"Stop!"
Seeing what was happening, the Heroes—who had been standing in stunned silence watching Shigaraki's display—immediately rushed forward to stop him.
Deep down, they also wanted the Sludge Villain to be subdued.
But as Pro Heroes—
They couldn't allow this to continue.
Because Shigaraki Tomura—
Did not possess a Hero License.
And without a Hero License, one was forbidden from using their Quirk in public.
Violators would face severe punishment.
"We appreciate that you resolved this crisis…" Kamui Woods said sternly. "However, you must cease your actions immediately! Otherwise, we will be forced to take compulsory measures."
"Actions?"
Shigaraki secretly curled his lip.
Of course he knew why they were intervening.
In the world of My Hero Academia, if you didn't have a Hero License, you couldn't legally use your Quirk in public.
Unauthorized usage—even in self-defense—required official permission.
What he had just done clearly crossed that line.
To be honest—
Shigaraki didn't fully agree with that regulation.
In an emergency, who had time to apply for permission?
By the time approval came through, you'd already be dead.
But—
Disagreeing with a rule didn't mean wanting to abolish it.
After all, many of the laws in this world were actually beneficial to him.
For instance—
When Pro Heroes defeated a Villain, the Villain was imprisoned, not executed.
Those regulations guaranteed his safety whenever he acted as a Villain.
Sure, Shigaraki had confidence in himself.
But who would ever complain about having extra insurance?
That said—
Appreciating the rules didn't mean he intended to obediently release the Sludge Villain and walk away.
He had every intention of giving him a lesson he would never forget.
If he didn't take advantage of this perfect opportunity to instill proper fear—
Even if he recruited the Sludge Villain later, the man might betray him at any moment.
Shigaraki had no time for power struggles within his ranks.
Better to crush any future rebellion at the moment of recruitment.
With that thought—
He simply turned around, put on an innocent expression, and looked at the Heroes as though he had done nothing at all.
"Did I do something wrong? I just touched him. Who knew he'd suddenly fall apart on his own? How can that be my fault?"
Watching him play dumb while fully aware of the truth made several Heroes bristle with anger.
"You—!"
But Shigaraki ignored their irritation entirely.
Instead, he turned his gaze toward the Sludge Villain—who had been forcibly separated from Katsuki Bakugo and tossed beside Kurogiri like a discarded corpse.
Under Shigaraki's cold stare, the Sludge Villain—half of his body already crumbling—stopped screaming and began pleading instead.
"P-Please… don't… don't let me die!"
At this point, he had completely detached from Bakugo and collapsed in a pitiful heap.
"Oh?"
Shigaraki crouched down, looking at him with faint amusement.
"Give me a reason. If you convince me, I'll spare you."
"M-My Quirk is useful! I'm useful too! I can… I can do anything you don't want to dirty your hands with, sir!"
Perhaps it was true that people unlocked hidden potential at death's door.
Under the threat of annihilation, the Sludge Villain's mind worked faster than ever.
"Hmm… Very wise choice."
Shigaraki nodded slowly, clearly satisfied.
As for whether this submission was genuine or temporary—
Whether the Sludge Villain might one day betray him—
Shigaraki wasn't worried in the slightest.
Once someone fell into his hands—
Escaping was nothing more than a dream.
Besides—
If he couldn't even control a slimeball like this on his own turf, what kind of transmigrator was he?
If that ever happened, he might as well commit seppuku out of shame before All For One even had the chance to clean house.
"Very good. From now on, you're my Number Two."
He stood and glanced at Kurogiri.
"Kurogiri, keep an eye on him."
"Understood, Shigaraki-kun."
Kurogiri nodded calmly and seized the Sludge Villain in one hand, positioning himself silently behind Shigaraki like a shadow.
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