Chapter 17 : The Strongest Party, Someday! (2)

“Hmph! It’s not like I’m following because I’m scared, it’s just that the inside of the cave feels suffocating, that’s all!”

Shouting that in my head, I stuck close behind the sound.

To be honest, I didn’t want to go out.

That dark and damp cave was horrible, but the fear of not knowing what was outside was even greater.

But even so, I really didn’t want to be left alone in the cave where that huge dragon—no, evil dragon—was sleeping.

And I felt like I’d be anxious if the sound wasn’t by my side.

The sound had saved me before, and even though she was a commoner, she was incredibly cool.

The adults around me must all be wrong.

When I think of how the sound fought against wolves, it was scary, but honestly… I wanted to be like her.

Even as I thought I wanted to be like her, my legs trembled as I moved forward.

It was because I was afraid of running into wolves again.

Of course, I had made my way from outside to the cave once before.

“Back then, at least I had the protection stone… that’s how I was able to get to the cave.”

The protection stone was a magical item that kept wild animals or monsters from approaching as long as you carried it.

Before coming here, I had received it from the coachman, saying it was a gift from my father.

That’s why I had the courage to attempt escaping to the outside when I entered the evil dragon’s cave.

But the protection stone had shattered my expectations miserably.

As soon as I stepped out, I encountered wolves, and then the evil dragon’s magic broke the stone.

Now, I could only rely on the sound in front of me like a replacement protection stone.

“M-My magic might be helpful, too…?”

The trees were so thick with leaves that they blocked the sunlight, and beneath our feet, wet soil and rotting leaves were being trampled.

Strange bug noises and the cries of unknown birds echoed constantly.

It was a strange place I had never been before.

“Wow…”

“We have to memorize the path as we go.”

The scenery was so different from my father’s castle or the garden.

But strangely, even though I was scared, my heart was pounding.

I could feel my heart thumping quickly—ba-dump, ba-dump.

And I could tell this wasn’t just because of fear.

It was like sneaking into a forbidden place—there was a thrilling excitement and sense of adventure blooming in my chest.

The sound walked confidently ahead.

Still holding that sharp stone, she marked the trees as she looked around seriously.

“Why are you scratching them?”

“Path… markers. For when we come back later.”

Markers—something about it seemed cool.

How does the sound know all this stuff? She looks about the same age as me, even if she’s a commoner…

Seeing the sound’s serious expression made me feel—oddly—reassured.

“Let’s draw a cat for the next marker!”

“A cat?”

“You don’t know? Then I’ll draw the next one!”

So there are things even the sound doesn’t know! I’ll have to teach her.

I grinned and followed behind her.

But my short burst of adventure quickly ran out.

Walking along the bumpy forest path was way harder than I thought.

I hadn’t walked that far, but I was already out of breath and my legs ached.

Sweat poured down like rain, mixing with the dust and making a mess.

“Huff, huff… Sound, can you slow down? I’m dying here!”

I panted and grumbled.

The sound looked back at me for a moment.

Her eyes seemed to carry a hint of disappointment, which made me feel a bit bad, but I didn’t even have the strength to complain.

Still, maybe because of my whining, the sound did slow her pace a little.

“When we get back, I’m seriously going to work out more…!”

If the evil dragon sleeps for a hundred years, I’ll be going on hunts with the sound every day from now on.

I decided to start exercising without complaint.

“Ehehe… just the two of us… hunting.”

With that vow, we walked a bit farther.

Then suddenly, the air around us felt chilly.

Goosebumps ran down my spine.

And then, from somewhere, I heard a low growling sound.

“Grrrr…”

I held my breath.

The sound also froze in place, eyes scanning the surroundings.

At the same time, we both looked deep into the forest where the sound had come from.

Between the shadows of the trees, glowing eyes appeared.

One, two, three—suddenly five or six wolves surrounded us.

They looked even bigger and fiercer than the ones that attacked me last time.

They narrowed the circle around us slowly, eyes glinting with hunger.

“Eek!”

I screamed and hid behind the sound’s back.

Wolves again?! I really thought I was going to die this time.

My heart pounded like crazy, and I felt dizzy.

But the sound was different.

She didn’t retreat even a little—instead, she gripped the stone in her hand tighter and glared at the wolves.

“Hm, wolves might be good eating too.”

Does the sound not even know what fear is?!

She even licked her lips at the sight of the wolves.

One of the wolves closest to us lunged first.

It bared its black fangs, aiming to bite her arm.

“Gasp!”

I imagined the horrible scene that would unfold next and squeezed my eyes shut.

But what I heard wasn’t her scream—it was a heavy thud and the wolf’s agonized yelp!

Thwack! Yelp!

When I cautiously opened my eyes, I saw something unbelievable.

The sound had hit the wolf that lunged at her right on the head with her stone, and the wolf was yelping and writhing on the ground!

And that wasn’t all—the sound didn’t hesitate and rushed at another wolf, kicking it in the side.

The wolf let out a strangled yelp and stumbled backward.

It all happened so fast.

Seeing that she had the upper hand, I cheered with all my might.

“Go, Sori!”

Her movements were even faster, more precise, and stronger than last time.

She definitely looked smaller than me, but where did that strength and skill come from?

The remaining wolves seemed completely terrified by her overwhelming presence—they whimpered and started backing away.

If they would just run away like this…!

“Huh…?”

But my hope quickly turned into despair.

Beyond the spot where the wolves retreated, a much larger shadow appeared in the dark forest.

A massive body that looked a head taller than the other wolves.

Its entire body was covered in scars that seemed to come from battles, and its eyes glowed cold and cruel like ice.

And… under its jaw grew a clump of gray fur, clearly different from the rest of its coat.

More than the fact that it was bigger than the other wolves, the moment I saw that gray fur, I forgot how to breathe.

Not long ago, at my father’s castle, I overheard hunters and knights whispering stories.

Stories about a cunning and ruthless old alpha wolf said to roam this Black Mountain range.

Because it frequently ambushed caravans, there was even a bounty on its head, and many hunters lost their lives or limbs trying to catch it.

The only defining trait of the beast was…

The gray mane under its jaw.

A monster I only ever heard of in scary but amusing stories had appeared before my eyes.

“Liar…”

My mind went blank.

The predator of the Black Mountains, Gray Fang, was right in front of me.

A massive body beyond comparison with the other wolves, scars etched all over, and most terrifying of all, those icy, piercing eyes.

“Sori! Run! That thing is Gray Fang!”

Instinctively, I grabbed Sori’s sleeve and shouted.

But Sori only shoved me behind her and glared at Gray Fang and the other wolves, growling lowly.

And in that moment, I realized.

There was nowhere to run.

Before I knew it, the other wolves had blocked our escape route and were closing in, forming a semicircle.

We were completely trapped.

“Stay behind me!”

Perhaps realizing how strange the situation was, Sori hid me behind her and shouted.

Her voice didn’t tremble, but the tension was obvious.

She still held the blood-stained stone in her hand.

As Gray Fang let out a short, low howl like a signal, the wolves all lunged at once.

I tightly shut my eyes.

But this time, I didn’t scream.

No — I couldn’t scream.

Because what unfolded before me made me forget how to breathe.

Sori narrowly dodged the wolves’ sharp teeth by a paper-thin margin and swung the stone at every opening, taking them down swiftly.

Thud!

A dull sound rang out as one wolf was knocked back.

But another wolf quickly took its place and charged.

Sori had no time to dodge and was kicked in the side, and another wolf slashed her arm!

“Ugh!”

Sori let out a short groan.

Her clothes were torn, and blood seeped from the wound.

I thought my heart had stopped.

“Sori!”

But Sori didn’t care.

She adjusted her stance again.

Her eyes grew fiercer.

‘I have to help. But how?’

Sori was fighting three or four wolves at once.

But there were too many of them, and cunning Gray Fang was commanding them from behind, waiting for an opening.

Sori’s breathing grew heavier.

Her movements were getting slower.

She was clearly getting tired.

‘Why can’t I do anything…!’

I couldn’t do anything.

I could only tremble behind Sori and watch the desperate battle.

The fact that Sori was fighting because of me — that she was getting hurt because of me — pierced my heart like a dagger.

If only I hadn’t followed her out of the cave… If only I hadn’t ignored what she said…

My vision blurred from the helplessness and guilt.

As I always did when faced with danger, I started crying loudly out of habit.

“Waaah… I’m scared! Someone help us!”

Maybe, just maybe, I hoped my crying would reach the sleeping dragon.

Or maybe it was just a reflexive burst of fear without any thought.

But it was then.

While barely dodging a wolf’s attack and gasping for breath, Sori turned her head toward me and shouted.

Her voice broke with exhaustion, but her frustration and urgency were crystal clear.

“Don’t cry!”

I hiccupped and stopped crying.

“If you’ve got time to cry… magic! You can use it! Show me!”

Magic?

Me?

In this situation? All I could do was make small flickers of light.

What use is that against these hungry wolves?

But Sori’s eyes were sincere.

Whatever power I had, she was desperately begging me to use it right now.

I held back my tears and looked at her back.

She had started fighting the wolves again, but her movements were clearly slowing.

Blood still poured from the wound on her arm, and her breathing now sounded like screams.

She might really die like this.

Because of me.

‘…No, I don’t want that.’

My very first friend might die.

I had to do something.

I couldn’t just let Sori die.

Even if my magic was weak — even if there was just a tiny sliver of hope — I had to try.

With trembling hands, I wiped away my tears.

I recalled the offensive spell I secretly learned a month ago from the sage who had been staying at the mansion.

Back then, I couldn’t use it, so I only played pretend, thinking it was cool and fun — but now was different.

This might be the only way Sori and I could survive.

I took a deep breath and focused all my mind.

“O light of the beginning.”

I tried to gather all the mana within me.

My heart pounded wildly.

As the mana gathered in my hands, my fingertips tingled.

“Radiance of origin… let your glory shine upon this land…”

My voice trembled like a goat’s, and light was already beginning to radiate from my palms.

‘It’s definitely brighter than before…!’

But if I couldn’t maintain it, it would explode from my hands just like with the evil dragon before.

Still, I didn’t stop.

“Lisette!”

Sori’s ragged breathing echoed from behind her.

I tightly closed my eyes and shouted the final incantation.

“Let it be filled!”

Please, please, let it be real light this time.

Let it at least blind the wolves.

With all my heart, I pushed the gathered mana forward.