### Chapter 7: Demon-Level Calamity, Trash Monster
"I knew you'd be like this."
Beside him, Bomb rolled his eyes helplessly, wearing an "as expected" expression.
The incident with Garou had ultimately left too deep a scar in his brother's heart.
Bang had no time to pay attention to his brother's complaints. His figure flickered, blending into the wind like a shadow, and chased after him silently.
However—
Almost the instant Bang set off, Kouki, who was striding down the mountain path, had an imperceptible curve at the corner of his mouth.
"Grandpa is still the same..."
He sensed the familiar and powerful aura trailing far behind but pretended not to notice at all.
In fact, he had sneaked down the mountain quite a few times over the years to "let off steam."
The number of Monsters he had casually dealt with was not small.
He could navigate the streets and alleys of Z-City with his eyes closed.
And the goal of his first stop down the mountain was extremely clear—to satisfy his hunger!
Although the food at the dojo was enough to fill him up, compared to the varied, oily, and delicious dishes in city restaurants, the gap...
Well, it was probably as big as the gap between his current strength and that of an ordinary person.
"Boss! Hurry! Meat and fish, bring out all your best dishes!"
Inside a restaurant with a conspicuous "Hero Restaurant" sign, Kouki's loud voice instantly drowned out all the noise.
He chose a seat by the window.
Soon, fragrant dishes piled up on the table like a small mountain.
Golden and crispy roast chicken, soft and rich stewed meat, tender and plump steamed fish...
Kouki rolled up his sleeves, his eyes shining. He picked up his chopsticks and started his whirlwind eating mode.
"..."
Bang, hiding in a nearby alley corner, watched his disciple eat like a starving ghost reincarnated, black lines dropping from his forehead.
And here he was worrying all the way, only for this kid's first priority to be stuffing his face?!
But... speaking of which, in order to keep an eye on Kouki leaving, he seemed to have forgotten to eat breakfast himself?
However, just as Kouki was immersed in the immense happiness brought by the food, his cheeks stuffed full—
"Yaaaaa—! Help! It's a Monster!"
"Run—!"
"Notify the Hero Association! Quick!"
"Are there any heroes nearby?! Help!"
Terrified screams and cries suddenly erupted on the distant street, splashing into the bustling restaurant like cold water.
"Hm...?"
Kouki's chewing paused, his brows furrowing in annoyance.
What the hell?
His rare good mood enjoying delicious food was ruined just like that!
What a bunch of blind fools!
His powerful perception instantly scanned the source of the chaos—a newly formed Tiger-level Monster.
"...Tsk."
Annoyed as he was, he didn't plan to get up immediately.
In his perception, a unique aura carrying the smell of gunpowder and smoke was approaching the scene at high speed—someone from the Hero Association must have arrived, right?
Most importantly... his gaze lingered reluctantly on the table full of delicious food in front of him.
He had only taken one bite of the braised pork knuckle that was just served!
Thick sauce, soft meat... giving it up was impossible!
So, against the chaotic backdrop of other customers in the restaurant screaming and fleeing in panic, Kouki continued his gluttonous feast as if no one else was there.
His cheeks were still puffed like a squirrel's, chopsticks and spoon moving so fast they almost created afterimages.
"..."
Bang, in the shadows, twitched the corner of his mouth, but his eyes grew more serious.
He suppressed the urge to act, deciding to observe Kouki's reaction a bit longer.
This was also part of the test.
Meanwhile, on the main road a few hundred meters away from the Hero Restaurant.
Panic spread like a plague.
*BOOM—!*
Accompanied by the teeth-aching sound of twisting metal and flying dust, a colossal figure suddenly arched up from the center of the street!
It was a terrifying giant forcibly amalgamated and piled up from countless rotten fruit peels, slimy wrappers, rusty cans, shattered glass bottles, tangled plastic ropes, and all sorts of other trash!
It was over three meters tall.
It emitted a stench foul enough to numb the sense of smell and churn stomachs, as if it were an aggregation of the entire city's filth.
"—Ugh!"
Some pedestrians who were too close or ran too slowly were directly overcome by this bio-weapon-level stench, bending over and retching.
"I am the Trash Monster!" The giant let out a muffled, distorted roar, sounding like a broken bellows grating. "You parasites of Earth! You only know how to create trash! Pollution! Inferior existences! All of you, disappear!"
It swung its twisted arms made of old tires and metal pipes, smashing frantically at roadside vehicles, shop windows, and public facilities.
Wherever it passed was a mess, a symphony of screams and shattering glass.
An atmosphere of despair shrouded the block.
Just then!
An agile figure suddenly rushed out of the crowd, blocking the rampaging Trash Monster!
He wore a gray cloak stained with a bit of oil and had unruly black spiky hair.
The most eye-catching thing was his mechanical left arm, completely made of cold metal and flashing with a chilling light—a modified Gatling gun.
"It's A-Class Rank 8, 'Death Gatling'!"
"Great! We're saved! It's an A-Class hero!"
"Lord Death Gatling! Kill it!"
Citizens who recognized this figure burst into cheers of surviving a disaster.
"Hmph, a mere Tiger-level small fry..."
The corner of Death Gatling's mouth curved in a confident arc, his eyes locking sharply onto the target.
He stood firm as a rock. His heavy mechanical left arm emitted a slight hum of gears meshing, the dark muzzle aimed steadily at the stench-emitting trash giant.
"Trash belongs in the trash can! Die for me—!"
*DADADADADADA—!!!*
A deafening roar tore through the air.
The six barrels of the Gatling gun spun wildly, spewing out tongues of lethal fire!
A rain of bullets wove a scorching metal net of death, instantly enveloping the huge, slow-moving Trash Monster completely!
*Bang bang bang!*
*Splurt!*
*Crash—!*
Bullets easily tore through and pierced the body composed of loose trash.
Rotten vegetable leaves, shattered plastic, and deformed metal fragments splashed everywhere as if lifted by an explosion.
The dense rain of bullets beat the Trash Monster back repeatedly.
Its huge body trembled violently, countless "parts" making up its body beaten off and scattering.
In just over ten seconds, half of its body was like a crudely dismantled broken toy, riddled with holes and crumbling.
"Hmph, can't withstand a single blow."
Death Gatling snorted coldly and stopped the roaring machine gun.
Wisps of blue smoke rose from the barrel, and the air was filled with the strong smell of gunpowder smoke, temporarily overpowering the stench of trash.
He shook his slightly hot mechanical arm, ready to declare victory.
An opponent of this level wasn't even worth his full effort.
...