Chapter 32 _ The Monologue of the God Wolf, or the Afterglow of Two Hundred Years
We set out toward the mountain road where the God Wolf was said to lie.
The place lay several leagues beyond the shrine where Frey had once been sealed, closer to the neighboring kingdom.
On foot, it would have taken a full day across treacherous terrain—but Frey’s magic shortened the journey.
“How troublesome,” Frey muttered.
“We’ll jump close to the shrine. Don’t bite your tongue.”
With her brief chant, the world twisted.
In the next instant, cold mountain air stabbed into my lungs, and we stood on a narrow trail only three hours from our destination.
As we walked, Frey swayed her tail and suddenly looked up at Hans beside her.
“Say, Hans,” she asked casually.
“Why is it that men and women never seem to truly understand one another?”
“Oh my… that’s quite a question, little kitty.”
Hans traced her lips with a graceful finger and smiled wryly.
“To be called a cat by a cat—how delightful.”
Frey snorted, amused.
Hans continued more softly.
“I think it’s because what we seek is fundamentally different.
Men look for their place through vertical hierarchy—status, rank.
Women find comfort in horizontal connections—shared bonds.
The puzzle pieces don’t match from the start.”
She slowed her pace, glancing toward the broad back of the man ahead.
“Fred—Roger too.
If he had behaved, he could have remained at the pinnacle of martial power, revered by all.
But more than anything… he despised being bound.”
“Hey! Don’t say unnecessary things,” Roger growled.
Despite the threat in his voice, a question slipped from my mouth.
“…You were captain of the royal guard.
Yet you laid hands even on royalty and nobles—
was that also your idea of ‘freedom’?”
“Want to die?” Roger snapped.
“My past is none of your concern.”
Cold rejection burned in his glare.
But Hans gently stepped in.
“Forgive him.
He simply believes his past self has no place in who he is now.
…For now.”
“…I’m sorry, Roger,” I said.
He didn’t respond, but the sharpness around him eased—just a little.
Then we saw it.
Blocking the road ahead lay a massive form,
its silver-white fur gleaming divinely in the dappled sunlight.
More than ten meters long—
it was less a beast than a mountain itself.
As we approached, the air trembled with overwhelming mental pressure.
I swallowed hard and forced out trembling words.
“G–God Wolf… sir.
We wished to speak with you—”
“…So you have finally come.
I have grown weary of waiting, Mario.”
The voice was deep, rumbling along the earth—
yet filled with a strange warmth.
Golden eyes opened slowly and fixed upon me.
“Frey, my daughter.
It has been long.
Mario and I have matters to discuss.
The rest of you—go ahead to my den and rest.”
“Mother…”
“Oh? Your mana is nearly depleted, my child.
Do not worry. I shall maintain the barrier here.
Abandon all else and sleep.”
“…Okay. Thank you, Mother.”
Frey lowered her ears in relief and departed with the others toward the rugged peaks.
Silence fell.
Only the divine beast and a former shut-in remained.
“Now then,” the God Wolf said gently,
“where shall we begin, child of man?”
“…You speak just like Frey,” I replied.
“It actually helps me relax.”
“Hah.
You feel no fear standing before me?
An interesting man.”
“I am afraid,” I admitted.
“But… I’m also certain.”
I met her gaze directly.
“When I first met Frey, she teased me endlessly—
yet I felt warmth in her heart.
She protected this country for centuries without asking for anything in return.
So I believed… her mother must carry the same warmth.”
“…Those eyes,” the God Wolf murmured.
“No falsehood. No clouding.”
She exhaled slowly, testing my resolve.
“God Wolf,” I said, bowing my head.
“Thank you… for raising Frey—my friend—with such kindness.”
“Do you know this saying, Mario?
‘Children learn from their parents, and parents learn from their children.’”
She gazed toward the distant sky.
“I once cared nothing for humans.
Even when the Demon King revived two hundred years ago,
as long as this mountain stood, I felt no concern.
…But my daughter was different.”
“She told me she would fight the Demon King.
I could not understand why she would protect humans—
for none had ever treated her kindly.”
“Still, I sensed her resolve and tried to go with her.
But she stopped me.
‘Mother, please protect the mountain.’
…I believed she would flee if things turned dire.
That belief… was my grave mistake.”
Regret weighed heavily in her voice.
“She cast away her own life.
A forbidden spell—Time Suspension.
When I felt it, I ran faster than any beast should—
but when I arrived…
she stood frozen like a statue within an untouchable barrier.”
“No one could approach.
I could only turn back.”
My vision blurred as I listened.
That lively, arrogant, cheerful Frey—
alone, frozen in time, for two hundred years.
The thought crushed my chest.
“God Wolf!
Isn’t there any way to save her!?
Anything I can do—!”
“…At present, there is none,” she said firmly.
My knees shook.
“…To be precise, I tried.
The God Dragon possesses a relic—the Substitute Orb.
If it could bear the burden of the barrier, my daughter could be freed.”
“But the God Dragon refused.
‘Defeat me and take it,’ he said.”
“…Our power is worlds apart.
Unlike me, the God Dragon values only might and reason.
Words will not reach him.”
The God Dragon.
The apex of the Three Gods.
I clenched my trembling fists.
“…Then I’ll go meet him.
Even if I’m powerless now—one day, I will.”
“So that is your new goal,” she said softly.
“…Very well.
I will say no more.
I shall simply watch the path chosen by the man my daughter trusts.”
The God Wolf rose, her massive body stirring the earth.
“Come. Night falls.
I will guide you to my den.”
I followed her silver back.
To save Frey.
To obtain the God Dragon’s relic.
It might be laughable fantasy for a man like me.
But to restore the true smile of the cat who called me her friend—
that alone was enough.
As dusk closed in on the mountain road,
a quiet yet burning resolve etched itself into my heart.
