— Boom!
The creature made a grand entrance by leaping with its massive body.
Crack!
As it landed, the stone floor shattered, sending debris flying in all directions.
It was as large as a three-story building.
With thick, ash-gray fur.
And a menacing purple gemstone embedded in its tail.
[Twilight Wolf]
This was the mid-boss of the dungeon.
Why on earth was it here instead of wandering around the temple far away?
— Growl!
The creature stood still, glaring at them as if assessing whether it could defeat them.
It was a smart one. It was trying to gauge if it could win against them.
All they could do was prepare for battle, hoping it would leave on its own.
“…It seems to dislike Ian?”
Lina kindly interpreted the wolf’s emotions.
“I can see that too, Lina.”
“Sorry.”
“Everyone, take your positions. Elena! Watch out for the flying debris and tail attacks. That tail can whip around like a whip.”
“Understood.”
Elena stood beside Ian, seemingly unafraid.
Good. The front position was secure.
“Lina and Danya, focus on preventing it from approaching. It’s quite fast and agile, so hitting it with direct spells won’t work. Use area attacks.”
“Got it!”
“Danya, if possible, aim for the gemstone in its tail… Danya?”
Danya didn’t respond.
‘This never happened before.’
A sudden sense of unease made him turn to her.
Unfocused pupils.
Trembling fingers.
Danya was blankly walking towards the Twilight Wolf.
“Danya! What’s wrong?”
Ian hurriedly grabbed her hand.
Her hand was so hot from how tightly she was clenching her fist.
At the same time, it was trembling.
“Danya!”
Ian shook her shoulders roughly.
Only then did her focus return, and she tilted her head.
“…Nyah. Ian? Huh. What was I doing?”
“That’s what I want to ask. What’s going on?”
Danya looked up at the wolf again.
The wolf was also glaring at Danya with its huge golden eyes.
Danya’s pupils narrowed like those of a cat about to pounce.
“…That wolf. I can feel it.”
“What?”
“A similar aura to the enemy who killed my parents. It’s not the same one, though.”
Danya muttered through gritted teeth.
Come to think of it, Ian had never heard about Danya’s past.
She wasn’t a heroine, so he didn’t have much information. All he knew was that she was from the feline tribe of Catsnesia, located in the central continent’s Grand Forest.
He had vaguely sensed that she avoided talking about her past, so he never asked.
Besides, he also couldn’t talk about his past either.
‘…It feels similar to her nemesis.’
So, was that a moment of madness brought on by rage?
He needed to calm her down first.
Ian flicked her smooth forehead.
“Ow! What are you doing, Nyah!”
“Calm down and take your position. You can’t face that thing alone.”
“Oh… right. Of course. I just had a moment of blankness, Nyah. I’ll take my position.”
“Aim for the tail with your bow. The gemstone embedded there is its weak point. It has magic resistance.”
“Got it, Nyah.”
— Growl!
The Twilight Wolf stepped forward as if it had finished its assessment.
“Everyone, get ready!”
◆
With a size well over three meters, the wolf was truly immense.
To be honest, Elena was quite scared.
Until the creature launched its first attack, she was frozen in place.
But.
“Tail pattern incoming! Shield up, Elena!”
As soon as Ian spoke, she raised her shield just in time to intercept the wolf’s tail.
— Boom!
The impact made her shield reverberate heavily.
Her arm went numb.
Only then did Elena snap back to her senses.
The wolf’s tail came whipping around again, this time aiming for Danya and Lina in the rear.
Whoosh!
Elena dashed forward, blocking the tail just above Lina’s head.
“Thanks.”
“Just doing my duty.”
“Ifrit!”
Lina summoned the spirit of fire.
Fwoosh!
The Twilight Wolf’s tail ignited. But the creature easily shook off the flames.
— Bang!
Taking advantage of the moment, Ian’s fist slammed into the wolf’s face.
But as expected of a mid-boss in a hidden dungeon, the wolf twisted its head, deflecting the impact diagonally.
Its thick, tough fur absorbed most of the remaining damage.
‘This is really tough.’
Ian thought as he resumed a defensive stance.
Twilight Wolf.
With a mouth full of sharp, massive teeth.
Claws that were almost like swords.
And a tail that lashed out like a whip.
In many ways, this creature was hard to handle with their current strength.
‘We need to target the gemstone in its tail.’
In other words, they needed to get behind it.
The problem was finding a way to do that.
Danya was shooting arrows, but it was nearly impossible to hit the tail.
The tail was too fast and erratic.
Using ranged attacks that took time to travel was almost pointless.
‘Should I abandon tanking and switch to my sword?’
Ian considered briefly before shaking his head.
It was too risky.
They needed one person to handle the teeth, another for the claws, and someone else for the tail.
Ideally, they would need three main tanks to handle this creature.
If he left his position for an attack, the rear could collapse, leading to a disastrous situation.
Ian frowned.
‘We really need a melee damage dealer to shake things up. If only we had someone who could move freely and deal damage.’
Despite the unexpected appearance of a raid-level monster, having just one such fighter would have made it possible.
“Ifrit!”
— Howl!
Lina’s fire magic flared up again, spreading through the seedlings Danya had planted.
Whoosh!
But the wolf shook its body, extinguishing the flames immediately.
“…Its magic resistance is insane.”
Lina’s voice slipped out with a rare sharpness.
“Seriously….”
Danya, her brow furrowed, agreed. They were clearly outmatched by this monster.
The only reason they were holding their ground was because Ian was in front, taking the brunt of the attacks.
— Boom!
Danya watched in shock as Ian blocked another headbutt from the wolf.
How much stronger had he become over time?
Ian’s growth was undeniably extraordinary.
At the same time, she felt anxious. It seemed like she was constantly holding Ian back.
‘If we don’t land a significant hit soon, we’re going to be in real danger….’
She had no idea how to handle an opponent like this.
At that moment, Ian spoke.
“Danya!”
“Yes!”
“Scatter arrow seeds on the ground behind the wolf!”
“Got it!”
What was Ian planning?
She didn’t fully grasp it but followed his command immediately.
“Done!”
“Okay!”
As soon as Danya finished, Ian sprang into action.
— Rumble!
He extracted heavy elements, holding the wolf’s jaws at bay while summoning an earth pillar behind it.
“”!!!””
A technique he had refined since his battle with Richard.
“Danya! Bloom the seeds!”
“Yes!”
With Ian’s order, Danya made the arrow seeds she had planted in the earth pillar bloom.
— Whizz!
Arrows shot out from behind the Twilight Wolf.
— Growl!
Elena protected the team from the wolf’s thrashing tail and the incoming arrows.
But the Twilight Wolf couldn’t defend against the arrows pouring in from directly behind its tail.
— Yowl!
The wolf tried to shake them off, but Ian had already pulled in all the heavy metals around, making the wolf’s movements sluggish.
— Crack!
With the sound of something breaking,
— Yipe!
The Twilight Wolf shook its body violently and fled.
◆
The loot from the lesser gray wolves included their ‘hide’, ‘meat’, and other byproducts.
From the mid-boss Twilight Wolf, they obtained two ‘superior magic stone fragments’, three ‘Twilight Wolf claws’, and two ‘Twilight Wolf fangs’.
Most importantly, they acquired one ‘key to the mystery box’.
The dungeon raid ended successfully.
Ultimately, they gained far more than their initial goal.
Most notably, even though they hadn’t defeated the Twilight Wolf, they still secured valuable items from its broken parts.
“Wow—!”
“We’ve never gotten so many things before!”
The team was visibly delighted with their haul.
Ian suggested a simple distribution method.
“Share the items from the gray wolves among yourselves. I’ll sell the materials dropped by the Twilight Wolf and distribute the money later. How does that sound?”
Danya, who had been unusually quiet, raised her hand.
“But Ian, you did almost all the work fighting the Twilight Wolf.”
The rest of the team members echoed Danya’s sentiment.
“Right. Splitting the Twilight Wolf’s loot evenly feels a bit unfair. I don’t need my share.”
“Me neither. Deus says not to be greedy. Plus…”
Elena added.
“Knowing about the dungeon is reward enough. It’s an open dungeon, so we can come back and farm as much as we want.”
“I have the same opinion.”
“Absolutely. The dungeon intel and the gray wolf spoils are enough for us.”
Ian felt genuinely touched by his team’s consideration.
These kids knew how to make compromises.
He felt reassured that he had chosen a great team.
“If that’s how you all feel, I’ll accept it gratefully.”
Ian wasn’t one for unnecessary modesty.
If they were offering, he’d take it.
Still, he thought he should do something special for them later.
With that decided, Ian collected the Twilight Wolf’s loot and gathered some of its scattered fur.
“This fur is more like ropes.”
It was indeed incredibly tough.
“Why are you collecting the fur?”
“I have a use for it.”
While not extremely valuable, the fur was still considered a material for items.
He needed all sorts of materials right now.
After finishing their looting, the team exited the dungeon.
By now, the evening sun was beginning to set.
After ensuring everyone was uninjured, they prepared to part ways.
Elena approached Ian shyly.
“Um, excuse me.”
“Yes?”
“You said you’d give Snowflake Fruits every week. When will we get this week’s supply, brother?”
Her voice was so soft, almost embarrassed.
There was no need for such shyness; after all, it was a contractual agreement.
Ian smiled warmly and replied.
“I’ve already submitted the application for the first sale, which will be in two days.”
“Wow! So, it’s finally happening!”
“Yes. Come help out, and I’ll give it to you then.”
Elena looked shocked.
“You weren’t just going to give them to me? That’s different from what you promised…!”
Poor Elena. That’s why contracts should always be written down.
