The Author's Viewpoint-Chapter 78 - Claiming the Catalyst

Elite-grade Shadow Wolf, Tier 3.

The creature before Tave was massive. Not just in form, but in presence. Towering, heavy with shadow energy, its eyes burned a deeper red than any he had ever seen. This wasn’t just any monster.

This was a territory boss.

And even though it technically sat at the same tier as Fang, it was obvious, undeniable, that it was on a completely different scale. It likely hovered near level 30. Hell, its grade could even be higher. Epic, perhaps.

There was no mistaking it. This creature outclassed Tave and Fang.

It wasn’t just stronger in raw power, but in skill depth, energy density, and sheer presence. It had seen more, killed more, survived more. And it wasn’t alone.

From the darkness, other wolves emerged. Silent, spectral shapes slinking through the trees and shadow. One by one, they stepped into the moonlight. Two, then four, then more. Tave stopped counting after ten.

The forest had heard him.

And now it answered.

But Tave didn’t flinch. Not even a step back.

Tave stood there with something new to his name.

He wasn’t a Gaia Apprentice anymore. He was... well, freshly Gaia Guardian.

Yeah. Technically. Recently upgraded. Still had the wrapping on.

Where did that confidence come from? Where was the line between bravery and madness?

Tave locked eyes with the alpha wolf, whose form stood twice his height, its shoulders thick with muscle, its teeth bared in a slow, deliberate growl that felt like it ripped straight into his soul.

That sound echoed, multiplied, growls rising from the circle forming around him.

They weren’t attacking.

Yet.

But they were waiting.

Watching.

Judging.

And in that eerie, moonlit silence, surrounded by a pack of death, Tave did not lower his gaze.

Because he hadn’t come here to challenge fate.

He’d come to claim it.

Tave drew his sword, the Relic, and leveled his gaze at the towering wolf. The blade shimmered faintly, a soft, flickering flame dancing along its edge.

"You should’ve killed me when you had the chance," he said.

The massive wolf let out a slow, deep growl and rose higher, its form swelling, literally. Its size grew, shadows thickening, muscle bulging, until it loomed over Tave like a living storm.

Then it howled.

A long, thunderous cry that rolled through the forest like a quake. The trees trembled. The very earth seemed to hold its breath. And from the surrounding dark, the other wolves answered. Howls layered upon howls, a symphony of raw dominance and pack power.

Tave didn’t flinch.

"Let’s end this quickly," he called out. "Send the others away. Unless you want them dead."

The alpha didn’t respond with words.

It howled louder.

And now, it glared down at him. This small, absurdly overconfident human who dared to stand tall in the face of overwhelming death.

Then it moved.

The shadows around the beast pulsed, thickened, and spread, like liquid darkness pouring outward, racing toward Tave, ready to consume him whole.

But he didn’t step back.

He held his ground, gripping the hilt of his Relic blade as the fire around it flared higher, brighter.

A tiny figure wreathed in flame, facing down a tide of shadow.

It looked like suicide.

But as the darkness surged in.

Tave smiled.

Thin. Sharp.

Like he was ready to shake hands with death itself.

Until...

Just as the crushing tide of death surged toward Tave, shadows rose like the jaws of some ancient god to devour him whole.

The night shattered. The sun came!

But, it wasn’t dawn. No... not morning.

It was a... mini sun.

A blinding, burning force of light suddenly erupted above them, high in the canopy, and within seconds it tore through the darkness like a god’s wrath descending from the heavens. It wasn’t daybreak. It was an attack. A blazing, radiant sphere hurtling downward with apocalyptic speed, like a miniature sun crashing into the earth.

The light seared through the shadows instantly, and the monstrous Shadow Wolf reeled back, snarling and flinching as the radiance slammed into its form.

BOOM!

The impact was thunderous.

The explosion of fire rippled outward, a pulse of sheer elemental destruction that blasted trees, scorched roots, and ripped apart the shadows around the monster’s body. It howled, a sound not of domination now, but pain.

And Tave was already in motion.

Launched sideways by the blast, he rolled, flipped through the air, and landed in a crouch several meters away. His eyes snapped upward just in time to catch a familiar silhouette emerging from the flame.

Orion.

Stoic. Unbothered. Still smelling faintly of smoke and steel. His palms still smoldering from the blazing incantation he’d just launched.

The wolves around them hadn’t even noticed his arrival.

And they wouldn’t get the chance to regroup.

Because next. Ice.

From above, from the flanks, from everywhere. Razor-sharp ice shards screamed through the air, tearing through the trees and impaling wolves with perfect precision. Shards drove into their limbs, necks, backs, freezing movement mid-lunge and halting growls mid-howl.

Tave turned sharply as another figure emerged from the shadows. It was Oriana.

She sprinted past him and slashed, her blade cleaving clean through two wolves in one sweeping motion, leaving behind a streak of cold air and a flash of blue light.

"Tave, you absolute lunatic!" she shouted mid-strike. "Do you want to die out here?!"

And then, another flash.

Elias burst onto the scene, his own blade humming with crackling force as he crashed into the side of the fray.

And Tave, he grinned. Not because he wasn’t in danger.

But because, damn... Like he was really going to finish this challenge alone?

No way.

He had resources.

He had allies.

And if he could use that support to its full potential, why the hell would he waste time playing the solo hero?

***

The battle didn’t last long.

Moments after the chaos erupted, the massive Shadow Wolf, the so-called territory boss, collapsed onto the earth with a thunderous thud. Its body was pinned, restrained by glowing chains and a thick iron collar that now crackled with containment energy. It lay there, frozen, its once fearsome growl reduced to silence.

Around it, the remains of its pack littered the forest floor. Motionless carcasses spread across the shattered battleground.

This had all been carefully set up.

Back during the Rift, Orion had mocked and dismissed the plan Tave proposed for the final boss. Shot it down with that usual cold, superior scoff of his.

But in that moment, Tave, keeping his ego on a tight leash, had offered Orion a simple deal:

"Reward me good if this works."

And now, here they were. Orion included, pulled into tonight’s hunt because of that conversation. And not just Orion, Oriana, or Elias.

There was a fourth. The one who brought them in undetected, slipping past the wolves without raising a single howl.

And now, Tave had exactly what he came for. The perfect sacrificial target for his next Bloodline Override.

"Why not kill the wolf?" Oriana asked, wiping her blade clean as she stepped beside him.

Tave grinned, just a little crooked. "I need to do a bit of... research."

"Hah! What a waste of time," Orion snapped. "I’ve done my part. Don’t bother me again."

With that, Orion walked off without another word.

Tave turned toward Elias. "Thanks... for coming."

Elias gave a small smile, clapping a hand on Tave’s shoulder. "We’ve been through worse in the Rift. Don’t get all sentimental on me."

"You good?" he added.

Tave nodded. "Yeah... I’m good."

"Come with us," Oriana said then.

"I’ll stay for a moment. That’s fine." fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

After a few reassurances, they all finally left. Fading into the trees, one by one.

Tave turned back toward the battlefield, the scent of scorched fur and shadow still thick in the air. His steps were steady as he approached the nearest carcass. Without wasting time, he crouched and dug into its chest. His fingers searched through the thick hide and bone for the core.

One. Two. Three.

Three monster cores.

He sighed, a little disappointed. He’d hoped for more. Given the scale of the battle and the number of enemies, he expected a better yield. But still, cores were cores.

Then, he moved to the final body. The larger wolf he’d taken down directly.

He pressed a hand against its chest, closed his eyes, and reached inside, carefully tracing along the beast’s inner structure until he found something... dense.

He pulled.

And what he held in his hand next made his eyes widen in disbelief.

Damn!

His breath hitched.

"Monster Soul Stone?!"

His voice trembled as he spoke the words, fingers gripping the gem-like fragment that shimmered faintly with residual life force.

"Damn it... This really is a Monster Soul Stone..."

It was the best possible result he could’ve imagined from this short, focused hunt.

He quickly stored all the recovered materials.

Then, slowly, he walked back toward the massive Alpha Wolf.

Tave crouched in front of it.

"You’ll stay," he said quietly.

"To become the catalyst... for my strength."