With two Finger Pistols, Lucien killed Silver Fang.
Afterward, Lucien's amethyst eyes slowly shifted toward a civilian house about a thousand meters away.
Inside that house stood a mechanical mass of steel.
It was Metal Knight, the S-Class hero ranked sixth.
His true identity was Dr. Bofoi, a genius mechanical scientist. He was also an old acquaintance of Dr. Kuseno, the scientist who modified Genos. Metal Knight itself was merely a remotely controlled robot.
Inside a hidden laboratory far away, Dr. Bofoi watched everything through Metal Knight's vision.
Lucien suddenly looked straight toward the camera.
Bofoi's body stiffened.
"He could not have discovered me from this distance... right?"
Bofoi nearly fell off his chair.
The glow from the screen illuminated his face. The scientist had several prominent front teeth and a sinister, unpleasant appearance. At a glance, he looked like someone who could never be trusted.
Bofoi's breathing became slightly heavy.
"It is confirmed. That man must be one of the Gods involved in the God War."
"He killed Silver Fang, the third ranked S-Class hero, with just two finger movements."
"That power truly belongs to the level of a God."
Bofoi quickly began operating the controls.
"Metal Knight, retreat immediately."
However, the moment the robot turned around, Bofoi suddenly stumbled backward in shock.
"How is this possible?"
Before turning around, he clearly saw Lucien floating a thousand meters away in the distance.
Yet the moment the robot rotated its body, Lucien was suddenly standing right behind it.
Bofoi caught a glimpse of the distant figure through the corner of the screen.
That figure slowly faded.
It was only an afterimage.
Lucien had already moved.
Bang. Bang.
Bofoi could not even perceive how Lucien approached the robot. There was not the slightest blur or motion visible.
Lucien simply appeared beside Metal Knight and lightly tapped the robot's head with his finger.
"The technology in this world is quite advanced."
Lucien observed the metal body with interest.
"A remote controlled combat robot like this is quite impressive."
Lucien naturally knew that Metal Knight itself was nothing important.
The real value lay with the scientist controlling it.
Dr. Bofoi.
Although Lucien did not clearly remember the scientist's full details, he knew enough.
Metal Knight was only a puppet.
"I... I do not know what you want."
Under Bofoi's nervous control, Metal Knight slowly stepped backward.
Lucien calmly watched the retreating robot.
"Originally, I intended to kill you."
Lucien spoke casually.
"But your real body is not here. That makes things slightly troublesome."
As soon as those words were spoken, Metal Knight immediately retreated two more steps.
Inside his secret base, Bofoi's heart violently twitched.
Cold sweat formed on his back.
Lucien suddenly smiled faintly.
"Do not worry. I changed my mind."
"I want to try a small experiment."
"Please cooperate."
Lucien stared directly into Metal Knight's optical camera.
At that moment, Bofoi felt as if Lucien was staring straight at him through the screen.
Lucien spoke again.
"Stop breathing."
His voice carried a strange authority.
Law Following Speech activated instantly.
One second passed.
Five seconds passed.
Ten seconds passed.
Nothing happened.
The atmosphere suddenly became awkward.
Metal Knight continued operating normally.
Meanwhile, inside the secret base, Bofoi stared blankly at the screen.
This so called God...
seemed a little unstable.
He had just ordered a robot to stop breathing.
But robots did not breathe.
Lucien rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"It seems that does not work."
Lucien did not feel embarrassed at all.
If he did not feel awkward, then the situation was not awkward.
Lucien calmly flicked his finger forward.
A small burst of force struck Metal Knight's head.
Boom.
The robot exploded instantly.
The entire steel body shattered into fragments.
To Lucien, destroying it was no different from crushing an ant beneath his foot.
After losing interest, Lucien's body disappeared from the spot.
This trip was not entirely pointless.
Silver Fang had provided him with another opportunity to roll the Dice.
A moment later, Lucien returned to the house.
"You are back."
Saitama did not even look up.
He was still focused entirely on the game on his screen.
"Yeah."
Lucien casually sat down cross legged beside him.
"Let us continue."
The two of them resumed playing games online.
Mosquito Girl and Beast King immediately greeted Lucien respectfully when he returned, then they continued doing their own things.
Mosquito Girl returned to watching her idol drama.
Beast King continued browsing celebrity gossip.
Life inside the house quickly returned to its relaxed rhythm.
Meanwhile, Z-City gradually calmed down.
Although the crisis had passed, everyone throughout the city continued discussing a single topic.
God.
However, things were not so calm inside the Hero Association.
A special emergency meeting had been called.
This time the meeting took place through a video conference.
All attending members were S-Class heroes.
At the center of the conference screen stood a man wearing a formal suit and glasses. He was one of the high ranking officials of the Hero Association.
"I have gathered everyone here to share important news."
He paused briefly.
"The meteor that was capable of destroying Z-City has been eliminated."
"It was destroyed by one of the Gods involved in the God War."
Although he called it good news, the minister's expression remained extremely serious.
One hero immediately spoke with obvious impatience.
"You called me here just for that?"
Another hero snorted.
"You are wasting my valuable time."
Someone else added,
"Enough pointless talk. I have other matters to deal with."
Several S-Class heroes sounded irritated.
Behind some of their screens, explosions and burning buildings could be seen. It was obvious that they were still in the middle of fighting monsters while attending the meeting.
The minister did not waste time.
He spoke the next sentence directly.
"Silver Fang and Metal Knight were also killed by that God."
The entire conference room fell silent.
"What did you say?"
Atomic Samurai, ranked fourth among the S-Class heroes, immediately raised his voice.
His expression turned extremely dark.
Silver Fang had always been someone he admired greatly.
The two of them were also close friends.
Among everyone present, no one had a closer relationship with Silver Fang than him.
Pig God finally stopped eating and spoke.
"Is this God evil?"
The minister shook his head slowly.
"We cannot confirm that yet."
"Our research team is currently analyzing the available information."
"So far we have no clear conclusion."
A young boy carrying a backpack spoke next.
It was Child Emperor, the fifth ranked S-Class hero and a genius inventor.
"If he is evil, then why would he destroy the meteor?"
The minister nodded slightly.
"We do not know."
"But one thing is certain."
"That God currently resides in Z-City."
At the center of the conference table, a holographic image suddenly appeared.
It displayed Lucien's figure floating in the sky.
"So what does the Hero Association plan to do?"
Drive Knight, ranked ninth among the S-Class heroes, asked calmly.
The hologram switched to a city map.
A red circle highlighted a specific area.
Lucien's residence.
"Because we do not know whether this God is friend or enemy, all heroes are forbidden from approaching this region."
"We need time to investigate."
The screen changed again.
Two new images appeared.
Mosquito Girl.
Beast King.
Various information and analysis data were displayed beside their photos.
"These two monsters are suspected subordinates of that God."
"All heroes are strictly forbidden from engaging them."
A heavy silence filled the conference.
One hero finally spoke.
"Are you saying this God is a monster?"
Many of the heroes present had grim expressions.
If that being truly turned out to be a monster, humanity would face a disaster beyond imagination.
The minister hesitated briefly.
"Based on current information, he appears to be human."
"But we cannot completely rule out other possibilities."
"He could also be a monster, an alien, or something else entirely."
One thing was absolutely clear.
The Hero Association could not afford to provoke him.
Watchdog Man suddenly spoke.
"What about the other God from the God War?"
"Was he killed by this one?"
The minister nodded slightly.
"That is the most likely possibility."
Atomic Samurai frowned.
"That is truly terrible news."
A few minutes later, the meeting ended on a heavy note.
No one felt comfortable.
No one knew what that God might do next.
If he ever went insane, humanity would have no way to resist.
Worse still, judging from his actions, he did not seem particularly friendly toward heroes.
At the same time, deep underground somewhere on Earth, numerous monsters were secretly gathering.
Because of the God War and Lucien's appearance during the meteor incident, the Monster Association began forming much earlier than it should have.
To monsters, God was also a terrifying threat.
Not just humans.
Every living creature on Earth now faced the same danger.
If God was kind, then everything would be fine.
But if God turned evil...
Then the world would face nothing but destruction.
Perhaps gathering together would at least give them some sense of safety.
Meanwhile, the so called God responsible for all of this was currently sitting in front of a computer, loudly cursing at a game.
His temper was so bad that he nearly smashed the keyboard.
"Oh, it is time."
Mosquito Girl suddenly heard the alarm clock beside her computer.
It was already four in the afternoon.
Time to prepare dinner.
Mosquito Girl stood up and returned to her bedroom.
She changed into a special outfit and walked toward the mirror.
After adjusting her makeup, she nodded in satisfaction.
After all, no woman would go outside looking careless.