Becoming a Monster

Chapter 457: Chapter 457: Respect The Alpha

While the trolls ran in horror, veering away deeper into the forest in the opposite direction of the sound.

The humans found themselves too mortified and dazed to do anything. It was the human curiosity to at least understand what was behind that roar. What monster could send nearly ten trolls stumbling over themselves in blind panic?

All except Paul.

He stood frozen as well, but for a different reason. He wasn’t questioning what had made that sound.

He had felt it before it reached his ears. A pull deep in his chest.

When the roar finally tore through the forest, it took everything he had not to answer it.

His throat burned with the instinct to howl.

Whatever had scared the trolls, Paul knew exactly who it was.

———

Fenrir announced his hunt. But then he howled again when he felt a member of his pack nearby.

Originally, he had gone out in search of his next victim. Ever since the chieftain had dared to challenge him, had taunted him, Fenrir had not forgotten.

He hunted for it every day.

At first, he had stayed within the range Noah allowed. Close enough that the territory was still in reach if unaccounted danger showed. Noah believed in their ability to defend themselves, but even belief had limits.

Outside their domain, his creature’s mana was constantly hampered by the dense, unfamiliar mana of the world.

But training had changed that.

Day after day, Noah pushed them harder. Each one stretched to their limits in different ways, either spiritually, mentally, or emotionally. Or in Fenrir’s case, physically. Their control sharpened. Their skills grew stronger, not just from the cores and blood they consumed, but from their own efforts.

Now, inside the territory, their strength was already showing significant improvement.

Outside the territory, the world’s mana should prove to be less of a hindrance and more of a supplement to their strength.

And so, little by little, Noah allowed Fenrir to go farther.

The first day he crossed that unseen boundary, Fenrir encountered a troll. He killed it immediately; it was rage at first sight.

The second day, another.

Then another.

One troll each day. Never more, never less. At first, it was because the trolls rarely traveled together. And very few would even venture into the forest’s depths.

But one day, he came across three of them at a time. The fear in their eyes, the trembling in their legs. Fenrir relished the sight. He wanted that very sight to be etched in their chieftain when he finally found him.

So, he continued with one a day. Every time he would kill the troll with the fierceness that seemed as if it was too much. But that logic was beaten into him whether he liked it or not. Even with food, he shouldn’t underestimate it.

At least that’s what Noah constantly told him.

There were times when he truly wanted to toy with his prey, yet his eyes would glance towards the distance. Spiders jumping from tree to tree were always watching.

They were meant to be silent supporters, in case anything happened during his hunts.

But in Fenrir’s eyes, they were snitches. Tattletales who would gladly run to Arachne to tell on him at the slightest inconvenience

So he continued to put in all his effort on his hunts.

Soon, the chieftain would have no choice but to come out. Or Fenrir would find him first.

________

And now, when he was on the hunt again, he felt a connection that he hadn’t felt in days.

Although it had only been for a moment, once a pact was made, Fenrir would forever remember their scent and their presence. And their connection would never extinguish.

Fenrir slowed when one massive paw hovered at the forest’s edge.

This was the boundary that Noah had set for him. He knew he wasn’t supposed to go any further.

’It’s only right here, it’s not far.’ Fenrir convinced himself. Besides, if he explained why he ignored Noah’s orders, he was sure Noah would understand.

When he came out of the forest, peering out into the open field. He first caught sight of a lingering troll, one who was stumbling more than the rest. Its breaths were haggard as if it just gone through training similar to its own.

Fenrir barely paid attention to the fact that the troll even had small sword wounds patted across its body that didn’t heal.

His gaze shifted over towards Paul, stopping again when he saw another troll. This one hadn’t run at all. Its body was blackened, releasing trails of smoke from different wounds.

Fenrir’s gaze lingered on the burning troll as it scraped itself forward inch by inch. Its massive fingers dug furrows into the soil, dragging scorched flesh behind it. The fire was weakening. Given enough time, the creature would recover.

All it would take was for Riley to continue adding more arrows to stroke the flames to deny all of its efforts, but no one moved.

Fenrir licked its lips. The smell was tempting. He had to hold himself back from devouring it right here and now.

—

Across from Fenrir, the others still hadn’t moved

They stood rooted where they were, weapons half-raised. Fenrir had driven the other trolls away. He had saved them. And yet, the sight of him brought no relief, only a deeper, colder fear.

As they looked at Fenrir, their gaze went beyond him. They were waiting, anxiously expecting the owner to appear outside behind him. Someone they thought they wouldn’t come in contact with at all.

No one dared to move until then.

But then Fenrir began to approach them all on his own. That moment was when they moved.

They didn’t plan to run. If they couldn’t run away from trolls, then running from a giant four-legged monstrous beast would be even more impossible.

Fenrir’s steps were unhurried. That absence of aggression did nothing to ease the tension; if anything, it made it worse.

Paul stood ahead of them all. If anything, he proceeded forward, approaching Fenrir on his own initiative. Something told him to do so. It was similar to how soldiers would address their king.

Seeing Paul advance was what finally allowed the others to move. They spread out cautiously, keeping their distance, close enough to support him if things turned violent, but not close enough to provoke the beast themselves.

Cautious glances still flicked towards the forest.

Still nothi- No! There were two monsters in the trees. Two giant spiders were looking in their direction.

It wasn’t Arachne.

That alone raised more questions than answers. What did their presence mean?

Meanwhile, the two rescued adventurers understood none of this.

The woman’s breath came shallow. She had faced death minutes ago, yet this was worse.

Fenrir’s presence crushed down on her senses, his gaze alone making her feel as though she stood before something brushing the edge of A-rank, if not beyond. She couldn’t understand why a creature like this would be on the forest’s outskirts.

First the trolls and now this?

Paul ignored all of it.

He didn’t speak. He didn’t react to the spiders or the fear behind him. His focus never left Fenrir.

The beast took another step toward him, then stopped.

Following its gaze, Paul saw the troll.

It had finally recovered enough to move. Faint embers still glowed along half its wounds.

Slowly, deliberately, the troll was crawling away on its belly, keeping its body low and small.

Revenge against the humans who burned it alive? The desire was snuffed out the moment it heard Fenrir’s roar.

Right now, all it wanted to do was to avoid any sudden movement, afraid even the act of standing might draw attention. Every few seconds, it stole a glance back.

It was at a distance now where it could soon pick itself up. Just one more look to make sure it was safe. But it was then that its eyes met Fenrir’s.

The troll froze. In that one still moment, the troll swore it could see the beast smile.

The ground suddenly shook as it used everything it had to stand. But just as the ground trembled from its movements, it also shook from someone else’s.

Its body was halfway up when it felt a giant paw collapse on its back. Deep claws piercing into its lungs and into its spine.

Paul and the others could only watch as Fenrir bent over, seizing the troll’s head inside his jaws.

Then what followed was a slow cracking of bones. The cracks were loud, disturbingly slow; one would think that he was trying to chew through stone. And what was worse? The trolls’ disturbed cries mixed amongst it.

Finally, Fenrir gave one final bite, yanking up at the same time to remove the entire head. The troll’s body still spasmed underneath. Its regeneration made its body slow on the uptake that it was dead.

That oppressive atmosphere had somehow diminished the moments Fenrir finished off the troll.

The troll’s head was still in his mouth as he approached Paul.

"Don’t," Paul suddenly called back when he saw Fenrir’s gaze narrow behind him. Paul quickly called behind them. He didn’t want them to do anything foolish. He could feel that Fenrir wasn’t hostile towards him at all.

However, his knees bent instinctively. He lowered himself under Fenrir’s gaze. If he wasn’t following him, he felt he needed to at least show the bare minimum of respect.

And that seemed to drop the tense atmosphere even more. Fenrir was just a few feet away from Paul now. He had stopped chewing on the head the moment Paul had bowed, dropping the distorted head at Paul’s feet.

Paul didn’t know what to say, yet when he glanced back up to Fenrir, he noticed that Fenrir wanted something. No, he was expecting something.

"Th-Thank you..." Paul slightly stammered, but he didn’t hesitate to pick up the head covered in saliva into his arms.

This pleased Fenrir even more. So much that he growled in response. If he could, he would rather trade Dummy for him instead.

"Stay away from him!"

Bailey took the growl for something else. The spear in her hand is already vibrating to deliver an attack. She didn’t care about the danger. In fact, right now she even felt that they had a chance to defeat him. They weren’t so weak anymore. As long as Fenrir was by himself, they could possibly free Paul from the curse.

"Bailey!" The pressure had suddenly spiked. This pressure came from Paul himself.

His cold look startled her, disrupting her skill altogether. Paul couldn’t afford the risk. He felt it now more than ever before. They were not Fenrir’s match.

Fenrir’s narrowed slits rested on Bailey’s figure. He glanced back at Paul, recollecting the hostility he directed to the girl in his defense.

At first, he was only going to gift Paul the troll’s head. He had secured the hunt after all. The exchange, in his mind, was finished. But Paul’s reaction earned him his respect. He didn’t mind rewarding one of his pact in exchange. Rewarding good behavior is what he witnessed Noah do many times.

He gave one last look to Bailey, releasing a strong, quick snort to show his displeasure before turning away.

His massive frame moved back toward the forest, padding in the same direction the trolls had fled, his presence receding with each step. The earlier troll didn’t count towards its hunt. It must return to Noah with something.

The pressure lifted gradually. Completely uplifting when his presence disappeared.

All of the others stood there, dazed, and relieved to be alive. But now they had to consider the next steps.

Do they still continue?