"Boom!"
Staring down at the street below—still roaring with explosions and firelight—Freeman showed a satisfied smile. He'd successfully dealt with five trashy bank robbers and added a little more stability to life in the United States.
He didn't bother with putting out fires, rescuing civilians, or making arrests. That was the job of the government, the fire department, private hospitals, and the police—none of it fell under his responsibilities. His only mission was to eliminate evil. Cleaning up the mess wasn't his problem. Everything happening down there was simply the price that had to be paid to wipe out crime.
"Let's see what's next…"
Jovian hovered in the sky, using his super hearing to search for the next incident that required a superhero's intervention.
That kind of work wasn't hard to find—after all, this was the United States… where there's a shooting every day.
That afternoon, Jovian returned to the Guardians of the Globe headquarters to hold the usual meeting.
Dupli-Kate, Black Samson, Atom Eve, Monster Girl, Robot, and Shrinking Ray were all present.
"Welcome, everyone…"
Jovian had arrived early. Wearing a black-and-white suit with his hands clasped behind his back, he stood with his back to them, as if admiring the beautiful view outside through the window in front of him.
"Jovian, why didn't you come to school at all today?" Eve asked, looking at him.
"Because I was doing something more important."
Jovian turned around at that, smiling at Eve.
"Uh…"
Eve looked at Jovian but didn't step forward. For some reason, she suddenly felt like the Jovian in front of her was a little unfamiliar.
"Jovian—no, Freeman. I just got a message from Cecil. In one afternoon, you destroyed over thirty blocks. What were you thinking? We're superheroes. We were born to protect this world and this country. We've never been destroyers. What you're doing—how is it any different from what criminals do?"
Black Samson frowned slightly and walked up to Jovian.
"So?" Jovian's face was expressionless, like he'd expected this.
"So I think you've got power, but you're not mature enough. You don't have the heart of a real superhero. And I don't think the current you is qualified to be the captain of the Guardians of the Globe!"
After circling around it for long enough, Black Samson finally landed on what he actually wanted.
"Heh…"
"So in your opinion, besides me… who in this world is more suitable for the position of captain than I am?"
Jovian let out a cold laugh after hearing him.
"Me!"
"As one of the original Guardians of the Globe members, even though I left for a while for my own reasons, I can confidently say no one understands the Guardians' work better than I do!"
"You may not have experience, but that's fine. I have more than enough experience to help all of you grow."
Black Samson laid out his thoughts to Jovian and everyone in the room.
"Sigh…"
Jovian sighed helplessly. Then he turned around and faced away from Black Samson, showing him only his back—like he was disappointed.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Black Samson stared at Jovian, feeling insulted.
"Black Samson…"
Jovian spoke his name softly and raised his right hand.
His thumb and index finger formed a half-circle, like he was pinching something in midair.
"Ugh…"
In an instant, Black Samson felt something clamp around his throat.
"Smack! Smack! Smack!"
Black Samson desperately slapped at his own neck. His face twisted, cold sweat pouring down his forehead, before he dropped to his knees on the floor.
And the moment he knelt, the pressure suddenly released. Air finally flowed through his throat again.
"Hah… hah… hah…"
Black Samson gulped for air, staring in terror at the snowy-white cape and the broad back in front of him.
"Black Samson, don't let power choke you…"
"Instead of standing here lecturing everyone on how to do the job, why don't you focus on doing your own job first—like getting back the powers that left you."
Jovian lowered his hand, clasped it behind his back again, and at the same time withdrew the telekinesis that had been holding Black Samson.
"You…"
Black Samson glared at Jovian's back, his expression dark—yet in the end, he couldn't force out a single word.
"Good. Looks like you have no objections."
"In that case, I'll tell everyone why I called you here."
"Starting today, I believe it's necessary to reform the entire Guardians of the Globe—along with the entire hero system."
Jovian turned back around and stated his objective.
"Reform?!" Eve was confused. She didn't understand what Jovian meant.
"That's right. Based on the lessons of the previous Guardians of the Globe, I don't want to see the same thing happen to us."
"So I believe the hero system must be reformed."
"Make it more reasonable. More complete. Not like it is now—where any random person can throw on a mask, or wear some outdated tech gear, and call themselves a superhero… even if they don't have powers at all, or if they're someone who already lost their powers."
Jovian laid out his thinking.
"…"
Black Samson felt like he'd just been indirectly stabbed again. Outdated tech gear? Someone who lost their powers? He was talking about him, wasn't he? He had to be talking about him. Right?
"So what do we do?" Robot understood Jovian's idea instantly and asked the key question.
"Bring everyone who wants to become a hero into the Guardians of the Globe as one big family!"
"Of course, they'll need to register their information—including their real names and so on…"
"That way, the Guardians of the Globe can grow from a tiny club of a few people into a justice organization with hundreds or even thousands!"
"And every hero who wants to join will be ranked: C-rank, B-rank, A-rank, S-rank! Then we assign missions based on each superhuman's abilities—reducing casualties, increasing efficiency, and striking evil more effectively!"
Jovian explained what he'd learned from the One Punch Man world.
"…"
Robot didn't speak. His eyes simply lit up with a bright glow.
"I agree."
After a moment of silence, Robot voiced his support.
"Ranks, mission assignments, real-name registration…"
"This organization would basically be a superhuman legion!"
"I want to know—who exactly is supposed to lead an organization like that?"
Monster Girl looked at Jovian as she asked.
"The strongest hero organization should, of course, be led by the strongest hero of them all."
"That would be me."
Jovian said it calmly.
"…"
Everyone fell silent after hearing that. They exchanged looks, as if thinking something over. Only Robot said nothing at all—staring at Jovian with unwavering conviction, as if leadership by the strongest was simply the natural order of things.
"Jovian…"
After a long silence, Eve decided she needed a clear answer. She felt this decision was way too hasty.
Just as Eve was about to ask her question, Jovian's phone suddenly rang.
"Hello? Yeah—okay, okay, I got it. See you in a bit."
Jovian nodded into the phone, hung up, and looked at everyone.
"Sorry. Something came up. I'll explain in detail in a few days."
After saying that, Jovian blurred—and vanished from the meeting room.
"…"
The new Guardians members watched him leave on his own, all of them silent.
"So he was taking shots at me, right?"
Only Black Samson wasn't just silent—he was pissed, because he'd heard a whole string of words that, to him, weren't exactly friendly.
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