With a glance around, Michael could count over 40 wolves, not to mention the big-ass Alpha behind them.
The hunters were right about the pack being young since more than half of the wolves surrounding them seemed smaller than the rest, which were the mature ones. The difference between the two could be spotted quite quickly, as the older wolves were marred with scars, and their fur wasn't as clean as the younglings.
However, that didn't make the older group an easier, more brittle target. On the contrary, it only added to their murderous aura while pointing out their dangerous nature.
The young were reckless—the older, strong and crafty.
"This doesn't look good at all! Any ideas on how to get the fuck out of here?"
[We can't break through! The pack usually kills its prey through harassment by aiming at the limbs, and only when it's fully exhausted do they go in for the kill. Even if we break through their ranks to escape encirclement, we would only offer them our backs... an easy target.](Orla)
"What about using my Skeletons to hold them back after breaking away while we make a run for it?"
[No offense, Wanderer, but you don't seem to have the stamina to outrun an entire pack. Neither do we, for that matter. Or the speed.](Orla)
[We can only stand our ground.](Bonny)
"What!? There are over forty of them! We're barely seven if we include my Skeletons, and I have no idea how long they can last against these many beasts."
[No other choice, Wanderer. We can only hope to kill enough of them to either enrage the Alpha and have him attack us or pull back in retreat. The rest of the pack will back off if we draw the Alpha into the fight and kill him.](Bonny)
"So, it's either we die, or they do?"
[Pretty much.](Bonny)
Seeing how casual they were about death, Michael sweated a bit. It looks like he underestimated how dangerous this world was if the natives were ready to die at any given moment.
Opening his Character interface, he cursed at the system for not opening the Abilities page.
He was confident he could find a way to live if given access. Unfortunately, there were no answers to his curses or pleas.
[Let's use the sleds! Use them as makeshift barricades. They aren't tall enough to stop the wolves from advancing, but it would force them to jump over. That should provide us with good chances to cull their numbers.](Bonny)
[Mhm! Wanderer, you must ensure the Skeletons go at it with everything they have if we want to get out of here alive. Have them stay in the spaces between the sleds, and we'll guard them themselves.](Orla)
"We force the wolves to attack us one at a time while the Skeletons take the brunt of the pack. Got it! Can you handle the wolves with the bow, though, Bonny?"
[I won't have much time to shoot arrows, but I can use my knives. I will be fine.](Bonny)
The trio quickly went into action, arranging the sleds sideways and forcing them to dig into the snow so they wouldn't move away easily. It was done rushedly, but they didn't have much time to begin with.
Weapons ready, they eyed the pack warily. Saliva kept dripping on the snow, yet the beasts made no moves to attack. There were only low growls, and from time to time, a young inpatient wolf testing the waters, only to be commanded back by a guttural roar from the Alpha.
This situation continued for over four hours, through which the nerves of the trio were pulled taut.
[*Sigh* They're wearing us out.](Bonny)
[Mhm. Cunning bastards!](Orla)
"They keep rotating the wolves on the front while the second row rests. If the situation continues like this, we'll get tired. And when that happens..."
[There's nothing much we can do. We can't attack because we'll fall into the same trap I mentioned before, with the rest of the pack attacking us from behind. We can only endure...](Bonny)
Grunting in annoyance, Michael kept pondering about ways to kickstart the attack. The longer this lul lasted, the worse their chances at survival.
Finally, after wracking his brain for another hour, a weird solution popped up.
"Dismember the deer..."
[What!?](Orla)
"The deer! Dismember it and eat it!"
[Are you insane, Wanderer!? This is no time to prepare food!](Orla)
[Hmm... No. It might work.](Bonny)
[Work? What might?](Orla)
"Taunting the wolves. Their packs work with a strict hierarchy. Nobody can touch the carcass until the Alpha eats the heart, kidneys, and whatnot. If they see us doing that, we might force them to attack out of anger."
[But... wouldn't that enrage them instead? A pack of berserk wolves... It doesn't sound like something we can withstand with just the three of us.](Orla)
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[Not much of a choice left. Let's try it. Orla, you do it. I'll keep the bow ready.](Bonny)
What followed next was downright insane, as Orla butchered the deer and pulled out its heart. Instantly, the mood in the clearing changed as the younglings kept turning their heads towards the Alpha.
They saw it as an insult to the leader's position, and the Alpha couldn't afford to show tolerance, regardless of its strength. He was still outnumbered, and a group of fervent younglings could easily do him in while working together.
"It's working! They're getting impatient."
[Orla, bite into the damned thing already!](Bonny)
[Do what!? It's fucking raw!](Orla)
[DO IT!](Bonny)
[Fucking hell...](Orla)
As Orla brought the heart to his mouth, finally, the Alpha stood up. Eyes thinning, Bonny took an arrow out and drew the bow into a full moon.
[NOW!](Bonny)
With a yell, Bonny released the arrow toward a young wolf, piercing its neck with ease. At the same time, Orla bit into the heart of the deer and began chewing with hatred, showing the Alpha a malicious smile. That and the blood around his lips made quite the visual impact.
[Brace yourselves! It's working!](Bonny)
His hands kept moving as four more arrows followed, all finding their targets. Two hit the midsection of two mature wolves, one hit right under the front leg of a young one, and the Alpha swatted away the other one.
Bonny's attempt at a sucker punch was thoroughly foiled when it came to the primary target.
A howl followed, sending tremors throughout the woods as the pack responded with their own cries.
"They're coming..."
Even someone as inexperienced as him could see that. And indeed, the 'cavalry' was upon them seconds later.
It was like a river overflowed after a downpour and crashed into their position. Fortunately, the ones at the front were the younger wolves that didn't know the meaning of team play, as well as the older generation, just lunging stupidly at what was in front of them.
That resulted in several heads rolling on the floor as the Skeleton Warriors stood rooted in front of the incoming tide. Michael realized he underestimated the damage these minions dealt, as he treated it as a game more than reality.
While in a game, a swing of a sword would deal damage in specific numbers, in real life, a sharp blade would easily cut through the neck of an animal when swung by a two-meter Skeleton, dealing fatal damage.
Enraged by the sight, the older generation swooped in to deal with the prey themselves, but the Skeletons held firm. However, Michael could see that they were losing HP quickly.
'Fuck! They are already at 75% HP!? They need to hold on bett...'
[Wanderer! Careful! In front of you!](Bonny)
Bonny's shout refocused his attention on the post he was guarding, and just in time to see a goddam wolf pouncing on him, pretty much flying over the shitty sled!
With barely enough time to act, his left hand pushed the buckler forward, blocking the incoming open maw.
A loud thump and a dog-like yelp followed as the attack was rebuffed, making the young wolf fall on the sled awkwardly. Not hesitating, the scythe cut through the air and, soon after, through the wolf's head.
That's right. Head. Not neck, as Michael didn't have the experience needed to aim properly like his minions had, as shameful as that sounded. That, coupled with a trembling hand, resulted in a sloppy strike that barely managed to crack open the beast's skull and end its life.
Looking around while gasping, he noticed no other incoming attacks on him or the two hunters; he quickly inspected the wolf's carcass to confirm his previous deduction.
'Indeed. It's right there! A shallow cut on its front paw from when it crashed into the shield. That means that the damage reflected through Thorns is physical in nature. What if I get attacked by a Fireball, and I block it? Would anything reflect through Thorns? And if it does, will it be in the form of a burn?'
Questions he had by the dozen, including who the hell was Rathma, what were the general prices of goods, how much were people paid as salary here and for what jobs, what's the general cost of living, what's the nearest town/city and how to get there...
There were just too many, yet not enough time to get answers for all of them. Or the right circumstances, as the incoming wolf proved. It was an older one this time around, and its jump made it stop atop the sled. Strangely enough, it didn't attack him, but he looked ready to pounce again.
[Wanderer! Careful behind!](Orla)
Before he had time to answer that he was busy, the feeling of fangs penetrating flesh made him roar in pain as the enemy in front also took advantage of the opportunity to attack.
Beset by horrifying pain, Michael slashed with the scythe forward awkwardly, but the beast's maw was already clenching around his wrist. Luckily, as the second set of terrible pain assaulted him, the scythe's blade also found its way into the back of the wolf.
Without time to cry or curse and with his weapon stuck in the back of the beast in front, he turned around and bashed the buckler at the head of the second perpetrator, which seemed to yank at the flesh on his left leg with all its might.
It proved an idiotic idea, as the teeth sunk even deeper into his thigh due to the impact, making him almost faint when they made contact with the nerves around his bones.
Gritting his teeth, he tried to move his right hand and attack with the scythe in an almost involuntary manner, but it was still firmly locked between the fangs of the other guy.
He kept smashing the young wolf's head with the buckler without better options until the latter fainted. Then, he repeated the same action with the older generation until it released his wrist, though mangled beyond recognition.
He was bleeding heavily from both his right hand and his left thigh. The right hand couldn't hold the weapon anymore, and it was likely that the second wolf nicked an artery in his left leg since he was losing blood quickly.
'If the artery was nicked, I have minutes at best...'
But his thoughts were halted once more as a third wolf fell on him from the fucking High Heavens. The impact dropped him to the ground, and in his panic, he pushed the beast away with his mangled right hand, prompting a gasp of pain.
Noticing the unmoving animal and an arrow accurately stuck in its neck, he immediately looked at a panting Bonny.
[Three wolves attacked Orla simultaneously, and a fourth sneaked past him! Can you still fight?](Bonny)
He didn't need the explanation, though, as he figured it must've happened like that. His Skeletons were still standing strong, and their connection would've alerted him if one got through.
Looking at the minions and noticing their HP under 40%, he sighed in resignation.
"Man proposes, and the heavens laugh at him spitefully..."
[What?](Bonny)
"Nothing! I'm good. Protect yourselves!"
Grunting in pain while repositioning himself, he pulled a vial of Weak Healing Potion from the small bag at his waist and downed it. He could already feel his wounds closing rapidly as soon as the liquid entered his stomach, almost stunning him speechless.
Shaking his head in amazement and getting back up to his feet, he realized the pain was still there, but it would allow him to move unhindered. Rotating his right wrist, it was also working well enough.
Grabbing the scythe and yanking it out from the downed wolf, a yelp of pain escaped the weakened creature. Being reminded of it and the second one still unconscious, he unceremoniously made quick work of both by using the blade to penetrate their brains.
"I was planning to use this on the Boss..."
Looking regretfully at the Alpha briefly, he refocused on the three wolf carcasses around him and activated his Raise Skeleton skill.
Since all four available Skeleton slots were still 'alive,' the skill promptly activated its secondary effect. Two blue, empty-handed Skeletons appeared next to him and waved their hands in the air.
Not even a moment later, they vanished into thin smoke. The effect was immediately noticeable, though, as his Warriors were hitting faster than before. One thing that made Michael frown was the HP healed by the Priests.
"Only a 10% increase... That means that the buffs don't stack in the five-second interval. Thankfully, I used only two out of the three corpses. It was a good idea to run this experiment early..."
Trying to complete the Quest in one shot while keeping more food for the villagers was a noble idea, but he wouldn't bother if his life were in danger. The Quest was to cull, and cull he would.
Unfortunately, the corpses he used his skill on would be turned into bloodmists, but he prioritized his own life above all.