My great thanks to TodaBruh, who kindly chose to use some of his free time to be my beta reader!

Z-City, less than a minute before asteroid crash.

"Not quite potent enough, huh?"

I glanced at Metal Knight as he spoke through his remote-controlled robot, then looked back up towards the meteor above our heads while the man sent his robot away to save it from destruction.

Meanwhile, Genos clenched his fists, glaring up at the meteor threatening to destroy Z-city, his master's home.

Neither man could see me, my powers keeping me hidden from view for now. I wanted to let Genos think that the situation truly verged on the critical, so that he would give it his all.

As it was, all three of us were currently standing on top of buildings overlooking the city, each of us wanting to deal with the meteor… Though Metal Knight had just tried and failed.

Sending a flurry of missiles at the meteor might have worked, but the power of the explosions had just not been enough to do more than superficial damage.

I saw Genos hesitate, his body glowing with power even as he fought through his doubts on whether or not he had what it took to make a difference, after seeing Metal Knight fail so thoroughly.

The young man frowned, pursing his lips…

"First off, be calm."

Genos jerked, glancing behind him to see Bang on the rooftop as well, looking at him calmly.

"I see you've lost your composure." the martial art master said. "You're far too young to be worried about failure. When your back's against the wall, just muddle through. The outcome won't change. So that's what is best."

Genos paused. "Muddling through is best…?" he muttered to himself, and I could see the moment he thought back on Saitama.

His expression hardened, and he tore off his blue jacket, before pulling out the power core of his body from inside his mechanical torso, and connecting it to his left arm.

The raw power surrounding him reached a peak, blue lightning crackling in the air.

"Bang, get down!" the young cyborg shouted, though Bang merely looked on with interest, not moving an inch.

"I will no longer think about failure or repercussions…" Genos muttered, before looking up at the falling meteor. "I will just pour everything I have into one last shot!"

*FFFFFWWWWWWWOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSHHHHHHHH!*

One of my eyebrows rose in appreciation of the giant red beam of raw power flowing upwards and smashing straight into the meteor, the sky turning bright red as both forces collided and fought for dominance, while Genos screamed his defiance against the mass of rocks above him.

The clash could probably be seen for miles around, possibly dozens of miles even, and yet Genos quickly gritted his teeth in frustration.

"Dammit! It's not working!" he cursed.

"No! I think I see the meteor being pushed back!" exclaimed Bang, eyes wide as he stared up at the clash of power above him.

"Really?" asked Genos hopefully.

"... Oh, no. It was just my imagination." he admitted a moment later, visibly sheepish.

"You old fool!" cursed Genos loudly.

For a moment, he still gave it his all, the sky a bright, burning red as more and more power flew into the heavens above against the falling meteor, until finally Genos ran out of power and fell on one knee, his whole body steaming and his expression grim and defeated.

"So, this is where I die…" he muttered. "Nine more seconds left before it hits the ground." he whispered. "Get out of here, Bang."

Bang said nothing, merely stared up at the meteor…

"Old man, take care of Genos."

I smiled, even as both Genos and Bang jerked at the sound of Saitama's voice.

"You!" muttered Bang, wide-eyed. "You came after all?"

"I'm a hero." calmly replied Saitama, with a slight grin as he stared up at the meteor.

Genos turned to look at Saitama, even as the man bend his knees slightly, took a deep breath-

And then jumped, a shockwave blooming on the rooftop which cracked under the strength of his jump.

My eyes followed the red and yellow blur as it ascended at inhuman speed into the sky, a shout reaching my ears as it did.

"You're not… gonna fall… on my city!"

Then Saitama reached the meteor, and a shockwave spread out from the point of contact, even as he visibly went through the length of the meteor, more and more cracks forming on its surface, until Saitama came out of it at the other end-

*KA-BOOOOOOOOM!*

-and the entire meteor suddenly exploded and shattered into a thousand pieces, spreading out in every direction.

"He shattered it!" exclaimed Bang. "But…"

"But all the pieces can still cause a lot of damage?" I finished for him, taking down the magic keeping me hidden.

Both men turned to look at me, surprised by my presence.

"Aeon! When did you-" asked Bang, and I chuckled. "Since the start. I just wanted to let other heroes try their luck in stopping this first. That being said…"

I lifted a hand, and all the countless fragments of the meteor froze in mid-air.

Snapping my fingers, an equal amount of portals suddenly appears, taking the fragments with them before disappearing.

"There. I'll give all of this to the Association, since there's a lot of resources inside all of these rocks which can be put to good use." I said with satisfaction.

Genos and Bang stared at me, then at the sky, free of the meteor, before both of them sighed in relief.

"Well, I dare say this day has proven much too exciting that is good for my old heart." declared Bang. "I'll go back to my dojo. You youngsters can take things from here."

I snorted. "First, you aren't even physically old anymore. And second, I'm nearly infinitely older than you!"

"Ah, but do you ever remember being physically old?" questioned Bang, which…

Okay, fair.

"Bah! Just go have your nap time old man, before you bust out a hip or something!" I joked, shaking my head with a grin.

Bang scoffed at my words, but his eyes danced with amusement.

Then he glanced at Genos, who had gotten back on his feet and had put his power core back in his torso now that the danger was over.

"It was a brave thing that you did, coming here to try and protect this city." commented Bang approvingly. "I'm glad to see that our newest recruits are proving themselves so worthy of their place in the Association." he said, sending a quick look in the general direction where Saitama fell back to the ground.

Genos nodded. "My master lives there, I could not let this city be destroyed." he simply replied, though he sent a long look at said city, before muttering to himself "And I don't want to see yet another ruined town if I can help it."

Bang and I sent him a look at those words, but said nothing.

Then Saitama jumped back on top of the building, blinking at me before smiling. "Hey, Aeon! You're the one who dealt with the fragment of the meteor?"

"I did." I replied with a smile. "I couldn't well let those fragments wreck the city after you went and broke the greater meteor, now could I?

"Well, thanks. I really don't want to know what would have happened if those fragments fell." he said gratefully, before shuddering. "My apartment might have been wrecked." he muttered in horror at the very thought.

I'd say something about said "home," considering it was a dirt cheap place that had barely any room to it, but to be fair it was about more than just the apartment, but also all of his stuff in it too.

So instead I merely smiled and replied "You're welcome."

I glanced at the city we just saved.

Now then, that was yet another brick up for the creation of the edifice that was Saitama's legend.

All that was left now was a few more, and I would be done with my goals in this world…

Three days later.

"Have you seen the newspaper?"

I glanced at Lucy, who was holding up the day's newspaper.

Raising an eyebrow in interest, Lucy gave it to me, and I took a look at the page 1 news.

My other eyebrow joined the first, a smile spreading on my lips.

"S-Class hero One Punch Man becomes S-class Rank 5!" I read with satisfaction. "After the recents events at Z-city, and the display of both immense courage and power on behalf of the heroes who participated in the saving of the city and it's people from utter destruction, the Hero Association has announced a number of changes in its ranking, with most notably the newest hero One Punch Man taking the spot of Rank 5 in the S-class as thanks for successfully destroying the meteor…"

I read through the rest of the article, which mostly consisted of praising the Association and the heroes present in the act of saving Z-city.

As it was, the new ranking meant that the highest of the S-rank were now Blast, Tornado of Terror, me (since I didn't want the rank 2 spot when a human hero could get it), King, and now One Punch Man.

Oedon was actually several seats behind me, as she was primarily a healer, and thus not as well-ranked by the Association's ranking system.

Not enough dead monsters for that.

"I dare say the plan to get him as number 1 is progressing smoothly." noted Lucy with a smile of her own.

"Agreed." I replied. "The Deep Sea King Incident will not be enough on its own to get him another rank-up, but the Boros one ought to be enough."

Lucy nodded. The benefits of foresight, it helps us plan like this.

Also, I was mildly worried that the growth in power level of the heroes would ensure that Tatsumaki would snap her fingers and wipe out Boros and his ship out of existence, but the side-effects of God breaking free, slowly but surely, from his prison ensured that Boros had grown much stronger than in canon.

If Tatsumaki could wreck a star easily, then Boros could nowadays outshine a supernova with ease.

Which means I was going to have to get involved, if only to ensure that Humanity doesn't become an unfortunate collateral of Boros and Saitama fighting.

On the other hand, there was nothing quite like watching explosions capable of wrecking planets happening up in the sky to ensure that Humanity ended up crowning Saitama the Rank 1 of the S-class heroes by the end of it all.

It would be quite the unmissable show of power, after all.

"Anything else of note?" I wondered.

"Well, Saitama and Genos are now beloved heroes of Z-city." Lucy mused. "With the lack of death and collateral damage, the people naturally began praising them to anyone who would listen. I heard that there was an impromptu gathering when both men were seen walking around the city, as hundreds of people came together to express their thanks."

"That's good. Much better than what happened in the original timeline, that's for sure." I commented.

Lucy smiled wryly. "The city is also strongly considering building up some statues of them both… and you as well."

I paused, then blinked. "Ah, the fragments. I guess dealing with that earned me some good will as well?"

Lucy snorted. "Some good will, indeed. Worship of you has picked up drastically thee last few days, primarily in Z-city but around the world in general as well, and it's hard to say who is the most grateful: the people for saving their homes, or the city officials for ensuring they didn't have to spend billions to rebuild the city."

"Fair warning: If the mayor tries to kiss me in thanks, I reserve the right to tell him to fuck off." I said with amusement. Then I paused. "Unless she's pretty, of course."

Lucy swatted my arm, rolling her eyes at me. "It's a he, thankfully-"

"Drat." I muttered.

"-and no, that probably won't happen. At most, he'll build you a gold-plated statue or something. It would still cost less than rebuilding the city would have."

"Why would I want a gold-plated statue of me?" I asked, genuinely confused. "It's probably going to be covered in bird shit in no time anyway, might as well make it a statue of stone."

Lucy snorted. "You could use your power to make it stay clean, you know." she pointed out.

"That would imply my ego can't take the sight of a statue of me not looking perfect. If anything, I'd just be amused over the reminder that reality doesn't give a fuck about my awesome cosmic power, it will still make sure that public statues of me get covered in bird shit." I pointed out with amusement.

Lucy snorted. "You know, when I inevitably meet other gods, my standards are going to be so utterly twisted by your constant lack of pride and weird sense of humor that it will take all of my self-control to not call the majority of them self-centered assholes in comparison, right?"

I smugged at her. Amygdala taught me well. "What can I say? I'm awesome like that."

Lucy gave me a flat look. "Nevermind, you're just a weirdo."

I flinch as if struck. "Gah! No hesitation whatsoever!" I cried out.

Lucy smirked back, multi-coloured eyes dancing with amusement.

I pouted. "It's hard to gain an ego when I'm surrounded by such merciless women, with such sharp tongues, you know!"

Lucy smirked harder. Why, she's actually smug enough to enter the Amygdala scale of Smugness!

Barely, though. Try again love, I'm sure you'll get there one day!

… Wait, is that a good thing, or a bad one…?

Lucy opened her mouth… then froze. "Wait, you're totally going to follow that up by a sex-"

"And such skilled tongues, too!" I cheerfully finished, because I was a benevolent god, who answered the wishes of my people.

Lucy groaned.

"I walked into that one." She grumbled.

"Yes, yes you did." I confirmed with amusement.

Smug amusement, as was only proper.

"Dear Aeon, stop teasing Lucy and let her go, she's got work to do!" shouted Oedon from elsewhere in our home.

"Yes my love!" I shouted back.

Lucy snickered and made a "whipped" gesture.

I smirked at her. "No, that's you tonight if you're good."

Lucy flushed.

"Aeon!"

"Coming, love!" I shouted, teleporting to-

I froze.

Oedon, wearing nothing more than a naked apron, blinked "innocently" at me.

I stared.

Then I cursed. "Dammit woman! I can never win against you, if you keep making defeat look so attractive!"

Oedon merely started laughing.

Genos looked with interest at his Master, and the young-looking blonde woman by his side.

The adopted daughter of the Good Hunter had begun to spend more and more time around Master Saitama lately, both of them often talking about the nature of heroism and the best ways to be a hero.

Genos had followed along those discussions with deep fascination, as both sides quite clearly gave the matter a great deal of thought, even if there were points in which both sides either somewhat disagreed upon or instead were willing to learn from the other.

Right now, the latter case was happening, as Sherry sought to explain as best as she could how to bring hope to people and encourage others to strive to become the best they could be.

Apparently, her dad had quite a lot of experience in the subject, and she was more than willing to share what she knew of it to Saitama.

Though Genos was starting to wonder if there weren't some deeper reasons why the woman was spending so much time with his Master than just shared interests in heroism. The looks she sometimes sent him, and the way she sat close to him…

Well. Maybe he was just imagining things, he was hardly an expert on such matters, but he still noted a growing number of potential hints for his personal theory about the true motivation behind her visit.

Genos actually hoped he was right. His master could do with a good woman by his side, and Sherry would be arguably the best he could think of.

"... Which is why you should not hesitate to at least show yourself in those competitions." said Sherry to his master. "If King can get away with participating in so many Gaming competitions, I don't see why you can't involve yourself in a number of sport events that fit your own personal preferences. As it is, various S-class heroes do sponsor activities that they consider important. Atomic Samurai use his influence to incite people into taking up swordsmanship, Silver Fang does the same for Martial Arts, and more besides. Tank Top Master sponsors a number of Gyms across the world. The higher ranked the hero, the more likely it is that you can feel their influence on various levels of society. If you want to try and become an even better hero, then showing yourself as a symbol to the people for what you think are important activities is very much an acceptable, even recommended, path to take." she finished explaining.

Master Saitama hummed in thought, growing deeply in consideration.

"I guess I see it, but the thought of putting myself forward like that just feels strange. I'd feel like some kind of salesman promoting a new product to the supermarket or something."

Sherry opened her mouth, blinked, tilted her head, and then closed her mouth, frowning.

"That's… I mean, the goal is visibility and convincing people… But that's…"

She fell silent.

"Huh. Never thought of it like that before." she muttered. She glanced at her master, blue eyes thoughtful.

Then she shook her head. "Either way, what matters is helping people, ultimately, in ways that you believe will work. You're not here to make a profit, you're here to show people that your way of doing things works, that doing so as well will benefit them, and that all you want is to help them walk the same path that you did."

Master Saitama stayed silent, then nodded. "I guess that I can always try it and see what happens." He paused. "So wait, am I paid for this, or…?"

Sherry smiled. "Sure! You're linking your name and 'image' to something else, and as a S-class hero, a lot of people would love to have your name among their known supporters. As for the actual number…"

She hummed, then gave a potential estimate.

Master Saitama's eyes bulged, before he began coughing.

"H-how much?!" he wheezed, staring in shock at Sherry.

The woman blinked, then repeated herself.

Master Saitama stared.

"Of course, that's just for the one job." she continued. "The more deeply you are willing to work with various groups, the more they will pay you."

Genos' sensei kept staring. "It goes higher?" he replied, voice strangely strangled.

"Well, depending on how much you're willing to work with various organizations, yes." Sherry nodded.

Saitama-sensei blinked slowly. "Okay." he said, voice flat and expression distant.

"Would you like me to help you get into contact with those groups you'd be interested in working with, Saitama?" Sherry asked.

"... I think I'd like that very much. Thank you." Saitama-sensei replied, showing a deeply grateful expression towards Sherry, who blushed slightly before smiling brightly.

Genos noted the whole exchange down in his notebook.

Not only could it be of interest for him specifically, since it might help finance the work of Dr Kuseno, but Sherry's look at the end only added more data points to his theory.

He smiled slightly. Even now, his master was showing his worth in matters of the heart!

Truly, Master Saitama was the best!

"It's rare to see you looking this thoughtful, sister."

Tatsumaki turned to look at Fubuki, telekinetically accepting a cup of tea from her before looking back out at the city beyond the rooftop terrace of Fubuki's home.

A home that had changed after she became S-class and she became known as an extremely powerful hero in her own right.

Nowadays, what she possessed was a full-blown mansion, as much to show off her status as it was a place for her "Fubuki group" to gather in.

"Maybe." replied Tatsumaki. "But Aeon did teach me a lot about meditation, and that, among… other things, left me with a deeper appreciation of just sitting down and thinking things through these days." she mused.

Fubuki raised an eyebrow in interest, taking a small sip of her tea.

"Consider me intrigued. What exactly did he do to cause such change?"

Tatsumaki stayed silent for a moment, before answering.

"I've been delving more and more into a better understanding of the cosmos, and the scale of Time and Space involved. Especially with my focus on Entropy…" she trailed off, before shaking her head.

"The more I learn and contemplate, the more I begin to understand the full scale of Creation. It is… an experience." she admitted.

Fubuki stared at her for a moment, before nodding in understanding, her own expression turning slightly distant.

"I know. A few years ago, destroying a city would be beyond me. Nowadays…" she fell silent, before continuing. "I can extinguish life upon a planet if I exert myself. And yet, it only makes me understand just how much of a difference there is between me and Aeon."

Tatsumaki nodded, sipping her tea. "I did not understand what it meant, to become more like him." she revealed. "Not at first. Even now… I've barely scratched the surface. And yet, it's already changing me. There are times when I look at the world and can't help but feel like it is…" she trailed off, but her sister finished for her.

"Too small?"

"Yes." agreed Tatsumaki softly. "Too small."

What was a world and its concerns, when one contemplated the Cosmos in its entirety? When one went as far as contemplating the nature of the death of an universe?

Tatsumaki was prideful. She knew that fact and accepted it in a way she previously didn't until she met Aeon, and he taught her… so much, about so many things.

But it was hard to stay prideful when one kept contemplating the immensity of an universe, and measuring oneself against it.

And it was even harder when you personally knew someone so much greater than even that immensity, someone who saw a single universe as a single speck of dust caught in a sunbeam.

The more Tatsumaki learnt, the more she became thoughtful and pensive.

What did it mean, to become like Aeon?

What price had to be paid? What secrets had to be confronted? What Truth, painful and humbling both, had to be accepted?

Even the billions of years that this universe had existed were nothing more than less than a blink of an eye in the full lifetime of an universe. The full length of Human history did not even warrant a single blink.

In the face of that, what did it mean to be important? Powerful?

What did it mean for Tatsumaki herself?

Aeon told her before that the "him" that she was familiar with was but an infinitely small avatar of his true self.

A mere shard, who nonetheless stood greater than her by so much she could barely even comprehend the difference.

And yet, for all of that…

A red gloved fist. A bald head. A punch to shatter everything she thought she knew about human limits.

"He is my equal." A smile, shining bright under twinkling dark eyes. Warm, delighted, joyous and free in ways that she previously had never seen in him. Challenging, eager, hopeful.

The impossible realized. A challenge met. An existence thought to be beyond all suddenly standing side by side with another at the top of Creation.

"If he could do it… why not others? Why not you?" Eyes dancing like stars, promising the heavens themselves, if only they dare to seek them out. Looking at heroes, and challenging them all to create a miracle beyond any thought possible… until now.

"Why not you?"

Tatsumaki's grip on her tea cup tightened.

"So very small…" she muttered. "And yet."

And yet.

A warm smile, kind dark eyes, holding the cosmos within them.

A smirk, a bald head, a raised gloved fist, eyes burning with life and passion as they proclaimed that victory would be theirs.

"Why not you?" they seem to speak to all.

Tatsumaki's eyes hardened.

A smirk spread across her lips.

"Wait for me." she muttered. "I'm coming."

She glanced at her sister and smiled, thinking of how much she had grown.

"We're coming."

"Justice crash!"

Mumen Rider gritted his teeth as his bicycle hit the massive body of the humanoid fish-like monster threatening innocent people, his beloved bicycle sadly only bouncing against the monster's body without doing anything.

He couldn't afford to show his fear or doubts, however. Every other hero present had already fallen, even one of the latest S-class heroes, Demon Cyborg, was now currently lying in pieces under the pouring rain of a sky that seemed to be crying for all the innocent lives about to be snuffed out if no one could stop this monster.

"The cyclist for Justice, Mumen Rider, is here!" he shouted, taking a stance. Those self-defense lessons he went to every week taught him little more than the absolute basics of how to fight, but then again he never wanted to be the strongest.

He just wanted to help people.

He could see people from the massive hole within the shelter's wall staring at him and the monster, and even from where he was he could see their doubts, their fears that he would not be enough.

He gritted his teeth. It didn't matter. He had to buy time! He knew that the other new hero, One Punch Man, a hero strong enough to have earned the Good Hunter's respect, was coming. All he had to do was buy time.

He could do it. He would do it!

With that thought in mind, he charged, even as the monster turned towards him, a flat look on his white face.

"I'm bored already." declared the monster, and Mumen Rider gritted his teeth harder at the insult and insinuation of his weakness.

He threw a punch, but stiffened in fear and horror when the monster stopped it with a single massive hand, before taking his whole forearm into his grip, and Mumen Rider tried frantically to get free-

And then the monster brought his arm up and down.

"Gah! Gkk! Aaah!"

Mumen Rider cried out in pain as the monster repeatedly slammed him down upon the pavement, and he could feel his nose break and his teeth come close to breaking, gods the pain-

*Crack!*

Mumen Rider felt himself be sent flying, before roughly hitting the ground, blood pouring from his nose and mouth, the right forearm part of his outfit having torn off and being left in the monster's hand.

He lay on the ground for a long moment, fighting through the pain and dizziness, cursing at his own weakness.

"Oh, my apologies. I nearly forgot to kill you."

The words were calmly spoken, almost as an afterthought, despite the brutal cruelty within them.

Mumen Rider gritted his bloodstained teeth, and painfully got on his knees, glaring up at the monster looking down at the broken body of Demon Cyborg.

Getting to his feet, Mumen Rider charged forward once more, slamming his body against the chest of the giant monster…

"Justice Tackle!"

…and not even making him budge slightly.

Mumen Rider could feel the blood pouring down his broken nose, could feel the pain across his body from where he had repeatedly been slammed into the ground, but he didn't care.

He had to buy time. Just long enough for someone, anyone to come, he had to buy time!

Mumen Rider spat out a mouthful of blood, straining against the monster as hard as he could to keep him away from Demon Cyborg.

"No one expect much-"

*SLAM!*

The monster sent him flying with a vicious arm swipe, and Mumen Rider gasped in pain as his body bounced across several feet on the rain-covered ground, before coming to a stop, trailing blood all the way.

"-from me." he gasped to himself, gritting his teeth in pain and willing his body to move, to stand up, to do something, anything!

He turned over, painfully getting on all four.

"They think a C-class hero won't be of much help." he muttered, coughing blood on the ground before feeling his limbs tremble, his green helmet hitting the ground as weakness rocked his body and made him fall almost face first into the pavement.

"I know that better than anyone!" he screamed, struggling to get up, feeling tears fall from his eyes from despair, pain and helpless rage.

"I'm not good enough for Class B." he admitted. He got on his knees, feebly beginning to stand up. "I'm weak. I know that much."

He stood up, head bowed and body trembling with agony, blood dripping from his face and various parts of his body.

"No one has to tell me that I stand no chance of beating you. I already… know that!" he screamed.

"What are you babbling about? Begging for your life?" the monster asked, sounding bored.

Mumen Rider took a few seconds to take several deep, painful breaths.

"And yet, I must try." he said, as much to himself as to the world at large.

His necklace slipped up from under his clothes, dangling from its chain.

He paused, staring at the symbol of a god, seeing it glint with the light of thunderbolts from the sky…

The lights felt like distant stars for some reasons, twinkling at him in approval.

He turned towards the monster, expression hardening, taking a stance once more.

"It's not about winning or losing!" he roared. "It's about me taking you on right here, right now!"

The monster stared at him, before speaking. "Enough of your rambling. Time to finish you off."

Mumen Rider gritted his teeth, rage and despair mixing together within him, struggling for domination in the face of such overwhelming evil-

"You can do it!"

The shout of the little boy cut through his thoughts like lightning, his mouth dropping open as he listened to the words screamed at him with desperate hope.

"Mumen Rider, you can do it!" screamed the little boy again from where his mother was holding him at the edge of the hole in the shelter.

"You're the Cyclist for Justice!" screamed the little boy again, and Mumen Rider gritted his teeth at the words.

He was a hero. He was the one charged with protecting people. He was a beacon of hope and safety in a world full of dangers.

"Beat that weird monster, beat him!"

He grinned through bloodstained teeth. His eyes lit up behind his goggles, burning with determination.

He had no time to despair. No time for fear, or doubts. There were people in need, a child's hopes rested on him, he couldn't give up, he couldn't fail!

"You can do it!" screamed the child, his voice breaking at the end as he shouted his faith in him as hard as he could.

"Yeah, get him!" screamed a second voice, joined by more and more. "Beat him up!" "We're counting on you, Mumen Rider!" "You can do it!" "Beat him!" "Good luck!"

More and more, all screaming for him to win, to triumph over evil, to bring forth a miracle.

Mumen Rider took a deep breath, then screamed, willing the hopes and dreams of those putting their lives in his hands to give him the strength to protect them this day.

Unseen by him, the symbol of the god around his neck glowed, starlight gathering in power by the second.

"Raaaaaaaaaaagggghhhh!"

And then he threw a punch.

The moment his fist hit the monster's body, a shockwave exploded from the point of contact, the monster gasping in pain before rocketing back like a bullet.

Mumen Rider didn't pause to gasp in shock. Instincts unlike anything he ever had took over, and he jumped after his prey, closing the gap in a blink of an eye and hammering the monster with a flurry of blows which made the very air tremble at the power each punch contained.

His fists glowed with white and black lights, the power within each making the monster quickly bring up his arms in a X to protect himself even as he flinched in visible agony.

Mumen Rider kept going. He felt no pain, no tiredness, no fear.

Only a strange sense of Determination unlike anything he had ever known.

The Determination to stand up against any evil.

The Determination to protect any innocents from harm.

The Determination to slay any Nightmares standing in his way.

It felt both like something he always had, and something that belonged to someone else, who had answered his call for aid when their emotions coincided and a sympathetic connection formed.

A bald man, smiling as he spoke words of Truth that felt like the most natural thing in the world.

"If heroes run, who's there left to fight?"

A kind, warm and proud smile underneath glowing eyes.

"-only one Mumen Rider, only one kind man who just wants to help people."

Please, let me… help these people… Mumen Rider thought.

He kept moving, kept punching. Over and over again, blood falling down from his mouth, from the sides of his face, every inch of him in agony- and yet, it didn't matter.

None of it mattered.

He had to keep going.

He had to buy time.

He had… he would help these people.

"How are you this strong?!" shouted the monster, fish eyes bulging as his regeneration worked at full time to fix the damage every one of his punches inflicted.

"I will… slay this Nightmare!" growled Mumen Rider in response, in a voice that echoed oddly, but felt strong.

Unyielding, no matter what terrors stood in its way.

Bringing his arm back, the monster doing the same in return, they both threw everything they had in the next punch.

*KA-BOOM!*

Mumen Rider and the monster both flew back, flying through the air until they hit the ground-

"Whoa there!"

-or not?

Mumen Rider blinked, then blinked again, a wave of weakness suddenly hitting him almost making him pass out before he pushed through, the symbol at his neck no longer glowing.

He looked up, seeing that he had been caught in the arms of-

A familiar smiling bald man stared at him with concern.

"You're here." he whispered in relief.

One Punch Man smiled. "Very nice fight."

Mumen Rider would have liked to reply, but a sudden bout of dizziness made him groan weakly.

"Rest. I'll take things from here."

He felt himself be gently lowered into the ground, before footsteps echoed as the Hero walked towards the monster.

Gritting his teeth, Mumen Rider opened one eye, using his remaining willpower to stare at the scene before him, the monster saying something to Saitama before punching him in the head… to no reaction whatsoever.

And then-

*KA-BOOOOOOM!*

The rain stopped.

The winds from an immense shockwave passed over him, drying his face instantly.

The world fell silent, as the monster's torso disintegrated into nothing.

And Mumen Rider felt a small smile curve his lips.

I… did it. I helped people…

His vision darkened, unconsciousness closing in at last.

And yet, before it claimed him fully…

Yes, you did. Sweet Dreams, Hero. You put my gift to good use. I'm proud of you.

Mumen Rider's vision went dark.

He did not remember what dreams he had.

Whatever they were, however, he woke up feeling more at peace than he had ever felt.

From the highs of a nearby rooftop, hidden to all, I smiled down at the sight below.

Mumen Rider really did amazingly well, as I expected. There were days where Humanity disappointed me, but for this moment at least, I could only feel pride at what he had accomplished.

True heroes were rare to find, but his heart and soul were amongst the most pure in all of this world.

I glanced at Saitama next, smiling wryly at the visible flash of disappointment on his face as a result of the monster's quick death.

Figures that he would have been hoping for a proper fight.

I was, to put it mildly, utterly unsurprised by that fact.

Either way, I focused next on what really mattered: the cheering crowd, who was right now riding the emotional high from knowing the monster who had threatened to kill them all was dead.

At least, in comparison to canon, everyone easily recognized Saitama. That made things simpler.

But just to make sure, and because I was a petty asshole like that…

I singled out a certain smartass bastard in the crowd, who looked ready to open his big fat mouth.

My smile turned cold.

Not on my watch, asshole.

First, make him pass out- make it seem the relief of knowing he will live overwhelmed him.

Then, because seriously fuck this guy, make him soil his pants… and shit himself, too.

He was a shitstain anyway, I was a god of Truth, I was just doing my divine work of showing it to all!

Naturally, him passing out drew concern from those around him… for all of a few seconds, before the smell hit them.

At which point they all jumped away as fast as they possibly could.

I nodded, satisfied. If he was going to be spewing shit, might as well make sure it all fell back on the guy who fucking earned it.

Himself.

Why yes, I was using my phenomenal cosmic powers to be a petty asshole. Did I regret it?

Hell no!

Besides, doing that had a secondary benefit: drawing the crowd's attention to the fact a whole bunch of people really needed medical attention.

In no time at all, people organized themselves, with a little bit of help from Saitama to ensure every fallen hero would be ready for pick-up by the staff of the local hospital.

I'd go heal them, but Oedon was already there waiting, and I was sure that they would all prefer being healed and fussed over by a beautiful woman rather than me.

Considering what they went through, I was more than willing to let them enjoy that.

Praise me, for I was truly a benevolent, Cultured God.

Besides, it'll make my True Self laugh when they inevitably start cursing me for being the lucky bastard married to her.

So a benevolent, Cultured and trollish God.

Truly, a worthy God of Humanity!

Shaking my head while chuckling, I teleported out.

"So, enjoying yourselves tonight, ladies?" I asked with a grin, both Summer sisters grinning widely back at me as they each held one of my arms while we walked back towards our seats.

I'd taken them both to a nightclub to relax and have some fun, and so far our date was going well. We easily proved ourselves King and Queens of the dance floor, and I had most certainly enjoyed the sight of both Summer putting their Huntress agility to spectacular use upon it.

Not to say I hadn't made the entire male population in the nightclub feel simultaneously insecure about their skill and envious about my own moves, of course.

God-like agility had to be good for more than just fighting, after all.

Well, and sex, but that was for later tonight!

""Yeah!"" They both screamed as one, both from joy and to be heard over the general sound from the crowd.

I laughed, even as we took back our seats.

"Good to hear! I don't get to relax like this all too often, so it's nice to go out and just be able to stop caring about the fate of the world for a little bit." I admitted.

"And we needed that too." said the silver-eyed Summer, currently rocking a silver dress that had drawn a lot of looks from countless men… and a lot of women, too.

"Killing monsters is fun, but there does come a time when a girl needs to let her hair down, too." agreed her blue-eyed twin, wearing a blue dress herself, the color matching her own eyes, and her looks easily gaining just as many stares from the crowd that her twin did.

The other Summer snorted. "Oh, to hear Military Girl here say those words!" she teased.

The Earth!Summer huffed at her twin, pouting slightly. "Hey! Just because I embraced the military lifestyle doesn't mean I don't know how to have fun! If anything, it means I just get wild when I'm free to do so." she replied, winking lustfully at me.

Naturally, her twin didn't take this lying down, her silver eyes twinkling. "Hah! I'm sure that what you consider wild is just doing more push-ups while a drill sergeant glares down at you! Girl, if you want wild, you need to embrace the Hunter lifestyle! Trust me, back in Remnant, we knew how to get wild!"

"I don't know about that." said the blue-eyed twin, blue eyes twinkling just as madly. "I certainly wouldn't mind doing a whole lot of push-ups with the handsome hunk of a man before us tonight…" she mused, licking her lips subtly while staring at me.

Her sister snorted. "Oh, the first one to get to do any kind of drilling tonight is me, girl."

"And why is that?" challenged the other Summer, a glint in her eyes.

Her twin grinned. "Because he'll drill me down while I'll use my tongue on you until I learn how wild you can get, of course!"

Her twin sputtered at that, and both me and the silver-eyed Summer laughed at the sight.

"Hugh, fine, you win this round." she grumbled, nursing her wounded pride by taking a sip of her drink.

"Don't worry, I'm sure that you'll get her to blush, next time." I said with a grin to the grumbling Summer while nodding towards the smug one.

"Big talk!" cheerfully shouted said smug Summer.

"Oh?" I said, raising an eyebrow in amusement. "Do I need to remind you of-"

"Nope!" shouted the Silver-eyed Summer with a blush at the mere memory of what she knew I was about to bring up, crossing her hands in a X before her. "I'm good!"

"Nah, she's a bad girl. You should definitely punish her tonight!" perked up the blue-eyed Summer, seeing her chance at revenge.

Her twin threw her a betrayed look, which only made her smirk wider. "In fact, you should definitely bring out the collar and the leash! She's been such a bad girl after all, and oh I remember how obedient she was when-"

"Sis!" cried out the silver-eyed Summer with a burning flush to her cheeks. "Not in public!"

"Bah! No one is about to hear anything with how hard everyone is partying." scoffed her twin, glancing around at all the dancing people and those in their own seats spending time with friends or loved ones.

I glanced with some amusement and approval at a nearby wall, where the pictures of a numbers of heroes could be seen- the owner and employees of the place had been among those saved by Saitama from the Deep Sea King, so there was a massive reduction in price for tonight to celebrate the heroes who saved the people of the city from the monsters.

As it was, all of the heroes involved with the Deep Sea King and his people had a standing personal invitation and price reduction for life.

Though the owner had half-joked, half seriously stated that, if they kept saving him and his employees' lives from other monster attacks, he'd welcome them without them having to pay a single thing.

Which, to be fair, wasn't a bad idea. The more heroes came here, the better the reputation of the place, and thus the greater profits to be made once more and more clients visited.

And since heroes tended to be people who didn't shy away from celebrating their achievement and welcoming people to see them, there was a great deal of money that could be made like this.

Of course, there was the risk of those heroes attracting monsters… but that was what the insurance that Lucy had set up was for.

People didn't have to worry too much about monster attacks wrecking their homes if everything would be compensated, houses rebuilt, and more.

It's hardly like we didn't have the money and resources for it, and the PR boost was gigantic, considering how often monster attacks caused massive collateral destruction.

Either way, tonight's nightclub was full of people celebrating their survival and the heroes who made it possible, so money and alcohol was flowing freely everywhere I looked.

I also wouldn't be surprised if there was to be a noticeable baby boom in the area after tonight…

Well. Far from me to say anything, considering how I intended to end the night with a threesome.

… If not more, depending on if more of my girls were feeling frisky.

"Speaking of fun, any interesting monster fight you'd like to share?" I inquired.

Both women paused, then actually grimaced as one.

"Huh, don't remind us." the blue-eyed Summer groaned.

"Oh, the memories." groaned her twin, just as loudly.

I blinked. "There's definitely a story there."

They grunted. "A guy turned into a monster close to where we were patrolling. He was meant to be weak, and he was, but…" the Summer on the right trailed off with a groan of disgust.

Her twin sighed. "Just… people can be disgusting, and monsters even more so, and let's leave it at that."

I stared, and checked what could get two of my Huntresses to-

Oh.

Oooooooh.

In hindsight, punishing that fat bastard with a foul mouth like I did, in a world like this one, was just a recipe for unexpected consequences.

Well, I can safely say that, as disgusting as he was as a human being, him as a monster was so much worse.

Right, time to change the subject…

Well, what could cheer both of them up?

Ah, of course.

"Hey, girl. I was just thinking, maybe we should continue our dancing at home? Say…"

I grinned. "With a stripper pole or three, and a lot less clothing for all of us?"

Both Summer's heads jerked upwards, wide silver and blue eyes staring at me.

I could see the moment they shifted my current clothes with something more fitting for pole dancing.

Add a stripper pole, and…

They both lick their lips.

"Have we ever told you that you're the best boyfriend ever?" asked the silver-eyed Summer, with her twin nodding passionately in agreement.

I grinned in amusement. "Yes, but please, say it more."

"Oh, I think you'll get much more praise tonight." purred the other twin, as both women stood up.

"Right, as fun as things were here, I think it's time for the real fun to begin." agreed the silver eyed Huntress.

They both presented their arms. ""Coming?"" they both purred as one.

"With you two?" I replied, finishing my drink and standing up, taking their arms. "Always."

They smirked.

As we left, my hands went to their assess, and I could feel the seething envy and grudging respect of all watching.

I chuckled.

Git gud, scrubs! I could do it, nothing's stopping all of you from trying the same!

I showed it could be done, now do me proud and do the same!

Or fail miserably, and make me laugh instead!

Either way, I win!

"... and through that piece of data, we can see the way things don't match up, and if we look here, then-"

"-then we see that he's actually taking money from the Association for personal reasons having nothing to do with how that money was meant to be spent. You're right."

Child Emperor glared at the screen and the numbers on it, as if personally offended by it all, while by his side Lucy grinned coldly, multi-colored eyes allowing nothing to hide from her gaze.

"And that, you see, is why it's important for people like me to always keep an eye on the Association. I've shown you the numbers of cases like this or worse we had over the years, and while it has gotten pretty low since everybody trying this shit always gets caught, there's always some idiot who thinks they will be lucky and not get caught." explained Lucy.

Child Emperor shook his head in disgust.

"Using funds from the rebuilding of housing for people who lost their homes to monster attacks… to build a damn private swimming pool. I swear, I don't get people, sometimes." he grumbled.

Lucy snorted. "It's actually pretty obvious the reason why, once you are aware of the fact that the man in question has two mistresses, who obviously don't know about each other. And his wife certainly doesn't know, either!"

Child Emperor blinked. "Isn't polygamy legal? Why-"

"It's easier to lie and hide than try and convince his wife and mistresses to all share him." Lucy said very, very flatly. "Besides, that would imply he sees anything more than some nice pair of tits in his mistresses… which he doesn't. He just wants to fuck them, not live with them."

Child Emperor grunted. "And someone like that is working for the Hero Association? I swear, some people really have no shame."

Lucy shook her head. "That's just how some people are. They don't care about anything else but themselves. Even with polygamy being legal, there are still many cases of lovers cheating on one another across the world. Even when presented with a legal path to love triangles and the likes, there are still many people who either don't care or even prefer doing things the 'wrong' way."

Lucy then turned towards the screen, a slight scowl on her face. "Still, at least this time it isn't someone drawing out funds to support criminal organizations, unethical research groups, or in one memorable case, a cult."

Child Emperor gave her a look, before sighing.

"I've got a feeling my faith in humanity is going to keep taking blows the more I learn and investigate the hidden sides of the Hero Organization, and various groups in general."

Lucy smirked. "Oh, you poor, sweet summer child, you haven't seen anything yet. Someone needs to keep an eye on the more subtle type of crimes, and I can assure you that it tends to be just as, if not more messy than killing monsters. The clean-up can be just as disgusting to deal with as removing monsters' guts from the ground and walls. Trust me, I've seen things that left me badly in need of a shower by the time I was done."

She shook her head. "If I have to bust out yet another sex-trafficking ring from unusual electrical and water bills in run-down areas, it'll be too soon."

Child Emperor grimaced. He had heard the story of what went down in that place.

To say it had been bad was an understatement worthy of the history books.

"Either way, since you're the genius of the S-class, you're the lucky bastard who gets to help me out in dealing with shit like this. You should have been like the other guys, good only for hitting things, that would have prevented you from being good enough to be able to help me out." she said with sarcastic amusement.

Child Emperor sent yet another disgusted look at the screen, before shaking his head. "No, it would have been wrong to look away from all of this. I did not become a hero just to hide from ugly truths. You're right, dealing with all of this is going to be thoroughly unpleasant, but it's a job that needs doing, and if I can help you out doing it, then so much the better."

Lucy sent him a long look, before sighing.

"I still would have preferred not to involve you in this while you were still young, but you were starting to look into all of this by yourself anyway, so at that point I decided that we might as well work together."

"And I'm grateful for your help. It's been some time since I felt like I've been learning so much- usually, I'm the one people learn from, nowadays." Child Emperor replied, an earnest smile on his lips.

He turned back towards the screen. "Also, in a way I'm glad to be here. Finding out about all of this by myself would have really frustrated me, so knowing that someone is already working on dealing with this kind of more subtle issue is reassuring. It's not pleasant to learn that crime like this exists, but the fact that it's already being seen to does help a lot."

Lucy nodded in understanding. "It's one thing to know that crime exists, it's another thing entirely if you knew that nothing was being done about it, huh?"

"Exactly." Child Emperor agreed. "Though in Hindsight, I shouldn't be surprised that things like this were being seen too. The Good Hunter is a God of Truth, it would have been really surprising if he, or someone working for him, wasn't looking out for hidden crimes to bring to light."

Lucy glanced at him thoughtfully.

"You hold him in high regards." she said, the words spoken more like a statement of facts than a question.

Child Emperor smiled at the words. "Is it that surprising? Everywhere I look I can see the weight of his influence. In the Hero Association, but also in the streets, as every vehicle is powered by clean fusion. Every man and woman looks young and full of life. The authorities possessed new technologies to do their jobs, crimes are being investigated with greater success than at any other times in human history, technology is leaping forwards with such speed that it's only a matter of a few decades at the most before Humanity will be able to explore the local solar system by setting foot on each worlds and moons, and much more besides."

He nodded at her. "And he doesn't work alone. I have seen every scientific paper you've ever published, and I have investigated just how much work Oedon has put into the medical side of civilization. Hospitals are more numerous and more capable of healing people than ever before, using both magic and technology. The global child care system has never been as competent and fast as it is today, too. And I don't even need to point out all the things you've achieved through your company."

He shrugged and grinned. "You and the others changed the world, Lucy, and everywhere I look it's been for the better. Yes, things like this still exist-" he waved at the screen "-but overall? Humanity owes you all more than we might ever be able to repay, and I'm fully aware of that fact."

"We haven't done our work just to burden Humanity with a debt it must repay us." argued Lucy.

If anything, those words made Child Emperor's smile grow.

"I know. But that's exactly why it makes all of it even more impactful and impressive."

Child Emperor glanced at the screen, gaze growing distant, before his gaze snapped back towards Lucy, eyes sharp and determined.

"There will always be darkness in Humanity, I know that much. I do not believe anything can ever change that. But I have seen with my own eyes the truth of how much good exists in the world as well, and that the principles that the Association were built upon are not lies. The world truly needs heroes, it needs protectors, and it does have them."

His smile was proud and happy.

"I'm just glad I can play my part, and that I get to stand at the sides of people who, by their very existence, prove that it is never wrong to stand up and fight to help people."

He looked away, a faint blush on his face at his passionate words.

I'm proud of being a hero, he thought, because I fight by the side of true heroes… and they are everything I could have ever hoped for them to be.

Child Emperor did not like to be seen as a child.

But he still would be forever grateful that his childish dreams of saving the world by the sides of heroes turned out to be true.

And if it just so happened that some of those heroes were gods, well, it just went to show that good things did come for those worthy of them, and that power could indeed end up in the hands of those worthy of it.

And that was a Truth worth fighting for, so that it could forever remain true.

A.N: Alright! Here is the next chapter in which we continue the One Punch Man Arc!
The meteor incident is pretty straightforward, but it does help Saitama become even more famous. Him becoming S-class rank 5 is actually what Genos theorized would have happened in canon if the collateral damage hadn't happened, so here in this timeline, thanks to Aeon and co. helping out, Saitama got his promotion.
After that, I wanted to show off more of the characters interacting, and the changes happening throughout the OPM world.
Saitama and Sherry interacting, Tatsumaki reacting to both her growing power and the existence of Saitama, things like that.
Then, once more canon events, this time with Mumen Rider being (even more of) a chad, with just a little help from God!Aeon. I admit, I enjoyed writing this part, as a divinely-enhanced Mumen Rider is just awesome.
Also, a bit more Summer twin content, because who doesn't like beautiful twin "sisters" who can kick ass and look good doing it?
And finally, Lucy gets to mentor Child Emperor as a new guardian against corruption within humanity. The poor guy is in for a wild ride, a rabbit hole without end, but at least he gets a literal omniscient goddess to help him out. Also, they will probably start ranting at each other about all the shit they come across within a month, two at most.
Still, with all that being said, I hope you all enjoyed this update! Next time, we continue OPM, and enter the last Arc of OPM, as a Boros far more powerful than in canon and his ship of aliens enters the stage…