EP.12 The Wolf That Shuns the Sun -1
EP.12 The Wolf That Shuns the Sun -1
We had returned to the northern snowfield region.
This time, however, we crossed beyond the nation's border and entered the Great Wilds, the domain of the Divine Beasts.
It was an unknown world I was visiting for the very first time, so I was half expectant and half nervous...
"Yuu~!"
"What?"
"I wanna have a snowball fight!!"
"..."
Tia's demand for a snowball fight brought back the memories of that day, triggering my PTSD, and nothing but tension remained.
"Tia, I'll teach you a game that's way more fun than snowball fights later, so let's stop with the snowball fights for good."
"Really? More fun than snowball fights?"
"Yeah, it's definitely a game that's more fun than snowball fights."
"Good!! Then I'll be patient!!"
At the mention of a game supposedly more fun than snowball fights, Tia brimmed with anticipation. She was enjoying herself so much she couldn't contain her excitement.
That much was certain, given how fast she was wagging her tail back and forth.
...I sincerely hoped that building snowmen would live up to Tia's expectations.
I'd had enough of snowballs with rocks in them.
"Dear husband? Aren't you cold?"
"The cold is fine. I was worried since they said it was sub-zero, but Tia solved it for me."
"Ehem!! Pet me as a reward!! Right now!!"
"Sure, sure."
As a mere human, I could not enter Hati's nest, where temperatures reportedly fell below minus one hundred degrees.
I'd obviously freeze to death from hypothermia or frostbite before I even got there.
But since I still had to follow, I came up with a solution that used Tia's ability.
A simple method: I brought warm air around me, then wrapped an air membrane around it to trap me and the warm air together.
The principle was similar to putting coffee in a perfectly insulated flask.
"Kyahaha! Pets! Pets! Good!!"
Tia loved being petted by me more than anyone.
Being able to innocently pet a child who honestly expressed that she liked it was a reward for me, too.
So much so that I could already count this trip as half a success just from this.
"Husband~! I'm glad you're playing with Tia, but don't forget to turn right at the trees you can see up ahead."
"Ah! Got it! Miho, did you hear?"
"Unfortunately, I have no idea what that crow is prattling on about. So I'd like you to tell me one more time, dear husband! Preferably with that whip...♡"
"..."
The reason Tia was now my only refuge was because of situations just like this.
Like last time, the only means of transport in the snowy plains was a sled.
But whether huskies or reindeer could survive in the Great Wilds' snowfields, which easily exceeded minus 100 degrees, was an open question.
So we'd acquired only sled equipment that could endure the extreme cold and had the Divine Beast Miho pull it.
Except this time as well, Miho was pulling the sled while maintaining her human form, not her fox form, and this was giving me a headache.
—Slap!!
"Kyaaheung!!"
"Let's go the right path, quietly."
"Yes, yesss...♡"
I wanted to stop her, but she was determined. More importantly, without Miho's help, reaching Hati on foot would take an entire month.
No matter what, walking across these snowfields for a month was insane, so I had no choice but to drive Miho instead of a sled dog.
Still, the sled Miho pulled was certainly excellent in speed and stability.
The only fatal flaw was that she didn't follow the words of Yata, who was playing the role of navigator. That problem was more or less solved by hitting Miho with the whip she'd brought, just like now...
Except every time I hit her, I also had to endure the feeling that my humanity was crumbling away.
The karma from my childhood self accidentally remodeling a companion fox into a masochist must have come back to me.
"Kheup...!!"
If only I could return to the past...
"Husband. There's an area thick with trees nearby, so let's spend the night there before going on."
"Hm? The sun's still a long way from setting, though?"
"Past this point, the temperatures are too extreme for even plants to survive. If we don't stop now, there won't be any chance to rest ahead."
"In that case, we'd better rest for a day before going."
This place was Divine Beast territory, which meant all kinds of dangers I knew nothing about were lurking. We needed to proceed with caution.
In this situation, moving around at night and sleeping on an empty snowfield were both dangerous acts.
So as Yata said, we decided to spend the night in the wooded forest of the snowfields.
"Anyway, I wonder if I've made her wait too long."
"Who are you talking about?"
"Hati. I told him we'd come as soon as we were ready, but we actually set out ten days after that day."
"I think that's fine. Divine Beasts are all long-lived beings, so their concept of time is different from humans. A human day is only about an hour to a Divine Beast."
"I-is that so?"
"Like the fox said, the ice wolf won't fuss at you for being late. Besides, you were busy dealing with everything that happened, husband. You couldn't help it, right?"
"That's true."
Starting with reporting that I was alive, then reporting on the mission to the Director, explaining the situation, and even the story about the meteor—I had to endure every possible kind of interrogation and was sweating bullets.
Obtaining permission to enter the Great Wilds required another long discussion with the Director, leaving me thoroughly exhausted.
"But why did you say to set out exactly ten days later?"
Resolving the aftermath, obtaining permission, and preparing for the journey took seven days.
Yata insisted that we rest for another three days, bringing the delay to ten. I still did not know why.
"Sorry, the future has changed, so I can't tell you."
"So this is something I have to experience for myself to know?"
"That's right. But you don't have to worry. This trip is going to be a good thing for you, husband!"
"A good thing..."
I didn't understand how going to where the ice wolf was to launch a meteor at her could be a good thing...
No matter how much I imagined it, no plausible happy incident came to mind, so I stopped trying to imagine.
"Done!!"
Meanwhile, Tia had been sitting on my lap, shaping snow into round little balls.
Fortunately, Tia, who had been absorbed as if completely engrossed in the snowman-building game I'd taught her, soon showed off the completed snowman to me, beaming with pride.
"Yuu!! I made it just like you taught me!! How is it? How is it?"
"You made it really well!"
"Really?"
"Really, really."
"Then can I make more?"
"Yeah, you can make as many as you want."
"Good!!"
A pure child who brought me joy while I was suffering from various trivial worries.
I thought she was a good kid—full of curiosity, interested in new things, taking on challenges, and absorbing whatever you taught her like a sponge.
The thought that someone had filled such an innocent child with false knowledge...
I truly couldn't express how relieved I was that I'd noticed and stopped Miho before it was too late.
If it had been any later, a second Miho might have been born...
I believed it was best for Tia to live on as the pure child she was, just as Tia.
"Hehe!! I'm gonna make a whooole bunch!!"
"Umm...?"
Mm, that's right, isn't it...?
***
The next day.
Today again, without fail, we were heading smoothly toward where Hati was.
However, unlike yesterday, the atmosphere was split into two extremes.
"Ahaha!! It was truly a spectacle! A spectacle!! Haha!!"
"This isn't funny. If you knew, you should've at least given me a hint!"
"Sorry, sorry! To be honest, I was only half-sure myself. I had no idea Tia was a child with that level of obsession."
This morning.
Having woken up on Miho's fluffy tails, I learned that yesterday's me had been wrong.
"Uh..."
Before me lay a scene proving that even an innocent child needed proper supervision.
The sight I beheld was a field of countless snowmen placed on the ground.
Snowmen that easily looked over three hundred in number, in all sorts of different shapes, were scattered all around.
I could tell that the creator who had hand-crafted each and every one of those snowmen was Tia, who was sleeping in my arms—the state of Tia's hands at the time, damp with moisture, had been the proof.
"I went to sleep first, thinking she'd play a bit and then go to sleep herself. To think she'd been making snowmen until dawn...!"
"See, I did see it through the future, but seeing it in person was pretty novel!"
"If you'd just let me know that future in advance, I would've stopped her..."
"Still, doesn't it mean she liked the game you taught her, dear husband, that much? Isn't that okay?"
"Thinking of it that way, I am happy, sure. But even so, this is too excessive."
Tia, quietly breathing in my arms even though the sun had risen to its peak.
Her sleeping figure, laughing happily, was cute, but for some reason it also felt a little vexing, so I pinched and stretched her squishy-looking cheek with my fingers.
"Hueheh..."
"Pfft!"
Sure enough, Tia was too tired from playing all night to wake up over that level of punishment.
Still, the strange and adorable sound that escaped her mouth made me let out an involuntary chuckle.
Truly, a companion dragon you couldn't bring yourself to hate even when you tried.
"Husband~ I think we've just about arrived."
"Oh? Finally!"
The same snowy landscape stretched endlessly in every direction. I had just considered joining Tia in making snowmen when news of our arrival lifted my spirits.
Now I understood why people said they could die of boredom...
Anyway, a cave made of ice began coming into my own field of view.
Hati was probably living inside that cave, which was burrowed beneath a mountain of ice.
In my mind, I'd figured he'd built an ice castle and lived inside it, but now that we were actually here, it was rather unexpected that he lived in a cave at the foot of a mountain.
But considering that structures like castles were a human product, it was actually more natural for Hati to live in a cave.
An ice wolf would be a complete layman when it came to human culture, after all.
"You've arrived sooner than I expected."
When I raised my head toward Hati's voice coming from above, a single wolf was racing down the ice mountain at high speed.
Soon enough, Hati took a powerful running leap from around the mountain's midpoint and launched himself all the way to where we were. As he landed, he kicked up a massive wave of snow toward us.
"Hold...!!"
I didn't even have time to say "Hold on" before the avalanche swept over the sled we were riding.
At least Tia and I were protected by the air barrier we had prepared.
"...What kind of stunt is this? You son of a bitch?"
Miho alone ended up covered head to toe in snow and flew into a rage.
Miho smiled with her eyes while radiating killing intent, something she did only when truly furious.
"Oh dear...! I'm sorry! I was trying to make a cool entrance, and I ended up...!"
"Aha~! Is that so? Well, then, it's time for you to make a pathetic exit, so it's fine if I just kill you, right?"
"I-I'm truly sorry! I sincerely apologize!"
"I don't need a sincere apology. Instead, your life...!"
"Now, now, stop! Hati has apologized this much. Let's calm down for now!"
"But this damn bastard even did it to you, dear husband...!!"
"Everyone survived, so please calm down. Besides, once we help the wolf, we will need his assistance. You cannot kill him."
"Ugh...!! F-fine, I understand..."
I felt sorry for Miho, but she had to endure it.
We hadn't come to fight the wolf; we had come to establish a cooperative relationship.
I didn't want to fight over something like this and scratch open an unnecessary wound.
I asked her to endure it for now and promised to help her vent once the matter was settled.
"Anyway, are you ready? Wolf?"
"Of course. Crow."
"Good. Then guide us to that place."
"Understood."
Did "ready" mean the location where they'd drop the meteor?
I would learn the details by following them.
"Ah, husband, please wait in the cave!"
"Huh...? Why?"
"Well, to summon the meteor, isn't just me and that fox bitch enough?"
"That's true, but..."
"Even though Tia's here, I don't want you getting hurt, even by the smallest chance. I'm asking you to wait somewhere a little safer. Please, okay?"
"I hate to admit it, but this time I'm of the same mind as the crow bitch. If my ability ends up causing you even a small wound, dear husband, I would...!"
"Ah, all right. If you both insist that much, I'll wait quietly in the cave with Tia."
"Thank you for understanding!"
"Thank you for listening to us! Also..."
"Also?"
Like last time, Yata whispered into my ear.
However, what she said to me this time wasn't a sweet whisper but a frightening warning.
"Because the wolf pissed off the fox bitch just now, a meteor even bigger than last time is going to fall. So make absolutely sure you don't come out of the cave."
"Is that really okay...?"
"Relax. Nothing in the future goes bad because of this."
"Got it..."
"Good! Then see you later!"
"Wait! You crow! What did you just whisper into my husband's ear?!"
"I talked a little trash about you."
"Wh-what?! You damn crow...!"
"It was a lie, and the stupid beast wench fell for it again..."
"Eek...!!"
The ice wolf leading the way, and my fox and crow companions, grew more and more distant.
The sound of the two of them fighting gradually began to fade as well, until at last only Tia, sleeping soundly, and I remained on the snowfield.
I remained uneasy, but as they had said, there was nothing I could do. I entered Hati's former ice cave and waited.
That was how I came to be inside the ice cave.
The cave was formed entirely of ice and remained immaculate even in its deepest reaches.
Still, it was far too pristine to call a den. Apart from the spacious area, there was nothing at all, so the ice wolf apparently used this place for nothing but sleeping.
"What a waste of hope."
I had thought that being the den of a Divine Beast, it would be filled with all sorts of mystical things, but having been lightly betrayed by that expectation, I decided to just lean against the cave wall and rest.
"So once this is over, things get a little easier...?"
Hati had said he would fend off the Divine Beasts of the North, so if I could only deal with the Divine Beasts dwelling in the West, East, and South, the threat from the Divine Beasts would vanish.
Then all I would have to do was handle the terrorists after the Divine Beasts' power, and I could enjoy my ultimate goal: a peaceful life with my companion animals.
Reaching that point would cost a great deal of time and effort, but if it meant living happily with my beloved companions, I was ready to bear any amount of it.
"At the very least, I've got to see Tia become an adult."
Tia was still sleeping peacefully.
I poked Tia's plump, springy cheeks with my finger and savored the feel of them.
"Hehe...! Yuu...!!"
Even in her dreams, she seemed to be playing excitedly with me. She wore a happy smile and was calling my name.
Tia really was adorable and cute.
How wonderful would it be to live peacefully with a child like her...?
"Hati..."
"Huh?"
Just as I was about to feel happy while indulging in various fantasies, I heard a small voice from the direction of the cave entrance.
Who was it?
"Hati...? Are you in here...?"
A very timid voice. I didn't know who it was, but they appeared to be acquainted with this cave's owner, calling the ice wolf's name so desperately.
"Hati, I'm coming in...?"
Given that the voice was growing louder, its owner seemed to be heading this way.
The unfortunate thing was that because the cave's interior was winding rather than a straight line, I couldn't identify who it was.
Whoever approached had endured the extreme cold to reach us, which meant they were no ordinary creature.
I figured it must be a Divine Beast, and I grew tense.
"U-uh... what should I do?"
If it really was a Divine Beast, most of them would certainly try to attack me, a human, the moment they saw me, so I had to come up with a plan.
But right now, neither Miho nor Yata was here, and Tia was in a deep sleep.
The situation was exactly the same as when I had conversed with the ice wolf, but unlike that time, things were dangerous now.
I had no idea whether the approaching Divine Beast was friendly or hostile.
"Should I attack first...?"
A foolish thought. They were my own words, but as soon as I said them, I realized just how stupid they were.
As Yata had told me, I couldn't even last ten seconds fighting a Divine Beast. The idea of me fighting one... was laughable.
"Then I guess there's only one option left."
I'd resolve this through conversation, no matter what.
At the very least, I had to buy time with talk until the Divine Beasts outside came back.
With that in mind, I rose from my spot and prepared to greet the Divine Beast I would soon be meeting.
First, let me start with a light greeting.
"Hati~? Ah...?!"
"O-oh, hi!"
The being I found myself facing was a wolf similar in size to Hati.
Its size wasn't that of an ordinary wolf, but unlike Hati, its fur was a plain brown.
"A...human?! Why is there a human in Hati's cave?!"
"W-well, you see...!"
Looking back, I had lived a lonely, loser-like life without any companion animals, and without any friends.
There was no way someone like me possessed proper communication skills.
I could provoke an enemy exceptionally well, but whenever I had to talk to people who weren't enemies, I always ended up getting nervous.
And since the being before my eyes was a fearsome Divine Beast, my nerves were making my body tremble.
"Eep...!!"
"Ah! Wait!!"
The brown wolf left before we could hold a proper conversation.
The result brought about by my pathetic communication skills. There was no helping it.
"But maybe it worked out for the better?"
The Divine Beast hadn't attacked and had instead fled first.
I figured this was better than a situation where it turned hostile and forced us into a fight.
For me, right then and there, safety came above all else.
Having regained my safety, I was about to lean against the wall and rest again, but then a memory from the past suddenly came to mind, and I couldn't.
[Because the wolf just now pissed off that fox bitch, a meteoroid even bigger than last time is going to fall. So absolutely do not leave the cave.]
The words of warning my companion crow had so earnestly impressed upon me before.
And now, the wolf from just moments ago had gone outside, which was supposedly that dangerous.
In other words, the brown wolf had ended up in a perilous situation.
"Agh...! Damn it!!"
I laid the sleeping Tia down on the floor for a moment and followed the tracks the wolf had left behind.
It wasn't that I had any particular bond with the brown wolf, but I thought it would be better to at least warn it that the outside was dangerous right now.
Perhaps I was merely meddling where I did not belong.
"I hope it hasn't gotten too far...!!"
I ran for quite a while, and before I knew it, I had reached a spot with a view outside the cave. In the snowstorm-whipped snowfield, I could spot a figure with faint brown fur.
"Hey!! Wait up for a second!!"
"Ah...! W-why did you follow me?!"
"It's just that the outside right now is... Ah!"
I stepped outside with both hands raised to show that I meant no harm.
Instantly, the surrounding blizzard ceased, and the area grew bright.
Except a massive shadow began to fall over the ground. I could witness a meteoroid, even larger than the one before, falling from the sky.
"What are you doing! Get down, now!!"
"Kyaa?!"
The meteoroid was falling toward a distant location, but it was clear that the aftermath of the impact would reach this far, all the same.
I tackled the brown wolf, who had been staring at me blankly, and threw my body over it.
"Awooo...!! Wh-what are you trying to do to meee...?!"
"Hold still! I'm not trying to hurt you. I'm doing this to protect you!"
"Huh...? Wh-what do you mean you're protecting me...?"
"Gh! It's starting!!"
Hati's form was clearly visible.
He had grown dozens of times larger than his earlier size, so I could tell at a glance that it was him.
The wolf forms I had encountered before were probably him deliberately reducing his size.
But now, since he had challenged the meteoroid to try and devour it, he must have reverted to his original form.
And so, the ice wolf, now returned to his original form, leaped toward the descending meteoroid with his jaws stretched wide open.
Even at his enlarged size, Hati was tiny compared with the meteor. His challenge looked reckless—until he proved otherwise.
Ice began to generate around Hati's mouth.
The ice gathered rapidly and was soon forming a colossal shape. That shape was a wolf's maw.
The maw of the ice wolf was of a size that didn't pale even in comparison to the meteoroid.
It looked as though it was slowly enveloping the meteoroid into its mouth and swallowing it whole, but that was only for a moment.
With a tremendous roar, the shockwave began to sweep all the way here, and fragments mixing meteoroid and ice began to rain down.
"Curl up!"
"Huh...? O-okayy...!!"
I made the brown wolf compact its body as much as possible, then pulled it into my arms and shielded it from the debris.
Ordinarily, this would be an extremely dangerous act, but right now, I had Tia's air barrier.
The thought unsettled me, but I had no choice except to trust Tia completely...!
"Khh...!!"
A rain of debris came pattering down upon us.
It began making a terrific racket as it struck the barrier of air, but thankfully, it was blocking every last piece.
As I thought, Tia's ability was the best in the world.
"Phew...! Was it finally over?"
Before I knew it, the sounds of bouncing fragments had completely vanished, and silence returned to the area.
The aftermath of the collision between the meteoroid and Hati must have finally ceased, I supposed.
"U-um...!"
"Huh?"
"I-if it's over... could you please get off of meee...?"
"Ah...! Sorry!!"
"It's okayyy..."
Having freed the brown wolf I'd been holding to protect it, I immediately stepped back a few paces from it.
"I'm sorry for acting on my own in the heat of the moment. I was only trying to protect you, so please don't misunderstand."
"I was watching the whole time, so I won't misunderstand... But I am curious about one thing... Why did you try to protect meee...?"
"Huh? Because you were in danger, obviously. Is there any other reason?"
"Even though I'm a Divine Beast...?"
"Ah! I'm sorry if it was unnecessary!! I wasn't trying to look down on you at all. I just felt I had to protect you...!"
"I-it's fine...! I wasn't trying to call your actions uncalled-for, either. I was just asking out of pure curiosityyy...!"
"O-oh, really?"
"Yes... so rather, I'm gratefuuul..."
"That's a relief, then."
Most Divine Beasts normally couldn't accept the fact that they had been protected by a human, but fortunately, the brown wolf before my eyes was the type not to care about such things.
Then again, I had only tried to protect her because I had a feeling this wolf had that kind of temperament.
It was what people called a protective instinct. The brown wolf awakened it in me, which was why I had tried to protect her.
If she had looked like a wolf with high pride, I would've just left her alone.
"Anyway, it seems like everything's over now. The Hati you were looking for should be coming back this way soon, too. Let's head back to the cave!"
"Ah...! Before that, just a moment...!!"
"Hm? Do you have other business?"
"Yes... if you don't mind! C-could you tell me your naaame...?"
"Sure. Then, shall we introduce ourselves while we're at it?"
"Yes...!"
"First, my name is Yoo Seon-ju. I had a promise with Hati this time, so I came here with my companion Divine Beasts!"
"Ah...! So you're the human from the rumooors...?"
"Hm... probably."
That was not good... Rumours about us had already spread throughout the Divine Beast world.
Wouldn't that mean a lot of guys would start coming after us?
"M-my name is Skoll...! I'm Hati's...!"
"I know. Twin brothers, right?"
"Ah..."
"Huh? D-did I get it wrong?"
"Yes, you got it wrooong..."
"Urk! I'm really sorry!! I'm pretty ignorant, so... if it's all right, could you tell me what I got wrong?"
Having realized my blunder belatedly, I quickly bowed my head to the brown wolf and apologized, entreating her to point out my mistake.
But perhaps the brown wolf was angry with me, as she merely maintained her silence.
Agh...! This was bad! I had angered a Divine Beast!!
Should I get down on my hands and knees, bow my head, and apologize right now?
Or perhaps...
"U-um! It's all right, so please raise your head nowww...!"
Right as I was clutching my head, agonizing over the best way to apologize, the brown wolf finally broke her silence and spoke to me.
Thank goodness! So she wasn't angry!
Having quietly calmed my panicked, jumbled mind, I lifted my bowed head back up to face the brown wolf...
"Wh-wha...?!"
"A-as you can see... I'm not Hati's twin brotherrr...!"
Before my eyes was not a wolf, but a naked woman in human form.
Her perked wolf ears and the gently swaying brown tail asserted that she was inhuman, but all her other parts were unmistakably those of a human woman...
Long brown hair reaching below her shoulders, and a beauty with clearly defined features.
Two breasts protruded roundly from her chest, her waist was slim, and her pelvis was lovely, clearly that of a woman.
And finally, between this human's legs...
"I-I am Hati's twin older sister... Skollll."
There was nothing attached.
"I-I may not be much to look at...! B-but I hope we get along weeeell...!!"
A wholly unexpected identity.
The brown wolf, whom I had assumed to be a male because she was Hati's twin sibling, was...
"Seon-juu...♡"
A female.