Most light firearms can't even scratch a Tiger-level monster. Those things are basically living tanks, military weapons in their own right.
As for Demon-level monsters, human weapons are completely out of their league.
Afghanistan's Demon-level monster, Ice Cream, made the world's strongest military superpower, the United States, eat dirt. Their famed Big Red One was wiped out. In the end, it took a superhero from the Sword Bureau to resolve the situation.
And Dragon-level monsters… well, so far only Zod Hess has a recorded victory over one.
"Heh heh heh. Human, I am King Piccolo. Prepare to die!"
Old King Piccolo opened his mouth and spat out an enormous energy blast.
"Get out of the way!"
The pureblood guards were horrified. One look told them that energy was bad news.
The blast detonated before even touching the ground, engulfing an area hundreds of meters wide. It practically erased the entire region.
"Tch. My body's aged. This is all the power I have left."
King Piccolo clenched his fist in dissatisfaction. His memory was of being sealed by the Evil Containment Wave, then the rice cooker rotting away at the bottom of the sea. That was how he got out.
But after being trapped for so long, his body had grown old, and his strength was nothing like before.
No matter. First, I'll kill these people, then rule the entire world!
Laughing loudly, King Piccolo loosed energy bombs, wiping out the pureblood nobles in one sweep. Zod calmly took the wealth the purebloods had accumulated over the ages.
It was quite a haul: mostly gold, silver, and gems, with a small amount of cash in dollars and pounds.
The hoard was on the same scale as the vast treasure sea inside Smaug's lair from Lord of the Rings, maybe even more valuable.
"Even a single piece of art here starts at tens of millions. These vampires really knew how to enjoy life."
Zod picked up an exquisite piece. A bio-electric field isolated his hands, so he didn't have to worry about skin oils, dead cells, or dust damaging artifacts that had survived the centuries.
Among the treasures were Van Goghs, the Venus de Milo, and pieces deeply imbued with the spirit of ancient China.
Zod even spotted a bronze dragon head.
Now, all of it was his.
The destruction King Piccolo caused was quickly detected. Based on Zod's assessment system, the Sword Bureau immediately classified King Piccolo as a Dragon-level monster.
A Dragon-level monster meant a disaster of the highest severity. The local governor broke out in a cold sweat, and the National Guard scrambled to engage the threat.
Halfway there, the Guard's vehicles started breaking down. Engines died, they ran out of fuel, malfunctions everywhere. Even the radios were affected. Contact with the units was completely lost.
"You've got to be kidding. A Dragon-level monster. They want us to just march to our deaths?"
The acting commanding officer of the National Guard shot his radio. The Sword Bureau's classification system was no secret. Actually, it had been made public precisely to make people understand the horror of monsters.
Wolf-level monster disaster: Notify the police or the National Guard. Automatic rifles may be required to eliminate the threat.
Tiger-level monster disaster: Notify the National Guard and evacuate the area immediately. Alternatively, contact the military and call the Sword Bureau hotline at 88888888.
Demon-level monster disaster: Run as far as you can. Ideally, leave the city. Driving is not advised; you could get trapped in gridlock.
Dragon-level monster disaster: Head to the nearest nuclear defense shelter and take cover.
That was the U.S. version. Other countries made slight adjustments. For nations without nuclear shelters, the Sword Bureau's advice was simple: leave the country immediately.
The National Guard wasn't stupid. Fighting a Dragon-level monster meant exactly one thing: suicide.
Better leave it to the professionals at the Sword Bureau.
The moment word of a Dragon-level monster came through, the Sword Bureau deployed virtually every superhero.
Of course, the weaker heroes weren't needed. They'd likely get caught in the splash damage and vanish.
"Where's Zod Hess?" Nick Fury asked Tony Stark before they rolled out.
"How would I know? And we might not even need Zod Hess this time. Newsflash: I'm an S-class hero too, remember?"
Tony's recent habit of running his mouth seemed to be flaring up again.
Among everyone present, he understood the terror of a Dragon-level monster most deeply. After all, the Dragon-level monster Bean Sprout had wiped him out in a fraction of a second.
But he'd since developed the Anti-Bean Sprout Armor. Next time he ran into that particular Dragon-level, he'd have a nice surprise waiting.
King Piccolo launched energy attacks and had the ability to fly. Watching the live feed, the heroes' hearts grew heavy.
Can we even make a difference here? Won't one of those random energy blasts just incinerate us?
No one noticed Zod Hess, suspended in the air above them.
Controlling the electromagnetic field to achieve visual invisibility and evade all forms of detection wasn't hard for him.
The ability to turn invisible—something he'd once dreamed of—now came as easily as breathing. But the dream-like thrill he'd once imagined was long gone.
"Keep pushing yourselves," Zod thought, stretching lazily. "Only by enduring the baptism of a Dragon-level monster will you avoid getting casually stomped by Thanos."
With his current power, Thanos would be the one getting crushed in a direct confrontation. But Zod was wary of the Infinity Stones—those things were forces that defied all reason.
That was why he needed to raise these superheroes into something stronger.
Ben the Thing and the Hulk dropped straight down. The two massive figures slammed into the ground from high altitude, kicking up a tidal wave of debris.
The tremor could be felt miles away. Destroying the surroundings wasn't their problem, so they could cut loose without worry. Zod considered it necessary adaptation training for Earth in preparation for future disasters.
King Piccolo sensed two powerful energy signatures. He looked over and spotted Ben the Thing and the Hulk.
The Hulk launched himself forward in a single bound, fist raised to hammer King Piccolo.
King Piccolo sneered and hurled an energy wave from his bare hand, intending to annihilate the big green brute on the spot.
What he didn't expect was that Hulk was nothing like the fragile mortals and martial artists he'd encountered before. Seeing the blast coming, Hulk simply covered his face with both arms.
He was ready to tank it head-on. But at that moment, a metal claw shot down from the sky, snatched Hulk, and yanked him upward, avoiding the attack completely.
"Hulkball!" Tony whipped the claw around and hurled Hulk right back.
Hulk ignored Tony entirely and slammed his fist directly into King Piccolo's own incoming punch.
BOOM!
The air rippled, forming a shockwave like that of supersonic flight. It blasted into both Hulk and King Piccolo, hurling them backward. They crashed to the ground, separated.
/-\
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