After leaving the world of Fate/Stay Night, Zuke didn't immediately return to the real world.
Since he hadn't spent much time in Fuyuki City, it was likely still some time before dawn in reality.
Upon exiting Fate/Stay Night, he re-entered the world of One Punch Man.
After all, before leaving last time, he had implanted "Black Bird·Lover" into the minds of the Hero Association's executives.
And it seemed those executives still held onto a sliver of hope—they had planned to enlist Child Emperor's help to remove whatever was in their brains. By now, there should already be a result.
---
"So… nothing was detected at all?"
In the Hero Association's executive office, only two people were present—Sitch and Child Emperor.
As one of the few executives who actually got things done, Sitch was trusted not only by the heroes but also by his fellow higher-ups, who often delegated important tasks to him.
In matters of life and death, the less competent executives were well aware that if they had to choose someone to negotiate, Sitch was the best candidate.
Seated across from Sitch, Child Emperor fiddled with his laptop, operating a set of automated instruments beside him.
The devices appeared to be modified medical equipment, continuously scanning Sitch's head while analysis results popped up on the laptop screen.
"...Line 690. There really is no abnormality detected. No foreign objects in your brain, no irregularities in your body."
Finally, Child Emperor closed his laptop and shook his head, looking helplessly at Sitch.
He had done his best, but he truly couldn't find anything wrong with Sitch's body—if he had to nitpick, Sitch's blood sugar was a bit high.
But Sitch's high blood sugar obviously couldn't affect the entire Hero Association's executives. There had to be something else stimulating their brains.
---
"Still not giving up?"
At that moment, the conference room door was forced open—the heavy lock destroyed by psychic power—and Tatsumaki's petite figure walked in.
She glanced at Sitch and Child Emperor inside, then said with exasperation:
"If you just obey Zuke, your heads won't have any problems. Why insist on resisting?"
"Tatsumaki!"
Seeing her enter, Sitch's face twisted with anger.
Though unlike the other executives, he had always respected the heroes, Tatsumaki's actions this time were simply too excessive.
"How could we possibly hand the Hero Association over to someone of unknown origin!?"
"That just proves you still don't have a clear understanding of Zuke's strength."
Tatsumaki sighed—ultimately, the Hero Association's executives hadn't seen just how powerful Zuke was.
If they had witnessed his true capabilities, they would realize Zuke didn't even care about the Hero Association's meager combat force.
If Zuke truly harbored ill intentions, he could wipe out every hero in the association within minutes.
Just look at what happened to Psykos and Homeless Emperor from the Monster Association—those two were brutally subdued by Zuke's sheer power.
(Though Homeless Emperor's case seemed to have special circumstances… but that wasn't something Tatsumaki knew about.)
---
"Even you… can't defeat him, Tatsumaki?"
Hearing her words, Sitch's expression turned grave.
He was well aware of Tatsumaki's strength—at full power, her psychic abilities could uproot an entire city.
"I'm not even qualified to be his opponent. Even if I attacked him with everything I had, he wouldn't budge an inch."
Tatsumaki spread her hands in a helpless gesture, then raised an eyebrow at Sitch.
"Sitch, you need to understand—Zuke has no interest in interfering with the Hero Association's operations. In fact, he could even become the association's [bbeg]... I suggest you make the right choice."
Hearing her answer, Sitch clenched his fists, his expression conflicted. He even considered whether to seek help from Blast.
Blast, the S-Class Rank 1 hero, was elusive, but Sitch did have a way to contact him.
But even if he did… what then? Blast was undoubtedly strong, but that wouldn't solve the executives' dilemma.
Blast had many feats—destroying the Esper Research Organization, repelling Elder Centipede, and more—but Sitch had never heard of him performing brain surgery.
In fact, even if Blast could do it… the Hero Association's executives would never agree to let someone crack open their skulls.
---
"...I understand. I'll inform the others of the final outcome."
After a long silence, Sitch finally made his decision, his face twisted with reluctance.
It seemed he was ready to surrender—next, he would relay this reality to the other executives and prepare them mentally.
Child Emperor watched as Sitch left the conference room, then turned to Tatsumaki with a serious expression:
"Tatsumaki, just who is this Mr. Zuke? What's his goal in taking control of the Hero Association?"
Though Tatsumaki's words made it sound like Zuke wouldn't change the association's operations, Child Emperor remained skeptical.
He hoped to get a clearer explanation from her.
---
"To be precise, I just want the Hero Association to help me find someone."
But the one who answered wasn't Tatsumaki—it was a deep male voice that came from behind Child Emperor.
His heart lurched, and he whipped his head around to find Zuke standing right behind him, having appeared without warning.
His body was equipped with numerous high-tech devices that constantly monitored his surroundings—even Tatsumaki's approach had triggered an alert earlier.
Yet Zuke's arrival had rendered all his instruments completely useless, as if they'd malfunctioned.
The "Presence Concealment" effect from Assassin-class Servants could even evade Child Emperor's technology.
---
"Zuke!"
Tatsumaki let out a small cry, then immediately flew to his side like a cat greeting its owner.
But just before reaching him, she abruptly stopped, maintaining a deliberate distance as if holding herself back:
"When did you get here?"
"Just now. I went to look for you and saw you flying toward the Hero Association HQ, so I followed."
Zuke answered truthfully.
Upon entering this world, he had originally planned to have Tatsumaki take him to the Hero Association to observe the executives' reactions.
But he'd coincidentally run into her coming here on her own to persuade them on his behalf—it seemed Tatsumaki had fully aligned herself with him.
Then again, it made sense. Given how corrupt the Hero Association's higher-ups had become, Tatsumaki had no reason to show them any goodwill.
To be continued…