What?

　I don't know what I was going to ask you to do, but....
　I kicked him off before he could give me any details.

　It seems I wasn't expecting my reaction, and Arios pulls a face.
　But he's managed to keep his anger in check.
　Twitching at his temples, Arios says, ''Oh.......

''Oh........Hey, hey, isn't it terrible that you don't even listen to me?　We're on the same side, aren't we?
Former colleague. Not anymore.
Don't be trite. I told you.　We've had some sad differences, but I... no, we still think of Rain as a valued colleague.
Yeah. But I'm not.
Huh.
'I don't think anything of Arios and the others. They're like rocks on the side of the road, they don't care about them at heart. I don't care where you go or what you do, but will you leave me alone now?
Geez...
'Arios, please calm down. If you don't cajole him well and round him up...

　Mina is trying to calm Arios down but....
　So I can hear it all.
　Are they doing it on purpose, by any chance?
　After all, is this a distant fight being sold?

　I can't help but think about that seriously.

"Geez ... you're right to be angry. It wasn't our fault. Well, for that I apologize. Here we are.

　Arios bows his head with a sense of reluctance.

'Right. So?'
What?
My answer is still the same. Will you leave?
...!

　I didn't mean to do that, but as it turns out, it was a form of agitation.
　I'm not going to lie when I say I don't think anything of it, but....
　Maybe somewhere in my mind, I still have a lump in my throat.
　It must have become an irritation and caused him to lash out harshly at Arios and the others.

''........Mr. Rain. Please do me a favor. This is what we need to do to save the world.

　Mina's words stopped me in my tracks as I was about to walk away.

'What does that mean?'
Can you help us conquer the Lost Forest?
Can you just tell me what's going on there?

　If you say it's for the sake of the world, it's indeed impossible to ignore.
　For now, I decided to listen to Mina's story.



----------



...I see.

　That Arios and the others are struggling to capture the Lost Forest.
　That's why they want my help.
　After listening to Mina's story, I understood the general situation.

　And then........I was dumbfounded.

　How could they kick me out and then try to ask for my power again after all this time?
　Don't these people know the word shame?
　I'm too stunned to say anything.

''Although.....

　Even though it's like this, Arios is still a brave man.
　He needs the Demon King to be defeated.

　Even if the demon king is not defeated and the world is overrun with demons, I'm confident that I can do something about it.
　It's because I have two reliable friends in Kanade and Tania.
　With the two of them, I felt like I could do anything.

　But what about the others?
　What about the people in the city who live a normal life?

　The Demon King is a great threat to the powerless.
　As long as the Demon Lord is not defeated, they won't be able to live in peace.

　It's not desirable for the journey to defeat the Demon King to be interrupted.
　Maybe I need to think about the whole thing more than just my own personal feelings.
　I know it's annoying, but....
　If the journey of Arios and the others is stalled, then maybe I can't help but lend a hand.
　Just like my past I can't let a tragedy like that happen again.

''........Okay. I'll help you this one time.
Are you sure?　Thank you.
Why would I do this........why would I do this.......

　When he agrees, Mina smiles... perhaps it's an act... but Arios is still puffed up like a child.
　He didn't like the exchange he had just had very much.

　Does this guy not know his place in the world?
　I'm not saying to be humble and flirtatious, but if you're going to ask for things, you're going to have a reasonable attitude.

'Hey,'
Wait.

　Just as the conversation was coming to a head, Kanade and Tania stepped forward.
　Their faces.................were in a ridiculous mood.
　They didn't hide their anger and even emitted a light killing intent.

''.......What is it?''

　Arios also responded grimly.

'Actually, I'd like to disagree with you but if it's Rain's decision, I can't help it. I won't disagree.''
But I'm going to make one request.
Haha, you want a reward?　All right. How about 20 gold pieces?　That's not a bad deal. It's more money than you've ever seen in your life, right?
Of course I'll get paid. It's a personal request for adventurers. But there's something else you'll have to do for me.
Yeah?　What does that mean?
Apologize to Lane.

　Kanade glared at Arios as he shot him a look.

'You guys did a terrible thing to Rain. Don't be a random guy like you did earlier, apologize properly!　Apologize from the bottom of my heart!
It's fine for me to make fun of Rain, but it's really annoying when other people make fun of me. Apologize.
What did you say you were sorry for when you said you were sorry?
No, that's not good enough.
"Get down on your knees.
What?

　The outrageous words flew out of Tania's mouth, causing Arios and the other three to exclaim.
　Without a care in the world, they continued their words.

''Nyaah.......If you don't apologize properly to Rayne, we won't forgive you, we won't forgive you!
I hear you guys did some pretty bad things to my master, didn't you?　Normally, I would have burned every single bone in your body with my breath. But now you're willing to get down on your knees to get it over with.　Hey...
We're nice.
Come on. Get down on your knees.
Oh, and make sure you rub your forehead on the ground, okay?

　They both seemed to be in an angry mood, but....
　It wasn't.
　I wasn't just angry, I was deeply pissed.

　I'm glad you're mad at me for me, but....
　I'm a little scared.
　Let's not make these two angry.
　Secretly, I swore that I would.

''Fu, fu........Screw you!

　This time Arios snapped.

'You think I'm going to get down on my knees to this incompetent?　That's ridiculous, and I don't think they'll ever admit it!　No way, no way, no way, no way, no way, no way!
'We didn't do anything wrong. And yet, you can't expect us to apologize that much. Normally, on the contrary, I'd want an apology from us.
You're licking it, aren't you?　Uh-huh?　Who the hell do you think I am?　The Great Wizard, Master Lean.　There's no way I'm going to get down on my knees to a garbage worm!
It's disgusting. To make such a statement without knowing your place in the world is, after all, untrustworthy.

　Buying words to sell.
　Arios and his group are getting mad, and the place is getting out of control.

　What can we do about this?

Hey, Rain!
Uh... what?
You want me to get down on my knees?
It's not that much to ask, but...
Then get on with it and make them withdraw their dumbass suggestions!　You should at least have a firm grip on your pet's reins!
...Pets?

　Kanade and Tania are treasured friends.
　For the first time, I was able to trust them from the bottom of my heart.
　You call someone like that a pet...?

.........you're kidding me.
What?
"Kanade and Tania are not pets, They're my best friends!　You take that joke back.
'Ha, crap. Did your head boil over after spending time with a bunch of non-human people?　Even the strongest species isn't human. You could call me a pet and it wouldn't be a problem. Hmph, you like the way it looks?　The truth is, you're keeping him as a pet, aren't you?　Good grief, you're in heat with a beast, that's a beast guho!
Shut up.

　To stop himself from saying something stupid, he punched Arios in the face.

"I will not allow anyone to insult my people!
"You ... you ... you hit me here!　It's only a Beast Tamer, I'm a brave man!

　As expected of a brave man, I should say.
　Even though I was hit by a blow from me, whose physical abilities have been enhanced by the contract with the cat spirit race, Arios was still properly alive.
　With this ... there seems to be no need to go easy on him.

''I'll hit you as many times as I want.

　Finally, I lost my temper and...
　The two parties collide.