"What?"
Paimon, still groggy, had yet to realize what was happening.
"Run!"
Forced into motion, Paimon glanced back. In an instant, an icy chill shot from the base of his tail straight to the top of his head, and cold sweat seeped down his back.
"Run, Will!"
A large pack of wolves slowly emerged from the direction of the hot spring, their blood-red eyes fixed squarely on the two of them.
"Awwooo~~~~"
A massive, snow-white wolf slowly stepped out from the depths of the pack. Its crimson eyes watched the fleeing pair as it howled into the night sky.
After the Wolf King's howl, the pack howled several times at the night sky before charging after the two of them.
Listening to the howls behind him, Havent swore he had never run so fast in his life. As for Paimon, there was no trace of drunkenness left in him; his mouth hung wide open, and his tongue lolled out.
Merchant Guild Camp
After inspecting his mercenary group's defensive perimeter, Wells strolled back to the campfire. Baki and several mercenaries from the squads had set up a large pot to prepare dinner. Wells looked around but saw neither his nephew nor Havent, so he asked,
"Hey, Baki, where did those two little brats go? Why aren't they helping out?"
"I'm not sure either, Commander. I haven't seen them for a while. Maybe they went off to play nearby."
Wells sat on a wooden stump, took out the wineskin at his waist, and tipped back a mouthful.
"That Paimon is such a troublemaker. Will was such a fine lad when he first arrived, but Paimon has led him astray. When he gets back, I'm going to whip his backside good."
Captain Baki had finished setting things up as well. He walked over to a wagon and took out a pile of food from a sack.
"Commander, Paimon is still young. It's normal for him to be playful. In a few years, once he gets married, he'll settle down. By then, he'll be a fine, upright young man too."
Wells took the smoked meat Baki tossed him and bit into it hard. Then, as if remembering something, he shook his head helplessly.
"Ah, if he put even a little more effort into training, he would have become a Tier 1 Warrior long ago. Then I could finally relax a little."
"Take it slowly, Commander. Children grow fast. My youngest son changes every few months when I don't see him."
As the two chatted, the mercenary standing watch atop the lookout tower built from wagons seemed to spot something.
"Captain, Paimon and Will are running back!"
Watching the two wave frantically toward the camp, the sentry turned and called to Wells, who was sitting beside the fire.
Baki had also sat down with a cup of wine.
"See? Didn't they come running back? Young people really are full of energy."
"Something's wrong! Wolves are coming! Commander, Captain, there are so many wolves behind Paimon and Will!"
Wells, who had been about to complain to his old friend some more about the troubles of raising children, shot to his feet and hurried outside the tents.
Elsewhere
After sprinting nearly two thousand meters without stopping, Havent felt as if his lungs were about to leap out of his throat. Foam had already begun to spill from the corner of Paimon's mouth.
Yet the wolf pack behind them did not seem eager to attack. It simply kept close behind them at a distance of twenty meters.
By then, the people in the camp had also spotted the two of them and the vast pack of wolves behind them.
Standing outside the tents, Wells saw the two running desperately from the wolves. His heart burned with anxiety as he grabbed a longsword from a wagon and rushed forward.
"Run! Keep running!"
The moment the two ran into the group sent to receive them, they collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath like two fish freshly hauled from the water.
As more and more wolves gathered around the perimeter, everyone hurriedly carried the two into the camp. Seeing that neither of them had any wounds, Wells finally relaxed.
He quickly climbed onto the platform built from wagons to observe the situation outside. After a rough count, Wells felt his scalp tingle. There were likely five or six hundred wolves gathered outside.
"Hurry! Move! Set up the barricades!"
"Get moving, boys! Get moving! Light the fires, hurry! Throw them around the tents! Wells! Wells, come here!"
The Mercenary Commander of Oath of Iron Shield, standing atop another wooden tower, waved at Wells. After arranging his own side's defenses, Wells headed toward the center of the camp.
"Damn it, why are there so many wolves? We've traveled this road so many times without anything happening."
By the time Wells arrived, Ada, the Mercenary Commander of Blood Wolf, Batila, the commander of Oath of Iron Shield, and Dida, the person in charge of the caravan, had all gathered there.
"Commanders, what should we do now?"
Whether from nerves or fear, sweat continuously streamed down the caravan leader's forehead. His originally curly hair had gone limp from the sweat and clung to his head, making his round face look especially comical. But no one was in the mood to laugh at a time like this.
"Mr. Dida, there's no need to panic. With your caravan guards and our three mercenary groups, dealing with these wolves won't be a problem."
Batila reassured the caravan leader. Ada, the Mercenary Commander of Blood Wolf, nodded beside him and said in a deep voice,
"Mr. Dida, rest assured. With us here, these ordinary wild wolves won't break in. If they dare attack, we only need to kill a batch of them, and the rest won't dare come forward. Once dawn comes, we'll be safe."
Hearing the commanders' assurances, the caravan leader breathed a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his face with a handkerchief.
"That's wonderful. I truly have you all to thank. Once we reach our destination, I'll definitely add more to your reward."
"You're too kind, Mr. Dida. This is what we're supposed to do."
Hearing that their employer would pay them more, the three commanders hurriedly voiced their reassurance.
"Commander! Commander! Look, by Tyr, what is that?"
Hearing the warning from the sentry atop the wooden tower, the three commanders hurried up. Before long, they saw what the sentry had meant.
Nearly a hundred snow-white wolves were approaching from behind the pack. As the white wolves drew nearer, Wells's face twitched uncontrollably, and he muttered,
"Merciful Earth Mother Goddess, how can there be so many Wind Wolves?"
But what shocked the three men was far more than the nearly hundred Wind Wolves. Behind them, an enormous figure slowly emerged from the darkness. Its crimson eyes filled Wells with an involuntary sense of dread.
"This is..."
After Ada, the Mercenary Commander of Blood Wolf, saw the massive creature clearly, even his voice began to tremble.
"This is the mid-tier Magical Beast, Death's Howl!!!!"
As the largest magic wolf drew ever closer, the three exchanged bitter smiles. It seemed tonight was destined to be exceedingly difficult.
"Commander Ada, Commander Batila, make arrangements for your respective defenses. It looks like we can't avoid a hard battle tonight."
Before you continue