MTMLF CH 01

Chapter 1
The Wolf Who Returned a Favour 

There’s a saying: “Even a fallen animal deserves another look.”

It was a common proverb among ordinary humans in the Respina Empire.

This was a world where beastmen and humans coexisted—a world inside a novel.

The novel was titled When a Fierce Beast Wags Its Tail.

Its story was about the chief of the wolf beastmen—scarred by a tragic past—finding happiness after meeting the bright and kind heroine.

Jaina had recently possessed this novel.

But she wasn’t the heroine or even a side character.

She was just an extra—one whose name never appeared even once.

***

“Hmm, hm-hmm.”

Early in the morning, Jaina busily swept the yard.

There weren’t many visitors, so there was hardly anything to clean, but if she didn’t do at least that, she had nothing else to do.

Looking around at the silence of her surroundings, she tilted her head.

This place feels strange…

Some people she occasionally interacted with had called her “Jaina,” so she at least knew the body’s name.

But besides that, she knew nothing. Not even exactly where she lived.

It seems far from the capital, though.

In Respina, beastmen mostly lived near the capital. They were fewer in number than humans, but most of them held power.

Long ago, beastmen had been persecuted across the continent. But after a long war, they had gained the upper hand and risen as rulers.

Now things were relatively stable, and most humans accepted beastmen rule.

Well, the novel did mention plenty of conflicts…

In the story, human factions tried to overthrow beastman rule, clashing with the male and female leads.

But in this quiet, peaceful countryside, all that felt like someone else’s problem.

“I’m bored…” she muttered, a phrase that had become second nature.

***

The day she opened her eyes in this body had been sudden and bizarre.

She hadn’t had an accident, hadn’t overworked—she’d gone to sleep perfectly fine, and then woke up inside this novel.

At first, she’d been so dumbfounded she spent the whole day in a daze.

She thought she’d return to her original body after a night’s sleep.

But days and weeks passed, and nothing changed.

Now she lived alone in this big, empty house. And the loneliness was unbearable.

“No family, no neighbors—well, the closest house is half an hour away… sigh.”

It seemed this Jaina was an orphan.

There were no family belongings in the house—no clothes, no items left behind by others. Clearly, she had lived here alone from the start.

At least there was one relief: the storage shed was full of food, so she didn’t have to worry about starving anytime soon.

Still…

“I want to see people…”

But no one ever came to this house, standing alone in the middle of the forest.

Anyone who did show up would surely be suspicious or have a story behind them.

Nearly a month had passed since her possession, yet she hadn’t run into a single person by chance.

“Well, even animals would be fine… wait, no, animals are dangerous.”

Her distant neighbor had told her that because this place was so far from the capital, beastmen were rarely seen here.

And ordinary people feared their strength so much that nobody dared to “pick up” stray cats or dogs—or wolves.

“Haah… might as well work.”

Sighing, Jaina kept herself busy. Better to move her body than be lost in thoughts.

***

After sweeping the yard, she walked to the gate.

The tall walls and sturdy gate surrounding the house were the only things protecting her from whatever dangers lurked in the forest.

Not that she’d seen any real threats yet. The forest around here was oddly quiet—no wild beasts in sight. Her early days of paranoia had long faded.

“Hmm?”

She pushed the gate slightly open to check outside.

But right at the entrance, something lay on the ground.

Dark. Heavy.

“A… wolf?”

A massive black wolf was sprawled there, bleeding heavily at her feet.

“Grrr…”

“Eek!”

The wolf opened its eyes and locked its golden gaze on her.

Her body froze.

W-what do I do?

Was it a beastman? Or just a wolf?

For such a creature to collapse here in this remote place was suspicious. But from its appearance alone, she couldn’t tell the difference.

“Grghh…”

The wolf groaned weakly, then closed its eyes again. At this rate, it would die.

Jaina hesitated. Should she pretend not to see, or help it?

If she got involved, who knew what trouble might follow?

But looking at its pitiful state, she couldn’t just turn away.

…As long as I don’t bring it inside the house, it should be okay, right?

Her walls were tall, too high for even a wolf to climb. And the gate was sturdy.

Swallowing nervously, Jaina went back inside.

“Good, there are some things for treating wounds.”

The medicines were made for humans, but they seemed to be herbal, so maybe they’d work.

Gathering supplies, she returned outside. The wolf was still unconscious.

“I’ll just treat the wounds. That’s all.”

Repeating it like a mantra, Jaina steadied her breath and got to work.

She cleaned the blood with cloth, applied herbs to the injuries, and wrapped them in bandages.

“Will this be enough…?”

She wasn’t a vet. She had no idea how to treat animals. All she could do was hope the herbs were effective.

The wolf was huge, so just bandaging it took forever.

She lifted its massive paws, pushed its heavy body, and worked until her whole body was drenched in sweat.

“Phew… finally done.”

Wiping her forehead, she looked down at the motionless wolf.

She had treated it out of pity, but now she wondered if it would survive.

…Could it be the male lead?

The novel’s hero, Noah, was also a wolf beastman.

“No… it can’t be him.”

In the story, Noah’s eyes were ocean blue.

This wolf’s eyes were golden. So at least it wasn’t him.

And in the novel, there was no wolf beastman with golden eyes around Noah. So even if this was a beastman, he was definitely just a nameless extra.

Convinced, Jaina nodded. Seeing its breathing calm, she returned inside.

Exploring the area would have to wait.

***

The next morning, Jaina cautiously opened the gate.

“Huh?”

The wolf was gone.

Traces of blood remained, but the animal itself had vanished.

“…It must’ve walked away.”

She let out a sigh of relief.

But then, something caught her eye.

“…Fruit?”

A pile of fruit was stacked neatly at the gate—berries and nuts, all from the forest.

The food in her storage was mostly preserved things—jerky and cheese. Occasionally, she went out to pick fruit like this herself.

She had been craving fresh fruit… but for it to appear suddenly at her gate was suspicious.

Don’t tell me…?

Right after she’d treated the wolf, this happened. Her suspicion grew. But no matter how hard she looked around, she found no trace of black fur.

Eventually, she sighed and gathered the fruit into her apron, carrying them inside.

The same thing happened the next day. And the day after.

Until finally—

“Eek!”

One morning, instead of fruit, there was a dead animal.

A huge deer carcass lay by the gate.

Shocked, Jaina trembled and fell to the ground.

This couldn’t be coincidence. She was certain it was the wolf repaying her. Otherwise, it made no sense.

Her face pale, she whipped her head around.

“Y-you’re out there, aren’t you?”

But the forest was silent.

Unable to hold it in, she shouted:

“I don’t want this! I don’t! Stop giving me stuff like this!”

After a pause, the bushes rustled—

And the black wolf slowly stepped out.

Jaina’s eyes widened as she stared nervously at him.