Fairy Tale: Little Red Riding Hood's Wolf Mentor

"There really was a princess..."

Poro looked into a cave not far away, where a princess dressed in a golden gown was sitting.

But the princess's expression was blank, like a doll that had lost its will.

"No, this is more like a trap. Even if she were a real princess, she wouldn't live in a cave like this."

Poro also noticed that there were no signs of life in the cave where the princess was; there was no food, no excrement—and even the clothes showed no signs of wear and tear.

There was also a hint of magic.

Poro made a judgment and then looked to the other side, where the "Royal Guards of the Air Force" that Tiger had mentioned were located.

To be precise, they were three "Royal Air Force soldiers".

Was it a coincidence? Or perhaps some kind of deliberate guidance? The direction these three Royal Air Force soldiers were heading was precisely towards the cave where Princess Air Force was!

Of course, this was not their good fortune.

Above the heads of the three Royal Guards, an inconspicuous bird perched on a branch. These soldiers, who could not sense magic, naturally could not distinguish between an ordinary bird and the cursed one!

"Your prey consists of those three guys, see them clearly?"

A sparrow landed beside Poro and the other three beasts and said, "If they try to rescue Princess Hangt, kill them, understand?"

Upon hearing this, the three beasts besides the Poro all gleamed with a bloodthirsty light in their eyes:
"understand!"

"I will kill them!"

Two leopards and a jackal spoke up, vying for attention.

“Very good, this is an opportunity specially reserved for you.”

The sparrow nodded, then spread its wings and flew back into the darkness.

In the dim light, two cheetahs and a jackal found a corner to lie in ambush, but Poro could see clearly that, compared to other hunters or wild beasts, the three beasts had not chosen a very good spot.

Perhaps before they were cursed, they weren't good hunters either, as humans.

Or rather, he wasn't a hunter at all.

Even with their bodies enhanced by magic, these three wild beasts would have a hard time defeating those three armored guards.

Poro frowned, but it was too late to think. The three special forces soldiers had already crossed the jungle, and Poro could even hear their hushed conversation:
"You're saying you really saw Her Highness the Princess?"

"It should be. There were those strange wild beasts around at the time. I only saw the dress, but it should be in this direction... Hide, separate, and search along that small hill ahead."

As he spoke, the three special forces soldiers split up and came out.

Poro watched as the other three beasts headed toward two of the soldiers, while one of the three special forces soldiers came toward him.

Poro knew that there must be birds observing from above the forest at that moment.

He had no choice but to fight the soldiers who arrived at this time—

But... perhaps this battle doesn't need to be won?
With that thought in mind, Poro stepped out of the jungle and stood in front of one of the special forces soldiers.

"Huh? A wolf?"

The soldier was taken aback, and immediately blew a sharp whistle as a warning. Almost at the same time, whistles also came from the other two sides!

Poro knew that the other two sides' special forces soldiers had also encountered their opponents at the same time.

"Hmph! A wolf dares to stand in my way? But if there are other wild beasts—I must finish them off quickly."

The soldier fighting the Poro thought to himself, and immediately drew his sword and charged forward.

The Poro also swung its claws, clashing with the soldier's sword, sending sparks flying in the darkness. Then, using the momentum, it leaped to the side.

But while this series of actions may seem dangerous, in reality, for a Poro, if it wanted to, it couldn't possibly suffer the slightest harm.

As an ordinary space special forces soldier, he poses little threat to the current Poro.

Poro is only thinking about...

How long should I act?

On the other two sides, however, the situation was quite different. The lame jackal and the two leopards were truly fighting to the death. Sword blades cut wounds on the beasts' bodies, while the beasts' sharp claws tore through the soldiers' soft armor.

Perhaps, once the battles on both sides are over, I can pretend to be defeated and no one will suspect me?
Poro continued to dodge the soldiers' slashes with ease.

But clearly, the soldiers facing off against the Poro didn't think that way.

"Damn it, something's off about this wolf!?"

The soldier felt that every attack he made was easily dodged. His decades of honed memory were no match for the wolf's reaction speed!

Even more surprisingly, the wolf's eyes darted around and didn't even look at him!
Is this mockery?

The image of a cat playing with a mouse flashed through the soldier's mind, and his teeth clenched so hard they clattered, but every swipe of his sword still grazed the Poro's fur.

A difference of a hair's breadth can lead to a huge discrepancy!

"Could it be that this wolf intends to kill me easily after it's tired of playing with me?!"

As the battle grew increasingly desperate, the special forces soldier realized that, given the wolf's reaction speed, it had many opportunities to kill him!
But this wolf did not.

What is it waiting for?
But Poro was unaware of the soldier's thoughts; he was simply waiting for the battles on the other two sides to end.

The two cheetahs working together made life extremely difficult for the soldiers they were facing.

However, both cheetahs had numerous wounds, and if either of them were seriously injured, the situation would be reversed.

As for that lame jackal...

Poro looked to the other side; the jackal was already weak, and it had a leg injury.

"As expected, that jackal is going to die."

Poro made his judgment, and the next moment, blood splattered everywhere. The soldier facing the jackal had severed the jackal's head with a single sword strike.

Meanwhile, the soldiers facing the Poro felt increasingly desperate.

He had been giving it his all from the start, and now his movements were becoming increasingly stiff, while the wolf in front of him showed no sign of slowing down at all.

The next moment, the Poro leaped up and grazed the soldier's throat!
Then, turning over, it disappeared into the darkness behind it.

Sure enough, I'm going to die!

The soldier fell to the ground, feeling a burning pain in his throat.

But a few seconds later, he found that there wasn’t much blood coming out of his throat—he raised his hand to check, and found that his trachea and arteries had not been pierced.

How could that be? Did the wolf miss?

The soldier cautiously got up, but saw no sign of the wolf. He continued searching deeper into the area where his comrades had been calling out.

His two companions also ended the sudden battle at this time.

The soldier who fought the two leopards was covered in blood, with several wounds so deep that bone was visible.

Although he won, the price he paid was equally heavy.

In the forest, the only possible outcome of such an injury is death from blood loss!

The soldier looked sadly at the other side, where the soldier who had fought the jackals was also covered in wounds, but he was the one with the least injury.

"Look over there!" Without time to think further, the soldier fighting the jackals was now closer to the cliff face, and he could see the cave below—and the faint light within.

A young girl?
A girl in a gold dress?!

"Your Highness?!"

Their pupils contracted, and they shouted the princess's name, but the figure sitting in the cave turned around upon hearing this, and it was indeed a beautiful young girl.

Both soldiers recognized her instantly—it was Princess Biste!

At this moment, the princess looked surprised, but quickly it turned into panic.

The two soldiers wanted to continue forward, but then their steps slowed down as the biting cold seeped into their very bones.

They saw the princess's lips moving; she was saying—

Run!

At the same time, two enormous shadows appeared in the darkness beside the cave.

A tiger and a brown bear!
"This time, it seems we can't save the princess..."

The soldier wounded by the jackals gave a bitter laugh and said with a tremor, "My leg is injured. I'll hold off these two beasts. You go find the hunters and the other brothers. You must—rescue the princess!"

Another soldier saw his comrade's eyes redden, but he slowly loosened his grip on the longsword. He nodded silently and turned to leave.

Behind them came the roars of their comrades fighting wild beasts.

The soldiers, exhausted from their journey, naturally didn't notice what was happening above them. Amidst the swaying branches, a crow hid among the leaves, whispering something to another bird:
"If we guide him in the direction he's fleeing, he can get back to the outsiders' camp."

"He'll feel very lucky, right?"

"But they can't escape from this forest."

"They still think they can rescue the princess?"

"Hehe, they have no idea that the princess they've been longing for is now something far more terrifying than us!"

As it spoke, the crow spread its wings and flew away from the branches.

Under the tree, Poro's eyes flashed as he gazed at the torn-up soldier not far away.

"So, Princess Hangte was just bait after all?"

……

The campsite was now protected by a temporary wooden fence, and there were more hunters and soldiers gathered there than yesterday.

Under such circumstances, the impact of a small number of unusual wild beasts becomes even less likely to cause harm.

"The analysis of the forest maze and the calculation of the escape route have been completed."

In the center of the camp, the deer-riding girl Sideg looked at the hunters and soldiers around her and showed them a complex array diagram in her hand.

"As I said before, you, as ordinary people, should not stay here."

"Since someone is manipulating the maze, it might change, so—after I open a path to safety, you should leave!"

After hearing Sideg's words, many hunters were tempted.

After all, the beasts here possess human-like intelligence and extraordinary strength. Coupled with the dangers and unknowns encountered upon entering the forest, these veteran hunters and warriors couldn't help but feel fear.

For the special forces soldiers, the mission to search for the princess was even more fruitless...

But just then, a commotion suddenly came from the woods beside them!

"That is……"

The hunters and soldiers looked over and saw that the newcomer was a special forces soldier being helped up.

He was covered in wounds and blood, but he was still alive. He limped forward, and when he saw the people in the camp, his eyes lit up.

Before anyone could ask, he spoke loudly in a hoarse voice:
"I... I've found where Princess Biste is!"

"what?!"

Upon hearing the soldier's words, the hunters and soldiers present were all stunned for a moment, their expressions varying.

After all, everyone still remembered the promise the king made before the hunt.

Everyone knew that the king's real purpose this time was to find the princess—

Those who rescue the princess, or even the hunters who assist them, will receive extremely generous rewards, and soldiers will also be promoted and ennobled!

If we knew where the princess was, there would be so many people here.

Wouldn't it be much simpler to avoid fighting those strange beasts and just rescue the princess?
Many hunters began to show signs of interest.

The enormous profits are enough to make them willing to take such a risk!

"The dangers in the forest haven't been fully revealed yet. I think you, as ordinary people, should leave as soon as possible—"

The girl riding the deer, Sideg, noticed the people's interest and frowned.

"Your Grace, if you can help us rescue the princess, His Majesty the King will also bestow upon you a very generous reward."

Hearing Sideg's words, one of the special forces soldiers not only did not give up, but said again, "You can become a court mage, and I will report your merits to His Majesty."

No, you don't understand.

But the deer-riding girl, Sidag, resolutely shook her head and said, "I am not strong, but I understand that if this forest truly represents that one—even I myself am not confident of escaping unscathed!"

"Even if he's a magician, he can't be that powerful, otherwise why would he stay holed up in the forest and not come out?"

But one of the leading soldiers frowned and said, as if to Sideg, or perhaps to the other hunters, “These beasts are just stronger than ordinary beasts, but they are still beasts, aren’t they?”

If we go together, find the princess, and bring her back—

What's so difficult about that?

As he spoke, he waved his hand, and the hunters and soldiers who had decided to rescue the princess began to gradually gather.

In the crowd, Lake looked at Sidag's anxious expression, then at the "rescue the princess" team that outnumbered more than half the number of people in the camp, and finally took a breath and stepped out of the crowd:
"Wait a moment!"

"What's wrong, little girl?"

Several special forces soldiers looked at Lake.

"I think it's best not to go; it's dangerous—it could be a trap!"

Reck replied that, through the Poro's secret communication, she knew the details of what had happened to the special forces soldier, and... the conversation between the two cursed birds, "How could the princess still be waiting for you safely in the cave in such a dangerous forest?"

"I know, but that's Princess Biste, I can't mistake her!"

The wounded soldier looked at Lake and frowned, saying, "Besides, those beasts used the princess's traps—even I couldn't kill them. As long as there are more people, rescuing the princess shouldn't be too difficult!"
Even the strongest bear or tiger couldn't possibly withstand the combined swords and bows of so many of us!

The seriously wounded soldier continued speaking.

As he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on Lake, as if he were thinking about something, and his brows gradually furrowed into a knot.

Just as Lake was about to say something more, the soldier suddenly spoke again, asking sternly:

"Little girl, I remember when you came..."

Is there a wolf with him? (End of Chapter)