"Th-Th-Theodor, sir!!!!"
I hate it when someone calls my name like that.
It always means something's gone wrong.
I rushed toward the rear.
'Did someone die or what?'
When I arrived, a particularly massive shadow wolf lay collapsed, covered in blood.
"What happened? It looks like you already took it down...."
"N-No, sir! Look at this!"
One of the mercenaries pointed at the shadow wolf—or more precisely, its belly.
-Twitch!
-Twitch! Twitch!
The shadow wolf's swollen belly writhed ominously.
Karl stared at it gravely and turned to me.
"You know beasts better than anyone, Theodor."
"...."
"What do you think? Could it be some kind of plague? We should gather firewood right away...."
"No."
Aside from the blood, the shadow wolf's body was clean.
'Plague, my ass.'
If it were a plague, the entire pack would show similar symptoms.
Foul odors, filthy fluids, bloodshot eyes, that sort of thing.
But the shadow wolves had all been perfectly healthy.
Except for the black gems embedded in their napes.
Without hesitation, I drew my dagger.
The task ahead required delicacy and caution.
I placed my hand on the bulging belly.
As if trying to swat my hand away, it thrashed violently.
"Ca-Careful...!"
"I am being careful. Step back."
At my words, the mercenaries shuffled backward.
They strutted around without properly facing monsters, so no wonder they were spooked by something like this.
I pressed the dagger's sharp edge against the wolf's abdominal skin and slowly, very slowly, began to cut.
-Pshhh!!!!
Blood sprayed unavoidably.
Drenched in the shadow wolf's blood, I sliced open its belly.
And then—
-Squeal!
The thing that had terrified the mercenaries revealed itself.
"Gasp!"
I heard someone behind me swallow hard.
It was understandable.
"...."
Even coated in its mother's blood, its silver fur gleamed radiantly.
That marked it as one of the chosen offspring of a shadow wolf.
This pup looked just like Ayla, the legendary silver shadow wolf cherished by the goddess Nemeia in ancient tales.
'...Though it's probably just a mutant anyway.'
I took out a cloth, soaked it in clean spring water, and gently wiped the blood and grime from the pup before cradling it.
-Kiiing...!
Seeking warmth, it burrowed deep into my arms.
"Theodor, that's...."
"Yes. As you can see, a wolf pup."
"Ahem, ahem...."
Karl kept peeking into my arms. It was obvious he coveted the silver shadow wolf pup.
"Theodor."
"Yes."
"Strictly speaking, this mother wolf is ours...."
Shameless bastard.
I fixed him with a cold stare.
"If it weren't for me, you would've burned it alive."
"No, but still...."
"Shadow wolves grow incredibly fast. It'll be a near-adult in a week, full-grown in a month. This one will outsize its mother within that time."
"All the more reason!"
"Can you handle it?"
I couldn't help but chuckle.
It was absurd seeing Karl's greed laid bare.
"I mean, in a month, it'll lunge at you. Can you handle that?"
"Th-That's!"
"That's if you're lucky. Sell it off and it kills the buyer...."
"...."
"Then what?"
Karl was no doubt planning to sell this precious silver shadow wolf to some high-and-mighty noble.
But what if, a month later, it tore out that noble's throat?
Just imagining it paled his face.
"Wolves aren't dogs."
Any more than you and I are alike.
I tucked the whining pup into my inner pocket and sheathed my dagger.
"...Fine."
"I'll take care of it."
Realizing there'd be no profit, Karl backed off easily.
"Then we'll handle the shadow wolf pelts."
"...Do as you like."
Greedy idiot.
But getting a silver shadow wolf pup meant I wasn't at a loss.
Insisting on the pelts would only stir trouble, and they wouldn't take it lying down.
Stepping back here benefited us both.
I agreed readily and left.
Drenched in shadow wolf blood, my body felt sticky and gross, but I couldn't wash yet.
To build rapport with the pup, sharing the same scent was far better.
I'd needed a beast companion anyway. Perfect timing.
I'd raise it right and make it a reliable ally.
"Your name from now on is 'Ayla.'"
I named it after the legendary silver shadow wolf beloved by the moon goddess Nemeia.
-Kiiing.
As I hand-fed the blind, wriggling pup goat milk, the mercenaries and servants cleaned up the mess and prepared camp.
Thanks to my blood-soaked state, no one bothered me for help, so I could feed Ayla in peace.
'Still, shadow wolves coming this far to raid a caravan... And deploying a pregnant one? Ridiculous.'
Wolves treasured their packs, families, and pups above all.
A wolf that far along should've been safely nesting in their den.
Yet they'd come all the way from the Dark Forest to the Barak Empire to hit this caravan?
To get here from the Dark Forest, they'd have to cross the elven nation of Lüset and the mages' republic of Solen.
Lüset teemed with disgustingly skilled hunters, and Solen crawled with horrifyingly cruel mages—yet they passed through unscathed to target this caravan?
'Why?'
The shadow wolves hadn't even been starving.
Meaning they had no need to stray from their territory.
It made no sense on every level.
'Is the caravan hiding something from me?'
But the caravan leader, Colin, was just an ordinary merchant without much pull, hardly suited for a critical mission.
If it were important, they'd have hired a higher-caliber group than Karl's mercenaries.
"Phew...."
I pushed aside the unease and settled under a massive oak tree.
Ayla, having downed a full flask of goat milk, was already snoring softly.
'Gotta get to the capital safely....'
As darkness fell, I took a moment to breathe.
* * *
'Damn it, what the hell is that guy!'
Not far away, Pavel ground his teeth, fuming as he watched the raid.
The caravan's hired Karl Mercenary Company had long stuck to the Golden Road. They might've once tangled with barbarians and monsters in Rosan, but now it was just washed-up retirees and green rookies—a third-rate outfit.
They should've been effortlessly wiped out by shadow wolves under the Black Worm's control.
But the reality was the opposite.
A druid he'd never seen before had annihilated the pack.
Sure, the mercenaries took down a few, but the druid had handled nearly all of it.
'If not for him, I'd already have
On the surface, the caravan was transporting tea leaves imported from distant Niram in the east.
Niram tea was popular in the empire, but the real prize hidden within those tea leaves was 'Black Opium.'
The black opium needed to cultivate the Black Worms—those fiendish parasites that stripped away wills and bent minds to control.
Processed and rolled, Black Opium looked no different from tea leaves.
That's how Pavel's organization smuggled it.
A simple tea caravan raid raised no major suspicions.
"Things went to shit."
To make matters worse, massive floods had recently hit Niram, making Black Opium scarce and exorbitantly priced.
And if they let the caravan through, the empire would learn of the massive Black Opium smuggling op.
Then not just the empire, but the opium-crazed mages would come swarming.
That couldn't happen.
'Tonight, I'll kill them even if I have to go all out.'
Pavel glared at the caravan's campsite, grinding his teeth again.
"Druid, I'll make sure you die."
* * *
"Ow! Ouch! Isn't that too tight?"
"Quit whining."
When injured mercenaries or servants came for treatment, I'd give first aid as needed or use [Nature's Healing].
Unlike holy power, magic, or potions, [Nature's Healing] enhanced the target's own vitality and recovery, with no limits, side effects, or much pain—mercenaries loved it.
"Theodor, you were amazing again today! Taking down all those shadow wolves in one go!"
"Where I come from, we dealt with beasts a lot."
Karl's group had many young mercenaries, and they looked up to me.
I applied a herbal poultice to a young mercenary's arm bitten by a shadow wolf, then bandaged it.
"Go to a temple once we reach the city. Just in case you catch wolf fever."
"Thanks, Theodor."
The young ones gazed at me with shining eyes.
"Aren't you just here for meds? Why linger?"
At the booming voice, the young mercenaries scrambled up.
Jamil, the mercenary company's action captain.
The worst injured, Jamil was my last patient.
"Tch, these kids are all bark and no bite."
Jamil muttered at the fleeing youths' backs.
"Your wound's bad. Should've come first."
I clicked my tongue at his shredded thigh.
"Not gonna die."
"...."
"Good thing you treated it quick."
Jamil grinned.
I placed my hand over his wound and murmured a simple incantation.
A pale green glow gathered in my palm, then spread soothingly.
I slathered on a poultice made from gray burdock, then bandaged it.
"Take it easy for a while. If you can."
"With a druid like you around, no worries."
His praise grated; I felt hives forming.
I pocketed the coins without a word and leaned against a tree to catch some shut-eye, ending this chaotic day.
-Thud!
But peace never lasted.