As I continued to run away from the students, I suddenly noticed that it was getting darker around me and stopped in my tracks.
(Oh no! I'm in the deep end!)
The color of the plants was getting darker. I couldn't find any student footprints in the soil, and the canopy of branches and leaves was blocking out most of the sunlight.
--Deep layer.
There are two types of areas in this forest: the shallow layer and the deep layer. Normally, students use the former for practical training. But it seems that I was so desperate to escape that I ended up in the latter, the deep layer.
The demons that live in the deeper layers are all-powerful enemies.
This is not good.
I have to get back to the shallow layer before I come into contact with the demons. It's a hundred times better for the students to fight each other than to fight the demons in deeper levels.
At that moment...
(Is that a ...... student?)
In the corner of my vision, I saw a figure.
If you look at it, you will see that one of the female students is facing a lion-like demon, the Blast Tiger. The blast tiger is a powerful enemy. It's not a demon that a single student can fight alone.
The demon shouted and rushed towards the girl.
"Watch out!"
I shouted involuntarily. But...
--It's okay.
The girl's lips muttered. A moment later, the girl's body flew through the air. Kicking the ground, her running limbs slid through the trees, and in the blink of an eye, she reached the top of the demon's head.
Flipping her body lightly, the girl's heel falls on Blast Tiger's skull.
With a loud bang, the demon lay on the ground.
"That was awesome ......!"
One blow. With just one attack, he defeated the blast tiger. She didn't even use a weapon. The girl had fought using only her physical skills.
That girl approached me.
"Are you suicidal, coming all the way here by yourself?"
“It's not that I'm suicidal, but I'm not ...... alone either.”
“I'm strong, I'll be fine." The girl says and that's true.
“So, why are you here all alone?”
“Have you ever heard of ......? The brother of the sword princess Muir is an incompetent dropout.”
"Oh, ...... you."
The schoolgirl looks somewhat convinced.
I see. If she was a beast, it would make sense why she had such high physical strength. Strong physical strength is a characteristic of the beast race. Her ears and tail are both adorable. I wonder if she is a beastman of the cat family.
"It's a tiger." The girl said as if she could see through our thoughts.
The girl had long blonde hair tied up with black ribbons on either side. She has sharp reddish-brown eyes and is a little taller than the rest.
(Lately, I've been seeing a lot of beautiful girls., but ...... They're all very noisy...)
It reminded me a little of the vampire I met last night.
“Don't stare at me.”
"Oh, I'm sorry." I was subconsciously staring at her while thinking hard.
I averted my gaze elsewhere and began to introduce myself.
"I'm Kale Kraynils. I'm the brother of the Sword Princess and, as they say, incapable of ......."
“I'm Aina Feyristan, a tiger beastman.”
"Oh, hey, ......?
You can't hide your dismay at Aina coming within a few inches of your nose.
“You're ...... a vampire's ward?”
"What?"
“I can smell it. A vampire ...... that's also pure blood."
They say that beastmen have keen senses, and it seems that they are right.
“Are you actually a great person to be discovered by a pureblood?”
“No, I'm not. ......”
Not only vampires, but pure-blooded sub-humans have more powerful racial traits than half-breeds. It's a good idea to take a look at a few of the most common types of vampires. In other words, a pure-blooded subhuman is usually of high prestige. They are like aristocrats in human society.
“I've been wondering about this for a while. I've been wondering for a long time if that sword princess's brother is a dropout."Aina said without losing her expression.
"So I'll try."
“What?"
"Become my Genus."
I stood there dumbfounded for a while at Aina's words.
"...... You can try, but I won't know anything if you just become my Genus.”
“I want you to become my Genus and then we'll take it down together."
Aina silently pointed in a certain direction. It's a monkey-shaped demon with a blade for a tail.
I see. It would certainly be difficult for Aina to do that alone.
“ I'm sorry you're expecting this, but if I become one of ...... Aina's Genus, I won't be able to help you.”
“It's not like that. The strength of the family members is proportional to the strength of the Lord. I'm much stronger than the other beastmen, so even if you're a real dropout, you'll still be a force to be reckoned with when you become one of my Genus.”
With that, Aina lightly pricked the tip of her thumb with her own nail. After that, Aina immediately grabbed my hand.
"Oh, hey!
The way to make a beastman's Genus is to make wounds in the same place and pile them on top of each other."
Aina scratches the tip of my thumb in the same way.
"But!”
The signs of becoming Genus appear in my body.
A new power that is not my own permeates my body. I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not.
The five senses are enhanced even more than when I was a vampire. My hearing has become so acute that the sound of the grass rustling in the wind seems annoying. Changes also came to his body. My claws grew rapidly, and I felt an irresistible urge to run around the earth.
(For the second day in a row, I've become ...... a dependent of a different species.)
I chuckled to myself. Strange days are continuing. I don't think I'll ever experience anything like this again.
“So let's hunt together.”
"...... Oh."
My thoughts were strangely clear, just as they were when I became a vampire's Genus.
I wondered if this was a characteristic of beastmen.
--After all, is there some kind of psychological effect to being a Genus?
Not long ago, all I wanted to do was to leave this place, but now I'm not so sure. But now I don't. I even want to fight.
“Kikiiiiiiiiiii!"
The scythe monkeys all jumped at me at once. I'm not sure what to do, but I'm going to try to avoid it.
I felt as if I had been instantly transported.
The tree suddenly appeared in front of me, and I immediately changed direction.
(This is the power of a beastman...)
It's not much of a pain for me, now that I have a strong body unique to beastmen.
I regained my composure and approached the Scythe Monkey.
(It's the same as yesterday when it was a vampire. ......!)
I think about it as I sprint.
(I know how to use my powers...!)
The scythe monkey swings its tail. I dodged the approaching blade by the skin of my teeth and put all my strength into the fingertips of my right arm.
The claws extend about ten centimeters and become as sharp as a blade.
"Haaah!
I reamed out the body of the Scythe Monkey with my claws. The claws sunk into the demon's flesh and quickly severed its body.
First, one of them.
While doing so, Aina had also killed one.
The remaining one...
"Kale, up!" Aina shouted.
A moment later, the Scythe Monkey's tail flashed.
“I'll take it.”
"Too late."
I stopped it with two fingers, pinching it. This is the first time I've been able to do this. I gently grasped the demon's neck with one of my free hands.
"Sorry."
I break the bone with a snap.
"...... you."
Aina was looking at me with her first corner of her eye. I bent my knees and avoided the kick by bending down. She extended her claws further and unleashed a slash at my neck. Before the claws could reach my neck, she grabbed my wrist forcefully and stopped my movement.
Aina strained her legs and tried to release the restraints.
I don't let go - if I do, she'll attack me again.
'...... that's enough.'
“I'm not going to let you go," Aina muttered after a few moments of rigidity.
I let go of her arm, still wary.
"......, you're crazy."
"Abnormal?"
"Are you ...... unaware?" Aina wondered. “It's not possible to be that strong just because you're my Genus.”
“It's a little bit of that, but I was aware of it.”
I thought it was strange too. It's not that easy to master the sub-human traits that come with being a dependent. But for some reason, I've been able to use it to my advantage.
(Is this really what I'm capable of? ......?)
I've never heard of an ability that only activates when you become a dependent. I'm sure you'll be happy to know that I'm not the only one.
No. ......
Of course not. I never smelled anything like that.
This is the same question that the vampire girl asked me last night.
“I think I may have found ......." Aina muttered something in a small voice.
“I'll talk to you in the future.” Aina finally said, and quickly walked away.
I just watched in dismay as she flew over the trees.
(What was that? ...... after all ......)
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