Chapter 161: Fire Rat
Baekrang had once allowed the black lizard to touch her body.
It was when the Igaksus had swarmed in.
To save the youngest and for the sake of the pack, she volunteered to sacrifice herself.
There was no way the touch of that lizard could feel pleasant.
She thought of herself as merely a tragic heroine.
That was what Baekrang believed, but surprisingly,
It wasn’t so bad.
No, it went beyond "not bad."
The large hands and tail of that lizard were something she had never experienced before.
They seemed rough and crude, yet they were calm and gentle.
Feeling that unfamiliar sensation for the first time, Baekrang’s tail couldn’t help but sway.
Her shame over exposing her belly disappeared, and she felt a growing desire for him to touch her more.
However, she only thought that way while being touched; in her usual state, Baekrang denied those feelings.
No matter what, the other party was a lizard.
Wolves and lizards were different species entirely.
There was no way she could feel such emotions toward a lizard without a single strand of fur.
Moreover, wasn’t that lizard’s relationship with females extremely complicated?
And soon, he would leave the pack anyway.
Despite all this, her pack liked that lizard.
Baekrang thought it was because of his peculiar hand technique.
Eventually, that lizard would leave.
Though it didn’t matter to her, it was clear the wolves in the pack would be saddened.
If only she could learn that hand technique, she could quickly fill the void he would leave behind.
And she could correct the pack’s misguided thinking.
Wolves are naturally drawn to those with abundant fur.
A wolf without fur would simply be eliminated by nature.
Swaying their tails at those scales was not a good habit.
That’s why Baekrang made a request of the lizard.
She asked him to touch her body once again.
Last time, she hadn’t been able to feel it properly because of the Igaksus.
How he touched and with what kind of strength.
If she understood that, she thought she could replicate it herself.
That was Baekrang’s thinking.
“Ahwung…”
Baekrang was startled.
She caught sight of herself flipping over naturally and wagging her tail.
At first, it started with her head.
The lizard touched her head with an appropriate strength, then pressed firmly near her ears.
Gradually, his hands moved downward, stroking along the grain of her fur, which felt pleasant.
Only then did Baekrang realize that this lizard wasn’t an ordinary one.
She hadn’t noticed it last time due to the chaos, but his movements were natural and smooth, as if he had done this hundreds of times before.
However, the moment she realized this, it was already too late.
The lizard’s large hands brushed every corner of her fur, as if scratching and stroking her all over.
“Ahwoong…”
A spiritual being with white fur was behaving in a manner she shouldn’t.
Her tail swayed gently, looking like a display of flirtation.
“Ke, keeng!”
She was the leader of the pack.
She was doing this dangerous act for the pack’s sake.
But looking at herself now, wouldn’t it seem like she seized an opportunity the moment the pack left to indulge in a secret rendezvous?
Even as she thought this, she couldn’t push away the lizard’s hands.
“Ahwoong…”
His hands scratched parts of her body that wolves could never reach, continuously stroking her soft flesh.
Baekrang, with her tongue outstretched, entrusted herself to the black lizard’s touch.
“Heh, heh…”
This wasn’t an act of fulfilling her desires.
It was purely for learning the lizard’s technique.
Of course, it might not look that way from the outside, but no one was watching.
As long as she finished before the pack returned, there would be no problem.
If she mastered his technique, she could maintain her dignity as the leader while strengthening the bond of the pack.
That was what Baekrang thought.
“Awoo?”
Until her eyes met Chillang’s.
“…Chi, Chillang?”
The youngest wolf dropped the piece of ice she had been holding in her mouth onto the ground.
She had seen the leader flipping over and enjoying herself.
And it wasn’t with another wolf, but a member of a different species.
“Yu, Yukrang!”
Chillang wasn’t the only one who had seen it.
From Illang to Chillang.
Every wolf had witnessed her behavior.
“…It’s not true.”
Baekrang denied it.
“That’s not what this is!”
But in the pack’s minds, Baekrang was already remembered as a lascivious leader who pretended otherwise while sending them away and spending a blissful time with the lizard.
“Awoo!”
Illang nodded her head.
It seemed to mean that after struggling alone for so long, it was time to find a good mate and be happy.
“It’s not like that!”
Baekrang tried to explain for a long time, but it wasn’t easily accepted.
The wolves wagged their tails as if they finally understood when the black lizard intervened with a croaking sound.
However, deep down, the pack couldn’t forget the fact that their leader now had a mate.
“Ehehe… some…”
“What about you now!”
An ice shard flew toward a suspicious beast laughing ominously in the distance.
I had shrunk my size and was spending time with the wolves.
“Gegek.”
I was being treated so generously that I was tempted to stay here forever.
To be honest, the surrounding environment wasn’t exactly great.
Just a little outside, drooling beasts were swarming and lunging at everything.
Of course, if I saw them as prey, it was highly satisfying, but I was a lizard that knew civilization.
Compared to the cozy, safe places like the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult or the Snake Queen’s shrine, this place was several times more dangerous.
But there were benefits here that outweighed those risks.
“Awoong…”
These furry creatures surrounding me.
Looking at their fur somehow put me at ease.
…Not in some weird way, but more like the feeling of looking at puppies.
Sometimes, smelling the faint scent of their fur felt healing.
Even with just this welfare, it was fine, but there was more to it.
“What, what are you looking at?”
White Pup.
Now, she usually maintained a human form when around me.
Perhaps remembering how she flipped over in a trance when I petted her, she seemed to think it might be a big problem if she stayed in her wolf form.
She must have felt like she would turn into a puppy instead of a wolf.
So, to prevent that, she kept her human form.
She was a sly one.
How did she know I was weak to this form?
“Don’t think I’d fall for you just because you petted me a few times.”
“Gek.”
“I keep saying, we don’t fall for those without fur. Got it?”
She rested my head on her lap and poked me with her fingers.
I stared for a while at the mysterious cold energy pouch on the ceiling, only half visible.
“…Still, it wouldn’t hurt to learn. I should try before you leave.”
“Gek?”
“Don’t ask for detailed reasons!”
Baekrang trembled slightly.
In technical terms, it was denial of affection.
If she admitted it like the other wolves, it would be easier, but maybe it was because she was the leader that she acted this way.
Seeing her like that made me stubborn.
Before I left this place, I was going to turn White Pup into a perfect puppy.
“…Be careful out there.”
Baekrang spoke coldly.
Everything was ready, and it was finally time to face the Guardian of the Volcano.
“Awooo!”
The wolves jumped around excitedly, cheering me on.
I wanted to take Baekrang with me, but I couldn’t.
As a spirit beast that controlled cold, Baekrang couldn’t move freely in the heat-filled volcano.
Her cold energy was effective against the beasts and spirit beasts of the volcano. But conversely, the volcano’s heat was fatal to her.
Fighting a beast that wielded fire energy was manageable, but the problem was the volcanic environment itself. Just staying there would be exhausting for her.
It was a little disappointing that I couldn’t rely on her help, but I had to face the Guardian alone anyway.
The reason I was fighting the Guardian was to evolve.
More precisely, it was to pass the trial of the Dragon Gate, part of which involved defeating the Guardian.
If Baekrang helped me defeat the Guardian, the effects would be halved.
I might not achieve the level of evolution I wanted.
…Of course, that was just speculation, but better safe than sorry.
“Gekgek!”
After saying my farewells to them, I headed out.
The path to the volcano was familiar.
I had visited it several times with Baekrang.
Not only did I hunt Magnosaurus there, but also various other enemies.
Since they wielded fire energy, they served as good practice opponents before facing the Guardian.
I arrived at the volcano’s entrance.
It was the typical appearance of a volcano, with flames burning here and there.
There were no beasts near the entrance that could pose a threat to me.
A Magnosaurus coming down from the volcano wasn’t common.
Even if one appeared, I could handle it without much difficulty.
Rumble!
Boom!
Was the volcano about to erupt?
I felt intense vibrations.
Kwooooooooosh!
Startled by the vibrations, a horde of beasts began descending from the volcano all at once.
Thankfully, the volcano didn’t erupt, but it gave me a bad feeling.
If it erupted while I was fighting the Guardian, things could get very complicated.
When I drank the elixir that White Pup made, I gained some resistance to fire, but that didn’t mean I could swim in magma.
“Kraaaah!”
“Kieeeek!”
There were beasts that weren’t startled by the volcano’s vibrations and held their ground.
They all charged at me.
But they weren’t my match.
Even without drinking the elixir, my basic resistance was enough to block their attacks.
Sssshhh!
The battle ended anticlimactically.
Something felt off.
Even if they had lost their intelligence, they shouldn’t fail to recognize this difference in power.
The way they rushed at me as if terrified was a bit suspicious.
It bothered me, but not enough to stop me from moving forward, so I kept walking.
As I climbed higher, the volcano’s heat grew stronger.
If I made it to the summit, my body might catch fire just from moving around.
Without Baekrang’s elixir, I would’ve been in serious trouble.
I could now see the midsection of the volcano.
That area was planned to serve as a kind of base camp.
From there, I would drink the elixir and prepare to take down the Fire Rat.
After that, I would climb to the summit and face it in a proper battle.
Originally, the Magnosaurus was supposed to be at that midsection, but it was now inside my stomach.
Therefore, I could rest comfortably in the middle of the volcano.
Even if another creature had claimed the area, it wouldn’t be a big problem.
Most had retreated to the lower areas due to the volcano’s activity.
Rumble!
Boom!
The volcano shook once again.
Hearing it up close, it didn’t sound like the kind of rumble that signaled an eruption.
Was someone else challenging the volcano?
Considering the sound came from the summit, it seemed to be coming from the Guardian.
It seemed stronger than I had anticipated.
I had let my guard down because it was a rat, but I refocused myself.
With that thought, I arrived at the midsection.
“Kikakakak!”
There was a visitor waiting.
I wanted to quickly deal with it and rest, but something was off.
It had a bulk even larger than the Magnosaurus.
Its fiery aura was obviously unusual at a glance.
And its face resembled that of a rat.
【Fire Rat LV90】
The Fire Rat, the Guardian of the Volcano.
…Why is it at the midsection?
Then what is the sound coming from the summit?