The protagonist is incredibly strong.
I'm just an extra, not someone you'd call particularly powerful.
So you might think this situation is strange.
And you'd be right to—after all, some no-name extra had just beaten the protagonist.
But in truth, it was an obvious outcome.
After all, don't I have the Spirit Sword right now?
A cheat weapon the protagonist won't get until much later in the story.
With that in my hands, there's no way I'd lose to the early-game protagonist.
"I'm sorry... I really thought you were with the bandits..."
And just like that, the misunderstanding was cleared up.
I explained the situation, and Tigna finally realized her mistake, dropping to her knees in apology.
"No, no. It was an understandable mix-up."
"Hng... Thank you... for forgiving me."
I didn't mind at all.
If I saw a guy with a sword in the middle of a bandit fight, I'd assume he was one of them too.
With the misunderstanding sorted through conversation,
it was time for me to head out, right?
I was wrapping things up to leave when...
"Well then, I'll be..."
"Wait! Are you here to subjugate the magic beast too?"
Tigna suddenly hit me with a random question.
"Huh?"
"Ah, I see. That's why you were carrying a sword."
"Uh... yeah... sure."
Is that how this goes?
I blurted out an agreement in surprise.
I mean, I was here to subjugate the magic beast, after all.
So I went along with it, but...
the conversation took a weird turn.
"I'm here to subjugate the magic beast too."
The protagonist looked up at me with sparkling eyes.
Then she grabbed my hand.
"Wow, perfect timing. I was just looking for someone to team up with. Since fate brought us together, how about we head down to the village for a strategy session? I'll share all the info I have."
"Uh... s-sure?"
And just like that, I ended up partnering with the protagonist.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The protagonist dragged me straight to the village.
She ordered a ton of food and started briefing me on the magic beast.
"I think the magic beast is around here. Probably near the base of the mountain. Once it runs out of game to hunt, it might raid the village soon."
"Mm."
"That's when I'll fight it. But if it comes here, there'll be civilian casualties... It's risky, but the bounty for killing it is pretty good..."
She figured the beast would definitely attack the village.
Strong folks like us have a duty to protect the villagers, she said.
She was brimming with enthusiasm.
Of course, the bounty probably factored in too.
'Is getting involved with the protagonist at this point a good idea?'
Anyway, I'd accidentally formed a magic beast subjugation party with the protagonist.
What the hell is this?
Meeting her wasn't in my plans at all.
'What if the butterfly effect screws everything up?'
My mind was a mess.
How big a backlash would this cause later?
I was already scared thinking about it.
I'd gone out of my way to avoid the protagonist this early on...
A sigh slipped out at this unexpected turn.
But what can you do?
The situation had already happened.
Nothing's more pointless than late regrets.
'No helping it now. Let's just subjugate the damn thing.'
And actually, maybe this works out for the best.
Hell, we just kill the magic beast together, right?
Teaming up with the protagonist to take it down might be the smartest move I could make.
Yeah, not bad.
With that, I'd sorted my thoughts.
"Um... are you listening?"
"Ah, sorry. Sorry. I was listening. Where were you at?"
"I was thinking we should scout around here. Lots of sightings nearby."
As we resumed our strategy talk, the protagonist pulled out a map and pointed to a spot.
"It's there, huh?"
"Yes, exactly."
A ridge deep in the mountains.
Yeah, that made sense for the magic beast's lair.
That's where the protagonist fought it the second time and finally took it down.
"Normally, I wouldn't dream of charging in alone, but together? We might actually pull it off."
Of course, even knowing wouldn't make her charge in solo.
Walking into a magic beast's den is basically suicide.
But now that she had me, she figured we could rush right in.
'With me here, yeah, it'd be an easy subjugation.'
And she was spot on.
Though at this point, she had no clue about the Spirit Sword.
She probably just thought I was a skilled swordsman.
With the Spirit Sword in hand, I'm way stronger than the current protagonist.
A magic beast? Piece of cake.
"Let's head out now."
I decided to move immediately.
No point dragging it out if we're killing it anyway.
I knew the spot, so let's go.
"Yup...! Right away it is."
The protagonist jumped up eagerly.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Deep in the mountains.
Tigna and I traversed the slopes, tracking signs of the magic beast.
We were almost at the ridge we'd targeted.
"Here... these are... footprints?"
We found traces of the magic beast easily enough.
A massive print between tree branches that Tigna spotted.
Way bigger than any wolf's.
Claws dug deep, surrounding dirt crushed flat.
And branches around it snapped like something huge had forced through.
"So many prints, and they're enormous... Some look off too. What even are these? Doesn't seem like ordinary magic beasts."
Tigna muttered gravely.
Makes sense—she thought it was just a normal one up to now.
She'd learn the truth once we faced it.
"It's definitely nearby."
"If we follow these..."
We pressed on.
Then,
Tigna's words cut off.
The air shifted suddenly.
A chill hung heavy.
Rough breathing echoed from the brush.
"Tigna."
"Yes...!"
We snapped into combat stances.
That instant, red eyes began glowing in the forest shadows—one pair, then two.
Emerging from the dark: a pack of magic beasts.
Huge wolves, low to the ground, forming a encirclement.
"Around thirty... That's a lot. Not an easy fight."
Tigna drew her sword, sounding more excited than scared.
The wolves didn't wait.
The front one let out a fierce roar, and the pack leaped as one.
"Here they come."
As she shouted, the first lunged at Tigna, fangs bared.
She swung swiftly, slicing its throat clean.
Blood sprayed; it crumpled.
But that was just the start.
The rest charged.
Tigna moved like lightning.
She ducked a flying beast, then slashed its belly open without pause.
Blue light flashed; it screamed and fell.
"There's a ton of them."
Tigna cut them down one by one with her agile footwork.
"This might be tough."
But maybe sensing the numbers, she looked troubled.
Even for her, thirty was a lot—even with her skill.
One by one meant stamina drain eventually.
'She failed the first subjugation because of the minions.'
That exhaustion let the boss slip away.
Round two, she ignored them and rushed the leader—crazy, but it worked.
That's how she finally won.
'But what's that got to do with me?'
Nothing at all.
"Mana Release."
I raised the Spirit Sword high.
Mana orbs bloomed from the tip.
They scattered, slamming into the wolf pack.
'Easy.'
The horde vanished in one AoE blast.
These guys are nothing with a wide-range skill.
She's just stuck meleeing them one by one without one yet.
"Alright, let's go."
Thirty-plus magic beasts: done.
Now for the boss.
I was about to say we should push deeper when...
"Whoa...! That was amazing. How'd you do that? Teach me!!! "
The protagonist grabbed my hand.
Staring with eyes full of overwhelming intensity.
"More importantly, wanna keep partying from now on? Let's save the world together...! I'm gonna be the hero, so please join me as a companion."
What the hell...?