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After Velle and Ember left Kaska, a snowstorm swept over the kingdom, blanketing everything in white.
Inside the alchemist workshop, Aster was deep in conversation with the receptionist when a group of hunters burst in, looking frantic.
“Those bastards again!” one of them, the hammer and shield user, spat out angrily.
Noticing the commotion, Aster approached. “What happened?”
The hammer user turned to him, face tense. “Those damn wolves ambushed us again, that’s what!”
“They’ve never come this close to the kingdom before,” another hunter with a bow added, bewildered. “What the hell is going on?”
“Where exactly did you see them?” Aster asked, frowning.
“Near the western outskirts. There were three of them,” another hunter, the swordman, replied.
Aster’s brow furrowed. Earlier this morning, the hunters had spotted them to the east. And now, only half the pack was appearing? Did they split up? The wolves, who always hunted as a pack?
Just then, a distinct, haunting howl ripped through the air, its volume and proximity sending a chill down everyone’s spine.
The workshop erupted into a panic. The howl was closer—too close.
In the chaos around him, Aster’s mind raced. The wolves usually hunted during snowstorms, and the howling was often a signal from the pack leader. Could this be...?
Without hesitation, he bolted out of the workshop and headed toward the palace. At the entrance, two guards halted him.
“Whoa, what’s the rush, Aster?” one guard asked, raising an eyebrow.
“I need to see the queen immediately!” Aster’s urgency was unmistakable. “I think the Wintry Wolves are about to attack the kingdom!”
“Why would they do that?” the other guard questioned, glancing toward the storm. “I mean, sure, that howl was close, but...”
“There’s no time!” Aster insisted. “Let me in!”
The guards exchanged uncertain looks but eventually shrugged and stepped aside. As Aster dashed inside, they chuckled, shaking their heads.
“What’s gotten into him?” one muttered.
“Bit too paranoid for a guy that handsome,” the other joked with a grin.
Then, shrieks echoed through the streets, followed by more cries from the west.
The guards turned, staring wide-eyed in the direction of the screams, then looked back at each other.
“Well... damn.”
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Inside the throne room, Aster’s urgent report was punctuated by the horrified screams echoing from the streets.
“How can this be happening?!” Queen Victoria cried, rising from her throne.
“We need to evacuate everyone and send every available fighter to face them, Your Majesty!” Aster insisted, dropping to one knee.
The queen nodded, calling for guards to help rally the townsfolk within the palace walls. “Aster, do you know where Velle and Ember are now?”
“They left for the eastern borders, Your Majesty. I’m not sure they realize the kingdom is under attack.”
Victoria’s face hardened as she sat back on the throne. “I see. Regardless, we’ll stop those monsters here. Go, Aster—help with the evacuation.”
“Right away, Your Majesty.”
Aster rushed out into the chaos, joining guards as they shouted directions and waved people toward the palace gates. The snowstorm raged, masking visibility as the air filled with terrified screams.
He ran through the streets, yelling for people to take shelter, watching hunters scatter to defend the city. But Kaska, isolated in the north’s harsh climate, had fewer hunters than other kingdoms.
Then he heard it—a low, heavy thudding amidst the shouting, something massive moving nearby. The wolves had already reached the heart of Kaska. This isn’t possible, he thought, horrified.
As if on cue, a hulking white wolf landed in front of him, towering as it bared its teeth. Its snow-colored fur made it ghostly in the storm, blending into the whiteout.
Unlike Velle, Aster didn’t carry a mana weapon. He wasn’t equipped to fight.
Slowly, he backed away, heart pounding, eyes locked on the beast as it advanced, each step crunching the snow beneath it.
“I’ve got one!” A male voice rang out as a hunter dashed past Aster, charging at the wolf.
Relief washed over him, but horror struck again as the wolf swatted the hunter down with bone-shattering force. A piercing scream split the air, and Aster’s relief turned to terror. He took another step back, helplessly watching the gruesome scene unfold.
Throughout Kaska, the wolves tore through the streets, leaving crimson streaks against the endless white.
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Within the palace walls, the townspeople huddled under the protection of palace guards, tense as two massive Wintry Wolves prowled just beyond the gate. Their red eyes gleamed through the storm, and their hulking forms—still eerily wolf-like rather than monstrous—blended seamlessly into the swirling snow.
A few guards made a desperate attempt to drive one wolf back, but as they reached its last known spot, it had vanished.
“Where’d it go?!” one guard cried, scanning the whiteout in panic.
Suddenly, a blur of white flashed behind them, and the wolf took them down one by one, leaving only the sounds of terrified cries and clashing steel. The surviving guards stumbled back, gripping their weapons, but the wolves’ red eyes remained fixed on them, unblinking in the blizzard.
Then, a bone-chilling howl echoed from deeper within Kaska. The wolves halted, their gaze snapping toward the source of the sound. The guards, hands shaking from both cold and terror, watched in bewilderment.
In a flash, a streak of red and gold descended from the stormy sky, hurtling toward the nearest wolf. It was Ember, her spear, Helios, blazing with golden flames as she struck down hard, piercing straight into the wolf’s skull. The impact sent a wave of heat outward, forcing the other wolf back and scattering the guards nearby.
“Princess Ember!” The crowd gasped, recognizing her as she stood on the fallen wolf’s massive form, Helios still in hand, its flames flickering wildly. Ember blinked in surprise, feeling a warmth of Mana pulsing around her, coating her and her spear, untouched by the fall or the beast below. Delphine’s Mana.
The surviving wolf let out a furious growl, only to hesitate as another figure appeared between it and Ember. Velle descended, gripping her blue dagger, Zephyr, above her head while her yellow dagger, Eurus, circled her like a shield.
“That’s one down,” she noted, casting a glance at Ember’s kill.
The remaining wolf snarled, enraged, and charged straight at Velle, its massive paws pounding the ground with enough force to shake the earth.
“Velle, look out!” Ember warned, spotting a second wolf hurtling from the opposite direction.
But just before either could reach her, the beast’s head tumbled to the ground in a clean slice. Velle’s spinning Eurus had decapitated it in a single, calculated stroke with its blue water core activated, creating saw-like spinning water—and she hadn’t even flinched.
“That’s two.” Velle’s gaze was as cold and sharp as her blade, fixed on the blood-stained snow before her and the stunned townspeople huddled in the distance.
Ember watched, momentarily stunned by Velle’s merciless efficiency. She had known Velle as distant and somewhat cold, but this blend of power and precision struck a deeper chord, sending a chill down her spine.
“Can you keep an eye on the palace?” Velle asked, already turning to dash into the blizzard as her daggers hovered in position.
Ember quickly jumped down from the wolf’s corpse, gripping her spear. “I will. Be careful.”
Velle shrugged. “Sure.” Then, in a blur of motion, she disappeared into the blizzard, her silhouette swallowed by the storm.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
As Velle’s presence faded, Ember felt the fierce surge of Mana dissipate from her own body, and the flames on her spear receded to their usual size. Glancing once more in the direction Velle had gone, Ember refocused on her mission: keeping the palace and its people safe.
Like Renn, Velle could now perceive Mana in her surroundings, thanks to Delphine’s immense Mana coursing through her body. Each Wintry Wolf’s form stood out as a shadowy glow in her sight, clear through the blizzard. With just a glance, she could pinpoint their exact locations, even as they prowled through the storm.
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Across the kingdom, Aster dashed through the narrow alleyways, one of the wolves hot on his heels. Its massive strides made each alley seem smaller, closing in on him from above with terrifying ease.
Blood dripped down Aster’s left arm, which hung uselessly by his side. He gasped for breath, fighting through the pain as he tried to lure the creature away from the townspeople. It was all he could do now.
But when he rounded a corner and found himself at a dead end, he stumbled, his strength nearly spent. The vibrations on the ground signaled the wolf’s approach from behind. With nowhere left to go, he turned, meeting its crimson eyes as it advanced.
“This is it,” he thought, sliding down against the wall with a weak smile as his blood stained the cold stone. “Sorry, Velle.”
The wolf’s paw lifted, ready to strike—but before it could descend, a swift, blue flash zipped through the air. In an instant, the wolf’s paw severed from its leg, and blood sprayed across the alley.
The creature’s howl of pain never had a chance to form. Velle’s dagger, Eurus, encased in spinning water from its mana core, sliced cleanly through the wolf’s neck, beheading it in a single motion.
As the creature’s body thudded to the ground, Velle landed lightly beside it, her winter coat billowing around her. Her usually stoic expression shifted as she saw Aster’s condition, and her eyes widened.
Kneeling beside him, she pulled out a Mana potion, lifting it to his lips. “What were you thinking, you idiot?”
Aster managed a shaky chuckle as he swallowed the potion. “Hey, it was either me or them. Gotta take my shot at being a hero, right?”
Velle’s frown softened slightly. Even now, he managed to joke. She had a feeling he’d be okay.
“You stay here and let your wounds heal.” Velle said, straightening and turning away from Aster, her daggers floating silently behind her.
Watching her go, Aster thought about warning her, but he knew Velle didn’t need it; she was more than prepared.
Back in the main street of Kaska, another howl echoed through the thick storm. To most, it would only deepen their fear. But Velle recognized it right away: a warning. Not for Kaska’s people, but for the other wolves.
The pack leader had been watching her every move from a distance. She was certain it had some form of Mana sight, likely from the accumulated Mana it harbored.
It struck her, then—perhaps the pack had held back from attacking Kaska because of Delphine’s dormant Mana in the palace graveyard. Once she’d absorbed it and headed east, the leader must have sensed that threat was gone.
Velle clenched her teeth at the thought. If she’d anticipated the pack leader’s ability to detect Mana, the kingdom might not have been attacked. The frustration was sharp, but the anger surged even stronger. Since her father’s death, monsters were her only target, and knowing one would avoid her just to hunt others around her made her blood boil.
Glancing around, she caught the faint shapes of wolves’ Mana moving in the same direction. Without delay, she dashed forward to intercept them.
As Velle approached, the screams of nearby hunters rang through the snow. They were surrounded, three wolves already charging toward them, shaking the ground with each heavy step.
A fierce wind suddenly blasted past, knocking the wolves back, and the hunters turned to see Velle striding toward them. Zephyr spun above her, its wind core active, while Eurus floated beside her.
“Run,” she commanded coldly. The hunters didn’t hesitate, fleeing and leaving Velle alone to face the wolves.
The open marketplace gave them plenty of room to move, and the wolves now circled her from both sides.
Zephyr, the blue dagger, held a wind element core, and Eurus, the yellow dagger, contained water. But even with high-matching infused Mana, the blast she had just unleashed far exceeded their usual capabilities.
This was Delphine’s powers.
Delphine, one of the seven legendary heroes and known by her codename Enchanter, wielded powers of enhancement far beyond ordinary mana cores. Unlike typical weapons that boost only the user, Delphine’s Mana amplified those around her and intensified the Mana they used, extending her power outward.
In just one evening after absorbing Delphine’s Mana, Velle had already learned to harness her ancestor’s powers.
As if on cue, one of the wolves lunged at Velle from behind. She spun around, sending her daggers whirling into its front legs, slicing through with precision. The wolf staggered, halted by the sudden pain.
The other wolves hesitated, sensing the immense powers in her. Velle scanned the area for the pack leader but saw no other substantial Mana nearby. So, where was it?
Just then, she felt a massive force descending from above. Looking up, she spotted it: a towering Mana silhouette plunging towards her like a meteor. Instinctively, Velle enhanced her body and leaped aside, narrowly avoiding the crushing impact as something enormous struck the ground, creating a wide crater and scattering debris.
Using Zephyr, Velle cleared the dust to reveal the figure at the crater’s center: a colossal wolf-like monster, scarred over its right eye, with a more commanding presence than the others. The pack leader.
With her body and weapons enhanced, Velle braced herself for the real fight. The pack leader let out a powerful howl, prompting the remaining wolves to charge, two from her right and one from the left. She launched Zephyr in a spiraling gust towards the two on her right, then sent Eurus to finish off the injured wolf, its spinning water blade slicing cleanly through.
In that split second, the pack leader charged, swiping her with its massive paw and sending her hurtling through a building and into another one across the street, her glasses lost somewhere. Her daggers clattered to the ground, disconnected from her Mana wave.
Despite the distance, her enhanced resilience dampened the impact, allowing her to recover quickly. She charged back toward the marketplace with inhuman speed, leaping over the pack leader as it lunged at her. Recalling her daggers, she seized them mid-air.
Falling toward the remaining wolves, Velle hurled Eurus with all her might, activating its water core. The blade spun into a vicious saw, tearing through one wolf in a second and embedding itself in a nearby wall.
Enraged, the pack leader locked eyes on Velle, charging with terrifying speed and leaving a trail of destruction. Velle leapt to dodge, but the leader anticipated her move, leaping high and slamming her downward into the ground. Her other dagger fell out of her grip and into the ground in the process.
Pain pulsed through her as she struggled to stand. Seizing its chance, the last wolf lunged, sinking its teeth into her and flinging her hard into a nearby building. The bite was brutal, but her enhanced endurance kept her intact. Without Delphine’s Mana, she would not have survived the blow.
Blood seeped from the fresh wound left by the wolf’s fangs as Velle slumped to the ground, her winter coat torn and her movements growing sluggish.
Nearby, the wolf retreated to give its leader a better look at her, while the pack leader bared its fangs in a vicious smirk, each heavy stomp drawing it closer to Velle’s weakened form. Reaching her, it raised a massive paw, preparing to crush her where she lay.
Suddenly, a voice rang out from behind as a rock struck its back.
“Hey, over here!“
The pack leader turned, finding the hunters Aster had spoken to earlier—the same group ambushed by the wolves.
“Remember me, you bastard?“ one called, a defiant smirk on his face as he gripped his hammer, shield ready at his side. His companions readied their own weapons, bow and sword at hand.
The pack leader gave a nod to the other wolf, signaling it to handle the intruders. With a snarl, it charged, jaws open to bite—but the hunter swung his hammer with surprising force, landing a blow that sent the wolf staggering back.
The pack leader’s eyes narrowed, catching a faint Mana trail connecting the hunters to Velle, who, though sprawled on the ground, was glaring at the pack leader. Realizing she was the source of the hunters’ sudden strength, it raised its paw to finish her off.
Before it could strike, a flash of fiery light burst into its vision. Ember appeared, her spear blazing as she lunged at the wolf’s face, driving the spearhead into its thick hide. Though unable to pierce fully, the blow sent the pack leader reeling, roaring in pain as Ember leapt back to Velle’s side.
“Velle, are you alright?“ she asked, resting a hand on Velle’s shoulder.
“Why...are you here?” Velle’s voice was barely a whisper as she struggled to stand.
“I heard the crashes,” Ember replied, glancing back at the hunters, who nodded in acknowledgement. “Found that group on the way here.“
Ember helped Velle to her feet, steadying her as they faced the last two wolves. The hunters readied their weapons, eyes fixed on the smaller wolf.
“Let’s end this. Velle, boost us up,” Ember commanded, twirling her spear as she advanced on the pack leader.
“Right,” Velle replied, summoning her daggers and channeling her Mana to enhance herself, Ember, and the hunters, strengthening their weapons and resolve. “Go.”
Ember charged at the pack leader, her flames blazing higher as her spear struck with speed and precision. The hunters, bolstered by Velle’s power, turned on the smaller wolf, their enhanced cores glowing as they attacked with relentless force.
The pack leader swiped at Ember, but she sidestepped and countered with a searing slash to its leg. Distracted, it roared as Velle sent Eurus slicing through its side.
The hunters, seasoned in fighting large monsters, became an unstoppable team under Velle’s enhancements, landing blow after blow on the last Wintry Wolf, wearing it down with unrelenting strength.
The pack leader grew desperate as its last remaining ally fell to the hunters, its movements becoming erratic under the onslaught of Ember and Velle’s fire and water. Disoriented, the wolf thrashed around, snapping at the air and stomping in confusion.
Nearby, the wolf began to falter, slowing as it let out a final roar. Seizing the chance, one of the hunters drove his sword deep into the creature’s skull. Enhanced by Velle’s Mana, the weapon’s electrical charge surged through its blade, frying the wolf’s brain and ending its life in an instant.
The pack leader watched in horror as its last pack member fell. Realizing it was alone, a spark of fear crept into its eyes. Then, in a panicked decision, it turned and ran, each desperate paw strike sending it farther from Velle’s group.
“No, it’s getting away!“ Ember called, ready to give chase. But Velle stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
“It’s fine,” she said, her gaze fixed on the fleeing beast. Her daggers began to spin, gaining speed as they rose into the air. “It’s already over.”
From the way the pack leader had landed, Velle guessed it had been watching the fight from a nearby peak before joining in, which might have been why she hadn’t sensed it earlier. But now that she had locked onto its Mana, there was nowhere for it to hide.
Withdrawing her Mana from Ember, the hunters, and their weapons, Velle concentrated every ounce of power into her two daggers, pushing them to the absolute limit.
Eurus transformed into a massive water saw, whirling above the rooftops, while Zephyr whipped up a towering whirlwind, drawing clouds and clearing the blizzard from the area.
The pack leader, startled by the sudden break in the storm, glanced over its shoulder—and that brief moment of curiosity sealed its fate.
The massive water saw was already upon it, mere inches away. In a flash, the wolf’s enormous body staggered, collapsing forward as its head rolled aside, separated cleanly.
Eurus came to rest between the wolf’s head and body, its blade embedded in the snow as the swirling sky above gradually stilled, marking the end of the Wintry Wolves’ pack.
“Whoa…” one of the hunters murmured, awed by Velle’s final attack.
“That was incredible!” the archer exclaimed, turning to call out to her—only to see Velle already collapsing into Ember’s arms.
“Velle! Can you hear me?!” Ember shouted, but there was no response. Her eyes widened as she noticed the blood loss.
“She’s hurt badly… Help me get her to the alchemist workshop, fast!” she urged the hunters.
The hammer user and swordsman moved quickly to help Ember lift Velle, while the archer retrieved her daggers before catching up with them.
Together, they hurried back to the alchemist workshop for urgent treatment. Once Velle was stable, Ember made her way to the palace to inform Queen Victoria of Kaska’s victory over the wolves—and of the toll the battle had taken.
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