Awakening to a Special-Grade Explorer
Vol. 4 - Ch. 164 - The Beginning of Battle

Honnou slowly walked up to the Tenji in the battlefield illuminated only by the dim moonlight of waning gibbous moon.

Tenji was first surprised to see him, but then replied calmly, "It's been a while."

"It's such a hectic time that I couldn't free myself till now, but well, I do have now. Till the signal goes up."

"Certainly so."

The two chatted, their gaze never separating from black cocoon. After a momentary pause, Honnou suddenly said in an apologetic tone.

"Sorry......I couldn't see the promise till the end."

"You don't really have to, seriously. Not when the reason is so terrific. You're a leading explorer first and foremost after all, my request can still be completed later."

Tenju replied with an obvious tone. His reply was a perfect textbook example reply, befitting of a student status aiming to be an explorer. But it seemed like Honnou couldn't accept them completely as he turned to glance at Tenji for a fleeting moment. And after seeing the profile of Tenji, who was trying not to let any strangeness appear on his face, Honou shifted his glance back to the monster.

"I never expected the future would be hiding such...a big surprise."

Honnou's voice became slightly sharper.

"I too. It's been just half a year, I would have laughed out loud if someone had told me I would be standing here today."

"You really have grown up. I guess...there aren’t many things I can teach you now. And from the looks, you have met a wonderful master, so I hadn't wanted to suddenly disturb that rhythm. However, and that's why, I want you to take a closer look at my technique as a member of the pre-emptive strike unit."

That's a wonderful suggestion. I will make sure to commit everything to my memory. I guess that would surely fulfil our premise."

"Hmm, that's great then."

Facing a cheerful smile from Tenji, Honnou---whose clumsiness was pretty much known to the whole world---too, gleefully smiled back in return.

On the other hand, the fellow guild members of Honnou were stunned to the core seeing his smiling face. Their expressions were the window to show how they have never witnessed him laughing this much.

The air of tension had loosened ever so slightly when it started.

Commander Kujou, standing at the forefront of the team, suddenly jutted out her hand outward, parallel to the ground. Her simple actions immediately drew everyone's attention.

Basking in everyone's attention, Kujou, holding a charisma that pulled in others and recognised by the world, slowly spinned her words.

"It's about time. Everyone, take a deep breath. You numbskulls are being too nervous."

All the 21 explorers present there immediately took a deep breath hearing her words. Once she confirmed that their strained nerves had loosened, Kujou then put up a ferocious smile. Her beautiful, long eyes reflected the moonlight.

Tenji and Fuyuki felt a shake in their heart. 'Ah, we truly are going to fight under the command of someone as gallant as her,'...the realisation had once again downed upon them, this time to an even degree. They couldn't put a finger to that sensation, but without doubt, it should have been something closer to 'excitement.'

And finally---

The monster broke through the black cocoon and laid its face bare to the world.

"Rruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuoooooo!!"

A shrill warcry. It rose its upper body with an incredulous moment, its deformed upper half projecting in everyone's eyes.

It was a monster completely dyed in white. The monster had no defining curve, every single feature was either straight straight or cuboid---overall, it was an odd foe. It was without a speck of dust from top to bottom, all dyed in white. Though one could notice orange inscriptions in particular parts of its body.

The monster was lacking any defining feature for its face, as if wearing a noh mask, and one couldn't tell which part of it was touched and which eyes. Nevertheless, the strange part was they could tell which was its face and which was its chest.

The white monster blew away the upper section of black cocoon, as if saying 'you're in a way.' Then it placed its finger at the edge of black cocoon and slowly rose up.

And then, with an eerie expression that seemed to be immersed in pleasure, he looked up at the pale yellow crescent moon.

With a sticky sound, cracks spread horizontally across the diamond-shaped face. As the jagged cracks extended, a large mouth appeared there.

It opened its eyes wide. Circles of sunset hue were drawn up at the end of its two cavities that suddenly appeared at the upper half of its face. And one could take a glimpse of its astonishingly beautiful 'white eyes' floating at the depth of the cavities.

A tension that permeated the entire hierarchy surged as they gazed at that alien figure for the first time. A tension running in everyone.

Almost simultaneously, the captain assigned to the northeast to northwest sector, Commander Kujou, tightly clenched the hand she had extended to the side and forcefully raised it upwards.

"Preemptive unit, prepare!"

It was almost as if she had seen the future, Tenji marvelled. Commander Kujou had just fired her instruction when it happened.

With a clang, the artificial lights spanning the entire floor suddenly lit up at once.

It was nothing special. Tenji couldn't count how many times he had seen the crystallisation of human knowledge back at school ground or soccer field on the surface.

As if at cue, it releases red and white illumination that assailed the dungeon's night sky. And at last, it laid its body completely bare to everyone's eye.

The same instant, the signal for the surprise attack went on.

"Tenji-kun, make sure you look at it till the end. It’s the power of a professional."

Honnou pulled back his left leg, and then planted it at the ground with a thud. The ground stepped on and couldn't withstand the power and weight behind it, which created a depression.

Then, Honnou Itagaki, a world leading first-grade explorer, brandished his right arm outward before pausing momentarily. And the next moment, bright orange lava gathered in his arm and gushed out. It was like the boiling lava was leaving his skin.

"<Magma Force> <Aether Flame> <Divine Step> <Immovable Stone>---synthesis bullet <Rock Magma>."

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