"Please don't let it be what I think it is."

I whispered to myself, trying to stay calm, as I turned my body quickly in the direction those noises were coming from. However, my heart almost stopped when, as I completed the movement, I saw five wolves leap out in front of me, their red eyes shining in the moonlight and their long sharp teeth ready to attack me.

(This has got to be a joke.)

I thought to myself as my face displayed a disbelieving countenance.

"Road!"

Watching the first wolf's movements carefully, the other five followed suit. Letting out a deafening roar, they advanced towards me, ready to pounce on me like a hungry predator hunting its prey.

Because of that first attack, which had ripped the wolf's head off, Lincoln had the misfortune of hitting the blow too hard. This resulted in the sword ending up stuck in the ground.

"Damn!"

With a little anger bubbling up inside me, I whispered to myself as I struggled to pull out my sword, which was so deeply lodged in the ground that it didn't want to come out at all.

It was at that moment that one of the wolves, realizing that Lincoln was not in any danger, didn't think twice and launched itself at him, aiming for his face.

Lincoln, having no other choice, had to take his hand off his sword for a second to dodge the wolf's attack. He quickly lowered his head. The wolf, unable to control its speed, missed the attack and fell to the ground.

crack!

The sound of the impact was so loud that, as well as cracking the ground, the wolf began to grunt in pain.

*SFX for dog whimper*

"That was very close. If that attack had hit my eyes, I would surely have lost an eye - or my life."

I whispered to myself as I picked myself up off the ground, but I didn't even have time to breathe. As soon as I turned around, another wolf was already coming towards me with its mouth ready to attack me.

"Shit! You don't give me a second's rest."

Lincoln, realizing that the sword wasn't going to come off the ground that easily and that he wouldn't have time to do it either, turned his body, with his fist ready to hit the wolf that had jumped towards him.

*SFX to something passing quickly through the air*

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

However, that wolf seemed to be the leader of the pack, because, just as the punch was about to hit him, he somehow managed to dodge it and, with the fur of his tail that looked more like a scythe, hit Lincoln's cheek, making a small cut.

"Damn!"

I whispered to myself as I felt my face burn. At first, I thought it was just a superficial cut and didn't pay it much mind. However, a few seconds later, I began to feel my strength waning.

"What the fuck is happening to me?"

I asked myself as I tried my best to stay on my feet.

Just as Lincoln had asked himself that question not expecting an answer, the system, as always, not obeying his orders, manifested itself as a sonorous echo in his mind, something he was already used to.

*SFX for something appearing*

[ATTENTION:]

[A harmful substance has just been detected in your body.]

[Applying 'Fragile Body' debuff.]

"What the hell, I've managed to get poisoned again."

Just as Lincoln was about to get worried, thinking that something worse might happen, that sound that had just echoed a few seconds ago echoed again in his mind.

*SFX for something disappearing and reappearing*

[WARNING:]

[Doing the 'Detox' of the substance.]

[... ..]

[Substance successfully 'Neutralized'.]

[Removing 'Fragile Body' Debuff.]

[... ..]

[Debuff successfully removed.]

"If you want to kill me, you'll have to do a lot more than that."

I whispered that as I stared at the monster, realizing from its reaction that it hadn't taken too kindly to my provocation.

(I have no idea what you did to my body while I was passed out. But whatever you did, thank you very much, system).

As I thanked my system, I thought to myself that, although I didn't know exactly what it had done, something it had performed was crucial to my still being alive.

***

As Lincoln had lost a lot of time, that first wolf, which had previously been on the ground in agony, had already pulled itself together and was now on the leader's side.

"Apparently, if I can't get rid of you, you'll be the ones to get rid of me."

I whispered this to myself as I stared at them.

Lincoln, realizing that the only way he could kill the wolf leader would be to trick him, came up with a quick plan in his head.

He pretended to run towards his sword. After doing so, his little action alerted the pack leader, who decided to ambush him. However, as soon as the wolf jumped on Lincoln, he was in for a surprise.

"I've got you!"

I said, staring at the wolf as I stretched out my arm towards my sword.

"Gravitational touch."

*SFX to something being pulled*

When I used that Skill on my sword, I immediately saw the pressure of gravity in action. Not only did it break the ground where it was stuck, but it also flew towards me with incredible speed.

Grab!

"This time, you won't escape me."

Giving the pack leader no chance to escape, Lincoln made a cross-cut that would tear the beast's head off. However, the wolf again managed to parry his attack by biting his sword.

"You've got to be kidding me!"

A whisper escaped my lips as I stared at the wolf before me, unable to believe what it had just done.

***

Lincoln, realizing that there was no point in using his strength to cut the wolf with his sword, managed to think of another way out of the situation.

"You're starting to get on my nerves."

With a well-timed knee strike, Lincoln managed to destabilize the wolf a little. He then took the opportunity to try another cross-cut. However, unlike the other times, this time the wolf was unable to defend itself against the attack and ended up having its head cut off.