed during the match.

    Nevertheless, they didn''t dare challenge Satoshi since it would just bring great embarrassment to them if they lost. That''s why they kept silent when the second round was announced. It would''ve been easier for them had they challenged Satoshi since he''d have given them a sure win had they asked to fight with him.

    After all, he actually didn''t want to fight anymore. And had they asked him for another round, he''d have forfieted the mome the match started.

    Everyone on the circle kept quiet while they chose who their next oppponent would be. They specifically avoided Satoshi since he was a difficult enemy to fight with.

    Without further ado, Midori clenched his fists and readjusted them before he ponted at Hiroshi who was keeping quiet.

    Since he wasn''t doing anything, he opted to ask Hiroshi for another first even he wouldn''t gain anything from it. If either of them loses the secoud round of the match, they wouldn''t rlly benefit from a win since the seating arrangement had changed. If one of them wins, they''d assume the spot of the other one and they''d just switch seats with each other.

    Nothing would change at all. Even their school standing wouldn''t change since the result of their second round wouldn''t amount to anything.

    Even then, Midori stepped forward and challenged Hiroshi for a fight. Whatever happens, the two of them would have disadvantageous seats so there was nothing else to do but let the two of them continue.

    Since neither of them would recieve full advantage during the match, Satoshi kept quiet. He knew that anyone who would challenge him would immediately win. That''s why he didn''t bother putting himself in the spotlight.

    It was sure that Midori and Hiroshi woudl fight each other during the first round.

    And since the two of them would still be separated after the conclusion of the match, Knighthawk and the rest of the ss agreed to the arrangement and it was decided that they were the first ones who would fight first in the second round.

    Once the thirty minutes rest time was over, and once the audience was back after taking a quick break, Midori and Hiroshi stepped forward to fight against each other whille they waited for candidates who would participate in the second round.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Hiroshi forced a smile on his face while Midori did the same. The two of them would face each other on the second round, and they were in full health since the Nurse recently gave them a quick check-up.

    "I hope you''re ready." Hiroshi muttered, calling out to Midori who was still gathered with the others.

    Before Knighthawk could say anything, the two of them stepped forward into the ring even though it wouldn''t benefit them. They were keen on challenging each other just because they wanted to challenge each other in a match.

    Their fight wouldn''t amount to anything. There was a chance that the two of them would switch, but nothing much would happen since their position was too far from each other.

    Midori and Hiroshi stood on the opposite side of the stage, waiting for Knighthawk tomence the match.

    It didn''t even matter whether some of their students challenged each other or not. After all, they wanted a friendly match.

    That was the sole reason why they challenged each other. And they didn''t care about the oue nheless. They were keen on fighting each other and all.

    Since the thirty minutes rest time was up, Knighthawk assumed his positon in the middle of the stage and he announced the match between Hiroshi and Midori

    Currently, Hiroshi is on the second seat while Midori is one the eighth seat. If any of them loses and they exchanged seats, they''d still be far away from each other.

    It didn''t matter to them.

    Knighthawk could tell that the two of them were raring to go. Even before he announced the match-up to the audience, they already assumed their position.

    It didn''t take long before the audience gathered once again, and they started cheering for both Hiroshi and Midori. After all, the two of them wouldmence the second round of matches, which meant that there will be more matches toe during the second round,

    Without further ado, Knighthawk raised his hand and he called out to both Hiroshi and Midori to prepare themselves. Since they were all the more ready to fight each other, he didn''t give them too much waiting time.

    "Both sides at the ready, fight!" Knighthawk announced in a sh, and with it came the wild cheers of the crowd.

    "I''m not going to take it easy on you." Hiroshi dered.

    "Me neither," Midori said, shing a smile before he charged at Hiroshi.

 Chapter 454 Payback Time

    This wasn''t the first time that Hiroshi and Midori were going head to head against each other. However, it had been a long time since theyst engaged inbat, and it pressured them a little bit,

    They were superheroes, and they were almost at the professional level. It was a given that they had more tricks up their sleeves and it mighte out while they were fighting.

    As Knighthawk gave the signal, Hiroshi was the first one to make a move, propping an earth wall in front of Midori so he could buy some time. He knew that Midori was strong, but what good is that strength if he couldn''t use it at him in the first ce?

    It was well known that Midori is a closebat fighter. As for Hiroshi, he does well with long-range. That''s why everything was advantageous for him. Both of them agreed to the fight, but Hiroshi was sure that he was going to win.

    Seeing the earth wall in front of him, Midori activated his berserker superpower and charged straight through the earth wall. He thought it was a thin wall, but to his surprise, the earth wallpletely stopped him even though he went with full force.

    As it turned out, Hiroshi was constantly making the earth wall thicker while he was on the other side. The defensive gesture didn''t affect him that much, and he was only buying some time so Midori would tire himself out.

    At the end of the day, he knew that Midori has a limited amount of energy and even if he used his healing superpower, he''d still drain his energy out little by little.

    Hiroshi''s n was to y the waiting game. He was confident that he''d be able tost longer than Midori even though he didn''t have any way to regenerate his energy.

    "So this is how you want to fight, huh," Midori gritted his teeth as he continuously punched through the earth wall.

    Meanwhile, Hiroshi justfortably stayed on his own side of the stage, waiting for Midori to break through his wall so he could fly up and prop another one.

    No one could tell who was winning or not, but it was a boring match so they didn''t really bother thinking too much about it. Some of the superheroes found it underwhelming, while some high-ranking superheroes saw the match as a brilliant ce of strategies.

    ...

    While all of that was happening, ss 3-1 began talking to each other. Since they could now challenge anyone else, they started picking their partner so they could move up to the next match.

    Those who haven''t fought Satoshi actually thought of fighting him, but they wouldn''t dare ask him for a match since that would just look bad.

    After all, he couldn''t use his superpowers, If they were to pick him, then it''s basically them picking on him.

    Knighthawk could tell that it was getting rather awkward but he didn''t say anything. It was his rule in the first ce and he was going to see it through.

    At the back of his mind, he felt a little bit guilty since Satoshi was having a hard time without his superpower. If he was in his shoes, then he won''t evenst a second if he was up against any of his students.

    And yet, Satoshi was able to defeat not one, but two students who were some of the strongest in ss. At this point, he wanted to retract what he said but his pride just wouldn''t let him. He just couldn''t bring himself to announce to the audience that he''d be taking his words back. It would poorly reflect on his decision-making and the other teachers would look down on him.

    Knighthawk heaved a sigh, but he didn''t say anything.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    In the midst of it all, Kurogami stepped forward and stood in front of Satoshi. He won the previous match, and he wanted to see his skill against a powerful superhero like Satoshi.

    He knew that even if he were to go all out, Satoshi would still pull through since he was strong both physically, and superpower-wise. Satoshi even managed to defeat Fuuka and Lydia and they were both formidable with their superpowers.

    "Sure," Satoshi said before Kurogami could say anything. "You were going to challenge me to a match, right?"

    Well, Satoshi didn''t have that much of a choice. There were a lot of people watching so he couldn''t just reject anyone who would challenge him.

    Besides, he already won twice, even if he lost in the third match, people wouldn''t think badly of him. That''s just how it was.

    "Ah, er-yes," Kurogami answered. "I thought you wouldn''t ept the match."

    "I can take any of you on... but there''s no guarantee of me winning though." Satoshi forced a smile on his face. He was put at a disadvantageous spot but he still decided to grin and bear everything.

    "All right... then I''m challenging you as well." Jonathan called out out of nowhere, to which responded with a nod.

    "I couldn''t care less about our seating arrangement. So even if I lose, I promise that I won''t take your seat away." Kurogami put his hands together and bowed towards Satoshi as thanks for epting the match.

    "Me neither, you can keep your seat, Satoshi, just fight me fair and square," Jonathan called out, clenching his fists.

    "Calling it fair and square is cutting it close, I can''t use my superpowers, you know." Satoshi exhaled.

    And then a great idea suddenly shed in his mind and a mischievous grin appeared on his face. He slowly turned his head towards Knighthawk who was minding his own business.

    Without further ado, he walked towards him.

    "Sensei, does the seating arrangement only apply to students?" Satoshi asked, raising his voice so the audience would hear what he was about to say.

    "What are you talking about?" Knighthawk had no idea why Satoshi would ask such an absurd question.

    "I''m challenging you to a match, sensei, and I''m taking your teacher''s seat," Satoshi announced out of nowhere.

    That''s when the crowd started screaming once again, and they started chanting at Knighthawk who simply stood there, stunned at the challenge that Satoshi directed at him.

    "Fight him. Fight him. Fight him." The audience repeated.

 Chapter 455 Kurogamis Relentlessness

    Chants from the audience resonated all throughout the coliseum while they urged Knighthawk to ept the challenge.

    It was the greatest humiliation of all since he too didn''t have any superpowers.

    "Fight him. Fight him. Fight him."

    Even the superheroes who were casually watching in the background, as well as the teachers who were present, egged him on to ept the challenge.

    Knighthawk could hear the chants getting increasingly louder the more he stalled for time. He raised his hand and mouthed at the audience to keep quiet, but they just screamed louder.

    Even Hiroshi and Midori who were in the middle of the match stopped what they were doing just to watch the confrontation unfold.

    In hindsight, Satoshi had every right to challenge Knighthawk. After all, he went as far as to ban him from using superpowers.

    And if Knighthawk were to reject the challenge, then everyone would look down on him. It was certainly a disadvantageous situation for him.

    Heaving a sigh amidst the chants, he finally conceded. "All right, I''ll do it." He finally said.

    The crowd went even wilder after that. It was a fight between a USA teacher and a student. Now that was something to look forward to after the student matches were over.

    Since the deration was done, and Knighthawk epted the match, Satoshi felt like he already won against his fate.

    Knighthawk chose to bully him so he decided to return the sentiment tenfold, by humiliating him in front of the crowd.

    Then again, before that could happen, he had to survive his match against Kurogami. After that, he also had to survive his match against Jonathan.

    Just thinking about it made Satoshi a tad bit anxious. Jonathan and Kurogaki were powerhouses when it came to their superpowers, after all.

    ...

    A minute had passed and everyone returned their focus on the match at hand. Midori managed to break through the earth wall but as soon as he did that, Hiroshi used his fire superpower tounch himself to the other side of the stage.

    After that, he propped another earth wall, but Midori was tired of it. Instead of breaking through the earth wall, he decided to climb it with his bare hands.

    Bam.

    Bam.

    Bam.

    In a sh, Midori was on top of the earth wall and he jumped straight at Hiroshi who was l defenselessly sitting on the other side. Surprised that Midori actually found a way around his n, he dodged out of the way and destroyed the earth wall in an instant.

    He knew that the earth wall won''t work anymore, that''s why he dodged out of the way and proceeded to the second phase of his n.

    As soon as he was at a safe distance, he fired a couple of fireballs at Midori who simply tanked them.

    After that, Hiroshi then proceeded to trip Hiroshi with earth bumps here and there while he ran. His sophisticated control over his superpower helped him with his aim since he never missed.

    Midori was moving very fast, but Hiroshi was keeping up with him just fine. <novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Unbeknownst to everyone, Hiroshi had been secretly training his physical body as well as his reaction time.

    He knew just how strong Satoshi had be thanks to his special training, and he wanted to at least improve so he would get closer to Satoshi''s level.

    Surprised that he was put off bnce every single time, Midori tried to move even more erratically, faster than he did a moment ago.

    But Hiroshi kept up with him just fine. And whenever he got too close, Hiroshi would just fly off.

    Whenever Midori caught up, he thought he''d get a clean hit, but it never happened.

    Quite frankly, Midori had been used to using his superpower that he forgot to focus on physical training.

    He should''ve thought that physical training would really up his game, After all, his superpower is rted to his physical strength.

    "You have to move faster, Midori," Hiroshi taunted with bated breaths. He was also getting exhausted but Midori was more drained than he was. That''s why he had the confidence to rile him up.

    Midori had no idea how he''d catch up with Hiroshi anymore. Had he fought with sheer desperation, he would''ve easily won.

    Hiroshi did a good job keeping his distance while attacking Midori. It was a foolproof n and it worked, Not only did he tire out Midori, but he also forced him to forfeit the match.

    And Midori didn''t have that much of a choice. In truth, Hiroshi was kiting him really well and he was doing a bad job trying to catch up to him.

    Dejected, Midori raised his hand with a somber expression on his face. "I forfeit," Midori announced.

    ...

    Hiroshi didn''t want to swap seats with Midori, that''s why he let the seating arrangement be.

    It was finally time for Satoshi and Kurogami''s match. Honestly, everyone was invested in this match since they couldn''t think of a way for Satoshi to survive this matchup.

    But then again, Satoshi performed well beyond their expectations in the first two matches so they had no idea who would win.

    And it''s not like Kurogami still had his power-up. The rain had abated, and the clouds in the sky were slowly opening.

    "Both sides at the ready... fight!" Kurogami announced without further ado. He didn''t even bother giving them time to greet each other on the stage.

    The moment the signal was given, Kurogami immediately charged a couple of shadow balls and started hurling them at Satoshi. It was a normal opening for the match.

    The shadow balls were dodged with ease. Satoshi didn''t even break a sweat when he stepped away from the shadow balls. There was no waste in his movements and it looked like he was confident in this match.

    Kurogami didn''t waste any time charging more shadow balls and shooting shadow beams at Satoshi.

    In response, Satoshi cleanly dodged them with ease.

    "You''re not good at closebat, are you?" Satoshi called out the elephant in the room.

 Chapter 456 One Moment

    Forcing a smile on his face, Kurogami disappeared into one of the shadows on the stage. It was like his body turned into liquid as he melded with the shadows.

    At this point, Satoshi also felt confident since Kurogami didn''t dare approach him. He knew that Kurogami was not well-versed in closebat and that''s the reason why he didn''t dare get close to Satoshi.

    As soon as the match started, he defaulted into kiting Satoshi by attacking him with long-range attacks, all the while keeping his distance from him.

    Once Kurogami reappeared on the other side of the stage, he started shooting a volley of shadow balls at Satoshi.

    With a somersault and a backward step, Satoshi dodged the shadow balls, and he attempted to close in on Kurogami by sprinting toward him.

    Seeing that Satoshi was still a couple of meters away from him, Kurogami shot a shadow beam at him, and then he disappeared once again.

    Right now, he was reluctant to use his newfound skill of shadow clone since it drains a lot of energy.

    After all, when it came down to it, he nned to oust Satoshi by draining his energy. Once he was exhausted, he''d be a sitting duck.

    As usual, Kurogami''s attack missed, and he had to disappear into one of the shadows once again and he came out of a different spot. The process continued until the audience was bored to death.

    Unbeknownst to them, Satoshi had been gradually slowing down while he tried to catch up to Kurogami. This was one of the tactics he came up with during his fights back when he was still powerless.

    If they can''t catch up to them, he''d give them a false sense of security that he was slowing down. This would give them a false sense of his speed and he''d be able to catch them off-guard.

    Thinking about the past made Satoshi smile a little. Even though he was fighting a disadvantageous battle, he felt a modicum of nostalgia hitting him.

    Back then, he was training day and night, trying to mold his body into the peak human so he''d be able to defeat those with superpowers. He would frequent dojos, training facilities, and no-superpower martial arts tournaments. He would even go as far as to challenge masters of different martial arts styles just to get better.

    All he wanted back then was to make his parents proud. Even though he didn''t have any powers, he wanted to at least show them that he could handle himself. He was the son of the top two superheroes of Japan, the Midoriyama Duo, the least he could do was put in the effort.

    Kurogami fired off a couple more shadow balls. He was getting rather tired himself but he could also tell that Satoshi was out of breath.

    His sprints were more limp than normal, and he was panting. Not only that, he seemed to have a hard time dodging the shadow balls and shadow beams.

    He was on the edge, and Kurogami was ready to take advantage of it.

    Little by little, Kurogami''s time out of his shadow grew longer, and Satoshi took a mental note of it. Meanwhile, Satoshi continued to slow down until, but not too much. He still needed some speed so his eleration would be easier.

    Kurogami was smiling at this point, and he could tell that it would be his win.

    As for the audience, they held their breaths while they watch Satoshi struggle. He had won the first and second matches. There was no way he could win this third one.

    If he did, then he''d probably be the best superhero there is in terms of physical raw power and hand-to-hand technique.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    One way or another, the spectators could tell that history was about to be written in front of them. Even Knighthawk couldn''t help but gulp as Satoshi continued to struggle.

    There was no way he could win, but at the back of everyone''s mind, they thought the pr opposite.

    "You should give up now, Satoshi," Kurogami reappeared on another side of the stage once again, and this time, his shadow balls hit Satoshi on the shoulder, Satoshi struggled forward and he fell.

    He took three more steps before his body fell forward.

    Watching Satoshi''s helplessness, Kurogami decided to fire even more shadow balls so he could put him down for good. He couldn''t believe that his n worked, and now he would be reaping the seeds of victory.

    Just when Satoshi was about to hit the ground, he gave one mighty push with his right ankle, propelling himself forward.

    The shadow balls hit just as he did so, and it exploded, giving him a smokescreen.

    Satoshi actually sacrificed his arm, blocking the three shadow balls just so Kurogami won''t see him elerate forward. And before the smoke cleared up, Satoshi was already at his top speed.

    While Kurogami was celebrating, Satoshi appeared in front of him.

    Gasp!

    Since Satoshi''s center of gravity was too low, his punches wouldn''t be as effective even with his eleration. In the heat of the moment, he decided to put his center of gravity a tad bit lower, and he used his arm as support just when he tipped forward.

    Before Kurogami could do anything, Satoshi twisted his core and delivered a powerful side kick.

    Thanks to his momentum, the side kick was so fast that Kurogami didn''t see it. It also packed a good punch, sending Kurogami flying before he could disappear into his shadow.

    "Kaghk~!" Everyone could''ve sworn they heard the air escape out of Kurogami''s lungs. He was sent skittering sideways, hitting the ground and rolling out of bounds.

    "..."

    "..."

    The entire crowd went wild with their cheers as they saw the sudden upset of the match. Ny-nine percent of the time, Kurogami was winning, and yet Satoshi risked everything in one shot, even sacrificing his right arm just to deliver that one blow.

    Everything that he did led up to that point, and it was all worth it. He had won his third match.

    Then again, he was more injured than Kurogami, so it was more in the sense of winning the battle and losing the war.

    "Satoshi wins!" Knighthawk announced. He almost choked on his words.

 Chapter 457 Satoshi Versus Jonathan

    Satoshi was exhausted to the teeth, but he pressed on. Next, he''d go head to head with Jonathan who was a beast tamer just like him. Then again, Jonathan''s got another superpower which allowed him to teleport everywhere. He also got the superpower to nullify any supeprower but Satoshi won''t be using his superpower in the first ce.

    There was no need for Jonathan to use his superpower so he''d be relying on his teleportation instead.

    Before the match started, Satoshi summone Sera to replenish his energy reserve. He felt tempted tomand Sera to buff him up but he didn''t do it. He wanted to fight fair and square even though the rules were unfair for him.

    At this point, Knighthawk was getting rather nervous since Satoshi won three matches in a row. If he were to win the fight against Jonathan, then his confidence would dwindle even more, and he might even embarrass himself in front of the entire crowd.

    He wasn''t expecting Satoshi to challenge him so tantly like that. And since he put him in such a disadvantageous position, he couldn''t say no to his challenge. Even if he did, the audience won''t allow it.

    Jonathan was prepared for his match, and he walked forward. The rest of the ss wished him all the best even though they were suppposed to be doing the opposite. Obviously, he was at an advantage, but they knew that Satoshi could beat him up.

    It even flew right past their minds that Jonathan was well-versed in closebat as well. He may not be on par with Satoshi, but he could hold himself up in a physical fight.

    Furthermore, he could use his superpower and Satoshi couldn''t.

    Knighthawk stepped forward to announce themencement of the match. After this, he''ll have a match with Satoshi. Just the mere thought brought chills up and down his spine.

    "Don''t hold back, Satoshi. I won''t hold back either." Jonathan said the most cliche thing to say at the start of the match.

    "Sure, I won''t hold back." Satoshi went to his position and assumed a fighting stance.

    Before Knighthawk could give his signal, Jonathan also assumed a fighting stance.

    "Ready? Fight!"

    Satoshi and Jonathan charged at each other as soon as the signal was given. Guarding his head with his right hand, Satoshi unleashed a hook with his left.

    Without hesitation, Jonathan also struck with his left hand. He was expecting Satoshi tounch a hook so he carefully guarded his head with it.

    However, it was just a fake, Satoshi was actually aiming for a kick on the shin. He only used his left hand as a decoy so Jonathan won''t see his kick.

    Then again, Jonathan was thinking the same thing, and the their kicks connected with each other, leaving them surprised.

    "You''re pretty good." Satoshiplimented Jonathan before he struck a punch at his sr plexus.

    Jonathan didn''t guard the punch with his hand. Instead, he lifted his leg and blocked the punch with his knee. Not only did it make his hands free, it also damaged Satoshi a little since his punch connected with his hardened knee...

    ... Or so that''s what Jonathan thought.

    When the punch connected, he decided to strike a one-two punch at Satoshi''s face since it didn''t have a hand guard. But before his punch connected, Jonathan felt himself falling. His knees buckled when Satoshi punched them, and he couldn''t feel his legs.

    As it turned out, he underestimated Satoshi''s strength. His knees were actually weaker than Satoshi''s fists.

    The numbness was temporary, so Jonathan was up on his feet in a second. Satoshi was merciful enough to give him a breather when he stood up, and it humiliated him a bit.

    Then again, he couldn''t me Satoshi for doing it. If it were him in his shoes, he''d have done the same thing.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    After all, the two of them were looking forward to a good match, and they wouldn''t attack the other party if they fell.

    Since the tactic didn''t work, Jonathan changed his fighting style a little bit. This time, he crouched low before charging at Satoshi.

    Returning his sentiment, Satoshi also crouched low, and two of them engaged inbat with unusual fighting styles.

    Jonathan was the first one to attack, putting his hands down as support before unleashing two low roundhouse kicks.

    The kicks caught Satoshi off guard, and he took a step back. On the second kick, he stomped his feet, aiming at Jonathan''s ankle.

    Fortunately, Jonathan''s reaction time was fast enough and he managed to pull away before the kick connected. While he safely avoided the attack, it did give Satoshi a lot of openings since Jonathan''s circr momentum was cut off.

    Before Jonathan could revert to his standing form, Satoshi jumped on top of him, pinning one of his shoulder to the ground before punching him on the jaw.

    "Gahk~!" Jonathan eximed.

    Out of desperation, he aimed at the only opening that Satoshi had.

    His balls.

    While Satoshi punched him a second time on the jaw, he brought his knees straight at Satoshi''s balls.

    Crack!

    The attack connected, but it wasn''t Satoshi who was injured.

    After all, before the knee attack connected, Satoshi shifted his body to the right, and Jonathan''s knee hit his thigh instead.

    "Well yed, but this ends here." Satoshi called out, delivering another punch.

    A smile appeared on Jonathan''s face, this was the moment he was waiting for.

    While Satoshi got too focused on their physical attack, Jonathan assumed that he wouldpletely forget about his superpower. Now that Satoshi had a modicum of confidence in his victory, he decided to use his superpower.

    Jonathan used the same attack, kneeing Satoshi on his balls.

    But before the attack could hit, Jonathan teleported his knee at Satoshi''s jaws.

    "Got you." Jonathan mouthed just when Satoshi was about to punch him.

    Satoshi''s punch went through, and Jonathan felt it on his jaw. His knees also felt something... but it wasn''t Satoshi''s face.

    To his surprise, Satoshi caught his knee with his free hand. And he was smiling.

    "You''re pretty good," Satoshi repeated, he was having a field day fighting with Jonathan.

 Chapter 458 The Managers Decision

    Hwap~!

    Haah~!

    Jonathan let out a kick, aiming at Satoshi''s neck. Initially, Satoshi tilted his head back so he could dodge the kick. But after noticing Jonathan''s eyes, he realized that Jonathan was actually aiming at his shin.

    In a split second, Albrecht jumped up, twisted in the air, and delivered a backhand punch right at Jonathan''s face.

    Disoriented, Jonathan took a couple of steps backward. He raised his hand up just in case Satoshi attacked him while his guard was down.

    That was exactly what Satoshi did. However, instead of aiming at Jonathan''s upper body, Satoshi leaned in and kicked him on his third leg.

    The entire audience let out a gasp when the attack went through.

    Oof~!

    Letting out an oof, Jonathan fell to the ground as he clutched his third leg. Every man in the crowd instinctively clutched their balls as well since they could tell that the attack was really excruciating.

    Satoshi also let out an ''ooh'' before rushing towards Jonathan''s aid. "I''m sorry, I was confident you''d be able to dodge it."

    Before Satoshi could react, Jonathan also kicked his leg while he was sprawled on the ground. It caught Satoshi by surprise since his guard was down, and the kick hit him straight on the balls as well.

    "Aghk~!" Satoshi eximed. It didn''t hurt that much, but he decided to act as if it did hurt. After all, he didn''t want Jonathan to be the only one embarrassed.

    "I... forfeit." Jonathan suddenly said, much to everyone''s surprise. "That attack got me good."

    It still hurt a lot, but Jonathan managed to stand up and drag his feet on the ground as he walked away from the stage. Satoshi copied him.

    The audience didn''t know whether they should p or not. In the end, there were a couple of awkward ps here and there.

    Without further ado, Knighthawk stepped forward and announced the winner. "Satoshi wins!"

    He couldn''t help but gulp since the next match would be him against Satoshi.

    At the back of his mind, he was hoping that some of his students would challenge each other before the match concluded. But no one dared to challenge anyone, probably because all the spotlight was pointed at Satoshi and he was deserving of it.

    Quite frankly, they were just

    ...

    Meanwhile, by the edge of the universe,

    A ck blob could be seen floating there with the others. Countlessets surrounded this ck blob, and they continued to travel forward toward the center of the universe where their target was.

    They weren''t really<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    The cmity known as the World Eater (or an extension of it) scanned the entire universe for signs of life. They were sent there to scout the entire universe. To their surprise, the entire universe only had one with life in it.

    It was totally weird, but the scan was sessful. Now that a target was ced, it was time for the blob to scan the other universes which would also be attacked by the World Eater.

    While there were still three months before the awakening of the cmity, small parts of its body were already roaming other dimensions, looking for universes that would easily fall prey to its sheer power. The universe where Earth was located is just one of the many universes which the World Eater would attack.

    Once it awakens, it wouldy waste to universes one after another, and this universe was its first target since there was only one with life on it.

    With the inspection done, the blob seemed to turn around, followed by the floating rocks that surrounded it. A ck portal appeared in front of it, and energy seemed to seep out of it as it opened.

    Fwoooosh~

    There was actually no sounding out of the ck portal, but one might assume it produced such a sound due to the steady influx of energy.

    Slowly, the blob inched closer to the ck portal, and then it entirely disappeared once a small portion of it touched the portal.

    ...

    In another dimension,

    Once again, the Managers gathered together, encircling the round table while they discussed the grim situation they were in. The World Eater was bound to awaken in three months'' time, and their disciples couldn''t evene close to its power. In short, they weren''t ready, and the Managers were pretty much aware of this fact.

    "What do we do? At this rate, Universe 1 is going to fall into the hands of the World Eater. It''s going to get deleted just like Universe 31 and Universe 69." A manager with brown hair and a ck robe spoke. She had the urge to bite her nails, but the meeting was important and it would distract the others. That''s why she suppressed the urge.

    "We have no choice, we have to gather them. We also have to call the Masters while we''re at it." Another Manager spoke out loud. His name was Hyodo Issei, and he wielded red gauntlets.

    "Or we can pit them together with the Veterans?" The man with a long white beard spoke. His name was Dumble Dore, which was oddly familiar considering that there was a certain famous character who had the same name in a popr movie series in the past.

    "Let''s do that. But before anything, we have to gather the Disciples."

    "Then you do that, when do we call them?"

    Murmurs could be heard while they discussed when they''d call the Disciples. In the end, they unanimously decided to call them as soon as possible.

    In other words, the Disciples would be summoned as early as a couple of hours from the present. And since time was of the essence, no one argued with the decision.

    "Are we done here?" Someone suddenly raised his hand and called out to the other Managers.

    It was none other than Bucky Barnes. And before anyone could respond, he stood up and walked towards the exit. "Seems like we''re done here. I''ll take my leave first." He casually spoke.

    As soon as he got out of there, he teleported straight to his abode. There was something he needed to do before he summoned his Disciples to this dimension.

 Chapter 459 Knighthawk Versus Satoshi

    Once again, Knighthawk was backed into a corner since he had no choice but to ept the challenge. The audience put up a front of cheering him on, but honestly, they just desired to witness a fight between a teacher and a student.

    It was a spectacrly novel idea for Satoshi to challenge him like that after he was bullied, and the audience was all for it. it was going to be an unforgettable match, provided that not a single teacher would step in to put a halt to it.

    In fact, when the challenge was issued, the audience half-expected Principal Sai Tama to step in and tell them that they were taking things a tad bit too far. Unbeknownst to everyone, the principal was also looking forward to the event. \

    A match between a teacher and a student wasn''t a rare urrence in the USA, that''s why the principal was not at all surprised by Satoshi''s challenge.

    "Fight him. Fight him. Fight him." The constant cheers and urges of the spectators got on the nerves of Knighthawk. He wanted to scream at them that they be quiet. However, he had a reputation to uphold, and it would give him a bad image if he were to scream after being challenged by the student he bullied.

    With not much of a choice, Knighthawk held his breath and walked forward to the center of the stage. He walked with silence, stering a forced smile on his face as he gently waved at the audience. He wanted to scream ''this is what you wanted, right?'' at them.

    Instead of screaming, however, his eyebrows just twitched in annoyance as he assumed his position.

    Satoshi also walked toward the other side of the stage. From what little knowledge he had of Knighthawk, he knew that he didn''t have any superpowers. He was one of the handful of superheroes who didn''t have any superpowers, and he was able to rise through the ranks.

    In and of itself, that was such an impressive feat, but Satoshi was not impressed. He could more or less gauge Knighthawk''s level when ites to his physical build. His fighting prowess shouldn''t amount to that¡ª or so that''s what Satoshi assumed.

    "Oi, why didn''t you challenge anyone?" Jonathan asked Kuroe who simply stood there with the other girls.

    "Yeah, some of you wanted to switch ces with each other, right?" Hiroshi also asked. During the first round, the girls were especially enthusiastic about the matches, but now that the second round hadmenced, they didn''t bother challenging anyone.

    Then again, all of them didn''t do it since they didn''t want to ruin Satoshi''s momentum. He was on a roll, and his winning streak would help with his confidence in his next match.

    Adding to that, a fight between a teacher and a student is a fitting match to end the event. Thus everybody opted to step back and give Satoshi the limelight.

    Everyone''s attention was on him, and it was well-deserved, considering that he was fighting with a handicap.

    A figure suddenly leaped from the uppermost part of the coliseum. It was a familiar figure, but the figure was currently wearing a robe and sandals.

    As the figure descended, everyone noticed his bald head, reflecting the brightness of the sun as he went down. It was shiny as if someone just polished it with wax.

    Principal Sai Tama had arrived on the stage!<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "You''d need a referee, right? Allow me to stand in as a referee." Principal Sai Tama rmended himself as he slightly puffed his chest. His robe was open on the front so everyone could see his well-sculpted chest and the upper half portion of his abs. Despite his bald head, his body made him resemble a model.

    Just one look and Satoshi could tell that the principal also did not overlook his physical training.

    "Principal, are you really going to oversee this match?" Knighthawk asked. He didn''t want the principal to see his weak self because at that moment, he knew that Satoshi might beat him at his own game.

    Principal Sai Tama smiled. He was going to oversee the match with or without Knighthawk''s permission. Besides, the audience kind of wanted to see the principal act as a referee. He rarely goes outside to show himself to the public, after all.

    The crowd started murmuring amongst themselves. While Sai Tama rarely ever goes out, he was quite respected as one of the most powerful superhero to ever exist. It was even believed that he could easily take a top spot in the SAO Rankings if he were to get serious.

    However, he''d rather act as a principal and watch over his school instead of going out there and ying the role of a superhero.

    Apparently, Sai Tama only ever wanted a chill life. That''s why he stuck to his profession.

    "Well then, both sides in position." Sai Tama said extending his hand towards the stage as he stood by the sidelines. "The rules are simple. There will be no tamed beasts. The winner will be decided if the other party is unable to fight or if he surrendered. Ready?"

    Knighthawk and Satoshi gulped. This was the moment everyone was waiting for.

    "Begin!"

    Dash!

    To everyone''s surprise, it was Knighthawk who charged at Satoshi instead of the other way around. Somehow, the audience got used to thinking that Satoshi would make the first move, but this time he didn''t.

    Even Knighthawk was surprised since he was confident that Satoshi would charge as well.

    "Here goes nothing," Knighthawk gritted his teeth. Everything that he ever learned, as well as all the hardships he experienced, shed before his eyes. Somehow, his mind thought told him that everything that happened in the past led to this moment.

    Then again, it was his fault that this happened in the first ce. The least he could do was not embarrass himself further.

    "It''s all or nothing. It''s all or nothing." Knighthawk called out loud, clocking his fist as he readied a punch.

 Chapter 460 Bare-Handed And Weapons

    Knighthawk forced augh out of his mouth when he asked Principal Sai Tama the question.

    In his mind, he hoped that the principal would change his mind.

    But upon seeing the mischievous grin that the principal wore. No matter what he did, he was going to oversee the match no matter what.

    The crowd held their breaths as Principal Sai Tama finally raised his hand. It was time to start the match.

    "START!"

    Instead of charging forward, Satoshi stepped backward and assumed a fighting stance.

    But Knighthawk was prepared for the match. While he banned the usage of tamed beasts, he never banned the use of items.

    And Knighthawk never goes out of his house without bringing all his ''babies'' with him.

    As soon as Satoshi stepped back, Knighthawk pulled out asso from his pocket and whipped it right at Satoshi, catching him off-guard and constricting both Satoshi''s legs with thesso rope.

    Satoshi fell on the ground with a thud, not knowing what hit him. When he looked down, he noticed that his legs were tied up.

    "What on¡ª that''s cheating!" He eximed, but Knighthawk paid him no mind.

    Inwardly, Knighthawk wasughing, grabbing a couple of shurikens from his pocket and consecutively firing them off at Satoshi''s body.

    Since Knighthawk didn''t pull him, Satoshi brought his legs up and propelled himself forward, using his momentum to hoist himself up without using his arms.

    With his quick reflexes, he deflected all the shurikens, bare-handed. He then didn''t waste any time grabbing the rope that tied him up.

    In the contest of strength, Satoshi proved to be superior to Knighthawk. Not only did he manage to stand up while his legs were tied up, he also tugged at thesso and was able to get it from Knighthawk.

    "I have more where those came from," Knighthawk said as he pulled out two sword-like items from his pockets.

    Satoshi immediately recognized what those items were. While they may look foreign to most audiences, he was very familiar with them.

    Since he was young, he had been a big fan of superheroes with superpowers. And of course, Knighthawk instantly caught his attention since he was powerless yet he was able to be a superhero.

    That''s why Satoshi knew what he was wielding at the moment.

    And on a side note, he was hit with those things before. That''s why he knew that even only one of those would pack quite a punch.

    They were underground-issued tasers, each packing a hundred million volts in one tase.

    Satoshi knew that one hit from those bad boys would send him straight to dreand.

    "You''re really not pulling your punches on a student, are you?" Satoshi clenched his teeth.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Knighthawk''s lips curved upward. "Of course, my pride is on the line here." He responded.

    Since Satoshi had a pool of knowledge about Knighthawk, he knew that he was proficient in swordsmanship as well.

    That''s why when he assumed a fighting stance with those tasers, his body screamed of panic.

    Nevertheless, he didn''t back down. To top it all off, he even charged at Knighthawk, putting up a false bravado that he wasn''t afraid of his tasers.

    "What the-" Knighthawk grunted, totally caught off-guard since no one had attacked him when they heard the crackle of electricitying from the tasers.

    It was truly an unconventional fight in a world of superheroes. A fight between defense items and a powerless individual using the fruits of his physical training. Nevertheless, it was pretty entertaining, so the audience couldn''tin.

    Knighthawk dug his sole and stepped forward, using all the weight of his body to swing his tasers around. He swung them in an x-shape, confident that one of them would at least hit Satoshi since he was charging at him without defending himself.

    As soon as he was within arm''s reach, Satoshi dove forward, spinning in mid-air while he did a screwdriver vault.

    The x-attack missed its mark, and Satoshi was able to pierce through Knighthawk''s stance. He then grabbed Knighthawk by the cor, punching him on the jaw twice before backing away.

    Satoshi knew just how powerful Knighthawk was. If he were topare himself to him, he could confidently say that Knighthawk is much better than him.

    Sure, Satoshi had the skills, but Knighthawk had the experience as a professional superhero.

    That''s why he didn''t hold back with any of his punches. Each punch to the jaw was so explosive that it almost broke Knighthawk''s neck. Fortunately, Knighthawk instinctively clenched his neck before the punch connected.

    Thanks to his experience, it was second nature in his body to react to life-threatening attacks. If he didn''t clench his neck, it would have broken in an instant. An instant loss.

    Knighthawk''s nose bled, and he spat out blood from his mouth. However, his adrenaline gave him the push to stand up and continue fighting. There was no way he''d stay down, not when thousands if not millions of people are watching him.

    Satoshi''s unpredictable attack certainly caught him off guard, but he won''t let it happen the second time. With renewed determination, he put his hands up, still wielding the two tasers he had.

    As for Satoshi, he wielded thesso he acquired from Knighthawk. This was going to be his main weapon, seeing that he didn''t bring one into the fight.

    In a split second, Satoshi whipped thesso, knocking one of the tasers on Knighthawk''s hand. Using the momentum of thesso, he continued swinging it around, creating unpredictable whips in the air as he slowly approached Knighthawk.

    A grin appeared on Knighthawk''s face. He had never seen anyone use the whip like that, and it opened his eyes to new fighting styles. In any case, he couldn''t afford to lose, especially when that someone uses his specialty weapon.

    With his one and only taser in hand, he started parrying Satoshi''s whips. Every time he tried to retrieve the other taser, Satoshi would whip his hand. It was annoying, but Knighthawkmended its effectiveness.

    "This is bad..." Knighthawk muttered to himself.

    This time, he decided to use hisst resort. There was no way he''d win if he let things continue like this, after all.

 Chapter 461 Cornered But Not Cornered

    For once, Knighthawk was filled with confidence since he was going to use hisst resort. This move had been effective throughout his career. After all, it involved threatening someone''s life.

    And he was going to use the same thing on Satoshi. Even though this was just apetition between a teacher and a student, he didn''t want to lose. ''Besides, I''m just going to use a dummy, not a real one. I''m sure he''d fall prey to my lies. After all, my poker face had always been the best.''

    Knighthawk formted a n in his mind as Satoshissoed him a second time. Thesso whipped him on his ankles, causing him to jump up.

    ''Just you wait, I''m going to humiliate you by making you surrender.'' Knighthawk muttered to himself as he used his taser.

    On his back, he got two wooden sticks. He didn''t bother using it though since the taser was much better than two wooden sticks. As long as he wielded one taser, he wouldn''t resort to using his wooden sticks, especially at Satoshi who specializes in most if not all martial arts.

    Without wasting time, Knighthawk reached into his back pocket, causing Satoshi to move forward since he was about to do something.

    Gritting his teeth, Satoshi extended hissso, whipping it at Knighthawk''s right hand as he reached into his back pocket.

    It was all just an act, though, and Knighthawk immediately knew where thesso would whip.

    He immediately knew where thesso would whip, and he reached for it with his bare hands.

    The pain instantly shot to his head as thesso whipped around his hand. He winced, but he managed to grab thesso before it unwrapped.

    "Gotcha!" Knighthawk uttered as he pulled Satoshi.

    Taken off-guard, Satoshi was thrown forward as Knighthawk pulled with all his might.

    Once he was within arm''s reach, Knighthawk smoothly grabbed his st resort'' from his back pocket. It looked like a cor.

    Since Satoshi was thrown off-bnce, he wasn''t able to react in time as Knighthawk slid the cor onto his neck and locked it.

    And before Satoshi could do anything, Knighthawk let go of hissso and jumped backward. It was obvious that he had done this cor thing before. He was so smooth that Satoshi wasn''t even able to react in time.

    "And now we''re done," Knighthawk said to himself, smiling at Satoshi as he patted himself on the back.

    Some of the audience began wondering if Knighthawk had a weird fetish, while a small portion of them knew exactly what Knighthawk was doing.

    Long story short, Satoshi was in trouble. The cor was not just any other cor. It was actually a bomb.

    "I just strapped a bomb on your neck," Knighthawk announced. "Not only that, I made it trigger automatically. "Try to approach me, and that bomb would slowly heat up until your neck''s burnt to a crisp. Try to attack me, and your head''s going to be blown to bits."

    Satoshi stopped short in his tracks as he stared at Knighthawk who was smiling from ear to ear. Obviously, he was telling the truth. The moment he moved forward, the bomb slowly heat up, making him wince in pain. He moved backward, and the bomb cooled down.

    Unbeknownst to him, Knighthawk was actually lying. It would heat up when he tried to approach Knighthawk, but it won''t explode no matter what he did. Then again, it would burn his neck to a crisp, but it wasn''t life-threatening.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "That''s cheating!"

    "Get outta here!"

    "Using deadly weapons against a kid, you''re deplorable!''

    "Somebody disqualify that man!"

    "He has no conscience! He''s going to kill a child!"

    The audience started booing at Knighthawk who was fighting underhandedly. But Knighthawk didn''t listen to theirints. This was his fight, his rules, and anything goes as long as he could defeat Satoshi and hold onto his pride like a spoiled kid.

    "What are you going to do about it?" Knighthawk responded to the audience as he shrugged at them.

    Satoshi clenched his teeth. He couldn''t move forward, and he couldn''t move backward since that would also activate the heat on the cor. He wasn''t sure whether the cor would really go off, but based on Knighthawk''s expression, he knew that he wasn''t lying.

    "What are you going to do? Just stand here and waste our time? Or are you going to forfeit this match?" Knighthawk taunted, extending his hand as he signaled for Satoshi to take a step forward.

    "Then? You can''t also approach me, right? There''s no way you can do it either, right?" Satoshi felt the clouds open up as he found a sliver of hope. He had no idea if his bluff would work, but he risked saying it nevertheless.

    "What are you talking about?" Knighthawk scoffed as he took a step forward. "Now, get a load of this."

    As Knighthawk took one step, Satoshi felt his throat burning up. He gasped for air, but the temperature just continued to rise, burning his neck and literally toasting his throat.

    "You see, it works the other way around as well. If I approach you, the temperature would rise up as well. That''s why you don''t want me walking towards you." Knighthawk exined, taking another step forward.

    Satoshi almost fell to the ground due to the excruciating pain, but he got up and jumped backward, gaining some distance from Knighthawk.

    "That won''t work, you know," Knighthawk told him as he increased his pace.

    While Knighthawk tried to approach him, Satoshi continued retreating. He couldn''t afford Knighthawk to get near him. His neck was already burning, and he could tell that his skin had already suffered some serious damage.

    "Don''t be ridiculous, Satoshi, give up now. I''ll remove the cor." Knighthawk continued.

    Satoshi was about to raise his hand and give up... however, he felt a sharp pang in his mind, and he heard a voice speaking at him.

    From a distance, he saw Kuroe looking at him, mouthing out the words that gave him newfound confidence.

    This time, without hesitation, he charged at Knighthawk.

 Chapter 462 A Heartwarming Moment

    Satoshi''s throat literally burned up as he approached Knighthawk. However, this didn''t stop him from elerating. In fact, he sprinted even faster, as if his life depended on this race against time. Impulsively, he clenched his teeth so as to alleviate the pain of the burn on his neck.

    The sudden unexpected movement made Knighthawk''s eyes almost pop out of their sockets. While Knighthawk predicted that Satoshi would cowardly stay in ce, he did the exact opposite, and itpletely caught him off-guard.

    "What are you doing? Aren''t you afraid of exploding?" Knighthawk''s lips curved upward, thinking that Satoshi would fall for his bluff. In the field, most criminals would fall for his bluff and they won''t be able to endure the burning sensation in their throats.

    However, Satoshi was a different breed of criminal¡ª or so that''s what Knighthawk thought to himself when he saw that Satoshi was running at him without any intention of stopping.

    Since Satoshi was already within arm''s reach, Knighthawk had to jump sideways to avoid him. Before he couldpletely get away, though, Satoshi grabbed him by the ground and mmed him on the ground.

    This left Knighthawk defenseless and almost knocked him unconscious. Before he could even recover, Satoshi lifted him off the ground and mmed him on the other side. This time, Knighthawk hit the ground rear side first.

    Mercilessly, Satoshi repeated the process, mming him face-first and rear-side first a couple of times until his face was unrecognizable. His back also had marks where it was hit the hardest.

    All this time, Satoshi''s throat burned, but he held on. He wasn''t going to give Knighthawk time to recover. As seconds passed, Satoshi got even more out of control, mming Knighthawk on the ground like the iconic move of a certain iconic green-skinned berserker superhero.

    What gave Satoshi his renewed confidence was the telepathic message that Kuroe sent him. Since Knighthawk was pulling out all stops in his cheating and bullying, Kuroe thought that giving Satoshi a hint wouldn''t hurt. That''s why she directed a message into his mind.

    She then told him that the cor wouldn''t explode. It would just increase in temperature.

    That was all that Satoshi needed to attack Knighthawk. If it wouldn''t explode, then there was no risk of him dying. His neck would get burnt to a crisp, but he knew that the skin and muscles were resilient enough that he won''t burn to death.

    It didn''t take long before Knighthawk''s eyes rolled backward and only the whites of his eyes could be seen. He had lost consciousness while Satoshi was throwing him around. It was a fitting defeat for someone who abused using underhanded tactics in a match.

    Satoshi felt his throat burning, and he couldn''t breathe, but he waited for the Principal''s announcement before he removed the cor on his throat.

    He already thought of using Ghast to teleport the cor away from his throat, and then he would once again summon Sera to heal him up.

    If that didn''t work, then he''d just summon Sain, his Chainsaw Familiar, andmand him to cut the cor from his throat.

    Principal Sai Tama raised his hand, but before he could say any word, a couple of students jumped into the stage, charging at Satoshi as if to attack him.

    "Winner, Midoriyama Satosh¡ª" The principal stopped short, wondering why most of ss 3-1 was charging at Satoshi with the slight intention of bloodthirst emanating from them.

    ...

    A few seconds ago,

    Biting her lips, Shiroi closed her eyes. She couldn''t bring herself to continue looking at Satoshi while he underwent excruciating torture. The cor was glowing bright red at this point, and Shiroi couldn''t even imagine just how much pain Satoshi was going through.

    And it''s not like she could just jump in and ask the principal to stop the match. ''Satoshi would be angry if I did that. I knew he got it under control... but he''s hurting.'' Shiroi clenched her fists in frustration.

    "Oi! Is everyone ready?" Jonathan called out of nowhere. "Emma, help me out here, will you?"

    Jonathan didn''t even need to exin. He and Emma were on the same page. Before another word was said, Emma nodded her head towards Jonathan and they prepared.

    At this point, Satoshi had already thrown Knighthawk around more than ten times. It wouldn''t take long before he faints.

    "Shiroi, we''re going in as soon as the match is over. You know what to do. Midori, Kuroe, you know what to do."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I also know what to do!" Sakura Cherry (Sassu had currently taken over her body right at this moment) eximed.

    "Then the rest of us are going to stay. You know the saying, right? Too many cooks will spoil the broth." Kurogami said, nodding at Hiroshi, Lydia, and the rest of ss 3-1.

    "Well then, here we go," Jonathan called out. "Avengers, move out!"

    Jonathan was way into character even though Satoshi was just a couple of meters away from them.

    ...

    As soon as the principal gave the signal, Emma and Jonathan teleported toward Satoshi, bringing Kuroe, Midori, and Shiroi with them. They didn''t bother bringing Cherry into the mix since they expected her to just be all over Satoshi which won''t help at all.

    "What''s going o¡ª" Satoshi cut himself off as the group made their move. Initially, he thought that they were going to attack him since he detected bloodthirsting from them. However, the bloodthirst wasn''t directed at him so he didn''t think too hard about it.

    Shiroi didn''t need to be told what to do. In an instant, she froze the cor fastened around Satoshi''s neck. Kuroe activated a portion of her power to numb Satoshi''s pain receptors. And as for Midori, he started healing the burns on his neck.

    Emma also removed the cor on Satoshi''s neck using her portal superpower. No one knows where she threw the cor but it was gone in an instant.

    In a split second, Satoshi felt like a king. A refreshing feeling overcame his body as he rxed. One moment, he felt like he was being tortured, but now that torture was just a distant memory.

    Five secondster, Kurogami appeared, bringing the Nurse with him. With an expressionless face, he looked at Satoshi. "Are you all right? I brought the Nurse." He asked before jerking his thumb towards the Nurse who had no idea how she got there.

    "Never better," Satoshi forced a smile on his face. "If you could get me a cold canned drink, it would feel even be¡ª"

    He wasn''t even finished with what he was saying when Lydia appeared in front of him, handing him an ice-cold drink. Lydia then kicked Midori on the thighs. "Make sure you heal the burns properly, if it leaves a scar, we''re going to sew your mouth shut," Lydia called out, but she smiled after saying something so dark.

    "Ey ey~ of course, if things go wrong, we have the Nurse here. She''d patch Satoshi up, good as new." Midori confidently said.

    In response, the Nurse just crossed her arms and sighed. "It seems like I''m not even needed here." She called out.

    "Do you need a hug, Satoshi? How about a kiss?" Sassu asked, leaning in towards Satoshi.

    This time, the rest had to step in before Sassu started getting all over Satoshi.

    While all these were happening, Knighthawk was still lying on the ground, unconscious. It took a minute before the Nurse noticed his existence and he immediately healed him up. Surprisingly, he was more beat up than Satoshi even though he had the advantage of items and underhanded tactics.

    From a distance, the spectators watched as ss 3-1 joined together to save their ssmate. It was a heartwarming moment that even the principal started tearing up. The established and unbroken camaraderie of ss 3-1 was shown in full light.

    The audience felt the scene tug at their heartstrings, and some of them started cryughing. It was a very inspiring moment, and it promoted a peace that they never knew existed in a ss. Even the other teachers and sses were slightly envious of the bonds that the entire ss 3-1 had forged.

    And since it was broadcasted on the school''s official youtube channel, people around the globe saw it, and it became a viral moment. It would even make the headlines the very next day.

    But the ones who were affected by the scene the most were none other than Midoriyama Ayumu and Tatsuki, who were watching their son fight against Knighthawk. They were this close to stepping in when they saw that Satoshi''s ssmates were charging at him.

    "Look, dear," Ayumu shed a tear as she smiled at her husband. "Our son... he''s made many friends," She proudly said.

    Tatsuki briefly remembered the anxiousness they felt when Satoshi applied to the prestigious school of USA, and he couldn''t help but feel proud. Satoshi had grown so much, and now he''s gotrades looking after him. "I told you he''s going to be fine, right?" He confidently responded.

 Chapter 463 Bucky Barness Mission

    In another dimension,

    Bucky Barnes didn''t want anyone to uncover his secret, that''s why he didn''t tell anyone where he''d be going. It was one of those rare times when he could go somewhere and directly help his Disciples. As a Manager, he took it upon himself to give as much advantage as he could.

    After all, it''s not every day that Managers were allowed to directly involve themselves with their Disciples. Not only would it break the rules, but they might even get removed from their position.

    "This is thest one, right? What a sneaky one indeed." Bucky Barnes said to himself while looking around. He held a map in his hand with a couple of squiggly lines written on it. By the end of one of those lines was a location marked with a red ''X'', sort of like a treasure map.

    "Is it really here? I doubt it." Bucky Barnes scratched his head in frustration.

    This project of Bucky Barnes had been ongoing for the past ten years, and he hasn''t grown tired of it. His goal was to get three of ''them'' and in the span of ten years, he''d only captured two.

    This time, however, he was feeling lucky, and based on the additional information he gathered in the past two years, he knew that he was this close to finding what he was looking for.

    While most Managers would rather choose a lot of Disciples and pit them against each other, he was different. He would carefully choose his Disciples, and he would guide them and help them grow as much as he could, provided that he didn''t break any rules.

    This was the reason why his past Disciples were pretty powerful in the past. Some of the Managers even suspected him of breaking the rules, but not once did he do it. And yet he was able to recruit powerful Disciples as if it were nothing.

    He was an underrated Manager, but every Disciple he''d ever had left asting imprint in history.

    "And today, we''re going to create another history." Bucky Barnes said to himself as he walked forward.

    At the moment, he was in a lush jungle, filled with thick vines and towering trees that covered the sunlight. a dark atmosphere enveloped the forest.

    "It''s here all right...." He said to himself as he gritted his teeth.

    From the center of the forest, a huge roar could be heard, well, it was more like a battle cry than a roar. A small-scale quake was felt on the ground, causing the trees to slightly shake at the sheer power of whatever it was.

    "I''m going in." He continued.

    ...

    Back on Earth, United Superheroes Academy,

    Since the seating arrangement matches were done, and there were noints about their position, the event hade to an end and it was time for afternoon sses.

    Somehow, Satoshi was the only one who felt really exhausted. He kept on battling his drowsiness throughout the entire ss, and there were a couple of times when he dozed off.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Fortunately, he wasn''t caught... or maybe the other teachers just gave him a break since he fought five consecutive times that morning. His exhaustion was understandable, and that''s probably why no one bothered to be strict with him in the afternoon.

    The sun was slowly dipping on the horizon when sses came to an end. The usual school bell rang throughout the entire school, marking the end of the day. A couple of minutester, students started pouring from the entrance to the school, and the once-empty school grounds were once again filled with people.

    "Oi~ Satoshi," Emma called out to him as he finally dozed off after sses. Hiroshi and the other guys made a beeline to the cafeteria and the other girls had to go to the restroom, that''s why Emma and Satoshi were the only ones left in the ssroom.

    Satoshi stirred a little bit, but he didn''t wake up. Instead, he subconsciously turned her head around to avoid the sunlight which was hitting him through the window.

    "Oi~ wake up, Satoshi, you can continue your nap at home," Emma repeated, lightly pping him on the cheek.

    But Satoshi just won''t wake up. And at this point, she felt bad about waking him up after the exhausting morning he just had.

    "Oiii~" Emma whispered softer than normal before inching closer to Satoshi.

    Since she felt bad about waking him up, she just grabbed the arm and used her superpower, portal creation.

    "All right," She muttered, teleporting Satoshi straight into his room.

    Fwooom~!

    It was instant, and Satoshi didn''t even feel the transition. As for Emma, she was quite proud of her own work. Their teleportation didn''t even make any sound, so the Midoriyama Duo wasn''t alerted by their arrival.

    (Well, the two of them were actually alerted since they could sense the use of superpowers thanks to their enhanced senses. But they immediately recognized Emma and Satoshi''s signatures so they didn''t rush towards the second floor to Satoshi''s room.)

    Feeling thefortable mattress on his back, Satoshi rolled over to his side twice before exhaling. He didn''t wake up at all, falling deeper into sleep.

    "Wait, I didn''t tell anyone about¡ª" Emma muttered to herself, realizing that the two of them left without giving the rest of their ssmates a heads up. But then again, it''s not like they needed to say goodbye. The only problem was the school bus that was expecting them.

    Before then, she had to tell Satoshi''s parents of their arrival, otherwise, they might end up worrying.

    "Well... let''s think about thatter yawn~" Emma let out as she slowly crawled up Satoshi''s bed. She too felt sleepy, and the bed was more than tempting for her liking.

    Without waking Satoshi up, she positioned herself just beside Satoshi, making sure that there was some space between them. She also turned on the air conditioner so Satoshi would feel even morefortable.

    "Oyasumiii~" Emma weakly greeted before she too fell into slumber.

 Chapter 464 Five More Minutes

    A couple of secondster, Satoshi turned to Emma''s side, and Emma got a clear view of Satoshi''s face. A smile appeared on her face as she reminisced about the first time she met Satoshi.

    It was an unorthodox way of meeting someone, but they bonded in an instant. Adding to that, Satoshi ultimately helped her out and now her was saved.

    "Thank you, Satoshi," A warm smile appeared on her face as she sumbed to her drowsiness.

    Slowly, Emma''s eyes fluttered and then she fell asleep. Her hand subconsciously held Satoshi''s and they held hands as they fell asleep.

    Normally, Satoshi wouldn''t have fallen asleep when there was someone there with him. However, he had been with Emma for a couple of months now, and hepletely trusted her. That''s why it was fine for him to let his guard down if it was Emma.

    Well, he also trusts Shiroi by a lot, but Emma had been supporting him closely for quite some time now, inevitably bringing them closer together.

    ...

    A sweet atmosphere lingered in the air as Ayumu and Tatsuki cooked dinner together. They''ve been enjoying the past couple of weeks staying home together since there were no major incidents going on in Japan. In the past, alien invasions and terrorist attacks were a daily urrence, but now peace had set in.

    Some called it the calm before the storm, but Ayumu and Tatsuki just hoped things would stay this way. After all, it wasn''t every day that they get to spend time together like this.

    Even with the prolonged peace that was currently going on, Ayumu and Tatsuki never missed a day of training. They have to be prepared for when disaster strikes. It is the inevitability of a superhero-infested world, after all.

    Ring riiiing~

    "I''ll get it," Ayumu volunteered as she picked up her phone. It was the school calling.

    "Hello, we would like to ask if Emma Leisenberg and Midoriyama Satoshi had gotten home safely. They didn''t ride the school bus today." It was Knighthawk who was speaking on the other end, and Ayumu immediately recognized his voice.

    "Ah, Knighthawk-sensei." Ayumu greeted, bowing down even though she was only greeting through audio. "Yes yes, don''t worry about them. They got home an hour or so ago." Ayumu continued.

    "Right, I''m sorry for calling sote. I''ve been looking all over the school for them." Knighthawk exined. He was actually out of breath, and Ayumu could hear his bated breaths through the phone.

    "No worries, no worries," Ayumu cheerfully said.

    Click!

    As Ayumu put the phone down, Tatsuki leaned by the kitchen counter. "Knighthawk?" He asked, vaguely hearing the voice through the phone since he didn''t bother listening.

    "Yes, he said that Emma and Satoshi didn''t take the school bus." Ayumu giggled.

    A smile appeared on Tatsuki''s face as he mischievously pointed at the ceiling. "Now that you mention it... it''s been rather quiet up there, don''t you think?"<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Ayumu giggled even more. She was confident that Emma and Satoshi weren''t doing anythingscivious. And as for Tatsuki, he had been checking up on them for the past hour. They were just sleeping, so he didn''t worry as well.

    "It''s about time we wake them up, right?" Tatsuki asked.

    "Let them rest. They had quite an exhausting day, after all." Ayumu suggested. "Why don''t we cook more food?" She suggested.

    "Good idea, let''s cook another batch of hamburg steak. I''m sure Satoshi will finish everythingter." Tatsuki agreed, walking towards the fridge and getting another batch.

    Meanwhile, Aira, who had been looking for Emma and Satoshi since the afternoon, overheard the call, and she decided to quietly slink towards Satoshi''s room. She had been looking forward to their afternoon walk today, but it was already nighttime and there were no signs of Emma and Satoshi around.

    Gulping, Aira reached for the doorknob, slowly pushing it open. As expected, she saw Emma and Satoshi sleeping together on the bed. The cold st of aircon hit her on the face, and she entered the room without hesitation.

    Yawning, Aira climbed up the bed and scooted between Emma and Satoshi. The warmth was sofortable that she instantly fell asleep. She turned towards Satoshi, hugging him as the cold air hit her in the face.

    This wasn''t the first time that the three of them slept together like this, but Aira felt like it had been so long since this happened. That''s why she decided to relish the opportunity, literally getting in between Emma and Shiroi.

    ...

    The mouth-watering aroma of dinner called out to Ayumu and Tatsuki''s stomachs as they prepared the table. Even though it was just a normal day, there was so much food on the table that one would misunderstand it as a celebration.

    Then again, this was a celebration of sorts. After all, Satoshi managed to win against his ssmates and his homeroom teacher even without using his superpower. In the past, this wouldn''t have been possible. But now, his confidence gave him newfound strength, and he managed to pull through despite the pressure ced on him.

    "That smells good. I know this is supposed to be for Satoshi.... but I might eat more than expected." Tatsuki rubbed his stomach.

    "We have more hamburg steaks by the kitchen counter. We''ll just refill these once it''s finished." Ayumu said.

    "Now then... should I wake them up?" Tatsuki asked.

    Before Ayumu could say anything, Tatsuki raised his voice. "Aira, Emma, Satoshi, it''s time for dinner!" He announced.

    There was no response. He was met with silence. As it turned out, they were sleeping deeper than he thought. An exhale left Tatsuki''s mouth as he headed for the stairs. "I''ll go wake them up." He continued.

    When Tatsuki got to Satoshi''s room, he didn''t hesitate to open it. After all, he could sense that they were just sleeping. He was surprised to see that Aira joined in on the sleepover, causing a chuckle toe out of his mouth.

    "What peace.... five minutes. Let''s let them sleep for five more minutes. Yup, five more minutes." Tatsuki nodded as he slowly closed the door behind him.

 Chapter 465 Battle Of Endurance

    I knew it!

    It was right here!

    HAH! After years of searching and exploring the far reaches of interdimensional travel... I finally found it!

    Bucky Barnes had no idea how he''d react when he finally found what he was looking for. For years, he had looked far and wide for this beast... and now that he found it, he felt like his journey was all worthwhile. His years of dedication finally bore fruit. And that fruit was right in front of him, seemingly hibernating.

    On his hand, he held two Grens (as a recap, this is this world''s version of a Pok*ball), each with their own engravings that marked which type of tamed beast was contained. Two out of these three Grens already had a tamed beast inside, and it took Bucky Barnes a span of ten years just to hunt them.

    Now, thest beast in his collection has finally appeared, and he would go to extreme extents just to capture it... all for the sake of his Disciples.

    "Who would''ve thought I''lle this far? Perfect timing as well. Now.. how long would it take before I capture this thing... hopefully less than a month." Bucky Barnes said to himself.

    As he walked towards the hibernating beast, he remembered his experience with the prior two beasts which he captured by himself. He almost died trying to tame them, but he seeded in the end. All of those seemed like a distant memory since it took him ten years toplete the search.

    A certain sense of nostalgia hit him. He grinned. "After this... my journey wille to an end... or rather, it would be the beginning of a new age. Now... I guess there was no time to waste."

    "Lava Hydra, Lochness Monster, I choose you both!" Bucky Barnes said, throwing the two Grens he had in his possession.

    The first tamed beast toe out was a ming snake with eight heads. Its skin color was akin to scarlet. mes and smoke came out of its mouth when it hissed. As for the second tamed beast, it was asrge as the gigantic Lava Hydra, the only difference was it had one head, and it had four flippers that acted like legs.

    "Let''s go!" Bucky Barnes called out, his arm outstretched as he directed the two tamed beasts¡ª the result of ten years of his hard work and dedication.

    With a resounding roar, the Lava Hydra unleashed an earthquake that terraformed a portion of the forest intova-infested grounds. As for the Lochness Monster, it shot a high-pressure water beam at the hibernating tamed beast.

    The third tamed beast in question was a giant panda. Just like the first two, it''s also a Representative. Even if it''s a two-on-one battle, Bucky Barnes knew that they''d have a hard time bringing down this third tamed beast.

    That''s right, the Lava Hydra and Lochness Monster were also Representatives. Bucky Barnes had been hunting Representatives for the past ten years, all for the sake of his goal.

    A glint appeared in the eyes of the Bamboo Panda as it woke up. Its hibernation was cut short, and it really pissed off the Bamboo Panda. With a deafening roar, the Bamboo Panda pped its hands, deflecting the water beam that the Lochness Monster shot at him. It then activated its special hardening skill to reduce the damage it received from the fiery terrain.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Fortunately, the sun shone brightly on its back, and the Bamboo Panda could charge up a sr beam in an instant. Before the Lochness Monster could fire another bout of water beam, the Bamboo Panda opened its mouth and unleashed a powerful sr beam, aimed directly at the Lochness Monster.

    Even though Bucky Barnes was a distance away from the fight, he could tell just how powerful that Sr Beam was. Even though he was a Manager, he wasn''t sure whether he could tank a single hit on that Sr Beam. He could only imagine himself being obliterated as soon as that attack connected.

    "Dodge it, Lochness Monster!" Bucky Barnesmanded.

    To his relief, the Lochness Monster dodged the sr beam just in time. Just like the other two, the Lochness Monster boasts great agility, that''s why it easily dodged a sudden attack.

    At the same time, the Lava Hydra unleashed a methrower right when the Bamboo Panda shot its sr beam. Bucky Barnes didn''t even tell the Lava Hydra to attack, but it did anyway.

    Then again, Bucky Barnes knew that the Lava Hydra had great instincts in battle. That''s why it attacked right when the Bamboo Panda''s position was fixed. The Lava Hydra was aware that the sr beam couldn''t be fired when a tamed beast was moving around. After all, the recoil would be too much of a strain on the body.

    That''s why it attacked as soon as the Bamboo Panda fired away. And because of that, the methrower connected,nding a clean hit on the Bamboo Panda.

    Clearly, the Bamboo Panda suffered serious damage. However, it didn''t show a shred of cowardice or weakness in front of its two opponents. In essence, it acknowledged the Lava Hydra as a bigger threat than the Lochness Monster.

    "Lava Hydra, use overheat. Lochness Monster, use Earthquake!" Bucky Barnes called out.

    Overheat allows the Lava Hydra to increase the temperature of the surroundings, giving it more attack power while weakening grass-type beasts in the vicinity. And since the Bamboo Panda is a grass type, it would severely be affected by the attack.

    As for the Earthquake, it gave the Bamboo Panda uneven footing, making it unable to activate its powerful sr beam attack.

    Out of desperation, the Bamboo Panda let out a roar before it countered the Earthquake with another Earthquake. Doing so doubled the damage to the forest, but it did give the Bamboo Panda some breathing space.

    That didn''t cancel out the effect of Overheat though, and the Bamboo Panda continued to weaken as seconds passed. At this rate, it was going to lose to the two Representatives.

    "Let''s keep at it! I guess this wouldn''t take that long thanks to you guys." Bucky Barnes called out,manding the Lava Hydra and the Lochness Monster to continue using Overheat and Earthquake. It was a battle of endurance, and the side with more numbers would usually win in a battle of endurance.

 Chapter 466 Bamboo Panda, Lava Hydra, And Lochness Monster

    In every dimension, there were hundreds if not thousands of Managers all overseeing their universes, taking care of their universe and monitoring it to avoid its inevitable end. They weren''t omnipotent, but most of them are more powerful than a regr human on average.

    Universe 31 and Universe 69 had already fallen, and their Managers were removed from their posts since they were incapable. And now, Universe 1 is at risk of being deleted. While they survived the first wave of the World Eater, the second wave was bound toe. There was no way that Universe 1 could get out of the inevitable predicament.

    During the first wave, Universe 1 fought with everything they''ve got, and it resulted in their victory. However, every race died because of that, and only Earth was left with inhabitants. Now, with the uing second wave of the World Eater''s invasion, they were bound to lose.

    Fortunately, the Managers assigned to Universe 1 had gathered strong superhumans across the dimensions, and they were tasked with saving Universe 1 from utter destruction.

    There were only three months left before the World Eaterpletely revived, but it was already sending scouts to Universe 1 to prepare for its onught. With the scouts appearing on the scene, the Managers knew all too well that the attack was really about to transpire.

    As such, the Managers sought to prepare for the invasion, each going their own way since all of them had different views about preparing. Hermione Ranger went about gathering new tamed beasts and skills for her disciples. As for Hyodo Issei, he gathered a couple of beautiful humanoid beasts that were sure to inspire his disciples. Dumble Dore hunted for magical beasts for his disciples.

    Then there was Bucky Barnes, who went out of his way to do what he could for his disciples. This was one of the rare moments where they could directly support their disciples. Of course, he''d try to do what he could to help his disciples as much as he could.

    Unlike the other Managers, Bucky Barnes treat his disciples as if they were his children, and he wanted to give them as much edge as possible. He also doesn''t choose his disciples willy-nilly. He would choose them and scrutinize them as much as he could just to make sure that he had chosen the right disciple.

    The incident between Jana and Jonathan was something that he didn''t want to repeat, and that''s why he became even more careful this time.

    Currently, he had three disciples since the incident between Jana and Jonathan killed all of his disciples including Jana. It was a great tragedy, but now he treasured the three disciples he had left¡ª Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe.

    While the others were scurrying to give their disciples more tamed beasts and rewards, Bucky Barnes had not given his three disciples a single cent. For the past ten years, he had been hunting Representatives, trying to tame them so he could bestow the ultimate gift a Manager could give.

    ...

    Twelve hourster,

    "Now, let''s finish this." Bucky Barnes was sweating, and he felt so exhausted. Well, he wasn''t the one fighting but he had been barking orders nonstop at the Lava Hydra and the Lochness Monster. If it weren''t for him, the two Representatives would''ve already been defeated by the Bamboo Panda.

    Together, the two Representatives wouldn''t have been able to work together if it weren''t for Bucky Barnes''s specific instructions.

    The Bamboo Panda charged another sr beam, but it didn''t work out so it approached the Lochness Monster before swiping his ws at it.

    "Lava Hydra, methrower! Don''t let the Bamboo Panda get near your ally!"<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    Kruooogh~!

    Since the Bamboo Panda was getting rather desperate (it was already twelve hours, after all), it didn''t bother with the Lava Hydra, and it continued charging at the Lochness Monster.

    Scratch~!

    The Bamboo Panda managed tond a hit, and since the Bamboo Panda had an effective advantage over the Lochness Monster (Grass type against a Water type), the Lochness Monster was one-hit knocked out by the Bamboo Panda.

    In return, the Lava Hydranded a clean methrower on the Bamboo Panda. Coupled with exhaustion, the Bamboo Panda fainted, but not before taking down the Lochness Monster with him.

    With a resounding roar, the Lava Hydra was thest Representative standing. Bucky Barnes didn''t waste any time throwing a Gren at the Bamboo Panda. Now that it fainted, he could most certainly capture it.

    Ting. Ting.

    Poof~!

    Bucky Barnes''s eyes sparkled as he imagined the background music ying in the area. There was a skip in his steps as he walked towards the Gren that stopped shaking. He had sessfully caught the Bamboo Panda.

    "I caught the Bamboo Panda!" Bucky Barnes childishly eximed as he raised the Gren at the top of his head.

    That''s when he felt his vision blurring out and dizziness struck him. He was so exhausted that he fell to the ground, his body giving up before the mind. "Seems like I overextended myself, hahhaha~ but then again, at least my job is done here." Bucky Barnes continued as his consciousness slipped away. Before hepletely passed out, however, he let the Bamboo Panda out so he could guard the vicinity while he slept.

    Atst, after ten long years of hunting down Representatives and gathering information for them. He finally achieved what he sought to do. He had caught three elusive Representatives, and they were going to fall into the hands of his three disciples.

    It was an achievement that not anyone would''ve stuck to had they known that it would take ten years. But Bucky Barnes kept at it despite the ridiculous amount of effort he had to put in. More than anything, he wanted to at least give his disciples the edge over other disciples...

    ... And more than anything, give them a fighting chance against the World Eater.

    "Now... it''s time. Mission aplished." Bucky Barnes weakly uttered before he passed out.

 Chapter 467 Late For Training

    When Bucky Barnes came to, he was greeted by the three Representatives he caught. For a moment, he felt threatened since he was still half asleep, but when he remembered that he actually tamed all of them, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    The Lava Hydra, Lochness Monster, and Bamboo Panda were all his prized possessions, his ten years of hard work.

    But sadly, now that his mission was done, it was time for him to part ways with the three of them.

    "Right, I guess it''s time for the three of you to meet your respective masters, huh? All right then. I guess it''s about time we go back."

    Fully rested, Bucky Barnes did a couple of stretches before he recalled the three Representatives. For a brief moment, he admired the scenery of the forest where the Bamboo Panda once resided. Now that he tamed the Bamboo Panda, it was time for him to leave.

    The curtains to his ten-year journey had finallye to a close.

    "I wonder how they''ll support their disciples this time around." Bucky Barnes asked himself as he manifested a dimensional portal. As soon as he got inside, he appeared right in front of his abode.

    ''Wait, are you kidding me right now?!'' Bucky Barnes eximed when he noticed the date on the clock. For some reason, he was gone for a week even though he had only been fighting the Bamboo Panda for a day.

    What he didn''t know was that the location of the Bamboo Panda was actually so far even when it was in a different dimension, that''s why one day burned one week in their usual time. "Oi~ this is not good. We''rete! Very very veryte!"

    Without further ado, Bucky Barnes summoned another dimensional portal that led to Earth. He needed to round up his Disciples as soon as possible.

    ...

    Somewhere in another dimension,

    The other Managers contemted whether to train the disciples in their dimension or not. In the end, they chose to train them in another dimension so there won''t be minor damage on their or anything of the sort.

    What they chose is a simple pocket dimension by the edge of the universe. There was a single there that had the same terraformation as Earth, but it was a tad bitrger so the overall climate was much colder.

    Dumble Dore stood in front of the Disciples who were neatly lined up in front of them. Beside him were the other Managers who also brought their Disciples with them.

    This would be the chosen training ground, and the higher-ups have already decided on a training regimen, even going as far as to schedule everything to make the most of the training.

    "Where''s Bucky Barnes?" Dumble Dore leaned to the side, whispering at Hermione Ranger who stiffly stood while trying to act all cool in front of her Disciples. She rarely appeared in front of them, that''s why she felt a bit embarrassed after seeing them up close.

    "I don''t know, why are you asking me?" Hermione hissed before she turned towards Hyodo Issei. "And why are all your Disciples... women?"

    "Non non~ you misunderstand, Hermione Ranger-san," Hyodo shook his index finger in front of Hermione. He was wearing a confident expression on his face even though everyone expected him to say something useless. "They are women, and that''s exactly why they''re all my disciples."

    "Right," Dumble Dore indifferently uttered. "In any case, it''s been one day but Bucky Barnes still hasn''t shown up. The higher-ups were merciful enough to make us wait an hour for them... but I doubt he''s going to show up today."<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "He will... and if he didn''t, then it''s still good for us. We get to rest for another hour every day."

    One of the Disciples with white hair and a headband spoke as he scratched his head. His red scarlet pupils stared directly into Dumble Dore''s eyes. "Hey, can''t we just start the training, like right now? We need to run through the forest and back, right? And it''s getting dark as well."

    Some of the Disciples started nodding their heads while the others shushed the white-haired boy who spoke up.

    "Ryuta Himuro-san, right? Look, the Managers are Managers, and the higher-ups are the ones who get to decide. Even if they wanted to start right now, they can''t. They can''t change the decisions of the higher-ups. Whatever you do, we''re going t wait, so just stand there and be quiet." A girl wearing bikini armor spoke up. She had pink hair, and she screamed of femininity despite her tomboyish tone.

    After she spoke, she flicked her hair as if to say that she couldn''t care less about what Himuro just said.

    Her name was Murasaki Nanako, and just like the white-haired guy, she was a Disciple of Hermione Ranger.

    "Shut up, I didn''t ask." Himuro retorted, snorting as he turned away from Nanako.

    Minutes passed, and everyone grew impatient as they stood still. Anyone could''ve rested or sat down, but they were inpetition with everyone so no one dared to take a rest.

    Moreover, the Managers wanted to set an example for their Disciples. That''s why they also didn''t step away from where they stood. Their pride was on the line, and the heavy atmosphere caused them to grow nervous in front of their Disciples.

    The sun from the horizon was beginning toe down as the hour came to a close. However, there were still no signs of Bucky Barnes anywhere.

    "Right, everyone at the ready." Dumble Dore finally spoke up, much to everyone''s relief. It was time for them to start thest test for the day.

    "Your goal is to run through the forest, get the white g by the end of it, and then return here. You are not going to use any of your abilities or the help of your tamed beasts. And we have Managers monitoring the entire ce"

    "Immediate disqualification will be meted out as soon as someone uses their ability."

    "On your marks... get set..."

    Fwooom~!

    "..."

    "..."

    Before Dumble Dore could give the signal, a dimensional portal appeared in front of them.

    "We''re very sorry we''rete!" Bucky Barnes screamed the moment he and his Disciples got out of the dimensional portal.

 Chapter 468 Gathering The Disciples

    Just like the other Managers, Bucky Barnes had the conventional power of interdimensional teleportation, which allowed him to teleport from one location to another notwithstanding the distance between them. He could teleport as soon as he thought about the ce, and it made his next mission all the easier.

    Apparently, he was a dayte for the scheduled training. He got too preupied with giving his Disciples the best advantage he could ever give¡ª and in the end, he gave them the greatest disadvantage.

    It''s not like everything was intentional, but to other Managers and Disciples, it might as well be intentional since Bucky Barnes had always acted indifferently in front of them.

    He didn''t mean to act like that however, it''s just he found socialization a tad bit exhausting. In any case, he needed to round up his Disciples as fast as possible.

    "From the looks of it, they still have thest exercise to finish the day. I hope we can make it before then." Bucky Barnes said to himself.

    The first one he found was Yun Zhe, who was chilling by the temple of the ck Fog. When he got there, he found that Yun Zhe was taking a nap.

    "Yun Zhe, we have to go." Bucky Barnes called out to him, shaking him awake.

    Disoriented, Yun Zhe had no idea what was going on. When his eyes opened, he thought that there was an intruder, and he bolted upright, assuming a fighting stance. "Wha- who- wh¡ª ?!" Yun Zhe turned his head when he finally realized the familiar figure. "Bucky Barnes, what are you doing here?" Yun Zhe asked.

    "I''m sorry... this iste notice but we need to go. The Managers are providing training for Disciples like you, you know, for when the World Eater awakens and pays this universe a visit." Bucky Barnes continued, grabbing Yun Zhe by the arm before he teleported once again.

    ...

    United Superheros Academy,

    With the school day officially over, the students poured out of the front gates of the school as they headed home. The sunset was more vivid than usual, probably due to the clear skies that matched the windless atmosphere.

    Jonathan moped as he walked out of the school gates. He wanted to invite Satoshi to a nearby fast-food restaurant since he finally got some allowance. But then he and Emma suddenly disappeared in the ssroom. "Emma probably used her dimensional portal to get home. Then again, there''s always tomorrow. I''ll just invite him tomorrow."

    Clenching his fist, Jonathan was renewed as he continued walking forward.

    Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of him and he bumped straight into that figure''s chest since he couldn''t react in time.

    "Whoa, sorry about that," Jonathan called out, wondering why someone just blocked his way in an instant. For a moment, he felt offended, and he wanted to attack the person that halted him. Even then, he maintained hisposure since they were in front of the school.

    "Perfect timing, Jonathan, we have to go. Come on." A familiar voice spoke to Jonathan, causing him to look up.

    "Bucky Barnes? Why are you here? Wait, aren''t you allowed to go here directly?" Jonathan questioned. He''s got a lot of questions in mind right now but those were the first things that escaped his mouth.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "I''ll exinter, for now, we have to go."

    "O-okay?" Jonathan''s eyebrows furrowed but he went with Bucky Barnes anyway. He noticed that Yun Zhe was also there, but they didn''t greet each other since they missed the right time.

    Ever since the incident, the two of them were still awkward with each other. It''s not like they hated each other... it''s just that they were conflicted about how they should treat each other, especially when a murder was involved.

    "Nowstly, we have to get thetest disciple. Kurayami Satoshi. My intuition tells me he''s at home, right?" Bucky Barnes had a sense of urgency in his voice. He was runningte as it is, but at this pace, they might be able to catch up to thest exercise.

    Holding onto his two precious Disciples, Bucky Barnes teleported in front of the Midoriyama household. He didn''t hesitate to ring the doorbell.

    Ting!

    "Yes?" Midoriyama Tatsuki answered the door, wondering who rang the doorbell thiste. There were two familiar faces, but the adult with them, he didn''t recognize.

    "I''m Bucky Barnes... I was wondering if I could speak with Satoshi?" He asked. This was the first time he met the number one hero of Japan and he was surprised to see that he seemed like a normal person.

    "One second."

    As Tatsuki closed the door behind him, Bucky Barnes, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe heard his muffled voice calling out to Satoshi.

    It didn''t take long before Satoshi''s head popped up from the half-opened door. His dad didn''t tell him who was looking for him so he was careful not to defenselessly show himself.

    From the entranceway, Satoshi saw Jonathan and Yun Zhe waving at him. And right behind them was none other than Bucky Barnes.

    "Bucky Barnes, what are you doing here?" Satoshi''s curiosity was piqued since this was quite an unusual time for a visit. Furthermore, the other two disciples were there so it was clear that something was definitely going on.

    "There''s no time to exin, we have to go." Honestly, Bucky Barnes was a bit irritated that he had to repeat the same line three times. But then again, there was no better way to exin it so he had to stick to simple words.

    Satoshi gulped. Seeing his Manager and his fellow Disciples gathered together could only mean one thing¡ª there was development regarding the World Eater!

    Nodding his head, Satoshi turned around and briefly said goodbye to his parents. They were a bit curious as to what was going on, but Satoshi promised to exin itter and it reassured them.

    "Let''s go." Satoshi called out, surprising Bucky Barnes since he didn''t even ask any questions.

 Chapter 469 NICE!

    Back to the present,

    When Jonathan Ainsworth, Midoriyama Satoshi, and Yun Zhe got to the ce, they were surprised to see that there were a lot of people with them. As it turned out, there were plenty of Managers and more Disciples. They didn''t even bother counting how many Disciples were present.

    Their age range was wide as well, with some Disciples aged as young as ten years old and some as old as

    seventies.

    However, that wasn''t the first thing that surprised the three of them. The fashion sense of everyone in the group shocked them even more since they varied greatly. It was a culture shock for every Disciple present. After all, they came from different dimensions.

    "Whoa~ look at that. She''s wearing bikini armor!" Jonathan whispered to Yun Zhe.

    In response, Yun Zhe shed a thumbs up towards him while one side of his lips curved upward. "I see, you''re a man of culture as well."

    As for Satoshi, he was mesmerized by the group of Disciples who were wearing full-body mech suits. They were pretty awesome.

    In return, they also noticed that Satoshi was looking at him. Their eyes went wide with shock upon seeing Satoshi''s poor clothing. He wasn''t wearing a single piece of armor, just a T-shirt and shorts. One of them teared up upon seeing how defenseless Satoshi had been. Compared to the other Disciples, he was the most vulnerable of all.

    "LISTEN UP! I will repeat what you''re about to do as yourst test for the day." Dumble Dore cleared his throat as he exined the quest once again.

    While he was exining, the scent of barbecue lingered in the air, making the majority of the Disciple''s stomachs growl while the scent intensified.

    "Also, the first one to return here with a g gets to eat first. As a reminder, you can''t use any of your superpowers or tamed beasts. This will allow us Managers to know the limits of your physical strength." Dumble Dore continued.

    Without further ado, he raised his staff and a hologram of an hourss appeared. "You only have one and a half hours to get here. If you don''t get here within the time limit, you''d have to do the same course all over again."

    Eh?!

    Exmations and groans could be heard from the Disciple''s side. Some of them were well aware that they won''t be able to pass the test tonight. This meant that they won''t be having dinner, and they''d have to repeat the exercise a second time.

    This was enough motivation for everyone to finish the test. After all, if they didn''t, then there was no way they''d be able to survive the night without dinner.

    Before this exercise, they also had another difficult exercise during the day. That''s why they were on the verge of exhaustion and it put them at a disadvantage against Bucky Barnes''s Disciples.

    "Isn''t this unfair? How could we go head to head against these three when they arrivedte?" Nanako, the girl wearing bikini armor spoke up. "We should all be given a headstart or something."

    "Whoa~ she spoke! How could she speak fluent Japanese?" Jonathan whispered at Yun Zhe who gave him a good whack on the head.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "You fool, didn''t you know that Japanese is a universal novel? That''s why those Japanese people who get isekai-ed follow the same trope." Yun Zhe exined.

    "Ooh~ I see. So that''s how it works." Jonathan muttered to himself.

    While they were discussing the universality of the Japanesenguage, Nanako felt like they were ridiculing her since they didn''t care about her opinion at all. This made her a bit frustrated, and she clenched her fists.

    Seeing her reaction, Satoshi didn''t want to get caught in her fury so he nudged both Jonathan and Yun Zhe so they would stop talking.

    At the same time, Dumble Dore cleared his throat. His contemtion led him to believe that Nanako pointed out a very valid point, and it was only fair for Bucky Barnes''s Disciples to be given a disadvantage since they arrivedte.

    Moreover, he wanted to make Bucky Barnes suffer for everything he put them through. It wasn''t him who received an earful from the higher-ups. They did.

    "All right. What Hermione''s Disciple said was true. They should be given a disadvantage. All right! Everyone gets a headstart!"

    Cheers from the Disciples erupted as they celebrated the advantage they were given. Then again, it wasn''t really an advantage since the time limit remained the same. They were just tricked into thinking that they had it betterpared to Bucky Barnes''s Disciples.

    "Thirty minutes. All of you will get a thirty-minute headstart. HOWEVER! The time limit will remain the same." Dumble Dore continued.

    Everyone continued celebrating as if they just received the best reward in the world. Meanwhile, Nanako felt bad for Satoshi and the other two since they received a half-hour disadvantage. Although she brought it up, she didn''t expect Dumble Dore to give them such a big disadvantage. Initially, she expected them to receive a ten-minute disadvantage at most.

    Pursing her lips, Nanako remained quiet.

    "Well, that works for us. We should be able to clear the forest in less than an hour, right, Satoshi?" Jonathan pointed out with utmost confidence even though he knew that the forest was filled with dangerous beasts.

    "Yeah, also... we don''t have to clear the entirety of the forest, right? We just need to get a g and return, right?" Yun Zhe licked his lips as he eyed every Disciple in the crowd¡ª his potential victims for when he''d steal one of their gs before they get back.

    "Come on, you guys, let''s do it by the book. " Satoshi scratched his head, wondering why the two of them were riling up the other Disciples for no reason.

    Because of them, the majority of the Disciples started ring at them. It was a challenge that lit a fire in Jonathan and Yun Zhe who couldn''t wait to show off their physical prowess.

    Then there was Satoshi, who just wanted to lie low but deep inside, he was aspetitive as the two of them.

    BAM!

    "Everyone at the ready, start!" Dumble Dore screamed out of nowhere, causing everyone to scamper forward while they tried to get ahead of everyone else.

 Chapter 470 Through The Forest

    No one was allowed to use any of their abilities, so there were no shy moves when the signal was given. However, everyone sprinted off at full speed as if they could keep that pace up for an hour.

    Back and forth, the forest had a sheer expanse of 30 kilometers, depending on which route they''d take. No one had any idea as to what route would be the shortest, and even then, dangerous beasts roamed around the forest so encountering one would be risky.

    After all, they couldn''t fend them off using any abilities. They''d have to deal with the monsters bare-handed, and if they released a sliver of their aura or energy, the other Managers would immediately notice it, and that Disciple would be disqualified right away.

    Obviously, the Disciples weren''t the only ones who were in an intensepetition. The Managers werepeting as well. If they could disqualify one Disciple that is not theirs, then they''d ept it as their victory. That''s why they were very zealous at being on the lookout for Disciples who used an ability.

    A disqualification would have the same punishment as the Disciples who couldn''t finish the challenge. Aside from not getting a single bite for dinner, they''d have to repeat the entire course before they could rest.

    Now, one would think that traveling 30 kilometers in one and a half hours would be insane. However, it should be mentioned that the Disciples were one of the best humans to ever exist in their world, both in their superpower and peak human strength.

    This distance is as basic as it could get, and they could even do it with their eyes closed. Hence the reason why there were monsters roaming in the forest, was just to give them a little bit of difficulty to impede their progress.

    Ultimately, this challenge is just another way to prove how outstanding the Managers'' Disciples were. If any, this was just a flex to the other Managers to see who''s got the best Disciples.

    Jonathan Ainsworth, Midoriyama Satoshi, and Yun Zhe were the Disciples that Bucky Barnes had. While the others easily had twice as much, he knew that he had picked the strongest of the bunch. The world had many talents, but these three were the youngest and most powerful of them all.

    Jonathan Ainsworth is the best beast tamer there was until Satoshi came into the picture. Bucky Barnes couldn''t believe that another beast-tamer prodigy would appear in Universe 1, but here he was, with both of them as his disciples.

    As for Yun Zhe, his superpower paired really well with his innate fighting skill. Not to mention that he could summon interdimensional portals and is also a genius when it came to beast taming.

    Jonathan and Yun Zhe were the top two Disciples of Bucky Barnes. And then Midoriyama Satoshi came to the mix and he easily bested the two of them. He was a good mix of the two, but his superpower wasn''t tranted that much. After all, not one Manager could decipher the real superpower that Satoshi had.

    It was one of the many mysteries that was happening on Universe 1.

    Officially, Bucky Barnes''s Disciples haven''t started the challenge yet, so they decided to eat some barbecue. It wasn''t specified that they couldn''t eat while they were waiting, so they took the opportunity and started stuffing themselves up.

    No one stopped them though, since what they were doing would only put them at a disadvantage. If they were to run with a full stomach, they''d be out of breath in a snap of a finger.

    Because of that, the Managers even started encouraging them to eat. They even fed them.

    Hermione Ranger and Hera Aphrodite took a liking to the three Disciples. They were especially attached to Satoshi for some reason.

    "Here, eat more, waghh~ he''s so cute!" Hera squealed as she fed Satoshi herself.

    Slightly filled with envy, Hermione also fed Satoshi as well. "Here you go, aahhhh~," She cooed.

    While Jonathan and Yun Zhe enjoyed eating their meal, Satoshi was being hogged by the two Managers, much to their surprise. Well, they didn''t fill jealous though since Satoshi clearly wasn''t eating in peace.

    Moreover, Satoshi was eating more than he could handle. The two of them couldn''t help but chuckle as they saw Satoshi helplessly eating as he was spoonfed by the two Managers.

    "Bucky Barnes." Hermione Ranger suddenly called out, causing Bucky Barnes to flinch as he turned around. He was so focused on monitoring the other Disciples that he didn''t even find the time to look back at his own Disciples.

    "Yes?" He simply responded. This was the first time Hermione called out to him, that''s why it surprised him in an unexpected manner.

    "You didn''t tell us that you have a cute Disciple with you. Can I take him under my wing?" Hermione directly asked, causing Hera to take a step back as she clung to Satoshi.

    "What are you talking about? I should be the one who''d take him under my wing. Don''t be ridiculous, Hermione." Hera spoke up, clinging tightly to Satoshi, so much so that he could hardly breathe.

    "He hasn''t even shown you his true colors yet, and you already like him." Bucky Barnes smiled. A momentter, he turned around to continue monitoring the other Disciples who were making their way through the forest.

    ¡¤?¦Èm Hera and Hermione continued to pester Bucky Barnes for the entirety of thirty minutes.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    "Ey, Jonathan," Yun Zhe uttered as their thirty minutes continued to run out. "I just realized something."

    Ever since they arrived at this dimension, this was the first time that Yun Zhe talked to him. He immediately swallowed the food in his mouth, almost choking.

    "What is it? Ah~ you just realized that Hera and Hermione are total lookers, right?" He joked out of nowhere, causing Yun Zhe to elbow him right on the diaphragm.

    "No, stupid, I mean... we only have an hour right, to clear the entire forest?" Yun Zhe continued.

    "What of it?"

    "I mean... thirty kilometers? In one hour? Isn''t that ridiculous? I could do that on a clear path, but there are trees around so we have to weave around them. Also, we have to steer clear of dangerous beasts." Yun Zhe stated.

    "Yeah, so what? We don''t have to go around the trees, you know, we could just travel in a straight line and bulldoze our way through... oh wait, we can''t use our superpowers, right?" Jonathan continued. "I guess you''re right, this would be hard."

    After a momentary pause, Jonathan and Yun Zhe stared at each other as if they got to an agreement. Their lips twitched as they nodded their heads.

    "I guess we have no choice but to do this, right?"

    "Yeah, I guess so..."

    Meanwhile, Satoshi was left in the dark. He had no idea that Jonathan and Yun Zhe were plotting something sinister behind his back.

    ...

    Meanwhile, in the forest.

    Distant screams could be heard in the background as Himuro and Nanako made their way through the forest. Thirty minutes have passed, and they already got their own gs.

    On their way through, they encountered someone who had already taken a g. They had no idea who he was, but he ran through the forest with ease, and his steps were too light that they couldn''t even hear a faint taping from them.

    "Let''s head back. Make sure you hide your g, someone might take them." Himuro advised, handing Nanako a g.

    Issei was assigned to monitor the gs, just in case someone wanted to take more than one. It would be unfair if one person were to take all the gs and bring them with him, leaving everyone no chance of getting a g...

    "That would be interesting though," The Manager, Issei, said to himself. As usual, he monitored the gs, but if someone were to take more than one, he''d decided not to call that someone out.

    ''A fight might even break out in the middle of the forest. That would be nice.'' Issei thought to himself.

    Himuro had no idea about the rules, so he took five gs with him and handed Nanako one.

    The gesture made Nanako panic a little bit. She slowly turned toward the Manager who was monitoring the gs.

    Aghast, Nanako stopped short. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Himuro running away from the gs. "What are you waiting for,e on!" He called out to Nanako.

    "What are you doing? We''re going to get disqualified, you know!" Nanako hissed.

    As if on cue, Issei turned away with a nk expression on his face. He started whistling a tune from a certain animated series of the past about demons, schools, and chess pieces. He couldn''t care less whether someone took all the gs or not. It would be more interesting that way.

    "Come on, let''s go," Himuro repeated, grabbing Nanako by the hand as he pulled her away from there.

 Chapter 471 I Change My Mind

    Dusk had finally descended, showing off thest rays of the sun as the sky shifted into a purple-colored hue. Exactly thirty minutes had passed since thest challengemenced, and now it was time for Satoshi and the others to clear the forest in a little less than an hour.

    "We''re going in, try to keep up." Satoshi joked, unleashing his pure physical prowess and elerating at top speeds. He had already calcted the exact amount of energy he was going to expend. That''s why he didn''t hesitate to use his top speed.

    "That should be my line!" Jonathan grunted as he caught up to Satoshi in no time. With Satoshi leading the way, he''d be able to keep his pace and not identally exhaust himself by wasting too much energy.

    Grinning, Yun Zhe started running as well. Hopefully, he''d be able to keep up with the two physical-training monsters.

    "So, what''s the n?" Satoshi asked out of nowhere since he just started running without thinking about a n.

    "I''ll take care of the route. With my keen sense of smell, I''ll be able to detect if there are beasts nearby." Yun Zhe volunteered. With this, he''d be able to contribute to the team and in turn, give Jonathan and Satoshi more leeway to focus on running.

    "All right. If we encounter a beast, we''ll try to outrun it as much as we could. If we can''t... then we''ll just lure it to another Disciple." Jonathan smirked as he voiced out his mischievous n.

    "Nice idea," Satoshi and Yun Zhe both responded, nodding their heads at each other. The other Disciples should be strong enough to deal with the beasts, however, it would shave off a lot of their time if they were to engage these beasts inbat.

    From the starting point of the challenge, the other Managers eyed the trio before they stole a nce at Bucky Barnes. In terms of first impressions, Bucky Barnes''s Disciples weren''t that impressive, that''s why the other Managers already assumed that they''d fail the exercise.

    "You think?" Dumble Dore muttered to himself as he overheard the other Managers. He was the only one who could see that the trio was taking it easy at the moment. He had his doubts, but he was fairly certain that the trio would easily clear the challenge.

    As for Bucky Barnes, a smile formed on his lips when he saw his Disciples running. They haven''t even achieved anything but he was already proud of them. With confidence, he puffed his chest, fully knowing that his Disciples would pass the challenge with flying colors.

    The other Managers thought otherwise. They were convinced that the trio would fail miserably. Not only would they not be able to eat dinner, but their reputation as Bucky Barnes''s Disciples would lower, causing the other Disciples to steer clear of them.

    There was only one way for the three of them to escape their fate of being shunned by the rest of the Disciples and Managers¡ª they had to clear the challenge no matter what!

    ...

    A couple of kilometers from the g''s location.

    Forty-five minutes into the challenge, Himuro and Nanako were surprised that they were doing fine. Even though they thought that they''d be left behind, they were unexpectedly on time. Smiling, Himuro clutched the five gs which he hid under his robe.

    As for Nanako, she just carried her g, waving it around. Well, it''s not like she had any choice, she was wearing bikini armor after all, and she had no idea where to put the g.

    "I can''t wait to meet up with the others. With this, all of us passed, right?" Himuro called out to Nanako. Even though they''d been running nonstop for forty-five minutes, they weren''t out of breath. As expected of the Disciples chosen by Hermione Ranger herself.

    "Yeah, once we get back, we can have dinner together as usual. I can''t believe we survived the second day of the Disciples'' training." Nanakomented. "In any case, how did you know that it would be allowed to get more than one g?"

    "Of course, I did my fair share of research about the Managers. That''s why I knew that the Manager Issei would prefer if we get more gs. For a moment, I thought that he''d call us out for it, but my intuition was correct, and he ignored us."

    "Yeah, I was surprised. I thought we were going to get disqualified." Nanako chuckled.

    Himuro and Nanako grew up in the same orphanage together. Some might even call them childhood friends but they were nothing like that. In fact, before they became Disciples, they were mortal enemies.

    But when they joined the Disciples under Hermione Ranger, things changed for them for the better. They realized what family was all about, and they became friends. They weren''t romantically attracted to each other, but they consider themselves siblings¡ª that''s just how close they were.

    The two of them weren''t the only ones included in their family though. In fact, they treat everyone as their family. For the first time, they finally had a home to go back to, and that home had one underlying goal which united them together¡ª to save the universe from the World Eater.<novelsnext></novelsnext>

    It wasn''t even their universe, but they were tasked with it. They were the only ones who could do it, and adding to that, they hated the thought of an entire universe being deleted from the dimensions.

    From a distance, they could see the other Disciples who were under Hermione Ranger as well. In total, there were five of them, still keeping their pace even though it was clear that they won''t make it to the g''s location and back on time.

    Seeing them, Himuro and Nanako heaved a sigh of relief. They were just d that the five of them didn''t encounter a beast.

    Then again, even if they were to encounter one, they''d be able to defeat it without much difficulty. Even though they weren''t that physically gifted, they were still chosen Disciples. It was just a coincidence that Himuro and Nanako had more staminapared to the five of them.

    "Raniel!" Himuro called out, waving his hand as if he was happy to meet them in the middle of the test. He picked up the pace, catching up to them in no time.

    Nanako also picked up her pace as well so the two of them could greet the group together.

    However, Raniel didn''t even greet them in return. He just turned away and clicked his tongue as if something they did frustrated him.

    This made Himuro stop short as he forced another smile on his face. "What''s wrong, Raniel? Are you tired, don''t worry I brought¡ª"

    Before Himuro could get the gs under his robe, Raniel grabbed him by the wrist and forced him to kneel on the ground. It should be mentioned that Raniel was actually the first Disciple that Hermione Ranger ever chose.

    His strength was something to be reckoned with. Even the formidable Himuro was easily brought to his knees in a second.

    "Himuro!" Nanako screamed as she ran to help Himuro. However, the four other Disciples stopped her from getting closer. One of them even pressed a dagger against her neck.

    "Easy now, tiger," ire whispered, putting the dagger even deeper until a line of blood dripped on its de.

    "What are you doing?!" Nanako gritted her teeth as she tried to escape their grasp. However, they overpowered her so much it couldn''t even be called a struggle. "What are you doing you guys?"

    "Don''t worry, Nanako, they''re just joking," Himuro said. He also couldn''t believe that the group would do something so underhanded, especially to those whom they considered family.

    Raniel didn''t let go of his grip on Himuro''s wrist though, and he continued to grip it until Himuro had no choice but to flick his hand away.

    "What''s the big idea, Raniel-san?" Himuro asked, clutching his wrist since it was almost broken. "If this is a prank, then you''ve already gone too far."

    "Hand me your gs, then we''ll let this matter go." Raniel offered as if he didn''t start the offense in the first ce.

    Unbelievable!

    Gritting his teeth, Himuro hid the gs under his robe. At first, he wanted to give them the gs so all of them could go back together. If they only let him speak, he''d have given them the gs.

    However, they just had to rile him up and stab him behind his back. It was clear that this confrontation was pre-nned, and they opted to gang up on the two of them right from the start.

    A moment ago, the gs already belonged to them. But now, Himuro didn''t want to give them the gs anymore. If any, he was prepared to engage them in a fight, even if it meant attracting the beasts that lingered all over the forest.

    "Raniel, are you really going to do this? Thene at me with everything you got!" Himuro taunted as his lips curved upward.

 Chapter 472 Pure Physical Fistfight

    Compared to the other disciples who were keeping their pace, Satoshi and the other two doubled their pace in order to catch up with everyone else.

    They were half an hour behind, and they need to increase their pace in order to catch up.

    "You look tired, Yun Zhe," Jonathanmented even though he was almost out of breath himself.

    "I''m just getting started." Yun Zhe exhaled loudly in order to reset his breathing. He could barely keep up with the pace, but they knew they had to keep it in order to be on time. Adding to that, going faster or slower would only lead to earlier exhaustion.

    Because of that, they couldn''t do much. But on the offside, if they were to meet a beast midway, they allotted enough time to steer clear of a couple of them and still arrive on time.

    Oof!

    Agh!

    Gahk~!

    Varying sounds of struggle could be heard from the distance. And although it caught the trio''s attention, they didn''t bother taking a look since they were running short on time. There were a couple of instances where they almost encountered a beast. Fortunately, they were all quick enough to change courses before the beast was attracted.

    Thump!

    Despite their utmost efforts in avoiding any scrimmages, the trio caught themselves in the middle of one when a white-haired guy appeared in front of them. He was pretty beaten up, which was weird considering that this was a test of endurance, not strength.

    There shouldn''t have been any fistfights here. But right now, a group of Disciples was actually ganging up on two weaker Disciples.

    "AH! It''s that guy who was ring at us since we werete." Jonathan usingly pointed a finger at Himuro who was sprawled on the ground, blood dripping from his forehead to his eyes.

    "AH! It''s the bikini armor onee-san!" Yun Zhe eximed when he saw Nanako being pinned down on the ground while the others dealt with Himuro.

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi asked himself when he instinctively helped Himuro up. Despite their ring eyes a couple of moments ago, Satoshi proceeded to help them since Himuro was badly beaten up.

    A total of five people were ganging up on them and clearly, they were at a disadvantage. All of them present were Disciples, chosen as powerful people who had the most potential with their superpowers. Everyone was pretty evenly matched, so more people ganging up on someone would give them the higher ground.

    "Thank you... um, Satoshi, was it?" Himuro confirmed as he dusted himself off.

    Before Satoshi could say anything, Himuro charged at the two people who were pinning Nanako down. He immediately grabbed her by the hand and then transferred all his weight forward, throwing himself onto their fellow Disciples.

    The Disciples didn''t expect the attack, that''s why they fell backward when they were thrown off bnce.

    "Are you all right?" Himuro worriedly asked as he propped Nanako back up.

    Jonathan and Yun Zhe could''ve sworn that their nose almost bled when they saw the jiggle physics on that bikini armor. Then again, they have a problem at hand so they couldn''t focus too much on Nanako.

    "What''s going on here?" Satoshi asked. He couldn''t just leave without batting an eye, especially when there was a clear foul y transpiring.

    Himuro subconsciously stepped forward, putting his hand in front of Nanako to guard them against their fellow Disciples. This was their fight.

    Even though they were thankful that Satoshi and the others helped them out, they were fairly certain that the trio would continue with the challenge and leave them behind. They couldn''t possibly ask for their help since they''d done more than enough for them in the first ce.

    "Thanks for helping us. You should go your own way." Himuro called out, implying to Satoshi and the other two that they got everything handled. Even though it was apparent that they needed some extra hands to help them out, they didn''t want the trio to fail the test because of them.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    It was a scuffle amongst the Disciples under Hermione Ranger, so they shouldn''t include other Disciples in the mix.

    Jonathan and Yun Zhe had second thoughts. Honestly, it didn''t even matter if they failed the test or not. After all, they''ve already eaten.

    Adding to that, they could easily repeat the test since it would prove to be a challenge for them. And if they failed because they helped someone out, it wouldn''t leave a bad aftertaste on their mouth at all.

    While the confrontation was going on, Satoshi was able to pick out a couple of things. He even understood the root cause of the fight because of his deduction skills. On one end, he saw that Himuro and Nanako had gs in their possession. While on the other side, the groupprising Five Disciples didn''t even have a single g under their belt.

    It was clear that the fight ensued because of jealousy... or envy.

    "We''ll help you out. You two worked hard enough to pass. It''s only obvious that you reap what you sow." Satoshi resolved to aid the two. "You guys go on ahead, we''ll hold them off." He continued.

    "What are you talking about? You''re going to fail at this rate." Himuro pointed out. There were only forty-five minutes or so left before the test concluded.

    Then an idea hit him¡ª it was by far the best idea he cooked up so far in this Disciples'' training. Himuro mischievously grinned as he opened his robe.

    "You know what... sure, you can help us out. We''ll give each of you a g." Himuro continued. "Quite frankly, the gs were supposed to be for these guys. But they attacked us out of nowhere so there''s no way I''m going to hand each of them a g."

    A vivid expression of surprise and regret filled Raniel''s face when he realized what was going on. Originally, Himuro and Nanako went ahead in order to get their gs for them. But before he could give them anything, they just had to attack them, causing Himuro and Nanako to change their minds.

    And now, those gs would fall in the hands of the trio under Bucky Barnes''s management. "You''re gonna regret this." Raniel gritted his teeth in frustration. His bad decision borne out of jealousy led to this situation, and now they were bringing in the ''bad fruits'' of theirbor.

    "No, I won''t. I won''t regret this at all." Himuro said.

    On the signal, the two groups charged at each other, and a full-on fistfight ensued. To be fair, Himuro and Nanako weren''t expecting Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe to be proficient at fistfights.

    Raniel charged at Himuro while the others picked their partner for a fistfight. This was going to be the biggest brawl in the test, they just knew it.

    Before Raniel could reach Himuro within arm''s reach, however, Satoshi just had to offensively step in. Stepping with huge steps, Satoshi let the momentum carry him as he released a full-swing punch.

    The hooknded squarely on Raniel''s jaws, sending him flying as he rolled a couple of times on the ground before he found his bearings. Gritting his teeth, he furiously stood up and unleashed a scream while he swung a fist at Satoshi.

    The taunt was effective, and Raniel was locked on Satoshi instead of Himuro.

    "You''re the strongest one here, right? I could feel it." Satoshi stated, fully confident in his assumption. He had never been wrong when ites to judging other people''s physical prowess, that''s how he could tell that Raniel was the strongest and most formidable of the bunch.

    "What of it?" Raniel growled, nting his foot on the ground while swinging a couple of hooks and jabs at Satoshi.

    Without hesitation, Satoshi stepped forward and cleanly dodged all his punches. It was so smooth that even the other Disciples were bbergasted. They''d never seen anyone move so fast before.

    Just from his movements alone, Raniel could tell that Satoshi had been training for a long time. He too had been training ever since he was a kid but he was nowhere close to Satoshi''s level¡ª or so that''s what urred in his mind during that exchange.

    "Hoh~ I see, so you''re the strongest of the bunch here as well. I''m honored that you''re willing to challenge me." Forcing a smile on his face, Raniel continued his monologue. "I''ve never lost to a fistfight before... so if you''re going to challenge me, then you should have challenged me on a test where superpowers are allowed."

    "Then I guess this is your first loss. I hate to break it up to you but I only awakened my superpower a couple of months ago. Even without my superpower, I can go head to head with pretty much everyone my age just with my pure physical strength alone." Satoshi continued. it was clear that he was overexaggerating but no one would know since they have no idea who he was in the first ce.

    "Hoh~ so you''re challenging me? Come at me, um, Satoshi was it? Let''s see if you''re telling the truth." Raniel licked his lips, eagerly anticipating the challenge that was about to transpire.

 Chapter 473 Test Complete!

    Raniel crouched low enough that his forearms were almost touching the ground. Using his low center of gravity, he twisted his core and unleashed a one-two hook punch at Satoshi.

    The attacks were so sudden that Satoshi missed the right timing. It connected, but Satoshi managed to defend it with his arm guard. If it weren''t for his instincts, which were honed over the years, he wouldn''t have been able to parry the attack so easily.

    Since Raniel decided to fight him with fists, Satoshi used that to decide which fighting style to use. He was going to return the sentiment with the same thing.

    An eye for an eye. A punch for a punch.

    Apparently, Raniel was pretty riled up for some odd reason¡ª probably because he felt inferior to Satoshi. Then again, it was clear that there was a gap in their proficiency in physicalbat, so he couldn''t help it.

    That inferiority was what subconsciously affected Raniel, causing him to move more stiffly than before. Adding to that, he was more careful than usual, restricting his movements.

    Satoshi charged forward, giving Raniel less time to react. When Raniel finally step backward, Satoshi went for a sr plexus punch.

    There was no way he could dodge such an attack since his bnce was off. The sr plexus hit him squarely, and the air was forced out of his lungs.

    Aghk~!

    Laying on the ground, wheezing, Satoshi didn''t continue to attack him. It was the worst type of mental attack. Satoshi decided to wait for him to stand up before he continued his fight with him.

    At first, Raniel expected Satoshi to attack him while he was down. However, Satoshi wasn''t as underhanded, and he didn''t do such a thing. Raniel could sense even more that Satoshi was levels ahead of him in terms of physical prowess.

    But even with that fact right in front of him, he knew that he couldn''t back down. The other four Disciples were fighting on his side. His pride won''t just let him ept defeat. He''d rather get genuinely defeated than surrender the fight like a coward.

    Wheezing, Raniel forced himself to stand up. He still couldn''t breathe, but he couldn''t afford to stay on the ground while the other Disciples were fighting. It would be the greatest of all embarrassments.

    An exhale left Raniel''s mouth as he put his arms up as a guard. He brazenly assumed that Satoshi would just use his fists since he started off the match with some type of boxing.

    But Satoshi had more ideas. He brought his arms up once again, a smirk crossing his face before he cleared his throat.

    "Have you ever heard of a magical punch?" Satoshi asked out of nowhere.

    The question was out of the blue, and it caused the other Disciples who were fighting to stop and listen in.

    Even Jonathan and Yun Zhe had no idea what the magical punch is. They doubted the idea that Satoshi would use his superpower, but at the back of their minds, they could see him disregarding the rules of the test.

    In any case, all of them became curious about the magical punch. They became invested in it that they temporarily stopped engaging each other inbat.

    "Why don''t you show me then, this magical punch of yours," Raniel said, putting his right foot sideways before taking one step.

    The torque gave him enough momentum to unleash a powerful punch. Satoshi barely had enough time to react due to how speedy the attack was.

    Fortunately, he was able to dodge it. He then proceeded to give Raniel a punch to the liver, which made him ''oomph'' as he was thrown over backward. This wasn''t enough to knock him out though, and he used his hands as leverage to kick Satoshi.

    Seeing that Raniel had incorporated a kick, Satoshi decided to use kicks as well, just to add fuel to the fire. He didn''t want to fight Raniel at his one hundred percent since he knew that Raniel would lose.

    Sure, he was a formidable opponent, but he was the type of person to rely on his strength. Also, Satoshi had more experience fighting opponents more powerful than himself, and Raniel was a bit inexperienced in that department.

    Jumping forward, Satoshi unleashed a side kick which Ranielpletely blocked. Simultaneously, Raniel was quick enough to respond to the kick, grabbing Satoshi by the leg in an attempt to throw him off bnce. In terms of raw physical strength, Raniel was clearly stronger, so he could swing Satoshi around, rendering him helpless.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Hoh hoh~ I activate my trap card," Satoshi said out of nowhere as if he was ying a character of someone from a famous animated series about cards.

    The leg grab was actually Satoshi''s trap, and Ranielpletely fell for it. Using his core strength alone, Satoshi steadied himself by bringing his caught leg closer, and then he unleashed a second punch, right on Raniel''s throat.

    "AGHK!" Raniel was caught off guard, and he staggered backward while holding his throat. The kick was so forceful that it actually caused his throat to constrict, and he felt like he was momentarily choked to death by someone.

    Satoshi didn''t waste any time grabbing Raniel by the head before nting his knee on Raniel''s face. The blow instantly broke his nose, and Raniel was defeated for good.

    Jonathan, and Yun Zhe, as well as Himuro and Nanako, finished up the other Disciples as well. They were just in time for when Satoshi beat up Raniel. It''s as if they nned this all along.

    Defeated both physically and psychologically, Raniel didn''t bother counterattacking anymore. In the contest of strength, Satoshi proved himself as the superior one. Raniel knew that he made a wrong decision in the first ce, and he didn''t intend to make another one right after he was defeated.

    In the end, the group of five Disciples under Hermione Ranger retreated... well, more like they proceeded with running towards the gs. if they were to hasten their pace, they should be able to arrive on time.

    "We owe you one... Midoriyama Satoshi, right?" Himuro was out of breath when he extended his hand toward Satoshi. "I''m Ryuta Himuro. Some people say myst name sounds like a first name and vice versa... where am I going with this? I''m just sharing whews~"

    "I''m Murasaki Nanako." Nanako introduced herself. She had a couple of bruises on her thighs and arms, causing the trio to question what the bikini armor was for.

    "No, we owe you one." Satoshi continued as he pointed at the gs that Himuro had in his possession.

    With a smile of realization on his face, Himuro dly handed the three of them a g each. This was thanks to what they did, and also, he was certain that they deserved it more than their fellow Disciples.

    It was a win-win situation for both parties. On one side, Himuro and Nanako needed help. And on the other end, Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe needed gs. It just so happened that Himuro and Nanako had more gs in their possession so they could give the trio one each.

    The test was not over yet though, and they still needed to run all the way back. They''d wasted enough time engaging Raniel and the others inbat, and now they had to sprint their lungs out just to get back in time.

    "Those moves... where did you learn them?" Himuro asked, talking about the way Satoshi fought against Raniel. As far as he knows, no one had actually defeated Raniel in a pure physical match before.

    But to Satoshi, he was just a small fry. It was a refreshing and terrifying sight to see. Superficially, Satoshi looked more friendly than Raniel. Who would''ve thought that he''d be more deadly than him?

    "Ah, that? I''ve just seen some very old movies." Satoshimented. "I''m kidding. My dad trained me."

    "Whoa, then your dad is stronger than you?" Himuro asked, shocked that Satoshi wasn''t actually the most physically formidable person in his dimension.

    "If it was a no-holds-barred match, I''d lose ny-nine percent of the time. He''s pretty strong." Satoshi casually said.

    "Of course he is, he''s the number one superhero in our country." Jonathan chirped in, his eyes would often wander towards Nanako but he didn''t prolong his stares for fear that Nanako might bite his head off.

    "Wow, the number one superhero... I''m the number one superhero in our country and I''m not even half as strong as you." Himuromented. It''s as if what he just said wasn''t a spectacr feat as it is.

    Then again, hisment just made the trio realize that the people here were actually big shots. Chosen Disciples weren''t just here to fill the headcount, they were specifically chosen for their particr strengths.

    From a distance, the sight of the starting line could be seen, and the smell of barbecue wafted in the air, causing the group to salivate. They sprinted harder, their hearts pumping out blood as if it was in overdrive.

    "We made it in time! I can''t believe it!" Nanako brightly cheered the moment they all crossed the line together.

 Chapter 474 Shoji Mitsuka And Manager Scarlet

    In the end, more than half of the Disciples didn''t make it. Despite the fact that it didn''t gauge their overall strength, they were still embarrassed since they werecking in the stamina department.

    To top it all off, they won''t have dinner for tonight, and they had to repeat the test before they could get some rest. It was a truly hellish experience, but it gave them a grave reminder that they couldn''t just rely on their strength or superpowers alone.

    It was one of those adages where the fist is always more reliable than the gun or the sword, and this training was to emphasize that fact.

    "We made it in time! I can''t believe it!" Nanako brightly cheered the moment they all crossed the line together.

    All five of them immediately fell to the ground, their adrenaline leaving their system and giving them a sudden bout of exhaustion. It was understandable though since they sprinted all the way to the finish line.

    Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe were thoughtful enough to run in front of the group to block the wind pressure and give Himuro and Nanako an easier time to run. They barely made it in time but it was thanks to everyone''s teamwork that they managed to do it.

    "Thanks again, Himuro, Nanako," Satoshi mumbled, his face pressed to the ground. as he tried to absorb the coldness of the earth.

    "Yeah, if it weren''t for you... we wouldn''t have been able to make it." Yun Zhe agreed. "We''re the first ones to arrive, right?"

    "Yeah, we should b¡ª"

    Before Jonathan could finish what he was saying, his gaze wandered toward the person who was eating like a ravenous wolf. He didn''t bother leaving food for the others who were about toe. He just continued eating, gorging himself without reprieve.

    His urgency gave the group newfound energy, and they stood up without question, scampering toward the barbecue ce and grabbing as much as they could. Even though they started eating at their fastest pace, they still couldn''t keep up with the mysterious man.

    "Who''s he? Do you know him?" Himuro whispered to Nanako, who also had no idea who the person was.

    "He''s been here since day one, right?" Nanako returned before eating another skewer. He proceeded to eat some form of chicken drumsticks next, even though she had no idea which bird they cooked. To be fair, she didn''t question the drumstick since it was more savory than the drumsticks she had in their dimension.

    "Yeah, he''s been here... but he never socialized with everyone. I bet no one knows his name." Himuromented.

    Unbeknownst to them, the mysterious man was actually listening in on them. For a moment, he stopped eating, and then he stared at Himuro and Nanako.

    There was a pause. HImuro and Nanako gulped when they felt the bloodthirst emanating from the mysterious man. Before they could react to him, however, he redirected his attention on the food and he continued eating.

    "What was that about? That was scary." Nanako shivered, but she continued eating anyway.

    It didn''t take long before the next groups arrived. But by the time they got there, the food was already gone. Even though they finished in time, they still wasn''t able to eat dinner.

    There were only twenty or so Disciples who managed to finish the challenge. Obviously, Raniel and the others weren''t able to finish in time. It was one of the hardest challenges that day because it didn''t rely on physical strength, but rather endurance and willpower.

    Three seconds left.

    Two.

    One.

    The deafening sound of a siren reverberated throughout the entire area, marking the end of the challenge. Once again, Dumble Dore walked forward, clearing his throat before his voice boomed in the air.

    "Testplete! Those who passed the test, you can now head back to your rooms. As for those who couldn''tplete the test, you have to redo it before going back." Dumble Dore announced. "As you may know, the dorms are exactly ten kilometers away from here... you guys would have to walk all the way over there before you could rest."

    "What?!"

    "No way!"<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Are you kidding me?"

    They justpleted the hardest challenge of running thirty kilometers. And now they had to walk an additional ten kilometers? Crazy.

    "Don''t worry," Dumble Dore smiled as he continued speaking. "There will be no time limit. It''s not even 8:00 yet, so you can enjoy your sweet time strolling through the forest. Just steer clear of the beasts okay?"

    Not only do they have to walk back an additional ten kilometers, they also had to face beasts if they were to encounter one. This was what they signed up for, and this was what they were going to get.

    "Come on, let''s head back." Himuro called out to Nanako. "How about you guys? Do you know the way back to the dorms? We can walk together."

    The offer brought about a new question in the trio''s mind. Their manager, Bucky Barnes, didn''t inform them that they''d be staying in for training. At first, they thought that it would only be for a short time, and they''d be able to go back home before the next day of schooles.

    Who would''ve thought that the training would actually take longer than expected?

    "Uh, sure?" Satoshi trailed off, gesturing for Jonathan and Yun Zhe to tag along since they don''t know the way either.

    Surprisingly, Satoshi was the only one who was worried. Jonathan and Yun Zhe were actually looking forward to staying in the dorm. It''s like a sleepover¡ª something that they''ve never experienced before.

    While Satoshi worriedly tagged along, Jonathan and Yun Zhe already caught up to Himuro and Nanako, conversing with them.

    "Ey, do you have cards with you?" Jonathan asked out of nowhere. "We still have time before lights out, right?"

    "Yeah, we have cards. There''s also a snack bar there so you won''t have to worry about snacks. I think that everyone who didn''t finish the challenge would flood the snack barster on." Himuro exined.

    "You''ll like it there. There''s a lounge where everyone could go, and then the dorms were separated into the left and right wings. The right wing belongs to the guys¡ª "

    "Because we''re always right." Himuro interrupted.

    Nanako gave Himuro a stare before he continued. "¡ª and the left wing belongs to thedies. The rooms are also airconditioned... not that we use it though since the night air is cold enough as it is."

    "Whoa~ let''s go check out the others'' rooms," Jonathan suggested out of nowhere. "Let''s go to your room, Himuro. Right now we don''t know which one''s our dorm room."

    "Ah, you can check that out by the list located beside the front door. Yeah sure, you can stay in my room, only if my dormmate allows it." Himuro continued before jerking a thumb towards Nanako. "Her dormmate is pretty amicable so if we can''t stay in my room, let''s go invade theirs instead."

    "Oh, you''re going to our room? Let''s y some board games! The drink''s on me!" A vibrant voice suddenly spoke out of nowhere, causing everyone to turn around.

    Well, everyone turned around except for Satoshi, who flinched when a head popped to his side out of nowhere. He almost let out a scream since he wasn''t able to detect the presence of the girl. "Ooh~ you''re pretty muscr... lean muscr... you must be super strong." The unnamed girlmented as he touched Satoshi by his obliques.

    "It''s Mitsuka! You were able toplete the test as well!" Nanako celebrated, happily approaching Mitsuka and grabbing her by the hand. The two of them started skipping in glee.

    "Guys, this is Shoji Mitsuka. She''s my roommate." Nanako introduced the red-haired girl beside her. As she did so, Mitsuka waved her hands to everyone. Nanako continued her introductions "This is Satoshi, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe."

    "Oh! You''re name sounds familiar. Was it based on that animated series about tamed beasts? it''s still pretty popr in our real world." Nanako asked. "Jonathan sounds like a normal name... and Yun Zhe... you''re name''s weird."

    The trio had no idea how to react, but they could tell that Mitsuka was having fun. To be fair, she described their names perfectly. Even Yun Zhe finds his name weird even though it was a pretty normal name.

    "You''re Bucky Barnes''s Disciples, right? I''m Scarlet''s Disciple. No one knows what her surname is, everyone just calls her scarlet. Also, all of us have red hair, for some reason. I guess she''s raising an army of redheads or something." Mitsuka continued. "In any case, all of you are more than wee toe to our room. You can even spend the night there if you want... all of you would have to share a bed though. I don''t mind sharing a bed with Nanako since we''re both girls."

    "Then let''s hit it. Off to the dorms then." Himuro excitedly said, only to realize that they have about nine kilometers to go before they could get there.

 Chapter 475 To The Dorms!

    In the Beast Dimension,

    Amy (Satoshi''s Familiar, Copycat) sat on top of a huge boulder as he watched White Lion and Sain going at it as usual. They were pretty much on equal terms whenever they fought, so no one cheered for one side or the other.

    "I wonder if Master is doing all right." She heaved a sigh, leaning on her knees while she watched the White Lion and Sain fight. There was nothing she could do at the moment so she decided to loaf around while waiting for Satoshi to call out to her.

    Even though she could check up on Satoshi from time to time, she didn''t do it. After all, it might disturb him. Or he might be in a crucial situation and her going out would just interrupt him.

    "Of course, he''s all right. I can feel it." Gabriel walked toward Amy, clenching his fist before he sat beside him. "See that? That''s my summon, the phoenix. He seems rxed, right? That means our master is doing fine."

    Gabriel may seem like a normal person, but he''s actually a monster from a Gate, an incarnation of the formidable summoner that once existed in time''s past. Then again, the way he moved didn''t seem like a normal person at all since he floats around most of the time.

    A sudden chill went up and down their spine as another figure walked towards them. She was pure white, and her skin was made of icy ss. Two bears stood beside her as she assumed her position near Amy and Gabriel.

    "Our master may be all right at the moment... but he might face danger in a snap of a finger. Right now, we have to prepare for that moment." The Ice Empress spoke, frosting out of her lips whenever she breathed.

    "You talking about Satoshi, right?" A huge beast popped out of nowhere, pping her wings as she lightly descended near the boulder where Amy was seated. She was none other than Ryu Ryoko, the ck Winged Dragon.

    "Yeah,"

    "He''s all right. Although he seemed pretty tired. I''ll check on himter." Ryu Ryoko casually said as she shifted into her dragon form once again before flying away. She didn''t want anyone to notice that she was worried for Satoshi because that would cause everyone to worry as well.

    It was thanks to Orb Oboros that they could stay in the beast dimension since he was the one who could transport them into this space and bring them back. He could also easily create his own spatial dimension as well, and some of Satoshi''s tamed beasts stay there whenever they feel like it.

    From a distance, Stat (the Statue of Captivity) stood perfectly still, watching over everyone while he also awaited Satoshi''s orders. The other tamed beasts find his existence a bit mysterious, probably because they had no idea what kind of powers he has. And to be fair, Satoshi rarely calls out to him despite him being a Representative.

    ...

    The dorms were actually monumental in size, evenrgerpared to the United Superheroes Academy. As Nanako stated, there were two wings and amon area which was pretty spacious as well.

    From a distance, the group saw the dorms looming up ahead, right by the edge of the forest. Everything in the dorm, from the walls to the roof, wasprised of bricks, even the fence that lined up the vicinity was made up of bricks as well. It certainly had a medieval style to it despite the fact that it was five stories tall.

    A metallic gate towered right by the entrance of the dorm. Nanako exined that it opens automatically. It wouldn''t have been easy opening such a huge gate with physical strength alone.

    "Random question!" Jonathan blurted out of nowhere, raising his hand as if he was interrupting a ss or something. "On this... are there other inhabitants as well? Just curious since this didn''t seem lifeless or something."

    "Yeah, apparently there are people living here. We''re in the middle of the forest though so we haven''t encountered a local just yet." Himuro answered. "I''m a bit curious about them though, since I''ve never met one. Maybe they look like regr humans... or maybe they look like aliens... who knows?"

    The premise of locals living nearby was actually a pretty interesting topic. Even Satoshi and Yun Zhe became invested in it, wondering what they look like when they meet them.

    "Oh, you''ve arrived. Why didn''t you use your superpower on your way back?" Their thoughts were interrupted by Dumble Dore who was standing by the front gate of the dorm. Somehow, he made it from the test area to here in an instant. Then again, he used his superpower instead of going all the way without activating any of his skills.

    His obvious statement actually made a lot of sense, and the group started questioning themselves since they didn''t even think about using their abilities. The test was already over, and yet it was still imprinted in their minds that they couldn''t use any of their abilities. As such, it took them two hours to get to the dorms.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Right! Why didn''t we do that?!" Himuro screamed. Just like everyone else, he just realized that they could''ve easily gotten to the dorms by using their superpower.

    "Right... interesting," Jonathan muttered to himself. He was also fooled, but it wasn''t that embarrassing since everyone else was fooled as well.

    "All right, you can all head back to the dorms. You have until midnight before lights out so you can enjoy the amenities of the dorms." Dumble Dore smiled.

    At the end of the day, he still had no idea how strong Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe were. They weren''t able to go all out during the challenge after all, so their strength and superpowers were still a mystery to a couple of Managers. Then again, there were a lot of Managers who''d been monitoring Satoshi for quite some time now. That''s why they more or less know Satoshi''s strengths. Some of them had a vague idea of how physically formidable Satoshi was. Then again, they have no idea what his limits were.

    "Amenities? Like the bathroom?" Jonathan asked out of the blue, causing everyone to spit out as theyughed out loud.

    "You can go in. You don''t want to be out here without supervision. The beasts are pretty deadly around these parts after all." Dumble Dore said, giving a sinister smile as everyone entered the dorms.

    "Ah yes, we forgot to tell them about the amenities. We have pretty much everything in there¡ª gym, swimming pool, onsen, sauna, massage shop... everything."

    "They have billiards too? And a game center?" Jonathan asked.

    Somehow, the others found it weird that Jonathan knew about billiards and the game center when he had no idea what amenities meant.

    "No, that won''t help us at all with our training so they don''t have it here. In any case. The two of us are heading into the snack bar. You guys do your thing and we can meet in our room in half an hour or something." Mitsuka told them.

    "Sweet, we can go to the sauna and see who can endure the longest!" Himuro challenged. The trio epted the outright challenge since they couldn''t back down as men.

    "Fine by me. I guess we have half an hour. Let''s clock it up to maximum heat, and then let''s see whosts the longest. ALSO! No using any abilities or superpowers. I''m sure our sense enhancements were all heightened to the point where we can detect someone''s energy, right?" Himuro asked.

    The trio nodded.

    "Well then, I guess we''ll part ways here. You can go have your contest or whatever. As for the two of us, we''ll prepare the food and drinks." Mitsuka called out.

    "Enjoy," Nanako greeted as the girls and boys parted ways.

    When the girls were out of sight, the four of them suddenly put their hands on their knees while they breathed heavily. As it turned out, the four of them were just trying to act tough in front of them. They were actually more exhausted than usual since they had to fight the other Disciples. "Thedies pretty much stood idly by while they were breaking bones and muscles together."

    "So that''s why you wanted to go to the sauna." Satoshi forced a smile, now that Himuro''s intent was now as clear as day.

    "We''ll reset our exhaustion over at the sauna. I guess this would be an everyday thing now so we won''t have to worry about soreness the next day." Himuro exined. "Then again, the contest still holds. We''ll see who could endure the sauna the longest. To start with, how does ny degrees Celsius sound?"

    "Easy peasy, we can start at a hundred no sweat," Yun Zhe challenged, smiling as he puffed his chest with utmost confidence.

    "Then let''s go. We can think up of a punishment for the loserter." Himuro continued.

 Chapter 476 Sweating Sauna

    Right in the middle of the dorms was an open area where the ''amenities'' were located. On one end were the hot springs, which were upied by a couple of personnel that manage the entire building. Fresh steam enticingly rose up the hot springs, attracting Satoshi and the others when they entered the ce.

    The swimming pool was situated on the other end of the hot springs. It was an Olympic-sized swimming pool for training.

    Surprisingly, there was a game room right beside the hot springs¡ª a ping-pong table, air hockey, and basketball arcade was located right there. This was probably to train the Disciples in their precision and reflexes.

    The sauna was conveniently located near the swimming pool,pleting the cycle.

    "Now that I see it... aren''t we at a resort or something? This resembles a resort more than anything." Yun Zhemented, admiring the view. He was tempted to go straight into the hot springs but right now, they have a challenge waiting for them.

    "Yeah, it just looks like that right now. But most of the time, we couldn''t even ess these things. Either we''re training outside, or hunting beasts." Himuro stated. "Fortunately, we have ample time to rx tonight, unlike yesterday when we barely had enough sleep."

    Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe didn''t bother pressing any questions onto Himuro. They were probably given some training untilte at night, or so that''s what they assumed happened.

    "In any case, are you guys ready to lose?" Himuro asked, putting his thumbs down in a gesture that meant he''d defeat the three of them. "I got the best dare for the loser and the best reward for the winner, hehhe."

    By the looks of it, Himuro appeared to be an expert when ites to staying in saunas. Then again, most of it was probably just false bravado and he was just messing with them.

    This didn''t discourage them from epting his challenge though. However, before they went with the challenge, they had to know what the reward and the punishment were.

    "So, what would be the punishment for the loser?" Jonathan asked, genuinely curious since Himuro was wearing a wide smirk on his face.

    Himuro cleared his throat as a glint was briefly seen in his eyes. "The loser will..."

    There was a little bit of suspense before Himuro announced the punishment. "The loser will scream at the rooftop of the dorms."

    Confused, the trio looked at each other since it seemed to be a somewhat normal punishment. However, Himuro wasn''t done speaking. He only brought up half of the punishment. When he paused, he stared at the trio while waiting for them to point out the obvious.

    "So... what are we going to scream?" Satoshi asked.

    "That you... you like Hermione Ranger-san." Himuro continued.

    All of their jaws dropped to the ground in an instant. This was probably one of the most dangerous dares Himuro could ever think of. After all, it involves the presence of a Manager which was way stronger than any of them.

    As far as they know, Hermione might execute them for saying something like that. She''s a Manager, after all, and there was no way they could ever fight back against one.

    "Don''t worry, our Manager is pretty lenient so she won''t get offended by a prank like that." Himur confidently said before putting his thumb on his chin. "Or so... that''s what I''d like to think." He continued.

    Hisst sentence gave the trio shivers up and down their spine, but they still agreed to the challenge. "As for the winner... he gets to be carried by the three losers everywhere, like a king! HAHHA!"

    When Himuro startedughing, he sounded like a psychopath, but that''s beside the point.

    WIthout further ado, Himuro extended his hand for a handshake. All of them had to formally agree to the conditions of the challenge before they went through it, just so no one would back down midway.

    "I''m down." Satoshi was the first one to speak up, shaking Himuro''s hand. Jonathan and Yun Zhe followed suit with firm determination, intending to win the contest so they get to be carried around.

    Obviously, it would be embarrassing, but it would be even more shameful for the three who''d be carrying the winner around like a trophy.

    "All right, let''s do this." Jonathan clenched his fist before pumping it in the air.

    "Osu~!" Yun Zhe hyped himself up as he also clenched his fists.

    "LET''S GO!" Himuro screamed at the top of his lungs as the four of them resolutely strode towards the sauna.

    To begin with, they were going to start at the boiling point of water. Then it would only increase from there. Quite frankly, the four of them had no idea what their record would be, but all of them were determined enough to see the challenge through.

    ...<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    Meanwhile, in the snack bar,

    "Achoo~!" Nanako sneezed out of nowhere, causing Mitsuka to instinctively flinch as she put her hands up in a fighting stance.

    "You surprised me, Nanako," Mitsuka heaved a sigh of relief when she realized that it was just Nanako''s sneeze. "You all right? Did you catch a cold?" She concernedly asked.

    "No... it''s Himuro. He''s probably up to no good again." Nanako joked as she started chuckling. "I wonder what those four are doing right now."

    "Should we go check them out? We can follow them as soon as we gather the drinks and the snacks for tonight." Mitsuka suggested. She was curious as to what the boys were up to.

    "Great idea!" Nanako chirped, hurrying towards the drinks section so she could gather drinks for everyone.

    As for Mitsuka, she urgently ted a lot of snacks, stacking them one after the other so she could efficiently carry them to their room. They moved faster than usual, excited to regroup with the boys as soon as they were done with their specific task.

    ...

    The four boys stood in front of the sauna as if they were in an audience with the king. Nervously, they gulped before they looked at each other. Once they open the door to the sauna and close it, the challenge would start.

    Only one of them would walk out victorious, while the rest would suffer a grievous defeat that would embarrass them the next day. It was a do-or-die moment for them, which gave them more resolve to win no matter what.

    "Here we go!" Himuro firmly nodded in front of Satoshi and the others.

    The three of them nodded in response. It was time for the contest to start.

    Creak~!

    Without further ado, Himuro opened the door to the sauna. With a countdown to three, all four of them entered the sauna at the same time.

    It didn''te as a surprise for them when they saw how spacious the sauna was. The moment they entered, a st of hot steam greeted them right on their face, causing them to impulsively shut their eyes for a couple of seconds.

    Satoshi didn''t waste any time walking towards the steady-flowing water by the edge of the sauna, scooping up water from it and putting it on the sauna stones.

    A st of steam erupted from the sauna stones, increasing the temperature and humidity of the ce. It didn''t take long before the temperature rose to ny degrees Celsius... all the way up to a hundred.

    "Whews! What on¡ª this is hotter than I thought." Jonathan eximed as he started jumping up and down.

    "You can go out if you want, we''ll stay right here." Himuro provoked, causing Jonathan to stiffen up before he sat down on one of the wooden ts in the sauna.

    While they were talking to each other, Satoshi and Yun Zhe already sat down, regting their breathing while they saved up as much energy and willpower as they could. The steam stung their skin, but the pain was bearable.

    Theirplexion reddened in an instant, due to the sudden spike in temperature. This didn''t push them into going out of the sauna, however.

    "Haah~ this isfortable," Himuro let out a sigh as he rxedlyy down on one of the ts. It''s as if he was telling the other three that they didn''t stand a chance against him... when in fact, he was feeling the same thing as them.

    After all, they weren''t allowed to use any of their superpowers or skills. In the face of the temperature, they were just regr humans.

    "Just a random question," Jonathan called out of nowhere, raising his hand. "We only have thirty minutes in here, right?"

    "Ah, right." Himuro let out. The sudden realization made him question the contest. Then again, there was no way he''d get out of the sauna when the contest had already started.

    "Well then, allow me," Before Satoshi told them what he was about to do, he went towards the water once again and scooped up a couple of cups of water.

    Without thinking twice, he poured them all on the sauna stones, increasing the temperature in an instant. Within seconds, the temperature rose all the way to one hundred eighty degrees Celsius.

    "Are you kidding me, Satoshi?" Himuro gritted his teeth, as the steam painfully stung his skin.

 Chapter 477 Dont Back Down Now

    Generally, the boiling temperature of water in a sauna isn''t that harmful. Still, it would be an entirely different case if the temperature were to rise drastically higher than that. Satoshi and the others knew exactly that, but they still went through with the challenge since they didn''t want to go back on their word.

    Besides, they were keen on winning the entire thing, so there was no way they''d rush out first and risk screaming a love confession by the rooftop. There was no going back now since the challenge had alreadymenced.

    "Are you kidding me, Satoshi?" Himuro gritted his teeth, as the steam painfully stung his skin.

    "Seriously, Satoshi?!" Yun Zhe also eximed as he desperately covered his face, somehow partly blocking the steam that threateningly oozed out from the stones.

    Wearing a grin on his face, Satoshi also felt everything they endured but he wore his poker face so it wouldn''t seem like he was gravely affected by his actions. In pain, he walked towards his usual seat,fortably seating himself as he resumed the trial he set before all of them.

    The challenge had just gotten unusually harder, with their skins screaming the terrible suffering they felt. Jonathan wanted to go out, but he didn''t want to be the first one to go.

    Then there was Yun Zhe, who was concentrating solely on evening out his breathing. He knew that he could oust the three of them if he focused long enough.

    And there was Himuro, who couldn''t even focus anymore. He just wanted to go home. This wasn''t what he signed up for... nevertheless, there was no way he''d be the first to go out.

    "Now, that''s more like it." Himuro forced out his lungs as he rigidly sat still. The others also assumed their position farthest from the sauna stones.

    All of them were heating up, steaming out of their body as their skin turned into a pinkish hue. One wrong move or onerge breath would be enough to send pain signals up their brain.

    Continuously, the sauna stones released steam, filling the entire room with it. The temperature continued to rise up but at this point, the four of them had gotten somewhat used to it. They didn''t dare move, though, since they''d immediately feel the stinging pain on their skin.

    "Y''all can go out. I''ll be staying here a couple more minutes." Himuro called out. To be fair, he already wanted to go out, he was just pushing past his limits so he won''t be the first one to go.

    "You''re looking kinda ufortable there Himuro." Yun Zhemented. "If you want, you can head out first."

    "Yeah, and then head straight to the rooftop and confess your feelings to Hermione Ranger-san." Jonathan continued. "Then again, Hermione-san is beautiful... I might go out first and confess instead." He joked.

    "Then go ahead, no one''s stopping you from confessing. In fact, we''ll even help you, right?" Satoshi continued, teasing Jonathan since he seemed to be seriously considering the option.

    "You know what. I''ll take the fall for all of you guys. I''ll be going on ahead..." Heaving a sigh, Jonathan stood up as he headed towards the door. His expression disyed his intention of going outside, so everyone concluded that he really was about to go outside.

    Just when he grabbed the door handle, a smile swept across his face. He then turned around, chuckling. "Just kidding! I won''t be the first one to go. You guys can go on ahead before me."

    "You know, you can still confess to her even if you win, right?" Satoshi pointed out, twirling his index finger in the air. "No one''s going to stop you."

    "Ah, right! I''ll go with that option then heh~" Jonathan nodded along, heading back to his seat and continuing the challenge.

    It was clear that none of them wanted to go outside no matter what, which meant that they''d be staying in the sauna until they lose consciousness. The four of them didn''t budge as the minutes passed by.

    When the five-minute mark hit, Satoshi decided to stand up to get some water by the corner. Without further ado, he poured another batch of water on the sauna stones just to keep the temperature fresh.

    Everyone was gasping for air at the ten-minute mark, but then again

    A st of steam hit him straight in the face, but he didn''t flinch. Instead, he went back to his seat as quietly as he could. Even though he didn''t utter a single word, he directly challenge everyone to put more water and produce more steam.

    There was no backing down now. The next one to stand up was Himuro, pouring more water into the stones in an attempt to send someone out.

    The temperature rose to two hundred and ten, and they were burning up. Their breathing became more ragged and their lungs started to constrict. The amount of oxygen in the room had beenpromised and they were barely hanging in there.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    To be fair, this sauna was constructed with the thought of training someone''s temperature immunity as a superhero. That''s why it could easily rise up to an insane temperature. Unbeknownst to the four of them, it could even be used to develop immunity to the cold since it could go the other way, lowering the temperature to a crazy number.

    At this point, no one spoke anymore. They were so close to losing consciousness due to how hot the ce was. It''s as if death was knocking right on their doorstep.

    Their throats dried up, and they wanted to drink some water. However, all of the unanimously assumed that drinking water was synonymous with epting their inferiority so none of them drank.

    Jonathan went up next, walking towards the sauna stones and putting more water on it. The entire room was filled with steam, so much so that they could barely see each other. Then again, they could still sense themselves so they''d know in an instant if someone were to use their superpower or not.

    When the twenty-minute mark hit, they heard a sudden plop on the ground, causing them to whirl around, surprised. The first thing they noticed was that Jonathan was the first one to hit the bucket, falling into unconsciousness while he was sitting down. He lurched forward, causing the plop which everyone heard.

    "HAH! We have ourselves a losee-ughH~" Himuro trailed off as his eyes rolled to the back of his head. The moment he stood up, his blood cycle had gone haywire and he cked out. He passed out in an instant, falling on top of Jonathan who was already sprawled on the ground like a rotting cadaver.

    "HAHA! And the second one bites the dust. I guess between me and you now Hajime-ughhh~" Yun Zhe felt all the strength in his body leaving him as he fell sideways. His control over his body became nonexistent as he drifted into slumber. As it turned out, he''d reached his limit and he also fell into unconsciousness just like Jonathan and Himuro.

    "Oi~! What are you guys doing?!" Satoshi screamed, shaking them awake. Even he was on the verge of losing consciousness. However, if he fainted right then and there, all four of them might die together.

    Well, not really since their bodies would automatically switch to using their superpower.

    Before any of them could wake up, Satoshi grabbed all of them, slinging Jonathan and Yun Zhe on his shoulder while he dragged Himuro to the floor. His head started spinning but he pushed himself to get all of them out of there before the worst-case scenario transpired.

    "Spend time in the sauna they said, it would be fun they said," Satoshi said to himself as he opened the door to the sauna, bringing everyone out as he fell on top of all of them.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    Now that everything was in ce, and they''d already cleaned their ce up, Nanako and Mitsuka decided to head to the sauna so they could either get the boys or join them in their fun.

    "How could they hold a sauna contest in just half an hour? They shouldst longer than that." Nanako questioned as she and Mitsuka made their way to the sauna.

    "Nah, they probably have something else in mind. You know, the three of them seemed to regard each other as rivals." Mitsuka responded.

    "Yeah, there''s probably something more to it. We should go see them before they get into some sort of trouble."

    Quickening their pace, the three of them hurried to themon area, then out to the open area in the middle of the dorm. From afar, they saw the sauna and they sprinted towards it.

    The moment they arrived in front of the sauna, they couldn''t even see through the ss door due to how thick the steam was inside.

    BAM!

    To their surprise, the door suddenly mmed open, and out came Satoshi, holding the other three since they were all unconscious.

    "Ah, good thing you''re here. As you can see, I won the challenge." Satoshi pointed out before he copsed in front of Nanako and Mitsuka.

    "What on actual¡ª" Mitsuka couldn''t help but exim.

 Chapter 478 Rooftop Confession

    Satoshi felt like dying when he took thest couple of steps before he got out of the sauna. His lungs constricted whenever he breathed due to the steam. And everyone''s weight didn''t help since he was carrying all of them out of there.

    Fortunately, he was able to break past his limits pushing the door open with hisst bout of strength and lurching forward. They were out of the sauna, and Satoshi took in a breath of cold air the moment they got out. He didn''t bother keeping himself bnced since his legs gave away.

    It''s as if his strength was sucked from him, and he fell to the ground along with the other three.

    Jonathan fell sideways, still unconscious. As for Yun Zhe, he fell on top of Himuro and the two of them sort of got tangled together when Satoshi dropped them down.

    "Ah, good thing you''re here. As you can see, I won the challenge." Satoshi pointed out before he copsed in front of Nanako and Mitsuka.

    "What on actual¡ª" Mitsuka couldn''t help but exim as he watched Satoshi fall in front of her.

    Nanako gasped when he saw that everyone was unconscious as well. The full st of steam came out of the sauna, causing them to sweat in an instant. They could only imagine just how high the temperature was in there. Just thinking about it made them shiver.

    "Come on, Nanako, help me out here," Mitsuka called out, carefully grabbing Satoshi by his armpit before she started dragging Satoshi to the lounge.

    Nanako nodded along. As for her, she grabbed Himuro by the armpit.

    When they arrived at the lounge, Mitsuka started fanning Satoshi''s face,pletely forgetting the other two who were left behind. A couple of minutester, Jonathan and Yun Zhe walked into the lounge, still disoriented since they found themselves out of the sauna. They didn''t even remember how they passed out.

    "What happened?" Jonathan asked. Somehow, he could tell that Satoshi and Himuro weren''t the first ones to get out. After all, he couldn''t remember them going out before him. The only thing he remembered was him trying to keep himself awake. And then he cked out or something.

    "You guys passed out. Satoshi brought all of you out of there before he passed out himself." Mitsuka exined. "What were you guys doing? No wonder you were keen on holding the contest. That was dangerous, you know."

    "Ah, so he was the winner... then!"

    "THEN!"

    Jonathan and Yun Zhe looked at each other since the two of them simultaneously eximed ''then''. A split secondter, Jonathan gestured at Yun Zhe to go first. Clearing his throat, Yun Zhe continued what he was about to ask.

    "Then... who was the first one to fall into unconsciousness... no wait... it was you Jonathan! I remember now!" Yun Zhe eximed, pointing a finger at him as he started howling withughter. For a moment back there, he thought that he''d be the one to scream at the rooftop.

    But, if his memory didn''t fail him. Then that means, it was Jonathan who fainted first, then after him was Himuro. Yun Zhe was this close to winning the entire thing, but he lost focus at thest moment when he saw Himuro fall down.

    ''It should''ve been me.'' Yun Zhe told himself. Then again, Satoshi didn''t fall into unconsciousness, not until he brought all of them out of there. It was andslide victory for Satoshi, that much was obvious.

    When Himuro came to, he instantly saw Nanako fanning him with a towel. A smile swept across his face as he forced himself to sit down. "Am I dead?" He joked, prompting Nanako to give him a good whack on the head which perked him right back up.

    "RIGHT! WHO WON?" Himuro looked at Yun Zhe who was standing in front of Satoshi. He concluded that it was Yun Zhe who won, and he clenched his fists in frustration.

    Just like Yun Zhe, he too lost his concentration when he saw Jonathan plop on the ground. Of course, anyone would''veughed heartily after seeing someone fall on the ground like that. It was akin to a seal walking onnd, the way he plopped like that.

    Himuro couldn''t help but chuckle after remembering that scene.

    ...

    The steady whirring of the ceiling fan greeted Satoshi when he woke up. His eyes fluttered open as he rubbed it. For a moment, he had no idea where he was, then he remembered what happened in the sauna, and then he slowly sat up, heaving a sigh.

    To his side, Mitsuka continued fanning him with a towel. It was extremely helpful since Satoshi was able to cool down. Then again, even without their help, Dex would''ve stepped in to help him out the moment it became too much. Fortunately, he didn''t reach that point.

    "Are you all right?" Mitsuka concernedly asked since Satoshi''s skin was bright red, an obvious sign of too much exposure to high temperatures.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Yeah, just a little bit light-headed," Satoshi responded.

    "Here," Mitsuka said, handing him a bottle of milk. "It would help with the light-headedness." She offered.

    Muttering a soft thanks, Satoshi gratefully epted the bottle of milk, gulping it down in an instant. Mitsuka was right. It did help with his ufortable feeling. Another sigh left his mouth as his gaze wandered towards Jonathan who was slowly stirring into consciousness.

    When he woke up, he was also as confused as the others. "What happened, you guys?" He asked... and then he remembered what transpired in the sauna.

    "..."

    "..."

    Now that everyone was finally awake, they stared at each other for a good moment before Yun Zhe started chuckling. Everyone followed suit and the four of them startedughing at each other. The contest was a sess, and there was a clear winner and a loser even though they didn''t have enough time.

    It didn''t take long before Jonathan realized that he was the one who clearly lost. His eyes widened as Satoshi and the others resumed theirughter. They couldn''t help but remember how Jonathan fell on the sauna floor. It was the most hrious thing they''d ever seen.

    "So... what''s the punishment for the loser?" Mitsuka asked. Her curiosity was piqued since Jonathan didn''t seem troubled by the oue.

    "Yeah, and the reward. You have a reward for the winner, right?" Nanako let out, following Mitsuka''s question.

    Without further ado, the four of them exined both the punishment and the reward. Nanako and Mitsuka couldn''t help but realize how childish the contest was. Then again, the four of them seemed to bond with the contest so it resulted better than expected.

    "So... should we head over to the girls'' room? We''re going to spend some time there, right?" Jonathan trailed off, hoping that he could get away from the punishment. After all, he still wasn''t ready. He needed at least a day to prepare himself before he confessed his feelings to Manager Hermione.

    "No, not yet. You have to do something first, right?" Satoshi said as he wore a grin on his face.

    Himuro and Yun Zhe also wore a grin on their face, implying that Jonathan had to undergo the punishment right now.

    "All right, all right!" Jonathan muttered. Without further ado, he stood up, did a couple of stretches, and proceeded to head toward the rooftop.

    When they reached the staircase that led to the rooftop, Jonathan started questioning his life choices, or rather, he began questioning his existence with every step. He had no idea what would happen the moment he blurted out those words, but then again, he agreed to the contest so he couldn''t back down now.

    Before he knew it, the door that led to the rooftop was right in front of him. When he turned back, he saw Satoshi and the others who were keenly tailing him. There was no point in taking a strategic retreat. He just had to move forward and get on with it.

    Mustering his courage, Jonathan opened the door. A soft gust of wind greeted him the moment he arrived at the rooftop. The coldness sent literal shivers up and down his spine, but he still walked forward. "All right, here we go," Jonathan said to himself.

    In hindsight, Hermione was prepossessing. Right now, Jonathan received the push he needed to shoot his shot. And he was going to do it.

    "You can do it, Jonathan Ainsworth!" Nanako whispered from the back as Jonathan walked towards the edge of the rooftop.

    "Yes! You can do it!" Himuro clenched his fist, pumping it in the air. He was quite proud of himself for thinking up of a punishment like that.

    "Here we go," Jonathan took in a breath of fresh air, preparing himself for the deration that he was about to do.

    "HERMIONE RANGER-SAAAAN!" Jonathan screamed out of nowhere, causing Satoshi and the others to rethink what they were doing. Then again, it was toote to stop Jonathan from his punishment.

    "I LIKE YOU, PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!" His scream echoed all over the dorms, traveling further into the forest. With how loud he was, there was no way Hermione Ranger didn''t hear his confession.

 Chapter 479 Within Earshot

    A myriad of stars nketed the entire sky, giving it a new face as the cold of the night set in. This wasn''t Earth, but the view of the universe was just as heavenly as usual. Anyone who saw it would gape their mouths in awe due to the insane amount of gxies that could be seen from the ground.

    It was a cloudless sky, perfect for stargazing. Even the other Disciples who just got to the dorms leaned on their balconies, enjoying their nighttime coffee while taking in the picturesque scenery of the starden skies.

    Since the test was officially concluded, some of the Managers were sent to the dorms to monitor the other Disciples. Well, some of them were left behind to look after the Disciples who failed the test. From their estimate, they could more or less guess that some of the Disciples would take until morning before they could return.

    "This view never gets old." Hermione Ranger said to herself as she walked up the path toward the dorm. Just like the others, she didn''t bother using her superpower to get to the dorm in time. She relished her alone time, partially covered by the trees that lined up the path while a series of gustsflew in. The sight of the stars seemed to take all the exhaustion away while she rxed.

    If it were like this every day, Hermione thought that it would feel like a vacation more than training for their Disciples. Then again, she knew that the Managers needed to take a couple of breathers as well, and right now, she''s availing one of hers.

    "I wonder what my Disciples are up to. I hope they''re befriending the other Disciples." As soon as she said that, she remembered what happened to Raniel and the others. She couldn''t help but heave a sigh under her breath when their betrayal reyed in her mind.

    She wasn''t expecting Raniel and the others to harbor hatred towards Himuro and Nanako when they were just doing their best. They were even merciful enough to bring their gs but Raniel just had to show his true colors at such an opportune moment.

    "I had no idea that they felt inferior to Himuro and Nanako... was it because of their talent? No... Raniel is more talented than them, he shouldn''t have the right to feel jealous... but why? I''ve never shown them any favor, nor did I express favoritism towards my Disciples." Hermione Ranger tried to think as hard as she could, but she couldn''t recall an instance where she favored any of her Disciples. Not a single memory came to mind.

    "Should I talk to them? No... I should let them solve their own problems. If I were to step in and give them an earful, they might think that the other party didn''t receive a reprimand. It might aggravate the situation. For now, I should keenly observe them and only step in when things get out of hand." Upon saying that, Hermione Ranger clenched her fist as if she just came up with a satisfactory decision. Then she heaved a sigh since she wasn''t sure whether what she did was right or not.

    It wasn''t widely known to the Disciples but the Managers weren''t really higher beings. Just like them, they were once humans who were chosen to lead a couple of their Disciples after they became too strong for their own craft.

    They were chosen as Managers so they could pass on their techniques to the next generations. And just like humans, they weren''t immortal at all, but they were stronger than any other regr humans out there. After all, they''ve existed for hundreds of years, so their mastery over their techniques had been honed to perfection.

    Hermione Ranger was a bit troubled by the way his Disciples acted during the test, but she knew that it could easily be resolved amongst themselves. She didn''t want to intervene unless absolutely necessary.

    Seeing a small stone in front of her, she kicked it, causing it to skip a couple of times beforending by the foot of a tree. From a distance, she could see the dorm which was gigantic as usual. She wanted to enjoy the atmosphere and the scenery for a couple more minutes so she slowed down her pace. Even though she already walked at least ten kilometers on her way back, she still wanted to spend more time walking.

    Life as a Manager was drastically differentpared to being a human. And just like anything new, it brought about its difficulties and stress. Hermione Ranger was not immune to these kinds of things. Her solitary walk was just one of the ways she destresses.

    "Wait, what''s going on?" Hermione Ranger asked herself when she noticed multiple presences by the rooftop. In total, there were six people, and she immediately recognized two of her Disciples, Himuro and Nanako, with the group.

    The moment she used her sense enhancement, she noticed thatthe other three were actuallyBucky Barnes''s Disciples. And as for thest one, it was one of Scarlet''s Disciple. "Why are they with a bunch of weirdos? No offense, Bucky Barnes and Scarlet." Hermione Ranger said to herself as she observed the gathering.

    She didn''t even realize that she began quickening her pace so she could get there on time. Furthermore, it didn''t even ur to her that she could use her superpower to get to the rooftop in a snap of a finger. Her mind was a mess since she could sense that something was definitely about to go down.

    ...

    On the rooftop, the gathering didn''t even notice that Hermione Ranger was right by the edge of the forest. Had they peered over a little bit closer to the edge of the rooftop, they''d have noticed Hermione Ranger making her way to the dorms.

    She was the only presence by the path in the forest so they shouldn''t have missed her.

    Meanwhile, Jonathan already steeled her resolve to go through with the confession. He''s got nothing to lose, right? Right?!<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Here we go," Jonathan took in a breath of fresh air, preparing himself for the deration that he was about to do.

    "HERMIONE RANGER-SAAAAN!" Jonathan screamed out of nowhere, causing Satoshi and the others to rethink what they were doing. Then again, it was toote to stop Jonathan from his punishment.

    "I LIKE YOU, PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!" His scream echoed all over the dorms, traveling further into the forest. With how loud he was, there was no way Hermione Ranger didn''t hear his confession.

    ...

    "W-w-what?!" Hermione Ranger, who was listening all along, heard the confession loud and clear.

    As for the other Disciples who were lingering by their balconies, they also heard the confession loud and clear. In fact, they even noticed that Hermione Ranger was actually in front of the dorms.

    They started pointing at her, murmuring amongst themselves while they tried to figure out if she heard it or not.

    Of course, she heard it! There was no way she didn''t!

    From a distance, Jonathan did a celebratory dance since he went through with the punishment without any hups. He was confident that Hermione didn''t hear him since she was still with the other Managers monitoring the Disciples who failed the test.

    That''s when one of the Disciples who was by the balcony called out to them, telling them to look by the entrance gate to the dorms.

    As if on cue, Hermione Ranger covered her face while she walked into the open area. She didn''t speak a single word when she entered the dorms, nor did she call out to Jonathan who did something so brazen right in front of her.

    Then again, the Disciples noticed the redness on her face even though she tried topletely cover her face. It was clear that she was affected by Jonathan''s tant confession.

    ...

    On the rooftop,

    Jonathan already turned around when the Disciples by the balcony started calling out to him. He was on cloud nine due to the adrenaline rush, so much so that he didn''t even think about the consequences if Hermione really did hear what he screamed.

    "Oi! Jonathan look!" Himuro was the first one to notice Hermione running through the open area into the dorms. "HAHHA! She heard you, Jonathan, eheyy~"

    "What''chu gonna do now?" Yun Zhe added tinder to the fire as he teasingly elbowed Jonathan. "Well, at least it went well, right?"

    "There you go, she heard you loud and clear, Jonathan. You''ve got to own up and take responsibility or something." Mitsuka added, making everyone chuckle even louder.

    "Ah eh... what?!" All the colors drained from Jonathan''s face when he realized that Hermione really did hear his confession. At the same time, his adrenaline left him and he was left with a feeling of embarrassment.

    "There you go, now your wish came true, isn''t that nice, Jonathan-kuuun." Himuro continued. Even though the woman in question was none other than their Manager, they still pulled out all stops with their teasing.

 Chapter 480 Night Out

    The first one to break the formation was Himuro, followed by Nanako who tailed Himuro out of the rooftop. Knowing that their Manager, Hermione Ranger, was aware of their antics, they just had to take a strategic retreat.

    They were the ones behind the event, and somehow, they were also well aware that Hermione Ranger knew all of it since she sensed them from the entrance. In a sense, the strategic retreat didn''t mean anything, they just did it out of their own amusement.

    It was also fitting that they got out of there while Jonathan''s guard was down, it gave him the right adrenaline rush he needed to follow suit.

    Seizing her chance, Mitsuka also followed right behind Nanako, gesturing for Satoshi and Yun Zhe to tag along.

    "Come on! Let''s get out of here!" Mitsuka called out, smiling at the situation that beset them.

    Without further ado, Satoshi and Yun Zhe also followed suit, leaving Jonathan behind. Yun Zhe even pretended to shut the door to the rooftop behind him, causing Jonathan to desperately scream as he flung the door open.

    Surprised that it was actually not locked, Jonathan felt a modicum of embarrassment before he trailed behind the group.

    "Right this way." Once again, Mitsuka grasped the opportunity to get closer to Satoshi, grabbing him by the hand as she led the way to their dorm rooms. They had to take a couple of flights of stairs before arriving on the first floor.

    Then they had to sprint through themon area into the girls'' dorm, which was on the left wing of the building.

    "Come on," Mitsuka continued, smiling since Satoshi didn''t let go of her hand.

    From the corner of their eyes, they could see Hermione Ranger heading to the snack bar. Her face was still as red as a beet, and she didn''t dare make eye contact with the group.

    When the group disappeared into the girls'' dorm, Hermione Ranger covered her face in embarrassment. She couldn''t believe that a Disciple actually confessed his feelings to her. Moreover, he did it where everyone heard him. What would the other Disciples and Managers think of her now?

    "Arghh~! What should I do?" She asked herself, realizing that the person who confessed to her was actually Bucky Barnes''s Disciple. It made it even harder for her to ept what just happened.

    Step. Step.

    While Hermione Ranger internalized the embarrassment she just felt, someone approach her from behind. There was no need for her to turn around since she already knew who was sneaking up behind her.

    "Shut up." Hermione Ranger uttered under her breath as she was handed a drink. One would wonder whether the drink was alcoholic or not, but based on the redness on her face, it could easily be assumed that she was drinking.

    "What? I didn''t even say a single word." Bucky Barnes shrugged, taking the seat right beside Hermione. Like her, he also ordered a drink for himself¡ª a frappe.

    "I know what you''re going to say... and you don''t have to say it." Hermione pouted, downing her drink in an instant and ordering another one.

    Chuckling, Bucky Barnes couldn''t help but admire Hermione''s state at that moment. She was reacting like a child in the face of a confession from a Disciple. Bucky Barnes had to suppress the urge to tease her.

    "What? I wasn''t even going to say anything." Bucky Barnes defended himself. "Want to cheers?" He offered.

    ring at Bucky Barnes, she raised her ss and went for the cheers, downing her second drink in one go. "You were going to tease me, right? You were, right?"

    "No... I was just going to ask if my Disciple''s got a chance or not?" Bucky Barnes grinned widely as he pped his knee and startedughing.

    "I knew it! You were going to do that!" Hermione growled. "One more drink!" She eximed.

    ...

    Right when they entered the girls'' dorm on the left wing, the four men felt like they just went inside uncharted territory. There was a certain fragrance emanating from the dorm, which explicitly expressed that not a single guy was in the vicinity. It was a flowery scent, or rather, a fresh scent that is nonexistent in the boys'' dorm.

    "Whoa, it smells nice here," Himuromented. "I guess we should also spray perfume on the corridor so it would smell nice on our dorm as well."

    "What are you talking about?" Nanako asked. "In any case, we have a couple of hours before lights out. Let''s enjoy the night because tomorrow''s another torturous day." Nanako pumped her fist in the air even though what she said was nothing short of ominous.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Ou~!" Mitsuka also pumped her fist in the air, matching Nanako''s energy.

    Once they arrived in front of the girls'' room, Satoshi and the others gulped. For some reason, the four of them felt nervous, more nervouspared to when they went through thest test a couple of moments ago. Now, the feeling of entering uncharted territory felt stronger, and they anxiously stood right where they were.

    Without further ado, Mitsuka coquettishly tugged at Satoshi''s hand (Satoshi didn''t realize but she still didn''t let go of his hand) before she slowly opened the door to their room. A bright smile was stered on Mitsuka''s face as she prompted Satoshi to step forward. "Come in," She enthusiastically invited.

    "Yeah, you don''t have to hold back. We''re going to y all night!" Nanako cheered before she entered their room first.

    "Pardon the intrusion," Satoshi whispered as Mitsuka dragged her into their room. She didn''t hesitate to pull her straight into her bedroom, patting the side of her bed as she took a seat by the edge of it. "Here!" She offered.

    "Eh?!" Satoshi eximed, but he took a seat anyways.

    ''Come to think of it... this is the first time I''ve ever been in a girl''s room... right?!'' Satoshi eximed inwardly as his body stiffened up due to nervousness. He was only able to keep hisposure since Himuro, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe entered a couple of secondster.

    Just like him, the three of them admired theyout of the room. It certainly had a woman''s touch and everything smelled good. They can''t believe that they''d be spending a couple of hours in this room. It felt like a dream.

    "It''s so girly... this is so unlike you, Nanako," Himuromented, to which Nanako responded b giving him a good whack on the head.

    "What did you mean by that?" Nanako asked. "Just wait for a bit, I''ll change into my nighttime clothes."

    It was only at this moment that the guys realized Nanako was still wearing her usual bikini armor. The four of them reddened out of impulse. "Wait, you''re going to change into your nighttime clothes? Does that mean you''re going to change into your linger¡ª"

    "Say another word, and I''m going to knock you out in one punch." Nanako threatened him, causing him to choke on his own saliva.

    Awkwardly, Jonathan and Yun Zhe sat on the opposite side of the small table. They still continued to look around, taking in the view of the room, as if they were taking pictures.

    It''s as if they were taking down notes so they could improve their room as well... or maybe they were using this room as a standard for when they enter another girl''s room. In any case, Satoshi had no idea what they were thinking but they seem to be enjoying themselves.

    As for Himuro, he was brazen enough to walk around, admiring every side of the room as if it was his own. He was having a tour of his own.

    "So when did you be a Disciple, Satoshi?" Mitsuka asked. Unlike the others, she was one of the few Disciples who kept track of the other Disciples¡ª not because she was strictlypetitive, but because she wanted to keep track of the other Disciples to befriend them.

    "Uhm... a couple of months ago?" Satoshi said.

    "Hmm~" Mitsuka mumbled, taking mental notes since this was the first time she heard about Satoshi.

    Honestly, she was aware of Jonathan Ainsworth, Yun Zhe, and Jana Alexis as Bucky Barnes''s Disciples but this was the first time she heard about Satoshi. He''d never seen him in anything, nor did she ever hear his name amongst the Managers.

    Then again, she was in a different dimension, Satoshi was probably a popr superhero in his world and she''d have no idea.

    "How about you, Mitsuka?" Satoshi feltpelled to return the question just to keep the conversation going.

    "I''ve been a Disciple for a couple of years now... but I''ve known I was a Disciple ever since I was a kid." Mitsuka continued.

    "Really?" Satoshi eximed. He couldn''t believe that someone was actually born as a Disciple.

    "Ehhh~" Mitsuka trailed off a second time. Now, it was clear to her that Satoshi was actualy chosen as a Disciple... or maybe he was born as one but he wasn''t aware of it. That could happen as well.

    Their exchange was interrupted by Nanako entering Mitsuka''s room. Now she was wearing pajamas instead of her usual bikini armor. "Yosh~ let''s enjoy the night!" She eximed.

 Chapter 481 Lights Out

    Once the drinks and the snacks were served on the table, Nanako disyed something from her pockets¡ª a universal game that they''d be ying for the entire night.

    Satoshi and the others were genuinely surprised they knew about the game. Even though they resided in different dimensions and had entirely different upbringings, they were all aware of the game which Nanako offered to y.

    "Ousama game," Nanako called out. "This is just a simple game, the king gets to order the other yers... or so that''s the basics of it." She exined, assuming that the trio didn''t know the game since they came from a different dimension.

    "You don''t have to state out the obvious. We know how to y the game." Jonathan grinned, rubbing his hands as he expectantly waited for the game to start. It was clear that he was the most excited out of everyone else who was eager to y the game as well.

    "Shouldn''t we start with something like... spin the bottle?" Yun Zhe asked. Although he knew that it''d be impossible for them to y spin the bottle since they have mastery over their strength (making it possible for them to manipte the game), he just had to ask since he never experienced something like that before.

    He lost his parents at a young age, and his adopted grandfather taught him everything he needed to exceed. During those times, he never felt the need for friends, nor did he get to experience the life of a student going to school and spending time with peers.

    Long story short, Yun Zhe grew up as a recluse, and it was only recently that he got to spend time with people her age.

    For a short moment, the group looked at him as if he just said something weird. Then after that, they continued on with the conversation. "All right, let''s start!"

    ...

    Two hourster,

    Just like any other normal game of Ousama game, the yer who''s got all the sticks should wait for everyone to get one before he could tell which one he got. There was no use scrambling the sticks together since it won''t matter anyway.

    Besides, the sticks that Nanako pulled out were specialized sticks. She was well aware that everyone in the group had heightened senses, and that''s why the sticks were all identical to each other, except for their symbols.

    The sticks were made out of an alloy, a recipe that is exclusive to Himuro and Nanako''s dimension. There were instances in other dimensions where this special metal was called vibranium, but in their dimension, it was called something else.

    There were a lot of mental gymnastics transpiring as everyone chose their sticks. Jonathan scrunched his brows before he finally picked a stick. Nanatsu and Himuro just grabbed a stick to their liking.

    Previously, Satoshi was the king, that''s why he got thest pick this round. Then again, he had been king for the past round as well, and it seemed like a pure coincidence that he was a king this time around.

    Once everyone had picked their sticks, a smile shed on Satoshi''s face as he repeated the catchphrase of the game. "Who''s the king now?" He asked.

    Satoshi wasn''t the least bit surprised when he noticed that he was king the third time around. At this point, the others were having suspicions about whether Satoshi was cheating or not. Nevertheless, it was basically impossible for him to cheat since he was the one who got thest pick.

    "All right, number one and five will p each other, number two will do a handstand, and three and four would form a chair with their arms and I''ll sit on it." Satoshi continued.

    The first one to stand up was Jonathan and Yun Zhe who were number one and five, and they were more than willing to p each other in the face. In fact, Yun Zhe didn''t even give a signal, he just pped Jonathan before he could evenpose himself. Well, Jonathan also pped him since they were supposed to p each other.

    After that, they pped each other a second time since they were not satisfied with just one. Then another round came, and they only concluded their pping contest after receiving and returning ten ps each.

    Surprisingly, Himuro was number two, so he did a handstand on his own, and Nanako and Mitsuka had no choice but to construct a chair with their arms. Satoshi thought twice about sitting on top of it though and in the end, he opted not to do it.

    "Haah! The king''s orders are absolute! You have to sit on it, Satoshi." Himuro rubbed his nose.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Yeah! The king is not above thew! You were the one who ordered it! Now sit!" Yun Zhe screamed as well.

    "Come on, Satoshi! We can take it!" Mitsuka and Nanako simultaneously called out before they smiled. For one, they were Disciples, so carrying Satoshi in their arms was nothing but child''s y. They were only voicing out their pretentious desperation just so they could mess with Satoshi.

    Left with no choice, Satoshi had no choice but to sit on their arm, and then he bolted upright in a snap of a finger. He didn''t want his rear side touching the girl''s arms at all. In fact, they barely touched them when he got out of the chair made of their arms.

    "Let''s continue." Satoshi reddened as he gathered the sticks once again. Since he was king for this round, he had to get thest pick again.

    Unbeknownst to them, lights out was already issued a couple of minutes ago, and the Managers were already checking every room. They were too into their Ousama game that they forgot about lights out. And now, a couple of guards in the dormmenced their nightly duties of checking each room.

    It would''ve been easier if the Managers were to use their sense enhancement to check all the rooms at once, but they didn''t bother doing that for fear that they might sense something that they shouldn''t see in the first ce. That''s why they left the individual room check to the guards who were residents of that.

    A woman who goes by the name of Jane Watts started checking each room one by one. She possessed a master key that could unlock any door in the girls'' dorms. Then again, she didn''t bother surprising everyone in the room.

    Instead, she would slowly walk towards a room and listen in. If there were no noise, she''d assume that they were already sleeping. If there was some noise, she would knock on the door and remind them of lights out.

    One by one, she stood in front of the rooms to see if the girls were already asleep. Well, they could hardly be called girls since some Disciples were already adults.

    In the process of checking everything out, her ears suddenly perked when she heard noisesing from a room. It was three doors down, but the noiseing out from it was chaotic. She could''ve sworn she heard the voices of men in there as well.

    Not only her ears perked up, but her entire body seemed to bolt upright as she sprinted toward the room in question. Hurriedly, she rummaged through her pockets, grabbed her master key, and unlocked the door.

    It didn''t even take her a second to push the door open, catching whatever it was on the other side of the door off-guard. While she only sprinted a short distance, she was already out of breath, and she panted as she checked the dorm room.

    As expected, the room wasn''t neat and orderly. Bags of chips were lying all over the floor, drinks littered their small table, and their beds were a mess. Jane could tell that they were having a fun sleepover, but she was still suspicious about the voices she heard.

    Nanako and Mitsuka''s beds were on two opposite sides of the room, and they were on the bed, leaving their mess while they tried to act like they weren''t doing anything besides preparing to sleep.

    With furrowed brows, Jane eyed the two of them while she sniffed the ce. There was a faint scent of men in the room... and if her assumptions were right, they were probably hiding nearby.

    Her initial thought was to check the balcony. However, the balcony was see-through so there was no way someone would hide over there. Her next suspicion was either the restroom or the closet.

    She opted to check the cab first since it was nearer than the restroom. All this time, Nanako and Mitsuka remained as quiet as a mouse. There was no hint of rm on their faces as Jane slowly opened the door to the closet.

    Creak~

    "..."

    "..."

    "Well, this is awkward..." Jonathan was the first one to speak as he, Himuro, and Yun Zhe, were caught inside the closet. It was such an obvious hiding spot, which prompted them to conclude that they''d be able to get away with it.

 Chapter 482 First Kiss

    The cold morning air slipped through the slightly opened windows, waking up Aira whofortably slept through the night. She stirred, pulling up her covers while she sleepily moaned.

    Most of the time, she would wake up just a little bit before Emma and Satoshi left home for school. It was hard to change the habit of sleeping in but after a couple of days, she hadpletely assimted to the new lifestyle, and it had be a new habit for her.

    Today was no different. With another moan, she pushed herself out of the bed and unevenly walked out of her room. There was a restroom on the second floor but she preferred using the restroom on the first floor just in case she woke up toote and Emma and Satoshi were already heading out. With this, she''d be sure to say her goodbyes before she washed her face and brushed her teeth.

    Sometimes, she would get nightmares during the night and she would go out of her room and crawl into Emma or Satoshi''s bed. Thankfully it didn''t happen tonight. In fact, her bout of nightmares was bing less and less frequent, thanks to the safe household she''d been in. There were moments wherein she''d remember the days when she was still in the slums, but it hardly affected her by now.

    "Ah, Aira, you''re awake. Morning~" Emma cheerily greeted, waving her spoon before she dug into her bowl of cereal. She was already in her uniform, which meant that it won''t be long before she and Satoshi head out.

    "Where''s big brother?" Aira asked, rubbing her eyes while she took a look around. She vaguely remember Satoshi telling her goodbye yesterday and she''d hoped that he''d return before the morning. But now, it became clear to her he hasn''t arrived yet.

    "He''s going to stay somewhere in a couple of weeks, Aira," Emma was the one to answer. She saw the crestfallen faces of Ayumu and Tatsuki so she took it upon herself to exin things to Emma.

    "Oh..." Aira trailed off. It was probably because she was still sleepy that she didn''t take it to mind too much.

    Emma heaved a sigh of relief, her exnation was epted and Satoshi''s parents didn''t have to say anything in addition to what she said.

    Still, Emma was still worried for Satoshi. At the back of her mind, she thought of ways how to help Satoshi out but she had no idea how to do so. For one, she wanted to follow him to their dimension so she could check up on her from time to time but their Manager didn''t allow her to go with them. He said something about it being againstpany policy or something along those lines.

    Then again, Emma still hasn''t given up. Her peace of mind just won''t return unless she was well aware that Satoshi was perfectly safe.

    Ting!

    Her thought process was interrupted by the tick of the clock, reminding her that she had to head out soon. Before Aira could evene out of the restroom, she picked up her bag and said her due farewell to Satoshi''s parents.

    "I''m heading out!" She greeted, to which Ayumu and Tatsuki returned by telling her to take care.

    With a sigh, Emma headed out, still thinking about Satoshi. If only she had the time, she would check each and every dimension via her dimensional portal. It would be time-consuming, but she''s bound to locate her presence if she did something like that.

    ...

    A couple of moments before Jane barged into the room,

    Another round of Ousama game hit the table, and the noise emanating from the room became louder than usual. They were totally into the moment, yelling at each other andughing their hearts out while they enjoyed each other''spany.

    Adding to that, the supply of snacks and drinks didn''t seem to go down as Nanako kept on bringing in more and more onto the table. They''d stored crazy amounts of snacks just in case so they won''t have to return to the snack bar in the middle of the game.

    "Number one will imitate a dead horse, while... number two kisses number three on the cheek! Number four and five would y a round of palm push on top of the table!" This time, the king was Jonathan, and he wanted to humiliate everyone before him. He had absolute authority, the king''s words are absolute!

    It was Nanako who started doing the weird neigh of the horse. Satoshi was number two, so he reddened as he stared at number three who was Mitsuka. He averted his gaze before Mitsuka grabbed him by the cheeks. "Just get on with it!"

    While Mitsuka was trying to boost Satoshi''s morale, Himuro, and Yun Zhe were already on top of the table, disregarding the chips which were half empty, and stepping on them. The game of palm push was easy. The two of them just had to stand in front of each other and try to push each other off the tform with their palms. Of course, they could only push the other party''s palms, and anyone could put their hands back at any time. A yer would lose if he loses his bnce and either falls backward or forward.

    "Then turn your head sideways," Satoshi blurted out while Himuro and Yun Zhe were already having fun trying to push each other off the table.

    With a nod, Mitsuka turned to the side but she still held onto Satoshi''s cheeks for some odd reason. She closed her eyes, wondering when Satoshi would kiss her on the cheek.

    ''It was only a kiss on the cheek, everyone''s received a kiss on the cheek before, right? Right?! This shouldn''t be a big deal!'' Or so that''s the thought that repeated in Mitsuka''s mind. Satoshi was still indecisive while Mitsuka just wanted to get it over with.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "Look, Mitsuka, he just won''t kiss you so you can just do it to him instead. And Satoshi, you''re a puss in boots." Jonathan shrugged as he provoked Satoshi.

    "Shut up!" Satoshi steeled his resolve and went in for the kiss on the cheek.

    HOWEVER!

    At the same time, Mitsuka also turned her head towards Satoshi and she went for the kiss. She also steeled her resolve to give the kiss instead, thanks to Jonathan urging her to do so.

    Because of that, both their kiss ''on the cheek'' met halfway, and they ended up nting a kiss on each other''s lips.

    GASP!

    "..."

    "..."

    Mitsuka and Satoshi had awkward eye contact with each other as their kiss connected, and they paused for a moment as they took in what just happened.

    "OI! What are you doing?!" Jonathan mmed his fist on the table. "That''s forbidden! That''s a crime, a war crime! You should be stoned to death! You should be hanged, drawn, and quartered!" Jonathan was spitting off straight bars as he ''calmly'' pointed his shaky finger to them.

    Seizing his chance thanks to the distraction, Himuro pushed Yun Zhe off the table, and he fell on top of Nanako who stopped neighing mid-sentence after seeing the kiss.

    "Ow~!" The two of them eximed.

    A string of saliva formed a bridge between their lips as they separated from each other, turning away as Mitsuka and Satoshi had just gotten their first kiss stolen. Granted it was an ident, however, it was still both their first kiss nheless.

    "Guys, someone''sing." Himuro suddenly called out, heading straight into the closet.

    Seeing that he hid in the closet, Jonathan and Yun Zhe followed suit, thinking that Himuro had done this before and that the closet was a foolproof hiding ce.

    Who in their right mind would look into the closet first, right? Wrong!

    Satoshi was a step toote to respond, thanks to the kiss. When he got in front of the closet, there was no more space, and he figured that there were no other hiding spots left aside from the restroom.

    "Let me in!" Satoshi tried to squeeze himself inside the closet but he just won''t fit.

    "Find yourself another hiding spot. We''re sorry, Satoshi." Jonathan rubbed his hands together as he apologized.

    The steps of the guard were getting louder now, and he heard someone grabbing onto the doorknob. Satoshi began panicking.

    ''Should I take my chances and hide on the balcony? Under the bed? Should I take Ghast out and teleport out of here? No, the guard would sense his power in an instant and they''d find out. In the first ce, why would the guard bother going inside the room if he or she could just sense our presence from the outside?'' Satoshi''s thought happened in a span of a split second.

    "Come here!" Mitsuka called out dragging Satoshi with her, flinging him on her bed before covering him up with a nket. "Just hide in there, I''lle up with an excuse."

    The door opened after a secondter, and in walked Jane Watts, finding two suspicious girls on their bed with their nkets pulled above their necklines.

 Chapter 483 To Escape The Nightwatch

    Himuro, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe were smiling with their awkward smiles as they walked out of the closet. The cat was let out of the bag and they sheepishly walked with Jane Watts.

    Holding their hands above their head the group walked out of the room as if they were criminals being walked into their cell. Jane Watts lightly tapped her finger on her forearm as she let out a ''hmph''.

    "It''s already lights out, were you not aware of it? Also, inviting boys into your room? The two of you have a lot of exining to do to your Managers." Jane Watts delicately reprimanded them. She didn''t even bother raising her own voice since she knew that it was the Manager''s job to discipline their Disciples.

    She was just a foreman of sorts who happened to be assigned to uphold the rules of the dorms. Besides, she didn''t catch them doing something unsightly so she didn''t have the leverage to scold them.

    While she led the three boys out of there, she noticed that Nanako and Mitsuka didn''t bother getting out of their sheets to see her off. Furrowing her brows, she found it rather suspicious that they remained in their bed and she just had to go back inside to recheck the area.

    Who knows, there may be another boy on the loose!

    Once again, she checked the restroom. This time, she was mindful enough to check behind the curtain of the bathtub. To her relief, she didn''t see anyone there. If she saw anything, her soul would''ve jumped out of her body and she''d have punched whatever it was on the other side.

    Jane Watts doesn''t deal well with surprises, and surprises don''t deal well with her either. One time another guard tried to catch him off-guard and she punched him before she screamed her heart out. The punch immediately broke the guard''s nose.

    That''s why after this, she had to roam around the boys'' dorms as well. The other guard was taking a break due to a broken nose... which was well-deserved since he brought it upon himself in the first ce.

    In any case, now that Jane Watts had checked the restroom, she opted to check under the bed. There were no monsters under there, much to her relief, nor were there signs of people.

    When she stood up, that''s when she noticed that Mitsuka actually pulled her nket over until it reached her eyes. It was obvious that she was covering something. Once again, Jane Watts gave her the look and she suspiciously held onto the hems of the nket as if her life depended on it.

    Nanako also did the same, but there were no figures under Nanako''s nket, just her own.

    However, as for Mitsuka, there was a figure of a man right beside her. Of course, it was only normal for Jane Watts to question what was behind the nket. As far as she knows, it could be a boy or someone else.

    "Um,dy," Jane Watts called out since she had no idea what Mitsuka''s name was. "Would you mind if you pull down your nket? I need to see what''s that beside you." She asked.

    "N-nothing! Just air," Mitsuka called out, shaking her head as she held down the nket even tighter. The nket squirmed, and Jane Watts was pretty sure that there really was a person beside her.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi was really beside Mitsuka. For a moment, he thought that he''d be safe since the other three were already caught. There was no way Jane Watts would check under the nkets since she didn''t notice that something was amiss.

    Then again, Mitsuka just had to act guilty. That''s why Jane Watts grew suspicious of her, retracing her footsteps as she confirmed what was under the nket.

    "nket? Wait, I just got an idea." Satoshi said to himself. It was a totally different idea for when he thought of using Ghast.

    With this, no one would even detect his presence... or so that''s what Satoshi said to himself.

    Heaving a sigh of relief, Satoshi summoned his familiar, Cloak of Invisibility,manding it to cover his whole body as he jumped out of there.

    "Please, can you just put the nket up? I don''t have time for this." Jane Watts pleaded. And she was telling the truth. She still had to check the entire right wing where the boys'' dorms were located. Now she was beginning to regret ever punching the other guard when he yed her for a fool.

    Mitsuka adamanatly refused, violently shaking her head as she rejected Jane Watts''s offer. Meanwhile, Jane Watts was already sure that there was really someone under the nket.

    "Please, youngdy, just show it to me and I''ll be on my way. Otherwise, I''d have to bring this straight to your Manager and we can settle things from there." She lightly threatened. But she never raised her voice towards her.

    "All right, all right!" Mitsuka said. She was fairly certain that the fiasco would end with a punishment for her so she decided to juste clean with it.

    Besides, Satoshi didn''t signal anything to her so he was probably okay with it,

    Now that Jane Watts got her cooperation, she crossed her arms and waited for Mitsuka toe clean. From the gap in the doorway, Himuro, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe peeked in since they were sure that Satoshi would get caught this time.

    Inwardly, they celebrated since they''d all be caught. It would be unfair if only three of them were caught and punished, right?

    Then again, they won''t sell out Satoshi because they upheld their brotherhood. No one would rat each other out, even if their lives depended on it... well, not really. It depends.

    Closing her eyes and hoping that Satoshi would concoct some sort of invisible potion and drink it, Mitsuka slowly pulled the nket down, revealing...

    ... nothing! There was nothing under the nket!<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    "What?!" Jane Watts eximed. She''s also a superhuman so her enhanced senses should''ve detected someone once she focused as hard as she could.

    But to her surprise, there really was no one! Impossible!

    On the other side, Nanako started chuckling. Soon, Mitsuka yed along with the chuckle. For a moment back there, she was also shocked that Satoshi couldn''t be found anywhere. And yet she could still feel his weight on the bed.

    "I told you, ma''am, it''s just my superpower hehhe~ I got you~ teehee~" Mitsuka teased , causing Jane Watts to redden as she turned away. She couldn''t believe that Mitsuka really did her like that.

    Then again, it was a good joke so she wasn''t at all offended by it. Well, more than anything, she felt embarrassed.

    "All right. The two of you, just go back to sleep." She instructed after clearing her throat and regaining herposure. The moment she faced the door, she noticed that the three boys were actually peering through the gap, and she felt even more embarrassed.

    ''Don''t tell me... they saw all that?!'' She eximed in her mind. At this point, she just wanted to dig a hole and crawl into it due to how ashamed she was.

    Stomping her foot, she stormed out the room and pointed at the three to follow her. She''d lead them straight into the boys'' dorm and then do her rounds over there. She''d had enough patroling on the left wing.

    ...

    Creak~

    When the doors closed, Nanako and Mitsuka jumped out of their bed and they started looking around. There was no way Satoshi just disappeared out of thin air! Moreover, they didn''t even sense anything. He never activated any skill, nor did he use any superpower.

    His presence was right there, and then it disappeared in a snap of finger, gone with the wind as if he was spirited away to another dimension.

    "Satoshi, Satoshi, pspsps~" Mitsuka called out as she checked under the bed, and then on the bed. Satoshi''s weight was still there.

    She then touched the empty space where Satoshi was. To her surprise, he was still there. It''s just that they couldn''t see or sense him at all.

    "Satoshi? What happened to you? Oh, no~ are you all right?" Mitsuka asked, touching Satoshi everywhere as he started squirming.

    "Ah! He might be using a technique which would erase his presence. Still... it''s pretty cool, even us Disciples couldn''t even detect you, Satoshi." Nanakomented,plimenting his ability.

    "How did you do that, Satoshi?" Mitsuka asked.

    As if on cue, Satoshi reappeared on the bed as he recalled his Cloak of Invisibility. To their surprise, he really was still there, just undetectable.

    "It''s a trade secret." Satoshi responded as he hopped out of the bed.

    "Whoa, to think that there''s a skill like that. How did you learn that, Satoshi? Is that your superpower?" Mitsuka asked. "By the way, my superpower is really air. Just air."

    "And mine''s... well, you''ll figure it out by tomorrow." Nanako chimed in.

    "Thank you for the good time, I hope we can have another get-together like this soon." Satoshi said. He was trying too hard to maintain his poker face after that idental lip touch with Mitsuka.

    It was his time to exit, and to their surprise, a dimensional portal appeared in front of Satoshi. They didn''t even detect him use any ability, nor did he expend any energy to summon a dimensional portal.

    "What?!" Mitsuka and Nanako eximed as Satoshi waved his hand before he jumped into the dimensional portal.

    (The dimensional portal was thanks to Ghast who summoned it for him.)

    ...

    As soon as Satoshi hopped out of the dimensional portal, he was in their room. Fortunately, he checked their room number before they headed to the girls'' room.

    And just in time, Himuro, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe walked into the room. Their eyes bulged out of their sockets when they saw Satoshi in the room waiting for them.

    "Guys, where have you been? I''ve been waiting for all of you." Satoshi excitedly greeted, weing them into their room.

 Chapter 484 Early Morning Workout

    In the end, no one was actually punished for their actions. Then again, because of the situationst night, most of the girls happened to see what was going on since they peeked in the hallway while the three boys were being escorted.

    The walk of shame was something that they didn''t want to experience again, and they deemed it unfair that Satoshi wasn''t there with them. He was able to get away.

    "How did you¡ª" Jonathan cut short when he realized that Satoshi teleported into their room via his summoner who could manifest dimensional portals. That was the only exnation he could think of.

    Creak~

    An awkward silence filled the room as soon as Jane Watts closed the door behind her. After a couple of seconds, the four of them startedughing at each other.

    "Haha! Did you see Satoshi''s face when he couldn''t fit in the closet with us?" Himuroughed out loud.

    "Yeah, haha!"

    Satoshi remained silent since saying anything would just remind them more of what transpired back then. He didn''t want to bring anything up for fear that they''d remember the kiss. Well, his mind reyed it a couple of times but now, he wasn''t even that affected by it.

    Since it was alreadyte, the four of them felt the exhaustion oveing them and they realized that they''d be having more training tomorrow. Right now, they had to maximize their rest time as much as they could, otherwise, it might bite them back when traininges.

    Even though they wanted to continue the fun they had, they had to take a break and sleep the night. A long day awaited them tomorrow, and they had to be prepared for it.

    ...

    Fresh morning dew enveloped the grassy fields of the open area of the dorms, bringing in a crisp scent that flourished in the vicinity. It was afortable wee for the Disciples who were just about to greet the new day.

    Even though it was still early, a figure was already doingps around the school, hitting his usual ten-mile run on schedule.

    Wearing a skintight shirt and shorts, Satoshi continued to run around the school before stopping by the front entrance so he could get a quick snack by the snack bar. Initially, he wanted to get an early breakfast but he figured that he''d probably be invited by Jonathan and the others to join them.

    That''s why he put off eating breakfast for now. Instead, he grabbed a quick snack before he put in another workout.

    As mentioned before, the facilities in the dorms were top-notch, and it wasplete. From pools to gyms, you name it. That''s why as soon as Kazuichi grabbed a couple of french fries from the snack bar, he headed straight to the gym.

    In the gym, there were a couple of functions one could y around with when they were working out. One was the power dampener, which shuts down the body''s ability to expend supernatural energy, allowing them to work out on a purely physical level. Then two, the gravity control, which allows them to put more pressure on the body while they were working out.

    When Satoshi walked in, he noticed that there was a man working out. Based on his profused sweating, Satoshi could tell that he had been there for more than an hour. "Wow... then again, he''s a Disciple, he''s probably much stronger than me," Satoshi said to himself as he went to the bars so he could work out his upper body.

    That''s when he noticed that the man was actually built like a truck. He looked twice Satoshi''s age, and he was deadlifting 2000lbs with a power dampener and gravity control set to 2 (A setting of two meant that the gravity was twice the gravity on Earth).

    Not only did he deadlift it once, he repeatedly do it until he reached ten counts. He was wearing a belt though, but even then it was an impressive feat. He was easily carrying 4000 lbs of weight.

    "Whoa~ that''s strong," Satoshi said. He already assumed that the man was far stronger than him, but seeing it in actuality made him believe even more.

    Sensing that someone was looking at him, the man grunted as he turned around. Satoshi didn''t want any trouble so he scooted to the farthest bar and started doing some controlled pullups. He didn''t want to show off as well so he acted as if he was having a hard time doing it.

    The man didn''t question him about anything though, and he just went on with his next two sets of deadlifts.

    Now that the man wasn''t looking, Satoshi adjusted the gravity to 3x the amount before he started doing his pull-ups. "Maybe I''ll embarrass myself so I''ll just stick to afortable weight." He said to himself.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    What Satoshi didn''t know was that the man was actually observing him. While he started doing his reps, the man assumed that he was using his power since the power dampener was not on. And yet, he didn''t feel any energy emanating from Satoshi.

    He couldn''t believe it. How could a teenager pull 3x his weight without difficulty? Satoshi wasn''t even breathing too hard and it even looked like he was doing normal pullups.

    This got the man curious and he continued observing Satoshi in silence.

    For some reason, Satoshi felt like he was doing it pretty easily. He wasn''t even out of breath at all so he went down and adjusted the gravity control to 5x his weight. Surely, he won''t be able to pull it off.

    And just to make sure, Satoshi turned on the power dampener so he wouldn''t subconsciously use any of his superpowers.

    "Are you kidding me right now?" The man asked himself. He had a southern ent but Satoshi didn''t hear any of his monologues since he was talking under his breath. He stopped his sets altogether since he wanted to see if Satoshi could really pull it off.

    The man was invested now, and he carefully approached Satoshi just as he was about to do his first set.

    Satoshi pulled one up, then another, then another. He was shocked that he was repping the pull-up like normal. He could feel the tension, but somehow, his muscles could handle the stress.

    "No, this isn''t possible. The gravity control must be faulty." The man said as he watched. Satoshi already did ten reps.

    Without further ado, the man walked towards the section where the gravity control was activated. And sure enough, he felt as if he got heavier five times than normal. He could hardly walk.

    And yet... Satoshi was acting normal. He was jumping up and down, shaking his hands, and even throwing a couple of light jabs here and there. "What''s going on? This is weird!" Satoshi said to himself as he cranked the gravity control all the way to ten times.

    Although he was chosen as a Disciple, even ten times his body weight with a power dampener was a bit too much. At this point, the man couldn''t move anymore. He simply stood there, tightening every fiber of his muscle and hardening his posture so he won''t break any of his bones.

    One small move, no, even one small mistake of tilting his body a little bit would result in a grave injury. Sure he could heal it in an instant the moment the power dampener was deactivated, but it would hurt nheless.

    That''s when Satoshi was beginning to feel some tension, but he still thought it was durable. Without further ado, he jumped on the bar and started doing some pull-ups.

    At first, his muscles seemed to not cooperate and he couldn''t pull himself up. But after a couple of seconds, Satoshi felt like he could do it and he pulled himself up, getting to the top of the bar in an instant. He still felt some tension, but he could do it.

    "Now, for a muscle-up." Satoshi said to himself as he pulled up and transitioned into a dip. He was able to perform a muscle up with ten times the gravity weighing him down.

    "Whoa, this is crazy!" Satoshi celebrated. Right as he turned around, he noticed that the guy was actually standing right behind him.

    The man actually remained quiet for fear that he would disturb Satoshi''s workout. That''s why he stood perfectly still.

    "What are you doing?" Satoshi asked, seeing as the man was just standing still without doing anything. Hepletely forgot that they were both being pressured with ten times the gravity.

    "I''ve mastered the ability of standing so incredibly still that I be invisible to the eye" He grunted as if to reference something.

    "Right..." Satoshi trailed off, wondering what was wrong with the man. "Do you want to do some pull-ups?" He willingly offered.

    "Of course not, I want to get out of here. Turn off that gravity control and power dampener." The man grunted a second time.

    "Please?" He continued. "The name''s Draco, by the way. Draco Meteor."

 Chapter 485 Magnus Carter, The Greatest Manager

    "Oh! Sorry," Satoshi said, turning off both the gravity control and power dampener at the same time. When everything returned to normal, Satoshi couldn''t believe that he felt as light as a feather.

    He had no idea what just happened, but it was certainly weird. After all, his body just adjusted to ten times his body weight and he was able to easily perform a pull-up.

    "Sorry for disturbing your workout like that. I just had to take a closer look since I couldn''t believe what I was seeing. Pardon thete introductions, the name''s Bruce." With a friendly gesture, the man amicably extended his hand.

    "Bruce who? Banner? Willis? Wayne?" Satoshi just had to ask since it was such amon name.

    "Bruce Willow," The man responded. "Although, I do know where you''re getting at." He said with a smile.

    "Ah, it''s nice to meet you, Bruce Willow," Satoshi said. "Which master do you serve?"

    "What do you mean? Ah! My Manager?" Bruce Willow finally understood. "I serve under the leadership of Dumble Dore. You may think that his Disciples would be magic this and that... but no, we also pride ourselves as physically strong."

    Bruce puffed his chest up before he heaved a sigh. "Although... we didn''t pass thest test yesterday. It was hellish." He continued.

    "Right..." Satoshi trailed off. He had no idea how he''d continue the conversation.

    Fortunately, the man saw this as his chance to leave. He had been working out for more than two hours now, after all. "Well, the test will start in about an hour. I''m heading to the cafeteria. You wouldn''t want to miss out on breakfast since the next meal would be ate lunch." He advised before he headed out of the gym.

    "Sure, thanks for the reminder." Satoshi responded, awkwardly waving his hand as the man exited the vicinity. At the moment, his mind was still preupied with how his body adapted to so much gravitational pressure.

    ...

    Breakfast ended in an uneventful manner and all of the Disciples assembled right by an open field adjacent to the dorms. Despite it being midmorning, sunlight hasn''t pierced through the nket of cold air that enveloped the ce.

    It was clear that the open field was hastily constructed. What was once the edge of the forest had been cleared into a track field,plete with the oval race track and equipment which were safely kept in a nearby storage.

    "Oi, Satoshi!" Someone called out, causing Satoshi to swivel his head as he caught a glimpse of someone familiar.

    Before he knew it, a hand wrapped around his neck and he felt something soft touch his cheeks as the arm brought him down. A giggle came out of the person''s mouth as she greeted him good morning.

    It was none other than Mitsuka.

    "Ah! Mitsuka... and Nanako, good morning." Satoshi greeted back. He tried to act as normally as he could, thinking that Mitsuka still remembered what happenedst night.

    "Morning," Nanako greeted back as well before she bowed toward Himuro, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe.

    Although the group just met yesterday, they were now inseparable due to their forged bondsst night. It seemed like getting into trouble was what brought them closer together, not the ordeal they had to deal with during thest test the day before.

    "What do you think we''ll do this time around?" Mitsuka asked, still keeping her arms around Satoshi. She was especially aggressive today, and everyone noticed it.

    Obviously, Satoshi could''ve easily overpowered her but he didn''t do it. Instead, he slowly pulled himself back up, causing Mitsuka to hang limply in the air since he was taller than her.

    This made her feel ufortable and she let go of the hold. Besides, she was already feeling awkward as it is.

    Quite frankly, Mitsuka didn''t really need to resort to all that since Satoshi would''ve responded normally to her if she greeted him normally. Then again, she didn''t want anything to be awkward, especially after what happenedst night. It was an ident, sure, but it was her first. And judging from Satoshi''s reaction, she could tell that it was his first as well.

    In the end, Mitsuka thought that an ident shouldn''t count, and that''s why she acted like that. Satoshi, Jonathan, and Yun Zhe were the first friends she got aside from Himuro and Nanako.

    "Still... why do you think they gathered us this time?" Himuro asked, rubbing his chin as he took a look around him.

    There was definitely an air of heaviness in the air as everyone lined up. The Managers were casually talking to each other as if waiting for something. They were murmuring amongst each other while looking at their watches. Some of them even looked slightly irritated but they tried not to show it too much.

    That''s when a portal appeared right above the open field. It was a mixture of color, and then it ultimately shifted into a ck haze as a figure stepped out from it.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    What stepped out was a man in a white suit, and he emanated an opposite energypared to his dimensional portal. When he touched down, he breathed in a lungful of air before waving at everyone.

    "You''rete, Magnus Carter." Bucky Barnes casually said, putting his hand up in the air in greeting.

    In response, Magnus Carter also raised his hand, giving Bucky Barnes a high-five before their hands transitioned into a clean grip.

    Before anyone could say anything. The two of themy down on the ground, still holding their hands up in an arm-wrestling position. Neither arm budged, but the ground started shaking in the process.

    A couple of secondster, Bucky Barnes lightened his grip and Magnus Carter did the same. "Still the same, huh, I thought I''d have gotten stronger by now." Magnus Carter said, heaving a sigh as if to imply that he was out of breath.

    "You were holding back." Bucky Barnes called out, smiling.

    "Oh yeah, I wanted to meet your Disciples. Are they here now? Thest time I came over, you weren''t here so I figured you were runningte." Magnus said. "In any case, today''s my scheduled visit. I''ll be training everyone here, just so you know."

    Magnus Carter had blond hair, and he had a stocky muscr build. He exuded an aura of sheer power, even the Disciples could tell that he was the strongest of the bunch.

    To be fair, some of the Disciples could probably go head to head with him in a contest of pure strength. The only reason why he seemed stronger was because he never bothered hiding his true power. As for the other Managers, they did their best in suppressing their energy.

    A mischievous smile appeared on Magnus Carter''s face as he nudged at Bucky Barnes. "Just so we''re clear, there should be no hard feelings, all right? If your Disciples want to transfer under my management... hehe."

    Bucky Barnes wanted to punch Magnus Carter''s visage since his expression was really annoying. Then again, he was confident that his Disciples won''t go to his side so he didn''t take Magnus''s provocations to heart.

    After greeting and catching up with each other for a couple of minutes, Magnus finally pped his hands to get everyone''s attention. The atmosphere in the entire ce shifted into a lighter one while Magnus assumed his position in front of all the Disciples.

    "All right, pardon thete introductions, my name is Magnus Carter and I''ll be the one monitoring this test." He announced.

    All the Disciples started talking amongst each other while pointing at Magnus Carter. Unbeknownst to Satoshi and the others, Magnus Carter was actually the number one Manager. He had saved countless universes and his Disciples are pretty formidable. In fact, they were only a level below a Manager''s level, and they could''ve easily passed as Managers if they chose to do so.

    "It''s Magnus!"

    "Whoa, it''s Magnus in the flesh. Who would''ve thought I''d meet him on this lifetime!"

    "I should get his autographter!"

    "He''s probably scouting right now, we should do our utmost to get on his good side!"

    While everyone was talking to each other, Bruce crossed his arms as he clicked his tongue. He couldn''t believe that most of the Disciples were willing to change their Managers just like that.

    Then again, this was Magnus Carter they were talking about. The number one Manager in all the dimensions!

    "On this test. I''ll assign you in groups of three. And then... I''ll transport all of you to a certain. I''m guessing you all know the drill by now, right?" Magnus smiled as he waved his hand.

    Just as everyone was trying to figure out what the test was all about, dimensional portals started appearing underneath the Disciples'' feet and they were sucked into them without warning.

    "See you on the other side, dear Disciples. Don''t worry, you''re in good hands." Magnus Carter said, waving them goodbye.

    But before he could jump into his own dimensional portal, he noticed that one Disciple was left behind.

    "I''m sorry? What do I need to do?" Satoshi cluelessly asked since he was the only one left behind.

    "What the¡ª" Magnus had to turn his head twice to confirm that there really was a Disciple who survived his forced teleportation.

 Chapter 486 A Faulty Teleportation

    Multiple interdimensional portals appeared on the ground. But unbeknownst to everyone, Magnus also activated a certain skill under their noses.

    Since they were misdirected by the sheer amount of interdimensional portals spawning, they didn''t notice the other skill that immediately shut down their skill usage.

    Had they noticed such an instant change in the atmosphere, they''d have been able to avoid being affected by the skill. Specifically, Magnus activated some sort of power dampener that intervened with everyone''s energy.

    With this, they''d automatically be teleported through the portal without much of a struggle.

    And that''s exactly what transpired. Even the Managers were dumbfounded by Magnus''s exquisite control over his skill activation. Moreover, he activated two skills more than a hundred times in a snap. It was ridiculous as it is near-impossible to achieve.

    Quite frankly, Magnus had been doing this surprise for hundreds of years now. Hence the reason why he was streamlined at it. There were no mistakes in his skill activation since his proficiency over it had reached master level.

    "Well, I guess that''s over with. We''d have to wait for three days before their return. I''m sure they''re in good hands." Dumble Dore stretched his hands before he surreptitiously rubbed his chin.

    "Yeah, we''ve witnessed this happen in the past and nothing risky happened back then. And it''s Magnus we''re talking about here. They''re in good hands." Hermione Ranger uttered. Then again, she didn''t speak her monologue to reassure someone else, she was doing so to rid herself of anxiousness.

    Raise.

    Just when Magnus turned around, giving himself a pat on the back for a job well done, he noticed a single presence in the open field. ''That''s weird, I didn''t notice a single Manager amongst the crowd. Am I imagining things?''

    With slight confusion in his mind, he turned around, realizing that he overlooked something, somehow or the other.

    "I''m sorry? What do I need to do?" Satoshi asked, raising his hands in confusion. He had no idea what just happened since it was too instantaneous. Adding to that, he wasn''t teleported just like everyone else.

    "Oi oi oi~ are you kidding me right now?" Magnus''s brows twitched as he descended from his elevated position. Touching down, he approached Satoshi with keen interest. "What''s your name, young kid? Which Manager are you under?"

    From afar, Magnus already emanated insane pressure. But now that heckadaisically approached, Satoshi felt like choking up due to the overwhelming pressure seeping from his body.

    "What''s your name?" Magnus repeated.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi, I''m Bucky Barnes''s Disciple." Satoshi responded, anxiously thinking that if he were to dy his response a few more seconds, he might end up in a ditch somewhere.

    Magnus''s eyes widened as his demeanor lightened. He wasn''t expecting the exemry Disciple to be under Bucky Barnes¡ª not because he underestimated Bucky Barnes''s capabilities as a Manager, but because he was expecting the other Managers to have stronger Disciples than him.

    "That exins things... you''re his newest Disciple, right? So you''re the renowned Midoriyama Satoshi, the beast master." Magnus hinted as a light smile appeared on his face. He then raised his hand, brushing it in the air before he swiveled.

    "I will wait for you to pass the test with flying colors, Satoshi. And while you''re at it, I hope you''d consider transferring under my wing instead of Bucky Barnes. My reputation precedes me, as you may as well know, and I can transform you into a powerful universe-level Disciple."

    Since Satoshi felt his neck constricting due to the immense pressure, he wasn''t able to utter a single word of response. Even he had no idea why he was the only one who didn''t go through the interdimensional portal underneath his feet.

    Either the power dampener skill of Magnus didn''t work on him... or his interdimensional portal was faulty. But Satoshi doubted such was the case since everyone else was teleported instantly.

    This time, Magnus manifested another dimensional portal. "Please jump in, I don''t know what it is but your skill''s blocking my forced teleportation. Is it your superpower or something else? In any case, this is interesting."

    To Satoshi''s relief, Magnus had already taken a couple of steps away from him, giving him his much-needed breather before he jumped inside the new portal. He had no idea what to expect on the other side, but then again, everyone else had already been transferred so they were probably experiencing what he should expect.

    Without further ado, Satoshi stepped inside the portal, looking forward to the first test of the day (which would actuallyst for three days).

    ...<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    On the other side of the portal, the Disciples were met with a certain trial that is amon trope when ites to training arcs in a lot of animated series. It was so forecasted that the situation was thest thought in everyone''s mind.

    Some of the Disciples startedughing under their breath, while some were met with worry and concern since they were just transported into a foreign world with nothing but two other Disciples to depend on.

    And yes, all of the Disciples were transported by threes, automatically creating a team that was foreseen to spend the next three days together.

    They were transported into a lush forest with a somewhat eerie vibe. Strange cries from wild animals could be heard emanating from all directions of the forest, giving everyone the shivers but they maintained theirposure nheless.

    Well, most of them did except for one group.

    "Wait, we''re supposed to have three people on our team, right? Right?!" A woman in her early twenties pointed out. She didn''t exude a certain level of fear, but she was concerned about their third teammate since he or she probably didn''t survive the travel through the portal.

    "There was probably a mix-up. I''m sure that Disciple is alive... or maybe we have to regroup with that person. But how?" The guy bit his nails in frustration. He couldn''t care less about their third member... but he knew that the third person is relevant so they could pass the test.

    "Then what do we do?''

    "For now, we''d have to wait. Who knows, maybe his teleportation just got dyed. Besides, we need to observe the surroundings first before we started walking around." The man pointed out, settling on one of the huge boulders nearby.

    Initially, he wanted to suggest setting up camp where they spawned. However, the others might not agree so he decided to wait on their third member before they decided what to do.

    Either way, they already choked on the first part of the test. They knew that the third person on their team was not at fault because something probably happened midway. Then again, they couldn''t help but think that he was impeding their progress.

    "I''m Lucy Hexius Von Arabe, you can call me Lucy." The woman introduced herself out of nowhere, formally bowing down with the grace of royalty.

    It was clear that she belonged to a royal family in a certain dimension due to her generic name of having ''von'' in the middle of her name¡ª or so that''s what the man thought to himself.

    "Pardon myte introductions. I''m Bruce Willow, it''s nice to meet you, Lucy Hexius Von Arabe." He repeated. It was certainly a strange name but he didn''t pry her too much about it.

    "Just Lucy, you don''t have to call me by my full name." She hmph''ed as she crossed her arms. Unbeknownst to Bruce, Lucy was actually pretty self-conscious about her name. Even she deemed her name as unique as it is strange.

    "Lucy it is. What''s your superpower?" Bruce asked.

    "Uhm, do we have to reveal that now? Shouldn''t we like... wait for our third member... I-I mean, so that we don''t have to repeat ourselves, you know." Lucyughed, flicking her snow-white hair as her ashen eyes glistened in the darkest light.

    "I mean... if that works best for the three of us, sure. Why do you think our third member''ste though?" Bruce scratched his head as he jumped to a couple of conclusions. "Do you think he... he like cut himself in half while he teleported through the interdimensional portal?"

    "What? No! Don''t say something so ominous!" Lucy scolded him, tightening her crossed arms.

    Ti''ring~!

    Before Bruce could retort, a huge screen shed in the sky, marking a countdown of some sort. It was something that one would see in an MMORPG before the start of an event. It certainly wasn''t the first time everyone saw something like it so no one panicked.

    The countdown had a minute left and it continued to go down as seconds passed. Right when everyone started questioning what the countdown was for, a deafening voice boomed and it was heard by everyone.

    It was an ominous voice and it matched the overall atmosphere of the entire forest as well as the countdown that so suddenly appeared in the sky.

    "A horde of Dark Beasts are spawning soon, please prepare yourselves, little soldiers." It announced.

 Chapter 487 Lucys Representative: Golden Pen

    The countdown of one minute threateningly went down as Bruce and Lucy stared at it, dumbfounded.

    From the start, they were tasked with working with three people in their team, which meant that the difficulty level of the current challenge would require the teamwork of three people. If it was that hard, then going at it with just two people would be hellish, or rather, it would be straight-up suicidal.

    Bruce and Lucypletelyprehended their situation. If they were to survive this case without dying, then they''d need each other''s cooperation lest they utterly fail the challenge.

    Who knows, maybe everyone''s situation was the same¡ª that everyone would spawn two at a time while thest member would appear a couple of minutester.

    Or it could be the pr opposite where they''d spawn by two and whoever survives from that two-man team would then be ced in a three-man team of other survivors as well.

    In any case, the two of them had more questions than answers but it''s not like they could do anything about it. In the heat of the moment, they''d have to survive. That''s all there is to it, nothing more nothing less.

    Four.

    Three.

    Two. One.

    As the countdown reached its final second, Bruce and Lucy braced themselves, awaiting the test that would greet them headfirst. They expected some sort of portal to appear by the countdown but that wasn''t what transpired.

    In an instant, Bruce and Lucy put their guards up as they sensed multiple entities around them. They weren''t your old run-of-the-mill entities either, but entities that were probably on par with a Disciple.

    "What''s going on?" Bruce slightly panicked while he equipped a giant axe with him. This was his go-to weapon since he had been using an axe ever since he was a kid. Needless to say, the axe was a mere extension of his body.

    "I don''t know. All I know is that we have to be ready, or else we''re going to die." Lucy said. She didn''t wield anything. Instead, she summoned her Representative, Golden Pen.

    "Is that the Golden Pen? The Representative which is capable of rewriting a singrity one at a time? Whoa, why do you have such a reality-bending Representative, how did you tame it?" Bruce eximed, conveniently exining what the power of the Golden Pen was.

    "I''ll tell youter... if we''re still alive until then." Lucy said, her brows furrowed.

    The presence of the entity was clearer now, and multiple shadow-like figures appeared all around them. There were at least more than a hundred of them in sight, each capable of going head to head with a Disciple.

    Fortunately, their assumption was slightly incorrect. In actuality, the entities were actually slightly weaker than your average Disciple. In a one-on-one fight, a Disciple would easily defeat an entity without breaking a sweat. However, it would be a different topic if a Disciple were to engage a group of them inbat.

    The entities finally manifested, slowly shifting from the ck hazy smoke they were into humanoid shapes. These humanoid shapes had long limbs and a faceless face. What was supposed to eyes, nose, and mouth, was reced with one gaping mouth ced sideways. With every step, the entities would snap their jaws while some of them started growling and grunting.

    It was certainly a scene straight out of a horror movie but the two Disciples had seen worse. That''s why they weren''t aghast by their monstrous form.

    "You with me?" Bruce asked. "You got my back, right?" Bruce faltered as uncertainty was heard from his voice.

    "Yeah, you also got my back, right?" Lucy shed a smile at Bruce. It seemed like she was more confident at facing these entitiespared to Bruce.

    It also seemed like another thing was budding between them, other than friendship.

    A couple of seconds passed while the two of them anticipated the first attack of the entities. Bruce and Lucy were at the ready, eyeing each entity on sight, fully knowing that they could pounce on them at any given moment.

    Their conclusion was right on the money. In an instant, one of the entities really pounced on Bruce, forcing him to impulsively swing his axe.

    However, the entity blocked his swing with its bare hands before violentlyshing its ws at Bruce. It was speedy, for sure, but fortunately, Bruce was able to react just in time. He managed to dodge at thest second, and it was by a hair''s breadth as well.

    "Careful now," Lucy said, stretching her hand at the entity andmanding her Golden Pen to rewrite a singrity. She had no idea what the entity was, but at the very least, she could rewrite its speed and bring it down to zero.

    In a snap of a finger, the entity froze in ce, giving Bruce the opening to decapitate it.

    Swish!<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    They didn''t expect Bruce''s attack to connect, nor did they expect the entity to get eliminated. It was weaker than they thought... and it gave them a confidence boost which prompted them to go on the offensive.

    "That''s pretty neat... however you can''t use it all the time, right? And I''m sure that the Golden Pen has some limitations as well." Brucemented. "Don''t worry. I''ll assist you as much as I can, you don''t have to tell me the ins and outs of your Representative''s power."

    The reason why Bruce was aware of the Golden Pen''s limitations was pretty obvious¡ª it was because Lucy didn''tmand it to get rid of all the entities around them. There were two scenarios which led Bruce to this conclusion.

    One, every altered singrity was an exchange¡ª so there was always something in return for everymand, probably something that matches the price of the altered singrity.

    Or two, it cannot alter singrity too much so it might mess-up the reality and then there will be inexplicable repercussions that will follow.

    Whichever the reason, Bruce knew that the Golden Pen has some serious limitations, and it was his duty to work around it in order to fully assist Lucy and bring out her strength in this test of survival.

    "Behind you!" Lucy eximed as she blocked one of the entities who tried to push her onto the ground.

    As for Bruce, he quickly turned around, swinging his axe with full speed and it hit the entity squarely on the neck. He could''ve sworn he heard a snap, and then the entity fell on the ground and turned into smoke once again.

    Somehow, they were getting the odd feeling that they were overlooking something in the test. They couldn''t quite put their fingers around it.

    Another entity attacked, and another, and another. When the seventh entity attacked them, that''s when they realized what was going on.

    Apparently, the entities don''t die, they simply disappear and then respawn in another location. And adding to that, the entities increase in number as time pased.

    It hadn''t been five minutes but the amount of the entities surrounding them have doubled. Just a small portion of them weremencing their attack, but Bruce and Lucy perfectly knew that there woulde a time where all of them woulde at once.

    "We have to think up of a n to efficiently drive them back. We''ll be ying purely on the defensive, and we have to continue on improving our defense."

    "Sure," Bruce responded, but he had no idea how they''d do something like that. Bruce didn''t want to use his superpower, not on a test like this. If any, he wanted to use his superpower when he''d be in a life-or-death situation.

    Nevertheless, the current situation urged him to use his superpower. That''s how desperate they were bing.

    The entities starteding by the droves. At first, there were only five of them attacking simultaneously, but now, there were seven of them. Bruce and Lucy could barely keep up with the onught.

    Based on Bruce''s observation, Lucy was pretty proficient with elemental magic, she could use them with grace and precision that could rival any elementals Bruce had ever known. Then again, it still wasn''t enough in the face of adversity such as the one they were facing right now.

    Bruce continued to use his sheer physical strength as he pushed back the entities. Lucy assumed that he was already using his superpower but she was fairly certain that there was more to it than that. If his superpowers were purely physical, then Lucy couldn''t believe that it was this weak.

    "Duck!" Lucy screamed, causing Bruce to duck as she hit the pouncing entity with highly pressurized watering from her palms. "If they start attacking twelve at a time, we''re probably going to die."

    "Don''t say that." Bruce called out, swinging at another entity and squarely hitting it on the stomach. The attack was not enough to cut it down so the entity continued to approach him, pushing down on him as it tried to pin himself down.

    "Argh!" Bruce grunted as ten more entities helped the first entity. Their summed up weight was enough to push him down.

    "BRUCE!" Lucy screamed since that was the only thing she could do. She had her hands full with the other entities as well so she couldn''t really assist Bruce at the moment.

    "I''m fine. I can..." Bruce stopped talking as one of the entities started choking him on the neck. He had to tighten his neck so the entity wouldn''t get the better of him.

    Fwooooooosh~!

    Before he could retaliate, however, a spire of mes erupted somewhere, burning down the entities in an instant. Thinking that it was Lucy who helped him out, Bruce turned around and proceeded to thank her.

    To his surprise, there was another person there with them, it was a familiar face and he waved at Bruce with a friendly gesture.

    "Satoshi?" Bruce asked. He was d to know that their third team member had arrived.

 Chapter 488 Whats Your Superpower?

    At this point, all of the entities present started charging at the group. It''s as if they were specifically tasked with overpowering the group the moment their third-party member arrived.

    Well, that was their basic function since it gave Bruce and Lucy a small window of a breather before the real trial began. There was no way Magnus would indifferently challenge them without havingplete control over the variables.

    While the entities were there to give the Disciples a hard time, they won''t necessarily kill a Disciple. They were just projections of Magnus, nothing more nothing less.

    Nheless, they were physical projections, not just illusions, so their attacks, if they were to connect, could actually hurt a Disciple. Magnus assured them that none of the Disciples were going to die, but he didn''t assure theirplete safety.

    Deep wounds, injuries, and torn limbs were just a small part of what they had to go through. Magnus wouldn''t think twice about driving any of the Disciples to near death because that was what the test was all about.

    Unbeknownst to all the Disciples present, the grueling test actually consisted of three parts, each assigned on their own day. Right now, those that were assigned were just weaker enemies. On the second day, there would be apletely different batch of them and on the third day, Magnus nned on pulling all stops.

    It was the best test for the Disciples'' teamwork. And no, Magnus wasn''t going to judge them based on their performance as a three-man team. There was something else in ce of the test¡ª a hidden requirement that wasn''t known to any Disciples nor Managers.

    "Now, let the games begin," Magnus smirked as he monitored every team using his perception skill.

    Actually, the moment he teleported Satoshi into his team, he also traveled through the dimensions of the where the test was being held. He didn''t bother calling the other Managers to monitor the test since they needed all the respite they needed, considering that the training camp wouldst for a couple of weeks.

    He wasn''t surprised that all the Disciples were handling the test outstandingly well. None of them were having a hard time dealing with multiple entities at once. That''s why Magnus had to raise the bar a little bit, offering the Disciples a bit more challenge since hepletely underestimated their prowess.

    Still, he didn''t go too far with the readjustment of the test. After all, they still need to survive three more days before the test would officiallye to an end. If he were to challenge them too much, none of them would be able to survive for the entire duration of the test.

    "Sometimes, I can''t really gauge these Disciples'' powers pretty well. Either I end up overestimating or underestimating them. It was never bnced." Magnus said to himself.

    After raising the difficulty level of the test, more entities started spawning at a much faster pace. Bruce and Lucy could barely keep up with the entities, and then the moment Satoshi arrived, they were ovee by the horde of entities that rushed at them.

    "What is going on?" Bruce exhaled, madly swinging his axe as he entered a frenzy. The entities kepting at him and no matter how many times he swung his axe, their numbers just kept increasing.

    Then there was Satoshi, who was only using one of his familiars¡ª Lighter. Honestly, he didn''t act too much, he just kind of stood there in a calm manner while Lighter did all the heavy lifting.

    While his teammates were having a hard time dealing with all the entities that gued them, Satoshi loafed around, trying to figure out why they weren''t using their superpowers in the first ce.

    "I''m sorry, did I miss something?" Satoshi asked out of nowhere, fully knowing that the two of them haven''t unleashed their own potential.

    "What do you mean?" Bruce grunted after pushing four entities away from him.

    "Is everything all right?" Lucy asked, using her Golden Pen and elemental skills to keep all the entities attacking her at bay. She was doing a decent job at it. But at this rate, she was bound to get overpowered soon enough.

    To be fair, Satoshi too was holding back against the entities but he eliminated them like a professional. Not a single entity approached him since Lighter continuously burned all of them.

    "Yeah, it''s just that, why are you making it hard on yourself?" Satoshi was genuinely curious as to why they were withholding their superpowers. He could sense that they were far stronger than what they showed.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    Bruce and Lucy gulped. The reason why they didn''t show any of their superpowers was that they didn''t fully trust each other that''s why they kept up the pretense that they were weak. Then again, it was clear that they were just pretending since Satoshi immediately caught wind of what they were doing without them exining it.

    "It''s because we can''t just show our superpowers to other Disciples. Who knows, maybe they might use it to their advantage on the next tests." Bruce grunted.

    As for Lucy, she nodded her head in agreement. She had the same reason so she didn''t bother wasting her saliva on answering.

    "But wouldn''t they see your superpowers sooner thanter? If they can take advantage of your superpower, then that just meant you''re both weak." Satoshi shrugged.

    Even though he wanted to help them out since he felt bad for them. He was aware of their antics so he didn''t opt to help them out. They could handle themselves pretty well and they won''t need his intervention to survive.

    They might have a hard time, but it won''t kill them.

    There was a brief pause as Bruce and Lucy stared at each other as if they just saw a ghost. It didn''t even ur to them that Satoshi madeplete sense. They were going to witness each other''s superpowers anyways, so why hide it now?

    Lightning crackled in the sky as Lucy tapped into her superpower. Not only could she control all elements, but she could also manipte lightning and ice. There was another reason why she wanted to hide her superpower¡ª it was due to its destructiveness. She could already control all four elements, and adding to that, lightning and ice were on her palms as well. It was a ridiculous superpower.

    As for Bruce, his power was actually nuclear. The reason why he couldn''t use it was due to its radiation. Well, he has the ability to suppress radiation and control it as well so there won''t be any harm done as long as he was conscious while he using his superpower.

    However, his superpower was extremely dangerous so he don''t use it whenever he pleased. In fact, he only uses his superpower as ast resort.

    "So mine''s nuclear, and Lucy''s elemental... how about you, Satoshi, what''s your superpower?" Bruce asked himself. Even now, they had no idea what Satoshi''s superpower was.

    At first, Bruce thought that he had some sort of a physical superpower since he saw him doing those crazy exercises in the gym this morning. But then, Bruce realized a split secondter that Satoshi was actually doing those things with the power dampener activated.

    At this point, the three of them did easy work on the entities and they had the leisure to talk to each other. Bruce and Lucy''s curiosity was piqued when they asked Satoshi the question. After all, he went to great lengths talking them into revealing their superpower so they could work as a team. He should also do the same, right?

    Honestly, Satoshi still had no idea what his superpower specifically was. However, it did help him be the most powerful beast tamer on Earth. Whatever his superpower was, it greatly affected his beast-taming capabilities.

    "I''m a beast tamer." Satoshi simply said.

    The silence that followed was too loud that Satoshi felt uneasy. It was clear that they didn''t ept his answer. In response, Satoshi shrugged, wondering why they weren''t satisfied with his response.

    "Really? Anyone can be a beast tamer if they wanted to. Is that really your superpower?" Bruce asked, confused. Technically, what Satoshi mentioned didn''t evene close to being called a superpower. It was merely a skill anyone can learn.

    Satoshi had no idea how to exin his superpower into words so he decided to demonstrate it instead. From afar, he saw one of the entities charging at him and he specificallymended his familiar, Lighter, to not get rid of that entity.

    Once it was a couple of feet closer, Satoshi finally activated his superpower in front of them. A hazy blue me appeared in his hand and it steadily grew bigger. Once the entity was within arm''s reach, Satoshi didn''t think twice about firing that blue me onto it.

    Fwooosh~! The entity vanished in an instant, causing Bruce and Lucy to wonder what would happen next.

 Chapter 489 Lost Projection

    "What?!" Bruce eximed while Lucy remained wide-eyed. They had no idea what just happened to the entity that approached them. It just disappeared in an instant as soon as the blue mes touched a part of its body.

    "You said your power''s rted to beast taming, but why did you make the entity vanish?" Bruce asked since he was wildly confused about what just happened. Lucy couldn''t make heads or tails of it either.

    "Just wait," Satoshi told them while he eagerly waited for the entity to reappear. The moment it does, he was confident that it would turn into his tamed beast the moment it reappeared.

    There was no response. A couple of seconds passed but the entity didn''t reappear.

    "That''s weird," Satoshi scratched his head in bewilderment. He had no idea why the entity just wouldn''t appear. Usually, it would appear a couple of secondster as his tamed beast but right now it couldn''t even be seen anywhere. "This wasn''t supposed to happen."

    "What''s supposed to happen?" Bruce asked since he too couldn''t tell what should happen next.

    "It should reappear right now, but it just won''t appear," Satoshi said.

    Apparently, the moment he shot the blue mes at the entity, he immediately felt his connection with his newfound tamed beast. But right now, it just won''te out. Either something went wrong with the beast taming or there was just a great dy. Satoshi was led to believe that something really went wrong since this was the first time such an absurd dy happened.

    "Anyways, I''ll show it to you next time, my superpower doesn''t seem to work on these entities... even though it was supposed to work on anything," Satoshi muttered to himself.

    Since there really was something wrong with his superpower, he decided to put it at the back of his mind as they continued subjugating the entities. Still, Satoshi couldn''t quite put his finger around the waning connection of the entity in his mind. It''s as if someone or something was preventing him from making the entity his tamed beast.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    It had been so long since Magnus got to see his fellow Managers so he decided to spend time with them albeit with his tight schedule. He still had three days to go before he returned to his usual duties but right now, he decided to use this precious vacation time while guiding the other Managers'' Disciples.

    "Cheers!" Magnus called out while they enjoyed barbecue and beer together. Even though they were still Managers and have no need to eat, they still couldn''t help but indulge themselves with food.

    After all, they were humans before and they still haven''t gotten used to their life as a Manager. In fact, ask any Manager out there and they would say the same thing¡ª that they still do eat and drink, just not regrly.

    "Now that we''re gathered here, let''s monitor all your Disciples, shall we?" Magnus offered after raising his ss. Actually, he had been carefully monitoring them every step of the way, just in case something unforeseen happens. In fact, he had an intricate camera system set up on the portion of the where the Disciples were currently taking the test.

    Some of the Managers started nodding their heads in agreement so Magnus created a huge screen in front of them, putting up a live stream of the test which was happening right now.

    "Whoa, are those your summons, Magnus?" One of the Managers asked after seeing the entities running around, pestering the Disciples in an attempt to defeat them.

    Some of the Disciples did have an easy time engaging them inbat while a select few were having a hard time even defending themselves. It was understandable though, considering that some of the Disciples were offensive and defensive in nature. There were bound to be Disciples who wouldn''t be able to pass the test.

    "No, they aren''t my summons, more like projections. They are mere manifestations of my energy and they aren''t separate from me. That''s why as long as I have the energy, I could summon an endless wave of them." Magnus exined and everyone understood what he was saying in an instant. All of them were Managers after all so they could somewhat get the gist of what Magnus meant.

    "Still, summoning thousands upon thousands of them while keeping their energy levels consistent, you have crazy control over your innate energy." Dumble Doremented. He knew that if he were to try practicing Magnus''s sophisticated technique, he would have a hard time mastering it.<novelsnext>I think you should take a look at </novelsnext>

    As the group watched the live stream, they were surprised at how coordinated the entities were. Adding to that, the number of entities suddenly doubled when they reached the thirty-minute mark. It was insane, they could barely keep up with Magnus''s insane control over his projections.

    When Bucky Barnes reentered the dining area, he was surprised to see that all the Managers were gathered there. He had to leave for a bit to get some fresh air and he didn''t expect all the Managers to gather at one ce.

    "Well, this is quite a rare sight indeed." Hemented quietly approaching the group so he could take a seat from a short distance without disturbing anyone.

    Suddenly, he saw Magnus''s face shift in expression. Since everyone was too engrossed in watching the live stream, they didn''t notice the sudden change in Magnus''s demeanor.

    "Is he all right? What''s going on?" Bucky Barnes asked himself when he realized that all the color drained from Magnus''s face. Judging from his reaction, Bucky Barnes assumed that something went absolutely wrong with the test and he had to take action.

    When he looked at the live stream, he noticed that it was quickly changing channels. It was too fast that no one could even watch what was going on. The blur continued on before it stopped on a channel¡ª the one where Bruce, Lucy, and Satoshi were.

    "That''s, Satoshi, right?" Bucky Barnes asked himself. There was no doubt the person on the other side of the live stream was Satoshi. "What''s going on? Are they in trouble?"

    Thanks to the blurred live stream, the other Managers lost their concentration and instead focused on Magnus who was already tapping his foot like crazy. Obviously, he was panicking, but he acted ass if nothing was wrong.

    "Magnus, is everything all right?" Dumble Dore spoke up since one of the Disciples in the live stream was his. "Is something wrong?"

    "Ah, uh, yeah~ everything''s all right." Magnus nervously answered while he pushed on his leg so it would stop tapping itself. "I just uh, I just had to check something." He continued.

    "Oh, all right," Dumble Dore brushed it off since he believed that Magnus was telling the truth. Then again, an anxious feeling started eating away at him while they continued watching the live stream.

    For a couple of minutes, Magnus didn''t change the channel they were watching. The other Managers were already curious as to how the other Disicples were doing but Magnus didn''t bother changing the view live stream. He was keen on observing Satoshi''s group like his life depended on it.

    Heaving a sigh, Bucky Barnes stood up from his chair and approached the group. This was when they realized that Bucky Barnes was actually there with them. He suspiciously eyed Magnus as he sauntered forward.

    Meanwhile, Magnus had no idea that Bucky Barnes was actually approaching him. He keenly watched the live stream, trying to figure out what happened to one of his entities.

    As mentioned before, his entities were actually projections made from his energy. It would even be urate to call the entities his energy since that''s what they wereposed of.

    A couple of moments ago, Magnus was as rxed as ever since he could freely control all his projections. In a way, all his projections were alive, but they were only projections of his energy so they couldn''t think rationally like humans. All they could do was blindly follow orders.

    And yet, despite that being the case, one of the entities went rogue. Magnuspletely lost control over that entity and to top it all off, he couldn''t feel its connection towards him. It''s as if his energy was right there and then it was spent in a snap of a finger. His energy literally vanished into thin air and he didn''t even sense where it had gone off to.

    "I have to reel it in," Magnus muttered to himself. he could still feel the faint trace of the entity so he tried calling out to it¡ª a poor attempt at bringing back his lost energy.

    No matter how hard he tried, it just won''te back to him. His energy was lost, gone, and it took the imprint of his projection along with it.

    "Hey, Magnus, tell us what''s going on or we''re going to pull out our Disciples from there." Bucky Barnes mildly threatened as he grabbed Magnus by the shoulders, causing him to flinch.

 Chapter 490 Smol Boi

    ?

    On the other side of the live stream, Satoshi had been struggling with his new familiar as well. He had no idea what was causing the momentary disconnection he experienced but nevertheless, he could tell that his control over his new familiar was getting stronger and stronger by the second.

    Whatever it was that was trying to bring his new familiar back, it was slowly losing. Gaining more confidence, Satoshi focused on his new familiar, assuming that doing so would give him even more control and finally tame the uncontroble beast.

    "Satoshi, we''re losing on the left nk, what''s going on?" Bruce screamed, bringing Satoshi back to reality. Apparently, he subconsciously told his familiar, Lighter, to stop firing spires of mes at the entities, causing the entities to almost break their formation.

    Then again, it was solely thanks to Satoshi that they were doing rather well on the test. In fact, they even thought that Satoshi could single-handedly fend for himself due to how powerful he was.

    And he hasn''t even used his superpower. He was just relying on one of his tamed beasts he called the Lighter. Bruce and Lucy have their fair share of tamed beast encounters so they knew most of the beast in existence. However, they''d never seen a tamed beast that looked like Lighter.

    Well, it resembled a tamed beast that looked like a fiery orb, but its firepower and its aura were entirely different inparison. Bruce and Lucy could tell that this Lighter is a legendary tamed beast and probably an unknown beast that had never been encountered.

    This made them question Satoshi''s history since not a lot of Disciples had ess to unknown tamed beasts. It should be mentioned that Bruce and Lucy were knowledgeable when it came to tamed beasts. They even know most of the Representatives in existence.

    Even then, they had no idea what type of tamed beast Satoshi was using.

    While they were thinking about what the deal with Satoshi was, he victoriously eximed as if he had just won a war. He pumped his fist in the air as he screamed.

    "I got it!" Satoshi announced. "Now, let me show you my superpower."

    The moment hepletely took over his new tamed beast, he immediately transferred it inside Orb Oboros''s dimension. He had no idea what it looked like, and he didn''t bother checking it out since he wanted to surprise himself as well along with Bruce and Lucy.

    "All right, let''s see it then." Lucy returned with a suspicious gaze. She wondered whether Satoshi was still messing with them or not.

    "All right, all right," Satoshi raised his hand up in a poor attempt to convince them that he wasn''t fooling this time around.

    Extending his hand while reenacting a scene straight out of an animated series, Satoshi summoned his new tamed beast by screaming the word that starts with ''hado''. He shouted it so loud and the tamed beast appeared in front of them at the same time.

    A thunderous ear-splitting roar reverberated in the air, filling the entire forest. Not only did the Disciples freeze in fear, but even the entities were also reduced to statues when they heard the roar.

    There was a new entity that emerged in front of both Bruce and Lucy, causing them to pray inwardly. It was so formidable that the pressure that oozed out from it gave them shivers. They were Disciples, but they knew that they don''t stand a chance against the entity in front of them.

    Because of the shock that they received, they also identally deactivated their skills. Doing so brought the entities back and they resumed their attacks. While Bruce and Lucy were frozen in shock, the entities rushed at them mercilessly.

    Once again, the huge entity that appeared in front of them let out a roar before it swiped its gigantic ws at the entities that charged at them. The entities were deleted in an instant, thanks to the huge entity''s swipe attack.

    The huge entity looked exactly like the other entities, except it was thrice their size and it was more muscr. Instead of standing upright on two feet, the huge entity stood on all fours, like a gori. Aside from that, it was evident that the huge entity was exponentially three times more powerful than the normal ones.

    Bruce and Lucy nced at each other before they nodded at each other. Before they could do anything, however, Satoshi immediately realized what they were about to do.

    "Stop! That''s not your enemy! That''s the entity I tamed a moment ago!" Satoshi stopped them short before they attacked the entity. "I''m naming him ''Smolboi'' because he looked scary." Satoshi said in a funny manner.

    The entity turned to Satoshi with a surprised expression. He couldn''t believe that his name was actually so stupid.

    "Fine, I''m naming you ''Smol'', that should be fine, right?" Satoshi asked, to which the huge entity nodded its head in a defeated manner.

    The entity seemed to shake its head while it continued to deal with the smaller entities. Satoshi couldn''t believe that its firepower matched the three of thembined.

    "Wait... what did you just do? Is that your superpower?" Bruce asked. He couldn''t believe his eyes.

    Satoshi nodded his head as he settled on one side of the forest. There, he started creating a campfire as if that was the most normal thing to do during a survival test. "The two of you should get some rest as well. We still have three days to go before this survival test concludes."

    ...

    Back at the gathering of Managers,

    "What the¡ª" Hermione Ranger eximed when she noticed that a huge entity suddenly appeared in front of Satoshi and his team. It was so gargantuan that she was the first one to think about canceling the entire test altogether.

    "That''s what''s going on," Magnus heaved a sigh as he dejectedly pointed at the live stream. "Somehow, that Disciple right there managed to steal a portion of my energy and then replicate it. I mean... that''s what my projections should look like on the third day. That was the real final form of my projections." Magnus continued.

    "Ah, you mean my Disciple? Yeah, his superpower''s super weird. He could turn anything into his tamed beast. Did you know that his most powerful tamed beast is aputer? Crazyyy~" Bucky Barnes casually called out as if what just happened is a normal urrence for him.

    "So you mean to tell me... that he stole a small portion of my energy and then transformed it into a tamed beast. That''s crazy, all right." Magnus muttered to himself. "Is there any limit to his superpower? How many tamed beasts does he currently have?"

    "I have no idea either. He just goes and tames a couple of things as he pleased. Even I have no idea how many tamed beasts he currently has." Bucky Barnes responded.

    Some of the Managers who were listening to the entire exchange couldn''t fathom what they just heard. Satoshi''s superpower could rival most of the long-time Disciples. Heck, he could even rival the superpowers of some weaker Managers himself!

    "Are you sure he''s a... human? Is he really a human?" Magnus asked just to confirm.

    "That''s rude, you know... and racist." Bucky Barnes responded, shaking his head as if that was thest thing he expected Magnus to say.

    Clearing his throat, Magnus decided to just leave it be. Who would''ve thought that the only Disciple who could cancel his forced teleportation would be even more talented than he thought? It just gave him a better reason to really pull him into his team.

    "Interesting," Magnus muttered to himself. "Now that I know what''s going on, well, not exactly, I''ll just leave it be. I won''t adjust the difficulty level of anything but I could already tell that it would be a breeze for Satoshi and his team. I couldn''t say the same thing to the other Disciples so I couldn''t really afford to adjust anything on this survival test."

    From the corner of his eyes, he saw that the other Managers were in agreement with what he said. Of course, they witnessed firsthand how difficult it was for their Disciples to survive the steady onught of the entities. Even though Satoshi and his team were breezing through it, they knew they couldn''t make it harder for them. That would be unfair in more ways than one.

    "For now, let''s watch over them while they try to survive this. I''m sure they''d hit a roadblock on the second and third day." Magnus told everyone, sping his hands together.

    While one huge entity was enough for them to get through the first day, the second day might be different since the entity was bound to shift into its second form. There was no way the one huge entity could stand a chance against many entities in their second form.

    "We''ll see about that." Bucky Barnes smirked as he walked away. "I''ll grab some drinks for everyone. On me."

    "The drinks are free here though..." Hermione Ranger trailed off when she noticed that one of the Managers was eyeing Bucky Barnes in a weird way.

 Chapter 491 To Rescue And Be Rescued

    ?

    "Don''t stop running!"

    "We can''t do this anymore!"

    "Whatever you do, don''t stop running! We''re bound to run into another group. Just don''t stop running!"

    Gran Expatrio is a middle-aged man who had been unanimously assigned as the team leader of their three-man team. He had no idea that his team members were actually proficient as support, and they werepletely useless when it came to offense.

    Of course, they had skills that enabled them to survive, but with the three-man team, they had to bnce defending and attacking. They couldn''t just focus on one side and pray that it would work out. After all, the entities were all-rounders as well, excelling in both offense and defense.

    And by a stroke of bad luck, Gran Expatrio was actually a Disciple focusing on speed¡ª which meant that his attack speed was outstanding but his offensive throughput was severelycking.

    In any case, it didn''t take long before their group fell apart, and the entities overwhelmed them. It hadn''t even been a couple of hours and their defenses had already beenpromised.

    Which led to the current scenario of three people gunning it through the forest. Gran Expatrio led the way while the two healers behind him struggled to keep up with him. He couldn''t believe that these two people were actually Disciples.

    Then again, the moment he arrived at the training camp, he also realized how he was at the bottom of the barrel. On his, he was one of the strongest, the fastest superhero to ever live. But here, there were people who were much faster than him, and it really dealt a sizeable blow to his pride.

    Simply put, he also couldn''t believe that someone like him was a Disciple as well. After all, he was too low-leveledpared to the other Disciples.

    "Do you have your tamed beasts with you?" Gran Expatrio asked his teammates.

    "I know this would sound stupid but... I only have a tamed beast that boosts my healing abilities. He won''t be of help in our escape." One of his teammates answered.

    "I... left mine at the dorms." The girl on their team whimpered as she continued. She was already out of breath, but she pushed forward, fully aware that they''d fail the test if one of them fell into the hands of the entities.

    Even though they knew at the back of their minds that they won''t die at the hands of the entities, they still ran as if their lives depended on it. In hindsight, their lives really did depend on it. They might not die, per se, but there was a good chance they''ll be gravely injured by those entities that resembled man-eating monsters.

    "Come on!" Gran thought of using his mammoth tamed beast as their ride out of there, but he knew just how slow his mammoth was so put the thought at the back of his mind.

    The three of them ran with bated breaths, trying to figure out what to do before their exhaustion caught up to them. Hopelessness was beginning to fill them up with every step they took. Their consciousness even dwindled for a moment due to how physically taxing it was to run away from the entities.

    One might ask why they didn''t just use their superpower or something like that. But they''ve already exhausted their energy reserves and if they use them all up right now, they won''tst until the third day.

    It was either giving up now or holding on until they ran out of options. Of course, they would choose thetter since this was a survival test that they needed to pass no matter what. They were Disciples, the best of the best, if they couldn''t survive such a test, then they don''t belong here¡ª or so that''s what urred in their minds while they were running for their lives.

    From a distance, the three of them saw a billow of smoke slowly rising up into the sky¡ª a sign of danger or a sign that someone was camping nearby.

    Judging from the calm smoke, they immediately assumed that another team had fallen prey to the hands of the entities. If the smoke was big and heavy, then it was indicative of a struggle. But the smoke that they saw was so calm and that could only mean one thing.

    It was a remnant of a team that waspletely wiped out by the entities.

    "We can''t go there!" Gran screamed at his two teammates as he steered from their straight path. He knew that they won''t see anything there, just in debris and ruin. That''s why he advised the other two to follow him as he headed the other way.

    However, the other two had a different idea. Even though they were exhausted, and that there was nothing they could do except wait for exhaustion to overtake them, they turned towards the direction of the smoke and headed towards it.

    The guy who was the second team member of the team almost tripped on a tree root and one of the entities almost pounced on his back. Fortunately, he dodged it in the nick of time and he let his momentum carry him forward. "Someone out there might need our help! We''re going in no matter what, Gran."

    "Yeah, if we can''t survive this test, then we should at least save someone and help them out so they could pass it in our stead. We''re not going to leave them out there to suffer." The girl, who was the third member of the team, agreed with the guy and they both headed to the smoke.

    Left with no choice, Gran grunted as he too followed right behind the two. Despite theirck of options, they still chose to help someone instead of running for their lives. They were truly the epitome of support superheroes¡ª putting others'' lives first before theirs.

    "Fine, but if that''s where we end up failing, then don''t me me, all right?" Gran called out to them, conceding as he went with their decision. "I''ll provide support, buy you a couple of seconds while you aid those who need help."

    Forcing a smile on his face, Gran quickened his pace as they found a new purpose in this survival test. "If we''re going out, then might as well go out helping someone, right?" He said, voicing out the ideal of the other two. A moment ago, he disagreed with them, but he was affected by their selflessness and it changed his mind.

    "Right!"

    "Right!"

    Physically, they were drained, but their energy was renewed when they thought of saving people. It didn''t even ur to them that right now, they were leading a group of entities to a group which they were supposed to help... that is, if there were still survivors in that area.

    But what they saw from a distance was something else entirely.

    It was a huge entity, as big as a two or three-story building. But that wasn''t the weirdest part of it. The huge entity was actually attacking the other entities, flinging them everywhere and eliminating them from this life with ease.

    From the corner of their eyes, they saw a group of three people gathered around a campfire. The difference between the area around the campfirepared to the outer area was like the difference between heaven and earth.

    On one side, there were three people casually talking over fire while eating a newly-cooked stew. And on the other, there was the huge entity protecting the group from the other entities, massacring them without mercy.

    "What''s going on?" Gran asked while the other two shook their heads in puzzlement.

    They rushed here, putting their lives on the line, only to find the weirdest situation they could possibly encounter.

    As if they were waiting for them, Lucy actually approached the group, weing them to their camp while directing them to join them. "We saw you running from afar, we thought you needed help," Lucymented as she gestured for the three of them to sit with them around the campfire.

    "What''s going on?" Gran asked as his eyes wandered towards the huge entity that was soloing all the other entities. It was truly a sight to behold, something that would be imprinted in his mind for a long time even as a Disciple.

    "We thought you needed help so we came running after you. I''m Gretel Grimoire." The girl promptly introduced herself. "And this is my brother, Hansel."

    "Wait, you''re siblings?" Gran eximed. He had no idea that the two were actually siblings. It did strike him as odd that they have an uncanny resemnce with each other.

    "Twins." Gretel corrected.

    "But what''s going on? Who''s superpower is that?" Hansel asked, pointing at the huge entity that kept on iling its appendages and knocking all the other entities out of the way.

    "You should ask him, even we don''t understand what kind of superpower that was." Bruce casually shrugged, jerking a thumb towards Satoshi who was quietly eating a bowl of stew.

    "Hmm?" Satoshi mumbled, cluelessly looking at Bruce and Lucy while they stared straight back at him.

 Chapter 492 Test Within A Test

    ?

    Satoshi went to great lengths in between bites to exin what his superpower was.

    But no matter what he told them, they still couldn''tprehend how that was a legitimate superpower. In hindsight, his party members already saw what his superpower exhibited. Then again, it was still not enough for them to understand what his superpower was.

    Even the neers had no idea what Satoshi was talking about. They just got here, with their energy almost depleted... only to find out that the team they nned on rescuing was actually doing better than expected.

    "So, you''re Gretel Grimoire, Hansel Grimoire, and your supposed leader is Gran Expatrio, right?" Bruce confirmed. Since he couldn''t shake all their hands at the same time, he went the extra effort to stand up and greet each of them with a handshake.

    "Eat up, you don''t have to worry about supplies," Satoshi assured the three of them that they were a bit hesitant to eat.

    After setting up the campfire a couple of minutes ago, Satoshi and his party members actually checked out the area, picking up a couple of forest mushrooms and nts which were edible. After that, Satoshi used his Ghast to gather meat from his. He specifically got beef and chicken.

    Then they cooked the stew together. In a sense, Satoshi told the truth that they didn''t have to be concerned about running out of supplies. After all, the rules didn''t state that they couldn''t teleport other objects from the other world.

    Satoshi did make sure that he didn''t hop inside the dimensional portal created by Ghast. Otherwise, it might disqualify him from the challenge. Once again, these weren''t stated in the rules but Satoshi just had to make sure that he didn''t give Magnus the chance t disqualify him for such petty reasons.

    In short, he didn''t abuse the loophole he found in the rules.

    "Thank you for rescuing us. We were supposed to help you out, but you ended up helping us instead." Gretel spoke. Despite his somewhat timid image, his voice was actually a little bit deep.

    "Don''t worry about it. We were saved up by our teammate as well so we''re on the same page, to say the least." Bruce casually said.

    As for Lucy, she continued eating what Satoshi prepared. It was a simple chicken stew with forest mushrooms and herbs but it tasted much better than she thought.

    For the life of her, she didn''t want to admit that Satoshi was not only good-looking and physically robust. He was also overpowered and a good cook. Her mind already started concocting a n to win his heart since she thought that he deserved to be hers.

    While Lucy was having these thoughts, the group started talking about their experience with the survival test so far. The two teams had basically the same experience, the only difference was Satoshi was in their team so they had the upper hand against the entities.

    In fact, Satoshi was actually a one-man army. Even though he was currently using only one tamed beast, he was winning. What more if he actually summoned more of his familiars?

    While they were talking about their three-man teams, Satoshi actually found the time to think about the essence of the survival test. Of course, they weren''t put here just to survive. They were given this test for a much greater purpose¡ª and finding that purpose is the test within the test.

    ''But that''s the thing... I''m not good when ites to uncovering the hidden meaning behind a test. I mean, sometimes my mind works but I don''t think it''s working this time. Dex, do you have any ideas? How about everyone else?'' Satoshi said in his mind, addressing Dex and his other familiars who were connected to his consciousness.

    None of them answered. Only the Quasar Lightning Snake responded with a request to be summoned. He wanted to get out of Orb Oboros''s dimension and spread his tail in the skies. Surprisingly those who actually talk to him from time to time didn''t say anything. ''They were probably having their routine matches with each other.'' Satoshi muttered to himself.

    A couple of minutester, the others started requesting Satoshi to summon them as well. They liked it in the dimension, but right now they could tell that Satoshi''s new summon was having the time of its life and they wanted to join in on the fun.

    Satoshi did advise them to prepare for the third day. He thought that maybe he''d need everyone''s help on the third day since that''s when things were bound to go down. Right now, they were still in easy mode and yet they were already having a hard time.

    After eating their fill, Hansel and Gretel didn''t want to stay without doing their fair share of the workload. Now that their energy was rejuvenated, they healed the others with their support skills. They also didn''t hesitate to buff up the huge entity just in case it was getting tired.

    What they didn''t know was that the entity actually doesn''t exhaust itself. As long as Satoshi had energy in his reserves, it won''t get tired. It was unnecessary for them to buff up the entity but Satoshi didn''t stop them since they wanted to do their fair share as new members of the team.

    New members of the team.

    Suddenly, Satoshi came to a realization and he turned to the others who started to improve their camp. Bruce and Lucy were setting up tents and Gran helped them out. As for Hansel and Gretel, they gathered firewood nearby and even volunteered to share the food they brought with them.

    While they were busy minding their own business, Satoshi approached them with a question. "Does any of you have some sort of detection skill with you?" Satoshi asked out of nowhere.

    "Yeah, I have one. It''s just a simple detection skill though... I mean, doesn''t everyone have one?" Gran asked. Every Disciple he knew had a skill like that so it wasn''t even a question.

    "Right, how far could your detection skill reach?" Satoshi continued, disregarding Gran''s sarcasm.

    "Mine could reach about three miles," Hansel raised his hand as if he was answering his professor at school.

    "Hansel? Kilometers please," Gretelmented before addressing Satoshi. "Mine''s about ten kilometers."

    "About the same as Gretel," Gran added.

    Bruce and Lucy then joined in by saying that their detection skills were subpar to the others so Satoshi didn''t pry them about the details. In any case, at least there were Gran and Gretel who could actually detect in a ten-kilometer radius.

    "Can you sense if there are other Disciples around us? I''d like to invite them to our group." Satoshi then mentioned it without even asking anyone''s opinion about it.

    His suggestion was met with silence while they try to contemte what Satoshi just said. The first thing they thought was to disagree since they wouldn''t have the sustainability to survive with more people.

    But after thinking about it a little more, they realized that they were just taking advantage of Satoshi''s strength. If it weren''t for him, they wouldn''t have been able to survive this long. What''s in it for them if he wanted to add in more people?

    "Right, I can detect about three groups, do you want us to get them?" Gran raised his hand. "I''d be able to round them up and bring them here, it wouldn''t be that hard."

    "Y-y-yeah, I could also do the same thing. My brother and I are pretty good at running and rescuing. We could bring them here in no time." Gretel also pointed out. There was a hint of shakiness in her voice since she felt guilty for having such selfish thoughts. Initially, she wanted to disagree with Satoshi but it was his call to make, not any of theirs.

    "What would it be, leader?" Brucemented, smiling at Satoshi. He already deemed Satoshi as their leader the moment he unleashed the huge entity to protect them.

    "Yeah, it''s your call. We won''t mind. We''ll help out as much as we can to support you so you don''t have to worry." Lucy also added, turning her face away from Satoshi since she was a bit embarrassed saying that in front of Satoshi.

    "Thanks," Satoshi smiled. He couldn''t believe that his teammates were actually cooperative. They didn''t even ask questions as to why he was gathering more people. "I... I''ll exinter once we have more people." He continued.

    In the end, Hansel and Gretel decided to head out, aiming to gather one of the groups to the west. As for Gran, he went with Bruce since they needed at least a two-man team to round up a group.

    Before they left, Satoshi specifically stated that if they didn''t want to join them, then they shouldn''t force them¡ª to which the two teams agreed.

    "We''re heading out then." Gretel chirped, happy that she and her brother could finally be of use to their new group.

    "Yep, us too," Bruce waved his hand as he said his farewell.

    "Take care, you guys," Satoshi returned, watching the two groups leave their safe haven.

 Chapter 493 Forming A Group

    ?

    While Satoshi was keenly observing ''Smol'', his new familiar which looked like a huge entity, he noticed that his movements suddenly became sluggish. Some of the entities managed to slip past him. While he was speedy enough to grab them and eliminate them before they get to the camp, Satoshi could tell that Smol was running low on fumes.

    "You all right?" Satoshi voiced out, addressing his familiar. It was impossible for them to get exhausted since he hasn''t run out of energy yet. Besides, he didn''t suffer enough injury to deactivate the summon. That''s why Satoshi wondered why he was more sluggish than usual.

    Then again, it was somewhat exinable due to the fact that he had been fighting non-stop for a couple of hours now. He was probably getting bored due to the mundane task he had to aplish.

    "Right right." Satoshi muttered to himself, much to Lucy''s surprise. The huge entity didn''t utter a single sound, nor did it speak to Satoshi. However, Satoshi was nodding his head as if the two of them were holding a private conversation.

    Lucy''s eyes widened in disbelief as she continued her observation.

    "What? You''re bored?" Satoshi let out, heaving a sigh. "Well, that''s expected. Don''t worry, I''ll summon someone else. Do you want to go back?"

    Once again, the huge entity didn''t voice out a single sound, nor did it do any signnguage.

    "All right. I''ll call out the ck Winged Dragon... what? Even Gabriel wanted toe out right now? You too?" Satoshi muttered to himself. "All right, all right, everybody gets a turn." He continued as if he had just been defeated in a debate.

    "Smol, you can get some rest now. I''m sure everyone''s excited to meet you face-to-face. Orb Oboros." Satoshi called out as Smol was transferred to the dimension created by Orb Oboros. This was where all of Satoshi''s familiars coexisted.

    "ck Winged Dragon, Gabriel,e out." Satoshi continued. He totally forgot that Lucy was still there, and she witnessed every action he took.

    Now that Lucy saw Satoshi talking to his familiar firsthand, she thought that she already saw everything. But it didn''t take long before the mystery that enveloped Satoshi became even more hazy. The moment she concluded that nothing could surprise her anymore, she witnessed something even more bizarre.

    A girl came out from Orb Oboros, and a man floating in the air, wearing a shabby robe came out with her. Lucy bolted upright from her seat while her jaws hung down to the ground. She wanted to demand an exnation from Satoshi but she decided not to¡ª after all, she might not evenprehend what Satoshi was going to say.

    "Finally! I can finally stretch my wings. Whoa~ what are those?" Ryu Ryoko called out, pointing at the entities which were rushing from all directions.

    "Isn''t it obvious, it''s the entities master told us about. We need to get rid of them in the ce of our new member." Gabriel spoke, his shabby robe fluttering against the wind. Lucy couldn''t actually see Gabriel''s face since he was wearing a hooded robe.

    "Don''t summon the phoenix, you might burn the entire forest," Satoshi advised.

    "Master, my phoenix can control its mes. It can burn a target without burning anything else." Gabriel said, bowing its head.

    "Really?" Satoshi eximed so he didn''t bother limiting Gabriel anymore. As for Ryu Ryoko, she already transformed into her dragon form. Just like the huge entity, she easily took care of the entities even without using any of her powerful attacks.

    "Satoshiiii~" Lucy whispered. Even though she had no idea who the people were, she could tell that they were powerful, almost as powerful as Disciples. "Who are they?" She asked, scooting closer to Satoshi.

    "Ah, she''s Ryu Ryoko, a ck Winged Dragon. As for him, he''s Gabriel, I met him during a Gate Incident in our world." Satoshi casually said.

    "Yeah, but why are they here? Are you sure you''re not breaking any rules? I mean, only Disciples are allowed here, right?" Lucy continued. She was genuinely worried for Satoshi. After all, he just brought all these people out of nowhere.

    "And?" Satoshi returned, clueless as to what Lucy was trying to imply.

    "I mean... they aren''t Disciples. You might get reprimanded for breaking the rules." Lucy whispered back.

    "Yeah, they aren''t. They''re my tamed beasts though." Satoshi responded. His answer was so out-of-this-world but he said it so casually.

    For a moment, Lucy nodded her head as if epting Satoshi''s exnation. Soon after, she bolted upright a second time when she finally internalized what Satoshi just said. "Haah?! Those two? Your tamed beasts?!"

    "I prefer calling them my familiars instead of my tamed beasts... but I figured it would be easier to exin it using those words." Satoshi continued since Lucy still wore the same confused expression on her face.

    "Aren''t they... people?" Lucy asked. Right now she had no idea what was right or wrong anymore. She was just genuinely confused.

    "Um... it''splicated..." Satoshi trailed off. "But you can ask the other Managers, they can confirm that they''re my familiars."

    "Oh..." Lucy also trailed off. She didn''t want to ask questions since she knew it would just confuse her even more.

    When the two groups who left camp returned, they noticed that there was a dragon, a floating robe, and a firebird fighting against the entities. They looked at Lucy, and when she didn''t say anything, they realized that this was all Satoshi''s doing.

    That said, they didn''t ask questions anymore. They just brought the two new groups to Satoshi so he could brief them on what was going on.

    Now that everyone was gathered, well, sort of, Satoshi addressed all of them. He finally told them the n he had in mind. "I''m going to gather as many of us as we can so we can have an easier time defending against the entities. We still have two more days to go. It''s just going to get more challenging from here on out."

    "Still... expecting us to work together... some Disciples might not agree to it," Lucy mumbled. She wasn''t against Satoshi''s n, but she doubted its effectiveness since some Disciples could get a bit prideful.

    "That''s why we ask them. If they don''t want to join, then they don''t have to." Satoshi responded. "Still, we have to gather as many Disciples as we can... or else we don''t stand a chance on the second or third day."

    The two groups nodded their heads. For a moment back there, they thought that they were going to die. If Satoshi''s group didn''t rescue them, they might have already been eliminated.

    After getting to know the additional six people of the group, they began working on improving the camp together while the two-man teams that Satoshi formed continued rescuing other Disciples. The processsted for the next couple of hours until evening came.

    It didn''t take long before Satoshi''s camp turned into a smallmunity with thirty people in it. To Satoshi''s relief, the n worked so far since all of them worked together. He had no idea what their names were, but they cooperated with him and that''s all he needed.

    All of them shared each other''s resources, built tents, and rotated cooking for each other. It became a pic party instead of a survival test.

    Nevertheless, everyone knew that this respite wouldn''tst very long. When the second and third dayes, they''d have to use every ounce of their energy to defend. Right now, Satoshi could still defend the entire group alone. However, the second and third days would be different.

    The other Disciples didn''t hesitate to work with each other since Satoshi defended them. They were exhausted enough as it is, and now they could finally rest and recover their energy in preparation for the second and third days.

    Just like the first two groups, the additional Disciples who joined the team didn''t ask any questions. They had no idea why there were powerful tamed beasts guarding them. They also didn''t ask who the floating hooded man was even though Satoshi would''ve obliged in answering their questions.

    "Satoshi!" Someone suddenly called out from afar. She cheerfully waved her hand as she ran towards him.

    It was none other than Mitsuka, with Nanako trailing right behind her. Satoshi was surprised that Himuro was thest member of their team.

    "You guys were together?" Satoshi asked.

    "Yeah, what''s going on here?" Himuro asked. "Why do you have thirty people on your team?" Himuro asked, impressed that Satoshi managed to gather such a huge group.

    "Did you gather all of them? Are you going to survive the second and third days together?" Nanako asked, her curiosity piqued. "If that''s so, then count us in! We''re going to join your group as well."

    Satoshi''s face lit up when he heard Nanako''s offer. He knew that the three of them were reliable so having them join the group would really help them out a notch. "Really? Then wee to the team! Don''t hesitate to make yourselves at home... or something like that." Satoshi greeted, gesturing for them to go inside the camp.

 Chapter 494 Behind The Survival Test

    ?

    With more people on the team, the group became more and more cohesive under Satoshi''s leadership. It didn''t take long before they have sustainable camping grounds which were defended solely by Satoshi.

    Satoshi talked about it with his new group, and they were in agreement that he''d be defending everything for the first day, and then they just had to adjust on the second and third days. As much as possible, Satoshi wanted them to rest so they''d be at their optimal fighting capabilities the next day.

    "What was that?" One of the Disciples asked, pointing at the sky where the countdown was continuously shown.

    Another screen was shown in the sky. This time, it had an orange background and yellow edges. A number was shown on the screen and it went down by three. Before anyone could say anything, the number went down once again. From 54 to 51.

    "It''s the number of Disciples left. There''s only 51 of us left." Another Disciple voiced out.

    The number continued going down until there were only 42 people left. And thest time Satoshi checked, there were exactly 42 people in this group.

    In other words, this group was the only one left.

    Realizing that this was the final defense force against the entities, everyone seemed to panic a little as they approached Satoshi. They wanted to help out with the defense since it was clear that the other entities woulde for them.

    However, Satoshi was still firm in rejecting their request. They needed them for the second and third days. If they were going to survive this test all the way, then they need to save up their energy as much as they could.

    There were only 42 Disciples left, and now that they were gathered in one spot in the forest, the entities only needed to target one spot. This made it easier for Magnus since he didn''t need to focus on multiple spots at once.

    The number of entities that attacked their camp doubled in number, giving Satoshi an even harder time defending everyone. Then again, technically he wasn''t in defense, it was his familiars who were defending them for everyone.

    Satoshi''s main job was just monitoring the situation so he''d be able to adjust. If his familiars were having a hard time, he''d summon more andmand them simultaneously. Right now, Satoshi held off on summoning Ghast and Sera since they were his top familiars who could easily defend against waves upon waves of entities.

    He also held off on using any of his Representatives since they could very well be the key to surviving the entire three days.

    "Ice Empress, are you free right now?" Satoshi asked, causing everyone to look at him since he was speaking in empty air.

    To his relief, the Ice Empress was more than willing to get summoned so he didn''t hesitate to call her. She was going to be the third familiar who would defend the camp.

    To be fair, Gabriel and Ryu Ryoko weren''t having a hard time defending the entire camp. Gabriel alone could take care of the entities single-handedly with the amount of summons he has in his possession.

    However, Satoshi also didn''t want to tire them out since he might need all of them on the second and third days.

    ...

    Meanwhile, in the gathering of Managers,

    Since Bucky Barnes was feeling a bit generous today, he decided to get some drinks for everyone just like what he said before he exited the room.

    He had no idea how many drinks he needed to get since there were a lot of Managers present so he just grabbed twenty drinks and was done with it. If they needed more, he could always teleport to get more drinks.

    As he reentered the room, he was in high spirits. However, as soon as he stepped foot inside, he noticed a drastic change in the atmosphere. A moment ago, they too were in high spirits but when he came back for their drinks, everyone was so tense that Bucky Barnes felt like choking.

    "What are you doing? Did someone die or something?" Bucky Barnes casually said as he gave everyone their drinks. He had no idea which drinks they liked so he just left all the drinks on the table so everyone could get what they want. This also solved his problem of not getting the number of drinks right.

    With everyone wearing a sullen expression on their face, Bucky Barnes examined their faces one by one. That''s when he realized that Magnus was the only one who had a satisfied expression on his face.

    "So? What happened?" Bucky Barnes asked, seating himself beside Magnus who seemed to be pleased with the gloomy mood that epassed the entire room.

    His gaze thennded on the live stream in front of them and that''s when he noticed the headcount of all the Disciples who hasn''t failed yet. Honestly, he was surprised that more than half of the Disciples already dropped out of the test...

    "Wait... more than half of the Disciples... so that means..." Bucky Barnes trailed off. He finally understood what everyone''s problem was.

    Magnus''s survival test was too hard and a lot of Disciples failed the test. It wasn''t because they were weak, but because the difficulty level of the survival test went beyond their capabilities.

    "Bucky Barnes, I''m sure you''ll understand. This test is to gauge their limits so a lot would drop out from the first round. You might not believe me but all of my Disciples managed to survive the first day. The second and third days were different topics altogether though." He exined, trying to gain everyone''s trust once again.

    "But I also have to tell you that... only a handful of my Disciplessted until the third day. And by the end of it, none of my Disciples made it through the end of the third day." Magnus continued. "This test is an indication of how strong your Disciples are. If they couldst the first day, then the second day, then consider yourselves blessed."

    Quite frankly, Magnus actually didn''t care whether the Disciples formed an alliance or not because, at the end of the day, they''d be so overwhelmed that they won''t be able to work cohesively together. Even if they tried to, it would end up as every man for himself. That''s how difficult this survival test was.

    Somehow, Magnus managed to exin to everyone what the essence of the survival test truly was. To his relief, most of them epted it, but they weren''t pleased with the way he set up the test. It''s as if he was setting all of them up for failure since it was an almost impossible test toplete.

    Then again, this would give them a rough estimate of how powerful each of their Disciples was. Magnus helped all of them out in the long run since he showed them the real potential of every Disciple by forcing them to their limits.

    "I mean, next time you should just say that. Youe here on the day of your test and don''t exin everything. And then you expect us to know everything?" Bucky Barnes began, patting Magnus on the shoulder in a condescending manner. "Despite your busy schedule, you should''ve done your due diligence to make this event as smooth as possible, and that includes giving us proper prior heads up of what you''re about to do."

    "Also, you just teleported all of our Disciples¡ª by force¡ª to another. That alone is crossing the line." Bucky Barnes continued, adding tinder to the fire.

    Heaving a sigh, Magnus hung his head while everyone nodded their heads along. He may be the strongest Manager but even in the face of the others, he still couldn''t hold a candle to them as a group.

    "All right. I''ll be more careful next time." Magnus finally said, to which everyone responded by nodding their heads once again.

    ...

    While all of that was happening amongst the Managers, the group which Satoshi formed was beginning to get worried. Satoshi just summoned another familiar and this portrayed that he was having a hard time or something along those lines.

    A cold chilly wind blew at the camp while a toweringdy was summoned. On both her sides were two massive pr bears that walked as if to guard her. Respectively, they were Alez and Pelez, and thedy was none other than the Ice Empress.

    The Ice Empress looked at Satoshi, d that she was once again summoned to help him. She shortly greeted Gabriel and Ryu Ryoko before assuming her position a distance away from them.

    Before anyone could say anything, the froze the surrounding area and unleashed a chilling blizzard that surrounded the entire camp. The camp in and of itself wasn''t hit by the blizzard, but around it was a different topic.

    "Now we''re talking." Satoshi said as the horde of entities was dealt with despite their spiking numbers.

 Chapter 495 Survival Test, Second Day

    ?

    Nighttime soon descended on the ce where the survival test was being held. The sun-tint orange skies turned a lovely shade of purple before they darkened into ashen gray, revealing the twilight which temporarilysted.

    The entities'' steady onught continued through the night. Still, with the assistance of the Ice Empress, the three familiars¡ª namely, Gabriel the Summoner, Ryu Ryoko the ck Winged Dragon, and the Ice Empress¡ª worked together to keep the entities out of the camp.

    As for Satoshi, he continuously monitored his familiars even though they didn''t particrly have a hard time dealing with the entities.

    With the help of the group, the camp soon became a bustling ce, with an excellent cooking area and sleeping quarters tucked in one corner. The other Disciples also didn''t hesitate to share their supplies with everyone. There was always food avable and they didn''tck any resources.

    It seemed that the first day went in the favor of the Disciples.

    ...

    A couple of hourster,

    Since his familiars were having an easy time defending, Satoshi rxed a little bit and fell asleep. The constant monitoring as well as the stress of managing a huge group was pretty exhausting. Satoshi didn''t even realize that he fell asleep.

    When he woke up, he noticed that someone was calling out to him. It was none other than Dex, waking him up at half past midnight.

    "What''s going on?" Satoshi asked, noticing that she was actually lying down on someone''sp. Looking up, he realized that it was Mitsuka who gave him thep pillow.

    "You''re awake," Mitsuka said as her face was partially blocked by her bosom when Satoshi looked up.

    With his face turning into a nice shade of red, Satoshi coughed as he got up. There were still a couple of Disciples who were awake, they probably have a guard rotation in ce since some of them were vignt enough to keep watch.

    Surveying the entire camp, Satoshi didn''t notice anything wrong. It was still nketed by the strong blizzard that the Ice Empress released. As for Gabriel and Ryu Ryoko, they were still fighting outside the blizzard. They assured Satoshi that he didn''t have to worry about them.

    However, they were too focused on the entities in front of them that they didn''t notice the uing wave of a new batch of entities. Thankfully, Dex managed to notice it before everything was toote.

    With his enhanced senses and the help of Dex''s detecting capabilities, they saw the new wave of entities and their upgraded version. Compared to the entities on the first day, they were twice as big, and overall, they were twice as formidable as the first entities.

    As if on cue, the entities from the first day disappearedpletely and they were reced by stronger, more formidable entities for the second day. With this, one of Satoshi''s theories proved to be true¡ª that the entities would most likely end up looking like his familiar ''Smol'' on the third day.

    The three familiars who defended the entire camp were surprised that the entities they were fighting suddenly disappeared, vanishing into thin air. And the moment they realized that another wave wasing, it was already right up their face.

    One of the entities who was first to appear, jumped upward, grabbing the phoenix (Gabriel''s summon) and tearing its wings like a mad animal. It then bit on its neck and decapitated it, shrieking as theye.

    Another entity also engaged the Ice Empress, extending its hand as it blew a powerful methrower right at her. The attack was so strong that it forced Ice Empress to step back. Confused, her blizzard was deactivated the moment she lost her concentration.

    With the nket of blizzard dissipating, the other Disciples who were on night watch perked right up, wondering what happened. They had no idea what went wrong so they cautiously walked to the edge of the camp to see what was going on.

    "Sain, you''re up," Satoshi called out, integrating with his chainsaw familiar as he jumped into the fight. The moment he realized that the Ice Empress was having a hard time, he knew that he had to defend himself.

    An armor made of chainsaws enveloped Satoshi. The moment he noticed an entity, he swung his hand which instantly shifted into a chainsaw. He and his familiar were in sync with each other so he didn''t feel the need tomand it from time to time.

    The Ice Empress managed to drive out the entity that engaged her inbat. However, she suffered some heavy damage since fire is her type disadvantage. She was totally caught off-guard when the entity attacked. After all, she didn''t expect the entities to have elemental magic.

    As for Gabriel, he had no choice but to recall the phoenix he summoned since it was almost ripped into pieces. Although the phoenix could revive after dying, it will take a significant amount of time before it did so Gabriel opted to recall it so it could recover.

    Instead, Gabriel summoned his other familiars, but they too didn''t stand a chance against a single entity.

    In just a span of a couple of minutes, the tables hadpletely turned in favor of the entities.

    Ryu Ryoko also transformed into her Crystal Scaled Form since she had a hard time dealing with the entities who continually wed on her skin. Fortunately, her Crystal Scaled Form minimized the damage incurred upon her.

    Within the camp, the ominous shrieksing from the entities echoed as if to mark the second day of the survival test. It didn''t take long before the other Disciples also noticed that the entities had gotten stronger.

    There was no need for exnations. On the second day of the survival test, there was no way Satoshi could defend everyone by himself.

    "Satoshi, we''re here to help," Mitsuka called out, kicking one of the entities away from him.

    Satoshi was surprised that Mitsuka managed to easily kick the living daylights out of the entity but he didn''t say anything. Instead, he proceeded to hack and sh at the group of entities which relentlessly rushed toward him.

    Those who were awake set to work as well, defending the camp with everything they could. And as for the other Disciples who just woke up, they too started helping. The situation had gotten even more urgent and they needed all hands on deck.

    On one side, the other Disciples were having a hard time pushing back the entities. However, on the other side, Satoshi was single-handedly defending his front. What a couple of Disciples achieved was just child''s y for Satoshi. He was a one-man army, and his defense was even better than the group of Disciples.

    Even Mitsuka didn''t feel like she was helping at all. Then again, she didn''t bother helping the other side. She wanted to remain with Satoshi since she figured that that was the safest ce to be.

    Still, Mitsuka couldn''t believe that Satoshi was actually keeping up with the entities all by himself. He was on par with the group of Disciples just with his tamed beasts alone. Furthermore, all of his tamed beasts were unfamiliar to them, and some of them even resembled humans. It was truly a conundrum for everyone who witnessed the true power of Satoshi.

    "Aghk~!"

    From a distance, Satoshi and the others heard someone let out a scream as one of the entities got the better of him. He was immediately forcefully teleported the moment the entity tore one of its arms.

    The headcount which shed on the skies went down by one.

    Another one fell into the hands of the entities. And another, and another. In a span of two minutes, the headcount went down from 42 to 35.

    There were only 35 Disciples left, and the second day just started.

    "This difficulty spike is unfair." Bruce Willow grunted, helping out the group of Disciples with his axe.

    "Just defend. This is no time to strike up a conversation." Lucy told him. She was in a sour mood since her sleep was interrupted.

    Just like the first day, there was no end to the entities that charged at the ce. The moment they defeated one, another will spawn right after. It was a crazy game of endless mode.

    Some of the Disciples already felt the exhaustion overtaking them and if it weren''t for Satoshi, they''d have dropped out of the test sooner thanter. They managed to survive this long thanks to Satoshi''s intervention. But now, some of them were nearing the end of their rope.

    On one side, there was Satoshi defending half of the circle which bordered the camp. And on the other side was the group of Disciples who worked together to defend with Satoshi. Still, the power bnce between Disciples and entities slowly tipped in favor of the entities. Once again, a couple more Disciples fell in the hands of the entities, disqualifying them from the test.

    There were only 30 Disciples left.

 Chapter 496 Cruising Through The Second Day

    ?

    There was no time to rest. On all sides, the group suffered heavy damage in a poor attempt to hold down their fort. Clearly, Satoshi underestimated the strength of the second-day entities. They were exponentially more powerful than the first-day ones, not to mention that they were talented in both physical and magical control aspects.

    Four hours into the endless onught, the entire group still managed to defend but with great difficulty. Most of the Disciples were running low on fuel, and they were also beaten up. The only ones who barely held on were Bruce and Lucy who still didn''t use their full power.

    As for Himuro, Mitsuka, and Nanako, they slowly scooted closer to Satoshi since they couldn''t defend themselves without his help. Granted that they were more talented than the other Disciples in the group, they still stuck to Satoshi in hopes that they could save up energy for the third day.

    Even then, they continued draining their energy as if someone poked a hole in their stic bottle of energy reserve. At this rate, they won''t even survive a couple of hours.

    24 Disciples left!

    "Satoshi! We''re here to help!" Hansel and Gretel just lost their third team member who defended them. Since they were both support units, they buffed Gran Expatrio (their third party member) to no end. It was thanks to that that they could survive up until now.

    "Thanks! But I don''t need the support. The others need it more than I do." Satoshi pointed out.

    Nodding their heads, Hansel and Gretel continuously tapped into their energy reserves just to refill the others'' energy levels as much as they could. They were way beyond their limits but they pressed on, fully knowing that they''d also get eliminated the moment one of them falls down.

    Everything went by in a blur as Satoshi continued to hack and sh at the entities that came at him. All he saw was pure chaos and the liquid that came out of the entities whenever he shed them. It was ck, so Satoshi wondered whether they were blood or not.

    "I''m sorry, Smol, but I have to call you again." Satoshi couldn''t hold it any longer. Even if it would drain a little bit of his energy, he had to summon Smol once again so he could deal with the other entities.

    Smol was a third-day entity, so he should be able to deal with the second-day ones, right?

    A roar was heard as Smol came out of Orb Oboros''s dimension. Apparently, he was itching to go out into battle after seeing how much fun the others were having. Well, the others wouldn''t even consider it fun since they were backed into a corner but to Smol, it was something that he looked forward to.

    The moment Smol came out, he grabbed one of the entities and ripped it to shreds. It then ate the entity and gulped it down as if it were eating an expensive steak.

    With the additional carnage of Smol, the second-day entities became somewhat manageable.

    ...

    ...

    Halfway through the second day, Satoshi had no choice but to summon his star familiars, Ghast and Sera so they''d help them out. Their presence alleviated the problems that Hansel and Gretel were having¡ª their consistent drainage of energy.

    With Sera''s help in buffing and revitalizing everyone, the subjugation had be easier... but it didn''t take long before they experienced hardships once again.

    Some of the Disciples just couldn''t keep up. And now there were only 15 of them left!

    With the deduction of the other Disciples, everyone needed more ground to cover and it exhausted them faster than expected. Their numbers continued to go down one by one...

    And then there were 10 of them left!

    Satoshi''s original team, along with Mitsuka''s team counted six. Then there was Hansel and Gretel, and another support unit who was still alive to this day.

    To be fair, Satoshi had no idea what her name was but she was pretty strong considering that she could keep up with Hansel and Gretel who were expert support units.

    On the far end of the group was a lone man who defended on his own. He was the same man who finished first back when they had that final test yesterday. He was the one who ate a sizeable portion of avable food the moment he finished first.

    Satoshi and the others knew that he was probably one if not the strongest Disciple there was. However, witnessing it firsthand was another thing.

    He weaved through the air and shed at the entities with his dagger. He couldn''t kill them in one hit but his continuous shes were enough to keep them at bay. Compared to the other Disciples, he was having an easier time defending than the rest of them.

    Unbeknownst to Satoshi, the person who was wielding two daggers was actually observing him as well. After all, Satoshi was singlehandedly defeating the entities with his powerful summons as well as keeping everyone defended at all costs.

    If it weren''t for him, the others would''ve lost to the entities a couple of hours ago. They were supporting him, but the person could''ve sworn that Satoshi could defend himself even better without their assistance.

    That''s why he was bewildered as to why Satoshi was keeping the group together no matter what. There were no merits for him if he were to abandon the group. In fact, the person could picture him soloing the entire test due to how strong he was.

    And yet, he still chose to defend everyone, keeping the group together while working with them to the best of their abilities. It was unnecessary as it was a roundabout way of defending.

    "Interesting. Is he really a Disciple? Why would he go that far just to keep the group together? It''s much better if he just abandons them altogether." The person said to himself after bringing down five entities in one go.

    ...

    A couple of hourster,

    Evening came, and with it came the looming dangers of the third day. As the sun dipped down the horizon, marking the end of daylight, it was time for everyone to prepare for the worst.

    There were still 10 Disciples left, and together they found a streamlined way of defending themselves with the help of each other. The peerless Disciple also had no choice but to work with everyone else since his energy reserves were bing depleted.

    With a tightened defense of fighters in the outer circle surrounding the support units, the group tirelessly survived through the night. Satoshi''s summon, Sera, hung her shoulders down low since she was running low on energy as well.

    As for Ghast, he continuously teleported the entities which were getting a little too close to the support units. He manifested multiple dimensional portals each second and it tired him out after an hour.

    Then the clock ticked, one hour before midnight. Another screen appeared in the sky, followed by a notification that a strong wave of entities will spawn at this point. It was a warning that they didn''t expect at all.

    [WARNING! Final Wave!]

    [Number of entities will double from now on!]

    This was actually Magnus''s inner workings. He wanted to gatekeep everyone from getting through the second day because a majority of his Disciples didn''t even survive the second day of this survival test. If these ten people survive, then that would just put a majority of his Disciples at a lower level.

    Clearly, it was a dirty trick that Magnus was trying to pull.

    Gritting his teeth, Satoshi summoned his other familiars. Alpha Red Smander, Lighter, Windfan, and his other Representative Stat (Statue of Captivity).

    "You know what, if they''re going to attack us with all they''ve got in the next hour, then I''m pulling out all stops as well." Satoshi stole a nce towards his four familiars. "I don''t care about this forest anymore, burn it to the ground!" Satoshi screamed.

    A st of fire and hot air filled the entire ce as the second-day entities were mowed to the ground. Due to Lighter''s passive of unquenchable mes as well as the Alpha Red Smander''s heat body, the intense heat that encircled the area was enough to melt the entities rushing at them. Windfan helped with the mes'' range, blowing it through so it would reach farther than normal.

    But it wasn''t enough. Stat activated his gravity pressure as well as debuffs onto the entities. The entities could hardly move an inch before they melt into the ground.

    Thest hour of the second day was more chaotic, and the number of entities that rushed at them quadrupled!

    Initially, Magnus only wanted to double the number but they couldn''t even break through Satoshi''s immacte defense.

    That''s why he had to triple it, then quadruple it. When he was about to quintuple the number, the Managersined that Magnus was taking it too far. This wasn''t how the survival test was supposed to go.

    If they were topare it to the survival test that Magnus''s Disciples had to go through, then Satoshi and the others had far surpassed them long ago.

    With this, the group cruised through the second day, and now the third day had descended upon them.

    At this point, Smol wasn''t the strongest entity anymore. He was on par with the hundreds upon hundreds of entities that spawned on the third day.

 Chapter 497 Go Beyond, Plus

    ?

    Survival Test, Third Day,

    In the curious gathering of the Managers who keenly observed the live stream with their fingers crossed. Some of the Managers delightedly gave themselves a pat on the back after seeing that their Disciples had survived until the Third Day.

    The steady tapping of heels could be hearding from Magnus as he anxiously watched the Managers. Right now, he couldn''t do anything since he had manipted the survival test to the point where the other Managers wouldn''t forgive him if he were to alter something else.

    On thest hour of the second day, he suddenly challenged the Disciples to a ''happy hour'' where he quadrupled the number of second-day entitiesing their way. It was nothing short of cruel, but the remaining ten Disciples managed to hold on even with such an unfavorable situation handed to them.

    Ultimately, it was all thanks to Satoshi almost going all out, summoning more than five of his familiars just to hold down their fort. The others supported him to no end as well, continuously healing each other and defending Satoshi''s blind spots and openings.

    At this point, the Disciples worked so fluidly together that they couldn''t have gone this far without each other''s help. While the other Managers believed that it was all thanks to Satoshi''s greatest contributions that they survived this far, the others perfectly assisted Satoshi and their contributions couldn''t be brushed off either.

    "Hey, you did say that none of your Disciples could make it through the third day, right?" Bucky Barnes smirked. Once again, he sat down beside Magnus Carter, slowly putting his hand on his shoulder before patting it in a condescending manner.

    With a troubled expression written across his face, Magnus nodded his head. Everyone in the room already knew what Bucky Barnes was about to say, and they could also tell that the next words that woulde out of Bucky Barnes''s mouth would sting Magnus''s pride.

    "Go all out, I don''t mind." Bucky Barnes shook his hands as if he was drying it out. "You can go quadruple or quintuple the number of entities on the third day. Honestly, I''m curious about my Disciple''s limit as well."

    The other Managers were about to retort to Bucky Barnes''s absurd request. However, Dumble Dore raised his staff and released a little bit of pressure to calm everyone down. It wasn''t surprising that Dumble Dore supported Bucky''s provocation.

    "Are you sure about this? If I really go all out, no one would be able to survive." Magnus''s lips parted into a grin. "Also, your Disciple seemed to be having a hard time right now."

    "Oh please, he hasn''t even used eleven percent of his power." Bucky Barnes shrugged, fully confident that Satoshi was actually more powerful than he realized. The only reason why Satoshi couldn''t break through his limit was because there wasn''t enough challenge for him.

    Even on Earth, there were only a handful of people who could go head-to-head with him¡ª but if Satoshi were to fight seriously, no one would top him in his world. That''s how Bucky Barnes viewed him as, and that image won''t disappear in his mind since Satoshi''s potential was limitless.

    "Is everyone in agreement? I promise that I''ll shield the Disciples if a fatal blow was dealt by my entities." Magnus offered.

    Now that it hade to this. The other Managers also wondered if what Bucky Barnes said was true. Whether Satoshi was barely using eleven percent of his power or not, would be up to the Managers to decide.

    At the bottom line of things, the Managers wanted to see just how far Satoshi could go. He seemed to be breezing through the third day right now with the others. It was clear that he really wasn''t going all out.

    With those thoughts in mind, the other Managers nodded in agreement.

    Smiling, Bucky Barnes extended his hand at Magnus. "Go ahead, give ''em hell or something."

    "My pleasure... don''t go backing down on your word, Bucky Barnes," Magnus responded.

    ...

    Three hours left before the third day ends.

    Since this was already the third day, all the entities that spawned were asrge as Smol, Satoshi''s familiar. Compared to thest hour of the second day, it was somewhat manageable.

    However, their collective firepower was considerably superiorpared to the second-day entities. Not only were they agile on their own, but they were also adept in elemental magic.

    Their regeneration skill was also nothing tough at. Every time one of them decapitates an entity, it would just regrow its head or appendages. Furthermore, the number of entities that spawned was already overwhelming them.

    Satoshi and his group were already on the verge of losing consciousness. It was only about time before theypletely exhaust themselves. Everyone was doing their best, but it was clear that Satoshi was hard carrying everyone else.

    Most of them wanted to give up, but Satoshi was doing his best to defend everyone else. That''s why they pushed themselves way beyond their limits just to keep up with Satoshi.

    "Just a little more..." Gritting his teeth, Satoshi shed at the huge entity in front of him. Spinning around like an intense whirlwind, Satoshi let the momentum carry him as his chainsaws dug through the skin of the entity at his front.

    After putting a stop to its movements, hemanded Orb Oboros to use his dimensional space to push back the entities. He wasn''t sure if transporting the entities would disqualify him from the test so he didn''t risk it.

    Besides, even if he were to teleport one of them, a couple more would just spawn so he''d just be wasting Orb Oboros''s entity by doing something so unnecessary.

    Satoshi barely had enough time to check up on everyone. He didn''t need to confirm since all of them were at full power. Bruce was screaming his lungs out while he pushed back one of the entities with his innate physical ability. Magic shot out from all his sides as well, giving him enough firepower to defend his position while protecting the support units with his life.

    As for the three support units, they were glowing a bright shade of gold as they buffed everyone up. Even though Satoshi explicitly told them not to give him any buffs, they still included him. After all, he was theirst line of defense should one of them fall down.

    Lucy was furiouslymanding her Representative, Golden Pen, rewriting as much as she could while maintaining the minimum bacsh so she could survive the next three hours. Himuro and Nanako were a duo when it came to defending. With the two of them working together while receiving the buffs from Sera and the three support units, they were a formidable wall in front of the relentless entities.

    The huge entities continuously attempted to break through their defenses without reprieve but they just couldn''t find an opening. This ten-man team was close to invincible¡ª or so that''s the only thought that came into Magnus''s head as the administrator of this survival test.

    However, the test was just getting started. Thanks to the tant challenge made by Bucky Barnes himself, Magnus got the green light to spawn as many entities as he could.

    Currently, the spawn rate of the huge entities was the same on the second day. The only difference was the size and the power level of the entities. But now, all of that was going to change in a snap of a finger.

    On Magnus''s signal, the spawn rate of the entities increased by five times. Then when Magnus saw that it worked, he increased the spawn rate by another five times.

    Just like what Bucky Barnes advised him to, he pulled out all stops, unleashing his full summoning power onto the Disciples who were left.

    Forecasting the absolute pandemonium that was about to ensue, Magnus couldn''t help but chuckle inwardly. He hoped that Bucky Barnes wouldn''t regret what he said just now.

    And he didn''t, he just casually sat there, drinking a colorful drink he got from the snack bar. Magnus could''ve sworn that he saw Bucky Barnes smile but it must''ve only been his imagination.

    In any case, what was once a nice forest was now trampled on by the crazy numbers of entities. A moment ago, there were still sizeable gaps where the entities didn''t spawn. But now, they spawn on every inch of the forest.

    "Well, that escted quickly." The peerless Disciple muttered to himself as he stole a nce at Satoshi.

    Meanwhile, Satoshi seemed to be preupied with something.

    "SATOSHI!" Bruce eximed at the top of his lungs, calling out to him as he pointed towards the horizon.

    The number of entities that spawned was ten times faster, and they marched toward the epicenter of the group.

    "It''s the Rumbling," Himuro muttered to himself as he nervously gulped his own saliva.

    "Don''t say that, we might get copyright issues." Nanako hissed at him. But then again, Himuro couldn''t have described it more urately.

    Clicking his tongue, Satoshi clutched the bag which was slung on his shoulder. This bag was actually Orb Oboros in the flesh, and Satoshi finally decided to bring out all his familiars and unleash one hundred percent of his power.

    "Brace yourselves everyone! We''re going to get through this!" Satoshi growled.

    It was time to really pull out all stops. Go beyond, plus¡ª

 Chapter 498 To Survive A Survival Test

    ?

    Even with the staggering numbers of huge entities, Satoshi still kept on fighting while protecting and covering for everyone. He didn''t even think twice about selflessly going above and beyond for his teammates since he wanted them to survive through the third day with him.

    They had only been together for three days, but the constant onught of the entities forged their bonds in a fiery furnace. Satoshi was going to bring them with him through the survival test even if it meant going all out.

    "Amy, Nailgun, Scarlet Scythe, I choose you! Octo and Kraken Queen, you guyse out as well!" Satoshi screamed.

    He finally brought out all his offensive familiars to help him out, and for the first time in Satoshi''s life, he could finally go all out.

    Instead of letting Octo (the Kraken Queen''s child) fight alongside his mother, Satoshi integrated with him so he could use his powers along with Sain. Right now, Satoshi could only achieve a Dual Beast Integration whilemanding his army of familiars.

    Technically, he could just integrate with everyone and destroy the entire area altogether, but that wouldn''t be beneficial for his team. His offensive capabilities were more than enough to match the horde of entities, nevertheless, he still need a certain control over them.

    Furthermore, there was no way he could protect the entire group if he were to integrate with everyone. It would be easy if he were surviving alone. Right now, however, he''s got a team with him and he determinedly decided to bring them with him through the end.

    "Amy! You copy me. We''re going all in." Satoshimanded, to which Amy (originally known as Copycat, his copy familiar) nodded her head in response.

    Tentacles came out of Satoshi''s posterior, swinging wildly around as they mixed with the chainsaw feature of the chainsaw familiar Sain. Now, Satoshi''s tentacles resembled long chainsaws that erratically sliced and diced the entities.

    Amy copied him in a sh, also assuming his superpower to the letter as she covered the other side of the group. Together, the two of them worked hard in keeping the entities at bay.

    Compared to a couple of hours ago, everyone was having a hard time. But now that there were technically two Satoshis keeping the entire horde at bay, everyone found it easier to defend.

    One hour left.

    "Final push everyone!" Satoshi''s voice sounded a little too mechanical thanks to the subtle changes from integrating with Octo and Sain. These familiars changed Satoshi''s physique as well as his bodyposition. He still looked humanoid, but his entire body was made up of Octo and Sain''s bodies.

    It was the final push so everyone gave it their all¡ª not that everyone wasn''t giving their all a couple of hours ago. Thanks to the countdown reaching its final hour, it renewed everyone''s determination, causing them to go way beyond their limits while screaming their lungs out.

    Seeing the insane boost in their power output, Satoshi didn''t want to get outshined so he pushed himself even further, going way beyond his one hundred percent as the countdown continued going down.

    Every single Manager and eliminated Disciples watched the entire group while they gritted their teeth. It was like a scene out of a battle movie, a fitting end to a survival test that should''ve been impossible.

    Even Magnus''s Disciples, who weren''t present in the current training camp since they were powerful enough, watched with their fingers crossed¡ª not because they were wishing for the remaining ten Disciples to finish, but rather because they hoped that they won''t survive the third day.

    After all, none of them survived the third day, so they wished for everyone''s failure as well just so they wouldn''t lose face.

    A handful of them survived halfway through the third day and couldn''t even begin to imagine how ten of them could get through such a formidable horde. They just faced a tenth of that horde and they couldn''t evenst through the third day.

    Of course, there was one Disciple there who was the most powerful out of everyone, and he watched with clenched fists as the final minutes ticked. He hated the fact that a normal Disciple was actually more powerful than him... and yet he greatly respected his superpower.

    Somehow, the entire live stream became famous throughout all dimensions. It had be an interdimensional sensation amongst Managers and Disciples. There were even Disciples who wouldn''t participate in the fight against the World Eater. But after seeing the live stream, their rear side started itching for a battle.

    One minute left!

    Satoshi and the nine others in his team could see the light at the end of the tunnel. They started screaming while the horde mercilessly threw everything at them. They were already certain of their victory, and it gave them the adrenaline boost they needed tost a couple of seconds more.

    With the nearing end, Satoshi''s consciousness actually started dwindling. After all, he needed to continuously consume energy while trying to keep his familiars summoned. Adding to that, he was using Dual Beast Integration so his energy consumption was unsurprisingly fast.

    It was mentioned before that Satoshi''s summons don''t consume energy. However, Satoshi consumes energy every time he summons them. Throughout the entire survival test, he had to resummon some of his familiars since they suffer considerable damage... and Satoshi didn''t want them to suffer so he resets their summon every now and then.

    Because of that, Satoshi''s seemingly endless well of energy was now beginning to dry up, and his consciousness dwindled because of it.

    Three.

    Two.

    One!

    "..."

    "..."

    The pandemonium thatsted for three days was gone in an instant. And then there was peace. For a moment, the usual serenity and tranquility of the forest epassed the ten Disciples who survived the hellish three days.

    With exhaustion in their eyes, everyone stole a gaze at each other as the area surrounding them started clearing up. The entities who stopped moving finally disappeared, and what was left were all the Disciples along with their tamed beasts.

    Now that they got a good look at it, Satoshi''s familiars exuded so much power that they couldn''t help but choke up. Behind these formidable familiars is an overpowered Disciple who looked nothing like a human. The tentacles in his back continued to erratically swing around in the air as if still looking forward to another match.

    And a couple of feet away from him was his copy, which looked exactly like him and disyed powers on par with his. It was none other than Amy who assumed Satoshi''s current form.

    At this point, Satoshi just wanted to keel forward and rest on the nonexistent grass on his feet. The moment he thought that his body fell forward, the Dual Beast Integration deactivated before he could do anything.

    Satoshi felt as helpless as a newborn fawn when he fell forward. He may have looked like a hero back then, but now his image was nothing like that. The exhaustion finally got the better of him and he fell into unconsciousness.

    Of course, it was understandable since he solo-carried everyone in the group. His losing consciousness didn''t make him any less cool than he was before.

    However, Satoshi forgot to do one thing before he fainted¡ª he actually forgot to recall all his familiars!

    "Um, what do we do about them?" Bruce asked, jerking a thumb at the hooded robe floating behind him. Somehow, the figure sent chills up and down his spine even though he knew that it was harmless.

    After all, they were Satoshi''s familiars. There was no way they''d suddenly attack anyone, right?

    Every Disciple got a better look at Satoshi''s familiars. Just the sheer size of them made them want to throw up¡ª especially that familiar he called Stat. They had no idea that such a massive Representative such as the Statue of Captivity existed.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    The gathering of Managers took a standstill when the survival test ended. All of them just sat there with their eyes wide open. Never in their long life span have they witnessed something so unimaginable.

    Then there was Bucky Barnes, who simply leaned back on his seat. His smug attitude emanated in the room they were in. "Told ya," He simply uttered as he shook off the imaginary dust from his clothes.

    "I guess this is my big break, huh? I can''t wait for the other Managers to interview me." He continued as he wore the same smug look on his face. "Nothing like good marketing, right Magnus Carter?"

    Somehow, even with his chatty attitude, his voice was still monotonous. There was excitement in his voice, but it still sounded robotic and serious just like the usual Bucky Barnes.

    Tight-lipped, Magnus stood up and slowly walked out of the room. The moment he took one step outside, he turned around. "I''ll go check up on everyone. With this, the survival test has officially concluded." He mumbled before summoning an interdimensional portal which led straight to the where the Disciples were.

 Chapter 499 Into The Hall Of Representatives

    ?

    It had been so long since Satoshi had woken up inside the Hall of Representatives (refer to chapter 241). Compared to before when only two of the twelve spots lit up. Right now, there were four spots that were taken out of the twelve avable spots.

    As previously mentioned by Dex. This is the Hall of Representatives where all Representatives across dimensions gather. In total, there were twelve of them, but Satoshi knew that there were more Representatives. He had no idea why Dex misinformed him about it, but there was nothing

    "Wait, there are five spots lit up. I must be seeing things." Satoshi corrected himself when another spot lit up in front of him. In total, there were five Representatives under hismand and one by one, they appeared in order.

    The first one who appeared was his original familiar, Dex, who had been functioning like a System and a personal assistant for him.

    He was the one working in the background to ensure Satoshi''s safety and assist him in everything. He was also the reason behind Satoshi''s expansive knowledge about familiars. Without him, Satoshi wouldn''t have be as formidable as he was right now.

    The next one to appear was Stat, the Statue of Captivity, towering right in front of Satoshi while wearing a straight face. Then again, Stat always wore the same expression on its face.

    The third one to appear was Scarlet Scythe, then Amy (Copycat) followed suit. As for the fifth Representative whom Satoshi almost forgot about, it was none other than the Quasar Lightning Snake.

    Now that the five of them were gathered in the Hall of Representatives, Satoshi couldn''t believe that these powerful familiars were under him. Clearly, each of them was more powerful than him. If it weren''t for the help of his other familiars, he wouldn''t have been able to tame them.

    "Why am I hear again? Oh wait, I passed out, right?" Satoshi asked as he sat in the middle of the hall. He tried to act asfortably as he could while suppressing his anxiousness due to the sheer power of his familiars.

    "That was awesome, right?" Stat began, still speaking with an even tone to his voice as he recalled the final moments of the survival tests.

    "We finally get to go all out... well, not really, we almost went full power though," Amy said with a certain seriousness. She wanted to celebrate but seeing everyone with their stiffposition prevented her from doing so.

    "I didn''t get toe out til thest moment though. I''d have obliterated all of them in one go." The Quasar Lightning Snake calmly spoke. He wasn''t ming Satoshi for not letting him out earlier. In fact, he was amazed at how specific Satoshi could get when ites to his tactics.

    "Still, if there was only our master in the whole picture, he would''ve had an easier time surviving. Technically, Master still didn''t go all out." Stat continued.

    "You guys converse with each other. I need to get some rest." Dex joked. He was exhausted, but not to the point where he needed to take a break.

    To be fair, he was Satoshi''s right hand when it came to managing everyone. He was like the middleman of everything, and without his help, Satoshi wouldn''t have been able to micromanage everyone while trying to defend the entire group.

    "We all need some rest after that." Satoshi exhaled as he leaned back to rx a little bit. "In any case, we passed that survival test, right? Do you think we have a fighting chance against the World Eater?"

    "Not even a peter of chance," Dex called out. "You have to gather more familiars, Satoshi. At this rate, you might solo the entire fight against the World Eater."

    "Yeah, the Disciples are surprisingly weak." Stat didn''t even filter his words. He just went straight into insulting the other Disciples.

    "I mean... that''s why we''re in the training camp, to train beyond our limits and hopefully get better to fend off the World Eater." Satoshi continued. He didn''t disagree with Stat''s words, however¡ª not because he found the other Disciples weak, but rather, he sees all of them weak as a whole, including him.

    "We have three months, plenty of time to get another Representative. We know you can do it, Satoshi." Dex said.

    Before Satoshi could say anything, his consciousness dwindled, and he was sent out of the Hall of Representatives.

    ...

    When Satoshi regained his consciousness, he was greeted with a pristine white ceiling and a strong fluorescent light that partially blinded him. He winced, turning over to his side before he tried to figure out where he was.

    It didn''t take long before he realized that he was in the clinic, tended to by the nurse assigned to take care of the Disciples if they were to hurt themselves.

    From the curtains that covered all sides of the bed, Satoshi could barely see the figure of the nurse being reflected through the thin sheets. When she heard Satoshi''s slight movements, she stopped short and opened the curtains.

    Much to Satoshi''s surprise, it was no other than Nishimura Haruka, also known by her superhero name, the Nurse.

    "You''re awake," Shemented before walking towards the water dispenser by the corner of the clinic and procuring water for Satoshi. As she handed it to him, a smile formed across his face. "You''re really pushing yourself too far everywhere you go, huh? There was the Inter-high Tournament, then the Official Beast Tournament, and now this?"

    Although the Nurse sighed under her breath, she couldn''t help but feel relieved that Satoshi didn''t suffer any fatal injuries. This situation was already normal for the two of them since she was almost always the one healing Satoshi whenever an injury is incurred upon him.

    "Haruka-san? H-how? But why? Why are you here? I thought only Disciples are allowed here?" He asked.

    "I was scouted by Bucky Barnes. He''s your Manager, right? He told me that someone who''d tended to one of his Disciples should be more than trustworthy enough. Also, I already know the news about the World Eater so I couldn''t just sit still without contributing anything." Haruka exined.

    "You do all your best in training, pour your heart out. Meanwhile, I''ll be here, tirelessly tending to your injuries." She continued. "How are you feeling?"

    Now that the topic was brought up, Satoshi felt that his entire body was sore all over. Even the muscles on his neck started cramping at the slightest movement. It left him a little confused since he turned to the side a moment ago nd he didn''t feel anything.

    "Figures, you overburdened yourself, using Dual Beast Integration while keeping tabs with everyone. You pretty much tanked that entire horde so it''s no surprise that all your muscles are screaming right now." The Nurse, Haruka, pointed out.

    "In any case, your body should heal after a good night''s rest. And don''t think about using that tamed beast of yours to speed up the process. I already did what I could to hasten your recovery, your body might not take it properly if you were to speed it up even more." As she exined, she gave Satoshi another cup of water and assisted him with drinking it. "Also, your tamed beasts might be exhausted as well. They''re actually waiting right outside the dorms since you didn''t recall them before you fell into unconsciousness."

    "Ah, right, I totally forgot about that." Satoshi muttered to himself. Even Orb Oboros, who should''ve been right there were with him disguised as a bag, was nowhere to be found. He could still feel his connection to him though so he was probably just chilling with his other familiars while everyone admired them.

    "You can rest for a couple more minutes. No one actually suffered any major injuries so feel free to upy that bed until dinner or something. You''re wee to sleep here, but just so you know I''ll be staying in this clinic so if you want to sleep in the same room with me, then go ahead." Haruka teased. She wasn''t pressuring Satoshi at all since he was always wee to sleep in the clinic. Besides, she''s got a room for herself in the girls'' section of the dorms.

    "I''ll oblige then," Satoshi went with the joke as he closed his eyes. RIght now, he just wanted to rx as the cold winds of the airconditioner sted straight at his face.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    Satoshi''s familiars had the option to go inside Orb Oboros''s dimension. But seeing that Orb Oboros was right there with them, they decided to stay out for a little longer, enjoying each other''spany while all the other Disciples admired them from afar.

    Actually, Magnus wanted to teleport them back but Ghast was quick enough to do it before he could do anything.

    As the Disciples admired Satoshi''s familiars, they started posing since they were the spotlight right now. Even Gabriel and Ryu Ryoko were doing peace signs as if they were greeting their long-time fans in a concert.

    "This isn''t so bad every once in a while." Gabriel whispered at Amy, who still assumed Satoshi''s looks. "Also, you look weird, you know that?"

    "What? Are you saying our master looks weird?" Amy the Copycat returned, her lips curving upward as she smiled at Gabriel.

 Chapter 500 A Days Rest

    ?

    As the world-renowned number-one superhero of America, Jack S. Michael (also known by his superhero name, Star Spangled), made it his routine duty to fly all around America to get a bird''s eye view of the entire country. With this, he could monitor brewing trouble and deal with it.

    Most of the time, he would inform the local superheroes to deal with their local troubles, and if the situation couldn''t be handled by the local superheroes, he would inform the Top Ten and then it''s up to them to decide who would handle the case.

    Furthermore, if the top ten superheroes of America couldn''t handle it, then that''s when Star Spangled would move by himself, working with either the top ten or the local superheroes to bring the situation under control.

    For years, Star Spangled never missed a day flying all over the entire North and South America. Usually, it takes him a couple of hours or so, that''s why he forced himself to develop the clean habit of waking up early. After all, as the number one superhero, there were still plenty of things he needed to do aside from that.

    Today was no different.

    Right when he was flying directly over Brazil, Star Spangled felt like rxing so he flew a little bit higher, gaining altitude until he crossed the thermosphere. Usually, a normal person with the power of flight couldn''t get this far, but this was Star Spangled we''re talking about. He could easily withstand the harsh conditions of this atmosphericyer, all the while holding his breath for an extended period of time.

    "Wait, what was that?"

    Thanks to his enhanced sight, Star Spangled could actually see into space, and from afar, he saw a little red dot that shouldn''t be there in the first ce. "Is that a?" He continued asking himself.

    While it resembled a, Star Spangled could''ve sworn that he''d never seen something like that before. That''s why he started questioning the very reality he woke up in. He tried to take a closer look but there was a limit to his sight.

    "I''d have to report it. That looks weird. Is it an alien threat? It could be... there might be another invasion." Star Spangled muttered to himself as he touched down in Brazil.

    Everyone immediately recognized him when he descended. It was weird since Star Spangled rarely visits the country, and he even touched down in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil.

    "It''s Star Spangled!" Some of the bystanders muttered to themselves while they took pictures. For a moment, a minority of the people were a bit rmed since the presence of the number one superhero could only mean that there was most probably a threat to their country or something along those lines.

    In any case, Star Spangled was quick-witted enough to calm everyone down by telling them that there was no real danger involved. He didn''t tell them about the weird-looking thing in space though, since that might cause a global panic.

    "Is Mi Hermano here?" Star Spangled asked one of the passers-by as if he would know the whereabouts of the top superhero of Brazil.

    Ironically enough, the top superhero of Brazil is actually Spanish-Brazilian and he goes by the name Mi Hermano. He got inspiration from a certain popr superhero in a series that has ''friendly neighborhood'' on its name. It gave off the same vibes and it paid homage to his upbringing, that''s why he named himself Mi Hermano.

    "Um, he should be in his agency, right?" The passers-by calmly said in broken English as he handed the Star Spangled a huge piece of paper.

    In response, Star Spangled gave his autographs to those who wanted it before flying towards Mi Hermano''s agency building.

    "Star Spangled, er, sir, what brings you here?" The security guard standing by the front entrance excitedly greeted him while tipping his hat.

    "Is Mi Hermano inside? I need to make a report and coborate with him and other superheroes. We''ve got an urgent situation on our hands." He continued.

    The security guard almost choked up due to the intense pressure that Star Spangled released. Without further ado, he quickly opened the door for Star Spangled. "Right this way, sir, he''s in his office at the moment." He continued.

    "Thank you," Star Spangled responded as he amicably bowed his head slightly toward the security guard.

    ...

    A bell resounded throughout the entire dorms, signaling dinnertime. As if on cue, some of the doors in the dorms swung open and dozens of Disciples flooded the hallways. they all headed to the cafeteria to get their much-needed dinner for the night.

    Thanks to Magnus Carter''s spartan survival test, the group was given a day''s rest to recuperate... well, only Satoshi''s group was given this window of opportunity since the others dropped out on the first day.

    While the majority of the Disciples were given another day of hellish training, the ten Disciples who survived with Satoshi had a day''s rest as a reward. It couldn''t even be considered a reward since theypletely exhausted their energy and it might take more than a day topletely recover it.

    Currently, the other Disciples were still doing their tests while the ten Disciples including Satoshi get to have one full day of rest.

    "Hey, don''t you think it''s a little bit calm in here? Where are the Disciples?" Hansel asked, turning to his sister who was walking beside her. He fully knew that they were still outside doing some rigorous training while the ten of them enjoyed their rest.

    Now, it was dinnertime and the ten of them went to the cafeteria to get some dinner before they spend their sweet time enjoying the facilities. The entire group opted to go swimming first, then they decided to rx by the jacuzzi while drinking some drinks.

    "We''re here." Gran Expatrio called out, saying hello to Bruce and Lucy who were also there with them.

    Pretty soon, the other team also arrived,prising Himura, Mitsuka, and Nanako. The peerless disciple and the other support unit who survived with them were also present.

    Together, the ten of them sat on one of the tables so they could enjoy each other''spany. After saying a couple of greetings to each other, the ten of them ate as if this was a normal urrence for them.

    At the back of their minds, they thought that maybe they didn''t deserve this rest since Satoshi pretty much carried them through the survival test. However, they could also argue that it was thanks to their abilities that they were able to support Satoshi even if it was just a little bit.

    "Don''t you think we... you know... don''t deserve all these? If it weren''t for Satoshi..." Mitsuka trailed off. "No, instead of thinking like that, we should just thank him once he gets here!" She continued, pping both her cheeks with her hands.

    "Yeah, it was thanks to him that we were able to survive. We owe a lot to him, that''s for sure." Gran said, as a smile briefly appeared on his face.

    Without saying another word, he raised his ss to toast for Satoshi. The others followed suit and together the ten of them merrily ate and drank to their heart''s content.

    .....

    Meanwhile,

    "Are you sure you''re going to leave?" Haruka coquettishly asked, leaning forward as she tried to convince Satoshi to stay a little bit longer. To be fair, she was just teasing him. She wasn''t really nning on letting him stay.

    "I can''t impose on you too much, Haruka-san, you''ve done so much for me already. Also, I do think that I might return here soon." Satoshi scratched his head. Hisst statement really spoke out loud since he was fairly certain this wouldn''t be thest time he''ll end up in the infirmary.

    "Hmm... that''s true... okay then, I''ll be waiting for your return. Don''t overextend though, Satoshi, you''re pushing yourself too hard." She advised while pouting her lips.

    "I''ll be in your care, Haruka-san," Satoshi said before heading out of the infirmary.

    The moment he stepped out, he noticed an aura so intense that it almost curdled his blood. He felt like he would choke if he didn''t maintain hisposure.

    "Midoriyama Satoshi," Someone called out to him from behind.

    It was none other than Magnus Carter.

    "H-hai~?!" Satoshi yelped the moment he turned around. Inwardly, he eximed, seeing that Magnus Carter was really there talking to him.

    Clearing his throat, Magnus Carter approached Satoshi, toning down the pressure that emanated from him so Satoshi wouldn''t feel as powerless in front of him. "I''ll get straight to the point."

    At this point, Satoshi was already panicking. He had no idea why Magnus was talking to him. ''It must be because of my performance, right? Did I do something wrong, wait~?'' Satoshi anxiously said to himself.

    "Would you like toe to my wing as a Disciple? I mean... do you want to be my Disciple?" Magnus asked out of nowhere, causing Satoshi''s jaw to drop straight to the floor.

 Chapter 501 Dinner Together

    "Would you like toe to my wing as a Disciple? I mean... do you want to be my Disciple?"

    The sudden invitation made Satoshi do a double take. ncing around, he initially thought that Magnus Carter was actually pranking him. But sensing that there was no one around except for the two of them, he was led to believe that Magnus Carter was sincere when he asked him to be his Disciple.

    "Eh, me? Why me?" Satoshi pointed at himself, surprised. Thest thing he expected was for the renowned strongest Manager to invite him under his wing.

    "You''re talented enough, and you''ve got limitless potential. You''ll grow even faster under my wing. Adding to that, I also have a lot of formidable Disciples under my wing. Don''t you want to fight them?" Magnus offered, extending his hand for a handshake since he was one hundred percent sure that Satoshi would ept his offer.

    "I uh..." Satoshi looked away. Even though he may look indecisive right now, he never actually considered joining hands with Magnus Carter.

    Quite frankly, it didn''t matter to Satoshi. He had already epted Bucky Barnes as his master and that''s final. Even if someone approaches him with the intent of recruiting him, there was no way he''d join.

    The only reason why he was contemting his words was that he didn''t want to offend Magnus Carter. Hence, he wanted to reject him as respectfully as possible.

    "I''m sorry, Magnus-san, but I''d have to decline. I want to remain under Bucky Barnes." Satoshi bowed his head as he apologetically rejected Magnus''s offer. To him, this was the most effective way of rejection he could think of.

    In response, Magnus''s brows twitched. He couldn''t believe that a mere human rejected his once-in-a-lifetime offer! If any, he felt a modicum of annoyance since this was the first time it happened to me.

    As someone who stood at the peak, Magnus would always get his way no matter what. The other Managers didn''t evene close to his sess, that''s why all they could do was bask in his shadow as he took all the advantages.

    Whenever he finds someone who could be a fine addition to his already growing faction of Disciples, he would recruit him or her in a snap of a finger. And ever since he had done this dirty trick, not one Disciple had rejected him. It was simply ridiculous to reject someone like him.

    "I-I see. I guess this recruitment came as a surprise, right? Don''t worry, you don''t have to give an immediate answer. Just take your time and talk to me when you''re ready to be my Disciple." Magnus Carter rubbed the bottom of his nose as he brushed off Satoshi''s direct rejection.

    Since he simply couldn''t ept it, he decided to just ignore what Satoshi just said, and instead give him the opportunity to think it over a little bit more. Surely, this n would work, right? No one in their right mind would reject such an open-ended closure, right?

    "I''m sorry, Magnus-san. I don''t have to think about it. I''ll stay as Bucky Barnes''s Disciple. Nevertheless, I''m grateful for your generous offer, Magnus-san." Satoshi mumbled to himself as he turned around. He was well aware that Magnus would just brush off what he said just now so before Magnus could say anything, Satoshi excused himself without saying another word.

    "Please, Satoshi, do reconsider it. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance." Magnus forced a smile on his face. He was clearly annoyed by the unfolding events which didn''t go in his favor.

    Tight-lipped, Satoshi turned around, bowed his head, and proceeded to walk away. He had said his bit in the matter, and there was no need for him to rify himself.

    ...

    A couple of minutester,

    The doors to the cafeteria opened, and Satoshi saw everyone gathered at one table. With a wave of greeting, Satoshi assumed the free seat which was by the end of the table. Everyone reserved that seat for him since they were expecting him to join them for dinner. To be fair, Satoshi missed out on two meals that day.

    After all, he had to stay in the infirmary for the entire day just so he could recuperate a bit.

    "Satoshi!" Mitsuka called out, waving her hand as everyone else did the same. "Are you feeling better now?"

    Honestly, all of Satoshi''s muscles felt a little bit sore, it''s just that he had to move them a little bit so they won''t stiffen by tomorrow. With every movement he did, he felt like his muscles were tearing apart.

    More than anything though, Satoshi was famished, so he overlooked his muscle aches and just grabbed some food. He particrly ate his favorite, hamburg steak, surprised that the cafeteria never runs out of food. There were plenty of Disciples and more than a dozen Managers. And yet, the cafeteria could keep up with the demand.

    "In any case, we still have no idea what your superpower was, but it is certainly powerful. You might even rival Magnus Carter''s Disciples or something." Granmented, swinging his fork around to prove his point.

    "Even if we weren''t there, I''m pretty sure Satoshi would''ve been able to survive that test all throughout." Hansel also agreed with what Gran said.

    "You''re right, we''re most certainly not needed. But then again, Satoshi opted to work together with us, going the extra mile just so we could survive as well." The rumored strongest Disciple spoke as he looked at Satoshi with a serious expression on his face. Leaning back, he decided to question Satoshi''s motives since there really was no merit in helping all of them.

    "So, what were your motives in helping us? Why did you decide to help us even when you could''ve just cleared the entire survival test by yourself?" He asked. This time, he leaned forward as he sped both his hands in front of him.

    "Wait, before anything... can''t you introduce yourself first? We''ve been eating together for three meals now and we still have no idea what your name is." This time, it was Gretel who spoke, waving her hand as if to brush off what the Disciple just said.

    "Pardon myte introduction... I''m not really very good at socializing so I''ve got the friendship steps mixed up." Arghus heaved a sigh before he bowed his head in an apologetic manner. Before anyone could say anything, he introduced himself. "I''m Arghus Melodica, the strongest superhero in our world... but now that I''vee here for training, I realized that I was just a frog in the well."

    "Not really, you''re one of the strongest Disciples there is. I mean, if youpared some of us to you, you know," Gran Expatrio responded. "Now, back to your question, you were asking Satoshi something, right?"

    Meanwhile, Satoshi wasn''t really paying attention to all of them. He was just enjoying his hamburg steak, hastily finishing up the food on his te so he could get seconds.

    "Let me ask again," Arghus cleared his throat.

    Just then, Satoshi stood up, causing everyone to flinch and put their guards up since he stood up so suddenly. Confused, Satoshi turned his head, and he realized that they were actually talking to him. Without saying another word, he pointed at his empty te, gesturing that he was going to get more food.

    "..."

    "..."

    When Satoshi returned to his table, Arghus once again asked the question. To be fair, everyone was kind of curious as to why Satoshi decided to help them out.

    "Ah, that? It was part of the test. We had to work together in order to pull through. It''s all part of the test." Satoshi calmly exined as he ate another hamburg in one bite. "I wouldn''t have been able to do it without you. There was no way I could''ve been able to defend the entire circle."

    It was clear that Satoshi was putting them up on a pedestal. After all, they only needed to defend a small portion. Now that Satoshi put it that way, though, it took every being of Satoshi to defend his side, and if they weren''t there, the small gap would''ve made all the difference in whether they survived or not.

    In a way, Satoshi spoke the truth. The ten of them worked hard to survive and they managed to pass.

    "I see. I guess I was just reading too much into things. I thought you want something from us." Arghus said as he rxed a little bit. "Thank you for helping us though, we wouldn''t have been able to survive without you."

    "Same here," Satoshi said, raising his ss of water before he drank it in one gulp. "In any case, I''ll be looking forward to working with you when we defeat the World Eater."

    "Ou, we''ll be in your care." Himuro said, also raising his ss of water.

    While all of that were happening, the third support unit who was with Hansel and Gretel fidgeted on her seat. She missed her chance to introduce herself to the group and now she regretted it.

 Chapter 502 Hot Springs Episode

    ?An error urred while reading the file: Could not find file ''/data//panda_novel_py/used_emails.txt''.

    "So this is the hot springs. It looks more weing than I thought." Arghus Melodica muttered to himself as he jumped into the hot springs. The wave of mild warmth hit Arghus Melodica and he let out afortable exhale as he dipped his entire body in the hot springs.

    Gran, Hansel, and Himuro followed suit and were thest ones to dip into the hot springs. All of them let out an exhale just like what Arghus did, rxing in the hot springs.

    While they were spending their sweet time in the hot springs, the girls were also rejuvenated in their own hot springs. They were a bit curious as to what the boys were talking about, but none of them were curious enough to peek.

    Though, they were a bit tempted since they knew just how well-chiseled Satoshi''s body was. They did see a portion of his upper body during the survival test, after all, and it was by far one of the best physiques they''ve seen and it should be mentioned that Disciples have some of the best physiques in the dimensions.

    While the girls were trying to figure out how they''d get to take a peek at Satoshi''s upper body, the boys were up to something much better. Surprisingly, it was Bruce who brought up the topic, and everyone was genuinely shocked that Bruce had that side of him.

    There was a glint in his eyes when he brought it up, and he seriously looked at Himuro and the others as if trying to convince them that they won''t regret this. "This morning, while I was taking a dip here... I did something. You might not see it but it''s there." He began, pointing at the bamboo fence that separated the boys'' and girls'' baths.

    A smile appeared on Bruce''s face. "Who''s with me!"

    Himuro and Gran screamed their lungs out, while Arghus simply stood up and scooted to the edge of the hot springs. He wasn''t going to partake in such childish pranks. Satoshi went with his sentiment, and he too scooted out of the way.

    However, before the two of them could say anything, Himuro sneakily went towards them, putting both his arms on their shoulders while wearing a sinister smile on his face. It was at this moment, that Arghus and Satoshi realized that they were already part of the n.

    Quite frankly, they were both too tired to retaliate so they just let Himuro drag them to the group so they could see what they were about to do. Furthermore, Arghus and Satoshi were a little bit curious as to what they were about to do.

    After all, Bruce vaguely mentioned peeking, but he never disclosed the entire process. Hence, Arghus and Satoshi''s curiosity was piqued, and they wanted to see how he''d go about it¡ª not that they weren''t the least bit curious about peeking as well.

    "All right then, now that the power rangers have gathered. We''re going to go all in on this one. Trust me, you won''t regret this." Bruce smiled as he slowly waved his hand on the bamboo fence.

    Then the craziest thing happened, and it made Himuro and Gran scream at the top of their lungs once again. But this time, it was for an entirely different reason.

    BAM!

    ...

    A couple of hours ago, earlier that morning,

    Bruce woke up earlier than the rest of them so he could set his n in motion. He knew that there were a couple of barriers in ce where the hot springs were located, and he had to painstakingly remove and rece them with his own barriers.

    Moreover, theposition of the barriers should look the same as the previous ones so no one would see anything wrong with it. With this, Bruce would be able topletely rece the barrier and then reveal it at the right moment for the greatest effect.

    In total, there were three barriers and Bruce immediately set to work bringing down the first one before the first girl takes a bath on the other side of the hot springs. He had to be fast, otherwise someone might catch him and it won''t end well for him.

    Thanks to his vast knowledge of magic, though, he was able to bring down the barrier fairly quick, moving to the second and the third barrier in no time.

    He was Dumble Dore''s Disciple, so this intricate magic barrier is nothing for him. He could take it down and copy it as if he was breathing, that''s how easy it was to someone who was proficient in magic like him.

    Third one!

    After bringing down the third barrier, what was left was the bamboo fence that separated the group. Even this one was taken down by Bruce, and he propped an illusionary bamboo fence that resembled the bamboo fence itself, down to the minute details. Upon doing that, he created the three barriers he brought down.

    In less than an hour, Bruce''s preparations wereplete, and now it was time for him to make his leave and join everyone for breakfast... well, not really. He decided to take a dip in the hot springs first before doing anything else.

    ...

    Back to the present,

    Bruce''s lips curved upward as he brought up his hand and snapped his finger. In one snap, the three barriers disappeared, and so did the illusionary bamboo fence that was just there a split second ago.

    Initially, Satoshi and the others thought that Bruce would just pop a hole in the bamboo fence so they could take a peek into the girls'' bath. But no, he took it up a notch by removing the separator altogether.

    One moment, the bamboo fence and the three barriers in ce were there, the next moment, it was just gone. Disappeared in an instant. All of them were expecting an infinitesimal hole on the bamboo fence and what they got what aplete removal of it.

    "Behold!" Bruce raised his hands in the air,ughing like a maniac. He then crouched low before he rubbed his chin. "It ain''t much, but its honest work."

    "Wha¡ª ?!" Himuro eximed while Gran and Arghus impulsively turned away from the open wide bath. In that second, their lives shed before their eyes as the girls appeared in front of them, naked.

    Fortunately, Gretel was quick enough to envelop everyone in healing magic, covering their bodies with white light. She immediately did it as soon as she heard cheersing from the other side. It was a good call, and the boys didn''t see anything.

    Everyone paused for a second, and then Bruce slowly walked away, shaking his head. "Looks like, my work here is done." He muttered to himself.

    Satoshi and the others looked at him as if he was the craziest man alive. And in that instant, the girls realized that Bruce was behind the removal of the barrier as well as convincing everyone to join him in his crusade.

    Before anyone could react, Bruce gunned it out of there, stark naked. He didn''t even bother putting a towel around his waist, he just ran as if his life depended on it.

    And yes, his life indeed depended on it since the girls started giving chase.

    "Come back here, you!" The girls screamed, running their hearts out as they chased Bruce. The other men also started running, thinking that the girls would eliminate them from this life if they were caught.

    "Wait up, you guys! I can''t envelop you in white light if you keep on moving around!" Gretel screamed, but she was doing a good job keeping their bodies covered.

    Satoshi froze in ce not knowing what to do. The chaos shed by in a second, and the moment he realized what just happened, he was the only one left in the hot springs which turned into a mixed bath.

    Well, he wasn''t alone, the third support unit in their team was left behind as well, she had a somewhat red violet hair and she bashfully turned away as the white light that covered her disappeared.

    An ''eek'' left her mouth when she charged at Satoshi. Just to make sure that he wouldn''t see, she hugged him from behind, and for a couple of seconds, the two of them remained in that position while Satoshi covered his Statue of Captivity.

    Since the two of them felt awkward regarding the situation, they didn''t move at all,pletely missing their chance to excuse themselves. Satoshi should''ve summoned Ghast and teleported their clothes to them, but he was in too much of a shock that it didn''t even ur in his mind.

    Meanwhile, Jonathan and Yun Zhe just finished thest Disciple test for the day, and they were exhausted. Then again, they had two days of rest since they actually failed the first day of the survival test.

    "Wait, isn''t that Satoshi?" Jonathan pointed towards the hot springs before running towards Satoshi. "Oi, Satoshi! You should''ve helped us during the sur-vi-val¡ª" Jonathan trailed off when he saw what was happening.

    Before he could ask Satoshi what was going on, Yun Zhe grabbed Jonathan and bowed towards Satoshi. "We''ll see ourselves out." He said. "Please, take your time."

    "W-wait!!!" Satoshi eximed as he was finally brought back to reality.

 Chapter 503 Mi Hermano, Surprise Visit.

    ?

    Because of Jonathan and Yun Zhe''s appearance, Satoshi was brought back to reality and he immediately got clothes for him and the girl who hugged him from behind. Clearly, she was more than flustered, and Satoshi didn''t have to look back to know that her face was as red as a beet.

    "Here, take this, I''m really sorry about that." Satoshi apologized while handing her a hoodie. He also wore one himself before he stepped out of the hot springs.

    Now that the hot springs had turned into a mixed bath, the Disciples (who were justing in after theirst test for the day) had to wait as the personnel of the dorms repaired it.

    No one expected someone like Bruce to take down the barriers and replicate them to the point where none of them saw any anomalies. Then again, this much was normal for someone who''s a renowned Disciple of Dumble Dore.

    Before Satoshi could run away from the facilities, the girl screamed at him, causing him to stop short in his tracks.

    "K-Karinna!" She screamed with her eyes closed. "I-I''m... I''m Karinna Dracus!" She said.

    Honestly, this was a weird time to introduce herself but she figured that she might not have another chance like this. They were close enough to see each other naked, so the least she could do was introduce herself, right?

    A smile appeared on Satoshi''s face as he realized what Karinna was doing. Waving his hand, he responded amicably. "I''m Satoshi, Midoriyama Satoshi. It''s a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

    Upon saying that, Satoshi swiveled and started giving chase to the others who were running without their clothes on. He had to keep things on the low before it got out of hand. Well, he was the only one who realized what was going on so in a sense, it was up to him to stop their frenzy.

    It took him a couple of minutes before he could round all of them up. Fortunately, they were sensible enough to cover themselveses while they were in the cat-and-mouse chase so the other Disciples didn''t see their naked bodies while they run all over the dorms.

    Actually, Satoshi didn''t really round them up, he just sort of teleported all of them inside Mitsuka''s room, so they wouldn''t disturb anyone else. And after one of the girls kicked Bruce on the crotch, the matter was over with, and the group continued hanging out with each other in Mitsuka and Nanako''s room.

    The rest of the night was pretty much uneventful, with everyone enjoying their rest day together until it was lights out. This time, the group didn''t miss it and they headed straight to their rooms before then.

    ...

    A couple of minutester.

    When Himuro and Satoshi got back to their room, they saw that Jonathan and Yun Zhe were already on their beds, and their gazes followed the two as they went to their respective beds.

    "Eh, we got mr popr here, Yun Zhe." Jonathan smugly jerked his thumb at Satoshi.

    "I know right, we got mr popr here with thedies hugging him naked in the bath, Jonathan." Yun Zhe wore an irritated face as he also jerked a thumb at Satoshi.

    "Guys! It was a misunderstanding! You saw it too right? She suddenly hugged me out of nowhere. Of course, it''s understandable since I saw her na¡ª" Before Satoshi couldy out all the facts and exin his way out of his inescapable situation, Jonathan interrupted him once again.

    "Eh, did you hear that Yun Zhe? she saw her naked. The audacity, right Yun Zhe?'' Jonathan shook his head.

    "Knock it off, you guys, even we were shocked with what happened. We didn''t expect Bruce to tear down the entire bamboo fence. It wasn''t Satoshi''s fault." Himuro smiled as he lightly brushed the topic off. He could tell that Jonathan and Yun Zhe were having a field day in teasing Satoshi.

    "This is so unfair, why did we have to take a couple of tests today while you had a rest day?" Jonathan slumped on his bed as he heaved a sigh.

    "You did get two days of rest while we were having a hard time in the three-day survival test, right? It would''ve been nice if we had two days'' rest as well, but we were only given one. It''s not even enough topletely recover our energy." Himuro exined.

    To be fair, they did have two days of rest while Satoshi''s group were fighting tooth and nail in the survival test. They have no right toin, but the exhaustion got the better of them and they started voicing out their remonstrance.

    "We still had a couple of tests during that two days of rest.... although it wasn''t that hard... but still! They didn''t even give us a full day''s rest." Yun Zhe chorused a sigh a with Jonathan.

    "You should''ve joined us then. Satoshi here gathered everyone. If it weren''t for him, we wouldn''t have been able to survive as well." Himuro continued.

    "Yeah, we weren''t able to join with you guys. Our individual teams were wiped out and then we couldn''t defend by ourselves so we got disqualified on the first day. And yes, my power nullification didn''t even work on them." Jonathan said.

    "I did teleport here and there, but it didn''t take long before I ran out of energy. Those entities must have some sort of tracking device or something since they always know where I was no matter how much I tried to hide." He continued.

    "Yeah, we saw what you did back there. That was pretty insane. You pretty much carried your entire team. A one-man army." shing a thumbs up, Yun Zhe smiled at Satoshi. A split secondter, he realized that he still hasn''t gotten over the scene he saw in the hot springs so he frowned once again and clicked his tongue at him.

    "Eh?'' Satoshi questioned himself if he did something wrong, but Jonathan and Yun Zhe said their goodnights before he could ask them anything.

    ...

    Meanwhile, back on Earth,

    Mi Hermano, the Brazilian hero with the spanish hero name was typing away at hisputer while he monitored all the incidents of the city. He kept a clean record of every thing that happened no matter how minor it was so it would be easier for them to review the events if need be.

    Obviously, Mi Hermano is the head of his agency, and he did all he could to keep everything streamlined. Despite his busy schedule, he still foud the time to assist everyone, especially when it came to recording incidents that happened in his city.

    BAM!

    As a workaholic, Mi Hermano tends to get too focused at work so interruptions like the door to his office suddenly opening would shock him greatly. The moment he heard the door m open, he flinched, and he almost fell on his seat as he let out a soft gasp.

    "Sir! Sir!" One of the superheroes in his agency screamed at the top of his lungs. He seemed to be out of breath, so Mi Hermano assumed that there was an emergency.

    "What is it? Calm down and tell me in great detail. Remember, a superhero must not panic in the most crucial of times. No matter how urgent or how bleak the situation may be, one should maintain theirposure in order to efficiently address the situation." Mi Hermano lengthily said as he carefully approached the superhero. "Now tell me, what is it?"

    "Sir! It''s... It''s Star Spangled! He''s here! Right now! He''s looking for you!" The superhero screamed on Mi Hermano''s face, so much so that spit showered on him.

    Despite his wprds of wisdom a moment ago, Mi Hermano''s pupils dted as his mouth went wide open. "HAGGHHHHHH!" He screamed at the top of his lungs as he almost tore his own clothes.

    "You''re not joking, right? The Star Spangled is here? The one and only Jack Son Michael?! WHAAAT?! What''s going on?!" Mi Hermano screamed. His eyes darted here and there as he checked whether his office was hospitable or not. To his relief, it was spotlessly clean...

    ... but it was not enough!

    "You! I have an urgent task for you!" Mi Hermano grabbed the superhero by the cor before he gave him the order. "Go around town and buy as much delicacies as you can! We''re going to give Star Spangled a proper wee, all right?

    "Don''t worry about the expenses, I''ll cover the entire expense with money from my own pocket. Also, while you''re at it, grab some food for everyone in the agency as well, do you understand me?"

    Nodding his head, the superhero received a bundle of cash before he beelined to the door. A couple of momentster, Star Spangled knocked on the door to Mi Hermano''s office, causing him to bolt upright.

    "Ehrmm,e in?" He called out, half-expecting it to be a prank.

    However, Star Spangled was really right there, in the flesh!

    "Mi Hermano, we need to talk." He voiced out, wearing a serious expression on his face.

 Chapter 504 Into Magnuss Dimension

    ?

    Fifth day of training camp,

    Satoshi was greeted with cramps the next day, and he gritted his teeth as he summoned his familiar, Sera, to alleviate the pain. It had been so long since hest had cramps, and it wasn''t as painful as he had initially expected. His sore muscles were more ufortable, to be fair, but that didn''t stop him from doing his morning routine of exercise and training.

    Once breakfast was over, the first test for the day was finally upon them. Once again, all the Disciples were gathered by the open area in front of the dorms, expectantly waiting for the Managers to give them their test. It was already the fifth day of the training camp, so some of the Disciples already fully adapted to their circumstance.

    While everyone eagerly waited for the announcement of the first test, Karinna made her way beside Satoshi without speaking another word. No one knew why she did it, and at this point, Satoshi couldn''t bring himself to ask.

    Fortunately, only a couple of Disciples noticed this, and no one pointed it out. Well, Jonathan and Yun Zhe were on the verge of pointing it out, though, but Himuro stopped them short before they could do anything.

    "H-here," Karinna muttered, handing Satoshi some sort of charm before she ran away without exining anything.

    "Thank you... ? What is this?" Satoshi asked as he examined the charm which Karinna handed him. To be fair, it greatly resembled a normal japanese charm but there was a faint trace of magic imbued in it.

    Satoshi had no idea what it was, nor did he know how to activate it. Nevertheless he decided to keep it to himself, putting it in his pocket and making a mental note to ask Karinna about itter on.

    This time, it was Bucky Barnes who walked forward. It wa s his turn as a Manager to give a test, and based on the smug expression on his face, one could tell that he was bound to give them hell. He might even be nning to top what Magnus Carter gave the Disciples three days ago.

    "Ehrmm, I see that everyone''s gathered here." Bucky Barnes''s usual monotonous voice reverberated in the open area while he addressed everyone. "Today would be a simple and straightforward test. You don''t have to worry about anything even if I don''t exin the test to you."

    "And yes, this time, Satoshi would not be joining the test. He would annihte all of you if you were to join." Bucky Barnes said in a condescending manner. He wasn''t showing any favorites, whatsoever, just that Satoshi would really ace the test without question, and it wouldn''t be a challenge anymore if he were to do that.

    "Instead, I''m assigning Satoshi under Magnus Carter''s guidance. You have a scheduled test with your Disciples who didn''t join this training camp, right? He should go with you for now, see if he stands a chance against some of the strongest Disciples out there." Bucky Barnes continued.

    "Eh?!" Satoshi turned around, hoping that some of the Disciples would disagree with what his Manager just said. He didn''t expect Bucky Barnes to separate him from the group, much less put him with stronger Disciples.

    However, no one actually sided with him. Even Jonathan and Yun Zhe just shed a thumbs up at him, wishing him good luck. Every Disciple here knew just how powerful Satoshi was. After witnessing his feat during the three-day survival test, they knew that he was leagues above them.

    "I''ming with him!'' A girl suddenly stepped forward without regard to what Bucky Barnes just said.

    For a moment back there, Satoshi thought that Lucy would disagree with Bucky Barnes and insist that he joined them. Well, not really.

    Rather, Lucy suggested the opposite. She wanted to join Satoshi in his separate training.

    "Eh?!" Satoshi eximed as he leaned in towards Lucy who stood beside him. "What are you talking about? You should''ve convinced them to let me stay." He hissed.

    "It''s all right. It''s not like they''d willingly agree to my absurd request." Lucy shed a smile at Satoshi.

    For a moment, Satoshi could''ve sworn that a couple of res were directed his way. With his enhanced senses, he didn''t have to look back to know that it was Karinna, Mitsuka, and Nanako who were giving him the stares. Jonathan and Yun Zhe were also ring at him, but at this point, Satoshi was immune to their res.

    "Whoa, we have ourselves a challenger." Bucky Barnesmented before nodding his head. "Very well, if your Manager allows it... and if Magnus Carter allows it as well, then feel free to join my Disciple."

    Initially, Lucy just acted out of impulse. Even then, she was confident that the Managers won''t allow her to go with Satoshi since she might not be able to keep up. That''s why she was confident that Bucky Barnes would just reject her ridiculous request.

    To her surprise, Bucky Barnes actually epted her request, provided that her Manager and Magnus Carter would agree to it.

    "..."

    "..."

    And they did!

    "Eh?!" Lucy''s jaw dropped to the floor as the sheer shock overcame her. With both parties approving, Lucy had no choice but to go with Satoshi on this test.

    "I guess that''s that then... didn''t you say something about them not agreeing to your request?" Satoshi asked, confused.

    Teary-eyed, Lucy sniffled as she stared straight into Satoshi''s eyes. She wanted to ask for help, but she couldn''t do it since she was the one who brought up the topic of going with him in the first ce.

    Clearing his throat, Bucky Barnes continued his announcement. He started discussing the contents of the next test, and while all of that was going on, Magnus Carter carefully approached Satoshi and Lucy, signaling for them to follow him while he led them to their separate test.

    "My Disciples are eager to meet you as well, Satoshi. I guess this is a good opportunity for them." Magnus Cartermented as they walked through the crowd, then out of the dorms.

    The rest of the Disciples watched as the two of them were led into the forest, dreading to think what would happen to them if they were to speak up. From afar, the group saw Magnus Carter opening an interdimensional portal and gesturing for Satoshi and Lucy to go with him.

    The ten Disciples belonging to Satoshi''s group also wanted to go with them. But right now, they were exhausted to the point where they didn''t want an additional challenge. Nheless, they gave Lucy a salute for volunteering even though she clearly won''t be able to keep up with Satoshi.

    Now that Satoshi and Lucy were gone. It was time for Bucky Barnes to garner everyone''s attention. It was time for them to initiate the first test for the day. He was especially looking forward to the test he was going to give them.

    "Let''s start, shall we?" Bucky Barnes grinned as he created a sizeable portal in front of them.

    ...

    Fwoooosh~!

    Before Lucy and Satoshi could say anything to each other as they entered the portal. When theye out the other side.

    Satoshi could''ve sworn that he heard angelic voices singing in the background when they set foot in an entirely different ce.

    The ce resembled a scenic Japanese ce wherein there were tall pirs of rock with waterfallsing out of it. Shinto arches could be seen everywhere, marking the paths and stairways which meandered all over the ce. It was certainly a paradise, and Lucy and Satoshi gazed in awe as they admired the view.

    "Wee to my dimension where all my Disciples are gathered." Magnus Carter excitedly said while he extended his hands.

    Everyone in this ce wore the same clothing, just with different designs. When they saw Magnus Carter arrive, they waved their hands and greeted him with a slight bow. Some of them wondered why their Manager brought new faces, but they didn''t dare ask any questions.

    The first one, they had no idea who she was¡ª just that her face was familiar. As for the second one, everyone unsurprisingly knew who he was. Most of them watched the three-day survival test, after all, and they saw how Satoshi did what all of them weren''t capable of doing.

    He survived the entire three days, and he even protected his team of ten with him. Just that feat alone puts him as the number one Disciple to ever exist, much stronger than any of them who were supposed to be the most formidable ones in the dimensions.

    "It''s Satoshi."

    "Eh? He''s here, why?"

    "I don''t know, why don''t you ask him."

    "No, you should approach him."

    Satoshi could hear everyone murmuring his name as Magnus Carter led them forward. It didn''t take long before most of the Disciples gathered around them, and Magnus Carter addressed them while sping his hands together.

    "Perfect timing, today, Lucy and Satoshi here will be joining us for our training this entire day." He announced, causing everyone to gasp as they stared straight into Satoshi''s soul.

 Chapter 505 Finana And Horatiuss Welcome Gesture

    ?

    Everyone gathered around Lucy and Satoshi as if they were disy animals in a zoo. All of them gave their nods of either approval or disapproval while they examined them from their feet up.

    A couple of them incredulously checked them out while trying to figure out why they were there in the first ce, while some just didn''t care at all, and they separated from the crowd as if it wasn''t any of their business.

    "This here is Midoriyama Satoshi, and Lucy Hexius Von Arabe. The two of them will be joining us for today." Magnus Carter enthusiastically introduced the two to his Disciples. He then put his arms on their shoulders and lightly pushed them to the group.

    "They are trial Disciples so treat them as if he''s one of us. Show them the ropes and also show them to their quarters. They''d be staying for a day so shower them with hospitality while they''re here." Magnus Carter informed the group.

    In response, some of them nodded their heads while the others indifferently stared at the two of them. In a way, it was a normal weing so Lucy and Satoshi didn''t feel at all that out of ce. At first, Satoshi was skeptical as to how the others would wee them.

    But so far, they were quite amicable... or maybe that was because Magnus Carter was in front of them. If he wasn''t there, they''d probably drive them off like a horde of mosquitoes. Then again, the only thing they could see if that was going to happen was when Magnus Carter actually leaves them alone.

    "All right then, I''ll be heading out for a bit. Horatius Argroa, I''ll leave the two of them to you. Finana Qrystal, apany him, would you?" Magnus Carter said before waving his hands at the group. "I''ll be back in an hour, make sure these guys are fully settled in when I get back, all right?"

    Finana and Horatius responded with a nod before slightly bowing down toward their Manager. This wasn''t the first time they weed someone into the dimension so they weren''t actual beginners when ites down to it.

    In any case, they were a bit shocked that Lucy and Satoshi will be joining them in their next training when usually, it would take at least two or three days before the neer would be weed for the test.

    Then again, they witnessed firsthand just how powerful Satoshi was during the three-day survival test. There was no doubt that he''d be able to go head-to-head with them. But the girl was a different matter.

    This was the first time they heard her name, but some of them recognize her as one of the top ten who survived up until the end of the survival test.

    It was obvious that Lucy got carried by Satoshi during the survival test. But then again, who were they to judge? They''ve never seen her go full power... or so that''s what they assumed as they tried to recall what they watched.

    Well, Lucy really gave her best during that test... and it was really thanks to Satoshi that she got through to the end. In a sense, the Disciples were totally overestimating her since she was in their presence.

    "Satoshi and Lucy, was it? Let me properly introduce myself. My name is Finana, and this here is Horatius." She said with a smile on her face. "I know that this mighte off as unexpected, but I''m requesting a duel." Finana extended her hand, still wearing the friendliest of expressions while bloodlust emanated from her body.

    Clearly, she was looking forward to the duel, and she couldn''t wait but to see Satoshi in action.

    "Ah er... sure, why not?" Satoshi trailed off as if he was questioning what Finana was saying. Nevertheless, he extended his hand, trying to return the friendliness of Finana while suppressing the bloodthirst that almost leaked out of his body.

    Finana had blue hair, just like Lydia Schwarz. Except, Finana''s hair was brighter, and she was on a much cuter side. She was a foot smaller than Satoshi, but her curves were in the right ces, giving her peerless beauty even when she was surrounded by other prepossessing women.

    As Satoshi reached for her hand, he felt a certain threat oveing his body, which made him inadvertently retract his hand before it reached the handshake.

    But before he did so, a hand grabbed him with its iron-like strength, squeezing it with a force that was strong enough to crush an apple with bare hands.

    Satoshi could still see Finana''s hand in front of him. Obviously, it wasn''t her who grabbed his hand out of nowhere.

    "Before that, duel me instead! I won''t ask for anything extravagant. Just give me your best in an arm-wrestling match! No holds barred!" Horatius squeezed Satoshi''s hand, infusing a little bit of his energy into his grip so he could overpower Satoshi who wasn''t budging at all.

    For a couple of seconds, Satoshi looked at his hand and at Horatius''s soured expression. It was written on his face that he was trying to force Satoshi into submission, however, Satoshi held his ground like a professional hand shaker.

    "Um... why are you squeezing my hand? Satoshi asked, curious whether this was a part of the culture amongst Magnus Carter''s Disciples or not. He didn''t want to disim anything since it might greatly offend a whole crowd. Since he was new here, he figured that he''d at least respect their culture.

    In return, Satoshi squeezed back, causing Horatius to wince in pain. Satoshi wasn''t even using any of his power and yet he could already squeeze Horatius''s energy-infused hand.

    The first one to let go of the grip was Horatius, and he put up a false bravado as he clenched his fist. "I guess you agreed to the duel, right? Men first." Horatius shed a thumbs-up in front of Satoshi.

    Satoshi didn''t notice it but while that interaction was going on, the Disciples were actually keenly watching his actions. They knew just how much of a fanatic Horatius was when it came to arm wrestling, and they also were aware of Horatius''s usual greeting of squeezing someone''s arm out. He was considered one of the most powerful Disciples out here in terms of raw physical power output.

    And yet, he was struggling to squeeze Satoshi''s hand despite infusing energy already. They also noticed that Satoshi looked bewildered when Horatius did that, and he didn''t even bother tapping into his energy reserves to squeeze his hand back.

    "Wait... did I see that right?"

    "No, I saw it too."

    "Horatius was overpowered in a handshake?"

    "Well, that''s something we don''t see every day."

    Despite the false front that Horatius showed in front of everyone, he couldn''t feel any of them. In terms of that handshake, he had lost so disgracefully. Satoshi didn''t even bother using his energy. He just squeezed his hand with raw strength and it was enough to almost break his bones.

    ''Wait... there''s no way someone as powerful as him is also talented in the physical spectrum. There''s no way, right? He''s powerful enough to survive three days in that hellish training. He even brought ten people with him to the end! How could someone blessed with magic and energy be physically talented as well?!'' Horatius inwardly screamed, forcing a smile on his face as his eyebrows twitched.

    ''There''s no way... there''s just no way! That grip was merely a fluke, right? I''m just not on my a-game today, right?"

    Shaking his head, Horatius decided to just pass the torch to Finana. Since she was the one who asked for the duel first, he figured he''d just let her go first before him.

    Before he could say anything, though, Finana just shrugged and forwardly waved her hand in front of her. "You go do your thing, men first, right?" She smirked. "I can wait."

    Upon saying that, she turned around and shook hands with Lucy. "I''m Finana, do you want to watch their match, or should we head over to your temporary residence?" She gently asked. "And don''t respond with ''either''s fine'', okay? I''m pretty much free for the entire day so we can do what you want."

    "T-then, let''s watch the duel. You''ll be dueling Satoshi as well after this, right?" Lucy asked, a soft smile written on her face, matching the serenity of her gaze as her pristine white hair fluttered with the gentlest of breeze.

    "A-all right then." Lucy stammered, almost bewitched by Lucy''s natural beauty. She couldn''t believe that someone could actually look so heavenly as a human.

    One of the Disciples created a cylindrical pir made of hardened earth and as if on cue, the crowd started spacing out to give Horatius and Satoshi the ring where they''d be arm-wrestling.

    "Finana! I brought some sandwiches. Let''s eat them while watching the match." One of the Disciples who goes by the name Silverina happily joined the duo while they found a nice ce to sit.

    Horatius and Satoshi assumed their position on opposite sides of the cylindrical pir. In this contest of strength, they didn''t need to speak any words. They just went in and initiated the match without warning everyone.

    "Aight, everyone give us a count!" Horatius grinned as he and Satoshi adjusted their grips to overpower each other in a snap of a finger.

    Three.

    Two.

    One!

    Without warning, Horatius activated everything he could activate. Physical enhancement, magic enhancement, skill enhancement, increase morale, stat buffs, you name it! He went all in with his multiple-activation in a split second before overpowering Satoshi.

    With a grunt, he brought he tried to bring down Satoshi''s hand... but it only budged a little bit!

    ''What?!'' Horatius eximed in his mind as he slowly brought down Satoshi''s hand.

    It was clear that Satoshi was struggling, but try as he might, he just couldn''t overpower Horatius.

    In the end, Satoshi lost, and the first round went to Horatius. And yes, it was a best of five arm-wrestlingpetition.

    ''No way... he stood on his own... without using any superpower?'' Horatius won, but he couldn''t believe that Satoshi matched his power without even activating anything! He didn''t even infuse his hands with energy!

 Chapter 506 Arm Wrestling Techniques

    ?

    ''No way... he stood on his own... without using any superpower?'' Horatius won, but he couldn''t believe that Satoshi matched his power without even activating anything!

    He didn''t even infuse his hands with energy!

    A huge blow was dealt to his pride as he stared at Satoshi who calmly shook his hand in front of him. It was apparent that he lost the first round, but that didn''t even affect him in the least bit.

    Aside from thinking that Horatius was actually stronger than he thought, Satoshi wasn''t worried at all. Besides, he was able to gauge his power just by going head-to-head with him without using any superpower.

    Then again, no normal person would resort to the tant tactic that Satoshi did. In retrospect, Satoshi was far from normal, so resorting to something deviating from the norm should be expected of him.

    "That was faster than I thought," Satoshi muttered to himself, shaking his head at his poor performance. It was probably because everyone around him was considered Disciple. And a couple of months ago, he had no idea that they existed.

    Now he was one of them, and he concluded that it might take ample time to get used to this scenario. It was an entirely different atmospherepared to when people would watch him as an underdog powerless student.

    Satoshi felt way more nervous than usual. After all, these Disciples rival him in terms of superpower. They may not rival him in a physical sense, but when ites to their superpowers, Satoshi knew just how formidable they were.

    While Satoshi was trying to figure out whether Horatius was taking it easy or not, everyone started letting out an ''oooh'' as Horatius ced his arm on the stomach-height pir. This was a gesture for the second round.

    ''Yeah, there''s no way he struggled after using his full power. He''s probably holding back so he wouldn''t humiliate me that much.'' Satoshi concluded to himself. Even then, he didn''t want to underestimate or overestimate his opponent, and the only thing he could do to fulfill that was to give it his all in the next round.

    Or not?

    Following Horatius''s lead, Satoshi also put his arm on top of the pir. For the second round, Satoshi nned to go beyond his limits so he won''t be using his superpower. He was able to temporarily stop Horatius''s forceful top roll with his physical strength alone, and he figured that trying harder might put him at a slight disadvantage.

    Furthermore, Satoshi actually found a hole in Horatius''s technique. Satoshi was prepared to utilize that weakness against him, and he was pretty sure that that would be the tipping point to his victory even if he decided to not use any of his superpowers.

    Once again, there was no need for anyone to give the signal. As soon as their hands touched, it was game time. With great anticipation, everyone held their breaths as they awaited the winner of the second round.

    Every Disciple in the vicinity was aware that one split second could utterly change the tide of the arm wrestling round, that''s why they couldn''t dare breathe the moment Horatius and Satoshi went in on each other.

    Fwoosh!

    Although it was sudden, Satoshi immediately felt the right moment when Horatius activated all his skills before forcing his arm. At the same time, Satoshi also forced his arm, trying to counter his press, Satoshi brought his arms closer and leaned his body to the opposite side.

    In the first round, Satoshi used the entirety of his arm strength, but right now, Satoshi used his entiret as well as his core strength to squeeze as much power as he could. He also ced his leg in an advantageous position, hooking it a bit around the pir so it would act as a counterweight.

    The n worked!

    Despite Horatius activating everything in his arsenal, Satoshi just wouldn''t budge. In the face of overwhelming power, Satoshi managed to counter Horatius with his pure physical strength and technique.

    And Satoshi wasn''t even sweating!

    "Oi... is that even possible?"

    "No way, a human could actually be that strong?!"

    "He''s probably superhuman... or maybe a superior breed of a human, like a manekian or something."

    "What''s a manekian?"

    "I don''t know, I made that stuff up."

    While everyone was arguing whether Satoshi was really human or not, Horatius had hit a wall and it was only a matter of time before his defensive stance broke down.

    For thest minute, the two of them just wouldn''t budge, but there was an entirely different take on the way they spent their time. While Horatius got increasingly impatient since he got a chance at winning, he decided to force everything with every second, hoping that Satoshi would drop down his guard and he would unleash a finishing move on that opening.

    However, Satoshi waspletely locked in, and his arm wasn''t even getting exhausted.

    Inyman''s terms, Horatius was ying offensively, while Satoshi was ying the waiting game. He was waiting for the next moment when Horatius would weaken, and then he could deliver the final blow.

    The fight became exponentially more anxiety-inducing to the crowd. As seconds passed, the crowd continued holding their breaths as if to match both of their paces.

    And yes, after all this time, Horatius and Satoshi were actually holding their breaths just to get a couple more ounces of power into their arms. With everything tightened tautly, it wouldn''t take long before one of them gives out.

    Then the inevitable happened¡ª Horatius rxed for a split second to take in a short burst of air into his lungs!

    That was the only opening Satoshi needed, and he used all his strength to push up with a top roll, catching Horatius off-guard, and then he brought his arms down with a locked forearm.

    It still was pretty hard to break through Horatius''s defenses since he was using some sort of enhancements on his body. For a moment, Satoshi even thought that his forearms would snap in two, but fortunately, that didn''t happen.

    BAM!

    Without using a sliver of his superpower, Satoshi brought down Horatius''s arms which were buffed to the teeth with enhancements and skills. It was the greatest upset everyone had ever seen in the history of Magnus Carter''s Disciples.

    And it was the greatest insult that Horatius had ever received since birth! Unsurprisingly, he was born as a Disciple, so his strength had always been backed with the title of being a Disciple of one of the strongest Managers.

    That''s why the humiliation felt a thousand times worse. Moreover, most of the Disciples were watching, and it made the humiliation a thousand times worse than a thousand times.

    "Whoa~ can a human really be that strong? How is that possible?" Finana asked, turning to Lucy since she assumed that she might know a thing or two about Satoshi.

    But Lucy had no idea that Satoshi was that strong. Even she was shocked, and she stared, dumbfounded, at Satoshi upon witnessing his raw power.

    Seeing her reaction, Finana realized that Lucy had no idea about Satoshi''s real strength. Now she was beginning to question how the two of them knew each other but she didn''t ask any prying questions.

    She''ll eventuallye to that information, after all, and she didn''t want to sound as if she was eyeing Satoshi out. That would make it even more obvious.

    "All right! Since the two of you are clearly a match... then I''ll just do the refereeing! Is that what it''s called? The name''s Rogund Hill by the way." Rogund said, stepping forward out of nowhere.

    Rogund had red hair and energy that matched his vibrant colors. He was famous for his fiery and passionate take in fighting, and just like Horatius, he was easily one of the strongest among Magnus Carter''s disciples.

    He had been watching the fight unfold from afar now, and seeing Satoshi''s technique and pure power just made him want to take a closer look. He didn''t want to miss his chance to observe someone who could rival him, that''s why he took this opportune moment to get closer.

    Quite frankly, this was one of the ideas that Horatius could get behind with. After all, with the referee in ce, he could time his skill activation the moment he gives the go signal. With this, there won''t be a split-second dy and he could totally catch Satoshi off-guard.

    It was time for the third round.

    "All right, both hands in ce. Equal grip. Thumbs should be facing each other with both palms parallel... right." Rogund gave the words of the referee even though he wasn''t an expert in arm wrestling. He did know the basics though.

    "All right, on my count, I''ll release and then you guys do your thing." Upon saying that, Rogund gave the usual countdown. "Three. Two. One. Go!"

    BAM!

    Unlike the previous rounds, this round was as anticlimactic as it was sudden. The moment Rogund gave the signal, someone had already won the third round.

    And to everyone''s surprise, it was Satoshi who won!

 Chapter 507 Lucy And Satoshis Backstory

    ?

    It wasn''t even close.

    Satoshi just annihted Horatius four consecutive times after his win in the first round. It was just a best of five, but it was clear that Horatius couldn''t even hold a candle to Satoshi.

    Despite the fact that he had the audacity to ask Satoshi for a duel, as well as having the utmost confidence that he won''t be defeated, he suffered one of the most humbling losses he''d ever experienced in his life.

    To be fair, Satoshi was surprised at himself as well for being able to go head-to-head with Horatius. He may be considered one of the strongest Disciples of Magnus Carter, but even with his full activation of enhancements and skills that would bring out the best of his arm wrestling prowess, he still utterly lost.

    His pride was almost shattered when the fifth round ended, and he couldn''t bear to look everyone in the eyes. Thepetition between Magnus Carter''s Disciples was off the chartspared to the other Managers, but that didn''t mean they don''t get along at all.

    Some of them were good friends, while the majority treated each other like rivals. Most of them were aware of how powerful Horatius was, and that''s why they couldn''t believe that he lost to someone in an arm wrestling contest.

    If it were a Manager who fought against Horatius and won without using any superpower, then that would''ve been understandable. But this was Satoshi they were talking about here. He was the most powerful Disciple they''d ever seen in the three-day survival match, and now he had just defeated one of their strongest in the contest of manly strength.

    Slowly, the Disciples pped while Horatius and Satoshi shook each other''s hands. They conversed for a couple of seconds before the two of them headed to the side where Finana and Lucy were.

    "Great job out there," Finana patted Horatius and Satoshi''s shoulders while she shed a smile. It was genuinely a good fight, that''s why she gave them thepliments. "Oh, and we can have our duelter on, Satoshi, we have less than an hour left before our Manager returns, wouldn''t want to tire you out before the first test."

    Since it felt like Finana actually changed her mind instead of being thoughtful of him, Satoshi didn''t push the idea of dueling her. Besides, his arms were pretty exhausted after that five-round arm wrestling with Horatius. He didn''t want to bother Sera at the moment since she was probably taking a good rest.

    "All right then, let''s go head to your abode, shall we?" Horatius gestured at them in a friendly manner. Inwardly, he felt a bit crestfallen after his loss a moment ago, but he didn''t want to ruin anything for Lucy and Satoshi. If any, he still wanted them to feel wee as he expressed his hospitality on behalf of everyone else.

    "Here in Magnus Carter''s dimension, we all have separate houses but since you arrived shortly, Magnus could only prepare one for the two of you. Don''t worry, everyone worked hard on cleaning it up so you don''t have to worry about it looking like a storage shed or something." Finana exined.

    Before she could continue her exnation, Horatius moved forward and stepped beside Satoshi. He then extended his hand forward and swiped it sideways. "Now that that''s out of the way, how did you get so strong? I''ve never met a Disciple who was as physically strong as you."

    "Yeah, usually someone with an overpowered superpower would just neglect their physical capabilities. We saw the live stream of the three-day survival test and you''re pretty strong... who would''ve thought you''d be physically talented as well?" Lucy nudged an elbow at Satoshi''s side, causing him to flinch.

    "I want to know too." Lucy called out. Surprisingly, she was also interested in Satoshi''s life story. It had only been five days since theye across each other but she was invested in his past because of how powerful he was.

    He didn''t want to leave them hanging so he told them his story as concisely as he could, starting from when he got tested for the Alpha Gene but he didn''t awaken his superpower. Or maybe he had already awakened it back then, he just wasn''t aware of it.

    Then he told them about his physical training just to keep up with the superheroes, and this strenuous training continued to his teens, up until his high school year when he first encountered his superpower.

    After that, Satoshi summarized everything that happened in the past. Now that he went back to it, he realized that a lot had happened in the past couple of months. From invaders, to gates, to tamed beasts and tournaments. Ever since he awakened his superpower, his life had been more than eventful, and with it came the challenges and the friends he made along the way.

    It didn''t take long before Satoshi''s story reached the present, and at that point, the three of them nodded at each other as if theypletely understood his life experiences.

    Well, they more or less knew why Satoshi ended up the powerful superhero he was, and his experiences were nothing but challenging so it was the catalyst for his awesome power-ups.

    But even now, they still couldn''t understand what kind of superpower Satoshi possessed, and they didn''t bother asking since it might just get even moreplicated. All of them did make a mental note to observe him so they could understand him even more, the friends they were.

    "Still, that was awesome. Your parents were the top two superheroes in your country, and you could even keep up with everyone at your age back then? Wow. If I didn''t have any superpower, I''d have given up already or something." Horatius said to himself as he clenched and unclenched his fists while trying to imagination the scenario in his head.

    "It''s awesome, no wonder you''re really powerful right now. All that physical training and hardbor paid off. Now you''re an admirable bnce between physical power and superpower. That''s like a cheat code in real life... but you worked hard to earn that cheat." Finanamented.

    "..."

    "..."

    "H-how about you guys? It wouldn''t be fair that I''m the only one who gets to share my life story. We''re all here for a reason, right?" Satoshi brought up, just when they were pulling up in front of a vacant house. He didn''t want to make it more awkward for everyone since it had gotten quieter after he was done speaking.

    Besides, he was also curious as to how they became Disciples. Compared to him, the three of them were long-time Disciples so he knew that they had more experience than him. He was especially curious about this.

    "I''m a princess in our country. We have a long history as Disciples but my parents didn''t want me to join the superhero scene. Instead of flying everywhere and saving people, they want me to stay in the castle and learn etiquette and the like. I get that they were important, but they were not as interestingpared to bing a superhero." Lucy didn''t waste her time going first. She decided to tell everyone her story before Finana and Horatius shared theirs.

    "Then one day, I met the prince who was supposed to be my fiance. He was weak, and not only that. He was a spoiled brat who wanted everything to go in his way. I didn''t want to get married to someone like him so I just..." Lucy trailed off as she yed with her fingers. It was obvious that she was getting rather anxious to share the next bit of her story.

    "What is it? Are you going to torture us with a cliffhanger?" Finana gently asked.

    "That would be pretty bad. I''m already invested in this royal drama genre we have going on here." Horatius nodded his head in acquiescence.

    "I-I mean... he was doing everything to make me his bride... and they were pretty underhanded like employing assassins to kidnap me, framing my parents for crimes they didn''tmit... and things like that. In the end... I had enough so I..." Once again, Lucy stopped short as she nervously swallowed her saliva.

    Mustering her courage, she stopped short and clenched her fists. "I... I destroyed their entire kingdom, pretty much ran it to the ground with my superpower. They didn''t stand a chance since I have pretty powerful people on my side." Lucy continued.

    "Whoa... badass..." Finana''s mouth hung open as her jaw dropped to the ground. "Did you really? That was epic."

    "Right right, we get it. It''s all epic and all... but what happened next?" Horatius became even more invested in the story since it turned into a military drama setting instead of your typical romance drama.

    "I... of course, I had to finish what I started so I took over their kingdom. Now I have a kingdom under me and honestly, the people said it was in better hands than before." Lucy cut her story short since she was already feeling extremely embarrassed.

    "And then after a month or so, when my kingdom was already self-sufficient... our Manager contacted me. My parents were her Disciples as well, but she knew that my parents were against me bing a Disciple. As usual, I didn''t listen to them and I became her Disciple. So here I am now, hoping that I''d make my parents proud one day." There was warmth in Lucy''s words as a gentle smile appeared on her face.

    "Whoa, you own a kingdom? That''s so sick! No wonder our Manager wants you to join us as well." Finana lit up as she put her arm on Lucy''s shoulder.

    While they were having their heartwarming conversation and catching up with each other, Satoshi noticed something in his peripheral vision, which made him do a double take.

    A couple of Disciples were surrounding a certain individual, and from afar, it looked like they were bullying him. Satoshi didn''t think twice about running towards them, ready to jump in the action the moment they started throwing hands.

    "Satoshi!" Horatius snapped as he tightly grabbed Satoshi by the arm. "I wouldn''t do that if I were you." He warned with a serious expression on his face.

 Chapter 508 A Couple Of Mints

    ?

    "We just need a couple mints, bro, we''re fellow DIsciples, you should help us out." One of the guys called out, heckling the person who was kneeling on the ground.

    "Yeah, just a couple thousand will do. Or you can give us a gold mint. That''s always useful." Another Disciple added to the first one. He was also standing in front of the poor Disciple who was cowering on the ground.

    In total, there were five Disciples who were surrounding the fearful person who didn''t want any trouble. He stiffly kneeled in front of them while begging them to stop.

    "You''ve already asked me that yesterday, I don''t have mints anymore. Zero. I don''t even have the funds to get a decent mealter." The poor Disciple muttered to himself, flinching as he expected one of the five Disciples to p him across the cheek.

    "Who cares about your meals? Just get us the mints or you''re in for a real treat." The guy who seemed to be their leader, haughtily extended his hand, gesturing for him to cough up what little bit he had left.

    Right now, the guy didn''t have anything to spare anymore. Not a single mint was in his pocket.

    "What''s this..." With his demeanor shifting into a mild rage, Satoshi slowly walked towards the group, fully prepared to mercilessly confront them due to their one-sided bullying. There was no way he was going to let this one go after witnessing it firsthand.

    In fact, he was surprised that no one actually stepped in to stop them even though they were tantly harassing someone. It was madness, a clear image of the bystander effect. There were a lot of people but not a single person stepped forward to save the guy from his bullies.

    Seeing that no one would take action, Satoshi decided to take it upon himself to stop them. Without thinking twice, he approached them with the thought of beating them ck and blue just so he could teach them a lesson.

    Grab!

    "Satoshi!" Horatius snapped as he tightly grabbed Satoshi by the arm. "I wouldn''t do that if I were you." He warned with a serious expression on his face.

    "Are you stopping me right now, Horatius-san?" Satoshi gritted his teeth but he didn''t shake off Horatius''s vice grip on his forearm. He was due an exnation, and the only one who could exin what was going on was either Finana or Horatius.

    "I am... because you don''t stand a chance against them. Even I can''t go head to head with that group. They always travel in packs and once they gang up on one Disciple, they''re unstoppable. I wouldn''t mess with them if I were you." Horatius respectfully warned as he slowly let go of Satoshi''s hand.

    "You go do your thing but don''t say I didn''t warn you. Each of them may be weaker than you but as a group, they''re the best. No one could stop them, that''s why they could freely roam around and bully like that."

    "By the way..." Satoshi trailed off. Now that he got back to his senses thanks to Horatius''s deathly grip, he felt like he overlooked something.

    "What is it?"

    "I mean... what are mints?" Satoshi asked, wondering why the guys were asking the person for a mint. "Are they asking him for candies? What''s going on?"

    "Oh um, that''s the currency we have here." Horatius casually said as if the gang-up wasn''t even happening in front of them.

    Now that Satoshi got a good gist of the situation, he still turned around to get in the way of the five bullies. Up until now, they still haven''t noticed Satoshi''s presence since they weren''t paying attention in the first ce. Adding to that, no one had interfered with their bullying before so they were confident that no one would do it this time around as well.

    Although there were two additional people in the dimension, the group felt like it didn''t matter that much. Because of that, they didn''t even notice that Satoshi was already making his way to them.

    "You''ve got until before lunchtime. If you don''t have the money by then... you know what would happen, right?" One of them said.

    This was the first hour Satoshi got here, and he already knew what could happen to the guy if he wasn''t able to provide the expected funds.

    Since the group couldn''t outright bully him especially when their Manager is around, they''d have to do it in secret or when the Manager was not present¡ª which meant that if they want to beat him up, one of them would have to formally ask him for a duel and then the one-sided beat-up wouldmence soon after that.

    Satoshi could already see the future and he didn''t even have to look that far. At this rate, the guy was going to get stomped on until he loses his right as a Disciple due to his declining confidence and strength.

    With a smug expression on his face, the man pretended to spit something at the poor guy before he turned around. Confidently, he lightly gestured at his followers to go with him while he walked away from the scene. He was letting the poor guy off the hook for now, but if he still didn''t give the money by lunchtime, then the punishment was due in order.

    Walking away, he didn''t even notice that Satoshi was also approaching him and his group of unruly men. They were giggling and nudging at each other like the close friends they were, but underneath those grins was the attitude of superiority and desire to humiliate others.

    It took all of Satoshi''s being to suppress the urge of punching them right then and there. Instead of attacking them, he simply used his absurd physical capabilities by quickly shifting his foot from one side to another, basically tripping the leader of the group so he could humiliate him in the most messed up way possible.

    For a Disciple who basically honed his senses to the limits, the most shameful way to get attacked was for someone to trip them. Any Disciple out there would say with confidence that their senses and reaction speed could pretty much get them out of any normal threats.

    Basically, if you''re a Disciple and you tripped, you''re a failure as a Disciple. This was what Satoshi wanted the leader to feel since he was already a failure, to begin with. He was just going to prove it.

    The leader just let Satoshi pass and he didn''t even notice the re that Satoshi gave him. It was a conundrum whether he noticed it or not but at this point, it was irrelevant.

    At the right moment when the leader took a step, Satoshi shifted his foot and tripped him. He also activated the Statue of Captivity''s skill which pushed the leader to the ground and affected the gravity pull around him.

    Everything happened so briefly that no one even noticed who did it. By the time they realized what was going on, their leader''s face was already lying down face-first on the ground. He tripped on Satoshi''s foot and he didn''t even notice it.

    Someone who boasted top-notch reaction speed and was chosen by a Manager tripped on someone''s foot. It was the greatest insult and embarrassment one could ever experience as a Disciple.

    "I''m sorry, you didn''t see my foot there, didn''t you?" Satoshi apologetically said even though he intentionally did it to humiliate the leader of the group.

    Before the guy could even get up, Satoshi activated the Statue of Captivity''s gravitational pull skill which allowed him to m the guy even further into the ground. While it didn''t do any significant damage, it was more than enough embarrassment for someone who held himself in such high regard.

    "What was that for?!" The man angrily screamed as he stood up and approached Satoshi. He didn''t hesitate to grab Satoshi by the cor even though he was obviously aware that Satoshi just defeated Horatius in a game of arm wrestling a moment ago.

    "I said I''m sorry, sheesh~!" Satoshi pped the man''s hand which grabbed his cor. He then walked away as if the group of bullies weren''t even a threat to him.

    "What the... do you even know who I am?!" The leader grunted as his followers surrounded Satoshi, cutting off all his escape routes.

    Initially, Satoshi wanted to walk toward the guy they were bullying to help him out... but now that he was surrounded, he couldn''t do that without struggling. Because of that, he stopped and turned around to address their leader instead of pushing his way forward to help the bullied guy out.

    "I have no idea. I''m Midoriyama Satoshi by the way." Satoshi calmly responded. With a smile on his face, he extended his hand for a handshake as if this was a normal time to exchange handshakes.

    "You~!" The leader grunted, his patience running short as the humiliation got the better of him.

    BAM!

 Chapter 509 A Marathon

    ?

    Without a shred of hesitation, Satoshi swiveled while nting his right foot down on the ground. If he was going to throw someone, he needed the foothold so he could activate his core strength without much effort.

    morote seoi nage~!

    Whenever Satoshi encountered an enemy who would lose hisposure in front of him, his body always defaulted to a judo throw since enemies who weren''t thinking were the most susceptible to the technique.

    That''s why the moment he saw the group''s leader outstretching his hand towards him, he immediately activated abination move imprinted in his instincts for the longest time.

    In fact, it was one of the most used techniques he defaulted to, and he had used it many times on his peers during tournaments. Back when he was as powerless as a newborn deer, his martial arts and techniques were the only ones he relied on in order to win.

    And he wanted to win no matter what back then, that was why he resolved to learn the most effective techniques to get an edge over students with superpowers.

    Today was no different. Well, there was a huge difference with the fact that the leader was a bully, but that was beside the point.

    Satoshi''s body moved like a machine, grabbing onto the leader''s hand and pulling it towards him. Since his momentum carried him forward, Satoshi didn''t have a difficult time leading him closer before he put his leg in front.

    "Urk!" The leader eximed as Satoshi grabbed both his shoulders and flung him to the ground. It was a clear smackdown, and he didn''t even see iting.

    By the time his senses returned to him, he was already lying down on the ground, staring directly into the sky which shone a nice hue of bluish-yellow. The surreal sight of the sky made him pause for a moment and at that point, he waspletely devoid of hostility and rage.

    Well, it only took a couple of moments for him to get back on track though, and he was already seething with rage by the time he tried to get up.

    Just when he was about to continue throwing hands, however, he felt a pressuring gaze on his back, causing goosebumps to run all over his body as he slowly turned around. It''s as if everything went by in slow motion as the surroundings got quieter and quieter.

    It was obvious that the pressureing from someone had already overwhelmed the entire ce, and everyone felt that affection which caused them to shut their mouths.

    The moment hepletely turned around, he noticed a familiar face standing in front of him. It was none other than... Magnus Carter himself!

    Apparently, the moment Satoshi engaged the leader of the group in a fight, Magnus Carter had already arrived and he saw themotion transpiring from afar. Of course, since he was a bit curious as to how Satoshi would react, he decided to just observe until Satoshi dealt with everyone else.

    But now that he was caught in the background, he had no other choice but toe clean and clear his throat. Walking forward, he didn''t even bother looking through the eyes of the group''s leader.

    "All of you should be preparing right now, the test that I''d be giving you this time around is twice as difficult. With that out of the way, I hope that you can put your differences aside and just continue this altercationter on." Magnus Carter advised.

    While he was displeased with his Disciple''s actions, he didn''t want to ruin the mood by kicking them out as his Disciples. Besides, there may be a better way of dealing with this situation so he decided to use the test as an excuse to buy himself some time.

    On the off-chance that he couldn''t think up anything, he began to wonder if Satoshi would just teach them a lesson in his stead. So far, that was the most sensible idea he''d cooked up in order to deal with what just happened.

    Everyone present nodded their heads as Magnus Carter gracefully turned around and excused himself. He still needed to do a couple of tweaks to his next test and he was running out of time. In less than an hour, he was going tomence the test, and he didn''t want any imbnces to that test, just like what happened during the three-day survival test.

    Then again, Magnus Carter subconsciously decided to use Satoshi as his standard when it came to his test. Although all of his Disciples couldn''t even finish his three-day test, he was still going to push through the idea of increasing the difficulty to Satoshi''s level.

    He figured that if he were to push his Disciples to the possible limits, they might get better results¡ª not that they weren''t getting any results either. After all, they were the best Disciples to ever grace the dimensions.

    Back to the present, as soon as Magnus Carter turned around, Satoshi didn''t bother bullying the bully. He didn''t even bother asking him for his name even though an introduction was due in order. Instead, he also turned around and helped the guy who was still kneeling on the ground.

    "You all right?" He asked, offering his hand to the guy as he picked himself up.

    With a nod, the guy muttered a soft thanks. "You shouldn''t have done that. Now you''re going to..." His voice trailed off as he walked away.

    From the looks of it, he was unhurt, so Satoshi was relieved that the encounter didn''t escte any further. Then again, they have another problem right in front of them, and that''s the test that was bound to happen in a couple of minutes.

    "Come on, Satoshi," Horatius stepped forward, patting Satoshi''s shoulders while he directed him in a different direction. Finana and Lucy also walked up to them. "I was about to step in, but you handled that pretty well."

    A smile appeared on Horatius''s face as the four of them walked forward. Now that Satoshi noticed it, everyone was actually walking in the same direction. Even though Magnus Carter told them where the test was being held.

    "Where are we going?" Since everyone seemed to know what was going on and no one was asking any questions, Satoshi just had to ask.

    "It''s the usual test of the first day. A marathon." Horatius exined. "This is the usual first test every day and this is also how we get our necessary funds."

    "Under Magnus Carter, it is very different. We get to have different training but nothing too out of the ordinary, and we also have our own currency in order to motivate us to be financially capable. Also, the currency is an obvious motivation for everyone aiming beyond their limits." FInana added, twirling her finger around as she and Horatius exined.

    As the four of them continued walking, Horatius continued speaking. "In every test we have, we earn a minimum amount of mints that could get us through a normal day. Completing all the tests would get you enough mints to have three meals a day and rent a space."

    "We have three currencies: copper mint, silver mint, and gold mint. Andpleting a test earns you about twenty silver mints. However, you can earn more if you go through certain challenges... well, I prefer calling it debuffs since you''re basically giving yourself a disadvantage... although these debuffs are high-risk high-reward."

    Finana nudged Satoshi to the side, grabbing onto his hand as if they were close friends. "Yeah, the tests are pretty hard, to begin with, and putting debuffs on yourselves might make it so that you won''t be able toplete the test. You don''t earn any mint if you can''tplete the test, after all."

    "I see. And right now we''re going to run a marathon? I''m guessing we''re not allowed to use our superpowers, right? And we have to finish the marathon in one hour or something?" Satoshi asked.

    "Whoa, that''s pretty spartan. No, we can still use our superpower, it''s just that there''s a time limit of thirty minutes if we do that. If not, then we have an additional one hour toplete it. Also, you can equip weights on yourself before running, and that would add to how much mints you can earn. You can''t add weights if you''re using your superpower though, so that''s the neat part of it."

    "Don''t worry, running while using your superpower would take you twenty minutes maximum to clear it. This is your first time going through a marathon so don''t push yourself too hard, Satoshi." Finana advised. Well, since Satoshi was pretty powerful in terms of physical strength and superpower, she figured that Satoshi might be bad at one thing... and that one thing is stamina.

    If she said that outright in front of Satoshi, he''d have flipped off.

    "This is not my first time though, I''ve run plenty of marathons in the past." Satoshi said, but he took a mental note to himself since the challenge might be harder than he initially assumed.

 Chapter 510 Marathon Commencement

    ?

    Tension was welling up amongst the Disciples as they gathered in the same old ce¡ª the starting point of the marathon.

    This was right in the middle of the living quarters, right at the heart of the vige where all the Disciples stayed. And the path would head straight through a far forest, then out to another clearing, then circle around the entire vige from a distance before returning to the usual route.

    Even with all these differences on thend, there were still the usual stairs, torii shrine gates, and pirs of stones with waterfalls littered everywhere. It was the only thing that remained wherever one goes in Magnus Carter''s dimension.

    For a normal person, this path is a scenic route that will bring out theplete experience of enjoying Magnus Carter''s dimension. But to the Disciples, this path was paved with their blood, sweat, and tears.

    Of course, they enjoyed the sights, but with the time limit and the tests imposed on them, they barely have enough time to take in the scenery.

    "Well, if you''ve run a marathon in the past, then I guess this would be a piece of cake for you," Horatius said. At this point, he wouldn''t even be surprised if Satoshi managed to clear the entire run in record time.

    Finana and Lucy believed it as well. They were confident that Satoshi would easily exceed everyone''s expectations.

    When Magnus Carter appeared in the scene, he pped his hand and briefly exined the rules. Everyone already knew what the rules were, and also, Magnus assumed that Finana and Horatius also exined a couple of things to Lucy and Satoshi. He didn''t want to waste everyone''s time going over the nitty-gritty of the test.

    "All right, you have five minutes to choose how much weight you''re going to put on, and whether you''re doing the test with your superpower or not." Magnus gestured, showing a table where all the equipment was.

    Rows upon rows of normal-looking weights were on that table. They were all the same size but as it turned out, they were different weights. The heaviest weight avable weighed two tonnes and had the advantage of adding five minutes to your time. The lighter the weight, the less additional time one could get, but it wasn''t as significantpared to the usual time limit.

    There was also the choice of going through the test with or without one''s superpower. The majority would pick using their superpowers of course, but some of the Disciples would try to challenge themselves by going at it with no advantages, even equipping the weight so they could earn more mints for themselves.

    Doing the bare minimum would grant someone enough mints so they could survive for the day. However, if they wanted something extra, then they had to work hard to get more. It was a normal ''no work, no eat'' rule and Magnus Carter greatly stuck to this rule.

    This didn''t mean that Magnus Carter left his Disciples to learn by themselves. He still gave them pointers and personalized training lessons from time to time so they could break through their limits.

    However, it was up to them if they were going to push themselves or not. One thing that Magnus Carter didn''t want was to force them to train. If they wanted to stand out above the rest, then they should at least have the discipline to train themselves and improve without him telling them to.

    Also, forcing someone to train would actually provide negative results since that would give the Disciple a mindset that training would count as a punishment of sorts. Thest thing that Magnus Carter wanted was to rob someone of their potential by negatively affecting their mentality.

    As such, he left his Disciples to their own devices. It would be up to them if they''d want to work harder, but in essence, his training was enough to give them the growth they needed. If they wanted to add to that, they''d be rewarded for it, just like how it worked in real life.

    One by one, the Disciples started picking out their weights. Horatius and Finana led Lucy and Satoshi to the table, they then pointed at the different weights, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

    "I''d be using my superpower but I''ll be carrying the one-tonne pack. That should be enough to get me two meals for the day." Horatius exined.

    "I''m taking the two-tonne pack. With my superpower, this should be easy." Lucy shed a thumbs up. The only reason why the two of them pushed as much as they could during the first test was because the second and third tests might be even more difficult.

    If that was the case, then there was a good chance that arge portion of them wouldn''tplete these tests. It was only logical that they get as much as they could from the first test so they won''t have to worry about one of theter tests. They could just take it easy or perhaps even skip one test altogether.

    Well, not everyone thought like that, however. A handful of Disciples actually wanted to genuinely push themselves... and Satoshi was one of them. Lucy, on the other hand, just wanted to get through the test doing the bare minimum (it may look like it was the bare minimum for everyone else, but really, she was already doing her best).

    "You guys go ahead, I still have to decide what I''d go with," Satoshi said. Quite frankly, he just didn''t want them to see what he was going to pick. After all, it was a little bit embarrassing... at least for Satoshi, it was,

    As the marathonmenced, the Disciples started running one after the other, eager toplete the test so they wouldn''t bete for breakfast. Satoshi watched as Finana, Horatius, and Lucy started the marathon. He also saw the group of bullies going at it as well, ring at him before they made their way to the marathon.

    "All right, now, let''s do this." Satoshi clenched both his fists as he went with something that anyone had never done before. In fact, no one had ever thought of doing something crazy since that would result in instant failure.

    Without thinking twice, Satoshi actually equipped four two-tonne pouches and slung them on all his appendages. It was said that going with the maximum weight would reward someone with the highest amount of mint... but Satoshi didn''t hear anything about the maximum amount multiplying.

    ''If I were to equip four of them, then my reward should multiply by four, right? Also, my time limit would have a couple more minutes added to it.'' Satoshi concluded to himself, heading to the other side of the preparation area and deciding to not use any of his superpowers.

    On his way to the other side, he immediately felt the weights that pulled him down. All he wanted to do was lie down and get some rest, but doing that would result in instantly failing the test. That''s why he had to fight every urge to rx. More than anything, he had to keep standing as much as possible.

    "Any time now. If what I assumed was actually true... then it should kick in by now." Satoshi muttered to himself, letting out a silent prayer as he prayed for his idea to work.

    Slowly, the weights seemed to get lighter and lighter with every step he took, until it felt like he was just wearing regr old pouches on his arms and legs. He had experienced the same thing when he amped up the gravity control in the gym and it didn''t even faze him. Now he put it to the test, and it happened again.

    Somehow, his body adjusted to the crazy weight and he could move just fine. With this, he could finally move forward with his n. Instead of going at it using his superpower, he made it even harder for himself. He just used his physical strength alone.

    He started running.

    At this point, there was no Disciple left in the waiting area since he was thest one to leave. This meant that, if everything falls into ce, then Satoshi should be thest one to arrive, assuming that everyone else finished their tests properly.

    Satoshi started off with the usual pace of thirty kilometers per hour. It was pretty fast for a human but to all the Disciples, it was doable. However, Satoshi was easily carrying over eight tonnes of weight thanks to his pouch! This shouldn''t have been possible!

    Nevertheless, Satoshi did an easy work out of it, keeping his pace as he ran. He could feel the exhaustion, but he''d been through worse training in the past so it was a normal urrence for Satoshi.

    It didn''t take long before he overtook a couple of Disciples. These Disciples actually questioned Satoshi''s strength since he was slower than they had expected. It didn''t even ur to them that the pouches strapped on his arms and legs were of maximum weight each.

 Chapter 511 Alicia Quills Marathon

    ?

    Now that Satoshi''s entire body had fully adjusted to the weight of the pouches, he finally picked up the pace, just to make sure that he get within the one-and-a-half-hour mark. At his current pace, he''d barely make it in time, but if he sped up just a little bit, he''d be able to shave off a couple of seconds.

    In fifteen minutes, he had already cleared seven kilometers, more or less. It was a good pace, considering that he was carrying eight tonnes of weight plus his body weight. For a normal human, this should''ve been an impossible task, but somehow, Satoshi''s body managed to adapt to this weight and still run.

    He barely felt anything at all, as if the weights warped to amodate his body. Furthermore, he was also not using a sliver of his superpower.

    Of course, now that fifteen minutes had passed, most of the Disciples were already making their way back to the start line. They''ve already finished more than half of the entire track.

    At the twenty-minute mark, some of the Disciples were already reaching their final stretch. After all, there was an additional reward if one were to finish first in their category. There were only two categories for this marathon¡ª with superpower or without superpower.

    "Look at him! He''s just starting out!"

    "Isn''t his pace kind of slow for a Disciple? Can he make it?"

    "He''s not using any superpower but he''s way behind the others in the same category. Is he really a Disciple?"

    "Nah, he''s just physically strong. In terms of stamina, he''s got no stamina."

    Satoshi overheard the Disciples talking about him on their way back. They''ve already finished the test but Satoshi still hasn''t even reached halfway. His little arm wrestling performance back then with Horatius disyed how formidable he was, but now that they saw him in the marathon, his results weren''t all that promising.

    To them, he was like a normal peak human running a marathon, and of course, that''s what he was considering that he went through the marathon without using any of his superpowers.

    One by one, the Disciples finished and celebrated with their hard-earned mints. Since they were only doing the bare minimum, their earnings only went up to seventy or so mints. Finana and Horatius were also done with the marathon, and they earned eighty mints each.

    For one, eighty mints were actually a lot of money and it would be enough to grab two meals. Then again, they still need to save up a portion of their earnings so they''d have enough money to pay for their daily necessities. After all, food wasn''t the only thing they needed to survive for the day.

    Despite most of the Disciples making fun of him, Satoshi pressed on. He even quickened his pace once he got even morefortable with the weight. At this point, he still couldn''t believe that he still didn''t use a single ounce of his superpower.

    From afar, Satoshi saw someone who was also struggling behind. She was deadst, not counting Satoshi who was way behind her. elerating even further, Satoshi decided to catch up to the girl who was almost out of breath.

    Her hair was bright red in color, and her eyes phoenix-like. She was almost as tall as Satoshi, and her proportions were on the curvaceous side. Her outfit choice was actually pretty normal since she was wearing an oversized sleeveless shirt on top of her sports clothes.

    She belonged to the handful of Disciples who challenged themselves to not use any of their superpowers for this marathon. Apparently, this wasn''t the first time the girl ran this marathon, and this time, she challenged herself by carrying twenty pounds with her.

    While the additional reward for this weight was minusculepared to what Satoshi was carrying, it still was an amazing feat to pull off. After all, she was running at an even speed of at least thirty-kilometers per hour.

    Briefly turning around, the girl actually noticed Satoshi running right behind her, and the first thing she noticed was the weights on both his arms and legs. While she had no idea how much he was carrying, it was obvious that he had more weight than her since there were four pouches on his body while she only had two.

    At most, Satoshi was carrying forty pounds... or more. He was a guy, after all, and she concluded that his weights were even heavier than what she carried.

    When Satoshi finally caught up to her, she had the impulse of matching her pace with him since it would be rather rude if she suddenly ran faster.

    "Hey." Satoshi waved his hand at the girl who seemed to have the same age as him. He cordially greeted her, trying to strike a conversation while they were together in this portion of the run.

    "Hi, you''re Satoshi, right?" The girl''s lips curved a little bit upward as she smiled in front of Satoshi. Her lungs were already screaming, urging her to stop running. But right now, with Satoshi''spany, she should be able to maintain her pace a little bit more.

    "How did you know?" Satoshi inquisitively asked since he had no idea who the girl was It didn''t even ur to him that everyone in here knew each other, and since he jus arrived an hour or so ago, of course everyone would know who he was.

    "That arm wrestling match with Horatius. You''re pretty strong." The girlmented as she pointed at the weights Satoshi was carrying around. When Satoshi waved his hand, the pouch wrapped around his arm dangle heavily, and based on her observation, she assumed that it weighed at least thirty or forty pounds.

    Her curiosity piqued, she then pointed at Satoshi''s weights. "How much are you carrying?"

    Now, Satoshi knew that everyone here were the cream of the crop, so he assumed that everyone could do at least half of what he does. "About a tonne?" He responded, even though each weight actually weighed twice what he said.

    The girl wore a shocked expression on her face,pletely misunderstanding what Satoshi just said. When Satoshi responded to her question, she thought that Satoshi referred to his weights as a whole. It didn''t even ur to her that he might be referring to only one of the four pouches he wore.

    "Wow, that''s a lot of weight." A light chuckle forced out of the girl''s mouth when she smiled. Thanks to Satoshi, she finally got back on her groove, and together, the two of them ran as two of thest Disciplesgging behind.

    "Yours?"

    "Just twenty pounds," The girl responded. Compared to him, she was carrying just a small amount.

    "Twenty pounds? And you''re not using any of your supeprower? What made you decide to not use your superpower?" Satoshi asked just to keep the conversation going.

    While it was hard for the two of them to keep a conversation, they still did it while they ran side by side each other. "I haven''t introduced myself yet. My name''s Alicia Quill. Thank you for running with me." She said.

    Quite frankly, Satoshi was just keeping his pace. He wasn''t actually running with the girl, nor did he intended to run with him the rest of the way. Then again, she was running on his pace so that was convenient.

    The moment she slows down, though, he was going to leave her behind. He''d try his best to encourage her though, but that''s the only thing he''d do. He wouldn''t go as far as to drag her to the finish line since he didn''t want to fail because of her.

    As it turned out, Alicia Quill was actuall sixteen years old as well, andpared to the other Disciples, she was incredibly weak in the physical aspect. That''s why she decided to train without using her superpower.

    Well, she was pretty sessful with the first few marathons, and so far she hasn''t failed it despite her physical weakness. That''s why she decided to challenge herself. Now, her new goal was to finish the marathon with twenty pounds in tow.

    But one hour in, she was already questioning her decisions in life. They''ve already cleared thirty-one kilometers. Just a couple more, but she felt like giving up. There weren''t any Disciples in their vicinity anymore. They were thest ones left.

    "Whoa, they''re really used to this marathon, huh, no one''s failed the test." Satoshi muttered to himself, briefly ncing at Alicia who was on the verge of copsing.

    "Get it together, we''re almost there." Satoshi advised her, slightly raising his voice so he could keep her awake. This was the least she could do to push her to finish.

    "I can''t... I want to rest."

    "We only have a kilometer left,e on! If you want to fail, then go ahead." Satoshi said as he sprinted thest kilometer.

    Somehow, his indifferent words gave Alicia the boost she needed and she too sprinted with him.

    They were able to finish the marathon with three minutes to spare.

 Chapter 512 Disciples Expectations

    ?

    Unbeknownst to all the Disciples who participated in the first test of a marathon, Magnus Carter was actually monitoring each of them just as he had done so in the past.

    He never told his Disciples about it so they wouldn''t know whether he was aware of their diligence or theirziness. In any case, this had been an unbreakable habit for Magnus Carter and it allowed him to guide each of his Disciples ordingly.

    Had the Disciples known that Magnus Carter was keeping close tabs on them, they''d have done their utmost in challenging themselves and breaking through their limits. However, because they were presumably left to their own devices, most of them stuck to the bare minimum.

    Since this was Satoshi''s first time joining his marathon, he was curious whether he''d carry more weight or not. There was also the option of using his superpower, and Magnus Carter looked forward to that as well.

    To his utter shock, Satoshi picked up a couple of two-tonne weight pouches and strapped them on himself. This was too much for a marathon, so Magnus Carter was convinced that he''d do it using his superpower.

    Even then, it would still be pretty tricky. After all, he had to keep using his superpower for thirty minutes straight, assuming that he would finish the test in time.

    After witnessing Satoshi grabbed his weights, Magnus still couldn''t imagine how Satoshi would be able to pull it off. Even if he used his superpower, he still wouldn''tst long. After all, Satoshi''s superpower mainly relies on his tamed beasts, and the rules of the marathon specifically state that the runner had to carry the weight himself.

    "Beast integration. Is he going to stick with beast integration for thirty minutes? Then again, it''s possible... but could he really hold eight tonnes of weight?" At this point, Magnus Carter was half-convinced that Satoshi would clear the test. Because he was especially curious as to how Satoshi would go about the marathon, he decided to watch him closely.

    What happened next was enough for Magnus Carter to almost lose his reason. He rubbed his eyes to reconfirm that he wasn''t dreaming, and when that didn''t work, he had to pinch himself.

    Satoshi had chosen not to use any of his superpowers! And moreover, he had already passed the starting line, which meant that he couldn''t go back on his choice anymore. Either he finished the entire marathon without using his superpower, or he gives up on it altogether.

    "How could he possibly finish this entire marathon while dragging eight tons by himself? Also, there''s a time limit of one and a half hours, could he really do it?" Magnus asked himself.

    But before his skepticism got the better of him, he saw Satoshi picking up the pace, and it didn''t take long before he started running at an even momentum. For the first time in who knows how long, Magnus Carter witnessed something that left his mouth hanging open in shock.

    ...

    Back to the present,

    When Satoshi arrived at the finish line, everyone looked at him as if he was an alien who just arrived on their home. He was exhausted but he managed to keep himself upright as he dropped the weights on the floor.

    Now that he''d finished the entire marathon in time, he felt the weights begin to drag him down which almost forced him to seat. Left with no choice, he just dropped all the weight altogether, unstrapping the pouches and dropping them on the ground before anyone could react.

    A cloud of dust erupted and Satoshi let go of the pouches. To be fair, the pouches he wore seemed to be lighter than normal, but little did they realize that Satoshi actually got four pouches with the heaviest weight. And he managed to carry all of that all the way without even stopping.

    He was able to clear the marathon in the least expected time, but he exceeded everyone''s expectations. Even Alicia Quill, who was with him all the way, was surprised at how much weight he was carrying.

    At first, she assumed that Satoshi was only carrying a ton of weight, but who would''ve thought that he had eight tonnes total in his body? And he was able to finish the marathon while carrying such an insane weight.

    When Satoshi dropped the weight on the ground, it let out an ominous thud as the four pouches slightly bounced off the ground. A huge column of sand and dust erupted from where they were dropped, and Satoshi was expecting something ''biased'' and normal at the same time.

    As soon as he dropped the weights, Satoshi copsed on the ground, heaving a sigh of relief as hey down on the ground, obviously exhausted. he didn''t even bother looking back at the other Disciples who were clearly observing him without disturbing anything in his vicinity.

    "Whoa~!"

    "How much weight is he carrying?"

    "No way he just finished that marathon while dragging ady with him. How did he manage to arrive in time with those crazy weights?"

    "I don''t know, did he use any of his superpowers? And even if he did, how did he do it? He should''ve copsed right now after the test."

    "He''s clearly alive though. How was that able to happen?"

    It wasn''t just Magnus Carter who was questioning himself. Every one started murmuring at each other when Satoshi walked away so he could sit down on one side of the starting line.

    As the smoke cleared up from the weights he dropped on the ground, he briefly noticed the majority of the Disciples, wearing a shocked expressions on their faces, wondering how Satoshi managed to finish the marathon in time while carrying such a ridiculous number of weight.

    They had no idea how much Satoshi was carrying, but some of the Disciples got curious enough to try to carry one of them.

    And since Satoshi didn''t use any of his superpowers, all of them didn''t even bother activating their superpowers when they tried to lift them up. One of them grunted when they tried to lift one of the pouches up, but they couldn''t even put it up to the ground.

    "What is this, Thor''s Mjolnir or something?" One of the Disciplesmented. When he turned around to see if the others could carry the other pouches, they too couldn''t do it.

    "Is this real? Am I dreaming?" Another Disciple said, scratching his head in amusement. It was only when he activated his superpower was he able to carry the pouch that Satoshi dropped.

    Curious, Alicia Quill also walked up to one of the pouches and he tried to carry one of them. If it weighed at least a hundred pounds or something, she should''ve been able to lift it up even just a little bit.

    Nevertheless, no matter how much she struggled, she just couldn''t lift it. It was only when she activated her superpowers and clenched her teeth was she able to lift it a couple of inches from the ground.

    "This is insane, how did he do it? Was he cheating?"

    "No, I didn''t sense any superpowering from him when I passed by him."

    "Or maybe he just deactivated his superpower on thest hundred meters."

    "No, he really didn''t use any of his superpowers on the entire race. I was there." Alicia announced to everyone. But of course, no one believed her.

    A couple of minutester, Magnus Carter arrived at the scene, pping his hand and congratting everyone for a job well done.

    As usual, none of his Disciples failed the first test of the day. No one could afford failing the first test so most of the Disciples took little risks. It was to be expected, since passing the first test gives everyone more freedom for the uing tests.

    "Please head forward to receive your rewards." Magnus Carter said as some of his personnel appeared. They began handing out the mints that every Disciple earned for keeps.

    Usually, no one bothered with each other''s earnings. However, today was different, they were curious as to how much Satoshi earned during the entire race.

    They lingered around the ce after getting their mints, sticking close to Satoshi, but no so much so he wouldn''t suspect them that much.

    When it was Satoshi''s turn to get it, Magnus Carter specifically stepped forward to give him his mint. He red at some of his Disciples since they were sticking too close to Satoshi, not that Satoshi was bothered by it.

    "Here you go," Magnus scratched his head, handing Satoshi eight gold mints¡ª an equivalent of 800 gold mints.

    "Thanks," Satoshi indifferently said as he pocketed eight gold mints. As for everyone, they hung their mouths open in shock. They couldn''t believe that someone earned eight times as much as their expected maximum earnings.

    Initially, they thought that one could earn a maximum of one gold mint, when in fact, one could actually multiply that maximum amount by equipping more than one two-tonne pouch.

    "Wait... so, he really ran with that much weight without using his superpower?!" One of the Disciples asked, to which Magnus Carter nodded. Apparently, he too was shocked that Satoshi could actually pull it off.

 Chapter 513 Barbecue Party

    ?

    Coincidentally, the Disciples left with Bucky Barnes were also subjected to the grueling marathon... however, they had no choice but to go at it without using their superpowers.

    For some, it was incredibly easy, but for those who were only strong in the superpower sense, this was one of the most challenging tests they could go through. There was also a time limit of two hours, which was already a lenient amount of time considering that they were all peak human Disciples.

    A handful of Disciples like Arghus (peerless disciple) and Bruce (main member of Satoshi''s party during the three-day survival test) resolved to break through their limits andplete the marathon in under thirty minutes. As for the majority, they went with an even pace of 21 kilometers per hour, barely making it in time to finish the race in under 2 hours.

    "Hey, you think Satoshi''s doing fine?" Jonathan worriedly asked as he turned his head toward Yun Zhe. "I mean, tests like these are barely a challenge for us, but it is an altogether different topic with Magnus Carter''s Disciples. They''re the best of the best, right?"

    "You should save your energy for the entire run, you know... but yeah, it''s worrying that one of us is not here." Yun Zhe pursed his lips, concerned for Satoshi''s well-being since he wasn''t present. "In any case, we know how it is for Satoshi. No matter where he goes, he''s bound to amaze everyone with his pure skill and overpowered self."

    "We''re switching with you guys I''ll take the lead this time," Himuro suggested. Their group decided to rotate their lead runner so they could conserve as much energy as possible.

    Compared to the test mindset that Magnus Carter''s Disciples underwent, this group had a different outlook¡ª they were keen on doing the bare minimum so they could survive the next test.

    Magus Carter''s Disciples just wanted to let it be done and over with so they could take it easy on the next tests. Then again, it was almost always a surprise what the midday and evening tests would be for everyone so no one could actually fully prepare for what was about toe.

    "Come ondies, don''t go dropping like flies now," Jonathan turned around, seeing thedies in their group struggle to keep up with their pace.

    ...

    Magnus Carter''s Dimension,

    When Satoshi was handed eight gold mints, everyone''s pupils dted in shock upon seeing that much money in one go. They had no idea that multiplying the amount of weight essentially multiplied their earnings.

    "Whoa, Satoshi..." Alicia Quill trailed off as she stared at Satoshi with a suspecting re. "You were lying when you said a ton, right?"

    "Eh?" Satoshi darted his eyes around, finally noticing the stares that everyone gave him. He hung his head down low as he whispered at Alicia Quill. "It was actually two tonnes." He responded sheepishly.

    "Two tonnes? And you earned eight gold mints because of that?" Alicia eximed.

    "Then again, two tonnes is pretty heavy considering that you weren''t using any of your superpowers... but eight gold mints is still a crazy amount... hmm." Alicia trailed off as she tapped her index finger on her chin.

    Usually, it would take at least three or four days tops before a Disciple could earn that much money. And yet, Satoshi just earned it in one test as if it was nothing. With that amount of money, he could already treat himself to a feast, or rent out the most expensive ''housing'' in the dimension.

    The greatest housing avable in the dimension costs one gold mint per day, and Satoshi could get that and then some.

    "No... it was two tonnes each," Satoshi said, grabbing one of the pouches and handing it to Alicia.

    The moment it touched her hands she immediately let go since she would definitely get squished if she were to keep holding onto it.

    BAM!

    Dropping the pouch created a crater on the ground, and everyone gasped in shock as Satoshi calmly reached out and picked it up. He then ced it on the table where the pouches were originally set.

    "Ehrmm!" Magnus Carter cleared his throat, garnering everyone''s attention so he could announce what would happen next. He too didn''t expect Satoshi to exceed his expectations, but right now was not the time to ask him about it.

    The next test was bound to happen in a couple of hours. Usually, there would be another test after breakfast but Magnus Carter wanted Satoshi and Lucy to get a full experience in his dimension.

    Because of that, he once again reminded Finana and Horatius to look after Lucy and Satoshi while the next couple of hours passed. Since there was nothing left to do and they didn''t need to prepare for the next test, Finana and Horatius opted to point Lucy and Satoshi to their abode, and then they could either grab a quick brunch or continue touring the entire dimension.

    (As mentioned, no one knows what the next test would be so there was no point preparing for it).

    "Here we are." Horatius extended his hand, presenting a house that looked like a traditional Japanese house with a nice deck and stone-paved pathways through a clear yard.

    A koi pond was located on the side, and the entire area was fenced with bamboo that swayed with the slightest breeze.

    The stead click-ck of the bamboo fountain was rhythmed with the creaks of the bamboo and the steady flow of the fountain to the pond. It was the most rxingbination of natural sounds that Satoshi had ever encountered.

    To top it all off, the entire ambiance of the ce resonated with their souls. Before Lucy and Satoshi knew it, they were drawn to the house.

    "I call dibs on the wooden deck," Satoshi spoke first, but Lucy didn''t even acknowledge what he said.

    She just went straight to the deck andy down on top of it, an action unbefitting a royalty like her.

    "Oi!" Satoshi said, finding an open space as he too assumed a lying position. Together, the two of them enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere, the feeling of rejuvenation oveing them while they rxed.

    "It feels nice, right? Especially after that exhausting marathon... in any case, do you want to eat something?" Horatius asked, sitting down on an open spot in the yard while Finana dipped her feet in the koi pond.

    "I want hamburg steak!" Finana raised her hand in the air.

    "Whoa~ me too!" Satoshi bolted upright and raised his hand as well.

    "M-m-me too!" Lucy also jumped on the bandwagon since she felt like she was being left behind.

    Seeing that the three of them fancied hamburg steaks, Horatius smiled and rubbed his nose as he brought up a great idea. "I have a grill at my ce. I''ll bring it out and we can have a barbecue party here."

    "Ooh, great idea," Satoshi pped his hand as Horatius sprinted out of there. Even though they were the ones who suggested hamburg steaks for their meal, Horatius appeared to be the most excited out of all of them.

    "He''s always like that. He likes hamburg steaks as well." Finanamented as she began feeding the koi in the pond. She had leftover bread in her pocket, for some odd reason (well, she actually enjoyed feeding the fish so she always kept bread with her).

    It didn''t take long before Horatius arrived with an entire grill bnced on his shoulders. Gently, he put it down right by the clear space in the yard.

    "I have an extension cord with me, don''t worry," Horatius said, grabbing an extension cord from his spatial storage. It left everyone wondering why he carried the grill when he could''ve just stuffed it inside his storage.

    With an excitement akin to a five-year-old, Horatius set up the grill, and it didn''t take long before the grill was ming hot. Even though some of them had fire as their superpower, Horatius insisted that they do it the ''normal'' way.

    "Now, all that''s left is to order our hamburg steak... or do you prefer making it ourselves... no, we don''t have time for that," Horatius said, pulling out some sort of device from his pockets.

    "Wait, you have a smartphone over here? Wow," Satoshimented as Horatius ordered a couple of things online. Apparently, they have something called ''overeats'' here and it delivers the food and groceries they need.

    "This overeats app is pretty convenient. We can order anything we want and it would be delivered in a couple of minutes. This is how we get our food around here." Finana exined.

    A couple of minutester, a delivery guy in a scooter arrived on their doorstep. His appearance was an extreme contrast to his surroundings. Without saying a word, he set down his deliveries and drove off.

    "Oh, it''s already paid," Horatius said, smiling at all of them, indirectly saying that this meal was his treat.

    "Sweet!" Finana sped her hands together in glee.

 Chapter 514 Tempering The Body

    ?

    Sizzle sizzle~

    From afar, the sweet savory scent of barbecue wafted in the air, causing the other disciples to turn their heads and salivate. Because of their underlying influence, some of the neighboring abodes where the disciples resided soon had the aroma of barbecue.

    They too decided to have a barbecue party for brunch.

    "Wahhh~! I''ve always wanted to have this." Finana wiped the thirsty grin on her face while her eyessered on the hamburg cooking on the grill.

    Every time Horatius flipped the hamburg steak, she would follow it up in the air. Finana would then suppress the urge to snatch it in the air and eat it all together. Then again, the hamburg steak wouldn''t beplete without its sauce, so that made it easier for Finana to stop herself.

    "I can''t believe that we all wanted hamburg steak. What a coincidence." Horatiusmented, nodding at Satoshi so he would start preparing the sauce.

    Without needing further instructions, Satoshi began prepping the sauce. With tonkatsu sauce as the base, Satoshi prepared the hamburg steak sauce based on how his mom would prepare it. He had seen it countless times and it was practically ingrained in his mind.

    "Whoa~ what was that? That smells so good!" Horatius started drooling as he caught a whiff of the sauce that Satoshi made.

    "Our own version of hamburg steak sauce. I got it from my mom." Satoshi answered as everyone surrounded him. He was using the same ingredients but hisbination brought out its every vor.

    A couple of minutester, Finana set up the table she found inside the house, setting it a couple of feet away from the grill so they could have the full barbecue experience.

    "Thanks for the meal!"

    "Thanks for the meal!"

    As Horatius set down te upon te of hamburg steaks, everyone licked their lips in anticipation. It was only when Horatius sat down that all of them started eating.

    "Whoa, this is delicious! Especially that sauce, man, it pairs really well with the hamburg steak." Horatius eximed, finishing his portion in an instant.

    "You should teach us how to do it next time. It''s really good!" Finana agreed.

    "Mhmm~!" Compared to the other two, Lucy actually relished her portion, slowly eating it so she would enjoy it to the fullest. Once she finished her meal, a satisfied smile appeared on her face while she gently dabbed her mouth with a napkin.

    Even though she also really likes hamburg steaks, she didn''t eat them in an unsightly manner. She was famished, but her mannerisms and table etiquette were befitting royalty.

    "Now, onto the real topic..." The atmosphere of the ce suddenly changed as Horatius leaned forward. He gave a brief nce at Satoshi before his lips curved upward. "Satoshi, mind exining what happened during the first test?"

    "Oh, you mean... ah, right!" Satoshi pressed his hands together as if he just thought of a great idea. He then started answering the presumed question he received. "Everyone was thinking that the maximum reward you could get in a test is two gold mints, right? That is, if you run the marathon with two tonnes on you and without using your superpower."

    "I figured the rewards would multiply if you added more than that. After all, it wouldn''t be avable if it didn''t give additional rewards, right? So I equipped four two-tonne pouches and got eight gold mints."

    With utmost confidence in his exnation, Satoshi twirled his index finger as he exined. Somehow, he feltfortable with this group even though it had only been a couple of hours since they met each other and gathered.

    Sigh~

    Scratching his head, Horatius had a troubled expression on his face as he stared at Satoshi. "No, I wasn''t talking about that." Hemented.

    This time, bewilderment filled Satoshi since he had no idea what Horatius was implying. If he wasn''t talking about his exploitation of the marathon rewards, then what was he talking about?

    "Yeah, we already knew that, but that''s not humanly possible so no one tried it. In any case, what we want to know is how you carried eight tonnes by yourself without using any of your superpowers. Are you even human? How does that even work?" Horatius let out, pulling out all stops since Satoshi didn''t seem to understand his indirect question.

    "Oh, I''m sorry but I don''t know either. I only found out about it during the disciples training." Satoshi brought his hand up and clenched it. "It seems that... my body actually adapts to its environment. Be it gravity or an absurd amount of weight, I can withstand it."

    "How about temperature? If it''s very cold or hot? Can you endure it as well?" Finana''s eyes lit up as she intently stared at Satoshi.

    "I-I think so." Satoshi nervously replied since he knew what was about to happen next.

    "Then we have to test it! If you only found out about it, wouldn''t it be better for you if you knew its limitations? Right now we should put your body in extreme trauma... well, not too much since we still have two or so testster on." For some odd reason, Finana was more fired up than usual.

    Without saying another word, she started cleaning up and clearing the empty space in the yard. She was more than eager to test Satoshi even though Satoshi was the one who owned the unique trait.

    "Is it the... Golden Refinement Body? There''s no way, right?" Horatius muttered to himself. He had only heard the term loosely discussed in the books in their world, but throughout history, there were only two recorded instances of this strange phenomenon.

    Horatius touched his chin as he got too deep in his thoughts. "Strange, isn''t he from another world other than ours? So that means the phenomenon could exist in other dimensions as well... wait, does that exin why there were only two recorded instances of it?

    "What are you muttering about?" Finana asked. "Come on, you should help out too."

    "Sorry," Horatius apologetically said, scratching his head. For now, he would put the thought at the back of his mind. Once they were done with these tests, he would know for sure whether Satoshi has the Golden Refinement Body or not.

    While the term may sound like it was straight out of a cultivation novel, it was a loose term that describes a rare case where someone was born with an almost-indestructible body. Provided that the body was subjected to a slow adjustment as well as having enough energy for sustenance, the body could then adapt without much difficulty.

    This wasn''t a superpower, but rather, it''s akin to a congenital disorder. That''s why it doesn''t work like any superpowers out there. If any, it was closer to a natural unique trait than a buff.

    "All right, let''s start with fire! Remember, you should consciously not activate any of your abilities or superpowers, Satoshi." Finana reminded him before nodding at Lucy.

    At Finana''s signal, Lucy then fired off intense mes at Satoshi. Since he wasn''t activating anything, Satoshi immediately felt the burn in his body, and his skin got a third degree burn.

    "Aghk~!" A scream of excruciating pain came out of Satoshi''s mouth as he was forced to kneel on the ground.

    Fortunately, Satoshi''s pain threshold was high, and he actively reminded himself to not activate any of his superpowers nor expend any energy. Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to endure the mes that scorched his skin.

    Then a miracle happened.

    A couple of secondster, Satoshi''s body just stopped burning. His body got used to the temperature and he didn''t even feel a sliver of warmth.

    ''Strange... howe I have this ability when I''ve never experienced this before? When did I awaken this, exactly?'' Satoshi asked himself.

    For a moment, Satoshi thought that his nervous system entered failure, but he could still feel it whenever he pinched himself, which disproved his first assumption. Still, it was weird that he never knew about it until now.

    Then again, he never subjected himself to extremes, so there was no way he''d know he had such an overpowered bodily trait.

    "Next is the coldness!" Finana called out, to which Lucy fired off an extreme st of ice beam.

    Fwip~!

    Suddenly, Satoshi felt like his heart stopped, and he could''ve sworn he lost consciousness in a split second. But after that, the sudden cold disappeared altogether, and he didn''t feel a thing while the ice beam continued to hit his body squarely.

    "Whoa, what''s going on?!" Satoshi eximed as his body continued to adapt to the coldness.

    "Now gravity!" Finana ordered.

    Just like the first two, Lucy once again used his Golden Pen Representative to apply gravitational pressure onto Satoshi.

    "Now let''s move on to hydrostatic pressure! Then space environment!" It''s as if something was awakening inside Finana as she continued testing the sheer limits of Satoshi''s body. But no matter what she did, Satoshi survived everything.

    He did suffer some really serious injuries, but he didn''t die¡ª which was a good thing.

    "Can we stop for now? I might transition into an ''m'' at this rate." Satoshi panted as he copsed on the ground, all beaten up and out of breath.

 Chapter 515 Cavalry Test!

    ?

    Meanwhile on Earth,

    After making a report to the Hero Association in America, Star Spangled then informed Mi Hermano of what he saw from afar. He briefly described the unknown entity in space, dangerously closing in on Earth.

    "Now that exins why there were fewer and fewer incidents these past few weeks. To think that another invasion is bound to take ce." Star Spangled clicked his tongue, once again turning to Mi Hermano so he could advise him on what to do.

    Since Star Spangled was behind schedule, he left Mi Hermano with the job of informing the other superheroes in America to prepare for an all-out war. At that moment, they still didn''t want to inform the entire world since it might stir a global panic. However, they had to slowly leak the information so as to fully prepare for the war.

    "We''d have to inform Fury about this as well. Leave it to me." Mi Hermano suggested, puffing his chest as Star Spangled walked out of his agency. While Star Spangled''s visit was a cause for celebration, it brought about bad tidings so there was no time for the agency to celebrate.

    "Please, I''ll leave that matter to you." Star Spangled saluted before walking out of there. Now it was time for him to prepare for the uing war as well. "I''ll inform them soon. For now, I have to take care of a couple of things."

    ...

    Disciples Training Camp,

    As usual, Satoshi''s group gathered once again since it was already lunch time. Lately, they found themselves sticking close to each other even though they were of different Managers. It was most probably because of their connection to Satoshi and how they survived the three-day test.

    Before, they didn''t even know each other. But now, they were as inseparable as close friends. There were only nine of them at the moment though, since Lucy and Satoshi weren''t around.

    "I heard that the next test would be a tournament-type. We''re going to fight each other or something like that." Himuro whispered to everyone. Apparently, this was just his assumption since he overheard the Managers talking about it.

    "Really? Is it going to be like... free-for-all or are we fighting one on one?" Jonathan asked as he scooted closer to Himuro.

    "I have no idea. We have to prepare though." HImuro responded. "In any case, do you think Lucy and Satoshi would join us or not?"

    "I think not. If Satoshi did, then there''s no way we''d win. He''d just win the whole thing or something." Yun Zhe said. "It would be better if they set up restrictions on everyone, that way we could have an even ground of fighting. For example, if we could only use one tamed beast or something."

    "Yeah, that would actually even things out. However, it wouldn''t'' be fair since not all of us have Representatives." Mitsuka exined. "I think less than ten percent of Disciples have Representatives. Of course, I don''t have one." Mitsuka continued.

    "I don''t have one either." Nanako admittedly said. "How about you?"

    Bruce and Larry also shook their heads. They do have powerful legendary tamed beasts, but they never encountered a Representative.

    "Really? All of you don''t have?" Jonathan couldn''t believe it. He assumed that everyone else had Representatives since all of them under the management of Bucky Barnes had Representatives.

    Then again, Bucky Barnes worked his rear side off trying to collect Representative for ten years just so he could give them to his worthy Disciples. As fate would have it, he was able to gather three Disciples at the end, a fitting number with the same amount of Representatives he gathered.

    Before they arrived at the training camp, Bucky Barnes had actually given each of them their Representatives. He did allow them to pick which one they liked and they all picked a different Representative.

    Although they have such an overpowered trump card under their belt, Jonathan, Satoshi, and Yun Zhe still didn''t use their new Representatives, just because they still weren''t sure about them.

    Satoshi made a mental note in his head that he''d use it in the near future though, but right now was not the most optimal time yet so he still kept it hidden in its Gren. Even his other familiars had no idea that he''s got another Representative with him.

    "Well, let''s just do this properly. Satoshi or no Satoshi, we have to pass the next tests with flying colors." Yun Zhe clenched the cup in his hand, raising it up in front of everyone. "Cheers to our team." He said while rubbing his nose.

    Himuro and the others also raised their hands in unison. It may just be another test, but to them, it was a way in which they could prove themselves. After all, they were worthy enough to survive the three-day survival test. It was up to them whether they lived up to the others'' expectations or not.

    ....

    Magnus Carter''s Dimension,

    "Now that we''ve proven Satoshi''s unique trait, well... what do we do next exactly?" Horatius felt like they were missing the point of the series of tests they gave Satoshi.

    "At least we could now exin why he could easily carry eight tonnes of weight. I''m sure Satoshi would''ve wanted to know the inner workings of his body, right?" Finana enthusiastically said.

    What they were bound to about it didn''t matter, at the very least Satoshi now knew why his body was weird that way.

    "Still, I can''t believe that something like the Golden Refinement Body actually exists in different dimensions. I guess our dimension was one of the lucky ones since we have recorded instances of it." Horatiusmented.

    "Yeah, it''s pretty powerful, but it wasn''t that convenient. After all, it needs some time to adapt to the environment, right? That means most attacks would still be effective on you. That probably exins why you could still bleed despite your unique trait." Horatius continued his monologue as everyone intently listened.

    He was right on the money. Even though Satoshi had the Golden Refinement Body, he could still suffer serious injuries from powerful attacks, provided that his body couldn''t adapt to it in time.

    A great example of this is how Satoshi could hypothetically survive the full st of the sun if he were to approach it from afar. But if he were powerlessly exposed to it in an instant, then he''d get incinerated before he even realized what was going on.

    Just when they ran out of topics to talk about, the voice of Magnus Carter announced themencement of the next test for the day. Apparently, they had to gather in the same ce where the marathon was held.

    "I guess that''s our signal. Let''s go, we have another test to conquer." Horatius cheered as the four of them walked out of their ce.

    The lingering scent of barbecue epassed the vicinity as they left. Just like usual, they gathered around the same ce where the first test was held. It was a little before noon time, so the sun was almost at its crux, bringing with it the somewhat unbearable heat.

    Fortunately, it was a windy day with clouds littered in the sky. Some of the Disciples thought that running a marathon under this weather would be nigh impossible if they didn''t use any of their superpowers.

    From afar, Satoshi and his group saw the gathering of bullies who were picking on one guy earlier on. When they saw Satoshi, walking up the crowd, they clicked their tongues together as they expressed their frustration.

    Then again, they were well aware that causing trouble right when Magnus Carter was there would be problematic. That''s why they distanced themselves from Satoshi instead of riling him up as per their usual behavior.

    Additionally, they could always sabotage their records by messing with them during the test so that''s another, safer option as well.

    "Don''t mind them, Satoshi. They''re always up to no good, the lot of them." Horatius whispered at Satoshi while ring at the group of bullies. Like the others, he didn''t want to involve himself with the bullies, but now that Satoshi was on their side, he knew that he could at least reject their ideals.

    Just then, Magnus Carter appeared in front of everyone, ready to announce the next test. "Today, we''ll have a different test. And since we have special guests for today, I concocted a brand new test that would put both your teamwork and your superpower utilization to the limits!"

    Everyone stopped short as a deafening silence befell the entire crowd. Right as Magnus Carter paused, the anticipation welled up within the Disciples who were looking forward to the next test.

    "For this test! You''re going to be teaming up by five, and we''re going to have a no-holds-barred, cavalry elimination test!" Magnus Carter excitedly raised his voice.

    "Whoa! A usual event in a usual school festival! This is going to be fun!" Horatius pumped a fist in the air. "Then again, we''re missing one member since there are only four of us... hmmm..."

    "Um... excuse me?" Someone suddenly spoke behind the four of them, causing them to flinch before they simultaneously turned around.

 Chapter 516 Five-Man Cavalry Test Commencement

    ?

    When they turned around, they immediately recognized the guy who was getting bullied a couple of moments ago. He sheepishly raised his hand and offered to join their team.

    Initially, he wasn''t sure whether he should approach them or not, considering that they had done enough for him. If any, he assumed that he''d be doing them a disservice if he were to join their team. At the back of his mind, he already epted the fact that he''d be a burden, the weakest link of the team.

    Nevertheless, he forced himself to ask them, steeling his resolve and swearing that he''d do his utmost to support their team... but before anything else, he had to persuade them that he''d be a fine addition to their team¡ª well, he was a bit unsure of himself so that wasn''t going to help at all.

    "Not a single group would take me in, and I saw that there were just four of you... may I join you?" The guy asked, flustered. From time to time, he would divert his eyes from them, his inferiority getting the better of them as he couldn''t maintain eye contact.

    "Sure, if you don''t mind us being on your team." Horatius was the first one to speak up just so he could at least alleviate a little bit of the awkward atmosphere enveloping the guy.

    "Your superpower''s all about shields and barriers, right? We could really use that, we''re all offensive, you see." Finana let out a sigh of relief left her mouth. Now their team was more viable than before. After all, it wouldn''t hurt to have an additional defense.

    "P-please take care of me." The guy bowed his head, just when everyone was done forming their team and gathering in silence once again to listen to Magnus Carter''s instructions.

    With the conclusion of the group formation, Magnus Carter could finally ry the instructions for the test. "Today, we''re going to have a cavalry battle, and you''re free to use all your superpowers in this test." Magnus began, directing everyone to an open field where they could go all out.

    "What we''re testing today is your adaptability and your teamwork. After all, this is a crucial necessity when ites to being a Disciple. More often than not, you''ll find yourself in a situation where you have to assist someone or work with someone. This exercise would do just that."

    "It has the same rules as any cavalry battle. There will be a team captain and he or she will stand on top of the four. The team captain would wear a headband, and the group would be eliminated if that headband was removed."

    "And before I forget, while you''re allowed to go all-out, the summoning of tamed beasts would not be allowed for this exercise. If all of you summoned their respective tamed beasts, then we won''t have enough space." Magnus Carter continued, briefly stealing a nce at Satoshi. "Of course, beast integration would still be allowed."

    Now that everyone was directed to the open space where the test was going to be held, Magnus Carter gave everyone a minute to decide who''d be the team captain.

    "Of course, you''re going to be the team captain, Satoshi." Horatius patted him on the shoulder as a grin appeared on his face. He was already sure that Satoshi won''t reject the opportunity. After all, it''s not every day that someone gets to be chosen as a team captain.

    "Yeah, if you''re the team captain, our win''s bound to be guaranteed." Finana crossed her arms as she continuously nodded her head.

    "Yes, I agree with them. You should take in the reins, Satoshi, you''re more than fit to get that spot." Lucy also agreed, turning towards the guy who just approached them. "You agree as well, right? By the way, you haven''t given us your name."

    "I''m...Leif Phiresa. I know, it doesn''t sound exactly pleasant. Even I find my surname weird." He sheepishlymented, scratching his head as he forced augh out of his system.

    "What do you mean? It''s a nice surname." Satoshi said.

    "So, what would it be, Satoshi? We only have ten seconds left to decide." Horatius brought up, getting anxious by the ticking seconds since they could be automatically disqualified.

    "Don''t worry, I have a n. And for that to happen, I need you to take the steering wheel, Horatius." Satoshi said.

    There was no time left. Before anyone could react, Satoshi integrated with three of his tamed beasts. He could always integrate with more of them but for now, he only needed three.

    First on the list was Octo, and as usual, slippery tentacles appeared on Satoshi''s posterior. They wriggled around before wrapping around his four teammates. The next tamed beast that Satoshi integrated with was actually a Representative, Stat (Statue of Captivity).

    Not only would Stat provide all the debuffs they needed to give their opponents, it''s gravitational pressure would also be useful at crucial moments.

    Thest tamed beast that Satoshi brought out was none other than Ghast. With his dimensional portals, their group could easily grab other team captains'' headbands. It would be their trump card for this test.

    "What are you doing, Satoshi?" Horatius iled his arms in panic as all four of them was lifted off the ground.

    "Oi, what''s this?" Lucy also panicked, but she didn''t dislike the tentacles that wrapped around her waist.

    As for Finana and Leif, they both have positive reactions since this was the first time they saw this particr superpower of Satoshi. They''ve seen plenty of beast integrations in the past but this one is by far one of the best they''ve encountered. That''s why they weren''tining even though they were wrapped with tentacles.

    Satoshi''s apperance changed as well. He''d gotten unusually bigger and tankier. Adding to that, purple smoke came out of his body while tentacles portruded out of his back.

    Apparently, this was Satoshi''s n. He would be the one-man cavalry while the four of them were the riders.

    Since anyone could basically grab a team captain''s headband, their group had an even greater chance of securing the win. After all, four people in their group were free and only one was manning the cavalry.

    "What are they doing?"

    "I don''t know, but it looks kind of cool, don''t you think."

    "It''s as cool as it is disadvantageous. How would they be able to work together like that?"

    While everyone was wondering what Satoshi and his team was doing Satoshi found the time to ask the four of them what their superpower was. As it turned out, Lucy could actually use her Golden Pen and integrate with it. She did it without thinking twice.

    Utilizing the powers of the Golden Pen as her integrated beast, she gave everyone a two-way connection with each other''s minds. Unbeknownst to everyone, there was actually a limit to how much she could use the Golden Pen''s innate power. Then again, she didn''t feel the need to tell them about it so she didn''t mention a thing.

    "Wow, that feels weird. Really really realy weird." Horatius muttered to himself, to which everyone agreed in his mind. It was certainly a creepy feeling since it felt like everyone was in his mind at the same time. Adding to that, he felt like he had gained four other minds and it overloaded his mental capacity a little bit.

    "All right, this could work," Satoshi said as their one-man cavalry transformed into an efficient five-man team that could act on each other''s piloting.

    Seeing that everyone''s preparations were more or less done, Magnus Carter floated at the top of the open space to overlook the entire test. He could tell that there were a couple of innovative ideas here and there, but Satoshi''s team was by far the most novel out of everybody else.

    "It''s new... but that doesn''t mean it would work. Let''s see how they''d be able to work with all that intricacies in their n." Magnus said to himself as he raised his hand, catching everyone''s attention.

    Silence filled the air as everyone waited in anticipation. Some of the disciples felt butterflies in their stomach. Rarely do they ever get a test which included working with a five-man team. That''s why this was a somewhat new experience for them.

    "The test would be over in ten minutes. Once the timer is over, the team with the most headbands secured would win. Of course, since this is apetitive group test... the group who would win will get a reward." Magnus Carter said, rubbing his nose as he did so.

    Of course, saying that would give everyone the right amount of motivation. From up in the air, Magnus could feel his Disciples'' morale rising up. Without further ado, he brought his hand down, signaling themencement of the second test of the day.

    "Let it rip!" He screamed out of nowhere, as if that would mean anything.

    In an instant, the peace that enveloped the open space disappeared in a snap of a finger, and aplete pandemonium urred as everyone tried to get each other''s headbands.

 Chapter 517 Sneak Headband Grab

    ?

    "Are you sure about this? Are we really going to target them?"

    "We already saw how powerful he was during the marathon. We can''t possibly..."

    "We''ve been together longer than their team. There''s no way we''d lose against them in terms of teamwork." The man grunted. "Besides, I need to get revenge on the humiliation this morning."

    The leader of the group of bullies spoke as if he was severely humiliated this morning. When in fact, Satoshi just talked to him and tried to stop him from bullying the guy. Gritting his teeth, he assumed the position of the team captain.

    "What are they doing?"

    "I have no idea."

    "Is that even allowed?"

    Bewildered, all groups stared at Satoshi''s team as if they were an anomaly in their dimension. And they were right to think about that since their group looked like arge monster instead of a team.

    Satoshi assumed the cavalry position and it''s just him down there. As for his four other teammates, they were iling around with tentacles around their waist.

    "Let it RIP!" Magnus Carter announced.

    "All right, here we go!" Satoshi screamed at the top of his lungs as his tentacles lengthened themselves. Finana, Horatius, Leif, and Lucy zipped through the air, trying to grab as many headbands as they could. With their superior mobility, there was no way they would lose against the other groups.

    Fwip~

    Fwip~

    Fwip!

    One thing that Satoshi and his team overlooked was theirck of defense. If they were fighting regr superheroes, it would''ve been easy to fight back considering that they were Disciples. However, they totally forgot the fact that they were also fighting Disciples themselves.

    In terms of offensive capabilities, they were all a match. Satoshi''s group might have more mobility but that didn''t put them in the slightest advantage whatsoever.

    Before anyone in Satoshi''s team could grab a headband from the other team, Satoshi felt his connection to the others cut off. Immediately, Satoshi then realized that the orther groups actually aimed for his tentacles instead of aiming at his teammates.

    Then again, his teammates could defend himself, but it was an altogether different topic when it came to his tentacles. They may be speedy and they may erratically sway around... but in terms of defense, they have no defense.

    With a grunt, Satoshi caught his teammates in the nick of time, thanks to his tentacles which regenerated and darted toward his teammates. Fortunately, none of them touched the ground and they could continue fighting without the loss of a team member.

    "Satoshi, thanks for that." Horatius said, forcing a smile on his face as he continued focusing on his given task. This was a new tactic so there were bound to be a lot of drawbacks. If they were a regr team, they would''ve immediately lost.

    But it was Satoshi they were talking about here. If any, they wholly trust him toe up with other insane ideas to solve their current issue.

    And Satoshi solved it in an instant. Thanks to their mind connection which was set up by Lucy, Satoshi informed Leif to put up a barrier around them. Since his barrier was near indestructible, it wouldn''t be easily cut just like what happened a moment ago.

    Adding to that, Satoshi decided to integrate with another familiar, Sera, and he buffed the barrier that Leif put up, basically creating an indestructible barrier around his tentacles.

    Fortunately, Leif was skillful enough to put up such an intricate barrier. Thanks to the mind connection they all have, Leif felt like he was creating a barrier around his entire body, that''s it.

    With this newfound solution, Satoshi''s team became even more invincible, and it became evident when Horatius finally grabbed a headband from one team.

    Then Finana also grabbed her own, and it forced the others to do a good job so they could contribute to the team as well. Pretty soon, only Satoshi was left, and he was desperate to grab a headband. As a cavalry, though, he had limited opportunities. He was the foundation of the team, and one small misstep would be the end of their team.

    That''s why he couldn''t act haphazardly. He was thebination of gears that made his team work together, he couldn''t just act out on his own and jeopardize his team.

    Because of that, Satoshi just stuck to what he was doing. It didn''t matter if he didn''t grab a single headband. What matters is that he could assist his team and ultimately win the entirepetition... or so that''s what he initially thought.

    Now that the entire battlefield was filled with nothing but chaos, Satoshi realized one thing, and it was an eye-opener for him. For one, none of the teams actually used dimensional superpowers. He knew that some of the teams should have this superpower in their arsenal, but no one bothered using it.

    Unbeknownst to him, everyone went through great lengths with protecting their headbands. Even though the dimensional portal superpower should have been useful, it had been reduced to being useless in this exercise. Anyone who sneaked up behind someone and try to grab their headbands would only end up in failure.

    "I see, so that''s how it was."

    From afar, Satoshi saw one team captain try to reach out to another team. Since they were at risk of falling behind, he grew desperate and used his dimensional portal.

    The portal worked, but the moment he put his hand inside, the portal closed and his arm was cut off. He gritted his teeth as he held the stump which was left after his arm was amputated.

    "So that''s how it was. I wonder what kind of magic or stuff they have in ce." Satoshi asked himself. He wanted to try it out as well since he knew that Ghast''s dimensional portal was more sophisticatedpared to what the guy put up.

    Without further ado, Satoshi put his hand up with Leif''s barrier around it. He buffed it a couple more times with Sera. From a distance, everyone saw as Satoshi''s halo floated and went around his hand. It gave it a nice yellow glow, almost blinding. Before anyone could wonder what was going on, Satoshi extended his hand and manifested a dimensional portal.

    He reached out and grabbed someone''s headband. Then he retracted his hand. As soon as he did so, he noticed that one of the halos (there were seven halos in total) disappeared around his wrist, which meant that the defenses they put up were enough to drain one-seventh of Sera''s power.

    It was really extreme, and this meant that Satoshi could only use it a maximum of seven times. Then again, it was a sessful hunt and Satoshi gained another headband in hand. With this, their total finally got to seven headbands, and this put them at an equal ranking with the first ce.

    However, the fight is not yet over. They still need to gather more headbands to win the entire thing. They couldn''t just settle for equal cing. After all, only one team could be deemed the winner. With this in mind, Satoshi decided to aim for the craziest y of all.

    With a minute left under the clock, Satoshi began his final preparations. In his mind, he signaled everyone to defend their headbands with their lives, handing them to Horatius and surrounding him like vultures hanging around a cadaver.

    There were eight groups left, and the second cer was only missing two more headbands before they could tie with the two groups in the first ce. Since Satoshi didn''t want his teammates to divulge his n to the other groups, Satoshi just told them to remain defensive. "Don''t worry, I have the n to win this." He told them, his eyes glistening as the challenge became clearer in his mind.

    Once again, the halos above Satoshi''s head surrounded Satoshi''s arm. He was going to attempt to grab another headband from someone else.

    Seeing that Satoshi was bound to do something crazy again, Everyone put their guards up and focused all their attention on Satoshi. They already saw how Satoshi managed to break through their precautionary measures a moment ago. They weren''t risking another sessful headband grab from Satoshi, not if they could help it.

    Little did they know, while they were all focused on Satoshi, one of his team members was actually in the n as well. The only reason why no one realized this was because they just assumed everyone was surrounding Horatius to defend him. Satoshi actually instructed Horatius to reach out his hand and grab it at the same time.

    The moment Satoshi reached out his hand, he gave Horatius the signal and he reached his hand as well. In that instant, Satoshi put up a portal in front of Horatius as well.

    While they were busy guarding themselves from Satoshi''s sneaky grab, it didn''t even ur to them that they''d have to avoid two sneak attacks. When Satoshi''s hand came out, trying to grab the a headband from the first cer group, Horatius''s hand also grabbed from the other side.

    They managed to push off Satoshi''s hand, but Horatius''s sneak grab was sessful, and he managed to get a headband at thest second.

    "Whoa, can''t believe that worked." Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief as the timer finally ran out.

 Chapter 518 Leif Phiresas Backstory

    ?

    The bullies didn''t even have enough time to get into action. By the time they tried to counterattack, time had already run out, and Satoshi''s team came out on top. To top it all off, the difference between first and second ce was just one point.

    Wearing a shocked expression on his face, Magnus Carter couldn''t begin to imagine that Satoshi''s unconventional approach to the cavalry test actually proved to be effective. All the other teams couldn''t evene close to how they melded together as a team.

    "W-we won!" Horatius raised both his hands in the air, celebrating by pumping his fists up. All he did was listen to Satoshi''s words right by the letter, and it granted them the win they desperately aimed for.

    "We really won, right? Well, that''s nothing new," Finana flicked her bright blue hair as if this was a normal urrence. Inwardly, she was jumping up and down due to the sheer glee she felt. This was another win on her belt, and it was even one of the rarestpetitions where they had to work together as a team.

    "Wow... Satoshi''s really awesome, isn''t he?" Leif''s eyes sparkled as he directed his gaze at Satoshi who was also doing his own celebratory dance on the ground.

    "I didn''t believe it at first either. He''s really something else, isn''t he?" Lucy bashfully said as her face reddened. Her blush reached all the way to her ears while she hung her head low so Satoshi won''t notice it.

    Deactivating his skills, Satoshi set everyone down while they all gathered in one ce. From what they knew, Magnus would give them some form of perk or reward in exchange for winning the entirepetition. The five of them smiled at each other, shing their thumbs up as they unanimously decided to grab dinner together.

    "Still... I can''t believe that worked. That was a really insane approach to the cavalry test. Who would''ve thought, right?" Horatius nodded his head while he puffed his chest. He wasn''t really celebrating his contributions to the team, but rather, he celebrated Satoshi''s impable leadership.

    "Yeah, I also couldn''t believe that worked." Satoshi scratched his head, heaving a sigh of relief. When he first concocted the n, it worked in his head. However, when they were in the actualpetition, it felt like they were at a severe disadvantage.

    If it weren''t for everyone''s participation andplete trust in him, they''d have lost by andslide. Thanks to Finana''s fluid motions, Horatius''s all-rounder capabilities, Lucy''s Golden Pen Representative, and Leif''s super sugoi~ near invincible barrier, they wouldn''t have worked that well.

    It was as effective as it was unexpected. At the end of it, though, Satoshi was just d that he could support the team and bring them to victory. It wasn''t his win, but rather everyone''s collective efforts that bore fruit.

    The deafening sound of silence due to a loss surrounded Satoshi''s group as they celebrated together. At this point, they were already patting each other on the back and nning what they''d eat at dinner. It was a warm interaction between five teammates¡ª which was a bit out of ce since their team was only formed today.

    pping could be heard from afar as Magnus Carter approached the group. Just like what he mentioned before themencement of the test, the group who''d win will get a hefty reward. As for what the reward was, they could only wonder.

    "That was some perfect teamwork right there. You only met today, right? And from what I could tell based on my observations, your team was never close to begin with,pared to other circles and cliques that existed within my Disciples." Magnus Cartermented.

    Nodding his head, Magnus Carter turned around with a smile on his face. Now that it hade to this, he had no choice but to give them an advantage.

    "Very well, for your reward, I''ll prepare a nice dinner for you five. ALSO! You won''t have to do the third quest for the day." Magnus Carter announced, causing everyone to gasp in shock. They couldn''t believe that Magnus Carter would give such a big advantage to their team.

    "Whoa~! We get to enjoy the entire afternoon?!" Horatius eximed. It was rare for Magnus to grant his Disciples free time, so Horatius decided to enjoy this rest to the fullest. Finana and Leif also thought the same thing, that''s why they started pumping their fists in the air in celebration.

    Honestly, Satoshi was a bit disappointed since he was really looking forward to the third test. But then again, the cavalry test was really enjoyable, and they were able to win it to boot. If any, his experience in Magnus Carter''s dimension was nothing but great.

    There were a couple of setbacks like the bullies they encountered, but that was normal considering that there will always bepetition when ites to groups such as this. After all, the struggle for power will never disappear when there were groups of people in one ce at one time. Satoshi was already aware of it, but he wondered whether Magnus Carter takes action when it came to incessant bullying.

    ''Then again, Leif could always defend himself, thanks to his superpower... wait a second?!'' Satoshi eximed inwardly as he briefly nced at Leif. Now that he thought about it, he realized that Leif could actually decently defend himself from the bullies, and yet he didn''t do it. There must be a reason why, and Satoshi''s mind couldn''t help but dwell on that thought.

    "Let''s head back. We have the entire afternoon ahead of us!" Horatius called out, to which everyone else on the team screamed in agreement.

    On their way back to the residence, Satoshi just had to pull Leif to the side just so he could ask him the question in his head. He had the capability of defending himself, and yet he didn''t do it in front of the bullies. It was pretty questionable.

    "Ah, Satoshi? I-is something wrong?" Leif asked, sheepishly putting his head down as he reluctantly avoided Satoshi''s eye contact. He had no idea why Satoshi pulled him out of nowhere, but based on his gaze, it was clear that he was curious about something.

    "Ah, yes. I was just wondering..." Satoshi whispered. Thankfully, the others were preupied with dinner talk so they didn''t bother eavesdropping. And even if they did, Satoshi made sure not to talk too loudly so as not to attract their attention.

    "Wondering?" Leif repeated.

    "I just wondering... you''re pretty good at using your barriers, right? Why don''t you defend yourself when you''re getting bullied?" Satoshi asked.

    "About that." Leif began as his expression stiffened. He then clenched his fists before he continued. "I''m very proud of my barrier superpower since they are naer invincible. It''s what granted me a spot as a Disciple of Magnus Carter himself, I couldn''t feel more honored. That''s why, in order to be stronger, I decided to not use my barrier in my daily life. That way, I could get used to the physical pain inflicted upon me. I know it sounds weird, but it helped me a lot." Leif said, forcing a smile on his face. his expression slowly softened.

    "Also, I owe them a great deal. My mother was sick, and I needed some money from them. I borrowed a lot from them, and I haven''t paid everything in full. That''s why they wereing after me. I n to return their money as soon as I can, but since I could barely survive with the mints I earn, and since I had to support my sick mother, I couldn''t pay them as fast as I could."

    "I deserve their beating. If it weren''t for them, my mom would''ve gotten worse. It was thanks to them that she was still alive, or so that''s what I think."

    Satoshi had no idea what kind of illness Leif''s mother had or how much money he needed. And quite frankly, he didn''t want to pry into another person''s personal life. That''s why he didn''t ask any more questions. After all, he more or less already understood why Leif acted that way when he was being bullied. At the very least, the question in his mind had already been answered.

    "But still, I''m really grateful that you came to my rescue when no one did, Satoshi-san. You''re a very kind person, I can tell." Leif went on since Satoshi wasn''t saying anything.

    "N-not really, anyone who didn''t know would''ve reacted the same thing. I hope your mother gets a full recovery." Satoshi said. It was probably hard for Leif to support his mom, especially when he needed to focus on being a Disciple. Obviously, he was doing what he could at the present, and Satoshi found it totally admirable.

    "Thank you so much," Leif bowed his head in gratitude.

    With that, the group continued their walk back home, debating whether they should throw another barbecue party or not.

 Chapter 519 Dimension Break!

    ?

    It was a leisurely stroll back to the Disciples'' living quarters, with everyone in high spirits as they listed down the things they wanted to buy. As it turned out, they also earned two gold mints each, thanks to their overall victory during the second test. As such they have the freedom to splurge for the rest of the day and they''d still have money to spare.

    "As I said, hamburg steak should still be on the table, right? Right?" Horatius puffed his chest as he twirled his index finger in the air. "It wouldn''t be a meal if there''s no hamburg steak."

    "Took the words out of my mouth." Satoshi noded his head as he patted Horatius''s shoulder. At this point, they were already best friends thanks to their same tastes.

    "Fried chicken and steak are pretty nice as well. Ahh~ and cold sparkling drinks!" Finana squealed, her eyes sparkling as she continued reciting the food she wanted to order. She had enough money to splurge on two-days worth of food, and she decided to enjoy their rest to the fullest by doing just that.

    [Anomaly detected]

    [A dimension break is bound to ur.]

    [Satoshi, prepare yourself, I''ve already informed the others.]

    Hearing the words in his mind, Satoshi stopped short in his tracks when he realized it was Dex speaking to him. He spoke about something called the dimension break and knowing Dex''s tone, Satoshi was fairly certain that his words spelled trouble.

    "Dex? What''s wrong? Is everything all right? A dimension break?" Satoshi asked, ignoring the other Disciples who weirdly stared at him since he didn''t address any of them. He was talking to himself with the urgency of an uing war.

    "Satoshi?" Lucy asked, also stopping beside Satoshi as she leaned in, trying to figure out if something was wrong. At that moment, she immediately saw the horrified look in Satoshi''s face, which caused her to flinch and take a step back before also assuming the same expression.

    [Dimension break in 3... 2... 1... Satoshi, brace yourself.]

    This was the first time Dex mentioned anything about a dimension break. However, Satoshi concluded that it might have the almost exact meaning of a dungeon break, and it left a bad taste in Satoshi''s mouth.

    "Everyone, brace yourselves! A dimension break is about to ur!" Satoshi waved his hand, warning the four members of their group regarding the inevitable dimension break.

    "What?! Here? A dimension break?!" Horatius eximed. Initially, he wanted to shrug it off since he thought that Satoshi was just kidding. But after seeing the sheer seriousness on Satoshi''s face, he changed his mind in a snap of a finger and also braced himself.

    "A dimension break, huh... Satoshi, how did you kno¡ª" Before Finana could figure finish her sentence and make a joke out of Satoshi''s statement, a huge dimensional portal appeared right on top of Lucy and Satoshi''s residence. It was so colossal that the gates that appeared on Earth couldn''t evenpare.

    A swirling mass of pure energy bordered the entire dimensional portal, and then an equally colossal monster stepped out of it.

    Its skin was red in color, and horns grew out of its head. It had a small waist, and its legs were only one-fourth of the size of its entire body. As such, the monster had to lean forward and assume a four-legged position despite its humanoid features.

    However, that wasn''t the worst part of it. Another red-skinned monster came out, then another, then another!

    "What the¡ª ?!" Horatius screamed as two orbs of water appeared in his hand with lightning crackling around it. "It''s a dungeon break!"

    Crash!

    Underneath the feet of the red monsters, Lucy and Satoshi''s temporary dwelling was crushed, dpidated to the extreme. Fragments of wood and brick flew at the five of them, and the koi fishes who were in the pond started pping on the ground as they desperately tried to go back to the non-existential water.

    Satoshi was quick to move, extending his hand so as tomand Orb Oboros to move the koi to a safe ce. At the same time, he also integrated with the Alpha Red Smander. For some odd reason, that was the first familiar that Satoshi thought of, that''s why he integrated with it in a sh.

    A red armor with a bright sheen enveloped Satoshi''s entire body, and the heat that emanated from it was so intense that the others had to step back a little.

    "What do we do now, Satoshi?" Horatius gritted his teeth, his eyes turning into slits as he observed the movements of the red monsters.

    Since they were the only ones in the vicinity, the red monsters relentlessly rushed at them with an ominous growl. They were already being targeted before they could even regroup.

    "We''re going in, just like usual," Satoshi said. He wasn''t a foreigner when it came to asional dungeon breaks, but this one was a dimensional break so he wondered what the difference was between the two. Nevertheless, there was no time to think about it, nor did they have the luxury to call for help or strategize.

    Left with no choice, they had to engage the red monsters in a fight without knowing how formidable they were.

    "I''ll support everyone with my barrier. I''m sorry, I won''t be useful when ites to dealing with the monsters." Leif apologetically bowed his head. "You don''t have to worry about me. I can at least defend myself while all of you are fighting."

    "We can''t hold back anymore, can we?" Lucy furrowed her brows as she nervously summoned her Representative, Golden Pen.

    "That''s right. We have to buy time while waiting for¡ª that''s right! Who would inform Magnus Carter about the dungeon break?!" Finana slightly panicked.

    To be fair, the dimension break happened so suddenly that they weren''t able to collect their thoughts properly. They only had a couple of seconds to prepare before engagin the red titan monsters in a fight. Theypletely overloooked the need to inform Magnus Carter before anything else!

    Before anyone could answer Finana''s question, the monsters were already upon them, baring their fangs as they engaged them inbat. Based on their physique, the group assumed that they''d be using their physical formidability to overwhelm them.

    But they were totally off the mark. The moment the red monsters were upon them, they extended their hands and gigantic fireballs appeared in the air, raining down on the group. Since their movement was stranger than they had expected, Finana and Lucy actually froze in ce.

    "Watch out!" Fortunately, Satoshi was quick enough to jump on them, pushing them out of the way.

    Because of that, Satoshi took the full st of the fireball while Finana and Lucy were shoved out of harm''s way.

    Eh?!

    BAM!

    "SATOSHI!" Lucy screamed, getting back on her feet as she used the Golden Pen''s power to erase the fireball that fell on top of Satoshi.

    "S-Satoshi?" With tearsing out her eyes, Finana stammered, struggling to get up as she too used her water superpower to cool Satoshi down. She med herself for losing herposure and putting Satoshi in harm''s way. if it weren''t for her and Lucy, Satoshi wouldn''t have had to deal with a fireball to the face.

    When the fireball was about to strike him squarely, Satoshi was confident that he''d be able to tank it. But when it was already right up his face. "Ah, I''m die thank you forever." Satoshi said to himself since the fireball was more powerful than he expected.

    Closing his eyes, Satoshi prepared for the worst, thinking that the fireball would engulf his entire body and probably take out an appendage or two. It wouldn''t even surprise him if the fireball were to consume his entire body.

    Eh? What''s going on?

    When the smoke from the rubble and the smoke from the fireball cleared up a little, Finana and Lucy saw Satoshi standing there with the fireball on his face. Even though the fireball was clearly burning his body, he seemed to be unscathed.

    "It doesn''t hurt?" Satoshi pushed the fireball out of the way. Filled with disbelief, he nced at Finana and Lucy. "A-are you all right?"

    "Satoshiiii~" Lucy sniffled, convinced that Satoshi was already gravely injured.

    Unbeknownst to them, it was thanks to his beast integration with the Alpha Red Smander that Satoshi managed to survive that. If it weren''t for that, Satoshi would''ve been burned down to the veryst cell. The warning of death in Satoshi''s mind was actually real, he was just lucky enough to have put up countermeasures before it even happened.

    "It didn''t hurt!" Satoshi confirmed.

    It was no time for a celebration, however. Before everyone could sigh in relief, a dozen more monsters came out of the dimensional break, and now they started using earth magic and hurling boulders at the group.

    "We don''t have much choice! Finana! You''re the fastest out of all of us, you have to go back and inform our Manager about this!" Horatius screamed.

    "That''s right! If we''re the only ones here, we''re bound to exhaust our energy before help arrives. Don''t worry, we can hold down the fort, Finana, leave it to us." Satoshi said, nodding his head at Horatius as they assumed the vanguard position.

    With the two of them in front, Lucy in the middle and Leif holding the rear, it felt like they were back in the cavalry test once again, working as a team against multiple groups of opponents¡ª only this time, it was more dangerous than a normal test.

 Chapter 520 Diablos

    <h4>Chapter 520 Diablos</h4>

    Satoshi jumped to the side and extended his hand as a whip made of molten rocks manifested in his hands. iling around, Satoshi managed to shield himself from the boulders that were so mercilessly hurled at them.

    On one side, the monsters had taken a strategic position of putting their vanguard tanks on the front, while the spellcasters continuously summoned fireballs and hurled boulders at the four-man team who were infinitesimally smaller than them.

    Compared to the gigantic monsters who were going berserk, Satoshi''s team were just bugs waiting to be squished in a snap of a finger. Despite their overpowered superpowers as Disciples, they could barely keep up with the onught that was delivered to them.

    Once again, Satoshi jumped to the side, avoiding another fireball by a hair''s breadth. However, the fireball actually scattered into smaller pieces like a frag grenade, dispersing an unblockable force that hurled Satoshi forward. He wasn''t able to stop the momentum since the suddenness shocked him, and by the time he realized what was going on, he was already on top of Lucy.

    "Eh?!" Lucy said, also losing herposure when she realized where Satoshi was touching. She looked down, then looked up at his lips which almost grazed her lips.

    "LUCY! SATOSHI!" Horatius screamed, rushing to their aid and propping a nket of water so they won''t be hit by a boulder traveling toward them. "You guys all right?"

    "Yes, thank you, Horatius." Satoshi gritted his teeth as he stood up, also pulling Lucy up along with her. At that moment, he wanted to apologize for the ident but before he could utter another word out of his mouth, a couple more boulders came their way and he had to grab Lucy in a princess carry and jump out of the way.

    It would''ve been far easier if the monsters matched their headcount. But no, there was thrice their numberpared to Satoshi''s team. Of course, they''d be overwhelmed since each monster was slightly more powerful than any of them.

    "Eh?!" Lucy eximed as she felt Satoshi''s grip on her thighs and shoulder. She looked up, seeing Satoshi''s chiseled chin and blushing as she inadvertently turned away. ''He''s so closee~ hiyaahhhh~'' She screamed inwardly.

    "Oi, oi, earth to Lucy? Are you all right?" Satoshi asked.

    "E-e-earth?" Lucy stammered, wondering what Satoshi meant by that expression.

    "Nothing, are you all right?" He asked once again before setting him down. In that instant, a burst of energy erupted from Satoshi, and before Lucy could ask what was happening, Satoshi had alreadypleted his second integration.

    Another boulder was hurled at the two of them. But this time, Satoshi didn''t bother dodging. Instead, he extended his hand and it transformed into a huge chainsaw. With a flick of his hand,? the boulder was cut cleanly in half before it disintegrated into tiny rocks.

    "Amy, I need your help," Satoshi said. Right now, he was still looking at Lucy, causing her to misunderstand what he was doing.

    ''Why did he call me by a different name? Is Amy some type of endearing term in his home? What''s going on?'' Lucy asked herself. At this point, she was already befuddled and her mind became preupied with assuming what the term ''Amy'' meant.

    In that instant, Satoshi''s familiar, Amy the Copycat, came out of Orb Oboros''s dimension. She looked like a humanoid blue-colored blob with more curves than Lucy. Her appearance alone made Lucy self-conscious, but she didn''t bring up the topic.

    "You know what to do," Satoshi called out as Amy nodded her head. In that instant, Amy transformed into a replica that looked exactly like Satoshi.

    Since the two of them couldmunicate in their minds, Satoshi didn''t bother saying anything to Amy. She already knew what to do and they coordinated their attacks together pretty well.

    Just when Amy aimed her chainsaw at Satoshi''s head, Satoshi ducked, and the boulder that came at him was blown to bits. Satoshi then stopped short in his tracks, putting both his hands together and squatting as low as he could. In response, Amypletely understood what Satoshi was doing, and she stepped on his palms.

    Fwip~!

    Satoshi propelled Amy upward, and before one of the vanguard monsters could figure out what was about to happen, Amy grabbed him by the horn, unclipped the chain on her chainsaw, and used it as a rope to bring Satoshi up as well.

    Sling~!

    With a nod, Satoshi grabbed the chains that dangled in front of him. As soon as he did so, Amy pulled him upward, not because she wanted to, but because the monster started iling, trying to literally get her out of its head as it let out an irritated groan.

    As Satoshi was flung up, he put his entire weight into the chainsaw, swinging it sideways. Since the monster was too focused on Amy, it wasn''t able to defend itself from Satoshi''s surprise attack. Moreover, its weakness was on its neck since that''s the only part of its body that wasn''t fortified by any of its skills.

    Grgrggrgrggr~!

    At first, the chainsaw just dug through the skin of the monster, which caused Satoshi''s momentum to temporarily stop. But just then, he made the chainsaw go faster, and it didn''t take long before itpletely dug through the monster''s thick neck.

    Before the other monsters realized it, one of theirrades was already dead, its head plopping on the ground as it let out a soft groan. Slowly, its colossal body fell down on the ground with a thud.

    Horatius, Leif, and Lucy couldn''t believe that Satoshi single-handedly took down a monster. It gave them the morale boost they needed as they continued theirst stand against the invaders.

    However, that didn''t stop the monsters from attacking at all, nor did it discourage them from attacking without mercy. Just like usual, they came down at the four-man team without hesitation.

    "ARGH!" Horatius screamed, propping another wall of water in front of him to block a boulder. He then used a hydro pump, blowing a couple of fireballs away before surfing away out of there. No matter what he did, he just couldn''t get close to the monsters no matter what he did.

    He knew that summoning his tamed beast would break the status quo, but if he did that, he won''t have enough energy left for himself. And if his tamed beast was gravely injured during the summoning, he won''t be able to recall it a second time.

    The others faced the same dilemma as well. Well, everyone except Lucy was affected by it since she already summoned her Golden Pen. Right now, she just had to concentrate on keeping the Golden Pen alive throughout the entire battle. Otherwise, she won''t be able to summon it anymore, just like the others.

    ...

    When the dimension break happened, Magnus Carter immediately felt it deep within his system. After all, the entirety of this territory was his dimension. Even mild alterations to it would be detected automatically. At first, Magnus Carter had no idea what it was, but when he realized that it was actually a dimension break, he was faced with a problem.

    For one, all his Disciples were outside their residences. And if a dimension break urred deep inside his dimension, then that would mean the enemy was formidable enough to break through his nigh impable barrier. In other words, his Disciples were in danger, and not only that, he was the only one strong enough to protect them.

    "What do I do?" Magnus Carter contemted. If he sent all his Disciples away just to guarantee their safety, then there was no way he''d be able to guarantee his.

    There was also the option of asking the other Managers for help, but would he have enough time?

    Magnus Carter pped both his cheeks, instantly returning him to reality. This was no time to think about things. Right now, he had to do what he could in what little time he had. "For now, I''ll check the situation, and then I''ll think about what to doter on."

    Before he could announce to everyone what was currently going on, one of his Disciples approached him from behind. She was out of breath as if she ran a long distance just to get there. But what he didn''t know was that Finana actually used most of her energy just to get there as fast as she could.

    "Finana? What''s going on?" Magnus asked, even though he was already fairly certain as to why she hurried all the way here.

    "It''s a dimension break, Magnus-san! A dimension break!" Finana was on the verge of tears when she informed their Manager about it. However, she still had enoughposure to utterprehensible words.

    "Calm down, Finana, first, tell me what the monsters look like. All right?"

    "They''re big, and red, and they have horns on their heads! Magnus-san, please help Horatius and the others. Satoshi and Lucy are also there, keeping the monsters at bay." Finana sniffled. She badly wanted to cry but she had to suppress the urge since the urgent situation was not yet over.

    "Diablos... we have to hurry." Magnus Carter responded, creating a portal that leads straight to the Disciples'' residences.

 Chapter 521 An Armored Threat

    ?

    The current situation could only bepared to a national emergency as Magnus Carter gathered all his Disciples, briefing them about the dimensional break that had just begun. He knew that they were running out of time and that only four people were desperately trying to halt the advance of the monsters that came out of the dimension break.

    "Diablos?" Finana knew the correspondent meaning of the word but she had no idea why Magnus Carter called them like that. In any case, this was no time to ask questions so Finana put her thoughts back in her mind while she listened to their Manager.

    "A dimension break? No wonder I felt a bit weird."

    "Yeah, me too. I thought I was the only one who felt the sudden influx of energy."

    "As for me, I thought it was Horatius''s group having fun or something."

    "This wasn''t the first time, in any case... I hope there would be fewer casualties this time."

    When Magnus Carter told everyone about the details of the dimension break, some of them felt a little anxious since this wasn''t the first time it happened. Besides, thest time a dimension break happened, a number of them died. Now a threat of another dimension break was right in front of them and they had to once again deal with it.

    A dimension break was actually a normal urrence when it came to the dimensions owned by Managers. Most of the time, this dimension break was to kidnap Disciples and learn the knowledge passed to them from their respective managers. Even with Bucky Barnes, dimension breaks in his dimension happen quite often.

    It''s just that he had no Disciples in his dimension so the invaders wouldn''t have anyone to kidnap. Adding to that, they''d have to defeat Bucky Barnes before they could gain any knowledge from him. Even if they wanted to steal something in his dimension, he had it carefully guarded so there was no chance.

    Adding to that, if there came a time when the dimension break would be too much for him, Bucky Barnes had countermeasures and precautions in ce. On the off-chance that his dimension gets deleted, he also had a n to transfer his dimension somece else.

    Then again, Bucky Barnes wasn''t one of the famous Managers so he wasn''t targeted by stronger invasions.

    Magnus Carter was a different topic though. After all, he was deemed to be the strongest Manager out there. That''s why a dimension break was a regr urrence in his dimension. He usually deals with them easily, but the previous one was so formidable that some of his Disciples died while trying to fend off the invaders.

    Right now, another threat of a dimension break was presented to him. This time, Magnus Carter pledged that not a single Disciple of his would be kidnapped or killed.

    "..."

    "Our dimension is on the verge of being invaded. Moreover, the attackers aren''t just ordinary attackers... they are diablos, a powerful species who are both proficient in everything. Not only are they physically formidable, they boast great defense, and even use magic with greatmand. They''re truly the all-rounders among the dimensions."

    "But you''re my Disciples. I''m sure that any of you would be able to fight head-to-head with a diablo. With that said, I''ll be giving you a minute to prepare, and then we''re heading back to the residence. At the moment, Horatius and his team during the second test cavalry test are engaging the diablos. We have to get there as soon as possible to assist them."

    Receiving a couple of nods from his Disciples, Magnus then extended his hand and finally started the timer. Everyone was given a minute¡ª which was a short time, but to Finana, it already felt like an eternity.

    A minuteter, the Disciples were already gathered around, fully prepared tobat the invasion. Some of them wore their best armor and equipped their best weapons¡ª or rather, a great number of them did. If they weren''t careful, they wouldn''t just lose points from Magnus. They might even lose their lives fighting... or worse, they might get kidnapped.

    "All right, we''re going in. Follow me." Magnus Carter wore a grim expression on his face as he took the lead. It was time for them to head into camp and assist Horatius and the others.

    Now that the entire force was mobilized, Magnus Carter could finally rush headlong into the scene and save his Disciples who were robbed of their free time. A smile briefly appeared on his face when he realized that the break they gave him was useless. ''I guess I should give them another breakter on.. wait, Lucy and Satoshi can''t avail it though since they''re only here for a day. Sigh~''

    BAM!

    BAM!

    The Disciple had no idea whether they should stand their ground or simply tuck their tail and run when they saw the diablos. Of course, they were vaguely aware of their strength since Magnus Carter gave them an overall description of the invaders. However, now that they were directly in front of them, the sight reduced them to panic.

    "What those are the invaders?"

    "How could we possibly deal with those?"

    "Everything... everything''s beyond 9000!"

    To be fair, the Disciples were powerful enough as it is, but most of them specialize in only one thing, offense, for example. But upon seeing the diablos, they could tell that they were capable of doing anything and were proficient at it.

    "Don''t lose spirit! Look, Horatius, Satoshi, and the others are doing their best to hold them back. They need our help." Magnus Carter sternlymented, cutting off his Disciples''ments before they dug an even deeper hole in their doubtful mindset.

    Fortunately, his firm assurance gave a boost to their morale, and they all gulped as they made up their minds.

    "Everyone!!!" Finana screamed at the top if her lungs as half of her body transformed into water and she glided towards them. "I''m back! I brought everyone."

    As soon as she said that, a wave of relief came crashing down on her and she started crying. More than anything, she was just d that everyone was all right. The invaders were pretty strong, and since there were only four of them holding the horde off, Finana thought for a second that one or more of them would die by the time she came back.

    Fwoosh~!

    Satoshi had to grab her and princess-carry her to safety when one of the diablos mmed its fist on the ground. "Oi~ save your tears forter when we''re already done. In any case, thank you for bringing them with you. We owe you one." shing a smile, Satoshi set Finana down and patted her on the head.

    Her ears twitched as her visage reddened a little bit. Finally getting back to her senses, she nodded her head at Satoshi before going into the fight. "You owe me one, right? We''ll save that forter!" Finana waved her hand as she shot pressurized water on the ground, sending her flying into one of the diablos.

    "What did she mean by that?" Satoshi asked, returning to his position of assisting Amy.

    "Everybody, charge!" Magnus said.

    ...

    The fight with the diablos got even fiercer when Magnus Carter and the rest of the Disciples joined in. There wasn''t exactly a battle formation or battle n for anyone so anything goes. Instead of taking the lead, Magnus Carter opted to assist everyone while they dealt with the diablos.

    For some reason, the Disciples were doing pretty well. It''s as if theypletely overestimated the diablos. One by one, the diablos fell, and they were steadily getting pushed back.

    Then again, the Disciples had the numbers on their side. But that didn''t cancel out the fact that the diablos had the skills on their end. If it weren''t for Magnus Carter and Satoshi assisting and buffing everyone to no end, they wouldn''t stand a chance.

    It didn''t take long before theypletely pushed off the invaders, killing some of them in the process. However, even after doing that, the dimension break still didn''t disappear.

    Fwooosh~!

    Before anyone could react, a st of energy came out of the dimension break, and an armored being stepped out of it. Compared to the diablos, this one was more colossal than any of them, and he exuded an overwhelming aura. Even Magnus Carter felt threatened by it.

    Looking around, the armored being seemed to be curious about something. It didn''t attack, onor did it show any animosity towards the group. The way it acted was certainly weird, considering that this being might be the one behind the dimension break.

    "So this is what the strongest dimension amounts to, huh? I thought it would pose a challenge, but clearly not." With a sigh, the armored being shrugged as it let out another exhale of disappointment. Then it turned around and headed back to the dimension break with nothing but a wave of its hand as a farewell.

    "We''lle back soon enough. I guess it would be a pretty easy invasion." The armored being snickered.

 Chapter 522 Closing Off The Invasion

    ?

    Upon saying a tant threat, the armored being stepped into the dimension break before it closed off, leaving Magnus Carter and his Disciples wary of an uing dimension break. Of course, it wouldn''t happen at once, but they couldn''t help but conclude that it would ur soon.

    Under his breath, Magnus Carter heaved a sigh of relief, d that the invasion was taken cared of. There were no casualties, which was the best oue Magnus could ever wish for.

    Turning around, he realized that his Disciples were still lingering in the scene, waiting for his instructions since they have nothing else to do. Their training was interrupted, and they won''t be able to resume their training since much time had passed.

    Or so that''s what they thought.

    When Magnus Carter pped his hands to get everyone''s attention, they already assumed that he''d give them some form of rest. Or better yet, they were going to get dismissed and they could enjoy the entire evening just like Horatius''s group. Based on the majority of their expressions, it was clear that they already knew what Magnus Carter had in mind.

    "All right then, since we still have enough time, let''s have a quick test before dinner. Of course, Horatius and his teammates are still excused." Magnus Carter said, saying the exact opposite of what most of them expected.

    Letting out a groan, everyone about-faced and headed back to the training area without saying another word. They didn''t even bother convincing their Manager that they needed some rest. After all, they still have energy left to spare for another training session.

    And also, Horatius and the others won''t be there so thepetition was toned down a little bit. Everyone looked forward to getting first ce now that the top Disciples weren''t in the frame.

    "I guess that''s that, huh," Horatius muttered to himself as he smiled at Satoshi and the others. "Then again... what are we going to do about this?"

    Even though they were given the freedom to do whatever they liked during their free time, the entire residence was sted to total destruction. Even if they were to take a break, they won''t be able to rx due to how dpidated everything looked.

    "What perfect timing, right?" Satoshi shed a smile at everyone since he already decided on what to do.

    "Satoshi, just leave it. We can just go somece else and eat." Horatius''s lips slightly curved upward since he could already tell what Satoshi had in mind. There was no way he''d be willing to help with the restoration of the entire residence.

    "But... it wouldn''t take that long," Lucy promised, somewhat on the same wavelength as Horatius and Satoshi. "With my Golden Pen, we can fix everything as it once was. Then again, I won''t be able to fix everything so I''ll be leaving some of them to you."

    "Ou, leave it to me. It wouldn''t sit well with me to enjoy while everything looked like this." Satoshi reasoned out, nodding his head along with Lucy''sment.

    "That settles it. Let''s work on bringing back the residence before we eat!"

    "Osu~!"

    ...

    An hourter.

    The remation of the entire territory was sessful. And Satoshi''s group managed to fix the entire ce and restore it to how it once was. They were slightly exhausted, but it was light work that gave them an appetite.

    "With that, we''re done right?" Leif asked. Thanks to him who did most of the heavy lifting withhis barrier.

    Lucy worked on ''gluing'' everything back together. And then Horatius and Finana dealt with the clean up. Their water superpower really pulled their weight.

    "Not yet, we''re missing the final step." Satoshi called out, telling the Orb Oboros to open up his dimension and transfer all the koi fishes out of there. With the newly-repaired ponds filled with the usual koi fishes, they could finally rx and enjoy their much-needed break.

    "Here, Satoshi," Lucy casually offered, handing Satoshi a candy bar.

    The gesture surprised Satoshi, but he epted it anyways, muttering a soft thank you as he looked at the name of the chocte. "Katkit? What kind of fraudulent bar is thi¡ª" Before he could continue his monologue, Lucy exined why she handed Satoshi a chocte.

    "In our dimension, we eat this whenever we take a break. ''Have a break? Have a Katkit.'' It''s a famous line in our world." Lucy said, implying that the chocte bar didn''t mean anything at all, she simply handed it to Satoshi since they were going to take a break.

    Then again, she only handed one to Satoshi and the rest didn''t receive any. Her actions were definitely suspicious but Satoshi didn''t question any of it. Instead, he ate the chocte bar with gusto, a nice appetizer before they eat their early dinner together.

    Once again, Lucy and Satoshi went to their temporary abode to check if anything was amiss. To their relief, it looked the same before the red monsters destroyed it. Satoshi even made sure that the koi fishes in their pond were the same.

    "Soooo~ what are we getting for snacks and dinnerter!" Horatius asked. His face lit up when he asked the question, which meant that he was bound to suggest hamburg steak once again... which was already expected on the menu.

    "Let''s have french fries and vored chicken for snacks! And then for dinner... I have an idea!" Lucy said, grinning from ear to ear. Clearly, she had something nned in mind.

    "Ou, we''ll leave it to you," Horatius said even though he already ordered hamburg steaks. "If you need mints, just tell us."

    Nodding her head, Lucy went inside the house with a skip in her steps, confident that her ns would be enjoyable for everyone. Of course, why would it be when it was one of the traditions they had in their hometown?

    With Lucy nning the entire dinner, Satoshi and the others ordered some snacks and set up the grill once again. They thought about what to do over the course of the entire afternoon. In the end, they decided to treat it like a sleepover. It was supposed to be their rest time, so things like ousama game, spin the bottle, and ssic twister was yed.

    During that time, the Disciples just finished their additional training and as soon as they entered the residence, they were surprised by two things. One, that the residence was actually repaired and it felt like the dimension break was nothing but a dream. Two, they could hear giggles andughtering from the residence where Lucy and Satoshi were supposed to stay temporarily.

    Curious as to why they were chuckling theirughs out, some of the Disciples decided to sneak a peek. Just in time, the group was actually ying a mad game of ssic twister. Of course, no superpowers were allowed so their body were pushed to the limits.

    It came as a surprise when they saw just how flexible Satoshi was, but no one spoke about it.

    From a distance, Magnus Carter chuckled as well. After all, Horatius and his team go out of their way to fix the entire ce so everyone would be able to rx after their training, even though he didn''t specifically ask them to do so.

    "They deserve the rest. I should leave them be." Magnus said to himself, ordering a couple of things for the group to further their enjoyment. Of course, he couldn''t just treat them and not do anything for his other Disciples. In the end, Magnus sent everyone a box of rewards which contained a pricey dinner for all of them.

    And even when he decided to remain anonymous, his Disciples immediately knew that he was the one who sent the rewards.

    Nighttime came and it was finally Lucy''s time to shine. While they were enjoying the entire afternoon together, Lucy actually ordered something and two boxes arrived at their doorstep. Lucy was adamant about anyone opening them and she kept them inside the abode, not wanting to open them until dinnertime.

    "Finally," Satoshi eximed, still hyped about the series of games they yed during the afternoon.

    With a grin, Lucy brought out the boxes and set it in the middle of the yard. When she opened a box, she immediately grabbed the pack of skewers inside and set it on the grill, cooking it alongside the hamburg patties that Horatius already prepared.

    As for the second box, it actually contained fireworks, much to their surprise.

    A couple of minutester, the group was already gathered around, ying with sparklers as they enjoyed their time together. One wouldn''t believe that they just survive a dimension break together, due to how much they relished each other''spany.

    "I set up the big ones!" Horatius called out, just when fireworks started shooting up the sky.

    This time, the entire dimension enjoyed the night, indulging in an expensive dinner while they watched the fireworks from afar. It was a fitting ending to a cmity that is the dimension break, and Magnus Carter wouldn''t have asked for more.

 Chapter 523 Midoriyama Duos Day Off

    ?

    One thousand one hundred ny-eight... nine...

    One thousand two hundred!

    The consecutive handstand pushups didn''t even faze Tatsuki as he dropped to the ground. Once again, he broke his new record, but he never documented it in any way. He believed that doing so would push him to exceed his limits when he tries to break his new record in the near future.

    Midoriyama Tatsuki was considered to be the most powerful superhero in all of Japan. Even then, he kept himself disciplined and continued working on his physical body without relying on his superpower at all. His example was what gave Satoshi the advantage despite being powerless.

    Somehow, working out his pure physical skill reminded him of Satoshi in his younger days. When he was already old enough to walk, he was already keenly observing his dad when he works out. That''s because Tatsuki would sometimes work out while looking after him.

    This gave Satoshi his attachment to physical training even at a young age. And by the time he learned how to speak simple words, he was already attempting to work out with his dad.

    "Yeah, those were the days, huh," Tatsuki muttered to himself, wiping the sweat off his forehead as he caught a whiff of the breakfast that his wife was cooking. "A lot had happened since then."

    When Satoshi was given the positive for the Alpha gene, he was over the moon, telling his parents that he would be the most powerful superhero, even surpassing them in their prime. This gave Ayumu and Tatsuki the hope that Satoshi would be a better superhero than them in the near future.

    But then, there was the Boosting Incident, and the hero workforce had been depleted thanks to the viins behind the drug. The only reason why the situation went from bad to worse was because some superheroes were using the drugs, and when it affected their system, they too turned berserk and they had to be put down.

    Because of this, the hero workforce had their numbers reduced, and the minority of superheroes who didn''t use the drug had to step up and fill in the holes that the affected/killed superheroes left behind.

    The number of viins increased during that time, and the superheroes could barely keep them together. But now, they were past that portion of history, and the somewhat peaceful lives had returned in Japan. The other countries had the same problem as well, but Japan was one of the countries affected the most during that viin era. The Boosting Incident ran the superheroes dry, and when it was all over, they were med by the people because of their usage of drugs. It was an unfair treatment considering that the superheroes were the reason why peace returned once again.

    Satoshi''s grade school years were a bit of a struggle since he still didn''t figure out what his superpower was. Still, he didn''t want to to make his parents disappointed in him. That''s why he worked hard with what he was proficient at¡ª physical training. Pretty soon, he was somewhat dominating the school tournaments despite being powerless.

    "And then he awakened his superpower in the first year of high school. Truly a ''youth'' moment if you ask me." Tatsuki chuckled. Since he was done with his workout, he headed upstairs to join his wife for breakfast.

    A lot had happened since then. A couple of invasions, dungeon breaks, and gates. There were also plenty of local and international tournaments that urred the past couple of months and before Tatsuki knew it, Satoshi was already making a name for himself. He was the world''s strongest beast tamer, the beast master. And then he was also chosen as a Disciple, which was one of the visions that Tatsuki''s dad told him.

    And now, he was training somewhere, along with the other Disciples who were going to defend the world from an uing cmity. Although this was a necessary procedure and Tatsuki fully understood it since he also underwent a couple of adventures to level up his superpower as well. Even then, he felt like the house was empty without Satoshi around. Sure, Aira and Emma were present, but the house felt totally different without Satoshi around.

    "Ohayo~" He casually greeted as he emerged from the superheroir. To his surprise, Aira and Emma actually woke up earlier than usual, and they were already eating breakfast before him.

    ''Now that''s unusual...'' Tatsuki inwardly trailed off as he joined them for a hearty breakfast as well. His expression spoke a million words as Ayumu smiled at him. She couldpletely tell what he was thinking but she decided not to bring it up since he knew that Tatsuki would do just that a momentter.

    "Ohayo~" Ayumu, Aira and Emma greeted simultaneously while they continued eating.

    "You''re up early," Tatsukimented, smiling as he seated himself, grabbing a couple of sausages and cutting a portion of scrambled eggs for himself. Somehow, the food on the table doubled up due to Satoshi''s absence. Whenever they have a meal, they could really feel Satoshi''s absence. He was a heavy eater after all.

    "It''s the weekend. Didn''t we promise to bring them to the mall downtown?" Ayumu softly reminded him, passing a bowl of rice his way as he muttered a soft thanks.

    "Ah, right. Is it going to be a girls date?" Tatsuki scratched his head as a weirdugh escaped his mouth. "I''ll drive you there." He continued.

    "Wait, you''re noting with us?" Ayumu asked, surprised. Aira and Emma also silently voiced their opinion as they nodded their heads along with Ayumu''sment.

    "I''ming with you?" He asked, wide-eyed.

    "We''re going to watch the new Transformers movie, right? It''s our day off so we might as well enjoy it." Ayumu said.

    "T-then... you should''ve told mest night. I need to prepare for these things you know." Tatsuki heaved a sigh, but inwardly he was ted. "I guess it''s time for the number one hero to dress up a little bit, right? And here I was, thinking that I''d spend the day off on the couch."

    Once breakfast was done, Ayumu told the girls to prepare. They immediately rushed to the bathroom while Aira screamed. "Let''s bath together, Emma-nee!" She called out.

    Emma agreed, and the two of them took a bath together, washing each other''s back while they giggled. At this moment, Tatsuki was once again reminded of the fact that he''s got two additional daughters now. They weren''t part of the family registry but they were family nheless.

    "We can always add more, you know. I''m still young." Ayumu teased,pletely reading her husband''s thoughts.

    "Ah, wha¡ª w¡ª what are you saying?" Tatsuki reddened, averting his gaze from her husband who chuckled at his bashfulment. "D-d-do you want one more?"

    "Eh?! Uhm~" Ayumu nodded her head as a smile appeared on her face, implying that she really did want another one.

    When Aira and Emma got out of the bath, they saw that Ayumu and Tatsuki had their face reddened. They had no idea what they were talking about but it surely left them embarrassed.

    "T-then, I-I''ll be using the bath," Ayumu muttered as she slowly glided to the bathroom.

    "Wanna go together?" Tatsuki casually asked out of nowhere.

    "I''ll wash your back." Ayumu returned, causing Tatsuki to punch a fist in the air. He didn''t realize that he activated one of his strength superpowers and the punch caused an airwave to the ceiling.

    A dent shaped like a fist was nted on the ceiling just when Ayumu and Tatsuki headed into the bath together. Aira and Emma remained silent during the entire exchange while they waited for them to finish. Of course, Emma wasn''t taking any chances and she covered Aira''s ears.

    ...

    A couple of minutester (and no, this won''t go into the details of the bath scene),

    Feeling refreshed, Ayumu and Tatsuki got out of the bath with towels wrapped around their bodies. Aira and Emma indifferently stayed in the living room, watching tv. They didn''t even bother stealing a nce at the couple since that would just make them more embarrassed. And while Aira didn''t know why Emma covered her ears back then, she didn''t ask any questions since it might concern some adult stuff or something along those lines.

    "Whoa~!" Aira eximed when the anime opening started ying. "Shubidubibiduba mofu mofu~! One more shubiduba mofu mofu~!" Aira started singing, dancing to the song.

    "You really like that song, huh," Emma said, finding Aira''s dancing cute. She was beginning to wonder if she could dance to the tune as well, but before she could do any dancing, Ayumu and Tatsuki approached them, all dressed up and ready to go.

    "You girls ready?" Ayumu asked, her face flushed red. "Let''s head out!"

    Tatsuki could tell how excited his wife was, and he couldn''t help but pat her head. "I''ll go start the car. You guys gather by the front entrance." He offered, heading out the door.

 Chapter 524 At The Arcade

    <h4>Chapter 524 At The Arcade</h4>

    It was just a normal trip to the mall but Aira and Emma were excited to no end, letting out a soft squeal the moment they entered. Usually, they would go to the mall to get some groceries or simply when they wanted to get a cup of coffee.

    This was the first time they''d be able to explore the mall, and they had the entire day to do so. Just thinking about it made Aira and Emma excited. With puppy-like eyes, they looked around, admiring the different shops that lined up the mall.

    As for Ayumu and Tatsuki, they felt like they were bringing their daughters to a walk or something along those lines. Then again, that''s what they aimed to do today on their day off. Besides, they felt like they needed some sort of distraction at the moment.

    After all, Satoshi was currently with them and not doing anything would just make them miss him more as they were reminded of him. Aiming to enjoy their day off to the fullest, Ayumu and Tatsuki thought up a n on how they''d be able to fully explore the mall with efficiency.

    "So, what do you want to check first? We can grab some groceriester before we head home." Tatsuki asked. It had been so long since he had thought of enjoying the day off, and now he wasn''t used to having fun as he once was in the past.

    Even though there were plenty of enjoyment facilities in the mall, he didn''t know what to do first.

    "Then, let''s hit the arcade first!" Emma suggested, pumping a fist in the air as she grabbed Aira by the hand. This was the start of their free day, and Emma promised herself that she would let Aira enjoy it to the fullest.

    It hadn''t been long since the Midoriyamas took in Aira just as they did to her. And even then, Emma already believed that Aira was her little sister despite their stark differences. Emma had purple hair, and she was somewhat reserved, and as for Aira, she''s a redhead who could get a little rambunctious when she gets overly excited.

    Most of the time, Aira and Emma would spend their leisurely time with Satoshi. Sometimes, the three of them would even train together, but not in the superhero''sir since Aira wasn''t allowed to go there just yet. Going to the mall reminded them of their days with Satoshi, but that didn''t dampen their spirits at all.

    Right now, they decided to have as much fun as they could. That way, they''d have more things to do when Satoshi returns home from his training.

    "Arcade, it''s been so long since'' I''ve been to one," Tatsuki muttered to himself as he nodded his head. Once upon a time, he asked Ayumu for a date and since he wanted to leave a good impression while portraying himself as modern as he could, he opted to bring him to the arcade.

    Well, in the end, he made an embarrassment of himself since he couldn''t y any of the games there. Instead of Tatsuki showing him around the arcade, it became the other way around¡ª with Ayumu touring him and showing him the ropes of every video game therein.

    Quite frankly though, Ayumu saw Tatsuki''s cute side during that time, and by the end of the date, she liked Tatsuki a little better after. She knew he tried his utmost in giving her a swell time. He seeded in the end, albeit showing an embarrassment of himself.

    Emma''s suggestion to the arcade also reminded Ayumu of that time when they were still in the dating stage. Ayumu let out a chuckle, and Tatsuki immediately realized what she was thinking about. Once again, Tatsuki''s face reddened as he turned away from his wife.

    "Stop thinking about it." Tatsuki pursed his lips as he awkwardly spoke to her.

    "Why not? You were cute. In fact, I still have the¡ª" Ayumu twirled her index finger around before reaching into her pockets to get her wallet. Inside that wallet was a photo they took by the arcade photo booth at the end of that date. And up until now, Ayumu still had it in her wallet.

    "You still have it?!" Tatsukimented even though he too has that same picture in his wallet. "Don''t show it." He bashfully said.

    "Why not?" Ayumu teased, grabbing theminated photo and showing it to both Aira and Emma. "Look! Isn''t it cute?" She giggled.

    Curious, Aira and Emma looked at the picture, seeing an awkward picture of Ayumu smiling as she pulled on Tatsuki''s arm. Tatsuki tried to get away, and his expression clearly expressed that sentiment of surprise.

    "Wah~! Ayumu-san''s so cute!" Emma eximed.

    "Riight~?" Ayumu chuckled, briefly stealing a nce at Tatsuki as his face reddened. His reaction was top-tier, and Ayumu couldn''t help but tease him even more.

    "I-i-in any case! Let''s go to the arcade!" This time, it was Tatsuki who pumped a fist in the air as he led the way to the arcades.

    Seeing Tatsuki head straight to the arcade without hesitation caused the three girls to wonder. Tatsuki dind''t even waver when he led the way, almost as if he knew exactly where the arcade was.

    "Dear, you know where the arcade is? I''m surprised you remember it after all this time." Ayumu said.

    Tatsuki didn''t say another word. He couldn''t even bring himself to tell her that back then, he would frequent the arcade to the point where he mastered most of the games. But even after doing that, they didn''t have another date at the arcade so there was no way for him to show off his skills.

    When they had a son, he figured that he could finally y games with him once he grows up, but Satoshi was more focused on physical training than ying games for enjoyment. Of course, there were times when they would y games at home from time to time, but they never went to the arcade.

    After all, Satoshi preferred training more than spending his time at the mall.

    Once they got to the arcade, Tatsuki realized that it didn''t change much at all. Most of the retro games were still there, and even the cement of the games didn''t change much at all. There were still basketball arcade machines lined up in one corner.

    Even the photo booth existed since Ayumu and Tatsuki were in their teens. It was still tucked in the same corner where it had been all these years.

    "Ah! It''s the photo booth!" Emma pointed at the photo booth which matched the photo booth in the photo that Ayumu showed them. She was surprised that it was still there, considering that it had been years since the photo was captured.

    At the far end of the arcade were the rhythm games that Tatsuki mastered back when he was still a teenager. Right now, he was confident that he could still pull them off even when he hadn''t yed them for years.

    "Right, now let me show you how it''s done." Tatsuki clenched his fists walking

    They had no idea what Tatsuki was going to y, so the three of them followed right behind Tatsuki so they could watch him first before trying out his game.

    With confidence, Tatsuki walked straight to an arcade game called ''Dance Dance Rev''. It was all the craze back in the day, and there were even tournaments centered around it. Tatsuki yed the game before, and he practiced it to no end just so he could redeem himself in front of Ayumu. Their first date by the arcade was a failure to him, after all.

    Even though that redemption was long overdue, Tatsuki wasn''t going to miss his chance right now. He cracked his neck and jumped up a couple of times before walking at the guy who was ying the arcade game.

    Dance Dance Rev is a rhythm-based arcade game that involves four arrows that needed to be pressed by the feet. The harder the difficulty, the faster the arrow''s appearance would be. And since they were to be pressed by the feet, one needed to have full coordination in order to perfect a level.

    "Eh?!" The man eximed the moment he turned around. He immediately stepped out of the arcade the moment he saw Tatsuki walk up to him. Even though he stopped ying mid-game, it was all worth it since this was a rare chance to see Tatsuki y an arcade game.

    A crowd immediately formed around Tatsuki as he positioned himself on the tform. Somehow, he was slightly ovee with nerves since there were a lot of people watching. However, this was his chance to show off in front of his wife.

    Without hesitation, Tatsuki immediately chose the hardest song in the arcade. It was titled ''Freedom Dive''. Just to give him a little bit of a challenge, he also decided not to use any of his superpowers, just his pure physical skills were enough to conquer the hardest level. "Here we go," Tatsuki hyped himself up as the music started ying.

 Chapter 525 To The Cinemas

    ?

    Usually, in certain maps, there were only two or three arrows at once since the game was usually yed with two legs. However, the song that Tatsuki chose was the most difficult song in the game, and there were instances when four arrows should be pressed at once.

    The only way one could finish the song with a perfect record was if they use their hands. However, there were certain steps that should be met before doing so because if one were to use their hands at the wrong timing or cement, they would lose the entire streak and instantly get a game over.

    Tatsuki was well aware of this. That''s why he studied the map until he found the best way to clear it. Some people could clear it with just their legs while hanging onto the bar so they could have bnce. However, no one could finish the map without using his or her superpower. That''s how difficult it was.

    However, Tatsuki was going to attempt the song without utilizing a shred of his superpower. Adding to that, he would do it without hanging onto the bar which would give him enough leverage to use his legs to their full potential. He didn''t need it anyway since he''d be using his hands in the game.

    The first row of arrows was already difficult enough with two and three arrowsing at weird intervals. Nevertheless, Tatsuki swept through it without difficulty. He knew the song like the palm of his hand. In fact, he had studied every avable song in this game so there was no way he''d miss the first couple of notes.

    At the very least, there was no way he would get a game over on every song in the game.

    When the beat of the drums yed, the people who surrounded him hung their mouths open in shock when Tatsuki moved like mad. He was nailing every arrow, pressing on the pad below him and timing it perfectly.

    Even though what he was doing was impressive enough as it is, there were a number of people who weren''t impressed at all since they could do the same thing. Everyone who''s an acimed expert on the game could at least do what Tatsuki was doing.

    Of course, it was prettymendable since this was Tatsuki they were talking about. With newfound eagerness, these game connoisseurs continued watching, observing every step that Tatsuki was doing.

    The elite yers totally forgot that Tatsuki wasn''t using his arms to support himself. Usually what he was doing should be easy for a regr yer, but doing it with free hands is twice or thrice as hard.

    Then the pre-chorus or build-up of the song started hitting, and Tatsuki went hard mode. For the first time in the history of the game, Tatsuki did something that was never done before.

    One of the most insane perfect clears of this song involved two people. And as for the single yers, they used their superpower to increase their speed and reaction time. However, Tatsuki didn''t have any of that. Instead, he tried a new technique that would enable him to clear the song without any external or internal help.

    Tatsuki crouched and did a little break dance with his arms and legs. He timed it perfectly and he never missed a beat. He even spun around and rolled and his perfect streak still remained. At this point, everyone in the audience went silent, and they continued watching Tatsuki in awe.

    "Whoa, that''s awesome." One of the pro yers muttered under his breath, to which the other yers also nodded their heads in acquiescence.

    There was no doubt about it. Kazuichi was really killing the song.

    When the song reached the final chorus, everyone still had a shred of doubt since thest chorus was the most difficult part of the entire song. And yet, Tatsuki just somersaulted and spun while iling his arms around. And yet even with his insane movements, he still hit all the notes without fail.

    Ti-ring!

    Before they knew it, Tatsuki was done with the song, and he was already sweating a little bit. With a sigh of relief, Tatsuki managed to get himself on the leaderboards as one of the perfect scorers on that song.

    "Awesome! Tatsuki-san''s so cool!" Emma eximed, breaking the silence in the vicinity as she pped her hands. Aira joined in on thepliments as well, excitedly jumping up and down in glee as she heartilyughed.

    "I want to try it too! I want to y that one!" Aira called out, smiling from ear to ear as she tugged at Ayumu''s sleeves.

    As for Ayumu, she couldn''t help but blush a little when Tatsuki jumped down the tform. He knelt down in front of Aira with a smile, offering to pay for tokens so she and Emma could y together. Upon saying that, Tatsuki looked up, maintaining his smile as he addressed his wife.

    "Do you want to y too? We could y together, just like old times." He offered. Honestly, he just wanted to y again but this time, with his wife.

    "How many times did you practice that?" Ayumu couldn''t believe that Tatsuki really went out of his way to master that song. There was no way he could y that well if he didn''t know the song and its map by heart.

    "Geh~" Tatsuki let out, refusing to answer the question. He actually practiced a couple of these songs in the superheroir whenever he had free time. Of course, how could he say that out loud when his wife knew that he always does his training in their?

    Coughing to divert the topic, Tatsuki then put both his arms on Aira and Emma''s shoulders, urging them to try it out.

    In the end, Aira and Emma enjoyed it, and they tried out most of the booths in the arcade. Ayumu had a great time as well. Inwardly, she felt like she was back in her high school days, spending time with her friends at the arcade. She actually didn''t meet Tatsuki in her school days, but when she was already on the field as a superhero.

    "All right then! Now let''s go to the cinema! The movie''s about to start!" Ayumu softly announced as she held both Aira and Emma''s hands. They were just as excited as her, and they hopped happily when Ayumu came up to them.

    "Wait! Before that!" Emma called out. This time, she grabbed Ayumu and Tatsuki''s hands before pulling them towards the photo booth. "You two have to take another picture! Tomemorate your date!" Emma grinned as she pushed them inside the same old photo booth they used more than a decade ago.

    Filled with embarrassment and a hint of surprise, Ayumu and Tatsuki found themselves in the closed confines of the photo booth. They were too close to each other that they couldn''t help but notice the redness on each other''s faces, so much so that they had to turn away in surprise.

    But before they could dwell on their embarrassment, they realized that they were already married. What were they embarrassed for?

    With a light chuckle, Ayumu and Tatsuki leaned in towards the photo booth. "Which filter do you like?" Tatsuki asked. Since this was a picture tomemorate their date and all, he didn''t want to mess up the photo.

    "How about we go with the one we used back then? Those big eyes look good on you, you know." Ayumu teased.

    "Shut up."

    Meanwhile, Aira and Emma were lightly chuckling outside the photo booth. Although they weren''t inside, they could feel the light atmosphere emanating from within. "Let''s get a photo as well after them, and show it to Satoshi once he gets back," Emma said, to which Aira happily nodded.

    ...

    A couple of minutester,

    "Ah, that was fun." Emma eximed, letting out an exhale of satisfaction as the four of them headed out of the arcade. They never had so much fun in a long time, and their visit to the mall was just getting started.

    Next stop was the cinemas, but before that, they had to grab some snacks.

    "Off to the cinemas!" Tatsuki hooray''ed.

    BAM! BAM! BAM!

    The four of them suddenly stopped short when they suddenly heard a couple of gunshots from the first floor of the mall. And it wasn''t even that far from the arcade, ording to Tatsuki''s estimate.

    "An incident? In a mall, no less?" Tatsuki let out, heaving a sigh. "Whatever, I''ll go. Ayumu, can you buy the tickets and reserve some seats for the four of us? I''ll be back soon"

    It was a small setback, but Tatsuki wouldn''t let it cancel their ns for the day. For the first time in so long, they finally had a day-off, and Tatsuki decided to enjoy every second of it.

    "I''ll be back soon!" Tatsuki calmly called out, heading to the nearest esctor. Instead of riding it, however, he jumped to its side,nding on the floor below before anyone could react.

 Chapter 526 Bank Robbery

    <h4>Chapter 526 Bank Robbery</h4>

    Using his detection skill, Tatsuki instantly located where the trouble currently was. To his surprise, it was worse than he thought, not because the situation was too much for him to handle, but because it was somethingplicated as a hostage situation.

    Of course, he could easily deal with it alone. But if he wasn''t careful, the people in the mall might get in the crossfire.

    And that''s thest thing that Tatsuki wanted. If things escted quickly, then there might be a good chance that the mall closes down for the day. They won''t be able to enjoy the movie if that were to happen¡ª and that''s thest thing Tatsuki wanted to happen, not on their day off.

    "For now, I should check it out from afar, and then I''ll move in based on what''s going down," Tatsuki said to himself.

    ...

    A couple of minutes ago,

    "Oi! You said the cops won''t be here!"

    "I did say that, but we can''t expect everything to go well, right?"

    Thanks to their superpowers, the group of robbers managed to rob a nearby bank, and they made a run for the mall as soon as they did so. They knew that once they got inside the mall, they could just change clothes and get out the other side without anyone noticing.

    It was the perfect heist, and everything should''ve gone well. But they weren''t expecting to meet the security as soon as they went inside. While they didn''t want to garner any unnecessary attention, the security was already up their rear side before they could even do anything.

    With their covers blown, they had no choice but to retreat to one of the stores. It was a pretty rookie mistake, but no one could me them since this was the first time they tried to rob a bank.

    Or rather, this was the first time they actually tried to rob anything.

    Clicking his tongue, the first one grabbed the first person within hand''s reach, dragging that person into the store as they all intruded inside. Upon doing that, they barricaded themselves from the security outside.

    "What do we do now?"

    "I don''t know! We just stay here until help arrives?"

    "What are you on about, dumbass?! Who would help us? We''re robbers, you know!"

    "Ah, right!"

    The five of them were now stuck in a cold and hard ce, waiting for help that would never arrive. By the entrance of the store, the police and mall security were already gathered around, waiting for them toe out.

    "What do we do now?"

    "I guess we don''t have any choice," One of them gritted his teeth as he extended his hand. It was clear that he was about to use his superpower and once he does that, there was no turning back.

    His superpower was actually pretty nifty, not because it was harmful, but because it could cause a considerable amount of confusion. He calls it the ''shbang'' since, well, it was a literal shbang. His hand would emit a loud noise and a bright light that would fill the entire ce. Once he does that, anyone within the vicinity wouldn''t even see them escape.

    It didn''t even ur to him that if he were to do that, the security and the people in the mall would be thrown into disarray, and panic might ensue. There might even be idental gunshots or stampedes since the mall was quite a crowded ce this time around.

    Tap. Tap.

    "I wouldn''t do that if I were you."

    Before the guy could even say another word, someone tapped him on the shoulder and advised him not to do it. Their group had already secured all the hostages on one side, so it came as a surprise that there was another one with them.

    Fortunately, that other person didn''t attack them while their guard was down. If he were to do so, then they''d be defeated in an instant.

    Slowly, the guy with the shbang superpower slowly turned around, only to see a man who was more than? one foot taller than him. He gulped, but he didn''t activate his superpower at all. Instead, his pupils dted as his mouth went wide with shock.

    "AGHHHH! IT''S PLUNDER-SAN! EH?! EHHHHH?!" The guy eximed, turning to his other friends and pointing at Tatsuki who happened to appear out of nowhere.

    "Wait, is it really?!"

    "No way, it''s really HIM! WHOA! THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I''VE SEEN HIM IN PERSON!"

    "WHOA! He looks so awesome! May I get your autograph?"

    "I''m also a big fan, please give me an autograph!"

    Tatsuki was surprised that the ones causing themotion were actually high schoolers. He could tell that they were more or less Satoshi''s age, and it surprised him to know that they robbed a bank or something.

    Heaving a sigh of relief, Tatsuki drooped his shoulders for a bit before he face the guy who was about to use his superpower. "I''ll give it to all of youter. But first, we should do something about this." Tatsuki told them.

    "I''m Rintarou! It''s a pleasure to meet the number one superhero!" The shbang guy called out. "Oh, and um... sorry that you had to meet us like this. We were... we didn''t really think this through and the only reason we did it was because we didn''t have any choice."

    The other guys pursed their lips and nodded their heads at Tatsuki. They had no idea what the number one superhero would do to them but now that he was present, there was nothing they could do but concede. Even though their ridiculous n had already failed a moment ago, they still didn''t want to give up. However, they instantly changed their minds when they saw Tatsuki.

    At first, Tatsuki didn''t react at all when Rintarou, who seemed to be the leader of the group, started exining some things. Instead, he took a brief nce at his watch and sat down.

    "I have about thirty minutes before the movie starts. I''ll give you fifteen minutes to exin, and then we''ll all walk out of here, okay?" Tatsuki calmly said. "And don''t worry, I''ll exin everything to the authorities the moment we go out. You''re lucky that it was me you met here. If it were the Death Angel or someone else, you''d have already been thrown out before you could even utter a single word."

    "Fifteen minutes? Then..." Rintarou trailed off.

    ...

    Thirty minutester,

    Patiently, Ayumu and the two girls waited for Tatsuki to resolve the situation quickly so they could all enjoy the movie. However, it had already been half an hour and Tatsuki wasn''t there yet. For a moment, Ayumu felt worried, but she didn''t let that get the better of him.

    More than anything, she trust her husband''s capabilities when it came to these things. He wasn''t the number one superhero of Japan for nothing.

    One by one, the people started flooding into the cinemas as the movie was about to start. It was obvious that Aira and Emma were concerned as well, but they knew that Tatsuki would do just fine. The only question was if he would be able to make it in time for the movie.

    "I guess we should head inside now. Come on, let''s wait for Tatsuki inside." Ayumu suggested. She knew that Tatsuki wouldn''t like it if they were to miss some parts of the movie because of him.

    "Let''s wait for a little bit. They''re going to y the trailer first so we have another minute or so, right? We can wait." Emma called out, to which Aira nodded in agreement.

    "Then..."

    Before Ayumu could finish her sentence, she was interrupted by a familiar figure running up the esctor.

    "I''m sorry, that took a tad bit longer than expected," Tatsuki said, seemingly not out of breath at all even though he sprinted all the way. "Let''s go in."

    Ayumu nodded as she gestured for everyone to go in. "We can talk about what happenedter. First, we enjoy the movies!"

    "Ou~!" Aira and Emma pumped their fists in the air in excitement.

    Without further ado, the four of them entered the cinema, just when the movie was about to start.

    ...

    Meanwhile, on the first floor of the mall.

    Rintarou and the four others willingly walked with the police as they were escorted out of the mall. They didn''t resist at all, and they even told the police that they''d willingly cooperate with them.

    While the onlookers assumed that they would be crestfallen after being caught, it took them by surprise that they were smiling. It''s as if they just gained their freedom based on how loose their smile was.

    Before they hopped in the police car, Rintarou took a brief nce at the mall, then at the autograph he held on his hand. His smile shone much brighter as he looked down. "Thank you, Tatsuki-san. Thank you." He said to himself as a stray tear dropped from his eyes.

 Chapter 527 Unexpected Date

    Chapter 527 Unexpected Date

    A few minutes ago,

    "You mean to tell me¡­ did you rob that bank of your own money? Why?" Tatsuki asked with furrowed brows. It was the weirdest thing he''d heard all day.

    To be fair, Tatsuki had never heard of the bank that Rintarou mentioned. As it turned out, it was just a small-time bank with a shady background, and just recently, they filed for bankruptcy without any exnation.

    "My grandmother put her money in the bank due to the high-interest rate. We didn''t question her since it was a well-known bank. But that''s where we''re wrong. Apparently, the bank wasn''t even legally recognized.

    "We had to go in and steal back our money. Otherwise, my grandmother would lose all of it. Our grandmother exhausted herself to the bone making that money. There was no way I''d let those thieves be when I could do something about it." Rintarou clenched his fists.

    "And while we''re at it. We also grabbed as much cash as we could to return them to their respective owners." Another member of the bank robbers pointed out. "While we don''t know if the money was enough, we could at least return a portion of it.

    A forced smile appeared on Tatsuki''s face as he let out a forced exhale. Behind their actions were the greatest of intentions. However, it was clear that they broke thew by robbing the bank.

    Another sigh left Tatsuki''s mouth before he stood up. The group''s fifteen minutes were up, and he had gathered everything necessary in his exnation to the authorities outside.

    He didn''t even ask the group for their opinion. Instead, he quickly went outside, raised his hand, and called for them.

    There was no way he''d miss the movie they nned to watch in the cinema. That''s why, without further ado, he headed outside to exin everything to the authorities.

    Rintatou and the others also meekly followed behind Tatsuki, thinking that doing so would put them in a somewhat better light.

    Somehow it worked, and the authorities were a bit lenient towards them. They intently listened to Tatsuki while he exined, and they took notes while he talked.

    The rest of the fifteen minutes were then spent on Tatsuki telling the authorities everything he knew about the current situation. He also advised the cops to take it easy on the high school kids.

    Lastly, Tatsuki had to sign a couple more autographs. Fortunately, the wave died down at the fifteen-minute mark and he was able to excuse himself from the crowd, sprinting all the way to the upper floor to catch the movie.

    ¡­

    Meanwhile,

    Since it was the usual holiday, there was no school on that day, which meant that even those schools that focused on rearing superheroes (like the USA) didn''t have any school either.

    One might think that superhero schools would have a different schedulepared to other schools, but such wasn''t the case at all. In fact, the schedules were so simr and it didn''t pose any problem to friends who go to different schools.

    By the exit of the shinkansen, a familiar face was glued to his phone while rearing a bashful expression on his face.

    Quite frankly, this was the first time he ever felt nervous. That''s why he couldn''t help but panic a little bit while he tried to maintain hisposure.

    "You got this Midori, you got this," Midori said to himself, evening out his breathing since it was only a matter of time before he screamed in utter panic.

    ''Now that I think about it... isn''t this super weird?!'' Midori said to himself as his teeth chattered.

    ''Of course, anyone would find it weird. Right?! There''s no way I''m the only one'' He inwardly screamed while darting his face here and there in hopes that he''d catch a glimpse of someone.

    The coast was still clear, but that didn''t alleviate his anxiousness at all. More so, he felt more nervous as the seconds ticked.

    It''s as if he was being mentally tortured. The longer he waited, the more anxious he became. His teeth chattered while he agonizingly waited for the moment toe.

    "Why is it freezing in here?" Midori said to himself even though the weather was only on the slightly colder side.

    From afar, Midori saw the police station and he thought that maybe he was a crime waiting to happen. He put that thought at the back of his mind though since it was a far-fetched idea.

    Then again, thest time they met was back when they were kids, specifically in second grade elementary.

    He remembered that person to be the same age, and that person most likely remembered him just like that as well.

    Furiously, Midori shook his head before his thoughts went too far. Right now, the only thing he needed to think about was weing her.

    That''s it.

    Thinking back on it, even Midori was surprised that he easily epted her invitation. Well, it was more like a scheduled date than anything, but it didn''t ur in Midori''s mind before it was toote.

    After all, she was her childhood friend, and they actually clicked together pretty well. Then again, they were just eight or nine years old back then, and they haven''t even manifested their superpowers.

    Still, their friendship blossomed despite their differences in gender. The only reason why they grew apart was because her family had to move to the countryside.

    But now she came in contact with Midori out of nowhere, telling him that she''d be visiting Tokyo tomorrow.

    It was all so sudden that Midori was forced to say yes. She had already made up her mind and he wanted to meet her as well¡ª a win-win situation indeed.

    "Sure, see you tomorrow."

    "See you tomorrow! I can''t wait!"

    And that was the end of their conversationst night. That was also how Midori found himself in this weird situation of waiting on someone by the train station.

    Shudder.

    Shudder.

    "Oiiii~!" someone called out from afar.

    In Midori''s peripheral vision, he saw a somewhat familiar girl running toward him. Initially, he wasn''t sure whether the girl was his childhood friend or not, but once he took a closer look, he realized that it was indeed her.

    There was no way he could mistake her purple hair after all.

    "Saki?" Midori trailed off as he became mesmerized by her appearance.

    Her perfectly symmetrical face was still there, with her big eyes and her small pursed lips. She looked the same as before, just that she got a bit more mature.

    No, saying that was an understatement.

    Her face matched her well-proportioned body, and the skip in her steps gave her the gracefulness that almost hypnotized Midori.

    Compared to her, Midori felt like a fish out of water. Sure he was on the muscr side since he trained his body so he could handle his superpower. But other than that, he felt like his looks werepletelyckluster.

    His natural green hair was the only thing going for him, or so that''s what he thought.

    Well, his view of himself was absolutely off the mark. When Saki saw him, she realized just how mature and manly Midori had gotten. He still had his innocent face and the calm look in his green eyes.

    And his mannerisms of averting his gaze whenever he felt embarrassed were still there as well. The moment Saki noticed that she felt like she just had to chuckle. It gave her that nostalgic feeling of when she''ll tease her and he''d have the same reaction.

    "Long time no see!" She greeted, waving a hand in front of his face just like her usual greeting back then.

    As expected, Midori flinched and took a step backward, not because he remembered how he acted back then, but because Saki was too close forfort.

    "Ou, long time no see," Midori repeated, averting his gaze once again when their eyes met.

    "What are you getting embarrassed for? Hehhe~" Sakimented, jumping up and locking his head on her arms and giving him a good noggin.

    This time, Midori''s face heated up and reddened as his cheeks touched something soft. Saki didn''t seem to mind it, so Midori yed with her and tried not to react as well.

    Well, he was a bad liar. It clearly showed on his face just how embarrassed he was while ncing at Saki''s bosom.

    "So, why did you suddenly find the time to visit?" Midori asked. She''d never visited before so it was certainly news to him.

    "Oh, it was the holiday today, and I kind of saw you in the USA''s youtube channel. I was surprised when I did! I almost didn''t recognize you!" Saki excitedly exined. "In any case, we''ve finally been reunited! And this event needs a grand celebration! Ey, ey, oh~!"

    shing a smile at Midori, Saki instantly grabbed his hand and dragged him. "Come on, we have no time to lose! Let''s get some cake!"

    "Wait!" Midori eximed as a smile appeared on his face. ''She''s as energetic as before, huh.'' He thought to himself.

 Chapter 528 Parfait

    Chapter 528 Parfait

    Despite living in the heart of civilization in Japan, Midori didn''t exactly enjoy their stay due to their poor living conditions. Of course, they werefortable enough to live by the paycheck, but they could barely make ends meet since his parents weren''t earning enough.

    That''s why it was Midori''s dream to make it big in the superhero scene. With his pure talent in his berserker superpower, he knew he could make it big as one of the offensive types. He was a berserker. At the very least, he''d be able to sessfully join an agency even if he achieved a passable grade.

    But a couple of months ago, he had awakened another superpower that put him on an even higher pedestalpared to his peers. While he already felt lucky enough to have a decent superpower, he was blessed with a second one. Moreover, it was theplete opposite of his offensive type superpower, which made them even more synergic to each other.

    Ironically enough, his second superpower was what got them out of their tight situation. Now that he was currently under the mentorship of the Nurse, he was finally earning afortable amount and he didn''t have to rely solely on his parents anymore. His younger sister, Miya, was also cured of her sickness, so they didn''t have to worry about spending more money on her illness.

    It was only recently that he got to have such afortable lifestyle. More than anything, he was d that Saki approached him when he was already doing well. If she had reached out to him earlier, when his family was still severely financially unstable, then he would have t-out rejected her before anything else.

    However, now he could be proud of himself, and that gave him the confidence boost he needed when Saki offered a meet-up.

    "Wahhh~! It''s parfait! It''s been so long since I ate one!" Saki drooled as they stopped in front of a stall that sold parfait.

    The stall had a nice light pink and blue hue as its theme, and it was set by the edge of a nearby park. Even the chairs and table had the same color. A lot of couples were there, sharing each other''s parfait with satisfied expressions on their faces.

    At first, Midori felt like he didn''t belong there since most of the customers brought their partners. It''s as if it was a hot spot for couples, and Midori felt out of ce. Then again, he was with Saki so he perfectly blended in. Adding to that, Saki also didn''t seem to mind that they were surrounded by couples.

    Midori let out a long sigh and rxed his shoulders, finally regaining hisposure. Since Saki was having the time of her life, Midori decided to y along with her.

    "So, what do you want? It''s my treat." Midori said without hesitation. Even Midori felt weirded out when he said that. After all, he knew that in the past, there was no way he could say that.

    "Really?! REALLY?!" Saki asked but before she could ask anything, her expression changed for a moment. There was a troubled expression on his face for a couple of seconds. And then she shook her head when her calmness returned. "Nah, I''ll treat you to something! Don''t worry, my mom gave me some allowance."

    Even though she said that... it was clear that she was actually lying. Her money was enough for a meal and a return trip to the countryside. Still, she wanted to enjoy this time with Midori so she was willing to sacrifice the money she set aside for a train ticket.

    This was one of those rare moments where she could spend time with her childhood friend. And adding to that, she was the one who initiated the date. She was the one who invited her. If any, she should be the one spending money.

    Back then, Saki was already aware of Midori''s financial situation. And she was aware of how diligent Midori was even when they were still children. He would sell things in ss, answer his ssmate''s homework just to earn money, and he would even study years in advance just so he could tutor other students who were ahead of him.

    He was doing everything he could to support his family and yet he didn''t seem exhausted at all. This was what attracted Saki to him, and before she knew it, they became close to each other. She would assist him whenever he had a new ''business venture'', and every day was interesting since Midori always had a good idea.

    That is why she was not taken aback when Midori got epted into one of the top superhero schools in Japan.

    They were still in elementary grade when Saki''s family moved out of the city. She didn''t have any contact with Midori, and it was only during the Inter-High Tournament that she finally got some sort of update regarding her childhood friend.

    When she confirmed that it was actually her childhood friend who was on youtube, she told her parents about it, and her parents went to great lengths to once again contact Midori''s parents. It took a couple of weeks, but she finally got Midori''s contact details.

    Of course, Midori''s parents didn''t tell him anything. They kept it a secret from him so he''d be surprised when she finally visits him. And now that day hade, and Midori had no idea that this was actually pre-nned by their wingman parents.

    Since Saki recognized Midori immediately, she concluded that they were still struggling financially. And even if they weren''t as poor as before, Saki had already decided to treat him just because.

    If Midori had known that she was actually spending more money than she should, he''d have given her a good earful.

    "Are you sure? But I want to try all of them." Midori asked. It felt like he didn''t phrase hisment properly since he only meant that all the parfait looked so good he wanted to try them all.

    "Eh?" Saki blinked twice, but she recovered quickly. "I-I-I can only treat you to onerge parfait! That''s it." She voiced out.

    "Don''t worry about it. I have enough money. I just got my sry early and besides, you''re the one visiting from far away. Let me spoil you a little." This time, it was Midori who gave her a noggin, before he pulled back embarrassed.

    "T-then..." Saki trailed off as Midori''s words sank into her mind. "Wait, you have a job? Don''t tell me, you''re selling mixed drinks again. Or are you tutoring someone? You''re in high school now, right? How can you even keep up with studies and tutor someone?" Saki bombarded him with questions.

    "Eh?! N-n-no no no, I was way past that. Right now, I''m working under the Nurse, you know, the top healer superhero." Midori said. "I assist her from time to time since my healing abilities were slightly better than hers... that''s what she says though, but maybe she''s just telling me that so I''ll feel better," Midori said.

    "Wait, t-t-the Nurse?! EH?! You''re working under the Nurse? Whoa, I knew about your healing abilities, but who would''ve thought?!" Saki happily said, grabbing Midori''s hands as she jumped up and down.

    "That''s why it''s my treat. We can order the entire menu if you want, don''t hold back." Midori said. This was a reunion of a lifetime so there was no point in holding back with the celebration.

    "T-THEN! In return, I''ll tour you around the countryside one of these days! It will be my treat!" Saki returned.

    "I''ll be looking forward to it!"

    Midori shed a smile at Saki, which made her heart flutter a little. Her face reddened, and then she turned away as she was embarrassed. She got too into the present that she didn''t even realize that the two of them were holding hands, grabbing each other''s shoulders, and prancing around as if nobody was watching.

    When they realized themotion that they were doing, the two of them sheepishly hung their heads as they walked towards the shop. They weren''t expecting the customers to be looking at them... but what they didn''t know was that some of them envied their rtionship since they were too open and expressive with each other.

    Then again, they were just friends as of yet so that much was normal¡ª the couples who were customers of the parfait shop didn''t know this though and they already assumed that the two of them were going out.

    "Umm... yeah, all of them looked good," Midorimented, and Saki nodded her head in agreement. "Should we get all of them?"

    Without waiting for Saki''s reply, Midori ordered the entire menu, deciding to take home what was left if they couldn''t finish everything. For his first date, Midori was nailing his role. It further solidified just how forged their bonds of friendship were, even oveing the years when they were separated.

 Chapter 529 Tayokama Hiroshi and Red

    Chapter 529 Tayokama Hiroshi and Red

    "Wah~! I''m stuffed!" Midori announced as the two of them finally finished the entire menu, taking in a couple of bites of every parfait they ordered. Quite frankly, it was a struggle to get rid of everything but thanks to Midori''s voracious appetite, they were able to see the other side without that much judgment from the other couples.

    Even Saki was surprised upon seeing Midori''s performance. However, it wasn''t as foreign as expected since she knew how formidable Midori''s appetite was. In fact, she even chuckled when the two of them finished the entire menu with Midori doing her utmost to finish everything.

    Initially, Midori thought of getting some of the parfaits as takeout. But after realizing the limits of his appetite, his mind grew tired of the parfaits and he took french fries from another stall as takeout instead. He bought thergest size since he knew that his siblings would enjoy the meal from him.

    Nevertheless, it was an unforgettable experience for Saki, and she enjoyed every minute of it. Midori felt the same thing, and by the time they were done with the parfait stall, the two of them were already full.

    "Do you want to go somece else? Ah, would you like to visit home like you used to? I''m sure my parents would be d to see you." Midori suggested. It didn''t even ur to him that he just straightforwardly invited him to his ce. It was a pretty open invitation, and Saki couldn''t help but blush.

    Despite the embarrassment, Saki responded with a ''sure'' as redness filled her entire face. While she felt a bit self-conscious about the invitation, it didn''t stop her from epting it since she wanted to meet Midori''s parents as well after so long.

    She was also sure that Midori felt the same thing, and she made a mental note of inviting him to meet her parents if they had the leisure to do so.

    Upon hearing Saki''s response to his invitation, Midori was over the moon and he clenched his fist as he looked forward to going back to their ce and introducing Saki to his parents. It didn''t even ur in his mind that doing so would imply that Saki was his woman and that he was indirectly asking his parents to support his rtionship with her.

    Of course, that wasn''t his intention at all, but judging from his future actions, it could more or less mean the same thing. The misunderstanding was in in sight, and Midori was too out of it to even realize that he just made up an inexcusable situation.

    "Before that, could we go somewhere? I''d like to visit a ce." Saki asked, to which Midori agreed without second thoughts.

    To be fair, it had been a long time since Saki had been to Tokyo. Surely, she''d have a couple of ces on her lists that she''d likely opt to visit. Midori was sensible enough to realize that so he immediately agreed to her suggestion. To her surprise, Saki shed a smile in front of him while holding onto his hand.

    It was Midori''s turn to feel a bit nervous as he felt Saki''s assertiveness. The moment Saki grabbed his hand, he almost lost all his reason. To be fair, he was the one who initiated hand-holding first. But now that Saki returned the sentiment, he felt like he was about to burst.

    As the redness on his face continued to overwhelm him, Saki led the way from the parfait stall to a familiar ce. It was none other than the local park which they frequented back when they were kids. During tha time, Midori was doing all he could to earn money even at such a young age, and this park was a core memory of that past.

    Most of the time, his business ventures would be held here, and Saki would support him every step of the way. Midori even recognized some of the corners where he set up his stall to sell some things, and all the while, Saki was right beside him, giving him the extra push he needed to get out of hisfort zone and coerce the park-goers to buy his product.

    The park was just as scenic as it was in the past, and Midori was even surprised by its atmosphere since he rarely visited the ce. An exhale left his mouth as they entered the park and he remembered the childhood days he spent in the walls of it.

    "That''s where you used to sell juices. And that''s where you used to sell rocks." A lightugh came out of Saki''s mouth as she pointed one spot after the other. It was a trip down memoryne with every step they took inside the park.

    "I''m surprised you still remember that. How''re your parents? And how''s school?" Midori asked. He missed the right time to let go of her hand, and now he was trapped in the moment of holding onto it without the initiative to let go.

    "They''re doing great. They wanted to send their regards and visit as well, but they were currently busy with the family business. That''s why I was the first one here, but they were bound to visit here sooner thanter." Saki exined. In a way, he told her about the possibility of their parents catching up with each other, but Midori couldn''t read between the lines so he didn''t realize what Saki implied.

    "I''m studying at the local superhero school. It couldn''t bepared to the United Superheroes Academy, but I''ve been learning a lot. I''m hoping to apply for a superhero license this year in Tokyo, I hope you could join me when the timees."

    "Sure, I wouldn''t miss such an important day," Midori responded, to which Saki reacted with a smile.

    In a way, she expected Midori to say something like that, but when he really said it, she felt her heart skip a beat and her face turned red as a beet.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    Tayokama Hiroshi (earth and fire maniption superpower) had just trained his Red Smander in one of the facilities which allowed the training of tamed beasts. In his mind, he had a clear picture of the Alpha Red Smander and he assumed that training his Red Smander to the limits would make it evolve into an Alpha version of it.

    In a way, he wasn''t wrong, but it would take a ridiculously long time before it could even happen. He didn''t know anything about it though so he blindly kept on training the Red Smander and getting into beast battles with other beast tamers.

    Clearly, he wasn''t the best beast tamer out there, but his Red Smander was one of the strongest there was. It may not be a match against Satoshi''s Alpha Red Smander, but against other Red Smanders, it was at the top of the food chain.

    "Great work out there, Red. I knew it, you''re strong. We just need to keep on winning and get you to your Alpha form as soon as possible. You also want a rematch against that Alpha Red Smander, right?" Hiroshi asked, referring to Satoshi''s Alpha Red Smander.

    With a light squeal, the Red Smander pranced beside Hiroshi. Seeing the Alpha Red Smander made it assume its full potential even though there was a huge chance that it may not get to its Alpha form. Still, that didn''t stop Hiroshi from training his tamed beast. There may be a small chance that it would get a massive power-up, but that didn''t discourage him from pushing his tamed beast beyond its limits.

    As usual, Hiroshi visited a nearby park and fought against a couple of beast tamers out there. And as expected, he wasn''t able to win a single match. Of course, how could one of the weakest tamed beasts out there win against other tamed beasts?

    "You did great again today, Red. It won''t be long now, I''m sure you''ll turn into a fine Red Alpha Smander someday!" Hiroshi said, pumping a fist in the air as his Red Smander walked alongside him. This was just one of the many days of training they''d undergo in theing weeks so there was no point in getting discouraged. "Just you wait, Satoshi, we''re going to have a rematch and this time, we''re going to win." He said to himself.

    For a moment, Hiroshi remembered that Satoshi was currently training somewhere and he was excused from school. While he had no idea where Satoshi was and what he was doing, he knew that he was bound to get even stronger the next time they meet. ''I can''t just sit still. I have to push myself even more.'' He said to himself, clenching his fists.

    In the middle of his thoughts, he heard a familiar chuckle, and his head immediately darted towards the general direction where it came from. Of course, there was no way he could mistake that noise when he hears it every single day at school.

    The moment he noticed Midori, his eyes went wide with shock.

    "..."

    "..."

    Chotto matte~!

    "Isn''t that... Midori?! ON A DATE?!" He eximed, covering his mouth so he won''t scream in utter disbelief.

 Chapter 530 Kurogamis Day Out

    Chapter 530 Kurogami''s Day Out

    There was no mistaking it!

    Right at the center of the park, in broad daylight, Midori and a purple-haired girl lingered, pointing at some scenic spots of the park while having the time of their lives. It was obvious that they werepletelyfortable with each other since sometimes they would pat each other on the shoulder and let out a couple of chuckles here and there.

    Still, despite their amicable rtionship with each other, Midori was still holding himself back From afar, Hiroshi could tell that Midori could easily suggest that they hold each other''s hands, but Midori didn''t do anything about it since it was a huge step up for him since this was the first time he ever interacted like this with a girl his age.

    Besides, Midori didn''t want to risk making their rtionship more awkward. It was already awkward enough as it is, and the cozy rtionship they had going on had be theirfort zone. Going up a notch and pushing their rtionship even further was way beyond them.

    Unbeknownst to Midori, Saki was actually in the same spot. She also never had a rtionship like this in the past. Still, their friendship transcended time and now they were interacting just like usual. It was certainly baffling, but Midori and Saki weren''tining at all.

    "How are your parents, Saki?" Midori asked. In the past, they would call each other by their first names and somehow it had be rooted in their skulls to do the same even after a couple of yearster. Although it felt a bit new and somewhat shameful, Midori didn''t back down at all from calling Saki by her first name.

    "Ah, they''re both doing fine. Compared to before, my parents are healthier now. I guess it''s got something to do with the countryside air. Also, they''re both tending to my grandparents'' farm. It''s just a small plot ofnd, but they nted asparagus and sells it." Saki exined, remembering the bad days back when they were still in Tokyo.

    Midori was relieved. Initially, Saki''s family moved out of Tokyo because of employment problems. Back then, Saki''s family struggled, but she knew that Midori''s family suffered even more, that''s why they had that certain connection that brought them closer together.

    "Do you still live in that ce? Now that I thought about it, I''ve only ever been there once." Sakimented, reminiscing about the nostalgic ramshackle house where the Takoyama family resided Since she felt like Midori and his family were doing much better, she concluded that they don''t stay in that ce anymore.

    "Yes," Midori simply answered, much to Saki''s surprise. "It had improved since then. Little by little, we fixed the ce up, and now it''s more or less liveable. It wasn''t like before when all of us were like sardines in a small single-room abode. Now, We have a living room, a kitchen, a couple of rooms, and stuff like that."

    "Now I''m curious, I want to see it," Saki muttered to herself, but she didn''t want to impose on Midori. Sure Midori invited him to their ce a couple of minutes ago, but she decided to visit this park first and missed her chance to bring up the invitation again.

    Fortunately, Midori was quick on the uptake. A smile appeared on his face while he looked up. A tinge of redness appeared on his face when he realized what he was about to say. Then again, it didn''t deter him from saying it out loud. "We can stop over thereter if you want. Or are you going straight home after this?"

    "Sure! It''s been so long! I wonder if your parents would still recognize me." She continued.

    From afar, a certain someone recalled his tamed beast as he slinked behind a shrub. "What a bizarre sight. This is probably the strangest thing I''ve ever seen today. Midori, with a girl? How enviable." Hiroshi muttered to himself, his thoughts leaking out as he continued to tail them.

    Taking extra precautions so they won''t get caught, he went behind trees one after another with the goal of observing the two of them all the way. And on the off-chance that he was caught, Hiroshi already had an excuse in mind just so he could get out of the situation without much trouble.

    Once they got out of the park, Midori and Saki spent their time browsing and window shopping through shops. Since Saki brought just enough money to get a meal and buy a ticket back to the countryside, Midori was mindful when it came to bringing her other shops. Adding to that, he also made sure to treat her whenever he could. this was one of the rarer days wherein he didn''t feel guilty about spending his money at all.

    "Yeah, they''re on a date, all right. Who would''ve thought that someone as loud-mouthed as Midori would find himself a girlfriend." Hiroshi muttered to himself.

    For a split second, his sight wandered to a boy who was holding an ice cream in one hand and his mother''s hand in the other. His gaze also garnered the boy''s attention, and the boy stared at him for a good couple of seconds before letting go of his mother''s hand and pointing at him.

    Hiroshi knew what was about toe next, and he froze in ce as the boy spoke of the inevitable.

    "Look, ma, a stalker. We should report him to the police!" The boymented, urging his mom to do so.

    "Wha¡ª stalker?!" Hiroshi let out, almostshing out at the poor boy.

    At the same time, the boy flinched due to Hiroshi reacting a bit strongly about hisment. Because of that, the boy dropped his ice cream, and started crying. What Hiroshi feared the most had happened, and he had attracted unnecessary attention to himself.

    After offering a quick apology, Hiroshi got out of there in a sh. It didn''t even ur in his mind to rece the ice cream that the boy dropped. Then again, Hiroshi thought that the boy kind of deserved it after uttering such shamelessments.

    Even the mom was surprised when Hiroshi darted out of there in a snap of a finger. Without that much of a choice, the mom decided to console her child while taking a mental picture of what the stalker looked like.

    "That was close~!" Hiroshi heaved a sigh of relief as he took cover from behind amppost. Fortunately, Midori and Saki were both preupied with their date that they didn''t even notice Hiroshi''s presence at all. There was one moment when Hiroshi was out in the open, but the two of them didn''t see him.

    "Now, let''s continue..." Hiroshi muttered to himself.

    Just then, he felt a shiver up and down his spine, and it caused him to automatically look back.

    "What are you doing?" A familiar voice asked. It was none other than Kurayami Kurogami (shadow superpower). Apparently, he just finished running at the nearby park and he noticed Hiroshi''s suspicious movements.

    And right when the boy called him a stalker, that''s when he decided to follow him. After all, he seemed to be stalking someone and Kurogami didn''t waste any time finding out who it was. It didn''t take long though before he realized that he was stalking Midori.

    Just like Hiroshi, Kurogami was surprised that Midori was actually on a date. As someone who had been casual when it came to getting a girlfriend, Kurogami was genuinely surprised that Midori got a girlfriend first. Because of that, he also decided to follow them as well.

    "Hah! It''s just you. What are you doing here?" Hiroshi said, trying to push the topic onto Kurogami in the hopes that he won''t notice what he was doing.

    However, Kurogami already knew what was going on. "You''re tailing them too, right? All right, let''s form a temporary allegiance right now and find Midori''s secret." Kurogami continued.

    Before Hiroshi could even deny his presence, Kurogami was already taking the lead, going in front of Hiroshi as the two of them followed suit. Meanwhile, Midori and Saki remained oblivious to the two following right behind them.

    "SOMEBODY! HELP ME! A PICKPOCKET!"

    From a distance, an olddy who was carrying her purse to the bank bumped into a young man, and that young man grabbed her purse before running away at an insane speed. He had a speedy superpower, that''s why he was confident in getting away despite the superhero-infested city.

    Fwooosh~!

    "Don''t worry, I got this." Midori voiced out even though there was no way he could catch up to the speedster. Despite the severe disadvantage, Midori didn''t want to look bad in front of Saki, and that''s why he offered to help. Quit frankly, he had no idea how he''d catch the pickpocket, but the least he could do is try.

    "Look at him, ying the hero," Kurogami whispered to Hiroshi, amused. Even though they were slightly jealous of Midori''s rtionship, they didn''t want him to look bad either. With a sigh, Kurogami shrugged his shoulders. "Should we help him?" He asked, to which Hiroshi nodded.

 Chapter 531 Playing The Wingman

    Chapter 531 ying The Wingman

    Of course, Hiroshi and Kurogami didn''t want to steal the spotlight even though they genuinely wanted to help Midori. It was painfully obvious that Midori won''t be able to catch up to the thief, let alone bring him down without external help.

    Because of that, Hiroshi and Kurogami opted to butt in and thought of a n to help Midori out as self-proimed wingmen.

    This was Midori''s date, and he shouldn''t make a bad name for himself no matter what. With that in mind, Hiroshi and Kurogami jumped in on cue, trailing the pickpocket with their gaze while they hid behind a shrub from afar.

    "As expected, that thief is pretty fast... but I can still follow him with my eyes. This should be a piece of cake." Hiroshi licked his lips as he extended his hand. Despite the distance, he could feel the earth connect to his palms as if it was an extension of his body.

    With a slight flick of the rest, Hiroshi brought a small portion of the ground three strides away from the pickpocket. Kurogami watched as Hiroshi worked his magic and was ready to jump in at a moment''s notice should Hiroshi fail.

    But Hiroshi didn''t fail, his control was so impable that the pickpocket stepped right by the edge of the protruding solid ground, tripping on himself and falling face-first on the ground. Since he didn''t see the ground shift on his feet, he wasn''t prepared for the ident, and he skidded a couple of feet beforepletely stopping.

    Gurk~!

    Disoriented, the pickpocket looked around to see who was responsible for tripping him. There was no one. Then again, he was still confident that no one would catch up to him. After all, he was already a distance away from the scene of the crime.

    But that''s when he felt something weird. The moment he tried to get up, he couldn''t do it. It''s as if an invisible force was hugging him and pinning him on the ground. He couldn''t see anyone, and even if he tried to activate his superpower, there was nothing he could do.

    Right behind him, Midori was running at his full speed, activating his berserk superpower so he could push his speed even further. Slowly, the distance between him and the pickpocket widened, but that''s when Midori saw the pickpocket trip on empty ground, and he sprinted even faster.

    The pickpocket tried to stand up, but some unseen force pushed him down.

    "Heh, I got you now," Kurogami smirked, activating his shadow superpower and pinning the pickpocket on his shadow. It was basically impossible for him to move at this point.

    "I thought he was just kidding. So you can use your shadow superpower like that." Hiroshiplimented, patting Kurogami on the shoulders.

    "Stop it, I''m trying to focus here." Hiroshi gritted his teeth since every time the pickpocket activated his superpower, his hold on him would weaken.

    But it was game over for the pickpocket. Midori had caught up to him, grappling both the pickpocket''s hands and getting the wallet he stole from the olddy. A wave of relief washed over him when he finally caught the pickpocket. At the very least, Saki won''t be disappointed.

    By the sidewalk, Midori caught a brief nce of Saki, helping the olddy up and reassuring her that Midori would be able to catch the perpetrator. And just for good measure, Saki also already called the police.

    Not once did she doubt Midori, and on the off-chance that Midori didn''t catch the pickpocket, she decided to just encourage Midori and thank him for trying his best. She was aware that Midori''s superpower isn''t the speedy type so there was a good chance that Midori might not make it. Even then, there was no doubt in his mind.

    "Noice~!" Hiroshi snickered, giving Kurogami a fist bump as he deactivated his superpower.

    Not only were they able to help Midori, but they were also able to do that without showing themselves. They were able to do their job as wingmen with flying colors.

    "Now Midori won''t have to worry about that girl dumping him. Heck, she might even be more attracted to Midori after that. We''ve done our job." Hiroshimented, nodding his head while he patted Kurogami on the shoulder.

    In return, Kurogami also patted him on the shoulder in a condescending manner. Nodding his head, he decided to put in a few words as well. "Yeah, we''ve done our job, and we''re still as single as ever."

    "You don''t have to say it, my heart''s already hurting enough as it is." Hiroshi returned as they both forced a chuckle out of their mouths.

    "..."

    "..."

    "You''re back," Saki greeted as Midori handed the olddy her wallet. As for the pickpocket, he indifferently dropped him on the ground, still holding onto his hands so he won''t be able to escape.

    "I''m back." Midori greeted back.

    "Thank you so much! Thank you so much. This money is for my grandchildren. Thank you." The olddy bowed in front of Midori and Saki.

    Soon after, the cops arrived, and they arrested the pickpocket and assisted the olddy. With the situation concluding with the best oue, Midori and Saki could finally continue their date.

    "That''s done. All''s well that ends well, I guess." Hiroshi shrugged. "Should we still follow them? Or should we get out of here?"

    "Yeah, I guess there''s no point in following them anymore. That whole situation made me lose interest." Kurogami said. "Say, let''s get some Mgronalds on our way home."

    "Sure."

    Midori and Saki were already a couple of hundred meters away from Hiroshi and Kurogami. With one final look, Hiroshi and Kurogami turned away, making a mental note to ask Midori about his date with Saki. Now they have one more thing to tease Midori about.

    As for the ''couple'', the two of them headed to Midori''s ce as their final stop before Saki went home before the day ends.

    ...

    A couple of minutester, Midori and Saki finally arrived at their ce. When they were walking to his ce, Midori felt like going back and just telling Saki to go back. He felt a little embarrassed since their ce wasn''t that nice.

    It was a liveable space, and the house looked normalpared to before. Even then, Midori felt like their house was an embarrassment. Nevertheless, Midori didn''t back down, and he brought Saki home.

    "Wow, this is your house now? It looks nice." Sakiplimented before Midori could even say anything. When the house came into view, Saki''s eyes lit up, and shemented before Midori could apologize or do something along those lines.

    "Yeah, my parents are currently working even though it''s the weekend and it''s a holiday. As for my siblings, my older sister is rarely at home, but my younger siblings should be inside." Midori exined just so Saki won''t be surprised if two green-haired youngsterse up to her.

    In the past, she only met Midori''s older sister since Midori''s younger brother and younger sister weren''t even born yet. And from what she could remember, she knew that Midori''s older sister was weing and hospitable, even offering a cup of tea and snacks whenever she visited. Even though they were at the red line, financially speaking, Midori''s older sister would go out of her way to give what she could.

    "I couldn''t remember her name, what was your sister''s name again?" Saki asked. To be fair, she always called her ''older sister'' in the past, and she never asked Midori for her name.

    "Miyuu-nee. Right now, she''s working part-time while attending college. She''s probably hanging out with her friends or something today." Midorimented.

    "Ah, badmouthing your sister since she won''t be here when you introduce your girlfriend to the family, huh? I get it. I get it." Right behind them, a familiar voice spoke. She had green hair and fierce green eyes. A stic bag was slung on her shoulder. While nodding her head, she stopped short in her tracks as shemented.

    Midori and Saki both turned around, surprised that Miyuu called Saki his ''girlfriend''. A tinge of redness appeared on Saki''s face and her bashfulness got the better of him. As for Midori, he was just as surprised that his sister was actually home.

    ''This wasn''t part of the n?!'' Midori inwardly screamed in his mind since he knew that he''d receive endless teasing from his sister.

    "Miyuu-nee, she''s not my girlfriend." Midori let out even before he greeted her sister.

    "Not yet." She corrected, twirling his index finger in the air while winking at Saki. "In any case, the two of you should head in. I''ll be preparing an early dinner so you guys rx while I''m at it... not that you could rx though since Miyura and Miya''s going to pester the two of you to no end."

    With that said, Miyu stepped forward, shing a smile at Midori and Saki.

    "Wha¡ª but you can''t cook, Miyu-nee." Midori returned, to which Miyu reacted by wrapping her free arm around his neck.

    "Shut it, or I''m going to end you." Miyu''s eyes twitched as she half-threatened Midori before dragging him inside. "Come in, Saki, let''s have dinner together." She invited.

 Chapter 532 Tayokama Family Dinner

    532 Tayokama Family Dinner

    Seeing his sister was an unexpected surprise for him, and Midori silently let her drag him into the house without that much of a retaliation. It would''ve been easy for him to shake off his older sister, but he didn''t resort to that due to how disoriented he was. Saki also meekly followed right behind the two since she had nothing better to do. In a way, Midori''s older sister weed her, and it would be rude if she just turned away and reject the invitation. She was already there anyways, and even if she felt like backing down, she had no choice at this point. "Ah, Miyuu, your home." Midori''s dad greeted them from afar. He was helping his wife prepare some food for an early dinner, while Miya and Miyura werefortably seated on the couch. "Miyuu-nee!" Miya and Miyura greeted before their gazended on their older brother. A bigger smile was stered on their face as they too called out to Midori. "You''re here early." Midori''s dad greeted them with a warm smile, but everyone knew that underneath that warm smile was mischief. It was evident on his face that he had grantly nned this scenario right from the start, and as it turned out, everyone was in on it as well. Right from the get-go, the moment when Saki initiated contact with Midori''s family, both her side and his side of the family had already nned the meeting out. Of course, Midori''s parents didn''t tell his siblings nor did they tell him about it. They just let nature take its course, giving Midori the leeway to get a date, as well as putting in the element of surprise. And it worked! Based on Midori''s expression of utter shock and speechlessness, it was clear that the n had worked. "Why is everyone here?" Midori uttered after regaining hisposure. He wasn''t sure whether to be angry or surprised, but deep inside he knew that it was an odd mix of both. It didn''t take long before slight embarrassment kicked in, and his face slightly reddened as he sat down on the couch. The interior of their ce was nothing fancy. A huge portion of the house was the living room, with the kitchen area tucked in on the far corner of it. As for their sleeping quarters, there was a small portion of the house that was right beside the kitchen. That room could only fit two people, so Miya and Miyura slept there. With a shocked expression on his face, Midori scanned his family, and he found their actions totally unusual. For one, both his parents were cooking. From as far as he could remember, they rarely have the time to make homecooked meals. It was to the point wherein Midori couldn''t imagine his parents'' cooking. Then there were his siblings. On a normal day, Miya and Miyura were as active as snakes, darting around here and there, ying around, and rambunctiously running in circles. Sometimes, their ytime would get to the point where they''d go out and y with other children. However, right now they were as behaved as doves. They didn''t even budge from their seats¡ª a totally weird way of greeting their older brother and older sister together. Just from the glint in their eyes, one could tell that they were anticipating something. Something. "Pardon my intrusion," A soft voice trailed off as the door to their ''mansion'' slowly opened. First, Saki peeked her head inside before slowly stepping in. After repeating her greeting a second time, she bowed down and sheepishly sat beside Midori. Her entrance was as if on cue, and Midori couldn''t believe that Saki perfectly timed his entrance. All in all, it left asting impact, even leaving Miyua and Miyura smiling from ear to ear as they too bowed in return.

    The first thing that they noticed was the striking purple hair and eyes that Saki possessed. She was neither too short nor too tall, just the ideal height right above Midori''s shoulder length. Adding to that, she was as respectful as they thought she was, and it gave them a somewhat respectable assessment of Saki''s personality as a whole. "Ah, Saki, right? Pleasee in, don''t be shy." Midori''s mom offered, gesturing for Saki to take a seat while she untied the apron from her back. Without further ado, she grabbed a teapot with fresh-brewed tea, setting it down on the small table in front of a couch and pouring a ss for both Midori and Saki.

    "Please, help yourselves," Midori''s mom eagerly offered before walking back to the kitchen. Now that her intentions were as clear as day, Midori and Saki felt like they were in the middle of a marriage meeting instead of a casual visit to Midori''s ce. Still, that didn''t stop them from drinking the tea. After all, Midori''s mom was well-versed when it came to the right taste of tea.

    "We used to drink this together back then, right? So it was your mom who makes it." Sakimented. She wasn''tining about the taste of the tea at all. It was the perfect blend of rxation, and somehow it gave Saki a nostalgic nudge. "Yeah, you used to visit a lot back then." Midori returned in a rxed manner, riding the wave that Saki started. He knew that he had to go with the flow, otherwise, things would get even more awkward and it was only a matter of time before they stopped talking altogether. Meanwhile, Miya and Miyura just kept on staring at Saki as if she was some sort of unidentified creature. Their eyes were too sharp that they might bore a hole through Saki''s face at any moment now. "Kora~ That''s rude, you know. You shouldn''t stare like that." Midori warned the two of them in a whisper before turning his head at Saki. With his voice momentarily faltering, he extended his hand and patted both Miya and Miyura on the head before reintroducing them. "This is Miya, and this is Miyura." Midori let out, not knowing how he''d be able to continue the conversation. "It''s the purple ranger," Miyura whispered. "It''s the purple ranger, right?" In response, Miya nodded her head intently looking at Saki while she tried to closely observe her facial features. "Why is the purple ranger at our ce? Big brother, is she your girlfriend?" Miya asked. To be fair, Miya wasn''t the only one who was curious. Quite frankly, everyone in the family was really curious as to what their rtionship was. The moment Miya asked the question, everyone''s ears perked up and what followed wasplete silence. "What are you talking about, me? Saki''a girlfriend no¡ª" Midori was about to adamantly refuse the usation thrown at him. However, before he could finish what he was about to say, Saki softly clutched the edge of his sleeves before interrupting him. "N-not yet... but I... I really enjoy my time with Midori. Back when we were still kids, and now, I really enjoy Midori''s apany." Saki softly smiled. "And right now... I''m not attracted to anyone else.... hah~! Wait... don''t tell me you already have a girlfriend, Midori?" Saki asked. "What? No, the closest thing to a girlfriend I have is yo¡ª" Midori was about to say something embarrassing but before h could continue, he was once again interrupted. This time, it was Miyuu who interrupted him. "Hai~ hai~ that''s enough flirting for today. Why don''t the two of you set the table?" She asked, pushing them out of the couch and seating herself. "Wai¡ª but you were the one who was supposed to do that, Miyuu-nee..." Midori trailed off as he and Saki found themselves in front of the table. "You''re really purple ranger, right?" 16:55

    "Don''t sweat out the small details," Miyuu called out. "Here you go," Seizing her chance, Midori''s mom then handed Midori a couple of tes, and then she proceeded to hand the side dishes to Saki.

    There was nothing they could do but assist with setting up the table. Nevertheless, that didn''t stop the two of them from contemting the words they let out a moment ago. Now that they thought about it, that situation was embarrassing. Now they couldn''t look each other in the eyes. Meanwhile, Miya and Miyura still didn''t get over Saki''s purple hair. And while Midori and Saki were setting up the table, the two younger siblings came up to them to continue theirments. "You''re really purple ranger, right?" "Did you kiss older brother?" "Did you go on a date together?" Their questions were met with silence and a little redness to the face. In the background, Midori''s parents and older sister were suppressing their chuckles altogether while the tables were being set up. They didn''t go out of their way to stop Miya and Miyura though. "Whoa, it''s a feast!" Miyuu eximed. She was the one to sit down first, telling Saki to sit beside her so she could interrogate her about the date. "All right, take a seat everyone, let''s eat!" Midori''s mom pped her hands once, and dinner was served.

    16:56

 Chapter 533 Silk Girls Backstory

    533 Silk Girl''s Backstory

    Over the course of the meal, Midori''s parents sted off questions upon questions at Saki, and at first, Midori felt like Saki was getting a bit overwhelmed by their constant chirpings. Fortunately, Saki was actually enjoying herself, and he decided to keep quiet and just watch over her.

    It was actually quite surprising that everyone in the family was eating a meal at the dinner table. Since their family was once financially challenged, all the able-bodied people in the family got part-time jobs and worked their rear sides off as much as they could.

    This meant that most of them were usually not home, and they rarely got to have a meal together. And even if they get to have the unusual chance of eating together, most of them would be too exhausted to have a normal exchange of words.

    However, what happened right now felt like a dream. Everyone was contributing to the conversation while actively including Saki in it. They more or less asked Saki about her life in the countryside, and in no way did they ask prying questions like her rtionship with Midori.

    In hindsight, both Midori''s parents and Saki''s parents had already agreed to pair off their children, that''s why they weren''t proactive when it came to pushing the rtionship. It was clear that the two of them were attracted to each other, and their parents would jump at every chance to push them closer to each other.

    In a way, this was a mission aplished for the parents. Everything went by the book, and they''d have a great time exchanging information with each other in order to glue their children more.

    Once dinner was over, and once Midori''s mom sent a text over to Saki''s mom about the sess of their ns, it was time for a clean-up. Saki volunteered to help with the dishes, but she was shot down by Midori''s mom.

    "It''s gettingte, you might miss thest train, Saki." Midori''s mom called out, turning her head over to Midori who was also helping with the clean-up. "Midori, you should apany the young miss to the train station. It''s gettingte, you know."

    "That''s right, don''t worry about the dishes, we can handle it." Midori''s dad reassured him, gesturing that the two of them get out of there. "You shoulde over and visit next time, Saki? Or would you rather Midori visit you over there instead? If that''s what you want you can just tell us, and we''ll send him over straight away."

    "D-dad!" Midori eximed since his father was teasing him once again.

    Much to Midori''s surprise, Saki just bowed in front of Midori''s dad. "I''ll be taking you up on your offer then, father," Saki returned. Not only did she call Midori''s dad her father, but she also implied that she''d be availing his offer.

    "W-w-what?" Midori stammered as his parents and siblings had a heartyugh. With his ears turning red due to embarrassment, he grabbed Saki''s hand and dragged her out of there.

    In haste, Saki blurted out her farewell just before she found herself outside.

    "What are you talking about, Saki?" Midori hissed in a low voice just so his family members wouldn''t hear him.

    "I really meant it, you know... and we already talked about this a while ago, right? You said you wanted to visit our ce." Saki asked. It was obvious that she wasn''t joking when she responded to Midori''s dad a moment ago.

    "B-b-but..."

    "Mom and Dad would be delighted to have you over as well, and you get to help around the farm. Trust me, it would be fun." Saki incited. She was absolutely keen on bringing Midori over to her ce.

    "T-then... our semester break''sing in three months... I''lle to visit." Midori scratched his head, hanging his head low so Saki wouldn''tpletely see his bashful expression.

    "Whewsss~ get a room you two," A voice came from the front gate.

    "Gya!!" Midori flinched, and then he saw his older sister, Miyuu, looking over the steel bars of the gate. "Nee-san! Why are you eavesdropping."

    "Oh, I wasn''t nning to. It''s just that I found your conversation a bit too cute so I decided to let you finish, teehee~"

    Before Midori could say anything else, Miyuu handed Saki a package. "Here, a gift to your parents. Tell them that we were d that you visited us. Also, tell them that you''re always wee here¡ª or so that''s what mum and dad told me to ry."

    "Thank you, I''ll tell them." Saki lit up as she epted the gift. This time, it was she who grabbed Midori by the hand, saying her farewell as the two of them headed to the train station.

    "Oh! And consider that dowry from Midori. Just open it up when you get home!" Miyuu called out, which was the ultimate below-the-belt blow.

    It was still early evening, and the city streets were nowhere near deserted. In fact, it was somewhat crowded, with most of the people taking their early evening stroll to unwind for the day.

    As such, Miyuu''s call was heard by everyone, and all of them looked at Midori and Saki as if they were newlyweds. Some of them were chuckling, while some of them respectfully greeted Midori and Saki as they passed by.

    "Mou~ nee-san~" Midori muttered to himself as an old couple in the neighborhood nodded their heads at them. They were smiling from ear to ear as if they were watching their grandchildren ying in the park.

    It was the worst walk of shame the two of them could ever experience. Then again, it was nothingpared to the enjoyment they had for the whole day. In a couple of minutes, the two of them startedughing at the joke, and it made the trip to the train station less awkward than expected.

    ...

    Meanwhile,

    Silk Girl was relishing a brief respite during what was supposed to be a routine day at the agency. Since it was early in the evening, she was hoping that there won''t be any incidents near the shinkansen. After all, if there were any, then she''d have to move the superheroes in her agency.

    Knock. Knock.

    "Come in."

    Mumble. Mumble.

    "What another hundred orders came up? But I thought we weren''t releasing another one?" Silk Girl calmly asked. She wanted to show how irritated she was, but there was nothing she could do about it. Then again, it was probably her fault that this was happening to her.

    In the past, since she was short on money, she decided to put up her own clothing brand, and she made everything, from shirts, to shoes. She was barely making any money, but it was enough to support herself in the city considered to be the heart of Japan.

    It was thanks to her hard work and dedication that she was able to be a sessful superhero. By a stroke of goodluck, she received a schrship in United Superheroes Academy, and soon after that, she had the opportunity to work under the top superhero in Japan. This was where she learned the ropes, and it boosted her career even further.

    Her resilience, as well as her artistic image of using her silk became a sensation, and she was regarded as one of the most iconic superheroes to ever exist. With her career on the rise, she decided to close her clothing brand for good. After all, it had never been popr to begin with, and she was bound to get busier with her sessful line of work.

    It was more than a decade ago when she had a fateful encounter. It was the son born to the top one and two superheroes of Japan. She was there when he was born and she was there on his first year. And since then, she had watched over that child as a self-proimed aunt.

    Later on, she realized that the Midoriyama Duo''s son was actually powerless, but she didn''t fail to support him from the sidelines. She didn''t fail to ask the Midoriyama Duo if her ''nephew'' needed something and she never failed to give it to him whenever they tell her what it was.

    That''s why, when Tatsuki contacted her a couple of months ago, asking her for a pair of shoes, she didn''t think twice about making it. After indirectly giving it to Satoshi, she presumably released the model a couple of dayster. That was just an act of publicity though since she only released one pair of that model.

    The reason why she did that was so Satoshi won''t be suspicious of her helping him out whenever she could.

    However, because of that stunt, Silk Girl now had to reject orders from notable people since she didn''t want to make another pair of shoes, nor did she want to revive her clothing brand.

    BAM!

    "LEADER! LEADER!" A superhero screamed as soon as he forced open the door to Silk Girl''s office and interrupted Silk Girl''s line of thought.

    "What is it?" Silk Girl asked. She was clearly pissed.

    "It''s the shinkansen! It had been derailed!" The superhero promptly answered.

    Oh no, Saki o_o

 Chapter 534 The Blob Humanoid

    Chapter 534 The Blob Humanoid

    Over the course of history, there was not a single instance when the Shinkansen was derailed. There weren''t even reported injuries on the train, even though there were a handful of times when a passenger died of natural causes inside.

    That''s why the news felt like a fever dream to Silk Girl and she bolted upright, wondering if the superhero was trolling her or not. However, the superhero wore a straight face and his ragged breathing indicated that he wasn''t joking at all. There was only one way to confirm whether he was telling the truth or not really.

    Without further ado, Silk Girl turned on the television in her office, it was a hologramthat yed the newsin a 3D manner, and Silk Girl immediately went to the news channel to see if the Shinkansen had really been totaled.

    After all, the news of the Shinkansen derailing is probably one of the most shocking things to happen in the entire world.And there it was, an emergency report in all news channels regarding the Shinkansen derailing. As it turned out, the superhero was telling the truth, and the unexpected ident had really urred in the Shinkansen.

    "We have to go, leader," The superhero called out before getting out of there.

    Silk Girl was still experiencing shock, and he watched the Shinkansen careening to one side of the rails as the tragedy was caughton camera. Fortunately, there were a couple of superheroes in the vicinity, and they were able to correct the Shinkansen before more incidents happened. They were quick to jump into the fray, rescuing civilians and making full use of their power.

    "I have to go." Silk Girl hyped herself up. If she could help with the rescue even if it was just a little bit, then she had to leave now. Otherwise, a passing second is a wasted second, and she won''t be able to do anything if she was toote in the scene.

    Within a minute, Silk Girl had already suited up, and she got out of her agency, swinging through the buildings thanks to his superstrong silk that came out of her hands. There was no way she''d miss the derailment of the Shinkansen, not when there might be more trouble lingering in the background.

    From afar, the people who were casually walking through the street saw Silk Girl zipping through the air. They all cheered for her, but that didn''t help put her mind at ease. And a couple of minutester, she finally saw what happened to the Shinkansen.

    Well, the damage was minimal, thanks to the superheroes who held it up when it suddenly derailed. Most of the superheroes who managed to catch it in the air while it was at its top speed were outside the train.

    Hundreds of people gathered around the ce as the other superheroes put it back on its train tracks. Still, the trouble didn''t stop there. As it turned out, the Shinkansen wasn''t the only one affected. In fact, an entire section near the station was damaged due to some sort of meteorite.

    In droves, the reporters gathered around the ce, reporting everything live on their own channels. They had no idea where the meteorite came from, nor did the satellites detect its passage to the Earth. Even the other superheroes who were watching the headlines were utterly shocked since they didn''t sense the meteor going down.

    "What''s going on here?" Silk Girl asked the moment she swung on one building and touched down in front of the reporters. At this point, she didn''t care at all whether the reporters snagged a couple of her photos or not. Right now, she was dying to know what was happening, and the superheroes in the background also shared the same sentiment.

    "You''re here." Right behind her, a famous superhero appeared in the scene, causing everyone to murmur amongst themselves as they took photos of her.''

    It was none other than Otomi Elimine, also known by her superhero name ''Plume''. She was just like Silk Girl since she too learned the ropes of being a superhero under the Midoriyama Duo. That''s why Silk Girl thought of her as a rival more than anything else, even though, she was already more sessful than her.

    Of course, if Plume was there, then the Eye Goddess should also be around since they were both in the same agency. And as expected, the Eye Goddess appeared, slowly pushing her way through the crowd just so she could inform the superheroes present about the meteorite.

    One look and the superheroes could more or less tell that the meteorite was a prelude to an alien invasion. In recent years, there were multiple incidents of alien invasions on Earth, but no one knew why such was the case. However, most Disciples were already aware of what had caused these invasions.

    When the World Eater first appeared, trying to swallow the entirety of the gxy where Earth was, the entire Milky Way Gxy formed an alliance with Earth, and they were able to push back the World Eater and defend the universe for good. n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om

    However, that didn''te with repercussions. Every single race except mankind was deleted from the universe. There were no other life forms in the universe anymore, however, it was still the main highway when it came to other dimensions.

    That''s why, whenever alien invaders from other dimensions would look for a ce to conquer in this universe, they would only happen to see the humans on Earth. As such, they were left with no choice but to invade it. After all, most alien invaders don''t have a ce, and they were desperate to conquer newnd for their race to settle in.

    Hence the frequent invasions on Earth. This information was only known to Disciples though, since they were the ones tasked with defending the universe from the World Eater when he awakens. Back to the meteor... "I believe... that is a remnant of the World Eater." The Eye Goddessmented out of nowhere, causing the superheroes to turn their heads to each other since they had no idea who or what the World Eater was.

    To be fair, this was the first time they heard anything regarding the World Eater. That''s why even the most veteran of superheroes shook their heads in bewilderment. "Eye Goddess, what''s the World Eater?" Elimine asked. The entire area went quiet as they intently listened in to Eye Goddess''s reply. It felt like she was about to say something important, that''s why no one dared speak over her. However, Eye Goddess remained silent. Instead of responding to them, she raised her hand and pointed at the meteorite. Quite frankly, the Eye Goddess became so shocked that she blurted out something she shouldn''t have. There was no way she could retract her words, that''s why instead of exining what she said, she found a suitable distraction. As if on cue, the meteorite seemed to soften a little bit, it appeared more malleable. And then it turned into a nice red color before it started pulsating. Now resembling a big blob of red, the meteorite grewrger, before transforming into a gooey humanoid form with soft tentacles. "What''s that?"

    "I don''t know. Is that the blob?"

    14:00

    "What are you talking about?! It''s a slime."

    "Either way, we should get out of here, right? Let the experts take care of it." "Dude, we''re the experts. We''re the superheroes on the scene."

    "Oh."

    While a group of superheroes were having a somewhat dumb topic, the meteorite hadpleted its transformation. And now it started charging at the crowd, iling its soft tentacles around. It didn''t talk at all, it just shrieked with a muffled voice as if gurgling a mouthwash. "Everyone dodge! Get the reporters outta here!" Plume screamed, giving the superheroes a little bit of unity before they engaged inbat. In an instant, the superhero got out of the way, grabbing every civilian in sight and getting them out of the way. However, their manpower wasn''t enough, and a group of reporters were caught in the crossfire as the blob humanoid flicked its gtinous tentacle at them. Fwish~!

    Since Plume was the nearest one, she had to dive and defend the reporters. She could at least get there in time to block the attack while another group got them out of the way. In a split second, Plume utilized her wings and she screwdriver-vaulted her way to the reporters, blocking the gooey tentacle before it could smash on one of them. Sfploosh~! The moment it touched Plume''s wings, the tentacle passed through it as if it was cutting through butter.

    What was supposed to be an indestructible pair of wings, were melted in an instant, and Plume screamed in pain as both her wings were cut off. "Aghk~!" Plume screamed in pain, but she was relieved that the reporters were left unharmed. "Nee-san!" Someone screamed from behind as a wall of ice blocked the blob humanoid''s path. "Shiroi?" Elimine turned around, only to find her cousin running to her aid."

    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and

    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!