Global Disaster: I Will Slay Gods In This Second Chance!-Chapter 60: Captain Meeting

May 4, 2025.

Zold arrived at the Demon Hunter Association Headquarters.

Upon arriving, the noise in the building was a lot louder than usual, making him instinctively frown.

But the moment he entered, the noise suddenly stopped.

Ever since Zold’s recent appearance, a rumor had surfaced among demon hunters, spreading across every branch.

In the Shinjuku Branch, where the headquarters were located, a foreign man directly led a demon hunter squad.

Not just any foreign man, it was said that he was someone chosen by the Chairman.

Everyone in the association knew that those chosen by the Chairman were at least Limit Individuals.

On the door, Zold’s cold expression immediately deterred those who wanted to talk to him.

"It’s him... the 13th Captain..."

"He looks quite handsome..."

"How do you think he compares to Arima-senpai?"

"What are you talking about? Arima-senpai is the Captain of the 1st Demon Hunter Squad! They can’t be compared at all! Are you stupid?!"

Ignoring the others’ whispers, Zold went upstairs, arriving at the highest floor reserved only for the most important meetings in the association.

Upstairs, he immediately saw a large door leading to the main conference hall.

Zold didn’t slow down, pushing the door slightly.

Creak!

In the conference room, a large circular table was placed in the center, and seventy-six different individuals were seated around it.

They were the seventy-six captains of demon hunter squads, each an elite or limit individual.

Besides them, more than a hundred people congregated around the left, representatives from other regions who didn’t belong to any of the demon hunter squads.

Seeing his appearance, everyone shifted their gaze, staring at him in interest.

At that moment, Nagito spoke in a welcoming tone.

"Captain Starks, please sit down."

Zold nodded slightly, walking towards the circular table and finding himself an empty seat.

Nagito shifted his gaze, tapping the table to gather everyone’s attention.

"Since Captain Starks has arrived, we’re only waiting for Captain Arima."

Speak of the devil, and he too will arrive.

At that moment, the door creaked open once more, revealing a tall, modestly built man with curly white hair. He wore thin, rectangular frame glasses, giving him an unassuming appearance.

His arrival drew countless whispers, no less than Zold’s.

But besides curiosity, a trace of respect and admiration flickered in many’s eyes.

Arima bowed slightly.

"I apologize for being late, Chairman."

Seemingly unconcerned, Nagito waved his hands.

"Sit down. The meeting is about to start."

Hearing that, Arima quickened his steps, finding an empty seat at the table.

Coincidentally, he sat beside Zold.

But the moment he saw Zold, his expression changed subtly.

Sensing his gaze, Zold glanced at him indifferently, tilting his head.

"Do you have a problem?"

Arima blinked, immediately shaking his head.

"... No."

Then, he coughed awkwardly, regaining his composure.

"No, sorry. I was surprised, that’s all." He smiled gently. "I didn’t expect to see a foreigner here. What’s your name?"

Zold’s gaze stayed on him for a moment, but Arima remained calm, as if he had nothing to hide.

After a pause, he answered:

"Zold Starks, Captain of the 13th Demon Hunter Squad."

"13th? Isn’t that..." Arima was confused, narrowing his eyes. "What happened to Captain Keisume?"

Zold clarified. "13th Demon Hunter Squad in the Hyotekye post."

Arima suddenly understood.

"I see."

This confusion came directly from how squads were referred to externally and internally.

Outside, demon hunter squads were simply identified by the order they assumed their post.

But within the association, demon hunter squads were commonly distinguished by their overall ranking instead.

"Hm," Arima nodded slightly, then asked casually. "What’s your squad’s rank?"

But instead of answering, Zold glanced at him, speaking slowly.

"You’re a curious one, aren’t you?"

At that moment, Arima’s hair stood on its end.

But remaining calm, he quickly shook his head.

"I apologize. It’s rare to see an Awakener from other nations, so I’m curious about your abilities. If it’s fine..."

"No ranking." Zold cut him off, shrugging. "We don’t have a ranking, at least even if there was one, it wouldn’t matter."

’It wouldn’t matter...?’

Arima thought, not capturing what he meant.

Tap!

At that moment, Nagito tapped the table once more, gathering everyone’s attention.

"Let us begin."

Standing behind him was his assistant, Shiho.

"Shiho."

"Understood."

Shiho nodded slightly. She swept her gaze to everyone, then spoke:

"Seven days ago, the Second Era Ending Calamity descended."

"The Second Era Ending Calamity, known as Hell’s Paradise, has now lasted for a week. A short amount of time, but long enough to cause widespread chaos and casualties in the world, and most importantly, Nihono."

Across the room, various monitors hung on the ceiling.

The monitors showed different images; some from other nations, some from Nihono.

But all of them depicted a monster that had a red glow around its body, surrounded by countless other monsters serving it.

"The day after Hell’s Paradise descended, we saw a significant growth in the monster’s strength. In the past, monsters would either fight or run away when encountering each other in the wild."

"But not anymore. These monsters now deified other unique monsters, classified by the threat-class system as Demon-class. Some of the images you see on the screen are not just from Nihono, but from nations all over the world."

Everyone turned silent, recalling their recent missions with a deep frown.

"After comparing results," She paused, then continued: "We all found that the world has seen a 30% increase in high-risk areas. In Nihono alone, our pathfinders found five new high-risk areas, infested with unnatural-type monsters."

"... However."

Shiho paused, her expression turning heavy.

"The worst part is... among the current high-risk areas in Nihono, four had been fully invaded by monsters overnight, killing all those that lived there."

"These four are Kachiuka, Tsumugoi, Eita, and Sumoi."

"As of yesterday, they had been marked as... Ghost Towns."

Hearing that, every demon hunter’s expression changed.

Besides Zold, Arima’s eyes turned cold, staring at the screen silently.

His hands clenched slightly.

"Ghost Towns are the term for former human settlements turned into a nightmarish sleeping ground for monsters. For every ghost town, multiple Tier I Demon-class monsters are present. But in worst cases, a single Tier II Demon-class monster resides among them. Their existences are extremely dangerous for Nihon. If left alone, they could breach apart the main cities, causing us to lose our last line of defense."

But then Shiho’s expression subtly changed, her voice turning heavy.

".. But as the Chairman said, no one is allowed to set foot into these places as long as no member of their squad has reached the Vital Spark stage. The Chairman said that these places would be temporarily sealed."

Hearing the strange word she had just said, everyone momentarily fell into confusion.

One of the demon hunter captains suddenly raised their hand.

Shiho glanced at them, nodding slightly.

"Speak."

"Shiho-san I apologize for interrupting," The demon hunter captain bowed first. Then, she asked. "But... you mentioned something like Vital Spark stage, correct? I’m not familiar with this term—"

"You’re not familiar with it because it’s new," Nagito suddenly spoke, causing everyone to fall silent. He swept his gaze to everyone in the room. "I put it there. It’s a new level of strength. After this meeting, the updated Demon Hunter manual will be released. Everything about the Second Era Ending Calamity is there."

Hearing that, the demon hunter captain nodded. "I... see. Thank you, Chairman."

Nagito glanced at Shiho.

"Shiho, continue."

After a brief pause, Shiho continued.

"Expect the volume of missions to rise during this period. Naturally, these risks come with increased benefits. The Association will further increase your salary and help you increase your strength quickly."

"The Chairman will also host a public class twice every week. Only those who have mastered at least a third of their expression path’s exercise may attend, and those who are close or have mastered them may come to the chairman for personal advice."

Hearing that, everyone’s eyes flickered slightly.

Although the Chairman’s strength was below average, he was the person who knew the most about awakeners and expression paths.

In terms of teaching, no one was more suitable than the Chairman himself!

After all, in their knowledge, he was the one who discovered and laid the groundwork for all of the demon hunters in Nihono.

Then, as if she had just remembered, Shiho added.

"Your updated posts will be announced by the Chairman later, so please stay tuned."

"Are there any questions?"

Nobody spoke, shaking their heads.

"Meeting dismissed."

Zold stood up and stepped out of the room, but before he could walk away, he suddenly heard someone call him.