No, this couldn’t be! Suddenly the world went from colorful to unbelievably grim. Moon Moon stared at its master’s unmoving body in disbelief and despair.

Now the damn tree was even doing a victory dance on their corpses, rejoicing at gaining a new food source.

“Woo!” (Bastard! Give them back!)

That’s when the poor little wolf went insane with rage. It stopped caring about how strong the enemy was, and all fear of annihilation left its mind. It would get them back!

— Dash! —

The enemy had changed its attack pattern.

Before, it had wholeheartedly tried to kill them, but now it wanted to capture them. The thing had obviously decided to taste a wolf’s life force.

It was a vine hell, seaweeds everywhere trying to restrain it…and yet it didn’t give up. After all, its master was more important than its own life.

“Woo!” (Take that, you evil thing!)

With a mighty howl, Moon Moon rained fire on the enemy. But just when it was beginning to work…it didn’t.

The creature had learned from its previous experiences with Moon Moon’s fire. This time it used its appendages to suck some of the surrounding water, extinguishing itself instantly.

Wolf Fire Magic —> Useless!

This forced Moon Moon to rely on its claws and jaws, but the creature was so large that even a solid bite would barely hurt it.

The poor wolf had to come to the depressing conclusion that all its bravery was useless. It could try for the rest of eternity without success with the enemy able to regenerate.

“Woo!” (This is so unfair!)

But instead of wallowing in despair, the little wolf asked itself what would its master do in such a situation. He certainly wouldn’t give up!

He’d often repeat that nothing in this world was invincible, everything having its clear method. The problem was either a lack of knowledge or strength.

Lacking Strength? Definitely! But the gap between them was so abysmal that its master would have already perished before it was done training!

No, it had to develop a trick to help itself overcome this. Except what kind of trick could even work here?!

Ah! What if it ran out and came back with Jack’s temporary troops?! They were pretty decent at alchemy and would be able to throw some nice stuff at the enemy!

No, this wouldn’t work…the stealth part would be an issue. There was no way they’d all be able to sneak back inside the manor. As for bringing only a few elites….what elites?!

What about begging the Empress for help? She’d rescue him for sure, right? Ah, but she’d instantly realize that he was actually human, right?! This wouldn’t work either.

Moon Moon’s brain was seriously overheating from thinking about all those crazy plans. If only it could have the brains of its master!

Every potential solution was a dead end! The creature was also hellbent on stopping it from thinking. — Slap! Slap! Slap! — How annoying!

If only a couple more pets were here to act as a distraction! No, this wouldn’t have worked either. The monster was attacking way too fast for them to keep up.

If only there were a couple more Moon Moons here! It would— wait! The little wolf suddenly beamed with joy: that was it!

“Woo!” (Hahahaha!)

The little wolf began cackling, laughing evilly as its master had done so many times. It had finally come up with a viable plan!

As it kept dodging, it focused its mind on manipulating its fire magic. The usual method was ineffective, but what about this one!

Instead of throwing fire at the thing, it manipulated it to form…more Moon Moons! The result was a ton of fire wolves all over the place!

Damage-wise, they were about as helpful as a cigarette lighter’s flame….but they were awesomely bright!

The creature suddenly stilled, utterly confused. Where had all those wolves come from?! More importantly, which one should it attack first?!

Moon Moon swatted away the mysterious box appearing before its eyes Unlocked…, and ran even faster. This time it would grab its master!

Many fire wolves arrived at the man’s side, all making the motion of biting his collar. As the creature attacked yet another clone, Moon Moon rushed out, carrying Jack away!

Success! We did it, master! It would just put him back in a corner, return for Pumpkin Girl, and…— Slam! Slam! — What?! Moon Moon barely escaped getting caught.

The creature’s reach had increased! Its vines had kept growing and now were so long that they could reach every corner of the room. There was nowhere to hide anymore.

This meant it had to remain with Jack and also that it would be impossible to go back for her. Trying would simply waste all its previous efforts.

“Woo!” (I’m sorry, but…)

A tear escaped the little wolf as it resolved itself. It would bring Jack back to D.L., and they’d find a solution to his lifeless state together, whatever it was.

But for now, it had to escape as quickly as possible before— Suddenly, its worst nightmare realized itself as the room’s doors were slammed open, guards entering.

— Clang! —

“What the hell is all that ruckus abo— Invaders!”

The fish’s outburst was enough to alert all its colleagues. A few seconds later, they were swarming the place, standing between Moon Moon and freedom.

To make matters worse, a blaring alarm began ringing, the enemies about to get lots and lots of reinforcements.

A deadly seaweed monster behind and an army of guards in front. The little wolf obviously couldn’t contend with such a lineup, yet it would bloody try anyway!

It had learned from its master never to give up!

“Woo!” (Bring it on, all of you! I’m a proud member of D.L.!)

The little wolf not only didn’t falter but even taunted the enemies, giving itself courage. The latter couldn’t help but stare at it bewildered.

“Is that a wolf?! Since when are there wolves in a lake?!”

“Who cares? Apprehend it! We’ll interrogate it later.”

“Interrogate a wolf? Wait, it’s dragging someone!”

“Let’s catch them both first!”

They all sprung on it from all directions, but just as they did, Moon Moon used its new magic against them.

Instantly many wolves appeared and….the guards didn’t even give them a look! Their vision was much better than the tree, and they quickly saw through the illusion.

After all, only one of the fiery balls had a living wolf inside it. Many even used water spells to reduce the illusions to nothingness instantly.

“Spread out and surround it!” They were organized enough to make use of their numbers effectively.

What should it do?! Leave Jack behind and run away alone? It really couldn’t accept that! Besides, was fleeing even possible at this point? Perhaps this called for a heroic last stand.

Moon Moon went on a rampage.

It clawed and bit at the enemies, throwing fireballs as distractions. They’d block the spells with water, it would create steam clouds, and it’d vengefully pounce using them as cover!

It didn’t take long for the enemies to be full of wounds, their blood staining the place. It was impressive that Moon Moon did it all while carrying its master!

But the scene appeared bloodier than it was. The enemies were all wounded, but none were in critical conditions.

Whenever a guard was hurt, they’d retreat to heal while others covered for them. This meant that the wolf was expending its energy pointlessly.

Moon Moon glanced at the exit sorrowfully. It was utterly unusable, as a torrent of new guards kept charging in.

It fought well, all until the end. It fought so valiantly that even its enemies were in awe of its courage. But it was all pointless.

The guards even managed to trap it inside a water prison, one that became smaller and smaller with every chant. It couldn’t dodge anymore, a wolf ripe for slaughter…

“Woo…” (Sorry, master. I tried.)

It kept biting, even as its legs stopped working. But then it felt vines wrap around its body, immobilizing it entirely.

The seaweed monster yanked its body away from the guards, ready to devour its prey. This was the end…

“There goes any interrogation—”

“W-wait, what’s happening?!”

“It’s not eating them?!”

Guards suddenly exclaimed as a strange scene appeared before their eyes. The seaweeds had indeed captured the wolf, but instead of eating it…they were patting its fur?!

What kind of outcome was this?! But then it became even weirder as the unconscious guy received the same treatment. What the actual **?!

“Woo?!” (W-what?…)

Just as everyone was equally puzzled, Jack’s body suddenly trembled.

“GASP!” He sprung upward, awakening. It didn’t take him long to survey the room, seeing all the guards. But instead of panicking, he simply waved at them. “Sup!”

“…Sup?” Wasn’t he a little too relaxed for an intruder?! A few shellshocked guards unconsciously waved back.

“Woo?!” (What’s happening?!)

The little wolf’s heart was beating faster than ever. Its master was alright?! This was great news, but it couldn’t be more puzzled. Was the tree their friend now?! How?!

Jack gestured to the tree to put them down, the thing obediently complying. Then he turned toward the stunned Moon Moon, chuckling as he scratched his head in embarrassment.

“Well, it seems like we’ve misunderstood a little. That seaweed guy over there really was feeding on her energy, but not because it was trying to eat her….”

How was this even possible?! What about all the guards holding her prisoner?! This didn’t make any sense!

“Well, turns out this seaweed thing is her summon, this mansion is hers, and the guards are here to protect her—”

“Woo?!” (SAY WHAT?!)

“It’s a long story….” Pumpkin Girl’s voice suddenly echoed