After running through some ideas together, Yosho and Arken decided to simply intervene once a while every time Erinot is about to regenerate.
"Do we keep this up forever?" Arken asked, watching Yosho finish dismembering Erinot's body again.
Standing up to her feet, Yosho had a simple answer, to her at least. "We wait. I expect this to be very energy consuming." Yosho turned to Arken. "So he should be out of Perivállon soon."
"And if he's not?" Arken asked.
Yosho raised an eyebrow, glancing back down at Erinot's dismembered body. "Uh~... Then… Then we, try to dispose of his entire body."
Arken grumbled, slowly coming to terms with the issue at hand.
"Strange. Where is his pack?" Yosho asked out loud.
"Want to check the pit?" Arken inquired, giving her a very undesirable answer. "Neithertheless, I shall report your victory that I handed to you to the Demon Lord."
"Wow! Dear me, thank you," Yosho murmured sarcastically. "Though… It would be wise to hear Great Imuru's input, so hustle along."
"Hmm." Arken glanced at her, perplexed. "Hustle along?" He repeated underneath his breath.
"Yes… Hustle along. Lord Imuru is not gonna spawn now, will he?" Yosho asked, her voice laced with a playful tone.
Arken didn't look at her, his glare remained fixed on the twitching halves of Erinot's corpse, his expression a mask of cold contempt. "This time only, woman."
He stepped off, his feet coming down with deliberate heaviness. Behind him, Yosho's eyes rolled so hard it was almost audible, a sharp rebuke to his tone.
Arken hastened back to Imuru's residence, the distance melting away under the heat of his urgency. In just a few frantic minutes, he was barging through the lodge, swinging the door to Imuru's office open, stumbling inside, breathless and sweat-streaked, his exhaustion a cloak he tried desperately to shrug off.
Imuru lowered the book in his hands, his calm, scholarly gaze lifting to lock with Arken's heated one, a flicker of profound perplexity in his eyes.
"Come. W-We have something important to show you," Arken managed, the words rasping out between controlled breaths.
Imuru blinked slowly, the confusion clearly on his face, but he didn't question it. With a quiet, deliberate motion, he simply placed his book down on the surface of his desk and rose to his feet, tagging along with Arken.
"I wonder who this… We are?" Imuru mused. This was Arken so he didn't really have much trust in the Dark Devider. He glanced at Devider from the side of his eye, with a bit of suspicion.
"Hm… I wonder…"
As they drew close, the dense canopy of trees filtered the evening sun once again, reaching back to the grim sight. Arken was practically spent, his body screaming in protest with every step, but he held himself rigid, his quiet panting the only admission of strain.
"Maybe try to lighten the armour," Imuru said in a cheeky manner, by contrast, hadn't even broken a light sweat. But the moment the foul, metallic stench hit him, he recoiled as if slapped, his face paling, until his eyes landed on the bits and pieces of Erinot, standing behind Yosho.
Despite the scene, Imuru forced himself forward, his eyes drifting off to the leaves above, from the scene. Yosho broke from her watchful stance and rushed over to Imuru, with an expressive expression of proudness.
"Great Imuru!" Yosho bowed, with brisk and cheerful readiness. She stood straight, clearing her throat, returning to her professional stance. "Please forgive us for disturbing you… But there is an issue that must be assessed.
Imuru tilted his head to break from the view of Yosho's body, snapping it back straight almost instantly. Clearing his throat nervously, he nodded. "I-I can see that… Who exactly is that?"
"Oh, right of course. This is Erinot. The leader of the Grand Pack," Yosho replied, twisting her head to look at the corpse, twitching furiously. "Ow, Dear."
"For goodness sake, what the hell was Yosho doing to this guy?!" Imuru screams internally, frightened by his secretary. "What does she even need me for? There's Barely Anything Left! 'Please Great Imuru, judge this head for me' Like What?!" Imuru mocked frantically, while maintaining his outward cool exterior as much as he could.
"Give it a minute." Yosho walked off over to the recovering corpse of Erinot looming over his body that was painfully remade in 2 minutes. This new body was weak and lanky, not quite suited for combat yet.
Erinot gazed up at Yosho, glaring down at him, with Imuru shortly entering his field of vision.
"Wolf…" Imuru glanced up at Yosho. "This is the guy, huh? What warranted… Such a brutal measure?"
Yosho pointed towards the pit. "My memory is unclear if I mentioned this to you, but Erinot and his pack have been devastating the population even before your arrival Great Imuru… Here it was planning to conduct a ritual to evolve. I and Arken were supposed to be his final sacrifices…" She puffed out her chest, sticking her head high. "But of course we handled this in your name Great Imuru."
"Ah~... That explains it. So this is the leader of the Gray Persudos…" Imuru thought. He propped his hand up on his hips. "A real trouble. Thankfully, my awesome secretary took care of it, and I didn't even have to lift a finger." Imuru nodded proudly.
"Thank you Yosho, I truly appreciate your efforts," Imuru proudly commended Yosho,
Yosho's eyes glimmered gleefully, barely able to hold in her happiness. "It was my pleasure, Great Imuru," She bowed.
Imuru wasn't done yet, turning around to Arken. "Don't worry Arken, I haven't forgotten about you," He said with a flirtatious teasing smile.
"Hmph." Arken turned his head away. "Keep your weirdness to yourself."
"Meh. I'll deal with you later." Imuru swapped his focus, placing it all back to Erinot. He kneeled down to the Persudo, locking eyes with Erinot. In a modest, soft, deliberate manner, Imuru reached out to Erinot. The Persudo, defensive, snapped at Imuru, biting his hand, drawing blood.
"Imuru!" Yosho screamed in panic, wanting to reach down to him, but was stopped by Imuru's other hand.
Arken just on the move to intervene.
"I'm fine!" Imuru exclaimed, flashing his right hand, blood trickling down his fingers. He smiled softly. "Wow. Fierce… Erinot, right?" He said leaning in closer. "That's a sweet name. I'm Imuru. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Imuru glanced over to the pit for a second. "Was that necessary?..."
Erinot snarled at Imuru, bearing his teeth showcasing his fury.
"You know there's a balance in nature that must be maintained… You're a pivotal part in that ecosystem, but this merciless killing for power… Is it really worth it?" Imuru calmly asked.
"Let me rephrase that… The reason, what was the purpose for this power? What's this need that drives you, Erinot?"
Erinot's ears drooped slightly, no longer bearing his teeth at Imuru, appearing externally calm. "The Ennom… Forcent."
"....."
"....."
"Holy smokes…" Imuru thought, shocked. "Forcent…"
Imuru cleared his throat. "The Ennom?... Um, you see, Erinot. Forcent is a reformed person, he's not the person you once knew," He said, twiddling his thumbs.
Erinot's ears perked up. "That Ennom? Doubtful."
"No, seriously, he's just a nice, sweet, fluffy ball. Cuddles, snuggles, kisses. He's the sweetest," Imuru proclaimed, wooing himself, twisting his upper body from left to right.
The Gray Persudo couldn't fathom such behaviour from the mighty Forcent, it seemed more as if Imuru was under some kind of spell from the Ennom in his eyes. "Impossible. The Ennom has you under his control, clearly."
"Nope." Imuru threw his arms up forming an X. "Trust me. Forcent has simply reformed. Very good boy. I'd also like to be friends with you, so we can all live in harmony here in this beautiful forest. Hunt when needed, and not for power. What do you say?"
Erinot managed to gain the strength to crawl to his feet. "Fine. Sunshine and Rainbows. So you're willing to let me go?"
"Yep, of course… But actions, especially as severe as this, must have consequences." Imuru stood up to his feet. "So, listen here, from now on you're responsible to ensure the balance of the ecosystem. Least you can do, after what you've done."
"You expect me to listen to you. I can simply go back to my objective," Erinot warned.
"That's it… It's trust," Imuru softly replied.
Erinot didn't say another word, his eyes locked onto Imuru's as he walked off.
"Bye-bye!" Imuru waved. "I'm counting on you!"
Arken sighed upon this sight, watching Erinot get off with a slap on the wrist. He wasn't disappointed in Imuru's decision… It was a complex mix of emotions he held towards the guy.
"Sunshine and Rainbows?... Hmph… Describe him perfectly."