"What the hell, you're pretty strong!"
Though his instincts told him that Alice's attack held no lethal intent, Bete couldn't help but feel a surge of intense curiosity toward it.
He could sense not even a shred of killing intent in her assault.
So, this beautiful girl who 'seemed' to be from Freya Familia was probably just here to pick a fight and make a name for herself.
Anyone else, given the gap in strength, might've backed down.
But among Loki Familia's adventurers of the same level as this girl, none would stand a chance against Alice.
Bete effortlessly dodged Alice's barrage of projectiles. Watching her beam attacks, a smirk tugged at his lips.
"Too bad for you, you ran into me. Normally, I can't stand bullying weaklings."
"But if it's just teaching a lesson to some arrogant adventurer who doesn't know her place, I'm more than happy to oblige."
Wolves have a strong sense of family.
Within the same pack, every member looks out for the younger ones.
Though Bete had a sharp tongue, his reputation in Loki Familia was actually pretty solid—aside from his mouth, that is.
But when it came to outsiders, Bete showed no mercy.
He might not like picking on the weak, but if the other party was an enemy, he wouldn't hesitate to go for the throat.
This girl from 'Freya Familia' had come right to Loki Familia's doorstep to provoke them.
So even if she was weak, Bete was going to teach her a hard lesson.
As a Level 6 adventurer, even his bare body was formidable. Being a werewolf, Bete fought with his legs—
but that didn't mean his claws were useless.
On the contrary, as a werewolf, his claws were incredibly sharp and deadly. Facing Alice's magic beam, he reached out and swiped it apart with a single claw.
Seeing her attack invalidated, Alice's expression didn't change one bit.
She wasn't surprised Bete could block it.
From his attitude, it was clear he was confident in his strength. Even though she'd attacked, he hadn't counterattacked yet—just kept waiting for her to make a move.
She didn't know why, but Alice was well aware that with only a few months of magic training and no Blessing, she stood no chance against this werewolf in a real fight.
That much was obvious from how Bete had cut off her retreat earlier without her even noticing him move.
If he wanted to, Bete could probably use those claws—the ones that shattered her magic—to tear out her throat in an instant.
But for now, for some reason, he kept waiting for her attacks, so Alice didn't need to worry about his offense.
Not a bad deal. She didn't know when he'd get bored, but this was a perfect opportunity.
Alice's one strong point was her enormous mana pool.
Whether it was basic projectile barrages or beam attacks, the mana cost would be enough to drain a Level 2 or even Level 3 mage in Orario dry.
But for Alice, that amount was a drop in the bucket—she could recover it just by breathing.
With an advantage like that, how could she not use it? She might be bad at fighting, but she wasn't stupid enough to ignore her strengths.
And he kept waiting for her to attack.
So Alice didn't even bother holding back.
For once, a smile actually appeared on her face as she looked at Bete.
"If you're willing to wait, that's great news for me. If you used your speed to take me out instantly, I wouldn't be able to do a thing."
"But it seems you won't go for the kill, and you're really just blocking my way without fighting seriously. In that case, don't blame me for what happens next."
Her words made Bete frown.
Then, a cold sweat broke out on his back.
If Alice had three spells, he'd already seen two: the barrage and the beam, both powerful magic—even if her execution was clumsy—that would be highly effective against monsters in the Dungeon.
If those two were like that, what about the doll magic?
It couldn't just be ordinary puppets, right?
Otherwise, his palm wouldn't have been injured earlier. So the doll magic had to be formidable.
Instantly, Bete went on high alert.
Just then, Alice spoke up.
"Shanghai, Shield Defense. Hourai! Master Spark!!"
At her command, Shanghai appeared instantly in front of Alice, her lance vanishing, replaced by a small knight's shield.
As the shield materialized, a barrier of mana formed before Alice.
Meanwhile, Hourai floated up behind her, the magic circle in front of her expanding rapidly. From it, a pale blue light shot forth.
If Alice's basic beam was the width of a finger, the Master Spark from Hourai was as thick as a utility pole.
It surged toward Bete, engulfing him in a massive blast of magical energy.
Of course, Alice knew perfectly well that even though Master Spark was dozens of times larger and more powerful than her basic beam,
it still wouldn't mean much to the werewolf before her.
But if it could just stall Bete for a single moment, that would be enough.
With a slight flick of her finger, a rift opened beneath Alice's feet, and she dropped into the spatial tear, vanishing without a trace.
By the time the mana from Master Spark dissipated, Bete emerged, slightly singed.
Seeing Alice gone and the empty space where she'd been, a vein bulged on Bete's forehead. "Fine!!! Don't let me catch you again!!"
His fur had been burned. He was pissed.
Just as Bete was fuming, Loki suddenly came rushing out of the familia headquarters, with Gareth and Finn right behind her.
Of course, Loki Familia's gate wasn't left unguarded. Earlier, while Alice had been hiding and hesitating, she'd spotted the gatekeeper.
But when Bete and Alice started fighting, that adventurer had hurried inside to report to Finn.
After hearing about a beautiful blonde girl fighting Bete, Loki ran out, took one look at the singed Bete standing alone outside, and stared in confusion. "Bete, where's my adorable Alice-chan?"
"Hah? What Alice-chan?" Bete frowned, a bad feeling rising in his chest.
"So, where's that cute girl you were fighting?! Don't tell me you chased her off! I went through hell to snatch her from Hephaestus!"
Loki started getting a bad feeling too, on the verge of tearing her hair out.
Right then, Tione and Tiona, who'd gone to Alice's shop early that morning to help her move, came walking back.
Seeing Loki and the others at the gate, Tione called out loudly.
"Loki! Alice's doll shop is gone! Has she come here yet?"
Hearing Tione's words, Bete instantly realized he'd really messed up big time.
And Loki, seeing Bete's flustered look, immediately understood what must have happened. She glared at him, gritting her teeth.
"If a certain werewolf hadn't chased her off, I'd say Alice probably hasn't arrived yet!"
"Alice was chased away?" Tione looked bewildered at Loki's words, but then she noticed Bete's singed appearance and asked suspiciously, "Bete, why are you all burned? Did you run into some blonde doll girl?"
Hearing that, Bete's face darkened even further.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
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