A True Melee Scholar

Saitama closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and spread his arms, welcoming the joy of victory.

Although he had no idea why Morien kept talking in his head, he had to admit, the whole thing did feel pretty awesome.

"Sir over there," Genos, with only half his body left, forced himself upright. "Please tell me your name."

Genos recalled the voice from earlier in his head.

"Are you called Saitama?"

Saitama opened his eyes, looked at Genos sprawled on the ground, and answered:

"Yeah, I'm Saitama."

Sparks occasionally crackled across Genos's body as though he was leaking electricity.

He struggled to prop himself up further.

"Please accept me as your disciple," he said with difficulty.

"Oh, sure," Saitama replied casually, then suddenly realized something was off.

"Huh? Me?" He pointed at himself.

"Yes!" Genos answered with absolute certainty.

"Uh... I feel like you're not thinking clearly right now." Sunlight reflected off Saitama's bald head. "You should think it over yourself."

"No need, Master Saitama. I've already made up my mind."

"Why are you calling me Master already?"

"Because it is an honorific for one's master!" Genos immediately replied.

"Why can't you understand plain speech?" Saitama felt that Genos was being far too stubborn.

At that moment, a hand reached out from behind Genos, grabbed the back of his neck, and lifted the half of him that remained with one hand.

Genos instinctively looked back.

"By the way, how were you planning to get back?" Morien asked, holding half of Genos in one hand and giving him a shake.

The voice appeared directly in his mind. It sounded familiar—it was the voice that had served as the narrator earlier.

That voice had interrupted his self-destruction, so he judged that its owner was probably a good person.

"There's no need to worry. I can call for rescue," Genos answered.

"Oh, I see." Morien nodded. "Well, I happen to be heading to the central district too. Why don't I just give you a ride?"

"Morien, what are you going to the central district for?" Saitama asked curiously.

"I'm going to the Hero Association's Z City branch to book the hero exam for the weekend." Morien smiled. "It wasn't easy coming all this way. Wouldn't it be a huge loss not to try being a hero for fun?"

"All this way?" Saitama tilted his head.

"Yeah, and there are subsidies. As long as you're a professional hero, you get subsidies even if you do nothing every day. Though if you really do nothing, they'll revoke your hero status."

"Subsidies!" Saitama instantly caught the keyword. "I'm going too."

"Yep, subsidies." Morien put one hand on his hip. "By the way, if you call yourself a hero without registering in this country, people will treat you like a pervert."

"That happens?!"

"So all this time, you've been a bald cape pervert," Morien pointed out.

"Ah!" Saitama's expression turned ashen.

"Seriously, aren't everyone here infected by microorganism Monsters or something? Every single one of them is pretty abnormal."

Morien shook Genos in his hand and asked Saitama:

"So? Are you coming with us?"

Remembering the past three years of eating discounted food every day, Saitama said with great seriousness and excitement:

"I'm going!"

"Then let's go together." Morien looked at Genos in his hand. "Can we drop you off at the police station?"

"Just leave me at the lost and found."

Genos thought for a moment, then nodded.

"That will work."

He could just call the doctor to come pick him up later.

"Then let's go." Morien suddenly pointed at Saitama's bald head. "By the way, is that really okay?"

"What?" Saitama patted his head in confusion.

"Buzz..."

A mosquito drifted up from above.

"Ah! Didn't I kill them all?!"

"How is there still one alive?!"

"Don't run!"

Watching Saitama angrily see the mosquito off into the distance, Morien chuckled.

Sorry I couldn't let you have your fill, Lady Mosquito.

But then again, that mosquito should have already eaten its fill.

How pathetic, Saitama. I'll probably forget you in about a minute.

Come to think of it, if I split off mosquito-like larvae, could they restrain Saitama?

Morien looked at Saitama and thought to himself.

Once Saitama had completely let the mosquito escape, Morien picked up the other half of Genos's body from the ground nearby, carried one half in each hand, and headed toward the central district.

They were currently in the outskirts of Z City. The central district was some distance away, but not far enough to require a taxi.

Morien and Saitama walked side by side along the road.

Morien continued chatting with Saitama in a casual, intermittent manner.

"But wouldn't it be enough to book the exam online?" Saitama felt that Morien was making an unnecessary trip.

Morien had barely gone out before this.

"Oh, that." Morien answered, "I want to visit the outskirts on the other side of Z City, and I'll be passing by anyway."

"Besides, I'm already out, and it's not far from where I'm going."

"I heard there's a dojo over there. Its martial arts are supposed to be impressive, so I wanted to take a look."

"Silver Fang Bang's dojo? The third-ranked S-Class hero?" Genos asked from where he was slung over Morien's shoulder.

"That's right." Morien nodded.

"I see." Saitama nodded. "By the way, why did you suddenly want to learn martial arts?"

"Why?" Morien thought for a moment, then answered, "I need some ability to protect myself, don't I?"

"I heard learning martial arts takes a lot of time." Saitama clasped his hands behind his head. "Do you really have that much time?"

"Don't say that." Morien smiled. "You might not be able to tell, but I'm a true Melee Scholar."

"Why call yourself a Melee Scholar?" Saitama asked. "Wouldn't something like martial artist or martial arts master be better?"

"Because I really am a Melee Scholar." Morien said it as though it were only natural.

"Ah... I don't get it."

"It doesn't matter if you don't get it. You just need to remember that I'm a true Melee Scholar." Morien looked at Saitama.

Saitama blinked, indicating that he remembered.

Morien looked away and sensed it.

There was no sign that the Melee Scholar potion had been digested.

Saitama should indeed remember that Morien was a Melee Scholar.

It seemed that although he was powerful, he did not possess the level required in the mysterious world for potion digestion. Acting before Saitama might not be any different from acting before an ordinary person.

Before long, the two arrived at the police station.

Morien handed over the two halves of Genos, one above the other.

"Officer, I found this by the roadside."

"Quick, praise me for returning lost property."

"And help me register it with the lost and found."

"Thank you."

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