Tony landed beside Saitama. His faceplate opened as he looked at the lifeless Golden Queen, then let out a long breath.
"Nice work, Saitama. Every time I watch you fight, it makes our high-tech armor look like kids' toys."
Saitama scratched his head instead. Staring at the warehouse floor he said with a troubled look, "Crap… I think my clothes got splashed with that green stuff. No idea if it'll wash out… Ugh, what a pain."
With the bug crisis resolved, the city fell into a brief period of chaos, then frantic rebuilding. After Tony thanked him over and over (and strongly hinted there'd be a generous reward), Saitama's mood improved a little. He was already thinking about heading home, soaking his uniform to get the bug fluid out… and checking whether the supermarket still had discounted items at this hour.
But the calm didn't last.
This time, the disturbance didn't come from the sky.
It came from the ground.
At first, it was a dull, subterranean rumble from deep underground, like something enormous turning over in its sleep. Then, at a major subway-station expansion site on the city's outskirts, the ground suddenly gave way. Massive drilling equipment was swallowed in an instant, and the earth split open into a bottomless rift.
Along with a deafening, spine-chilling screech, a colossal creature burst up from below.
It was a worm-like monster of unbelievable size. Its body was nearly ten meters in diameter, its full length impossible to tell—just the portion above ground already stretched over fifty meters. Most despair-inducing of all, its entire body was covered in thick natural armor like granite. Its skin was rough and brutally hard, reflecting a rocky sheen under the sunlight.
The construction crew's drill had accidentally punched through an ancient rock layer that sealed off its nest, waking this terrifying beast that had been sleeping in the depths.
The rock worm was furious at being disturbed. It roared, opening its massive maw—inside were layered rings of circular teeth, like an industrial grinder. With a casual roll, it crushed a tower crane and site cabins into scrap. Then it began slithering toward the densely populated city center.
Wherever it went, streets cracked open, foundations collapsed. A bus that couldn't get out of the way in time was swallowed whole—its metal frame twisting and crumpling instantly under that horrific bite force.
The military responded fast. Tanks and armed helicopters arrived, shells and missiles slamming down like rain onto the worm's rocky hide. But when the fire and smoke cleared, they'd done little more than leave scorched marks and knock off a bit of stone dust. Nothing could pierce that thick natural armor.
Worse, it drew the worm's attention.
It swung its massive tail and sent several tanks flying like toys.
Panic spread again. This underground monster's raw physical defense seemed even more troublesome than the alien bug swarm from before.
The news quickly reached Saitama on his way home. He stood atop a tall building, watching from afar as the giant worm rampaged along the city's edge as if nothing could stop it, leaving devastation behind.
"…Why again…" Saitama sighed. "Today's really been nonstop."
Then he noticed something.
In the worm's path, there was an elementary school.
And right now, a yellow vehicle that was clearly a school bus seemed to have stalled due to the driver's mistake, stopping directly in front of the worm's route.
The worm appeared to notice the "snack." It adjusted its direction, opened its tooth-filled maw, and slowly crept toward the bus.
Inside, children's terrified screams rang out.
(End of Chapter)
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