Chapter 31: Cyborg Genos (Bonus)

After that god-level mosquito was summoned by Mosquito Girl, Saitama was instantly enraged and dashed after it without hesitation.

"Get back here!" he shouted furiously, eyes locked on the insect.

But almost immediately, something else caught his attention, a strange, massive black cloud hanging ominously in the sky.

"What the hell is that? Ugh... it looks like a swarm of wriggling mosquitoes."

Saitama squinted in surprise at the dark mass hovering in midair.

Then his eyes narrowed. "Wait, there's someone still here...?"

Genos, who had been concentrating on the situation, was momentarily startled by Saitama's sudden appearance. He quickly warned him, "Hey, kid! You need to evacuate right now. If that swarm notices you, you'll be attacked."

"...Seriously?" Saitama froze, momentarily dumbfounded. "Then let's hurry and run."

Right then, a strange, distorted noise rose from within the mosquito swarm that had completely enveloped Mosquito Girl.

"...!"

Genos immediately turned his head, eyes sharp. The swarm surged like a crashing wave.

Even faced with that terrifying sight, Genos remained composed. Energy began to build in his palm, glowing hotter by the second.

"Incinerate!"

An immense blast erupted, scorching everything within a 500-meter radius. Every mosquito caught in the wave of fire was reduced to ash.

"When I detected your presence, I already confirmed there were no other lifeforms nearby. That's why I can wipe you out without hesitation!"

Standing in the middle of a burned battlefield, Genos fixed an intense stare on Mosquito Girl, with flames flickering behind him. Suddenly, he remembered that there had been someone else, someone who had just appeared beside him a moment ago.

"Damn it! There was another person!"

He whipped his head around and spotted the bald guy from before.

Saitama was standing there, completely naked. His clothes had been incinerated by the blast.

"Relax, I'm fine. By the way, that move you just used? Perfect anti-mosquito weapon," Saitama said casually, his expression calm and unaffected.

"…the hell with this thing?!"

Genos blinked, staring in disbelief at the unscathed man in front of him.

"Hehehe~"

Mosquito Girl's cold laughter echoed ominously from above.

She had completed her transformation. Her body had turned a dark crimson, though her pale skin remained mostly intact. Subtle mutations ran across her limbs and back, revealing where she had fused with the swarm. But most terrifying of all was the power radiating from her; her strength had exploded beyond anything from before.

Before Genos could even react, she appeared behind him in an instant.

Whoosh!

A massive wound tore through Genos's waist, nearly slicing him in half.

He threw a punch, but she disappeared again. Her speed was simply too overwhelming. Genos couldn't land any hits.

"Hahahaha! You're pathetic!"

She laughed with cruel delight, dismantling his mechanical body piece by piece. In seconds, Genos found himself cornered and hopeless.

Realizing he had no chance of turning the tide, Genos began the sequence to self-destruct.

As the high-pitched beep beep beep echoed from his core, a glowing sphere of energy suddenly appeared in someone's hand.

Vaccine Man suddenly stepped between Mosquito Girl and Genos.

"?!"

Mosquito Girl's arrogant grin froze mid-smirk. The energy radiating from the glowing orb in Vaccine Man's hand was terrifying.

"I'm in a really bad mood right now..." he muttered, voice low and furious.

Without another word, he shoved the orb straight into her face.

BOOM!!

The explosion blasted her away. Her blood sacs ruptured midair, bursting into a red mist. Limbs and wings tore off as Mosquito Girl was flung who knew how far, her dismembered body vanishing into the distance.

[Alert! Your subordinate, Vaccine Man, has defeated the Demon-level monster 'Mosquito Girl.' Reward: 40 points!]

[Alert! First time defeating a Demon-level monster. Bonus reward: 30 points!]

Since Vaccine Man was one of Shinji's subordinates, the rewards were automatically credited to him. However, the explosion's shockwave traveled far beyond its intended target, leveling entire sections of surrounding buildings.

Fortunately, this area had long been evacuated, so no innocent lives were affected.

Genos hadn't been seriously injured either. Not only had Saitama absorbed some of the explosion by standing close to him, but even without that buffer, the blast wasn't strong enough to damage his core.

"...!!"

Lying on the ground, barely able to move, Genos stared in stunned silence at the figure floating overhead.

Despite the human clothing and vaguely humanoid form, Vaccine Man was clearly a monster.

A monster... attacking another monster?

And he'd taken out Mosquito Girl in just one strike?!

As Genos tried to make sense of what he'd just witnessed, Vaccine Man glanced down at him.

Something about Genos made his blood boil again. Just like the grotesque mosquito earlier, this guy didn't feel human.

And Vaccine Man was still furious. Hurling another energy orb might be a good way to vent some of that rage.

He ignored Saitama, who stood calmly nearby, untouchable, unreadable, and began condensing another orb of energy in his palm, this one aimed right at Genos's face.

"...Damn it!"

So this guy's a monster too?!

Realizing Vaccine Man was preparing another attack, Genos tried instinctively to stand. But his legs, sliced clean off by Mosquito Girl, couldn't support him. He collapsed back to the ground.

Was this it? Was he about to self-destruct again?

I'm sorry... Doctor...

He started the self-destruct sequence again. But just then, Shinji suddenly appeared out of nowhere using the Flying Thunder God Technique and struck Vaccine Man hard on the back of the head.

Smack!

The sudden slap stunned not only Vaccine Man but left Genos completely speechless.

Vaccine Man turned his head slowly, dazed. His eyes flickered with a jumble of emotions: shock, confusion, anger, and even a faint trace of grievance.

"I told you not to harm innocents. What were you just trying to do?!"

Shinji began scolding him without hesitation.

"But he's not human," Vaccine Man muttered in protest, his tone bordering on sulky.

"Cyborgs are still humans. Remember that next time."

"...Yes..."

Vaccine Man lowered his head, nodding meekly like a child caught misbehaving.

"You're strict... But wait, was he seriously about to attack this guy just now?"

At that point, Saitama finally spoke, a confused look on his face. He had been watching the scene without concern, assuming Vaccine Man was just messing around. It wasn't until Shinji's scolding that he realized how close things had come to turning ugly.

"Yeah, that's why I had to teach him a lesson," Shinji replied with a calm nod.

Then he shifted his attention to Genos, still sprawled on the ground with sparks flickering from damaged joints. "You okay? Sorry about that. This guy got carried away."

Genos snapped out of his daze, eyes wide with sudden focus. He immediately responded, "My name is Genos! I'm a cyborg who pursues justice on my own!"

He had already pieced things together. That monster who destroyed Mosquito Girl in one strike, no matter what he was, was clearly the subordinate of the red-eyed youth standing in front of him.

This was an opportunity. One he couldn't afford to miss.