The next day, 7:58 AM. Hero Association Headquarters, Disaster Defense Department.
"Two minutes left. Everyone, focus! Success or failure is decided today. If you don't want to be remembered as the greatest sinners in the Association's history, then listen up."
Sitch, the department head, was sweating profusely as he lectured the dozen or so bright and beautiful young women before him.
"First, your voice must be gentle when you answer. Speak clearly. And you must double-check the location where the disaster is occurring. Understood?"
"Understood!"
"To your stations!"
There was very little time left until eight o'clock. Sitch stared at his watch, counting down silently.
"10, 9, 8... 2, 1, 0!"
Time's up!
Everyone held their breath, staring intently at the microphones before them. Seconds turned into minutes, but the phones didn't ring.
"Director!" A short-haired girl suddenly raised her hand.
"Rei-chan, what is it? Did the phone ring?" Sitch asked nervously.
"No. I-I'm nervous. I need to use the bathroom." Rei-chan stood up, fidgeting.
"Phew!" Sitch exhaled in relief and waved her off. "Hurry up. Go and come back quickly!"
"Okay!"
"I-I want to go too!" Requests from the girls began to rise across the office.
"Sit down!" Sitch barked, silencing the room. "What time do you think it is? Look at yourselves. Going one after another... if the first person hasn't returned, the next one isn't allowed to go! If you all run off, there won't be anyone left to work."
"Yes, sir..."
By nine o'clock, some girls had already made two trips to the bathroom, but not a single phone had rung.
"This doesn't make sense," Sitch thought, his heart racing. "The lines couldn't be down, right? Or did the PR Division get the number wrong?"
He took out his own phone and dialed the number he knew by heart. Two or three seconds later, a pleasant ringing filled the office.
Rring!
"It's ringing! It's ringing!" Rei-chan took a deep breath. With a trembling hand, she picked up the receiver and held it to her ear.
Stay calm, stay calm. You can do this, Rei-chan!
Leaning into the microphone, she used a voice so sweet it was almost cloying, reflexively saying the words she had practiced until she felt sick: "Hello, this is the Hero Association Disaster Defense Department. How can we help you?"
I did it! I didn't mess up! Next comes the promotion and raise, Chairman Aomori noticing me, and reaching the pinnacle of my life... just thinking about it is a bit exciting. Rei-chan's smile became even sweeter.
"It's me."
"Eh?" Rei-chan turned and saw the Director, who had just hung up his phone.
"Ahem." Sitch coughed twice and said solemnly, "That was a surprise inspection. Rei-chan, you did well. Keep it up."
"Oh." Rei-chan put the receiver back with a blank expression, her heart feeling like ice. My dream ended before it even began. Waaaaah...
Sitch didn't care about the girl's wandering thoughts. He paced the office, reassuring himself: That's it. Monsters don't appear every day. No calls means no disasters. That's a good thing.
Even so, his desire to break the "zero" count was nearly overflowing.
Please, just one. Just one!
As if hearing his prayer, the phone in front of Rei-chan vibrated and rang again.
"It-it's ringing again." She looked back at the Director. Sitch was gesturing wildly: "Answer it!"
This is the real one!
Rei-chan quickly picked up and said gently, "Hello, dish is the Hero Association Disaster Defense Department. How can we help yerw?"
She covered her mouth, tears welling in her eyes. I was too nervous and bit my tongue. It's over. It's all over. The pinnacle of my life is gone.
Hearing the voice on the other end, Rei-chan endured the pain and continued communicating: "Yes, yes, okay. F-City, Akiba Market East Gate, correct?"
"Quick, which hero is responsible for F-City?" Sitch asked immediately.
"It's Suiryu-san!"
"Prepare to contact him!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Let me repeat, it's F-City, Akiba Market East Gate, correct? Yes, okay. Please ensure your own safety. A hero from the Hero Association will arrive shortly!"
Rei-chan hung up the phone and let out a long breath. She reported to Sitch, "Location: F-City, Akiba Market East Gate. Slight damage to streets and buildings. Initial assessment: Tiger-level Monster."
"Good! Notify the A-Class hero, Suiryu, immediately!"
"Yes, sir!"
…
F-City.
Suiryu was walking down the street, flanked by two scantily clad young women.
"Eh? You're a hero? No way!"
"A hero? But you're so handsome! Really?"
"Of course it's true. See this watch? Only heroes get to wear these."
"Oh, let me see!"
"Me too, me too!"
Suiryu was being bombarded with affection. Unable to refuse the two women, he showed them the watch.
"If there's a Monster nearby, it notifies me."
"So cool!"
"Tell me, if I were in danger, would you come and save me no matter what?"
"Oh, how cunning! Too cunning! I want to ask too. If I were in danger, would you appear before me like a prince on a white horse?"
"Is that even a question?" Suiryu gave a charming smile. "Of course I would!"
"Oh, I'm so happy!"
"Me too!"
Just as things were getting intimate, the smartwatch on Suiryu's wrist emitted a piercing alarm.
Beep beep beep! Beep beep beep!
"Oh." Suiryu tapped the message. After checking it, he pushed the women away and waved. "Sorry, I've got work to do. Let's have our date next time. Bye!"
…
Ahiro was a university student. Since his parents had both passed away, leaving him with four adopted younger sisters at home, he had to work part-time to support his family.
Today, he was a food delivery rider. While waiting to pick up an order outside a sushi shop in F-City's Akiba Market, he saw the pavement ten meters away suddenly shatter. Out crawled a balding savage with a hideous, fierce face, barely clothed.
He held an iron rod and shouted, "I am Caveman the Destroyer! I will destroy everything!"
"This is bad! A Monster!" Thinking of his four cute sisters, a surge of power welled up in Ahiro. He shouted "Monster!" and then hopped onto his electric scooter, zooming far away in an instant.
Reaching a corner, Ahiro stopped and looked back. The creature had already begun its rampage. Even from here, he could hear the boom-boom of buildings collapsing.
"Sorry, I can't afford to get hurt."
But as long as he was safe, he could at least report it. He called the Police Guard, informed them of the situation, and then suddenly remembered today was the Hero Association's first day of operations. He looked up and saw a massive Hero Association billboard.
"Let's try it." He picked up his phone and dialed the hotline.
After two rings, the call connected. Hearing the sweet voice on the other end, Ahiro felt like he was going to die. So… so cute! She must be a super cute girl.
However, the images of his four sisters flashed in his mind. He snapped out of it and said, "Hello, this is F-City, Akiba Market East Gate. There's a Monster on a rampage. Please send a hero quickly."
"Yes, F-City, Akiba Market East Gate. The monster looks like a savage. It came out from underground and can destroy houses. Please send a strong hero."
"Yes, thank you!"
He hung up. The chaos over there was spreading. Damn, I'm going to get fined again. I hope the shop owner is okay.
After watching for about five minutes, Ahiro heard a shrill scream, followed by people cheering.
"It's over? A hero? So fast?"
He cautiously returned to the vicinity of the sushi shop and found that the Monster had indeed been defeated. The one who had taken it down was a tall, handsome young man.
"I am Suiryu, an A-Class hero of the Hero Association. In the future, remember to call the Hero Association hotline if you encounter a Monster!" After reciting the required advertising line, Suiryu waved to the surrounding citizens, enjoying their cheers.
Looking at their joyful faces, Suiryu smiled. "I guess being a hero isn't so bad after all."
Outside the crowd, Ahiro nodded. "The Hero Association's efficiency really isn't bad."
…
Hero Association Headquarters, Disaster Defense Department.
"The Tiger-level Monster in F-City, 'Caveman the Destroyer,' has been killed by Suiryu-san. Alarm cleared! Eight citizens suffered minor injuries, none life-threatening." Having finished, Rei-chan exhaled slowly.
"Yay!" The girls in the office cheered happily.
Sitch gave Rei-chan a thumbs-up. "Well done, Rei-chan! You'll be handsomely rewarded!"
Rei-chan clasped her hands to her heart, her eyes sparkling. "Director, can I get a promotion and a raise?"
"What are you thinking? I'll treat you to a feast tonight!"
"Eh? Well, that's fine too. I want to go to that new steakhouse next door."
"Oh, I want to go too! Can we, Director?"
Faced with so many pleading eyes, Sitch couldn't say no. "Fine, fine! Everyone goes! My treat!"
"Yay!"
"Long live Director Sitch!"
"On the condition that no mistakes are made from here on out."
"Yes, sir!"
…
One week later. Top floor of the Hero Association Headquarters, Chairman's Office. Sitch was reporting to Aomori.
"Chairman Aomori, over the past week, the Disaster Defense Department has received 1,467 reports, involving 211 disaster incidents. Of these, 78 were Monster disasters, 93 were criminal activities, and the remaining 40 were accidents. Our heroes successfully resolved 203 of these incidents, a completion rate of 96.2%."
"Hmm, very good. Have you encountered any problems?"
"The main issue is still a shortage of manpower. Among the aforementioned incidents, those we failed to resolve were all due to insufficient staff. The daily volume of reports is steadily rising, so the manpower issue will likely become even more severe."
In his swivel chair, Aomori shifted to a more comfortable position. "Understood. This affects the Hero Association's credibility, so it must be resolved. I'll contact the Hero's Starting Ground and have them adjust their curriculum to cycle some heroes in. Any other issues?"
"Well, there's also the issue of precise location. Currently, we rely on the callers' verbal descriptions, which can be inaccurate. We hope for equipment that can help with precise positioning."
"By the end of the month, we will launch two satellites. Combined with the Disaster Sensing System, we will be able to precisely locate disasters and obtain clear images of them."
"That's fantastic!" Sitch's face lit up with joy. "Chairman, I have no further questions."
"The Hero Association was just established; many things will naturally need to be perfected over time. The beginning is always the hardest. I hope everyone can put in more effort. The Association won't mistreat you; you can tell everyone that bonuses for these two months will be doubled."
"Yes, sir!"
After Sitch left with a wide grin, Aomori looked at an image on his computer screen sent by Akihiko Kayaba. He smirked, opened a new document, and typed a line: "Hero Association Induction Training Mid-term Assessment Plan."
…
That same night, at the Hero's Starting Ground. All heroes were gathered in the open-air arena. There were now fewer than 600 people, divided into four square formations by class.
"Glasses, do you know what happened?" In the C-Class formation, Mumen Rider looked bewildered.
"I don't know. Something important must be being announced, since even the A-Class students were called back," Glasses replied.
They had been notified to gather right after classes ended; it was very sudden.
Only Instructor Locust was present. He took the microphone and faced the heroes. "I am now announcing a notice. Starting tomorrow, everyone will undergo an assessment. this assessment will determine your final hero ranking. Even those currently in C-Class or D-Class may pass the assessment and be ranked as A-Class heroes."
"A-Class?!"
Many people looked energized. S-Class was too remote; A-Class was the goal for most.
"Don't get excited too early!" Instructor Locust shouted. "As everyone knows, the Hero Association's rankings do not include a D-Class. Those who fail to meet C-Class standards will be assigned to the Rescue Department, retaining their hero title but losing their hero rank. So, those in C-Class and D-Class, take note."
"Ahh..."
In the C and D-Class formations, the vast majority of people looked panicked.
Glasses and Mumen Rider were also nervous. They looked at each other, and both saw determination in the other's eyes.
They had to pass the assessment!
"The assessment content is as follows: D-Class, pass a physical fitness test; C-Class, patrol mission assessment; B-Class, disaster subjugation assessment; A-Class, special mission assessment. Detailed plans will be announced tomorrow. You can check them via your smartphones. The final assessment period will conclude on the last day of induction training, fifteen days from now."
"That is all. Dismissed!"
After Instructor Locust left, many people remained to process the news before slowly dispersing.
Once Mumen Rider and Glasses returned to their tent, Glasses began to analyze. "Ours is a patrol mission. It should primarily test our observation and response skills. That is, when a disaster occurs, we need to discover it promptly and take effective measures to eliminate it or prevent it from spreading."
"Yeah." Mumen Rider nodded in agreement. "The instructor mentioned that point. Let's review it."
"Okay!"
The night grew quiet, but many lights still burned dimly in the tent area. Tonight was a sleepless night.