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“What kind of creature is a Honey Eater?”
“They’re monsters that resemble a bear. Their main diet consists of honey and insects. Since they eat bees as well, they’re the most detested monster in this village, which is known for its honey production.”
“Woof! Kuro knows! That’s what you call a business rival!”
“I get what you’re saying, but that’s not quite right.”

Well, I do get what Kuro-san is getting at. If it eats both honey and insects, then I suppose you could call the Honey Eater an enemy to Renshia.
However, strictly speaking, a “business rival” refers to a competitor in business, that is, someone in the same line of work, so that’s not quite accurate.

“Honey Eaters are usually very gentle, but they hate being interrupted while eating. They aren’t carnivores, but their claws and fangs are quite sharp, you know.”

Kuzuha-chan explained this to clarify. She was a girl who was always very considerate like this.

“Also, Honey Eater meat has a subtle honey aroma and sweet fat. It’s a high-end ingredient.”
“Woof! Kuro’s going to take this home and have Iris-chan cook it~”
“Could Iris-san cook it?”
“Huh? Kuro doesn’t know. But if Kuro brings it to her, she’ll probably figure something out!”
“I can’t tell if you’re just leaving it up to her or if you really trust her.”

As we continued our lighthearted conversation, we waited for the monster we were after to arrive.
Right now, we were a little ways away from the flower field where the bees were collecting nectar.
Apparently, the Honey Eaters always came from the same direction, so Kuzuha-chan, Kuro-san, and I were hiding in a patch of grass where we could keep an eye on that spot.
Our team was split: Habotan-san and Akisame-san were continuing their inspection of Renshia, while we’re in charge of pest control.

“Woof~. Kuro’s so bored~.”

Even though we were supposed to be hiding, Kuro-san couldn’t sit still at all. She fidgeted and moved around restlessly, rustling the grass. She’s just like a dog that’s lost its toy.
Kuzuha-chan, on the other hand, was very quiet. She didn’t move a muscle—so much so that if someone said she was a wolf waiting for its prey, I’d believe it. She didn’t even utter a word unless spoken to.

“Kuzuha-chan, you’re so calm.”
“When hunting, it’s important to sense what’s going on around you.”

Smiling a little shyly, Kuzuha-chan wagged her single tail.
Cloneha-chans were already on standby in different spots, ready to move at any moment. All that’s left is to wait for our target to show up—but.

…Kuro-san is right, this is boring.

Since we couldn’t move until our target arrived, we had no choice but to wait in the grass. It can’t be helped, but I get why she’d call it boring.
In fact, I’d been dozing off for about half the time since I started keeping watch here. It’s not a problem, though, since Kuzuha-chan was keeping watch for me.

And so, for a while, I repeated the cycle of dozing off and chatting.
During one of our many chats, Kuzuha-chan suddenly looked up. She twitched her ears and,

“They’re here.”

Hearing her words, I braced myself. Kuro-san, as usual, seemed a bit unsettled.
From the direction opposite the flower field, the scent of honey mingled with a beastly stench. It must be the scent of a Honey Eater or something like that.

“They do look like a bear, or rather, they’re literally just a bear.”

That’s right. They’re practically a bear.
Their body was covered in brown fur, and they were currently walking on all fours, but they would likely stand nearly three meters tall if they stood up.
The Honey Eaters were Striding toward us, digging into the ground with their sharp, clawed forepaws. Their eyes were bloodshot, and they looked terribly agitated.
The only thing that didn’t look bear-like was their dangling tongue—it’s quite striking. That’s the one feature that made them seem more like anteaters than bears. They’re probably using that tongue to lick up insects and honey.
There were about eight of them just from what I could see alone. They were heading straight for the flower field.

“There are quite a lot of them, how should I put it… and aren’t they all looking pretty hungry?”
“That’s strange. Honey Eaters usually compete for feeding grounds, so they aren’t the type to gather in groups… I’ve rarely seen them this excited either.”
“Woof! Anyway, we just need to take them down! Let’s go!”
“Ah, wait a sec, Kuro-san!?”

Ignoring Kuzuha-chan’s plea to stop, Kuro-san burst out of the grass as if she’d been waiting for this moment. Looking at this, it was hard to tell which one of them was the feral animal.
Leaping out in front of the Honey Eaters, the wild Kuro-san took a deep breath, showing no fear of the approaching swarm.
What on earth is she planning to do? Just as that thought crossed my mind, it happened.

“AWOOOOOOO!!!”

A massive roar—or perhaps “howl” would be more accurate—so loud I thought it might burst my eardrums.
The violent, deafening sound reverberated through the surroundings.

“T…That’s a werewolf’s hunting roar, isn’t it!? It’s a technique to instill fear in the prey and freeze them in their tracks…!”

It must have been quite a blast to the ears, because Kuzuha-chan explained this to me while her head wobbled slightly.
As for me, my feet—which had been wavering over whether to follow Kuro-san—came to a complete stop.
The commotion that followed in the surrounding grassy areas was likely the sound of small animals, having snapped out of their state of terror, fleeing.

“Woof? Huh?”

Only Kuro-san spoke in a carefree voice, though her tone carried a hint of confusion.
A Honey Eater’s claw came crashing down, aimed straight for her head.

“Aohh!?”

Kuro-san ducked her head in a panic. With a movement resembling a forward roll, she slipped past the Honey Eater’s side and evaded the attack unscathed.

“Kuro’s got ignored…!? They normally would stop, yanno!?”
“I guess this isn’t ‘normal,’ then.”

The Honey Eaters were clearly excited. Something more than the fear of being glared at—or rather, barked at—by a wolf was driving them.
There was no time to think about the reason right now. Teamwork wise, Kuro-san was currently the only one right in the middle of the enemy.

After making sure my frozen legs were working again, I immediately started running. Cloneha-chans and Kuzuha-chan were with me.

“It’s hard to cast spells with Kuro-san right in the middle…!”
“Then I’ll hold them in place. Blood Arms, Chains.”

I lightly bit my finger to draw blood. After that, it’s just a matter of using my vampire abilities to create chains and entangle them, as usual.
Once they’re immobilized, it’ll be easier for Kuzuha-chan and the others. And that plan worked exactly as expected.
The blood chains caught the Honey Eaters and held them down.

…They’re thrashing around quite a bit.

I don’t know why, but they seemed to be terribly agitated. Unconcerned even as the chains dig into their bodies, the Honey Eaters continued to thrash about.
The chains weren’t being torn apart, but their behavior clearly feels abnormal. What on earth is driving the Honey Eaters to such extremes?

“Triple—Weasel Sickle!!”

Kuzuha-chan’s signature wind magic raged forth in a triple blast.
The wind blades sliced through their thick fur and even the muscles beneath it. Swirling up the spurting blood, a crimson storm erupted around Kuro-san.

…That was the spell she hit me with, right?

I remember when we first met, Kuzuha-chan cast that spell at me.
If I hadn’t had magic resistance, things would have turned out pretty badly. I’m glad I listened to Grandpa Loli’s advice when I was reincarnated.

“Woof, Kuzuha-chan, you’re amazing, amazing!”
“The wound’s shallow, though…!”
“Woof! In that case, Kuro will…do it!!”

With her frilly skirt fluttering, Kuro-san charged forward. She lightly curled her fingers into a claw-like shape and rammed her hand into the Honey Eater’s neck.
Instead of a thud, there was a tearing sound. The Honey Eater’s torso and head were cleanly severed. The loss of strength from death caused the chains to clang loudly.

“Werewolves really do have incredible brute strength, huh?”
“Woof! I’m going to keep going!”

In contrast to Kuzuha-chan, who attacked with magic, Kuro-san went at them with her bare hands—or rather, her claws. Without worrying about the blood splattering on her clothes, she hunted down the Honey Eaters by either crushing their heads or severing their necks with a single blow.

In less than a few minutes, the Honey Eaters were wiped out. Kuro and Kuzuha did almost all of the work. My role was an easy one—I just restrained them with chains.

“They seemed strange, but they weren’t really that much of a threat, were they?”
“Woof. But still, the people in this village must have been in trouble.”
“That’s true. From what I could see, there didn’t seem to be anyone in that village who could stand up to the Honey Eaters.”
“True, I suppose we’re the ones who don’t fit the norm.”

A vampire and two beastfolk. As for me, I’ve been blessed with ridiculously high abilities as a benefit of my reincarnation, and Kuzuha-chan and Kuro-san are probably among the strongest even among beastfolk.
Rather than saying the Honey Eaters were weak, it’s more accurate to say they just picked the wrong opponents.

“Anyway, shall we head back?”
“Woof, got it!”
“Yes, understood!”

Leading the two of them as they replied cheerfully, I left the scene.
Kuro-san returned carrying as much meat as she could hold, so Habotan-san gave another awkward look, but the pest control operation was a success without any major issues.