Chapter 100: Masked Hero's Helmet
"Aokiji-sama—"
Mosquito Girl flew out to greet him.
She squinted at the suitcase beside Aokiji, emitting a slightly dangerous aura.
Ho—?
The bitch who dares to compete with me for the secretary position... to think she'd upset Lord Aokiji so quickly and even get punished, what a useless creature.
Since Lord Aokiji asked me to help administer the punishment...
I definitely won't show any mercy~!
"Lord Aokiji, everything is ready. I'll make sure this bi... new colleague deeply regrets her mistakes!"
"You're too excited. Get yourself ready first."
"It's fine!" Mosquito Girl flashed a confident smile, "I've already emptied my stomach!"
"..." Aokiji was speechless.
Dragging the suitcase, he walked into the Ghost Town villa.
——————
——————
A bit earlier in time.
"Roar—"
The tentacle Monster's circular mouth, filled with sharp teeth, opened in a terrifying roar.
Thick tentacles flailed in mid-air!
On the ground a few meters in front of the Monster, two human-shaped craters were deeply embedded.
"Pfft, cough, cough—" Garou coughed up the blood welling in his throat.
"Cough... Hey, trash hero, that crappy helmet of yours is still holding up, right..."
"Ugh, wheeze... barely..." Masked Hero replied weakly.
His right hand was grotesquely twisted into several segments, unable to even be lifted.
The road on this street was covered in cracks and craters.
One building had collapsed from the middle, and the building next to it was also teetering.
The Monster's tentacles were raised high!
"Not yet... Thanks... for specifically breaking out of prison... to help..." Masked Hero's eyelids were heavy as he spoke slowly.
"Tsk... I just wanted... a satisfying fight..." Garou forced himself up, using his last bit of strength to try and rise from the crater.
The tentacles fell!
Bang—!
The Monster fell into its own pool of blood.
"This thing is disgusting...!" Garou slowly and with great effort struggled out of the crater and sat up.
Then he pushed away the large eyeball he had forcefully gouged out of the Monster's socket.
"Haha... the thing in my hand is even more disgusting..." Masked Hero closed his eyes in exhaustion, muttering like he was talking in his sleep.
In his hand, which was twisted into several segments, a clump of blood-covered brain matter hung down.
This Monster's vitality was truly tenacious.
Even after a piece of its brain had been gouged out by the two of them, it could still use its tentacles to entangle them and smash them heavily into the ground.
It wailed and flailed its tentacles for over ten seconds before finally dying.
"Cough, cough—" Garou spat out blood mixed with small bits of flesh.
Phew—that felt much better.
He then pulled his legs out of the crater and stood up somewhat shakily.
"Hey, you're not dead yet, right? Get up... Hey?!"
Garou frowned deeply.
His gaze quickly locked onto the silent Masked Hero in the adjacent crater.
Chest... okay, it was rising and falling slightly.
His belly, which had been bloated with food, had unknowingly receded during the battle.
Though his breathing was weak, it was steady.
"Tsk!" Garou clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"Falling asleep right after a battle, no sense of crisis at all. People who treat being a hero as a profession really are unreliable."
At the intersection at the end of the street.
A figure holding a Masked Hero merchandise fan peeked out quietly.
A slightly shrill voice spoke with intense excitement:
"As expected of Lord Masked Hero! He really defeated that terrifying Monster!!"
"I should be the one to take care of the heavily injured Lord Masked Hero! This is the perfect time to see Lord Masked Hero's handsome face before anyone else, he-hehehe..."
The figure wiped the corner of their mouth, lost in delusion.
"If I save Lord Masked Hero now, he'll definitely fall in love with me!"
Deluding about a romance with the handsome hero, the person stopped hiding behind the building and ran over with heavy steps.
But as they got closer.
Their already slow pace faltered and stopped.
A man covered in gruesome wounds, his silver-white hair stained with crimson blood, stared fixedly with a fierce gaze.
"Get lost."
"Aaaaaah—!!"
Again, with heavy steps, they fled in terror!
They can actually understand human speech?
Garou raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Was that not a Monster, but a human?
...With that appearance, I really couldn't tell.
Whatever, it doesn't matter.
Garou held the back of his neck and rolled his head. Perhaps because he hadn't fought this hard in a long while, besides the pain from his wounds, there was a different kind of exhilaration.
Heavy footsteps were heard once again.
Hmm? Garou turned to look. Did that guy come back— "Garou-chan—♥️♥️♥️"
Puri-Puri Prisoner ran over, his face full of joy and excitement.
His arms were wide open, wanting to rush forward and give Garou a touching hug!
"I came as soon as I saw the news! Garou-chan really is a kind boy! Lending a helping hand to Masked Hero-chan who was in trouble..."
"I'm so moved I'm almost crying!!" As he said this, Puri-Puri Prisoner was already shedding thick tears.
Someone even more disgusting than a Monster has arrived!!!
Garou immediately entered his most alert combat state!
"Don't come over here, you pervert!!"
Puri-Puri Prisoner ignored him, sprinting across the cracked and uneven ground, wanting to give Garou an encouraging hug!
Damn it!!
Although the pain from his wounds had mysteriously lessened, in his current state, he still couldn't dodge this pervert!
Garou's gaze sharpened as he made a decision.
"Hey, pervert! That guy is hurt way worse than I am. Aren't you a... Pro Hero too?! Go check on him first!"
Hmph—consider this repayment for the life you owe me.
Garou shifted the focus to the unconscious Masked Hero without any guilt.
As expected, those words were effective.
Puri-Puri Prisoner's gaze immediately shifted to Masked Hero in the crater, filled with worry.
"Masked Hero-chan is actually so heavily injured. To protect the citizens... what a good boy!"
Tears of emotion welled up again as Puri-Puri Prisoner rushed to Masked Hero's side and knelt down.
It was difficult to lift the heavily injured Masked Hero directly out of the crater.
Puri-Puri Prisoner carefully crushed the ground around the crater so that the cracked and sunken layers would no longer press against Masked Hero's body.
Garou breathed a sigh of relief.
He wiped the blood from his hair and flicked it away.
An injured Pro Hero should be taken care of by a Pro Hero. He was going back to rest.
Just as Garou was about to leave quietly.
He heard Puri-Puri Prisoner say:
"He needs fresh air when he's injured. Let's take off Masked Hero-chan's helmet first."
Garou suddenly turned around: "Hey, pervert...!!"
But it was a step too late.
As Puri-Puri Prisoner spoke, he had already removed the helmet wrapped in prisoner uniform fabric...