010 It Seems I Can Use Magic

A little distance away, between the trees, stood a wolf. It was huge. It looked like a Siberian Husky magnified three or four times.

I don’t know if wolves are originally this big, or if the wolves in this world are particularly large. Anyway, it was completely different from a dog. In size, in intensity, it was different from any dog kept by humans.

The wolf stared straight at Juhwan. It had no fear of humans. Its eyes were not looking at the supreme being, the human. It was eyeing its prey.

Juhwan, while keeping his face towards the wolf, quickly rolled his eyes to scan the surroundings. There were no other wolves in sight.

I had seen in a documentary that when a male wolf reaches a certain size, it leaves the pack and becomes independent.

Such wolves wander alone until they join another pack or meet a female to form their own pack. Maybe that one was such a wolf.

It would have been nice to have something that could be used as a weapon, but there was nothing. Unfortunately, I hadn’t even thought that I might need one. Despite being somewhat cautious, his thoughts, accustomed to modern life, were evidently lax.

The wolf’s nose twitched and its lips moved. Its teeth were bared. It didn’t make a sound, but it was growling.

Juhwan slowly lowered his body while keeping his upper body straight. When he grabbed a branch lying near the spring, the wolf started making a sound.

Grrrr.

The low threatening sound spread like a heavy fog on the ground. It was just one wolf, but it felt like the whole forest was growling.

The sound grew louder and rougher, as if it had swallowed a firecracker, and suddenly the wolf moved.

Its huge body charged straight at Juhwan.

Almost simultaneously with the wolf’s movement, Juhwan also sprang up.

Holding a thick branch in his left hand, he clenched his right hand into a fist.

He stepped back with one foot, lowered his body, and took a stance.

When the wolf leaped at him to bite, Juhwan thrust the branch into the wolf’s mouth with his left hand and struck its head with his right fist.

Thud, the impact was felt through his fist.

At the same time, the branch snapped with a crack. It looked solid on the outside, but maybe it was rotten wood, or too dry, or perhaps the wolf’s strength was just too great.

The wolf bared its teeth again and tried to bite him roughly. His fist was scratched by the teeth and blood flowed. Saliva mixed with wood splinters flew from the wolf’s mouth.

The wolf growled and lunged at him again. The stench of the beast hit his nose.

The original plan was to beat it up when it bit the branch. But reality was completely different from his thoughts. It felt like getting beaten up by a real thug after learning to fight from comic books.

“Damn it!”

His heart raced. In this world, if he got bitten by a wolf, he couldn’t get proper treatment. If things went wrong, he could die from a simple bite wound.

“Don’t be ridiculous!”

I’ve just found a family, and now you think I’m going to die?

Juhwan pounded the wolf’s head with his fist again.

But after a few tussles with the wolf, his left arm was bitten in an instant. The wolf clamped down on his arm and shook its head. The pain was so intense that it made him feel faint.

Juhwan gritted his teeth and raised his right hand high. He clenched his fist and kept striking.

But the wolf wouldn’t let go. Instead, it bit down harder on his arm.

It felt like his eyes were on fire. The strength drained from his punching fist.

Unconsciously letting out a painful groan, he still clenched his fist around the bitten arm, trying not to die. If he relaxed, the wolf’s teeth would dig in and break his bones.

At that moment, the wolf suddenly let out a yelp and released his arm.

“Gasp!”

Juhwan’s eyes widened. His bitten left arm was blazing with fire. His entire arm was engulfed in flames.

But there was no time to think or be surprised.

Juhwan immediately charged at the wolf and mounted it. He pinned it down, pressing his legs tightly to prevent it from escaping.

He clenched his fist and started hitting the wolf’s head. Once, twice, he struck frantically until the wolf’s body went limp. It seemed the bones in its head had completely shattered from the continuous pounding.

Just moments ago, his left arm had been blazing, but now it had returned to a normal hand.

His clothes, torn by the wolf’s bites, were in tatters. Underneath, his flesh was deeply gouged, exposing the bone.

But there were no burn marks on his clothes. They were intact. Even though they had clearly been on fire, there was no trace of flames on the fabric covering his arm.

‘This is definitely not a dream.’

Or is it?

As he stared blankly at his arm, Juhwan realized that there was no blood flowing.

There were bloodstains, but the bleeding had stopped. It was as if someone had applied an invisible gauze to perform first aid.

In a normal situation, that wouldn’t happen. He had been bitten so deeply that his bones were visible…

The wolf had bitten his arm so hard that he could feel its teeth moving inside his flesh. The wound was deep, and his flesh and veins were shredded, so much so that the floor should have been soaked with blood.

‘Was it because of that fire earlier?’

As he thought about it, he suddenly realized. Oh, could that have been magic?

“….”

Since he had come to a world with magic, it might be natural to gain such abilities. Isn’t it common in novels to gain powers when transported to another world?

Juhwan extended his arm into the air. He hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to say, then mustered up the courage and shouted.

“Fireball!”

There was no response. Not even smoke, let alone fire.

—

“Fire Wall!”

As expected, nothing happened.

“Fire Magic!”

“Fire Storm!”

“Fire!”

“Flame!”

“Magic!”

“Spirit of the vast earth, arise!”

“Fairy of fire, give me strength!”

“Summon Salamander!”

“Dragon Breath!”

It was useless. Nothing came out of his palm.

Even recalling the sense of urgency from earlier and shouting, or reminiscing about the urgent moments in his life, it was the same. No fire came out at all.

Juhwan looked down at his arm for a moment and took a deep breath.

‘It wasn’t an illusion. Fire definitely came out of my arm. It stopped the bleeding and healed the wound to some extent.’

If he could use magic, he definitely wanted that ability. He didn’t mind living as a simple mountain hunter, but from the perspective of supporting his wife and daughter, that power would certainly be helpful.

He could provide a slightly better environment, slightly tastier food, and make them a bit happier.

He didn’t know much, but in a place like this, even if someone got sick, they couldn’t be properly treated. They would probably have to go to a big city to find a doctor. He had heard that medieval medicine was quite unreliable, but it was better than nothing. There might even be a magician with healing powers.

And perhaps, by using magic, he might find a way to heal his family. Just like how he healed his own arm, some unknown power might come into play.

“….”

Let’s take it slow. What happened once will happen again.

It was the same when he moved to his grandfather’s house after his parents passed away.

As if he was carrying death with him, his grandfather passed away while living with him. Although he was old, he was a healthy man who left this world due to a ridiculous accident.

After that, among his relatives, Juhwan was treated like a plague of death. They openly said in front of him, who was a middle school student, that if they lived with him, they would die too.

If death repeats, then surely magic will repeat. Juhwan looked down at the deep bite marks of the wolf and turned his head. His arm throbbed with pain, but there was no time to rest. There was more work to be done.

Before other beasts came smelling the blood, he had to get rid of this wolf. It would be better to drain the blood and move it if he had a knife, but unfortunately, he didn’t have one now.

‘It’s hard to process the hide, but at least I can skin it.’

His grandfather often slaughtered the chickens and rabbits he raised. These days, even in the countryside, it’s rare to see people slaughtering animals themselves, but his grandfather was an old-fashioned man. He used to process chickens and rabbits in the shed behind the old house.

Juhwan had never actually done it himself, but he often sat quietly next to him and watched. He was worried that his grandfather might cut his finger with the knife or something might fall and kill him.

Even though he watched over him, his grandfather eventually passed away in a ridiculous manner, but at the time, he thought it would be okay if he, who was already bigger and stronger than an adult, was by his side.

Thinking about what he had seen back then, Juhwan shouldered the wolf. It wasn’t as heavy as he thought. It looked big because of its fur, but it was very thin.

Maybe it had been chased out after fighting with the pack, as there were bite marks on its front paw. That’s probably why it couldn’t hunt alone and was starving. Otherwise, it might not have recklessly attacked a human on a morning like this.

If the fire hadn’t suddenly flared up, and if this wolf had been properly fed and fattened, he might not have been able to win. The wolf was a scarier animal than he had thought.

‘I need to be better prepared from now on.’

He now understood why the cabin was away from the water. Animals gather where there is water. There are weak animals like birds and deer, but fierce ones like wolves, tigers, and wild boars also come.

He filled the water container only halfway. Carrying both the wolf and a full water container was too much. It was heavy, and the water would spill out.

Juhwan walked quickly, with the water container on one shoulder and the wolf on the other.

His injured left arm hurt as if it were on fire. The wound was closed by some magic or something, but the pain hadn’t gone away. He might have a slight fever tonight.

‘But how do you train in magic?’

Should he feel the energy inside his body like in martial arts novels? Forcing his thoughts away from the pain, Juhwan quickened his pace.

*

The house was empty, but there were still some things left. If you searched the corners, you could find a bowl or two, and if you wandered around outside, there were a few things people hadn’t taken.

For a while, Lizzy and Dorothy diligently searched for and gathered such items. Dorothy, showing more enthusiasm than ever before, moved quickly, her thin body darting from one place to another.

In this village, children start helping with household chores as soon as they can walk. They take care of their younger siblings and pull weeds.

Five-year-old Dorothy could do more because she could communicate. She had to.

But while living with Dorothy, Lizzy realized that she was different from other children. Dorothy hardly spoke and moved slowly. She would crouch down at any loud noise. Sometimes, she even wet herself.

Thinking about her dead husband, who had hit her as soon as they met, Lizzy could roughly guess. How much must she have been beaten under such a person?

She thought Dorothy was similar to her but more unfortunate. Maybe that’s why she felt more affection for her.

‘But now, this child…’

It seemed to be because she had received a name. She was so happy to have a name that she kept wandering around, finding things, and bringing them to Lizzy. Then she would quietly look up at her.

Lizzy looked at the items Dorothy had brought.

They were large wooden shoes, worn over regular shoes when climbing a winter mountain. Half of the shoes, made by bending branches into a circle, were broken. They were useless.

‘But.’

Lizzy smiled at Dorothy’s sparkling eyes.

“Dorothy, thank you.”

“….”

The child’s face twisted as if trying to hold back a smile. She quickly bowed her head to hide her expression and ran out again.

To hear her name once, Dorothy kept bringing things to her.

Somehow, finding it amusing, Lizzy couldn’t help but laugh.

Leaving the outside to Dorothy, Lizzy went inside. Now she had to unpack and organize the things the village chief’s wife had given her.

Lizzie dragged the sacks of flour and oats from the large bundle and moved them to the kitchen. Then, she began to take out and check the other items in the package one by one.

Fortunately, all the most important things were there. Flint and knife, pot, rope and some salt, a set of men’s old clothes, and…

As she checked each item and moved it to a different location, she suddenly heard a scream from outside.

“Ahhhhhhhhh.”

It was Dorothy’s voice.

Lizzie grabbed the knife and rushed outside.

It might be a wolf. Wolves rarely come down to human houses, but winter is a season of hunger for all.

She had heard that a hungry wolf is the greatest threat in the winter mountains. In fact, her late husband had gone into the mountains and was eaten by a wolf.

Her whole body trembled. She added another hand to hold the knife with both hands, fearing she might drop it.

“Dorothy!”

As she shouted and rushed outside, she saw a large wolf running between the trees in the distance.

Oh my God, it’s a monster!

The wolf had human feet.