Chapter 56

Yobi was being stared down by the ash-gold, sharp eyes.

Being observed intently, he felt as if he were not alive.

If he moved a finger, it would not be strange to be devoured instantly.

Predator and prey.

He was made to feel the clear relationship between them.

However, the large black panther turned its gaze away from Yobi and reluctantly moved the foot that had been holding the warehouse man's face.

"---Huh. ...It's you again, as expected."

The warehouse man crawled out from under the snow-white and called out to Yobi, who had been frozen in extreme tension.

"Ah, this one is fine. How should I put it... like a partner, or a hunting beast, something like that."

Seeing the warehouse man crawl out unharmed, Yobi slightly relaxed, at least no longer worrying about his life.

"...A hunting beast, huh?"

"Yeah, her name is Snow White. Treat her like a human. She's smart, and in terms of sheer power, she's stronger than me."

With a wry smile, the warehouse man spoke, and Yobi wore an expression of not understanding.

"...Stronger than you, and still a hunting beast?"

"I found her when she was little. We've been together ever since."

Snow White, who seemed to be explaining to Yobi, hit the warehouse man's head with her long tail.

"Ah, this is Yobi, by the way—"

As if to say that such things didn't matter, Snow White showed a piece of paper wrapped around her tail.

The warehouse man untied it and opened the paper.

There was a message from Eirida.

[Caught by a strange hero. I'll send Snow White over for now. She's a bit restless.

And even though I'm caught, there's no danger to my life or any kind of restraint, so don't worry. It's more like... I've been taken a liking to.

According to him, he used to be a teacher to the heroes, and he was sent to improve the educational environment in Ankwaal from Albaum. He says he taught princes, officials, and the wealthy in the Rattana Kingdom not long ago.

But, she's a bit noisy.

Women should be independent like noblewomen, the treatment of women in this country is too poor, slavery is bad, honestly, I'm tired.

Unfortunately, it might take a while. Well, you can take your time over there.]

Only three teachers were summoned.

The warehouse man immediately knew who it was.

Tashima Kiyoko. Literally, a woman of history, a social studies teacher, and very active in union activities.

Just thinking about her made the warehouse man frown unconsciously.

Even though he was forty, the warehouse man had no hesitation in drawing, but he didn't want to draw this female teacher.

It wasn't that she looked bad, but he couldn't bring himself to draw her ideologically or internally.

Snow White, who seemed to be unaware of the warehouse man's feelings, hit him with her tail.

When the warehouse man looked at Snow White, she pointed to Yobi with her tail.

"...Ah, you want me to explain the situation?"

---Grr

The warehouse man put the female teacher out of his mind and explained the situation to Snow White.

Facing each other, the warehouse man and Snow White.

Bending down in front of Snow White, the warehouse man felt a silent pressure.

For some reason, he remembered the feeling just before being scolded by his parents as a child.

The pressure increased when they arrived and lost the trunk. It seemed that losing the brush really didn't sit well with her.

Then, without taking proper stealth actions, they entered into combat with the sea wolves, and Snow White's tail began to slowly tap the ground.

They bought a slave with a troubled past without proper information and preparation, and were cornered by the multicolored rock crabs.

They had made enemies in the city.

By then, the tail was tapping the ground high and heavily.

The sound of the tail tapping, like the footsteps of death, was unbearable for the warehouse man.

Sweating cold, he finished explaining that there might be an attack by a peacock-type bird person.

Squish.

The warehouse man made a silly sound.

Snow White's tail was wrapped around the warehouse man's neck.

Then Snow White pounced on the warehouse man.

While dealing with flying enemies, Snow White seemed to be saying, "How could you step on me without being alert in the air?" She bit and pressed the warehouse man's head.

The warehouse man continued to receive fluffy heavy blows.

Whether they were playing or lecturing, the long-awaited indiscriminate wrestling between the warehouse man and Snow White continued.

Yobi watched this in a daze.

In his heart, he was unsure whether he should help and whether he could.

The people who dealt with such powerful magical beasts as the sea wolves' parents were far more powerful than the warehouse man.

It looked like he was being attacked, but there was no sign of injury.

While beast people had less aversion to magical beasts than humans, it was rare for them to talk to medium-sized magical beasts, let alone play with them. If they played with a medium-sized magical beast or larger, it wouldn't end well.

They would get hurt unless the magical beast held back.

It was abnormal for a medium-sized magical beast to know how to hold back against a human.

Yobi watched the playful interaction between the warehouse man and Snow White, finding it all rather unreal.

The warehouse man lay on the ground, exhausted.

In contrast, Snow White looked shiny and well, which the warehouse man couldn't understand.

"Quite a miraculous reunion, right? I was going to say, a little more... but never mind. Anyway, let's set up camp and register. Ah, before that—"

Touching the magic book in his pocket, he chanted briefly.

<Reveal, even the illusion>

When the warehouse man used the dispel chant to remove Snow White's illusion, the black illusion that enveloped her melted away, revealing her true form.

In front of Yobi, a snow leopard as large as a big tiger appeared.

The warehouse man, still lying on the ground, looked up at Yobi.

"Is this magical beast famous? Her name is Ilneek."

Hearing the warehouse man's words, Yobi, bewildered by the rapidly changing situation, managed to respond.

"...I've never seen her. I've never heard of her."

"...If that's the case, it's fine."

The warehouse man intended to register Snow White as a hunting beast.

Snow White couldn't enter the city as she was.

If she were left waiting outside and someone saw her, they might try to hunt her as a rare magical beast, or a large-scale hunting party might be organized by the association, which would be troublesome.

Even with the deep green ring, if someone said they didn't notice or didn't know, there would be nothing he could do.

It was quite possible that information about Snow White could leak from the association to some greedy fool, but it would be better than having a hunting party organized. As a hunter's hunting beast, there would be a certain amount of justification.

Still, if there was something, he could resist. There was no need to be a hunter.

The warehouse man led Snow White and Yobi to the gate.

But there were people lined up there.

There were hardly any on the sea side, but on the land side, there were lines of merchants' magical beast carts and hunters heading to the capital.

The warehouse man was annoyed just by looking at them, but there was nothing he could do.

However, the warehouse man and Yobi, who were at the end of the line, were given way by the merchants and hunters in front of them.

"...? Is it okay?"

"Y-Yeah, it's a hunting beast, after all. I can't help but feel uneasy. Go ahead."

A wolf-type beast person who looked like a hunter said this, and the others nodded. Seeing Snow White, they seemed to be experienced enough to know that unease was all they would feel.

"Thanks."

The warehouse man bowed slightly and proceeded as they were given way.

In a few minutes, they reached the front of the line and showed the gatekeeper the deep green ring and two tags.

"I want to register a hunting beast. What do I need to do?"

The gatekeeper, suddenly faced with a huge snow leopard, was about to draw his sword.

Given its height, it was as tall as the warehouse man's chest, and in length, it was as long as the warehouse man and Eirida combined, so it was understandable.

But Snow White only yawned, showing no concern for the gatekeeper.

The gatekeeper's body stiffened at the yawn, but upon seeing the deep green ring on Snow White's leg, he didn't draw his sword.

"...Is it really a hunting beast?"

"Yeah. As long as it doesn't do anything strange."

"Wait a moment."

Saying this, the gatekeeper called out to the other soldiers inside the gate and sent someone running. Probably to the association.

Soon, a bird person who looked like an official appeared. The only thing that could be discerned was that he was not a peacock-type.

He was a slender, elegant man, but his eyes looked down on people.

He probably knew about the warehouse man and Yobi, as his eyes only held contempt when he looked at them.

While the warehouse man wondered if the slender build and bad eyesight were racial characteristics of bird people, he waited for the bird person official to speak, who was looking at Snow White intently.

"---In Ankwaal, hunting beasts can enter the city, but not one this size. However, this time we'll make an exception. You need to register, after all. Whether you can enter the city next time is uncertain."

Perhaps judging that the hunting beast led by an 'Eight-Star' was not a big deal, the arrogant bird person official pointed the way with his chin and quickly went inside.

The warehouse man, surprised at how smoothly he was let in, felt that trouble was inevitable from the bird person official's attitude, but he endured, knowing that he had to overcome this to avoid further trouble.

In the city, no one bothered the warehouse man, who was leading a huge snow leopard. It might have been a lie that he was surrounded just a moment ago, but without the strong men, this was to be expected.

The warehouse man, Snow White, and Yobi reached the association without incident, despite the cold stares.

On the way, cat-type and leopard-type beast people looked at Snow White with great interest. The warehouse man wondered if there was something about Snow White that attracted cat-type beast people, as Manya, the 'Moon Goddess's Attendant,' had also been so.

At the association, they were greeted with shocked stares.

Even the association officials and hunters were surprised when a huge snow leopard suddenly appeared.

But even there, the cat-type beast person girl at the cafe counter, with her tail twitching, was staring at Snow White