Chapter 133 The Missing Tycoon
A certain hidden research institute in the suburbs of M-City.
"Hmm? Mosquito Girl lost? And she was defeated by someone with a single punch?"
Dr. Genus, with a bandage wrapped around his wrist, tilted his head and looked at the virtual screen before him. It was filled with photos of S-Class heroes and some in-depth biological analyses.
"Forget it. She was just an experimental subject anyway. It's a pity we didn't manage to collect any of King's bodily fluids. We've missed another precious opportunity for a sample. Who knows when we'll be able to research King's genes. The waiting is truly agonizing."
"#28, I recall we were using our collaborator's surveillance system to constantly monitor Mosquito Girl, weren't we? Transmit the photos of her battle and death to me. I want to take a close look at the final moments of our experimental subject. This is something that needs to be recorded in the files!"
"Yes, sir."
Hidden in the shadows, a man who looked identical to a young man, dressed in an old-fashioned white prison uniform with the number "#28" marked on his chest, nodded in understanding.
*Ding!*
In an instant, the virtual screen chimed. A data transmission progress bar popped up. After a series of beeps, the bar filled, and several clear photos of Mosquito Girl's battle immediately appeared.
A street filled with molten lava—the scene of Mosquito Girl's massacre in the high-rise building—the ruined battlefield—a still frame of Saitama reaching out and swatting Mosquito Girl away!
Dr. Genus looked at the final photo of Saitama and asked in confusion, "Hmm? This fellow... why is he naked? He could at least wear some underwear!"
#28 replied calmly, "It is unclear."
"Alright then." Dr. Genus looked with great interest at Saitama's nude body and said nonchalantly, "He looks like a decent specimen. I hope to acquire him for experimentation, as compensation for failing to get King's genes. Even if I have to use force, I will study his body." He pushed up his glasses, his gaze profound, and smiled faintly. "Dispatch our envoys to invite him back. Have him come to our House of Evolution for an experiment. Oh, no, I should say... be our guest, heh."
"Understood."
#28 nodded and opened the file in his hand. It recorded all of the House of Evolution's successfully experimented new human elites: Carnage Kabuto, Beast King, Armored Gorilla, and so on.
He searched for a moment, then selected several elite warriors from the file and presented them to Dr. Genus. "Sir, what do you think of these few?"
Dr. Genus looked at the elites on the list. "Beast King, Armored Gorilla, Mantis Man, Ground Dragon, Frog Man, Remora Man..."
#28 explained, "Remora Man possesses telepathic abilities and can track that bald man. Ground Dragon can burrow into the earth, allowing for sneak attacks and tracking..." He briefly introduced the rationale behind this team composition.
After a moment of thought, Dr. Genus nodded. "Hmm, let's go with that. Find our bald specimen as soon as possible and invite him back to be our 'guest'. I can't wait to put him under the knife."
*Ding!*
Just then, another photo popped up on the virtual screen. In the picture, King was holding a camera, completely focused on filming.
"Hmm? Wait a minute? King?"
When Dr. Genus saw King appear, a fiery passion erupted in his intelligent eyes. "How did he appear on the battlefield?"
#28 analyzed, "The battle was so intense, it's natural that someone of King's strength would notice and rush to the scene. It's not surprising."
Dr. Genus pointed at the camera in King's hand and asked, "Then... what's the deal with this thing?"
"Recording. Perhaps he was recording the battle between that machine-modified man and the bald guy. As an important member of the Hero Association and an S-Class hero bursting with a sense of justice, perhaps he discovered that these two are promising talents. So, he's preparing to recommend them to the Hero Association. The battle footage would be the best letter of recommendation."
"Is that so? Then we need to speed things up. If those two are recruited by the Hero Association, things will become troublesome and complicated."
"Understood."
...
A City, Hero Association Headquarters.
"What's the situation with the mosquito disaster in Z City?"
Sitch frowned as he waited for Maria's report. As the director of the association's operations department, he was usually not in the operations room. He would leave matters to his Deputy Director, Genos, as well as Coulson, who managed hero information, and Maria, who managed information on Mysterious Beings. He would only step in to take charge when a Demon-level disaster or higher occurred.
The mosquito disaster in Z City had erupted too abruptly and strangely. So far, it had already caused a large number of casualties. The deaths of a vast amount of livestock had resulted in immense property damage. From what he understood, some small villages in the mountains surrounding Z City were on the brink of being unable to sustain themselves due to the loss of their livestock.
"The mosquito swarms are gathering in large numbers in the uninhabited area of Z City. The reason is unknown."
Maria stared at the data displayed on the computer and reported the facts to Sitch.
"Can you contact King?"
"Mr. King is currently heading to the uninhabited area of Z City."
"Good. I hope King can find the reason for the mosquito swarms' gathering and take the opportunity to eliminate them."
Waiting was an extremely arduous task. Sitch had been the director of the operations department for a long time and was long accustomed to waiting—waiting for the reason a Mysterious Being appeared, waiting for the battle reports of heroes eliminating Mysterious Beings, waiting for complaints from citizens, and so on.
However, today, before he could get the results he wanted, another incoming phone call scared him so much he almost dropped his cellphone.
Z City's only female super-tycoon—Yali—had gone missing, suspected of being abducted by a wanted criminal.
Yali was not only a Z City tycoon but also one of the Hero Association's most important directors. Over the years, she had invested a massive amount of operational funds into the Hero Association and had a pivotal influence on its development.
It could be said that without Yali, the Hero Association's logistics would suffer from an "insufficient blood supply." Its finances would immediately tighten, entering an era of poverty where every penny had to be counted.
Sitch's expression darkened, and he roared into his phone, "Hello? Shouldn't a missing person case like this be handled by the police? Why are you reporting it to our association? Our association's duty is to eliminate Mysterious Beings and defend against disasters! Finding people is the police's jurisdiction. Do you think our association's heroes are better at solving cases than the police?"
*How foolish*, he thought. *Heroes are a group that fights Mysterious Beings head-on. How would they know anything about solving crimes? Hmm, it seems there really is one hero who knows a little about solving cases, Child Emperor, known as the Child Sherlock Holmes. Hmm, who's Sherlock Holmes? Oh well, I'm getting sidetracked. The question is, should an S-Class hero be involved in a missing person case? Tsk, this is such a waste of talent. If the public finds out, complaint letters will probably rain down into the association's suggestion box.*
Unfortunately, his opinion didn't matter in this situation. The association's board of directors would directly issue an order for him to dispatch capable heroes to rescue Yali.
The good news was that he finally received the latest update on the mosquito disaster: King had eliminated the mosquito swarm, suspected of using the Inferno Annihilation Burst Wave Cannon.
It was to be expected that King would eliminate the mosquito disaster, so he didn't feel much of an emotional ripple. What he was torn about was—
"Which heroes should I send to rescue her?"
(end of chapter)