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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: First, Secure the Fortuitous Encounter (2)
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The silver lining in this unfortunate situation was.
The wolves weren't particularly large.
At most, they were the size of large dogs?
...That's certainly how they seemed at first glance.
A tremendous roar erupted from the wolf.
Immediately after the wolf's powerful howl,
"Oh, for fuck's sake."
As if to prove it was a true spirit beast, its silver mane suddenly swelled as if about to burst, instantly doubling its size.
Now, I was completely overwhelmed by its sheer mass.
Calmly, I put my brain into overdrive, calculating a path to victory.
It was a dead end.
This was a death trap...!
But there's also a saying: even if a tiger has you pinned, you can survive if you keep your wits about you.
Considering Darami, the squirrel spirit beast,
a spirit beast of that level should be able to understand what a human says.
"Three against one, how cowardly! Let's fight fair and square!"
I chewed on the rising self-loathing but still shouted with dignity.
Truthfully, I didn't expect much.
But then.
Was it that sincerity moves heaven, or that true feelings always get through?
The wolf slightly behind them,
the one with a scar over its eye, tilted its head slightly.
Soon after.
It nudged the wolf directly in front of it with its paw, pushing it forward.
A yelp escaped the wolf.
At the same time, it slowly retreated backward with the other wolf beside it.
I wasn't sure if I was accurately reading an animal's expression,
but even at a glance, only one slightly smaller wolf remained before me, looking utterly bewildered.
Truly, a spirit beast is a spirit beast.
To know fairness and impartiality.
I, too, was a person for whom fair play was a way of life.
I considered turning around and fleeing with all my might right then,
but no matter how swiftly I ran with my light-footed technique, in the dark, densely wooded forest, I'd likely be slower than a wolf, so I gave up.
In that case, the answer was to subdue this one first, then somehow struggle through.
I'd make it regret giving me this chance!
I gripped my sword firmly, lowered my stance slightly, and fixed my gaze on the wolf.
Its enormous size exuded a subtle pressure.
Its blue eyes fixated on me, and matching my steps, the wolf also began to slowly circle.
Honestly,
it looked stronger than Murong Wicheon.
Well, beasts tear people apart, after all.
...If the two wolves watching from behind joined in, I'd become delicious jerky and be munched on.
Before that, I'd strike first.
Savoring the flow of Hwayeong Jinqi released from my Dantian, coursing through my meridians, I slowly infused my sword with Jinqi through my palm.
Immediately after confirming the faint red aura flowing along the blade,
"Flame's Ho...!"
I instantly closed the distance and swung my sword.
THWACK—!
The wolf's forepaw, agilely pulled back, precisely blocked my sword.
Chewing on the faint, aching sensation in my wrist,
"No, what kind of wolf shoots qi from its claws?!"
I lashed out at the absurd reality.
Conversely, I kept my expression as calm as possible; a tingling premonition told me that if I showed any weakness, the other two would immediately pounce.
I continued my sword strikes as nonchalantly as possible, dodging its forepaws, and sometimes leaping over the wolf as it charged with its bulk, delivering murderous tackles aimed at my ankles—
Half-relying on instinct, I executed my martial forms.
If I had sniped one from afar, I probably would have taken it out cleanly.
I should have brought my bow too, I chewed on the belated regret.
"Tch—!"
I barely twisted my body, dodging the Mountain Soul Iron Claw the wolf swung,
Riiiiip!
"Aargh! My limited edition silk robe, handmade stitch by stitch by a master craftsman in Suzhou!"
I should have listened to my father.
He told me not to show off wearing expensive clothes during training...
I miss you, Father...
With a mind clear enough to nonchalantly recall such random thoughts, I sharply seized the opportunity gained by sacrificing my clothes.
«KRRROOOOAAAR—!»
Though my limit was merely infusing internal energy into my sword, not even proper sword qi yet, my vividly crimson-tinged sword strike lightly grazed the wolf's left shoulder.
It was a bit shallower than I'd hoped,
but it was enough to inject tension into its movements.
Both humans and animals,
instinctively flinched when confronted with something that harmed them.
Whether my clothes ripped further, exposing my upper body,
or I sustained a slight laceration from a claw I couldn't dodge.
After that, I persistently aimed my sword only at its left foreleg.
«KYYYAAARRRR—!»
The wolf, trying to intimidate me with a pointless roar.
For an ordinary person, the sheer intensity of that roar would have made them wet themselves and collapse to the ground instantly,
but unfortunately, it had picked the wrong opponent.
This body, a clear mirror, still water.
Even if a puppy growls, it inflicts no mental damage whatsoever.
Perhaps that's why.
Gradually, the wolf's movements became perfectly clear to my eyes.
In every fleeting moment that my sword and its claws clashed, it was as if time itself slowed down.
Every time my gaze met the wolf's eyes,
where its next attack would be aimed,
when it would unleash its claws,
or if it would try to ram me with its body—
all those possibilities arose in my mind as vividly as if I had seen the future.
And at the same time,
I felt the wolf's emotions.
Fear, impatience, and competitive spirit.
I felt a momentary confusion from the clear surge of emotions, as if I had entered and exited the wolf's mind.
—All things in the world are connected as one; the heart of a beast is my heart, and the eyes of a beast are my eyes. Hehe, isn't that a pretty cool line? That's why it's called Heavenly Beast Heart Return (天獸歸心)!
Truly, out of nowhere,
I felt Myonarang's voice imprint itself vividly in my mind, like a flash of lightning.
...My study of simplified characters wasn't entirely in vain, it seems.
It seems that during the process of copying it, and then teaching it to Myonarang, the oral traditions of the Heavenly Beast Heart Return Art had unknowingly taken root in my heart.
Therefore,
I swung. For it was within me.
The moment I actively began to employ the Heavenly Beast Heart Return Art, the atmosphere of the wolves watching me changed completely.
At the very least,
no further hostility could be found in the two wolves that had been observing the battle.
Indeed, this was a martial art worth Myonarang, from the Beast Palace, searching high and low for.
Of course, that didn't mean the wolf in front of me suddenly flipped onto its back and swore allegiance.
«KYAAAAOH!»
Perhaps because it was indeed a young individual, it instead bared its teeth, burning with even more fighting spirit.
I actually like dogs.
However,
for a disobedient cur, especially a fierce dog that might bite a person, a stick is the answer.
What followed was a one-sided beating.
Since I could clearly see how and where it would attack, as if it were laid out in the palm of my hand, what remained was simple.
Dodge and strike.
Practicing the exceedingly simple martial arts maxim with my own body, even sheathing my sword, I thrashed it like a dog on a hot summer day, with the following result.
«WHIMPER...!»
Subjugation training complete.
With desperate eyes towards me,
and pitiful, resentful eyes towards the two wolves still merely observing us,
FLOP!
the wolf finally exposed its belly, adopting a posture of submission.
Seeing no 'peanuts,' it must be a female.
Only then did the spectator wolves leisurely approach and begin gently licking its wounds with their tongues.
As I watched the three wolves, who had seemingly returned to their normal size, as if their bulk-up mode had ended,
the scarred wolf,
likely the father of the wolf that had just been beaten, raised its head and looked at me.
The moment our gazes met, I intuitively understood why it had been passively watching its child's suffering until now.
"...So it had me do the parenting for it..."
A hollow laugh escaped me.
If I hadn't realized the Heavenly Beast Heart Return Art, would it have intended to at least give me a taste of human flesh, or would it have still tried to maintain some kind of line?
The wolf, which had thoroughly doused its unconscious child in saliva, gazed intently at me.
«Successor of the Heavenly Beast Heart Return Art. This child will no longer resist you, so please, take good care of her.»
"...?"
After leaving me those words in a clear human voice that even I could understand,
it soon vanished into the darkening forest with its mate.
What the hell was that?
Child abandonment?
Selection? Adoption?
My brain, which had suddenly become a cat mom—no, a dog dad—began to throb, feeling overloaded for the first time today.
I wasn't even the successor of the Heavenly Beast Heart Return Art in the first place.
If anything, it would be Myonarang, wouldn't it...?
It occurred to me that if the protagonist hadn't seized this fortuitous encounter in the original storyline, Myonarang might have taken it.
"Haaah."
For now, I'll keep it alive, and later, I can take it to the academy and give it to Myonarang as a gift.
What kind of dog fate is this for me?
...Seeing how it bulked up earlier, it might be kind of cool to ride it and become a clippity-clop wolf-rider.
After all, the pinnacle of archery is mounted archery.
Let's think about this a little more.
First, I approached the silver wolf, still sprawled out with its tongue hanging, and roughly sprinkled some wound-healing medicine on the spot where I'd stabbed it.
«Yelp...!»
Does it sting?
"Ugh..."
It stings me too...
Fortunately, neither the place where I had cut it nor where the wolf had clawed me was very deep, so I expected them to heal quickly.
Since my clothes were already rags anyway,
I tore off a piece of fabric and bandaged the wound to stop the bleeding a little,
behind the wolves.
I pushed open the stone door at the entrance of the cave.
It's a little regrettable about the inner core,
but there'll be something even better, right?
* * *
All of that confrontation,
the Forest Guardian had observed from a distance.
They were creatures she had grown fond of over quite some time, so if by chance the young wolf was driven to its death, she had intended not to overlook it and make the culprit pay.
But for some unknown reason,
they entrusted their cub to the tall man who had already torn his tattered shirt completely, revealing his well-honed muscles.
"Hoh."
At a sight too incredible to believe even with her own eyes,
a low gasp escaped her lips. The formidable qi that had vividly coiled around the axe in her hand had, at some point, gently dispersed back into nature.
A moment later,
«Kyywoo!»
«Woo!»
The mother wolf and father wolf approached her, rubbing their heads against her affectionately.
"You sell your cub to a complete stranger, then have the nerve to come here and act cute? You know how much I liked that little one!"
Though the Forest Guardian expressed her anger with a feigned gruff voice,
an undeniable affection was hidden within her tone.
The Forest Guardian stared intently into the father wolf's bright, clear eyes, which were gazing back at her.
Being mute beasts, it was impossible to guess what they were thinking,
but their gaze, seemingly unconcerned about the half-naked man she'd just seen, or about their own cub,
"Hmph, it took more than half a year of rolling around with me before you finally opened your hearts."
couldn't help but make a slightly jealous voice escape her.
But what could she do?
The hearts of beasts were too complex for humans to fully comprehend.
The Forest Guardian hugged the mother wolf's face tightly.
The wolf's breath, accompanied by a pleasant purring sound, tickled her ample chest.
After enjoying the warmth for a while,
«Kiwu, Kiwuu—»
"Tsk, fine. Do you think this maiden wouldn't know what to do?"
At the mother wolf's persistent urging, which still seemed laced with a bit of anxiety,
after being semi-forcibly inducted into the Baekhwa Academy,
she decided, for the first time, to take an interest not in the forest, but in a single person.