Snow settled heavily over the mountains. Most wolves curled deep inside the great den, but I preferred the cold night air. My fire-wolf body didn't feel winter's bite, and Bruno—now an ice wolf—was just as unfazed. He slept near the entrance of the cave, among the low-rank wolves. Our parents, the alphas, slept at the warmest hollow at the back.
I perched on a high tree branch, watching the stars shimmer across a black sky. Peaceful. Silent.
Then—light.
Torches.
Moving in the distance.
I dropped from the tree without a sound.
Bruno appeared beside me instantly; he must've sensed the tension through our bond.
"Don't alert Father," I whispered. "If anything goes wrong, I'll call."
He nodded and returned to stand guard at the cave mouth.
I activated sound cancellation, blending it with enhanced eyes and high sense.
[Combination Likability: 70%]
Do you wish to combine?
"Yes."
My vision shifted instantly—everything turned into glowing outlines, an x-ray view of the forest. With shadow move, I slipped between the silhouettes of trees and rushed toward the torches.
What I arrived to was hell.
---
Kai POV – Battlefield
Another pack had crossed into our territory. Twenty wolves, fast-moving shadows tearing into a scattered human group. Four wagons formed a broken circle. Below, women and children huddled while knights desperately defended them.
It was hopeless.
Archers had been slaughtered first.
Eleven knights remained outside, five inside.
Blood everywhere. Screaming everywhere.
Time to test my abilities.
I combined shadow cover with shadow feat.
Shadow Movement unlocked — Move and attack from within shadows.
Then I fused iron claws, iron fangs, and buff.
Iron Wolf unlocked — Bones and body hardened like metal.
Quietly, I climbed onto a tree above the wagons.
---
Lady Angeline POV
My knights fell one by one. Wolves—fast, coordinated, ruthless. There must have been a high-dire wolf commanding them; the ambush was too perfect.
Is this… my death?
My light attribute magic was weakening. I couldn't protect everyone.
As a duke's daughter, I had been trained since birth—but training meant nothing against monsters.
I looked for an escape—and froze.
Something stood atop the front wagon.
A dark shape. A moving shadow. A wolf… but not like the others.
"Can any of you see that?" I whispered sharply.
My knights looked up, confused.
"We see nothing, my lady!"
But the figure remained there—motionless, watching the massacre unfold. A presence colder than snow and hotter than flame all at once.
I wasn't hallucinating.
Something else had joined the battlefield.
---
Kai POV
From above, I scanned the pack and locked onto him.
The leader.
A High Dire Wolf. Levels unknown. Dangerous.
He noticed me the moment I noticed him. His eyes narrowed.
Below, a girl—maybe eight or nine—pointed straight at me.
"H-He's up there! Can't you see it!?" she shouted.
The knights stared at her in confusion.
They truly couldn't see me.
Interesting.
I leapt.
Two shadow wolves lunged at the knights—I intercepted them in mid-air.
SLASH. SLASH.
Their bodies split before they knew they were dead.
Gasps erupted from the humans as I landed behind them, my burning aura lighting the snow.
I turned to face the High Dire Wolf, every muscle tensed.
I lowered my voice, letting the growl vibrate through the battlefield.
"You are trespassing.
Leave our territory…
or die by my fangs."
The entire battlefield froze.
Even the wind held its breath.
I watched as the invading pack froze in place. The soldiers and knights stopped mid-step, confusion and fear written across their faces. Every ear twitched, every nose flared. They felt it—the pressure, the aura radiating from me.
I let it build. Slowly, deliberately. My body burned with heat, muscles tense, every claw flexing, every fang gleaming. Shadows clung to me like smoke, feeding the fear into the air itself.
Then I turned.
Slowly. Purposefully.
There she was.
The alpha.
The High Dire Wolf.
A female. Massive, regal, her fur a deep silver that glimmered faintly under the torchlight. Eyes like molten steel locked onto mine. Calm. Confident. Dangerous. Every inch of her exuded authority.
She didn't move, didn't roar. She simply watched. Calculated.
I felt her assessing me, testing my strength, measuring my will. My heart raced, every instinct screaming to attack, to challenge, to assert dominance.
The snow around us shifted slightly in the sudden silence. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
I spoke—not a growl, not a roar, but low, deliberate.
"I am Kai.
This is my territory.
You will not pass."
Her gaze didn't waver. For a long moment, it was just the two of us—predator and predator, alpha and alpha, fire and ice.
Then, without warning, her stance shifted. Her muscles coiled like a spring. She crouched low, tail flicking, claws scraping the frozen ground. The air between us crackled—not with magic, but with pure, raw power.
The battlefield around us seemed to blur and fade. The snow, the wagons, the panicked humans—all irrelevant now. There was only her. And me.
A single thought ran through my mind:
This will be the fight that defines me.
And then, without another sound, she lunged
The fight had been merciless, a blur of claws, fangs, and flames. Time seemed to stretch and snap all at once—every strike, every dodge, every movement a deadly rhythm of life and death.
I felt it, the shift in momentum. With each clash, each burst of fire and shadow, I gained the upper hand. My flames licked at her fur, her strikes growing slower, less precise, weighed down by exhaustion—or perhaps respect.
Then she struck. A powerful swipe, aimed to crush me. I dodged, instincts screaming. Flames erupted around me as I activated Flame Flare, sending a burst of heat and fire that forced her to stumble back.
She recovered quickly, her silver fur singed, eyes narrowing—but her focus was broken for the briefest moment. That's when I saw it.
A sword, flying with uncanny speed, embedded itself in her back. Her head snapped around to follow it, and for an instant, her attention wavered completely.
I didn't hesitate.
I lunged, claws blazing and fire coursing through every fiber of my being, aiming for her neck. Her eyes widened—shock, surprise, fury—but it was too late.
The strike landed.
The world seemed to freeze for a heartbeat. Then she collapsed, her massive body hitting the snow with a heavy thud. Silence fell.
Around us, the invading pack froze in fear, watching their alpha defeated, powerless. I stood over her, chest heaving, fire still flickering along my fur, claws slick with ash and frost.
Victory wasn't sweet—it was survival, dominance, proof of power.
I had claimed my place.
And the forest itself seemed to acknowledge it.