“This isn’t too bad, actually.” Ossus looked down at the wolf, now napping contentedly after gnawing out a sizable chunk of his femur. It was annoying of course, because now he couldn’t walk until the bone regenerated completely, but he found that it was bearable with the animal near him. The surroundings had been empty for too long to be comfortable, and he would’ve started to worry about the lack of wildlife. “Where’s your mother though?” He idly scratched the creature’s head, its tail wagging at the touch as he thought to himself.
Humans likely wander through the forest occasionally, assuming it had a decent amount of monsters and wildlife. Maybe the pup got scared and ran off from its mother, but that was more optimistic than it was likely. The mother was probably killed by hunters or something, and the pup either escaped or wasn’t there at the time. The explanation made sense to him, especially the condition the animal was in. It wasn’t to the point of starvation, but it was malnourished, with minimal fat on its stomach, and it seemed that his bone was the only thing it had eaten recently. Gently, he picked it up and held it for a moment as it kicked at the air before placing it back down.
He wasn’t entirely ready to walk yet, but he could fix that. Forcing mana into the bone, he watched as the chewed away parts more or less filled back in until it was completely healed, and he stood up, giving the pup one last glance before walking out of the dungeon.
“Why am I doing this?” He thought to himself. By ‘this’, he meant going to find food for the animal, but he knew why. He was lonely, and the wolf wasn’t in the greatest shape. Of course, he did still need a weapon but…he was strong enough. He grabbed a chunk of stone, gauging the weight before resting it against his chest, continuing into the forest.
It wasn’t too far of a walk before he found something, a wild boar. Thankfully for him, the boar wasn’t able to get up from off its side, its breathing shallow and eyes foggy. It squealed pitifully, clearly in pain, and Ossus looked down at the leg of the creature. It had a gash through the back right leg, the wound festering, and he was thankful that he lacked a sense of smell. The animal looked up at him somehow, and it squealed, pleading for death. Ossus raised the rock high in the air before bringing it down on the boar’s head like a hammer. The bone splintered, blood oozing from the wound, and it spasmed for a moment, before it stopped all together. There was a light squelching sound as he pulled the rock off its head, and he grabbed it by the leg that wasn’t rotting away, dragging it along the forest floor until he saw the arches that made up the entry to the dungeon.
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The pup poked its head up, barking as it saw him before looking at the corpse he was dragging, but it didn’t bother to get up.
A thud sounded out as the boar fully hit the ground, and the pup quickly moved to the dead beast, tearing into the flesh. Ossus stared at the creature the entire time it ate, and when it withdrew its bloodstained muzzle from the corpse, he felt a strange sense of affection. He walked over and offered it his hand, and it immediately rubbed against it before beginning to gnaw on the bones. He looked at it for a moment. He didn’t exactly care for the minor damage it caused him, but he enjoyed the additional presence. With that, he picked it up, carrying it delicately and walking deeper into the dungeon, until he arrived at the old core room.
To his fortune, the pup didn’t fight him, instead focusing on the crystal ball in Ossus’s rib cage. It squirmed, attempting to touch it, but it wasn’t able to reach it until Ossus sat down, at which point it squirmed out of his hands and tapped the core with its nose. It looked up at him as the skeleton’s eyes trailed over a screen once again, invisible to the small wolf.
Bond with [Ash Wolf (Pup)]?
It was a curious thing, this new screen in front of him. Bond with it? How would that work for him, undead and wielding a dungeon core? Would it claim the creature as his and allow him to control it, commanding it to do as he wished, or maybe allow him to create more of them? Whatever the case, it would provide company, and so he selected yes.
There wasn’t much that happened. A small quantity of mana flew from the core into the animal, and that was it. It’s eyes flashed orange, and he felt a connection become established, mana streaming from the core into the wolf. The one that, as Ossus could see, had become much more energetic than before. Any fat and muscle it seemed to be missing was slowly being restored, and while it seemed to be in mild discomfort, it appeared extremely happy. No, it didn’t just appear happy, it was well and truly happy. It hadn’t had a decent meal in days and was prepared to eat just about anything when it stumbled upon him. Again, technically, since this…
Ossus gently picked up the wolf. “You were the one chewing on me when I awoke.”
It barked in response, its tail wagging furiously. Well, he thought, at least it wasn’t trying to eat him now. He set it down, and it immediately clamped down onto his tibia.
Ossus sighed.