"Hey!"
"Are you the one who defeated Watchdog Man and Tatsumaki?"
Yami, who was casually browsing clothes with Goddess Artemis, suddenly heard a question ring in his ears.
Although he hadn't yet seen the speaker, the words alone made him frown instinctively.
This visitor didn't seem friendly—it looked like they might be hard to deal with.
Yami raised his head and immediately caught sight of a figure. The stranger wore black tights, light-colored trousers, and simple cloth shoes.
His muscular physique stood out against the tight clothes, but what really caught attention was his bizarre hairstyle. It was parted sharply down the middle, flaring out on both sides in a way that was hard to describe.
"Hey, you haven't answered my question yet. Are you the one who defeated Watchdog Man and Tatsumaki?"
Seeing Yami remain silent, the man pressed on impatiently, his frustration clear.
Recognizing his identity, Yami couldn't help but feel an odd expression cross his face. Not long ago, he had fought Bang, and now, by pure chance, he'd run into one of Bang's former disciples.
At least this one, Garou, had an aura about him.
There was something similar to Bang in his demeanor, though compared to Bang's restraint, Garou was sharp, almost aggressive.
"Didn't your former master teach you manners?"
"With a disciple like you, I almost feel sorry for Bang," Yami muttered, clearly displeased at his rare moment of peace being interrupted.
Besides, the current Garou wasn't much of a challenge to him.
Garou was too weak, far from the peak he would eventually reach. Right now, Yami figured the man would struggle to defeat a mid-tier A-class hero. Though he found him somewhat interesting, Garou's presence wasn't worth the interruption.
"Oh? You know me?"
Yami's words clearly surprised Garou. The fact that Yami recognized him so easily seemed to intrigue him.
"Are you Bang's new disciple?"
"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm no disciple of Bang. In fact, I fought him and Bomb not too long ago, and I just left his dojo recently."
"As for how I know you, well, I have my ways."
Whether or not Garou believed this, Yami didn't care. He'd answered the question.
"So, you're the one who beat Watchdog Man?"
"Yes, that was me. What do you want?"
Not wanting to drag this conversation out, Yami admitted it openly. There was no reason to hide it.
If his guess was right, the Hero Association would likely announce his presence soon enough.
It wasn't about instilling confidence in ordinary people or anything like that. It was simply to avoid trouble, to make sure no one crossed him out of sheer ignorance.
"It really was you! I've been looking for you for a long time."
"I was planning to take you on immediately, but first, there's something I'm curious about."
"So, who won your fight with Bang?"
"Isn't the answer obvious?"
"I'm standing here, completely unharmed, so of course, I won. Even when Bang and Bomb teamed up, they couldn't defeat me."
"You've got your answer, so what do you want now?"
"Heh, Bang really is getting old," Garou said with a sneer.
He was no longer Bang's disciple. After injuring most of the dojo's members, he had been expelled. Their master-student relationship was long over.
Still, Garou considered Bang someone he needed to surpass. He was always seeking stronger opponents.
But what he hadn't expected was that before he could grow strong enough to defeat Bang, someone else had already done it. And it was a man so young.
This unsettled him.
"Even though I'm no longer his disciple, I will defeat him one day."
"But for now, let me experience the power that allowed you to defeat him!" Garou said, shifting into a fighting stance.
His expression was fierce and confident.
But given the public setting, his challenge seemed a little out of place. The surrounding onlookers began to take notice.
"I'm coming!"
"Wait, are you seriously going to fight here?" Yami quickly stopped him.
What a joke!
If they really fought here, in the middle of the city, most of the bystanders wouldn't make it out alive.
Though Yami didn't particularly care about these people, indiscriminately killing innocents wasn't something he could allow. His conscience wouldn't let him.
"What's the matter? Are you afraid I'll defeat you in front of everyone, embarrassing you?"
"Or maybe you're not the one I'm looking for at all, and your story of beating Bang and Bomb is just a lie?" Garou taunted, a sly grin spreading across his face.
Hearing this, Yami's frown deepened. He hadn't expected this guy to be so annoying.
He had to admit, the challenge was starting to feel hard to ignore.
"Yami, he's being so rude," Artemis said from beside him, her delicate brow furrowed in displeasure.
"It's fine, Artemis. Just give me a moment—this will be over quickly," Yami sighed, letting go of the clothes he'd been holding and slowly stepping forward.
An invisible energy pulsed outward, and the crowd that had gathered began to disperse, moving away at a visible pace.