Who could possibly believe this was a place for scrutinizing someone? Looking around, it didn’t resemble a venue where officials and legislators grilled an individual. It felt more like the court of vassals petitioning their king. That was the only way to describe it.

“Ahem, let us… begin,” the legislator in charge cautiously glanced down at the list of questions before him, each one exposing Iblis Corporation’s recent actions in raw detail.

He hesitated, wondering if he dared ask such questions to Regalia, who stood right before him. But legislators, for the sake of petty personal gains, could sell out even their own country.

“Iblis Corporation has reportedly engaged in illegal methods… extracting unjust gains from numerous cities.”

Barely had the words left his mouth when the surrounding superpowered individuals activated their abilities: powers that forced truthfulness and compelled answers—abilities uniquely suited to these hearings.

The legislator was confident; even an S-rank hero would struggle to hide secrets before these powers.

But the figure standing before them wasn’t an S-rank hero.

She was a sovereign, a queen of a city.

A king reigns over all.

“That’s never happened.”

“P-pardon?”

“I am more curious as to who dared attempt to smear my name.”

With a glint in her eyes, Regalia fixed her gaze on the legislator and, more precisely, on the two superpowered individuals behind him. In that instant, those who served the king felt compelled to surrender all they had.

As Regalia was supreme above all, everything beneath the sky was hers, including their powers.

“Now, tell me—where did you obtain that information?”

“Well, y-you see…”

With Regalia’s powers wrapping around him, the legislator found himself helplessly disclosing the source of his information. The rival corporations had covertly fed him the information, intending to use these hearings to extract critical data from Iblis Corporation.

Realizing he had just exposed the hearing’s true purpose, the legislator felt his career crumble before his eyes.

“…That concludes my questioning.”

“Is that so?”

It was no longer a matter of legislators questioning Iblis and Regalia. Rather, Regalia was interrogating them, but no one seemed to find it unusual.

Everyone in the room just wanted to escape this oppressive atmosphere, to confess and be done with it, like children waiting to be scolded for their misdeeds.

“Well then, let’s hear from you next.”

“M-me!?”

“Go on—tell me what you’ve done wrong.”

“A-ah…”

Thus, the “reverse hearing” unfolded.

With each turn, Regalia examined each of the officials as if she planned to uncover every last secret. Trembling, they bowed their heads, like cattle resigned to their fate, waiting for their turn.

That day, the hearing recorded the longest duration in history.

On the news, clips of E City’s hearing played, with officials stammering through confessions.

“Last Saturday, I…” “That’s all, I swear…” “I’m completely innocent!”

Watching the broadcast in their offices, corporate leaders could only let out wry chuckles.

“Who even is that?”

They all knew the identity of Iblis Corporation’s chair—Regalia. The unfortunate girl who had lost her parents at a young age yet had become a steel-willed leader, running her company even as a child. Recently, she had been devouring multiple cities, a rising figure of caution for all city rulers.

When they heard of a hearing for her, they expected to see her in a vulnerable state. No matter how capable, a child’s body was still a shackle.

Yet, standing at that hearing was a fully-grown woman. She had the exact bearing one would imagine if Regalia had reached adulthood.

“Did she find a stand-in?”

“But that presence…”

“Could it actually be Regalia herself?”

Some executives dismissed it as a body double or the work of an age-mimicking superpower, but the shrewdest among them—the rare few who were genuine visionaries—saw it differently.

‘So, that’s her message. Nothing special—’ ‘To show she can overcome this easily…’ ‘Bring it on, if you dare.’

They recognized Regalia’s appearance as a show of strength, a warning.

The message was clear: We have the strength to overcome any obstacle. If you don’t kneel, you will be made to submit. Stand up and die, or bow down and survive.

A declaration of war for those who dared oppose her. Those who understood began calculating where their interests lay—assessing the balance of power between their own resources and those of Iblis, determining which side held greater benefit…

In the bulletproof limousine, sealed from the outside, Regalia sprawled across the back seat, letting out a loud sigh.

“Phew!”

A soft hissing sound escaped her body, like air being released from a balloon. Moments later, her full chest and hips deflated, her once form-fitting clothes now hanging loose.

Holding her clothes to prevent herself from being completely exposed, Regalia changed into a new outfit handed to her by her bodyguards, Kitty and Vira, while muttering under her breath.

“…That dress was one of my favorites.”

“My apologies, Miss. We’ll find an exact replica.”

“No need. I wouldn’t have fit into it next year, anyway. You saw what I’ll look like in the future, didn’t you?”

At that, Kitty and Vira fell silent, recalling the image of Regalia’s grown form just moments ago—a perfectly sculpted figure, with a chest and hips that would rival a goddess’s.

If that was truly Regalia’s future, then she would grow explosively once puberty hit. Considering her current age, that meant this reality was just a year or two away…

Naturally, her current wardrobe would soon become obsolete.

“More importantly, did you record everything they said?”

“Yes, Miss. No need to worry; everything’s documented and stored.”

“Good. This information is crucial for identifying which corporations are plotting against us. Make sure we don’t lose any of it.”

“Understood. And how shall we handle the officials?”

“It seems they haven’t taken enough from me. I’m clearly more than they can handle alone.”

In other words, replace them all. Kitty nodded and immediately relayed the orders to the secretary’s office. Even if the records were lost, they were already etched in Kitty’s mind. They might not serve as evidence, but then again, proof wasn’t necessary.

Like their rivals, Regalia operated as a businessperson. Physical evidence was something police and prosecutors worried about. For business, circumstantial evidence was sufficient—and Regalia now held plenty of it, enough to confirm who was hostile toward her.

‘I’ll have the scientist prepare, just in case.’

She resolved to prepare for an all-out war if it came to it. Ideally, it would never happen, but hoping for peace was not a strategy.

Historically, wars are avoided by showing overwhelming strength. If their enemies understood that attacking Iblis was futile, they wouldn’t even think of trying.

‘Let them taste the monstrous power I’ve kept chained up.’

The head of the evil organization plotted a nefarious scheme—to unleash the full potential of her scientist’s dangerous brilliance.

Following the hearing, Iblis Corporation returned to business as usual.

In other words, continuing their operations as a dark organization.

“Ugh… the heroes these days are just pathetic.”

As Galrm grumbled, complaining about the state of the heroes, one of them lowered his head in shame.

No more fiery rage, no more defiance, just a sense of defeat, as if they had lost all hope. Galrm scowled, noticing their broken demeanor, and approached them with a question.

“What’s with you lot? Got some kind of problem?”

“…No, nothing.”

“Come on, this body can handle it. Out with it.”

Receiving a consultation from a villain would be absurd in other cities, but in E City, it was almost routine.

After a moment’s hesitation, the hero opened up, likely because he figured it was a matter even Galrm might understand.

“It’s because of… the things you guys make…”

“Things? What things?”

“The robots… and the androids…!”

“Oh, you mean the Iblisloids? What about them?”

“Because of them, heroes are becoming… useless!”

At last, Galrm understood the heroes’ disheartened state.

It was the unique sense of disenfranchisement felt by humans whose jobs were being replaced by machines.

The very same feeling that had haunted humanity since the Industrial Revolution, now resurfacing after more than 200 years.