Chapter 20: Pack of Mistfang Wolf
"Flame Lash."
The fire blade hissed as Lucien whispered the name.
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In the Haewun Forest, under a scorching sun that bleached the sky, he stood surrounded by a pack of wolves.
They had resumed the hunt for the Thornback Boar at dawn. Along the way, they had encountered numerous Volkoids – enough to sharpen his skills but not enough to exhaust him. Seraphina watched from the shadows, arms folded. She did not intervene; her aura would have scattered the beasts. This was his training.
Each battle had honed him. His reflexes now snapped like taut wire. His skills flowed without thought.
But this was different.
Dozens of wolves circled him – lean, silent, their grey fur streaked with faint silver. Their eyes glowed like pale amber, unblinking. They did not snarl.
Mistfang Wolves.
They were just waiting for the right time to strike.
The sun hung overhead, heavy and hot. Sweat trickled down Lucien’s temple, but his breathing was steady. His grip on the Fang of the Unnamed Dark was light, ready.
The pack leader – a larger wolf with a scarred muzzle – lowered its head. Its muscles tensed.
The battle hadn’t started yet.
The Mistfang Wolves were smarter than the Cottontail Impalers. They could sense something dangerous about Lucien, so they didn’t rush. They watched, waiting to wear him down.
Lucien didn’t attack first. He wanted them to make the first move.
There were almost fifty of them. Even with his defense and armor, he couldn’t be too careless.
The wolves got impatient. Their alpha howled.
Two Mistfang wolves charged from both sides, claws ready to strike.
The claws came close. Lucien moved.
He sidestepped the first wolf, its claws raking empty air. His blade came up, caught the second under the jaw. The wolf crumpled.
Heart-Mind fusion.
His emotions locked away. No fear. No hesitation. Just the blade and the bodies.
Ding!
[Host has killed a level 3 Initiate Realm Mistfang Wolf. You are rewarded with 10 EXP and 2 SP.]
Ding!
[Host has killed a level 3 Initiate Realm Mistfang Wolf. You are rewarded with 10 EXP and 2 SP.]
The system notifications came through. He looked at the pack of wolves – they were like experience points to him.
The wolves circled faster. One lunged from behind. He spun, kicked it aside, and drove the Fang into its ribs. It yelped once, then fell quiet.
Another down, and the system notified.
More came. Three at once. Their claws left afterimages – Mist Step. Harder to track. But Lucien didn’t need to see. He felt them. The air shifted. The shadows moved.
He ducked under a swipe, came up inside the wolf’s guard, and cut its throat. The second wolf tried to bite his leg – Hamstring. He hopped back, barely, and stabbed down through its skull.
The third wolf howled – Pack Howl. The sound washed over him. Slowed him.
But only for a breath. Heart-Mind fusion pushed through. His body ignored the effect while his mind pushed through it.
He stepped forward. The wolves fell back. Too late.
Shadow Step. The knight’s skill – he didn’t have it. But he had speed, his agility. Even without using a skill, he was fast – he drove his speed to the brim.
He closed the gap, blade swinging without a sound.
One wolf lost its tail. Another lost an eye. Another lost its life.
Bodies piled on the dry grass. The pack’s numbers thinned. The system notification buzzed.
With a swing of his sword, a wolf’s life was harvested.
Thirty became twenty. Twenty became ten.
The alpha watched from the edge until it couldn’t take it any longer.
Its pack was thinning, and as a leader, it couldn’t watch this happen.
It howled and charged into the battle fray. Lucien felt its aura – unlike that of the others.
It displayed the aura of an alpha.
The alpha lunged.
Faster than the others. Its jaws aimed for Lucien’s throat.
Lucien didn’t flinch. He stepped back, just out of reach, and swung the Fang. The blade caught the alpha’s shoulder. Not deep. The wolf twisted mid‑air, landed on its paws, and circled.
Blood dripped from the wound. The alpha snarled – the first sound any of them had made.
The Fang of the Unnamed Dark was not to be underestimated. There was no skin it couldn’t pierce, as long as the opponent wasn’t far stronger than the blade itself.
The alpha walked to the side; Lucien did the same, both moving in a slow, rotating circle.
The alpha charged again. This time, it feinted left, then snapped right.
The movement created an illusion – five copies of the wolf, each lunging from a different angle. But in the Heart-Mind fusion state, Lucien could track the real one.
Seeing this, he decided to bait the alpha.
The alpha lunged forward, claw aimed at Lucien’s chest. Lucien struck with the Fang – but the blade hit nothing. A fleeting shadow.
And from behind, the real alpha struck. Its claw aimed to cleave his head.
Seraphina, watching from the shadows, felt a spike of worry. She wanted to move, but she believed in her husband. That belief held her back. Still, she swore: if that wolf dared hurt him, she would raze this entire forest to the ground.
Lucien smirked as he sensed the alpha’s movement behind him.
His heart grew still. He became fully concentrated. Not even the wind could escape his ears.
Any small mistake, and his head would fall.
The claws drew closer.
Lucien made his move – an unexpected one. He bent his head low, like a man bowing.
This wasn’t a movement meant to counterattack. It left him vulnerable.
The alpha sailed over him, its body passing just above his bowed head.
But Lucien hadn’t finished. This was what he had been waiting for.
He willed his SS-Rank Origin Fire Element. Flames erupted from his body and spread to the blade.
"Flame Lash."
The fire blade hissed as Lucien whispered the name. Three small, unknown runes appeared, circling the fire blade in a ring.
They were golden, burning with flame. They fused into the Fang.
The blade turned red as magma. Then something magical happened – it slowly twisted, coiled, until it became a whip.
Red like molten rock, releasing waves of heat. Runes etched along its length.
All of this happened in an instant.
The alpha wolf’s fur stood on end, sensing the danger. But it could not stop its momentum or change direction.
It was already committed.
A/N: Note that the wolves in this Chapter are just slightly bigger than the wolves you know. Continue to support this author; your support is my greatest motivation. For the Discord link, please check the synopsis.
