"I guess I managed to get something done today!"
Having collected a villain Card and temporarily alleviated the crisis of the Vaccineman's expiration, he had more or less achieved his goal for the day.
king wandered aimlessly through the streets, lost in thought the entire time.
Little did he know, a mysterious and terrifying figure had begun to shadow him—the superstar of the assassin world! Speed-o'-Sound Sonic!
"So that's King?"
Sonic stood on a rooftop with his arms crossed. His hair was tied back like a girl's, his features handsome. Beneath his eyes were markings that curved like a bizarre, smiling arc. He wore an armored bodysuit, a long, ink-blue scarf that fluttered around his neck, and carried a samurai sword on his back.
At this moment, he was observing the casually strolling king, musing, "His entire body is full of openings. It feels like a single strike would be fatal. Hmm, no, that's not right. Those aren't openings, they're traps. The kind of false openings a master deliberately reveals to conceal their true weaknesses. These traps are as beautiful and deadly as a Venus flytrap. If the attacker isn't meticulous enough, they'll absolutely die in the beautiful traps King has laid out. Heh, King. To be called the strongest man on Earth, you really have a trick or two. But..."
He revealed a bizarrely "innocent" smile, similar to the Guy Fawkes mask from the movie *V for Vendetta*. "Once you're on my kill list, I don't care who you are. You won't escape my grasp..."
"But where is King's real weakness?"
His expression turned grave as he stared at the "seemingly casual, but actually vigilant" king. His gaze meticulously scanned king's body, attempting to find a true opening that would allow for a one-hit kill.
"An opening, an opening... which one is the real one?"
He had been tailing King for nearly a day, and night had already fallen. Yet, he still couldn't be certain which of the openings on king's body was the real one.
He was on the verge of a breakdown. Previously, he believed that with enough patience, he could always find his prey's weakness. But now, King had viciously slapped him across the face.
He frantically gripped two shuriken in his hands, itching to throw a few at King. However, having been trained in a Ninja Village since childhood, he had mastered the art of "endurance" to a certain degree. He wouldn't make a move so easily on something he wasn't confident about.
He took a deep breath, suppressed his agitated emotions, and once again threw himself into the game of "spot the difference."
At the same time, Sonic wasn't the only one tailing king. There was another tail—Inspector Hill. After learning that someone was plotting to assassinate King, he had already decided to personally act as King's close-protection bodyguard. Even if his superiors disagreed, he would still act on his own accord, because that was his mission as a police officer—to protect the lives and property of the citizens.
king was completely oblivious to all this, leisurely strolling down the street without any particular destination.
BOOM!
Suddenly, an earth-shattering explosion, like a clap of thunder, resounded through M-City. The sound echoed between heaven and earth as a pillar of fire shot into the sky from the city center, nearly illuminating the entire city.
"Huh? Fireworks?"
king looked doubtfully at the familiar pillar of fire in the city center. A faint sense of unease crept into his heart. The last time he saw such magnificent fireworks, he had encountered the Desire Adjudicator and had nearly been stripped of his consciousness. Thankfully, the System had protected him; otherwise, he might have missed out on a four-star Card!
"Hmm?"
Sonic, who had been trying to find king's true weakness, also looked at the distant pillar of fire in surprise. That location... seemed to be the M-City branch of the Hero Association?!
"What is the Hero Association up to? Could they be under attack?"
As the captain of the third squad of the police force, Hill was extremely familiar with the districts of M-City. He knew at a glance that the explosion had occurred near the Hero Association branch and deduced from this that the Association was likely in trouble.
...
"Attention residents of M-City, attention residents of M-City. This is an emergency announcement from the Hero Association. The Hero Association's Mysterious Being prison branch, located in M-City, has been attacked by rioters. All the Mysterious Beings held within have escaped. In total, there is one Demon Level Mysterious Being and several Tiger and Wolf Level Mysterious Beings. The Hero Association is currently dispatching heroes to eliminate the Mysterious Beings. Until the Mysterious Beings are eliminated, all residents please pay attention to your safety and proceed to a shelter..."
The Mysterious Being alarm in the city center blared out the emergency broadcast.
"Pfft!"
king nearly choked on the news. There were actually... terrorists in this world? How could someone be so audacious as to attack a Mysterious Being prison? Weren't they afraid the Mysterious Beings would break out and slaughter them first?
"A mass escape of Mysterious Beings?"
Sonic's eyes lit up, and he once again revealed that "innocent (bizarre)" smile. "King, as a hero, it's your duty to eliminate Mysterious Beings, isn't it? Heh, as long as you're fighting them, your attention will surely be focused on them, and you'll lower your guard against others. At that time... heh, your life will be mine."
...
Meanwhile.
Outside the M-City Hero Association branch's Mysterious Being prison!
Leng Feng and the other members of the Vigorous Assassin Group gathered around the Assassin Commander.
"Boss, those Mysterious Beings have successfully escaped the prison. I believe the Hero Association will soon broadcast a notification to the residents of M-City. When that happens, King will definitely be invited by the Association to participate in the operation to exterminate the Mysterious Beings."
The Assassin Commander sneered, "King's vigilance is too high, causing our last two operations to fail. This time, we've found a group of 'helpers.' We must kill King."
Li Ren looked at the Assassin Commander with admiration. "Boss, your plan is perfect. No matter how strong King is, he will definitely be distracted while fighting a group of Mysterious Beings. That will be the best time for us to assassinate him."
The Assassin Commander said hatefully, "Since we can't wait for the perfect opportunity to assassinate him, then we'll create an assassination opportunity ourselves! We'll give King nowhere to run and use his life to wash away the shame of our two failures."
"Kill King! Avenge our shame!"
"Kill King! Avenge our shame!"
The seven or eight assassins roared in low voices.
...
Ring, ring, ring!
king's phone rang right on cue. With a Mysterious Being riot breaking out in M-City, there was no way that King, as M-City's biggest-name hero, wouldn't be called into action.
After a brief conversation with Maria, the Association staff member in charge of managing Mysterious Being information, he hung up the phone. The cells throughout his body began to buzz with excitement, and a look of eagerness flashed in his eyes.
A Demon Level Mysterious Being! A Demon Level Mysterious Being! He had searched for a whole day, and finally, his wait was over. Haha, heaven rewards the persistent! And what's more, there were over a dozen Tiger and Wolf Level Mysterious Beings as bonus gifts. How should he put it? Let's just say: Perfect!
The Vaccineman Card was finally going to see some major action!
"This guy... is he getting excited?" Hidden in the shadows observing king, Sonic's eyes narrowed. "The moment he heard news of Mysterious Beings appearing, a fierce battle intent erupted from his eyes, and his completely relaxed aura sharpened like a blade's edge. So this is your combat state, King!"
"Huh? Why are there still so many openings all over his body? Why haven't the openings changed at all?" His pupils shrank. "What a terrifying man. Even after entering a combat state, his guard remains up. It seems to have become a kind of... instinct for him! He truly is a master, never letting his mind slacken for a momentary battle. King, I want to reap your life more and more! The feeling will surely be wonderful!"
Bang!
An explosion sounded from the distance. It wasn't caused by explosives, but rather the crash of a heavy object toppling over.
"A Mysterious Being?"
king pulled his duck-tongue cap down low, unable to stop himself from revealing an "innocent (bizarre)" smile. "Mysterious Beings, become my Cards!"
"That smile..."
Sonic stared blankly at the bizarrely smiling king, his mind exploding with a deafening roar. *Damn it, my patented smile has been stolen! Unforgivable! King, now I have another reason to kill you.*
*You... just go and die!*
(end of chapter)