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Everything became clear.
Hati—I'm pretty sure that's the name of a wolf from a myth in
modern Earth's mythology.
It seems too much of a coincidence, but it's probably just that.
It has to be a coincidence, right?
"Oh? Oh!"
"It's a crest!"
By naming her correctly with her true soul name, her potential has been unlocked.
Even non-humans can have crests, huh?
"What kind of crest is it?"
"I don't know. I have no idea."
"Let me check with the Sage's Crest."
The Sage's Crest is really handy.
I want one too.
"It looks like it's the 'Crest of the Wolf King.'"
"Oh, that sounds impressive."
While the specifics are influenced by the individual's traits,
it's definitely something powerful.
"Hati, you might actually be something extraordinary."
"Woof!"
When I lifted and praised her, Hati seemed to bask in pride.
She really does seem to understand human language. Such a smart girl.
And while I held her, I confirmed something.
"Hati is female."
"Oh, really?"
"She is."
"It appears so."
"Indeed, she is~"
Noticing where everyone's eyes were focused,
Hati squirmed uncomfortably, making a disgruntled noise.
Is she embarrassed? Even though she's a wolf.
"Since she's a bit dirty from her injury, I'll give her a bath."
"Master Jun, if it's a bath, we can—"
"No, she’s the one who made a contract with me. I'll take care of her.
In the meantime, could you prepare some food for Hati?"
"Understood."
It must've been her first time in a bath.
Hati seemed a bit nervous at first, but she quickly got used to it and started to enjoy herself.
She’s quite good at swimming too.
After the bath, I used magic to blow-dry her fur.
At first, I had to use the weakest setting because otherwise, the bathhouse could get damaged,
but now I'm pretty used to it.
After finishing the bath, we returned to everyone.
"I'm back."
"Welcome back."
"Welcome back, big brother. Wow, her fur was already beautiful, but now it's even more radiant after the bath."
After washing off the dirt, her silver fur seemed to shine even more.
Everyone's compliments made Hati look quite pleased.
"What about Hati’s meal?"
"It's ready."
A meal was prepared that seemed to be a mix of meat and rice.
It appeared to be made with meat from a magical beast.
It was quite a large portion. Can she really eat all of it?
"Hati, wait."
"Woof?"
I stopped Hati, who was about to dig in immediately.
Don't give me that disappointed look.
"Listen, Hati, before eating, you should say 'Itadakimasu.'"
"Woof?"
"No, that’s not possible,"
"Wouldn't it be better to just teach her commands like 'wait' or 'sit'?"
"Well, Hati's really smart, so I thought she might feel insulted if we kept it too simple."
It seems a bit too easy for Hati, who clearly understands human language, to just teach her commands like 'sit' and 'stay.'
"Hati, before we eat, we say 'Itadakimasu.' It's a way to show our gratitude for the food. Now, give it a try."
After a moment of thought, Hati let out a howl,
"Awooo."
"Good girl, Hati. Now you can eat."
Hati happily started eating.
I was worried the portion might be too much, but she devoured it all.
"It seems likely that Hati isn’t just a magical beast but a mythical beast, given how well she understands us.
I’ve heard that mythical wolves eat a lot, so even as a pup, this amount should be fine."
If she’s eating this much now, how much will she eat when she’s fully grown?
The food expenses might become quite significant.
A few days passed since Hati arrived.
In just a short time, Hati has become the idol of the castle.
She's smart and adorable, lovable and affectionate.
She fully understands the difference between what she can and can't do.
Even when going for walks, she doesn't need a collar or leash.
If I call her, she comes back right away, and she never attacks anyone.
Even when passing by other dogs in the town, she doesn't bark.
In fact, they don’t bark at her either.
Instead, they bow their heads as if they were submitting to her.
Is it because she’s a mythical wolf or because of the power of the Wolf King’s Crest?
I'm not sure, but despite still being a pup, she's able to make much larger dogs submit.
Could Hati actually be something truly extraordinary?
I was thinking about that one day,
when an event happened that turned that suspicion into certainty.
"""!!!"""
As our family gathered for breakfast,
we suddenly sensed a presence from the north of the royal capital,
emitting a powerful magical aura.
It felt like it was deliberately trying to make us notice it.
Is it calling us?
"Father, Mother!"
"Yeah, it seems like something bad is coming. Sebas, prepare for deployment. Inform the knight commander. I’m coming too."
"Understood."
"Be careful, dear."
"Father, I'm going too."
"No, you stay in the castle."
"But if I go, I can teleport us out if things get dangerous. I can protect myself. Please."
For some reason, I felt like this presence was calling me.
Or rather, it felt like things wouldn't be resolved unless I went.
"But we don’t know what kind of opponent it is. I’ll go first. You wait here."
"Woof, woof!"
"Hati?"
Hati tugged at the hem of my pants, trying to lead me somewhere.
Is she trying to take me to that place?
"Are you being called too?"
"Woof!"
"I see... Father."
"Tch, fine. But don’t do anything reckless."
"Understood!"
Convincing my father Aslad, I joined the knights with Hati to head out.
We traveled by military carriage.
"Why are you all coming? It's dangerous. Go back."
"No. We're coming too."
"If big brother's going, then of course I'm going too."
"If Master Jun is going, there’s no way I wouldn’t."
"Lily's coming too! I feel like I'm being called as well!"
Lily was called too?
It seems both Hati and Lily, and I were called.
By someone in the forest north of the capital.
A presence that felt dangerous.
Could it be Hati's parent or something?
While I was pondering that, we arrived at the northern forest, our destination.
Originally, it was a forest close enough for Lily to go hunting for a day trip.
It wasn’t too far away.
The knights running alongside the carriage started to murmur.
"Hey, is that really..."
"No way. I've never seen anything like that before. What is that terrifying presence?"
I also poked my head out the carriage window to see what was in the forest.
"As I thought, that must be Hati's..."
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