This time, Arthur didn't move. He watched, felt it, tracked it.
Not toward them.
Behind.
The wolf slipped out of the shadows right behind the guardian, moving without hesitation or testing, driven by pure intent. Its claws came down hard, everything it had pouring into that single strike as the tainted mana around it surged wildly.. thicker than anything they had seen so far, all forced into that one blow.
The guardian barely turned in time.
"Wha—"
Too late.
The hit landed with a heavy, brutal crash that drove the guardian straight into the ground, the sound echoing across the dungeon.
But the wolf didn't stop.
It kept going, claws tearing down again and again, every strike filled with everything it had been holding back. It wasn't fighting like before... there was no restraint, no hesitation, just raw rage.
And even then...
It stopped.
Right before it went too far.
Right before the cub would be caught in it.
