Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan

Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan – 148

Hero Isaac.
With blue eyes and a cynical expression, his delicate features suggested mixed heritage. There was no doubt it was Hero Isaac himself. However, the aura he exuded was different, as if he had become an entirely different person.
‘What the…?’
His skin tingled. His heart felt like it had dropped, and he instinctively took a few steps back. It was a survival instinct akin to a herbivore facing a predator, a sensation unfamiliar and refreshing to Vanguard, who had always been the predator.
‘Is that even possible?’
Incredibly, Isaac’s rank surpassed that of The One. The distance between him and the strongest hero in America, whom Vanguard had spent his life striving to catch up to, was now insurmountable. Vanguard’s mind struggled to reject the surreal reality.
Flash!
At that moment, a purple mist emerged to Vanguard’s right. A massive beast, jaws wide open, slashed through the mist with its claws.
Wooooong—
Crack!
“Gasp!”
His talent compressed the space. However, the dark tiger, though slightly slowed, tore through the compressed air with brute force and aimed a powerful strike at Vanguard’s chest.
Thud!
The tiger’s front paw dented a thick steel shield. It was a defensive armament enlarged by Vanguard’s expansion talent.
“Ugh!”
However, the monstrous strength affected Vanguard even through the shield. Gritting his teeth, he swiped at the air with his right hand. Instantly, small orb-like objects expanded into massive steel spheres, aiming to crush the dark tiger.
Flash!
But the giant steel spheres only struck empty air. The massive dark tiger had vanished just before impact.
‘When did it…!’
The shadowy beast reappeared behind Vanguard, dispersing purple mist. Vanguard tried to expand the air layer between the beast’s front paw and his back with all his might.
Boom!
“Argh!”
His spine crumpled with a single blow. Even the combat sense and experience of America’s second-ranked hero were no match for the sheer difference in power.
Whoosh!
As Vanguard was flung forward, a bird wreathed in blue flames sent a scorching blaze his way.
Wooooong—
Fwoosh!
Despite Vanguard’s talent pushing the space away, the blue flames curved gracefully and engulfed him.
“Aaaaargh!”
It felt as if his nerve cells were melting. Yet, surrounded by the blue fire, Vanguard’s eyes burned with a demonic intensity, focusing beyond the two summoned creatures to Isaac, who watched him with a nonchalant expression.
‘He’s a summoner. If I take down the main body in one strike…!’
Wooooong—
Crack!
Vanguard’s entire body, along with the space around him, began to compress.
The sound of muscles and bones twisting became the prelude to his resolve. The hero known as a villain exploded towards Isaac.
Boom!
He had forgotten why the fight had started. This was a contest, and an American hero must never lose to a hero from another country.
“I am Vanguard—”
Crack!
His fist twisted, gathering his unyielding will. As his right fist, with broken knuckles, compressed a large amount of air, it formed a white, orb-like sphere.
Whoosh!
His fist, breaking the sound barrier, aimed straight at Isaac’s delicate face. This was far beyond the scope of training; it was Vanguard’s all-out attack.
“—a man who knows no defeat!”
It was a comeback victory. No matter how strong Isaac was, a summoner hero couldn’t withstand this blow.
Swoosh—
Just as Vanguard was certain of his victory, dark hands approached from both sides. The shadowy hands, like those of a giant monster, clasped together with Vanguard caught in between.
Thud.
Crunch!
The shadowy hands squeezed, grinding the object trapped within. As the shadows dissipated like smoke, Vanguard lay unconscious on the ground. His limbs were grotesquely twisted, and his chest and back were horribly caved in.
The audience fell silent at the shocking outcome of the duel. Everyone present knew the prowess of the eccentric hero Vanguard. He was the second-ranked hero in the hero-leading nation of America, a legend with the talent of compression-expansion.
“Vanguard has been…!”
The ideal American hero, The One, who arrived at the training ground belatedly, knew better than anyone the extent of Vanguard’s power. Vanguard was the strongest hero in America, aside from The One himself, a pioneer in the shadows who purified top-tier disasters single-handedly. Yet, here he was, utterly defeated and in shambles.
The surreal story he had dismissed as nonsense was, frustratingly, not a lie.
“So, that means…”
Hero Isaac.
The One’s retinas captured Isaac’s face. Isaac’s breathing was steady, and his expression remained one of utter boredom, as if he had derived no enjoyment from the duel with Vanguard.
“I didn’t kill him. Save him if you can.”
Isaac’s emotionless voice broke the heavy silence. Yet, no one dared to step into the arena. Even Queen, known as the Ice Queen, only looked at The One with hesitant eyes.
‘This is the worst.’
Isaac had appeared at the training center and knocked out Vanguard. This implied that the troublesome hero had committed an irreparable diplomatic blunder.
‘He didn’t seem like a madman.’
Isaac was a hero respected by his friend, the Sword Emperor. There were no records of him committing mass atrocities in his past. If Isaac, the irregular, went on a rampage, America could be wiped off the map, but at least he seemed like someone who could be reasoned with.
And the only person here capable of attempting a conversation with him was The One himself.
“I’m sorry, Isaac. It seems Vanguard has been disrespectful. On behalf of America, I apologize.”
The One was not accustomed to apologizing, but he tried to appear as respectful as possible. This incident needed to end here. He had to quell the irregular’s anger, even if it meant bowing his head in the manner of Eastern etiquette.
Isaac had just turned Vanguard into a near-cripple in an instant. The One knew he couldn’t fight him.
“Fine, just get him out of my sight.”
“Yes! Queen, take Vanguard to Life Girl.”
Queen nodded silently, her face tense as she stepped into the arena. She carried Vanguard out of the center, her expression a mix of complex emotions. It was an era where only overwhelming power could lead to peace and prosperity. And from the past to the present, the world’s strongest nation had always been America.
With over 80 S-rank heroes and 3 awakened ones, the annual defense budget reached 1,500 trillion won, nearly half of the world’s total defense spending. Yet, such figures seemed irrelevant to the irregular who had defeated Vanguard.
As one of the awakened responsible for America’s peace, Queen’s mind was a tangled mess of conflicting thoughts.
“Leader…? We’re fine. Man-deuk oppa just got tired from training with another hero.”
Meanwhile, Seo Eun-ha, who had been mesmerized by Isaac’s presence, tried to calm their leader. She feared that if things escalated further, the solid relationship between Korea and America might deteriorate.
“It seems that way. But…”
“Haha, Isaac. It seems you accidentally overexerted yourself during the training. Of course, it was Vanguard who first forced the one-sided duel, so no one will hold it against you. Right, The One?”
“Hmm?! Of course. That guy Vanguard needed to be put in his place someday. It just happened to be today.”
The Sword Emperor, worried that America might make an issue of Vanguard’s injury, quickly tried to smooth things over. The One seized the opportunity to support him.
After much persuasion, the irregular Isaac descended from the arena with the squad members and headed towards the exit. He left a remark that he would attend the summit meeting scheduled for the next morning.
As the storm passed, The One let out a sigh of mixed relief and concern.
“Phew~ It’s so spooky! I feel like having a drink tonight.”
“Vanguard’s stubbornness exploded in the worst way this time. You’ll cover the tab. This mess happened because you didn’t trust my judgment. God Hand, let’s drink some expensive liquor.”
“Haha! The One, be grateful it ended this way. Leave the complicated matters to the American Association and let’s get out of here. Now we can have an open-hearted conversation.”
“Oh, our America has hit a snag. I wonder how much those two old men will extort from us tomorrow…”
“Who do you take us for, local thugs? Both nations will engage in meaningful negotiations.
The first day America learned the truth about Isaac.
The alliance between Korea and America was solidifying in real-time.
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***
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The U.S. government and the Hero Association decided to conceal the fact that Vanguard had been decisively defeated by Isaac. It helped that most of the witnesses at the scene were heroes who could be easily controlled. The Korean side also saw no need to publicize the conflict between the heroes of the two nations, as cooperation was more important than competition.
Meanwhile, the senior officials of the American Hero Association and the State Department had to stay up all night to quickly devise a new diplomatic strategy.
The White House. Roosevelt Room.
About twenty people gathered in the conference room. A secretary in a neat suit continued the briefing with a grim expression.
“…I’m sorry. When Hero Isaac defeated the demon monster prepared by DRR, the Landsat 2.0 satellite detected an extremely high concentration of magical waves over the Korean Peninsula. The Arcane Institute’s observation center initially classified it as an anomaly caused by the massive clash between heroes and villains, but it seems it was actually due to Isaac alone.”
No one in the room could blame him. Isaac was the first hero to surpass the realm of awakening. The results came from the American Arcane Institute, known for gathering the best minds in the field. Even these geniuses hadn’t anticipated the emergence of an irregular like Isaac.
“Chairman, how should we assess his combat power?”
“Approximately eight to ten times that of an awakened one.”
“That much of a difference!?”
“According to the footage we obtained and Queen’s account, yes.”
Combat power equivalent to ten awakened individuals. This meant that Isaac, as an irregular, surpassed America’s national defense capabilities. While it was difficult to quantify the total defense power by merely adding up the overwhelming number of heroes, infrastructure, advanced magical engineering technology, millions of specialized personnel, and the combined might of the army, navy, and air force, those present knew all too well the immense impact a single awakened individual could have.
The notion that The One, an awakened hero, accounted for a third of America’s defense capabilities was not unfounded. In top-tier disasters that only S-rank heroes could purify, A-rank and lower forces were of no help. Moreover, even those S-rank heroes struggled with large-scale top-tier disasters, which could only be purified by the ultimate weapons known as awakened heroes.
But now, an irregular ten times stronger than that had appeared. It was as if a deity from myth had been reincarnated.
“The key is how well The One can persuade the two of them. From what we can tell, Isaac isn’t very interested in politics or diplomacy. He likely attended this summit at the strong request of the Sword Emperor and God Hand.”
“I agree. And trying to induce Isaac to naturalize now isn’t a good strategy. The State Department has been requesting meetings with him continuously since last year, but he has consistently refused. We should assume he has a strong sense of patriotism.”
“His personality is introverted, preferring to spend time at home rather than engaging in external activities. He is also very interested in nurturing talent, as evidenced by his willingness to participate in entertainment shows for the year-end awards of his affiliated heroes. His eating habits are…”
The key figures from the White House and the American Hero Association were diligently analyzing Hero Isaac. They believed that America’s fate hinged on whether they could successfully appease the irregular, who was likely upset due to Vanguard.