A faint sound of rolling gravel echoed through the area.
Fang Li, Sylvia, and Fubuki stared at the scene before them, all falling silent.
Lying before the three of them was a Mysterious Being even larger than the Demon Dog they had encountered earlier.
The house beneath it had already been reduced to rubble.
As for the monster itself, it looked as though it had been struck by an overwhelmingly powerful force. More than half of its body had exploded, leaving behind a mangled mass of flesh and blood.
Its death was unimaginably gruesome.
Silence stretched between the three of them.
After a short while, Fubuki was the first to speak.
"What... what happened here...?"
A careful listener could hear the slight tremor in her voice.
"Such incredible destructive power... Could it have been S-Class Rank 11 Hero Superalloy Darkshine? Or S-Class Rank 14 Hero Tanktop Master? D-Don't tell me it was 'that' S-Class Rank 7 hero...!"
The S-Class heroes Fubuki mentioned were all famous for their overwhelming physical strength. Among the rest of the S-Class, if one considered pure physical power alone, none could compare to those few.
Sylvia turned her gaze toward Fang Li. Although the scene wasn't enough to shock her, it allowed her to make a guess.
"So," Sylvia asked, "this was done by the person you wanted to meet, wasn't it?"
"That's right." Fang Li nodded. "At least in this area, I don't think there's anyone else capable of causing this kind of destruction."
Of course, if other methods were involved, that would be another matter. Among the S-Class heroes, Fang Li knew there was a scientist who specialized in developing extremely powerful weapons.
If that person's inventions had been used to bombard the area, achieving this level of destruction wouldn't have been difficult.
But the scene before them clearly wasn't the result of weapons. It was the aftermath of an overwhelming physical blow. The entire area looked as though it had been devastated by a single punch.
If that was the case, then apart from the few heroes Fubuki had mentioned, only 'that person' could have accomplished something like this.
Only Fubuki remained completely confused. "Who are you two talking about? Stop speaking in riddles!"
Ignoring Fubuki's protest entirely, Fang Li said, "This actually works out well. I was wondering how I'd find him. Since we can confirm he was here, there should still be footprints or other traces left nearby. I'll go look around. You two wait here."
With that, Fang Li left.
Only Sylvia and Fubuki remained where they were.
Sylvia didn't say anything. She already knew that Fang Li had once been a Butei—an armed detective. In that case, tracking someone who had only left a short while ago shouldn't be difficult for him.
Fubuki, meanwhile, bit her lip. Watching Fang Li's departing figure, a trace of frustration appeared in her eyes. After a moment, she turned to Sylvia and asked, "Did I do something to make the One-Way Rakshasa hate me?"
Hearing that, Sylvia was slightly taken aback. "What makes you ask that?" she asked in confusion.
"Because..." Fubuki frowned. "He seems to really dislike me."
Sylvia blinked, then seemed to realize something and let out a laugh. "It's fine. Don't take it to heart." Smiling wryly, Sylvia continued, "He's just taking his frustration out on you. If his attitude made you uncomfortable, then I apologize on his behalf."
"It's not serious enough to need an apology..." Still unable to understand, Fubuki asked, "But what exactly happened that made him vent his anger on me?"
Sylvia fell silent. Even her charming face became somewhat unnatural.
Could Sylvia possibly tell Fubuki that the battle between the Blizzard Group and the Demon-level Mysterious Being had interrupted Fang Li's plan to push her down right there in broad daylight, leaving him embarrassed and angry enough to take it out on Fubuki?
How could she possibly say something like that?
Completely unaware of the incident, Fubuki could only watch as Sylvia's expression grew increasingly awkward.
In the end, Sylvia could only say one thing.
"...You should ask him yourself."
After saying that, even Sylvia felt her cheeks grow warm. She lightly patted her face before walking away.
Fubuki remained standing there, staring blankly at Sylvia's departing figure, becoming more and more confused. "What on earth is going on?"
In the end, she made up her mind. "If I get the chance, I'll ask him."
Poor Fang Li had no idea any of this had happened. Otherwise, he probably wouldn't even know how to react.
Afterward, Fang Li first contacted the Hero Association, informing them that Mysterious Beings had been discovered there and had already been eliminated.
The Hero Association would later send personnel to retrieve the corpses and record the achievement under Fang Li's and Sylvia's names, giving them each credit for one monster.
It couldn't be helped. Since the person who had defeated the second Demon Dog never showed up, the credit naturally went to the professional heroes who had been present at the scene.
As for Fubuki and the Blizzard Group, they had no intention of claiming the achievement.
Every member of the Blizzard Group had been knocked unconscious, while Fubuki was already B-Class Rank 1 and had no desire to move up in rank. As such, battle achievements weren't particularly important to her, so long as no one behind her caught up.
In other words, according to the Hero Association's records, Fang Li and Sylvia had each defeated one Demon-level Mysterious Being. That alone might not be enough to improve their rankings immediately, but it would certainly become a respectable addition to their records.
Meanwhile, Fubuki seemed to have decided to stick close to Sylvia. Along the way, the two of them gradually became much more familiar with each other.
It seemed Sylvia truly felt she couldn't simply leave Fubuki alone, so regardless of whether it would actually help Fubuki become stronger, she decided to keep the elegant beauty by her side for the time being.
Fang Li couldn't be bothered worrying about how long Fubuki intended to follow them. Following the trail that had been left behind, he eventually arrived at an apartment building.
"It should be here." Stopping outside one of the apartment doors, Fang Li came to a halt.
Sylvia appeared to sense something as well and nodded. "This is the only room where I can sense someone's presence. It shouldn't be wrong."
Hearing Sylvia's words, Fubuki stepped forward, seemingly intending to knock on the door. Before she could, however, the door suddenly opened.
The person who emerged was a young man who looked to be under twenty years old. Fubuki didn't think much of him, but Sylvia couldn't help showing a hint of surprise.
Nearly the young man's entire body was mechanical. Aside from his face, which still looked human, everything else was composed of machinery, and even his eyes glowed with the cold light of electronic components.
"What do you want?" The young man spoke in a detached, emotionless tone. "My teacher just came back. He said he casually dealt with a rather boring fight outside, and now he's lying down to sleep."
"No matter who you are, if you intend to disturb my teacher's sleep..."
"...you'll have to get past me first."
As he spoke, the young man raised his mechanical arm.
Bzzz...
A faint glow of energy gathered in the palm of his hand.
(End Of This Chapter)
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