The beast tamer exiled from the hero’s party and the cat eared girl from the strongest race meet

Chapter 398: The Beginning of Chaos

(TL:By Rafael,valhallatls.blogspot.com)

“Hmm…”

Currently, the seventh level.

I feel like I’m making decent progress, but I still have no idea how Elfin-san and Finia are doing.

Because of that, it’s hard to judge whether I’m in a dominant or disadvantageous position.

I’m not exactly hoping to clash with them, but…

If I were to win without any confrontation, would the Phoenix Tribe truly acknowledge me? I feel like overcoming Elfin-san and Finia’s interference is necessary to prove my strength.

That said, I don’t particularly want to fight if I can avoid it. Ideally, things would continue like this…

“…What a dilemma.”

“Wafu?”

Sakura, walking alongside me with a steady trot, responded to my muttered words with a curious glance upward.

As I patted her head, I quickened my pace.

To prove my strength or not. To gain their acknowledgment or not.

I don’t know which way things will turn out, but as a minimum requirement, I must win this race.

First, I’ll focus on winning the race…

If that works out, great. If not, I’ll think about it again when the time comes.

“Grrr…!”

“Oh, looks like we have company. The deeper we go, the more enemies there seem to be.”

The monsters were reasonably strong, but thanks to Sakura, I wasn’t struggling at all.

While her sheer strength played a significant role, it wasn’t just that. It was almost as if she could read my thoughts, providing support exactly when and where I needed it.

We were perfectly in sync.

“Sakura, you’re amazing. How do you manage to move so flawlessly?”

“Woof!”

With a somewhat proud bark, Sakura let out a loud voice.

“Eek!?”

Someone let out a familiar-sounding voice in response to Sakura’s bark, from a short distance away.

“You startled me… suddenly yelling like that… Ah.”

“Ah.”

My eyes met Finia’s as she revealed herself.

Caught off guard, my body and thoughts froze.

Then, from behind Finia, Elfin-san emerged.

“Oh?”

We made eye contact as well.

And then…

“A human!”

“Whoa!?”

A wave of flames erupted, spreading across my field of view.

There was no space to dodge! In that case—

“Fireball!”

I cast a spell, countering her flames with fire.

The attempt succeeded, and I managed to escape Elfin-san’s attack.

“You can block my attack? A mere human, yet you’re quite capable.”

“Attacking me out of nowhere is a bit much, don’t you think…?”

“It’s perfectly within the rules. Even if a mere human were to die here, no one would care.”

A mere human, huh?

The Phoenix Tribe’s disdain for humans far exceeds that of the Spirit Tribe.

Shigure-san had mentioned their hostility toward humans, and now I could feel it firsthand.

If that’s the case, then there’s no helping it.

Actually, this might even be for the best.

If I can confront them head-on and overpower them, there’s a high chance the other Phoenix Tribe members will acknowledge me.

I’ll turn this situation to my advantage!

“Sakura, I need your help!”

“Finia, let’s go!”

Elfin-san and I both called out to our respective partners, but their responses were faint.

Ready to move at a moment’s notice, I glanced at Sakura to see what was going on...

“Grrrr…”

She was growling in a low tone, staring off into the distance.

Finia, too, was looking in the same direction as Sakura, her face filled with unease.

“W-what is this feeling…? It’s so unpleasant… Ahhh…”

“Finia? What’s wrong? Acting like this in front of a human…”

“M-mother, there’s something terribly ominous… Ugh, what is this? Such intense malice… A human? But it feels like something even worse…”

Finia hugged herself, trembling violently.

What’s going on?

Sakura’s behavior, too… What’s happening here?

Faced with this clear abnormality, Elfin-san and I eased out of our combat stances.

We each moved to our respective partners.

“Sakura, what’s wrong? Could it be another monster?”

“Grrrrr…!!”

Sakura continued growling, as if she had no room to respond to my question.

I followed her line of sight.

And then, I heard the sound of footsteps—two sets.

Shortly after, shadows became visible, and then their forms emerged.

And those figures were…

“Aha♪ You really are here in a place like this.”

“Lin!?”

“Long time no see, trash bug.”

“How have you been?”

Monica appeared behind her.

“What… How did you two…? No, more importantly, how did you even get here!?”

How had they managed to slip past the watchful eyes of the Phoenix Tribe and enter this dungeon?

For that matter, how did Lin and Monica even know about the Phoenix Tribe?

Since we passed through the Spirit Tribe’s village on the way here, it seemed unlikely that they had simply been tailing us.

Did they gather this information on their own…?

And now they’ve begun acting on some nefarious plan…?

Should I lament this terrible timing? Or perhaps I should rejoice at the chance to crush their schemes, albeit coincidentally?

Either way, this was an extraordinary nuisance.

“Sorry to be so abrupt, but I’ve got a special present just for you,” Lin said with a sly grin.

The transparent staff in her hand began to glow with a dark light.

TL Note- Enter the evil?

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