Chapter 125: Enthusiasm or Something Like That

As the Kelpie and Zapuri sank into the water together, the Hunter jumped back and distanced himself from the river.

Even Sora, who could not use "Ken," and the three others who lacked danger perception like Sora, understood that the riverside was a dangerous place, so they kept their distance. I accepted it.

The Phantom Beast, which should have been hunted to extinction, was declared extinct half a century ago. Because the time was relatively late, Knuckles, whose main field was this, had an accurate understanding of what kind of Phantom Beast a "Kelpie" was; even if not, he could obtain sufficient information through the cyber-net.

And although there was no evidence that Sora was exactly the same as the Phantom Beast before them, the level of understanding of the Phantom Beast species known as "Kelpies" was the same as that of the Unicorn.

Although she looked like a horse, she was a water monster like a Mermaid.

A monster with the appearance of a horse, but which loved to eat human flesh.

In order to eat its favorite meat, it had to have the ability to transform into a form that humans could tolerate.

It is said that the Kelpie is skilled at Manipulation of water.

If these traditions from Sora World were integrated into the laws of this world, the Kelpie was definitely a beast capable of manipulating Nen Ability like a Hunter, if not better.

And, his system probably...

"!? "

Immediately after, the four jumped away, and the river water flowed upstream, rushing toward the place where Sora was like a tsunami.

The uninhabited riverside was already being washed by the monstrous water flow, and a groan came from it.

Using that sound to twist the water mosquitoes and other appearances, the Kelpie, who looked back at me with a glare, made the Hunters emit a creepy sound.

"... I think my view on the control system is correct, but most importantly, it is not a Suggestion system; it is more like a trait type, a system that can change your body."

"If you think changing your appearance and manipulating water is a more versatile Nen Ability than a human's, then you are turning yourself into water and coming toward us..."

Sora and Knuckles, although they retreated, each loudly expressed their agreement.

Accepting the same opinion as the two, Shoot clicked his tongue; although the two of them must have noticed, I would still tell them just in case.

"... Hey, sorry, my ability is not very useful."

"Is it a bit too much to be a higher-level ability than a human's? Can animals also have the power of Restrictions and Pledges? Even if they do, what kind of rules must there be to make their transformation ability so crazy?"

As the Archer said, the right eye that the Kelpie had taken from the Archer and sealed with his ability returned to normal once it turned into water to attack and then returned to its original form.

However, since the whip-like tail had disappeared, it was likely that a part of the tail was converted to make up for the missing right eye.

So it was not that the Archer's ability was meaningless. As long as it did not violate the law of conservation of mass, it did not matter where it was. Dark Hotel, if you limit yourself to "...," there is no doubt that one day it will be unable to compensate, and it will self-destruct.

However, in the current situation, just restoring the right eye was troublesome; I thought it had been shaved off, but the opponent could turn into a liquid state.

The four sighed long, realizing that if they were not good enough, it was probably more troublesome than a Unicorn.

However, no one expressed resignation in the breath they exhaled.

The emotion in the exhaled sigh was simply "troublesome."

The Kelpie did not seem to notice the Hunters' emotions; relying only on instinct and ego, she turned her flickering eyes toward her prey and changed her appearance.

This time, it was not growing horns in the water, but growing horns on its head. It grew the same horns as when it disguised itself as a Unicorn, and rushed forward with the momentum of a wild boar.

"It's more like a bull than a horse! I feel like a matador!!"

Sora was not intimidated at all; seeing the spear-like horns rushing straight at him, Sora laughed loudly, saying this as he turned to avoid the Kelpie's charge.

She gently waved the branch while avoiding the cannibal that took her as prey, as if dancing with her own clothes.

The branch was taken away by the twig, not the right eye assisted by her own ability for the time being, but cutting the real left eye.

The Kelpie let out a painful scream from this blow, then stood up on its hind legs, trying to slam into Sora like a hammer with its strong front legs.

However, there was no one in this place who would not do anything about an unprotected torso.

"Foolishness of the heavens, the lonely lost box!!"

Before the claws could swing down, Knuckles slammed his fist full of Aura hard into the Kelpie's torso, which was covered in strange green eczema.

This blow caused the Kelpie to lose its balance, but it persisted until the last moment before falling, angrily swinging its horned head, and kicking recklessly on the ground with its strong hind legs like pebbles.

Of course, there was no such calculation or anything, and there was no way to attack like a whining child; Sora and Knuckles distanced themselves from the Kelpie.

When catching it, Sora was suspicious of this attack that seemed to cause no damage at all, not an attack that seemed to possess him, but some kind of mayonnaise mascot-like Nen Bead.

The Kelpie tried to use the same ability as the right eye to make up for the left eye that was killed by Sora's Immediate Death, but he was confused that he could not recover even if he used the ability, and Sora asked Knuckles, "What about you?".

"I activated my ability."

Rather than a question of distrusting him, and not the disadvantage of revealing information, Knuckles simply told him that his Nen Ability was minimal, because he simply had no time to explain in detail.

I didn't expect Sora to foolishly and honestly explain all his abilities, so I didn't ask for a more detailed explanation, just asked for more information.

"I see. Then how much more time do I need to buy to activate Forced Extinction?"

"No matter how long you look at it, five minutes is enough."

Sure enough, I hadn't fought much yet, so I couldn't accurately measure the Kelpie's total Aura, so Knuckles made a rough estimate and gave the answer.

In fact, if the Kelpie hung "Nen," Sora's Immediate Death would kill Knuckles' ability along with the Kelpie, and Sora was a little worried, but just like Knuckles, he was familiar with his own "eyes." Since they didn't speak, there was nothing to be done; Sora raised a branch, responding to Knuckles' answer.

"Good. Then I will act as bait for that damn horse, and try my best to shave off Knuckles! At the very least, ensure that you are in a state of being forced into extinction! Then, in the worst case, if you..."

"Even if you don't tell me!"

"I know what it is!!"

I didn't mention the details, but I was very clear that the ability to forcibly apply "Absolute" for about a month was not something that could be obtained by simply killing time.

Temporarily strengthening the opponent was one of the restrictions, but Sora stepping on the time limit timer should also have a distance limit. If the target being hung exceeded the range of Knuckles' ability, the best time limit timer would stop until it returned to the range of Knuckles' ability again; in the worst case, when it went out of range, the ability would be canceled. A place.

Looking at it this way, the other Kelpie had been disturbed by the Hunters for more than a month and was starving, and Sora was his favorite prey, so Sora, who should have launched a mysterious attack more than Knuckles, attacked her, aimed at her, and used it as bait for the time limit. If possible, kill the Kelpie within this time; even if it was impossible, I would give instructions not to let it escape within the time limit, Suggestion to ensure it was forced into "Extinction."

To that instruction, Knuckles and Shoot seemed to complain: "Why are you giving these instructions?"

Both of them regretted and praised themselves for taking on their most dangerous roles without hesitation, and each prepared themselves not to waste this role.

Not only the men, but even Media felt the same way as the two of them, with a bitter smile on her face, manipulating the Dragon Tooth Warriors to surround the Kelpie.

Although the number was large, the appearance of Media's Dragon Tooth Warriors did not have high combat power, so this was nothing more than a moving wall, making it harder for the Kelpie to escape.

He was also good at launching weapons, so he could launch quite powerful melee Bullets, but since Sora was in close-quarters combat, the Kelpie would not give up predation and escape, so he was not good at precise shooting. I couldn't help it, with a bitter smile on his face, as if biting his own powerlessness, he shouted in frustration.

"Oh!"

While making the youngest girl play the most dangerous role, he shouted in disgust at himself for taking a role in the safe zone that he didn't need to. He accelerated his offensive, frustrated by his own clumsiness, and retorted inadvertently.

"You like the meat of young women!"

"……Knuckle? What do you mean? How old do you think I am?"

"A……"

As for Knuckles, he was just stating his impression without any ulterior motives, but this person was too good at stepping on landmines.

Medea suddenly became very scary, and Knuckle was confused, saying: "No, he is indeed the youngest. If he weren't here, I think I would go straight for you!" I said too much, and Sora poked me, "Is this what you're talking about?!"

However, although the thrust of Shoot and Sora was correct, Knuckle's statement was also correct.

Perhaps the most delicious meat for a Kelpie is the meat of women, and the meat of men who are younger than men.

So, when he found prey that looked tastier, he easily changed the object of his obsession.

"Fubekshon!!"

"!!??"

Suddenly, not only the Hunters, but even the Kelpie, with its Unicorn horn and lower body flowing with liquid in a terrifying Transmutation, was momentarily dumbfounded.

The reason the four of them and one person had such a reaction was not only because the one sneezing was neither a Hunter nor a Kelpie, but also because the sneeze came from a terrifying height, and the sound itself was quite high-pitched.

Yes, the sneeze itself was like an old man's, but the voice sounded like a young girl's……

"Ah, I fell asleep…… Huh? Ah, Hunter sisters!

Hey! What are you doing? Did you find a Unicorn?"

"How could you be in a place like this??"

Accompanied by the rustling of grass and trees, the young girl looked down at Sora and the others from the top of a tree growing by the river, sniffing her nose and innocently waving her hands, while the Hunters' questions and doubts sang beautifully together. It was done.

Before dusk, there was a mischievous little girl, Tatsuko, which was also one of the reasons she realized the horse-god beast was not a Unicorn but a Kelpie.

＊＊＊

Under the chorus of the Hunters, Tatsuko changed from a bewildered face to a squirrel-like puffy face, waving her arms and greeting them angrily.

"That's right! Listen to me! Suzuka, Nanaki, and Mimi are all lying to me!

A Unicorn and a River Ghost are completely different, yet you said you were the same as a River Ghost."

Apparently, 10% of her friends' good intentions, and the intention to persuade her because of the trouble, was 90% of the Unicorn explanation, and unsurprisingly, the girl who seemed to believe what she said was suspicious. About it, I went home and looked up Unicorns or something on the internet.

And just when her friends were concerned, Tatsuko couldn't figure out why her friends would lie to her, and passed on the information that the Unicorn Phantom Beast was "rough and dangerous," and it was very likely a lie. Even forgetting her anger at her friends, he slipped out of the house in the middle of the night, thinking: "What's so good about this, I want to see it!!"

Thinking this, Tatsuko showed a puzzled expression, saying she was surprised by a girl of the same type as Gon, more than I imagined, and she was impressed by her own mobility.

"Yeah, I get it! I get it, Tatsuko-chan, don't get off!"

"Fuh-huh?"

At Sora's plea, Tatsuko tilted her head cutely. At the same time, the tree Tatsuko was snuggled against shook violently.

The Kelpie, whose lower body had returned from a flowing body to a horse, slammed into the tree with all its might. Sora and Medea screamed, and Knuckles and Shoot ran.

Tatsuko was also in a blind spot because the Kelpie approached the first tree. Only after being hit did she notice the existence of the horse, "!?" she let out a scream and grabbed the tree trunk tightly.

"What, what is this!? This is a Unicorn! Not cool at all!!"

"Yeah, it's not a Unicorn, it's a River Ghost! So you can stay there until we get rid of it!!"

For a moment, Tatsuko seemed to have grasped the current situation, so Medea raised her voice to give instructions to the crying Tatsuko, who agreed vigorously like a koala.

"Even if you don't tell me, I can't get down!! Or rather, when I found a beetle and chased it, I couldn't get down, so I'll just sleep here!!"

"Is that why you're there!?"

When I thought he was hiding in an ambush, Tatsuko was stupider than I imagined. The Hunters inadvertently decided to chant again, but for some reason, Tatsuko was in the safe zone of the tree. A young girl kept the Hunters out of the Kelpie's sight.

However, it is a pity that the Hunters panicked due to the appearance of an unexpected person, so their judgment was very loose.

A Kelpie was never a safe zone.

"What!?"

"Pah!!"

"【Eww!? Disgusting!!】"

Knuckle and Shoot raised their voices in surprise, while Sora and Medea blurted out the exact same impression at the same time.

In order to avoid the oncoming Knuckles while capturing prey, the Kelpie transformed back into a horse, only for the head to grow a Unicorn-like horn, turning into a Snake, scurrying up the tree.

"Shoot! Use your hands to knock down Tatsuko-chan! Medea, collect them and have the Dragon Tooth Soldiers grab them!"

"! Ah, I see!!"

"Leave it to me!"

He was startled and grabbed the tree trunk tightly with his Knuckles, climbing up at a speed far exceeding that of a human, but he was no match for the Snake.

Therefore, while using Gander to control the Kelpie, Sora instructed the other two to move.

As for Tatsuko, fortunately, she had not yet realized that the Kelpie had made a creepy transformation and was climbing the tree she was on, so she was not that panicked.

So I took the opportunity to pull Tatsuko off the tree trunk with my left hand. Tatsuko floated independently from the Archer, and I tried to catch it with the Dragon Tooth Soldiers. Unfortunately, this strategy had too many flaws.

"Tatsuko-chan! I will definitely catch you, so don't take your hands off the tree!!"

"Ah?!?"

"Wow, sorry! Sorry Tatsuko-chan!! This really made me cry!!"

Sora gave instructions to Tatsuko between the Sword moves, and Tatsuko looked back with tears in her eyes to find the meaning of the words.

I saw three floating wrists trying to grab me, and what I would describe as a lizard-man skeleton beneath me was wriggling.

Sora, Shoot, and Medea were all good. There is no doubt that this strategy was the only one that could be executed at the moment and the best response, but Tatsuko at this time was also good.

Tatsuko panicked and climbed faster than the Kelpie. She couldn't believe she was saving herself. There was no way I could climb.

There was no way, but when the situation got worse, Knuckle clicked his tongue and shouted: "Sorry! I'll let go for once!!"

In this situation, he thought that the ability to temporarily strengthen by lending Aura would make Tatsuko even more dangerous. I placed Tatsuko above the worst escape from the Kelpie.

However, even though he was criticized for being disqualified, he placed water on the hot stone. Even after releasing his ability, the speed at which the Kelpie climbed the tree did not slow down, nor did it make me any faster.

"What is this!? Is there a ghost!? They actually have a ghost sports day!!"

"Actually, you have time, you!"

Even though she was in imminent danger, Tatsuko still climbed to the top of the tree and cried, clinging tightly to the unreliable, slender tip of the tree like a koala; I was shaken and crying as I was knocked down, and was scolded by Sora from below.

"Shoot! Break the tree now!"

"This is correct!"

"Knuckle!! I will use my Shoot fist and my gun to break that tree, so you be careful!"

"How can you tell me to do my best and be careful!!"

The weak screams of the Dragon Tooth Warrior suppressed her emotions; Media gave instructions for the shooting, and the shooting also gave up on pulling the Dragon Tooth Warrior off the tree trunk, instead breaking the tree and dropping it along with the Dragon Tooth Warrior; Sora jumped up, followed the wind, and urged Knuckle to be careful, which made Knuckle angry.

Of course, rather than breaking it from the tree root, it was better to just break the tip where the Dragon Tooth Warrior was climbing, and put the Dragon Tooth Warrior down to protect it, so the stray bullets would of course climb up the tree that the Kelpie was chasing. I couldn't help but hit myself.

Since he knew that was the only and best option, Knuckle still couldn't shake the feeling that he had won an unreasonable Lottery.

Knuckle's screaming of course quieted down; Shoot let go of the Dragon Tooth Warrior's hand, but instead grabbed the tree trunk that could barely support the little Dragon Tooth Warrior, and broke it with a bend.

Not only Sora, but Medea also dismissed her nephew to control the Kelpie and break the tree trunk, while Knuckle used Aura to amplify them to minimize collateral damage, protecting himself with "Ken".

"Ueeeeee!? What, what on earth is this!!???"

"I understand how you feel, but don't be irritable!... Ah"

I tried my best to help the Dragon Tooth Warrior, but in the eyes of the Dragon Tooth Warrior, everything the Hunter did was a crying bee. Even harder.

Shoot scolded Tatsuko's behavior, which made the tree bend even more, but the strength and flexibility of the tree seemed to be greater than Shoot expected, making it very suitable for use as a bow.

"One"

"Hiyaaaaaa!!"

The three people other than the Archer were stunned and speechless.

Tatsuko shook the tree that had been bent for the sake of breaking, and it slipped out of Shoot's hands.

Tatsuko's hands could not withstand the recoil at all, and Tatsuko was blown away like a marble.

The Hunters were also completely caught off guard; they should have been worried and impatient, but in such a surreal and dumbfounded situation, the first to move was the Kelpie, which was the worst.

When Tatsuko's hands fell from the tree trunk, the Kelpie jumped toward Tatsuko, and the Kelpie also separated from the tree trunk and fell.

He carefully grew bat-like wings on the Snake; although it could not fly, it still glided to increase its flight distance, pouncing toward the blown-away Dragon Tooth Warrior.

"Let's do it!!"

However, even if it wasn't the first time, it was not too late.

While the Kelpie was trying to pounce on Tatsuko while growing bat wings, Knuckle was also taking action.

He also let go of the tree, stretched out his hand as far as he could, grabbed the tail of the Kelpie that had turned into a Snake, and pressed himself down as he fell.

Even so, the Kelpie's life was terrible.

Turning a body as thick as a woman's torso into a body as thick as a Dragon Tooth Warrior's arm, stretching its own body, stretching its neck, grabbing Knuckle, shaking its head, and poking the Dragon Tooth Warrior with its horns.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"

"Tatsuko!?"

When Tatsuko was blown away by the power of the tree, he was attacked by a creature that looked like a nightmare chimera; a horse with horns and one eye on its head was crushed, and a snake with bat-like wings was screaming loudly; while Sora made a sound similar to a scream, Knuckle and Tatsuko were also caught in the crossfire, but just as I was about to throw the Wind attribute gem, I saw it.

The sharp horn that was supposed to pierce Tatsuko's stomach melted like ice on a hot iron Plate.

The Kelpie itself was also caught off guard, because it was not a horn made of Aura, but a horn transformed by Aura; it was definitely damaged, and it screamed, wrapped around Knuckle, and fell down while writhing.

The Dragon Tooth Warrior, who was entangled by the Kelpie and failed to be hit passively, crashed, but because of "Hard", everyone delayed confirming Knuckle's safety; the Dragon Tooth Warrior was still blown away, extending the flight distance and lowering the Prediction value.

However, the Media Dragon Tooth Warriors who gathered to catch the falling Dragon Tooth Warrior became enemies; although it was disadvantageous to Media, even Sora, who was advancing while eliminating the Dragon Tooth Warriors, was too late, and the Dragon Tooth Warrior fell to the ground and was severely damaged.

"!? Tatsuko-chan!!"

"You are healthier than I thought! You aren't hurt!?"

The child was thrown to the ground from the top of a three- or four-story tree; I climbed up energetically and hugged Sora, covered in tears, snot, and mud; Sora rushed in on behalf of the other Hunter's heart and finally felt relieved.

The crying Tatsuko family taught martial arts in front of farmers and peasants; thanks to Tatsuko, I knew that my martial arts were weak, but I was a genius in terms of passivity.

However, if he looked fine, he convinced himself that it would be convenient for him, and Shoot and Medea temporarily left the protection of the Dragon Tooth Warrior to Sora.

"If it's okay, I'll go to the Kelpie over there, let's go back!!"

"I'm going to help Knuckle too, so please take care of that child!!"

Sora and Tatsuko hugged each other tightly, and this little girl was the kind of girl who didn't know what would happen to him and Gon if something went wrong, so she hugged Tatsuko tighter and nodded.

Hug me, notice me.

There was something on Tatsuko's stomach... or rather, on her torso.

"……Tatsuko-chan, what do you have on your stomach?"

"Eh? I don't have anything that can be used as a weapon, so we at least used Tefal instead of armor..."

"……I see. Tefal is the one where you can remove the handle here."

Looking at Tatsuko's answer, the tears had not yet faded; what Tatsuko was wearing when she loosened her embrace was not armor, but Sora's, and for a moment he spoke his true feelings with a distant look in his eyes.

What Tatsuko was wearing was not armor, but a frying pan with a removable handle; the bread part could be put directly into the oven or refrigerator, or used as a Plate to eat; I was tied to my body.

Sora smiled bitterly and touched her head; Tatsuko was using something for a purpose other than its original intent.

"You really are a hateful idiot, you will really become a big shot in the future.

So... stay where you are. Turning danger into opportunity, always a cute idiot who is not bound by common sense and does things diagonally!"

It sounded like a compliment that wasn't a compliment, but Tatsuko, who actually couldn't deny the idiot Sora was talking about, didn't understand what Sora was saying.

Seeing that smile, Sora also smiled, then turned around holding the Dragon Tooth Warrior and shouted loudly.

"Knuckle! Shoot! Mr. Medea! The Kelpie's weakness is iron! Metal!

Maybe you can't change the part that touches the metal, so use whatever metal you are wearing as a weapon!!"

The world I am in is very similar to this world, despite there being too many differences.

This is why I obtained confirmation of unconfirmed knowledge.

Sora was not originally a specialist in studying Phantom Beasts, so he could not remember; his understanding of Phantom Beasts was not much different from that of an ordinary person who likes fantasy.

When I saw what Tatsuko was wearing and what happened to the Kelpie's horn that seemed to touch it, I thought of a legend.

The weakness of the Kelpie in Sora World is related to the Kelpie in front of you.

It is said that the Kelpie in Sora's world does not like metal.

Sora did not know why such a legend existed. If Sora's world and this world share the same logic, and if he had the ability to transform using Nen, then is "cannot transform upon metal contact" a restriction, or an original limitation? Is the weakness similar to an allergy theory? Did you obtain a Nen transformation ability?

However, judging from the scene just a moment ago, the Kelpie's weakness being metal is no big deal. If this weakness is true, it explains the method of deceiving humans and dragging them into the river instead of going down to human villages, even if they like humans.

I don't like metal, so I cannot enter a human village overflowing with hardware.

Humans deliberately change their appearance to deceive opponents who are hard to guard against, not only to drag them into the river, which is their territory, but also to ensure they have no hardware, which is their weakness; if they do this, they delete them themselves. If you think this is to guide you, then it makes sense to think of this slow effort as reasonable.

As proof, because it was wrapped around the Snake, "Alaya's Ignorance, the Lonely Lost Box Piece" would immediately restore Aura, so Knuckle, who was struggling to remove it himself, reacted to Sora's voice and pulled the belt from his pants. Away from the body.

He was clearly wary of the belt that Knuckle pulled out and tried to whip like a lash... or more accurately, the buckle on that belt.

In response, they also confirmed that Sora's words were true; Shoot used the birdcage to inflict damage on the opponent and trap the stolen parts, while Medea used the Antenna to control the Dragon Tooth soldiers, instead raising her staff to perform a physical attack with it.

However, perhaps because they survived extinction, Kelpies are very intelligent.

As the Dragon child, the perfect prey, and Sora were no longer by his side, perhaps he also understood that his weakness was well-known, so he slipped through the gap, destroyed the Dragon Tooth with the force of a mountain flood, and escaped into the river.

"Are you going to escape!!"

It was Sora who voiced everyone's thoughts.

Sora was entrusted with the protection of Tatsuko, but this woman had reached a point where one could not talk about Tatsuko; he is the possessor of the thought circuit.

Moreover, although she loves children and is very tolerant of them, because she worries about children due to her love for them, she breaks things she shouldn't do; unfortunately, no one present knew that he is a person who scolds so harshly.

"Tatsuko-chan!! You are still very interesting to me, so it's fine, but still, reflect for our friends!!"

"Eh!? What!? What the hell!?"

Sora picked up the Dragon child and ran toward the riverbank, looking at the river water with sparkling sky-blue eyes, while Sora lifted the Dragon child carried on his shoulder, acting as a turret. Looking at it.

"Eat this!! War Maiden Romantic Cannon Virgin Razor Palladium!!"

"Me aaaaaahhhhhhh!!!"

"What are you doing?!!"

He threw Tatsuko into the river without hesitation; the Kelpie turned into water and melted into the river, letting Tatsuko protect him.

Sora naturally received the full attack of the other Hunters, but she ignored those things and quickened her pace, even though she kept throwing them.

It pierced through with the momentum of seemingly catching up to the Tatsuko who threw it.

However, it was of course impossible for Sora to really catch up to the Dragon child he threw; the Dragon child could not catch up and fell into the river.

The sound of the splashing water and the Dragon child's scream were preceded by the roar of a horse.

When Tatsuko fell onto the water surface, the river water hitting the pan made a dripping sound, as if dripping onto a scorching hot iron plate, and the horse let out a scream of extreme pain.

What was originally just river water turned into a wriggling gray horse.

"Boogaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"

Witnessing the river water inexplicably turn into a horse ghost, Tatsuko let out a scream that made her nervous, but she no longer accepted it by instinct and fell from the river. Clinging tightly to the base of its neck.

Of course, if she did that, the frying pan in Tatsuko's hand would stick to the Kelpie, and the Kelpie, injured and unable to transform, struggled desperately to shake her off.

But it was too late to be angry enough to escape the grip Tatsuko wasted, clinging tightly to a tree until it bounced off like a pinball.

"You did better than I expected."

Said as if you were impressed.

Above Tatsuko and the Kelpie's heads, after throwing Tatsuko out, when the Kelpie recovered its original form from the water, Sora did not stop, leaping high and looking down with a smile.

The white lace Veil and train spread out like wings in the Wind, and the sky-blue eyes looked straight at the Kelpie.

Like a fairy, like an Angel, like a Goddess, the Death God swung her whole body under the influence of gravity, setting up the fine threads.

The Kelpie, whose right eye was hit by Sora and whose left eye was hit by Sora, should have been unable to see anything, but the sound of her nodding was louder than ever.

Although I could not see, I felt fear at the sign of death I sensed.

As if in response to the fear, Sora spoke words of parting, piercing through the past.

"Goodbye. Defeat Alaya."

Sora and the Kelpie sank into the river as soon as they pierced the "point" on the Kelpie's nose.

"I'm home. Ah, I'm tired."

Saying this, Sora climbed up from the river; the illusion and mysterious beauty that had been like a fairy a few minutes ago had completely shattered, and to say the least, she was just in the appearance of a monster.

Soaked all over, the fluttering Veil and long dress clung to her body, making her look like nothing more than a dirty white dress, not a wedding dress. His right arm and left hand were the Kelpie corpse pulled up by the mane.

Regardless of Tatsuko, it was the Kelpie's fault, and this woman seemed to be the monster that drags living things into the river. Tatsuko, held by her side, could only be seen as prey, not protected.

Seeing Sora appear so impromptu, all the Medea people were silent for a while, with painful expressions, but Sora casually tilted her head and asked, "What's wrong?" Since they had come, Medea represented them and rushed in.

"What's wrong? No!! I already have a lot I want to say and don't know where to start, but still, don't add anything more to what I want to say!!"

I mean, what on earth are you thinking? An ordinary child in the river! How about throwing it into the river where the Kelpie turned into water!?"

"Yeah, sorry."

"I know how you feel, but don't do that!!"

Medea threw off her hood and scolded him angrily.

So, of course, not only Medea, but also Knuckle and Shoot were angry, but as far as their feelings were concerned, they understood.

I don't know the psychology of doing this because I thought so, but I understand the feeling when Sora thought "Well, this girl will be fine." Admittedly, this young girl named Tatsuko also had quite a bit of bad luck.

In their hearts, Sora's words convinced everyone, but if they accepted this, then what was the point of their efforts to help the Dragon child? Thinking of this made me feel empty, so I moved my gaze away from Tatsuko's personality, and the three of us scolded Sora for what she did.

"What on earth are you thinking!? I threw this thing at a Kelpie, not actual river water, so this is a good result, but otherwise I wouldn't have fed the Kelpie. Mosquitoes!!"

"That's right. I mean, the ancestor child to the Kele circumference—but stomach like mosquitoes and other blood including hmm is hmm is world. If you don't know where the Kelpie is, it's impossible to throw them in."

Sora left the Kelpie's corpse by his side, refuting Knuckle's sermon while handing Tatsuko to Media.

Facing this objection, not only Knuckles, but even Shoot and Medea raised their voices: "Huh?", but Sora seemed not to care about their reaction, pinching the veil while training drainage as he answered.

"Didn't I tell you on the first day? My eyes are better at seeing the 'death' of living things, rather than objects. I can't see it because if I grab it one by one, my brain will overheat, but if it's a Kelpie, I can easily see it."

Even if you turn your body into water, if you are still alive, you cannot escape my eyes that can kill even the dead.

So, I feel sorry for Tatsuko-chan, but the metal I can throw at her right now is Tatsuko-chan wearing frying pan armor, so I threw it.

I know I'm careless and terrible, but surprisingly, I threw it in without thinking."

The only sentence Sora could answer was Shoot's, "... How is your vision?"

Facing this question, Sora smiled slightly as if teasing him, and asked back.

"Do you want to know? Do you really want to know the world I see?"

The faces of the three, who had already been twitching at Sora's words, twitched even more violently.

On the first day, I could understand that Sora's eyes were something special that my Nen Ability couldn't explain, but since Sora didn't say anything, no one asked. Even if it was a special ability different from Nen Ability, if it was a trump card, he wouldn't answer even if I asked, so I wasn't asking out of courtesy to a colleague, but right now I really don't want to know.

Almost no one understood what Sora meant.

I don't know, but even so, I told her that what she said was just the truth, the trust we had built up over the past week or so.

This woman's words and actions were high and mighty, and she always seemed to be joking, but she honestly admitted her mistakes and didn't try to deceive them with bland excuses. Throwing the dragon child was also serious, because I could only think it was a joke, I honestly admitted I was wrong.

That's why the objection to Knuckle was really just hard logic. As expected, it's unbelievable that people think I fed the Kelpie without thinking, let alone meaninglessly, so I just wanted to correct it.

Because he knew so much, he understood that if Sora didn't understand it was true, then her vision would be abnormal.

Because they understood her abnormal vision, even Hunters who explore the unknown would be overwhelmed by instinctive alarm bells and turn a blind eye to her "abnormality."

Sora shrugged and changed the subject.

"By the way, I brought it just in case, but what are you going to do with it?"

Sora showed the Kelpie he was facing by pointing at it with his toe.

Hearing this, Knuckles twisted his face in annoyance and opened his mouth as if complaining.

"Ah, right. Even a real Unicorn is troublesome, but surviving among extinct species is even more troublesome."

"'Of course, "Why don't you capture me alive?" Old people who don't know the hardships of the fields will stick out their mouths.'"

"And even if I report this guy's ability, I doubt he'll believe me, I don't trust you."

Although it was a species with powerful special abilities that could cause harm to humans, it was completely extinct, but when it got too hot, it would forget the heat and be confused by the rarity of the "extinct species survivor," and give up on the harm, seeking it as someone else's problem, the three of them let out melancholy sighs because they could see they would be criticized.

"... First of all, is this guy really just 'lucky to survive'?"

Sora, who was listening to the three complaining, stopped poking the Kelpie with his foot, his blue eyes lowered, and he suddenly muttered to himself.

The three who heard the voice stopped complaining about their lack of productivity for a moment, waiting for the continuation.

"Ability is an ability, so if you try to run away, it's easy to run away. So, I think this Kelpie guy was hunted to extinction.

Although it has the weakness of being vulnerable to metal objects, it is really too troublesome to be able to transform into both a human and water at the same time. Constantly suspecting your neighbors and the water around them might be man-eating monsters disguised as humans is a nightmare. I can't keep my sanity.

I don't think such a troublesome divine beast would be easily declared extinct just because the number of sightings decreased. It should have been driven out very carefully."

"Sora, what do you want to say?"

I listened silently, but I could also understand why I was confused, but what I wanted to say wasn't the point, so when Knuckles asked bluntly, Sora turned back while dripping water and answered.

"Now, if some idiot wants something just because it's a 'survival of an extinct species,' isn't it strange that there were idiots who wanted it before it went extinct?"

Although it was Sora's answer, simply understanding his doubts made not only the questioned Knuckles, but the other two widen their eyes, and then twist their faces in disgust.

"... The extinction declaration was issued half a century ago.

I don't know what the lifespan of a Kelpie is, but if it has awakened Nen, it lives longer than a normal horse, and even if it is difficult to increase the number of males and females, that's all. It is possible to breed them to some extent."

Knuckle didn't answer Sora's question, but muttered as if organizing his own thoughts, scratching his head vigorously in frustration.

"... It is characterized by leaving only the liver. This time there was only one victim, so this characteristic is not obvious, but if it really survived, I don't know if it would go anywhere in this place. The guy is. There should be a series of events where only the unknown and the liver are found.

... It's been nearly half a century since the extinction was declared, so few people might be able to find out such information, but if it was about 10 years after the extinction was declared, it would be connected immediately. But... in fact, such events have never happened in the past 50 years..."

"It's more likely that some idiot ran away as a pet than a survivor hiding somewhere."

Similarly, Shoot's conclusion was that if this Kelpie really happened to survive the Hunter's extinction, he would notice the unnatural part and make a sound, and Medea, who still held Tatsuko, would naturally correct the unnatural part.

This hypothesis was too reasonable and even more disgusting, and the expression on the Hunter's face became even more severe.

It is natural that my chest is not good. If this hypothesis is true, then if someone illegally captured a Kelpie and kept it as a pet instead of discarding it, what that person did to feed the Kelpie would make me vomit.

One cannot expect people who illegally keep man-eating beasts as pets to have the conscience to feed carnivores like beef or pork.

First of all, considering their ferocity, taming a Kelpie should be quite difficult.

The fastest way to tame a fierce beast is to let it learn, "If you listen to this guy, it's easy to get food." As far as animal taming is concerned, being looked down upon and licked by the other party is the worst thing, but if you really don't want to raise it, that's the simplest and fastest way.

There is no doubt that when hiding a beast of this size, the owner has a lot of money to spare.

From the perspective of such a person, finding someone who no one cares about even if he is gone might be easier and cheaper than buying a lot of legal meat.

Thinking that the worst possibility would make his mood even worse, Sora looked down at the Kelpie again, frowning at the three who were making faces.

"... If you ran away, it's still good."

Their guess was still better, he said, his eyes having changed from Aogyoku to blue sky.

"... If it's a pet, what kind of change would this be? Not the standard 'disguise as a human or a normal horse, drag it into the river,' but 'disguise as a Unicorn to lure humans' in ''. Did you learn how to use the ball?

And if it's a pet, it's not just bred from animals captured before extinction, but also originally wild, and has been a pet for over 50 years. So, even if it's a fallen beast. Now that it has escaped, can it still attack humans?"

Sora's question does not rule out the possibility that the kelpie was domesticated by humans. Denying it only deepens the mystery.

They also thought of what Sora denied, the worst-case scenario Sora hypothesized, they were no longer at the level of disgust or discomfort, but their faces were bleeding, and their lips were trembling because of "... impossible."

"... There is no basis. It's more of an illusion than a guess. I wish it were so."

I know I don't have to say it, but I wish everyone here was like that, Sora ended it with his own hands, pitying those beasts defeated by the human desire to "live." He looked down and said "the worst."

"I don't think he ran away. Perhaps his master got bored of him and threw him away."

Being abandoned in the woods of this village, which is said to have been a Kelpie habitat originally, is less a sign of his master's final love and more because they exude a rotten, foul stench even when discarded. Training him to become a Unicorn was not only convenient for the Kelpie, but likely a hobby of his master. If that is the case, the reason why Tatsuko and I were shot at makes perfect sense.

"... This guy's master is feeding women and children. I am an outsider who enjoys watching women and children die after being attacked by Kelpies, so I didn't consider slaughtering them to reduce casualties just because I was tired of the Kelpies. I would rather increase them. Even if I cannot see it with my own eyes, it is still released with the bad taste I desire."

There is no evidence that Sora's words are true. It just makes more sense than any other guess; somehow, this Kelpie happened to survive, somehow learned that disguising himself as a Unicorn was convenient, and has not mentioned his victims until now—the chance of him coming here until now was not that low.

So, those Hunters who were frustrated by their powerlessness clenched their hands until they bled, bit their lips to endure, and kept their frustration from erupting, so as not to be overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness.

This time, Sora understood without needing to bother saying anything.

If this worst-case possibility is true, half-baked evidence will only put you and those around you in danger, and you will feel frustrated when you realize this.

No matter how you look at it, it would be fine if the Kelpie's master were just a rich person or a big Mafia boss, like someone keeping a Kelpie as a pet—a divine beast that cannot be put on the table—and having the financial power to purchase women and children as live bait. Conversely, the possibility of them being a Cloud Person of royal or noble rank is not low.

Only in stories can such an opponent be directly caught and punished. Even if you could obtain decisive evidence at this very moment, if you have not first stripped the other party of their power, that evidence would instead be accused of blasphemy or some other crime, and in the end, you might end up killing yourself.

"... Damn it!"

Knuckles did not become a Beast Hunter because he wanted to kill creatures, but because he wanted to prevent even one animal from being labeled a pest and being Eliminated, even if he did not understand each other. But I express my regret.

If... if this Kelpie had only eaten beef and pork instead of humans from birth, it would not attack humans even if it were released into the wild. It would not change the fact that they are dangerous carnivorous beasts, but the level of danger would not be much different from lions and bears.

"... Hmm... no need... Hua, hua... fuck!"

No one could say anything, and the awkward silence was broken.

The young girl held by Medea woke up just as Tatsuko let out a big sneeze.

With a cute sound and an old-man-like sneeze, everyone couldn't help but widen their eyes and look at Tatsuko, while the half-asleep Tatsuko also looked around absentmindedly, her gaze stopping on Sora.

"Oh! Sister White!!"

Tatsuko, held by Medea, pointed at Sora, then jumped down from Medea and ran toward Sora.

I thought she would be angry at me for throwing Tatsuko instead of a shell without hesitation.

That was a matter of course; Sora smiled bitterly and opened her mouth to apologize, "I'm sorry."

But Tatsuko spoke before the words could turn into sound.

She jumped forcefully onto Sora's waist and hugged her.

"Sister, you were so cool just now! Although you are as beautiful as a fairy or an Angel, but what... what... anyway, you were too cool, it's crazy!!"

Hunters are really amazing!! Hey, how can I become a Hunter like you, Sister!?"

Her eyes sparkled, innocent and pure, as she pieced together words with a limited vocabulary to express her emotions.

Those eyes had completely forgotten the fact that she had been used as a weapon and thrown at the Kelpie.

Just like Gon during the Hunter final exam, she completely Eliminated her natural anger toward Sora. All she had was the scene before she fainted.

He complained that only the figure of the Hunter Sora, who came to save him, was branded on his heart.

Hearing Tatsuko's words, Sora was even more stunned than when she sneezed earlier and couldn't say a word, but after a while, she smiled and patted Tatsuko's head.

That smile made Tatsuko, who could read the mood better than Sora, feel a bit confused.

Sora was smiling, of course she was smiling, but at the same time, it was as if she were about to cry.

Tatsuko felt confused and uneasy because she was about to cry, but she looked incredibly relieved, and it wasn't just Sora; the other Hunters were the same.

However, the innocent, simple, and straightforward Tatsuko was immediately startled by what Sora said while patting her head.

"You can become the best Hunter."

This was neither lip service nor social etiquette.

I have no doubt that this girl can become the Hunter she wants to be.

Is what we do meaningful? Sora was certain: there is no reason for Hunters who have forgotten what they gained because of it to be able to find meaning and value in what they do so easily, and she could not become the best Hunter.

Speaking of this, Tatsuko showed a bright smile, innocently raised her hands, and jumped up and down.

"I did it!"

Shock!!

"Hmm?"

"One"

"!?!"

"That?"

The moment Tatsuko raised her hands and jumped, a heart-wrenching sound was heard.

When Tatsuko hugged Sora, she grabbed Sora tightly, still clutching the cloth she was holding... the train tied to her belt.

The train of the outfit was suddenly pulled violently, tearing and exposing Sora's lower body.

With the appearance of the Kelpie, I completely forgot about Sora, Medea, Knuckles, and Shoot. Why does Sora still wear a Veil and a train, even if it makes it hard for her to move around?

Because of this, although I was so careful before leaving, Sora still let Knuckles and Shoot stand behind her.

The two of them completely forgot about this, because the outfit wasn't very Transparent from the start, and it was night, so even standing behind her, they couldn't see what Sora wanted to keep Hidden.

However, because Tatsuko pulled and tugged, Sora's secret media said, "Maiden's irresponsibility," Sora said, "Surprise slut" exposed, and behind Sora, whether it was bad luck or good? I could see Knuckles and Shoot there.

............... The white knight outfit that seemed to have zero exposure, for some reason, was the only exposure.

The small and well-proportioned buttocks were like a juicy peach.

For some reason, these clothes were designed to be half-butt.

"!!?

Don't look!!!!"

The moment he realized what Tatsuko was holding, what had broken, what was exposed, and who was looking at it, Sora's face turned beet red, not just her ears, but her almost invisible neck, and she screamed and turned her face, but the two of them, Knuckles and Shoot, who were staring, were put together, blown away by a sobat, and before they fell to the ground, they were kicked up again by a high kick, and then hit repeatedly in the air, finally. Medea and Tatsuko, after deciding on a combination that was too artistic, inadvertently clapped their hands so hard that they couldn't hit the palms together and blew them away further.

This situation cannot be said to be that Knuckles and Shoot were too bad, but even so, I stared at it thinking it was a very good-looking butt instead of looking away immediately, so the two of them received a combination from Sora.

Later... or rather, a few days later, Morel was surprised that his two disciples came home beaten, saying: "It's not cheap, but it's not expensive either." It must have been a feast for the eyes. Sora could have killed the two of them more.

The two were blown away in an instant, and while Sora covered her buttocks with her hands, Sora's eyes also stiffened due to tears.

And Tatsuko followed as well.

However, even if Ryuko was a foolish child, he did not know that Sora wearing that outfit was practically a deception, and since Ryuko herself liked wearing outfits that exposed a lot, Ryuko did not understand why he was so shy.

She did not understand, but she felt that her breaking the train was terrible, and because she had the sincerity to make amends for this, she immediately followed up in her own way.

Nee-chan's butt is jiggly, really beautiful, so this outfit looks great!

Even without hitting anyone, it is still a one-hit kill!!"

"Sorry, Tatsuko-chan, please shut up!"

However, of course, this was just a finisher, far from a follow-up.

Medea hurriedly covered Tatsuko's mouth, but Tatsuko's counterproductive follow-up had clearly already reached Sora's ears, and Sora sat where he was and cried.

It is said that not until the Sun rose did Sora's sobbing gradually subside.

If Killua knew about this episode, he might not have pulled out the Needle during the Chimera Ant arc, but he might have already defeated Knuckle himself (lol).

Thinking the stage setting was too opportunistic, because the child who triggered the Discovery of the Unicorn's true identity last time was a nameless thug, and Puria's classmate suddenly appeared as a guest, as a result, Ryuko's unique Barrier was activated.

Perhaps she and Taiga are of the same bloodline. In any case, one must survive like a gag.

Sora's not-so-serious difficulties end here.

Starting from next time, I am planning the Kurapika arc, or more accurately the Nostrade, or more accurately the Neon arc.