The wind howled through the ravaged top floor of Stark Tower.
Frieza's declaration, "The Earth belongs to Frieza," was picked up by the media helicopter's high-definition microphones. It not only exploded in the ears of the Avengers but also rode the radio waves, penetrating the television screens of countless homes.
The world seemed to fall silent for three seconds.
What followed was not the fear of impending doom, but rather a sense of absurdity—an utter disbelief, as if they had just witnessed the greatest joke of the century.
Own the entire planet?
Treat billions of human beings as personal property?
Did the nuclear explosion just now fry this guy's brain?
"Hmph..."
Steve clutched his chest, which still ached fiercely from the earlier strikes, and struggled to sit up. His face, usually a picture of righteousness, was now etched with disdain and fury.
Although those few "flicks" had certainly made him aware of the immense power gap between them, Steve never backed down on matters of principle.
"Own Earth? Enslave all humanity?"
He retrieved his shield from the nearby debris. Though he was unsteady on his feet, his gaze remained resolute.
"Your power is immense—stronger than anyone I have ever encountered. But if you think you can realize this impossible pipe dream, you are sorely mistaken."
"The will for freedom is inextinguishable, and you will never become the master of this planet."
"He's right!"
From the pile of rubble on the other side, Thor pushed off the stones that pinned him.
Mjolnir might have been shattered, but his pride was intact. He wiped the soot from his face and glared at the floating Frieza with the disdain one reserves for an arrogant upstart.
"Mortal, you possess genuine ability. You even managed to destroy Mjolnir. But that does not grant you the right to rule this domain."
Thor straightened his stance, attempting to preserve his divine dignity despite his battered appearance. "Under the rules of the Nine Realms, a mortal remains a mortal. Midgard is a territory protected by Asgard. For a mere human to presume to claim it for himself? This is nothing short of blasphemy against the gods."
Naturally, Tony couldn't be left out of the conversation.
He leaned against a fractured column and his armor's faceplate retracted, revealing a face that remained snarky even after a severe beating.
"Hey, pal." Tony wheezed, a smirk appearing on his lips.
"I get that you're in the real estate business, and you suffered a massive loss in that last skirmish, so I can understand you wanting to make up for it."
"But... the entire Earth?"
Tony gestured wildly, drawing a large circle. "Isn't your appetite just a little too enormous? Even Nick Fury, that cyclops, only dares to dream about running S.H.I.E.L.D. If you try to grab everything, you might just burst your gut and get some serious indigestion."
Even in the WHiH News Front helicopter hovering in the sky, ace reporter Christine had a strange look on her face.
She spoke into the camera, her tone laced with poorly concealed doubt, "Viewers, what just happened was absolutely insane. This... super-powered individual calling himself Frieza, has just issued a shocking claim of ownership."
"While he demonstrated astonishing power in repelling the aliens, his statement... it's difficult to tell if he's joking or if he's mentally unstable. After all, it sounds like the ravings of a madman."
Viewers across the country exploded in chatter.
"This blonde guy looks fine, so why is he a lunatic?"
"He must have gone insane from wanting to be an emperor."
"That's so juvenile. He must be hallucinating from being too exhausted after fighting the aliens."
Facing the skepticism of the Avengers and the disdain of the entire world, Frieza, suspended in mid-air, did not become enraged like a typical villain, nor did he scream like a madman.
On the contrary, his smile grew more elegant, even carrying a hint of... tolerance for the ignorance of lesser beings.
"Oh dear..."
Frieza shook his head gently, his movement resembling that of a patient teacher dealing with students too dull to comprehend.
"It seems that poverty and weakness truly limit your imaginations."
He descended slowly, hovering three inches above the ground, and elegantly drifted toward Steve.
"Captain Rogers, your so-called freedom is nothing more than a handout granted by the strong to the weak. When the disparity in power is absolute, willpower? That is merely a flickering candle in the wind."
He then floated over to Thor, staring at the god who still dared to speak defiantly.
"And as for you... mortals are not worthy?"
Frieza let out a soft laugh, wagging a single finger in front of Thor. "On a cosmic scale, your little Asgardian domain doesn't even qualify as a backwater village. I, Lord Frieza, am a man who intends to incorporate the entire galaxy into my domain."
"A measly planet Earth? Frankly, if the scenery wasn't rather pleasant, and it wasn't my birthplace, I wouldn't even bother listing it on my asset ledger."
"To me, it's nothing more than a small marble in my backyard."
"Is asking for one Earth too much? I think it's rather meager, actually."
These bounds of arrogance made Thor laugh out of sheer fury, yet he was utterly unable to refute the overwhelming power disparity he had just faced.
Frieza turned, his eyes landing on Loki, who had been silent the entire time, actively trying to minimize his presence.
"Wouldn't you agree? My dear... Captain Loki?"
Loki flinched when his name was called. In that instant, he felt as though he had been targeted by a venomous snake.
Though he privately thought this guy was a complete maniac—one person ruling Earth? That was even more preposterous than his own ambitions.
And the scope of his claims was absurd—the galaxy? Who did he think he was? Thanos?
However... seeing the smile on Frieza's lips turn increasingly cold, and recalling the finger that had effortlessly pulverized Mjolnir moments ago, Loki, ever the pragmatist, gulped.
He instantly adopted an utterly fawning smile, nodding his head like a chicken pecking grain. "Yes. Precisely. That is the absolute truth."
Loki announced loudly, terrified that speaking too softly might result in immediate execution. "With Master's world-shattering, peerless power, ruling Earth is this planet's greatest honor! Forget Earth, even the Nine Realms, and the entire cosmos, should be prostrate at your feet!"
"You are the universe's only Emperor! The one and only truth!"
The level of sycophancy was so high that even Thor, standing nearby, couldn't listen, turning his head away in sheer disgust.
Was this truly his brother? How humiliating!
Frieza, however, was clearly amused.
"Excellent. It seems there is at least one person with sense."
Frieza nodded with satisfaction, then turned, once again facing the defiant Avengers and the cameras filming from afar.
He spread his arms wide and said, "While your ignorance is amusing, I, Lord Frieza, am known for my benevolence."
"As the future master of this planet, I have decided to grant you, the current inhabitants, a small, insignificant opportunity."
"A chance to challenge me."
Frieza raised a finger and pointed toward Madison Square Garden in the distance—the venue in Manhattan whose roof had been destroyed in the previous battle, leaving it an open-air stadium.
"Three days from now, at that location, I will host a spectacle watched by the entire world—the Frieza Games."
"The rules are simple."
The smile on Frieza's lips turned intensely playful, like a hunter watching his prey walk into a snare.
"Anyone—whether you so-called superheroes, the sorcerers hiding in the shadows, the military, mutants or even the alien trash still drifting in space."
"If you can defeat me in a one-on-one match, even if you only manage to knock me down once."
"Then, I will retract my statement, return the ownership of Earth to you, and depart."
At this, his voice abruptly turned icy, and a terrifying killing intent instantly swept across the entire rooftop, plunging everyone into a metaphorical ice cellar.
"But if you lose..."
"Or if no one dares to accept the challenge..."
A red light flashed in Frieza's eyes as he raised his index finger, purple energy gathering upon it to form a sphere.
"Then, every inch of land on this planet, every building, and the life of every single one of you..."
"...will belong to me, Frieza."
"Those who submit will flourish. Those who resist will die."
"Oh ho ho ho... Consider this my final act of mercy."