Chapter 52 – White Beast

Asuto wаsn’t thе оnlу оne who sensеd sоmething was wrоng.

The Моnstеrs thаt hаd bеen swarming thеm one аftеr anоthеr suddеnlу frоze in thеir traсks.

The mоmеnt thеу lookеd baсk, they scаttеred like baby sрidеrs fleeing in all directiоns.

“Whоa, look at that. Тhеy finallу reаlizеd hоw strоng you are аnd are tuсking thеir tаils betweеn thеir lеgs to run!”

“No wаy that’s it.”

Аsuto focused his wаning сoncеntrаtion, shаrpening it оnce morе.

Cоld swеat trickled down his temрles.

Тhе рresеnce hе fеlt frоm the pаssagеwау wаs оn a соmрletеlу different level from any Monster he’d faced so far.

“…What’s coming?”

Asuto narrowed his eyes, peering into the passageway.

From the intensity of the presence, he knew the opponent was already close by.

But the deep darkness obscured it, making its form completely invisible.

Chill…

A sharp pain shot through the nape of his neck.

Sensing something bad, he raised his arm.

It was the next instant.

From beyond the shadows, a pure white beast appeared.

Maintaining its ferocious momentum, the beast raised its claws.

(It’s fast!!)

He couldn’t react in time.

Asuto gritted his back teeth.

—Grrrrr!!

He caught the beast’s claws with both his Daggers.

“Guh!!”

The attack was heavy.

The powerful impact nearly buckled his knees.

The difference in physique was too great.

He couldn’t push back with his own arm strength.

Realizing this, Asuto immediately relaxed his strength.

He bent his knees with a thud, rolling to evade the attack.

—Shing!!

From the corner of his eye, he saw four claws plunge deep into the concrete floor.

If that had come down on his head, Asuto would have been neatly sliced into five pieces by now.

He rolled across the floor and got up.

Fortunately, the opponent didn’t immediately pursue him.

It looked at him, curling the corner of its mouth into a grin.

Asuto didn’t understand a single word of Monster language, but at that moment, he strangely managed to read what it was saying.

‘Seems like you might be worth toying with a little.’

His chest churned with disgust at the condescending look in its eyes.

Its leisurely motion of raising its claws was arrogant, as if it were the king itself.

At that attitude, Amy clicked her tongue in rare irritation.

“Tch, a lowly species like you, so damn annoying.”

“…Reluctantly, I agree.”

“Asuto, trample that eyesore of a beast.”

“Don’t order me around. Besides—”

He narrowed his eyes sharply, tightening his grip on the Daggers.

“—I don’t need you to tell me.”

Asuto charged in with all his might.

The beast met him with its claws.

He stopped abruptly, feinted, and circled around.

But the opponent was no slouch either, anticipating Asuto’s movements.

(As I thought—)

This pure white beast wasn’t just any Monster.

Without a doubt, it was Boss-level.

And at least on par with, if not above, Asuto.

If this wasn’t an inferior species but a primal Lycaon, its threat level would exceed B-Rank.

A very troublesome opponent.

But that didn’t matter.

He was just getting tired of dealing with small fry.

(If you’re the one provoking, I’ll meet you head-on with everything I’ve got!)

Slashing, thrusting, kicking, punching,

Evading, feinting, continuous slashes.

He attacked at a pace that left no room to breathe.

An average Hunter would struggle just to follow it with their eyes.

The beast effortlessly dodged all those attacks.

(Damn it, I’m not hitting it at all!)

They weren’t on the same stage.

Realizing the difference in their levels, Asuto ground his teeth.

But that didn’t mean he had any intention of giving up.

In this single day, he had learned the significance of reflecting on battles and devising countermeasures.

If reflection bore fruit, it could become a great power, equivalent to Leveling Up or Skill improvement.

So, Asuto focused.

He memorized the opponent’s breathing, gaze, body movements—every single action.

His concentration reached its peak.

Instantly, the world seemed to shift into frame-by-frame motion.

He executed the cycle of prediction, action, evaluation, and improvement in a single breath.

His thoughts spun.

Memory Playback accelerated.

With each repetition of the cycle, the resolution of the beast’s movements increased.

From the bulging of its muscles and its preparatory motions, he gradually became able to predict its next attacks.

The beast raised its arm, claws bared, and swung down.

Asuto caught it with his Dagger.

A fierce impact.

He kept his knees soft, channeling the impact into the floor.

An attack that had overwhelmed him at first, he could now easily deflect.

The beast launched a roundhouse kick.

But,

“I’ve already seen that one.”

Asuto crouched lightly, dodging the kick.

Simultaneously, he raised his Dagger and held it steady.

“—!?”

The beast hastily Backstepped.

Trying not to create an opening, it glanced briefly at its own foot.

A vivid red gash had appeared on that white foot.

Its foot had grazed the tip of the Dagger Asuto had just raised.

Having received an unexpected counterattack from an opponent it had completely dominated, the white beast grew enraged.

“You get hurt when you look down on your inferiors.”

“Grrr…!!”

“Fine, come at me. I’ll smash that pride of yours to smithereens.”

“Gah!!”

The white beast bared its fangs and charged.

In its demeanor now, there was no trace of arrogance left.

With a sound of cutting wind, its claws came at him.

Asuto nimbly Evaded the attack, its speed a blur.

—Its center of gravity shifted.

A kick was coming.

He swayed aside on reflex.

The beast’s toes passed right by the tip of his nose.

Using his abs as a spring, Asuto reversed his momentum.

He slipped into the opponent’s guard.

From directly above, the beast’s heel came swinging down.