The Alpha Male Tames the Wolf King
Blue lightning coiled around my entire body.
KWA-RRRRRRRUMBLE!
The mythic-grade hammer in my grip radiated power enough to pulverize an entire mountain in a single blow. Just as I was about to charge the Black Bone Wolf King with Mjolnir raised high—
The beast’s crimson eyes flooded with pure terror.
“This ends now!”
I roared as I swung the hammer down—
“W-wait! Stop!”
The terrified creature’s voice thundered across the entire ruined city.
My feet stopped of their own accord.
Right before Mjolnir could crush its skull, a bolt of lightning leaping from the hammer merely kissed the tip of one of its horns.
ZZZZT!
A blackened shard of horn clattered to the ground.
The Black Bone Wolf King squeezed its eyes shut and trembled violently.
I looked down at it, still gripping Mjolnir.
So it could speak all along.
That was surprising. In my previous life I had fought more wolves than I could count—ambushed by starving packs in snow-choked forests, even cleaving the neck of a bull-sized pack leader with my axe. But a wolf begging for its life in human speech? That was a first.
“Did you just speak?”
It nodded frantically.
“Y-yes, I did!”
Its voice was deep and rough, a perfect match for its monstrous frame—yet the tone was absurdly polite. Hard to believe this was the same beast that had been trying to tear my throat out moments earlier.
“Why stay silent until now?”
“I-I thought you were nothing more than lowly prey not worth conversing with.”
Honest, at least. I’d give it credit for that much courage.
I lifted Mjolnir high again.
“B-but I was wrong! Completely wrong!”
The Black Bone Wolf King scrambled to add more.
“You are no prey—you are a great warrior!”
“You were trying to kill me just a second ago.”
“I-it was a mistake!”
Lightning crackled from the hammer in my hand as I stared at it in silence.
ZZZZZT-ZZZT-ZZZT!
“Eek!”
A high-pitched squeal utterly unsuited to its massive body tore from its throat.
Off to the side, Han Yujin stood frozen, mouth hanging open at the bizarre spectacle.
“A m-monster just… talked…!”
But what happened next was even more astonishing.
The Black Bone Wolf King slowly lowered its body. At first I thought it was preparing a counterattack—some ploy to lure me into dropping my guard. I tightened my grip on Mjolnir instantly.
“What are you plotting?”
“Y-you misunderstand!”
It answered in a rush, then flattened its belly completely against the ground.
THUD!
And rolled over onto its back, exposing its underbelly.
THUMP!
“…….”
A wolf more than seven meters long lay on its back with all four legs curled in, utterly vulnerable. The purest gesture of submission imaginable.
Then it cried out:
“I-I surrender! P-please… just spare my life!”
I stood silent, still holding the time-limited Mjolnir. Han Yujin couldn’t find words either. An eerie quiet settled over the ruined plaza.
Yujin broke the silence first, murmuring as if to herself.
“Is this… actually possible?”
“I have no idea.”
“A Nightmare-difficulty boss… surrendering? Belly-up, no less?”
A moment later the thirty-second timer expired. With a soft chime of notification, Mjolnir dissolved into smoke in my hand.
KZZZZZZT!
Residual lightning flickered before my eyes as the status window appeared, as if it had been waiting for exactly this moment.
Title effect 'Wolf King' is currently active.
The target has submitted to the overwhelming presence of the mythic-grade weapon Mjolnir.
You have successfully tamed the absolute powerhouse: Black Bone Wolf King.
“Successfully tamed it?”
Han Yujin stepped closer.
“What just popped up?”
“It says I succeeded in taming that thing.”
More messages kept flooding in.
You have acquired 1,000 Alpha Male Points.
The target is now bound to you.
Black Bone Wolf King has been registered in the Subordinate Monster List.
You have subjugated a Nightmare-difficulty boss through sheer force.
Boss defeat conditions have been applied.
Defeat rewards will now be granted.
Reward 1: Alpha Male Points +1,000
Reward 2: Subspace Pocket
Current remaining points: 2,226
My points had jumped by two thousand in an instant.
“Excellent.”
Han Yujin stared at me in disbelief.
“What is?”
“I get the kill rewards even though I spared it.”
I had received full boss-clear rewards without actually killing the boss—and I could keep it as a subordinate monster on top of that. Looking at the results, this was far better than simply slaughtering it.
I looked down at the Black Bone Wolf King, still lying on its back in complete submission.
“Get up.”
It carefully cracked one eye open.
“Y-you’re really going to spare me?”
“I am.”
Emotion welled up in its crimson eyes. The massive beast heaved itself upright and planted all four enormous paws on the ground.
THOOM—
The impact made the floor tremble for a moment. Han Yujin reflexively raised her sword.
“B-be careful!”
But it made no move to attack. Instead, it lowered its head before me once more—so low that its enormous skull nearly touched the ground.
I spoke while looking at that giant head.
“Obey my commands. Do not harm the weak.”
“O-of course!”
“And never strike an opponent from behind.”
“I will engrave those words upon my heart!”
Its booming replies rang out with absolute conviction. Satisfied, I nodded.
Now that I think about it… what should I even name this thing?
I kept staring at it in silence. The wolf grew flustered and spoke in a trembling voice.
“M-Master… have I done something wrong…?”
“No. I’m deciding what to call you.”
“You’re… giving me a name?”
“I am.”
It might have had a name once, but the status window only listed it as Black Bone Wolf King. Using that as a personal name felt wrong on too many levels.
Looking at the wolf before me, memories of my previous life surfaced—the far north, endless snowfields and fjords. On nights when blizzards howled, the elders of the tribe would gather around a great fire and tell the stories of the gods.
Ragnarok. The Twilight of the Gods. The wolf that would swallow the sun. The colossal beast fated to devour even the All-Father Odin himself.
Its name was—
“Fenrir…”
“Pardon?”
The giant wolf tilted its head.
I declared it like a proclamation.
“From this day forward, your name is Fenrir!”
Its crimson eyes trembled violently.
“Fen…rir?! That is to be my name?”
“It is.”
In the next instant Fenrir lowered its head even deeper.
THUD!
Its massive jaw struck the floor.
“T-to bestow a name upon one as lowly as myself…”
Its deep voice shook.
“Khuh!”
“…….”
“…….”
Is it… crying?
Tears welled in Fenrir’s huge eyes. Fist-sized droplets soon rolled down its cheeks.
“How am I ever to repay this grace… sniff!”
Quite the soft-hearted fellow under that terrifying exterior.
I reached out and patted its enormous head. Given the size difference, the gesture looked nothing like ordinary petting.
You have bestowed a name upon a subordinate monster.
Black Bone Wolf King’s individual name has been changed to ‘Fenrir’.
Loyalty of the named subordinate monster has greatly increased.
Current Loyalty: MAX
A soul bond has been formed between master and subordinate monster.
Fenrir’s growth limit has been removed.
Influenced by the mythic name, Fenrir has acquired new evolutionary potential.
Simply giving it a name had unlocked its entire growth potential. Names truly mattered.
“Master.”
Fenrir still spoke in a voice thick with emotion.
“Please make frequent use of me from now on.”
“You’re telling me to use you like a personal vehicle?”
“Precisely! This Fenrir’s back is reserved for Master alone!”
From the side came Han Yujin’s voice as she watched our heartwarming(?) exchange.
“Are you two done talking?”
I turned to find her standing there with a potion bottle in hand. She stepped closer and held out the vial of swirling red liquid.
“It’s a wound recovery potion. It should stop most of the bleeding.”
I uncorked it and downed the contents. Sweet yet bitter. The moment the liquid slid down my throat, warmth spread through my entire body. The deep bite marks on my left arm began to close little by little, and the pain in my ribs faded to a dull ache.
“My thanks.”
“You’re still not fully healed, though.”
Yujin narrowed her eyes as she looked me over.
“You’ve lost a lot of blood already. Make sure you see a professional healer once we’re out.”
“Understood.”
I answered without argument. She blinked and tilted her head.
“You’re not going to insist that ‘an Alpha Male has no need of healers’ this time?”
“You are a veteran hunter. Sound advice from such a comrade is always worth heeding.”
Her cheeks flushed faintly.
“I-if you put it like that, I can’t even argue back…”
“It was a compliment.”
“I-I know.”
A small smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
There was still one problem, however: Fenrir’s sheer presence. Walking out of the tower with this massive body in tow would cause absolute pandemonium. If a wolf that size suddenly appeared among the throngs of hunters and civilians around Gangnam Central Tower, chaos would be inevitable.
Fortunately I now possessed the item I had just received as a clear reward—the Subspace Pocket.
I opened the status window.
Grade: Legendary
Can store items and tamed living beings.
Internal space expands automatically according to stored contents.
Storage Capacity: Infinite
I checked my waist. A black leather pouch no larger than my palm hung there.
So this is what the Subspace Pocket looks like.
Outwardly it seemed barely big enough for a few coins. I opened the mouth of the pouch.
Subspace Pocket has been activated.
WOOOOOOM!
A rift in space opened at the mouth of the palm-sized pouch.
“Go on in.”
At my command Fenrir bowed its head once more and vanished into the spatial tear.
The very next moment, the clear notification for Nightmare Floor 1 appeared.
You have cleared Nightmare Difficulty Floor 1.
A world-first record has been registered.
World First Nightmare Difficulty Floor 1 Clear
Republic of Korea Central Tower clear records have been updated.
Han Yujin’s eyes went wide as she stared at the window.
“A world-first record just appeared!”
“Is that impressive?”
“Of course it is!”
Her voice rose even higher.
“A single world-first record is enough to etch your name into history forever. And you achieved it only a few hours after awakening!”
Moments later a gate leading to the exit formed before us. We stepped through it together.
Blinding light swallowed my vision as space inverted. The next instant my feet found solid ground.
Click!
Click-click-click-click!
Camera flashes exploded like fireworks. Beyond them, thousands of people waited for us.
