Just after widening the distance from the Abyssal Creature, she turned her head only to run into a Silvermoon Wolf that had been corrupted and infected by the abyss. Talk about rotten luck.
She couldn’t help but glance at the flaming longsword in her hand—did it really want her dead so badly?
“Looks like you’re about to be thrown out as monster food.”
Regardless of whether it would work, Yuuri frowned and shouted fiercely in her heart.
If there really was a Sword Spirit inhabiting the blade, it should be able to hear her thoughts at this moment, right? After threatening it before, it had changed from a pendant back into a longsword. If she threatened it again, that timid Sword Spirit should at least rein in its ominous aura a bit.
Even Yuuri, who didn’t really believe in such things, couldn’t help but waver after running into so many strokes of bad luck in a row.
Maybe, just as Iris had said, there really was a heavy, ominous aura entwined around the sword.
“Yare yare, Yuuri-chan, what will you do next?”
How could she almost forget—there was still this irritating presence at her side. She didn’t need Iris to remind her of her current predicament.
“If you ask me, Yuuri-chan, you’re caught between a wolf in front and the abyss at your back. Be good now, and toss that sword away just as I say. Who knows, maybe your luck will turn and you’ll at least get to keep your corpse intact.”
How generous of her.
“Don’t worry, I won’t die here.”
“Yuuri-chan, you’d better keep your word. I’d hate for you to die here without even knowing why.”
The Little Evil God still wore that mischievous smile. If she could reach her, Yuuri would have loved to tug hard on that infuriating face.
But now wasn’t the time to banter with Iris.
Right in front of her, the Silvermoon Wolf corrupted by the abyss let out a savage roar. Its hind legs slammed against the ground, and in a flash of gray and black shadow, it leapt toward her with a fetid wind.
So fast.
The speed was such that Yuuri could only make out a blurred shadow.
She’d thought that, by day, the Silvermoon Wolf’s speed would be somewhat diminished. But now it seemed that, empowered by the abyss, its flaws had been patched.
With a strong swing of the flaming longsword, a tongue of fire erupted and forced the Silvermoon Wolf back. Even if empowered by the abyss, its fear of fire was still an instinct branded into its bones.
Having missed its strike, the Silvermoon Wolf quickly changed direction, circling around Yuuri. Its phantom-like figure twisted and weaved, trying to confuse her and catch her off guard for a surprise attack.
Because she’d been using the grappling hook so much, Yuuri now felt a swelling pain in her left arm and realized she wouldn’t be able to use the hook for a while. Otherwise, there might be lasting, irreversible damage.
A pity. She was down a powerful support skill. Otherwise, all she’d have to do was block a single strike from the Silvermoon Wolf, and before it could steady itself for another attack, she could fire the grappling hook and latch onto its body. Even if she couldn’t pull the beast toward her due to its mass, she could at least close the distance between herself and her target quickly.
Even just immobilizing it to create an opening for a single attack would be enough—especially for a fire-fearing Silvermoon Wolf.
With no way to use her grappling hook, Yuuri could only focus on watching the specter circling her, trying to judge from which direction the next strike would come.
The wind changed.
There!
A sharp claw slashed toward her lower body with a piercing sound. Yuuri shifted her stance and, with a powerful swing toward three o’clock, her sword’s flame grazed the Silvermoon Wolf’s fur, instantly setting the thick coat ablaze.
Roaring in pain, the Silvermoon Wolf leapt away, the fire clearly agony—especially for a creature with such dense fur.
Hoo… She forced herself to focus on the attack’s point of impact, but now the fatigue from her earlier battle with the abyss was starting to creep up on her.
She tried to control her breathing. If she only had to deal with one infected lone wolf, that was one thing. But if the entire pack was infected, she’d be in real trouble. Then she’d be up against not just this wolf, but the whole pack—including the Wolf King.
Even worse, the Abyssal Creature was still stalking her.
Being squeezed from both sides, the situation was growing grim.
Beside her, Iris still wore the look of a bystander, apparently eager to see how Yuuri would handle this.
If she asked Iris for help, she’d get out of this mess easily enough, but that would mean surrendering her body to Iris’s control.
What a tight spot.
Yuuri gripped her flaming longsword tightly. Man and wolf clashed fiercely in the clearing.
With the Silvermoon Wolf’s agility, Yuuri couldn’t gain the upper hand. Thankfully, the wolf’s fear of fire allowed her to slowly force it back, though she was never able to land a decisive blow.
If this dragged on, it wasn’t just a matter of other infected Silvermoon Wolves showing up—the Abyssal Creature stalking her would certainly reappear as well.
She needed to finish this quickly.
Just as Yuuri blocked another claw strike and readied her sword for a counterattack—
The nearby bushes suddenly rustled violently.
“Roar!”
With a mightier, more primal howl, a huge silver shadow shot out like lightning—much faster than the Silvermoon Wolf before her.
One down, and now another?
And this one looked even more formidable?
Not good…
Just as Yuuri braced herself for defense, the newcomer Silvermoon Wolf lunged at breakneck speed, jaws wide, and bit down hard on its kin’s neck.
Huh?
No—something was off.
Only now did Yuuri see the newcomer clearly.
Its frame was even larger than the infected one’s, with smooth, powerful muscle lines. Most striking of all, on its forehead was a tuft of silver-white fur shaped just like a crescent moon.
That was… the Silvermoon Wolf King?
There was no black mist coiling around the Wolf King—it seemed it hadn’t been corrupted by the abyss.
However, there was a clear bite mark on its right hind leg.
Did that come from an infected packmate?
The Wolf King’s sudden appearance broke the tense deadlock. It clamped its jaws tight around its kin’s neck, trying to subdue it. Against a normal Silvermoon Wolf, that would have been fatal, but under the abyss’s influence, the infected wolf unleashed even greater strength.
At the cost of having a huge chunk of flesh torn away, it broke free from the Wolf King’s jaws. Foul, black blood gushed from the wound, but as if it felt no pain, the wolf howled and lunged at the Wolf King.
It seemed to have forgotten there was still Yuuri right behind it.
A cold light flashed in Yuuri’s eyes as she sprang forward, the arc of her sword blazing red.
“Slash!”
The Silvermoon Wolf’s howl was cut short. Its corrupted body went rigid, then—just like those abyssal monsters—began to crumble and dissolve into gray smoke, scattered by the wind, leaving nothing behind.
The crisis was temporarily over.
Now, only Yuuri and the Silvermoon Wolf King remained in the clearing.
Who would have thought her target for subjugation would show up like this—and they’d even fought side by side.
What now?
Keep fighting?
The Wolf King’s eyes were wary.
As tension mounted again, another howl sounded from the thicket behind the Wolf King. Several Silvermoon Wolves, shrouded in black mist, burst through the brush and roared at their former leader.
So, apart from the Wolf King, the whole pack had been infected?
The Wolf King lowered its body, snarling in a battle-ready stance.
Behind Yuuri, the black fog symbolizing the abyss welled up again—Abyssal Creatures were pouring out.
It was one thing after another—no chance to catch her breath.
At that critical moment, the Silvermoon Wolf King made its move.
But its target wasn’t its corrupted kin, nor the abyssal monsters behind Yuuri—it was Yuuri herself!
What—
What was it planning?
Yuuri’s pupils shrank as she instinctively braced herself. In the next instant, the Wolf King swept past her, seized her by the collar, and—
“Eh?”
Before she could react, the Wolf King tossed its head, and she suddenly felt weightless—
The next second, she landed squarely on its furry back.
The Wolf King… was running away with her.
Wait, wait, wait… Could someone explain to her just what was going on here?