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"Ah, this is the life. I can finally sleep without worrying about some freak breaking in. Safe and peaceful... having a maid really is the best thing ever."
Ethan pulled open the curtains—and froze. Outside the window, a few grotesque monsters were crammed together, snarling and clawing at the glass, trying to force their way in. But no matter how strong they were, the wall between them was impenetrable.
Through the window, Ethan watched as Saitama obliterated the monsters with a single punch. Ethan gave him a casual wave. Saitama frowned, shrugged, and walked off.
For Saitama, every day started early. He had to get up, find missions, and—before leaving home—clear out the troublemakers loitering nearby. If he didn't, the monsters drawn in by Ethan's weird "trouble magnet" aura would just hang around the area. And since Ethan wasn't the type to bother with nuisances if they couldn't get past his defenses, Saitama had no choice but to clean up the mess each morning.
"Master, going outside for a little exercise every day is very good for both body and mind," said Sayuriko in her usual cheerful tone.
"Yeah, yeah, I know! But my situation's a bit... special, you see. So, um, going out might not be the best idea," Ethan replied lazily, slouched in his chair. Even after becoming a superhuman, he was still a total homebody. If anything, his desire to stay indoors had gotten worse. If he could, he'd probably spend entire days glued to the couch without moving an inch.
Sayuriko sighed softly, her expression knowing. "With your power, Master, no monster could ever hurt you. The truth is... you just don't want to go outside, right? Because you're lazy."
Ethan held up a finger like he was about to reveal a great secret. "No, no, no! It's not laziness. It's a rare disease, see? The moment I step outside, I start feeling... really uncomfortable. Terminal stage, even! The only known cure is to stay home. Preferably lying down. Works wonders."
Sayuriko covered her mouth, giggling. After living with Ethan for this long, she had a perfect grasp of what kind of person her master really was.
Honestly, she thought he was a good man—kind, gentle, impossible to anger, and always ready to comfort people when they needed it. He just... lacked motivation. About everything.
She knew she couldn't change him, but still, she tried. "Then, Master, you rest at home. I'll go buy ingredients for dinner. What would you like tonight?"
Her smile was soft, full of patience—the kind of smile that accepted everything about Ethan, the good and the bad alike.
"Dinner, huh?" Ethan tilted his head. "As long as it doesn't have ginger, I'm good. Other than that, I'll leave it to you, Sayuriko."
Honestly, it didn't matter what she cooked. Everything she made was amazing. The only thing he couldn't stand was ginger. (Superman doesn't like ginger either—yep, totally true.)
"Understood then! I'll be back soon," Sayuriko said, smiling as she slipped on her shoes and headed out.
"Ahhh." Ethan stretched with a long sigh of satisfaction. Life really couldn't get any better. He had everything he wanted—clean rooms, freshly cooked meals, and even a maid who'd give him a massage when he was tired. Maybe this was what living like a god felt like: comfortable, peaceful, and completely carefree.
He stood by the window, basking in the warm sunlight. Down below, Sayuriko looked up, saw him, and waved with a bright smile.
Seeing her like that, Ethan thought, Yeah... this world's actually not so bad. Even with all the random monsters and chaos, it's still pretty nice.
And then—
BOOM!
Before the thought even finished forming, something burst out of the ground with a thunderous crash.
From the sewer below, a creature emerged—green, gelatinous, and pulsing like a mound of living slime. In seconds, it expanded, swelling to nearly ten meters tall. A monstrous, bio-engineered abomination.
The Biochemical Demon.
The giant shadow fell over Sayuriko. She froze, realizing too late what loomed behind her. As she turned, her face went pale at the sight of the demon's twisted grin.
"HAHAHAHA!" the creature roared, raising one massive, whip-like arm and slamming it down toward her with terrifying force.
Crash!
Dust exploded upward. The ground where Sayuriko had just stood was obliterated into rubble. But not far behind the monster, Ethan was standing there, holding Sayuriko safely in his arms before setting her gently down.
"Man... what a pain," Ethan muttered, scratching his head, still half-asleep. "I just cleaned up one batch, and already there's another monster popping out? This world's such a hassle."
"ROOOAAAR!"
The Biochemical Demon screamed, digging its clawed arms into the ground and pulling back like a giant spring. Muscles tensed, the creature launched itself into the air, crashing down toward Ethan and Sayuriko with enough force to flatten a building.
Ethan sighed again. "Seriously... what a bother."
Without even changing expression, he lazily raised a fist and swatted at the air, as if brushing away a fly.
The punch connected.
In the next instant, the massive green monster exploded into a mist of liquid, droplets scattering everywhere. Gone.
One punch.
"Master! You're incredible!" Sayuriko looked up at him with eyes full of awe. "You're at least S-Class level, right? Maybe even higher! You're so strong!"
Ethan yawned. "Yeah, yeah. I guess."
For someone like him, being compared to a god wasn't even an exaggeration.
"..."
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