The mont the wolves charged, the Earth Sprite reacted.
A section of stone erupted from the ground directly in front of the ore deposit.
The lead wolf crashed into it.
The impact sent fragnts of rock flying.
The wolf stumbled.
But it didn't stop.
The creature quickly regained its footing and continued forward.
The other wolves split apart.
Instead of charging together, they spread out.
Ethan imdiately noticed the difference.
These wolves weren't mindless beasts.
They knew how to hunt.
The Fire Sprite attacked first.
A stream of sparks struck the nearest wolf.
The beast flinched.
Its fur darkened slightly.
But the damage was limited.
The wolf pushed forward.
The Water Sprite responded.
Several spheres of water slamd into the charging beast.
The ground beneath its feet turned muddy.
Its speed dropped imdiately.
At the sa mont, the Air Sprite descended from above.
A powerful gust struck the wolf's face.
The creature blinked repeatedly.
Its vision disrupted.
The Earth Sprite seized the opportunity.
Sharp stone spikes burst from the soil.
One clipped the wolf's shoulder.
The attack drew blood.
The first real injury of the battle.
The surrounding sprites surged forward.
Dozens of Elentless Sprites piled onto the distracted beast.
The wolf snarled furiously.
Several sprites were thrown aside.
Yet the assault slowed its advance.
Elsewhere, the remaining wolves reached the mining area.
One leapt directly toward a group of Elentless Sprites carrying ore.
The Fire Sprite imdiately intercepted.
A spark exploded against the wolf's muzzle.
The attack wasn't powerful.
But it was enough to redirect the leap.
The wolf landed awkwardly.
The Elentless Sprites escaped.
Ethan watched everything carefully.
Compared to the horned beast, the wolves were individually weaker.
The problem was their coordination.
They attacked from multiple angles.
They protected one another.
They adapted.
Several minutes passed.
Neither side gained a decisive advantage.
Then sothing unexpected happened.
One of the wolves reached an exposed section of ore.
Instead of attacking, it bit into the deposit.
A tallic glow spread through its body.
The creature's muscles visibly tensed.
Its claws dug deeper into the ground.
The glow lasted only a few seconds.
Yet when it moved again, it was noticeably faster.
Ethan's eyes widened.
The wolves weren't guarding the deposit.
They were using it.
Another wolf rushed toward the ore.
Then another.
The pattern beca obvious.
The deposit wasn't rely a resource.
It was helping them sohow.
The realization imdiately changed Ethan's priorities.
If the wolves continued reaching the ore, the battle would beco harder.
Much harder.
The Earth Sprite seed to reach the sa conclusion.
It slamd both hands into the ground.
Stone shifted.
A large section of the exposed deposit collapsed beneath layers of rock.
The wolves howled angrily.
Their access had been cut off.
The Fire Sprite let out an excited cry.
The remaining sprites surged forward.
Montum shifted.
For the first ti, the wolves began retreating.
Not fleeing.
Repositioning.
The lead wolf barked.
The pack imdiately regrouped.
Ethan frowned.
That level of coordination wasn't normal.
At least not compared to the other creatures he had encountered.
The wolves ford a loose circle around the clearing.
Watching.
Waiting.
Looking for weaknesses.
The battle paused.
Both sides stared at each other.
Neither willing to make the next move.
Then the Air Sprite suddenly cried out from above.
Ethan imdiately followed its gaze.
More movent.
Far beyond the trees.
Additional wolves.
Not six.
Not ten.
Dozens.
His expression hardened.
The earlier group hadn't been a hunting pack.
They had been scouts.
And now the rest of the population knew exactly where the sprites were.
The lead wolf slowly bared its fangs.
Its confidence had returned.
The forest around the clearing beca increasingly noisy.
Branches snapped.
Leaves rustled.
Shapes moved through the shadows.
More wolves erged every second.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Perhaps even more.
The Fire Sprite's excitent disappeared.
The Water Sprite tightened its grip on a water sphere.
The Earth Sprite stepped in front of the ore deposit.
The Air Sprite circled overhead nervously.
Ethan took a deep breath.
The objective of this expedition had never been to win a war.
It had been exploration.
Resource gathering.
Developnt.
And now he faced a decision.
Stay and fight.
Or secure the ore they had already collected and retreat.
The wolves continued appearing between the trees.
Their numbers growing with every passing mont.
And Ethan knew he needed to decide quickly.
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