The beast tamer exiled from the hero’s party and the cat eared girl from the strongest race meet
In a small house in a certain town.
Inside the spotless, dust-free home was Reinhardt.
He was carrying Mona in both arms.
However, there was little sign of him treating her with care; if anything, he looked somewhat annoyed by the task.
"Ahh... my home after such a long time. Yep, yep, this brings back memories."
"If you're feeling better, get down."
"Fwah!?"
With a casual toss, Mona was thrown onto the bed.
The fact that he had thrown her onto the bed instead of somewhere else was perhaps Reinhardt's way of showing the bare minimum of kindness.
"Ugh... I really think my master should be a little nicer to his familiar. Don't you think you're too harsh?"
"If it's someone who needs that, then I would."
"So you're saying I don't need kindness!?"
"Yes."
"You answered without hesitation!?"
Mona looked utterly shocked.
Apparently the blow was severe enough that she collapsed backward onto the bed and lay there staring at the ceiling.
"Just stay there and rest."
"What's this? Despite what you said, are you actually worried about me? Do you want me to take it easy?"
"I just want you to be quiet because you're noisy."
"So cruel!"
Tears streaming down her face, Mona turned over and sulked herself to sleep.
Paying no attention to her, Reinhardt left the bedroom and headed to the living room.
After taking a drink of water, he sat down in a chair to rest.
"...Phew."
That had been an unnecessary waste of time.
Reinhardt let out a sigh.
Mona was extremely capricious and always did whatever she pleased.
Knowing that full well, Reinhardt had still entered into a contract with her.
However, it became a problem when she acted too freely.
Mona possessed a tricky ability that allowed her to transform into almost anything, but her combat ability was not particularly high.
She could handle ordinary monsters or demons without issue, but against veteran members of the strongest races, the odds were not in her favor.
What would have happened if she had remained captured?
Mona hated pain.
If subjected to interrogation, she would probably give in without much resistance.
There was no problem if she revealed information about the demons.
Reinhardt was neither an enemy nor an ally of the demons.
They were people he simply did not care about, so it would not trouble him if information disadvantageous to them leaked out.
However, information about himself was a different matter.
There were things he had to do.
A mission he was destined to fulfill.
Until the day he accomplished it, he wanted no unnecessary interference.
That was why he had rescued Mona, but...
"Honestly, this has become troublesome."
Who would have thought he would meet someone from his homeland?
The other side hadn't noticed, but Reinhardt had understood immediately.
Rain was from the same village as him.
"Rain Shroud... to think that crybaby has grown up so much."
A small smile appeared on Reinhardt's lips.
Then he took another sip of water.
"Master."
Suddenly, an emotionless voice echoed through the room.
When he turned around, he saw a woman who appeared to be around twenty years old.
She had shining silver hair so long it nearly reached her feet.
There was one more distinctive feature.
Pure white wings.
Completely immaculate wings extended from her back.
"Welcome home."
"Ophelia, you were here?"
"Yes. I have been waiting for your return, Master."
The woman who answered showed no trace of emotion.
She was almost like a doll.
"You don't need to wait for me. Ophelia, you can do as you please, just like Mona."
"May I truly behave like Mona?"
"..."
"Truly?"
"I take that back. If you become as free-spirited as her, it'll be a headache. Just do as you please in moderation."
"Understood. Then I shall continue to wait for Master as I please."
"Good grief..."
Reinhardt let out a sigh.
Between Mona and Ophelia, there were certainly many eccentrics around him.
Though, from society's perspective, Reinhardt himself was quite eccentric as well...
He simply refused to acknowledge that fact.
Or rather, he was unaware of it.
"What happened to Mona?"
"She was about to be captured, so I brought her back."
"I see. So she caused trouble as usual."
"Yeah, same as always."
Ophelia shook her head in exasperation.
Though expressionless, she seemed slightly fed up.
That gesture showed that she was not a doll at all, but someone who possessed genuine emotions.
"Where are Mitsuki and Ariel?"
After glancing around the house, Reinhardt asked Ophelia.
"My apologies. Their whereabouts are currently unknown."
"I believe I ordered them to remain here and wait."
"Your return took quite some time, Master. Mitsuki said, 'It'll be fine if we go out and have a little fun, right? Yeah, it'll be fine!' and then left. Their return time is unknown."
"That delinquent cat and that idiot dragon..."
The muscles around Reinhardt's temple twitched.
Then he let out yet another sigh, one too many to count.
"What will you do?"
"...It's fine. I'll let them do as they please for now, but I plan to make my move soon. Before then, at the very least, make sure I can contact them whenever necessary."
"Understood."
After giving a respectful bow, Ophelia disappeared deeper into the house.
Although it appeared to be a small home from the outside, various mechanisms and hidden features had been installed within, making the usable space far larger than it seemed.
Left alone, Reinhardt drained the rest of his water and stared at the now-empty glass.
"The era will soon undergo a great upheaval... and when that time comes, I..."
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