The beast tamer exiled from the hero’s party and the cat eared girl from the strongest race meet
“Kon.”
“Shaaaaaaaah!”
Kuu happily ran up to the monster, but…
The monster bared its twisted fangs, growling in warning.
“Don’t!”
Nina spun her hand and opened a door connected to subspace.
She pulled Kuu back just as she tried to approach the monster, holding her tightly to her chest.
“Kuu…”
“It’s dangerous.”
Kuu must really want to meet the monster.
She struggled frantically, trying to break free from Nina’s arms.
Seeing such a strong reaction… that monster really must be—
“Grrraah!!”
“Ugh!”
The monster leapt at them.
It was faster than expected.
Still, it wasn’t too fast to react to.
He could dodge and counterattack, but…
Even if it was a monster, it was Kuu’s parent.
Hesitating to hurt it, he chose only to evade.
“Gugigigi!”
“Please stay back a little, okay?”
The monster charged again, but this time Nokia-san moved.
She opened a subspace door and forcibly teleported it away.
The monster looked startled by the sudden event.
It growled warily at them, but seemed to stop its continuous assaults.
“Thank you, Nokia-san.”
“No, it’s nothing. More importantly… that monster…”
“Yes. I think it’s Kuu’s parent. But monsters raising animals shouldn’t be possible. Normally, it’s more logical to think it transformed into a monster… but why it became one…”
He had never heard of an animal turning into a monster.
Monsters are a race of their own.
There shouldn’t be mutations that cross species…
Even if such a mutation occurred, it would take several generations.
It would be like a human suddenly becoming the strongest species.
The cause was unknown, but Kuu’s parent had turned into a monster…
And then attacked its own child.
That must have been the cause of Kuu’s injuries.
Just what is happening here?
“Nokia-san, do you know anything?”
“No, I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“I see… damn, what should we do?”
Its strength wasn’t that great, but still—
He didn’t want to kill Kuu’s parent.
But could they stop a parent that had become a monster?
Could they return it to normal?
Hesitation made him freeze.
“Gah!”
As he hesitated, the monster charged again.
Should he restrain it with Narukami’s wire?
Or try taming it?
As he wavered—
“Kuu! Kuu, kuu… Kuu!”
“Guu…”
Kuu cried out repeatedly.
As if responding to that voice, the monster stopped in its tracks.
“What’s wrong… Kuu?”
“Kuu!”
Answering Nina’s call, Kuu cried out even louder.
Was that cry exerting some kind of restraining power?
The monster stopped, as if conflicted, watching them carefully.
“Rain-san, maybe that monster…”
“Yes. It might not have completely lost its reason.”
Why it had become a monster was still unknown.
But… it didn’t seem like its heart had fully become one.
It appeared to be regaining itself at the sound of its child’s cries, showing hesitation.
“Nina! Tell Kuu to call out even more!”
“Mm… Kuu, call for your mother…”
“Kuu!”
Kuu cried again and again.
Each time, the murderous intent faded from the monster.
However, it seemed unable to completely suppress the destructive impulses rising within it.
As if torn between reason and killing intent, the monster writhed in pain.
“Not enough…”
It seemed difficult to fully restore its sanity.
And they still didn’t know how to return it to normal.
Should they restrain it and bring it back to the village to seek Suzu-san’s help?
But they couldn’t just bring a monster there without permission.
In that case, maybe they should go call them—
“Guu… uuuugh…”
Suddenly, the monster groaned in pain.
Slowly, it looked up at them.
Its gaze was directed at Kuu, its child.
Lovingly.
As if looking at something precious.
Its eyes were filled with affection.
Even in the form of a monster, it was unmistakably a mother.
“Gua…”
After a moment, the monster looked at them.
Tears slipped from its eyes.
It seemed to be pleading for something.
No…
It truly was wishing for something.
“You… could it be…”
Kill me while you still can.
That was what the monster was trying to say.
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