In the lands reclaimed after the monsters were eradicated, the people who resettled there—known as the returnees—spoke of rumors too fantastical to be entirely true or false. They told of encountering a group clad in black, calling themselves Ninjas, who vanquished monsters. Another rumor told of a young man commanding countless monsters of his own, battling against a legion of divine-class monsters. Yet another described a petite girl in white, riding a black panther, who, with a shout of “Here we go, Silver!” would dispel a horde of orcs as if it were mere pocket change for her journey.
Life for the returnees was fraught with instability, with monsters often infiltrating and attacking the resettled villages anew. Perhaps, after days upon days that feel like chewing on sand, the ceaseless tales of having witnessed “legendary visitors” served as a balm to soothe the daily trials, a dream-like vista spoken of by those to follow…
The woman had believed this, too, until the day her village was attacked by a horde of Hobgoblins, and she was on the brink of death protecting her children when they were saved by them. Like a shooting star from the sky, they arrived, blowing away the Hobgoblins about to strike with their swords using a tornado spell.
“Here we go, Silver!”
“I am not silver. My fur is black. Remember that, female.”
“Hey, come on, we need a battle cry!”
There was a tall black panther upon which rode a young girl dressed in a white robe. The girl’s hair was a striking blue, shimmering in the wind. She looked around ten years old, maybe slightly older, though the way she talked seemed younger…
When one of the surviving hobgoblins, fueled by rage, notched an arrow, and aimed at the girl from behind, she noticed. With a simple wave of her hand, a tornado appeared, veering the arrow off course.
Magic, the woman thought, astonished. The girl was wielding magic without any incantations.
As the hobgoblins turned to flee, the girl declared it unacceptable and proceeded to eradicate them. Beams of light shot from her fingertips, piercing through the backs of the fleeing Hobgoblins one after another. Satisfied as the monsters fell one by one, she collected the gems they transformed into. Then, she turned back to the still-stunned woman.
“Are you hurt?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“Good! Then, be careful going home, OK?”
“Go back? But the village is already…”
“I’ve cleaned it up!” the girl declared, puffing out her chest proudly. While the woman stood blinking in surprise, the girl tapped the black panther’s back.
“Don’t order me around,” the panther rumbled, his voice resonating directly in the woman’s mind. She recalled hearing a similar voice earlier—but only much later would she come to understand that this was how monsters communicated.
The panther leaped into the air.
“Bye-bye!” the girl said, waving energetically to the still-dazed woman and her children.
“Next—let’s go!”
“Enough for today,” the panther suggested.
“No way, we have to work extra hard for Papa and Mama. It’s like a honeymoon!”
“I will never understand your customs. Truly baffling.”
As the black panther soared into the sky, vanishing into the forest, the woman and her children watched in utter astonishment.
“Coeurl, what do you think Papa and the others are doing right now?”
“There is likely only one thing a pair would do.”
“Jeez! You have no delicacy!”
“Ouch, hey, stop pulling my fur. Don’t pluck it! I’ll tell Shiki.”
“Uh… sorry.”
“Female… damn it, why do you react only to Shiki’s name?”
“Mama told me to listen to her; just her.”
“… She’s vulnerable, though. Her level is lower than the others, isn’t it?”
“Shiki has something stronger than power.”
“Is that because she’s human? A special kind of strength that comes with it?”
“Yes.”
“I see… I understand now. Humans are complicated beings…”