The beast tamer exiled from the hero’s party and the cat eared girl from the strongest race meet
A few days had passed since then.
“Mmm.”
In the plaza behind the inn, Iris wore a bitter expression.
Thanks to Elfin and Finia, her wounds had completely healed. However, there was a chance that she might have lingering aftereffects.
We had been investigating that possibility, but unfortunately, the results weren’t great.
“This isn’t good… I can’t control my power properly.”
“I see… Specifically, what’s the issue?”
“It feels like a drop in output. If my previous strength was at a hundred, I can now only draw out about sixty. Well, it’s not a problem for normal combat, but… constantly maintaining a barrier or summoning my other self would be difficult. Also, deliberately triggering an awakening might be quite hard.”
“Any abnormal physical symptoms?”
“No, none at all. I feel perfectly fine.”
That was a relief.
If she was only weakened, it wasn’t a major issue.
What truly mattered was whether Iris had any physical health problems.
“Hm.”
Elfin, who was present, examined Iris by looking into her eyes and touching her cheeks.
Beside her, Finia observed her mother, as if studying the process.
“Indeed, as Iris said, she appears to be weakened. The cause is likely damage to her soul.”
“Is there no way to fix it?”
“I’m sorry, but no. The fact that she’s even alive is already a miracle, so hoping for anything beyond that is quite difficult. However, given enough time, it should naturally heal. This condition isn’t permanent.”
“Oh my. That’s good to hear. Even in my current state, I’m confident that I can still be of some use to Rain-sama… but of course, being able to fight at full strength would be much better.”
Iris glanced at me and winked.
“I appreciate the sentiment, but please, don’t push yourself too hard. If something happens to you again… I don’t know what it would do to my heart.”
“Oh my. Were you that worried about me?”
“Of course I was.”
“How much did you worry? Enough to faint? Enough to cry?”
“I was worried to the point where I almost lost myself.”
“……”
“Also, I haven’t been sleeping well, and I keep thinking about you all the time.”
“I-Is that so…? Now that I think about it, Rain-sama has always been like this. Hmph, I was trying to make you flustered, but I ended up being the one embarrassed… Have you gotten stronger at this?”
Iris muttered to herself, her face turning red.
She seemed embarrassed, but it was a rare and precious expression.
“I’m a little tired, so I think I’ll lie down for a bit.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. It’s just fatigue. But… if Rain-sama were to lie beside me, I feel like I’d recover faster than just sleeping normally.”
“Eh? No, that’s a bit—”
“Fufu, I always return what’s been done to me, you know?”
Seeing me flustered, Iris looked satisfied and returned inside the inn.
Compared to when we first met, she seemed much calmer now. But her mischievous nature hadn’t changed at all.
Good grief.
Letting out a sigh, I also started heading toward the inn—
“Could I have a moment?”
Elfin called out to stop me.
“There’s something I’d like to ask of you, Rain.”
“A request?”
Now that she mentioned it…
Even though she and Finia had saved Iris, I hadn’t properly thanked them yet.
“This might be a bit of a burden for you…”
“You saved Iris. If there’s anything I can do, I’ll do it. Don’t worry about troubling me—just say the word.”
“Thank you. Then, I won’t hold back… Could you add Finia to your party?”
“…Huh?”
I tilted my head in confusion, and almost at the same time, Finia did the same with a small tilt of her head.
It seemed like she was just as surprised.
“U-Uh, Mother? What do you mean by that…? W-Wait!?”
Finia suddenly seemed to realize something and—
Her eyes welled up with tears as she began trembling.
“C-Could it be… because I’m such a failure, you’re exiling me from the village…? Auu…”
“That’s not it at all.”
“B-But…”
“Honestly. I thought you had matured a little after everything that happened, but I see you still have a long way to go. You have great power, so have more confidence in yourself.”
“Auu…”
As Elfin sighed in exasperation, Finia looked remorseful.
Then, Elfin embraced her daughter and gently stroked her head.
“It’s okay. You can do it if you try. You proved that during the recent incident, didn’t you?”
“…Mother…”
“The reason I suggested you join Rain’s party was for your own sake. With him around, you were able to grow significantly. So I thought that by joining his party, you could develop even more… But perhaps I rushed things.”
Elfin let go of Finia, showing a moment of reflection.
Then, she looked straight into her daughter’s eyes and gently asked:
“More than anything, your own wishes matter most. Finia, what do you want to do?”
“I-I… um…”
“One of the reasons I considered this was because you seem fond of Rain. It would help with your growth while also respecting your feelings… That’s what I thought, but what do you truly want, Finia?”
“……”
Finia placed a hand over her chest.
Then, as if deep in thought, she slowly closed her eyes.
Elfin didn’t rush her for an answer—she patiently waited for her daughter to organize her thoughts.
I also chose to stay silent and simply observe.
After a moment, Finia finally spoke.
“…I want to… t-to… to try my best with Rain!”
“I see.”
“Um, well… humans still scare me, but Rain isn’t scary at all. In fact, he’s kind… So I want to learn more about him. And I also want to become stronger. Ah, but, um, it kind of feels like I’d just be using Rain for my own gain, and—ahhh, I-I’m so sorry!!”
With a panicked expression, Finia repeatedly bowed her head.
“I don’t mind at all. But more importantly, was everything you just said your true feelings?”
“Y-Y-Yes! I-It’s just… someone like me would only cause trouble—no, I’m nothing but trouble! But even so… um… haauu!?”
“Calm down.”
“Ah…”
I gently patted her head, and Finia immediately settled down.
While continuing to stroke her hair, I softly said, “Take your time,” encouraging her to continue.
“Um… I just… want to stay with Rain a little longer. And with everyone else too… So, um…”
She clenched her fists tightly and—
“Please let me join Rain’s party!!”
She declared firmly.
Yeah.
Compared to when we first met, she had grown so much.
She was shining brightly now.
“W-What do you think…?”
I quietly extended my hand toward her.
“I’d be happy to have you.”
“Ah…!”
“Looking forward to working with you.”
“Y-Yes! M-Me too!”
Despite her nervous stammering, Finia firmly grasped my hand.
Thank you for the chapter!
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