Dimensional Chat Group: Speed-o'-Light

Groribas, whose head and arms all had massive gaping mouths, growled in rebuke. Despite having no visible eyes, he somehow pinpointed Melzargard's exact location.

Though Melzargard was fuming at being scolded, he didn't dare talk back. Not because he feared Groribas per se, but because he knew Lord Boros might be watching.

And if Boros thought he was slacking off—even with insane regen—he'd be lucky to even leave a smear behind.

"Great, another one. Now things are really getting out of hand…"

Superalloy Darkshine scratched his steel-like head, a bit uneasy. He'd become an S-Class hero to prove the strength of his training, but facing these kinds of monsters made even him nervous.

"So, you've found it… The strongest native on this planet. The warrior from the prophecy."

Soon, another figure descended—a floating one this time. Unlike his comrades who'd plummeted from the sky like meteors, the alien octopus-lookalike Geryuganshoop glided gently down with psychic control.

"Yes. We've found him. That native."

Melzargard pointed straight at KING in the crowd, secretly relieved that the first thing he'd done upon arrival was look for the prophesied warrior—otherwise, he'd surely have been punished by Lord Boros.

The one being pointed at, KING, showed no expression. But the momentary quiet was shattered as his "King Engine" started rumbling once more.

"What are they talking about? A prophesied warrior?"

Bang strained to hear the conversation between Geryuganshoop and Melzargard, but the noise from the "King Engine" was just too loud. Honestly, it was a miracle KING's heart could beat that violently.

"Oh, so you've already found him… Idiot! Who told you the prophesied warrior was that native?!"

Just as Geryuganshoop was about to nod in agreement, he received a message from Lord Boros aboard the ship. All his tendrils snapped taut as the realization hit—and he erupted in fury at Melzargard.

He'd almost been dragged into a pit by that moron! Just the thought of presenting a random earthling to the impatient Boros made Geryuganshoop tremble.

"What?! How dare you deceive Melzargard!"

Four Melzargards roared at once toward the heroes. Not even when he'd been cleaved in half by Metal Bat or chopped into quarters by Atomic Samurai had he reacted this strongly—but this time, he was genuinely angry!

"I'll deal with you later!! Groribas, take care of the remaining natives… And as for the strongest warrior on this planet—come with me to meet Lord Boros!"

Geryuganshoop growled at Melzargard, then turned and respectfully extended a tentacle toward Kizaru.

They didn't even bother with threats or deception. They'd take Kizaru to Boros—and wipe out the rest of the planet's inhabitants while they were at it. Only then would their twenty years of star-hopping resentment be properly avenged.

"Leader to leader, king to king, huh? Real classy bunch of aliens… But it seems they really think Swift Flash is the strongest man on Earth…"

Atomic Samurai chewed on a grass stem as he spoke. Either the aliens were completely blind—or Kizaru was even more powerful than they had imagined.

Now the real question was: would it be better to keep Swift Flash here and fight off the alien army together? Or let him stall their leader, while the rest cleaned up the alien troops—then regroup for the final battle?

"Hmph! Like I'd listen to a damn octopus freak like you!"

Tatsumaki stepped in front of Kizaru, glaring angrily.

She trusted Kizaru's strength, but marching straight into enemy territory? No matter how you looked at it, it was a terrible idea.

"That's not your choice to make! Psychic Prison!"

Geryuganshoop suddenly made his move. His tentacles surged with psychic energy, forming an invisible cage that dropped toward Kizaru.

He didn't believe for a second that any warrior could rival Lord Boros. All he had to do was bring this planet's so-called strongest to Boros, then annihilate the rest of the natives.

That way, he could prove that ridiculous prophecy was just a joke—without incurring Boros's wrath.

After all, how could a backwater planet like this possibly produce someone strong enough to match Lord Boros?

"You're asking for it!"

Tatsumaki hadn't expected Geryuganshoop to strike first—but then, she wasn't planning to play nice either. Her psychic energy, already gathered, exploded outward, colliding head-on with Geryuganshoop's in midair.

Zzzzzzzzz!

The two massive forces of psychic power clashed, compressing and grinding everything between them to dust.

"Acid Spit!"

"Die!"

At the same time, Groribas and Melzargard launched their own attacks. Groribas's three massive mouths all spewed out highly corrosive acid toward the nearest targets—Genos, Superalloy Darkshine, and Flashy Flash.

The acid was strong enough to eat through a warship's armor. Even Melzargard, with his regeneration, didn't dare touch it lightly.

"Incineration Cannon!"

Genos clasped his hands together and unleashed a roaring torrent of high-pressure flames, incinerating the acid mid-air.

Flashy Flash barely twitched his legs, and his speed carried him clear of the attack in an instant. The acid that struck the ground melted a giant pit into the cement of the HQ plaza.

Sizzle!

Superalloy Darkshine was drenched in acid, yet he simply shook his hands casually, trying to fling the sticky goo off his body.

Even Geryuganshoop's acid couldn't faze him—his muscles, forged to be harder than steel, shrugged it off like water.

As his two companions engaged the enemy, Melzargard, now split into four bodies, also charged in four directions—toward Atomic Samurai, Bang, Zombieman, and Drive Knight respectively.

With his terrifying regenerative abilities, Melzargard wasn't just some freeloading undead freak—his offensive power could easily eliminate Demon-level monsters, and every part of his body could morph to adapt to different combat scenarios.

No exaggeration: unless you had a strategy tailored for Melzargard, or the raw strength to exploit his weaknesses, each one of his clones could be considered a Dragon-level threat on its own!

"Cutting into four pieces isn't enough? Then I'll cut you into four hundred! Atomic Slash!"

Atomic Samurai drew his blade again—his strikes so fast they didn't even leave afterimages. The moment he sheathed his sword, the Melzargard clone was reduced to scattered meat chunks.

But before long, those pieces fused back together—now forming two Melzargard clones.

"Slashes are ineffective? No… wait, that's—Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist!"

Bang had been quietly observing the battle between Atomic Samurai and Melzargard. When one of the clones finally charged at him, something clicked—and he struck instantly, reducing the clone to a mass of shredded flesh.

But just as Bang reached out, trying to grab something from the remains, the clone's flesh rapidly coiled around his hand and sprouted dozens of sharp spikes, forcing him to retreat.

Boom!

At the same moment, Zombieman swung his axe and took a brutal hit in return—but not before embedding the blade deep into the clone's shoulder.

"You brainless savage—this kind of wound doesn't even tickle!"

The Melzargard clone casually pulled out the axe. But as he turned to help the others, he saw Zombieman already standing back up, completely unharmed.

"Funny. Same here."

Zombieman replied flatly, revving up his chainsaw.

Two immortal monsters clashed again. Zombieman was promptly knocked away—but not before carving a fresh wound into the clone with his chainsaw.

"Highly regenerative enemy detected… Activating Plan J. Tactical Transformation: Electromagnetic Suppression—Mechanical Capture Unit!"

Drive Knight's arms snapped together and rapidly transformed. As a Melzargard clone lunged toward him, his arms clamped onto it and released a surge of electricity, generating a powerful magnetic field that pinned the clone to the ground.

While the top-tier fighters unleashed their attacks, swarms of grotesque alien pirates began raining down from the mothership—riding an assortment of bizarre flying devices.

The Dark Matter Thieves didn't dominate the galaxy solely because of Boros's unmatched strength.

"Tch! This sucks. I'm terrible at fighting crowds… Mini Electromagnetic Jamming Device!"

Child Emperor bit down on a lollipop and whipped out a gadget shaped like a pencil sharpener from his backpack. The moment he activated it, countless enemy flight devices suddenly lost power and plummeted from the sky.

Most of the pirates managed to dismount in time. Some even had wings or other flying appendages—but a few unlucky ones screamed as they crashed into the ground and turned into splattered pulp.

"Tank Top Charge!"

As soon as they landed, the alien pirates charged at the heroes—but Tanktop Master didn't flinch and met them head-on.

"Just a bunch of primitives…" A particularly burly alien pirate stepped forward to intercept him. Judging by size alone, this alien was at least three times taller than Tanktop Master, covered head-to-toe in jagged bone-like spikes. It wasn't hard to imagine what kind of carnage would come from a direct collision.

But Tanktop Master didn't hesitate for even a second. He roared and smashed straight into the alien, his muscles impaled by the spikes as he drove forward—turning the pirate into an explosion of flesh and gore.

The shock of the scene made several alien pirates freeze in their tracks—but more of them kept charging toward Child Emperor.

Without saying a word, Pig God stepped forward and blocked their path. As they came at him, he grabbed them one by one and stuffed them into his gaping maw.

The aliens were tough—some of them were still wriggling after being swallowed. But within moments, they were digested completely.

In the blink of an eye, Pig God had devoured over a hundred alien pirates. His body was a bloody mess, but just as quickly, he regenerated completely.

"This one's mine!"

Tatsumaki shouted toward Kizaru as she fought Genryuganshoop with her psychic powers, worried he might try to steal her opponent.

If she had started out with a bit of spite, now she was fully enjoying the thrill of battle.

Until now, she had always been the most powerful esper on Earth—even Fubuki, though also a psychic, was nowhere near her level.

"Damn primitives! This isn't the time to mess around! Move aside—I have to take the prophesied warrior to Lord Boros!" Genryuganshoop arrogant tone had shifted to panic. Boros was getting impatient, and if this dragged on, Genryuganshoop might be the next to die.

"Keep dreaming! You'll have to beat me first!"

Tatsumaki was in the zone—there was no way she'd let the alien get away easily.

The clash between two master-level espers was nothing short of spectacular. Each exchange of attacks shook the ground and sky—it was no wonder the Hero Association's higher-ups considered Tatsumaki their ultimate weapon. Her destructive power was on another level.

"Do you think Sis can win?"

Fubuki asked nervously. She too was a psychic, but the intensity of the battle between Tatsumaki and the alien was far beyond her ability to intervene.

Against a regular opponent, Fubuki had full confidence in her sister—but Genryuganshoop wasn't just holding his own; in fact, because he was desperate to deliver Kizaru to Boros, he was burning through his own psychic energy to finish things quickly.

For the moment, he even seemed to have the upper hand, pressing Tatsumaki hard.

"Hard to say. In terms of raw power, they're nearly equals. If Tatsumaki's a 100, that octopus alien is maybe a 95…"

Kizaru activated his Observation Haki, though against espers—whose strength wasn't based on physical prowess—its effectiveness was limited.

"So Sis can win?"

Fubuki brightened at that.

She knew just how sharp Kizaru's senses and judgments were. A difference of five points might sound small, but between fighters this powerful, it was enough to decide the outcome.

"Hard to say," Kizaru shrugged. "In terms of pure psychic strength, Tatsumaki has the edge. But who knows how long that octopus thing has lived—its mastery over psychic control might even surpass hers…"

In terms of raw destructive force, Tatsumaki was superior even to some of the strongest fighters from Kizaru's pirate world.

But her powers were a bit unbalanced—offensively overwhelming, but defensively vulnerable. In that sense, she was not unlike a certain snake-themed ninja from another world.

Still, it wasn't exactly fair to criticize her. Compared to the other S-Class heroes, Tatsumaki was clearly on another level.

Even Dragon-level monsters had a hard time threatening her. So whether she had a "weakness" or not didn't really matter much.

"Damn it! Fire! Kill the rest of the natives!"

Genryuganshoop finally lost patience. He hadn't been able to break through Tatsumaki's defenses, and now he barked an order to the alien pirates stationed aboard the ship.

They weren't planning to take over this planet anyway—once Lord Boros finished his fight, the planet would be destroyed. Might as well treat this like a dress rehearsal.

The Dark Matter Thieves' mothership didn't have something ridiculous like a planet-destroying cannon, but it could still flatten an entire city in a single barrage.

At Genryuganshoop's command, the hovering mothership began to transform, revealing rows of massive energy cannons.

"Fire!"

The alien pirates, used to pillaging and killing, showed no hesitation. Even knowing that hundreds of thousands of civilians lived in the city below, they launched the attack without a second thought.

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