"Who's there?"
Castorice reacted swiftly, flicking a splash of River of Souls water toward the distance. Yet, the figure was even faster.
"Whoa! That's dangerous! You can't just go flinging hazardous stuff around—what if you hit someone? Even if you don't hit a person, damaging the flowers and plants is still terrible! Do you have no manners at all?"
The bright yellow figure evaded Castorice's attack in an instant, then darted through the dense forest so rapidly that the group could only see a series of afterimages.
That speed, combined with the flurry of complaints, quickly clued Castorice in on the intruder's identity.
Jaguar Man—a powerful, divine-level being.
She might act like a fool with bizarre mannerisms, but her strength was undeniably fearsome, especially in close combat. The three of them together wouldn't stand a chance against her.
In terms of pure speed, she far surpassed the dragon-kin that had ambushed Castorice earlier. Back then, Castorice could at least keep up, but now, all she could perceive were blurred trails.
After a moment, however, Jaguar Man noticed Castorice simply standing there, alert but silent.
Feeling rather foolish leaping about alone, she hopped down from the trees and landed before Castorice and the others.
"Wait, what are you wearing? What exactly are you?" Merlin asked, unable to suppress a twitch at the corner of his mouth.
"What am I?" She scratched her head, the tiger decorations on her loose clothing wobbling with the motion. "Well, if you must know, I am the embodiment of the deep forest, the manifestation of great warriors! If you're not afraid of being torn apart by my fangs, then bring it on!"
As she spoke, she struck a bizarre pose.
"But... you look just like a tiger. Why call yourself a jaguar?" Castorice remarked, eyeing the tiger-print onesie-like outfit.
"Uh... mortals shouldn't pry into divine affairs! And I'm not a tiger! I'm Jaguar Man, you idiot!"
Clearly annoyed by the interruption, she huffed in protest.
"Whatever, now's not the time for a fight. See you around, folks!"
The instant Ana tensed to strike, Jaguar Man vanished, leaving only her voice echoing in the air.
"Did her appearance even have a point?" Ana sighed in exasperation, watching the spot where the whirlwind of a deity had disappeared.
"Her point was to warn us that a powerful enemy lurks here. Stay sharp—we're about to reach Ur. Enemies could appear at any moment. Don't let your guard down. With that speed, if she ambushed us, we might not be able to defend ourselves."
Merlin's expression turned serious as he spoke, though inwardly, he was calculating.
That one seemed like a fool—perhaps they could pry some information out of her...
After encountering her, Merlin also understood why all the emissaries King Gilgamesh had sent never returned.
With a divine-level being like that around, ordinary Servants wouldn't stand a chance.
No wonder Amakusa Shirou and his group had fallen here.
Remaining vigilant, the party pressed on until they reached the city of Ur.
After crossing a small bridge, they beheld the city's current state.
The original structures were now engulfed by vegetation, with thick, tangled plants crawling over the buildings.
During this period, the forest had surged wildly due to some unknown influence, rapidly invading the city.
Fortunately, the expansion halted after reaching a certain point.
Otherwise, it might have severely encroached on the humans' living space.
"Was this the doing of that Jaguar Man from earlier?" Ana wondered, gazing at the dense overgrowth.
"Unlikely. Though she is a deity, she doesn't seem to wield this kind of power. The master of this place is probably someone else."
Upon entering the city, Castorice and the others stepped into the view of the residents.
Surprisingly, the people here looked relatively well-off, showing no signs of suffering.
Soon, however, the group noticed something odd.
The men in this city... were far too few.
The next day, after Castorice gathered the townspeople, they learned the truth.
The city's current peace was bought at a price: offering one young man as a sacrifice to the gods each day.
Before the might of the gods, humans were utterly powerless—all they could do was obey.
"But surviving by sacrificing one person every day... that's too cruel," Ana said, furrowing her brow.
"Worry not!"
Just as the group fell into somber silence, Jaguar Man's figure reappeared atop the distant city wall.
"And why, you ask? Because if I killed the sacrificial offerings, I'd be called an old fossil!"
Jaguar Man crossed her arms, grinning broadly.
"Then, what happened to those who were taken? Are they still alive?" Castorice asked.
As a deity, she might know what Castorice sought—like the whereabouts of the Titan of Death, Thanatos.
Of course, the immediate priority was to establish some form of communication with her.
"They're sent to the Eridu temple for forced labor, of course! As a gourmet, I only feast on the hearts of brave warriors."
With that, she leaped down.
The people Castorice had gathered scattered in panic as Jaguar Man landed with a thunderous crash.
Even after plummeting headfirst from the sky, she emerged completely unharmed—a testament to her physical resilience.
"I won't let you take the sacrifice! All my efforts so far would be wasted, and I'd get an earful from Kuku... and she'd make me cry..."
Jaguar Man shuddered at the thought of being forced into a wrestling match with Kuku.
"Kuku? You mean the Feathered Serpent deity?" Upon hearing the name, Merlin's mind immediately conjured the supreme god of South America, the Feathered Serpent Quetzalcoatl—the legendary Kukulkan.
"Exactly!"
A golden light shimmered in Jaguar Man's hand, materializing into a hammer shaped like a cat's paw. Her expression turned stern.
"This is our world—the land of the spiraling serpent. You humans, who cannot comprehend the nature of gods, begone!"
As she issued her declaration, Ana and Merlin tensed, ready for battle.
Castorice, however, simply watched, lost in thought.
"Not leaving? Under the forest's protection, our sun is invincible! To put it simply... you should've at least brought a greeting gift, you fools!"
With that, Jaguar Man charged straight at Castorice and the others.
Ana moved to intercept, but was kicked flying in the blink of an eye.
Then, Jaguar Man's gaze locked onto Castorice. A wide grin spread across her face as she lunged forward.
Faced with the fierce assault, Castorice stood motionless, as if frozen in fear.
"Wait!" Ana cried out, frantic.
But what happened next made her eyes widen in disbelief.
Castorice simply opened her palm, revealing something within.
From her angle, Ana couldn't make out what it was.
Yet, in that instant, Jaguar Man went from a blur of motion to a dead stop. She sniffed lightly, staring at Castorice with an expression of pure rapture.
Ana: ?
Merlin: ?
"Well, would you look at that..."
Castorice couldn't help but smirk.
She'd only meant to test a hunch, but it actually worked...
And you still insist you're not a tiger!
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.