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"Saitama, what's that you're holding? A game console? You actually had money to buy a game console?" Ethan couldn't help but ask, surprised, as he looked at the bag with the console Saitama was carrying.
"Uh, yeah, the price of game consoles seems to have plummeted recently. It's less than a tenth of the original cost now," Saitama chuckled awkwardly.
"Hmm, that checks out. Game consoles are definitely a lot cheaper. After all, the 'Electronic Tentacles' have completely killed their sales. They'd probably sell them at a loss just to move the stock. Still, even with the discount, I remember the amount of cash you usually have. Buying even a marked-down console must have been a huge stretch, right?"
"Y-yes, it was! When I saw it was 90% off, I just couldn't help myself and bought it. But then I regretted it immediately. That was my food money for several days…" Saitama's smile was stiff and dry.
"Well, well, well, it's already bought. Don't dwell on it too much! But just be a little careful when playing! Those Electronic Tentacles seem pretty formidable. I mean, they managed to capture even KING, the S-Class Rank 7 hero, who's supposedly the strongest one out there," Ethan said casually. He figured that while the Electronic Tentacles might be tricky, given Saitama's power, they probably wouldn't pose a major threat.
"Oh, oh, I get it! But just playing for a little bit shouldn't be a problem, right? Besides, I spent so much money on this; it'd be a huge waste if I couldn't even play it!" Saitama thought it over and ultimately decided to play the game.
Ethan also played games at home, but thanks to the 'Home Guardian' setup, the Electronic Tentacles couldn't invade. However, playing at Saitama's place meant they wouldn't have to worry about weird things trying to creep in while they were gaming.
Saitama sat in front of the TV, looking like he had a deep-seated grudge against the world. He'd connected the console—the console that cost several days' worth of his food money—and he was determined to play until he'd gotten his money's worth.
Genos and Ethan sat behind Saitama. As for little Sayuriko, Ethan had sent her home. He didn't want to risk her getting accidentally hurt if the Electronic Tentacles turned out to be too difficult to deal with.
Genos watched Saitama holding the controller with deep seriousness, his eyes growing more cautious. Ethan, on the other hand, was still a bit languid, sitting back lazily as he watched Saitama turn on the game.
The console powered up, and the game screen filled the view of the three of them.
"Oh, just looking at the graphics, this game is actually pretty well-made. I wonder what the plot is like!" Saitama praised as he looked at the starting screen.
Before Saitama could officially start playing, however, long appendages, like octopus tentacles, suddenly began to emerge on the screen, wriggling and squirming everywhere.
"Is that… the Electronic Tentacle?" Seeing the tentacles on the screen, Genos's expression grew more serious, and he was already poised for action.
"Huh? Isn't this part of the game's story?" Saitama asked, looking surprised.
"Of course not. It's not some 'Tentacle Monster vs. Schoolgirl' game; it's just a normal game. Why would it have tentacles?" Ethan rolled his eyes.
"Oh, you're right!" Saitama nodded in sudden realization. But just then, a tentacle suddenly burst through the screen! It was large, with very prominent suction cups. One tentacle broke through, quickly followed by a second, then a third. A huge number of tentacles swarmed out, reaching for Saitama, Ethan, and Genos in front of the TV.
"They really are tentacle monsters!" Ethan exclaimed in surprise.
The newly emerged tentacles thrashed wildly, attacking the three. But before Genos, who was already prepared, could make a move, Saitama grabbed the very first tentacle and yanked hard.
The next moment, with a great whoosh, a torrent of tentacles was forcibly dragged out of the screen by Saitama.
The instant the tentacles were pulled out, Ethan flew out of the apartment fast. Once outside Saitama's place, Ethan saw a massive, dense collection of utterly repulsive tentacles. Saitama and Genos were currently enveloped by this huge mass of limbs, and even more people, besides Saitama and Genos, were being squeezed out of the screen one after another.
There were so many people, at least a thousand that he could see right now. And that wasn't all; more people were still being dragged out of the screen by the tentacles.
A constant flow of people and a constant flow of tentacles. These tentacles were truly wicked things. They really seemed intent on finding any available orifice to drill into, regardless of whether the person was male or female—they just aimed for any opening they saw. It was completely depraved. Ethan even saw a tentacle attempting to enter Saitama's mouth, but Saitama simply bit it off.
The endless stream of tentacles and humans pouring out of the screen meant that it wasn't just Saitama's apartment anymore. The entire building they lived in—every space inside and out—was filled with the vast number of tentacles, except for Ethan's apartment, where the 'Home Guardian' kept the tentacles out.
"This is—this is just too, too terrifying! And so evil," Ethan muttered, unable to look away. The sight was too much, too awful to behold.
"Aargh! This is disgusting! You absolute bastards!" Saitama roared, his voice full of exasperated fury. It would have been strange if Saitama hadn't gotten angry at something so vile.
Following Saitama's furious shout, Ethan, who was observing from outside, watched as the residential building seemed to have been hit by a missile. Most of it instantly collapsed. Countless snapped, severed tentacles flew everywhere. It was clear that no matter how many tentacles the monster had, they were no match for a single punch from Saitama.
"Is it over?" Ethan flew back inside once things seemed quiet. He quickly spotted Genos and Saitama. Genos had a fair number of tentacles on him, but they were all dead and mostly cooked, thanks to Genos's potent flames.
However, Saitama looked much worse, at least on the surface. Ethan saw two small tentacles still lodged firmly in Saitama's nostrils.
"Saitama, are you… are you okay?" Ethan couldn't help but want to laugh at Saitama's appearance.
"F-fine, I'm fine! It was just a rather large octopus, that's all!" Saitama reached up, pulled the two tentacles out of his nostrils, and tossed them on the ground.
"That's good, that's good! You're amazing, Saitama! You took down such a massive Tentacle Monster with a single punch!" Ethan genuinely praised him. If it were him, he wasn't sure he'd even have the courage to throw that punch.
"Haha, of course! It was just a little Tentacle Monster! Ah, I'm getting hungry. I'm going to the kitchen to find something to eat!" Saitama said, turning and heading toward the kitchen.
"Pfft! Hahahaha…"
The moment Saitama turned around, Ethan finally burst out laughing, clutching his stomach and howling until his throat hurt. As Saitama walked away, Ethan saw that there was still one tentacle dangling from his rear end, the other end perfectly inserted right there.
"Sensei Saitama, are you… are you really okay?" Genos also saw this and asked, his face full of concern.
"A problem? Of course not! It was just a measly Tentacle Monster…"
"But… I'm concerned about your hemorrhoids, Sensei…"
"...Hemorrhoids...?"
"..."
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