Chapter 66: The Frustrated Puri-Puri Prisoner
"Young men, how about a date?"
After killing the Dinosaur Man with a single punch, Puri-Puri Prisoner stood sideways facing Axel and the others. His head was turned toward them, a slight smile on his face. His right leg was bent, heel lifted, his right arm flexed into a fist with the palm facing upwards, and his left hand gripped his right wrist. Forcefully contracting his pectoral, deltoid, bicep, and forearm muscle groups, he struck a standard side chest bodybuilding pose, showcasing his firm, massive biceps to their fullest extent.
"..."
Axel and the others stared blankly at the fallen Dinosaur Man, then glanced strangely at Puri-Puri Prisoner, who was "making eyes" at them. They all fell silent, and the iron chains in one of the squad members' hands clattered to the ground. An intense sense of defeat washed over their hearts, flooding their minds.
It was a depressing outcome. They had fought tooth and nail for so long, yet the Dinosaur Man had remained full of vigor. However, this Dinosaur Man, who was terrifyingly powerful to them, had been effortlessly dispatched by Puri-Puri Prisoner with a single punch. The vast gap in power stung their souls deeply.
"Oh, does that expression on your faces mean you're accepting my invitation for a date?"
Puri-Puri Prisoner then switched to a side triceps pose, extending his right arm straight and clasping his left hand behind his back, forcefully contracting his right triceps and deltoid to display his most masculine side.
"Puri-Puri Prisoner, is it?"
Axel stared at the rippling muscles of Puri-Puri Prisoner and let out a low laugh. "Indeed worthy of an S-Class hero. A mighty Tiger-level Monster couldn't even withstand a single punch from you."
"This is the result of diligent muscle training, and the kind of power a masculine hero should possess."
Seeing Axel take the initiative to speak to him, Puri-Puri Prisoner's face lit up with joy. He switched poses again, raising both arms from his sides and flexing forcefully at the elbows in a front double biceps pose, doing his best to exude masculine charm.
"Hero? Heh." Axel scoffed. "Rumor has it that every time you carry out justice, you do so by breaking out of prison. Nearly every time, you smash a huge hole in the prison wall. After you return, the government always has to allocate funds to repair the damage. I heard that over the past two years, the government has allocated three hundred million yen to repair the holes you've smashed. Heh, your 'appearance fee' as a hero is really high!"
"Hunters, let's go."
After speaking, without giving the bewildered Puri-Puri Prisoner another glance, he led the Hunter Self-Defense Team away.
Clang, clang.
The hunters listlessly dragged their iron chains, trailing behind Axel, shuffling along slowly, their bodies like zombies.
Five minutes later.
Axel stopped and glanced at the dejected hunters. His face filled with anger, and he shouted, "Why are you all hanging your heads? Are you dejected? Defeated? Hmph, ridiculous. What right do we have to be dejected? What right do we have to be defeated? Why are we standing here? It's precisely because of our incompetence and weakness that we watched our loved ones die at the hands of Monsters, powerless to do anything. We are already a bunch of failures. The deaths of our loved ones happened because we were too weak! That's... that's... that's why we gathered together, to pool our strength and work as one to fight the Monsters!"
"Captain, even with the combined strength of so many of us, we still can't compare to a single punch from a hero. We're... we're just too useless."
"I've tried so hard, I want to kill Monsters so badly, but why am I so weak? Why? *Sob*..."
"We're just a bunch of ants. No matter how many of us gather, what's the use?"
The members of the Self-Defense Team hung their heads in despair. Most of them seemed to have lost their souls, standing on the street dispirited and lifeless, their bodies slumped and their spirit gone.
"Is that your reason for being dejected? Pathetic excuses!" Axel roared in anger. "Yes, we are weak. Individually, perhaps none of our members' combat abilities can match even a C-Class hero. But a swarm of ants can bite an elephant to death! I believe that as long as we cooperate sincerely and work together with one heart, no matter how weak we are, we can kill powerful Monsters. We will avenge our deceased loved ones, our lost happiness, and the peace that is gone forever! We... must have our revenge on the Monsters!"
"Revenge?"
Under Axel's impassioned roar, life returned to the hunters' vacant eyes. They clenched their fists, the scenes of Monsters killing their loved ones replaying endlessly in their minds.
"Right, we can't just admit defeat. We haven't died yet. We have to keep fighting and hunt down every last Monster!"
"We want revenge! We'll make the Monsters go to hell and repent to our families!"
"I'll personally send those ugly bastards to the underworld to serve my daughter as beasts of burden!"
The hunters roared hoarsely, their fighting spirit returning to them, even stronger and more fervent than before. Their gazes seemed to crackle with fire, and their chests felt as if they held ten-thousand-foot volcanoes, ready to erupt at any moment.
"Hunters, the battle is not over! No, it would be better to say our battle has only just begun!" Axel looked at the high-spirited hunters, a smile playing on his lips as he shouted, "There are still remnants of the Dinosaur Man out there. Hunters, the hunt is not over! We... move out!"
"ROAR!"
The hunters let out a furious roar and shouted in unison, "Move out! Kill! Kill! Kill!"
Axel nodded in satisfaction. This was the Self-Defense Team he truly wanted to see—their fighting spirit high, unafraid of death. However, even with their surging morale, they still couldn't avoid the biggest problem—strength. They were originally just ordinary people who were a bit stronger than average. After their loved ones were killed by Monsters, they gathered together in their grief and anger to form a Self-Defense Team to seek revenge.
Therefore, their individual strength was ultimately too weak.
"If I could just increase everyone's strength, we could definitely hunt Monsters of a higher disaster level. Sigh, how can I increase everyone's strength?"
Axel fell into deep thought. Perhaps he should talk to Mr. King. After all, he was the strongest man on earth; he must have a way for everyone to get stronger quickly.
Yes, it's decided.
"Mr. King, it's been a while. Do you still remember the thugs who took the kindergarten teachers and students hostage over a month ago? I said we would meet again. Soon. I'll be visiting you very soon."
...
"Huh, they left? Hey! Did you accept my invitation for a date or not?"
Puri-Puri Prisoner saw that no one was responding to his flirtatious advances and that they were all leaving with their heads down. He instantly cried out in alarm, but unfortunately, the hunters' minds were already elsewhere; no one paid him any attention.
"Did I just... fail to get a date?"
His upright body suddenly slumped, and his entire being instantly became utterly dejected.
"My invitation for the young men to date... has failed again!"
"Attention residents of M-City, attention residents of M-City. a Demon Level Mysterious Being from L-City has officially invaded M-City. Please proceed to the major shelters in M-City to take cover from the Mysterious Being. Our Hero Association will strive to eliminate the Mysterious Being in the shortest time possible. Please wait patiently for our news..."
"Damn it, meeting the young men I fancied made me forget about everything else. I completely forgot the reason I broke out of prison was to eliminate the Demon Level Mysterious Being! This is terrible!"
Puri-Puri Prisoner, burning with anxiety, started running again, charging toward the location of the Demon Level Mysterious Being provided by the Hero Association.
"Hah~ Angel Dash, hah~ Angel Dash..."
(end of chapter)