Chapter 43

After competing in strength with everyone, Tentacles seemed thoroughly satisfied and was now very calm.

Now, Rent and he were lightly patting each other on the shoulder, looking cheerful.

Perhaps they were praising each other's efforts.

"Tentacles, can you let us ride on your back?"

When I asked this, Tentacles nodded and lowered his body.

"Whoa, it's so smooth and hard to climb."

Tentacles' body surface was very smooth, and there were no footholds, making it difficult to climb.

"Excuse me."

Reluctantly, I made vines grow and hooked them onto the corners, using them to climb up.

The back part would be where he spreads his wings, so I decided to settle around the head area.

Since I was afraid of falling, I hooked the vines onto the corners and secured them to my body.

This way, there would be no worry of falling.

I helped Leidia and Rent climb up and secure themselves with vines in the same way.

"It's okay to fly, right?"

When I said this, the wings on his back opened, and thin wings came out from underneath.

As they moved at high speed, the air vibrated with a "whoosh," and a wind pressure came from behind.

When I listened closely, it was a loud noise, like a large propeller spinning.

Soon, Tentacles' body lifted gently.

As I was surprised by the floating sensation, the ascent speed quickly increased, and we soared into the sky.

"Amazing! We're flying in the sky!"

"Yeah, it's a great view."

Leidia and I exclaimed in excitement at the breathtaking scenery that spread before us.

The vast sea of trees stretched endlessly.

"This forest really is vast."

No matter which direction I looked, the trees continued without end.

It was a strange feeling to look down on the trees that I usually looked up at.

When I pulled the vine in the direction of my home, Tentacles seemed to understand my intention and headed that way.

Since I usually live surrounded by trees, it felt fresh to feel the sky so close.

After riding on Tentacles for a while, we saw a place where the trees opened up, and houses and fields lined up.

The speed of movement in the sky, free from obstacles, was vastly different from walking on the ground.

"Our home looks like this from the sky."

"When you look down, it feels much larger."

Among the dense trees, the flat area where we lived stood out clearly from above.

It was reassuring to have something like Tentacles, which can fly, keeping watch for defensive purposes.

To avoid startling Carmilla and the others, I had Tentacles circle in the air.

On the ground, Carmilla, Claire, Rent Jiro, and Rent Saburo looked up, wondering what was happening.

When I waved, they waved back, looking relieved.

"Land in that open area."

When I said this, Tentacles slowly landed in the flat area without fields.

Since he knew I was there, Mother Plant and Kira Plant did not attack me. I didn't want to be attacked like a demon king, so that was good.

Tentacles' back was quite high, so I had Rent carry me down.

It felt like I was a bag of rice.

"Wow! That's a magnificent Tentacles!"

"You must have won the strength competition. Impressive."

It seemed that Carmilla and Claire also knew about this monster and guessed why he was brought here.

"Rent and Hashira are one thing, but I had to do it too."

"That must have been a real ordeal."

Claire comforted Leidia, who groaned.

It seems that Tentacles has a habit of wanting to compete in strength when he finds a suitable opponent.

He might want to challenge Carmilla and Claire to a strength competition as well.

I was worried about this, but Tentacles did not move.

Instead, he seemed to be staring at something in the distance.

Following his gaze, it seemed that Tentacles was looking at the direction of the Hell Hornets. He must be able to sense their scent even from a distance.

Like a stag beetle, he probably likes sweet things like tree sap.

I went back home and brought a jar of honey.

When I did, Tentacles started to fidget, looking eager to eat.

"This is honey from the Hell Hornets. Do you want to try it?"

Before I finished speaking, Tentacles stuck his face into the jar and started licking the honey.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"Come on, there's still honey left, and we can collect more soon."

I tried to calm down Leidia and Carmilla, who screamed at the sight of Tentacles licking the jar.

After all, there's a big difference in size between us and Tentacles. Feeding him honey is part of the negotiation to make him a companion, so I hope you can understand.

After a while, Tentacles lifted his face from the jar.

The jar was completely empty, and his face was covered in honey.

His expression was hard to read, but it was clear that he liked the honey from the Hell Hornets.

"Tentacles, would you like to live here? It would be great if you could keep watch from the sky and let us ride on your back. There's a limited supply of Hell Hornets' honey, but I can provide it regularly."

Tentacles nodded in response to my words.

This way, our aerial defense capabilities will increase, and we can also use him for transportation.

◆

The first thing to do after Tentacles became our companion is to build a nest.

Unlike Rent and the others, who are fine being outside, Tentacles needs a place to rest.

However, what kind of nest does Tentacles need? Perhaps something like a stag beetle, with black soil and wood chips, and a location with tree bark and wood pieces?

I can only imagine something like the breeding case I had in elementary school.

To understand what kind of nest he wants, I asked Rent to show me the nest he lived in. It was a large tree that had fallen over, with the inside hollowed out and lined with damp wood chips and soil.

Yeah, it was like a large breeding case.

Finding a large tree is quite a challenge, but I can use my ability to grow trees as needed.

After grasping the idea, I was about to return to our living area when I noticed Rent carrying soil.

"Do you want to bring the soil?"

When I asked, Tentacles nodded.

It seems he prefers familiar things, like how one's own bedding is more comfortable than someone else's.

Understanding what Tentacles wanted, I used my ability to generate a large wooden box.

Rent used his large arms to scoop up the soil and fill the box.

When it was full, he closed the lid and secured it with vines.

I tied the box to Tentacles' body with vines so he could carry it.

"Is it heavy, but can you carry it back?"

When I asked, Tentacles easily took off into the air.

If he can carry this much soil so easily, he might be able to transport things through the air as well.

When we returned to the living area, I grew a large tree in an open space.

"How about this size?"

I made it about twice as thick as the previous nest to give him plenty of room. Tentacles seemed pleased, shaking his body in delight.

The previous nest felt a bit cramped, so I made it larger, and it seemed to be just right.

I laid the large tree on its side, and Tentacles repeatedly charged at it, carving it away.

The sound of the wood breaking and the wood chips and sawdust flying around echoed.

It seems he was hollowing out the inside to make it to his liking.

I could help, but since it's his nest, it's better for him to make it comfortable for himself.

◆

After the nest was completed, we had a new companion, and our aerial defense capabilities increased. We could also use him for transportation.