In the end, only five people remained in the Hero Training Room.
The President, Aiden Cross.
The Vice President, Doraemon.
S-Class hero,Aizen.
The Origin Spirit, Zero.
And the ever-cheerful, innocent spirit—Stella Nightfall.
The moment Stella saw Zero, she felt something strange.
A deep, instinctive familiarity.
They had never met before—yet Zero gave off a warmth that felt… comforting.
"Boss, I will now report on the second matter we discussed earlier."
"Go ahead."
"A powerful force has risen in Africa. They are rapidly expanding their territory."
Aiden Cross's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Noxus?"
"Yes." Aizen adjusted his glasses.
"Their power clearly does not belong to this world. I request permission to eliminate this unstable factor."
"No need to overcomplicate things."
Aiden Cross shook his head.
"If we handle everything ourselves, there's no point in establishing regional branches."
"Let the designated African Branch Director handle it—Julian Kane."
"…Understood."
With Julian's S-Class strength, even if he couldn't completely wipe out the Noxian army, suppressing them would be effortless.
After all—
Unless Darius awakened his God-King form and reached pseudo-god level…
There was no one in Noxus capable of matching Julian.
Meanwhile, recent news had revealed something shocking.
The hidden superpower nation—Wakanda—had lost its king.
Beheaded by Darius, the Hand of Noxus.
With a new Black Panther ascending the throne, cooperation with the Hero Alliance's African Branch would likely come easily.
Especially since Child Emperor's project—
The Vibranium Dreadnought Titan—
Still required thousands of tons of vibranium.
"Have you finalized the personnel distribution for each branch?" Aiden Cross asked.
"Yes. Everything is prepared. Please review it."
"No need."
Aiden Cross waved his hand.
"I trust your judgment, Aizen."
He knew his own limits.
Leadership wasn't his strongest skill—delegation was.
And when it came to strategic allocation, Aizen was far superior.
A quick glance at the draft revealed familiar names under the African Branch:
Julian Kane — Branch DirectorGarethChild Emperor
With his new power, Gareth would likely dominate against his old rival, Darius.
And Child Emperor's presence would ensure smooth acquisition of vibranium.
"Then I will proceed with the assignments."
"Go ahead."
With a flash of movement, Aizen vanished.
As the only reliable strategist in the Hero Alliance, he was constantly buried in work.
Unlike a certain hands-off President.
"Slurp~"
A gust of wind stirred.
And suddenly—
A yellow, tentacled figure appeared beside Aiden Cross.
A round head. Multiple main and sub-tentacles. Academic robe. Graduation cap.
The newly summoned S-Class hero—
Professor Koro.
With Mach 20 speed, he granted Aiden Cross a Mach 200 enhancement.
"Waaah! A tentacle monster appeared!"
Stella's eyes sparkled.
Clearly, she was thinking about yesterday's octopus dumplings.
Professor Koro's face turned purple with an "X" mark.
"That is quite rude. I am Professor Koro—a peace-loving, excellent teacher."
"Aiden, can we turn this into octopus dumplings?"
"Don't be ridiculous."
Aiden Cross lightly chopped Stella's head.
"He's not food. If you want octopus dumplings, I'll buy you some later."
"Okay!"
Stella nodded happily.
Her life goal: eat everything delicious.
Professor Koro wasn't just about speed.
His true danger lay in his destructive power.
Even a partial explosion of his body could destroy half the moon.
A full detonation?
Earth would be gone.
If he ever turned evil—
He would instantly become a planet-level catastrophe.
"I like octopus dumplings too. Count me in."
"…Is eating your own kind really okay?" Aiden Cross asked.
"I was human before this, you know!" Professor Koro replied, waving his tentacles.
So yes.
No moral conflict.
"But President…"
"What is it?"
"Compared to fighting monsters… I would prefer to be a teacher."
Aiden Cross paused.
…That actually made sense.
Professor Koro's combat style was indiscriminate destruction.
Not ideal for controlled combat scenarios.
Then—
An idea formed.
"Then go teach."
"…Really?"
"Yes. But not at a normal school."
Aiden Cross smiled slightly.
"You'll be teaching at a Hero Academy."
"A… Hero Academy?"
"Exactly."
"This world has many individuals with potential. With proper training, they can become reserve heroes for the Alliance."
Professor Koro scratched his head.
"But ordinary humans… no matter how much they train, they can't reach even D-Class level."
Training assassins?
Sure.
Training heroes?
Different story.
Aiden Cross smirked.
"Don't worry."
"This world has plenty of mutants."
"And their largest gathering place is—"
His gaze shifted toward a massive estate in New York.
X-Academy.
A place filled with gifted individuals.
Feared by society.
Rejected.
Misunderstood.
But with the Hero Alliance's current influence?
Rebranding them as heroes would be effortless.
"X-Academy, huh…"
"How you recruit them—that's your job, Professor Koro."
"…Eh?!"
Ignoring the panicking octopus-teacher—
Aiden Cross casually took Zero's hand with one hand, and Stella's with the other.
And walked out of the training room.
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