Hero For Lust

Chapter 155: Green Fodder



"Come out here, 'Lord!'"

Boros opened his eye while lying on his broad bed. Raptora and Reptera slept nude beneath the sheets. The shout outside hadn't roused them, for their exhaustion ran bone-deep.

He shifted without sound, slid one leg off the bed, then the other, taking care not to disturb his mates. He crossed the room, eased through the door, left the apartment behind, and climbed the building stairs until he reached the roof. At the building's edge, he paused.

Across the gap, on an adjacent rooftop, the one who had called him stood centered in a storm of swirling aura. Second only to Caspian's aura in scale.

The man wore something akin to armor — dark metallic gray, almost black — its angular plates crafting a monstrous silhouette. Fiery red lines, illuminated with internal energy, chiseled across his muscular torso, neck, face, and arms. Two sharp, red-edged protrusions crowned his head, adding to his predatory look. A single, stark white eye stared out, pupilless and unnerving. From his back, ragged, dark tendrils streamed with the breeze.

This aura… I remember. He is the one who injured Suppon and Kombu Infinity.

Boros grinned. He could tell this just might be the fight he had been longing for. Letting him live was the right decision.

"I can sense your grand power. Before we fight, tell me your name. I lead a group known as the New Dark Matter Thieves. I am Boros."

"'Lord' Boros is it? My name is... Garou. I'm the one who will rise to Disaster Level 'God' and set this world back on a proper course."

"Curious to know what I want? There existed a prophecy…"

Garou clasped his hands together and tilted his head. "A prophecy?"

"No one in the universe was left to face me. But then I met a seer who said I could experience a challenging fight on this planet. And when I arrived here, I met Carmin and Caspian, two beings whose—"

Garou cut him off. "Caspian… where have I heard that name before? It doesn't matter. I will take on anyone. Absolute evil is impartial, you know? Heroes, monsters, or aliens — I will slaughter every last one of them and rise to become the ultimate symbol of fear."

Boros could feel it, his emotions roaring at the prospect of going all out with an opponent who could match him. "The prophecy proved true in the end. Since you showed up here today. Come then! Bring excitement to my existence! I have waited long enough!"

"Very well."

Garou closed the distance in less than a blink. But that speed fell short. Boros drove his fist forward, meeting Garou's strike head-on. The impact launched Garou through the air, his body streaking across the skyline before crashing into a building over a kilometer away.

¤ ¤ ¤

Outside Z-City's Ghost Town, in the dry, reddish-brown expanse, a five-meter-tall figure crawled from the earth's depths. Long dragon necks, crowned with snarling maws, snaked from his back. This being had devoured an untold number of lifeforms to regenerate and compress his form into something far stronger than before.

"My tier of being right now," Orochi pressed his fists shut, "is unstoppable."

He heard the sound of movement in the distance, then looked over. "Oh, you're approaching me?"

Lit by the bright skyscape, Orochi caught a clear view of the monster. It stood several meters taller than him, its body a fortress of interlocking dark-green plates over a monstrously muscular frame. A smooth, gourd-like head rose above, eyeless — dominated by a horizontal gash: a grotesque mouth bristling with saw-toothed white fangs. In place of hands, two great mouths gaped open like carnivorous plants, each lined with its own set of sharp teeth.

"An appetizer before my revenge. Guess I'll test out my newfound prowess."

Orochi plunged his tail into the ground and drew energy straight from the Earth's core, pumping it into his body. "'Gaia Cannon!'" From his chest, he unleashed a massive beam of energy that rocketed toward the green fodder.

"Move Number 21: "Acid Squirt Breath."

¤ ¤ ¤

Outside Z-City's Ghost Town, a Hyperspace Gate tore open. From inside its lightning-wreathed perimeter emerged Blast, Void, and King Boris.

"Mercy," murmured Void.

Blast scanned the hellscape and glanced at the remains of whatever poor creature had provoked the entity. "We must've just missed it."

"Spacetime has melted again. The Dimensional Seal won't hold much longer. 'God's' cage will erode in the ne—"

Boom

All three turned toward the city and spotted a towering plume of smoke rising in the distance.

Without a word, they raced toward the Ghost Town.

¤ ¤ ¤

Stronger… I have to become stronger!

Garou clawed his way from the rubble of the collapsed building.

"Show me!"

Boros stood before him, unmoved. Garou surged forward. A sudden kick cut through the air. He twisted around it by instinct. Their fists met in a storm of violence. Blows landed faster than thought. They struck, deflected, countered — hundreds of clashes in less than a second.

For a breathtaking moment, Garou matched the pace, his martial arts a perfect, flowing counter to the alien's raw physical capabilities. The exchange, however, revealed itself as a lie.

"Gah!"

The illusion of parity shattered. Just as before, a single brutal fist buried itself deep in his gut. The blow felt like a meteor strike, stealing his breath and driving him to his knees as his vision swam with black spots.

Damn it! His power and speed are insane. I'll never reach my goal if I die here. If I don't take him out now…

Boros' voice thundered. "Stand. I know this is not your limit."

…I will never become…

Garou's thoughts became the catalyst for what followed: the glowing red veins across his skin ignited, blazing with furious light; his frame groaned, bones cracking and resetting as he expanded. Growing larger, heavier; simultaneously, the spikes adorning his form multiplied and stretched into wicked armor. His jawline fractured and reformed into a predatory angle; his mouth tore wider, becoming a jagged opening packed with rows of razor-sharp teeth.

He rose to his feet, a new and terrible silhouette against the blue yonder.

…Absolute Evil.


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