Chapter 29: Such Coincidences Happen in the World
king left, calm and composed, yet the hearts of Child Emperor and the others were in turmoil, like a raging tempest. They remained silent, carefully savoring everything that had happened that day.
Boom!
Tatsumaki rushed in, burning with impatience, and shouted, "Where's King? Tell him to come out! I'm going to beat him up!"
Flashy Flash opened his eyes to glance at Tatsumaki, then silently left, hugging his sword, "Instakill."
Tatsumaki pointed at Flashy Flash. "Hey, you with the hair clip, why are you leaving without a word? Tell me, where is King?"
Metal Bat dug a finger in his ear and sauntered out, slinging his custom-made baseball bat. "Aiya, time to head back for my daughter's piano recital. Hmm, it probably hasn't ended yet. Hope I can make it."
Tatsumaki put her hands on her hips. "Pompadour-head, you're up. Quickly tell me, where did King go?"
"To heaven. Go look for him there."
"Go to hell!"
Child Emperor, carrying his schoolbag, hopped off a stool and viciously crunched the lollipop in his mouth. "Sister Tatsumaki, Mr. King has already left."
"What? He actually left without waiting for me to get back?" Tatsumaki crossed her arms, tilting her head up arrogantly. "Hmph, he must have been scared to fight me, so he ran away early. It's just as well. That whole 'Strongest Man' thing is just nonsense people made up. He must be so ashamed of it..."
"Ah, it's time for my workout."
Tanktop Master picked up his dumbbells and headed for the door. As he passed Tatsumaki, he paused for a moment and said, "King being the Strongest Man isn't just nonsense people made up. It's something we all acknowledge."
A trace of reverence flashed in his eyes.
"What's that? How ridiculous. And don't you dare use 'we' to represent me. I've never acknowledged him as the strongest. Hmph, sooner or later, I'll prove to all of you who the strongest hero really is. I'm going to beat that conceited King until he's looking for his teeth on the floor."
A faint green aura flickered around Tatsumaki's body, and with a whoosh, she flew out of the operations room.
...
A City Hero Association Hospital.
Following a nurse's directions, king found Mike's hospital room. After the death of the Desire Adjudicator, the citizens who had previously lost consciousness were gradually waking up, though their bodies were extremely weak, making it difficult to move.
"Mike, how are you feeling?"
He placed the basket of fruit he had bought on the table and glanced at Mike, noticing his pale face and frail appearance.
"Mr. King~" Mike struggled to sit up, blaming himself in a weak voice. "I'm sorry. It's all my fault for not understanding the enemy's situation before leading you in, Mr. King. I almost got you involved."
"What are you talking about? You're not to blame for this. Don't beat yourself up. Just focus on getting better."
king comforted Mike for a few moments before taking his leave.
By the time he returned to M-City, the sky had already begun to dim.
"Looks like I've taken Saitama's credit again."
Although he hadn't done it on purpose, knowing the way Sitch and the others operated, they would definitely credit him with killing the Desire Adjudicator. No matter how he tried to explain, Sitch and the others would just smile and nod along, agreeing on the surface, but who knew what they were really thinking.
He wandered aimlessly down the street, his gaze scanning the various shops. "Should I send Saitama a gift as thanks? Oh, or maybe as an apology."
"Yeah, I won't send money this time. That's too tacky. The guy has saved me a few times; I should at least mail him a sincere gift that shows my appreciation."
As he stroked his chin, pondering what kind of gift to send Saitama, his eyes drifted between the storefronts. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, fixing on a particular shop.
"Heh, now this gift has some spirit to it!"
With a faint smile, he coolly took out his bank card, paid for the item, had it wrapped, and went to the post office to once again fill out Saitama's name and address.
"I hope he likes it."
He let out a mischievous laugh, his mind filled with images of Saitama's constipated expression upon receiving the package.
What he didn't notice was that in the coffee shop across the street, a well-built man in a suit was staring at him. The man wore a Bluetooth-like earpiece and whispered with a slight movement of his lips, "Dark Night, King is heading in your direction. Please get ready. Find an opportunity, and when King lets his guard down, go for the killing blow. Do not hesitate, or else, if you let King react, you will be the one to die."
"Understood."
"Remember, this deal cannot fail."
He solemnly emphasized the importance of the mission. They were the renowned Vigorous Assassin Group of M-City. A week ago, someone had offered five hundred million to take King's life. After tracking King's movements for a long time, they finally decided to act today. Firstly, they had heard that King had just fought a major battle with a Monster in A City, so his strength would not be at its peak, and he would be physically and mentally exhausted, making him more likely to show an opening for them to strike. Secondly, the client was getting impatient. To prevent this major deal from slipping through their fingers, they had to take the risk and give it a try.
In their philosophy, as long as someone was human, they had a weakness. Although King was hailed as the strongest man on Earth, they believed he definitely had an opening, as long as they were willing to put in the effort and patiently search for it.
And so, they had come. And, hmm, after seeing King, they discovered... damn it, King was full of fatal openings all over his body! They didn't even need to waste any effort looking. As long as you weren't blind, you could see the openings on King at a glance.
"Boss, King is full of openings. Leave it to me. I'll end his life with one slash," Dark Night requested excitedly.
"Don't be rash. Stick to the plan. Hmph, don't be fooled by his many openings. Most of them are actually traps. As a powerful individual, King is well aware that he has fatal weaknesses, so to cover them up, he deliberately reveals even more openings to confuse others. If we attack recklessly, we will definitely fall into King's trap. All that will await us is death."
"Brilliant, Boss. I'll stick to the plan then."
Just as king was about to turn a corner, a figure walked towards him. The man was wearing a white hoodie and a black baseball cap that obscured his features. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, and he walked with a certain swagger. The man's eyes, hidden under the cap's brim, intentionally and unintentionally swept over king, yet he seemed afraid of being discovered, so his gaze always passed by casually, never lingering for more than a second.
"Huh? Why is King staring at me? Could it be that he's discovered my identity?"
Dark Night suddenly noticed that for some reason, king's gaze was fixed on him, not moving an inch. This made his heart tighten fiercely, as if it were being squeezed by a hand, leaving him breathless.
The assassin commander in the coffee shop also noticed Dark Night's precarious situation and hurriedly whispered a warning, "Dark Night, Dark Night, be careful! It seems King has discovered something! A powerhouse like him is especially sensitive to killing intent. Take a deep breath, calm your nerves, and retract your killing intent. You absolutely cannot expose yourself." At the same time, he notified the next assassin, "Shadow, Shadow, King is about to turn the corner. If Dark Night can't find an opportunity to strike, you take over."
"Understood," a gruff voice replied through his earpiece.
On the other side, Dark Night didn't reply to the commander. He couldn't. King was right in front of him. If he dared to speak carelessly, he would expose his identity as an assassin in an instant and get blown to bits by one of King's punches.
He followed the commander's instructions, subtly taking a deep breath and then slowly exhaling, forcibly suppressing his inner tension.
At the same time, in a corner not far behind king, two sneaky figures were hiding.
"Granny, should we make our move now?"
"Wait a moment. The time is not yet ripe. We have to wait until he lets his guard down completely before we can strike. Meijiaoniang, King's power is super terrifying. We may only get one chance to attack. If we fail, what awaits us might be death. Therefore, we must be cautious, and then be cautious again."
"Granny, I understand."
These two figures were none other than Qixi and Meijiaoniang. After days of investigation, they had finally learned the truth behind the deaths of Cola-Man, Sprite Man, and Fanta Man. Although King's reputation was terrifying, this deep-seated blood feud made the two of them decide to avenge their fallen comrades, even if it meant death.
Meijiaoniang had the appearance of an orange Mirinda can, complete with arms, legs, and a full set of facial features, much like Cola-Man and his two sons. The only difference was the two points on her chest.
Qixi was similar, with the appearance of a light-green 7 Up package, looking slightly old.
"Granny, he's about to turn the corner."
"Meijiaoniang, get ready! When people turn a corner, they tend to focus on the path ahead and neglect their surroundings. This is our chance."
"Yes, Granny."
...
"Dark Night, Dark Night, prepare to strike, prepare to strike."
Inside the coffee shop, the assassin commander watching king also spotted the golden opportunity and hurriedly notified Dark Night.
Dark Night's pupils contracted. His breathing stopped, and his heart felt like it had been violently seized, pausing for a beat. His hand, stuffed in his pocket, tightened its grip on his dagger as he awaited the commander's final order.
One second!
Two seconds!
The assassin commander and Qixi stared intently at king, who was about to turn the corner.
Three seconds!
Four seconds!
"Dark Night, move!"
"Meijiaoniang, shoot now!"
"Yes!"
Meijiaoniang responded. The straw on her can-lid head had been aimed at king for some time. A stream of liquid needles as thin as hair shot toward the back of king's head.
"King, give me back my husband and my sons' lives!"
At the same time, upon hearing the order, Dark Night pulled the dagger from his pocket and lunged violently toward king. His eyes were sharp as a wolf's, his face twisted and ferocious. "King, your life is mine!" He held the dagger in a reverse grip and thrust it viciously at king's head.
Pfft!
A soft sound of flesh being pierced echoed in the air, then vanished.
Thump!
Dark Night's body froze mid-motion, his stabbing dagger fixed in place. His pupils dilated, and crimson blood slowly trickled from his seven orifices. His face was quickly drained of life, and his stiff body went limp and collapsed to the ground.
Meijiaoniang, Qixi: "..."
Assassin Commander: "..."
They were all stunned. The assassination plan had failed in the strangest way.
"Not good, that guy King has a bodyguard! Meijiaoniang, retreat quickly! Otherwise, if we let King recover, we won't be able to escape."
*Which eye of yours saw Dark Night as King's bodyguard? Didn't you see him holding a dagger ready to assassinate King? With this IQ, you can basically say goodbye to the assassination profession.*
"Yes, Granny, let's go!"
Seeing their assassination attempt fail, Qixi and Meijiaoniang immediately retreated.
"Shadow, abort the mission! Abort the mission!"
The assassin commander wiped his face, calmed himself down, and hurriedly ordered the other assassins to retreat. It was too terrifying. He didn't see King make a move at all, yet the elite assassin personally trained by their group had died without any warning.
King... what a terrifying man.
king had already turned the corner, completely oblivious to what had just happened behind him. He was thoughtfully recalling Dark Night's attire, "That guy was also wearing a white hoodie and a black baseball cap, almost the same outfit as me. We're wearing the same clothes. What a coincidence. How awkward!"
*(Assassin Commander: You bastard! Meijiaoniang, Qixi: WTF!)*
PS: Flashy Flash's Little Theater
Flashy Flash: Beibei, say no more. Draw your sword!
B-Class Hero Rank 666, Beibei: You must be angry about not having any lines again. I told you, your character setting is the cool and aloof type. You only have internal monologues, no spoken lines.
Flashy Flash: Cut the crap! I'm going to slash you to death! I'll show you the terror of lightspeed!
Beibei: I'll arrange a duel between you and King. Now scram, quickly.
Flashy Flash: It's a deal! Ultimate Technique: Lightspeed Scram!
Gulu gulu gulu...
Beibei: What terrifying lightspeed!
Thank you to Floating Clouds with the Wind 6 De Fei Qi (that name really is 6), Illusory Thousand Dreams, and Smiling Yang Weili for your donations! I officially started work today and haven't had time to touch my computer, so the update was slow. Also, I discovered a serious problem. Am I updating too much? I noticed some books on the recommendation list that were published earlier than mine are still lingering around forty or fifty thousand characters, while I've already soared to seventy or eighty thousand. Pfft! Whatever, I'll hold back one chapter today → → Don't hit me... in the face.
(end of chapter)