Solo Cultivating in Superhero Academy -
Chapter 96: Hero Call
Chapter 96: Hero Call
Captain Grit took a deep breath as the last of the whispers faded, his fingers steepled beneath his beard, eyes heavy with the weight of experience.
"Now listen carefully, all of you," he said, walking to the front of the class. "You’ve all been clapping, cheering, gawking over the Sword Immortal, but it’s time you learn why his actions shook the hero system to its core."
He tapped the board behind him, which now glowed with faint holographic text listing roles and responsibilities. The title read in bold: F-RANK SUPERHERO DUTIES.
"F-ranked superheroes," he began, "make up the foundation of our society’s protection structure. They’re not supposed to be flashy. They’re not supposed to take glory. No. Their work is the sinew, the muscle, the unseen lifeblood of this entire damned world."
He turned slowly, scanning every face in the room.
"The job of an F-rank hero is never about fame. It’s battlefield cleanup. It’s containment of low-level anomalous zones. It’s stopping unstable energy from leaking into civilian areas. It’s evacuating injured villagers, re-establishing communication lines, and setting up spiritual dampeners in zones that have been declared unstable."
He paced now, voice growing louder, more passionate.
"They’re the ones who get deployed last when a dimensional tear opens in an abandoned alley. They’re not the ones who close off portals before anything worse comes through. They only deal with F-rank threats—not because they’re weak, but because they are the future."
He slammed his palm against the wall chart. The students jumped.
"You see that line there? That invisible division between peaceful cities and cataclysmic hell zones? That’s drawn in the blood and sweat of F-rank superheroes."
He turned toward Elius, nodding once.
"And when someone like him—someone who isn’t even officially ranked—walks into the battlefield and slays a peak-level villain the system didn’t know how to deal with, it shakes things. It proves that even at the bottom, heroes are capable of greatness."
Before another word could leave his mouth—BOOM.
The doors to the classroom burst open.
The sound of heavy boots echoed across the floor.
Gasps filled the air as three figures entered.
They were clad in sleek, jet-black suits—tailored, precise, intimidating.
Silver badges gleamed under their lapels, and even their gloves shimmered faintly with enchantment.
Their expressions were stoic, hard, unreadable.
They weren’t here to teach.
They weren’t here to visit.
The tallest one stepped forward, his voice like a judge’s gavel.
"This is a Hero Call."
Silence crashed over the classroom like a wave.
Students exchanged frantic glances. One girl covered her mouth with both hands. A boy leaned back so hard his chair almost tipped.
Elius blinked, unsure.
"A... Hero Call?"
Captain Grit’s face had turned grim.
He stepped forward, arms crossed, the authority in his posture returning immediately. "So it’s come to that, has it?" he muttered, before addressing the class aloud.
"You kids don’t know what that means, do you? Well, sit down and listen, because this is something even I hoped you wouldn’t see for at least another year."
He stepped between the students and the men in black.
"A Hero Call is a priority override mandate. It bypasses school jurisdiction. It bypasses even regional hero stations. It’s issued directly by Central Hero Command, and it’s only triggered when a field anomaly has reached a point where it requires unpredictable variables."
He raised a finger.
"That’s you lot."
The class murmured. Students leaned closer, whispered frantically.
"Wait, what do they mean?"
"I thought Hero Calls only applied to active registered field agents?!"
"I heard a Hero Call once pulled a trainee right out of their graduation ceremony!"
"But why here?"
"I’ve never even seen one before!"
Captain Grit continued, voice heavy. "They’re random, yes. But statistically, they tend to fall on entry-level heroes. Why? Because you’re still adaptable. You haven’t been trained into predictable behaviors yet. You’re willing to take risks older agents won’t."
He let that hang.
"The problem is—Hero Calls often get F-ranked superheroes killed. They’re thrown into weird missions, sudden field deployments, sometimes even experimental battlefield evaluations. They’re not always fair. They’re not always safe."
He looked at Elius. "And sometimes, they’re not even accidents."
That’s when one of the men in black stepped forward again.
The room stilled.
He raised a gloved hand and called out, voice loud and clear:
"Superhero designation: Sword Immortal. Stand up."
Elius blinked.
There was no weight behind the name, not really.
But the way the room reacted made it feel like a crown had been placed on his head.
Everyone stared. Dozens of eyes turned toward him.
Slowly, stiffly, unsure, Elius stood.
"What is going on?" he whispered to himself.
"Why is he being called?"
"Isn’t this supposed to be for F-rank superheroes?"
"But... isn’t he unranked?"
"Wait, is this a mistake?!"
The man stepped forward, adjusting the cuffs of his coat.
"Are you the one who dealt with the peak F-ranked villain known as Lava Scissor, along with a group of sidekicks?"
The moment those words left his mouth, the class erupted.
"WHAT?!"
"Sidekicks?! He had SIDEKICKS with him?!"
"No way! No way, no way!"
"Wait—Lava Scissor’s domain was dangerous enough solo! You mean to tell me he had to protect others while fighting?!"
"But carrying sidekicks into a live dungeon is suicide! They’re liabilities unless they’re Tiered Support-class!"
Soon, another one chimed in.
"Oh, it’s different this semester at Radiant Man’s request. He wanted to test the sidekicks to see if they could help the superheroes, so they assigned two sidekicks to each hero. But Sword Immortal has four..."
Everyone was even more shocked.
"HOW did he manage that?! Not two but four?!!"
"Who were they?! Were they famous? No—wait, were they unknowns like him?!"
"Holy crap, so not only did he kill Lava Scissor... he did it while carrying baggage?! And nor just two, but four of them? That’s like fighting a boss battle while doing an escort quest!"
"I don’t think so... I didn’t see any external runes when the footage leaked!"
"Then how... how the hell did he manage that?!"
Elius didn’t respond. He simply nodded.
"Yes. That’s me."
More gasps. More whispering.
The men in black glanced at each other, as if confirming something on a hidden communication line.
The one in front stepped forward again.
"In this early morning, did you also enter another dungeon along with a different group of sidekicks... and complete the dungeon?"
Silence.
Absolute silence.
And then...
The room exploded.
"ANOTHER DUNGEON?!"
"This morning?!"
"WHAT?!"
"A different group of sidekicks? So he’s managing multiple parties?!"
"Like a squad leader?! But we’re students!"
"No, wait—did he say a different dungeon?! As in... not the same one from yesterday?!"
"And he completed it?!"
"Is this guy real?!"
"And it wasn’t even a recycled dungeon or an incomplete one! They said unexplored! That means there were NO DATA LOGS! No terrain analysis! No monster behavior data!"
"No cheat sheet, no escape route, no veteran support!"
"How reckless can you be?!"
"But also... how strong do you have to be to survive something like that?!"
"He’s not just gutsy. He’s insane. Insane and calculated."
"Sword Immortal... I want to follow him..."
"Me too! I’ll volunteer as sidekick!"
"I’ll switch dorms if I have to! Just let me witness it once!"
Elius stood in silence as the crowd’s awe battered him like waves crashing on rock.
Their gazes weren’t just impressed anymore. They were bordering on reverent.
And yet, with all that pressure, he didn’t flinch.
He simply looked at the agent, nodded once, and said:
"Yes."
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