I had no name.
I was merely a creature that wandered the Forest, living out a cycle of hunting whatever prey I could find. That was how I had always lived, and I assumed that was how I would always live.
Then came a life-altering encounter.
I met a female of my kind.
The moment I thought she was a fine specimen, she attacked. I fought back, not understanding why, but I stood no chance. I had always been confident in my strength, yet I was utterly outmatched.
I braced myself for death, but after flashing me a look of triumph, she ordered me to follow her. I couldn't possibly refuse. I had lived alone until then, but from that day on, there were two of us.
When a male and a female live together, nature takes its course. Eventually, her belly began to swell.
I see. So now I have a family to look after. It wasn't a bad feeling.
We spent our days together, but just as her time to give birth drew near, we encountered our worst nightmare. The other inhabitants who lived hidden in the Forest spoke of it in whispers.
The Grappler Bear. The King of the Forest.
It had a gargantuan body and the overwhelming power to match. Its overall movements might have been slow, but the speed of its limbs was terrifying. Ordinarily, I would have fled the moment I spotted it, but it was a sudden encounter, and I had a pregnant female with me.
There was no escaping.
I stepped in front of her to shield her from the bear. I was terrified. I knew this was a fight I couldn't win, but I couldn't run. I had to buy her enough time to get away.
The moment that thought crossed my mind, the Grappler Bear swung its arm. The strike mowed down the surrounding trees, sending razor-sharp splinters raining down on us. I shielded her, and she shielded her belly.
We couldn't dodge. The impact sent us both flying. It was overwhelming power. That single blow left my entire body battered and broken. She was injured, too.
I prepared myself for the end.
But the Grappler Bear ignored us, as if mocking my resolve. Whether it was out of a whim or because its belly was already full, I didn't know, but it let us go.
It was humiliating. It was frustrating, but there was nothing I could do. More importantly, we had to move before the bear changed its mind. Protecting my mate, I dragged myself away from that place.
Several days passed.
Our injuries made our bodies feel heavy, and we couldn't hunt. Sensing our weakness, some of our usual prey started getting bold. I wanted to tear them apart, but my bloodlust meant nothing in my current state. It only made me hungrier.
I didn't care about myself, but if I didn't get her something to eat, things would turn dire. I was worried about the pups. As I was wondering how to save us, we stumbled upon a strange clearing.
A tree was lying on its side, and the ground in front of it had been tilled. What shocked me wasn't the hole, but the tree itself. It was an Unfelled Great Tree—a wood so hard I couldn't even scratch it when I was at full strength.
And yet, it had been brought down? There were several of them lined up.
...
For now, I tried to howl. Perhaps because of my hunger, it came out more like a pathetic whimper than I intended.
However, it wasn't in vain. A human emerged from beyond the logs.
Perfect. He looked frail. He was prey.
The moment that thought crossed my mind, a chilling premonition surged through me. It was a fear even more primal than what I felt when facing the Grappler Bear. This creature in front of me was the source of it.
When you think about it, humans are weak. They might live on the outskirts of the Forest, but they never venture this deep. Even those who were far stronger than humans lived hidden away, avoiding this place.
Yet, here he was. There was no way he was as he appeared. I realized I was in a very dangerous situation.
The moment the human pulled out a wooden tool and took a stance, my suspicions were confirmed. Just because I had howled, I had summoned a monster like this. I regretted it instantly, but it was too late. My mate behind me seemed to have resolved herself as well, pulling herself up to stand beside me.
If it had come to this, I would do whatever I could. If possible, I wanted to save her, but I knew things rarely went so smoothly. I looked at her face. Thinking this was the end made my heart tremble.
But it wasn't the end. The human invited us in.
For some reason, the urge to flee vanished. When I followed him, I saw a Gate Boar. It was a massive beast, a species that rivaled my own for dominance in the Forest. Neither I nor my mate could have taken one down alone.
Yet there it was, dead. No, it had already been butchered into meat.
I truly understood the human's power then.
Afterward, the human gave the Gate Boar meat to us and provided a safe place for my mate to give birth. He would even go back into the Forest and easily hunt more prey for us.
Was this gratitude I felt? I had no desire to ever oppose him. No, both my mate and I recognized this human as our master. I didn't know how the newborn pups would feel, but I hoped they would never turn against him.
"There, there, good dogs."
There was just one problem. Our master treated us like dogs.
My mate, my children, and I are a species known as Inferno Wolves...
I wonder if this is alright? I'm a little afraid of what will happen when he realizes we aren't dogs.