Intermission: Hokuto

No matter how much time has passed…

Even if I was reborn…

Your warmth hasn't… changed.

In the rainy lonely remote mountain, a wounded puppy collapsed.

Whether it was abandoned or ran away because it got attacked, there was no hope for a puppy that just weaned off its mother's milk to survive by itself.

As you can see, the life of that hungry and wounded puppy was uncertain.

Beaten by rain, the life of the puppy whose body was gradually getting colder, was… about to end without nobody knew it.

"Wo..of.." (Puppy)

The life that seemed to disappear even now, was suddenly held and gently hugged by someone.

The puppy lose its consciousness while feeling the gentle warmth that spread through its whole body.

The puppy was alive.

The first thing it saw after waking up was an unfamiliar boy who anxiously looked at the puppy.

When it checked the surroundings, the puppy had been lying on top of the blanket, somewhere in the house.

"That's good. Were you awake?" (Boy)

With the boy's relieved smile, the puppy understood that it was saved.

At the same time, the boy was the one who gave the warmth that made its heart relieved.

After that, with the dedication of the boy made the puppy healthy, it always chased after the boy while wagging its tail.

Having a meal and gentle stroke every day, it was natural for that puppy to become entirely like a family to that boy.

As for that puppy, the boy was a Master, and he was like a parent.

The boy lived together with someone called Shishou in the mountains where people didn't visit.

They looked like a parent and son, but they were not.

If they were seen from the side, they might have a strange relationship, but there was no way for the puppy to know about it.

From the puppy's perspective, it was enough to understand that the boy was its favorite Master and the Shishou was an existence that couldn't be go against with.

"Hmmm… if it gets bigger, it seems can be eaten, but a puppy is more soft and delicious." (Shishou)

"Woof…" (Puppy)

"Stop it, Shishou! This guys is my family, I will kill you if you eat it!" (Boy)

"Hahaha, it was a joke, you know. But, well, if you can kill me, go ahead." (Shishou)

"Damn… I will definitely defeat you someday!" (Boy)

The puppy was increasingly held by the boy in order to protect him from the absolute opponent.

The morning for the boy and the puppy was early.

They woke up early in the morning, and they were doing long training runs as the daily routine after finished warming up.

Since the place where boy lived was mountainous, it was natural that there was no sidewalk or a well-maintained road. Every day, the boy ran through something like animal trails which a person could go through.

The puppy that became able to move, of course, ran together with the boy.

The puppy, that wasn't used to the running yet, had tumbled many times, but the boy didn't lend his hand. However, he would never left the puppy and kept waiting for it to catch up.

Although it tumbled, the boy firmly praised the puppy that came back up. After finishing the running, he checked the condition of the puppy and prepared meals. He never failed brushing the puppy every day and if he had time, he would play Frisbee with it.

The puppy grew up fast while receiving the affection of the boy. It recognized the boy as its master who it should give more priority over itself.

After the morning run, the boy would spar with his Shishou.

Sometimes, the puppy watched the sparring, but there were also times when the boy called it to jump on his Shishou. Even though the Shishou was a symbol of fear, if it was the life of its Master, the puppy braced itself and fought together. Without knowing this, the soul of the puppy was gradually forged.

From an ordinary person's point of view, the battle between the boy and the Shishou was nothing but abnormal.

The boy unleashed blows with the mind to kill and the master, after seeing the situation up to that degree, gave a good shaking until he was on the verge of death. And the battle that deviated from common sense continued every day.

Since the boy's assault couldn't leave a light scratch even aiming the time when the Shisou was taking a break, it might be unavoidable to ask for the puppy to help.

However, whether the puppy joined the assault, it never reached the Shishou. With the boy's hands and feet, even with the puppy's fangs and claws, they didn't even touch the Shishou. But, the boy never gave up and repeatedly fought against his Shishou.

The boy fought without giving up despite being defeated many times. It was abnormal to not giving up until that far. He might have been broken.

The puppy, that had been fighting together with such Master, grew up without noticing that this was abnormal. Since it hadn't see other ways of fighting, it was a natural result.

—

A few years later…

As usual, their assault didn't hurt the Shishou, but the boy and the puppy grew bigger. The puppy, in particular, grew into a splendid dog.

The dog didn't fall behind when running with the youth. Supposedly, the dog could hunt alone. The youth would praise when it hunted and brought back preys, and its hunting skill had improved day by day.

In addition to hunting and coordinating with the youth, the dog remembered various things for him.

And as soon as the dog could live by itself, the Shishou brought the youth abroad.

It was said that they couldn't bring the dog, and the reluctant boy ordered the dog to protect the house.

Although the dog was lonely, it faithfully followed the instruction of its beloved Master, and kept waiting for his return.

The dog also didn't know that the youth was brought by his Shishou, and they were participating as mercenaries for the war in the foreign country.

A few days later, when the youth came back from war… he hugged the dog and cried.

The dog, who couldn't tell that the youth had killed people for the first time, could do nothing to soothe him other than licking his face.

There were also times when the youth badly suffered when his emotion became unstable, but the dog never tried to leave him.

The youth went out with his Shishou to participate in wars, and the days of vacating the house lasted many times.

The dog was seen lonely every time, but one day, when the participation in war was beyond ten… the Shishou told him that he could bring the dog as his partner.

The Shishou was watching until now, but since it had become a considerable trouble, it seemed to depend on the intuition and the ability of an animal.

Like this, the dog also began to participate in war.

The battlefield was a terrible world where a lot of people die in incoming gunshots, but the dog didn't feel terrified.

Although it was used to the fear due to the fight with the Shishou, rather than waiting for their returns at home, it was more than happy to be in the vicinity of its Master.

As long it could be with its Master, it was all good.

With that in mind, the dog ran through battlefields together with the youth, and they got over great numbers of battlefields.

The dog protected the boy from bullets, and sometimes, it noticed the trap that the inexperienced boy didn't notice.

They mutually helped each other in a such way, and the bond between the youth and the dog deepened.

On the certain number of war, the enemies' traps caused the youth and the dog to be isolated and helplessly left behind in the enemies' line.

They were pursued and escaped into a pit, but the enemy blew up the entrance of the pit, and they were buried alive together with their allies.

The youth was caught in the collapse and broke his arm, but they were miraculously saved by creating a space inside.

Although they were able to escape from the enemies, they couldn't dig holes because of broken bones, so the boy and the dog, who had been completely trapped, had no choice but to wait for a rescue.

The possibility of being rescued by digging a collapsed pit in the enemies' line was hopeless, the youth kept waiting for the rescue without giving up.

He first treated the broken arm and fixed it with a stick, while conserving the lamp that was fit in the package, they managed to persevere with little water and portable foods.

Two days had passed since then… the boy and the dog remained trapped.

While snuggling to each other to confirm their existences and suppressed confusions, food and water ran out, and they were gradually driven by hunger and thirst.

At that time, the boy ordered the dog to leave. It was because that he was afraid of the possibility of recognizing the dog as a meat and attacked it because of hunger.

"Gurururu…" (Dog)

The dog knew.

As hunting means that the side that lose would be eaten, it knew by instinct that only winner would survive.

And the hungry dog first peered at the youth with its fangs.

Grasping over the body of the youth while raising growl, it tried pretending to eat the youth's throat as if it was hunting its prey.

The dog didn't think even once to eat the youth. On the contrary, it planned to attack  with the intention to be eaten.

If it didn't put up its fangs like this, the boy would probably used his knife on reflex, and kill it. As a compensation, the boy would be able to live by eating it.

The dog was satisfied when it noticed that the boy promptly draw his knife.

There was nothing to fear.

For the youth, for its Master, for its family… it only returned the salvation of being saved.

"…You stupid." (Youth)

But… no matter how much time had passed, the knife wasn't swung at the dog, and the youth, then, put the knife on the ground.

The dog was important to the youth, and the youth was also important to the dog. For that reason, he noticed the meaning of the action taken by the dog.

The dog kept pretending to assault desperately, but the youth gently hugged the dog.

"I would rather die… than eating you." (Youth)

He still… maintained his sanity.

That's why the youth thought that. If he couldn't survive without making sacrifice…

"My feet… is no good. I won't be able to walk with you." (Youth)

Then, he turned his eyes on the broken arm.

"Even without one arm… I can live. Wait there, I will… give you meat." (Youth)

Wrapping the upper arm to stop the bleeding, he grasped the knife with the opposite hand, and the time that he tried to swing down on the broken arm…

"Thank God, I finally found you." (Shishou)

"…Shishou?" (Youth)

The rock that blocked the entrance was smashed, and the Shishou came to help.

They safely survived in this way, thus the unbroken bond between a youth and a dog was born.

—

After that, the youth and the dog finished their treatment, and participated in another war again.

The combination of the youth and the dog, who became stronger after numerous failures, wasn't called as an enemy but as a death god that buried many enemies.

Intervening in wars all over the world, and intensely  fighting against Shishou every day when they returned home, but the dog was just happy if it was by the youth's side.

And when the youth grew up to be a young man… it came to an end in a sudden.

<Live free.> (Shishou)

A few days after the young man could give a blow to his Shishou for the first time… Shishou left a will and disappeared from the young man and the dog.

"…Running away when I am about to win… that’s unfair." (Young Man)

He might expected that this would happen.

As for the young man, rather than being sad about the Shishou's disappearance, he was sad because he couldn't win even once.

And then, the young man left the house where he lived, and went to the man who he met during the war, and became a special agent that dealt with requested targets.

Having the ability that could give a blow to the Shishou, forged intuition because of wars and making full use of modern weapons, there was no enemy for this young man. He became feared by various people due to the result of crushing a medium-sized base alone.

However, he had no dog by his side.

As the young man became active in the world of agent, the dog became a house taker.

The difference in lifespan between human and dogs is large.

While the flesh of the young man became most suitable for the job, the flesh of the dog started to gradually decline.

The young man worried because the dog still tried to follow him, so he left the dog to a woman who he saved during a certain job.

"Please protect her. It is a job that only you can do." (Young Man)

"Woof!" (Dog)

That order was merely a desperate plan to leave behind the dog.

Even if its body was aged and worn down, if there was anything for the young man, the dog would try to protect him as a shield. It was a harsh thing to say, but an old dog couldn't survive in a world where experts competed.

The dog was lonely, but he faithfully kept the Master's order.

The woman in care was rescued by the young man. Whether the part of giving priority to the young man was similar, the dog and the woman became friends, and waiting for the return of the young man every day.

When the job was over, the one that quickly noticed the return of the young man and greeted him was the dog.

Every time he returned, it would enjoy playing Frisbee and brushing. It was given the love as much as when he went away.

Seeing the young man off for work, the calm days went by even if the dog was lonely.

As the time passed by, the dog's body gradually declining because of aging.

And after seeing the young man went on a trip abroad with dozens of jobs… the dog became bedridden.

It enjoyed playing Frisbee with the young man until few days ago, but it couldn't stand up any longer. Without any strength, it lied down while being gently stroked by the woman.

"Is that so? You knew that it was the last opportunity to play with your Master at that time, huh." (Woman)

The dog probably could never run again until the young man came home next time.

As if that was the last time, the dog played with the young man with every effort.

A few days later… the time for the dog to stay awake was getting shorter.

When it woke up, it was taken care by the woman, and the painful days of lying down repeated when it was over.

Still, the dog didn't give up on living.

Even though it couldn't play anymore, the thought of possibly getting stroked only one more time made the dog continued to live eagerly.

Even if… the time when the young man returned for next time was nearly six months later.

A few days later… the dog's life had reached its limit.

Its lifetime ran out. Although its consciousness gradually became thinner and it was expecting death, this feeling wasn't the first time for the dog.

It was the same feeling when it was still a puppy as it couldn't move because of injuries and hunger, waiting for death while being struck by the rain.

Pain… hungry… nothing could be felt. And somehow, these were the only feelings that were overwhelming the dog.

"Wo..of.." (Puppy)

But… being picked up by the Master, it could never forget the warmth of being embraced.

It just couldn't forget it.

That's why, it wanted to feel that warmth only once more.

The dog quietly closed its eyes while wishing that.

And then, to sleep  which will never awake again…

—

"…I'm back." (Young Man)

Feeling the voice and the warmth of its special someone, the dog sustained the consciousness that was about to fade away.

When it opened its eyes, the young man, who it wanted to meet more than anything, hugged it with disturbed breathing.

There was a woman nearby when it noticed them, and it saw the young man wrapped in bandage with arms and legs bleeding blood and with pale face.

"Are-are you alright!?" (Woman)

"Yeah, I completed a bit unreasonable job. But, thank god, I made it in time. I… can take care of you." (Young Man)

It was enough for the dog if the Master was there.

The dog abandoned itself to the gentle hands and warmth of the young man who stroked it while shedding tears.

"I could be here because of you. So, sleep… slowly. I will see it through." (Young Man)

"Woof…" (Dog)

Cared by an important person, and being wrapped by the warmth that it loved… the dog's life ended.

—

{Isn't lonely to be alone? If you are lucky…} (??)

—

That voice told him such words when it XX. (TLN: The XX is blanked, probably 'died'?)

Even though it couldn't remember the face and the name of its favorite master… for some reason, those words remained in its mind.

In the meantime, there was one thing it remembered.

That it was… a dog.

When it opened its eyes while remembering that it was a dog, it was in a forest.

It supposed to die after being sent off by its special someone, but for some reason, it's appearance became of a puppy and lying in an unknown forest.

Even that alone was surprising enough, but the most surprising thing was that it understood the current situation, and it was able to think why this happened because of its intelligence.

When the dog, that became able to think like a human being, was doubtful about its own feet that had become more beautiful than before, a goblin appeared from a bush nearby.

The goblin drooled as if it found a delicious prey, and it attacked on instinct.

The dog was surprised by the unfamiliar creature it saw for the first time, but it immediately made up its mind and readied a battle position. This was probably because it experienced numerous wars with the young man.

It was a hopeless difference between the size of the puppy and the goblin. The size of the puppy, even if it stood up and stretched its body, was nothing but the other's knee. Normally, it would be a suicidal act to challenge it to a battle.

However, the dog instinctively understood that the other side wasn't a big deal, so it judged that it could win. For that reason, it prepared the battle position.

The dog avoided both hands the goblin stretched out to catch a prey. It got on the arms and rushed up to the body of goblin in one go, and bite the throat of its opponent which was the vital point.

However, the puppy's fangs were short. At best, the goblin would only bled. Because of that, the dog aimed to crush the goblin's spirit and chased it away, but… an unexpected thing happened there.

"Gyii–!?" (Goblin)

When it think why the fangs pierced easily, the meat was gouged and the throat had been bitten off.

The throat of the goblin was fragile, as if it was soft like  tofu.

The monster was weak–… No, the dog understood that it was strong.

Although it was partial, the goblin, that had its throat bitten off, died because of bleeding. When it thought that it should eat after killing the goblin, it noticed something when it looked at the carcass.

It didn't feel hungry at all. The appetite wasn't there not because of unappetizing meat, but the appetite didn't exist. Furthermore, even excretion seemed unnecessary.

To have an overwhelming power that could kill monsters in a blow even in the form of a puppy, it didn't know whether it could be called a dog anymore.

As the mystery deepened, the dog was puzzled by the change that occurred to him, but it also was mortified.

If it had this power… it would go along with the young man's jobs.

"Awoooo–!" (Dog?)

But, the person it should be with after having such strength was no more.

Seeing a monster that it had never seen before, this situation was clearly in a different world. it didn't know why, but it concluded that this world was a different world compared to the world that it had lived until now.

The world was different… in other words, the Master who was more important that itself, didn't exist.

The howl released with much less of regret reverberated to the surroundings.

Instead of eating the carcass, the dog turned its back and moved into the forest.

It encountered various monsters on the way, but as it detected the position of the enemies beforehand according to the abnormally developed sensation, it continued bring them down with a surprise attack.

Starting with goblins, then unusually big wolves, bipedal pigs and others… the dog kept walking without purpose while defeating various monsters.

The dog, that continued walking and found watering hole, saw itself reflected on the surface of the water.

It looked like a wolf rather than a dog, with shiny white fur, a supply and sturdy tail.

The dog was at a loss at the moment when it confirmed itself that obviously changed.

What should it do from now on?

The master it had when it was a dog was no longer here. Not just its parent, it couldn't even find its companion.

Even though it was reborn, the dog, that didn't require provisions in order to keep living, despaired. It quietly closed its eyes and lied on the ground.

"Woof…" (Dog)

To live in a world where the Master wasn't there… then, the significance of living was…

{Isn't lonely to be alone? If you are lucky, you may be able to see him again… so do your best.} (??)

At that time, the dog remembered the words that it thought before waking up.

That was the voice of the Shishou, who they couldn’t win against even once. It was the last words it heard before disappearing.

With a strength like a monster, having an air which obviously different from ordinary people, the dog began to think that it might be here because of Shishou.

As such a Shishou said that, the dog found hope in the words that it might see him again.

If it would be here, the Master might also be here…

The dog, that found the significance of living, decided to become strong.

The present appearance was strong enough, and it might get stronger when it grew bigger, but it couldn't increase without doing anything beyond knowing the strength of the Shishou.

There were many practice targets, the monsters, in the surroundings, so when remembering the fight between the Master and the Shishou which it saw how many times, it won't be a problem.

Just by looking, unlike how it occasionally joined and fought by instinct, there were many references when rethinking with the current intelligence.

The dog kept training by imitating its Master.

By knowing own limitations, it tried to use all parts of its bodies as weapons, and the tail sublimated to a weapon that could even break trees.

In addition, since human beings that it didn't killed might become enemies, it also learned to go easy even on goblins as practice targets.

The dog didn't know, but the beast's body called Hundred Wolves showed an abnormal growth of power as the dog's ability and body gradually grew day by day.

—

A few years later…

The puppy-sized body grew bigger, and the dog stood at the top of the ecosystem in the forest.

It was born in this world and fought against various monsters, but it never saw its own kind even once. Looking at its strength that surpassed other monsters, it presumed that it was a very rare species.

With such strength, the dog, that had no parents or companions, no longer needed to stay in this forest. It left the forest and jumped out to the outside world.

There was no guarantee that it would met the young man again.

Still believing in hope, the tales of the dog's journey began.

Knowing people's desires, the dog, that aware of its abnormality, preferred walking through forest so that people couldn't find it, but one day, it helped a girl who was attacked by monsters.

By meeting the girl, it realized that it was called Hundred Wolves. After that, it learned the common sense of the world while watching the girl who was somehow concerned.

However, the girl's family seemed to be attacked by a greedy noble, so the dog… Hundred Wolves casually beat the noble and took him away from the girl. Although the girl concerned, there was no need to stay unless there was Master.

After confirming the girl was alright, the Hundred Wolves resumed traveling again.

—

Hundred Wolves traveled beyond continents. However, it had to cross the sea to go to another continent.

As it found a discarded boat, the dog got on it and carefreely drifting in the sea. It encountered a slave ship while on the way. It defeated the slave merchant who aimed for him, and it also liberated the slaves captured.

The Hundred Wolves was treated as heroes and also treated as a sacred beast by the slaves, but since the Master wasn't found, it left the place to escape.

Later, it encountered and resolved various incidents, but… it couldn't find its beloved Master.

Nevertheless, the Hundred Wolves traveled around the world to seek for that one person.

A few decades after the beginning of the trip… the Hundred Wolves went to a certain mountain.

The ambiance was similar to the mountain where Hundred Wolves lived with its Master. In a glimpse, it pleased at the environment overflowed with mana, but there were monsters like monkeys were living in large quantities.

It worried about breaking the ecosystem, but by judging the differences between the characteristics of the monsters and the environments, it killed and drove them away without hesitation.

The Hundred Wolves, who expelled the nuisances, found a calm place and decided to stay for a while.

With the nostalgic air and environment overflowed with mana, the Hundred Wolves continued to sleep so as to forget the time.

And then…

—

Hokuto, who was dreaming about the past, woke up.

When Hokuto lifted up his face, there was his Master, Sirius, who slept in the bed nearby.

It seemed the time to get up from the outside brightness, but apparently, Hokuto got up a little early.

Hokuto stood up without sound. Standing by the bed so as not to wake Sirius up, he looked at the face of his Master.

The face wasn't in the slightest than in the previous life, even the smell was entirely different, but… the look and the affection towards Hokuto didn't changed from the time he was picked up.

He was convinced that Sirius was his Master. From the moment that a new name was given, Hokuto's world started to shine, and he was glad to be reborn while shedding tears.

His place was next to this person after all, and that made him delightedly howled.

And now he gained strength enough to be called monster, it would be more than anything to use it for the sake of his Master.

However, it might be because of the dream in the past, he felt lonely remembering how he left his Master when he died.

Hokuto slowly put his face on Sirius's chest to feel the warmth that he loved, and then, Sirius slowly opened his eyes.

"…Is that you, Hokuto?" (Sirius)

Although he didn't put any weight, Sirius, who woke up because unusual feeling felt on the chest, stroked Hokuto's head while still in the bed.

"It's unusual that you to fawn from morning." (Sirius)

"Woof…" (Dog)

"It's not that I'm angry. It's a bit early, but it's time to get up." (Sirius)

As he stroked Hokuto for a while, Reus, who was sleeping in the next bed, also woke up.

"Uhaa… good morning, Aniki. Hokuto-san." (Reus)

"Good morning. How's your body?" (Sirius)

"Of course, Aniki. The injury was completely healed, so I have to regain this body that has grown dull soon.

And when the two finished changing clothes that were easy for training, Sirius' lovers came into the room while giving morning greetings.

Everyone was wearing easy-to-move attires, it seems that it would be morning run from now on.

"Sirius-sama, we're ready." (Emilia)

"I have confidence in my stamina, but I'm worried whether I can catch up with you guys…" (Fia)

"It will be fine since Fia-san is trained adventurer. In the past, I wonder how many times I wasn't able to do anything…" (Reese)

"But still, Reese-ane came along without giving up, right? I think that is amazing guts." (Reus)

"Ahaha… I was carried many times by Sirius-san and Reus." (Reese)

"I see, there is also possibility of collapsing. I want a princess carry from Sirius." (Fia)

"Don't say that as the reason of collapsing, you know. This is the first day for Fia, so there is no need to worry." (Sirius)

Hokuto was looking at Sirius and the rest having peaceful chat with gentle eyes.

He seemed to have it hard, but looking at how his Master perfectly having fun, Hokuto was also happy.

Sirius' happiness is Hokuto's happiness.

"Well then, shall we start? First, we will do it lightly." (Sirius)

"""Yes.""" (Emilia/Reese/Reus)

"Hehe, since I am newcomer, I'll do my best to keep up." (Fia)

It was different from the time when a person and an animal kept running in an effort to defeat Shishou.

Joininng the four important companions, Sirius, who was about to leave the room, turned around and called Hokuto with a smile.

"Let's go, Hokuto!" (Sirius)

"Woof!" (Dog)

Together with his precious Master, every day continued to be filled with the brilliance of Hokuto…