While staring at the Manticore, Partner puts power into her arms.

“It’s fine to go all out now, right?”

W-Wait! Not yet!
Before any of that, let me check its status first!
I want to remove this uneasiness I’m feeling!

And, if you’re gonna attack, do it when the Manticore has its guard down.
When you do see a chance, maintain it and don’t let the Manticore find out.

“…… Ur so cautious”

L-Later! You can crush its feet later, okay?!
So, even if it escapes, it won’t stray too far with an injured leg.
Before you undo your humanization, at least be able to pull that off!

“…… Grr. A'ight, a'ight! I get it!”

I understand where your impatience is coming from, I mean, we missed our chance to kill the Manticore twice already.
But, not this time, we’ll definitely end this tonight.

Anyway, let’s check its status……

‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
Species: Manticore
Status: Normal
Lv: 73/80
HP: 453/453
MP: 142/142
Attack: 413
Defense: 228
Magic: 194
Speed: 534
Rank: B

Characteristic Skills:
〖Nekomata: Lv—〗〖Incognito: Lv4〗〖Presence Sense: Lv6〗
〖Grisha Language: Lv1〗

Resistances:
〖Physical Resistance: Lv4〗〖Magic Resistance: Lv5〗〖Fire Element Resistance: Lv3〗
〖Poison Resistance: Lv2〗〖Paralysis Resistance: Lv4〗

Normal Skills:
〖Paralyzing Claws: Lv7〗〖Paralyzing Fangs: Lv8〗〖Human Transformation: Lv9〗
〖Sandstorm: Lv6〗〖One-Thousand Needles: Lv9〗〖Surprise Attack: Lv7〗

Titles:
〖Cunning: Lv6〗〖Tenacious: Lv6〗〖Chaser: Lv9〗
〖Feline’s Obsession: Lv3〗〖Gale Runner: Lv7〗〖Final Evolutionist: Lv—〗
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐

Right, not much has changed since I last checked it.

I’d like to check out those special skills though.
There must be something there that’s related to〖Human Transformation〗.
I don’t like to rely much on God’s Voice, but there’s no helping it.

【Characteristic Skill〖Nekomata〗.】
【A special skill given to cat-like monsters who are good at tricking people.】
【MP consumption used for〖Human Transformation〗is greatly reduced with this skill.】

I knew it, that’s the one.
Reduces the MP cost for〖Human Transformation〗…… huh.
If only I had that skill-stealing skill that slime had before, I could steal that skill for myself.
Let’s not let up any longer, we don’t want it to trick us again.

“Gebagebageba…… geba~?”

The Manticore looks at Partner in disgust for standing courageously, even though she’s just a sacrifice.
Well, of course it would feel suspicious if we aren’t acting scared in the slightest.

Even Yarg was trembling like crazy just by the Manticore’s presence alone.
One would wonder how’d they even bring someone who’s this fearless here as a sacrifice.
Partner, try acting all scared and frightened……

“…… Ga, ga ~a~a~ah”

Partner tried screaming in fear while shaking her tied-up hands and running away from the Manticore.
Try not to make the Manticore lose you, run slowly.
Also… Partner, your acting lacks feeling! Put more “umff” in it!

“Aargh! This is why I tried to break you free from your ropes first!”

Tatarc shouts at us.
I thought Partner’s acting was bad, but heck, even Tatarc fell for it.
Partner… teach me your ways.

The Manticore begins to move, and extends a claw to reach Partner.

“Gebagebagebageba~a!”

Partner stops running, steps back, and uses the Manticore’s claws to cut the rope.

“Keba~a!”

The Manticore’s claw pushes Partner’s body down the ground.
Partner gets pinned down by the Manticore.

“Ga ~ah!”

The Manticore splits open its large mouth and gave off a sinister smile.

Ah!
We’re caught!
We can’t break its legs like this!
Should we undo our humanization now……?
No. Not yet. We need to find a really good chance before that.

When the Manticore is about to devour us, that’s when all predators lower their guard.
That will be our chance.

When Partner tried to struggle, the Manticore slightly scowled.
But, we still couldn’t shake our way out of the Manticore’s grasp.
Because of〖Human Transformation〗, our status is halved right now.
Which means our current power isn’t enough.

“Gebagebageba~a!”

The Manticore puts its mouth closer to Partner.
When it got too close to Partner, we saw a chance.
Now!

“Ga ~a~a~a~a~ah!”

Partner screams as she swings her arm at the Manticore’s fangs.
Meanwhile, I help her add more power in her arm.
Heat coursed through our blood, and Partner’s arm became bloated.

A large cloud of smoke came out of Partner’s fist during the impact.
I can feel the backslash of hitting the Manticore’s teeth with our bare fist.
Partner’s fingers reeked of Manticore saliva.

Partner tore out the Manticore’s claws and broke free.
A nerve-ending under the Manticore’s fangs was cut.

“Gebaa~a!”

The smoke filled the area and I could hear the Manticore scream in pain. My〖Presence Sense〗detected the Manticore stepping back.
When the smoke cleared, I noticed that Partner’s arm grew exponentially in size and mutated into a rough, black monster arm.

Only our arm reverted back to dragon.
I once saw the Manticore did something similar, so I tried it myself, and I’m glad it worked.

Partner wastes no time and rushes towards the retreating Manticore, aiming for its legs.

“Ga ~a~a~ah!”

“Geba~a~a!”

Our mutated claw pierces through the Manticore’s front leg.
The Manticore’s thick fur gets torn as blood trickles down its flesh.

And then, while piercing the Manticore with our mutated claw, Partner punches its jaw skyward with her other fist.
The Manticore’s large body gets hurled to the far side of the cave, spewing blood in its path.

“…… Yuck, its drool is sticky”

Partner complained.
…… M-My bad.

“W-What the-…?! Just what in the world are you?!”

Yarg picked up Tatarc’s glowing stone and pointed it at Partner, seeing her inhumane arms.
Near Yarg, Tatarc jawdrops at the sight of Partner.

“O~oooo~oo~o~o~oooo……!”

From deep within the cave, the Manticore’s cat-like eyes glowed in the dark.
It held its jaw with its front claw and gave Partner a hateful glare.

This time, I decided to fully undo our〖Human Transformation〗.
Our body gets heated up and grew in size, matching our mutated arm.

As our body gradually turned back into our dragon form, the anger in the Manticore’s eyes slowly faded, transforming from hate to fear, as our two-headed dragon appearance reminded the Manticore the difference in our strengths.
It’s too late for you to realize that I can humanize too.

“Gru~u~o~o~o~o~o~oo!”
“Gra~a~a~a~a~a~a~aa!”

Me and Partner roared together to say hello and goodbye to an old acquaintance.