Chapter 74 : Human Pride (3)
by fnovelpia
A shelter created to protect humanity.
The dome-shaped shelter had now become a prison trapping humans instead.
“Ah— Can all you humans hear me well?”
A grotesque monster’s voice echoed from the speakers meant for announcements.
Everyone inside the shelter froze in terror at the realization, while the cockroach monster twisted its body in delight, scanning the surroundings.
“No need to be so afraid. If you just listen to me, I might spare one or two of you.”
“O-One or two…?”
“There are at least a million people in here!”
“B-But with numbers like these, couldn’t we take down that monster?”
“…Right. It’s not like we have zero chance.”
Staying still would only get them killed anyway.
Some of those who realized this began pushing through the crowd, creeping toward the cockroach monster.
Like crocodiles stalking through a swamp.
The women daring to fight were all ruggedly built—by civilian standards, they were among the strongest.
“N-Now!”
“Rush it all at once!”
“Raaah!”
Just as about ten people lunged at the monster from all sides—
Clang.
“…Huh?”
The steel pipe they swung with all their strength bent instead.
The scene was broadcast to every survivor through the shelter’s ceiling monitors.
Calling it an “ambush” would’ve been too generous.
It was like bacteria biting an elephant—no, even more pitiful.
Amid the deepening despair—
Crunch.
“G-GAAAAAH!”
“KYAAAAH!”
“I-It’s starting…!”
“E-Everyone, run!”
The monster grabbed one of the attackers by the hair, lifting her high for all to see.
Then, it made sure the others understood too.
“From now on, the first one to run dies first.”
Everyone froze mid-step, their faces pale as they stared at the monster about to begin its execution.
“Now, humans. We’re going to play a fun little game.”
“A… a game?”
“What kind of game…?”
“The rules are simple. Bring me S-Class Hero Yoon Ha-eun. Right now. I don’t care how you do it—just get her here.”
Crack.
“AAAAH! M-My head! MY HEEAD!!”
“KYAAK!”
“H-Help, she’s dying!”
“From now on, I’ll kill 100 people every minute. Try to run, and you die. The only way to survive is to bring Yoon Ha-eun here.”
“That’s impossible!”
“Dammit… Yoon Ha-eun’s an S-Class Hero! How are we supposed to know her number?!”
“Q-Quick, call the Hero Association! Or stream this live—get the word out to Hero City!”
“I don’t wanna die! I DON’T WANNA DIE!!”
The cockroach monster had one goal: revenge against Yoon Ha-eun, the S-Class Hero who humiliated it 12 years ago.
And since she was a hero, it figured—keep killing people, and she’d show up.
A simple “solution.”
Now, it raised its hand to crush a human skull and begin its carnage—
When suddenly.
“DETROIT PUNCH!”
Wham.
“Huh?”
“I-It didn’t even flinch…?”
“W-Wait, who’s that…?”
“A-A hero!”
“It’s Hero Succubus Girl!”
An unexpected hero had appeared.
At least, until the monster realized this could lure Yoon Ha-eun even faster.
“Hmm? Never thought I’d find a hero inside the shelter.”
Thud.
“Guh…!”
“Gah, are you okay?! Seaweed Warrior! Get her to safety!”
“Safety? Where’s safe in here?!”
“Just take her as far as possible!”
Another hero.
Killing a junior would enrage Yoon Ha-eun even more.
Besides, hunting only the weak went against a cockroach’s instincts.
Cockroaches thrived on invading human spaces, risking death for the thrill.
And for their king—this monster—killing a hero was far more fun.
So it tossed the “trash” aside.
“Shall we begin the killing?”
“…!”
Just as Ruina’s face twisted in despair—
Bang bang bang!
Boom.
“Huh?”
“W-What?!”
Another barrage of attacks rained down on the monster’s head.
Bullets and a weak explosion—nothing that could hurt it.
“RROOOAR! C-Class Hero, Scissors Storm, has arrived!”
“I-I’m a soldier too! Stationed in F City… Let’s do this!”
“M-Me too! E-Class Hero, Third Eye, h-here to help!”
Inspired by Ruina’s bravery, third-rate heroes, soldiers, and mercenaries emerged, forming a ragtag team.
For the civilians on the brink of death, this moment sparked a flicker of hope.
“A-Ah… AAAAAH!”
“H-Heroes! We’re saved!”
“Damn right! I knew it!”
“Hang in there, Hero!”
Finally, the assembled personnel.
45 professional mercenaries.
171 soldiers.
And 89 heroes ranked C or lower.
21 C-rank.
9 D-rank.
59 E-rank.
A number and combination that could be considered reassuring, in a way.
Before they knew it, they were moving as a team, surrounding the cockroach monster that had been waiting for them.
And at this very moment—
“United Team, let’s go!”
“”Let’s go!!””
Everyone, though from different fields, came together to create a new history…
CRACK!
“It was hopeless~.”
“…Huh?”
It was a complete lack of power, plain and simple.
Before a proper battle could even begin, a single casual punch from the cockroach monster turned half of them into a bloody mess, scattering their remains across the evacuation shelter.
Just five minutes.
In that fleeting moment, the heroes, once believed to be everyone’s hope, were utterly annihilated.
“H-Hiiik?!”
“Hmm… I was expecting a little more. I suppose quality really does matter more than quantity? Looks like they were all trash.”
“M-Monsteeer…!”
At the feet of the cockroach monster, all that remained was a pool of crimson blood.
The bodies—whether still barely alive, on the verge of death, or long since lifeless—floated thickly in the blood-soaked ground like a river.
The watching citizens no longer even screamed.
Perhaps because they had lost too much hope, their faces were shrouded in darkness, leaving them as mere spectators, awaiting death.
They no longer clung to useless hope.
It was all over.
Even if there was still one hero left standing.
“F-Fight… We have to fight!”
Ruina forced her sharpened claws to rise, pushing herself forward toward the cockroach monster that slowly approached.
She had to move forward.
Because she was the only one left.
That was why she had to keep going, yet as the monster—at least three times her size—loomed over her, her body refused to obey.
It was pure despair.
Like a natural disaster beyond human resistance—Ruina could think of it as nothing else.
Her spirit was already broken.
But at that moment—
“Hero, I have a proposal for you.”
A whisper.
The monster—or rather, the demon—lowered its head, whispering into Ruina’s ear as if granting her an opportunity.
“I’m about to massacre those helpless humans behind you. But if you stay still, I’ll let you live.”
A god’s—
“…What?”
As a hero, the one thing she should never do.
To stand idly by in the face of suffering.
To allow not just an individual but an entire group to be slaughtered.
That was the price for her survival, according to the cockroach monster.
The reason?
Simple entertainment.
It was just a little test—to see how deep a hero could fall before Yoon Ha-eun arrived.
And, of course—
SMACK.
“…Ha.”
“S-Shut… up…!”
Rejecting such an offer was what being a hero was all about.
“Y-You… Y-You will… n-never… lay a… f-finger… on the citizens…!”
Dribble.
“…Pissing yourself while trying to act tough, huh.”
Despite the humiliation of wetting herself, Ruina still showed her resolve to fight.
But respecting her will? As if.
The monster was simply pissed off now.
“Then die.”
Compared to Ruina’s punches, which wouldn’t hurt a fly, the monster’s fists could pierce through buildings.
And with one of those, it intended to crush the last remaining hope of the shelter—
SLASH!
“Guh?!”
“…Huh?”
“… “
The cockroach monster was about to deliver the final blow—
But in that instant, its once-proud right arm, gleaming with a black sheen, was severed cleanly.
From above, where it had broken through the ceiling earlier—
A single blade had sliced through it in an instant.
“Confirmed: This cockroach monster matches the one recorded twelve years ago with 99.99% accuracy.”
“H-Hero?”
“S-rank Hero, Rank 15—Sword Princess Zero. Entering combat now.”
Like pouring fuel onto a dying ember, Zero arrived at the shelter, drawing all eyes to her as she engaged the cockroach monster in battle.
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