Alex, GIR, and MIMI charged into battle, determined to deal with the horde of mechanized zombies. Alex had no idea what kind of idiot thought creating cybernetic zombies was a great idea. But he knew for sure—it was a damn bad idea, and it wouldn’t end well.

He didn’t even need to think long to realize that, sooner or later, these cybernetic zombies would go out of the control of the Evil Corporation. And when that happened, the conflict would no longer be a battle between two sides—humans struggling to survive and the Corporation itself—but would descend into chaos with the emergence of a third threat.

Necromorphs. The Marker would inevitably take control of these mechanized corpses, and that would change everything. In a way, it even made Alex’s job easier, but he couldn’t predict what new abilities the zombies would gain once fused with the Marker’s influence.

Alex knew one thing: the Marker was merely a relay, transmitting a signal from a distant planet entirely composed of necromorphs. A massive collective mind, merging billions of bodies into a single biomass. Taking control of Earth’s technology would be effortless for it.

As soon as Alex crashed into the horde, the cyber-zombie with the plasma cannon decided that shooting him in the face was a brilliant tactic. Big mistake.

Alex instantly kicked the zombie in the chest, sending it flying into the crowd like a bowling pin. Several more zombies rushed at him, and a barrage of plasma bolts followed. He dodged with ease, tilting his head slightly, but soon, his eye started twitching in irritation.

“Who the hell keeps aiming only at my face?!” he muttered, dodging another shot.

While the plasma bolts didn’t harm him, feeling them repeatedly hit his face was, to put it mildly, annoying. Grabbing the nearest zombie by the arm, he effortlessly tore it off along with the cannon. The weapon sparked, signaling an imminent explosion.

“Here, assholes! Catch!” Alex hurled the cannon into the center of the crowd.

The explosion erupted instantly, scattering mechanical limbs and chunks of flesh in all directions. He noticed that the cyber-zombies were acting in coordination, which meant one thing—someone was controlling them. But who?

Meanwhile, he continued tearing through the enemies, using his fists and legs. He grabbed a zombie by the head and crushed it like a ripe tomato. He barely had time to toss the corpse aside before a modified Tank-zombie lunged at him. Instead of hands, it had massive cybernetic prosthetics, and it slammed into Alex with enough force to crack the concrete beneath them.

Alex firmly gripped both of its arms, preventing it from advancing or escaping. He glanced at the zombie’s metallic limbs.

“These prosthetics remind me of those old Cyberpunk implants,” he muttered. “Too bad you won’t be needing them anymore.”

Clenching the monster’s arms, Alex yanked them apart sharply. A sickening crunch echoed, and the Tank-zombie was torn in two. He tossed one half aside and used the other as a weapon, swinging it around and smashing cyber-zombies left and right. A wide grin stretched across his face.

GIR and MIMI were also having their fun. While regular zombies ignored the two robo-dogs, the mechanized ones immediately recognized them as a threat and attacked. However, GIR and MIMI had faced overwhelming forces before.

MIMI effortlessly swung her power mace, turning cyber-zombies into broken toys. The cheerful, childlike laughter coming from her made the scene even more absurd.

GIR, armed with a chainsword, sliced through zombies with ease. Even their metal implants couldn’t protect them from his blade. Chunks of cybernetic flesh flew through the air, and the ground beneath them was drenched in blood and entrails.

Meanwhile, in the Analytical Department of the Evil Corporation.

Caleb Williams sat at his desk, watching the events unfold on a massive screen. His subordinates were also closely monitoring the battle, desperately trying to make sense of what they were witnessing.

“This… this has to be a joke,” one of the analysts muttered. “He just took a plasma shot to the face… and nothing?!”

The longer they watched, the more they reevaluated the threat Alex posed. In their world, no technology or biological modification existed that could allow a human to survive such an impact.

A tense silence filled the room. Everyone waited for their boss’s reaction.

Caleb frowned at the screen, arms crossed over his chest.

“How the hell did he survive a charged plasma shot to the face?” he asked, his voice quiet but unmistakably sharp.

The question hung in the air. No one had an answer.

A cold sweat ran down the backs of those present. It was clear—this time, Caleb was truly angry. And no one wanted to be the one to face the wrath of a man whose cruelty had long become legendary.

Everyone understood: if someone dared to speak and their answer didn’t satisfy Caleb, they would immediately be sent to the research department—as an experiment. And no one needed to guess what would happen next. A death by zombie claws seemed merciful compared to what awaited them in the laboratories.

They all knew—the scientists in the research department had long forgotten what humanity meant. Their experiments were brutal, inhumane, enough to make one’s blood run cold. Ending up in their hands was equivalent to signing one’s own death sentence.

“Is anyone going to speak? Or are you just sitting here for nothing? Or perhaps you’re all so incompetent that you can’t even answer a simple question?” Caleb’s voice was cold and threatening, his gaze sweeping across the faces of those seated at their monitors.

Every analyst in the department felt his piercing stare. No one dared to meet his eyes—but not just out of fear. They truly had no answer. No one could understand how Alex had taken a direct plasma shot to the face and walked away unscathed.

Caleb saw that no one was going to speak, which only angered him further. These were supposed to be the best minds, people with exceptional analytical skills, yet right now, they looked like frightened rats avoiding eye contact. His expression grew darker, colder, and the employees swore the temperature in the room had dropped to freezing.

“You. Answer the question,” he ordered, jabbing a finger at one of the employees. “How did this man survive a charged plasma shot to the face?”

The man Caleb pointed at instantly broke into a cold sweat. His mind raced at full speed, desperately searching for an answer that would satisfy his boss—and save him from becoming a test subject.

Frank, as he was called, swallowed hard. Meeting Caleb’s gaze was terrifying, but saying nothing was even worse.

“Director Williams, sir… Perhaps it’s because this man is a martial arts master. Maybe he somehow managed to block the plasma shot…” Frank blurted out the first thing that came to mind that even remotely explained what they had seen.

He held his breath, praying he hadn’t just sealed his fate.

Caleb tapped his finger thoughtfully on the desk. Each tap echoed in Frank’s ears like a countdown before an execution.

“Explain,” Caleb ordered, his icy gaze locking onto Frank once more.

Frank nodded nervously.

“Sir, we know that martial arts masters accumulate energy within their bodies during training. This energy is called ‘Qi’ or ‘Ki,’ depending on the school. It serves as their inner strength, allowing them to deliver devastating attacks and perform feats beyond human capability. For example, Hayato Furinji, known as the Legendary Master, is incredibly powerful and is rightfully considered one of the greatest.”

Frank took a deep breath before continuing.

“It’s possible that the one we know as Alexander Voldigoad also possesses this energy. Perhaps he used it as a shield around his body. I can’t say for certain how exactly he survived a plasma shot, but this seems like the most plausible explanation. We have too little information about this man, and without additional data, it’s impossible to fully understand the nature of his power…”

He finished speaking, doing his best to keep his voice steady.

Caleb narrowed his eyes slightly, mulling over Frank’s words. As he tapped his finger against the desk, he realized just how little they truly knew about Alex. All they had was a fragmented analysis of collected data, and even that wasn’t enough.

Anyone who posed a potential threat to the Corporation was closely monitored. They knew more about those individuals than the individuals knew about themselves. But Alex… he was an unknown variable, a factor that didn’t fit into their carefully constructed equation. It was as if he had appeared out of nowhere, playing the role of a hero, a savior, gathering allies, and systematically dismantling their well-laid plans.

What were his goals? What were his true intentions? No one knew which direction Alex was heading or what exactly he intended to do.

“Red Queen,” Caleb’s voice cut through the tense silence.

At that moment, a holographic projection of an AI materialized before him.

“How may I assist you, Director Williams?” a calm female voice asked.

“Increase surveillance on this man. All cameras, every tracking system we can access, any networks that can be hacked—I want everything. On him and everyone around him,” Caleb ordered without taking his eyes off the massive screen.

“It will be done, Director Williams,” Red Queen responded before vanishing.

Caleb despised unpredictable elements. Alex hadn’t even begun directly interfering with the Corporation’s plans, hadn’t yet taken action, yet he was already being recognized as a greater threat than any of their previous enemies.

His gaze returned to the screen, where Alex and his two small companions were almost finished dealing with the cyber-zombie horde.

“Release the final experimental specimen. Once this is over, dispose of all this defective trash,” he ordered grimly.

“Sir, do you truly believe this man can handle the final specimen?” Frank asked cautiously, standing nearby.

“Of course. The question isn’t whether he can win—it’s how long it will take. But if our products can’t defeat him, that doesn’t mean they’re failures,” Caleb responded calmly. His voice held no doubt. This man was an anomaly, and there was no one else like him.

Frank nodded and relayed the command to release the last experimental zombie.

Caleb didn’t even bother speculating—he already knew that this specimen wouldn’t stop Alex. The data from the research division made it clear: the creature was powerful, yes, but not on the level needed to be a true threat to someone like Alex.

However, Caleb was still intrigued—how resilient would this experimental zombie be when faced with an opponent of such a level?

“What about Ogata? Has he dealt with the masters from Ryouzanpaku yet?” Caleb inquired, turning his head toward Frank.

“Sir, Ogata has just arrived at the port, literally at the same moment that the group of a man named Alexander fought off the horde of the dead sent there,” one of the analysts responded, bringing the broadcast onto the screen.

Caleb glanced at the image indifferently.

“Record everything in detail. In any case, people like him don’t live long,” he said coldly, already mentally marking Ogata as dead.

“As you command, sir,” the analyst replied seriously, nodding.

At that same moment, Alex and his two small companions—GIR and MIMI—were continuing to fight the cyber-zombie horde. During the battle, Alex realized that most of them were simply regular corpses enhanced with cybernetic implants. Their main danger lay in the fact that some were armed with plasma weapons, and others had augmented limbs. For ordinary people, they were deadly, but for Alex, they were no more than an annoying crowd.

Suddenly, from behind, a Charger—a massive cyber-zombie with a metal shield instead of one arm—charged at him. The shield was splattered with blood, and the Charger barreled forward, intending to simply crush Alex. However, Alex lazily raised his arm, stopping the zombie with an iron grip.

The shield began to crack and deform under his fingers. With a swift motion, Alex ripped the shield from the zombie’s arm and hurled it like a frisbee straight into the horde of cyber-zombies, slicing through several with a single blow.

The endless wave of enemies was beginning to bore him. Sighing, Alex drew his katana, and a cloud of steam escaped his mouth—he was preparing to use his breathing technique. But at that moment, the air was shaken by a deafening roar. Alex squinted, turning toward the source of the noise, and saw a massive monster break through the wall of a nearby building.

At first, he thought it was just another variation of El Gigante, but when the dust settled, what stood before him was a true cybernetic nightmare. Huge and with mechanical implants, this zombie resembled a Cyberdemon. Without slowing down, it lunged at Alex, raising its giant arm for a strike.

But Alex was faster. At the last moment, he intercepted the attacking limb and, with a powerful throw, slammed the Cyberdemon into the ground. A loud crack reverberated around the area—the impact created a crater in the earth, and a web of cracks spread out from the point of impact. The heavy body of the monster crushed several cyber-zombies, turning them into a bloody mess.

“Even the Cyberdemon…,” Alex murmured, looking at the fallen monster. “I guess it’s pretty dull in the Evil Corporation, or they decided to hire only video game-obsessed lunatics for their research department.”

However, one strike wasn’t enough to kill the giant. The Cyberdemon snarled, rose, and raised its other arm, which was now outfitted with a massive plasma cannon instead of a hand. The charge began to build up, preparing to fire.

Alex didn’t wait. He instantly appeared beside the creature, delivering a crushing kick that forced the cannon to point upward, making it fire into the sky.

“GIR, MIMI, grab this bastard by the arms. Let’s help him understand what it feels like to be torn in different directions!” Alex grinned, speaking with amusement.

GIR and MIMI instantly leaped toward the Cyberdemon’s arms, gripping them tightly. Alex grabbed the monster’s legs and began to pull. The zombie’s tense muscles trembled, and deep tears appeared where the biotissue met the metal.

“Pull!” Alex barked.

They made a sharp yank, and the Cyberdemon’s body tore apart, leaving only the torso and head, from which malicious growls erupted. GIR and MIMI happily waved the detached arms like new toys.

“Ugh, throw that disgusting thing away,” Alex grimaced. “No need to carry that trash around.”

GIR and MIMI looked at him first, then at each other, and casually tossed the limbs aside. Alex smirked as he watched them. Sometimes he wondered: had he created helpers for himself, or just two kids who loved to play pranks?

The little ones climbed onto his shoulders, and he lit a cigarette, smiling. His gaze then fell on the Cyberdemon, still twitching and growling with rage. Alex easily jumped onto its chest and stared into the monster’s eyes.

“Well, hello there, my dear friends,” he said with obvious sarcasm, fully aware that the Evil Corporation was watching him. “This time, your toys are much more interesting… but alas, they break quickly. Next time, ask your engineers to make them stronger. It’s no fun breaking something that falls apart in a second.”

In the Evil Corporation’s analytical department, everyone heard his words. A tense silence filled the room. The staff cautiously glanced at the screen, where Alex’s face displayed exaggerated sorrow, as if he were a child who had broken his favorite toy and was longing for a new one.

Then their eyes shifted toward Caleb. His face remained impassive.

Suddenly, the silence was pierced by loud, rolling laughter.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” Caleb laughed, genuinely amused by Alex’s words.

The analytical department staff flinched at Caleb’s laughter. They had heard that chilling sound before, but the last time it was heard, the entire Tokyo branch of the corporation was wiped off the face of the earth. Everyone who didn’t manage to escape the city died in a massive explosion.

And now, his laughter rang out again—louder than last time. Everyone froze, awaiting the next order from their Boss.

“Amusing… very amusing,” Caleb drawled, smirking, but soon his face returned to its usual emotionless expression. “Send my words to the research department. Have them do as this man demands. The next batch of these zombies should be better… more dangerous. And in the meantime, destroy this defective product.”

“Yes, sir!” Frank instantly responded, immediately passing the order to the research department.

Alex was sure that his words had reached those who were watching him. He just wanted to irritate them a little—after all, they had started it first. He was curious to see what card the Evil Corporation would play next.

Would they continue producing more cyber-zombies? Or would they decide to take a different approach, mixing viruses to create something even more dangerous and uncontrollable? Either way, if the corporation kept up its experiments, it would lose control over its creations sooner or later… and then things would get a lot more interesting.

Thinking it was time to leave, Alex turned away from the Cyberdemon, which was still growling. But then his hearing picked up a strange sound. He turned sharply, but the demonic monster had already fallen silent. A strange glow began to flare up in its chest, growing brighter and brighter.

“You son of a bitch…” Alex cursed, but he didn’t get the chance to finish.

The Cyberdemon exploded.

Some time before this, while Alex was fighting the horde of cyber-zombies and encountered the Cyberdemon, which eventually self-destructed, a battle was also taking place in the port.

The situation was tense: everyone who could fight was desperately fending off the attackers. Zombie corpses littered the ground, their limbs scattered by explosions. Brunhild commanded the people skillfully, guiding them toward victory. Even those who had been scared at first stood their ground, grabbing weapons.

The masters from Ryozanpaku also joined the battle. Zombies that managed to break through the front were immediately met with a crushing counterattack from the martial arts masters. Eijiro and Tomiko Agatsuma fought as if they had regained their youth.

Finally, when the last monster fell, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They had withstood yet another wave.

“Damn, there were so many of them… My shoulder hurts from all those shots,” Rika complained, rubbing her stiff arm.

“That’s because you don’t train,” Rei remarked sternly, glancing at her. “If you didn’t slack off, you wouldn’t be suffering now.”

“No thanks! I’m a sniper, not a fighter. I’d rather ask Alex for a massage, and then… hee-hee-hee,” Rika grinned mischievously.

“Get in line!” Koko interjected. “You’re not the only one who deserves it.”

“You didn’t do anything! You just stood there and watched! What do you deserve a massage for? For being good at standing? You’re last in line,” Rei retorted, poking her with her finger.

The girls began arguing about who would get the massage first, completely forgetting about the situation around them. Those who didn’t know them watched the scene in surprise.

“Hey, Eijiro, who’s this Alex they’re talking about?” Kensai asked, raising an eyebrow with interest.

“You’ve already met him. The guy in the Hawaiian shirt,” Eijiro answered, thoughtfully stroking his chin. “How should I put it…”

“They’re all warming his bed,” Kana muttered discontentedly.

“Hey, shorty, do you want me to smack you? Or was it not enough the last time when Alex spanked you?” Rebecca retorted, glaring at her.

Kana shot her an annoyed look but stayed silent. She knew she couldn’t compete with Alex, but with the other girls… she wasn’t sure about her chances there either.

Eijiro grabbed his granddaughter’s hand and warned her not to cause trouble.

“So, are they all with this guy? Damn, I envy him!” Takeda, the boxer, shook his head, envy on his face.

“What are you jealous of? You think you could handle girls like that? Any of them would spank you so fast, you wouldn’t even know what hit you,” a soldier, overhearing the conversation, snickered.

Takeda looked at the soldier who had spoken those words in surprise and demanded details. Those who weren’t familiar with the girls or Alex immediately started to listen closely, hoping to learn more about the group of people who had saved them. The more they listened, the more they realized that not only Alex was strong, but the girls were also quite capable and dangerous. Rebecca, with her green hair, and Brunhilda, the black-haired and stern woman, stood out in particular. However, the other girls were also worth fearing.

But despite these conclusions, the men couldn’t hide their envy, which was clearly written on their faces.

“Are you jealous too, Kenichi?” Miu asked, narrowing her eyes.

Kenichi quickly shook his head, denying the obvious, but his gaze still darted towards the girls a few times. Miu noticed this and frowned. Even Renka, standing nearby, glared at him disapprovingly. However, their silent standoff was interrupted by the unexpected sound of applause from above.

Everyone instantly fell silent and looked up, their gazes fixated on the source of the sound. On top of the containers stood a man in a long white coat with a hood. White hair spilled out from under the hood, and he was loudly clapping his hands, as if watching an impressive performance.

The masters from Ryozanpaku instantly recognized him.

“Ogata, you bastard!” Sasaki shouted angrily, pointing at him. “So you sold yourself to those who destroyed this world!”

Ogata slowly turned his gaze to him. In his crimson eyes, glowing from under the hood, there was a trace of contempt. He looked at the gathered people as if they were ants he could crush with a single finger.

After taking the serum that enhanced his strength, Ogata realized that even now, he hadn’t reached his limit—he had only expanded the boundaries of his abilities. He had never felt such power within him before. Now, the masters from Ryozanpaku seemed like a pathetic group of weaklings.

Their strength had once been roughly equal, and the outcome of any fight between them had always been unpredictable. But now… now Ogata didn’t see the slightest threat in them. The only worthy opponent, in his eyes, was Hayato Furindzi.

Easily jumping down from the containers, he landed in front of the gathered crowd.

“Ah, Sasaki Shio, the strongest karate master, holder of the 100th dan…” he said with disdain. “You have no idea what kind of power I have attained. In my eyes, you’re nothing more than a pathetic ant.”

“So, you’ve become a dog of the Corporation that destroyed the world for the sake of pathetic power?” Sasaki clenched his fists, holding back his rage. “You’ve betrayed the honor of all the masters! You’re no longer worthy of being called a warrior!”

Ogata smirked and laughed.

“Honor? What the hell is honor?” His voice was full of mockery. “I’ve gained power that none of you will ever have! I’ve become faster, stronger, better. All my senses are heightened to the extreme! I see the world in a way you can’t even begin to understand! I hear everything, even the beating of your hearts! No honor compares to the power flowing through my veins…”

A shot tore through the air.

A loud clap echoed across the yard, and Ogata’s body jerked back. A massive, through-and-through wound gaped in his chest. Blood poured from his mouth as he gasped for breath, collapsing onto his back.

Everyone stared in shock at his motionless body. A crimson pool began to spread beneath him. Then, in unison, their gazes shifted to the one who had fired the shot.

Rebecca was holding a shotgun in her hands.

“So many dramatic speeches…” she mumbled lazily, tossing the shotgun over her shoulder. “‘I see more,’ ‘I hear better’… And in the end, he died from a single bullet. Why was he going on like that, if it all ended so quickly?”

The others continued to process what had just happened in silence. Those who had known Rebecca for a long time simply shook their heads. It was very much in her character. However, no one could deny— they were all already tired of the villain’s pompous monologues.

“What are you staring at?” Rebecca scoffed, raising an eyebrow. “Aren’t you tired of hearing the same nonsense? They always say the same thing: ‘I’ve gained power that my father couldn’t even dream of,’ ‘Now you’re no match for me,’ ‘Blah, blah, blah’… It’s like they have a manual for ‘How to Be a Cliché Villain.'”

Akisame crossed his arms over his chest and, looking at her with slight reproach, remarked,

“Young lady, your action is unethical. This man was a martial arts master. He should have lost in combat, not died from a gunshot.”

Rebecca gave him a disapproving look.

“Listen, mustache,” she tilted her head to the side, narrowing her eyes. “If you’re so smart, why didn’t you fight him yourself, instead of just standing there listening to his chatter? You just stood there like a statue! Or is that your tradition? First, the pompous speech, then the fight? Do you guys fight with beautiful words or what?”

For a moment, Akisame was at a loss for words at Rebecca’s barrage. He had simply expressed his opinion, but in response, he was hit with a flood of sarcastic remarks. Had he really encountered an opponent he couldn’t out-argue?

Brunhilda merely shook her head and placed a hand on Rebecca’s head to calm down the enraged “green gremlin.” Those who had known Akisame for a long time couldn’t help but laugh— it was a rare sight when martial arts masters were stumped by just a few words.

However, the laughter was cut short by a loud explosion in the distance.

“Did Alex blow something up again?” Shizuka asked, narrowing her eyes, standing next to Brunhilda.

“More likely the opposite… They blew him up,” Brunhilda replied calmly, watching the plumes of smoke from the explosion.

“What do you mean ‘they blew him up’?!” Koko asked, confused.

Brunhilda said nothing but silently pointed in the direction of the explosion. Everyone followed her gesture and saw three objects flying toward them. One of them was particularly large, and the closer it got, the more distinct the curses reverberating throughout the entire harbor became.

It only took a few seconds to realize that the “meteorite” showering curses was actually Alex. And he was furious.

The fact that he had been blown up for the first time had thrown him off balance—usually, he was the one causing explosions, not the other way around. Moreover, the explosion had tossed him so high that he was now coming back down like a free express delivery.

Stopping his stream of profanity, Alex calculated his fall trajectory and, seeing he was heading straight for the harbor, decided to make the landing as dramatic as possible. At the last moment, he did a flip and, along with G.I.R. and MIMI, landed in a theatrical pose right in front of everyone.

“We’ve come to drive out the darkness and fight evil! Red!” Alex declared loudly, striking a dramatic pose.

“Green!” G.I.R. chimed in, mimicking his move.

“Pink!” MIMI added, standing beside him.

“And Blue!” suddenly interrupted Stitch, running up and taking his place in line.

“Together, we are the Power Rangers! No evil can defeat us!” they proclaimed in unison with ceremony.

Silence fell.

Everyone present silently stared at Alex and the trio of troublemakers in complete astonishment. But suddenly, someone began clapping. Then someone else. And soon, the majority of the crowd, especially those who had watched ” Power Rangers” as kids, were applauding the loudest.

Pleased with the response, Alex opened his eyes and nodded.

“Where’s the villain we need to defeat?!” he continued with his act.

“Young friend… he’s right beneath your feet,” came Hayato’s voice.

Alex looked down and discovered that he had landed directly on someone’s corpse. Or rather, what was left of it. A thick pool of blood was spreading beneath his boots.

“Ah, crap… I hope this isn’t someone’s friend? Or brother? Or… someone important?” he muttered, reluctantly wiping his soles on the shredded clothes.

“No, this idiot came here spouting his dramatic speeches. I got tired of listening to him, so I shot him,” Rebecca said carelessly, slinging the shotgun over her shoulder.

“Well, then fine. His own fault. Didn’t mom ever tell him not to just lie around in the street? Tsk tsk… tough luck, buddy,” Alex sighed, casting a brief glance at Ogata’s remains.

He shrugged and stopped paying attention to the near-nothingness left of the villain. Since he was dead, it was time to move on. After all, anyone who starts throwing around dramatic speeches in front of Rebecca is essentially signing their own death sentence.

To be continued…

+3 Chapters on my Patreon: /GreedHunter

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep