Awakening to a Special-Grade Explorer
Vol. 4 - Ch. 167 - The curtain rises on the war

With Kujou taking the lead, the rest of the Chariot followed after her and arrived near the black cocoon one after another.

"It's coming."

Commander Kujou suddenly spread one of her arms in the sideway to stop the advances of members at once.

'Formation Deploy,' Kujou murmured in a low voice. It, however, was enough for members to pick the cue as they started grouping the instant following the strategy they had been briefed about and took in their respective position.

Tenji was also a part of one such group, grouped with three other members---Fuyuki Kurou, Chisato Shiranei, Tomohito Fukuyama, to play out his role.

Fuyuki and Chisaot was the obvious choice even in dark, while Fuyuma, the second-grade explorer was add in to balance the team and to take upon the role of shield. And being an acquaintance he was, this was to make the co-operation easier. The lack of coordination in the tead had led them to become something simple party setup.

Tomohito Fukuyama, the 'shield,' was in charge of herding the monsters and managing the battlefield. With their top grade calling and also being the holder of highest firepower, the 'attacker' Tenji and Fuyuki were to eliminate the monsters. While Chisato was the 'jack of all trade,' someone who possessed the most analytical mindset to instantly make decisions.

The group of monsters swiftly appeared in front of the novice team.

(So they're the 'underling' monster? They really have no unity and all individualism with no guidance. It's going to be a tough battle huh.)

The threat that appeared in front of them was like a downgraded copy of the parent monster. These underling monsters were crawling on all four, moving with a strange yet erratic movement.

Some were as big as tigers, while some were small like bunnies. There was one unit that closely resembled a loctus as well. The said irregular had a completely white body, and was as big as a bear.

But at the end of day, the 'crawlers' were the most common trait among the appearance of monsters. The ground up to several hundred metres was occupied by the endless amount of underling as they moved around without putting a need for coordination.

It seemed like they're simply acting on their 'instinct.'

It was hard to tell what their objective was. Their erratic movement was just like any other low-grade monsters they had encountered, and similarly, showed the glimpse of having no intelligence. That said, the way they were locking their sight on other explorers was unsettling.

'So they possessed an ego, but not to the extent of working in a huge group, huh,' Tenji thought. Maybe there was no better way to describe them than that.

On the other hand, Fukuyama was amazed at the enemies. The huge number of enemies plus their white colour gave off the impression as if an avalanche had broken out. He wasted not a second and jumped out in the front line while raising his both arms---equipped with some fancy weapons. He channelled all his strength into them and stabbed them toward the ground.

"---<Shriek - Rashomon>."

Fukuyama shouted in a loud voice as his hands buried themselves in the ground till the wrist and activated his signature skill.

In tune with his shout, a huge gate, dyed in bright red, suddenly descended out of the thin air. It landed just right before their team with a 'thud,' and yet, it didn't stir the dust even a bit. As soon as it landed, the eyes of the demon-face-like mask, attacked at the gate, started moving in a sinister way.

Next moment, the demonic mask opened its mouth with a creaking sound like old gears lacking oil and released a shout so deafening that it might even burst their eardrums.

" GRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAA!!!!"

The scream of Rashomon that had suddenly appeared out there instantly attracted the gazes of literally every underling present there. At the same time, their hectic advancement instantly turned toward them.

Seeing that everything was just as he wanted, Fukuyama then slowly stuck out his hands from the ground.

Fukuyama's <Shriek - Rashomon> was the ability to forcefully alter the focus of any monster within 1.5 kilometres---with the focal point being Rashomon's location and in fan shape---to itself. In a simpler term, 'Fukuyama replaced their target with himself.'

Fukuyama heaved a sigh of relief that he safely managed to finish his role he was assigned to. Then he turned around and called out to Tenji standing just a bit behind him.

"In the end, we just didn't get the chance to work on our coordination. Well, not that any complaint is valid given the situation. I'm going to take a hard look at your performance this time for sure, Tenji-kun. Keep it in mind that it's not just some enrollment exam, but a true battle of life where everyone is staking their everything. Show me everything you have---I believe you already have reached that level, no?"

"Yes!," Tenji assertively nodded at Fukuyama's apparent cheering.

"That's the spirit, boy. Well, this ends my role here, so I will be working as support from behind along with Chisato-chan......so make sure to blast out even for my share. And you two, we will not let your talents go unburst here! Just leave the support to us adults!"

At the end of his words, a gentle smile appeared on Fukuyama's face suddenly.

" "We will!!"

The task up ahead was out of league for second-grade explorer Fukuyama. But then again, he had training to be the shield, a support platform, all this while. So when it comes to annihilating the enemies, he could only take the role of support. A shield was to support and defend, and a blade was to carve out the road out of foes---this was their role.

(You wouldn't find any reliable support like me. So show me what you have got!!)

Fukuyama gave a path on Tenji's back. Though rather than physically, it resonates deep within his heart.

One was the blade, and the other shield---it wasn't the enrollment exam where Fukuyama had to protect the students. Today was different.

It was not time for him to be protected, but to protect---no, it was the moment to walk right next to him and fight together. Was it not for what he was putting his all to train day and fight until now?

And at last, the curtain on Tenji's war opened up.

"---Summon, Fire Demon Blade."

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