The two walked down the street, ignoring strange looks from passersby, chatting as if no one else existed.
Saitama explained, "It's nothing much. I've been really grateful for your help lately. I earned some money from part-time work recently, so I wanted to treat you to hot pot. It might not be as spicy as you, but I'm confident in my cooking skills!"
"Oh? That sounds great!"
Hearing Saitama's confident assurance, Jordan immediately became interested. "Let's do it today. I just spent half a day on the train. I'm a little hungry."
"Eh... today?" Saitama subconsciously touched the pocket sewn inside his uniform. His expression froze.
"What's wrong? Inconvenient?" Jordan saw right through Saitama. Judging from the sudden aura of poverty emanating from him, he was probably broke.
"It's not that it's inconvenient..."
"It's fine. Let's go to my place then. I'll handle the ingredients, you cook. Sound good?"
"Hey, but I should be the one treating..."
"Next time, then."
Having decided on hot pot, the two changed plans and headed toward a nearby supermarket instead.
Before they'd taken two steps, a man and woman dressed as reporters ran over. The man's camera and the woman's microphone thrust toward Jordan almost simultaneously.
Professional efficiency.
"Excuse me, are you one of the heroes who resolved the monster attack in A-City three days ago, Mr. 'Thunderbolt' Jordan?"
Jordan looked puzzled. When did this strange nickname "Thunderbolt" come about?
"Yes, if you're talking about the crane monster in A-City, then I was indeed involved."
"Excellent! We're reporters from Hero News. You're very popular online right now, growing at a rate comparable to 'Tornado of Terror.' Could we have a few minutes for an exclusive interview?"
Jordan glanced at Saitama, who'd stepped aside. "You can schedule an interview through the Hero Association, but not today."
"What?" The blonde reporter covered her mouth in shock, but professionally lowered her microphone and gestured for her partner to lower the camera. "Mr. Jordan, our show has high ratings lately, which would be very helpful for your exposure. Would you like to reconsider..."
Jordan shook his head and turned toward Saitama.
"Why not?" the female reporter asked anxiously, even speaking her mind. "You know, being photographed with those shady, weird people will affect your popularity!"
"My friend isn't some shady character." Jordan paused, turning back to look seriously at the two trying to catch up. "If you don't take back what you said, I will refuse your interview permanently."
After leaving the intrusive reporters behind, Saitama suddenly said, "So Jordan, you're a hero too? I thought you were a policeman."
"Yes, being a hero's more like a side job, but it's also very important." Jordan nodded, then as if struck by sudden thought, added, "By the way, Saitama, why don't you register with the Hero Association? With your current strength, getting selected definitely isn't a problem."
"Hero Association? An organization that manages heroes?" Saitama scratched his head, seemingly lost in thought, then suddenly shuddered. "Never mind. I just want to be a hero out of interest. If my interest becomes my job, it feels completely different from my original intention, you know?"
Hearing Saitama's reply, Jordan swallowed back the words he'd been about to say. "You'll have good income."
"In that case, we'll talk about it later."
Next Day - Special Affairs Section Setup
It took a day to select officers and set up the Special Affairs Division framework.
Since it was newly established, everything had to start from scratch. Jordan wasn't in a hurry. He instructed them to handle basic work. If he wasn't present when monster disasters occurred, Anzu would serve as acting department head and contact the Hero Association's joint task force immediately.
Bottom line: attract talent with authority.
Having explained everything, Jordan ignored Anzu and the others' complaints and comfortably became a hands-off manager.
Hey, that's the privilege of someone who saved the Metropolitan Police Department's top brass.
Simultaneously, he informed Director Zee he might be leaving for a while, then immediately began preparing for the world travel project.
With his current strength, there wasn't much he needed to prepare.
The nature of Stand abilities dictated that things made into cards remained in their instantaneous state. For example, food once made into cards would never mold or spoil. Could even maintain the temperature of freshly baked goods after being released.
Therefore, theoretically, the Fantasy Cards deck was unlimited storage space.
Due to his sense of crisis early in his journey, Jordan always kept numerous daily necessities in his deck. Water, food, seasonings, cooking utensils. Ensuring he could maintain normal life even during severe disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis.
Even now, this habit persisted.
Due to increased popularity, he rarely used the steamroller attack he'd employed most often as a newbie.
The method was too cruel. Didn't quite fit a hero's image.
However, there'd be no such concerns in other worlds. After all, Lord DIO had quite good taste.
After replenishing some food and daily necessities, Jordan flew alone to Z-City's outskirts.
Though not his first time traveling through dimensions, arriving in the One-Punch Man world had been entirely passive. This time, however, he was actively traveling to another world. Better to be cautious.
If the commotion caused during travel was too great and resulted in damage, it would be a loss outweighing the gains.
Flying beyond the no-man's land, the city's outskirts were covered in dense forests.
Jordan found a flat open space to land. A shimmering lake nearby. Many birds and wild animals lived here, coming to drink and hunt periodically. The environment was quiet.
During free time, camping and fishing here would be excellent.
Jordan noted the location, snapped his fingers. The "Black Box Fragment" he'd obtained in A-City appeared out of thin air in his hand.
Stand ability activated!
The white fantasy card shone brilliantly. Space in front of Jordan spun and twisted, forming a pitch-black portal leading into the void.
At first glance, rather creepy. Could it lead directly to the gods' homeland?
Jordan immediately shook his head.
Not to mention the gods were still plotting their resurrection. The power sealed in fantasy cards would inevitably be controlled by the Stand ability.
As Jordan stepped into the portal, the dark gateway expanded slightly, then disappeared from the spot.
Through The Portal
The first sensation was weightlessness. As if his feet were sinking into nothingness. Jordan instinctively activated telekinesis to envelop his entire body, but the situation didn't improve.
Rather, the force of this fall was something he couldn't resist in his current state!