Chapter 494: Feast of the Black Wolf!
"You’re one damn annoying brat... Ngh...!" The former chamber lay in ruins. Dust from the destroyed timber beams fell like brown snow, and the polished stone table lay in rubble between them. From within the haze, two titans emerged. A huge bear and a devilish werewolf with a bloody gash on his forehead.
Nikolai wiped the crimson smear from his brow with the back of his hand, his mouth forming a twisted grin covering half his face. The bear, on the other hand, lumbered his muscular form forward, with deep wounds across his chest and arms.
As if he were an indomitable mountain.
"Why don’t you just collapse, old man." Nikolai rolled his head with a sharp crack, flames rippling across his fur as his black eyes glinted with aggression. "Before I make you fall."
"Tsk, arrogance!"
The words must’ve stung more than he blows. Because Big Bear charged at him while roaring, his fists crashed down like hammers. Nikolai caught one with both arms, digging his claws into the bear’s thick hide, the impact creating a crater in the stone beneath them.
His knees buckled; he was definitely weaker by sheer size and weight. The second fist slammed into Nikolai’s cheek, breaking one of his teeth.
But then, the momentum shifted.
Nikolai’s three hearts raced, the black blood pumping faster and faster. He could feel something change with each blow, each exchange; his body sapped the immense strength from the bear.
Ba-dum.
Ba-dum.
Ba-dum.
The energy came from Black Bear’s arm, from his blood as if drawn to Nikolai’s core like leeches seeking blood.
"...What trickery is this?!"
Black’s brow furrowed, confusion flashed in his savage glare, he pulled away quickly, kicking Nikolai in the air and jumping back. He rubbed his arms while squeezing his fists tight, a look of bewilderment on his face.
"The hell did you do to me, why do my arms feel so heavy!?" He shouted at the airborne werewolf.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Nikolai landed on the ground, tilting his head while huffing the air with difficulty. However, his grin looked more sinister and vibrant. He scraped his elongated claws against the walls to balance himself, muscles throbbing with black veins and glowing embers leaking from his pores. "A trick... well, its nothing like that."
"Arrogant Pup!"
The bear lunged again, swiping with a paw large enough to cave in a man’s ribcage. Nikolai rocked back then, shoulder-slammed into his gut, the force blasting both of them through a half-collapsed wall. The mansion wall exploded outward, showering the courtyard beyond with shards.
"How dare you destroy our ancient homeland!?"
"Filthy Bear what are you doing, end him!"
Elders shouted, scrambling from their seats as the floor split beneath the shock.
Black Bear rose with a snarl, veins bulging across his arms.
Nikolai staggered up after him, blood dripping from his jaw, but his movements became sharper. He moved with more energy each time they clashed, while the bear lost his edge, growing dull.
The onlookers couldn’t hesitate any longer. It was obvious the boy wasn’t weakening, and if they didn’t help now.
They would be next.
***
Nikolai’s ears flickered, his long wolf’s ears sensing the subtle change in movement of the people around him.
"..."
He acted oblivious while gathering his energy, his abdomen and thighs tensing.
The courtyard echoed with roars and shouts from the angry people as the monsters circled each other, cracking the flagstones with each careful step. The ruined mansion smoked behind them, walls caved in, and glass shattered across the floor. The Silver Clan’s ancient mansion was no longer a proud asset, but a ruin.
"Enough!" one elder barked. His aura exploded in silver light, blazing like a miniature sun. Two others followed with grim faces. Their bodies transformed into dark grey werewolves with sharp claws, eyes shimmering with silver light. "You must pay for your disrespect, bratty Patriarch of the Volkov clan!"
Black Bear wiped blood from his nose, grinning at the elders who rushed towards them. "Heh, finally decided to move, damn old men."
The nearest Elder lunged confidently, twisting his claws, carving a crescent-shaped silver flame, aiming at Nikolai’s neck.
CRACK!
Nikolai tilted his head to the right, his arm shooting up, wrapped in black fire as his claws gripped the old man’s arm. The impact split the stone beneath his feet, the silver flame sputtering out as though starved of air. His grin widened as the fire started to devour the old man alive.
"Argh, save me!"
Immediately, the Elders reacted, charging at Nikolai like rabid dogs, glowing silver dogs.
One Elder pounced from the flank. Nikolai twisted, dragging the first forward like a shield. Claws tore through his ally’s shoulder instead, spraying blood across the flagstones.
"You’re slow," Nikolai mocked, driving a knee into the wounded Elder’s ribs before shoving him back.
The gathered wolves stiffened. It wasn’t the brutality that froze them. It was the unnatural shift of aura swirling around him. Every time someone attacked, it gathered and devoured the attacker like a beast.
His flames appeared to be alive!
"Cowards, what are you all waiting for!?"
Black Bear didn’t hesitate, or rather, he couldn’t. He charged through his own comrades, his massive paw smashing across Nikolai’s chest. The blow hurled him back into the shattered wall, splinters exploding outward. Dust poured from the collapse, burying him. "We have numbers to crush him, attack with the resolve to die!"
The courtyard became hushed.
Then...
Ba-dum.Ba-dum.Ba-dum.
The rubble shifted.
Black fire erupted from the ruin, curling upward like a living beast. Nikolai stepped out, blood dripping, his wounds half-knitted already. His grin was gone now, replaced with a cold and empty expression.
"You keep feeding me," his guttural voice rumbled, distorted by the echo of his aura. His eyes burned black with golden rings. "Don’t you understand? The longer this lasts... the less of you will remain."
Even Black Bear took a breath, his bravado faltering.
For the first time, everyone felt it, that this gnawing fear at the back of their minds, the pull as if this young wolf devoured their blood with each touch, wasn’t just their imagination.
"Don’t lose to your fear! Attack him. I’ll finish it before we die!" Black Bear roared louder to cover their fear, his massive frame swelling before barreling forward at the proud wolf, with fists like black meteorites.
***
The clash of flesh and flame rang across the courtyard like war drums. Black Bear’s fists smashed against Nikolai’s guard, each strike tearing apart the stone, each impact shaking the air with bone-cracking force. Yet for every blow that landed, the wolf only seemed to grow faster, sharper, more relentless.
Nikolai’s claws snapped up, catching the bear’s paw in mid-swing. Black fire surged up his arm, twisting over Black Bear’s flesh like molten tar. The giant roared, wrenching back, but the flames clung, eating at his aura, sapping his strength.
"Grahhh!" Black Bear swung wildly, but Nikolai ducked low, teeth bared. His claw carved across the bear’s ribs, splitting flesh and armour alike.
"Too slow."
The nearest Elder tried to attack Nikolai from his blind spot with silver claws. However, Nikolai pivoted on the spot, dragging Black Bear into the path of the blow. His chest spurted blood as the Elder’s claws sank into his chest.
Black Bear staggered back, his feet unsteady.
Before the Elder could retreat, Nikolai’s jaw snapped shut on his throat.
Crunch!
Nikolai’s attack cut off the Elder’s with a choking gurgle. Black flames erupted from the wound, consuming his body from the inside. His aura vanished almost instantly, as it rushed into the throat of Nikolai, devoured like an iced cola.
Dark threads of power thrummed inside Nikolai’s body as he stood in silence, tossing the lifeless Elder to the side with a smug grin. He appeared taller, stronger and with monstrous claws that gleamed with an obsidian black hue.
"Hm?"
Another Elder turned his back, trying to flee.
Nikolai’s tail lashed out, catching his leg. With a brutal yank, he dragged him back and drove a clawed fist through his chest. The wolf convulsed as his soul force bled into the black fire.
The last Elder hesitated, sweat dripping down his muzzle. But hesitation was death. Nikolai leapt into the air, ripping him apart in a spray of gore that the flames devoured before it could hit the ground.
The courtyard was silent save for the ragged breath of Black Bear, who staggered to one knee. His once-towering presence sagged under the weight of his wounds. His chest heaved, arms trembling as blood poured down his fur.
Nikolai loomed over him, his eyes like twin furnaces, his claws dripping flame. "On your knees already? You disappoint me, Bear."
Black Bear growled, spitting blood at Nikolai’s feet. His defiance was still strong despite the weakness of his aura. "You... damned.... freak!"
Nikolai raised his arm for the finishing blow, ignoring his provocation.
When suddenly the air split, a blade of silver cutting between them, forcing Nikolai back several steps, as several shadows fell across the ruins, one as heavy as a mountain and glaring at Nikolai.
"Enough!"
The voice rumbled like thunder, calm yet merciless.
From the shattered gates strode a figure in robes of silver and steel, his aura a tidal wave that drowned the battlefield in pressure. His hair was the same pale silver as Loric’s, but his eyes glowed with the depth of centuries, each step cracking the flagstones as if the world itself bent under his tread.
The Lord of the Silver Clan had returned.
Another Great Elder.