The remaining wolves couldn't even howl. In their minds, they only wished for it to leave.
Resistance? What was that?
They knew this monster and how fearsome it was.
Those unfamiliar with it instinctively knew they had no chance against the overwhelming pressure exuded by the giant bear alone.
They were surprised to find their bodies trembling. The newly arrived bear was only as large as the gigantic wild boar they had just slain earlier. Like it, it was also alone. If so, why couldn't they move properly? What was the difference between them?
Each step of the bear sent a tremor through the ground as it moved toward the spot where the freshly killed wild boar carcass lay. All the wolves backed away and scattered, clearing every path it stepped into.
"'Leader, what are we going to do? Is that bear going to eat the wild boar we killed?" a worried younger wolf whispered as it approached its leader. It had been the first to attack the wild boar after the leader's command. It was a miracle the younger wolf was still energetic and had only a few bruises after taking a direct hit from the gigantic wild boar.
"'We won't do anything," the alpha wolf replied curtly to the younger wolf.
"'Why, leader?" it questioned, its bark growing higher-pitched.
"You're still inexperienced, kid. Look around you. Many lives have been lost from our pack, and many have been wounded. The pack we formed is only enough for this one hunt-- just for that stupid boar. I have no intention of sacrificing anyone for a pointless, losing battle. I just hope it only takes the boar and doesn't get greedy. if not..." The pack's alpha answered with a grim determination. Its hesitant but its eyes exhibiting a dangerous glow.
The young wolf was irritated by his usually brave leader's behavior.
"Why are you acting like that, leader? I didn't think you were the type who would show such cowardice," the younger wolf asked in a bitter tone.
"You don't know what you're talking about. You don't know that bear. Many have fallen, dying helplessly at the hands of that loathsome monster since I was a child." The young wolf was surprised by what the leader had just revealed.
"It is no secret that we wolves are the weakest race in the forest. That is why we remain at its edge, is it not?" The alpha cast a brief glance at the young wolf before his tense gaze snapped back to the giant bear.
"Yes. It's true that we can hunt foolish wild boars to survive. Those fools are very stupid-- idiots who prefer solitude over unity. Because of that arrogance, their individual strength is wasted. All their strength has gone into their fat, heavy bodies, leaving nothing for the mind."
"That bear is a different story. It's a resident of the deeper parts of the Eternal Forest," the leader said, his shaky voice betraying his unease.
The young wolf was stunned into silence.
"Resident of the deeper parts of the Eternal Forest." That statement alone was enough of a testament to the bear's true strength.
Among forest residents, it is common knowledge that the closer a creature dwells to the center of the Eternal Forest, the greater its strength.
In truth, the wolves stood out like a sore thumb within the Eternal Forest.
The Eternal Forest is regarded as the most dangerous place in the Terragon Kingdom, a land teeming with rampaging spirit beasts of immense power.
Adventurers hesitate before entering the Eternal Forest. If given the choice, they would rather face dungeons or, at worst, war itself. In this accursed forest, death is certain.
The wild boar from earlier was also a spirit beast. When would you ever see a boar so massive and powerful that it could slaughter dozens of wolves if it were merely a normal beast?
The answer? None!
The residents of Terragon Kingdom do not know how to explain the emergence of spirit beasts. They do know, however, that these creatures had existed since before their kingdom was formed. What little is understood is that something called "spirit" has enhanced every single one of these beasts, making each of them difficult for humans to defeat. This phenomenon is similar to the so-called spirit power possessed only by a select few among humans.
So, in a way, wolves are special, truly remarkable. They are the only ordinary wild animals that dwell in the Eternal Forest.
Unlike the spirit beasts that normally inhabit the magical forest, they are ordinary creatures, far weaker in comparison. Yet somehow, they always manage to avoid annihilation.
Even outside the Eternal Forest, there are spirit beasts as well. However, compared to those within the special forest, they pale in comparison. In terms of strength, they are not qualified to dwell in the forest.
The prime example of this is slimes-- widely considered the weakest type of spirit beast. They roam throughout the Kingdom of Terragon, with the Eternal Forest being the only exception.
Seriously, those slimes! Even spirit beasts would be embarrassed to be associated with them, and even the fierce yet ordinary wolves. They are so weak that a single swipe from the ordinary wolves is enough to end their pitiful existence.
Ahem! Enough of that talk.
No one was able to stop the bear. Or rather, it wasn't that they couldn't, it was that no one was brave enough to challenge the gigantic bear as it stole their hard-earned kill.
It effortlessly lifted the lifeless giant wild boar with one hand, then carried it on its broad shoulder, much of the carcass's flesh having been eaten by the wolves earlier. It looked at the leader of the wolves with amusement and grinned, snorting playfully.
As for the younger wolf beside the leader, it didn't even glance at it, as if to say it was an irrelevant, weak minion unworthy of its attention. It tilted its head slightly, as though thinking.
The bear moved again, a mischievous glint in its eyes.
A sense of foreboding came over the alpha wolf as it saw that look.
The bear surveyed the scattered, disorganized pack of wolves.
"RUN!" the leader of the wolves desperately ordered, but his command, which sounded like a plea, was in vain.
The bear lowered its free hand and moved in a way that resembled a human uppercut, except it struck with a clawed swipe. Then it turned away, laughing, carrying the stolen food without paying any attention to those behind it.
Those left behind showed no relief. The bear had left only pain, anguish, and grief. Its casual swipe left them in tatters, nothing remained but misery and devastation.
At the spot the bear had just left were three long, deep cuts in the ground. Pieces of torn and dismembered bodies of the wolves were scattered around with blood splattered everywhere.
Only ten remained standing, including the young wolf and its leader.
This was what the alpha of the wolf pack had feared: a level of strength so unreasonable that a casual swipe nearly wiped them out.
After the wolf pack killed the wild boar, they still had a few dozen companions left, although most bore varying levels of injuries. Now, only ten remained, and a sense of defeat crept over them, as if fate itself were mocking them. From behind the towering grass, rising far above the surrounding wolves, pairs after pairs of sharp red eyes appeared, watching them in the darkness. After a while, the creatures behind those eyes emerged one by one-- a full pack of wolves, far more numerous than the remaining ten.
"This is quite the opportune moment for me... wouldn't you agree, black wolf? I never thought I'd see the day when you would look so weak and pitiful," said the wolf who seemed to be the leader of those that had emerged into the grass, its tone dripping with delight. A low, rasping laugh escaped it. Soon, two more wolves emerged on its left and right, and the pattern repeated several more times until the ten remaining wolves, who had emerged victorious from the vicious wild boar hunt and survived an encounter with a gigantic bear by sheer luck, were surrounded.
They are both wolves, yet why has the black-furred leader grown alert rather than pleased at the arrival of its own kind? The answer soon unravelled itself.
"Your only advantage over the other groups is your color. Without that, you wouldn't even be the best hunters at night. Your group wouldn't have grown like that so easily. But that advantage is gone now. Even though you're still black, you have few followers left. It's time for us to collect our due." it said with a hint of amusement.
After making its declaration, the leader of the newly arrived wolves let out a mocking laugh.
This is why the wolves of the Eternal Forest never seem to dwindle. Not only are they cunning, but they are also fractured among themselves. A pack of wolves may be highly organized and tightly bound together, but that does not hold true for all the wolves within the Eternal Forest.
Each of them belongs to a different faction, each driven by its own interests, and they stand as enemies to one another.
Even if another group is in peril, they would merely watch without offering any aid. Instead, they would seize any opportunity to trample and crush a weakened faction.
Wolves, a race-- so united, yet so divided.
Such is the nature of the race known as the guardians of the Eternal Forest.
"Prepare yourselves!" the lone black-furred leader growled, his voice low and seething with fury.
"I said, PREPARE YOURSELVES!" the black-furred wolf leader shouted, jolting the distracted, discouraged wolves awake. The remaining nine snapped to attention.
"If you want to survive-- if you want to live through this-- then wake the fuck up! You can grieve for our fallen once we're out of here. You are members of the strongest pack in the Eternal Forest. Raise your heads and... STAND YOUR GROUND!"
At the black wolf's passionate rallying cry, the scattered and demoralized wolves surged back to life, their blood boiling and their eyes burning with fierce conviction.
"We'll see if you can still say that after you see this," the leader of the rival pack said, his voice laden with meaning.
It was as if that was the signal for pairs of blood-red eyes to appear behind the grass. Then, more wolf from the opposing pack began to surface from the shadows.