Chapter 105

The quiet lakeside bathed in moonlight.

Ariel quietly gazed at the little wolf.

Its tiny body, as if just born.

It looked more like a puppy than a wolf.

As Ariel crouched down and reached out her hand, the little wolf stared at her with curious eyes.

Tilting its small head.

Ariel smiled gently.

Where did this wolf come from?

The Evergreen Forest was home to many creatures.

Wolves, bears, deer, foxes, squirrels, and more.

But the animals rarely came to this lakeside.

Because this lakeside was Elysion’s territory.

In fact, the entire Evergreen Forest was Elysion’s domain, but this lakeside was where Elysion and Rakia often stayed.

The animals instinctively sensed it.

That this lakeside belonged to a very powerful being.

So how did this little wolf end up in Elysion’s territory?

Had it lost its mother?

No, more than that, Ariel wanted to touch it.

The little wolf’s fur was gray, and it looked incredibly soft and fluffy.

But the little wolf only stared at Ariel with curious eyes, not coming closer.

Ariel pondered.

Should she use telekinesis to grab it?

No, that would be a bit harsh. The little wolf would be scared.

Instead, perhaps…

Ariel took something out from her inventory.

It was a small, round fruit, a Luminaberry she had brought from the Elf’s Forest.

Luminaberries were a favorite among the elves, and when used to make pies, they were incredibly sweet.

Of course, they were delicious on their own too.

As Ariel placed the Luminaberry on her palm, the little wolf slowly approached.

Its steps still clumsy and awkward.

The little wolf sniffed the Luminaberry’s scent, then stuck out its tiny tongue to give it a lick.

Then it wagged its tail.

Ariel placed the Luminaberry into the little wolf’s mouth.

The little wolf chewed the Luminaberry contentedly, closing its eyes in pleasure.

Seizing the moment, Ariel stroked the little wolf’s head, and as expected, its fur was soft and warm.

After swallowing the Luminaberry, the little wolf tapped Ariel’s hand with its plump front paw.

As if asking for more.

Ariel took out a few more Luminaberries and placed them on her palm.

This time, she let the little wolf eat them on its own.

The little wolf began licking Ariel’s palm as it ate the Luminaberries.

After a while, having finished all the Luminaberries, the little wolf looked up at Ariel again.

Its round eyes filled with curiosity and innocence.

Finally, unable to resist, Ariel pulled the little wolf’s legs and hugged it.

The little wolf perked up its ears and nestled quietly in Ariel’s arms.

Ariel stroked the little wolf’s chubby belly.

Soft and warm to the touch.

Perhaps enjoying Ariel’s touch, the little wolf let out a small growl and soon fell asleep.

*

The next day, Ariel woke up to the morning sunlight.

Around her were Rakia, Revena, and Roo.

Roo sat under the shade of a tree, sipping fruit wine, while Revena sat beside her, nibbling on dessert.

And Rakia, wearing a rabbit mask, was chasing the little wolf from last night.

“Why do you keep running away! I just want to touch you!”

Rakia shouted, sounding frustrated. It seemed she wasn’t having much luck trying to touch the little wolf.

Well, even Ariel wouldn’t have succeeded yesterday without the Luminaberries.

Moreover, Rakia was a dragon.

The little wolf instinctively feared and avoided her.

“Huh? Ariel, you’re awake?”

Revena noticed Ariel and quickly approached.

“Whoa, big sis!”

Roo also flew over after finishing her fruit wine.

“Ah! Lady Ariel!”

Rakia, still in her rabbit mask, ran over too.

The three surrounded Ariel and asked what had happened in the Elf’s Forest this time.

Ariel calmly recounted the events of purifying the World Tree and defeating Nakshis.

“W-what…!”

Revena looked shocked.

“Nakshis, the ancient evil god… The one who fought against the ancient elves…”

Revena knew about Nakshis.

The evil god, Nakshis.

A being who, corrupted by dark power, sought to destroy the world but was ultimately sealed by the ancient elves.

This was a well-known story, even among those who weren’t saints.

Even Roo knew about it.

“As expected of big sis, defeating that evil god.”

Though Roo wasn’t as shocked as Revena.

Considering what Ariel had done so far, it wasn’t that surprising.

In fact, Roo thought Nakshis was just unlucky.

To have its seal broken while Ariel was in the Elf’s Forest.

At that moment, Nakshis’s fate was sealed.

Meanwhile, Ariel turned her gaze toward the tree.

Near the tree, the little wolf was secretly stealing Revena’s dessert.

“By the way, do you know that wolf?”

When Ariel asked, the atmosphere grew quiet for a moment.

Rakia, Revena, and Roo looked at each other, then back at Ariel.

“Big sis, that wolf is Ghost’s pup.”

Roo said.

“With Black… it seems that’s how it happened…”

Ariel looked stunned.

She didn’t know how to react.

For a moment, she wondered, “When did that happen?” but that wasn’t the important part.

More importantly.

A smile spread across Ariel’s face.

Though it was surprising, this was clearly a blessing.

Moreover, if it was Ghost’s pup, that meant she could see it often.

That adorable little wolf.

“Big sis, I think you should give it a name.”

At Roo’s words, Ariel nodded and looked at the little wolf again.

The little wolf’s fur was gray, as if it had inherited traits from both Ghost and Black.

Then…

“…Smoky?”

Ariel said with a bit of uncertainty, and the reactions around her weren’t great.

Roo cautiously spoke up.

“Big sis, that one’s a female…”

“Ah.”

Smoky wasn’t a fitting name for a female.

Ariel began to ponder again.

Everyone watched her intently.

Wondering what name she would come up with.

Soon, Ariel smiled and said.

“Ash.”

Finally, smiles appeared on everyone’s faces.

Ash.

A perfectly normal name that suited the gray wolf.

*

Ariel stayed in the Evergreen Forest for a while, enjoying her leisurely time.

Her next adventure destination hadn’t been decided yet, and more importantly, playing with the little wolf, Ash, was fun.

Ash was a cute little wolf with a round face, round eyes, a round nose, and fluffy fur.

Curious by nature, Ash explored everywhere and caused quite a few accidents.

Seeing Ariel spinning like a top while swimming in the lake, Ash bravely jumped in and let out a yelp, or one day, it ventured deep into the forest and bullied some bear cubs.

Even though the bear cubs were about the same size, they couldn’t fight back against Ash, likely because Ash was a spirit beast.

For that, Ash got scolded by Ghost and Black.

According to Revena, spirit beasts, being powerful beings, shouldn’t bully other animals.

Scolded by Ghost and Black, Ash sulked and nestled in Ariel’s arms.

Ariel gently stroked Ash to comfort her, but the next day, Ash caused another accident.

She tore Ariel’s dragon doll, Sparki, to shreds.

Ariel’s hands trembled as she gathered Sparki’s remains, and Revena repaired it.

Sparki became much fatter with more stuffing.

“Her teeth must be itchy.”

Revena said, gently stroking Ash’s back.

“Her teeth are probably growing.”

Ash didn’t just tear up Sparki.

She also chewed off one ear of the rabbit mask Rakia had taken off.

Enraged, Rakia transformed into a dragon, and Ash let out a yelp and ran deep into the forest.

Eventually, she was caught by Black and brought back.

“She needs something to chew on.”

At Revena’s words, Ariel had a sudden idea.

Ariel immediately took something out from her inventory.

Thud.

It was the lower half of the evil god Nakshis.

“!”

Revena was horrified, and Ash turned her gaze to Nakshis’s lower half.

Ash quietly got up and approached Nakshis’s lower half.

A sinister aura still emanated from Nakshis’s remains.

An ordinary animal wouldn’t dare get close.

But Ash was a spirit beast.

With a fierce growl, Ash bravely pounced and began tearing into Nakshis’s lower half.

Compared to Ash’s small body, Nakshis’s remains were huge, but Ash didn’t hesitate.

As if determined to defeat a much larger enemy, she persistently bit and tugged.

Her small paws moved busily, and her tail wagged excitedly.

In just a few days, Nakshis’s lower half was in tatters.

A small spirit beast’s victory.