Giant Beast

"But... the things Rem did... weren't for you... and anyone could have done them..."

Rem kept her head lowered, and Subaru couldn't see her expression, but the faint nasal quality in her voice gave everything away. She was crying. She was trying desperately to hold it in, but her tears had probably already fallen. In the end, she was still a child.

"Don't hold yourself to some standard that says you have to be one of a kind."

Subaru didn't call attention to the tremor at the end of her words.

"...Thanks to you, Rem, I was able to understand how much both of you cared about me. There's a saying: judge people by their deeds, not their thoughts. Judge them by their thoughts, and no one in the world is perfect."

"It means what someone does matters more than what she thinks. If everyone were judged by the thoughts in their hearts, there wouldn't be a single good person in the world."

He tightened his grip on the cold little hand in his palm, which was still trembling slightly.

"Thanks to you, Rem, I've been able to survive in this world. Thanks to you, I've had my fill to eat every day. Thanks to you, I didn't completely fall apart during that first month. You really are amazing, Rem."

"...What about my sister?" Rem's voice was muffled, and the change of subject came out of nowhere.

"I asked about Ram. She'll probably be busy for several more hours. Besides, this isn't your fault. I'm the one who borrowed you. I'll explain everything to Ram properly afterward. So for now-"

He gave her hand a gentle tug.

"Let's go home first."

This time, Rem finally moved. He led her along, slowly, one step at a time, toward the village.

The forest was quiet, and moonlight spilled over the path between them. Unfortunately, this forest never let the quiet last long.

"Hiss-!"

Several horned cobras shot out of the bushes, lunging straight for their necks.

"Swish!"

Icicles suddenly formed in the air, piercing every snake through the head. They dropped limply to the ground, slowly becoming covered in frost.

"Screech-!"

Another bird Witchbeast swooped down from the night sky, its claws aimed at Subaru's eyes.

"Boom-!"

Subaru raised his pistol, and a fire-attribute magic bullet struck the target dead-on, trailing a crimson flame. The bird Witchbeast exploded into a roast bird in midair. Its shrill scream was cut off halfway through, and its charred remains crashed to the ground, trailing wisps of smoke.

"Roar-!!"

"I know everyone in this forest is enthusiastic, but isn't this a bit much?!"

The ground trembled slightly. A three-meter-tall grizzly bear Witchbeast was rising onto its hind legs deep in the woods. A single horn grew from its forehead, and when it opened its bloody maw, its foul breath was strong enough to knock a person over.

Subaru shouted, sounding close to a breakdown, and pointed his gun ahead.

Rem's eyes were still red behind him, but she had finally suppressed the urge to cry. She looked at the large Witchbeast in puzzlement.

"...An Earth Bear? How strange. A Witchbeast of this level shouldn't appear this close to the village."

"Could it be because of me? For some reason, these guys all seem to like me a little too much."

Subaru gave a wry laugh. Ever since he entered the forest, Witchbeasts big and small had attacked him without a moment's pause. He was beginning to wonder if he had some quality that attracted them.

"Let's go, Anta."

The giant bear roared and charged, smashing straight through the small trees in its path and sending them flying, roots and all.

Subaru pointed his gun at the ground.

"Bang!"

The magic bullet struck the dirt, and ice spread out rapidly from the point of impact, covering the dead leaves and soil with a shell as smooth as a mirror.

The moment the giant bear's four paws hit the ice, it completely lost control. Its massive body slid like a car with failed brakes and crashed into a thick old tree, sending dead leaves flying everywhere and leaving it seeing stars.

"El Shuma!"

Antares blazed with light. The temperature around the giant bear plummeted in an instant, and the moisture in the air rapidly froze. By the time the bear recovered from its daze, it discovered in horror that half its body and all four paws were encased in a thick sculpture of ice.

It roared and struggled, but the ice didn't budge.

"Aren't you going to kill it?" Rem asked.

"Let's leave it like this for now. It's not that I feel sorry for a Witchbeast. This guy's got thick skin and tough flesh. Finishing it off would probably use up a lot of mana, and Anta would be exhausted."

Subaru glanced at the little red ball on his shoulder with concern.

Ignoring the giant bear's furious roars behind them, Subaru took Rem's hand again and continued down the road to the village.

Their palms pressed together, and Rem's little finger curled slightly, as if she wanted to grip something in return.

"...You're really strong, Subaru. You've become many times stronger than Rem."

"Then you should try relying on others a little more too, Rem."

Subaru's voice softened. "It's thanks to Antares that I've been able to get stronger. Without it, I wouldn't even be able to chop wood right now."

"But Rem only ever causes trouble for her sister."

"Maybe it's the other way around. Maybe it's because you're by her side that Ram is so strong."

"...That's not fair. How could that possibly be true?"

"Did I guess what you were thinking, Rem? Hmm-I can hear your heartbeat, you know."

"No, you can't. All you do is tease Rem, Subaru."

"Huh? It's not? Then where's this vibration coming from?"

Rem stopped. Wasn't it her heartbeat? Then where was that strange vibration coming from?

Fine specks of dust were jumping slightly on the ground beneath their feet. The leaves in the treetops were rustling and trembling too, but there wasn't a breath of wind in the air. The whole forest seemed to be whimpering softly.

"An... Anta? What's wrong?!"

Subaru noticed the change coming from the Lesser Spirit. Antares began spinning rapidly around him, each circuit faster than the last. Its terror flooded into his heart like water bursting through a dam.

"No way... Is a really powerful Witchbeast coming?!"

At those words, Rem's fingers tightened sharply. Subaru broke into a run, pulling Rem along as fast as he could. There was no chance of a leisurely walk back to the village now. Why was he so unlucky every time he came to this forest?!

I've only just started growing stronger, and my level's still low. Spawning a boss now? This game's balance is terrible!

The faint vibrations grew more pronounced. The ground shook, and with every step they could feel the sound coming from deep within the earth.

Pebbles bounced on the ground, dead twigs and leaves rattled and rolled in every direction, and even the trees shivered, their leaves falling. The whole forest trembled at the approach of something.

Behind Subaru and Rem, the bushes crackled in rapid succession, as if something were crushing its way through them.

"What the hell is it?! What exactly do you all find so attractive about me?!"

The emotion coming from Antares suddenly sharpened to its peak. It poured a fierce surge of mana into Subaru. Before he had time to think, he instinctively seized that power and leaped forward with all his might, pulling Rem with him-

"Rumble-!!"

A tremendous roar exploded behind them. Dirt, shattered stone, and uprooted trees tumbled through the air as a terrifying gash was plowed into the ground.

Clutching Rem, Subaru rolled over and over across the ground. Dirt and gravel splattered his body and face. It had been close. If Antares hadn't warned them in advance, they would already have been buried under that wreckage.

Subaru struggled to raise his head and looked behind him.

A wall stood behind him.

It was a very strange wall. Odd patterns covered it, each one writhing slightly with slow, immense breaths.

The wall began to move. Up, back, and then it bent-it had turned its head.

Subaru finally understood why this thing had come after him.

Its mouth was wide enough to swallow a grown adult whole, packed with sharp teeth that jutted unevenly from bloody, mangled gums. Its blood-red eyes were as large as two lanterns hanging in the night.

A massive horn in the center of its forehead pierced the night sky. It was over twenty meters long from head to tail, covered in dark scales, and gave off a suffocating stench.

It was a crocodile magnified countless times over, like a monster that had crawled out of Resident Evil.

The leader of the horned crocodiles Ram had wiped out in a single move had come for revenge.