The military camp had stockpiled a considerable amount of explosives and ammunition—enough to blast an entire town into the sky. Several squad leaders shouted, "Get down!" and the Expeditionary Force soldiers promptly dropped to the ground.
At this distance, the shockwave would not have much effect, but it was better to be cautious. If some metal fragment got blasted their way, there could still be casualties.
Hodge lay prone on the ground, silently counting in his heart.
"1... 2... 3...
"12... 13..."
Strange. More than ten seconds had passed—where was the shockwave? There should at least have been a fierce gust of wind. Perplexed, he raised his head, only to find that Ash had risen at some point and was staring fixedly toward the military camp.
Hodge turned his head, and his eyes widened instantly.
The blaze from that explosion should have swept up thick smoke, scattering into an enormous mushroom cloud before surging into the sky and spreading dust in every direction. It should have lingered for a long while before gradually fading away.
But over there now... there was nothing.
The sky was utterly empty, as though the explosion had merely been an illusion. They were already more than ten kilometers from the camp and could not make out any details, only a stretch of white smoke.
White smoke?
Hodge rubbed his eyes.
Could an explosion produce white smoke on the ground? Black smoke would have made more sense. It was not as though something had been quietly burning.
"That is... smoke?"
"No." A deep voice came from above him. Ash's tone remained indifferent, but ripples had appeared in his eyes.
"That is white fog."
"White fog? Why would there be white fog?" Hodge asked in confusion. But when he turned his head, he saw the mingled terror