The wolves are marching toward us with steady steps. Not just any wolves—these ones are dressed in spotless, pristine suits, not a speck of dust on them. In the tale of the Three Little Pigs, the wolf was driven by hunger, but the wolves in front of me exuded intelligence.
To top it off, the one that seemed to be the leader of the pack was even wearing glasses.
The bespectacled wolf tilted his head curiously as he looked at us.
“Hmm, this is strange. There’s three of you… and they’re all humans. The Boss wanted a plump pig lady, so what gives?”
Elise pointed her staff at the glasses-wearing wolf and spoke up.
“What nonsense are you spouting, beastie? I’ve been catching the strong scent of bl**d since earlier—it was suspicious. You were lurking around like some kind of creeper, weren’t you?”
“What… what’s going on here?”
In response to my question, Elise flashed me a sly grin, revealing her teeth.
“Whaddya mean? We got played, big time. Can’t you tell?”
[Looks like they were trying to sell us out to the wolves.]
Sell us out? Sure, these wolves in suits looked intelligent, but there was nothing friendly about the atmosphere. The tension in the air was palpable, making the situation feel downright eerie.
It was like dealing with gangsters in fancy clothes.
The glasses-wolf adjusted his spectacles with sharp claws and spoke.
“A mouthy human, huh? By any chance, is one of you the mother of pigs?”
“Mother? Hahahaha! Did you hear that? He thinks we’re the mother of pigs!”
[Absurd. Do we look like mothers to you?]
The wolf muttered under his breath with his arms crossed.
“Hmm, well… doesn’t matter much. Occasionally, humans make for a decent delicacy too.”
Something about his tone felt ominous. I glanced nervously between an excited Elise and Aerial, who was warily eyeing the wolves. Maybe we could resolve this through conversation since they seemed reasonable enough. I summoned up some courage and asked carefully.
“Uh, excuse me, may I ask why you’ve come looking for us?”
“Well, it’s not exactly a hard question, so I’ll humor you. We’re employees of Wolf Company. We came to collect a delivery from the pig.”
“Is… is that delivery us?”
“That’s right. Originally, we had agreed on the pig lady, but apparently, she wasn’t willing to sell herself. Instead, you three were sent as substitutes.”
“But we’re not merchandise!”
“You most certainly are.”
The glasses-wolf bared his fangs, capable of tearing flesh apart effortlessly, and licked his lips.
“And not just any merchandise—you’re prime cuts! Boys, let’s have a taste of one and take the other two back!”
“Yes, sir!”
Are you serious? So we were tricked into being sold into slavery by the pigs. d*mn those pigs! How could they sell us out to wolves?!
As the wolves approached us with low growls, I swallowed hard. Their razor-sharp claws, towering size, and superior physical prowess compared to humans were intimidating.
Even with Elise’s staff and my scythe, how could we possibly defeat such a large group of wolves?
If only we had ranged weapons like guns or bows. Dealing with over twenty wolves at close range using just melee weapons seemed impossible. Despite Elise’s bravado, I couldn’t imagine us winning.
The threat emanating from the wolves was overwhelming.
Elise glanced at me and burst into laughter.
“Keeheehee! Are you scared, kiddo? Your face looks pale! Don’t worry, I’ll cook these wolves up nice and tasty. Ever tried wolf meat? It’s surprisingly flavorful.”
[I can handle this myself! Prince, leave it to me!]
Ariel gestured in the air, and droplets of water coalesced into a trident made entirely of water. She gripped it firmly and pointed it at the wolves.
“Tch, do you really think that thing will stop a single wolf?”
[I’ll take care of more than you ever could, so stay out of the way.]
“Hey~ wanna make a bet? Let’s see who takes down more wolves!”
[Sure. I’ll make you regret it when I stomp the ground!]
Ariel charged forward first, hurling her water trident at the leading wolf. The weapon sliced through the air like a b*llet and struck the wolf square in the chest.
“Yaaaargh!”
The wolf fell backward, twitched briefly, then lay still.
Seeing their comrade fall instantly, the wolves’ confident expressions faltered. Suddenly, a massive shadow loomed over them.
BOOM! With a deafening crash, Elise’s colossal mace smashed into another wolf’s skull, flattening its giant frame against the ground.
“Kehehehe! Nothing beats the feeling of smashing skulls!”
Elise cackled maniacally as she repeatedly slammed her mace onto the dead wolf’s body. Witnessing the brutal m*rder of their ally, fear spread across the wolves’ faces.
Guess I worried for nothing.
“Hey! What are you all standing around for?! They’re just weak humans! Finish them quickly!”
Spurred on by their glasses-wearing leader, the wolves snapped out of their stupor and bared their fangs again. However, terror lingered in their eyes.
When Elise advanced with a sinister gleam in her red eyes, they flinched and hesitated. Taking advantage of their momentary lapse, she crushed another wolf’s head like a melon.
“KRAAAH!”
On the opposite side, Ariel was systematically skewering wolves with her water trident, turning them into shish kebabs.
“M-monsters! These aren’t ordinary humans!”
“Please! Spare my life! Please don’t crush my skull!”
“Now now, stay still. Otherwise, it’ll hurt~”
At this point, the wolves almost seemed pitiful. Meanwhile, I stood aside holding my scythe, though no one dared to approach me.
“Look at that huge scythe!”
“There’s no doubt he’s a monster too! If we get close, he’ll slice us in half!”
Fortunately, they mistakenly thought I was more dangerous than I actually was, saving me the trouble.
The number of wolves had dwindled to less than half. The remaining ones were fleeing for their lives. If I were a wolf, I’d rather choose a quick d*ath from Ariel over being pulverized into mincemeat by Elise’s mace.
“STOP!!!”
Suddenly, the glasses-wolf shouted loudly, halting both the fleeing wolves and the ongoing massacre.
The glasses-wolf strode confidently toward us.
“Heh, boss! Finally showing your true form as a berserker warrior without the glasses!”
“Show them, boss! Show these monsters what a real wolf looks like!”
The wolves cheered enthusiastically for their leader. Meanwhile, Elise and Ariel braced themselves in front of me, ready to face him.
“Hmph~ You’re bigger than the others. Should be fun. Can’t wait!”
[One hit KO for someone like you. Bring it on!]
“…”
The glasses-wolf puffed out his chest and took deep breaths, creating an intense atmosphere. His subordinates and I watched anxiously as the showdown approached.
His foot twitched. Elise’s mace and Ariel’s trident reacted instantly, aiming for his head and torso. But suddenly, his massive figure disappeared—no, it was now on the ground.
“I’m sorry!!!”
“Huh?”
The wolf knelt down and bowed deeply, apologizing profusely. The anticipation for a fierce battle was shattered, leaving everyone equally confused.
“We sincerely apologize for our insolence in threatening such mighty warriors!”
“Boss!?”
“What are you doing!? If you want to live, bow your head NOW!”
“Yes sir! Yes sir!”
The remaining subordinates followed suit, immediately bowing deeply. Their sudden change from arrogance to submission was unexpected. Perhaps their intelligence worked in their favor after all.
“We humbly beg for your mercy! We didn’t recognize your greatness and acted rashly!”
Elise placed her foot on the glasses-wolf’s head, clearly disappointed.
“Aww, this is boring. Come on, try attacking us.”
[Pathetic cowards. Still, good judgment in surrendering. You would’ve all died otherwise. What should we do, Prince?]
Elise draped her arm over my shoulder and grinned.
“Let’s make them remember this lesson. As punishment, let’s rip out all their claws and teeth. Then we can cut off one hind leg each and roast them. Sounds fun, right?”
