The beast tamer exiled from the hero’s party and the cat eared girl from the strongest race meet
Suzu’s tail split into two midway.
Her whole body crackled with electricity…
And then, a crest appeared on her cheek.
Suzu turned her golden, shining eyes toward me.
"Alright, here I come."
"Th-that is…"
No matter how you look at it, that’s an awakening.
So Suzu can do it too… well, of course she can.
The state that Kanade reached by chance is probably something Suzu has already mastered.
Even so… having to face Suzu in her awakened state.
Honestly, I’d struggle even against her normal form—if she’s awakened, it feels like I won’t be able to handle it at all.
I’d appreciate it if she held back a little…
"Rain, do your best!"
Kanade’s cheer suddenly brought me back to my senses.
I was surprised at first, but thinking about it carefully… isn’t this actually a good opportunity?
I want to become stronger.
I want power so that I’ll never lose anything again.
If I can train against Suzu in her awakened state, that might come true.
That’s right—this isn’t the time to hesitate.
Remember what I originally believed in.
I have to do what needs to be done.
"Please."
"Hehe, now that’s the face of a man. That’s more like it."
Suzu smiled in satisfaction.
Then, as if flipping a switch, her gentle smile turned into a sharp expression brimming with fighting spirit.
A prickling sensation.
I was probably being overwhelmed by the pressure she was giving off.
I took a light deep breath.
Steadying my mind, I pushed back against the pressure.
"Shall we begin?"
"Yes!"
Suzu lightly leaned forward and kicked off the ground.
The next instant, she was right in front of me.
"Fast!?"
"You left an opening."
Moving at a speed too fast to see, Suzu closed in and threw a punch with that momentum.
Before I realized it, her fist was already right in front of me.
I hurriedly twisted my body, barely managing to dodge.
I should counterattack to keep her in check—
…Just as I tried, I realized Suzu had already disappeared.
"Where did you—!?"
"In moments like this, I’m usually in your blind spot. This time, behind you."
"Wha—!?"
This time, I couldn’t make it in time.
Thud!
I took a powerful kick and was sent flying.
For a moment, my sense of up and down blurred…
Then I hit the ground and rolled dozens of meters in one go.
This is bad… that really hurts.
Thanks to the ability I gained from contracting with Finia, my wounds are slowly healing—but the pain doesn’t go away.
"I mean… it hasn’t even been a minute yet."
And I’m already this overwhelmed.
My body can still move, but my fighting spirit is starting to fade.
"Do your best, Rain! Beat my mom!"
"She’s strong, but I think there’s an opening somewhere!"
"G-go, do your besht!"
"…Yeah."
Everyone’s cheers give me strength.
It’s okay.
I can still keep going.
I stood up and raised my fists.
"Please."
"Mm-hmm, I do like boys who try their best, you know?"
"Nya!? Mom, even though you have Dad, you’re going after Rain…!?"
"Kanade-chan, your imagination is quite something."
"Even Mom said it!?"
"I think that one’s on you."
Their usual banter somehow felt comforting.
Because it made me strongly feel that they’re right there beside me… yeah.
I can still keep going.
"This time, I’ll go on the offensive!"
"Alright, show me what you’ve got."
Suzu still looked completely at ease.
In reality, she’s probably holding back too.
Unlike Kanade, she’s not concentrating lightning into her attacks when she punches or kicks.
I didn’t expect the gap in our strength to be this huge.
I thought I had gotten somewhat stronger…
Just like in that last incident, I’m painfully reminded that I’m still inexperienced.
But instead of giving up, I want to keep clinging on.
Even if it’s pathetic, I want to stand up and keep moving forward.
"…Hah!"
The moment I exhaled, I dashed forward.
"Boost!"
First, I enhanced my physical abilities with magic.
Then, using the ability “Material Creation” that I gained from contracting with Nina, I created a wall of earth around Suzu to block her vision.
Crash!
She shattered the wall with a single punch, but that didn’t matter.
It was only meant to buy me a moment.
"Fireball — Multi Shot!"
Circling around to her rear, I unleashed multiple fireballs.
Explosions went off one after another, but Suzu dodged all of them with the smallest possible movements.
From my perspective, it barely looked like she was moving at all… I see.
So that’s another way to evade.
Observe your target carefully.
At this point, I remembered the basics of being a beast tamer.
"…Maybe I’ve forgotten that lately."
I didn’t intend to, but after forming contracts with everyone, maybe I became overconfident.
That’s probably why Suzu decided to thoroughly beat some sense into me this time.
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