[Saintess for You - 12]
[Saintess for You - 12]
Monster Tamer.
Just as the name implies, it is both an ability and a profession for taming monsters, and at one time, it was a job with quite a high priority.
That was because one could get their hands on monsters, which could be called the enemies of humanity.
However, there were many problems with it; they couldn't be kept entirely under control, it lacked safety, and on top of that, the monsters' special abilities were deemed too easy to use for criminal purposes, so it began to be banned.
Even with the ban, there were people who still did it, and while it used to end with a slap on the wrist, the king two generations ago couldn't stand it anymore and created a law stating, 'Unlicensed monster hunters will be sentenced to death.'
Those who had already learned it were required to have it marked on their identification cards, and if one used or tried to learn it without state permission, they were already breaking the law at that point.
For those who made a living as Monster Tamers, it was literally a situation where their rice bowls were being snatched away, but because the crimes and negative societal impacts caused by it were beyond imagination, there was no choice but to ban it.
Above all, I saw the biggest reason as the fact that if one set their mind to it, it was possible for an individual to get their hands on a force close to an army.
"There are always guys who do it when you tell them not to, right? Isn't that so?"
"It's beyond that level. They aren't just handling one or two types of monsters, but are harmoniously controlling many. I think it's best to view them as quite skilled. It's too high a level to have been learned by chance or through self-study."
"Can't we just catch the tamer directly? Is there no way to find them?"
"We need to backtrack. If they notice and start running, we might have to play a very long game of tag."
"What a hassle."
"Yes, anyway, let's move quickly."
"Then Ed, handle it."
My shadow rippled and moved, then shot up from the ground like thorns, piercing through all the snow-white snakes.
There were quite a few of them, and they seemed to be handled fairly well, but the overall skill in controlling them wasn't that excellent.
Is it a lack of experience?
Are they a person with outstanding talent as a Monster Tamer, but who hasn't accumulated enough experience yet?
It felt a bit off to say that, but regardless, there was no doubt that their actions as a Monster Tamer were still clumsy.
Judging by the innocence of truly believing they could win if they just pushed forward with numbers, thinking they looked strong, I thought they might be young, or perhaps someone who didn't know the world yet.
"Can you backtrack?"
"Let's try."
As I tried to put my hand on a snake that had turned into a kebab and couldn't move, Twaang!! They burst one by one, trying to attack this side with their blood.
Since monster blood often contains poison, it was dangerous even just to touch it.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah."
"If you were going to cast a barrier, couldn't you have let me in too?"
"You blocked it well with your shadow, so I thought there was no problem? Besides, at this level, there's no need to retreat, right? Ed, you're making too much of a fuss."
"......That's true, I'm surprised too. At first, seeing them handle various types of monsters, I thought they were quite skilled. But compared to the number of monsters they are handling, their capability seems to be lacking a lot."
The commands being issued were monotonous, so the monsters' movements were also quite monotonous.
As I mentioned earlier, giving commands to monsters was quite tricky, and complex commands were even trickier.
That was why in the past, a Monster Tamer who could give complex commands to monsters was evaluated as excellent.
Because no matter how many there were, it was meaningless if they were just monsters that couldn't properly carry out commands.
Therefore, even if the numbers were small, training to give proper commands was no exaggeration to call an essential process for Monster Tamers.
Since I knew that, I naturally thought that seeing them handle various types of monsters naturally meant they would also handle complex commands quite well.
I had unconsciously thought, 'There is someone who has an army as an individual.'
'Whew, I got scared without realizing it.'
Once on the battlefield.
I had met a Monster Tamer.
They were a criminal, a traitor, and truly a madman who handled monsters like an army all by themselves, and they were so annoying that there was no madman like them.
Because even monsters with low intelligence showed intelligent movements when given complex commands, it was nothing short of annoying.
As a result, I managed to win somehow, but it had become a bit of a trauma.
To that extent, a Monster Tamer was a job that was nothing short of annoying.
"It seems they don't have the skill to block the backtracking."
"Can you even block that?"
"If they are an expert, they can block it. I practiced to be what is commonly called a hexagon, capable of doing anything, but I haven't polished everything to the limit."
"I see."
Honestly, even this Shadow Magic could be said to be not a very efficient attack method against top-tier powerhouses.
If I had to say, it was a fighting style more suited for surprise attacks or team play, so I moved to assist someone fighting in front rather than fighting 1-on-1.
I don't want to see teammates die.
I'm sick of comrades' corpses.
Hearing a comrade's last words makes me feel nauseous.
As such feelings piled up and piled up, before I knew it, I started creating power in a direction where I could assist and save someone.
Rather than stepping forward and being active myself, I wanted to assist from behind, even if I wasn't noticed, and save even one more person from the crisis of death.
So I intended to give up on standing out, but looking back, everyone was looking at me and calling me a hero, so it was a bit awkward.
Honestly, I wasn't very happy about it.
Because the faces of the people who fought and died wanting to earn that title wouldn't fade away.
"In other words, if there is someone who has dug deep into blocking backtracking, they could easily block my tracking. But the fact that the opponent blew up the monsters entirely......"
"So you're not confident you can stop it if they try to block the backtracking?"
"I want to capture them alive if possible. A suspicious smell is wafting all over."
"Why?"
"As I said, their skill in handling monsters is merely third-rate, but the number of monsters they are handling is too high. I thought they were just a genius with a lack of experience, but even so, it feels somewhat off. It seems necessary to hear their story."
"Alright, so where are we going now?"
"We have to follow the monster's traces."
The claw marks I found earlier were still there.
Since monsters are basically rich in mana, all attacks leave traces unless a lot of time has passed.
I slowly collected the mana from the claws and tracked the direction.
"There is no guarantee that the tamer is where this monster is, but nevertheless, we have to go. It might be a bit dangerous from here on, are you coming?"
"If it's really dangerous, we should go together instead; monsters have all sorts of poisons and curses. What are you going to do if a guy with strong poison and curses appears? Are you going to die?"
"It's not that."
"There's no problem if I'm here, you know that you're not someone I need to protect in battle, right?"
"That's true."
"Or are you just worried about me?"
"Is that not allowed?"
"......"
If feelings hadn't piled up after living together for years, that would be a lie. No matter how strong I was, that wasn't a reason not to worry.
Saintess-nim was silent for a moment and opened her eyes wide.
Before long, she smiled.
"You always fluster me. ......Still, I'm going. If I go back and hear the news that you died, I think that would be the most painful thing."
"I might just be one of the people passing by to you, Saintess-nim."
"Then stop."
"......"
"Don't pass by, just stay still."
When I looked at Saintess-nim without being able to say anything, her eyes looked like they were clearly shining, unlike when we first met.
The fact that that light was directed only at me was still scary and anxious, but even so, that light kept making me sigh.
"Until I catch you, the one passing by."
Saintess-nim smiled.
"I'll approach slowly, so don't worry. Yeah, I think I'd be very happy if you let yourself be caught around the time I become an adult."
"I really can't understand why you are like that, Saintess-nim."
"Me neither."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah, I don't understand myself either. Is this what they call emotion? I'm very happy, I must be feeling emotions now, right? Or if it's not even that, is this something not much different from my usual interest or questions? But the one thing I can be sure of is that I really like who I am right now."
That much could be said to be fortunate.
Because if one has many complaints about oneself and comes to hate the self that is acting, things that cannot be undone are easy to happen from there.
"Let's go for now, we have to solve the problem. If it's a Monster Tamer, the danger posed to the citizens is beyond words, right?"
"Yes...... Let's go."