Even if my wolf was strong, my body was weak from blood loss, and every step I took toward the forest was incredibly difficult.
The pup limped after me. It seemed to have sensed just how weak I was, since he nuzzled against my ankle as if it wanted to give me some strength.
I looked at it and said gently, “I’m fine. If I manage to hunt down a wild boar, I’ll give you its blood so that you can recover a bit of your strength too.”
The pup gave a little yip as if he understood.
Soon after, a sounder of wild boars in the distance smelled my scent.
They did not run away in fear. The leader seemed to have sensed my fragility. Before I could turn into a wolf, it charged wildly at us with its sharp tusks held low.
I used whatever strength I had left to turn into a wolf, but my aching limbs told me that I could not; I was too weak.
“Careful!”
My hands moved on their own as they grabbed the pup, and I turned my back to the charging boar to protect the little one.
Just as a tusk pierced my shoulder, I gritted my teeth and used all of my remaining strength to pull out the dagger at my waist to stab into the creature’s heart.
I did not miss.
The leader screeched in pain and swung its body around to fling me off. Then, it collapsed with a loud thud.
The other wild boars disappeared in all directions.
With much difficulty, I managed to land on my feet, but the wound on my shoulder kept on bleeding. I could not hold on and collapsed on the ground. My consciousness faded away again.
The pup whined and did his best to crawl out of Zoey’s embrace.
He licked away the dirt on her face to wake her up, but she did not move, and the pup howled toward the sky in grief.
Footsteps sounded from the forest. The pup sniffed at the air before it ran further inside.
“Alpha Mike!” A male werewolf saw the pup limping toward him and cried out in delight to the packmates behind him. “It’s the lost pup! We found it!”
When Mike, an Alpha of another pack, saw the pup’s injured leg, he frowned. “Someone’s bandaged his leg.”
The pup whined and bit down on Mike’s robe before tugging him along.
“I think he wants you to follow him…”
“Let’s go.”
The pup barked and brought them to Zoey’s side.
When they saw the dead boar beside her, the male werewolves were shocked.
“Did she kill the leader of the wild boars by herself?”
“She’s hurt and unconscious. Her breathing is also really weak. We have to bring her back to camp to treat her.”
At Mike’s orders, the werewolves quickly picked Zoey and the pup up, then vanished into the dark forest.
…
