The banner reading “The 22nd Super Fight” was raised early that morning.
Finally.
It had been worth spending three days waiting around this area and hunting every monster I saw.
Though the waiting had been pretty... rough.
Back in the mountains, at least I could lie down on soft dirt.
But here... the only thing better than the hard concrete floor was the corpses of monsters I’d hunted down in some dark alley.
In particular, I’d skinned one hippo monster and used its hide as bedding.
It started to rot and stink before long, and I threw it away quickly because flies kept swarming it, but... I’d made decent use of it.
Still, it was usable enough. The smell of blood was familiar, and the feel was at least better than concrete.
Murmur, murmur, murmur...
...Anyway.
There sure were a lot of humans.
A massive crowd had formed, so dense it was hard to even count them.
Let’s see. There were humans out with their families, humans who seemed to be here alone, and fresh-faced couples too.
For some reason, the thought came to me: youth.
“................”
The monster’s choice of words back then, calling it a big tournament, had definitely not been wrong.
The venue was huge, and the spectators were pouring in like a flood.
The crowd packed around the entrance was so tight there was barely any room to squeeze through.
This was more than I expected.
And that meant...
It wouldn’t be strange if there were guys far stronger than Choeje here.
The “Elite Bloodline Combat Arts” I’d learned from him were decent enough, but... they somehow didn’t feel like they suited me.
Compared to Social Circle, its offensive power was stronger, but its defense and precision were relatively lacking.
So I was hoping I might learn a martial art that fit me a little better.
Of course, today I had to use nothing but Elite Bloodline Combat Arts.
Right now, I was Choeje.
Murmur...
“................”
...Still.
It never ended.
If I kept waiting like this, it looked like I’d be stuck here for at least another hour.
That would be a problem.
If I was late, that would be a disaster.
...I can use another martial art for now, right?
With that thought, I shifted my weight back and took a stance.
[Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist]
-[Instant Body Step]
Keeping my upper body lowered, I moved through the crowd like flowing water and pushed forward.
Carefully, so I wouldn’t touch the humans if I could help it, one step at a time.
Bending low, gliding ahead as smoothly as a river.
And then I entered the building.
“Whoa?!”
Thud.
“Be careful. There are a lot of humans here, so if you fall, you might get badly hurt.”
“Ah, yes! Th—huh? Where did you go?”
Using one arm to help up a child who was about to fall, I pressed deeper inside.
And then.
About fourteen minutes later.
I finally reached the reception desk.
...No. Was “reception desk” even the right word?
For some reason, I couldn’t think of the term.
“Hello! What name did you register under as a competitor?”
When I showed the ticket, the female staff member asked politely.
Instinctively, I was about to answer the way I usually did, but I closed my mouth for a moment.
Right.
Come to think of it, I had to imitate this body’s way of speaking too.
From what I’d heard, he had already gone through preliminaries in front of people once.
Apparently he had looked down on his opponent and beaten him more than necessary.
So acting unnaturally different from before would probably be dangerous.
In that case, I felt sorry for the woman in front of me, but...
I’d have to use a slightly condescending tone.
Repeating to myself that I was sorry several times, I opened my mouth.
“Hmph... To think I’d have to tell some commoner my noble name... I am Choeje.”
...That should be right, shouldn’t it?
No.
Honestly, I had no idea.
Unease made cold sweat trickle down the back of my head.
I’d tried to copy his tone as closely as possible, so it should be enough.
...Something feels off. Is this right?
Half doubting myself, I watched the staff member’s reaction.
“Ah, Choeje... sir. Then...”
...Fortunately, she didn’t seem to have any suspicions or questions.
She immediately handed me a sheet of paper, asking me to fill in my martial arts style.
There was nothing to hesitate over.
I picked up the pen sharply and wrote into the blank.
One character at a time, without missing a single stroke, in perfectly neat handwriting.
“Elite Bloodline Combat Arts”
“......Is that correct?”
“................”
“Seongminhyungmaeng Gyeongtusung”
“................”
At the staff member’s question, I barely held back my face from turning bright red and shook my head.
Come to think of it, I’d never actually written anything before.
The note I’d left for the police after subduing Choeje last time was... a different case.
I’d remembered something from a cartoon I’d seen by chance as I passed by, and copied it exactly as if I were drawing it.
Besides, I’d had plenty of time then.
“......My apologies. It’s Elite Bloodline Combat Arts. I’m not good at writing.”
“Ah, yes...”
...Come to think of it, there were a lot of other blanks too.
What was I supposed to do with those?
I could read letters.
Since I could read, I knew what needed to go where.
And since I knew that, all I had to do was write it.
That was the problem.
“................”
Even the way I held the pen felt wrong from the start.
Controlling my strength was hard too; if I gripped it too tightly, I felt like I’d accidentally crush the pen.
If I used psychic power, I could probably write just fine, but then I’d definitely be exposed.
What should I do?
No.
What was there to do?
There was only one way, wasn’t there?
“...C-commoner? Sorry, but I’d like this noble one to get some help... I-I’ll even bow my head if necessary...”
I’m sorry.
I can’t write.
Please do it for me.
“................”
“D-don’t look at me like that... I-I’m confident in my skill!”
“I wasn’t really looking at you strangely...”
No.
That was exactly the kind of look that said, “What an annoying guy.”
I could tell that much from instinct.
...Then why doesn’t instinct work properly when it comes to writing?
No matter how hard I focused on my instincts, I still couldn’t figure out how to hold a pen.
What else could I do?
I’d just have to learn now.
Watching the staff member fill in the blanks with the information I called out, I memorized how to hold the pen somehow.
I tried bending my fingers to imitate the grip.
...So controlling my strength really was impossible here.
The imaginary pen in my head shattered to pieces.
It was ironic that I could control my strength perfectly in battle, but not when it came to something like this.
...I should practice later.
“...Phew. That finishes the registration. Then, Choeje, please head to the competitors’ waiting room and wait there.”
“......I will.”
After offering one last thank-you, I headed in the direction where the crowd was thinner this time.
With a somewhat, very stiff gait.
Focusing on one step at a time.
...This was still the best way to hide how embarrassed I was.
Before the match began.
As Genos stepped outside for a moment to survey the surroundings, he detected a faint energy reaction.
The location was probably somewhere in the back alleys.
Tracing the direction of the energy reaction, sure enough...
Something came into Genos’s view.
“...Is that a monster?”
A monster corpse that had been completely smashed to bits, with almost all of its body parts gone.
To call it a corpse was generous; only bits of skin, bone fragments, bloodstains, and scraps of flesh remained.
But the problem was...
“...It’s not just one monster that ended up like this.”
The fragments of flesh and blood scattered across the wall and floor were all different in color and shape.
This wasn’t the result of one monster exploding.
Based on the analysis, at least six monsters had been slaughtered in this back alley.
And judging by the traces of destruction around the area, each one had to have been at least demon-level.
“...This wasn’t done by Sensei.”
Based on the time and route, there was no way it had been his teacher, who should still have been in the competitors’ waiting room.
He had confirmed that no S-Class hero had come here either.
Then...
“...A hidden expert. A turf war between monsters. Or...”
“Now then, what should I do? Oh, right. Maybe I need to buy some time! Time until a hero who can defeat me arrives! Time to stalllll!”
“Damn it... I’ve lost too much blood. The injuries are too severe! I’ll retreat this once...! But I’ll return someday! Until then, be prepared!”
“................”
Suddenly, he remembered a lonely, pitiful back view standing in the rain.
An existence that felt out of place for a monster.
Its power and appearance were clearly inhuman, but it was a monster that strangely loved humans.
The monster hunter.
With most of the corpse gone, Genos thought maybe it could be that guy.
It certainly wasn’t impossible.
According to information disclosed only to S-Class heroes, that guy was said to have limitless potential for growth.
If he had become incredibly strong, this much might be entirely possible.
However...
There had also been a half-forced request to deal with him on sight, since he was not only a vicious monster but also one with even more room to grow.
In a way, it was only natural.
The Association already seemed to think of the monster hunter as the “danger” in the prophecy that said, “The earth is in danger.”
No one knew how strong he had become now, when he had already been near the top of the demon level.
That was why.
But...
Was he really a monster that should be regarded as a danger?
Genos stood there blankly, lost in thought for a while, then shook those thoughts away.
That wasn’t what mattered right now.
Sensei’s match was about to begin.
After contacting the Association about the scene, Genos headed back to the arena.
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