**Chapter 5: This Misunderstanding is Too Huge**
"Yay! The Monster has been eliminated by King."
"That's great! Long live King!"
"Ah, King actually appeared on our street just now, but I didn't even get to see him. How frustrating!"
king lay on his sofa, his ears catching the faint, intermittent cheers from outside. His eyes stared blankly at the gaping hole in the second-floor ceiling. After a long while, he sighed faintly, "Your reverence... makes me feel ashamed!"
He sat up, took out his phone, and dialed the contact number for the Hero Association Headquarters.
"Beep-beep!"
"Hello, this is the Hero Association Headquarters. How may I help you?"
king said, "I am King..."
"Huh? What did you say?" The customer service agent was clearly startled by the name. "You... you said you are who?"
king said helplessly, "I am King. Please connect me to your person in charge."
"Oh? Oh, please... please wait a moment. I... I'll inform my supervisor immediately." The customer service agent stammered excitedly.
...
Hero Association Headquarters in M-City.
The customer service agent excitedly reported to Maria, "Miss Maria, S-Class Hero King has called and requests to speak with Mr. Sitch."
Sitch, Chairman of the Hero Association's Disaster Prevention Committee, and Head of the First Combat Department, was a senior executive of the Hero Association with immense power, responsible for eliminating and preventing various types of disasters (Monster disasters, natural disasters, etc.).
Maria's expression tensed. "Can you confirm that the caller is indeed Mr. King?" The Hero Association had a total of over a dozen S-Class Heroes, distributed across various cities to ensure that individuals as powerful as nuclear weapons were stationed in specific regions, deterring Monsters.
King's residence was in M-City, and his deterrent power radiated to several surrounding major cities.
"Report, Miss Maria, after verification, the incoming call is indeed from near King's home. Furthermore, the phone number is confirmed to be King's. We just contacted him via this number not long ago. Based on our assessment, the caller is highly likely King himself."
Even as Maria asked, another staff member had already used satellite positioning to locate King's phone, confirming it was indeed near King's home.
"Understood, I'll inform Mr. Sitch immediately." Maria nodded and then instructed.
"Yes."
A staff member left the Command Center to inform Sitch, who was currently sleeping.
A moment later, Sitch arrived in a hurry and said, "Connect King's call." He took his seat.
"Hello, this is Sitch. May I ask if this is Mr. King?"
"Yes, it is I."
"Mr. King, may I ask if there's an important matter given how late it is?" Sitch felt puzzled and a little nervous. S-Class Heroes possessed extraordinary abilities and typically wouldn't trouble the Hero Association. When they did call the Hero Association for help, it usually signaled a major problem.
"Oh, it's like this: the street in front of my house is severely damaged, and I'd like to pay to have it repaired." king felt a bit sheepish about the damaged street and decided to pay for its restoration.
"Damaged street? Repair it? Just... just for this?"
Sitch was stunned. Did such a minor issue warrant a call to Headquarters?
Maria was also slightly taken aback. The Tiger-level Monster incident in M-City had only happened a few hours ago, so she naturally understood the street situation king was referring to.
"Chief Sitch, I need to report something to you..." She meticulously recounted the Tiger-level Monster incident that had occurred in M-City a few hours prior. Finally, she said, "Mr. King eliminated the Monster. He might believe the street damage was caused by his fight with the Monster and feels a sense of guilt, which is why he wants to pay for the street's repair himself."
"Oh, so that's how it is."
Sitch understood and said, moved, "Mr. King, you truly are a great Hero. However, your responsibility is to eliminate Monsters. Street repairs are the work of the Hero Association and the government. Our Hero Association and the government will carry out the repairs, striving to restore the street to its original state in a short time..."
*What is this guy talking about?*
king was confused. He just wanted to donate money for peace of mind out of guilt. Why was this person chattering endlessly about a bunch of nonsensical things?
"I understand, Mr. King feels extremely guilty about the street being damaged by the collateral effects of his battle. However, during fights with Monsters, it's inevitable that surrounding buildings will suffer damage. No one can avoid it, and you don't need to blame yourself. The public would certainly not blame you, who protects their safety..."
Sitch, as expected of a leader, couldn't stop once he started talking.
"Stop!"
king's face darkened with frustration. He said irritably, "Just tell me directly which account I should deposit the donation into!"
Sitch said sternly, "Mr. King, our Hero Association absolutely cannot accept your donation. A Hero's duty is to eliminate disasters, and our Hero Association's duty is to handle the aftermath. You have already excellently completed your work. The subsequent street repairs are our Hero Association's responsibility, not Mr. King's duty..."
king was exasperated by Sitch. "Mr. Sitch, let me be honest with you: the street wasn't damaged by any Monster at all. It was damaged by my own hand."
"Is that so?" Sitch was silent for a few seconds before continuing, "Mr. King, ever since the Hero Association was established, I have served as the Chairman of the Disaster Prevention and Command Committee. I am fully aware that when you Heroes confront Monsters, the force you exert inevitably damages surrounding buildings and the environment. However, for world peace and the safety of the residents' lives, these damages are extremely worthwhile. No one will blame you, and you certainly don't need to blame yourself..."
"..."
king was speechless. He just wanted to make a donation, why was it so difficult? Besides, aren't you higher-ups eager to get more money? What kind of trick is this, to refuse several times? Are you a fake executive?
He said weakly, "I'll be frank. The street damage wasn't caused by me and a Monster. There was no so-called Tiger-level Monster at all. From beginning to end, it was just me. I personally smashed the street. Do you understand?"
"Understood, I already understand Mr. King's earnest intentions." Sitch said earnestly, "You are truly a respectable Hero. In order to donate money for repairs, you deliberately lied, taking responsibility for the street damage upon yourself. Your spirit..."
"Beep-beep!"
king couldn't listen anymore. He directly hung up the phone. Damn it, even donating money was this troublesome!
Inside the Hero Association Headquarters.
Sitch stared blankly at the hung-up phone, then sighed with emotion, "Mr. King truly is an extraordinary Hero. Other Heroes, during their battles to eliminate Monsters, often damage surrounding buildings and take it for granted, acting recklessly every time and causing immense losses, leaving our Hero Association to clean up their messes and even leading to complaints from many citizens. Yet Mr. King, merely damaging a corner of the street, felt guilty and decided to donate money for repairs. Mr. King is truly a role model for our Hero Association, someone to be admired greatly!"
"That's right, Mr. King is truly incredible!" Maria nodded in agreement, her almond-shaped eyes gleaming with shining admiration.
However, if king knew what Sitch and his colleagues were thinking, he would surely shout helplessly, "This misunderstanding... is just too damn huge!"
(end of chapter)