Talent System: I Instantly Master My Opponents Skills
Chapter 145: Different, Yet The Same (2)

Chapter 145: Different, Yet The Same (2)

...

Outside The A-Dungeon

The sun’s light was blocked by the dark clouds.

Hereon stood next to the man, except this time both of them wore identical fox masks.

The boy wore a hat on his head, one that covered most of his blue hair.

The man was dressed better than him.

He only wore the white fox mask to hide his face, accompanying a black suit and black trousers. He was dressed as a businessman with a white fox mask.

"Are you going to dress like this?"

Hereon questioned him without bothering to take a look.

He was present when the man had bought the clothes and claimed that he was planning to give it away.

"Of course, we have to look the part."

He said.

He would have worn the glasses that he had bought alongside the suit, but unfortunately for him, the mask didn’t allow that.

He had tried.

"The organization isn’t well known and we intend to keep it that way, imagine if one of our members is captured and they spill the information on us."

The man said as he adjusted his collar.

His tone was serious, Hereon rolled his eyes as he heard the words.

’Even when he’s being serious I can tell that he’s joking.’

Hereon scoffed at his words.

’Captured?’

’How will they capture anyone if they don’t even know about the organization?

How would they even capture one of the members?’

When he had come initially he had thought about their low membership.

The few members that they had were strong.

The strongest he had ever seen.

Hereon could even say that the weakest of them was stronger than his father, that too by a large margin.

"Are we teleporting?"

Hereon asked.

Minutes passed and they had not moved a single muscle.

"Of course we are, how else do you think we would go before? Walking?"

He asked sarcastically.

The man could teleport without a teleportation talisman, that was a feat that was unheard of since the dawn of the first rank 0 awakened.

But his teleportation required him to either know the basic layout of the place he was teleporting to, or to have gone to the place before.

From what the man had told Hereon, the boy could deduce that it was at least much better than a teleportation treasure.

"I went on a stroll there a year ago, that’s where the meeting is taking place."

He grabbed Hereon, pinching his cheek.

"Get ready!"

He sounded excited.

Hereon wanted to get out of his grip, but he was aware that something was happening.

It was a shift in his body.

As if his body was being broken down without pain. He couldn’t feel any pain from the process.

"Close your eyes."

The man said seriously.

Hereon closed his eyes shut as the feeling overtook him.

He felt weightless in that moment, as if his body was moving freely in the air.

The feeling disappeared briefly.

Even though, he still kept his eyes closed.

"You can open your eyes now."

The boy opened them.

They were in an open field.

The air felt crisp, and there wasn’t any vegetation for miles.

The only thing under their shoes was sand.

A little distance away from them were some people. A man and a woman respectively.

Both of them seemed to have piercing sharp brown eyes and wore long flowing robes that dragged on the sand.

The location was the middle of nowhere. Both of them were visibly sweating from the distance they had traveled.

’Are these the rank 0’s he’s supposed to meet?’

Hereon wondered as he saw their physical condition.

These didn’t look like rank 0’s, at least, their physical abilities didn’t hint at that.

"Tch. They’re finally here."

The man looked at both of them, his expression full of discomtempt.

"Took you long enough, we were waiting here for you for hours!"

The man in the long robes continued his rant.

He was clearly hot-headed.

"Shh..."

That single sound shut him up.

"For now on, you’ll refer to me as..."

He paused, as if he was thinking up a good name.

And in reality, he was. Hereon knew that much.

"You’ll address me as Only during this discussion."

"Only" finally said, his hands in his pockets as he spoke.

"We’ll be here for a while so I think it’ll be alright if you introduce yourself as well."

He extended his other hand casually.

"But before you do, I want to introduce my friend here, his name is Hereon."

’This guy.’

Hereon thought.

Not only was his introduction horrible but he also told them his name straight off the bat.

"The name’s Clark."

He growled.

As he spoke he didn’t take an eye off "Only."

"Her name’s-"

He was cut off.

"Theia."

Unlike Clark, she was polite.

Her green hair was cut short and she had black eyes.

She didn’t know Clark and had come here on invitation, but like him she had been waiting for the arrival of the scout since.

Unbeknowest to both of them, they were given two scouts.

And both of them weren’t the right people for the job.

"Thanks for the introduction."

"Only" said once they were done.

"Now, as both of you know, you’ve been called here for the chance to be recruited... For the chance to be in something great.

I’m here today, "Only". As the one who will judge your capabilities."

He finished.

The man gave them both scrutinizing gazes, walking up closely to them and looking at them through the mask.

After several long minutes he was done.

"Both of you are eligible for the job!"

He declared.

"Do you want to join?"

He questioned.

Theia had a complicated look on her face, they hadn’t even been told about the organization they were joining or even asked.

They had only been judged by a man that looked like he didn’t know what he was doing.

But, this was her only chance.

She had a large bounty, one of 10 million on her head. And she had no money as well.

"I’ll join."

She decided.

"Good. Come over here?"

The man motioned for her to come over to them.

"Now, mister I’m so mad I can wet my pants, what’s it going to be?"

He asked Clark.

Clark, the man in the long robes, looked like he was at melting point.

Exasperated couldn’t do justice to how he felt.

He wanted a future as a rogue awakened, and the first people to see his potential was a bunch of trash.

The guy they had even called over to check them out, he didn’t do anything but look at them before deciding that they were good enough.

He didn’t want to force himself for a bunch of understaffed pitiful excuses of a rogue awakened association, he wasn’t being hunted internationally and still had options.

"Hell no!"

He yelled, his voice loud enough for people a distance away could hear him.

"Why would I join such a half ass organization?! I’d rather than die than do that!"

He yelled out.

Even before the series of words had left his mouth he was ready. The mana around him had already formed a shield.

A condensed shield of water.

The man looked at him for a second, his expression unreadable under the mask.

"Hereon, kill him."

He said coldly.

His voice was devoid of the joyous emotions he used to carry.

Hereon had to look at the person that had spoken to make sure it was the same person who was speaking.

In all the eight months they had known each other – from the extraction of his eyes in the cave to this moment in time – Hereon had never seen the man like this.

The woman with them, Theia, stared at Clark.

She was thinking that he didn’t know the life of a rogue awakened.

And she was right.

"Do you really think a kid can beat me? If so, you better check the screws in your head!"

The man taunted.

Despite his words, he didn’t even lower the shield.

’Does this man...’

All the hesitation that was stopping him gone.

"...Looking down on me!"

He charged forward.

As he moved he had a memory.

The prodigy of the Hachiman clan, Zane Hachiman, met him during the clan trial. Even though he had tried to strike up conversation he was shot down easily.

And he was made aware how different they were in strength.

The boy, even though a year his junior, was looking down on him.

But...

Now.

Things had changed, he was no longer just "the son of the second elder".

He was Hereon Hachiman, one whom had awakened the Null Eyes.

Not someone who would be forgotten easily. Not someone who would suffer unjustly again. Or someone who couldn’t protect his loved one.

At least, not again.

Hereon charged in without a care.

He didn’t think about how to break the guard of a rank 0, he just knew that he wasn’t the one going to lose.

"A kid."

He heard the man say.

Despite his words, but he still increased the density of his shield.

’He’s not going to come out of this alive.’

He was facing a rank 0 awakened, one that had been trained ever since he had awakened his talent. He was at least sure of that.

Hereon had many shortcomings in this match, he was well aware of that.

But he believed that his strengths would make up for them.

His fist crashed against the water shield.