The wolf blinked its eyes. It seemed momentarily unable to understand what situation this was. But soon the wolf grasped how the situation was unfolding.
The wolf's eyes curved. Its eerily elongated snout did so as well.
The Ranger unit members watching from a safe distance felt the fine hairs all over their bodies stand on end.
At the same time, Rotkäppchen warned.
"Everyone. Fall back further."
The Ranger unit followed orders without asking why. Cinderella clashed the glass slippers worn on both her fists together with a clang. With a clear sound, the surrounding area became clear for just an instant.
"What intense bloodlust. Does it smile when angry?"
"That's what makes it so vicious."
Rotkäppchen agreed with Cinderella's words.
Big Bad Wolf.
It swallows anything that can fit in its mouth. What's more ridiculous is that it recklessly stuffs in things even larger than its own bulk.
At this point, it was hard to tell whether to call it a wolf or a pelican.
And inside its endless stomach, everything it has devoured so far slumbers intact. The wolf devours someone like that, or swallows what others hold dear. And then thoroughly mocks them.
It wasn't for nothing that "Bad" was attached to its name. Being such a mocking creature, it doesn't show anger even when truly enraged.
Instead, it smiles. Grinning. With dense bloodlust that chills the skin.
Right now was exactly like that. It seemed quite aggrieved at having the egg it was guarding stolen.
"Still, thanks to that we got a good hit. You said you're Violet Fox's fixer? Thank you."
"Well, it's not a commission, just a personal favor I'm doing."
Just then Rotkäppchen aimed the loaded shotgun and pulled the trigger.
Ta-ang!
A huge explosion occurred in front of the wolf's head. This was possible because it was witchcraft, not an ordinary shotgun. However, what remained after the smoke cleared was a giant brick.
"What a shame."
The wolf said mockingly. It was the ability of the third of the three little pigs under its command. Building the strongest defensive brick structure. Bricks are sturdy. Being the result of mysticism, it would be harder than most alloys.
That's when Cinderella charged in. Her slender body kicking off the ground shot forward. It was a sprint fast enough to leave faint afterimages.
However, the wolf didn't just watch.
Chwa-ra-ra-rak!
Giant straws rose like waves. Among the straws were also sturdy, heavy logs. These were the abilities of the first and second of the three little pigs.
Cinderella immediately took a stance and thrust out her fist. The process was so swift it all happened in an instant.
[Glass Slipper - Straight Punch]
Pa-ang!
A shockwave that tore through the air spread out. An overwhelming destructive impact shot out like a spear. The straws and logs that rose like waves were pierced through, creating a large tunnel.
Beyond it, the wolf smiled as if amused.
"That's all you've got."
Sseu-eu-eu-eup.
The wolf inhaled. At that moment, they felt the illusion that all the surrounding air was being sucked into the wolf.
'It's not an illusion.'
Cinderella frowned. The wolf was sucking in all the surrounding air with tremendous lung capacity. A massive airflow suddenly occurred in the giant underground structure. After inhaling until its chest swelled up like a balloon, the wolf—
Pu-u-u-u!!!
Expelled the oxygen it had gathered.
It was wind so intense it brought to mind a raging typhoon outside. For an ordinary person, not only would their clothes fly off, but their flesh and muscles would separate from their bones with that force.
"Oh. You can withstand that?"
The wolf said while exhaling.
Cinderella didn't fall thanks to the beautiful ballroom dress adorning her body.
Ta-ang! Ta-ang! Ta-ang!
At that moment, bullets flew in succession. The wolf turned its head and narrowed its wide-open mouth as if whistling.
The compressed air was ejected more strongly. The trajectory of the flying bullets curved and stuck in innocent places.
"Rotkäppchen. You're really as tiresome now as you were before."
Rotkäppchen didn't answer. She only made her eyes shine eerily from within the shadowed face under her hood. Watching her reload the shotgun with swift hand movements, the wolf smiled while internally feeling annoyed.
'Troublesome woman.'
If there's anyone to be most wary of here, it's undoubtedly Rotkäppchen as priority number one. She awakened the witch's factor because of the wolf. Her wish is revenge against the wolf that devoured her grandmother.
That shotgun witchcraft is the result of that. It's not flashy, and bullets must be loaded directly. Hitting requires personally aiming and shooting. There's no such thing as a homing function.
Looking at it this way, one might ask what kind of witchcraft this is, but the story changes the moment you get hit by it.
'Even for me, if I get hit by that, it's not good.'
Rotkäppchen's witchcraft is [Beast Killing]
That shotgun boasts absolute lethality against beasts. It's not just a matter of it hurting when hit. Starting from the hit area, the very existence rots and crumbles before collapsing.
And what's absurd is that the category of "beast" in this Beast Killing doesn't simply mean mammals.
The definition of beast is determined by Rotkäppchen. Even those who, despite being human, commit subhuman evil deeds can also be defined as beasts by Rotkäppchen.
The conditions for making that definition are strict, but the moment the witch herself brands someone as a beast and fires that gun, if hit, they just die.
So the optimal response is to not get hit by it. Grazes are fine, but the moment of direct hit, there's no mercy from that point on.
'In front of that bullet, every part of my body becomes a vital point.'
Whether the heart is pierced or the tip of the tail is hit, dying is the same. The moment of being hit delivers equal death regardless of location. Normally, he would have retreated without engaging.
But this time, he couldn't. The reason was that the egg of the Sea Dragon he had to protect was stolen.
'I couldn't detect the presence. How did she penetrate the sealed brick fortress in the first place?'
The wolf's gaze turned to Seren. More precisely, to the egg of the sea dragon she was holding.
‘If I'd known this would happen, I should have just swallowed it and carried it around in my stomach.’
The wolf's eyes curved. It was a habit that came out whenever it thought wicked thoughts.
"Come out."
The wolf vomited something from its mouth.
Me-e-e-e. They were small, bleating baby goats. Seven in total. The creatures that were initially small goats gradually swelled up. Muscles attached and they stood upright on two legs. The horns on their heads grew long.
In an instant, they became seven fierce goat monsters.
"Ah. I picked the wrong fight."
Seren muttered. She was holding a considerably large egg, and she knew this wasn't an ordinary item. Even so, to think it was related to the great witch Mother Goose.
At the same time, a smile formed on Seren's lips.
"Good thing I called for backup just in case."
The seven goat monsters charged at Seren, targeting her. At that moment, something like pitch-black ink formed in the gap in the ceiling and dripped down with a plop.
What fell in front of Seren spread like a water balloon bursting on the ground, then coalesced into one form as if time were reversing. It was a jet-black furball.
Two golden lights flashed from within the furball.
Chwa-ja-ja-ja-jak
The goat monster that had been charging at the front was divided into dozens of pieces and fell. The wolf's eyes widened in surprise. Its long snout twisted in anger for the first time.
"Hello. Bad Wolf."
Toward such a wolf, a giant Puss in Boots greeted. It was Diolan, a fixer belonging to Violet Fox.
"We're not on such terms as to meet and exchange greetings, are we?"
Diolan sprang up like a spring and immediately charged at the wolf.
Gu-we-e-ek. After shoving a large hand into its mouth, it pulled out a large scimitar from inside as if vomiting it up.
The gleaming scimitar and Diolan's claws collided. The two beasts faced each other.
"Cat-t-t-t!"
"Let's have a proper fight. Wolf."
Mu-o-o-o-o!!
The Sea Dragon roared. Its roar spread through the surrounding atmosphere and its scales trembled with a rattle. In sync with the trembling of the scales, the clouds of the surrounding typhoon showed ominous currents.
Something is coming. No sooner had they judged so than vast clouds rushed into the eye of the typhoon like a tidal wave. Just because they're clouds doesn't mean you should think of them as just some kind of smoke.
The clouds that Sea Dragon controls have a track record of gnawing through even the military's anti-aircraft guns like a swarm of locusts on a rice field on their way here.
You can't even retrieve bones the moment they touch. That's not figurative, it's literal. The sharp water droplet particles would become a living super-sized sandpaper and grind down to the bones.
"You want me to hold out against that?!"
Terence exclaimed in shock. While saying that, he was continuously operating mana and casting magic without rest.
Terence's magic was peculiar. Perhaps because various elements were mixed together, its characteristics didn't stand out as one.
Wind attribute magic contained the hot heat of flames. An invisible, hazy shimmer spread in all directions like clouds. The approaching clouds evaporated without leaving a trace the moment they touched it.
"What. Are you scared?"
Terence bristled at Osian's provocation. But his mouth was quickly chanting spells instead of complaining. At the same time, Terence's hands quickly formed seals. The chanting and seals were done simultaneously, but what they manifested were different spells.
To simultaneously activate multiple different spells. Indeed, it was worth awakening. However, this seemed a bit taxing even for Terence, as red blood trickled down from under his nose. His eyes were also bloodshot, so he didn't seem able to last long.
But Terence wasn't the only one here.
Ku-wo-eo-eo-eo!
A giant black skeleton giant charged at Sea Dragon. In its hands it held a giant bone sword befitting its bulk.
Kwa-ang!
The Dragon-Slaying Sword and the bone sword collided. Giant waters gathered around Sea Dragon and shot out like cannons.
The skeleton giant didn't back down either. Skeletons made of bones appeared around it. Not in human form, but heteromorphs with various pieces of beast and human bones pieced together. They flew at high speed and blocked or deflected the incoming water columns with their bodies. This was possible because they contained high-density dark magic.
Blue ripples splashed in all directions, scattering particles, and sparkled in rainbow colors while receiving light pouring from the ceiling of the typhoon's eye.
Within it, the black, green, and red of gloomy dark magic exploded as if entangled.
Pu-beo-beo-beo-beong!
In mid-air, one branch of dark magic, infernal magic, was activated. This mana, red as blood, produces effects similar to a mage's elemental magic. Though less versatile, its destructive power was stronger.
Countless flames reminiscent of hellfire filled the space like a fireworks festival. Each flying spark was strong enough to melt even steel until it became soft.
However, Sea Dragon's scales didn't budge since Sea Dragon had already covered all its scales with water.
Hot steam spread from various parts of its body, but direct damage was minimal. Part of the steam that hadn't completely vaporized returned to Sea Dragon's scales and reinforced the empty areas.
It was Osian who slipped through that gap.
The most brilliant light in the sky surpassed all colors and split in half. An illusion occurred as if the world had been cut in two.
The Sea Dragon was startled and retreated. What Osian aimed for was Sea Dragon's horn.
The giant sword cut off one horn. A coral-like horn was cut diagonally.
Sea Dragon became enraged. The lightning dwelling in the severed horn exploded. Blue lightning swallowed the entire space and spread in a giant sphere.
Its range was large enough to fill one side of the typhoon's eye. The diameter alone was almost 2km. It couldn't be avoided.
"Fall back."
Elise stepped forward. The skeleton giant she commanded became a shield. The skeleton giant was engulfed in lightning. Because of its large surface area, the damage it received was also great. The skeleton giant's body shattered into pieces and disintegrated.
They barely managed to hold out, but the skeleton giant no longer seemed usable.
However, the pitch-black bone fragments flew through the sky and moved about following Elise's gestures.
Most parts had completely burned and fell with smoke, but there were intact parts. Those parts all attached themselves to Elise's body at once. They fitted together with clicks onto her body clad in a black robe, forming armor.
Finally, Elise donned a goat mask made of skull and spread blade wings made of bones behind her back.
She raised the staff she held in her hand. Black dark magic surged and unraveled like threads that became black birds and shot toward Sea Dragon.
Terence also didn't spare his support. Blue butterflies made of pure mana rushed forth together with the shadow birds.