"Whoa... I had a feeling, but I really didn't think things would actually turn out exactly the way Nielson said."
"Heh, see?" Nielson murmured proudly in response to Rei's whisper.
Do fairies have some kind of special power? Watching the handful of Orcs in his line of sight, Rei found himself wondering.
The special power in question wasn't anything like the magic fairies used or their teleportation ability via Fairy Circles, but rather some unknown power that Rei had yet to learn about.
Given the current situation, it wasn't strange for him to think that way.
(She says she wants to encounter something, and then we actually encounter it? No, surely not.)
Nielson had just said she wanted to encounter Orcs, and right there in the Treant Forest—not even far from the Fairy Dwelling—they found a pack of them.
A pack, though a small one of only about five.
Still, Orcs were Orcs, without a doubt.
Under these circumstances, Rei could hardly be blamed for thinking Nielson possessed such an ability.
"If you said you wanted to meet people connected to the defilement, would they show up too?"
Rei asked with considerable expectation, but Nielson immediately shook her head.
"Even if I did have that kind of power, I wouldn't want to encounter anyone connected to the defilement."
For Nielson, running into defilement operatives might mean having to deal with the defilement all over again alongside the Chief.
While they had discussed the possibility that Rei's magic could handle it, there was no way to know if he could actually pull it off.
If they tried it and succeeded, fine.
But if it failed, Nielson would have to deal with the defilement together with the Chief again.
To prevent that from happening, when it came to the defilement, Nielson felt it was best to... Thinking this, she pointed at the pack of Orcs to change the subject.
"Come on, enough useless talk. Just go defeat those Orcs already. With five of them, it should be enough for everyone in the Fairy Dwelling to be reasonably satisfied."
"Got i—... Wait."
Rei had been about to say he understood, but his gaze instantly sharpened.
The presence itself had changed significantly compared to just seconds ago.
"Rei?"
"Hide. Looks like we weren't the only ones targeting the Orcs. ...Here it comes!"
Retrieving Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear from his Misty Ring, Rei shouted sharply, ready to respond to combat at any moment.
In an instant, something black swooped down from the sky and sank its sharp fangs directly into the nape of an Orc's neck.
With one of the five Orcs dead, the detailed form of the attacker that had struck from above became visible.
To put it simply, it was a creature that could only be described as a winged black panther.
Being a black panther, its wings were also a glossy black.
Of course, the description "winged black panther" was merely a first impression.
In reality, there were many differences from an ordinary black panther beyond just the wings.
The most prominent among them was not the fangs sunk into the Orc's neck, but the sharp claws extending from its forelegs.
Normally, claws weren't that long. For a quadrupedal beast, unnecessarily long claws would get in the way when walking or running on the ground.
But in the black panther's case, as evidenced by its wings—and by the fact that it had dove from the sky to attack the Orcs—its primary mode of movement was flying.
That was why the claws extending from its forelegs, at an absurd length of about thirty centimeters, didn't hinder its movement. In fact, it could wield them like daggers.
Sinking its fangs into the Orc's throat, it appeared to be slicing the creature's body apart with those claws.
Moreover, whether out of monster instinct, it struck with precision at the heart... or rather, at the magic stone.
At the same time, it worked the fangs buried in the nape, spraying Orc blood violently in all directions.
"Buhiii!"
Noticing its companion killed in the blink of an eye, an Orc swung its club down toward the black panther's wing.
It targeted the wing rather than the body because it understood that the black panther was clearly stronger than them.
Even a direct hit to the torso wouldn't deal significant damage. But perhaps the wings, being more fragile, could be injured.
The Orc launched its strike with that in mind, but...
"Kishaaa!"
With a screech that sounded nothing like a panther, the black panther twisted its body.
Naturally, twisting its body also moved its wings, and the Orc's club sailed through empty air.
"Kisha!"
Using the momentum from the twist, the black panther slashed the neck of the Orc that had swung the club with its long, extended claws.
That made two.
The remaining three Orcs, judging that they would die if things continued like this, charged all at once.
However, the black panther darted swiftly between the three, cutting them down one after another.
The sight was nothing short of absolute devastation.
Not a single one of the Orcs' attacks landed. Every strike was evaded.
The black panther was about two and a half meters in length, slightly smaller than Seto.
From the Orcs' perspective, there were plenty of places to target, and the wings were sizable enough that they should have been able to hit them if they tried.
And yet, the Orcs were utterly overwhelmed without landing a single blow—not even a scratch.
(This is... incredible. A-Rank? No, B-Rank, maybe?)
The black panther, having killed the Orcs in the blink of an eye, did not let its guard down.
Baring its sharp fangs, it growled while looking toward where Rei and Nielson were.
"W-wait, what do we do, Rei?! We set out to make contact with Orcs or defilement operatives, but nobody said anything about encountering a monster that powerful!"
"Calm down. It's already completely aware of our presence. We can't run. Besides... this is the frontier, remember? It's not that strange for high-rank monsters to appear."
Of course, high-rank monsters possessed the intelligence or instinct to understand that approaching Gilm was dangerous.
...Though there were some that deliberately approached Gilm to challenge the strong to battle.
From what Rei could see, there was no doubt that the winged black panther before him possessed power worthy of being called a high-rank monster.
For such a creature to come to the Treant Forest... was likely because it had confidence in its own strength.
For Rei personally, encountering such a monster was extremely welcome.
A high-rank monster that wasn't overly cautious.
A high-rank monster's magic stone would almost certainly allow him to acquire a new Skill through Beast Magic, or enhance an existing one.
In that sense, it was the ideal prey for Rei.
...Of course, that was predicated on Rei fighting the black panther, winning, and obtaining the magic stone.
If an adventurer of lesser ability encountered such a black panther, they wouldn't lose a magic stone—they'd lose their life.
(In that sense, a high-rank monster like this black panther making its way to the Treant Forest... could mean that, in a way, the forest itself has grown? Though it'll be dangerous if the woodcutters or their adventurer escorts run into it.)
Someone like Vihera, who was active in the Treant Forest, could hold her own against such a monster—no, she would eagerly throw herself into battle, relishing the chance to fight a powerful foe.
In that regard, the black panther coming to him was not a bad turn of events for Rei.
(Though I would've preferred it if two had shown up.)
Since Seto could also use Beast Magic in addition to Death Scythe, he naturally wanted two magic stones if possible.
He thought this, but he wasn't sure he could handle two of them.
Even if he had to fight two at once, he could probably defeat them.
But in that case, it wouldn't be surprising if the Treant Forest suffered a massive fire.
"We can't stay hidden forever... Shall we go?"
"Huh? Wait, Rei, are you serious?"
At Nielson's panicked voice, Rei nodded and checked the feel of Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear in his hands.
"Yeah. If too much time passes and that black panther takes off, that'd be a problem."
At Rei's words, Nielson wore an expression of disbelief.
For Nielson, the black panther was clearly a being far above her.
Now that she had awakened to a new power, Nielson was the second strongest in the Fairy Dwelling within the Treant Forest, after the Chief.
Yet even Nielson could not envision a future where she fought the black panther and won.
Fairies were not a race suited for direct combat to begin with, but for even the current Nielson to judge that she couldn't win meant the opponent was truly formidable.
The Chief could probably win, though.
Seeing Nielson's reaction, Rei judged that involving her in the battle would be dangerous.
If Nielson were to participate in the fight now, it wouldn't be strange for her to end up dead.
"Understood. Then I'll fight that black panther, so hide, Nielson. Or you can use a Fairy Circle or something to return to the Fairy Dwelling."
"Eh..."
Nielson was surprised by Rei's words.
She had never expected to be told that she didn't need to participate in the fight.
Given Rei's personality, it wouldn't have been strange for him to tell her to provide support in the battle.
"What's with that face? Did you think I'd drag you into the fight here?"
"Yeah."
"...Shouldn't you normally say something like 'of course not'?"
Rei said this with exasperation at Nielson's immediate nod.
That said, based on his past experiences, he couldn't help but think it wouldn't have been strange for her to think that.
"Well, anyway... flee while I'm fighting that black panther. And just so we're clear, I'm not planning on dying in the fight, okay? I've fought and beaten a Dragon in the Forest of Magic, after all."
Rei's words were correct.
But it was also true that they weren't entirely accurate.
It was true that he had fought and won against the Crystal Dragon, but at that time, Seto had also been present.
Nielson didn't know those details, so she nodded at Rei's claim that he had fought and beaten a Dragon.
"O-Okay. Then... for now, once you start fighting that black panther, I'll evacuate."
"Yeah, please do. Make sure you don't get caught up in the fight. From what I saw in the battle with the Orcs, it's probably a B-Rank Monster, but it's one I've never seen before. There might be collateral damage to the surroundings."
"Good luck."
Nodding at Nielson's words, Rei stepped out of the bushes.
Hearing the rustling, the black panther braced itself.
The moment it saw Rei emerge, it leapt backward and created distance.
Whether it had judged Rei's danger at a glance, or simply thought that keeping its distance would let it fight from a more advantageous position, was unclear.
Unfortunately, Rei didn't know the circumstances, but if the black panther wanted to keep its distance, that was exactly what he wanted.
Both Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear were long-handled weapons.
Having a reasonable amount of distance between him and the enemy made it easier for Rei to fight.
(Does it not know how to fight against long-handled weapons? If it did, it should have closed the distance all at once... well, that's more helpful for me, though.)
What Rei wanted to avoid most was the black panther charging into the bushes and forcing a fight at point-blank range.
Of course, whether it was Death Scythe or the Twilight Spear, Rei could manage to some extent even if dragged into close combat.
Still, it was undeniably harder to fight that way than under optimal conditions.
Setting that aside, Nielson was still near the bushes.
Given that Nielson had been afraid of fighting the black panther, getting her caught up in the battle could cause her harm.
The black panther creating distance was something Rei was genuinely grateful for.
"Alright... then let's go."
Saying that, Rei flashed a ferocious grin and took a step forward.