Chapter 31

A combat scene... I’m not really good at this.

"Why... were you able to catch me off guard?"

The white-haired cat person, in a crouched position with her hands and feet on the ground, asked me as I landed on the ground. It seemed that magic was flowing through her claws, indicating that this was her fighting style.

"It’s just a trick, and you fell for it hook, line, and sinker."

When we arrived at the inn, we took a nap on the bed and prepared for the night by casting the light attribute magic, <Illusion>. This magic uses the refraction of light to distort perception.

"The key didn’t fit, right? That wasn’t the inn’s mistake; you simply entered the wrong room."

The room she entered was the one just before ours. The <Illusion> made the corridor seem ambiguous, creating the illusion that it ended at that point.

――――――But still,

I didn’t expect the inn staff to cooperate with her. However, now I can understand why.

(This one... is quite strong.)

In terms of rank, she’s probably between SS and SSS... She can’t beat a fully prepared Levi, but she’s at a level where I can win against her now.

Let me tell you, there aren’t many people as strong as her. That’s why the beast people cooperate with her. They love those who are stronger than themselves.

By the way, among all the races, the beast people are the most organized. Their simple thinking leads to the strongest on the continent becoming the king, and all the inhabitants respect and follow them. It’s much clearer than the complicated human or demon races who worry about inheritance and bloodlines.

"You’ve been tricked..."

"You seem to understand. So... can you tell me the purpose of the black-robed people right away?"

"..."

"Hey? Are you staying silent?"

The white-haired cat person said nothing, quietly sharpening her nerves. It was clear she was in a combat stance.

"Whoosh!!"

"Hey!! Answer a simple question!!"

She leaped at me with all four feet, diving in a near-dive. I deflected her with a black sphere, swinging it horizontally.

"Ugh..."

Unable to brace herself in mid-air, the cat girl, despite using her claws as a shield, was blown away by the force from the side. She dug her claws into the ground to stop her momentum, grimacing in pain from the impact, and regained her stance.

"Ha!"

"Oh, you’re still coming?"

With a half-defeated expression, the white-haired cat person kicked off the ground and leaped at me again. I observed her movements closely as I sometimes blocked and sometimes dodged her claw attacks.

"Attacks like that, full of desperation, won’t hit me!"

"..."

Her large, sweeping movements were negating her speed, which should have been her strength. Her muscles, which should have been optimized for speed, were completely wasted.

"Too many wasted movements, cat girl!!"

I easily dodged her claw flurry, dove into her guard, and thrust the handle of the black sphere into her exposed torso.

"Ugh..."

Seizing the moment when she stopped moving, I grabbed the collar of her robe.

"Here I go!!"

I threw her over my shoulder. As she was thrown into the air, she struggled, unable to control her movements. I immediately gripped the black sphere, infused it with a small amount of magic, raised it high, and lightly swung it down.

"<Flying Sword>――――――!!"

A flying slash of the same scale as the one I used in the dragon’s nest cut through the street in front of the inn, heading towards the white-haired cat person.

"Damn..."

Unable to avoid it in mid-air, she twisted her body, wrapping her arms around it. At the moment of impact――――――

"Ha!!"

She rotated her body in mid-air, and her extended claws made contact with my <Flying Sword>, producing a metallic sound as they were deflected. However, this caused her to veer off the path of the slash, which continued its course, unimpeded by her claws. Just as it was about to destroy a house at the end of the street, a wall of water appeared to block its path.

When the <Flying Sword> hit the water wall, the water vibrated like elastic rubber, completely nullifying the force of the slash and dispersing it into mist. The water wall, having fulfilled its purpose, collapsed and disappeared, leaving a puddle.

"Sorry, Levi."

"Full power... <Wall of Water>...! Stopping your <Flying Sword> is a big deal, so don’t do it too often!"

"Got it, got it..."

I sincerely apologized to Levi, who was standing on top of the house the <Flying Sword> was about to hit. She was currently defending to prevent any damage to the houses during the fight, but it seemed to be a bit much for her without being in the water.

"You two attacking me together... Do you think I’m weak...?"

"Huh?"

The white-haired cat girl, still in a crouched combat stance, glared at me. I’m getting tired of calling her "white-haired cat person."

"I’m not underestimating you. I’m just bad at teamwork."

When I fight with someone, my movements always become restricted. The only one who might be able to keep up with me is that homo hero, but with anyone else, there’s a high chance they’ll get caught in my attacks and be the first to fall.

"..."

"So, can you tell me your name?"

"...Why?"

"Don’t glare at me like that. I just want to know the name of the person I’m fighting."

After thinking for a moment, the white-haired cat person spoke.

"――――――Shironeko."

"Nice name, isn’t it?"

I kept that thought to myself.

"My name is Setsu, probably the strongest man in this world."

"I’m not listening..."

"Hey, don’t say that... I’m the one who’s going to make you submit."

"Shut up...!!"

"...Seriously?"

The moment she told me to shut up, a change came over Shironeko’s body. Her cells began to glow, and her shape transformed from human to animal. Her ears became pointed, her eyes slanted, and her tail grew long and swayed. When the light faded, the cute girl was gone, replaced by a cat―――――a white, beautiful fur, with sharper and stronger claws, exuding a mysterious aura rather than cuteness.

――――――And it was huge.

"......Huh!?"

Wait, wait, wait, wait!! What’s going on!?

"<Beast Transformation>... "

"I know that!!"

<Beast Transformation> is a technique unique to beast people, allowing them to fully express their power. Most trained beast people can use it, and its strength can threaten other races. When used, physical abilities increase significantly, and in some cases, magic power also amplifies. The transformed form is, of course, that of an animal. A dog person becomes a dog, a cat person becomes a cat, and so on.

Up to this point, it’s not surprising that Shironeko transformed. The issue is... her size.

"Why are you so big...? Don’t <Beast Transformation> users transform to the average size of their animal?"

In other words, a dog person would transform to the size of a pet dog, and a cat person to the size of a pet cat. Even then, their power is much greater than in human form, so you can’t let your guard down...

"Continuous training led to this."

"Really!?"

So, the more powerful you are, the bigger you get!? I haven’t seen the beast king or his followers transform... I made a deal to fight the beast king, but we parted ways before it happened...

"Enough talking!!"

"Ah! Oh..."

I dodged a log-like arm that swept towards me by jumping slightly higher.

While in the air, I saw something unpleasant.

"Ugh... <Beast Cannon>?"

"Roar!!"

I thrust the black sphere in front of me to shield my body. A massive, invisible impact hit me, and I was blown back with the black sphere.

<Beast Cannon> is a technique where a beast person compresses their voice into a cannon. Also known as a roar, it involves compressing air in the lungs and releasing it in a straight line with a loud noise. The shockwave, accompanied by a deafening sound, can defeat enemies. Even when guarded, if the power is high enough, it can still blow you away.

"You bastard...!"

I used wind magic to create a foothold in mid-air and kicked off, stopping the momentum from the blow. I landed on the roof of a house and immediately started running.

"Using <Beast Cannon> like that will cause a lot of trouble for the neighbors, you know!?"

"I’ve already evacuated the residents in this area!! There’s no one around!!"

"What...!?"

Don’t joke... You should have told me that――――――

"――――――First!!"

"Ugh!?"

I took a running start and leaped from the roof towards Shironeko. As I raised the black sphere high to strike, it was blocked by her sharp, strong front claws.

"Get out of my way!!"

With my sword blocked, I quickly countered, forcefully pushing her claws upward. I landed in front of the now unguarded Shironeko and released my right hand from the black sphere.

"Ugh..."

"If you had told me that, we could have fought to our heart’s content from the start!!"

I pulled back my right arm and struck Shironeko’s face with an open palm. A powerful slap sent her flying sideways, and her face embedded into a nearby house――――――

Next time, the conclusion?