Woof Woof Story ~I Said I Wanted To Be A Rich Person’s Dog, Not A Fenrir!~ - Chapter 49

Chapter 49: It’s a midnight snack! But there was actually an attack!

TL: kizen
ED: Filip/Gecko

It’s nighttime.
The Ojou-sama was sleeping peacefully after playing a lot during the day.
I quietly snuck out of the bed like a ninja.

「*mumble* ……Routaa~…… You can’t……」

Oops, did I wake her up?

「You can’t eat the fountain okay…… ufufu……」

I guess she was just talking in her sleep. Ojou-sama, I may eat a lot but eating a fountain is too much as expected.

I put the blanket back on her and quietly went out of the room.

I think it’s fine since all of the labyrinths have already been destroyed but I’ll be patrolling the fields again today just in case.
Those skeletons had a different feel to them after all.

It was like they had intelligence and someone ordered them to get Mea back. That’s why I definitely can’t say that those guys came from a labyrinth.

That necromancer guy the first skeleton mentioned……
If I remember correctly, I think someone with that title was in one of the stories that Ojou-sama had read.

It was about the hero defeating the Demon Lord Army, wasn’t it? I don’t really remember it that well, but I think there was someone like that written in there.

「Wafu…… (Eh? Isn’t that a bad thing then? I don’t think I’ll be able to handle someone on the level of a Demon Lord’s subordinate after all……」

I hope I’m just misunderstanding things.

「Chuー (Hmph, it’s just the likes of the Demon Lord’s subordinate. They don’t even reach the toes of my husband’s feet. You can just defeat such an insignificant opponent with a single bite you know?)」

Ren poked her face out from my fur and started spouting such stuff.

Well, I guess I could just have Ren defeat them when push comes to shove.
Our mentally weak rat is a physically strong dragon after all. I’ll just shove the responsibility to her when it gets dangerous.
Do your best, Ren. My pet life is resting on your shoulders.

「Kun kun (Hm? What’s this? Something smells good……)」

It’s meat. It’s the smell of meat-sama.
It seems to be well done and has a rich aroma that was completely different from the raw meat we had yesterday.

There was also a faint smell of liquor mixed into it.

It suddenly hit me.

「Wafu wafu! (This is…… It’s a sign of someone having a midnight snackー!)」

「Chuー (Oi, dear? Shouldn’t we be heading to the fields?)」

Mu, that’s right.
I can’t leave that matter along now that I think about it.

If that’s the case then there’s only one answer.

「Wafuu (You go on ahead)」

「C-chuー!? (W-what!?」

「Wafun (It’s fine, it’s fine. Nafra should already be there so you don’t have anything to be afraid of)」

「Chuー! (What am I!? A child who can’t go to the toilet in the middle of the night!? That’s not the problem heー Waー, my dear. Seriously, o-oiーー!)」

「Wafuー (Take care~)」

I opened the window and shook my head to drop Ren off.

「Chuー! Chuー! (My dearー! You will regret this when I get baaaaaackー!)」

Ren started yelling from the lawn but I just ignored her.
My mind was already preoccupied with the thought of tracing the origin of the smell after all.
This is the kind of smell I can’t resist, rather than the one that’s being produced by a labyrinth.

「Wafuー! (Here I goー! Midnight snack, here I come~!)」

There’s only one person I can think of that’s drinking at this time.

「Wafu wafun! (Papa-san~! Papa-san with the high uric levels~! If you don’t want Hecate to find out about this, you should share your midnight snack with me okay~?)」

I ran up the stairs and barked in front of Papa-san’s study.

After a while, the one who opened the door wasー

「You caught the scent of it already? Geez, you’re really quick when it comes to these things, aren’t you? Well, that’s a sharp nose for you I guess」

ー the old man James who had a bitter smile on his face.

Compared to his usual plain clothes, the black button shirt that he’s wearing suits him. He looks pretty wild with his shirt not buttoned all the way up.

「Wafu? (Huh? Is the old man having a late-night snack too?)」

「Well anyway, come in. It’s rare for us men to get together after all」

As I entered, I saw Papa-san sitting on the sofa of the study.

「Ooh, Routa. I knew you would come」

Papa-san who had a slightly flushed face, raised his glass to welcome me.

「Master, would you like some more?」

「Ah, gladly」

The old man put some ice in a tall, cylindrical glass then poured amber-colored liquor into it. After stirring the liquor and making sure that it’s completely cool, another liquid was added to it.

I can hear it bubbling so it’s probably sparkling water.
Finally, he added a lemon slice and once again mixed it with the stirrer.

He looks more like a bartender than a cook because of that. Well, maybe a veteran host would be more fitting.

「W-wafuu (Wait, that’s that thing you’d call a highball, isn’t it!? Me too! Give me one too, old man!)」

「Geez. You can drink too? Calm down a bit. Let me get a bowl since you’ll probably have an easier time drinking that way」

「Wafun (Hell yeah!)」

The old man also made me the same drink.
It looked like soup though since it was in a bowl but I’ll just ignore that. It’s good enough that I can drink it after all.

「Here you go, master」

「Ah, thanks. And James, you don’t need to use titles here. Can’t you just speak like how you used to back in the day」

「The other servants aren’t here but…… well…alright, Gandolph. Let’s let loose today then」

The two of them clinked their glasses together.

There were two suave-looking middle-aged men. It’s such a picturesque scene.1
I couldn’t really raise a toast along with them so I just shoved my face into the bowl.

*gulp gulp* Phewー.

「Wafuー (Tastyー. Instead of that harsh alcohol taste, it has more of a mellow and refreshing sensation as it passes through your throat. It’s a perfect mix ratio old man)」

「Here, make sure you eat the snacks as well. Wouldn’t want your stomach to hurt after all」

As he said that, he placed down a plate of thinly sliced meat.

「W-wafuu (T-this vibrant-colored meat, don’t tell me it’s……!?)」

「It’s roast beef. I got a hold of some pretty good meat after all. There’s not a lot since I just made some to try it out. The others don’t know about it yet so this’ll be our secret」

After saying that, the old man winked at me. Stop it~. I might fall for you, you know~?

「Hou, this is good. It doesn’t have a sauce but it still has a complete taste」

「While I was letting the meat rest, I soaked it in a marinade that was heated to the appropriate temperature. That’s usually done before cooking but the meat sucks in juices as it cools down so I’m just making use of that」

「*munch* *munch*! (T-tastyyyyyy!!! Or rather, what’s up with this tenderness!? It’s red meat but it melts in my mouth!)」

After that, with a child-like innocent smile, the old man started telling us more about how the meat was prepared.

「He he, that meat was cooked with the same sparkling water that was used to make that drink you know?」

「Wafuu (Eh, sparkling water can be used for cooking?)」

I only ate convenience store meals in my previous life so I don’t have any expertise in that field.

「The acidity of the sparkling water reacts with the proteins in the meat so soaking it there for half an hour before cooking tenderizes it. If you soak it in regular water after that, it will replenish the moisture that would evaporate during roasting ahead of time so you’ll end up with juicy meat 」

「Hou. I don’t know much about cooking but as expected of James. I haven’t seen a chef that’s as passionate about cooking as you. It’s a great loss for the king to lose someone of your caliber」

Did the old man get into trouble before coming to this mansion? I feel like I’ve heard about that somewhere before.

「Heh, I’m a chef and there will be people who need to eat no matter where you go. The guys at the royal court were just too stubborn. And besides, I’m having a lot more fun right now」

「That’s good then. Inviting you ended up being worthwhile」

「Well, if you didn’t help me out, I would have died before I got the chance to cook for anyone else in the first place」

After acting out a sword cutting off his head using his hand, the old man and Papa-san burst into laughter.

「Wafu…… (Oi oi……)」

That’s no laughing matter. You were almost executed you know?

「Speaking of executions, there was a time back then where you had come across terrible hardships just from stealing food」

「Ah, that was when you were doing your apprenticeship in that large store wasn’t it? The owner of that place really was an annoying idiot」

「That’s right. That came to mind recently. James stole all of the meat in stock while telling that pig to slim down a little」

「Well, I got caught right away though. I don’t know what would have happened to me if I wasn’t saved by Mariana-sama at that time」

「Well, if not for that incident, I probably wouldn’t have met my wife」

「How nostalgic. Mary-ojousama looks more and more like Mariana-sama every year. I’m sure that she’ll be an absolute beauty」

「……*sniffle* uuu… Mary would eventually be someone’s wife, wouldn’t she……?」

「Oi oi, don’t cry. That’s still a long ways off, right? Here, just drink it away. I’ll keep you company all night long today」

It’s the first time I’ve heard of someone called Mariana. It seems like she’s the Ojou-sama’s mother but I haven’t met her yet. If I had to guess from their conversation, she must have already passed away or something.

That must be why Ojou-sama’s the type to easily get lonely since she lost her mother at such a young age.
I’ll let her fluff me even more starting tomorrow.
That’s all that I can do for her as a pet.

「……mu? James, do you hear something?」

「Huh?」

Papa-san was sniveling at the thought of his daughter getting married when he suddenly looked up.

「It sounds like there’s something thumping in the distance…… See? There it goes again……」

「I can’t hear anything at all. You’re probably just drunk and imagining things」

「Y-yeah but I don’t think I’ve had that much to drink. I’m certain that I hear something though. It goes *thud* *thud*……」

Un, Papa-san is right.
I completely forgot about the fields.

It seems like those skeletons came today as well.
Looks like I’ll have to end this drinking party right here.
I need to leave before they start making a fuss about the noise.

While the two of them were looking puzzled, I left the room.
After closing the door with my tail, I jumped out of the second-floor window and over the mansion walls then ran straight towards the fields.

The sound of Ren’s tail hitting the ground got louder as I got closer and when I finally reached the placeー

「W-wafuuuuuuuuuuuu!!! (W-what’s thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiisss!?)」

There were countless skeletons that were illuminated by the moonlight.
From the look of things, their numbers would probably be equivalent to an army’s corps. 2

「Bahihiーn! (Monsters are scary… Monsters are scaaaaaaaaarryyyyyy!!!)」

You’re also a monster though.
I ran past the stables where Mea was panicking and went to Ren who was fighting that skeleton horde.

「Chuー! (You’re late my dear! Where the hell have you been?)」

Sorry ’bout that. I was participating in a gathering of men.

「Nyaー! (Ahー! Routa-san still has some traces of food on his mouthー! So unfair! You were enjoying a midnight snack by yourself while we were out here doing all the workー!)」

「W-wafuu (S-stop paying attention to me! In front of you! Look out!)」

「Nyafu? (Eh?)」

A skeleton approached Nafra who looked puzzled after hearing my warning.
Just before she was pierced by the skeleton’s rusty spear, I was able to hide her underneath me and protected her from the skeletons’ attacks.

「Wafuu (It doesn’t hurt, but getting attacked like this is still scary!)」

「Nyaー(Hawawa. Thank you, Routa-san)」

「Chuー (You bastard! What are you doing to my husband!)」

The weapon of the skeleton attacking us was swiped away and at the next moment, it was crushed under Ren’s tail.
Still, even though they were no match, they still had their numbers. We were gradually being overwhelmed.

「Chuー!!! (Tsk, so annoying!!!)」

Perhaps she realized that crushing them wasn’t doing anything, she started smacking them with her tail from the side.

However, although the skeletons that get hit get turned into dust, they start regenerating after a while.

They also still have their numbers advantage. Will our fighting strength really be enough?

「Chuー! (Hmph. No matter how many small fries gather, in the end, they are still small fries!)」

Ren climbed up my head and took a daunting pose as she said that.

「Wafuー (Phewー, as expected of Renー! So reliable!)」

Alright! You go for it, the most violent member of our family!

And if you’re wondering, Zenobia-chan’s in second place.
She’s probably fast asleep in the mansion right now though.
It’s a typical Zenobia-chan thing to always be useless during crucial moments like these so it can’t be helped.

「Chuー! (What are you saying! My dear, why aren’t you helping me out!?)」

「Nya~n (She’s right you know? Please use that amazing magic of yours to mow them all down!)」

「Wafuu! (Are you stupid!? If I do that, the fields and the forest would probably disappear! If that happens, the people in the mansion would definitely find out that there was a battle here!)」

What are you going to do if my pet life ends because of that?

「Wafu wafu! (Look at you Ren! You’re still able to handle this many without undoing your transformation except for your tail! Take care not to make too much of a racket with that okaーー)」

「Chu chuー! (Ooh, I forgot about that! My power would be doubled if I went back to my dragon form! I shall just burn them all down quickly with my incineration magic!)」

That’s the complete opposite of what I want you to do.

「Waoーn!! (Whoaー! Stop itー! You’ll burn the forest downー!!!)」

「GARORO！(Don’t get in the way my dear! I will burn these insects all at once!!!)」

「Wan wan! (Stopー! Seriously, stopー! My pet life would completely go down the drainー!)」

While I was desperately trying to stop the muscle-brained dragon from going back to her true form, I saw black shadows jumping towards the skeletons.

The shadows who pushed down the skeletons and tore their heads off wereー

「Gauu! (Sorry we’re late, my king!)」

ーthe demon wolves that were led by Garo.

「Wan! (Ooh, you guys came!)」

「Gau! (Naturally my lord! We would immediately run to where our king is! We won’t make the same mistake as the one from the other day twice!)」

Matching the might of the skeleton army, the demon wolves rushed forward one after the other.

「Wan wan! (Be careful! These guys will keep coming back as long as their mana source doesn’t get cut! Keep that in mind when trying to defeat them!)」

「Gau gau! (Hear that everyone!? The king is expecting the total annihilation of the enemy! Kill, kill, and kill them some more!)」

No, I don’t remember saying anything that dangerous though……

「「「Gau gau gau!! (Kill! Kill! Kill!)))」」」

The Demon Wolves who raised their war cry pushed the skeletons back.

Uwaa, how reliable… You guys are so reliable my pee’s gonna leak out.

Wolves who are showing their fangs with the bridge of their noses wrinkling are very scary.

Still, this is no time to be scared since there is something I need to confirm.

「Wan wan! (Hey, Garo! All of the labyrinths in the forest have been destroyed right!?)」

A skeleton attacked me as I asked that and while it was off balance from having its sickle bounce off my fur, Garo bit it’s head off.

「Gau! (Yes, there’s no mistaking it! The number of hysterical monsters in the forest had already decreased!)」

There’s no mistaking it then.
It’s that necromancer guy that’s behind all of this.

「Wan wan! (Alright, everyone! Please defeat these guys! Do it before everyone in the mansion notices!)」

「「「Gau! (As you will!)」」」

With the help of the demon wolves who were masters of hunting, we were somehow able to repel the skeletons.

Now then, it’s time for the counterattack (´・ω・｀)