The Fifth Product: Galrm Is a Real Man
Galrm was the fifth product, and Galrm was a real man. Whether a comrade had been kidnapped, tortured and mutated into a monster only to finally turn human again, or whether he’d had to tear apart an old colleague with his own hands, he didn’t dwell on any of it. He was an executive of the Evils. He simply did what had to be done.
In other words, like any proper villain, he showed up and turned the city into a disaster zone. As always, the corporation had filed the proper advance notice, and the citizens had evacuated to the shelters exactly as warned. A few locals who were used to this sort of thing even cracked jokes with him.
“Hey, Mr. Villain! My car’s ancient—mind smashing it for me? I’ve been wanting a new one…”
“Sure. Just don’t go posting on social media that I was the one who did it.”
“Obviously! Thank you!”
Galrm, who had been socializing with civilians like some kind of politician instead of a villain, flashed a sly grin as he sensed a presence in the distance. The prelude to the coming battle. To a man who had lived through battlefields where bullets and bombs fell like rain, the atmosphere felt as comfortable as his mother’s arms. Peaceful days without any struggle, on the other hand, felt like thorns against his skin.
A short while later, Galrm stood face to face with a hero he had never seen in this city before. The man seemed thoroughly bored; he scratched the back of his head and yawned widely. Beside him stood another hero whose face Galrm knew well—one who kept fidgeting nervously while watching the yawning man’s mood.
“Ahem, Galrm! This is as far as you go! We can no longer overlook your evil—!”
“—You’re Galrm? What the hell, calling me in because you can’t handle one beast bastard?”
Pushing aside Red—who, as a proper E City hero, had been about to deliver a flashy introduction, splendid lines, and a pose—the yawning man stepped forward.
Galrm felt the aura rolling off him and instinctively understood. This wasn’t some rookie who had only experienced playful, entertainment-level fights like the clowns beside him. This was a real warrior who had tasted blood and flying flesh on actual battlefields.
The moment he sensed that aura, Galrm dropped into a stance and released a seriousness he had never shown before.
“You seem quite confident in your skill, human.”
“Huh? Ah, yeah, I suppose.”
“Let us settle this fairly and honorably.”
The man let out a hollow laugh at Galrm’s words.
“Fair and honorable my ass. A villain sure has a lot of demands.”
And in the next instant, dozens of heroes appeared from every direction. Every single one of them was a long-range projectile user—the worst possible matchup for Galrm. In front stood an expert of equal caliber whose job was to prevent Galrm from fleeing or attacking the others.
After confirming everything, Galrm realized they had come to capture him in earnest.
“—How cowardly, for so-called heroes.”
“Didn’t you know? Every hero who wasn’t a coward is already dead.”
The man gestured as he spoke. Countless attacks rained down on Galrm moments later. Galrm fought with everything he had, but it wasn’t enough to overcome opponents who had come specifically to take him down.
And so Galrm was defeated. It had been a very long time since a new line had been added to his record of losses.
After treating Levitan, the number of my escorts had increased to two. To be precise, the amount of baggage had increased. After all, a guard without any ability could never truly be called a guard.
I looked down at Levitan, who was using my thigh as a pillow and rolling around happily. She must have been watching me the whole time, because the moment I glanced at her our eyes met. She beamed, twitching her rabbit ears.
“Boop boop~?”
“Miss Levitan. You’re heavy. Please get down.”
“Levitang is lighty~!”
“No, I’m the one who’s being crushed.”
“Lighty, I said~”
Feeling a definite killing intent, I deliberately turned my head and tried to ignore the growing weight on my thigh. Levitan didn’t like being ignored; she started bumping her head against my leg with little thumps.
Right around the time I began to worry about blood circulation, the lab door opened and Galrm walked in—covered head to toe in wounds, which was rare for him.
“—Scientist. Got any medicine?”
“Mr. Galrm? You’re hurt. What happened?”
“Ahh… lost for the first time in a while. Those cowardly hero bastards…”
I almost clapped like a happy seal at the news of his defeat, but then I remembered he was still a tiger who could crush my skull with one punch even while injured. I quickly put on a serious expression and rested my chin on my hand.
Luckily Galrm hadn’t seen my near-celebration. He strode straight into the lab and began fiddling with everything in sight.
“You can’t just touch things like that!”
“Where’s the medicine? Is this it? The color looks about right.”
“Ah! I’ll get it for you, so please just sit down!”
Fearing the damn beast might accidentally cause an incident, I hurriedly stood up and handed him the red medicine I had prepared. Galrm gulped it down in one go and let out a long sigh.
Soon the countless wounds covering his body began to disappear like melting snow. I couldn’t help but admire it inwardly. As expected of a beastman—his regeneration is off the charts.
“—Scientist. Got a favor to ask.”
“Yes. Go ahead.”
“While dealing with those cowardly, petty heroes… I realized my strength isn’t enough. I want to get a little stronger.”
“And?”
“…I want you to make me stronger.”
I looked at Galrm and let out a disbelieving laugh. Just “get stronger” with no details? How was I supposed to interpret something that vague?
Strength had always been relative. A tank that could massacre hundreds or thousands of infantry without breaking a sweat would become a sitting duck the moment those same infantry were handed anti-tank weapons.
In the twentieth century, the mighty battleships once considered invincible had been helpless against submarines and torpedoes. In the Middle Ages, knights who could slaughter dozens of peasants single-handedly with nothing but a sword had been wiped out by crude iron cannons that fired finger-sized lumps of metal—cannons that even one man could barely operate, let alone aim accurately.
Strength was never absolute; it was always relative, and it changed depending on its purpose. Fighter jets might be stronger than tanks, but that didn’t mean factories only produced fighter jets.
“I see. What exactly are you unhappy with? As far as I know, no one can match your physical ability, Mr. Galrm.”
“Turns out there are a few. Ran into a hero today with strength on par with mine. One-on-one wouldn’t have been a problem, but he had several subordinates helping him, so it was a little…”
“Too much for you?”
“…Not too much. Just a bit. I was only pushed back the tiniest amount.”
Galrm’s pride made him phrase it that way, but judging from the state he had been in when he first entered the lab, he had been pushed back quite a lot. If his pride hadn’t taken a serious hit, he never would have come asking me to make him stronger—the same man who had coldly refused steroids, claiming he didn’t need them.
“So you need a way to keep distant enemies in check?”
“Yeah. That sounds good. I need a method to deal with faraway targets. Throwing cars and objects has its limits.”
“Perfect. Miss Levitan, come over here too. I’ll explain it to both of you.”
“Me?”
Levitang, who had been lying on the sofa and watching us with a disappointed pout, broke into a bright smile and scampered over. With both beasts in front of me, I pulled out the gene sphere I had separated while treating Levitan the other day.
It was a small bead that looked like a piece of candy—the Leviathan gene extracted from Levitan’s body. I had even post-processed it to make it easy to swallow.
“This is the genetic code extracted from Miss Levitan’s body. Care to try one, Miss Levitan?”
“Ehh… you want Levitang to eat this-yong?”
“It came from your own body.”
“That’s true, but… hmm.”
Levitang frowned but still carefully placed the bead in her mouth. The next moment, scales began sprouting all over her skin.
While a startled Levitan poked at her own body, I realized the experiment had succeeded and smiled softly.
“Ei-tang, what is this?”
“I’ve reawakened the Leviathan genes that were inside you. More precisely, the medicine you just took recreated the genetic code… You should be able to use your old powers exactly as before until the effect wears off.”
“…It feels stronger than before, though?”
“Ah—I made a few modifications.”
“—Scientist. Stop with the complicated talk. So? What happens when I eat this?”
Galrm cut off the conversation, clearly impatient, and began fiddling with the gene bead. I searched for a simple way to explain it, then a word flashed through my mind. I smiled.
“If you take this… beams will now shoot from your eyes.”
“…Huh?”
“Beams will shoot from your eyes.”
“Oh…” Galrm let out an interested sound. I laughed along with him. Only Levitan, who still didn’t understand what was funny, kept tilting her head in confusion.
G City’s S-class hero Gaisa had been dispatched to E City on orders from the Hero Association. The first thought he had after arriving was, Are these bastards playing house?
In this city, villains didn’t run wild. Instead of digging up heroes’ families for kidnapping and murder threats, they even filed advance notices about when and where they would appear.
He had suspected it might be a villain trick to make the heroes lower their guard, but apparently the policy had been in place for years. If anyone broke the rules, the villain side would even file complaints with the Hero Association.
They’ve hit the jackpot.
In G City, where villains waged guerrilla warfare, ambushed heroes daily, kidnapped and tortured families, and occasionally assassinated the mayor in secret, such a thing was unimaginable.
To someone who had lived in G City, this place was literally paradise. A lukewarm, overly comfortable paradise. Part of him wanted to settle down here forever.
But he couldn’t—not when he thought of his suffering hometown.
“Mr. Gaisa, we have a dispatch.”
“Huh? There wasn’t anything scheduled today.”
“It came up suddenly this morning. Looks like they might be after revenge.”
“Really? Then I’ll make sure to catch that beast bastard this time.”
“Ahaha—That would be nice.”
Gaisa was still bitter about letting Galrm escape last time. If he had captured him properly, he wouldn’t still be lounging around here; he would have already returned to G City.
But regret was pointless. Forgetting the past and focusing on the present was the most important thing in life.
Arriving at the predicted location with E City’s heroes, Gaisa looked at the massive stadium that could seat tens of thousands and let out a hollow laugh.
“Does that guy have no learning ability? He’ll just get wrecked the same way again here.”
“Right? It’s strange… He’s not usually this stupid.”
The E City hero tilted his head in confusion and stepped inside. In the center of the stadium, Galrm stood majestically with his arms crossed.
Gaisa signaled his colleagues. The heroes spread out across the stands and took aim at Galrm. Meanwhile, Gaisa stepped forward boldly.
“Yo, beast bastard.”
“—You’re late.”
“Late, early… What, are we your errand boys? You call and we come running?”
Galrm simply shrugged, completely unfazed. He didn’t look any different from the last time they had fought.
Still puzzled, Gaisa loosened up his body as he approached. His ESP ability spread throughout his body, enhancing his physical capabilities.
“Didn’t get to ask last time. What’s your name?”
“What does a villain need a hero’s name for?”
“I am Galrm. Warrior, state your name.”
“Crazy bastard. What the hell is a villain—.”
“Hmm… You’re not going to tell me?”
Galrm took a quick photo of Gaisa’s face with his phone. While Gaisa frowned, Galrm finished his search and spoke.
“Gaisa. S-class hero from G City. It all comes up in a search. What were you trying to hide?”
“That’s a portrait rights violation, you bastard.”
“It’s fine. I’m a villain.”
After receiving confirmation that his colleagues were ready, Gaisa gave the signal. Abilities fired from every direction at once. Gaisa stayed alert to make sure Galrm couldn’t target the others.
But unlike last time, Galrm made no move to dodge or counterattack. Instead he simply stood there quietly, watching the incoming barrage.
What is this bastard doing…?
The abilities slammed into Galrm’s body. The concentrated firepower should have been more than enough to subdue the Galrm from their previous fight. Gaisa realized the beast had been neutralized and that he could finally return to G City. He was busy letting out one hollow laugh after another when—
From within the smoke, Galrm fired beams from both eyes.
—KYAAAAACK—!?
—KYAAAAH!
—What the hell is this!?
Screams erupted from every direction as his colleagues were struck. Gaisa stared at Galrm, who was still shooting beams from his eyes, in utter disbelief.
“…A beast using ESP?”
“It’s not ESP. It’s science.”
“What? What kind of bull—”
There was no time for conversation. Having suppressed the other heroes with his eye beams, Galrm charged straight at Gaisa. A strike far more powerful than before slammed into him.
Galrm, who had thrown the punch, grinned.
“—One-on-one is pretty lame, huh? Hero.”
“…You fucking beast bastard!”
And so Gaisa exchanged blows with Galrm. It was time for revenge. After a long, brutal exchange of fists, Gaisa finally rolled across the floor and lost consciousness.
Galrm, having reclaimed his glorious victory, smiled with satisfaction.