The wolf wasn't going to let them go, and both animals were sure of that.
Tenma hadn't felt the same fear since the fierce attack of that bear, and having his friend in the body of the ferocious animal made him even more scared.
"If this is some bad joke, just stop it! If I die, you die too, do you remember?!"
Despite being able to regenerate, and thus preserving his mind and therefore the existence of the angel, if he were to become unconscious again, he ran the risk of never waking up again.
At his side, Dave also struggled under the wolf's paw, using his four legs to fight against his natural predator; fear was evident in his eyes, he feared for his life too.
The wolf lowered its head, showing its fangs as it salivated. Its fierce appearance, with all its gray wavy and tousled fur, made it look experienced in hunting and survival in those lowlands, and the pair of animals under its paws were just appetizers compared to what it could find inside.
It gave a strong stomp to both, making them squeal. The squirrel's squealing let him know that it wouldn't be long before it surrendered under his strength, but in comparison, the puppy's squeal made his fur stand on end.
The wolf had thought they were just a pair of rats, driven by hunger. Seeing that they had brought along a puppy of some dog, it slowly withdrew its paw from him, but he was already unconscious.
"Damn it...!" The squirrel would tense its legs, managing to free itself from the ferocious animal's paw; it went for the puppy to get away from the wolf.
But the wolf would grab him in its jaws before the squirrel could reach him.
The squirrel would look around, seeing the magic book lying aside. It would run directly towards it in search of something to help defend them, but as it looked back at the wolf, it had already gone.
"He's going to eat him alive..." The squirrel would run towards the route in search of the wolf, barely able to keep up.
It would catch up to him at some point, just hoping the puppy could defend himself in the meantime.
And so, without hesitation, it would enter the cavern infested with beasts.
***
Tenma had lost his breath when the wolf trapped him under its paw and could barely be conscious.
He felt a strong breeze run through his fur, opening his mouth he felt the air rushing through each of his fangs. Somewhat fearful, he opened his eyes, seeing himself being carried at great speed between two walls that made the path narrow.
The breathing on his neck made his fur stand on end completely, alerting his hunter that its prey had awakened.
He was being carried by the scruff by the wolf from before.
"One problem after another, now I'll end up dead again," the puppy repeated to himself in his thoughts, feeling the wolf stop running upon reaching a cave full of different flowers.
Tenma would be absorbed in seeing that cave, mainly because he didn't believe any plants could grow normally under those circumstances. The wolf would leave the puppy on the ground and approach the cave's entrance where the flowers were.
The puppy remained still and seated as he watched what happened before his eyes, as the wolf took a moment to sniff the flowers. It smelled their fragrance, and the overall scheme made everything seem somewhat more peaceful.
The wolf would take a few steps back, and taking a deep breath, it would spew a large blast of golden flames over all the flowers until they were completely incinerated, every single one of them.
It would walk a bit around, making sure they were all dead, and once done it would turn to look at the puppy, who would be looking at him with a confused and absorbed gaze at what he had just seen.
But before he could say anything, the wolf invited him to enter the cave.
At this point, Tenma wondered if the wolf was really possessed by his angelic friend, because it didn't really seem like him at all. He would approach to walk beside it, once he saw that it had no intentions of eating him, for the moment.
He would take advantage of the moments when it would bring its head closer to see its eyes, confirming that it had the same spark of life of an angel as the rat that had possessed his friend before.
"I can only think that... the wolf has much more willpower, or something like that."
Once inside the cave, Tenma would hear more barking and a distinctive smell of milk. The wolf would cover him in licks completely, and despite being afraid, he would let it. Once covered in its scent, the puppy would walk even further into the cave, although the light was fading more as he went further.
Some barks would sound again, coming face to face with a she-wolf with similarly tousled dark fur, alongside 3 gray and dark puppies. Tenma would perk up his ears upon catching what was happening.
The wolf had brought him to its family.
"No no no." Tenma would step back, looking at the wolf. "I don't want to be adopted, I already decided that."
Behind him, he would hear different howls from outside, seeing how the wolf left the cave to keep watch, leaving him alone and facing the she-wolf with the other puppies.
The she-wolf would bark at him, inviting him to come closer. The puppies seemed confused by the recent guest, but the she-wolf would calm them with licks on their heads.
Tenma, nervous and sweating buckets, would approach slowly towards the den; his paws felt the tension, and they would make eye contact with the she-wolf.
Her gaze conveyed everything opposite to how he felt, but he still hesitated whether to approach completely.
He felt really uncomfortable.
rs of his guild knew him, lay sprawled in the adjacent room. He watched the scene in astonishment, partly unwilling to intervene.
But that call brought out an impulse in him.
"Shinma!"
"Woof!"
Leaping into action, Shinma ran out and bit Doris's leg. She jumped in fright, trying to shake off the puppy. However, he bit down with all his might, refusing to let go.
Melman approached Eva to tie her arms. Then, between him and Gorgon, they pinned her to the ground. The swordsman knelt to grab the girl's chin, but she spat at him.
"Disgusting! It got in my mouth!"
Tenma saw his owner fall to the ground, moaning in pain. It was a strange feeling, but he didn't want her to die.
"Get out of here, Shinma," Doris told him, grabbing him by the scruff and lifting him. "You don't need to see all this. Just go, and we'll come back for you later."
Tenma whined a little, disheartened by his weakness against someone who wasn't even using a weapon on him.
"Woof!"
"Shinma... you're going to make me kill you if you keep insisting—"
Suddenly, Melman drove his sword through Doris's back, leaving everyone stunned.
"You... what do you think you're doing?" Doris demanded, releasing Shinma to cover her mouth, ending up spitting blood. "Melman..."
Melman still held the sword firmly, seemingly unwilling to retract his attack.
Hysterical, Doris looked to Gorgon.
"Gorgon, stop Melman!"
Gorgon kicked his boss hard to prevent her from getting up, heading toward Melman.
But he changed direction and aimed his fist at Doris, punching her square in the face.
Doris, in pain, looked at her two comrades going against her. She began to stutter and tremble, not understanding a thing that was happening.
"The government... won't leave me alone, huh?"
Getting up carefully, Eva stood, adjusting the tie of her suit. Her face was bloody, and her suit dirty, but she kept the strength to look firmly at Doris.
"What's happening...? What is this?"
Eva picked up the knife Gorgon had left on the ground. Melman stepped back, drawing his sword, and Gorgon kept the girl held by the neck.
"How did you find me? Were all our adventures... fake?" the leader asked, pointing the knife at the girl.
In a desperate attempt, Doris raised her gun and shot at Eva, but she deflected it with her sword, causing it to ricochet and hit Melman. He fell to the floor.
"Answer. Was everything fake?!"
Doris began to cry, anguished by the pain and the betrayal of her comrades who were not responding to her calls. When she looked again at Eva, she exclaimed:
"We're just... bounty hunters. No one would join you. You are... the threat the government seeks to eliminate," the girl replied, spitting blood. "The assassin we sent to kill you... didn't do his job... and we paid him in advance. Why couldn't you die there?"
Eva stared at the traitor. She took the gun from her hands and pulled out the explosive material, throwing it to the ground.
Doris was stunned, trying to call out to her comrades to stop her. She screamed in alarm.
Tenma watched everything, scared. He was picked up by Eva and carried to the bar's exit.
"Melman! Gorgon! Why aren't you responding?!"
But both remained still. Doris tried to escape from the explosive material, getting up as best she could, leaving blood in her wake.
But Eva was already at the exit, with an explosive berry in her hand.
"Explosion... goodbye, friends."
With a flick of her thumb, she threw the berry at high speed, making it land on the explosive material.
Causing a massive explosion in the place, with the three guild members inside.
"Woof....! Woof..."
"Shinma...."
Eva hugged her pet in her arms, trying to calm him.
"Forget... everything you saw today. Okay?"
"Woof...!"
...
Eva kept walking, stroking her dog's head until dawn.
Leaving town before anyone could discover she was responsible for the disastrous fire.