Chapter 99: The Wolf in the Shadows

Thanks to the prior scouting done through the Soul Network, Vilyric had a good grasp of the surrounding terrain. It didn’t take long for her to lead her companions to a rock wall completely hidden beneath layers of branches and bushes, showing no distinct features from the outside.

“There might be some attacks soon; that’s normal, so don’t overreact. Just leave it to me.”

After giving this reminder, especially to a certain Giant Dragon, Vilyric gently brushed aside the bushes with the tip of her staff, revealing a completely hollow cave inside.

“Let’s go.”

The Black-haired Girl took the lead, and everyone entered one by one.

It was a one-way path. The dimly lit tunnel was only illuminated by the orange flames flickering at the exit far ahead.

“Lady Vilyric, what is this…”

The Priestess didn’t reply, only shook her head to signal Aiste to remain silent for now, before stepping forward.

They hadn’t walked far when a fierce wind rushed toward them, and the angry, hostile roar of a beast exploded in their ears!

“Intruders, die!!”

It was merely a few urgent howls from a wolf, but the Translation Tool that Vilyric wore promptly converted it into a language the girl could understand. When the claw, infused with magical power, lunged at her neck, Vilyric, as if foreseeing it, raised her staff to block the attack.

“Clang~”

With a crisp sound of metal colliding, the artifact effortlessly blocked the fierce strike. Though Vilyric only meant to defend and hadn’t launched any attack, the strong impact from the [Eternal Staff: Heart of the World] shattered the assailant’s claws into pieces.

“Awoooo!”

The fierce wolf howl instantly changed to a pitiful whimper, and in pain, the attacker quickly leaped back to create distance from the girls.

“Master!”

The tall figure of the Blonde Girl immediately stood in front of Vilyric. In truth, if the Priestess hadn’t given her prior warning, the Little Dragon Daughter would have already smashed the attacker with a single slap when it ambushed them in the dark; she had struggled to restrain her impulse.

The other girls quickly rushed forward, but the cave was so dark that they could barely see their own hands in front of them. Only Vilyric, the Little Dragon Daughter, and the Moonshadow Magical Wolf Aiste, being creatures of the night, could see clearly.

“I’m fine, it’s all within expectations.”

Soothing her somewhat anxious pet, Vilyric smiled and turned her gaze toward the creature that had just attacked her.

It was a strong, three-meter-long giant wolf with brown-yellow fur, and its long tail seemed to help maintain balance in perilous environments. Its claws were also different from normal wolves; instead of going straight forward, they curved downward like hooks.

Undoubtedly, such claw shapes gave it excellent gripping ability, allowing the brown wolf to hang from the cave ceiling and attack Vilyric from the air.

Clearly, this was the so-called mountain wolf, definitely a unique type of magical beast.

Without Vilyric needing to say a word, the Mage Wolf had already stepped to the front, her sharp gaze fixated on the slightly crouching giant wolf, which seemed to be on guard, but its left front paw was left suspended in the air, its claws thoroughly shattered, as it growled in wolf language.

“You clearly sensed the Moonshadow Clan’s scent on me, and yet you dared to attack directly? Does the Mountain Wolf Clan wish to go to war with my clan?”

The giant wolf paused human-like, and although it didn’t relax in vigilance, it chose to respond cautiously.

“The scents are so jumbled; how can I tell if you’re just another batch of their minions? The Moonshadow Clan is so far away; why would a normal Moonshadow Magical Wolf suddenly come here? Besides, you’re just a Magical General, and coupled with that terrifying feeling of being watched…”

“What nonsense… what has happened to the Mountain Wolf Clan here? Where is your clan leader?”

Clearly flustered, Aiste was quickly bewildered by just a few sentences. It was Vilyric who gently patted the Mage Wolf’s shoulder from behind, signaling her to take over the negotiations.

After switching roles, the Priestess, in front of the giant wolf, actively put her weapon back into her backpack.

“While I want to say there’s no need to be on edge and that we mean no harm, it seems like saying it without proof doesn’t help… But I’ve basically understood the situation here. You must be the strongest among the hundred Mountain Wolves in this cave.”

“I’ll get straight to the point. Even you haven’t reached the level of a shapeshifted Magical General; there’s no way the Mountain Wolf Clan could be without any Magical Generals. So let me guess… something has happened; those powerful Mountain Wolves have left the territory, and now you’re left with only the weak and the young hanging on. Am I right?”

“Roar… who are you! How do you know so much!? Are you also one of their minions?!”

Vilyric’s calming efforts bore fruit as the giant wolf’s previously calmed emotions surged again, its claws scratching the ground in distress and anger, making a scratching sound as if ready to pounce at any moment.

However, Vilyric didn’t care about its actions, merely smiling nonchalantly as her silver-blue eyes met the sharp, hostile vertical pupils of the giant wolf without yielding.

“First, please understand the most crucial premise—we are not afraid to fight with you. Given your Earth-level status, any one of us could easily take you down. The fact that we’re willing to communicate amicably despite our overwhelming power should already demonstrate our goodwill, don’t you think? At the very least, you should realize we’re not your enemies.”

The Black-haired Girl slightly shifted her gaze to the other hind leg of the giant wolf that was still frantically scratching the ground.

“Or should I offer to help trim the other claws too?”

The scratching noise stopped instantly.

The giant wolf retreated a few steps, swallowing hard, and looked at the Priestess’s empty hands with considerable trepidation and fear. It had just witnessed this mysterious girl make that strange weapon disappear in an instant; similarly, she could surely do the same to make it reappear.

It was still haunted by the terror of that long stick, as its entire left foreleg was still numb, and its shattered claw would take over a month to heal. All this pain stemmed only from the recoil of its own reckless charge.

There was no doubt this was a weapon of tremendous destructive power.

Powerless to resist and dominated by fear, it could only let out a low growl from its throat to vent its resentment.

“So what do you want?! Since you know the condition of my clan, you must understand we have nothing left to offer or be plundered! Can’t you spare us?!”

“Uh…”

It looks like this guy’s emotions are quite unstable; maybe it got scared when I scanned it with SP earlier? That makes sense…

We can talk about borrowing mounts later; for now, we need to figure out what exactly has happened to the Mountain Wolf Clan here.

   

---