The Divine Wolf... or?

Seeing Mado's power firsthand, Ark was pleased. Since it could now use more elements, its attacks were a lot more versatile than before. Having another reliable companion was great since he could help Ark protect his family if they were ever in danger. Mado's current strength was beyond both Ephine and Atar, so he would make a great guardian.

Not only was Mado strong, but he was also very cute, and would make most enemies drop their guards around him. Who would imagine that a cute small cat could be so dangerous?

After having killed the wolf-like creature, Mado ran up to Ark and started acting cute. Ark picked him up and patted his back. Mado enjoyed the affection and purred loudly, creating a strange scene in the hardest level of the Moonlit Caves. A young man stood silently and petted his cat, whilst a sea of fire was surging right next to them.

If anyone else were to see this scene, they would have to rub their eyes in disbelief.

Soon enough, the sea of fire started surging even more, and another creature appeared to fight Ark and Mado. Ark enjoyed the fight with open arms, this was his opportunity to get some levels after all, but whilst Ark was busy fighting in the dungeon, further away in Moonhill, some unpleasant scenes were playing out.

After Ephine and Edward had entered the city, they stumbled upon countless people protesting on the streets. No commoner in the city felt safe when the demons could attack at any time, especially since they were the ones who suffered in the battles. Even though they were noncombatants, there were more casualties from the common people than the people that were supposed to be protecting them.

Who would feel safe in such a city?

Most protests were met with harsh retaliation, and countless commoners ended up being beaten severely, some even to the point of disability. Ephine looked at this situation with obvious discomfort and disgust at the people ruling the city. Was this a way to treat the citizens of your city? No, not at all.

Ephine, who had grown up in the forest, surrounded by danger and monsters could only think it was barbaric.

However, the more they walked around the city, the more unpleasant things Ephine had to see. In the dirty alleyways and even along the normal streets, young children dressed in dirty rags were everywhere. Some were injured, others were covered in blood that wasn't their own, whilst some just sat there blankly, staring into space.

Ephine had a soft spot for children, perhaps because she had a son herself, and after asking Edward what was going on, she realised that they were all orphans.

Children who had lost their parents in the flames of war. It was a harsh reality, and perhaps the worst part of all was that Ephine couldn't find a way to help them. Could she take care of so many children herself? Obviously not. Did she have the resources to make sure that they all had a place to stay, clothes to wear and food to eat? No, not that either.

With some uneasiness and feelings of guilt, she could only look the other way, and continue walking with Edward.

After a while, Edward walked up to a small house with some unease and knocked on the front door. After they waited for a while, there was no response from the house. With growing feelings of unease, Edward knocked on the door again.

"Hey, Elise! Tony! Anyone home!?"

After his shout, Ephine and Edward could hear a small commotion from inside the house, and soon the mouldy wooden door slowly opened. A short man with a full beard and a slightly bulging stomach looked out of the house warily. When his eyes landed on Edward, he was a little shocked, before he quickly pulled himself back together and ran over.

Edward was embraced in a strong bear hug, and he felt like his intestines were breaking apart, but even then, he didn't object to the hug. Although slightly painful, it was a hug filled with warmth.

"You bastard! I thought you guys were dead, we couldn't find you anywhere."

With a hoarse voice, the man called Tony berated Edward, but he wasn't mad. If anything, he was truly happy that he was able to see his friend again. Behind him, a small child stuck his head out and looked at Ephine curiously. He had seen uncle Edward before, but this woman was someone new.

Before Ephine could feel uncomfortable because of the child's staring, a muscular woman walked over and picked him up.

"What have I said about staring at people?"

The woman inquired sternly.

"That it's rude, sorry mom."

Hearing the boy's pitiful voice, Ephine laughed softly, and the mood became slightly awkward. Tony and his wife Elise both looked at Ephine with curiosity.

"Hey, why don't we talk inside? There's a lot of eyes and ears out here."

After hearing Edward's words, Tony nodded and gestured for them to follow him inside. The inside of their house was both small and old, but it had a certain charm to it. Ephine looked around with some curiosity, before sitting down next to Edward at the small dining table. After gathering his thoughts, Edward started to explain what had happened to them.

How they had escaped from the city in the chaos, how they had been saved by Ephine and Atar, and finally how they had med Ark.

After hearing their story, Tony looked at them with some surprise, especially Ephine. To think that this beautiful young woman would be so strong. Before either Elise or Tony could think too much about it, Edward continued to explain how he and his family had decided to follow Ark to establish a settlement where they wouldn't have to live in fear of the war.

"This Ark fella, how strong is he?"

Although Tony would respect his friend's decision, he still wanted to know how strong this Ark person was for Edward to follow him, putting his entire family at risk. To establish a place where the war couldn't reach, a certain amount of strength was needed.

"You remember how the battle ended? He was the one who stopped the battle yesterday."

Although Edward didn't know exactly what happened the night before after he and his family had escaped from the city, he had heard about it today from Ephine, and after hearing what the people on the streets were saying, he confirmed that it was the truth.

"But wasn't the one who ended the battle that big wolf?"

The childish voice of Tony's child suddenly interrupted the conversation, and both Tony and Elise realised that what he said was true.

"Yeah, that's true."

This time, it was Ephine who responded. After realising the implications of her answer, both Tony and Elise looked at her with a strange expressions.

"Then, are you also a-"

"Yeah, that's right."

With a gentle smile, Ephine interrupted Elise as she was speaking. Both Tony and Elise were flabbergasted and didn't know how to react. To know that a young woman they had invited into their home was a wolf was certainly pretty... strange.