Twenty minutes later.
The lounge door swung open. King, frantically scarfing down snacks, free drinks, and complimentary fruit, jumped in fright and hurriedly hid the leftovers.
KING's reputation mustn't be ruined!
He looked up—and a gleaming bald head filled his vision.
Oh, it's Saitama. Never mind, then.
He swallowed a potato chip and mumbled,
"How'd the test go?"
Saitama was brimming with confidence.
"Felt great—way smoother than my old civil-service exam. This time it's in the bag."
For some reason, hearing Saitama so sure of himself left King with an uneasy feeling.
Flag raised?
Sitch had said that since Saitama took the exam alone, the results would be out within ten minutes; they could wait in the lounge.
The door shut, and the two of them tore into the free snacks, drinks, and fruit like a whirlwind.
As Saitama put it, the staff knew they were hungry and had kindly provided all this free food—refusing would be trampling on their goodwill.
To King, the Hero Association felt like home.
And if I'm at home, I can do whatever I want, right?
About ten minutes later, a polite knock sounded.
"Knock, knock, knock."
Saitama and King exchanged glances; their hands blurred into after-images, sweeping the mountain of trash into a nearby bin in seconds.
Only after permission was granted did the staff member step in, nervously hand King a file, and say,
"This is Mr. Saitama's exam result. Please review it carefully."
With that, the staff member spun on his heel, dashed out, and shut the door behind him.
The pressure exuded by The Strongest Man on the Surface of the Earth—KING—was simply overwhelming; one look at that face felt suffocating.
King passed the envelope to Saitama, letting him open it himself.
Saitama stared at the file that would decide whether he became a super-rich million-yen-a-year man or kept eating high-grade beef every day.
The mightiest being who could one-shot a Dragon-Level Monster without batting an eye now found his hands trembling with nerves.
He drew a breath; his simple cartoon face sharpened into hard lines as he carefully tore open the envelope and pulled out the report card.
[Name: Saitama][Gender: Male][Scores: Physical Exam – Perfect, Written Exam – 48]Assessment: Physical results far exceed human limits; written exam reveals a sincere heroic heart, steadfast and noble character. With KING, The Strongest Man on the Surface of the Earth, vouching for him, Mr. Saitama is hereby ranked S-Class, Position 17.
"Damn, I really made S-Class!"
Saitama couldn't hold back a fleeting curse, joy blazing in his eyes.
He could already picture every day of buying manga, premium beef, and sashimi without a second thought.
Watching the ecstatic Saitama, King smiled.
At least this mended some regrets from the original story—the Bald Demon King, the strongest being, deserved to start as S-Class, not misunderstood and ranked dead-last in C-Class…
In the simple little room, the hotpot bubbled, slabs of bright-red, beautifully marbled beef bobbing amid assorted ingredients.
At King's request, the Hero Association advanced Saitama one month's salary, turning the penniless Bald Demon King into a millionaire overnight.
To celebrate his sudden windfall and high-paying job, Saitama splurged, filling the pot with every hotpot ingredient imaginable.
Eyeing the premium beef rolling toward perfect doneness, King and Saitama locked gazes—resolve flashing between them.
Eight Gates • Seventh Gate • Gate of Wonder—OPEN!!
White steam drifted off King's body as pale-blue light cloaked him, his aura skyrocketing several-fold.
Seeing King get serious, Saitama's eyes sharpened, chopsticks tightening in his grip.
He absolutely would not surrender this beef to King!
Serious Series – Serious Chopstick Strike!
Seven seconds passed; neither seemed to move, yet they'd already exceeded normal eyesight.
In mere tenths of a second, their chopsticks clashed hundreds of times in mid-air, each intercepting the other the instant beef was seized.
At last, Saitama's chopsticks neared the biggest slice, delight sparkling in his eyes.
The next instant, King seized the opening, knocked Saitama's chopsticks aside, and snatched the largest piece at lightning speed.
Crack!
A crisp snap—King froze.
His chopsticks cracked clean in half, the prized beef plummeting.
Saitama was quicker, catching the falling slice and, in a flash, scooping three-quarters of the pot's beef into his bowl.
Looking at his bowl piled high with premium beef, Saitama grinned smugly and raised an eyebrow at King:
"Eat up, KING. I even left you a quarter—gets tough if it stews too long."
King: "…"
Even with the Gate of Wonder open, the gap between him and the Bald Demon King in normal mode was still an unbridgeable chasm.
From this beef-grab alone, King saw he was utterly outclassed in both speed and strength.
But… his gaze drifted to the box he'd brought from home, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
Next up—time to beat the Bald Demon King.
Watching Saitama happily devour premium beef, King patted the box beside him, smiling:
"Saitama, do you want to play a fighting game? I've got the latest controllers and game bundle right here."