"Master."

"These are the finest among our pack's younger generation!"

After careful selection, the Direwolves leader presented eighteen of the strongest and youngest wolves to Damien.

Among them was Ranga from the original story, along with others not named in the novels.

Interestingly, the eighteen wolves consisted of nine males and nine females.

Damien had no intention of pairing them up.

Once monsters evolved, reproduction became difficult and could even endanger the parents' lives.

Of course, Damien wouldn't interfere with their freedom of choice.

They could pair up or remain single... it was up to the wolves.

"Including you, that's nineteen Direwolves."

Damien had his own plans. Unlike Rimuru's collective naming approach for the Direwolves, he chose a different method.

The eighteen wolves would represent the eighteen Pokémon types.

Each would inherit one type, forming their own tribes.

The Direwolves leader would serve as the overarching leader of the pack.

"From now on, you'll be called Hoshiga!"

Besides the leader, Hoshiga, the other eighteen Direwolves were named.

Males: Ranga, Shiroga, Iwaga, Hagane, Chiga, Raiga, Ryuga, Akuga, Tataga.

Females: Honooga, Haruga, Mega, Yureiga, Kokoroga, Koriga, Tsukiga, Hikaga, Dokuga.

Among them, Hoshiga inherited some of Damien's traits as a Star Dragon King descendant.

While unable to manipulate Stardusts, Hoshiga gained control over spacetime and starlight power.

With Hoshiga as the namesake, the entire Direwolves evolved into the StarDirewolves.

Beneath them, eighteen tribes were formed, named after their leaders, such as Star Ranga Wolves and Star FlameDirewolves.

"Hmm…"

After the naming, Damien immediately felt a massive drain of magicules.

For the first time, he experienced dizziness.

This was the consequence of rapid magicule depletion.

"Looks like I'll need to rest for a bit."

Damien hadn't expected to share Rimuru's experience. He quickly summoned Violet. "I'll leave the rest to you, Violet."

"Please rest well."

Without needing further words, Violet, in sync with Damien's thoughts, caught him as he collapsed into her arms.

"…"

This scene, however, sparked an inexplicable dissatisfaction in the Snow Empress.

She didn't understand what this feeling meant.

It was simply an irrepressible irritation in her heart.

"Who are you?"

The Snow Empress stepped forward, wary of the sudden appearance of this girl.

"Violet."

Violet replied calmly, "I am Damien's other half."

"!!!"

This sudden declaration left the Snow Empress and the nearby Ogres dumbfounded.

"Other half?"

"Isn't that the mistress?"

"What a bold claim."

"…"

"Nonsense!"

The Snow Empress snapped coldly, "I wasn't aware he had someone like you by his side."

Normally, the Snow Empress wasn't one to get angry easily.

But when it came to Damien's safety and some unfamiliar emotion she couldn't name, she couldn't tolerate Violet's reckless words.

"You can ask Damien about that."

"For now, shouldn't we focus on protecting him rather than arguing?"

Violet's words left the Snow Empress with no rebuttal.

With no choice, the Snow Empress stood guard nearby.

She protected Damien while keeping an eye on Violet, speculating about her identity.

Leaving aside the silent vigil of the Snow Empress and Violet, the changes in the Direwolves drew the attention of the hobgoblins, goblins, and Ogres.

The once-ordinary giant wolves, only slightly larger than typical beasts, now radiated bursts of colorful light.

Red, blue, green.

In an instant, the moonlit grasslands transformed into a dazzling stage under neon lights, leaving Sakurako and the others in awe.

[Individual evolution successful. Calculating total magicules of followers.]

[Calculation complete. As the namer, 15% of magicules are shared.]

[Acquired 900 magicules.]

[Individual evolution successful…]

[Acquired 950 magicules.]

[Acquired 1100 magicules.]

[Acquired…]

As the Direwolves evolved into the StarDirewolves, the power of the eighteen tribal leaders radiated outward.

The 500 wolves evolved into their corresponding tribes based on their affinities.

This naming had nearly depleted all of Damien's magicules.

A full 200,000 magicules were consumed in an instant.

In return, the nineteen wolves, including Hoshiga, evolved simultaneously.

Hoshiga gained the most, receiving over 50,000 magicules from Damien.

Even with Violet's backdoor discount, it still cost Damien 25,000 magicules.

Combined with his existing magicules, Hoshiga, the pack leader, leaped from C+ rank to high-tier A rank.

The remaining eighteen wolves each surpassed 14,000 magicules, becoming true A-rank monsters.

That was 180,000 magicules in total, reduced to 90,000 after the discount.

Due to their racial traits, the StarDirewolves was now classified as beastmen rather than mere wolves.

In the Cardinal World, beastmen could shift between beast and humanoid forms.

Hoshiga and the other eighteen leaders gained this ability.

Humanoid form, werewolf form, and their original giant wolf form.

They could freely choose their preferred lifestyle among these three states.

By this point, Damien's magicules had dropped from 145,000 to 30,000.

As for the remaining wolves, they were originally C-rank monsters, only reaching B- rank strength when acting as a pack due to their inherent traits.

Collective equals individual; individual equals collective.

This didn't mean 500 wolves could team up to defeat a single B- rank monster.

Rather, as their numbers grew, each wolf's strength increased from C-rank to B- rank.

Yes, 500 B- rank monsters.

That was the true terror of the Direwolves.

***

[1] Star Fang: Hoshiga, Storm Fang: Ranga, White Fang: Shiroga, Rock Fang: Iwaga, Steel Fang: Hagane, Earth Fang: Chiga, Thunder Fang: Raiga, Dragon Fang: Ryuga, Vile Fang: Akuga, Fight Fang: Tataga, Flame Fang: Honooga, Spring Fang: Haruga, Sprout Fang: Mega, Ghost Fang: Yureiga, Mind Fang: Kokoroga, Ice Fang: Koriga, Moon Fang: Tsukiga, Glow Fang: Hikaga, Veno Fang: Dokuga

***

Bonus Chapter:

100 Power Stones = 1 BC

300 Power Stones = 2 BC

500 Power Stones = 3 BC

700 Power Stones = 4 BC

1000 Power Stones = 5 BC

***

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