It was another morning of Saitama dropping by for a meal.
It had become a natural habit by now.
Saitama made himself at home in Lexon's room, showing no restraint at all.
"Lexon, what are you looking at?" Saitama asked when he saw Lexon flipping through a hero directory.
"The Hero Association's rankings," Lexon replied, lifting the booklet.
"Huh? There's an association and rankings for heroes?" Saitama looked a bit dazed; it was the first time he'd heard of such a thing.
"I only found out recently myself, so I went and registered."
"Eh... why bother? Isn't being a hero just for a hobby?" Saitama seemed completely uninterested.
"They pay a salary," Lexon said flatly.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Saitama's uninterested expression flipped instantly. He became incredibly serious and spoke to Lexon with great composure: "Tell me more."
"If you register with the Association and pass the tests to become a hero, you get paid. Heroes are divided into different ranks, and salaries are issued according to those ranks."
"I see..." Saitama realized, then asked Lexon curiously, "So, what rank are you right now? How much is the pay?"
"I'm currently B-rank, and as for the pay... it's quite high." Lexon found it hard to specify the exact amount.
The salary the Hero Association deposited into his card was clearly a bit excessive.
It certainly wasn't the level a B-rank hero should have.
Saying it wouldn't serve as a good benchmark.
"Then I'm going to register as a hero too," Saitama said firmly.
When money was involved, how could he say no?
Besides, being a hero for fun was still being a hero, and being one as a profession was also being a hero.
No point in letting a salary go to waste...
"Go ahead, then," Lexon said.
"Bzzzt..."
Suddenly, a faint, annoying buzzing of wings came from the balcony window.
A small mosquito followed.
"Hmm? A mosquito." Noting it, Saitama stood up to swat it dead.
"Clap!"
The sound of hands slapping echoed.
"Bzzzt..."
Yet, the sound of the mosquito flying didn't stop.
"Hmm?" Confused, Saitama struck again.
"Clap..."
Another slap resounded.
But that mosquito seemed to possess a '100% Evasion' skill; even under the attacks of the invincible, bald Saitama, it hadn't been swatted.
Inevitably, veins of irritation popped on Saitama's forehead as he continued to swat at the bug with all his might.
'Saitama's arch-nemesis... the God-level monster "Mosquito" has appeared...'
Watching Saitama jump up and down, Lexon couldn't help but joke to himself.
However, if the mosquito appeared... did it mean Genos, Saitama's future disciple, was about to show up?
Lexon had no desire regarding Genos himself; after all, he had no interest in turning himself into a cyborg...
But... the doctor behind Genos was worth considering.
He could find an opportunity to use various conditions to try and recruit him, making the man work for him.
Just like Orochimaru...
Sustainable development...
Lexon had a certain appreciation for high-intelligence talents.
Since he was always freeloading off others' things and couldn't create anything himself.
So, at times, it was necessary to rely on these creative individuals...
To develop the things he wanted but couldn't get through the sign-in system...
Like Orochimaru's cloning technology used to resurrect Sasuke's parents...
"Boom, boom, boom!!!"
While Saitama was still battling the mosquito and Lexon was lost in thought, heavy explosions thundered in the distance.
Saitama clearly didn't notice, but Lexon heard them distinctly.
The sound of Genos's artillery...
Lexon looked in that direction.
His gaze seemed to penetrate all obstacles, landing directly on Genos in the distance, who had a grim expression as his cybernetic body fired barrages of flames. Opposite him was Mosquito Girl, looking arrogant as she manipulated a literal flood of mosquitoes.
'This is the first time I've seen this kind of mechanical combat style in person...'
Lexon couldn't help but feel a sense of novelty.
How should he put it... it was pretty cool...
Even if the "High-Budget Warrior" Genos usually ended up with barely any parts left in the original story...
Oh...
She powered up.
Lexon saw the battle between Genos and Mosquito Girl enter its next stage. Mosquito Girl absorbed the lives and blood collected by all the mosquitoes, her black-and-white appearance turning a vibrant crimson.
Both her presence and her power and speed saw a massive boost.
Genos, who had initially held the upper hand by using flames to incinerate large swaths of mosquitoes, instantly fell into a complete disadvantage.
He was being crushed in both strength and speed.
In an instant, Genos's body was sliced open in several places.
He became exceptionally battered.
At least half his body was damaged.
If he weren't a cyborg but a being of flesh and blood... he would be deader than dead by now.
"Is something happening over there?" Saitama, having finally settled things with the mosquito, saw Lexon staring in one direction and asked.
'Your disciple is about to bite the dust.'
Lexon noted in his mind.
Compared to the original story, with Lexon's influence now, Saitama clearly hadn't noticed the distant battle. Thus, Genos was already in a critical state.
After all, in the original story, Genos only survived Mosquito Girl's final form because of Saitama's intervention.
Without Saitama's help, Genos's self-destruction was a certainty.
'Should I save him?'
Lexon rested his chin on his hand, weighing the options.
"What are you thinking about?" Seeing Lexon hadn't answered, a curious Saitama pressed further.
Lexon glanced at the hard-boiled egghead beside him.
'I'll save him for Saitama's sake.'
'I've been mooching off the guy for so long after all...'
'And, he could serve as a gopher.'
'At the very least... Saitama won't be nagging me to go to supermarket sales with him anymore...'
Plus, Genos could serve as a bridge to that doctor.
"A monster and a hero are fighting over there. The hero looks like he's going to lose. Want to check it out?" Lexon said to Saitama.
"Oh? No wonder I thought I heard something. Your ears are really sharp, Lexon." Saitama, whose hearing was better than average but not ridiculous, praised him.
"So, are you going?" Lexon asked again.
"Can you handle it?" Saitama asked back.
"No problem." Lexon indicated it wouldn't be an issue at all.
A Mosquito Girl who was, at most, at the Demon-level in her final state was naturally easy to deal with.
"Then I'm not going." Saitama, who was only a hero for fun, showed little interest. He lay on his side, looking leisurely as he picked his nose.
If Lexon could handle it, he didn't plan on joining the fray.
'That's your future disciple, you know...'
Lexon looked at him with half-lidded eyes.
"I'm off then." After saying that, Lexon's body suddenly vanished.
If he kept talking to Saitama here... Genos would likely be long gone...
Actually, saying that wasn't quite accurate.
Because at the last moment, Genos would self-destruct, triggering his power core to cause a massive explosion, taking Mosquito Girl with him in a mutual kill.
So he should say he'd be well-done.
...
'I miscalculated... I didn't expect the power gap to change this much...'
The broken Genos watched the flickering figure in the sky, regretting his actions.
If he had gone all out from the start and not given the opponent a chance to absorb blood... he might have been able to kill her directly.
"Hahahahahaha... You really are trash... You don't have an ounce of resistance in you..." Mosquito Girl's arrogant voice echoed through the air as she moved.
Like a victor who held all the cards, she mocked her defeated opponent. She clearly could have killed Genos quickly, but with every attack, she only tore away a tiny part of his cybernetic limbs.
She was playing, toyed with him...
'She's right. I have no strength left to resist.'
Genos couldn't help but agree with her in his mind.
Currently, he could barely even track her position, let alone mount a counterattack.
Then the only option was...
Self-destruction.
As the thought landed, the power core in Genos's chest began to emit a blinding light and fierce energy fluctuations.
"Hmm?" Seeing this, Mosquito Girl's instincts sent an ominous warning to her brain. Her brow furrowed, and in the next moment, she appeared beside Genos, swinging her claws with full force, seemingly intent on stopping Genos's self-destruction in its tracks.
But it was almost too late. Genos's power core had been stimulated to a certain point; it was about to blow!
In the very next instant, a sudden change occurred. A strange sense of dislocation washed over both Genos and Mosquito Girl.
When she regained her senses, Mosquito Girl found her claws striking empty air. The person in front of her had vanished.
"Gone?" Perplexed, Mosquito Girl quickly looked around, finally spotting a human male standing on a flatter section of the ruined road.
And the man was holding her cyborg opponent by the hand.
Genos was also completely bewildered. He didn't know who this person was that had suddenly saved him, nor did he understand why his frantic power core had suddenly gone quiet.
It was as if... it was being suppressed and bound by an incomparably powerful force.
"You're not dead, are you?"
Just as Genos looked up, he saw the man who had saved him say those words.
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]