The diners had all retreated to the edges of the ran shop, pressed against the walls, staring at Kaito with a mix of fear and awe.
He cleared his throat. The Emperor Engine purred ominously, amplifying the aura around him like the rev of a god's heart.
"There's no need to panic, everyone."
His deep voice carried easily through the fractured air.
"This monster has already lost combat capability. As a hero, I have the responsibility to bring her to the Hero Association for judgnt."
A beat of silence passed. Then—
Applause erupted.
"As expected of Lord King!"
"He's so calm!"
"He's capturing a monster alive—soone record this!"
"Exclusive! I need footage!"
Phones ca out. Shutters clicked. Kaito kept his expression stone-cold, but his heart was hamring in his chest like a war drum.
Steeling himself, he approached the broken figure of Mosquito Girl and crouched down.
Up close, the reality was even more surreal.
This monster had once pushed Genos to the brink. Now she looked like a shattered puppet—burned, broken, grounded.
As if sensing his presence, she stirred weakly. Blood-crusted lashes lifted to reveal trembling, crimson eyes.
Then—
Her pupils dilated in fear.
"K... King..."
Her shredded wings fluttered faintly. Her voice was barely audible, like a breeze brushing past a grave marker.
"Don't... don't kill ..."
Even in this state, the weight of King's reputation had found her.
Ding!Detected intense fear from Demon-level Monster Mosquito Girl. Deterrence Points 200!
Kaito barely held back a fist-pump.
Jackpot.
He kept his face calm, unreadable, and slowly extended his hand—fingers closing gently around her throat. Not tight. Just enough.
He lifted her.
The entire shop gasped in collective shock.
"I'm not going to kill you," he whispered, voice low enough only she could hear. "But you're going to cooperate. Understand?"
Mosquito Girl gave the faintest nod, still trembling, blood beads clinging to her lashes like frost.
Kaito could feel the fear radiating from her like heat. Her body was light—fragile now—but the idea of her power still lingered in the back of his mind. He was holding what had once been a high-tier threat... and now, she was terrified of him.
"Everyone, please make way."
He stood tall, the roar of the Emperor Engine filling the silence. The crowd instinctively parted, like subjects before royalty.
"The Association has specialized containnt protocols for monsters like this."
With the setting sun casting a long shadow behind him, Kaito walked out of the ruined ran shop, Mosquito Girl in his arms. Her body trembled. His heart thumped.
And a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
"I've really struck gold this ti…"
Of course, Kaito had no intention of taking her to the Hero Association.
What was he, stupid?
Handing over this walking, trembling bag of Intimidation Points to be dissected and forgotten? Absolutely not.
He took a detour through back alleys and quiet streets, deliberately avoiding CCTV lines and patrol routes.
Eventually, he arrived at King's apartnt in M City—an upper-floor unit in a luxury high-rise, secured by biotric locks and steel-reinforced doors.
With a beep and a soft click, the door slid open.
Inside, the apartnt was surprisingly clean and orderly. Typical bachelor setup, sure, but spacious. Tidy. Functional.
The centerpiece was a monster of a display screen, nearly wall-sized, flanked by high-end audio gear and a fortress of gaming consoles. Shelves overflowed with limited-edition figurines and ticulously catalogued ga discs.
Thanks to King's S-Class ranking and the generous funds from the Association, the lifestyle here was… comfortable, to say the least.
Kaito closed the door behind him with a sigh of relief. The cool alloy pressed against his back as he leaned against it, finally able to breathe.
He looked down at the unconscious figure in his arms. Mosquito Girl's breathing had stabilized, but her injuries were still ghastly. Blood and gri stained her skin, and her tattered form looked wildly out of place against the pristine flooring.
"Tch... can't leave her like this."
She needed to be alive, coherent, and—most importantly—afraid.
Letting her rot on the floor wasn't going to help with that.
The next hour tested Kaito in ways he hadn't anticipated.
He wasn't a dic. He wasn't a biologist. He was barely qualified to put a bandage on a paper cut, let alone tend to an alien monster with human features and shredded limbs.
Still, he tried.
He found a plastic basin, filled it with warm water, and dug out a few old towels he'd never used.
Then, with a mix of dread and awkward hesitation, he carried her into the bathroom.
Every part of this felt wrong.
He knelt beside her, dipping a towel into the water, and began gently wiping away congealed blood and dirt, careful to avoid her worst wounds.
He kept his eyes averted from... certain areas, but her skin—though cold—had a strange elasticity to it. Almost human.
Occasionally, his fingers brushed against her as he worked, and each ti he flinched, the Emperor Engine threatening to kick back into full roar.
"Focus, dammit."
It wasn't about attraction. It was about survival.
She was an asset—a key to farming the system, to rising in power.
That was all.
The process was clumsy, uncomfortable, and thoroughly exhausting. But eventually, the worst of the blood and gri was gone. She looked a little less like a corpse, and a little more like a fallen warrior.
Kaito slumped back, breathing hard.
"One step at a ti," he muttered. "One terrifying, awkward step at a ti."
His hands moved with the utmost care, like handling ancient porcelain.
He didn't dare jostle her too much—half afraid she'd wake up, half afraid she might literally fall apart. The process felt less like cleaning soone and more like defusing a live bomb while blindfolded.
By the ti he finished and loosely wrapped the now-cleaned Mosquito Girl in a thick, dry bath towel, he was drenched in sweat. Carrying her into the guest room, he gently laid her on the bed.
Then he collapsed right beside it onto the floor.
Panting. Drained.
"Oh my god… way more exhausting than a full day of boss raids…"
Now stripped of gore and gri, Mosquito Girl's condition looked no less critical—but sohow less horrifying. Her pale skin now held a faint, pearlescent glow under the warm light. Her features—delicate yet clearly nonhuman—ford a picture of eerie fragility.
A broken beauty.
Kaito (still playing the part of King) stared a beat too long.
Snap out of it!
He slapped his own cheek hard.
"Focus, Kaito! This is a Demon-level monster! Don't let her pretty face trick you! You know how this goes—the second she's conscious, she could vaporize you!"
Shaking off the strange mix of pity and unease blooming in his chest, he turned to more pressing matters.
Security.
He marched to the utility room and pulled out a bundle of high-grade hemp ropes—left over from that one ill-fated attempt at cosplay.
Returning to the guest room, he carefully and tightly secured Mosquito Girl's waist and upper thighs to the bedfra, looping the ropes several tis around each point and locking them with dead knots."Sorry about this… but it's either this or I beco mosquito chow."She had no limbs to struggle with, but monsters were unpredictable. Her wings might regenerate. Or she might develop so weird proboscis-based kung fu. Who knew?
Once finished, Kaito let out a breath and backed out of the room, closing the door gently behind him.
Then he flopped onto the living room sofa like a ragdoll.
His body was wrecked—but his spirit buzzed with anticipation."System," he whispered in his mind.Instantly, a glowing, translucent screen appeared before him:
—— Deterrence System ——
Host: Kaito (a.k.a. King)
Level: 1 (EXP: 0 / 100)
Attributes:
• Strength: 7
• Agility: 6
• Spirit: 5
Skill:
• Emperor Engine (Proficiency: 0 / 200)
→ Emits tangible soundwave vibrations. A red aura forms around the body, amplifying deterrent effect.
Deterrence Points: 200
Kaito's eyes sparkled.
200 points.
All from that single wave of fear Mosquito Girl radiated back in the ran shop. A perfect start.
He stared at the points. Then at the two upgrade options.
Option 1: Level Up (100 points = 100 EXP)
→ Instantly reach Level 2.
→ Unlock 10 free attribute points.
→ Boost strength, speed, clarity—overall survivability.
Option 2: Skill Upgrade (Emperor Engine: 200 / 200)
→ Fully unlock Proficiency Tier.
→ Potential new effects: longer range, stronger pressure, tangible damage?
→ Psychological impact—confusion, panic, unconsciousness?
His hand hovered in the air, index finger twitching toward the interface.
Leveling up… that's the safe play. Physical gains. Permanent growth. Real survivability.
But boosting the Engine...
That's power. That's montum. That's compounding intimidation interest.
He closed his eyes, replaying the ran shop scene—the soup rippling from the pressure wave, glass exploding, the terrified screams.
And that was at Level 0 Proficiency.
What could Proficiency Level 1 do?
Make monsters faint from sheer presence? Disperse the weak without lifting a finger?
The Emperor Engine wasn't just a gimmick. It was the brand.
Without it, he was a fraud in cosplay.
With it… he could beco the legend that King was known as.
But…
He also couldn't afford to get caught by sothing stronger before he could farm more points."Tch…"The tension crackled behind his eyes.
This wasn't just an upgrade decision.
It was a choice between credibility and control.
Between bluffing smarter... or fighting stronger.
He stared at the points again.
200.
Just enough for one path.
And only one shot to make it count.
User Comments
0 comments from readers