(Come.)
I called to Shizuka's brother telepathically, and the moment he reached me, I ran my fingers through his fur, patting him.
That little act earned him a lot of menacing stares from the rest of the pack.
Hachiman was as big as I was—and if he tried standing upright like a human, he'd be even taller. So yeah, if you—feeble humans—weren't steady on your feet, he could very well bite your head off.
I shifted my gaze to the four heavenly kings behind the probably-pissed-off-because-I'm-not-patting-her Shizuka.
Okay, they weren't actually the Four Heavenly Kings, but—
{Phantom Fangs—Four Specter Commanders.}
They ranked third in the hierarchy of power within the pack's system.
Though only slightly smaller than Trigger and the twins, they still weren't quite the same size as the rest of the pack.
Of course, the size difference was barely noticeable.
First, because anyone—in their right mind—seeing them would likely be too busy running for their lives.
And second, because at a glance, it wasn't actually that obvious.
But make no mistake—these Phantom Fangs were leagues above the average Specter Wolf.
If we're still using our weird percentage scale, they'd rank at about 80% in comparison to the others.
Their black sclera and blood-red pupils carried an unspoken oath of violence.
And on each of their foreheads, a sigil burned—a mark of divinity.
Powerful. That's what these Phantom Fangs were.
The power hierarchy didn't stop there, of course, but the rest of the 193 wolves weren't exactly worth noting—at least, not when compared to the first seven.
Cannon fodder.
But don't get me wrong—they weren't pushovers either.
If an enemy didn't think fast on their feet, these so-called "fodder" could easily bring a titan crashing down.
{Mushoku Tensei,} they were known as—
{Mumoko no Kiba, Master.}
Ah, right. My bad.
{Mumoko no Kiba.}
That was their name.
Each one bore black sclera, with glowing white, smoky essence seeping from their pupils.
Threatening. Seriously Threatening.
Easterners gave me such a beating, I ended up with an ability from it.
Just when you think humans are nothing more than fickle twigs drifting at the side of the riverbank, they surprise you with one or two...
Such an unfair race.
...Maybe that's why I can't help but be infatuated with them?
And wait—
(Platform...)
{Yes, Master?}
(Can't these guys defeat me now if they all joined forces?)
{...That... is correct, Master.}
I've never been so happy to be the Master.
Ah, yes.
I had a special summon ability, didn't I? But it was sealed...
{It is now available to you, Master. Should I proceed with its summon?}
(Go ahead.)
{Special Spirit Summon... Unsealed.}
Black essence, just like the wolves', spread across the ground—not too far from me, yet still a safe distance from the pack.
Even before it fully manifested, my skin crawled.
A slight shiver ran down my spine, and my brow twitched.
"Why in the heavens are my own servants menacing enough to startle me too?"
Then, it appeared.
A large canine creature, easily the same size as Trigger—which, let's be clear, was huge by its normal species' standards.
Pitch-black fur.
Eyes as dark as the void itself.
A spiraling, interconnected symbol burned on its forehead, pulsing with something ancient.
Black essence—Evil Cursed Energy—spilled from its being as if it had just crawled straight out of Hades.
But its most striking feature?
Nine tails.
Each one tipped with a different color—green, red, gold, blue, violet, white, silver, brown... and one single, deep black.
(Uh... Platform? This isn't even a wolf, is it?)
{No, it's not, Master. And I never said it was.}
(Calm down, we're not fighting here. You could've at least mentioned that part, you know? A little heads-up?)
{I said it was a SPECIAL SUMMON. That should have been enough to convey the difference between a regular summon… Master.}
(I'm sorry.)
Platform gets mad at the slightest things. And being scolded by my own ability—how lucky am I?
And seriously, is Platform even an ability anymore? I really don't know.
By the way—this creature wasn't a wolf. It looked like a fox, but it was way too big for its own good.
Now that I noticed… the wolves were scowling at her. Did they know each other from somewhere?
And she was just waving those tails in arrogance, like taunting them the more.
{Dark Fox – Tamami-no-Mae}
That's what her status showed. Unlike the wolves, she was already named. And boy was she a hazard.
Her magical energy was off the charts, easily matching Trigger's—who I was already assuming was around my level.
{Tamami-no-Mae is, in fact, higher in class than the one called Trigger. She is at your level, though on the lower end.}
(This is news, Platform. Just how strong did I get?)
{Allow me to show you the three of your status information.}
And with that, Platform moved to reveal one of the biggest revelation of my life.
{Supreme Specter: Trigger}
[Class: High-level Principality
Blessing: Banner of Ruben
Attributes:
Earth – 60%
Fire – 70%
Water – 20%
Wind – 50%
Darkness – 90%
Lightning – 60%
Abilities:
Dark Magic
Magic Maneuver
Shadow Dive
Far Sight
Elevated Senses
Soul Crusher
Fear Aura
Great Strength
Localized Area Distortion
Outsource
Supreme Gift: Birth From Void]
Wait, even I don't have some of those!!
{Dark Fox: Tamami-no-Mae}
Class: Supreme-level Principality
Blessing: Banner of Ruben
Attributes:
Fire – 70%
Water – 70%
Wind – 90%
Earth – 80%
Darkness – 99%
Lightning – 90%
Holy/Light – 30%
Supreme Gift: Children of Chaos
Abilities:
Evil Eye of Disorder
Force
Range of Devastation
Instant Death
Soul Crusher
Envious Glutton
Plague
Shadow Dive
Localized Area Distortion
Supreme Strength
Sphere of Abuse
Shadow Creation
Dark Magic
Outsource
…And many more.]
Finish the stat, you lazy ability?!
And she also has Holy attribute like me? Another anomaly.
{Gullible Fenrir: Ruben
[Title: Babysitting Monarch of Monsters – Dark Fenrir, Lap Dog of Pluto, Servant of the Mortal Power, Master of the Leviathan of Envy.
Class: Supreme-level Principality
Blessings: Blessings of the Mortal Power, Blessings of the God of Death.
Attributes: Earth, Fire, Water, Wind, Darkness, Holy/Light, Black Lightning.
Supreme Gift: Abaddon's Jaw, Platform.
Abilities:
God Wolf Eye
Wolf's Howl
Phase Transformation
Colossal Wolf Transition
Specter Wolf Summon
Magic Maneuver
Special Fox Spirit Summon
Receive [Ability to absorb a servant's powers] ...etc.}
Again with the "etc?"
But… So… I'm officially a dangerous monster now.
And my attributes have no percentage, still.
But seriously, what does Gullible Fenrir even mean?!
{Master, I had no hand in that title.}
Guilty conscience made you say that, right?!!
And wow… This fox was really on my level. Looking at her stats, she wasn't just some powerful spirit—she was a walking disaster.
Though, arrogance clung to her like a second skin, and that pride was definitely the bad kind.
She was barely holding herself back from looking down on even me.
Unlike the wolves, she didn't bow. She only lowered her head slightly—just enough to acknowledge me but not enough to admit submission.
'Hmmm, that won't do at all.
'Should I… put her in her place? Just to make sure she knows who's in charge here?'
Before I could decide—
"Don't you think you're getting a little full of yourself?"
Oh? Trigger spoke.