It was a fennec.
A very small fennec, one that had broken away from the group it usually followed across these arid, empty lands.
It stood there, completely enraged. As if it truly believed it could win against that great wolf.
Its eyes shone in the darkness as well, revealing its rage to the pack— a pack that did not even notice it. Its presence was like a faint gust of wind.And yet, Aris, in this moment so close to death, saw it.
And that made all the difference…
Aris did not know why this small fennec had broken away from its group to attack, but he knew it was not foolish enough to challenge a wolf and even less a wolf surrounded by a pack of fifty.
There was only one reason this small creature was currently biting into a wolf's leg, and that reason, the Mad Beast found it utterly stupid:it was helping Aris.
Even though he knew it was not compassion, but rather the realization that it was losing its food supply within this wolf pack, the gesture still mattered.
Aris did not understand why it was willing to sacrifice its life. Nor why it had not fled from the very beginning. But in his tired, nearly vacant gaze, the little fennec burned with an orange flame.
A flame he did not want to see go out, because it felt like his own.Like his own fragile life as a weak little beast, clinging to nothing but the hope of revenge someday.
Yes, he wanted revenge…
yes… he wanted...
**
"Your Majesty, may I ask you a question?"
In a small village, near a high-risk zone, the King of Arkis had personally come to face a horde of rampaging beasts.
One of the soldiers present that day approached him, his armor slightly too large, his helmet slipping almost over his eyes.
Aris looked at the soldier for a moment before letting out a small smile at the poorly fitting gear. He did not reproach him for it at all.
"What is it, soldier?"
The soldier adjusted his helmet. His face lit up when he realized His Majesty was willing to answer his question, him, a simple, insignificant soldier.
"Why did you come to the battlefield yourself? I don't understand.We are numerous enough and strong enough to deal with these monsters.Seeing you here makes us feel… useless. Like decorations."
Aris took his time to consider the question.
The soldier was not wrong.
The soldiers could have handled it themselves. The beasts were not particularly powerful or strong. They were manageable, even for them.
And yet, Aris had still come for a reason.
"I like fighting for my people. And besides… I know you were planning to leave someone behind."
The soldier's face paled slightly as he lowered his gaze.
It was true.
The beasts were not overwhelmingly strong, but they were numerous.The attack group sent out was not guaranteed to return intact.
So instead of sending more soldiers, Aris had come himself.
"I know you want to be the emblem of the Empire, and I understand that.I sometimes go a bit too far when it comes to helping you.But I also enjoy fighting for my nation."
Aris grasped the blade resting at his side in its sheath, under the soldier's astonished gaze.
"Don't resent me too much. Putting my life on the line for someone has always been one of my favorite activities. At least… when I know everything will turn out fine."
**
He had failed to protect anyone that time.
And worse still, the person he wanted to protect had ended up risking their life to save him.
None of that mattered anymore.He could no longer protect them.
The only thing he could do…was avenge them.
He could avenge them.
And dying here was not going to let him do that.
So he seized that orange flame, desperately clinging to its prey, and intensified it.
"I… I'm not finished yet."
As the monster's flesh was starting to stir, Aris did not even notice the presence of a second small orange blur arriving as reinforcement.Then a third. Then a larger one—finally, the foxes had arrived.
In the blink of an eye, driven by the fury of the first little fennec, the group was there, tearing into the wolves' legs. Only then did the wolves finally realize their presence.
Agitation erupted violently within the pack as the groups began to collide and mix. Yet the three wolves holding Aris did not seem willing to let go. Their fangs remained firmly embedded in him.
One had sunk its teeth into his side. Another was still clamped onto his leg. And the last one into his arm, already bleeding dangerously.
Still, Aris decided—it was over.
While the group created chaos and distracted the others,the Mad Beast took matters into his own hands.
In a flash, Aris pulled with his remaining strength on his left arm, dragging the wolf attached to it with him.He managed to bring both hands together at the same level, crossing their attacks against the two wolves at his sides.
Two fingers of his right hand plunged into the eyes of the wolf on his arm,while the wolf at his side took the dagger straight through the center of its skull, ending both its desperate struggle to tear Aris apart and its life.
The wolf biting his arm cried out in pain, shocked, for a fraction of a second.A fraction of a second Aris did not waste, plunging his dagger into the wolf clamped onto his leg.
In an instant, he was free of the hungry fangs, his body horribly torn apart.But he could not slow down.
The group did not have the upper hand against the pack. The confusion faded quickly, replaced by slaughter. The fennecs and foxes stood no chance. No matter how fiercely they fought, they were massacred all the same.
But they were never the main meal.
They were only a distraction before the pack refocused on its original target. Only seconds later, eyes turned back toward Aris, whose blood still poured endlessly.
He noticed immediately. And without lamenting his fate, he moved on to the next step.
"Here we go."
Aris clenched his wounds as best he could, then pulled on the wire connected to his second dagger to reel it back in. In doing so, he put immense strain on his left arm and screamed in pain.
But he had to push through it.He had no choice.
With both daggers attached to their wires, Aris spun them around himself at tremendous speed, forming cutting circles almost impenetrable, forcing the pack to keep their distance.
Sensing danger, the wolves instinctively backed away, fangs bared.Some were still chewing on the fennecs and foxes, barely paying attention to Aris's display.
But that was also a problem. They were circles, not discs.
Once again, he had no choice. He had to move before the wolves realized the trick.
Aris leapt straight into the middle of the mass, charging first at the wolves busy eating or struggling against the foxes and fennecs. In a flash, exploiting their inattention, he slit three throats, moving like a serpent, impossibly fast.
The pack no longer moved as one. And that was their greatest mistake.
Those chasing Aris through the chaos had to dodge those eating and fighting, causing collisions and bottlenecks everywhere.Their prey was so close—only meters away—yet the storm of confusion ruined everything.
For Aris, however, he could thank the heavens. His group's intervention had finally given him a chance.
As the number of wolves dropped by at least ten, the Mad Beast continued his massacre across the battlefield.
Some wolves realized too late that he was coming for them. Aris had no time, his precise, ruthless human side resurfaced. He struck only vital points.Throats. Tendons. Eyes. Stomachs.Anything that would prevent movement the very next second.
The wolves grew even more disorganized. The pack fell apart like a corpse.
Some did not even realize they were blind before Aris had already looped back to slit their throats.
Those pursuing him closely became trapped by others collapsing like flies.Once stuck, it was already too late.
Aris circled the battlefield again. If they had not moved by the time he returned, they lost a part of their body.
He was not seeking direct confrontation, nor a quick death. He was reducing the number of enemies, lap after lap.
Wolves were too difficult to handle, even one-on-one. He had no advantage.Against many, their victory was guaranteed.
So he changed strategy. He needed to flee—but not while they remained an organized pack. He had to weaken them. He had to make sure none of them truly realized they were no longer acting as a single entity.
The group had already done most of the work. He only had to make it worse.
In the midst of chaos, Aris created even more. Blood spread like powder.Wolves fell like flies.
And as he completed his thirtieth round, Aris noticed—
"You're the last one, huh?"
—that only one remained.