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Even on snow—an environment with extremely treacherous footing—its movements were swift.

Just as if it were running across snow-free, flat ground, its two powerful legs kicked through the deep snow as it pounced on its prey.

Snow Lizard. Standing on its hind legs, this mabeast is about 1.3 meters tall, with a total length from head to tail tip of roughly 2 meters.

It is a relatively small, carnivorous mabeast that forms small packs and excels at leaping using its well-developed hind legs.

Normally, reptiles like lizards are cold-blooded. Therefore, during winter when temperatures drop, they would typically hibernate or become less active. But does such common sense not apply in this other world, or is there another reason?

Covered entirely in white scales, this lizard has adapted robustly to the snowy environment.

Even now, one of the snow lizards leaps high into the air, preparing to slay its prey with the sharp claws on its legs. Combined with its descent speed, this attack could likely knock over even a small tree.

But.

“Hmph. How innocent.”

The shade the snow lizard had targeted flashed a defiant grin, then crossed the war clubs held in two of his four arms above its head, effortlessly blocking the snow lizard’s attack.

Then, unleashing the immense strength hidden within his body all at once, he slammed the massive battle axes held in its remaining two arms with ferocious force toward the Snow Lizard that was once again airborne—involuntarily, this time.

An indescribable “thud” echoed through the snow-covered forest. And upon the white snow, a deep, dark red hue was splattered.

The snow lizard, its body severed in two by the battle axe while still in midair, fell heavily onto the snow, scattering entrails and blood.

Juddock the Shade—who had been targeted by the snow lizard—stepped back slightly to avoid the blood and entrails raining down from above.

“Yuck. What a gross rain.”

Though Juddock spoke lightly, his gaze was sharp, already locking onto his next prey.

Having set his sights on a nearby snow lizard, Juddock approached his pitiful prey with movements so smooth it was hard to believe he was moving on snow.

.

Snow lizards, adapted to their snowy environment, are naturally swift even on snow.

By repeating a series of small, quick leaps, they gradually corner their prey—which is unable to move as it pleases because its feet are trapped in the snow—and eventually kill it. That is the snow lizard’s hunting method.

However, this prey seemed capable of moving across the snow just as well as—if not better than—the snow lizards.

One of the snow lizards bared its sharp fangs and lunged at its prey.

But the prey—Tatsumi—deflected the fangs with the shield mounted on his arm, and in the next instant, he vanished.

In the blink of an eye, Tatsumi appeared in the snow lizard’s blind spot and slashed at its scaly hide with the sword strapped to his other arm.

Blood gushed violently from the wound.

But the spurting blood never wet Tatsumi’s body. That was because, the very next moment after the strike, he had vanished once again.

After that, he repeatedly vanished and reappeared, swinging his sword to gradually drain the snow lizard’s stamina.

Eventually, when the snow lizard’s movements had clearly slowed, Tatsumi thrust his sword straight forward to deliver the finishing blow.

.

Tatsumi and Juddock. From a short distance away, Calcedonia quietly watched the battle waged by the two mabeast hunters, who were still very much novices.

There was no anxiety in her crimson eyes. Given Tatsumi and Juddock’s abilities, it was highly unlikely they would be bested by something as insignificant as snow lizards.

Even if they were injured, as long as it wasn’t a severe or fatal wound, she could heal them with her healing magic. That’s likely why the two of them can fight with confidence, giving it their all.

Eventually, the last snow lizard in the pack was defeated.

The commotion faded, and silence reigned over the area.

All that could be heard was the sound of the wind rustling through the branches and leaves in the forest, and the labored breathing of Tatsumi and Juddock, still out of breath from the battle.

After confirming there were no more prey animals in the vicinity, the two sheathed their weapons and returned to where Calcedonia was waiting.

“Good work, both of you. That was quite a spectacular fight.”
“Mm-hmm. Thanks, Calcie dear.”
“Is everything okay over there?”
“Yes, Husband. No snow lizards came this way.”
“Leave it to me. Protecting the hired hands is part of a mabeast hunter’s duty, you know.”

The “hired hands” Juddock referred to were laborers tasked with transporting the prey the mabeast hunters had killed and handling other miscellaneous chores.

In exchange for not participating directly in the hunt, the hired hands had no right to the materials from the killed prey, nor were they eligible to receive any compensation beyond their wages as hired hands.

Mabeast hunters often form teams with others of similar skill levels. For this reason, novice mabeast hunters frequently accompany more experienced hunters as hired hands—often to learn the techniques of the veterans.

Calcedonia is a more skilled mabeast hunter than novices like Tatsumi and Juddock.

Normally, there would be no reason for Calcedonia to act as the hired hand for Tatsumi and the others, who are, so to speak, “inferior” to her. But the reason Calcedonia has chosen to take on that role and accompany Tatsumi and the others on their hunt—well, there’s really no need to explain that anymore.

Calcedonia, a senior mabeast hunter, offers her critique of the two newcomers’ fighting style.

“Admittedly, I think both of you fight wonderfully as ‘combatants.’ However, when viewed as ‘mabeast hunters,’ you’re barely passing.”

Tatsumi and Juddock’s expressions stiffen at the harsh criticism. Yet they make no objection to her critique and listen silently to Calcedonia’s words.

“Mabeast hunting means bringing back the hides, fur, fangs, claws, and sometimes even the bones and internal organs of the mabeasts you’ve hunted as various materials, and selling them to earn a living. Therefore, you must make every effort not to damage those materials as much as possible. Certainly, when facing a large mabeast, a strategy of delivering repeated, rapid strikes to gradually weaken it is effective. However, when facing a small creature like a snow lizard, it is preferable to aim for a single strike that hits a vital point.”

Caledonia’s gaze shifted from the two people in front of her to the area behind them.

There, the carcasses of the snow lizards that Tatsumi and Juddock had just defeated lay scattered on the ground.

Some had been split in two by Juddock’s brute strength, while others bore countless small cuts inflicted by Tatsumi; clearly, their “commercial value” would be low.

“If this were a request to exterminate pests ravaging crops in a field, there would be no problem at all. However, your objective this time is strictly ‘hunting.’ And not ‘hunting’ to obtain food, but ‘hunting’ to acquire materials. Given that objective, this was clearly a failure.”

After receiving a harsh critique from Calcedonia, Tatsumi slumped his shoulders in defeat, and Juddock let his four arms hang limply as he gazed up at the sky.

.

This time, Tatsumi and Juddock had gone out to hunt snow lizards in order to assess each other’s abilities now that they were teamed up.

Of course, earning money by selling the snow lizards they hunted was also one of their objectives.

Snow lizard pelts are highly effective against the cold and beautiful to look at, so they are highly valued as material for coats during the cold season and are also traded as material for armor.

Furthermore, their meat is highly nutritious and serves as an indispensable source of protein during this season when small animals are scarce.

However, as Calcedonia mentioned earlier, the hide of the snow lizard Tatsumi and Juddock killed was heavily scarred, so they would have to be prepared for the purchase price to be significantly marked down. Fortunately, though, the meat still looked like it would sell.

After hearing Calcedonia’s feedback on what to improve, Tatsumi and Juddock—with Calcedonia’s help—quickly and efficiently began skinning the prey.

“…You two really are experienced, aren’t you…”

Watching the two of them skillfully butcher the prey, Tatsumi couldn’t help but mutter that under his breath.

It’s true that he, too, had trained since coming to this world. But being strong in battle and living in the wild are two entirely different things.

No matter how strong you are, no matter how formidable a foe you’ve defeated, that alone isn’t enough to survive in the wild.

Combat skills and the skills needed to safely obtain food in the wild are completely different matters.

There’s still much more for Tatsumi to learn—such as how to butcher the game they’ve killed and how to skin it without diminishing its value.

“Don’t worry. You’ll get the hang of it in no time, Husband.”
“Seconded. Calcie, I’m following your method, okay dear?
“Yes. Now, first, regarding how to skin this part—while holding down this section—”

For Tatsumi, who grew up in modern-day Japan, the sight of butchering a living creature was, frankly, something he wanted to look away from. But since he’d decided to live in this world—and since it was an unavoidable path to becoming an exorcist after hunting mabeasts—he had no choice but to face it.

Forcing down the nausea rising from the back of his throat, Tatsumi peered intently at Calcedonia’s hands with a serious expression.

.

Tatsumi and Calcedonia worked together harmoniously on the dismantling.
Juddock, watching the two of them from a short distance away, smiled fondly.

“…Really, you never cease to amaze me, Tatsumi-pie.”

Juddock murmured quietly, making sure the two couldn’t hear him.

Just as Tatsumi and Juddock were wondering if there might be a suitable mabeast to test their skills on, Juddock happened to overhear that a small herd of snow lizards had recently been spotted in the woods near the capital.

No matter how well snow lizards are adapted to this season, the small animals they prey on are inevitably few in number.

That’s why they occasionally show up close to human settlements.

Snow lizards aren’t much of a threat. Unless it’s an exceptionally large herd, Tatsumi and Juddock alone should be more than capable of handling it.

After discussing it, Tatsumi and Juddock decided to head out early to hunt the snow lizards.

For novices like them, snow lizards are a suitable target. For that very reason, there are likely other mabeast hunters targeting the small herd that appeared this time.

Let’s hunt them ourselves before anyone else beats us to it. Having made that decision, the two set out on their hunt the very next day.

And so, on the day of the hunt. Tatsumi appeared before Juddock, who was waiting for him at the Elf’s Restful Pavilion, accompanied by Calcedonia.

Juddock’s eyes widened when he saw Tatsumi arrive with a woman. He was even more surprised when Tatsumi told him she was the famously rumored “Holy Maiden” of the Temple of Savaiv.

To make matters even more astonishing, Tatsumi and the “Holy Maiden” were engaged to be married, and she would be accompanying him on this hunt as a hired hand.

At this point, Juddock was completely speechless.

But Juddock’s astonishment didn’t end there.

He would soon find that out the hard way.

.

While exploring the forest rumored to be home to a flock of Snow Lizards, Tatsumi and his group were fortunate enough to come across the flock almost immediately.

Tatsumi and Juddock quickly readied themselves for battle, while Calcedonia—who was, after all, merely a hired hand—withdrew to a safe distance.

And so the hunt began, but almost immediately, Juddock was struck by a shock even greater than before.

Just as he thought Tatsumi, who should have been right beside him, had suddenly vanished, Tatsumi appeared right behind one of the snow lizards.

“…………eh?”

Even though they were in the middle of battle, Juddock found himself freezing in place, staring at Tatsumi.

“Juddock!!”

Juddock snapped back to his senses at Calcedonia’s sharp cry from behind him. When he looked, he saw one of the snow lizards right in front of him, baring its fangs and about to bite.

On the spot, he thrust his war club into the snow lizard’s gaping mouth. The club struck the open jaws, snapping the poor snow lizard’s fangs and sending it flying.

“Oh dear, I shouldn’t have dazed off… But, well… can’t blame me for doing so…”

While keeping a vigilant eye on his surroundings, Juddock’s gaze never left Tatsumi.

Tatsumi kept vanishing and reappearing, constantly fighting from the snow lizards’ blind spots.

“Isn’t that… the legendary ‘Heaven’ lineage’s *Instant Teleportation*…?”

The “Heaven” lineage of magic, said to have had only one practitioner in history. Juddock had heard of *Instant Teleportation*, which was practically synonymous with that lineage.

It was true that Tatsumi had said he was a mage, but Juddock never imagined he was a mage of the legendary “Heaven” lineage.

“…………I wonder who he really is.”

He swung his weapon, slaying nearby snow lizards while keeping his eyes fixed on Tatsumi.

The fiancé of the “Holy Maiden” of the Temple of Savaiv, and a legendary ‘Heaven’ mage.

From what he could tell, Tatsumi and the “Holy Maiden” weren’t just betrothed by their parents—they seemed to be completely in love with each other. No, if anything, the “Holy Maiden” appeared to be even more infatuated with Tatsumi.

Could it be that I’ve teamed up with someone who’s going to become a huge deal in the future?

That thought flashed through Juddock’s mind, and he let out a sly grin.

Juddock’s interest in Tatsumi grew even stronger than before, and as he resolved to stick with him for a while longer no matter what, he continued to slaughter the snow lizards before him.

.

Covered in blood and grease, Tatsumi and the others managed to finish butchering the creature.

Carrying their share of the materials—the skinned hide, meat, claws, and fangs—the group set out to return to the capital.

Just then.

Juddock, who prided himself on his keen hearing, picked up a faint sound.

“Be careful, you two. There’s something nearby.”

He quietly warned Tatsumi and Calcedonia, then scanned the surroundings for any signs of danger.

As the three of them held their breath, the bushes nearby rustled, and a white figure slowly emerged from within.

“…………Huh?”
“Oh dear?”
“Eh…………?”

Tatsumi and the others couldn’t help but widen their eyes at the sight.

Because.

What had staggered out from deep within the thicket was a completely naked human woman, about the same age as Tatsumi.