Chapter 80 – Getting to know the group

Fen and Aura had talked about their past when they were apart from each other to catch up on everything that happened. Afterward, the two reunited with Maya and Sophia because the female wolf wanted to get to know them better, as well.

"Sophia, I heard your magic power is rather unique. "

"Is it?" She tilted her head. It was also news to her.

"Fen told me that your recovery speed is abnormal."

"Ahh... he mentioned that before, didn't he? Well, my self-healing ability is extremely high, as well. Maybe it's related together?"

"I could've so used that in my accident!" Aura was envious of that ability.

"Ahaha..."

"Is it because you're from the tiger family? They were always some sort of oddballs along the beastfolk when it came to their magic powers. Though, not even nearly to this extent. Like, at all."

"Ahh... No. In the first place, I'm not really a tiger-girl..."

"Eh? You look exactly like I remember them, though? Safe for maybe the color of your hair." The female wolf took a better look at her.

"Yeah, let me correct it a bit... I've not always been a tiger. I messed up my magic and ended up like this... It was an accident."

"Oh? That's quite something. Fen told me about that, too. He said you're really disaster-prone, mess up a lot, and lose yourself from time to time?"

"Nice to meet you, my name's Sophia." Her description was spot on.

"I would love to get a rundown on that. I like these kinds of stories."

"Hmm..." Sophia thought about it for a moment and then looked at Fen. "Is it okay to tell her? Can I trust her?" The last time, when she hid her past from Maya, it almost backfired, and so she wanted to come clean from the get-go now. At least to someone she wants to be a permanent addition to the group. Even more so because she's a close acquaintance to Fen, her first friend in the new world.

"She definitely was trustworthy in the past, and I doubt she changed."

"Alright," She took a deep breath because she had to list a ton of things. "Let's see,

Well, that's the top 10... err, 30 plus... of the stuff I went through lately. As in, the last three to four months or so. Kinda lost track of time already."

"Uhh..." Aura clearly looked overwhelmed. "Are-, Are you serious?"

"I probably forgot half of the things."

"Wait, you died?!" The female wolf couldn't keep up.

"Yep, right before I was transported to this world."

"I see... Huh?! You're from a different world?"

"Ah, did I forget to mention? Yep, I am. See, I forgot some minor details in that list."

"Wow... Wait, you punched a god?! Twice?!"

"I'm eagerly awaiting the third time~!" A fire was burning in Sophia's eyes.

"Which god could've possibly made you this angry? Ahh, was it that little prankster Canir?"

"That very idiot."

"Then, I totally get it. Good job, girl."

"Ehehe."

"From the sound of it, you, just like our Fen, aren't the biggest fan of the humans, huh?"

"Yeah, no good experiences yet. Makes it all the worse that I'm, technically speaking, one myself."

"You're human?!"

"In my old world, I was. Here, as I said, I accidentally turned myself into a tiger-girl, all the way down to a biological level... No regrets~."

"Wow, you sure are something else, girl." Aura had no other response.

"Yes." Fen and Maya wholeheartedly agreed.

"I try my best... and fail horribly."

"Also, just how many genocides did you try to start?!"

"A couple? What needs to be exterminated needs to be exterminated." There was no remorse whatsoever in her voice.

"Wow. Fen, did you raise her?"

"Leave me out of this! She already was like that when we met. I mean, that part of why I like her so much, but still!"

"What a wild girl. The magics you invented seem to be really interesting, too. How did you come up with them?"

"Most of them are based on stuff I learned in my old world. That's also the reason why I mess up so much. Most of my knowledge is rather half-assed and superficial. Not to mention that it occasionally doesn't translate that well to magic over here."

"How interesting! Magic based on the principles of another world! Please show them to me sometimes!"

"Sure, I don't mind."

"Yes! I finally get to see the magic of an otherworldler!"

"Eh?!" Cat, tiger, and wolf all had the same reaction.

"W-Wait... That almost sounds like there are more like me?!" Sophia looked the most surprised.

"I haven't met them, personally, but I heard stories about them in the demon capital. Maybe they were a thing in the distant past? No idea... Most of them were supposedly really strong and ingenious. They apparently designed large parts of the capital."

"What?! No way... There are actually others like me...?"

"So I've heard. Well, I'm not sure if it was actually true or made up, but-"

"W-What a surprise."

"Do you-, Do you want to see them, Sophia?" Maya glanced at her with a worried expression.

"Hmm... I'm interested, sure. Though, I don't even know if we're from the same world. Rather than the desire to meet someone from my old world, I'm just curious about how they fared here." The tiger-girl only wanted to see how other people in a similar predicament coped with the situation. The desire to meet random people from her homeworld was basically nonexistent.

"G-Good... I'm not sure if I could compete with someone from your old world..."

"Yeah, you couldn't... It wouldn't even be a contest. You're in an entirely different league, Maya. Someone as beautiful and nice as you only exist once, after all."

"Sophia... Thank you, you're unparalleled, too."

"Ehehe~." Her cheeks turned slightly red.

"Are they always like... that?" Aura looked at the other wolf.

"Mh-hmm." Fen only nodded.

"I see what you meant earlier..." She remembered him mentioning being a third wheel. "It almost hurts having to listen to that..."

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The couple needed five minutes before they rejoined the discussion with the wolf after returning from their own little world again.

"By the way," The newcomer now glanced at Maya. "That girlfriend of yours sure is something... How outrageous are you, then?"

"Sorry to disappoint... Aside from my slightly out-of-the-norm magic power, well... compared to normal people, not this group, at least... Yeah, I'm just a normal girl that enjoys fighting strong enemies. Ones I have a chance of winning against, that is." She looked at every single one of them during the last part.

"Oh, sounds fun enough to me, though." She didn't seem bored. "Let's go hunting together one time."

"N-Nothing too ridiculous, okay...?" While intrigued, the cat-girl had a slightly bad feeling about going on a hunt with someone who casually mentioned how they took town a dragon or two.

"Don't worry, a dragon's actually not that scary."

"E-Eh?! How did you know what I was thinking?!"

"Just a wild guess. You're quite easy to read."

"A-Ah... Anyway, I can do without dragons, okay?" Maya didn't have a death wish.

"Aww... What about you, Sophia? It's really fun."

"Err, I'll obliterate every dragon that wants to harm Maya or me, but actively hunting one... Probably not? Though, it would depend on my mood during that time."

"It's getting warmer. Fen, you're cool, right? You'll hunt one with me, right?"

"Theoretically, sure. I haven't seen one in ages, though. I think they only live on the demon continent nowadays."

"That's too bad. You'll have to accompany me there eventually, then."

"Oh, I want to see that continent, too!" Sophia was very interested.

"The more, the merrier." The female wolf had nothing against it.

"Ehh?! We're actually going there?!" Maya did, though.

"Sure~."

"Ahh... the future keeps being eventful, huh?" She began to resign herself to her fate.

"Oh, now that I think about it... We're heading towards the beastfolk capital. Do you want to join us, Aura?" The tiger-girl looked at her.

"Your pseudo home, huh?" The wolf glanced back at her tiger bits.

"Y-Yeah... You know about the royal tiger thing after all, huh?"

"Of course?" She tilted her head. "I don't really care about the royalty of the beastfolk, but only idiots wouldn't be aware of that."

"Only idiots, huh?" Sophia faced her two idiots. "Aura knew about it, girls... Someone who lived on the demon continent for the last 200 years."

"We're very sorry!" Fen and Maya could only apologize. 

"Anyway, yeah, that was the plan. How about it, Aura?" The tiger ignored the two.

"It sounds like that could be fun. If it's okay with everyone, I would like to accompany the group."

"Of course!" No one had anything against it.

"By the way, can you transform to a smaller size, too, Aura? For the sake of not attracting too much attention, that is."

"No problem, every size you think is best."

"A cub would be great!" Sophia got greedy.

"Don't do it, Aura. It's a trap." Fen warned her. "She only wants something small and fluffy to pet."

"Fen, you spoilsport!" She immediately started to pout as she glared at him.

"If it's just that, I don't mind at all."

"Really?! You're awesome, Aura!"

"Big mistake..."

The group welcomed Aura as a new member. After chatting a bit more, they resumed their travel towards the beastfolk capital, now without any additional detours. The four kept going until the evening when they made camp, which included an extra fancy dinner for their new friend.