"Just a few darts—what could these things possibly do?!" Shuka, the guild master of Smile Coffin, felt insulted. After talking such big game and even launching the first attack, his opponent had actually chosen not to use magic, instead throwing a few darts.
Quick-eyed and nimble-handed, Shuka sidestepped and caught the Flying Thunder God Kunai flying toward him. "Trash from the Light Guild, using such low-class toys? I'll personally—"
"If I were you, I wouldn't..." In a flash of golden light, Ed vanished from where he stood and appeared before Shuka. An uncharged Monster Strength Fist slammed squarely into Shuka's nose, sending him flying. The unfinished second half of his sentence reached everyone's ears alongside his scream.
"Casually catch projectiles thrown by hostile mages!" With Ed's move, the battle officially began.
The surrounding Smile Coffin members came to their senses and swarmed Ed's position with magic. "Shadowhorn Spear!" "Lightning Strike!" "Fireball!" "Shatter!" Several attack spells struck the spot where Ed had just been standing. With a boom, thick smoke billowed up.
"Did we get him?" "He dared to talk big all by himself? Now he'll learn his lesson!"
"Never heard of no smoke, no damage?" As the voice rang out, everyone looked over to see that Ed had somehow appeared in front of the Wolf King. He had already cut the ropes binding the wolf pups and was tossing them to the Wolf King.
"All right, keep an eye on your children. I already know they were trying to control the wolf pack and attack the town, while you were restraining the wolves. So the two of us aren't enemies. What do you say? Want to help me take out this trash?" Ed invited the Wolf King.
The Wolf King did not answer. He merely lowered his head, picked up several wolf pups, and tossed them onto his back. Keeping everyone under wary watch, he slowly backed away.
"Tch, not interested? Fine, I won't force you." Watching the Wolf King retreat, Ed did not invite him again. Instead, he turned directly to the people around him. "Then it's our business now~"
He then took out several more kunai, gripped them in his hands, and hurled them at Shuka, who had just climbed back to his feet. "Capture the ringleader first. Let's see if you dare catch another one!"
After throwing the kunai, pale golden magic power emerged from Ed's hand, rapidly gathering and spinning until it gradually formed a golden sphere. It gave off a faint glow and a dangerous humming sound.
Shuka had learned his lesson this time. Seeing the kunai about to strike him, he scrambled and rolled aside. Before he could catch his breath, he heard a whoosh. Looking up, he saw Ed already at his side, raising the dangerous-looking sphere of magic power to slam it into him. Shuka's hairs instantly stood on end as an overwhelming sense of danger stabbed into his brain. With no time to think, he immediately unleashed his strongest defensive spell. "Earth Wall Summon!"
As expected of a guild master, Shuka's casting speed was still impressive. In the blink of an eye, an earthen wall rose rapidly, successfully blocking the Rasengan before Ed could strike Shuka.
"I thought you had some big move. Just an earthen wall? Break!" Ed did not hesitate. He directly increased his magic output and continued pressing the Rasengan against the wall. The instant the earthen wall came into contact with the Rasengan, a hole was bored straight through it from the point of impact, as effortlessly as a red-hot iron ball dropped onto a sheet of white foam.
Then, before Shuka's disbelieving eyes, the Rasengan struck him squarely in the chest. Under Ed's burst of power, the tennis-ball-sized Rasengan expanded into a giant sphere of magic nearly two meters in diameter upon impact. Its explosive force sent Shuka spinning into the forest behind him. He crashed through four or five trees before hitting the ground, and when they looked again, he was barely breathing.
"Now then, you're next." Ed looked around at the dozen or so dark mages staring at him as if they had been petrified.
"The boss was defeated just like that? He couldn't even fight back!" "What kind of magic did he use?!" "Impossible! Absolutely impossible! This has to be an illusion! How could some teenager be this strong?!" They seemed unable to accept reality.
Ed did not hesitate. He activated the Flying Thunder God again, combining it with the Monster Strength Art and Rasengan to swiftly clear out all the surrounding fodder.
After taking down all the enemies, Ed dragged them together and tightly tied them up with rope. "That should be it. That was pretty easy~"
Ed was about to leave with the group when he heard rustling sounds behind him. Turning around, he saw the Wolf King, who had left with his children earlier, returning alone. Seeing the scene before him, the Wolf King looked somewhat surprised. "Human, you defeated your own kind so quickly."
Ed realized that the Wolf King had gone to settle the pups down earlier, rather than refusing to fight alongside him.
"Well, I'm pretty strong. Come to think of it, you're the Wolf King, right? Thanks to you restraining the pack, this town managed to hold out until I arrived. You've helped them a great deal too. Oh, and you can just call me Ed."
"I understand, human... no, Ed. By helping me, you helped the wolf pack. If you ever need us, the pack will repay you. In the name of Andrius, Wolf King of the North Wind, I swear that the wolf pack will remember you."
"S-So you're the Wolf King of the North Wind. Does that mean that after becoming the Wolf King, you changed from a simple wind attribute into a dual attribute with both ice and wind powers?" Ed looked at the ice crystals and gentle breeze swirling around Andrius, feeling genuinely envious. Those effects are so cool, Ed thought.
"No. I am not a purebred Wind Wolf. I was born with both wind and ice magic power. My pack is not from this forest. When I was young and playing outside, a group of humans captured me. As they passed through this town, the humans here rescued me and released me into these woods. Then the Wind Wolf pack in the forest accepted me. They taught me to hunt and helped me grow up. To repay them, I became the king of the Wind Wolf pack, protecting them from harm while also restraining them from attacking the town."
"So that's how it was. You repay kindness without fail—I like that about you~" Ed patted Andrius's foreleg. "Well then, see you around. I've already taken down these people. All that's left is to bring them back and hand them over to the Magic Council, and the mission should be complete." Ed was about to bid the Wolf King farewell when he suddenly noticed that Shuka had somehow regained consciousness and was trying to break free from the ropes.
"Buddy, could you give me a little respect? Trying to run away right in front of me is a bit much, isn't it? And your vitality's like a cockroach's. You woke up so fast after getting beaten that badly." Ed kicked him irritably. Shuka rolled over from the kick and gasped for air. "Hah... You think... you think you've already won?"
Ed did not quite understand. "Why don't you explain how exactly you plan to turn this situation around?"
Shuka looked at the sky, estimated the time, and fell silent for a moment. Then he suddenly grinned viciously at Ed. "Since you heard our plan, did you notice that not a single mage here can control magical beasts in battle?"
"You mean Fosa, the one who can control the wolf pack? Wait, where is he now?" Ed suddenly remembered that their plan involved a mage who could command magical beasts.
"Why don't you guess?" Shuka looked as though he had nothing to fear and was even trying to provoke Ed.
"Not going to talk? Then I'll just—" A red firework suddenly exploded in the distant sky.
Before you continue