Chapter 182: Stand Against Injustice (Part 2)

At that moment, the young ratfolk was torn apart in midair by two war wolves. He was still screaming as they chewed, but his screams quickly fell silent.

Daryl had never witnessed such a tragedy. Although he had heard about the brutality of raider groups and defense squads, stories remained just stories. For a young man who had only recently killed his first enemy, the most brutal scenes he could imagine involved severe beatings. The act of someone being thrown alive to war wolves was beyond his comprehension and something he had never anticipated.

By this time, the mastiff soldiers closest to them had drawn their weapons and were cautiously approaching their hiding spot in the forest.

“Sir!” Beck said anxiously.

The enemy force numbered nearly fifty men, along with four war wolves. Without Ling and Liuli nearby, even escaping would be difficult for the three of them, let alone winning.

“Run!” Wu Qingsong shouted into Daryl’s ear, jolting him from his shock. 

However, Daryl’s first reaction was not to flee but to draw his sword.

“Daryl, have you lost your mind?” Beck exclaimed.

“These beasts… These vile creatures,” Daryl said angrily. “I’m going to kill them.”

Four or five mastiff soldiers had already entered the forest.

“Beck, go first. Get back and have them prepare for battle,” Wu Qingsong called out, drawing his sword at the same time.

“Who are you?!” the mastiff soldiers demanded, spotting them. 

Wu Qingsong’s appearance as a distinguished half-elf and Daryl’s fine clothing caused a moment of hesitation. But then, sudden intense pain erupted, making them clutch their heads and scream in agony.

“Quick!” Wu Qingsong shouted at Daryl.

The young wolfkin swiftly advanced with his sword, his skills far surpassing Wu Qingsong’s, and his movements more agile. His blade flashed, and two mastiff soldiers fell to the ground, while Wu Qingsong had just managed to stab the nearest mastiff soldier in the neck.

The fourth mastiff soldier, despite the severe pain, scrambled toward the forest edge to escape. Daryl struck him down from behind, but his screams had already alerted the other mastiff soldiers, who quickly mobilized.

“Get back here!” Wu Qingsong yelled at Daryl. “We need to go back and get help from the others.”

As one mastiff soldier mounted a war wolf and charged toward them, Daryl, though impulsive, was not foolish. He knew that it was impossible to kill all these enemies with just the two of them. 

He quickly activated the magic necklace at his chest and shouted to Wu Qingsong, “I’ll cover you. Go find Liuli and the others!”

This might have been the best decision, otherwise, Wu Qingsong would never have been comfortable letting Liuli and Ling charge into a group of mastiff soldiers on their own. He hesitated for just two seconds before deciding.

“Hold on,” he shouted loudly to Daryl, then left him behind and sprinted toward the camp.

The roars of the war wolves erupted behind him, accompanied by Daryl’s angry shouts. Wu Qingsong heard something heavy slam against a tree, but he didn’t look back, focusing instead on running as fast as he could.

The magic shield should hold for a while, providing them a chance to turn defeat into victory.

“Come on!” he heard Daryl shout.

This reminded him of his own early days in this world when he first encountered a masterless war wolf after rescuing the wolfwomen.

He thought he had forgotten those events, but seeing Daryl brought it all back.

Hold on!

He silently urged himself, sprinting at full speed.

“Sir!” Beck’s voice finally came from ahead. 

Everyone who had stayed in the camp was running towards them, armed. Wu Qingsong rushed over, quickly activated Liuli and Ling’s powers, and instructed, “Quick, go save Daryl!”

“Meow~” Liuli quickly vanished into the woods, with Ling rapidly following her. 

Seconds later, the anguished and fearful howls of the war wolves echoed through the air.

“Surround them,” Wu Qingsong instructed the others. “Leave no soldier behind.”

Minutes later, the battle ended decisively.

The guard unit’s soldiers, not as battle-hardened as the mercenaries and lacking in combat resolve, quickly lost their will to fight after Liuli cleanly killed one of the war wolves. This caused them to scatter and flee.

Wu Qingsong and Ling chased down those enemies who hadn’t gotten far, while Ram and the others used crossbows to cut down the fleeing soldiers. Liuli dealt with those attempting to escape on war wolves by pulling them off and violently smashing them against trees, killing them instantly. The war wolves, realizing they were outmatched, quickly fled into the forest.

However, the soldiers’ low combat spirit inadvertently worked to their advantage. Wu Qingsong’s team, limited in numbers, couldn’t chase the enemies running in all directions. Although Liuli did her best to kill all the enemies within her sight before falling asleep, and the mercenaries pursued the scattered enemies diligently, they were unable to kill every last one.

“Daryl!” 

Ram rushed to embrace the young wolfkin, who was unharmed thanks to his magic shield. She frantically checked him for injuries, then suddenly, and fiercely, slapped him.

“Sister Ram?” Daryl had just deactivated his magic shield, and the slap left him dazed and completely stunned.

“Why are you always so reckless?!” Ram was both anxious and furious, tears streaming down her face. “Do you really need to put us in danger to be happy?”

“But…”

“No buts!” Ram snapped. “Why can’t you think–”

“Ram!” Wu Qingsong cut her off at that point. “We can discuss this later, let’s first get out of here.”

“But these people,” Daryl muttered, his hand covering his face.

“What do you think we should do? Escort them somewhere? Or just bring them back to Silver Moon territory?” Wu Qingsong asked. “We’ve done what we can right now. The rest is up to them.”

Daryl remained silent. The prospects for the mousefolk if left here were grim. Not to mention, would the dispersed war wolves return to prey on them? What about the soldiers who had fled? Emotionally, it was hard to accept, but logically, he knew Wu Qingsong was right.

“Gathering these mousefolk with the power of the Silver Moon Wolf Clan might not be hard, but with our current strength, it’s impossible to bring these people to a safe place,” Wu Qingsong said.

“Let’s hurry!” Bernar said.

Suddenly, the sky darkened without them noticing. The mousefolk huddled together cautiously, silently watching them leave, neither expressing gratitude nor pleading for them to stay. Their village’s location was unknown, but they likely couldn’t return anymore. Perhaps having lost all hope for the future, they passively accepted the grim fate imposed upon them by the world.

“Run! Just run!” Daryl couldn’t help but yell at them, but the mousefolk only hesitated, looking at each other, still instinctively and passively clustering together.