Arifureta: From Whelp to Dragonlord (ON Hiatus)

Part 24: Reunion

As Keiji and Endou sprinted through the winding labyrinth, Keiji's heightened senses enabled him to detect the unique signatures of their classmates, allowing him to navigate the maze with precision and confidence but his pace was hurried because he was worried for one, He couldn't fathom losing her that's why he'd do anything to protect Shirasaki Kaori.

"Sumeragi slow down are you sure it was a good idea to leave Nagumo and your party behind,"

Keiji looked back at Endou "He understands why and we'll talk about it later and knowing him he's not far behind,"

suddenly piercing the darkness Keiji heard a familiar voice pleading for a miracle. 

"...Keiji-kun."

At that moment.

With a mighty force, Keiji struck the ground below, unleashing a seismic tremor that reverberated throughout the entirety of the Labyrinth.

The floor collapsed below him as he and Endou fell, his classmate panicked it probably wasn't helping that Keiji was glowing blue before he shifted into Bahamut.

"!?"

Not caring for the boy's reaction Bahamut grabs Endou with its talons. With Endou out of the way, Bahamut rained a constant barrage of [Megaflare] creating openings large enough to fly through as he descended downward. 

"Wait are these the "minor changes"?! This seems pretty major! You could've at least given me a warning!?"

Bahamut finally destroyed the last barrier before shifting back into Keiji letting Endou free fall screaming.

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The ceiling above fell with a roaring sound, and at the same time, two people fell one falling on his butt and the other did a superhero landing. Azure embers scattered around this individual as he stood. the monster that was crushed upon their arrival was crushed and burned under the debris. 

The sudden cave-in was a spectacle that made Kaori, Shizuku, and of course, Kouki's party, the demonic beasts attacking them, and the Demon Race woman stiffened.

A silence unbecoming of a battlefield ruled the room. No one, not even a thing understood what had happened as they stood in bewilderment. Suddenly, the shadow jumped down from the pile of debris. The person landed and lightly trampled down on the Ahatd's remains with his back before Kaori and Shizuku, and when he got off it, the person to note of his surroundings.

When he looked over his shoulder, he saw Kaori and Shizuku who were embracing each other.

The moment the person turned around, their eyes met, and lightning ran through Kaori's body. Her heart had been cold accompanied by sorrow, no, probably it was freezing since the day her important person disappeared, but a sudden fire lighted it and heated it up and her heart began to throb intensely.

"Glad to see you two are ok."

The person said with a smile, and Kaori's mind was filled with delight even before she could think about it.

The hair color was different, the aura was different, the tone was different, and the appearance was different. However, she knew. It is him. It is he whose survival she believed in while she looked for him.

That's right,

"Keiji-kun!"

"Eh? Keiji-kun? Wait, Sumeragi-kun? Eh? What? What do you mean?"

Kaori's ecstatic shout made Shizuku, who was by her side, confused and looked alternately between Kaori and Keiji. Apparently, Kaori was able to see through the white-haired, blue-eyed, black-coated person before her as Keiji with just a single glance, but Shizuku was still unable to recognize him.