Chapter 865 Crouching Tigers, Hidden Dragons

"Thank you, Hero!" A crying girl controlled her streaming tears and gazed at a teenage girl with admiration, "When I grow up, I'll save everyone like you too."

"I'm sure you will." The teenage girl wore a violet skirt accompanied by a red hood that covered most of her face. The jaw area was protected by a mask, sporting the symbol of a hammer. Her greyish-brown hair reached her hips as she condensed an energy hammer and smacked the shit out of all the monsters in her way.

The crowd cheered on her as she protected the settlement from the invading monsters. She was one of the Heroes stationed at the settlement for protection.

"Great job out there, Mida." She said upon seeing a youth carry a group of people to the settlement.

"Brat, I'm almost a decade older than you. Address me with respect." Mida grumbled before taking flight, "Don't die on me, alright? You still owe me an ice cream."

"That was rightfully mine! I didn't steal yours!" The teenage girl made an ugly face at his departing figure before cracking her muscles to pummel a monster charging at her.

…

"Why did I…recall that?" An old lady frowned as she sat on her easy chair and continued to read her morning newspaper. She sported a small hunch, slightly malnourished as age seemed to have taken a severe toll on her, more than others due to the countless injuries she sustained during her prime.

Bang!

"Grandma!" The door to her room burst open as her eight-year-old grandson rushed in, shouting in excitement, "Did you see the Invader that attacked our Hero Academy? It's all over the news."

"What?" Her expression morphed as she stared at her grandson, "Invader?"

'They began to attack openly now?' Her expression was a frown as she hurriedly switched on the TV, staring at the announcement made by the Genesis Hero. It was being broadcasted on a loop by all news channels.

Staring at the familiar face, there was reverence and nostalgia in her expression, "Lady Genesis is stunning even after so long. But,"

She frowned, thinking, 'Since it is daytime, she would have looked a tad mature in terms of her demeanour. But since she doesn't, it seems they recorded the video beforehand.'

Having fought alongside the Genesis Hero and having personally faced the enemies that she created while controlled by the enemy collective consciousnesses, she was aware of the truth. Moreover, she was this old despite only being in her early sixties due to having faced the Genesis Hero herself whenever she morphed from an ally to an enemy.

"Invaders, huh." She muttered before ruffling the hair of her adorable grandson, "Grandma needs to go on a walk. Will you be a dear and protect the house until then?"

"Hero Sugar and Spice and…um…water, reporting on duty!" Her grandson smashed together lines from his cartoons and formed a childish salute.

"Haha!" The old lady smiled and pinched his cheeks before picking up a dusty suitcase from her room as she exited the house and began to walk, disappearing in the streets, "The peace we fought for has ended."

"Seems I need to get back into action."

…

'Seems I have underestimated the people of this world.' Compass Carburettor failed to rein in his surprise, noticing that the moment he activated the power of his Tell-Tale and used the fighting spirit unleashed by old man Mida, it was as if he had sparked a nuclear fission reaction.

The retired Heroes, one after another, recalled the chaotic times when they fought alongside the Genesis Hero and gave their everything to stabilise the world and bring peace to society.

They recalled their past, glanced at the news regarding the Invaders, and put an end to their retired lives, springing back into action. The thoughts they unleashed were so strong that the world itself began to resonate in response, collating new, stronger powers that were being given to people who resonated with this feeling.

The feeling of wishing to protect their world, a patriotic responsibility towards their world. New Heroes began to appear rapidly, with the potential of each greater than their predecessor.

All these senior retired Heroes, those that had returned to their regular family lives donned their Hero Suits and arrived at the Hero Academy of their respective city-state.

Kieee!

An Invader leaped through the barrier and descended on the ground, intending to make a thunderous impact. But right when its feet touched the ground, the pavement behaved like quicksand, causing its body to pass right through.

Following that, the place turned silent as even the person standing a few metres away didn't notice anything amiss.

A couple of seconds later, an old man walked out of the quicksand, dusting his clothes once as the ground returned to normal, "Ahh, my aching back."

"I shouldn't have been so impulsive, sheesh." The old man grumbled as he walked away, vanishing once he turned around the corner.

…

"Eh? Where's the Invader?" Earth Star muttered as he teleported to the scene reported by his dragon plushie, only staring at a grandma wearing gothic clothes fiddling around with a tiny doll that resembled the Invader.

The lady stared at him, eyeing him from top to bottom, "My, oh my, how it feels to be young and brimming with vitality."

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She opened her mouth and bit off a piece of the doll as if it were a vegetable, making crunching sounds as she swallowed it. She then approached Earth Star before staring at the dragon plushie, "It has been a while, hasn't it?"

"I don't remember you," The dragon plushie snorted and turned its head around.

"Well, you weren't created during my service." She said and pinched the dragon plushie's cheeks in interest before slapping Earth Star on his bum, "My, my, oh my, perky. You're stronger than the Rangers of my time."

"Were you a Ranger, ma'am?" Earth Star asked with a respectful tone, "I don't remember seeing you in our records though."

"Well, I wasn't a Ranger after all." The old lady in gothic clothes said, opening her umbrella to point at him before closing it, disappearing in response, "I killed a Ranger in the past though. I just came out since I was interested in these Invaders. Killing them excites me for some reason."

"So, why don't you be a cutie pie and bring me more of them, pretty please?"