My novel is now completely free to read on Webnovel and Roy@lRo@d(replace @ with "a"). That means you can enjoy the story without spending a dime!
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The city air was too thick for what Alex wanted to do.
It stank of saltwater, stale ale, and the sweat of too many men packed into too few streets. His beasts — the dogs, the pigeons, the raven — functioned well here, but they were creatures born in cages or raised by humans. None of them carried the raw, undiluted instincts of the wild.
And Alex needed wild.
The Reason for the Hunt
The Beast Mind-Link upgrade had been powerful, but he'd begun to notice its limits. His city-born animals reacted fast, but they were predictable. They didn't have the awareness of a hunter born in the open. They didn't feel threats from miles away.
In Pentos, that was acceptable.
Beyond Pentos? Not nearly enough.
A week earlier, a drunken mercenary had told a dockside story about a massive wolf seen in the grasslands northeast of the city — not a common wolf, but a direwolf crossbreed, rare this far south. Stronger than a warhorse in the charge, faster than most hunting hounds, with a bite that could snap a boar's spine.
If Alex could touch it — just once — the Archive could take everything in that animal's blood.
The Preparation
He didn't go in blind.
Two days before leaving, Alex set up remote surveillance in Pentos to keep his network functional while he was gone.
The dogs would continue their street patrols under Tregar's general instructions.
Two trained pigeons would deliver daily visual notes to his loft.
Brann at the docks was given a simple order: anything marked with the sign of the silver tooth went untouched.
He also packed for more than just tracking.
Loadout:
Two short daggers, one bound with Dragon-Forged Edge (temporary enchantment available for 10 minutes).
One weighted rope with metal hooks — versatile for climbing, binding, or trapping.
Dried meat for bait.
Glass jar of rendered fat mixed with blood — a scent lure.
A small folding snare trap.
Leaving the City
The journey northeast took him along trade roads at first, then into narrower paths where caravans rarely went. Farmers eyed him suspiciously, but his light gear and calm pace didn't scream "thief."
By the third day, the stone roads gave way to open steppe — tall, golden-brown grasses swaying under a cold wind from the mountains.
The smell changed here.
Fresher. Colder. Every scent distinct.
It was the kind of place a predator could rule for miles.
Signs of the Wolf
Alex started low and slow. He walked the ridgelines where he could see depressions in the grass. The first track appeared just past dawn on the second day — a paw print nearly the width of his open hand, pressed deep into soft earth near a small stream.
He crouched. Studied the edges.
Fresh.
The claw marks were faint — the sign of a confident predator, not digging in for traction.
Alex followed upstream.
Twice, he found the remains of kills — a hare, and further up, a sheep carcass stripped to bone. Both had deep, crushing bite marks that matched the rumors.
The First Sighting
It appeared on the fourth evening.
Alex was downwind, crouched behind a thicket, when the wolf padded into view.
It was massive — easily the height of his chest, fur the color of ash with streaks of pale silver, muscles moving like water under its hide. The eyes caught him: gold, unblinking, scanning the horizon with an authority no dog in Pentos could match.
It drank from the stream without hurry.
Alex didn't move. Didn't breathe.
The Archive pulsed in his mind, almost as if it sensed the proximity.
Passive Analysis – Beast Detected
Species: Direwolf Hybrid – Alpha Male
Copyable Trait: Pack Instinct (Level 0)
→ Heightens user's awareness of ally positions and emotional states.
→ Sharpens hearing and smell to near-supernatural levels.
→ In combat, grants improved coordination when fighting with multiple allies.
Daily Beast Copy Limit Remaining: 1 / 1
He needed to close the gap. The range for copying was still touch only.
The Approach
This was no street dog that would let him walk up with scraps. A wild alpha would see an approach as a threat.
So Alex made himself not a threat.
He shifted his stance low, eyes averted, movements slow. He dropped the dried meat near the thicket, then poured a thin line of the blood-fat mixture closer to the stream.
The wolf's head turned instantly at the smell.
One step. Then two.
Alex didn't flinch. He stayed still until the wolf was within ten paces, its head low, nostrils flaring.
The muscles in its shoulders bunched — ready to bolt or strike.
That was when Alex extended one hand. Palm down. Motionless.
The wolf hesitated. Then closed the distance.
Its nose touched his palm.
Copy Initiated – Pack Instinct (Level 0)
Daily Beast Copy Limit Remaining: 0 / 1
Trait Stored Successfully
The surge hit him instantly.
Smell exploded into his mind — the damp earth, the fading scent of sheep blood, the musk of the wolf itself. Hearing sharpened — the faint rustle of grass a hundred paces away, the distant cry of a hawk.
For a heartbeat, he could feel the wolf's awareness — where it would move if attacked, how it weighed his posture, its instinct to watch the wind.
Then the connection broke.
The wolf snorted, grabbed the dried meat, and vanished into the grass without a sound.
First Test
Alex crouched in the dark for a long time, letting the Pack Instinct settle.
When he moved, he noticed something new: the way his feet avoided dry twigs without conscious thought. The way his head turned toward faint sounds before he even registered them.
This wasn't just animal sense — it was a hunter's web in his head, an instinctive map of surroundings.
System Log:
Pack Instinct (Level 0) added.
Base Duration: Passive low-grade effect.
Active Boost: 5 minutes of heightened coordination with allies, cooldown 2 hours.
Synergy Bonus: Beast Mind-Link effectiveness increased by 25 percent when used on wolf, dog, or similar canid species.
The synergy made him grin.
Every dog in Pentos would now operate faster, respond sooner, and — with training — fight in formation like soldiers.
The Journey Back
The return to Pentos was slower — not because of obstacles, but because Alex kept stopping to test his new senses.
He found two hidden hare burrows without trying. Detected a merchant's cart from the smell of its spice crates before it came into view. Even identified a lone rider half a mile off by the faint squeak of saddle leather.
By the time the city gates came into sight, he knew: this trait wasn't just valuable. It was strategic.
In street fights, it meant no one could flank him.
In political meetings, it meant reading tension in the air before voices even rose.
In war… it meant every ally was a part of him.
Reintegration
Back in Pentos, Alex went straight to the loft. His dogs reacted instantly to the Pack Instinct, adjusting to his presence without command. He tested formations in the courtyard, sending one to circle left while another moved right — both shifted with perfect timing, reacting to his movements like they were tied by rope.
This was no longer a city-boy's animal gang.
This was a pack.
And in Pentos, packs ruled streets.
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