Awakening to a Special-Grade Explorer

Book 1: Chapter 31

Tenji hurriedly put his bag away on the shelf and turned to the door.

Four people were standing there in suits that he had never seen before. The first was a man with light brown hair who gave a favorable impression.

Behind them were three people, two women and a man.

"May I come in?"

"Oh, yes. Are you from the association?"

"That's right, that's right! You're Tenji-san, aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm Tenji Amagi."

The lead man took the initiative to speak as he walked up to Tenzi.

Tenji realized that he was from the association and quickly straightened his posture.

"May I sit down?"

"Oh, yes. That's right, I'm sorry."

"No, no. Excuse me."

Tenji hurriedly sat on the edge of the bed, and the lead man sat in the chair next to the bed. Apparently, the other three stood and talked.

There was a slight scent of vanilla from the brown-haired man. He then pulled a business card from his pocket and handed it to Tenji.

"I'm Yujiro Mizuhashi, a Japan Explore Engineers Association member, and I work for the Disaster Countermeasures Department. I'm sorry if my mouth smells bad because I just ate some tsukemen." [TLN: Tsukemen is a ramen dish in Japanese cuisine consisting of noodles eaten after being dipped in a separate bowl of soup or broth.]

[The man who introduced himself as Mizuhashi greeted me with a relaxed smile.]

With that, Tenji also gives his name.

"I'm Amagi Tenji, a freshman at Japan Explorers High School."

"Yes, I know. Please don't be too hard, okay? I don't like this kind of hardness either, because it's too much trouble.... Oh, I'm sorry. It's my usual habit."

Mizuhashi winked at him as if he could hear the sound effect with a twinkle. Tenji felt somewhat out of sync because he was from the association.

Mizuhashi said and took out a sheet of paper.

"Well, sir, first of all, we need to reconcile our assumptions......."

"Would you like me to say that I came back alive with Godou-san and the others?"

"Yeah, that's right. I'm sorry I put this kind of pressure on the students."

"No, I think that's fair, given the high school's rank."

"I'm glad you're such an understanding student. We've had the mass media pick up on Mr. Godo as a hero, and we want to avoid any talk about him from the students. Fortunately, Godou-san and Ochanomizu Dungeon are the talk of the town."

"Ahh yes. It seems so."

Letting out a breath of relief at Tenji's immediate affirmation, Mizuhashi pulled out another document and began to speak.

"Next is to confirm that the report from Leon-san is true. Tenji-kun was left behind in Black Keroberos' room and spent four days hiding among the bodies of eight people, including Takashi Moiwa, as the two monsters fought. Then Leon Hyakuse appeared and defeated Black Keroberos. This must be it, right?"

Knowing Leon had deliberately twisted the truth, Tenji affirmed it without hesitation.

"Yes, I'm sure that is true."

"I see. I knew it. Well, I'm sorry. I asked Hyakuse-san to show me the magic ore as evidence, but he kept refusing. I thought about the possibility that it might be a false report, but I didn't think that person would make a false report. I'm sorry for doubting."

Mizuhashi lightly tapped the back of his head carefreely and gestured as if to say, "What the heck."

However, Tenji reacted with a giggle in his heart.

"So there's no enforcement from the association?"

"What? Impossible, absolutely impossible! It's Leon, right? He's really strong. He's seriously strong. He's the kind of person who can twist and slash monsters just by walking around. If you fire a bullet at him, he'll reflect it back at you."

Mizuhashi denied it as if he was really impatient.

Tenji knew for the first time hearing those words that Leon's strength was confirmed. Tenji didn't see Leon in combat, so he didn't know if that was true.

"He was such a great person, wasn't he?"

"Yes, that's right. He is not a person who generally shows his face, but this time, Director Mamiko was very helpful. I didn't want to be promoted."

"Don't you want a promotion?"

"Oh, let's not talk about me, it's a waste of time. So Hyakuse-san told me that you awakened as a "swordsman," is that true?"

Tenji thinks the main subject has arrived, and he can't help but set it up in his mind. He tilted his head.

That must have gotten through to Mizuhashi, who tilted his head questioningly.

"Well, I'm going to measure it now. So can you hold this calling measurement tree for me?"

"Oh, yes. Is this how you want me to do it?"

"Yes, just hold it and you'll be fine. Just stay still."

Tenji did as Mizuhashi said and grabbed the item he was given.

[The calling Measuring Tree felt like a silvery iron branch, which was as heavy as holding a lump of metal.]

As soon as Tenji holds it, it begins to glow slightly reddish.

"Oh, I see you've really awakened. Please hold still a little longer."

The first thing that comes to mind is that the tree is enormous.

Meanwhile, Tenji was inwardly chilling.

Mr Kaido had told him that he would appear as [Swordsman], but he couldn't decide how much he could trust him.

And then the calling measuring tree was flattened and rolled up.

As the fluttering, shedding bark fell through the air, Mizuhashi quickly caught it and turned the inside of the bark to face out.

"Ah, it's true. The measurement results are coming out in the fifth grade "Swordsman". I'm sorry for doubting you, Hyakuse-san."

Mizuhashi looked at the word [Swordsman] written in purple letters on the bark and apologized blankly to Leon as he looked out the window as if he was enlightened.

After that, Mizuhashi returned his gaze to Tenji and handed the tree to him.

"Here you go. Can I have you hold it in front of your chest like this?"

"Is this......?"

"Yeah, just stop right there. I'll take a picture for your license."

Mizuhashi slowly took his phone out of his pocket and snapped a picture.

He had Tenji check the picture and asked if this was correct.

"Yes, I'm fine, but can I get a...... license?"

"That's right, it's something you get automatically when you awaken to your calling. Well, I think it will be easier to apply for dungeon entry than before, right?"

Tenji's face brightened a little at the unexpected harvest.

However, Mizuhashi quickly corrects him.

"Oh, but...... is just a guess. I think it will be difficult to get the application approved for the time being, but this is inevitable since the students were just affected. Well, it will be over in a month, but maybe, you know?Maybe."

"We got into distress, didn't we?

"Well, I think it's just bad luck. To be honest, there's no precedent for going from a regular type to an irregular type, and it's really just luck. At any rate, I'm glad Amagi didn't die. I know it's late, but he made it back alive safely, thank you for your hard work."

"Oh, thank you."

"I'm not sure what to do now, but I'm going to go to the office. Of course, you can go back to high school again."

Mizuhashi said, standing up and tapping the shoulders of the three suits waiting behind him.

The three of them immediately smiled and finished greeting Tenji lightly.

"Are you done?"

"Yes, I'm sorry to detain you for so long. I was a bit nervous about the fact that the students were from Nippon Searchers High School. It's a little too much, but I'm glad to see that the trouble is almost over."

However, one of the men waiting for him soon had him in a pinch, making him sit in a chair next to the bed again.

Tenji was taken aback by just that little action.

I had always thought Mizuhashi was strange, but I hadn't expected him to be as weird as he was.

"Mizuhashi, get your work done."

The man grabbed the top of Mizuhashi's head as if he was angry at a subordinate.

"I don't like it. It's definitely going to be a hassle, isn't it? I don't want to get promoted, you know? Masatsugu Shotsugu, senior."

"I don't know, that's what he always says Tenji-kun. But the fact that he's not good at his job pisses me off."

"I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to get a good deal of credit for this one. "

"I'm just letting it sink in."

"...... I understand... I'll do it, I, Yujiro Mizuhashi will do his job!"

"You should have done that from the start, you idiot."

Mizuhashi raised his hands in contemplation and looked towards the hospital room doorway.

After coughing deliberately, he shouted.

"Inagaki Father and son, enter!"