1: The Wolf's Mystery (I)

In the quiet woods on the outskirts of small Tobata Village, something peculiar was happening. It had rained the night before, so the dew drops were still clinging to the leaves on the trees, and muddying the ground with puddles in the process. However, suddenly one of these is trampled by a deep and swift step, spreading muddy water around it. A child, with blond hair cut short, desperately flees into the depths of the woods. Running at a brisk pace, the boy does everything to increase the distance between him and his mysterious pursuer, while the despair on his face as he looks back tells otherwise. From afar, he glimpses the cursed executioner again.

A big white wolf jumps out from behind the bush, while the child is already a little way off. His withered belly and semi-exposed rib explain that he hasn't eaten for days, and that he would do anything to have a bite of a large piece of meat. As the little one tires, and they get closer to the side of a mountain, the helpless prey seems to be more and more cornered.

But, they were not alone.

From the top of one of the trees, a third presence was behind the wolf. He glimpses it, from a great distance, and smiles as he celebrates that he managed to find the child still alive. But the child seemed to be in trouble.

Cornered against the mountain wall, the poor boy knew his fate was inevitable. When the wolf came out from behind the last thicket before the mountain, unfortunately, he would be devoured, which only increases his despair that makes him scream louder and louder for help.

But nobody comes.

The executioner then emerges from the thicket. In his eyes, you could clearly see his ferocity, due to an intense and distant hunger. If the wolf got its teeth into the prey, there would be nothing left to tell the tale. And that was what the poor boy feared. Finally, already accepting his destiny, the child kneels down in tears, knowing that he would not escape from there alive, until. Something catches his attention, and the wolf itself.

From the bush, something screams to announce its presence: The wolf turns to find out, but when he does…

He receives a powerful blow to the head, knocking him away. The author of the blow does not lose momentum and, sliding until he reaches the poor boy, he positions himself with open arms to defend the child.

By appearance, the individual was thin, with an average height for his age, orange hair, which formed a topknot that fell on his face at the end of the cut, and light blue eyes. He was wearing a blue shirt, wrapped in a sleeveless blouse which he left rolled up to his elbows, black pants and white sneakers, grimy from use.

The wolf composes himself and stands up, being able to catch a glimpse of the scene.

"What's up, little wolf?" the boy said in a teasing tone and a sneering look. "Hunting down a defenseless target is easy, I want to see you hit someone your own size!"

The creature even considers retaliating, and both are in battle position, indicating a conflict that was about to begin. But the lupine, afraid of getting more wounds or perhaps dying, turns and flees into the woods, abandoning his prey.

Relieved, the boy then sighs and turns to thank his savior.

"Thank you very much, Leonard Flint!" the young boy says gratefully.

The young man smiled back at the boy upon hearing his words.

"It's nothing… Yeah… By the way, what's your name?" Leonard asked, curious about the brave child's identity.

"Ryan," the little one replied with a smile on his face.

"Oh yes! It's nothing, Ryan. I think you learned a lesson today about not walking around unsupervised."

"Yes! Walks in the forest now only with Miss Margareth," he replied excitedly, even though he had gone through a frightening experience.

Then the confused Leonard tried to talk some sense into the boy's head.

"Speaking of her, she must be furious with you. By the way, this all still seems pretty crazy to me, even more so by village standards. How did the situation get to this level?"

"It's just that I was very deep in the forest, and I couldn't see the orphanage. Then, when the wolf appeared, I just ran as fast as I could to try to lose him."

"You were very lucky!" Leonard exclaimed, even more surprised. "Never do that again! The outskirts are very dangerous; you never know when some strange creature no one ever heard about will jump you here. Anyway, let's go, today will be a very busy day."

After walking for a while, both boys arrive at the orphanage.

The building in question was a huge two-story house. There was a courtyard at its entrance, and its lower floor consisted of an entrance hall, with a staircase to the upper floor, and a kitchen accessible via a door, in addition to a backyard. And finally, on the top floor, there were the male and female dormitories, an “empty” room, and the boardroom.

Leonard and Ryan go

 through the main gate, and walk until they reach the boardroom. Inside that room, a lady was tasting her tea, blowing on it lightly before bringing the cup to her lips.

This woman, in her late 30s, was dressed in a black turtleneck uniform, a long skirt, and brown shoes, and had her hair tied up in a bun, with a single strand falling over her face and to the side of her green eyes. But, before you could even take a sip, there was a knock on the living room door and, putting the cup back on the plate, the young lady said:

“You can come in, the door is open."

It is then that Leonard enters the room alone, and addresses Margareth. He speaks with certain expressiveness in the body, making gestures to illustrate the situation.

“Excuse me, director," Leonard said politely.

The woman gives a slight smile at the boy's speech, almost as if she finds it funny.

"You don't need to be so formal; we've been acquaintances for a long time, and I know you don't want to do this," Margareth replied, trying to ease the tension.

"It's just that I wanted to vary the wording. Anyway, I found the boy."

"Excellent! How is he?" Margareth asked with concern.

"Scared, but okay. He is waiting for you at the door as he has to go to the hospital to make sure everything is ok. Poor guy, he entered the forest and was attacked by a wolf. Lucky I was there," Leonard explained.

"I'm glad he turned out okay, but something about this situation strikes me as odd."

"What it is?"

"A child that size isn't big enough to run away from an animal specialized in hunting, but he managed to survive long enough for some help to arrive."

"Well, he was a lone wolf on the hunt, but to be honest, anyone could outrun him. Even though he was a big one, it looked like he hadn't fed in days," Leonard said, trying to make sense of the situation.

"This wolf looses in the wild is a serious threat. I will send a request to the city's monster hunters, so that they capture it before a serious accident happens."

"That's if I don't capture him first," Leonard said with a confident but shy tone, knowing what would come next.

Margareth frowned slightly, surprised by the comment that Leonard had just made, and also with his tone of voice.

"What did you say? Don't tell me you're thinking about it."

"He looks exactly like the creature I've been looking for since I arrived in this village! I cannot miss this opportunity," Leonard said, his excitement evident.

"The werewolf is just folklore, a legend to scare the children around. Monsters are not so common around here due to the proximity to the city, making it easier for hunters to come here. Besides, I thought I'd given up on the idea a long time ago," Margareth said, trying to dissuade Leonard.

"And I gave up, but this incident gave me the courage I needed to return to activity," Leonard explained.

Although Leonard was very excited about the idea of capturing the creature, the director did not share the same excitement. Her face was expressionless, and her piercing gaze scolded the boy without her having to say a word.

"Come on," Leonard said to break the ice. "I'm also going to become a beast hunter, and for that, I need exploits and experience. And another thing, it's a lot better that I get rid of this threat for free than we have to pay for the services of a hunter, don't you think."

Margareth sighed deeply.

"Do as you see fit, but before you go, I require a favor from you. Two favors, actually. Ask Adam and Chloé to help organize the orphanage. We will have a big party today."

"Celebrating what?" Leonard asked, curious about the sudden celebration.

"It's the birthday of the orphanage!" Margareth revealed with a smile.

Leonard was surprised, knowing that he had never had a party while he was around. However, bearing in mind that his concerns at that time were other, he judged that it was only a minor detail and hurried off in search of his friends. He didn't even ask for information about where they were, as he knew exactly where he could find them.