Chapter 95 – Monster with Tentacles
Ahhh—!!
Lord Masked Hero!!!
When did the tentacled Monster get here?!
...Only then did the fans realize they'd just taken a round-trip along the edge of death.
The Monster's strike, Masked Hero's rescue—none of it had registered.
All they sensed was a blur before their eyes.
Then another thunderous crash.
Only a few metres ahead, Monster and Masked Hero were suddenly there.
Along with a ground cracked and sunken.
"Everyone okay...?" Masked Hero murmured. "Get out of here—fast."
The instant the words left his mouth the Monster attacked again!
After-images of tentacles filled the air.
Masked Hero dodged at the limit; some blows that would have hit the fleeing fans he had to take head-on with Iron Body.
At last the fans began to scatter in panic.
Yet some still looked back, reluctant to tear their eyes from the hero they adored.
After sprinting a hundred metres to a junction, one fan stopped and said:
"Look... this is far enough, right?"
"We're safe now, the Monster can't reach us here."
Another chimed in:
"Yeah, and how often do you get to see Lord Masked Hero fight?"
"Plus, his helmet's cracked—maybe today we'll finally see his real face!"
After that exchange.
Quite a few in the fan-club hesitated and halted.
A voice of reason cut in:
"What are you saying?! Did anyone even track the Monster's speed just now? Don't mess things up for Lord Masked Hero!"
"So what?!" A chubby, round-faced woman with thick glasses shrieked.
"Nothing happened to us! With Lord Masked Hero protecting us, what's there to fear!"
"Don't you believe Lord Masked Hero can beat the Monster?! You don't deserve to be his fan!!"
(T/N: Excuse me. I feel like it's a waste to let a monster kill this people. So can I kill them instead?😇)
The rational fan glared, speechless with anger.
In the end, to avoid a pointless slanging match, the sensible ones walked away.
The most rabid stayed, shouting and watching.
Leaving Masked Hero in agony.
All he'd had to do was keep dodging, stall until backup arrived.
But fans who refused to retreat kept provoking the Monster's urge to strike.
Forcing Masked Hero to attack and take hits.
Dragging the Monster's attention back onto himself.
Minutes crawled past.
The cracks in his helmet widened.
Shards glued to the visor wobbled, ready to fall.
So did Masked Hero's composure.
—Like this... I'll be exposed sooner or later!
He was grateful for their love and support.
Yet he knew—if they saw this face, the first to scream and run would be his own fans.
Bang—!
A tentacle slammed into Masked Hero.
The ground beneath him shattered; he slipped.
Still maintaining Iron Body, he was smashed into the earth.
Crack—snap—
A lens of the helmet chipped away, revealing one of Masked Hero's eyes.
Utter exhaustion.
Tangled turmoil.
Ha... ah... so be it... The tentacles writhed; the towering Monster stepped over the fallen Masked Hero, heading for the junction.
A hero beaten by a Monster—nothing new.
Not everyone possessed strength like Mr. Aokiji.
Failure was the norm.
He had already... reached his limit.
This was the best he could manage right now.
Masked Hero lay in the crater, eyes closing in fatigue.
"L-Lord Masked Hero..." the lead fan stammered.
Eyes wide with dread, he stared at Masked Hero on the ground and the Monster slithering closer.
The rest mirrored his terror.
After several seconds of collective freeze, they finally bolted.
Now they didn't care about the comrades they'd been chanting with moments earlier.
They shoved and tumbled over one another in frantic flight!
Seeing the humans flee, the Monster stopped toying with them.
Multiple tentacles slapped the ground at once!
Its speed soared!
It swung at the rearmost human—hm?
The thick tentacle smashed into the road with tremendous force!
Though the target was jolted off his feet by the shock,
The blow actually landed several metres short!
Scrr—scrr—scrr—
Two long furrows were gouged into the asphalt!
Behind the Monster, Masked Hero stood, eyes fierce, arms locked around a tentacle!
The leg armour was nearly ruined.
Blood-soaked feet ground into the earth.
Beneath the cracked helmet, his twisted, uneven features contorted with effort!
Even if he could never become the sun-like ideal of justice,
He could at least be a torch that burned itself to the last!
Right now, he wasn't just a miserable freak!
Masked Hero looped his arms around the thick tentacle, wrist clamped to wrist, draining the last dregs of strength in his body!
His pupils dilated almost to blankness.
Yet that stubborn resolve never flickered.
Veins bulged all over Masked Hero as if about to burst!
I am——
Countless tentacles ripped the air!
Their tips stabbed straight down at him!
So fast they barely left after-images, each one able to pierce a high-rise, filling Masked Hero's blurred sight!
'—Pathetic hero!'
In a scene like Hell, water under forced pressure surged forth!
A figure suddenly sprang up, standing before Masked Hero.
Arms swept, knocking every stabbing tentacle off course!
Each tentacle missed by a hair's breadth, slamming like javelins into the ground beside them!
"Tch—beaten black-and-blue by a Monster and still call yourself a hero? Cover your face and stop embarrassing us."
Riiip—
A black-and-white striped prison uniform was torn off and tossed over Masked Hero's head.
Bare-chested, Garou cracked his knuckles, Battle Intent blazing.
At last an opponent who wasn't some pervert!
Masked Hero's arms loosened, releasing the tentacle.
His voice came faint and broken.
"W-why... are you... here?"
"Hah?? You moron." Garou was already set, facing the Monster now serious.
"Prison break! Break-out! When a con shows up outside, it means he's sick of being inside!
"Just happened to pass by—now beat it, useless hero!