Although the initial plan was to rush at the opponent and deal with them directly, the opponent's 'show of force' was simply too shocking. The police officers who were now hanging on the ice spears, shivering, were the best proof.
Before entering here, they had already prepared themselves mentally. They were mostly just cannon fodder, and the ones who would really be doing the work were the top-ranked pro heroes, but now Hawks was standing on the side, and Endeavor was being supported by someone. It seemed that they had no other choice...
Everyone looked at each other and made a decision.
The defeat of the police force could be said to have exceeded most people's expectations. Compared to most people who were still pinning their hopes on the Hero Association, many parliament members had quietly gathered.
If ordinary people were concerned about this matter because they were worried about their safety, then these parliament members were concerned about the chairs they were sitting on.
Ordinary citizens wouldn't care 'why,' they would only know that the current government had disappointed them, and the result of the voting could almost be predicted.
All Might's defeat had ended with his own admission of 'injury,' but the original remedy seemed to have become the final nail in the coffin for them.
"Deploy the army?"
"Deploy the army in a non-war situation? Are you crazy?"
"Then what do we do? Let the ghost do whatever he wants?"
...
The big shots, in the eyes of ordinary people, were now gathered together like a group of anxious ducks, chattering away. But at this moment, one person hesitated and brought up a possibility—
"How about negotiating with the other party?"
The other party's attitude from the beginning was 'non-violent non-cooperation,' so this method, which was the most common, was instead overlooked by everyone. Even when it was brought up at this time, most people had a look of 'Are you kidding me?' on their faces.
But after everyone gathered and discussed it carefully, it seemed that there was no other way besides this one.
A small elite force was ineffective, and a large force could not be sent in, so there was no other way besides negotiating. After all, the enemy was a person, not a force. What if the opponent got angry and flipped the table and started attacking?
Right now, the people the other party had killed were just criminals. What if he started attacking ordinary people? Do they still want public support? What if it got even more intense and he started attacking them directly? They could ignore the lives of ordinary people, but what about their own?
Negotiation almost became the best option at the moment.
Lancer growth process made him feel nothing about bullying the weak. After he had driven the joint force of the Hero Association and the police out of the castle, he was waiting for the 'thing' he needed.
What happens when an existence that cannot be defeated appears?
Maybe some people would choose to die together, but such people are, after all, a minority. The higher the position, the more people are afraid of death. This is the case for most people. Of course, there are also those who are upright and honest, but they are a minority. And when that undefeated existence does not show obvious malice, the choice is almost self-evident.
When All Might walked into the 'castle' with a bitter smile on his face, the mocking smile on Lancer face gradually disappeared.
"Was I right?"
"Yes... you were right."
Although Lancer guess was the most important part of the plan, he still felt a little conflicted when he was actually proven right.
But that was all. After all, his ideal was to protect everyone. Although he didn't want to encounter this situation, he had already prepared himself mentally. In the past, he mostly chose to turn a blind eye, but this time, he had to face those 'bureaucrats.'
In fact, All Might's identity this time was a 'negotiating ambassador commissioned by the government,' in short—to pacify and recruit.
Of course, no one would have thought that All Might and Lancer had already reached a consensus, and what needed to be discussed had already been discussed, but—
"Are you really sure?"
"Didn't I already say so?"
In the face of this question that All Might had asked countless times, Lancer answer was the same as always—
"Of course I'm sure. The plan has reached this point, do you think I'll back down?"
Choosing to negotiate undoubtedly represented a show of weakness from the party that initiated it, so this negotiation was a 'negotiation in the dark' and was not publicized in any way.
However, some relevant departments still received information. For example, the police department was ordered not to actively seek trouble, and all related cases had to be classified and handled by the newly established 'negotiation team.'
The most intense reaction to this was not from the police department, but from the Hero Association.
After all, this was not the first time the police department had encountered this situation, and they responded with silence.
But the Hero Association encountered an even more troublesome matter—
"Cooperate with the 'ghost'?! I object!"
This was almost the first reaction of all the pro heroes who received the news. After all, the other party's image could almost be said to be 'deeply ingrained in people's hearts.' Almost as soon as the 'ghost' was mentioned, people would think of those bloody corpses hanging there.
However, when they learned that the so-called cooperation was to go to the castle for 'testing,' everyone's expressions became a little subtle. Especially when they heard that they might be able to get a 'reward' depending on the test results, the expressions of many people became difficult to describe.
At the same time, the theory that the 'ghost' was an ancient ghost began to appear again.
At first, everyone treated it as an urban legend like before, but when the first pro hero who received a 'reward' had the potion analyzed and it was found to be made from an unknown plant, people finally started to 'suspect.'
Do 'ghosts' really exist in this world?
If these were all just superficial changes, then the private changes were quietly taking place.
A certain man who was personally sent to prison by Lancer was also released.
Lancer opposed the 'Hero Killer's' ideas, or rather, the former Lancer also had a similar experience to the other party, except Lancer was because of 'arrogance,' and his was because of 'hysteria.' If he were allowed to continue acting, there would be no shortage of 'villains' being killed, but there would also be no shortage of 'innocents.' So, Lancer chose to arrest him, after all, his ideology was simply too dangerous, and that strong tendency for self-destruction was something that was difficult to judge.
But if he was given enough shackles, he could become the most perfect executioner.
So in the end, Lancer made a 'plea deal' to get him out.
And the hero killer, whose eyes were covered and his body was bound, also looked at the strange 'armored man' in front of him with a scrutinizing gaze.
There was no doubt that he didn't know the other party, so why did the other party save him?
The answer didn't even need to be thought of...