Showing Off

This sparked a flurry of discussion, especially among the Pioneers on the periphery who still had no idea what was happening—their minds were full of confusion.

"A gene monster appeared up ahead?"

"If nothing unexpected happened, that's what it is. But how could a gene monster show up at our graduation party? Isn't it true that only Pioneers can come?"

"Could it be that some Pioneer drank that miracle drug too?" someone guessed.

"Pretty much!"

"God, why would anyone drink that?" that person didn't understand.

"Who knows! Let's go, let's go! Zero ordered us to leave here quickly!"

"Why do we second-generation Pioneers have to leave! Are they looking down on us?"

"It should be for our safety."

"Strength in numbers! Wouldn't it be better if so many of us handled it? One bullet each from everyone here would riddle him full of holes!" This person's eyes sparkled with excitement, eager to try.

"Exactly!" someone agreed. "I don't want to leave; I'm staying! This is my first achievement after stepping into society—why should I let those first-generation Pioneers take it?"

"I swear, you two have something wrong with your heads. Didn't you hear Zero say no shooting? What are you still blabbing about here? Stay or go, it's up to you—I'm out!"

...

...

The second-generation Pioneers evacuated, and the crowd instantly halved, leaving the training ground more open.

Those who remained were the seasoned first-generation Pioneers.

The monster swelled to an enormous size, devouring anything it could reach—scattered food, chair legs, table legs...

Its body was already twice its previous size.

The Pioneers drew their weapons, mostly short blades and daggers, though some, like Tu Ran, wielded long sabers or curved blades.

They leaped into action one after another, throwing their full strength into attacking the monster.

Punches and kicks, flashes of blades, sparks flying.

It was a showcase.

A showcase that had quietly evolved from a hunt.

A showcase directed at their former classmates.

Back during training, ability tests were arranged every month. The instructors would score everyone based on their performance, rank them from high to low, and there were reward and punishment systems—who was strong and who was weak was clear at a glance.

But since graduating from the five-year training program, they had gone their separate ways, with almost no chance to gather together.

Of course, the collective meetings held after each trip out of the Threshold were the only time they got together.

But those meetings were just about listening to the commander assign missions and announce casualty numbers. When it was over, they all went home.

They had never had an opportunity like today to take on a gene monster together.

And this gene monster wasn't weak—it wouldn't die with a single squeeze. It was quite a challenge.

Enough for them to see the abilities of their former classmates.

And enough to prove their own abilities now.

Above them, an aircraft hovered steadily in midair.

Attached beneath it was a camera, transmitting a perfectly clear, unobstructed view of the scene below to the screen of a large conference room.

Sitting before the screen were the second-generation Pioneers who had been sent away.

Every face was locked onto the intense action, eyes fixed without blinking.

Zero's voice rang out in the conference room.

"As requested by the commander, the feed has been transmitted here."

"The commander hopes you will watch carefully and deeply understand the power of the enemies you will face in the future."

"Additionally, the commander said that whether it's the aberrant creatures from the Threshold or the newly emerged gene monsters, they can appear under any circumstances, at any time. He hopes you will remain vigilant at all times and not be caught off guard like today."

The faces in the room instantly turned colorful.

True enough—without the senior Pioneers today, who knew how many more of them would have been hurt.

But who could have imagined that a gene monster would appear at their graduation party?

On the huge screen, the Pioneers, each with more agile movements than the last, had the monster completely surrounded.

These Pioneers had been among the fifty percent who survived, so their abilities were already formidable. Combined with a year of real-world experience, their skills were far beyond what they'd been back then.

The sparks bursting from blades cutting into the creature's flesh dazzled those watching the screen, and "wows" echoed through the conference room.

Unfortunately, the gene monster's hide was comparable to the hardest iron walls—under the dense barrage of blades, it didn't suffer a single scratch.

"This isn't working. Let's try firearms instead," a male Pioneer shouted.

Some of the others nodded in agreement.

It was true—this gene monster was like a seamless stone. With knives, how long would it take to carve open even a single crack?

"Everyone get back! I'll try with a gun!" another burly male Pioneer raised an oversized handgun.

The moment he revealed his weapon, a small explosion of chatter erupted in front of the screen.

"That's the Erlest 700 handgun—the biggest handgun in the Federation!"

"They say its bullets hit as hard as a main heavy machine gun! And the ammunition is the extra-large bullets developed by A5 Corporation."

"I've used one once!" an overweight boy exclaimed, slapping the table excitedly. "The instructor let me try this type of handgun once. I fired a single round, and the recoil nearly ruined my arm! That guy's a beast!"

The ponytailed girl next to him raised a question. "When was that? Why didn't the instructor let us try it?"

"Exactly," someone chimed in.

The chubby kid scratched his head. "Didn't the instructor tailor our training to each person's situation? If you haven't used this, you've definitely used something else. It's because I'm heavier and stronger, better suited for a high-recoil gun, so the instructor had me train with it."

The people around him finally looked away.

On the screen, the Pioneers gathered around the gene monster quickly scattered, leaving plenty of room for the man with the handgun.

"BANG!" A thunderous gunshot rang out.

The bullet tore through the barrel and shot toward the creature's body.

Under everyone's expectant gaze, the oversized bullet slammed into the monster's rough hide, the tail end burying itself into the flesh.

Just as everyone thought it would succeed, the bullet rebounded out of the flesh.

Everyone's pupils contracted sharply as they watched the bullet fly back along its original trajectory toward the man who had fired it.

Tu Ran, who had been watching from the back of the crowd, had somehow already moved to the burly man's side.

The instant the bullet was about to pierce his body, she lunged.

The two of them crashed to the ground together.

"BANG!"

The bullet slammed into a wall several hundred meters away.

"He dodged it!"

The people holding their breath in front of the screen erupted in cheers!

Tu Ran got up from the ground and brushed the dust off her clothes.

The man was still a bit dazed. He staggered to his feet, looked at Tu Ran, and said, "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Tu Ran replied flatly, turning her gaze toward the monster.