"As a Demon-level monster, your status will be elevated. Accordingly, the number of missions you'll be responsible for will also increase."
"No problem," Hansen replied without hesitation. An elevated status meant getting closer to the core of the Monster Association, gaining more access to resources and opportunities. It was exactly what he had anticipated.
Then, shifting the tone slightly, he added, "However, I have a request."
Psykos, speaking through the Gyoro Gyoro puppet, had already suspected Hansen wouldn't be that obedient. She suppressed the urge to sigh and maintained her cold, detached image as she responded evenly, "Go on."
"I'd like to continue preparing food for Lord Rover," Hansen said with complete sincerity. "If someone else takes over, I'm afraid Lord Rover won't be used to it… also, more monster cells."
For a brief moment, Psykos was stunned.
Requesting to keep feeding Rover made some sense, maintaining rapport with a peak Dragon-level monster was strategically smart. But framing it as a matter of Rover's picky eating habits? That was such an oddly specific excuse that it left her momentarily speechless.
Still, Psykos wasn't the type to overlook practical value. The ability to spot every exploitable angle, to secure any available advantage, that was the mark of a resourceful monster. And right now, those were the kind of monsters she desperately needed.
As for his request for monster cells...
Psykos reviewed the intelligence she'd collected. Hansen's ability to absorb monster cells was abnormal. Not only did he experience no side effects, but the rate at which he consumed and processed them was staggering. It was as though monster cells were just high-efficiency fuel to him, no different from vitamins or energy drinks.
A rare anomaly.
Her curiosity about Hansen's unique physiology grew deeper.
The leap from Wolf-level to Demon-level had been smooth for him, but reaching Dragon-level was a whole different challenge. Fine. Let's see how far this so-called "Bug God" can go with a stable supply of high-tier resources.
"Alright. Starting today, your monster cell supply will increase from once a week to once a day."
After a short pause, Psykos finally gave her answer. A peculiar flicker of amusement and anticipation glinted in Gyoro Gyoro's single, floating eye.
"Ohohohohoho~~" Her long-absent villainous laugh rang out, sharp and theatrical. "Don't disappoint me, Bug God."
Little Gyoro Gyoro gave Hansen one last deliberate glance before the warped pink-purple body slowly melted back into the darkness and vanished.
Left alone in the quiet tunnel, Hansen stood motionless, still feeling the faint aftershocks of psychic energy echoing through his mind.
Gradually, a slow, knowing smile spread beneath his black mask.
From once a week to once a day.
This wasn't just an upgrade, it was a jackpot. Weekly wages had suddenly turned into daily pay, and there was no limit on how much he could earn.
He'd struck gold.
Psykos might see it as an investment, a long-term bet on a potentially useful tool. But to Hansen, it was a divine windfall. A pillow was handed to him just as he got tired. A fire lit in the freezing dark.
With a stable and abundant "fixed income," combined with the two broken UR-tier abilities, "Trillion-Level Division" and "Fusion Combination," a bold plan instantly took shape in Hansen's mind.
The main body would stay behind at the Monster Association, gathering Psykos's "daily resources," while endless clones would be dispatched to hunt, stir up chaos, and rake in waves of "side income."
The sheer scale of the idea made Hansen's blood rush. A fierce heat built inside him, every cell alive with fresh momentum. This wave... this wave, woohoo, it was time to take off!
…
The first week after Hansen's promotion to Demon-level within the Monster Association was nothing short of luxurious.
First, his living conditions were dramatically upgraded. Gone was the dark, cramped little den. In its place stood a spacious chamber equipped with an actual bed, a soft couch, a private bath, and more. Compared to his old lair, it felt like moving from a rat hole into a high-end condo.
Aside from the lack of Wi-Fi, there was nothing to complain about.
His personal territory had expanded several times over, and the number of Tiger-level monsters under his command had multiplied. As for the Wolf-level cannon fodder, there were so many that Hansen couldn't be bothered to count.
But the real highlight was the generous new "salary."
Every day without fail, a stone-skinned monster would appear at his door, delivering a cloth sack containing a single monster cell.
Seven days, seven monster cells. That alone meant seventy thousand Origin Points.
And then there was his daily side job: feeding Rover.
Each time he brought food and snacks to the behemoth, he'd also patrol his turf. Any monster who crossed him, or just looked at him the wrong way, was fair game. His Origin Point count ticked up steadily day by day.
Clearly, mindless fighting wasn't the way to survive. The true path lay in leveraging relationships, knowing how to navigate the game, and extracting every possible benefit.
As Hansen pondered how to funnel this growing wealth into greater combat strength, he suddenly sensed a familiar psychic ripple descend into the lair.
He looked up. The "monster cell" he'd been turning over between his fingers was forgotten.
From the shadowy mouth of the lair, a pink-purple, one-eyed creature floated forward on softly beating wings.
Little Gyoro Gyoro, the psychic projection of the real Gyoro Gyoro.
"Bug God, I have a mission for you." The dramatic, almost theatrical voice echoed clearly in Hansen's ears. "Follow my projection. Come meet me."
Without another word, the strange creature turned and glided deeper into the dark.
Seeing this, Hansen rose to his feet, casually dusted off his carapace, despite the lack of any actual dust, and followed behind at a relaxed pace.
It was his first time stepping into the Monster Association's core area.
As he moved along the corridor, he noticed the surroundings gradually change. The tunnels became wider and more structured, with the rough rock walls giving way to signs of artificial shaping. Torches and oil lamps illuminated the passage in a flickering glow, and from time to time, he could sense the presence of powerful monsters lurking nearby, beings clearly far superior to the ones he'd encountered before.
Eventually, Little Gyoro Gyoro led him into a massive underground chamber that looked more like a palace than a lair. In the center sat a gargantuan creature, grotesquely obese, its pink-purple body writhing with folds of flesh, four muscular arms dangling at its sides. One massive eye stared from its head as it lounged on what appeared to be a colossal throne floating mid-air.
Just at a glance, Hansen could tell this creature stood more than twice his height.
A Dragon-level monster, Big Gyoro Gyoro.
The sheer psychic pressure that flooded the room was overwhelming. It spread like a crushing tide of deep blue waves, saturating the air with oppressive force that could paralyze any lower being.
Yet Hansen remained composed. Beneath the dark mask, his expression didn't waver. He walked forward with measured steps and offered a respectful nod, unshaken.
He knew exactly who was controlling this monstrous body. Beneath the bloated mass was none other than a seductive psychic mistress, Psykos. This intimidating presence was most likely a calculated scare tactic.
Watching him withstand the suffocating pressure without even twitching, Psykos, hidden within the monster's shell, silently clicked her tongue in slight disappointment.
So he wasn't as mentally unstable as expected. His psychological endurance was stronger than she'd hoped.
"Bug God, you've arrived."
Though the creature had no visible mouth or vocal cords, its deep, eerie voice reverberated through the air in a twisted tone. As with most monsters, normal biological limits hardly applied.
"Not long ago, a new member named Gale Wind joined the Association. He's already recommended another recruit, someone named Hellfire Flame."
Psykos paused for a moment.
"A rare human powerhouse, Hellfire Flame chose to undergo voluntary monsterization. With him and Gale Wind together, our influence in the outside world will grow significantly. Currently, Gale Wind is focused on merging his ninjutsu with his monsterized form and cannot leave."
After that, Psykos smiled.
"That's where you come in. You'll bring a monster cell and head to City M. Locate Hellfire Flame and complete this recruitment task. Any questions?"