Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint-Chapter 518: Time of Dogs and Wolves (6)

The wind, heavy with the scent of earth, raced across the open plains.

Long ago, all beasts had been the wandering winds of the field.

With their feet against the dirt, they followed the flow of water and grass, competing for life and death in the wilderness.

There was no glory in birth, nor cruelty in death.

Life and death were not judged.

They simply blended into the world.

Teia ran across the plains, reveling in freedom.

She left behind the piercing stares of the wolves hunting her and the shouts of those who worried for her safety.

Even the wind couldn’t outrun her.

She let herself enjoy the primal joy rising from deep within her.

Then—someone appeared in her path.

A wolf girl.

What better way to describe her?

Amidst massive wolves, a solitary girl stood.

Like a shepherd among sheep.

Even as the scent of blood lingered in the air, she remained calm, tending to her wolves.

Teia recalled stories of humans raised by wolves.

Perhaps they looked just like this.

Had this wolf girl suckled at the milk of a mother wolf?

When had she realized she was different from them?

Teia let her imagination run wild—

But then, her rational mind whispered to her.

'That’s the King of Wolves. She’s my target. I have to lure her away.'

It was a shame, but the pleasant daydream had to end here.

Stopping in front of the wolf pack, Teia forced a bright smile and waved.

"Hi. Are you the King of Wolves?"

The wolves growled, wary of the strange human.

A few lunged forward, but the wolf girl moved.

The wolves, sensing their king’s will, instinctively parted.

The King of Wolves stepped forward lightly, like a wolf, gazing straight at Teia.

A familiar feeling washed over Teia.

The King of Wolves.

She was seeing her for the first time, yet she felt as though she had met her before.

Cold, gray fur.

Icy, blue eyes.

A presence so chilling, Teia felt her fur prickle with unease.

If she had ever met this being before, she would never have forgotten.

Why did she feel this way?

As Teia struggled with the strange familiarity, the King of Wolves spoke.

"You're violent."

The moment she heard the voice, Teia realized the truth behind her déjà vu.

The King of Beasts.

Their fur was different.

Their eyes were different.

Their presence was different.

The King of Beasts was cheerful, kind, full of warmth for all.

With round, gentle eyes, she smiled softly at everything.

The King of Wolves—in contrast—

Was sharp.

A being who looked ready to rip apart whatever stood before her.

Anyone who was bitten would not blame the wolf, but themselves for approaching her.

And so—

Teia had realized it too late.

The King of Wolves and the King of Beasts... were identical.

Not just similar.

Perfectly identical.

"Violent? I—I'd like to think I’m pretty decent."

"Violent. Like a horse."

"Ah, horse? That’s right. I’m a horse beastkin."

"Then why don’t you use your violence for yourself?"

Teia flinched.

The King of Wolves was no ordinary beast.

She hadn't expected her to recognize her as an individual, let alone hold a conversation.

But more than that—

Her words cut through to Teia’s core.

"Inside you is a horse’s violence."

"Your legs exist to run away."

"You should be running to the ends of the earth, fleeing everything ugly and terrifying—

So why do you stand before me instead?"

"Uh... well, to protect the city?"

"So you've been tamed?"

"Trained not to show violence to humans?"

"Even though you possess a horse’s wildness—

You were tamed to use it for the sake of humans?"

If a horse’s violence was running,

Then Teia had indeed used it for the sake of humans.

She raced, won, and basked in the cheers of the crowd.

She waved as flowers and gifts rained upon her.

She had never thought of it as servitude.

She had simply run.

Teia snapped back.

"I wasn’t serving them! I was fairly compensated!"

"‘You’ were.

The wildest of them all—

You were the one who survived."

"...!"

But what about the other racehorses?

Had they been compensated fairly too?

Teia hesitated.

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And in that moment, the King of Wolves spoke again, her voice low.

"Humans tame beasts."

"They kill the untamed."

"They hoard violence for themselves—

Pulling teeth, clipping claws, binding with harnesses and piercing with bridles."

"Cutting away brutality—consuming it for their own gain."

"Wolves..."

"I am the fangs you lost."

"The claws you cut away."

"The vast wilderness left behind after you broke us."

Teia had expected the King of Wolves to attack immediately.

She had assumed she would be a mindless, savage force.

And yet—

"I am the King of Violence.

The King that remembers the savagery you all have forgotten."

There was sorrow in her voice.

She wasn’t simply evil.

Teia had assumed she was nothing but cruelty.

But now—she wasn’t so sure.

"Remember your wildness."

"Horses are beasts that run to the ends of the earth."

"Not bridled things, made to carry humans on their backs."

Teia laughed weakly.

"Didn’t expect to get recruited today."

She couldn’t accept it.

But she understood it.

And at last—

She understood why the King of Wolves and the King of Beasts looked exactly the same.

They were mirror images.

The same—yet completely opposite.

The King of Beasts would never harm a human.

The King of Wolves demanded that violence be shown to them.

Had her life been a little different...

Had timing changed...

Had she been weaker at some past moment...

She might have been convinced by the wolves.

But—

What had brought Teia here was Ende.

And the King of Beasts.

Ende was a free city.

And Teia loved it.

Right now, she chose to stand on the side of kindness.

"Maybe you're right. But right now—"

"I run for myself.

My wildness belongs to me alone."

And more than anything—

Teia felt her instincts stir.

She met the King of Wolves’ gaze.

"More than anything—"

"I want to race you, wolf."

"...Keh."

The King of Wolves bared her fangs in a fierce grin.

A howl erupted from the wolves—

Hundreds of them, spreading wide, readying themselves for the hunt.

Then—

A shadow emerged beside the King of Wolves.

A figure in a pitch-black robe spoke.

"Fenrir... that’s a lure—"

"Silence, human. You never tamed me."

Crunch.

In an instant—

The shadow was nothing but blood.

Not even a corpse remained.

The King of Wolves, still licking the blood from her lips, never even looked at him.

Her eyes remained on Teia.

"I welcome your wildness, horse. Run."

And finally—

Teia understood.

The King of Wolves had given her a chance.

And that—

That terrified her.

Every cell in her body screamed at her to run.

Her heart pounded—

Desperate to flee before she was caught and devoured.

But along with the fear—

Came exhilaration.

A race with no bets, no ranking, no ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) validation.

A race for life itself.

Teia grinned.

She planted her hooves firmly into the ground.

And summoned every ounce of qi into her legs.

The plains wind brushed against her cheeks.

The King of Wolves’ fur rippled.

A moment of stillness—

The moment before the hunt began.

Teia whispered:

"It's a race, Fenrir."

The endless wind stopped.

And with that—

The two beasts charged at full speed.

"Damn, she’s fast."

I had planned to escort her, but she had zoned out for a moment—and then she was gone, sprinting far ahead.

It felt like she was living in a world several times faster than the rest of us.

I turned to the Obeli Guard Dogs and the beastkin strike team and urged them on.

"Run faster. We can't let the wolves cut off Teia’s path."

"We’re already running as fast as we can! How the hell are we supposed to catch up to a horse with rabbit legs?!"

The panting, gasping voice belonged to Kito, the rabbit mage.

Then, suddenly, she stopped in her tracks.

Our detached unit had advanced too deep, and now, we were surrounded by wolves.

Even though the Obeli Guard Dogs were a trained force, they were nothing compared to the Obelisk soldiers or the Beast Faction warriors.

Kito, slow to process the situation, started trembling.

"W-Wait. Aren’t we... a bit too deep in enemy territory?"

"We are. And we need to go even deeper."

"H-HIEEEEEK?! We’re gonna get eaten by wolves! There’s no one around to help us!"

"We’re here."

"We’re weak!"

Kito shouted in panic, her ears twitching wildly as she frantically scanned the surroundings.

The hundred or so Obeli Guard Dogs held their formation, steadily advancing.

The wolves circled them, wary but not attacking outright.

They were probably just a scouting pack, but even these wolves were deadly opponents for the Obeli Guard Dogs.

If the King of Wolves’ main force arrived,

It would be certain death.

"So... if we lure them... won’t we just become wolf food?"

"We don’t plan to be eaten, but yes. The wolves will definitely see us as food."

"WELL THEN GOODBYE FOREVER!"

"Where do you think you're going?"

I grabbed Kito’s long rabbit ears before she could bolt.

It was surprisingly easy to hold them in one hand.

Kito flailed her arms and legs, crying.

"Ahhh! It’s coming off! It’s gonna pop right off! LET GO, LET GOOOO!"

"What’s the problem? You’re a city trap engineer. You should be willing to sacrifice yourself for the city."

"I DON’T WANNA SACRIFICE MY LIFE! I HATE THIS DAMN CITY! I HATE HUMANS! I HATE BEASTKIN!"

Maybe it was the fear of the wolves, but Kito completely let loose.

"What, they think only they count as beastkin? I’M A BEASTKIN TOO! But just because there aren’t many rabbit beastkin, they ignore me, exclude me, and push me away! The cats are sharp and mean, so they don’t get messed with—but rabbits?! We’re weak and cowardly, so they just beat us up and make fun of us!"

"Ende DESERVED to get ruined!"

The Obeli Guard Dogs looked visibly shaken at her sudden, brutal honesty.

But Kito didn’t care.

She hopped in place, venting all her pent-up resentment.

"And the pigs are even worse!

They bullied me more than anyone, but now they wanna cry about ‘discrimination’?

They say they’re gonna enjoy the power they were denied until now?

FINE THEN. MAKE ME YOUR DAMN QUEEN! I SUFFERED MORE THAN ANY OF YOU!

I was the most miserable one! I was in the most pain! TOEEEEEENG!"

"But you’ve been making a good living since awakening your Unique Magic, haven’t you?"

"Oh, I’m SO glad you brought that up!"

She snapped.

"Do you even know HOW I awakened it?

Because those dogshit bastards kept setting up rabbit traps!

They put snares in the paths I walked, just to laugh while I cried!

I had to figure out how to avoid traps just to survive—THAT'S how I awakened my damn magic!"

The sins of the city ran deep.

Even if Kito had turned out okay, setting traps for a child had crossed the line.

Some claimed that teasing girls was a way of showing affection.

But setting up snares and pitfall traps?

That was just hunting.

"I’m a coward!

I’m weak and pitiful!

So why the hell should I risk my life to protect this city?!"

Kito wailed.

It was clear as day.

Her desires had nothing to do with saving Ende.

Even her job as a trap engineer had been a petty revenge plot.

From her high position, she secretly looked down on those who tormented her.

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Unlike the pig beastkin, who fought back openly—

The rabbits were too few in number to even attempt rebellion.

But I wasn’t the kind of person to force someone into something they didn’t want.

"Don’t misunderstand me."

I spoke calmly.

"I’m giving you an opportunity to fulfill your own desires."

"Hic. My... desires?"

Kito’s hatred was deep-seated.

She wanted revenge—

But she also had ambition.

She wanted to rise above them all, so no one could ever look down on her again.

And I—

Or rather, I and the Regressor—

Had a plan to make that happen.

"I’ll make you a hero."

Kito froze.

"A... a hero?"

"Wait. No, no. That won’t motivate you."

I needed something better.

Something that would truly move her.

And then—

I found the perfect answer.

After a short pause, I smiled and promised her—

"I’ll make you a god."