3 bar menu

Beast Tamer Who Got Kicked Out From the Hero’s Party Chapter 168

CHAPTER 168: TO THE SPIRIT TRIBE’S VILLAGE

In order to seal Iris away, we need to turn the Legendary Magic Item into a vessel.

In order to obtain said Legendary Magic Item, we need to go to the village of the Spirit Tribe.

With our course for the immediate future being more or less set……

All that was left for us was to start acting right away.

「Alright then, let’s go. Are you all ready?」

Everyone nodded their heads together at Aru-san’s question.

Taking that as a cue to set out, Aru-san turned around and faced the empty space that was right in front of her……

CLAP!

And then she clapped her hands together.

Then, as if in response to the sound of her hands smashing into one another, the empty space right in front of her shook and swayed.

Making it look as if it was the surface of the still lake when you threw a stone right into it, ripples started to spread through the air.

「This is the entrance. Follow me, if you would.」

Aru-san said, and proceeded towards the center of the fluctuating space.

Then, there was a high-pitched sound piercing through the air……

And Aru-san’s figure completely disappeared.

「Nyah!? she’s gone!?」

「She was simply transported to the village of the Spirit Tribe.」

「Come on, you guys! Go right ahead, don’t be shy.」

Contrary to Kanade’s astonishment, Sora and Luna were indeed calm and composed about the scene that just took place.

Then they proceeded to the center of the fluctuating space just like Aru-san did…… and then both of them disappeared without a trace.

「So, I guess that this portal serves as a gateway of sorts. I don’t know on what kind of principle it operates exactly, but it must lead to another place…. to the village of the Spirit Tribe.」

「Nyaaah…… Are we really going to be okay going through this thing? We aren’t going to be thrown into some strange or shady place, are we?」

「Oh, I think it will be okay. Or at the very least, I’m sure that it will only happen to you, Kanade.」

「Nyah!? Why me!?」

「And there we go……!」

While Kanade and Tanya were arguing with one another as per usual, Nina stepped right into the fluctuating space while carrying Tina’s kettle in her hands.

She might have been the smallest and the youngest of us all, but she certainly had nerves made out of steele.

「Kanade, Tanya. We should also get going.」

「U-Ugh…… O-Okay, nya……」

「Oh, come on now! Just how long are you going to be just standing there? Get a move on!」

Getting pushed by Tanya from behind, Kanade had no other choice but to step forward and just like that the two of them stepped right in the middle of the fluctuating empty space.

Being the last one to enter, I followed right behind them into the middle of the wavering space.

***

For a moment out there I was surrounded by a blinding white light and a strange sense of my body floating in mid-air.

That strange sensation lasted for about ten seconds or so……

And then, all at once, the floating sensation ceased and my vision cleared up.

「This is……..」

From one end of my field of view to the other, everything was filled with lush greenery.

It was as if I was in the middle of the forest, surrounded by plants and trees.

In the middle of all of that natural abundance, there were many man-made objects all over the place.

The only thing that could be clearly seen in front of me was a house made of huge trees and scaffolding made of wooden planks, a building that looked not man-made, but rather as if it just grew out of the ground and assumed that shape naturally.

Maybe it was a substitute for a watering hole, but there was a huge spring filled with crystal-clear water right in front of that house.

Instead of the light of the sun, there were fluffy orbs of light flying around.

Perhaps those were some sort of insects that naturally emitted light from their bodies.

I remember learning when I was still a child that there were supposed to be species like that somewhere around the world.

「Nyaah…… This is amazing.」

「Yeah, right…… So this is the home of the Spirit Tribe, huh?」

Kanade and Tanya were quite visibly in a daze, seemingly overwhelmed by the fantastic scene in front of their very eyes.

「Everyone is here? Good.」

Aru-san was waiting for us at a small square a little bit further down the road.

We then moved towards Aru-san who was in the lead.

「For the time being, together with my daughters, we are going to talk to the people of the village. As for the rest of you, you should just stay right here and wait.」

「That’s fine by me, but……」

「What if someone tries to devour us on the spot?」

Tanya and Kanade looked visibly uneasy.

I couldn’t really blame them for that.

After all, ever since we first stepped into this place, we could feel intense stares and pressure on us, not letting go even for a moment.

When I looked in the direction where the stares were coming from, I could sense that those stares quickly pulled back in a panic.

There’s no doubt that there were people watching us this entire time.

And I could say that those gazes were not exactly the friendliest ones.

Some of them were actually filled with curiosity to a certain extent, but……

Only Kanade and the others had that kind of gaze fixated on them, and many of the gazes that were directed towards me had a connotation of caution and hostility.

Perhaps it was because I was a human.

An existence that can be called the natural enemy of the Spirit Tribe that suddenly appeared right in the middle of their home, so it was only natural that they would be wary of me.

「Heya~♪! Sorry for bothering you~♪!」

But as if paying that matter no mind at all, Kanade suddenly greeted the onlooking Spirit Tribe members cheerfully.

She smiled and waved at them, even though she couldn’t quite see them.

Seeing that, Tanya makes a slightly exasperated expression while placing the palm of her hand upon her forehead.

「What exactly are you doing……? Have you finally lost it?」

「Why would you even assume such a thing!?」

Hearing Tanya say that, Kanade looked positively shocked.

「No, it’s nothing like that! You see, they seem to be wary of us, right? So I thought I’d show them that we are not scary at all and that there’s no need for them to be afraid.」

「Well, only you could actually think of such an absurd idea and carry it out in such a nonchalant way.

「A-Absurd……!? N-Nonchalant……!?」

Kanade continued to be shocked, as if she seriously couldn’t believe that someone else would assess her behavior like that.

「I’m glad that you care so much, Kanade, but I’m afraid that it won’t do us much good here.」

「Huh? Why?」

「Because they don’t have a problem with you being here. I’m the one that they are wary of.」

「Oh, I see, nya. It’s because Rein is a human, right……?」
「Well, technically speaking, I am a human, too, but…… I guess the way I am right now, that doesn’t really count.」

Tina said as she cracked the lid of her kettle.

「Muh.」

For some reason, Kanade puffed her cheeks, clearly displeased.

「Hm? What’s wrong, Kanade?」

「But, I mean…… You are not a bad person, Rein. And yet, without even trying to understand that, those guys are wary of you like some sort of a villain…… Unyaaah! This is pissing me off so much!」

「Thanks a lot, Kanade.」

「Fuwah!?」

I couldn’t help myself but to stroke Kanade’s head in a conditioned reflex.

「It makes me really happy to hear you say that.」

「Umm, I mean, this is…… Y-Yeah, you’re welcome.」

For some strange reason, Kanade seemed to be awfully flustered.

I wonder what could have happened to make her feel that way?

「Sorry to keep you waiting, guys.」

Before I could ask Kanade about that, Aru, Sora and Luna returned to us.

「Well, that was fast.」

「We don’t have time to waste. So it’s only natural that we would like to get this business over with as soon as possible.」

「Mother is really strong, even by the Spirit Tribe’s standards. That fact plus her years of experience and wisdom makes her a really influential figure here, even amongst the Higher Ups. So if Mother says that something needs to be done in a particular way, there is no one here who would possibly go and ignore her guidance.」

「Kind of like Kanade’s mom!」

So it would seem that Sora and Luna’s mother was really similar to Kanade’s mother: a really powerful figure with a whole lot of influence behind her belt.

Sora and Luna both said that while puffing out their chests.

「Nyah, that’s actually amazing!」

「By the way, how old are you, again?」

「For anyone who’s asking? I’m an eternal seventeen-year-old!」

The tone with which Aru-san said those words made us realize that it would probably be wise to take that information at face value and not question it further.

***

Aru-san led us to the Elder’s house.

The house itself was very spacious, built from a huge tree that looked like it was thousands of years old.

There was still plenty of room to spare inside, even with all of us crowding there.

「Well then…… So you are the ones that Aru spoke about.」

An elderly Spirit Tribe person sat across from us.

This person must have been the one who was the “Village’s Chief” around here.

There were some deep wrinkles on his face.

He had a long beard.

There was that, and there was also a particular demeanor about him, one that only those who have lived for a really long time could possibly hope to acquire.

Just confronting him like this, I felt an immense pressure all around me.

Although he was certainly making me feel nervous……

I couldn’t allow fear and anxiety to take a hold of me.
.
Taking a deep breath and calming myself down, I met the Village Chief’s gaze straight up.

「Hoo?」

The Village Chief let out an impressed voice for some reason.

「You have quite a lot of guts in that heart of yours. For a human, that is.」
「Umm…… Thank you.」

Was that supposed to be a compliment?

If that’s the case, then maybe we are off to a good start.

And if things keep going the way I want them to go, that would be great……

It was a thought that occurred to me, but it was a really naive thought on my end.

「I don’t like to beat around the bush all that much. So let’s get right to the point. I hear you want to use one of the Legendary-Class items stored in our village, is that correct?」

「Yes, and actually……」

「No need to explain. Aru already did that for you. and here is my answer. We are not going to cooperate with you.」