When someone is in a dangerous situation, it's only natural for them to call out the name of a hero, almost as if that hero has taken the place of a god. Even as they gasped for their final breaths, they clung to a glimmer of hope that a hero would swoop in to save the day.
The ongoing battle between humans and monsters has spanned generations with no clear origin. However, a prevailing belief suggests that monsters came into existence as a result of human greed.
There's a change in the air today.
It's interesting to see how monsters, who typically prefer to operate solo and may not always have clear motivations, are now teaming up to pursue unknown objectives.
Inside the Heroes Association headquarters, the higher-ups were caught up in a heated argument, struggling to find a solution to their predicament. Busho's staff put in maximum effort to gather information and guide the heroes to places that required their assistance.
"Report! A new powerful monster appeared in City C, calling himself Rhino Wrestler!
"What's the threat level?"
"Estimated Demon level threat!... Sir, what should we do? Sending C and B class heroes won't be enough."
As Busho listened to his subordinates' reports, he couldn't tear his eyes away from the monitor. It was filled with a sea of red dots, each representing a monster that had emerged in cities A to Z. Right now, he was particularly concerned about city C.
"What happened in C City? Why are so many powerful monsters appearing in that city... this organized monster attack is very different."
Busho glanced down at the tablet in his hands. It displayed a comprehensive roster of professional heroes, ranging from class C all the way up to the prestigious class S.
With their extensive advertising campaign featuring Fubuki, they managed to capture the attention and support of countless people, ultimately leading to their success in recruiting a new batch of professional heroes.
Despite the majority of them being C class, they managed to discover a few exceptionally skilled individuals who quickly rose to the ranks of B and A classes.
"I think a lot of them will be able to get stronger and rise in rank gradually, but this is just too fast for them," Busho's voice dropped, filled with a sense of despair.
He stared at the red profiles of the professional heroes on his tablet, his expression empty. Each red profile represented a fallen hero, and the number kept growing.
"S-Sir!... S-Sir! We received a call from a professional hero in City C!"
Busho quickly straightened up, his gaze becoming sharp once more as he firmly ordered to connect their line.
"Hey, can you hear me? Pineapple."
Upon hearing that absurd name, not a single person in the room burst into laughter. Instead, a palpable sense of tension filled the air as their channels were filled with nothing but the crackling of static.
"Pineapple, what happened-"
"Phew... hahh... Sorry about that! I was just dealing with a little monster situation, but everything's all good now."
They could tell from the heavy panting that Pineapple was in a tough spot. Shortly after, the big monitor screen, which had been showing nothing but a black image, suddenly transformed.
A guy wearing a pineapple mask and rocking mostly orange and yellow clothes popped up on the screen. He started explaining what was going on around him by showing it firsthand.
The people in the room were filled with a sense of dread, and one of them couldn't help but vomit. The view Pineapple captured on his cellphone was absolutely terrifying.
Despite the thick black smoke that filled the streets, the sight of monster corpses was still visible. However, that wasn't the most daunting obstacle they faced. There were bodies scattered across the streets, from kids to grown-ups, with blood streaming from their wounds.
"I've seen enough... so, let me get this straight. Are those monsters actually on the hunt for someone?"
Despite Busho's efforts to remain composed, he found it difficult to maintain his gaze on the lifeless body of the child. He felt a sense of relief wash over him when Pineapple's face once again dominated the screen.
"I'm not exactly sure, but from what I've heard, they're on the lookout for a-"
Pineapple's voice trailed off as he got distracted by something else.
"Hey, hold on a second, what brings you here? You should consider heading to the shelter with everyone else. This place can be pretty dangerous, so it's better to be safe than sorry."
Initially, the entire room grew tense once more. The anticipation of a looming threat hung in the air as Pineapple, a newly promoted class B professional hero, entered. Concern and worry filled the hearts of those present.
"Is he talking to the residents?" Busho didn't have any reason to be suspicious since there were plenty of people stuck in different parts of the city. But what came next caught him off guard.
"What on earth are you talking about? So, you're saying you want to get rid of professional heroes? Hahaha... that's hilarious-"
Pineapple's laughter abruptly turned into a fit of coughing as a hand unexpectedly clutched his neck. But it didn't end there. His body was forcefully slammed to the ground, causing the cell phone he was gripping to slip from his grasp.
"Pineapple? What happened... if you can hear, answer me!"
It all happened in a flash. The screen that once displayed Pineapple's face now only displayed the cloudy sky of City C. The occasional sound of the wind blowing only amplifies the eerie silence, adding to the overall sense of horror.
"Whoever's there, just hold on a sec and don't do anything crazy, okay?"
Busho was taken aback, unable to find the right words as the screen abruptly shifted, revealing Pineapple's condition. Pineapple's mask had been taken off, revealing his bruised and beaten face.
"Good afternoon to the people at the Hero Association headquarters! Did you catch a glimpse of how I completely wrecked your so-called professional heroes? Impressive, right?"
"Who are you?... Wait, are you a human or a monster?"
Busho and the others could clearly witness the person yanking on Pineapple's hair and callously thrusting his face towards the camera. However, the identity of the perpetrator remained hidden, leaving them unable to see his face.
"Just being able to see this trash is sufficient. Now, hear me out. I'm going to hunt down your beloved heroes, so prepare yourself."
"Could you tell me a bit about yourself and why you're doing this?" Busho is currently facing a test of his leadership abilities. Despite feeling furious, he manages to maintain a remarkable sense of composure.
However, the other person didn't respond at all. He just tossed the cell phone, causing the screen to display a cloudy sky again.
The man's voice returned, but it was barely audible.
"Isn't today just perfect for my professional hero hunt... I can also join in the competition with those monsters to see who can achieve a higher score…"