Jason stood there on still-wobbly legs, the 20% adaptation to blunt force trauma doing just enough to keep him upright after that brutal hammer-fist to the chest. His ribs ached like hell, but the pain had dulled into something manageable. He wiped sweat and dirt from his face, breathing hard.
He realized he had to use his brain here. He couldn't fight them with physical strength, not against creatures built like this. And even with the system helping against blunt hits, his adaptation was to blunt force trauma which meant it would be a different story if they used their claws. One good slash and he'd be spilling guts all over the dirt before the timer could even tick.
Watching Ylva take a life so casually did frighten him because it was a reminder that she had no problem taking a life which put him on edge. This reminded him that these were blood thirsty creatures but that coochie was fire, it wrapped around his cock like a perfect fit. He was adapting to it, sure, but right now that memory felt dangerously distracting.
He knew they couldn't win this fight through brute force. Not with him barely able to stand straight and the numbers still against them.
Then Ylva howled as loud as she could. The shockwave generating from her throat was deafening to the point Jason thought his eardrums would blow out. He quickly placed his hands over his ears or he would have lost his hearing.
"Fuck! What the fuck was that?" Jason muttered, voice shaky. He had no idea why she did that, but he noticed the other werewolves looked uncomfortable, ears flattening as they winced.
And in the blink of an eye, there was a new werewolf standing right in front of her. It was Luna. The speed in which she came was unbelievable, it felt like teleportation. Luna was one of the fastest and strongest werewolf, she had survived fights that no one thought she could. And the truth was, Amarok only became the alpha because he married Luna, it was through union.
"Plot twist!" Jason muttered under his breath, his head banging from the aftereffects of the howl.
Luna looked furious. Before anyone could plead their case, two of the other werewolves had their throats ripped out in a blur of motion and spraying blood.
"Luna, we are following tradition!" The main werewolf — the same one who had clashed heads with Amarok earlier — growled, stepping forward with his chest puffed out.
Luna didn't say a word. She simply charged.
The fight that followed was brutal and fast. The main werewolf was no pushover. He met Luna's initial rush with raw power, blocking her first claw swipe and countering with a heavy shoulder check that sent her skidding back. Luna recovered instantly and slashed at his side, but he twisted and landed a solid punch to her ribs that made her grunt. They exchanged several more blows — claws grazing fur, fists thudding against muscle — neither fully committing to a kill yet. Luna seemed to be testing him, holding back just enough that the exchange dragged on longer than it should have.
But the moment Luna decided to get serious, the tone shifted completely. Her movements became sharper, faster, lethal. She stopped pulling punches. In one fluid motion she ducked under his swing, raked her claws deep across his throat, then drove her knee into his face with bone-crushing force. Before he could recover she was behind him, fangs sinking into the back of his neck. With a vicious shake she tore out a chunk of flesh and artery. The main werewolf dropped to one knee, blood pouring, but Luna finished it by driving her claws straight through his chest and into his heart.
He convulsed once and collapsed dead.
Luna stood over the body, chest heaving, blood dripping from her claws and muzzle. She slowly turned her gaze toward Jason and Ylva. The werewolves were killed in the blink of an eye.
Jason lowered his hands from his ears, the ringing still loud in his skull. His legs felt a little steadier thanks to the adaptation, but his mind was racing. He forced a weak, crooked smirk.
"Damn… family reunions hit different in this world," he muttered under his breath.
He still didn't know if Luna was here to save them or just clean up the mess — and with how casually these werewolves ended lives, he wasn't about to assume he was safe yet. His brain needed to keep working.
Jason collapsed but someone caught him before he could hit the ground, it was Ylva.
She didn't look at him because she didn't want him to get the wrong impression but she whispered under her breath.
"T-Thank you..."