She was alive, right?

Stella slowly remembered her last moments before now, her unstable heartbeat, her body becoming numb, and the puddle of blood coming out of her mouth.

And right before darkness claimed her, Grýla's voice.

What did she mean by that? Did she know something the Human didn't? Fear started to creep inside her mind.

However, another thought served as a counter-measure. What if... all of this was a dream? What if she never stepped a foot on Sayama yet?

I mean, what else could Stella take from all of that madness? Bipedal, talking canines, monstrous elderly, a freaking superhero, and whatever Kristal's deal was. It must be a dream!

The girl could feel the solid ground supporting her weight because she slept in her tent without cushions. The wind passing through her skin was a tad stronger than usual, but it must have been some climatic quirk on the day.

Hmmm... She wasn't smelling anything unpleasant. That was weird. Not far from there was this open sewer, which could make anyone faint if they got too close.

Maybe her nose adapted to it.

ZZZZZZZZZ!

Okay, who the fuck was snoring? Who dared to sleep next to her tent?!

That was it. Time to open her eyes.

And... She wasn't in her tent. She was still in Sayama.

None of that was a dream. Perfect...

Then again, was it that bad? Stella had gained a new friend, maybe two or three (she was still unsure about Kristal). This was more than practically more of her life in Namadi. Ironic since she had to deal with so many fantastic creatures trying to off her.

Speaking of friends, Lien was peacefully sleeping next to her. The Wolf pup never stopped being more adorable as time went on. Apparently, these feelings still haven't worn off.

Eh, she would get over it.

Stella sat and leaned her back on a large rock. She saw that two Wolf guards were keeping their watchful eyes on them.

Actually, it was only one. The anthropomorphic bulldog was napping and snoring louder than a Snorlax. That left the big, black one to shoulder this responsibility alone.

The guard met his eyes with the Human's. He was a little scary, but after meeting a feline the size of a house, a slightly big canine was no big deal for her.

The girl then decided to pay attention to what the twin mages were doing a few meters away. The golden one was begging his sister. "C'mon! This is so boring! The captain won't even know!"

"Damn it, Raidd! We have a Human with us! Can't you show a little professionalism?!" The whiteish Wolf was clearly the straight man in their dynamic.

The male one fell limp on the ground, upset. "You don't want to play with your bro anymore..."

Surprisingly, that was effective. "Euraidd, please. You know I love playing with you!"

"Then just one time, please! For your big bro!" He clutched his paws together in a begging gesture.

The female one sighed. "Fine." She conjured a tiny ball of... ice? It was hard to see at that distance.

The sphere fell to the ground, and the cream Wolf prepared her staff for a swing like a golf club. She swung the staff with all her might and launched the ball at a surprising distance. Her brother eagerly ran after it on all fours.

After he found it, the process repeated, only with the roles reversed. They kept at it for about ten minutes. Honestly, it was quite a captivating experience. Stella and even the guard kept silently watching the game unfolding.

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After all that noise of rustling leaves, bushes, and obnoxious snoring, the pup started to break free from her slumber. Stella decided to keep quiet, curious to see how long it took for the pup to notice her presence.

After a loud yawn, Lien sniffed. "Hey! Stella! Did you wake up?!"

Stella did not respond, trying to trick Lien into believing she was asleep still.

"Stella?" The pup shuffled closer to the girl and touched her thigh, presumably by accident. That made the Human blush, not expecting this turn of events.

The girl became even more flustered when her friend lifted her hand to touch her arm and then her cheek. Stella's face was burning.

However, the embarrassment was cut short by a fierce slap by Lien. "Stella! Wake up!"

That cry did wake up someone. "SQUIRRELS!" The sleeping guard's first words after returning to the real world. He was heavily breathing, and sheer terror was etched in his eyes.

The Human decided to not touch on that.

Lien waved at her uncle. "Uncle Tarb! Is Stella okay?!"

"Yes, Lien. I'm fine." Stella rubbed her aching cheek, frowning.

"Great!" The pup's innocent voice softened Stella's demeanor. "I've been worried, you know! You passed out on my lap all of a sudden!"

Stella smiled at the image of her resting on Lien's lap. Unfortunately, she couldn't enjoy it while it lasted.

Wait, why would she want to enjoy such a thing?! Yuck!

"So, you're the Human!" Tarb raised his eyebrow and started analyzing Stella. "Lien wouldn't shut up about you!"

Lien scratched the back of her head, seemingly embarrassed. "That's true. But you were so cool back there! You helped the Knight defend us against Grýla's attack!"

That was true. Thanks to Stella, they didn't become the witch's barbecue. Heh, she felt pretty good about herself, almost like she was a hero or something. Although she wouldn't do it without the Knight and Lien's words of support.

............

Wait a minute...

What about Lien?! She was right there with them! Why didn't the Knight asked for her help!?

The Human couldn't believe she hadn't picked up on that detail before. In her defense, things were pretty intense back then.

Maybe it was because the color of their aura was the same? It felt like a flimsy explanation, to be honest. Then again, the girl knew almost nothing about this energy.

Speaking of which, her body felt weird ever since she drank that jam. That feeling of restlessness rooted deep in her chest still remained. She hoped that wouldn't cause any other fainting episodes.

She also felt her muscles a little sore, as if she had just returned from a long workout. Probably nothing to worry about.

What worried Stella, in fact, was Grýla's ominous telepathic message. She affirmed that with such conviction. What was waiting for her now? More Monoke like her?

She was starting to like this place. She couldn't die now.

"Are you okay?" Lien asked. "You smell like fear."

Stella didn't want to burden her friend with these preoccupations, deflecting the subject with something interesting she had just mentioned. "Wow, you can do that?!"

"There's nothing that can escape my nose!" She poked her own nose while speaking proudly about herself. "Actually, since my eyes don't work, my other senses are even better than most Wolves!"

"That's true." Tarb's eyebrows furrowed. "You wouldn't believe the number of times she had found my meat stash and eaten them all at once!" He glared daggers at his niece. Of course, Lien hadn't picked up on that.

"Oooh! I got a story!" Euraidd came to join in the conversation. "Me and Hufen were playing hide-and-seek with Lien, and we had hidden in bear du-"

Hufen slapped the back of her brother's head. "We agreed to never speak of that again..." Her voice was charged with the pent-up desire of shouting.

"Sorry..." Euraidd hanged his head in shame. "But yeah, Lien's nose and ears are something else." Then he perked up. "Locci can attest to that!"

Everyone's eyes were now on the brooding guard, who turned his head the other way. "Y-Yeah..." His voice was way softer than Stella imagined.

Honestly, it was super adorable.

The Human then turned to the pup again. "Damn, you're really close to these guys!"

Lien nodded. "Yup!" Then she started pointing at each guard, often missing the mark.

"Tarb is my uncle and takes care of me sometimes." The old guard nodded.

"Locci and I played a lot before he joined my mom's squad." He shuffled his feet uneasily.

"And Euraidd and Hufen are like my big bro and sis! I play with them the most!" The golden Wolf beamed while the other gave a gentle smile.

Stella barely had time to become friends with the pup, and now she was meeting her family?! She became a little shy herself.

"H-Hey, guys..." She waved at them. "It's an honor meeting you."

Lien pulled her close with an arm around her neck. "It's so good they can meet you already! Especially since we two are a pack!"

That last word made every guard with their mouths and eyes open wide. Seriously, what were the actual implications of being a "pack"!?

"Damn! You and the Human?!" Tarb cried as if they were announcing their marriage. Stella's ears rang because of it.

"Oh, my..." Hufen spoke, dumbfounded.

It was a solid minute of complete and utter silence. Stella wanted to bury herself in a bottomless hole. She felt dirty.

Lien's smile didn't waver. "Hey! You never told me how you met the Knight! He's so cool, right?!"

She was right in both accounts. "You're right. Although I thought the guy was just a fraud at first. But man! He's actually awesome."

Lien's tail wagged. "Right?! He saved me a bunch of times! There was this one time he-"

"Oh boy, here she goes..." Tarb yawned. "We gonna stay here for a while, so buckle up!"

Stella knew he was right. But weirdly enough...

She didn't mind hearing more of Lien's voice at all.