Chapter 78: Other Inquisitors
As they continued on the path, the forest once again began to tremble.
Reinhard froze mid-step, exchanging a glance with Marie and Joseph, who also noticed the shaking of the forest.
Don’t tell me there is more, so soon-
Then a thunderous roar rang out through the area around.
Reinhard clutched one of his ears as the sound felt like lightning was striking next to him. Then he saw branches cracked in the distance, and birds burst into the air in panicked flocks.
And then he saw a Phantasm Beast that looked like a deer rushing up from the forest, through the sky.
Reinhard couldn’t see its body properly, but he could see soft light that trailed off its body like smoke. The Phantasm Beast, as it began to fall, seemed to shine and illuminate the area around it.
The trees below it trembled before massive roots as big as a tree rushed up from below and rushed underneath the beast. The creature landed on the roots, which glowed white before hurling itself into the air once more.
Reinhard stood in stunned silence as wind rushed past his face. Marie’s eyes were wide with awe; Joseph’s hand instinctively went to his blade, though he didn’t draw it.
"Don’t tell that’s the legendary Rainbow Deer!" Marie’s eyes lit up as a massive grin appeared on her face, and she trembled.
But Reinhard ignored what she was saying, shifting to the six figures that rushed up out of the forest.
The first was a man with golden fur and wide, radiant wings sprouting from his back. His roar split the sky, the sound vibrating in Reinhard’s bones.
A golden aura erupted around him, swirling like fire, and when he thrust out his fist, it became a beam of pure gold light that tore through the roots reaching toward him.
The impact rang out like thunder!
Pieces of burning bark scattered in every direction, raining down as ash and splinters.
Before Reinhard could blink, a woman with long, flowing blue hair vaulted over the golden-winged man.
As the woman soared above, a blue light shined over her as a beautiful woman appeared behind her.
The woman had silver-haired, pale blue-skinned, draped in an elegant dress that shimmered like moonlight. Her expression was calm, almost serene, as she conjured a spear of ice.
She spun it once and swept her arm outward.
A brilliant white light swept out as a wave of frost exploded, and it rushed out towards the oncoming roots that were piercing them.
The wave of ice crashed into the countless roots before swiftly turning them into ice and turning them into massive pillars of glittering blue.
Reinhard’s eyes widened at the sight, with him seeing the snow-white figure fading away as the blue-haired woman landed on the ice.
The rest of their group landed on the frozen roots, their feet barely touching before they launched themselves forward again.
Each leap sent shards of frost scattering into the air as they chased after the Rainbow Deer.
Their figures blurred with speed, the roaring Phantasm Beast bounding ahead, and soon they were little more than distant shapes, vanishing beyond the horizon.
The silence that followed didn’t last as they heard roars and screeching coming through the forest, most likely from the other beasts.
"I didn’t think there would be other Beast Tamers. But I guess that’s what it’s like when hunting a high-level Beast?" Reinhard muttered as he blankly stared.
"Most likely, they should at least be Second Class Beast Masters or higher." Joseph muttered.
"They have to be, as the Rainbow Deer are in Tier A with a dozen Second Class Beast Masters needed to hunt it." Marie says lightly before narrowing her eyes. "Most likely, the group we saw was just chasing it to the location where they wanted it."
Reinhard’s eyes widened slightly as he asked. "So hunting team members can reach the dozens?"
Joseph nods his head and says. "The number is dependent on many factors, but in general, if you’re planning on hunting a beast above your class. You would need a dozen other Inquisitors of the same level to have a good chance of accomplishing it."
"We are lucky we haven’t encountered any C-level or higher monsters. Or we would have been forced to retreat or seriously injured." Marie says, leading Reinhard to slowly nod his head.
Reinhard said nothing in response as his mind lingered on the sight of the deer movement and how beautiful it looked. He had to admit, some of the Phantasm Beasts were truly a marvel to look at.
Whether it be that Stellar Beast back in Mensis Town, the serpent rushing in the air, or the Golden Peng.
A distant rumble rolled across the forest, faint now, as if the fight had carried miles away.
"Let’s quickly go now. Staying around might lead us to be caught in that high-level hunt." Marie says with a sigh.
"Not only that, but it’s best to avoid them since we might be blamed if their hunt gets messed up by us being here." Joseph says.
Reinhard nodded before the three of them quickly began rushing forward.
They continued forward, their pace quickening from walk to jog to full sprint. But as they sped through the forest to get away from the battle, Reinhard saw that the peaceful atmosphere of the forest was gone.
Other Phantasm Beasts moved through the forest around them, and they were also fleeing. Leekos abandoned their careful tree-hopping to simply run along the ground, their wooden spears forgotten or discarded.
A family of Forestsune burst from undergrowth and raced past without their usual caution, their green fur standing on end with terror.
The sounds of combat intensified behind them. Not the isolated skirmishes they’d heard throughout their journey, but something massive and catastrophic.
Roars overlapped with screeches, creating a wall of noise that pressed against their backs.
The ground began shaking with constant tremors that made running a bit more difficult. Reinhard felt his foot slip on loose earth before catching himself and pushing forward.
Beside him, Marie quickly adapted to the change in the ground while Joseph had the earth element helping his stability.
It’s then the pillars of roots erupted from the earth behind and to their left, shooting skyward with explosive force.
The massive column twisted as it rose, individual roots as thick as tree trunks braiding together as it reached fifty feet, then a hundred, and still climbing.
Another pillar burst upward close to it, but this one was made of ice. The temperature dropped noticeably even though they were far from the pillar.
Golden light pierced through the canopy directly behind, making it difficult to see what was in front. But Joseph used the wind elements to help take the lead as he shouted directions.
Reinhard then took a glance behind, and his eyes widened as the light touched the trees and erased them, leaving perfectly smooth earth behind.
But then the light faded, allowing everyone to see properly again.
Another thunderous roar rang out, which made the trio and the Phantom Beasts that were fleeing tremble.
A Tonothus appeared ahead, running perpendicular to their path. The massive creature was in full panic, its armored limbs moving desperately. It crashed through smaller trees without slowing; small trees crashed to the ground with other fleeing beasts leaping over it.
Reinhard adjusted his position before taking the lead and moving behind the Tonothus. Marie and Joseph followed his lead, all three of them threading through the gap between the fleeing beast and the obstacles it was creating.
More Bumbodusks rushed past, their tusks swung wildly, catching on vegetation and tearing massive gouges from tree trunks.
One nearly collided with them, forcing a desperate dive to the side that left Reinhard rolling through undergrowth before regaining his feet without breaking stride.
The shaking further intensified, but the Area 9 exit appeared ahead a long way from them.