Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

Chapter 153: Alex, the Wolf Whisperer

CH153 Alex, the Wolf Whisperer

***

Suddenly, the shadows less than a hundred metres from the platoon’s camp flickered—barely perceptible.

A lithe, graceful humanoid silhouette darted across the underbrush, arriving silently at the edge of a small ridge where six direwolves watched the camp from a distance.

Before any of the direwolves could react, the figure leapt into their midst and attacked.

Fast. Precise. Unrelenting.

Her movements flowed like water—strike after strike, too quick to track. Within seconds, all six direwolves were unconscious, collapsed in a silent heap.

Then the silhouette gripped the largest among them—clearly the Alpha—by its front paws and began dragging it away from the rest, moving toward the platoon’s camp.

A shaft of moonlight pierced through the clouds and the dense canopy above, revealing the figure in full.

It was Udara Gudrun Kael, Alex’s Amazon-Drow Shadow Guard.

Somehow, she had fulfilled his request, dragging the six-foot-tall, ten-foot-long Alpha Direwolf—easily half a ton in weight—towards the camp without being spotted.

”Master, it’s done,” Udara reported.

”Thanks. You should leave. I’ll make up an excuse to come retrieve it,” Alex replied.

”Alright, Master.”

He hesitated, then added, ”One more thing... I told you to stop calling me Master. Alex is fine.”

”Understood, Master,” she responded.

Her voice was as calm and respectful as ever, but it was obvious she had no intention of obeying that particular order.

Alex blinked, taken aback by her stubbornness. Then he let out a wry chuckle.

A moment later though, he suddenly schooled a solemn expression.

Then he exaggeratedly muttered a Spell, pretending to be subtle, while fully intending to noticed by the people around him.

”Shadow Chain.”

A dark chain of mana snaked out of the undergrowth.

Fen instantly darted into the bushes, sniffing out the new ”hostile.” Several archers followed after him through the treeline.

When they arrived, they found an unconscious Alpha Direwolf, bound tightly in black mana chains. Its size was even greater than a normal direwolf—heavier, broader, and with a thicker coat.

More platoon members arrived soon after—Alex, Laura, and Lieutenant Cross among them.

A flicker of surprise passed through Laura’s eyes, though she quickly masked it.

’First, Lightning and now Darkness...? He has both affinities? That’s only possible with a very pure bloodline... Perhaps the purest in our generation. No, maybe even in the last few generations,’ she thought, but kept silent.

Lieutenant Cross crouched beside the beast.

”It’s a Direwolf. Judging from its size, this one’s an Alpha. Unless it’s a loner, its pack can’t be far,” he noted.

”I already checked,” Alex replied smoothly. ”No other threats nearby. It must be an Omega Alpha.”

Lieutenant Cross nodded in agreement.

A lone wolf surviving in Dankrot Forest was nearly unheard of. But if any wolf could pull it off, it would be a lone Alpha at this one’s size and strength.

”Should we kill it?” Cross asked, already reaching for his sword.

”No, don’t.” Alex held up a hand. ”Didn’t we talk about asking the forest natives for directions?”

He smiled faintly.

”We’ll just ask him.”

”But we don’t have a beas—” Lieutenant Cross began, then paused. He glanced between Alex and Fen. Realisation dawned. ”You can speak with wolves?”

”I should be able to, yes,” Alex confirmed with a nod.

”Oh.” Cross blinked, then added, ”Then I suppose we should give you some space?”

It was common knowledge that beast tamers didn’t like to be watched while conversing with their beasts—it made the creatures uneasy. Alex didn’t feel the same constraint, but he nodded regardless.

He already drew enough attention by being able to speak with wolves. Showing he could do so more easily than actual beast tamers was not the kind of spotlight he wanted.

Lieutenant Cross led the platoon back a respectable distance, leaving Alex and Fen alone with the Alpha Direwolf.

Unbeknownst to him, Laura lingered for a moment, casting a long, thoughtful look at his back.

Dominance! Dominion!

Alex activated his Velkarasolmir bloodline to full strength, releasing an overwhelming wave of spiritual pressure. The power wrapped itself around the Alpha like a noose.

The wolf jolted awake instantly.

It tried to rise, but the Shadow Chain bindings kept it locked in place. Its wild eyes scanned the area warily... until they landed on Alex.

They widened—shrinking into thin slits in unmistakable fear.

A heartbeat later, the Alpha lowered its head between its forelimbs in a show of submission.

Alex blinked, stunned at how easy that was. He didn’t even have time to respond.

The wolf, thinking his show of submission had displeased the human, rolled slightly, attempting to show his underbelly.

”Stop!” Alex called out quickly, fearing the movement might hurt the beast under the active spell bindings.

”I accept your surrender. But first—I want to know the reason for the upheaval in the forest.”

The Alpha nodded.

Bark~ Whine~ Pur~ Howl~

From the camp, the rest of the platoon watched in open confusion as a bizarre back-and-forth began—barks, growls, whines from the Alpha... followed by Alex’s calm questioning. Occasionally, Fen added his own growls and yips.

The scene looked completely absurd—a man and two wolves exchanging words in two different languages, yet clearly understanding one another perfectly.

After about fifteen minutes of intense ’interrogation’, Alex stood and released the spell binding the Alpha.

Howl~

The great wolf stood tall and let out a thunderous howl.

The platoon immediately went on high alert. They might not speak wolf, but the meaning of that howl was unmistakable.

It was a call to arms.

A moment later, five other Direwolves emerged from the trees—recovered from Udara’s attack and ready to fight. Their posture was aggressive, their fangs bared.

They came to rip apart whatever had dared bind their Alpha.

Bark!

The Alpha barked sharply.

The others halted, confused.

Whine~

The pack whined their protests, clearly questioning why their leader had submitted to a human.

But then their eyes turned to Alex.

Their pupils dilated in unison.

A moment later, just like their Alpha, they prostrated themselves before Alex. Forelimbs flat to the ground, heads bowed low, butts raised high—complete and unquestionable submission.

”Stand down,” Alex told the platoon. ”The Alpha has volunteered his pack to guide us to the source of the forest’s unrest... and help eliminate it.”

He turned to Laura.

”Once the sun rises, you and five other scouts will mount the Direwolves and begin the scouting operation. I want eyes on the target.”

”I understand,” Laura replied at once—her tone noticeably more respectful than before.

Alex raised an eyebrow at that. But before he could comment, Lieutenant Cross stepped forward.

”Commander, did the Alpha tell you what’s causing the upheaval in the forest?”

”He did,” Alex said with a nod.

His ruby-red eyes gleamed.

”It’s a giant troll.”

***