Hulim Heyerar had just entertained the thought when she glanced again at the spot where the Goblin Lord had been lying moments earlier. The creature was nowhere to be seen now.
But Hulim Heyerar had kept a close eye on its movements the entire time—and she had a pretty good idea where it had gone into hiding.
“Very well. Time to burn it all down!”
Hulim Heyerar raised her wand, ready to incinerate the hidden Goblin Lord, the immobile goblins still writhing on the ground, and their entire tribe in one fell swoop.
“Awooo——!”
Just then, a long, drawn-out howl echoed suddenly from the depths of the forest.
Hulim Heyerar froze, whirling around to stare gravely at the endless expanse of trees ahead.
“Awooo——!”
Another howl rang out, closer this time.
“Awooo——!”
“Awooo......”
More and more howls pierced the air, closing in from all directions at breakneck speed.
“Grrr!”
“Grrr!”
“Grrr......”
Dark figures darted swiftly through the underbrush outside the goblin tribe.
“Gah——!?!”
Goblin screams erupted from the woods.
Moments later, several green-skinned goblins that had fled into the forest earlier came charging back into the tribe, their faces twisted in terror. They glanced over their shoulders repeatedly, checking if they were being pursued.
“Grrr!”
As if answering their unspoken fear, several figures burst out of the trees behind them. They caught up in the blink of an eye, pinned the goblins to the ground, and tore out their throats in seconds.
It was then that Hulim Heyerar finally got a clear look at the attackers.
They were wolves—grey-furred, with a single sharp horn protruding from their foreheads.
“Horned Wolves?”
Hulim Heyerar recognized the creatures at once. They were E-Rank wolf-type monsters—Horned Wolves.
“Did the scent of blood draw them here...... But even with blood in the air, would mere E-Rank Horned Wolves dare to attack a goblin tribe guarded by a Goblin Lord?”
Despite the fact that these were only E-Rank monsters, Hulim Heyerar felt no sense of relief. On the contrary, a growing sense of dread welled up inside her.
Seemingly sensing that the goblin tribe was completely defenseless, the Horned Wolves that had emerged from the forest began to pace restlessly, their eyes fixed hungrily on the camp.
Yet the lingering auras of the Goblin Lord and the fallen Hobgoblins hung heavy in the air, keeping the wolves at bay. They paced anxiously at the edge of the tribe, daring not to step foot inside.
“Awooo——!”
Finally, one of the Horned Wolves let out a signal call to the pack behind it.
Stolen story; please report.
“Awooo!”
“Awooo!”
“Awooo......”
Howls echoed back and forth, rippling deeper into the forest. More and more dark figures emerged, surrounding the goblin tribe on all sides.
Like the first few wolves, they made no move to attack, instead darting back and forth through the trees surrounding the camp.
“I’m surrounded......”
Hulim Heyerar scanned her surroundings. Sounds of movement came from every direction outside the tribe—the wolf pack had the entire camp encircled.
They weren’t doing anything for now, but even through the thick layer of trees, Hulim Heyerar could feel the weight of countless eyes locked on her from the shadows, watching and waiting.
“What are they waiting for?”
The situation was growing more and more bizarre.
It made sense that the first few Horned Wolves had hesitated to attack. But now that the entire pack had the tribe surrounded, their continued inaction was highly unusual.
Besides......
There were far too many of them.
The size of this wolf pack was completely abnormal!
Hulim Heyerar had already detected the movements of over a hundred wolves—and that wasn’t even all of them. More and more wolves kept emerging from the depths of the forest.
“In a dangerous monster-infested forest like this, E-Rank Horned Wolves could never form such a massive pack on their own. Something’s very wrong here......”
As if to confirm her suspicions,
“ROOOOAR——!!!”
A thunderous howl boomed from deep within the forest.
Even from a great distance, the sheer force of the cry made the very air seem to tremble.
A cold chill ran down Hulim Heyerar’s spine.
“No! That sound—could it be——”
“Awooo!”
“Awooo......”
The moment the roar faded, the wolves surrounding the tribe sprang into action. They burst out of the trees, their paws thudding against the ground.
And when Hulim Heyerar saw the full scope of the pack, she finally understood why it was so large.
E-Rank Black-backed Wolves, D-Rank Dire Wolves, E-Rank Brush Wolves, D-Rank Spiny-tailed Wolves......
More and more wolves of different species poured out of the forest.
They circled the goblin tribe, running faster and faster, their formation tightening with every pass, shrinking the encirclement.
This wasn’t a pack of Horned Wolves at all. It was a massive coalition of different wolf species!
This was unheard of.
As pack animals, wolves were fiercely territorial—even members of the same species rarely tolerated other packs in their territory.
If same-species packs clashed violently on sight, then different species should have been at each other’s throats the moment they met.
And yet, here they were—wolves of all kinds, working together in perfect harmony, each species with a clear role to play.
This kind of coordination......
Hulim Heyerar’s grip on her wand tightened, but her mind grew colder and calmer. She stared silently at the massive coalition of wolves closing in from the forest.
She had heard rumors of this phenomenon before—some wolves were born alphas, blessed with a natural commanding aura that could force even rival species to submit to their rule. These alphas forged massive super packs that could sweep across the land like a wolf plague.
And there was one such alpha wolf species that Hulim Heyerar knew of all too well......
“Rrrrrrr——!”
A deep, rumbling snarl echoed from the trees, reverberating in every direction.
THUD! THUD! THUD......
Heavy footsteps shook the ground, growing louder and louder as they approached from the heart of the dark forest.
“Awooo!”
“Awooo!”
“Awooo!”
“......”
At the sound, the hundreds of wolves surrounding the goblin tribe threw their heads back and howled in unison—a chorus of reverence, welcoming their king’s arrival.
THUD!
The thundering footsteps came to a halt at the edge of the forest, right on the border of the goblin tribe.
From the dim shadows beneath the trees, a pair of enormous glowing eyes emerged—like two bonfires burning in the darkness, floating eerily in mid-air.
“Rrrrrrr!”
A cloud of white mist billowed from the shadows—the creature’s breath, visible in the cool air.
The howling wolves fell completely silent, waiting obediently for their king’s next command.
“ROOOOAR——!!!”
The earth-shaking roar rang out once more, shaking the entire mountain forest.
In the next instant,
THUD——!
A colossal black shadow flashed across the clearing. It bounded forward in a single leap, landing right at the edge of the goblin tribe.
Hulim Heyerar lifted her gaze slowly, finally getting a clear look at the beast in its entirety.
It was the size of a small cottage—its fur plain and unremarkable, like any other wolf’s, but its eyes blazed with a sharp, intelligent light.
Forest Colossus Wolf.
A name both familiar and terrifying.
The very alpha wolf species Hulim Heyerar had thought of earlier.
