The Silent Pact of a Wolf Babysitter
Chapter 102: Feel the Tremor... of the Demon Wolf Howl

Chapter 102: Feel the Tremor... of the Demon Wolf Howl

Jorō examined the Glypnir stone, one hand resting beneath her chin, eyes narrowing with mild interest.

"I doubt my [Village Chief Killer] will so much as scratch this," she muttered.

Village Chief Killer? Does she mean that scythe in her hands?

She planted the weapon upright beside her, and it stood on its own, as though obeying her will. Then, she spread her fingers.

I assumed she would strike with her bare hands. But no. I began to feel it—an eerie convergence of energy gathering at her fingertips.

Her red eyes darkened to a deep obsidian, as the dark web wrapping them turned white.

Slowly, she mimed the motion of embracing something invisible, then drew her arms inward.

Only a trained eye would notice it. A mortal’s eye would probably not pick up on it... but I saw: threads. Razor-thin webs had begun to wrap around the Glypnir crystal, swiftly.

With each touch, the stone hissed and reacted—like snow seared by hot iron.

The strands moved cleanly through it. As though they were not threads, but blades of pure heat.

In moments, the stone had been lacerated. Not shattered, but thoroughly carved through, making clattering sounds as it fell to the ground.

The annoying part was Master Raven was excited and was clapping his hands adorably for her; making me want to really Showoff my own strength.

That Jorō... From what cranny of the world did Master Raven pull her out?

She’s usually strong.

Among the summons, only Tamayō, Trigger, and perhaps that Lygari fellow could even hope to match her.

And her soul... it is...

Hmph.

So this is what it means to be a Celestial Beast? Its strength is absurd.

Even measured by Prime Value alone, she stands nearly equal to Master Raven.

As she turned from the shattered crystal, she glanced at me briefly.

A glance...

I certainly hope she doesn’t fancy me a rival.

Another overconfident child? As if dealing with Tamayō wasn’t enough. I’ll have to make time to remind her where she stands.

With the prideful one finally done, the next participant stepped forward.

Lygari.

The strongest of the Demon wolves, and a million Prime-Valued individual.

Though, you wouldn’t realize it at a glance. Physically, he looked disarmingly ordinary.

But his aura—an unmistakable weight in the air—told another story. This was not one to be taken lightly. A true Demon Supreme.

"Uhm... I’m not really sure I should be part of this," he mumbled, scratching the back of his head, visibly uncomfortable. "I’d be perfectly fine cutting grass or tending to crops somewhere."

His chronic modesty is truly exhausting. He carries himself like a mere civilian, yet his power could wipe out cities.

That unshakable melancholy of his... one can’t help but wonder—what scar from a past life haunts him so thoroughly?

Regardless—

"Believe it or not," I began, "as infuriating as it is, every one of us is equal before the Supreme Lord. But you’ve been included among the elites because of your immense strength—which you definitely have. Break that crystal so we can assess your power. Then you can go back to sulking in peace."

Lygari sighed and dragged his feet toward the Glypnir stone.

"Oh, god. This is such a pain," he muttered. "And why is this thing absurdly hard? Ugh... I’ll just use a move I retained from before—"

From... before?

"—though it kind of changed, but..."

His golden eyes gleamed. The black pupil narrowed into a horizontal slit—like a dragon’s. He raised a palm partially over his face.

And then, in a suddenly, disturbing deep voice, he said:

"Feel the tremor... of the Demon Wolf Howl."

BBBRRRRMMMM!!

The Glypnir stone immediately shattered—almost disintegrating into near mist. The ground and air around it trembled, then tore.

Fissures spidered through the atmosphere itself, until Flora quickly patched reality back together.

The terrain looked like it had been smashed with a celestial hammer. The impact left a deep crater, burying Lygari waist-deep in shattered earth.

Demon Wolf Howl?

If he meant the vibrating force of dread that echoed across the plains, it was more like Satan’s Roar of Devastation.

It was unnervingly close to a move Satanas used four thousand years ago.

And back then, that technique caused enough angst to write songs about.

"Huh? Was it supposed to be like this?" Lygari glanced around as he dug himself free.

"Amazing!" Master Raven exclaimed. "Demon wolves are awesome! And I can’t believe you were holding back, too."

He was right.

You don’t casually destroy the terrain unless your energy reserves are mostly untouched.

Take Fangstrong, for instance. He’s been quiet and completely drained since his [Star Blast].

As Lygari shyly approached to thank Master Raven, I was boiling with untold jealousy.

The others had their turns, but aside from Cetus, none could destroy the crystal.

Lucia and Witz did manage to crack it. Especially Lucia—she’s on par with Fangstrong in raw power.

Cetus, however, broke the crystal completely, using a spear I crafted for her from one of my own tentacles.

It was laced with curses, ailments, and could channel lightning.

As for the rest of the Sea Demons—they showed promise.

Venom—recently named by Master Raven—demonstrated remarkable skill too.

But even so, the crystal remained.

Well then...

Hehehe! It is my time to shine!!

"Master Raven," I called sweetly. "Please allow me to participate too."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" he barked, Alicia clinging to him like a baby monkey. "I know you could tear through the entire realm if you wanted, but didn’t you say you needed to conserve your strength for teleportation?"

That wasn’t a lie. Not exactly.

I do need to preserve some strength, especially after the fight with Tamayō and Alicia. But the power I have left now is more than enough for the teleportation.

Truth is—I just want to do what Alicia’s doing right now!

"Geez!" I pouted. "Master Raven, you meanie! You give Alicia more attention than me! I want to show off too! Let me! Let me! Let me!"

"S-So direct!" Master Raven was flustered. "Where’s that capable, militaristic woman I was just talking to?!"

We bickered for a while, but Master Raven, being Master Raven, eventually gave in.

I then turned to the Gleipnir stone. I could feel it spewing cold sweat in fear of what I had in mind for it.

This move... it has to be flashy.

The most dramatic, dazzling display of the entire event.

And m-maybe Master Raven will say I’m amazing too.

...Maybe he’ll even invite me to sleep beside him. Or maybe more! One can never tell.

"...I hope you’re not scheming anything nefarious involving me?" he asked warily.

"Of course not, Master Raven. I would never."

Now... what should I hit this stone with...?