Chapter 13

As Su You struggled with his short little arms and legs to climb onto the back of the gray wolf, Wolberly, he gripped the fur on the back of Wolberly’s neck with all his might to steady himself.

Once the tiny little cub was securely seated atop the massive gray wolf warrior Wolberly, he let out an astonished “Wow!”

“So high up!”

It was the first time the little one had ever perched at such a height. Sitting on the back of the gray wolf warrior Wolberly, he gazed out over the vast grasslands, the expansive sky, and the towering ancient trees stretching toward the heavens.

Everywhere the tiny cub looked, his face was filled with wonder and amazement.

“This is amazing!”

He exclaimed again, joyfully taking in everything around him. Then, all of a sudden, he lunged forward and wrapped his arms tightly around Wolberly’s neck.

The mighty gray wolf warrior stood nearly two meters tall when on all fours. The cub, less than a meter tall, was but a small speck on his back. When the cub clung to Wolberly’s neck, he seemed to almost vanish.

Around the neck of the adult gray wolf warrior was a ring of longer fur, and the three-and-a-half-year-old cub happily buried his face in that soft fur, savoring the comfort of the wolf’s most tender spot.

Indeed, Teacher Xiaohua was right—fur was the best thing in the world!

After the little cub climbed onto his back, Wolberly moved his tail and realized he was able to move again. Though reluctant, he found he could not shake off the pesky little cub.

But the brave gray wolf warrior was more than just brute strength. Want to ride the back of a gray wolf clan member?

Wolberly narrowed his blue-gray eyes, lifted his head, and howled.

Though the nearby half-orc warrior Salvador did not understand the meaning of Wolberly’s howl, his instincts told him one thing—the gray wolf was about to leave.

At that moment, System 098 appeared and said to him, “Congratulations, your luck is quite good.”

“Your next mission is to survive in universe number 12768 for at least seven cosmic cycles—until the next task arrives and the teleportation activates.”

System 098, the Soldier King system, was about to discuss with its rather lucky host where to hide and survive next. But unexpectedly, as the gray wolf tried to carry the cub away, the half-orc host clenched his fists and prepared to run after them.

System 098: “?”

Yes, you do need to run, but can you at least pick the right direction, you brainless half-orc?

Watching his host seemingly ready to chase after Wolberly, the entire system descended into a chaotic state, on the verge of crashing.

Perhaps someone could tell it—was it going mad, or was its host?

Salvador, upon hearing the system’s warning, insisted he had chosen the right direction.

“By the Beast God above! My most beloved young lord has saved my life! From this moment on, I am the most loyal servant to my esteemed young lord!”

The young half-orc’s face was alight with fervent devotion to his dear young lord.

Look at that! How powerful is his beloved young lord, to have tamed such a wild beast of the wilderness!

This is truly a miracle bestowed by the Beast God!

System 098 fell silent, wishing it could knock some sense into this fool.

It wanted to tell him—the seemingly harmless cub was no divine child of the Beast God; he was his opponent in the Soldier King elimination match!

But the system’s fundamental rule forbade revealing opponent information to contestants.

This rule was meant to make the competition more thrilling, though in the previous season, it seemed ineffective—after all, candidates for the Soldier King challenge were no fools and rarely failed to recognize their opponents.

But now, System 098 had found a genuine idiot.

Not far away, System 001 also sensed System 098’s presence, but there was no communication between the two. System 001’s host cub simply did not understand the concept of elimination or the significance of the Soldier King challenge, let alone the meaning of an opponent.

And System 098… well, it simply had a foolish host.

Amid the silence, only the gray wolf warrior Wolberly moved. The agile wolf flexed its limbs and tore across the Selnerhan grasslands, the territory of the gray wolf clan.

Wait and see, little one!

Daring to sit on a gray wolf warrior’s back and treat him like a mount means you must have the courage and strength to bear the consequences.

Wolberly knew how astonishingly fast he could run at full speed. What would happen to a cub perched on his back during such a run?

The great gray wolf warrior Wolberly didn’t bother pondering the question; he simply wanted the cub to give up and be shaken off anywhere beyond his back.

The dignity of a gray wolf warrior must not be violated!

As the wild beast began thundering forward with his young lord on his back, half-orc Salvador also sprinted full tilt in pursuit, his eyes blazing with fervor.

Exactly like this!

A newly tamed beast never willingly submits quietly at its master’s feet. It always tries every trick to shake off its master’s control—just like this wild beast. Though clearly subdued by his beloved young lord, it still tried to escape through frantic running.

Such an untamable wild beast!

Salvador, watching the charging beast and the joyful little lord atop its back, pushed himself harder, chasing after them.

System 098 watched the scene in silence, unwilling to intervene further.

Forget it, it didn’t want to meddle with such an idiot. Though lucky enough to avoid the initial attack from the gray wolf warrior in the elimination round, how much longer could his luck hold?

Perhaps it should prepare a more meticulous selection plan for the next season’s host…

No matter what System 098 thought, events unfolded just as they were.

The gray wolf warrior Wolberly thundered ahead, carrying the little cub, seemingly trying to shake him off with the jolting speed.

Behind him ran half-orc warrior Salvador, candidate number 098, dutifully pursuing his young master, oblivious that this young master was in fact his elimination opponent.

At this moment, the simplest mind among them all belonged to the tiny cub sitting on Wolberly’s back.

Su You felt sheer joy sitting atop Wolberly!

Lili is incredible—how could Lili run so fast?

The little one had never played in such a vast world before. Riding the gray wolf warrior across the Selnerhan grasslands filled him with the exhilaration of running against the wind for the first time.

As for Wolberly, he had originally planned to shake off the cub through extreme jolting and speed.

In theory, it should have been easy—how could such a tiny cub, unprotected, sit steadily on the wolf’s back?

Wolberly even thought the cub wasn’t even grabbing the long fur on the back of his neck with much force.

At the very first step of running, he had expected the little one to be thrown off.

Yet the cub remained firmly seated. How was this possible?

To test his theory, Wolberly suddenly slammed on the brakes mid-sprint.

Under normal circumstances, the cub would have been flung off by inertia without any protection.

But the truth was, after the wolf stopped, the little cub joyfully hugged his neck and buried his head in the long fur, rubbing back and forth.

“Lili, you’re really amazing, Lili!”

The happy little cub wiggled on the wolf’s back, then asked seriously, “Teacher Xiaohua said roller coasters are the most fun rides in the amusement park. They’re so fast!”

“So were we just riding a roller coaster?”

His little eyes shone brightly, clearly wanting to go again.

The brave gray wolf warrior Wolberly could hardly believe what he was hearing—damn amusement parks, damn roller coasters!

He wasn’t playing with the cub!

The poor wolf felt on the verge of madness, unable to understand why the cub, who could barely immobilize him by lightly grabbing his tail, and who looked so fragile that a single paw could crush him, could sit so securely on his back, unfazed by the wind’s fierce assault during his sprint.

Lost in his torment, Wolberly failed to notice that he had unknowingly reached the edge of the gray wolf clan’s territory.

Not far off, a fierce beast’s eyes were fixed intently on him and the cub on his back.

Simultaneously, a voice dripping with mockery sounded nearby:

“Wolberly? When did you betray the higher beasts and decide to become a pet for the humanoids?”