Chapter 211: The Mother’s Fall
The wolf didn’t rush.
It didn’t bare its fangs or charge like the others they had faced.
It simply stood there, at the center of the room, watching them.
Arthur felt it immediately.
"...D rank boss," he said under his breath.
Not a guess.
The pressure alone made that clear.
He had felt strong monsters before, but this one was different. It wasn’t just strength pressing down on them, it was something heavier. Something that felt... aware.
Its fur was dark, almost clumped together like it had been soaked and left to dry that way. Its body was steady, grounded, claws slightly digging into the earth as if it had no intention of being moved.
And its eyes..
Arthur frowned slightly.
"They’re not empty."
Ryn, beside him, let out a quiet breath. "Yeah. I see it."
There was something behind that stare.
Something that didn’t fit with what a dungeon monster should be.
It didn’t sit right.
"Don’t get distracted," Ryn added, low but firm.
Arthur didn’t answer.
Because he wasn’t only looking at the wolf anymore.
None of them were.
There was something else in the room.
Something worse.
Behind it, near the ritual formation, the guardian stood.
Still.
Watching.
Like none of this concerned it at all.
Arthur didn’t like that.
Not one bit.
If the wolf was a problem, that thing was the reason.
"...Did you see that?" Selene’s voice came out soft, but it cut through the tension.
Arthur’s eyes sharpened.
"Where?"
"In its hand."
They all looked again.
At first, nothing stood out.
The guardian was large, its presence already unsettling enough to draw attention away from anything else.
But then..
Something moved.
Small.
Weak.
Arthur leaned his focus harder.
And then he saw it.
"...What the hell..."
A cub.
A small wolf cub, held in the guardian’s grip.
Its fur was grey, soft even from this distance, nothing like the dark, matted coat of the larger wolf. Its eyes were the same though. Red.
Too similar to be a coincidence.
The cub shifted weakly, its small body struggling against the hand holding it.
Not fighting, trying to escape the grip.
But it didn’t have the strength left to do more.
Its body twitched, and a faint sound escaped it.
Not even a proper cry.
Just pain.
Arthur’s jaw tightened.
"That’s..." he trailed off, but didn’t finish.
He didn’t need to.
The large wolf reacted.
A low growl rolled out of it, deep and warning.
It stepped slightly to the side, adjusting its position so its body blocked their view of the cub.
Instinct.
Clear as day.
Torren exhaled slowly. "...You’ve got to be kidding me."
Althea’s voice came out quieter than usual, but there was tension in it.
"...That’s binding magic."
The words settled heavily.
No one questioned it.
Because it made sense.
Too much sense.
Arthur’s eyes flicked between the wolf and the guardian.
"So it’s using the cub to control it."
Ryn nodded once. "Looks like it."
The cub moved again.
And this time, the guardian reacted.
Its grip tightened.
The change was instant.
The cub’s body jerked violently, a weak, broken sound leaving it.
Pain.
Raw and forced.
Arthur’s fingers tightened around his dagger.
"...That’s messed up."
Before anyone could say anything else, the guardian spoke.
"Intruders."
Its voice dragged out of its throat like it wasn’t meant to be used. Rough. Twisted. Wrong.
It echoed faintly across the room.
The wolf growled again, louder this time.
But Arthur noticed it clearly now.
"That’s not at us," he muttered.
Ryn’s eyes stayed locked forward. "Yeah."
The growl carried something else.
Resistance.
The wolf didn’t want this.
It didn’t want any of this.
For a brief moment, that awareness in its eyes became clearer.
Stronger.
Like it was holding on to something.
But then..
The guardian pressed down harder.
The cub trembled.
Its small body shaking in its grasp.
And just like that..
The wolf’s resistance broke.
Arthur felt it.
That moment.
The shift.
"...Damn," he said quietly.
The ritual circle flared.
Dark mana surged out, thick and violent.
Not flowing.
Forcing its way through.
Straight into the wolf.
Its body jerked.
Hard.
Like something had been shoved into it against its will.
Its claws dug into the ground..
Crack.
The earth gave under the pressure.
Its muscles tightened, then swelled unnaturally, stretching against its skin. Veins showed faintly beneath its fur as it thickened, darkened even further, swallowing what little light touched it.
Arthur didn’t blink.
He watched it happen.
All of it.
The eyes were the worst part.
That awareness...
That resistance...
It disappeared.
Replaced by something colder.
Sharper.
Empty.
The wolf threw its head back and roared.
The sound hit them like a wave.
Heavy and violent.
The ground shook beneath it as cracks spread outward from where it stood.
Arthur felt his grip tighten.
"...It’s gone."
The guardian laughed behind it.
"Hohohoho..."
Satisfied.
Like it had just finished something it had been waiting for.
The wolf lowered its head again.
Slowly.
Its gaze locked onto them.
And this time...
There was nothing behind it.
No hesitation or thought.
Just intent... to kill.
Ryn didn’t waste time.
"Brace."
His voice was low but sharp.
"Althea. Buffs on first move."
"Ready," she answered immediately.
No one looked away.
They couldn’t.
The wolf stood still.
One second.
Two.
Arthur’s breathing slowed.
His grip adjusted slightly.
Then... It moved.
No.
It disappeared.
Arthur’s eyes widened.
Too fast..
The space where it stood distorted from the force of its movement.
And then..
It was in front of Nox.
She froze.
Not because she wanted to.
Her body just didn’t catch up.
The claw came down.
Massive.
Sharp.
Fast enough that it blurred.
"NOX!"
Arthur moved.
But even as he stepped, he knew that he wasn’t making it in time.
But Torren did.
And he didn’t hesitate.
He stepped in front of her, shield already coming up.
"Get back!"
Althea’s voice followed instantly.
"Now!"
Her mana surged.
Two layers at once.
They wrapped around Torren just before impact.
Strength.
Defense.
Then... BOOM!
The hit landed.
The sound cracked through the room.