"...But aren't they getting a bit too used to humans?
Normally, wild animals don't become attached to humans that easily, right? And that's because the relationship between the wolf, an animal species, and the hunter, a human species, is one in which they hunt each other as prey and are hunted..." (Mile)
Mavis, who came from a family of knights, answered Mile's question.
"Monsters never get attached to humans, but that's not the case with animals.
If an animal you meet for the first time seems unusually friendly, there are roughly two possible reasons.
One reason is that the animal is originally accustomed to humans.
For example, they may have been kept by humans before, or they may have a friendly human friend and like humans.
The other is when it is the animal's first time meeting humans, and it does not consider them either friend or foe, and has no hostility towards them.
…Although, even in that case, they would probably still perceive you as an intruder into their territory, or as prey, and attack you." (Mavis)
"......" (Other 3)
Based on the information available so far, the former was unlikely.
...That was, assuming the explanation given by the village chiefs was correct...
So was it the latter? That's hard to imagine either.
Would a wild wolf behave in a friendly manner towards a soft, tasty looking animal that it found in its territory rather than viewing it as a prey?
It seemed that Reina and the others were not entirely convinced...
"Ah!" (Pauline)
Pauline seemed to have thought of something.
"Maybe Mile-chan isn't even recognized as a 'human'? Their wild instincts have picked up on our strength and our vast magical powers, and they see us as 'A creature stronger than us that we shouldn't mess with, that we should treat in a friendly manner', so they're acting humble...
And since the three of us are Mile-chan's subordinates, or Mile-chan is their captured prey, they won't lay a hand..." (Pauline)
"That's it!!" (Reina + Mavis)
"What is that?!!" (Mile)
Reina and Mavis agreed, but Mile was furious.
The six wolves, chained together, were frolicking with great joy.
They had absolutely no awareness that they had been captured...
"It looks like we've arrived..." (Mile)
As Mile said, they were still far from the center of the forest, but they seemed to have reached the center of the wolves' territory. It was easy to tell from the state of the six wolves and the positions of the other wolves that were responding to Mile's search magic.
"A cave, huh… It doesn’t seem to be that deep. It doesn’t seem to be an archaeological site, it’s just a naturally formed shallow cave that they use as their home.
But do wolves live in caves or anything like that?" (Mile)
"Well, caves aren't all that common, so not all wolf packs can live in caves..." (Mavis)
Mavis answered Mile's question, but...
"But wouldn't it hurt to sleep on rocks, and wouldn't it be uncomfortable in winter because your body heat would be lost to the ground? Wouldn't they be better to sleep curled up on the grass?" (Mile)
"What will you do when it rains?"
"If you're exposed to the wind, the wind will take away your stamina and body heat, and if you think about defending yourself against hostile beasts and monsters..."
"No, unlike humans, they have fur..."
"Ahhhh, please leave that for later!
…No, I don’t dislike that kind of speculation, and as a hunter, it’s good to have that kind of curiosity and inquisitiveness, but right now, please prioritize our meeting with our business partner!" (Mile)
"Sorry……" (Other 3)
Reina and the other two sincerely apologized to Mile who is yelling at them.
Mile rarely got angry, but when she did, she could be scary.
They'd been friends for a long time. That much was something Reina and the other two knew.
"...But the one who started it was Mile-cha...gyaahh!" (Pauline)
Then, when Pauline made an inappropriate remark, Reina stepped on her foot with all her might, causing her to scream.
...Pauline, it seemed her learning effect wasn't sufficient...
"Well then, it's about time we meet the final boss..." (Mile)
Mile was pulled by six wolves, who were tugging on the chains attached to their harness, towards the cave, followed by Reina and the other two.
If Mile really tried and dug her feet into the ground, she could stop it, but under normal circumstances, no matter how strong the force, Mile, who was light in weight, would be easily pulled away.
Of course, Mile wasn't planning on stopping at the moment...
Then, out of nowhere, several wolves appeared and followed Mile and her group.
Of course, there were many wolves waiting ahead, in the cave as well.
However, Mile and her group didn't seem to mind.
If something were to happen, if the Crimson Vow got serious, they could take down 20 or 30 wolves, anything.
Considering the absolute defense of the Alban Empire, it was a pretty easy job.
...Although the wolves didn't seem to harbor any hostility towards them...
As expected, the cave wasn't very deep, about 20 to 30 meters at most. The diameter of the hole wasn't that big, so Mile and the others had no choice but to walk in two lines without bending over.
If they spread out any further, there would be a risk of hitting their heads on the lowering ceiling...especially for Mavis, who was the tallest of them...
"……what?" (Mile)
Then Mile tilted her head.
A wolf sat at the very back of the cave.
Judging from the positioning of the other wolves, this individual was clearly the leader, the boss, of the pack.
As an added bonus, it's white in color.
If this wasn't the boss, it was a fraud.
...However, the white wolf was small.
It's not a matter of being small or anything, it's clearly a child.
It was surprised and confused by the unexpected visitor.
The faces directed at the six wolves that had dragged Mile and the others along were clearly ones of accusation, as if to say, "What's with these guys?" and "What, you've brought some weirdos here without asking!"
However, without paying any attention to this, the six wolves pulled Mile hard and brought her in front of the white wolf.
Reina and the other two had stopped walking, and the only ones approaching the white wolf were the wolves and Mile.
And of the six wolfs that stopped in front of the white wolf, were the first to capture Mile...no, the first to capture these humans...and they walked toward Mile, stood on two legs, put its front legs over Mile's shoulders, and patted Mile's shoulder with its right leg.
"Ah, yes, yes..." (Mile)
And just like before, she responded to their request and took a piece of blue rare-cooked ogre meat from her item box… since it had been placed in stop time item box, it was still freshly cooked, warm, and smelling delicious… and placed it in front of the white wolf.
"......" (Wolf)
Obviously, the white wolf was looking suspiciously.
That's probably true. For a wild animal that had no idea about item boxes, what it had just seen must have been far too mysterious and suspicious...
However, the meat placed in front of me looked and smelled so good.
Considering the situation, there was no doubt that it was a tribute to itself.
To refuse to eat it would mean refusing the gift from those its subordinates brought with them, destroying their reputation, and denying its friendship with them.
As the leader of the pack, that was bad.
...And above all, the meat placed in front of them smelled incredibly delicious.
Gulp!
The white wolf stood up and ate the meat that was given.
And…….
Gulp gulp gulp!
The white wolf devoured the meat in an instant and then walked towards Mile...
It stood on two feet and patted Mile on her shoulder.
"Yes, yes, you'll have another one..." (Mile)
Mile gave out some extra meat.
The white wolf gobbled it up.
And…….
Thud thud thud thud!
The wolves in the pack all pounced on Mile, hitting her violently on her shoulders with their paws.
"S-stop! No, I'm glad to be surrounded by all these fluffy creatures, but wait, stop right now!!" (Mile)
Reina and the other two shrugged as they saw Mile, who could be heard but was no longer visible among the wolves...
Author's Note
Summer vacation is over!
Thank you for your continued support! (^^)/