Sometime later, Partner gets tied up by a rope and gets dragged along the ground by Nagrom.
Right now, we look like a worm.
Partner stares at Yarg in discontent.

“…… Will we really be all right?”

Yarg mutters to himself.

“I-It’s a rope that can bind a Grafant. It should hold…… I think. Even if she’s a demi-human, she’s still human, like us”

Nagrom tells to Yarg.
I’ve never seen a Grafant before, it’s probably just another monster.

Partner heard what Nagrom said and tries to exert power on her wrists that were bound.
And, because of that, the rope creaked.
Partner pretends to show them how utterly helpless she looks as she tries to break free.
…… Careful not to actually break free though.

“Still…… even after taking in that amount of Mors poison, isn’t she unusually energetic?”

“…… She’s just a little bit more resistant to poison, that’s all. I’ve heard from my father that the physiological features of a demi-human is even harder to understand than most monsters.”

Yarg is blocking Partner’s line of sight.
I can’t see what face Partner is making right now with this limited view, but I can imagine her making an annoyed face and staring at Yarg.

When they made eye contact, Yarg immediately looked away.
It looked like he was trying to bear with Partner’s stare. Was he feeling guilty?

“…… Nagrom-sama, will offering this demi-human as live bait really put the Manticore in a good mood? If it doesn’t, it might ask us for another reckless demand again.”

“If we keep her bound by a rope, it’ll be fine”

So I heard it right, they really are paying respect to the Manticore.
And, “reckless demands”, huh? So, you’re saying offering regular sacrifices isn’t reckless already?

Oh yeah, I wondered why the Manticore was hanging out at the Dragon God’s shrine before.
The two children I saw before were wearing masks, I think.
At that time, I thought that everyone in the village wears a mask, but it was only the two children and the men who brought me tributes.

Even if I assume that only those who get to serve directly under the Dragon God get to wear masks, why would those children be wearing them?
Although disturbing, maybe wearing masks also means they’re candidates for sacrifices.
Guess they’d rather not see the faces of children who’s about to be dinner.

I won’t be surprised if other villages did the same thing if it meant avoiding the Manticore from rampaging their home.
Then, that would mean… Alo was……
So, that explains why her mother looked so wasted away.
Anyone would’ve ended up like her if they were suddenly told to sacrifice their own child to a monster.

For the Manticore, humans are probably just food for its indulgence. [T.N: 嗜好品 “shikō-hin” something consumed for taste or stimulant effect rather than nourishment like drugs and whatnot]
If it keeps eating haphazardly like this, it won’t be long until villages all over the forest turn into a wasteland.
That’s even more frightening considering that it’s only targeting females and children.

But, that’ll all end today.
I’ll wait until I get really close to the Manticore before I undo my〖Human Transformation Art〗then I’ll kill it on the spot.

“…… Gra ~a~a”

Partner nibbles at the rope and makes a low animal-like growl.
…… I know you’re impatient, but please, just bear with me.
Yarg noticed Partner nibbling and probably remembered something which made him hold his right hand tight.

“Yarg, my boy, do you want me to give you a different task?”

“N-No need. I’ll bring her to the offering site myself.”

“Alright then. I will her leave to you. Careful not to let her bite your other hand this time.”

Yarg’s right hand is now wrapped in bondage.
…… The fingers he lost won’t come back, huh.
Even〖Rest〗can’t recover lost blood.

This is getting disturbing, hurry up and take us to the Manticore already.

I once saw Yarg heading to the back of the mansion and returned with a hemp sack that was likely to contain one person and a mask with a cloth attached to the surface which looked like a round animal.

Will you put a similar mask on me too?
I’m reminded of bingo.

When Yarg was about to put a mask on Partner, Partner grit her teeth.
Yarg flinched for a second, then immediately covered Partner’s face with the mask in a rush.
After covering her with a mask, he placed Partner in a sack.

This is the moment of truth.
We only have 30 minutes until our〖Human Transformation Art〗wears off.
If we don’t arrive to the Manticore’s den within that time, our secret’s out.
I can’t even think about running away a few minutes before time’s up while Partner’s stuck in a sack.

Yarg lifted Partner, who’s in the sack, and walked further.

Halfway there, I heard talking and someone else walking.
After that, it was just Yarg walking all the way.
Are we there yet?

“Hey, Tatarc. It’s me.”

Yarg stops walking and is talking to someone.

“Ah, Yarg-san and…… that is…?”

Another voice is heard.
He added an honorific [T.N: “Yarg-san“] to Yarg’s name, and he sounds older.

“A traveler. A demi-human with absurd physical strength, don’t break the rope.”

So, we’ve finally arrived.
That was so close, I honestly thought I had to brawl against the Manticore without any MP left.
Although I was planning for a surprise attack, if it didn’t work and we had to face off, I hope I can still manage an actual duel……

“For the other children…… this one won’t break the rope, will it?”

“It’s a rope meant to bind monsters. Nagrom-sama tied it himself. Even the girls who came before her still haven’t broken theirs.”

“…… I guess you’re right.”

Hm? There are other sacrifices?

While thinking about what he said, they dropped Partner’s sack to the ground.
Both Yarg and Tatarc take Partner out of the sack.

Finally, we can take a proper look at where we are.
Up ahead lies a rocky mountain.
And, a bundle of trees extend just beside some gray rocks.

Just as I imagined, Tatarc looked older than Yarg.
I don’t know how old you are, but…… you’re probably around your 30’s, I think.
His face looked aged and haggard, and his skin looked pale and malnourished, and he gives off this vibe that makes you wanna think he’s really old.

Yarg and Tatarc head towards the rocky mountain then stop midway and started moving a boulder together.
Behind the boulder, there was a hole.

Tatarc went inside first then looked around for a bit before shaking his head at Yarg.

“Nagrom-sama said you’d be suitable since you’re an outsider, but not as live sacrifice, he says. So, I’ll tell you this…”

Tatarc then called out to Yarg, and with a pin, Yarg stretched out his back and turned around.

“P-Please, just leave it to me.”

Yarg looked at Tatarc in doubt, but eventually, he walked back beside Partner.

“Young traveler. If you hate us, then despise us as much as you like……”

“Peh~”

Partner spat at Yarg’s face and ran directly to the hole.

It wasn’t really a high fall, around 2 meters or so in height.
Even though we’re bound right now, who knew we can still manage to jump that high.

But, Partner……
Um, although I didn’t say it wasn’t alright……

“What? Ya got a problem with that?”

N-Nothing, really……
In fact, you did great. It was really appreciated.
Sorry for always having to drag you into my bad decision-making from time to time.

Partner looks around her surroundings.
There’s a cave that’s wider than the hole. There are passages that lead to different directions and each entrance has a 3 meter gap between them.
Although there’s nothing here other than rocks, there’s light coming out of the gaps from the ceiling, so it’s not that dark.

…… All the passageways lead to one place, and there lies ten other girls who were captured.
They look like they’re around 6-12 yrs old.
Just from their appearance, I can tell that they’re from the Lithuvar Tribe.
There are others who are stripped nude and they’re only covering themselves with ragged cloth.
There are also three children who are wearing masks.

Minus the children whose faces I can’t see, all of them look gloomy and are gathered together on one dirty mat.
They don’t look like they’ve noticed me yet, but it’s still strange for them to not react to the slightest footsteps we’re making.

“…… Hey. What is this place?”

Partner tries talking to them.
The girl in front faced up and looked at Partner.

“Onee-san, are you being sacrificed too?”

“Me, a sacrifice? No way, no way. I came here on my own.”

“…… Really?”

Partner was going to puke, but she shook her head.
Then, one of the masked children collapsed on the ground.

The child leaned her small neck to the wall, but never made any more sounds after that.

…… This wasn’t what I was expecting, they’ll be dead of starvation before they become the Manticore’s sacrifices.
This place is just a stash for the Manticore to keep its food, huh? These girls aren’t given any food at all!

Our humanization is about to wear off.
If we were alone, Partner and I could revert back to dragon form and replenish our MP while we wait, but that’s not the case right now.
Should we cut the rope and make a run for it then come back later?

…… I still don’t know where the Manticore currently is, and if I look for it later, I might be found out by that anti-Ryujin shrine maiden, and the chances of pulling off a successful surprise attack will only decrease.
If the Manticore won’t arrive within the remaining 30 mins, this whole plan will be for nothing!