Chapter 335: Mutated Mob and Saitama
"I really... came out..."
[Lilith] stretched out her hand somewhat incredulously, feeling the warmth of the sunlight.
Even the air had a scent that made her feel sweet.
"I advise you not to inhale too much of the air in this kind of place, little girl~"
A female voice tinged with a bit of laziness interrupted Lilith's exclamation.
She turned her head and saw a woman a few dozen meters away. Her long white hair stood straight up towards the sky, and she wore a cloak, standing outside a police cordon line. Holding a weapon resembling a metal baseball bat and with a cigarette dangling from her mouth, she was currently sizing up Lilith and Mercenary Tao.
Lilith turned back to look at the sewer she had just escaped from. Where was the hospital? Behind her, there was only a large patch of colorful, motley hues appearing out of nowhere in the air, constantly changing.
"If you're living humans, hurry back to my side."
The woman continued to remind Lilith. Lilith naturally wanted to leave, but she turned back to look at Mercenary Tao, who hadn't moved a step.
Rumors in the Space said that Mercenary Tao had hunted down a Title Level Reincarnator, [Seven-Colored Magus · Kirinji], in a head-on battle and displayed his Crimson Drop Card on a stall.
Lilith didn't think she, a [Average]-tier spellcasting-side Reincarnator, could escape his pursuit at this distance. So, wisely, she made no move to run away.
Of course, if the person who came wasn't Ayase Seiko from Dandadan but some powerful S-Class Hero from One Punch Man, she might have tried to call for help.
Kaito 'heard' this weak woman's inner voice and glanced at her. Her thoughts were so simple that he almost didn't need mind-reading to understand them.
Kaito looked around. This was probably the outskirts of a certain city; the outline of the city could be seen in the distance. However, a large area of space behind him was occupied by that peculiar energy.
Those colorful, motley hues didn't give a sense of brilliance or beauty at all. Instead, looking at them for too long induced discomfort and nausea.
A special aura emanated from there. All real-world forces were isolated. Even the wind, upon reaching that space, completely dissipated.
Sunlight couldn't penetrate, and air couldn't circulate. It was clearly an independent space completely isolated.
"Stop looking. That place has been completely eroded by the Spirit World. Your companions can't be saved. Give up."
Ayase Seiko reminded the 'nostalgic' pair. She didn't dislike this type of person, but in this day and age, such people were becoming fewer and fewer.
After seeing the tall, handsome man and the thin, black-haired woman walk out from the cordon line, Ayase Seiko frowned.
This man carried a strong scent of blood.
"Spirit World erosion?"
Realizing that this was likely a plot character arranged by the Space to introduce the world background and current situation to Reincarnators who escaped from this Side Mission, Kaito chimed in.
Ayase Seiko received that distress call and calculated slightly, knowing someone else was trapped in this Spirit World erosion zone. She came here merely to observe if there were new changes in this area.
Unexpectedly, there were actually survivors.
"Half a year ago, someone tore the boundary between the Spirit World and reality, causing a massive amount of Spirit World power to leak into the real world. The number of Youkai and Ghosts exploded. Many places have turned into this. Tsk, very dangerous..."
The woman spoke somewhat dully. The changes in this world were no longer something a Spirit Medium like her could solve.
Listening to the woman's brief description, Kaito understood this must be part of the world background.
He turned to look at the other side of these cordon lines. A motorcycle was parked by the road, and a man whose hair almost covered his face leaned against the bike, smoking.
"Hey, you know what happened half a year ago, right..."
"Mr. Reigen Arataka."
Ayase Seiko, who was about to leave, also stopped. The spirit disaster half a year ago had dealt a nearly devastating blow to their Spirit Mediums. Already struggling with broken lineage due to lack of recognition in modern society, Spirit Mediums were almost crushed by the massive amount of supernatural events.
Many Spirit Mediums died in the spirit disaster.
Actually, when Kaito heard Ayase Seiko say someone tore the boundary between the Spirit World and reality, he immediately recalled the voice suspected to be Reigen Arataka when those people tried to find Mob for help earlier.
The other party said [Reigen Arataka is just a fraud] but remained silent about Mob's whereabouts.
Combined with the currently known worldview, in Kaito's view, there were few characters capable of tearing the boundary between the real world and the Spirit World.
Probably only a handful like Saitama, Mob, and God. Although Tatsumaki was also a ceiling-level Esper, the description of tearing the Spirit World fundamentally fit Mob and God better.
As for Saitama, due to his special characteristics, theoretically, he could achieve almost all destructive events.
Combining Reigen Arataka's appearance here and his decadent posture, Kaito could almost confirm that the one who caused the terrifying spirit disaster was Mob—or rather, a darkened, berserk Mob.
In the center of a bustling city, on a densely populated commercial street, inside a coffee shop with the sign [Shandora Maid Café], the aroma of coffee mixed with the smell of blood.
Several waitresses in maid outfits lay dead in the shop, their bodies torn apart. Only a barista in a white shirt and vest remained, head bowed, brewing coffee at the counter.
His face was pale, his hands trembling. He couldn't perform his usual skills at all, wailing constantly in his heart.
Someone save me! Anyone! Hurry and save me!
But no one responded to his expectations. People came and went on the street, seemingly uninterested in looking at the situation inside this shop. He even saw several Professional Heroes pass by the window, yet they still didn't notice anything wrong.
Inside the shop, 9 men and women dressed differently sat in their seats with various postures. A man sitting by the bed, wearing a gray trench coat and a hat, lowered his head to taste his coffee before speaking:
"Although being deployed to the same area as me implies everyone is at least a Veteran-level Reincarnator with quite good evaluations in the Space, I still want to share some intelligence and a few pieces of advice."
"Currently, this world is confirmed to contain content from both [One Punch Man] and [Mob Psycho 100]. Therefore, there are several [Iron Rules] I hope everyone can abide by."
"First, regardless of what type of Reincarnator you are—Lawful, Neutral, or Evil—and regardless of what goal you want to achieve in this world, do not, in any form—remember, any form—provoke Saitama, Tatsumaki, or Mob!"
The man emphasized his tone and simultaneously took off his hat, revealing his face. A cross mark was branded on his forehead.
"Want to capture female slaves? Fine, but don't target Hellish Blizzard (Fubuki)."
"Want to torture and kill plot characters to satisfy your desires? No problem, but don't do it in front of these people."
"Want to kill plot characters to obtain Singularities? Also OK, but stay away from people around Hellish Blizzard and Mob."
At this moment, everyone in the coffee shop recognized the speaker as the number 4 figure of the [Far East Magic Society], Title Level Reincarnator [Treant].
He had a fierce reputation, but right now, his words implied that everyone should 'behave themselves.'
Lee Chae-rin, wearing a half-mask, stood against the wall on the innermost side. Out of the corner of her eye, she clearly saw everyone's expressions.
Those deployed here were likely Reincarnators above the middle stage of the [Strong] tier. There were two recognizable Title Level Reincarnators who didn't speak at this moment. Clearly, the [Iron Rules] mentioned by Treant were likely some laws summarized by Reincarnators who had entered these two works.
She recalled Mob's loss of control and rampage in Mob Psycho 100 and Saitama's overwhelmingly powerful setting in One Punch Man.
She understood this arrangement.
These so-called [Iron Rules] were likely figured out by countless Reincarnators using their lives.
"Second, Reincarnators with heterogeneous bloodlines should avoid appearing in front of Saitama as much as possible."
"Third, the [Limiter] is not something we Reincarnators can touch. I suggest you put away those thoughts you shouldn't have and just stay away from Saitama. If anyone contacts Saitama and causes plot mutation, I will kill them directly."
These so-called pieces of advice basically focused on a few overly powerful plot characters. Before anyone could raise objections, Lee Chae-rin's expression suddenly changed.
A bald man wearing a casual hoodie and carrying a bag of stuff appeared by the window.
Thump, thump!
Lee Chae-rin's heart contracted abruptly. The terror of this instant made her vaguely realize that her Observation Haki hadn't detected his approach at all.
Even more terrifying was that the [Repel Humans] spell cast at the coffee shop entrance didn't work on him. Those dead-fish eyes looked directly into the shop.
None of the Reincarnators in the coffee shop were weak, nor were they fools. Even if they didn't necessarily agree with [Treant], nor would they consider Treant capable of becoming the temporary team leader of this group...
No one would start a conflict with Treant before confirming safety.
The more mission worlds one experienced, the more one understood that relying on Reincarnator powers to cause trouble without thinking often led to death in sudden conflicts.
At this moment, almost everyone's gaze froze simultaneously. The coffee shop was abnormally quiet in an instant, save for the sound of heartbeats and the clinking of cups as the barista trembled while brewing coffee.
Treant sat by the window. His heart, which had long been replaced by a pure elemental body, also accelerated uncontrollably.
Damn it, it can't be this coincidental, right? Saitama appeared directly here?!
His face was livid, and the cross on his forehead began to glow.
The others also tensed their nerves instantly. Because they trusted the effect of the [Repel Humans] spell and due to the arrogance rooted in these powerful Reincarnators' hearts, they hadn't even disguised the gruesome state inside the shop.
When Saitama's dead-fish eyes, like the eyes of the King of Hell, looked into the shop, finally, a Reincarnator couldn't bear the pressure.
Boom!
Blazing Douqi erupted. One person exploded with incredibly violent wind and thunder energy, smashing through the back wall in an instant and disappearing. Wind and thunder roared, as if countless figures appeared simultaneously.
[Three Thousand Lightning Movement]!
Then came a magical explosion. One person pointed a finger at Saitama. Magic power exploded, and the space was completely submerged in intense light.
Lee Chae-rin's muscles trembled instinctively. With the transcendent trait of [Godspeed] combined with the explosive speed of [Soru], she could flee in an instant.
But watching the Reincarnators displaying their abilities, she forcibly suppressed her fear and lowered her body against the wall.
Squelch!
Amidst spraying blood, a devastating shockwave swept past Lee Chae-rin.
Then the magical glow dissipated. Only half the body of the Reincarnator who released intense magic remained on the ground, and the distorted spatial teleportation was completely shattered.
Treant gripped the table tightly with both hands, motionless, head bowed, avoiding eye contact with the bald head outside the window.
Subsequently, amidst the slightly changing expressions of everyone, the bald man in the hoodie turned and left emotionlessly, not even asking a single question about everything inside the shop.
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