Giant Snow Wolf

We encountered a massive white wolf, almost three meters tall, which I assumed to be the boss of this region, or at least one of them.

The tension was palpable.

*Ratatatata!

*Whooosh!!

No matter how much we shot at it, this thing seemed capable of enduring everything. Even shots aimed at its vulnerable areas, like the eyes, were easily dodged.

(This thing is pretty tough, huh?) I thought, glancing at my teammates: Yuki and the two scouts.

*Ratatatata!

"Die!" they shouted desperately.

*Ratatatata!

"It won't die!" they repeated, filled with frustration.

*Ratata!

"..."

None of the three seemed to have good aim; they aimed at its legs but almost never hit, which didn't make sense given how agile this thing was.

Yuki, in particular, only fired in short bursts, and most of her shots ended up in the ground.

I suppose it was the nerves.

*Crunch *Crunch

Setting aside my thoughts, I constantly repositioned myself to get a good angle and avoid accidentally injuring an ally, which was challenging amid the chaos.

*Ratatatata! *Ratatatata!

Fortunately, the wolf didn't seem to find a safe angle to attack any of us, which was great since I was sure this thing could kill someone with one bite.

However, the internal panic continued to rise, making efficient movement difficult for my allies.

"Grrrr GRAAA"

*Whooosh!!

Suddenly, the wolf roared and lunged at someone with incredible speed.

*Trip

"Oh shit!" It was Frederick, who, nervous from the sudden approach, tripped.

*Ratatatata! *Ratatatata!

*Crunch *Crunch *Crunch *Crunch

"GRAAA!!!"

The sound of rapid footsteps echoed as the wolf closed in, opening its jaws ready to take a bite out of Frederick.

Seeing this, Luke and I decided to act.

*Crunch *Crunch

I quickly approached the wolf from the front and fired at its sensitive areas while Luke attacked from the rear.

*Ratatatata! *Ratatatata!

*Whooosh!!

The wolf interrupted its offensive, magnificently dodging some of our shots.

*Crunch *Crunch

It distanced itself from us with incredible speed, yet it didn't flee.

"Grrrr," the wolf growled warily, watching us intently.

We quickly reloaded, seeing the action subside.

*Clic, *clic, *clic!

I took the opportunity to check its appearance. Its fur was slightly stained with blood, indicating that some of our shots had hit.

(Its HP bar must be halfway or less, right? We've been shooting at it for like ten minutes now.)

Despite its wounds, the wolf kept trying to find someone in our group who was off-guard for its dinner. It must be pretty hungry to keep trying so relentlessly.

"It's moving," one of our scouts reported, although we were all watching it closely.

*Crunch *Crunch

Changing tactics, the wolf decided to hide among the surrounding white trees.

*Crunch *Crunch...

There came a moment when even its footsteps couldn't be heard, and its silhouette vanished...

"Jaa, Jaa, I don't like this," said Thomas, trying to calm his heavy breathing.

"Maybe it's gone," replied Yuki, the ice goddess, nervously.

(I don't think so...) For some reason, I felt that thing was still with us.

*Crack!

Suddenly, I heard a branch breaking right next to one of the scouts.

I immediately aimed.

"Huh? Why are you pointing at me?" The scout was nervous seeing me aim, but there wasn't time to respond because...

"GRAAAAA," behind him, the silhouette of the giant wolf materialized.

"AAAAAA," the scout screamed in terror and threw himself to the ground, fortunately for me.

*Ratatatata! *Ratatatata!

*Whooosh!!

I fired a double burst, and as usual, the wolf dodged.

"This isn't working," said Thomas, looking around, nerves heightened.

"I agree," I responded, trying to stay calm.

*Aim

*Ratatatata!

I fired again when I saw the wolf behind Yuki.

Seeing the wolf disappear again, I looked around for its next target.

At that moment, my gaze met Luke's, who pointed to a high spot among the branches.

(I get it...)

I quickly understood what he was trying to convey with that look.

Just then, the wolf made its move towards Thomas, but it was a bit slower this time, and I spotted it quickly.

*Ratatatata! *Ratatatata!

"Reposition!" I shouted, pointing in a direction and firing.

Hearing my shout, everyone broke their positions and followed me to an elevated part of the terrain.

*Crunch *Crunch

While running, Luke came close to me.

"Jaaa, Jaaa, take out your special toy, we'll cover you," he said as we ran.

"Alright," I replied and stopped near a tree, quickly dropping to the ground.

All this while Luke stayed close, trying to cover me.

[Equipped: Burst Rifle MK-516]

Without wasting time, I equipped the rifle and stayed still on the ground, looking for an opportunity.

"GROOOOAAAAARR" roared the white wolf, losing patience.

*Crunch *Crunch

The wolf appeared in front of us, in the slightly lower terrain, and ran towards us, showing its teeth and acting crazed.

*Ratatatata! *Ratatatata!

Everyone started shooting, but the wolf...

*Crunch *Crunch *Crunch *Crunch

Didn't seem to want to dodge or stop, heading straight for the nearest target, which was Frederick.

"Oh shit! Oh shit! It's coming for me! That bastard wants to kill me!" Frederick shouted, filled with terror.

"GRAAAAAAA!!!!" The wolf's crazed roar as it approached was enough to make my hair stand on end.

"Whenever you're ready, partner!" Beside me and nervous about the wolf's berserker approach, Luke urged me to hurry.

"Fuuuu," I exhaled, trying to calm my breathing and get a perfect shot.

(Goblin heads explode when I shoot them with the rifle, so maybe something similar will happen), I thought optimistically.

Even if it doesn't die instantly, I was sure it would do significant damage. Enough to finish it off.

"AAAAA! HELP ME! HELP ME! IT'S GOING TO EAT ME!" Frederick, seeing death running towards him, lost his composure. Dropping his weapon, he ran towards us in panic.

*Crunch *Crunch *Crunch *Crunch

*Ratatatata! *Ratatatata!

(Almost there, almost there)

The wolf got closer and closer to Frederick, and with it, my opportunity to kill it.

"GROOOOARR"

*Crunch *Crunch *Crunch *Crunch

*TRIP

Frederick tripped over a branch and fell hard.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAA," he screamed with all his might as he turned to see the wolf right in front of him.

"GraaaAAAAA," The wolf, seeing its prey right in front of it, opened its large jaws and prepared to taste its defenseless prey.

But, just as it was about to take a bite...

(Now!)

*BANGG!!!

A powerful shot echoed through the forest.

[You have killed a Giant Snow Wolf!

Rating: (E+)

Abilities: Strong Legs (F+), Agility (D-), Reinforced Teeth (E), Monstrous Vitality (E+), Wild Senses (D), Camouflage (E), Reinforced Skin (E-)

Muta-gen Material Found! Collect enough biological material from this type of individual to synthesize muta-gens in the laboratory! ]

--

After a perfect shot, the tension eased significantly for everyone.

"GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OFF ME!" Frederick screamed, still trapped under the wolf's corpse.

(Phew, that was pretty close.)

I got up from the ground and, with the help of Luke and Thomas, moved the heavy wolf's body to free Frederick.

"1, 2, 3... Let's go!"

"Ugggh!!"

That beast was quite heavy.

"HAAAA, HAAAA," Frederick panted, almost out of breath as he crawled out from under the wolf.

*Sit

"Ha, ha, that was intense," said Luke, sitting on the ground, euphoric.

"Yeah, that was wild," added Thomas, following Luke's example.

*Sit

*Sit

*Sit

The others followed suit and sat on the ground, while I remained standing.

(Wow! It looks even more impressive up close.)

I observed the wolf's corpse. It was huge, a little over three meters long. Its snow-white fur was almost completely covered in blood, and a thread of blood still dripped from its open jaws.

"I can't believe this thing died from one shot," I exclaimed, amazed.

"Well, you've got a powerful toy," replied Luke, looking at the rifle in my hands.

(Now that I think about it, I haven't shown this to anyone.)

"Want to see it?" I asked, noticing his interest.

"Sure, sure, why not," said Luke, getting up to examine the rifle.

I handed him the rifle, without ammunition, of course.

[Unequipped: Burst Rifle MK-516]

Luke took it in his hands, surprised by the weight.

"Ha, it's a bit heavy, huh?" he said, trying to handle and examine it.

"Where did you get it?" asked Thomas, approaching with curiosity.

"Gacha," I replied simply.

"Oh? You can get one of those in the gacha? Maybe I should try..." said one of the scouts.

"Don't do it, you'll waste your salary on it and only end up frustrated," advised Frederick, now calmer.

After that, Luke handed the rifle back to me, and we all agreed on how to divide the wolf. Luke didn't want any part of the wolf, while the others only asked for the legs, which I easily agreed to.

(Eva will surely do something good with this guy,) I thought, recalling Eva in the muta-gen lab.