Around the time when Shuuya and his friends were dealing with G.o.ddess of Nightmares Varmina, a man was diligently doing his work west of the small hill with Shuuya's home on top of it. His name was Eboué and his occupation was that of a lumberjack.
Eboué was wearing old-fas.h.i.+oned, thin feather-made clothing that contained mana. His muscular upper body and the tattoo of a black panther could be seen through the gaps between the feathers.
His lower body was covered by protective clothing that reached down to his knees. It was st.u.r.dy, duralumin-made orc armor. It also emitted mana. Despite its orcish make, it suited him well enough that anyone would suspect for it to have exclusively been made for him.
Currently, at six o' clock, Eboué was in the middle of his woodcutting. He silently raised his both arms as he held a huge, magic ax, just to immediately swing it down.
A sound as if the trunk of the big tree was being destroyed reverberated through the area. Wood chips scattered, cutting his cheeks and forehead open. But, he didn't even pay any attention to the blood streaming down from his cheeks.
His eyes were wide open as if they were about to pop out any moment. And then he, once again and with his full, undivided attention, over and over again, swung his ax down, running its blade against the tree.
The trunk kept being whittled down. He went at it with a drive similar to a 『Punisher』. The way he moved his ax looked abnormal, too.
Did Eboué imagine the tree's trunk to be some sort of big enemy? Or was he currently reliving a past trauma that had edged itself deep into his mind?
Either seemed quite possible for Eboué. As if enthralled by a violent G.o.d, he kept hacking away at the tree.
The name of the ax in his hands was De Ga. It was a weapon only a few orcs within the Kaibacz Clan could handle. And it was definitely no weapon a normal human would be able to wield, and yet no one except for Gramps Bang had realized that fact in Cydale.
Even Shuuya hadn't noticed it, despite having defeated "Ga Del Viegolzan," who had been transformed into a semi-transparent orc monster through a remodeling by a kin wors.h.i.+ping a mad G.o.d of Sebdola.
As Eboué swung his eyes, a fierce gleam dwelling in his eyes, the "black panther tattoo," which covered the entire area from his shoulders to his chest, simultaneously shone up in his eyes, before it vanished in his skin as if sinking into his body.
This appearing and disappearing tattoo was proof of him possessing a special ability. It was the ability that had drawn the interest of Toys, a bloodkin of Hoffmann Ravahl Valmask and served as one of the reasons why Eboué had been captured by Hoffmann and his ilk.
Suddenly, Eboué's ax stopped. He turned around, looking into the forest.
The dense thicket rustled, and then, "Nn, nyaa～, a black cat appeared from within. Divine Beast Rollodeen.
"Nyao." "Nyaa."
Alray and Hueremy were with her, too.
The cats approached Eboué.
"Oh what a pleasure. Divine Beast-sama, do you have some business with me?" Eboué asked while wiping the sweat off his forehead with a leather cloth.
"Nn, nyao," Rollodeen meowed.
Then she transformed into a black panther, one that was bigger than usual. Seeing Rollodeen do that, the other two cats followed suit, transforming into big tigers.
"…"
Surrounded by beasts, Eboué dropped his magic ax on the ground. Next he touched his tattoo as if it held some sort of meaning.
Rollodeen opened her muzzle in his direction and roared, "Nyaooooo."
It looked as if she was questioning Eboué, full of intent to tell him, 『Show your true self』 or 『You've been hiding this from those you cherish, haven't you?』.
Eboué Kilmoga sensed it with his .
"Divine Beast-sama…you want to see my true form again?" Eboué asked with his voice trembling.
"Nn, nyaoo～"
"Nn, nyaa."
"Nyao, nyaoon."
Encircled by the three beasts, Eboué resolved himself. Thereupon, his eyes narrowed down to slits like those of a cat. Next, a glitter spread on the surface of his irises as if oil had been spilled on it. The "black panther tattoo" on his chest faintly glowed like the Pleiades in the night sky.
In an instant, his eyes, which were similar to those of a panther, created a stroboscope-like flash of light. The tattoo embossed on his skin floated up into the air while keeping its shape. And then the black panther depicted by the tattoo dispersed as if having burst. The ink's mana rained down on his brown skin and old clothing. His outfit instantly turned into something akin to a silver and black liquid.
Following that, the liquid wrapped itself around Eboué's body as if having its own consciousness, and Eboué transformed. He was now wearing a new costume that used a black panther as motif.
With a sharp glint in his eyes, Eboué's face was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with pride. If one were to see his costume, they might get the impression that a black panther fitted well with his brown skin. The costume had silver fangs protrude out of its surface all over the body.
This was a unique ability of the Kilmoga race.
"…Divine Beast-sama, just like the other day, please keep it secret from everyone," Eboué requested calmly, his eyes being as piercing as those of a panther.
You would never expect him to be the same Eboué who was beaten by Dokoko Muse.
After making sure of Eboué's transformation, the three cats shook their heads as if inviting him to follow without answering his request, and quickly turned around. The Rollo Squad das.h.i.+ngly vanished in the forest.
"Ah, Divine Beast-sama! My speed in this form…no choice…," Eboué crossed his arms in front of his chest.
In the next moment, he transformed into an imposing, burly black panther, albeit a smaller one than Rollodeen. His black pelt possessed a vivid gloss. The black panther Eboué exuded a dignity as typical of male panthers, but he didn't have any tentacles like Rollodeen. Instead, he had silver fang-like weapons installed on his forelegs and a part of his torso.
Eboué tilted his head, picked his ax up with his mouth, and turned his beastly eyes in the direction of the forest where the other three had vanished.
"Garururu――" Eboué growled lowly.
And then, at the moment he put power into his rear legs with their conspicuous muscles, he started to dash. The silver claws growing out at his paws scratched out the soil of the Sea of Trees. An instant later Eboué had vanished, leaving only a dense cloud of dirt and dust behind.
He cut through the thicket like the wind so as to catch up with Rollodeen and the other two cats.
◇◇◇◇
The beast squad led by Rollodeen stopped, interrupting its run through the Sea of Trees. They had reached a riverbank.
Blood stains proving a certain, fierce battle that took place here could be spotted all over the place. Blades similar to the weapons of the divine domain's forces were stabbed into the ground as if creating a gravesite of crosses. The terrain had been unnaturally transformed, as if it had suffered an area bombardment.
The remains of a sickle were dispersed on the ground as if to create art out of iron sc.r.a.ps.
Rollodeen's interest was suddenly drawn by a bloodstain that still had the gleam of a moth design left. She used her tongue to lick the blood. Next, Rollodeen lifted her head and scanned the vicinity.
While moving gracefully like a black queen, she ordered the magic tigers to follow her with a "Nyao～," and then extended tentacles in all directions from her neck. Those tentacles traced the remains of bloodstains which kept a moth pattern.
Eboué moved his nose behind the magic tigers, perceiving the smell of blood. While wondering whether they'd hunt something, Eboué saw how Rollodeen's long tail stretched and arched to the extent of touching her own back.
『Has Divine Beast-sama become entranced…?』 Eboué wondered.
Just like that, the Rollodeen Squad headed onwards, following the blood traces. In front of a cave, they found someone collapsed. That person held a bloodstained, violet, magic spear in their hand. They were close to naked, allowing a good peek at their broad and big physique, but it looked as if that person had stopped breathing at this point. He was smeared with blood, missing a leg and arm.
Rollodeen immediately realized that this man was 『an enemy who had fought against her beloved』.
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