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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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Deep within the forest, Virang, the Black Wolf King, was content.
He didn’t know why he was here, but the forest was teeming with lesser monsters, mana was plentiful, and for some reason, an abundance of pure mana-rich morsels had wandered into his territory.
A feast.
He’d gorged himself, sating his hunger, enjoying his newfound dominion over this pack of lesser monsters, reveling in his kingly status.
Then, he sensed something.
Five incredibly delicious sources of mana, and five more, not quite as potent, but still tempting. A feast unlike any he’d experienced before.
He could almost taste them, their mana, their flesh. He could barely contain himself.
He ordered his underlings to capture them, his mind already envisioning how he’d devour them.
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“There… there are too many of them…”
“It’ll be fine. Just follow my instructions.”
Albert dismissed Lianna’s concerns, but she wasn’t wrong. The forest around us was teeming with monsters. Tentacles, insects, birds, mammals—all sorts of grotesque creatures.
“Run!”
We fled, dodging the smaller monsters that sprang from the undergrowth, weaving through the trees, narrowly avoiding the larger ones that lumbered after us.
We’d entered the forest hoping to lure the monsters, but we hadn’t anticipated such an enthusiastic response.
It didn’t matter. As long as we could lure them, we had a chance.
“Can’t we just use Invisibility?”
“That would reduce the number of monsters we can lure.”
“Just running is boring…”
We ran and ran, until we finally reached our destination.
A hill, a steep incline, and at the top, the other students, waving us forward.
“Push!”
Albert roared, and Brihun and Huben, along with Isabella and the princess, using their magic, began pushing logs and boulders down the slope.
The projectiles rained down on us and the pursuing monsters, but we were safe behind Albert.
Crash—
Crack—
Albert’s Adamant Body deflected the falling debris, creating a safe path for us.
Monsters, being composed of mana, were usually unaffected by physical objects like logs and boulders. But…
“Brihun, imbue the logs and boulders with your mana.”
“…May I ask why?”
“It will make them effective against mana-based creatures.”
The projectiles, now infused with Brihun’s mana, impacted the monsters, slowing their advance.
The barrage of falling debris created a bottleneck, allowing us to gain some distance.
We reached the top of the hill, the supply of logs and boulders exhausted, but the monsters were still scrambling up the slope.
“W… What do we do now…?”
“Carlin, was it? Stop those monsters.”
“W… What?!”
“You said you could manipulate mana. This should be easy for you.”
“I… I’ve never tried it before…”
“Do it. You have to.”
Carlin’s eyes glowed red, and the monsters at the front of the pack faltered, then stopped completely, colliding with the ones behind them, creating another bottleneck.
“I… I did it!”
“Good! Jenison?”
“…Don’t rush me.”
Carlin beamed, while Albert looked at me expectantly.
I ignored his impatience and began working.
‘Jenison, a question.’
‘…?’
‘Can you create explosives?’
Creating makeshift bombs was easy. I’d done it before, against the princess.
A few stray monsters broke through the bottleneck and charged towards us, but they were no match for Albert’s Adamant Body and the combined magical attacks of the others.
“Are you done yet?!”
“Hurry up!”
“…”
I worked without interruption, creating explosives and throwing them at the monsters.
Boom—
Kaboom—
“Eek!”
“Hahaha! That’s the way!”
One bomb, then two, then dozens. I pushed my mana to its limits, maximizing the explosions.
“Isabella! Unleash everything you’ve got!”
“I… I am!”
“…I’ll help.”
Blazing spears, ice storms, wind arrows—devastating attacks, unleashed by two of the academy’s most talented mages, the princess and Isabella.
The combined force of their magic and my explosives created a chain reaction of explosions.
Boom—
Kaboom—
Rumble—
Smoke filled the air, the screams of dying monsters echoing through the forest.
The surviving monsters, those who’d managed to avoid the explosions, were blocked by a wall Lianna had created and finished off by Albert and Sino.
The magical barrage continued until a sudden gust of wind cleared the smoke.
The once grassy slope was now a crater, littered with shattered rocks and fallen trees. Charred remains twitched feebly on the scorched earth.
Mana stones, remnants of the dead monsters, littered the ground. A few monsters still lived, but they were all severely injured.
We weren’t unscathed either. Our clothes and hair were singed, our bodies covered in cuts and bruises. The front line, who’d borne the brunt of the explosions, looked particularly battered.
But we were victorious.
Carlin was the first to cheer.
“Ha… ha… Wow… wow!!”
“Hahaha! We did it!”
“I… I honestly didn’t think we could pull it off.”
“We’ll get a high score, just from the extra points…”
They shared their excitement, their voices filled with joy and relief. Even Hildegarde, the Saint, smiled faintly as she healed their injuries.
But Albert and I remained silent.
The monster we were looking for, the Mid-Rank wolf, was nowhere to be seen.
“…Jenison.”
“…”
“Where do you think it is?”
“…”
We searched the battlefield, but there was no sign of it.
Growl—
A chilling sound, a low growl that echoed through the forest, snapping us back to reality. We instinctively took up defensive positions.
“W… What is… that…?”
“Huh… That doesn’t look fun…”
“…We’re in trouble…”
A figure emerged from the depths of the forest, its form slowly taking shape. The weaker students recoiled instinctively.
It was just as Albert had described. Crimson eyes, a regal bearing, the undisputed king of the forest.
Its dark fur shimmered like falling leaves, its low growl sending shivers down our spines.
The surviving monsters gathered around it, bowing their heads in submission, then stood motionless behind it, like obedient puppets.
The ground beneath its paws was slightly indented, a testament to its immense size and weight.
It walked towards us, then suddenly vanished.
“It’s gone!”
“Incoming! Brace yourselves!”
We braced for its attack, remembering its speed, its ferocity. But the attack never came.
Crunch—
Chomp—
Instead, we heard the sickening sound of tearing flesh and crunching bones coming from the area where the dead monsters lay.
It was devouring the carcasses of its own kind, its massive form growing larger with each bite, its eyes glowing even brighter.
We stared at it, momentarily stunned by its gruesome display, then, realizing we were outmatched, we slowly retreated, prioritizing healing our injuries.
We’d barely gained some distance when it vanished again.
But this time, it reappeared right in front of us.
“Look out…!”
“Ugh!”
Crash—Thud—
Its massive form, its glowing red eyes, filled our vision. Albert’s warning came too late. Brihun, caught off guard, was sent flying by a swipe of its paw.
“Saint! Heal him!”
“O… Okay!”
“We’ll hold it off!”
Hildegarde rushed to Brihun’s side, channeling her holy power, while Albert and the others charged towards the wolf.
Then, it vanished again.
A black blur, a flash of red, and then… darkness.
It happened so fast.
Its fangs lunged for Hildegarde’s throat.
Crunch—
“Growl…?”
“…Huh?”
But it wasn’t Hildegarde’s throat it had bitten.
I hadn’t run. Hildegarde’s safety was my priority, not Brihun’s.
And I’d anticipated this. I’d assumed it possessed a level of intelligence, and I’d been watching it, waiting for its next move, staying close to Hildegarde.
In that split second, as its jaws closed around her throat, I’d thrust my right shoulder forward.
My shoulder erupted in a bloom of red, like autumn leaves.
“…W… What?!”
“…Run.”
It loosened its grip, realizing its mistake, and I clamped my hands around its upper and lower jaws, forcing its fangs deeper into my shoulder.
Crack—
Squish—
Its teeth tore through bone and muscle, a searing pain radiating through my arm, as if my entire body was being drained of blood. It felt like my shoulder was being ripped from its socket, like iron spikes were being driven into my flesh, twisting and turning, digging deeper and deeper.
My arm hung limp, the bone exposed, blood obscuring my vision, but its gaze remained fixed on Hildegarde.
I released my grip on its jaw, conjured a dagger, and plunged it into its right eye.
“Grrrrraaagh!!”
“…Finally, some pain.”
I twisted the dagger, and it thrashed, throwing me to the ground.
Crash—
“Ugh…”
My body bounced once, twice, before coming to a stop. I looked down. My shoulder was gone, blood pooling on the ground, staining the grass crimson.
But the wolf’s right eye was also gone, blood streaming down its face.
It finally looked at me, its remaining eye burning with rage, its fangs bared.
I tried to call for help, but the other students were occupied with the lesser monsters, who were now attacking with renewed ferocity. I didn’t care. As long as Hildegarde was safe.
But this wolf…
It was the one who’d targeted the Saint. It was fast, intelligent, and it wouldn’t hesitate to attack again.
It lunged at me, its jaws snapping, eager to finish me off, to devour the Saint and shatter my hopes of meeting Him.
A monster, a remnant of mana, a primal distortion, the king of the wolves.
“…I’ve never fought an animal before…”
I remembered a past life, a time when I’d been the moon of an empire, and I charged, a lunar eclipse descending upon the ravenous wolf.
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I need more chapters 😢