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Chapter 9 — My Apologies, It Seems He Got a Little Hungry 

David was a vice-captain for the city guard, responsible for guarding the southern gate of the capital. Their duties included keeping order on the southern side of the city as well as managing the area just outside the gates. 

So guiding the people who were milling around the gate was part of his responsibility. However, with the city drowning in a sea of meat and most of the citizens dead, what could they do for the few survivors who had barely escaped with their lives? This was far more than what a city guard was prepared to handle. 

But David didn’t run. Even though he held the lowest possible rank within the royal family, he still maintained his pride as a member of that household. Only a tiny fraction of the capital’s population seemed to have survived, but the original number was so large that even the comparatively small number of those who had been close enough to the walls to escape defied counting. Most of them were in a daze, with nothing left but the clothes on their backs. 

Recognizing how dire the situation was, David headed for a nearby town. They couldn’t flood the smaller town with people without giving them warning, so he went alone first to negotiate. 

He asked for accommodations for the refugees, or if that was impossible, some emergency camping equipment and food. His requests were accepted surprisingly easily. It helped that the town was a wealthy one, although having been introduced by Third Prince Richard was also a great boon. 

After parting ways with Yogiri, David had managed to meet up with Richard, who had been in the palace but had escaped through the rooftop after finding that he was unable to fight back against the tide of flesh. Now he too was visiting another settlement, performing negotiations just as David was. 

“Well, that’s all well and good, but now what?” David grumbled on his way back to the city. 

By mobilizing the surrounding settlements, they should have just been able to handle the survivors. But the ever prosperous capital of Manii was no more. One could not deny that its destruction was a crippling blow to the nation. It wasn’t hard to imagine some other countries taking advantage of the situation and moving against them. 

The nearby Empire of Arganda was already in the process of swallowing up the countries around it. It was only a matter of time before they set their gazes on Manii as well. 

Wasn’t stopping the Argandans from invading one of the great feats that the Sage candidates were supposed to accomplish? he mused. 

Now that the Sage Sion was dead, it was doubtful that those great feats would ever be accomplished, but it did make him wonder about how the empire would react to their current situation. And now that the Underworld was gone, they would no longer be receiving financial support from other nations to keep it suppressed. Compared to its size, the amount of practically usable land in the Kingdom of Manii was surprisingly small. It had managed to prosper thanks to the support provided by their neighbors in exchange for keeping the Underworld under control. Either way, the future of their kingdom was looking dark. 

As David mulled this over, the sound of screaming pulled him from his reverie, and he lifted his head to take in a sight that made him doubt his own eyes. Although he was still a distance away, he could see that an enormous wolf was attacking people near the city gate. 

“Is that...an Aggressor?!” 

The capital had been protected by the Sage Santarou, powerful walls that had been built by the ancient High Wizard, and the sealing power of the royal family. There was little for the people of the capital to fear from the Aggressors. But now the Sage was dead, the walls had crumbled, and the royal family had been considerably weakened. They should have been on their guard, but it seemed like his people had completely forgotten about the existence of the Aggressors. 

David knew the second he laid eyes on the wolf that none of them stood any chance against such a beast. Nothing they did would matter. Even if he tried to distract the creature long enough for a single person to escape, it likely wouldn’t pay him any attention. It would simply continue to devour people, feeding its insatiable hunger. 

The next thought was for him to escape on his own, but that would also have been impossible. Naturally, refugees were scattering like flies, but the wolf merely appeared in front of them as they ran. It moved so fast that it might as well have been teleporting, and it was prioritizing those who were trying to run away. It was also aware of David—in fact, it was fully aware of every bit of prey in the area. 

“I suppose I should have stayed with Yogiri after all,” David said, drawing his sword. 

There was no way he could win, but that didn’t mean he could sit around and do nothing. He looked for an area on the creature’s body where he might be able to injure it. The eyes seemed like a good option, but the wolf was so tall that he probably couldn’t reach them. The inside of its mouth seemed similarly vulnerable, but if he was close enough to attack, he would quickly be crushed by the creature’s jaws. 

“Huh, what about striking between its claws?” 

He didn’t know if it would make any difference, but at this point it was all he could think of. With a roar, he charged the beast. It was already aware of him, so there was no point in trying to sneak up on it. It made more sense to get his own adrenaline going. 

“Get down!” 

David reacted immediately to the shout that came from behind him. Abandoning his sword, he threw himself headfirst to the ground as something passed through the air overhead. He looked up and saw that the wolf was growling, turning to face him. Spitting out the bodies in its mouth, it was taking a battle-ready stance. 

“Are you okay?!” 

“Yes, though I wouldn’t have been for long,” David replied, climbing back to his feet. 

Standing beside him was Richard—the current Swordmaster and third prince of Manii—with his sword drawn. 

 


“Was that shock wave from your sword?” 

“Yes, that’s what happens when I swing the Holy Sword.” 

“Do you think you can handle this thing? As frustrating as it is to admit it, I don’t think I can do much here.” 

“It appears to have identified me as a threat. Can you help the others to escape while I hold its attention?” 

“I’ll do what I can.” 

If Richard could keep the wolf at bay, they might have a chance. David stepped forward, ignoring the monster. He had no way of beating it himself. But curling up in fear would get him killed regardless, so he went with defiance instead. 

Richard managed to keep the wolf in check, preventing it from attacking. It growled as it adjusted its footing but nothing more. While the beast was distracted, David gathered the survivors. There weren’t many left, but he tried to tell himself that any number was better than zero. He slowly led them around behind Richard. 

“Oh my, looks like Fido is scared,” a woman’s voice called out from the direction of the wolf. 

David looked up to see that a woman with long hair had suddenly appeared there, sitting on the animal’s head. 

“Its name is Fido?” Richard replied dumbly. 

“No? It’s like, treating your underlings like pet dogs. It’s just an expression.” 

“Did you order it to do this?” Richard had apparently decided that this woman was the wolf’s owner. 

“I’m not quite sure what you mean by ‘this,’ but I guess I get what you’re trying to say. I’m sorry, it seems he got a little hungry.” 

She clapped her hands together in apology. It was certainly a situation that called for her to apologize, but her flippant attitude didn’t match the gravity of the moment at all. 

“Really, this is just an excuse, so feel free not to believe me, but this little guy and I got separated after coming to this world. And when I’m not around, he makes a real mess, doesn’t he? I’m always telling him to cut it out, so I bet he gets real stressed about it. When I’m not around, he must feel like he’s finally free to eat as much as he likes.” 

“I honestly don’t understand what you’re trying to say, but is it safe to assume you will not allow it to continue its rampage?” 

The damage was already immense. There weren’t enough words to describe how he felt, but Richard swallowed his complaints. Regaining control of things was his top priority. 

“Of course. Letting him eat anything he wants will spoil him rotten.” 

“In that case, I would like to ask you two to leave.” 

“I don’t mind much, but there’s a reason we’re here. Actually, me finding him here was mostly a coincidence.” 

“And what is your reason for coming?” 

“We sensed the presence of a god. Seems like it’s coming from that big pile of meat. My little guy here noticed it and came running. So I decided to come take a look myself.” 

David recalled the form that the mass of meat had taken earlier. The figure he had observed from the Archbishop’s office had been beautiful enough to make the classification of “goddess” seem fitting. 

“But this doesn’t seem to be what we’re looking for. Ah, I guess I should at least ask. We’re searching for a goddess. Have you seen any around?” 

“A goddess? I’ve encountered one named Vahanato, but...” 

“What? She’s here?! I was wondering why I hadn’t run into her for a while. But that’s not who I’m looking for. Thanks for letting me know, though.” 

The woman lightly tapped the head of the wolf, and in an instant they were gone, the beast running off at a terrifying speed. 

“I guess we’re saved?” asked David. 

“For now. But clearly we can’t afford to stay here for long. The Aggressors are being drawn to that ocean of meat.” 

Even if they didn’t already have a reason to get moving, they couldn’t wait around and do nothing, so they decided to head on to one of the nearby towns. 



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