Tatsumaki, hovering in the sky, watched Qingshui treating Fubuki below, her teeth practically grinding together.
To prevent her naive younger sister from being taken advantage of by some pretty boy again, Tatsumaki appeared without hesitation. Without much preamble, she whisked Fubuki away.
Until she could ascertain this man's true nature, she couldn't allow Fubuki to have any more contact with him. What if her foolish sister fell too deeply in love, only to discover he was a scumbag? That would only hurt her more.
Meanwhile, Qingshui opened the gift box in his hands, a puzzled expression on his face.
Was it really a gift?
Where's my 100 million?
Why is it a top-tier graphics card, the latest model?
What does this mean?
"I hear some thoughtful girls nowadays give their boyfriends graphics cards and sneakers as gifts. Mr. Qingshui, you're truly blessed!" McCoy said, leaning in with a smile, looking at the packaged graphics card in the box Qingshui held.
"Uh... my relationship with Fubuki isn't what you think," Qingshui replied, shaking his head at McCoy.
What the heck?
No way, no way, Fubuki isn't actually smitten with me, is she?
Hiss… It's not impossible!
Right, for someone like me—powerful, handsome, and able to guide lost little sisters through life's迷途—it's perfectly normal to be admired by such a beautiful girl.
A certain high-quality male human stroked his chin, thinking with no small amount of self-admiration.
But...
Even though Fubuki is beautiful and perfectly fits my aesthetic, if something really happened between Fubuki and me, would her sister Tatsumaki kill me?
Hmm...
My life is more important.
And what if I misunderstood Fubuki's intentions?
"Ah? Is that so? I understand. However, Miss Fubuki's sister is Tatsumaki, ranked second in S-Class. In the year and a half since Blast disappeared, Miss Tatsumaki and Mr. King have become the association's strongest trump cards. If they wished, they could mobilize vast amounts of energy and resources. If you could establish good relations with them, Mr. Qingshui, it would greatly benefit you..."
"Cough, Mr. McCoy, you seem to be saying a bit too much." Qingshui put the gift box into his Devouring Pouch and said to McCoy.
"I understand, I understand. After all, with Mr. Qingshui's strength, becoming an S-Class Hero is a certainty. Some things truly don't need to be done; you can just follow your mood," McCoy said, waving his hand with a smile.
"Oh? You know about the new hero rankings for tomorrow?"
"Yes, Mr. Qingshui. The discussions were mostly finalized yesterday. I was at the meeting. According to the plan discussed, we just need Mr. Sweet Mask, the A-Class rank one, to review and approve your file today. With your recent achievements, you'll likely become the seventeenth S-Class Hero tomorrow." McCoy said to Qingshui with a polite smile.
In truth, even McCoy wasn't entirely sure if Qingshui would successfully advance to S-Class.
To be promoted to S-Class Hero, one must receive the approval of Sweet Mask, the A-Class rank one, especially after Puri-Puri Prisoner.
Last time, the association's higher-ups didn't consult Sweet Mask. After Puri-Puri Prisoner killed a Demon-level Monster, they bypassed Sweet Mask, the A-Class rank one, and promoted Puri-Puri Prisoner, who was then A-Class rank two, directly to S-Class. This greatly displeased Sweet Mask.
Consequently, that month, after Sweet Mask thoroughly criticized the association's higher-ups, they canceled all commercial activities and endorsements with the association. This also led to many sponsors terminating their support due to Sweet Mask, causing a significant drop in the Hero Association's revenue for that month.
As a transcendent, unparalleled popular idol, Sweet Mask's ability to generate money was terrifying.
Variety shows, movies, TV dramas, music albums, concerts—Sweet Mask's individual influence alone was equivalent to half the entertainment industry.
The Hero Association absolutely could not afford to lose such a super cash cow.
Even though the Hero Association was backed by a large number of wealthy individuals and powerful figures who invested money for their own safety and interests, the absence of Sweet Mask's income would affect the Hero Association's normal operations for a long time and cause negative consequences due to Sweet Mask's immense influence.
This was something the Hero Association did not want to see.
For the Hero Association, among all heroes, Sweet Mask was the most indispensable.
Unless, of course, that S-Class Hero was an unrivaled powerhouse like Tatsumaki or King, whom no one dared to provoke within S-Class.
With Sweet Mask present, those powerful figures and wealthy individuals would recognize the Hero Association's commercial value and be willing to invest. The public, too, would continue to support the Hero Association because of Sweet Mask.
Therefore, for Qingshui to be promoted to S-Class, he had to gain Sweet Mask's approval.
Whether it was by having his achievements recognized by Sweet Mask, or by fighting a match and gaining Sweet Mask's consent afterward, he still had to pass this hurdle.
From McCoy's understanding of Sweet Mask, the reason Sweet Mask disagreed with Puri-Puri Prisoner's promotion to S-Class was that Puri-Puri Prisoner didn't possess the ability to threaten Dragon-level Monsters.
Unless a God-level threat appeared, Dragon-level disasters were the greatest threat to humanity. As the highest combat force on the human side, Sweet Mask believed that one must possess the strength to contend with Dragon-level Monsters; otherwise, they were unqualified.
As for beyond qualified, if one possessed an extreme sense of justice and adopted a zero-tolerance attitude towards evil forces like Monsters and criminals, insisting on their complete eradication, that was excellent.
And if one could be like King—not only leaving no powerful Monsters alive, but also possessing an imposing image that deterred Monsters and reassured the public, while also having noble character and making significant contributions beyond hero activities, becoming a beacon for heroes—that was a perfect score, a hero approaching "perfection."
As for Puri-Puri Prisoner, his strength was sufficient against Demon-level Monsters, but he indeed lacked the ability to threaten Dragon-level Monsters. In Sweet Mask's eyes, he was just an unqualified filler.
Genos gained Sweet Mask's approval because the credit for destroying the House of Evolution, which possessed Dragon-level combat power, was attributed to Genos—as for the source of the information, it came from Zombieman, also from the House of Evolution.
Moreover, before Genos met Saitama, when he was tracking down a certain cyborg organization, his hatred led him to completely incinerate every enemy he encountered. His actions earned Sweet Mask's approval, and his handsome, striking appearance allowed Genos to pass Sweet Mask's scrutiny when he was promoted to S-Class.
This is also why Sweet Mask expressed his disappointment in Genos the second time they met.
Because Genos failed to defeat Deep Sea King, a Demon-level monster at its peak, Sweet Mask viewed him as being on the same level as Puri-Puri Prisoner.
In reality, by the time Puri-Puri Prisoner was promoted to S-Class, they had already defeated several Demon-level Monsters, creating a significant gap between them and other A-Class Heroes.
If they weren't promoted to S-Class, then the top two A-Class spots would be completely occupied by these two, which would have a negative impact on the heroes below who saw no hope of promotion.
McCoy didn't know if Qingshui could successfully pass Sweet Mask's test and be promoted to S-Class, but in his opinion, being able to capture a Demon-level Monster alive and tangle with a high-tier Dragon-level Monster for so long should be enough for an S-Class promotion.
Even if not, a few good words from him wouldn't hurt.
After all, based on his current achievements, the opponent's strength was certainly no worse than Puri-Puri Prisoner's. Plus, with the apparent pursuit by Hellish Blizzard, he was very likely to become a rising star in the Hero Association, and it wouldn't be inappropriate to befriend him.
Most importantly, McCoy currently needed Qingshui's help.
"By the way, Qingshui-kun, what's the purpose of those strange symbols on this Monster's body…?"
"Seals."
"Does that mean if they're removed, the Monster will go berserk again?"
"Yes."
"Then I wonder..."
"You won't be able to learn it."
Qingshui said straightforwardly.
"That's a real shame. If the Hero Association could master this technique, perhaps we could better control Monsters for research."
McCoy said with regret.
Qingshui raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
"Oh? Researching Monsters? I'm quite interested in that. Could Mr. McCoy elaborate?"
He had previously collected materials from the corpses of Monsters like the Runaway Deliveryman and brought them back for research.
Perhaps due to his limited ability, or a lack of equipment and instruments, he hadn't achieved any practically significant research results.
"It's nothing much. Some top heroes in the Hero Association also know about it. Those Monsters are imprisoned in a laboratory for research into the origins of Monsters and how to turn them back into humans."
McCoy replied with a smile, his expression unchanged.
In truth, there was much more to it, involving many appalling grey industries connected to numerous powerful figures and wealthy individuals. Even core members of the Hero Association like Sitch were kept in the dark. Only Hero Association executives like him, who had connections with those influential people and were even deeply involved themselves, had some understanding.
These matters, of course, couldn't be discussed with Qingshui, as he shouldn't know.
Theoretically, these matters were "non-existent."
"I see, I'm quite interested in that myself. Could I apply to participate? Don't worry, I won't cause trouble. If my skills aren't up to par, you can just ignore me; consider it a visit."
"I'll inform the Hero Association's higher-ups."
McCoy didn't think much of it.
Many of the Hero Association's top heroes were leaders in their respective fields, such as Child Emperor and Metal Knight, who helped oversee numerous technological equipment developments and defensive structure constructions for the Hero Association.
Since this person in front of him had the strength of an S-Class Hero, and the technology in his battle armor wasn't low, he might also possess considerable research capabilities.
Anyway, he'd just forward the notification.
Even if he didn't, once Qingshui was promoted to S-Class, he would have the authority to speak directly with the Hero Association's higher-ups.
After watching McCoy and the transport vehicle carrying Selfie Queen depart, Qingshui also turned and left.
Until night fell.
Inside a private dining room.
Qingshui looked at the table full of leftovers, burped, picked at his teeth with a toothpick, and contentedly patted his stomach.
Given his physical strength, the energy required for his daily life was several times that of an average person, and during this period of rapid power growth, even more energy and nutrition were needed.
Although the secret techniques given by Haragiri and the legacy passed down by Bang included some recipes and medicinal formulas that could satisfy energy and nutritional needs, and the Hero Association also had high-energy, high-nutrient energy bars synthesized through technology, their taste was only mediocre.
When he had time, Qingshui still preferred to eat a good meal out.
After all, his weekdays were spent either fighting Monsters, training, climbing the tech tree, or studying some special sciences of this world. He had no entertainment activities and no beautiful, understanding girls to accompany him.
The only thing that could soothe his soul was satisfying his appetite.
However, only slightly larger restaurants and hotels could satisfy his appetite, because smaller street eateries with limited staff couldn't keep up, no matter how hard their cooks worked.
Perhaps once this intense period of rapid development passed, he could find more ways to entertain himself?
Different worlds, different cultures, but the same human nature always produced similar yet uniquely enjoyable forms of entertainment.
"Waiter! Check, please!"
Qingshui took out his phone and wallet, pushed open the private room door, and called out to a waiter.
The waiter bowed slightly and replied to Qingshui:
"Excuse me, sir, someone has already paid for you."
"Huh? Was that a fan who saw me eating here?"
Qingshui asked, curious.
He hadn't deliberately hidden his whereabouts or identity, so if a fan saw him and paid in advance, it was perfectly reasonable.
His popularity among A-Class Heroes was currently among the highest, second only to Sweet Mask. Especially in City D recently, he had surpassed Light Ray Genji to become the most popular hero in the region.
This wasn't just because his image was better than Light Ray Genji's and he knew how to promote himself, but also because he was stronger. After the Giant Younger Brother incident, many residents of City D had placed high hopes on him, wishing for a native S-Class Hero from their city.
The supercontinent in the One-Punch Man world has twenty-six cities, named after letters of the alphabet. There are currently only sixteen S-Class Heroes. Some cities, like City Y, have two S-Class Heroes, Child Emperor and Pig God, active there regularly. So, when you actually count, roughly half of the cities don't have an S-Class Hero.
Some cities even lack enough A-Class Heroes, with only thirty-seven in total. And similar to City Y, some cities have more than one A-Class Hero concentrated in them.
This is because some A-Class Heroes, like Atomic Samurai's disciples, the Three Swordsmen, Golden Bow, and Spring Beard, often operate as a group due to their relationships, or perhaps they believe that sticking together helps them deal with stronger Monsters and compete better in hero rankings.
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