Apollo landed on the ground with a thud. He looked around the area and still couldn't find what he was looking for. After a few minutes of jumping from tree to tree like a monkey, he arrived beside a hill.
"Where is that wolf…" Apollo muttered. He was sure he was heading in the right direction, but where was it? He glanced up and saw the moon peeking behind the rocky hill.
Up there? Apollo was about to climb the hill when he stopped. "Something feels strange."
He could sense it, but he couldn't pinpoint what was causing the feeling. Apollo hesitated, unsure whether to keep looking for the wolf or just go back. In the end, he sighed and decided to call it a night. There was still plenty of time for him to test his strength in a real battle. What if another fool tried to pick a fight with him? Wouldn't that be a free sparring partner?
Hopefully, that fool isn't foolishly strong enough to beat my ass, Apollo thought with a bitter smile.
Shaking his head, he turned around and started walking back.
That's when…
Howl!
The wolf he had been looking for suddenly howled again, louder and clearer this time. It only meant one thing: the wolf was near! Apollo abruptly turned around but didn't see the wolf.
He slowly looked up and, sure enough, a four-legged animal was standing on the hill with its head pointed to the sky.
"I guess the fool is this guy," Apollo chuckled. "Hey, down here!"
When the wolf heard this, it looked down and growled menacingly.
"Fighting against a wolf… it still sounds crazy," the beggar muttered in amusement. He started lightly jumping to pump his heart and did some simple stretches to calm his mind. This was going to be his first fight against a wild animal, and he wanted to make as few mistakes as possible.
The wolf jumped from the hill and made its way down. Because of the night, its body was still shrouded in darkness. Although Apollo's vision had improved, it only applied to nearby details; if something was fully covered by the dark, he could only make out the silhouette.
Apollo prepared himself and assumed his boxing stance. As he waited, that strange feeling came back. Excitement turned into nervousness.
When the wolf fully revealed itself, he finally understood why he felt that way. The wolf in front of him stood at least 2 meters tall. But what was more prominent was its black fur and two tails.
Hearing the menacing growling, Apollo woke from his daze. I should change my thinking. The trees from earlier were not the same as the trees from his previous life.
Apollo kept comparing this world to his previous one. When he heard the howls, he thought it was just a normal wolf, but reality proved him wrong.
And now, he found himself in trouble. Was it arrogance because of his sudden strength? Apollo thought this must be one reason for his mistake.
Run or fight? The beggar thought and decided after a few seconds. He was already here, so he decided to fight. What if this guy was just scary-looking but weaker than him? Then he would have chickened out for nothing. And if the black wolf was really strong, he could just escape.
Roar!
Apollo became tense. He waited for the black wolf to make the first move to gauge its strength.
The wolf observed the small human with its red eyes. A few seconds later, it roared angrily and launched itself toward the beggar!
"Here it is!" Apollo prepared himself and widened his eyes.
In his vision, the black wolf moved fast, but he felt he could keep up if he really tried.
Apollo jumped back, the sharp claw barely missing him. He could even hear the wind being torn apart—that's how strong the attack was.
If that claw landed, I would definitely be in two! Apollo thought, breathing heavily. The wolf didn't give him time to rest and attacked again.
Apollo jumped back, and when the wolf landed, he ran to the side with his quick feet.
The black wolf ran after him while the beggar made sure to keep track of the animal's movements. He purposely slowed down, and the wolf took this chance to jump on him.
Now! Apollo sidestepped and turned around abruptly before punching with all his strength! With a shout, his fist connected with the wolf's jaw!
The wolf growled in pain as its body was sent crashing to the ground, rolling a few times and creating small dust clouds. Seeing this, Apollo raised his hand and clenched it. Although he already had a basic understanding of his 1st-Step Foundation Building and could even make a tree fall with just his fist, he still felt excited that he could make a wolf of this size roll on the ground.
The wolf stood up and shook its head to clear its dizziness. Then, it looked at the tiny human with killing intent.
He's angry. Apollo readied himself. He didn't dare to underestimate the wolf just because he had managed to land a hit once.
Roar!
The black wolf howled at the sky before charging toward him! Apollo ran again, intending to use the same technique.
Dodge! Turn! And punch!
But contrary to what he expected, the moment his fist was about to hit the wolf's jaw, something struck his chest! With a thud, his body hit the ground hard!
"Argh!" Apollo grunted in pain. He didn't expect the black wolf to be so smart that fooling it twice wouldn't work! D*mn! I bit off more than I can chew! And what is that other idiom… I have eyes but can't see Mount Tai! Apollo recalled all the idioms he could think of about his current situation.
He looked at his chest and noticed that blood was tainting his robe. It hurts. Apollo glanced at the black wolf with anger in his eyes.
As the wolf growled at him, almost mockingly, Apollo stood up and dusted off his clothes. Although his chest hurt, it wasn't enough to keep him from moving.
Seeing the human standing up, the wolf howled again before dashing towards Apollo.
Apollo raised both hands in front of his face and waited. He decided to fight the wolf head-on. He could think of other tricks like before, but he was already angry. Besides, he thought fighting head-on was cooler.
This time the black wolf didn't dodge. Instead, it opened its jaws wide and tried to bite the beggar.
Apollo carefully observed its movements. He ducked to the side and was about to kick when a tail immediately attacked him. He crossed his hands in front of him and managed to block the attack, though the impact still caused him to take a few steps back.
Faster!
Before the wolf could turn towards him, Apollo stopped his momentum and lunged at his enemy!
With a thud, his fist managed to land on the side of the black wolf, causing it to howl in pain and tumble to the ground. This is not enough. Apollo ran after the wolf and sent another punch.
Bang!