Closing his eyes, he sharpened his senses. Every sound was caught by his heightened hearing—the murmur of voices, the growl of a beast, and his own breathing.
“Be careful.”
Clack. The head of the equipment team fastened the final piece of the protective suit. He opened his eyes and looked at the man, who wore an anxious expression. He tested the weight of his body, now made heavier by the suit, shifting from side to side, then nodded to reassure him.
“Go ahead.”
The team leader stepped aside to clear the path. He began walking toward the massive cage now in view.
Shhhhkk… The only door to the cage slid open.
And beyond it, he stepped into a space that belonged not to humans, but to a beast.
— Grrrrr…
A massive creature, wrapped in black fur, with an elongated tail and a sharply angular, inverted-triangle face. Piercing yellow eyes glared at him—the beast resembled a black panther.
This was S8A152, the star of today’s demonstration.
Restrained and bristling with tension, its fur standing on end, the creature appeared agitated by the many presences beyond the barrier. He glanced toward the viewing stands as well. Seated observers outside the cage were clearly reacting to his entrance—some looked nervous, others intrigued.
He returned his focus to the creature. Now was the time to concentrate solely on S8A152.
“……”
Without hiding his presence, he strode toward it. The ominous growling gradually faded. S8A152, sniffing the air as it fixated on him, seemed to quickly recognize his scent—the same one it had known since it was a cub raised in the lab. Gradually, it began to calm.
“Hello, Cat.”
— Grrng!
As he stopped a short distance away and called out the nickname, S8A152 began to shake violently. It looked eager to leap toward him, clearly excited to see him again. To the others, though, it might have appeared like a predator ready to pounce on its prey.
“You’ll hurt yourself like that. Stay still.”
He warned it firmly, voice clear. The cables binding S8A152 were controlled through a controller embedded in his suit. No amount of force from the beast alone could break them.
“Stay.”
He repeated the command sternly from just a few steps away.
Cat froze. Those wide, round eyes looking at him with a touch of sorrow made him feel a pang of guilt—but it couldn’t be helped. The rough movements from earlier had caused the cables to dig into its flesh, leaving shallow cuts. Not deep, but unpleasant nonetheless.
“Just wait a little. I’ll undo it soon.”
— …Grrrk.
“That’s right. Be patient.”
Nodding, he slowly circled the beast. Cat tracked his movement with disgruntled but resigned eyes, following his path without turning its head.
Once he felt the observers had gotten a clear enough view of the interaction, he closed the distance even more.
The sound of the beast’s ragged breathing grew louder. Without the helmet, its breath would’ve sent his hair flying. Yet even with the full-body protective suit sealing him from head to toe, Cat had caught his scent and recognized him almost instantly. He was impressed.
He reached out and stroked the creature’s fur. The inky black hair flattened beneath the thick gauntlet. He regretted not being able to feel it directly.
He continued the motion like brushing it, and gradually, Cat’s taut muscles began to loosen. The fur that had been raised like the quills of a porcupine slowly settled down. The gaze it fixed on him turned innocent.
Carefully, he rubbed the top of its head where the coarse fur grew straight and uneven. Cat gently closed its eyes. Its front paw, slightly bent, was nearly touching him, but the likelihood of claws suddenly emerging was low. Even if they did, the protective suit would shield him from serious injury.
— Grrng.
Watching Cat quietly accept his touch, tail twitching slightly despite the restraints, he realized enough time had passed.
He looked through the transparent wall of the cage at the equipment team leader. The man, who had been observing him, responded with a nod. Then his mouth began to move—likely relaying orders through the comms.
Drrrrrrrr…
Soon, the ground beneath him began to tremble. Cat perked up its ears and snapped its head toward the noise. He withdrew his hand and backed away.
They were standing on the eastern side of the cage, and the tremor was strongest in the west. From that direction, where the floor opened into a gaping hole, something began to rise through an unseen passage.
— KIEEEEEEK!
With a shriek full of rage, another creature emerged onto the floor—B32C97, like Cat, bound and restrained.
Its eyes were bloodshot with fury, and it thrashed violently, looking ready to tear free from its restraints at any moment.
Several observers, already uneasy just with Cat’s presence, turned pale. Though sound didn’t carry well into the cage, it seemed a few of them were screaming. Some couldn’t bear to look, covering their faces. He glanced at them briefly before checking on Cat.
— GRRRRRRR…!
Even restrained, Cat was threatening. Its glowing eyes narrowed, lips peeled back in a snarl, exposing long, sharp canines—a textbook image of a feral beast.
B32C97 hesitated in response to Cat’s ferocity. Though ape-like in form, a flash of fear crossed its face. It had clearly realized that Cat was the stronger of the two.
Monsters were categorized based on their physical capabilities and intelligence. Each monster’s designation directly reflected its classification; for instance, S8A152—Cat—was a creature ranked between Level 8 of the S-Class and Level 152 of the A-Class, placing it above B32C97 in the hierarchy.
However, regardless of rank, monsters typically didn’t attack one another.
— …Kyaaak.
Soon, B32C97 turned its gaze from Cat to him. Untamed and starving, B32C97 needed a target to hunt—and it chose him.
He tapped the concealed section of his suit where the controller was hidden. After selecting which creature’s restraints to release, the cables binding B32C97 unraveled with a loud shraaaak.
Crack. B32C97 stomped on the fallen cables with its hind legs, head thrown back.
— Screek! KIEEEEEEKK!
The shriek nearly split his eardrums. Then B32C97 snapped its head down and locked eyes on him.
Boom, boom-boom-boom!
B32C97 charged like it would tear up the floor beneath it. It moved on two legs, hind limbs powering forward while the front limbs hung low.
He kept his breathing steady as the creature’s massive body barreled toward him. There wasn’t much time—its wide strides closed the distance in an instant.
— KYAAAA!
Whether it thought it already had him, B32C97 screamed in triumph. It was close enough to graze him. In that instant, he dove low and slid between the creature’s legs.
— Kak?
B32C97 swiped at empty air with its forepaws, clearly confused. It turned around belatedly, searching for him.
“……”
He stared back, calmly, letting the creature see he was unscathed. As soon as it realized this, B32C97 flew into a predictable rage.
KA-BOOM! The monster stomped furiously.
— Kee, KIIIEEEK!
Screeching again, it lunged at him in pursuit.
“……! Ugh!”
Thanks to the suit’s shock absorption, he managed to roll away without serious injury, dodging the attack. But when B32C97 suddenly lunged into a backflip, he had to hastily dive to the side. The move came just as he was thinking that the monster didn’t seem particularly intelligent. If he’d hesitated even a second longer, the sheer weight of the creature might have crushed the suit entirely.
…And then—
— KRRROOOAAAAAR!
Suddenly, Cat let out a thunderous roar that reverberated like it could shake his skull. For a moment, it even felt like the entire space echoed with the sound.
Both he, sprawled on the ground, and B32C97, about to chase again, froze in place by reflex.
They turned to look toward Cat. The creature had clearly been struggling again to break free of its restraints; now, deep wounds had formed where the cables had gouged its flesh, blood dripping steadily from the gashes. Shhhh, shhhh. The heavy, shallow breathing—a symptom of extreme stress—was unmistakable. Its golden eyes locked precisely onto B32C97.
As he took in the sight of Cat, brimming with fury…
…his fingers quietly moved along the surface of his suit.
— Keee…rrrk…
B32C97 glanced at Cat, its expression puzzled, as if it couldn’t understand why it was being threatened. Perhaps judging that the still-bound Cat posed no real threat, it turned its focus back to him.
— KIIIIII!
With a shriek that left no room for escape, B32C97 launched itself at him. Its protruding maw stretched open wide, ready to sink its fangs into him.
In that perfect tableau of predator and prey…
He released Cat’s restraints.
