Chapter 4 – Prologue IV

“Whoa, this whistlе’s rеsроnsе is way toо gоod…”

A singlе Gray Wоlf lungеd аt him.

“Whоа, dаngerous!”

Аt the last роssible mоmеnt, hе usеd 〈Lеaр〉.

Hе jumped оntо а wаll to evаde it.

Тhere werе аlready five Grау Wolves around him.

For а Lеvel 1 Hunter with no Arms, it wаs а hopеless situаtiоn.

Dеsрite that, Asuto blеw the Dog Whistlе еvеn louder.

“Nоt уеt!”

He rаn along thе top of the wаll аnd used 〈Leар〉.

Hе ran through, сareful not tо get surrоundеd by the Gray Wolvеs.

Whenеvеr it sеemеd like theу might flаnk him, hе immediatеly usеd 〈Lеар〉.

Grаduallу, thе Skill’s Рrofiсiеncy increased, and the distance he could 〈Leap〉 grew.

(With this, maybe I can do it.)

Around the time he could leap about seven meters with 〈Leap〉, Asuto arrived at his destination.

It was a gas station that had gone out of business a short while ago.

There was no place more suitable for executing his plan.

Climbing onto the station’s roof, Asuto caught his breath and surveyed his surroundings.

Nearby was a single building, an empty lot slated for construction, and a row of houses.

There were almost no people around here.

Having heard the alarm, they had fled to a nearby shelter.

“Good. If there were people, I couldn’t use this plan.”

Relieved, Asuto continued sounding the Dog Whistle while checking his Inventory.

○ Lantern

Description: A Magic Tool that provides light. Perfect for exploring dark caves. Fragile against impact; rough handling is strictly prohibited. Light extinguishes after a maximum of 24 hours of use. Disposable type.

○ Water

Description: Just drinking water, 100 liters. Taste is slightly better than tap water. Simple to use; just pour gradually from the Cart. Be careful, as applying too much force will release it all at once.

“So, what are you gonna do with that junk?”

“Like this.”

He had thought about it many times before.

Back then, if he had chosen a different path, would his future have changed?

If he had used a method like this, would he be a different person now?

That

dream

(

wish

)

was about to be granted.

The past cannot be changed.

—Normally, that is.

Thanks to his Skill, Asuto had returned to the past.

He still didn’t know if this was reality or not.

But that didn’t matter at all.

Right now, he could choose the optimal path he had once only dreamed of!

Asuto persistently continued blowing the Dog Whistle.

Gray Wolves gathered at the gas station, one after another.

(All the Monsters within range of this sound are being lured here.)

After about five minutes, no new Gray Wolves appeared no matter how much he blew the whistle.

It seemed all the individuals within the whistle’s range had been gathered here.

“…If I climb down from here now, I’d be reduced to bones in seconds.”

Beneath the building, a massive number of Gray Wolves were packed together.

They filled the nearby empty lot completely. It was like a writhing carpet.

“You’re being all dramatic, but you’re not actually planning to just wait for help, are you?”

“That’s one option. If I wait a bit, some strong Hunters would probably rush over.”

The True Strength of the Hunters who Awakened during the First Outbreak was considerable. If they gathered, they could likely wipe out all the Gray Wolves here without significant casualties.

“Oh, I see. So you weren’t planning to take them down yourself after all.”

“I just said it was an option. But—”

Is that interesting?

Is being saved by others the best possible outcome for me?

—No, it’s not.

Asuto wanted to become a Hunter.

He admired Hunters who defeated Monsters and protected people.

He never wanted to be a Hunter who begged for help in the face of Monsters.

“It’d be a waste to let a chance like this slip by, right?”

What if, he thought.

If he could defeat all the Monsters that appeared in this Outbreak, what kind of optimal start could he get?

Several years from now, a shocking Conquest method for low-Rank Monsters would be posted online.

When Asuto saw that video, he was filled with regret.

(If only I could have used this back then…)

He would surely have become a much stronger Hunter.

There wasn’t a single night he didn’t think that.

Now, he could realize the scenario he had even dreamed about in his previous life.

Suppressing that excitement, Asuto curled up the corner of his mouth.

“I’m taking all the Monsters here!”

Opening the Inventory’s mouth, Asuto simultaneously released the water downward.

Mere 100 liters of water dumped on them shouldn’t be able to damage Gray Wolves.

On the contrary, it would only fuel their hatred.

—I’ll kill you!

Intense hostility was directed all at once toward Asuto.

But, ignoring it completely, he took the Lamp from the Cart.

Lighting the Lamp, Asuto held it out in front.

“Who said ‘taking all’? Are you kidding me?”

“Well, just watch.”

Saying that, Asuto released the Lamp he held from the roof.

Simultaneously, he moved.

Running at full speed, he used a full-power 〈Leap〉 at the roof’s edge.

“Woooooh!!”

Crossing his arms, he crashed through the glass of the neighboring building.

—Crash!!

His body was cut in various places by the shattered glass.

Then he fell from shoulder height.

But, the overflowing adrenaline erased the pain.

He rolled on the ground and ended up face-down against a wall.

The next moment, after covering his ears, half-opening his mouth, and holding his breath—

—Thump-Booooom!!

A bright blue light. A ground-shaking rumble, a violent blast of wind raged.

Every pane of glass shattered, and blue flames flowed into the building.

The blue flames quickly turned white.

Intense heat scorched his body.

(Guh…!!)

The building continued to shake violently.

The shaking and heat seemed like they would last forever.

But Asuto endured, staying perfectly still in the hellish situation.

Thump, thump, thump…

His heartbeat echoed strangely loud.

Eventually, a cool wind flowed in from the opposite side of where the blast occurred.

That wind carried the white smoke outside.

After counting another ten seconds, Asuto resumed the breath he had been holding.

“Phew. Thought I was gonna die.”

Getting up, he saw all the office supplies that had been inside the building were blown away.

A crackling sound came from somewhere. Embers were smoldering.

“H-hey, you… what in the world did you just do…?”

Amy, who looked out the window, had her eyes wide open.

What she was so shocked about, Asuto could already imagine.

“What do you mean? It’s obvious. A Hunter’s job—Monster Subjugation.”

Outside, the corpses of the enormous number of Gray Wolves that had been there just moments ago were scattered.

Asuto had wiped out all the Gray Wolves he had gathered with the explosion.

“No, no, not that! How did dropping a lantern cause such a huge explosion!? Did it ignite gasoline or something?”

“No, that’s wrong.”

It wasn’t gasoline that exploded. The station was out of business, so there was no gasoline left to begin with.

So, what exploded?

The answer is: the Lamp.

The Lamp is a Magic Tool created using magical techniques.

Its fuel uses a Mana Substance that reacts violently upon contact with large amounts of water.

When Asuto dropped the Lamp, its body broke, the fuel leaked out, contacted the water, and caused the massive explosion.

(I’d seen a video of using this method to take out Gray Wolves all at once, but I never thought the explosion would be this big…)

Until several years from now, when an adventurer who accidentally broke a Lamp would discover this phenomenon by chance, no one knew about it.

But Asuto, who knew the future, was different.

(Using future knowledge… I can surely—)

Asuto raised a hand toward the sky and clenched his fist tightly.

—Become stronger than anyone!

“Thought I might die, but my Level went up a lot, and I got some unexpected income too.”

It was worth doing.

Looking at his Status Screen, Asuto broke into a smile.

New Feat Achieved

・Subjugated over one hundred Monsters at once

Reward: 1000 G obtained

・Dealt the finishing blow to Outbreak Monsters (346 / 100)

Reward: Strength +3

・Reached F-Rank as Humanity’s Fastest after Awakening

Reward: Agility +3

○ Name: Yuki Asuto (20)

Level: 1 → 11 Aptitude: Assassin

Rank: G → F SP: 0 → 50

Held G: 30 → 1064

○ Physical Ability

Strength: 2 → 5 Stamina: 2 Magic Power: 1

Spirit: 1 Agility: 7 → 10 Perception: 1

○ Skills

・Leap Lv1 (51%)

・Memory Playback Lv1 (1%)

・Return Lv1 (0%)