"Damn it… Galactus, defeated by that brat? And the idiot didn't even leave a corpse behind… what a humiliation."
Lurking in the crowd, Loki gritted his teeth and wrapped his trench coat tighter around himself, terrified someone might recognize him and blame him for the catastrophe.
"Nope. I'm out. I need a plan before that demon-child hunts ME down."
Iron Man and the X-Men were already locking down the disaster zone.
Loki slipped into a shadowed alley, tore open a glowing space rift, and vanished without hesitation.
Meanwhile—
Magneto and Thor, hearing Galactus had fallen to Ryuuto, immediately fortified their bases.
Neither of them had any desire to accidentally poke the monster who punched out a cosmic god.
But no one took it harder than Quicksilver.
He smashed an antique vase against the floor, breath shaking with rage.
"Useless! Useless! Someone tell me where that bastard Ryuuto ran off to!"
A trembling Mutant approached.
"Y-Young Master… you're not thinking of fighting him personally, right?"
Quicksilver's smile froze.
His eyes sharpened.
"What did you just say?"
He grabbed the man by the collar.
"Fight him? With THIS collection of old, sick, half-powered rejects? You wouldn't even be enough for him to floss his teeth with! Useless idiots!"
"Young Master, I—I didn't mean—please spare me—"
"ROLL!"
He threw the man aside, collapsed into his chair, and buried his face in his hands.
Across the ocean—
Ryuuto sprinted through Paris like a crimson streak.
"Haaah… Paris really is something. Romantic, flashy, full of blond beauties—Magneto would lose his mind here."
He admired the scenery, then headed straight for the glowing steel giant rising above the city.
The Eiffel Tower.
But before he got ten steps closer—
"Hah! He's not here—because I am!"
A red-and-black blur dropped in front of him, landing with arms outstretched and a theatrical wink.
Deadpool.
"Surprised? I chased you all the way from New York! You weren't gonna ditch me, right?!"
"Kami above… Deadpool again? Do you WANT to get diced up by me another time?"
Deadpool tilted his head 180 degrees like it was nothing.
"Exactly! My life's dream is to die beautifully so I can meet the Goddess of Death!
Help me out, buddy! You can even come to the wedding!"
"No thanks."
Ryuuto flickered out of sight and shot upward.
"HEY! WAIT! Don't fly away from your responsibilities!"
Deadpool leapt after him, clinging to the tower like a deranged ninja, eyes locked on Ryuuto the entire climb.
Ryuuto landed atop the Eiffel Tower—
—but felt killing intent before his feet even settled.
Someone was already there.
A lone figure stood at the tip of the steel lattice, eyes cold, voice low:
"Ryuuto… Captain of the X-Men. You're finally here. I've been waiting."
Ryuuto smirked.
"Really? You should've brought snacks. I don't make appointments before sundown."
Shion's voice chimed in his ear:
[Ding! Host, this is an S-rank mission target: "Kong." Extremely dangerous. Do not underestimate him.]
"Good. If he were weak, I wouldn't bother."
Ryuuto drew the decapitating blade from his inventory with a single fluid motion.
But Kong didn't flinch.
His lips curled upward, predatory and ecstatic.
"Perfect. I've been dying for a real fight."
"WOOO! A fight! Let me in, let me in!"
Deadpool popped between the two of them like an excited kid, totally ignoring the lethal tension.
Kong blinked at him.
"…And who exactly is this clown? Your backup? He seems… talented."
Ryuuto closed his eyes.
Then sighed deeply.
"Oh, this is gonna be a long day."