CH 16

After our lunch break, the wagons start moving again.

Our journey is going perfectly, and nothing’s happened so far.

Is this the calm before the storm? There’s a forest to our right and a rocky mountain to our left, and I can feel a lot of presences deep inside the forest.

They’re too far to see with the naked eye. If I say something about them, we can start preparing, but it will be hard to answer if they ask me why I know. Will they even understand what I’m talking about if I tell them it’s because of a skill I have?

No, that’s just an excuse. I just can’t let others know about the skills I have, and that includes Rurika and Chris.

All I can do is count on the ranger in the wagon that’s leading the way.

As we get closer, the reaction gets stronger, and I grab my weapon without thinking.

“Hey hey, what’s that all of a sudden? Did you see something?”

The merchant sitting next to the driver’s seat sees me doing this, and asks me about it.

“The place we talked about is just up ahead, so…”

I say to try to evade his question.

He laughs it off, because he knows it’s my first escorting quest.

I definitely sense something. I try looking for presences again as the forest is within my sight, and sense a lot deep inside it. They seem to be moving, but… They’re not coming this way?

Apparently what I’m sensing are wolves. About twenty of them.

But as Rurika watches this back and forth, she sounds her alarm, seemingly sensing something.

The line of wagons stops, and we hear a loud stir in the forest.

The wolves change direction and they all jump out of the forest.

“Wolves?”

“Prepare your spells.”

“Wait, something’s there… A tigerwolf!?”

Something else jumps out, like it’s chasing the wolves.

It’s a large beast that’s twice the size of a wolf. Its fangs that are larger than knives immediately draw my attention. But the real danger is in the claws of its front legs, which are said to be able to shatter even a shield.

There’s still some distance between them, but it’s fast. At this rate, it’s going to catch up with the wolves.

So that’s what was going on. The wolves are being chased by the tigerwolf.

“What do we do?”

“Magic users, prepare your spells. Blow those wolves away once they get a little closer. Everyone else, get ready to intercept them. Us, Goblin’s Grief, will take on the tigerwolf, everyone else hunt the surviving wolves.”

Siphon gives instructions.

He specifically tells the D ranked adventurers to move away from the tigerwolf, and they oblige without any complaints, because they’re aware of their own strength. There are two parties, so one is instructed to guard the merchants.

“We’ll hunt wolves too. We’ll draw them away from the tigerwolf to make it easier for you.”

“Sora and the others, go look after the merchants too. I’m leaving that to you.”

Siphon tells us to go guard the merchants.

Rurika hesitates at first, but follows the commands of the leader.

Magic is activated and fired on the wolves. They’re focusing on wind and water magic because they’re purposely choosing magic that makes as little noise as possible.

In the meantime, the wagons are circled like when we camp, and the horses are given calming herbs to prevent them from getting too excited and rampaging.

Rurika tells me to get on the canopy, and I do so.

The magic attack throws the wolves into disarray, and the tigerwolf catches up to them and opens its mouth widely to bite at them. Its sharp fangs easily pierce one of the wolves, and blood sprays.

I hear what sounds like the wolf shrieking, and the rest abandon it, running away from the left and right of the tigerwolf.

The C ranked adventurers quickly deal with this, blocking the wolves like they read the future. When did they even get so close?

The tigerwolf starts groaning as it sees this, probably thinking they’re there to steal its prey.

But before it can jump at the adventurers, magic is fired at it. The timing is off, and although two or three spells are fired at it, it easily dodges them. Apparently it’s magic that prioritizes activation speed rather than power, to keep enemies in check.

Meanwhile, Siphon gets close and attacks the tigerwolf.

The tigerwolf lightly dodges this attack, and jumps at Siphon, who got within its reach. An adventurer holding a shield switches places with Siphon and blocks the sharp claws.

Apparently he specializes in using a shield, because he’s holding it with both hands and he doesn’t have a weapon. No, that’s not it, it feels like he equipped just a shield specifically to be able to withstand the attacks of the tigerwolf. But he strikes with the shield from time to time, and doesn’t forget to draw its attention.

The battle with the tigerwolf has reached a stalemate.

In the meantime, the rest of the adventurers are hunting the wolves. C ranked adventurers have no trouble disposing of them, and they’re all being killed one after the other.

But wolves that the D rank party were fighting manage to slip through and come this way. Are they trying to escape from the tigerwolf? Trying to use us to relieve the stress from being chased away? Did they instinctively sniff out non-combatants? I don’t know, but they’re headed right for us.

Wolves run and jump this way, and Rurika kills one with one slash after dodging them.

The remaining two are dealt with by the other D ranked party and their unrefined but still well-matched combination. They’re not unharmed, but didn’t suffer any serious injuries either.

I was trying to come down from the canopy when the wolves were coming, but I was stopped, so I’ve been cautiously looking around. As far as my eyes can see and my Presence Detection can feel, there aren’t any more enemies.

All that’s left is the tigerwolf, and as neither side can finish off the other, the battle ends with the tigerwolf’s retreat.