The Wolf in the Cave
The choice was simple: leave the cave to avoid the danger named Cheongrin, or stay despite the risk. Seo Seyeong and Han Gamin unanimously chose the latter.
“There’s no guarantee it’s safer outside the cave anyway.”
The moment they stepped out, they would be exposed to the freezing cold. In a blizzard where unknown threats lurked, there was no telling when they would find shelter again. Staying here meant they only had to worry about one thing—the merman named Cheongrin. For whatever reason, he was sound asleep, and as long as they didn’t make too much noise, he didn’t seem likely to wake and attack them.
But Seo Seyeong hadn’t accounted for one thing.
Krrrr…
A faint growl echoed from deep within the cave. She had assumed the sleeping merman had already secured the area. In a dangerous place where players had to compete against one another, she couldn’t imagine that someone who had reached the third floor would be sleeping so defenselessly.
Thud. Thud.
Yet reality shattered that assumption. The shadow of the cave’s true owner crept slowly into view.
“……”
“……”
Seo Seyeong and Han Gamin held their breath, every nerve focused on the darkness where the sound had come from. Moments later, a massive wolf with an extraordinary silver mane emerged.
“……Unni, that’s a wolf, right?”
Han Gamin’s whisper drew a nod from Seo Seyeong. A wolf… It certainly looked like one. But given its sheer size—large enough to chew through a person with nothing but its fangs—calling it a mere wolf felt inadequate.
You have discovered a Lv.4 Treasure Monster.
[Hungry Alpha White Wolf Lv.4]
A snow mountain wolf distinguished by its silver mane. It rarely leaves its cave during winter when prey is scarce. However, when driven by extreme hunger, it ventures out in search of food—and never lets its chosen prey escape.
— Upon a successful hunt, it drops jewels or earrings.
The wolf’s enormous frame reminded Seo Seyeong of the talking wolves from Japanese anime and movies. With its appearance, the once-spacious cave suddenly felt cramped.
Swish.
“Uh, Unni, what are you doing?”
“I’m waking him up.”
Seo Seyeong picked up a nearby rock. It wasn’t some idealistic urge to help a stranger in need. A starving beast fixated on food with terrifying intensity—especially a carnivorous predator. If the wolf had already killed the merman, who would be its next target? The two intruders closest to it right now.
‘In that case…’
Use barbarians to control barbarians.
All she had to do was wake Cheongrin. If she could pit the merman against the wolf, they might buy enough time to escape.
“Hup!”
She hurled the ice-encrusted rock straight at the wolf’s eyes with all her strength. But the beast’s instincts wouldn’t allow it. The wolf jerked its head aside the instant it heard the rock coming.
Thwack!
—Kreeeeeng!
The rock missed its mark but struck the wolf’s head. The beast roared in pain, thrashing as it tried to identify its attacker. Fortunately, the merman wasn’t so dull that he could sleep through the wolf’s howl.
Whoosh!
Cheongrin’s eyes snapped open. He grabbed the spear beside him and leveled it at the wolf. In an instant, the wolf’s attention shifted entirely to the merman. Their clash began with Cheongrin’s first strike.
“Huff… Huff…”
Surprisingly, the battle between the fishman and the giant wolf ended in the fishman’s victory. The wolf had overwhelmed Cheongrin with raw power and durability, while Cheongrin countered with godlike spearmanship and water-attribute magic. At first, it seemed the wolf’s superior stamina would carry it to victory. But an intelligent being always holds a trump card. A sharp surge of magic erupted from Cheongrin’s spear, piercing the wolf’s stomach. Slowly, the beast succumbed to its wounds.
“Damn it… I almost died for real…”
Cheongrin caught his breath after the narrow victory and turned to the two humans who had helped him. He hadn’t noticed during the fight, but the fact that humans had aided him was hard to believe.
“I’m grateful for the help, but… why did you help me?”
The two had seemed ready to flee at first, yet at some point they had joined the fight, swinging their swords alongside him. In a competition where rivalry was the norm, they had helped their competitor. Cheongrin couldn’t understand it. After catching her breath, Seo Seyeong smiled and answered.
“You just looked like you needed help.”
In truth, Seo Seyeong hadn’t planned to fight alongside the merman from the start. But the moment Cheongrin engaged the wolf, a thought flashed through her mind.
‘This merman… He must hold quite a high position among the merfolk…’
Someone who could speak so casually to the young king. Someone trusted enough to advise and teach him.
‘He’s practically a regent.’
Her mind raced, calculating the implications for the upcoming competition.
There would surely be team events as well as individual matches. If the individual rounds were already this complex, the large-scale team events would be far more demanding. Building rapport with the actual leader of another coordinate world was a smart move.
“How absurd. You helped me just because you wanted to? Do you even know who I am?”
Cheongrin questioned her. She delivered the answer she had prepared—one any climber of the tower would understand.
“A player forcibly dragged into the tower as the world ended.”
“……”
“And you’re the representative of the merfolk.”
Cheongrin nodded, finally grasping her intent.
“A strategic alliance?”
People sometimes became friends or allies through mutual interest. Moreover, a regent burdened by an inexperienced king couldn’t afford to reject a group with capable members outright.
“Let’s sit. This conversation seems like it’ll take a while.”
“Oh, can I sit too?”
Han Gamin plopped down near the campfire the moment Cheongrin finished speaking. Their conversation began with her abrupt question.
“Why were you sleeping in a place like this?”
When I tried to enter the snow mountain region I had discovered, Geumrin explained one of the merfolk’s traits with a slightly troubled expression.
“They hibernate when it’s cold?”
“Yes. That’s how we merfolk are.”
It was a very fish-like characteristic. Just as humans sweat in the heat and shiver in the cold, merfolk grew drowsy when the temperature dropped, according to him.
“But if that Cheongrin guy started the individual match in the snow mountain, how are we supposed to find him?”
“……Huh?”
From his reaction, it seemed he had never considered the scenario I described.
“It’s possible, isn’t it? He suddenly drops into a freezing place, starts feeling sleepy, finds a warm cave, and falls asleep without realizing it—only for a monster to be there…”
“P-Please stop!”
Geumrin waved his hands frantically as I painted a grim picture of Cheongrin’s situation.
“Lord Cheongrin is an elite among elites who passed the merfolk’s sleepless training with top honors! There’s no way he’d succumb to something as trivial as the cold…!”
His reaction made me want to tease him more. It was that strange urge to poke something cute when you see it. But then another question surfaced.
“It was a joke. But seriously, what’s your relationship with that person—no, that merman?”
A subordinate who addressed the king with full honorifics. A subordinate trusted by the king, yet one who didn’t fully trust the king in return. After a brief pause, Geumrin finally revealed the relationship I had been curious about.
“He… is my uncle.”
“What?”
Father’s younger brother. But that only raised an even more fundamental question in my mind.
“And even in this situation, he gave you the throne?”
The leader’s position was crucial. Even in a college group project, grades varied wildly depending on the leader’s competence. In a death game where lives were at stake, the leader needed to be far more capable than some project captain. Yet he had entrusted the highest authority to this inexperienced kid.
‘It’s not that this guy is incompetent…’
No, he wasn’t incompetent. In fact, he was quite capable. But even so, he was still lacking. The weight of lives was something no outsider could bear, and the resentment they carried was far too harsh for a mere child to endure. This wasn’t a matter of skill. It was something more fundamental—mental fortitude and charisma.
“Could you tell me more about it?”
A story from another world. I equipped the treasures I had obtained from the monsters I hunted and looked at him.