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"Subjugating the White Wolf pack?"
The moment Fang Li said those words, it was as if time came to a standstill.
Megumin, full of morning zeal.
Aqua, still haunted by amphibian trauma.
Kazuma, perpetually bored and borderline apathetic.
All three froze, staring at Fang Li in disbelief.
After a pause, they exchanged nervous glances.
"…Uh." Kazuma, self-designated team spokesman, raised his hand awkwardly and asked, "What exactly is a White Wolf…?"
Fang Li responded casually, like he was reading off a shopping list. "They're a type of white-furred beast-type monster. They hunt in coordinated packs and have been attacking livestock in a pasture not far from here. The local ranchers have suffered heavy losses."
Then he added, as if it were an afterthought: "Several adventuring parties have already taken the quest, but none succeeded. Even a five-man team led by a Level 20 veteran, with a full formation of vanguard, rearguard, and support, returned empty-handed. And their gear was advanced, too."
Kazuma and Aqua didn't wait to hear more. They turned and bolted.
Unfortunately for them, Fang Li had expected that. He grabbed them both by the back of their collars like misbehaving pets.
"I already cancelled the Giant Frog extermination request at the counter. Marked it as a failed quest."
Still holding them, he calmly continued,
"So, today, we're heading out to take down the White Wolf pack. Let's make it count."
His relaxed tone sparked instant chaos.
"WAAAAHHHH!" Aqua screamed like she was being dragged into the depths of hell. "I don't wanna! I don't wanna! I don't wannaaaaaa!"
A fine display of panic from someone claiming to be a divine being.
"Hold on! This has to be a joke! Fang Li-dono is messing with us, right?!" Kazuma flailed, cold sweat running down his temple.
"Let's be rational here! This is suicide! We're the team that got devoured by frogs! I'm classless trash, she's a useless Goddess, and she, " He gestured to Megumin. ", can only cast one spell per day before collapsing like a broken puppet! How are we supposed to defeat an entire wolf pack?!"
It sounded logical, but it was really just pure desperation.
Even Megumin, who had been quiet until now, spoke up hesitantly, her expression stiff.
"I mean… I wouldn't mind blowing up a bunch of enemies, but given our current rank... shouldn't we start with something smaller? Something less mainstream?"
That she didn't object to the "one-shot and done" remark meant even the Crimson Magic Clan had some level of self-awareness.
Watching Kazuma and Aqua struggle in vain, while Megumin posed dramatically with her staff like she was summoning a final boss, Fang Li finally smiled.
"What's the matter?" His voice was calm, but the words cut deep.
"Afraid?"
Just one word.
And suddenly, everything changed.
The prideful shut-in.
The showy, overconfident Goddess.
The bomb-happy sorceress.
All three stiffened. Their eyes lit up with something they hadn't felt since joining a proper party, competitive fire.
The pasture wasn't far. Even on foot, they reached it without trouble.
Fang Li, Kazuma, Megumin, and Aqua were now marching toward it, weapons and spell foci in hand.
But the mood wasn't exactly heroic.
"Gods of this world... please, someone save me..."
Aqua was muttering to herself under her breath, hands folded in prayer. The Goddess of Water is asking for divine protection… from other gods. It was hard not to laugh seeing this.
"I-I'm not scared… I'm totally not scared… I'm powerful… very powerful..." Megumin walked stiffly beside her, chanting affirmations like a magical girl with stage fright. It wasn't clear if she was bracing for combat or for public speaking.
As expected, Kazuma was the first to regain his composure.
But even with his nerves settling, the so-called weakest class still tried reasoning with Fang Li.
"Are we seriously going through with this? Subjugating monsters this dangerous?" Kazuma asked, feigning concern, though his eyes were practically begging for a way out.
"We're clearly punching way above our weight. Let's be realistic, our team composition is... catastrophically unbalanced. There's no way we can take down an entire wolf pack, right?"
Fang Li responded with calm detachment, as if reading off a battle plan. "Why not? Think about it. We've got two top-tier classes, one magic-focused rearguard and one divine support with healing abilities. Add the two of us as vanguards, and the setup's actually quite... optimal, no?"
Kazuma looked like he had just been stabbed in the heart. "You call that optimal? Our front line is a classless NEET and the weakest class in existence. Our rearguard goes offline after firing a single spell. Our 'healer' causes more disasters than she fixes. That's not optimal, that's a statistical nightmare!"
He nearly choked on his own frustration.
"To be blunt, we're just well-equipped snacks for the wolves!"
Fang Li shot him a glance.
"What are you really afraid of?" he asked calmly.
"I get it, you don't want to die. That's fair. But I'm not tossing you into a death trap. So what exactly are you scared of?"
Kazuma narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"Are you sure this isn't just your way of getting rid of us? Like picking the hardest quest just to scare us off?"
Fang Li's footsteps paused ever so slightly. Then he resumed walking, his voice cool and even.
"Don't be ridiculous. Nothing of the sort."
"...You hesitated. And that sounded like a question."
"You're imagining things."
"...Can I go back now?"
"Only if you're confident you won't get eaten by frogs again on the way."
"That's a threat in disguise!!"
And so, amidst this not-so-subtle banter (if you could even call it cheerful), the team finally arrived at their destination,
The pasture targeted by the White Wolf pack.
Sprawling fields of green stretched out before them, nestled right at the edge of a dark, dense forest. It was nature in its rawest, most unwelcoming form.
And yet, not a single animal grazed in sight.
The absence of livestock made the threat all too real.
Fang Li and Kazuma stopped in place, surveying the area.
"According to the commission report," Fang Li muttered, double-checking the parchment in his hand, "the wolf pack is hiding somewhere within the pasture itself. The ranchers already evacuated, so until we set foot inside, they won't show."
Kazuma let out a breath of relief.
"Perfect. In that case, we'll sneak in, one step at a time. Take out the stragglers with surprise attacks. Divide and conquer. Easy."
Right as he finished his genius plan, a voice ripped through the air.
"Hey! What are you two doing?!" Aqua's shrill cry echoed from a distance.
"Hurry up and get over here! Don't tell me you're scared now? That's totally unacceptable!"
There she stood, already inside the pasture.
Worse, she was standing dead center in the open field, waving like she was calling for backup during a parade.
Fang Li and Kazuma's faces twitched in perfect sync.
Behind them, Megumin's face went completely pale.
"Wolves... wolves... wolves..."
As she muttered like a broken incantation loop, dark shapes began emerging in the tall grass behind Aqua,
One.
Two.
More.
Many...
Eyes gleamed in the shadows.
The White Wolf pack had arrived.
(End of Chapter)
PS-"For every 100 power stones, I'll release one bonus chapter (Current-06)!"