The ground trembled violently, knocking over some shelves of books lining the wall of the room causing dust to fall onto their bodies. It's the Virah attack all right. If only I had left earlier than I originally planned.

"Come on!" shouted Rihan in desperation towards the Black Dog, "We have to get out of here! There're too many enemies outside."

He proceeded to hack the chain as strong as he could and still, the chain wouldn't budge. This stymied him for a few minutes before his gaze fell on the Black Dog.

The chain remained motionless until the beast lowered its head in defeat.

The black dog whined softly until finally, it let out a deep howl followed by a determined gaze that made Rihan realize she has resigned herself to her fate.

It is highly unlikely that any animal will break free from these bonds and it wasn't possible to free her and escape.

The little puppy next to him sniffed the air anxiously which drew his attention to the noise approaching from outside—the roaring of monstrous beasts accompanied by countless other screams.

There must be other people hiding inside the city besides the three of them.

The Black Dog licked the little puppy's face, who happily wagged her tail at the feeling of love coming from the dark canine, then stared back at Rihan with sad eyes filled with trust.

A sudden chill ran through his body; this creature was willing to sacrifice herself for her little puppy despite being chained like an animal!

"Let's go!" said Rihan firmly while patting her back with one hand while holding his dagger with another.

"I can still make it if you jump onto my shoulder and hold tight—" the pup hesitated as she looked at him questioningly and didn't move a single muscle after waiting several seconds.

"What?" asked Rihan quizzically and began to panic since the puppy didn't seem to understand him.

He tried to repeat himself but failed to do so because the small dog turned around, walked up to the mother's collar, and nibbled on it.

The Black Dog opened her mouth wide, revealing rows of sharp fangs, before letting out a growl of warning, showing her anger clearly by baring her teeth against the unnerved child.

She reared its head threateningly in front of the pup making her stumble backward a few steps away from the chain.

The black beast showed no signs of backing down or moving from where she stood beside Rihan despite what happened; instead, it merely glared at the young puppy daring her to try to approach again.

The little puppy whimpered sadly and backed slowly.

"It's alright," Rihan reassured her, "I'll bring him out of here and make sure he survives." He petted both the black dog one final time before turning toward the wall that hid the exit from this room.

As soon as they heard the door smashed open, the Black Dog quickly put herself in between Rihan and the charging Virahs.

Sensing the danger, Rihan quickly grabbed the puppy by the scruff of her neck while running towards the exit opposite the entranceway with his dagger held high for protection.

The little puppy didn't fight back against his hold but he was keeping an eye on the battle outside while barking angrily at any Virah who dared to come near them—much like the mother.

However, there were too many enemies to deal with at once which caused some to break past the Black Dog's defensive perimeter to attack Rihan and the young puppy, only to have their heads cut clean off by the Black Dog.

However, it suffers injuries itself during the battle because of the large number of attackers coming after their life!

Despite all this, the black dog continued fighting until it could barely stand anymore; its strength started waning bit by bit causing it to stumble over its own feet.

Then the dog reared its head and roared so loud it sounded painful. Its black fur appeared matted; blood seeped out from its wounds even more noticeably now due to the strenuous effort and exertion.

But all the Virah's attention was drawn towards her instead. The red eyes look like they're ready to pounce at any moment and devour her whole.

Rihan and the Black Dog made eye contact briefly before she turned her attention toward the group attacking her from behind.

At first, Rihan thought that maybe she could handle this alone, however, when she dropped onto her side, she let out a pained growl, obviously suffering immense pain.

Blood dripped from the beast's mouth along with short moans of agony. There was nothing else they could do except to run, the puppy and himself.

The puppy whined as if telling him to turn back and save his mother; yet despite his desire to help her, Rihan refused to go against his survival instinct.

"I'm sorry!" cried Rihan while cradling the pup against his chest and holding his dagger tightly against his stomach, "I'm sorry!"

With one last desperate glance at the Black Dog, Rihan ran through the narrow passage leading outside into the wide street.

The sound of fierce battle filled the air, echoing throughout the streets.

***

The Grand Master's Room

The sound of the Black Dog's cries still rings in Rihan's ear as he held the black puppy in front of him.

A tear runs down his cheek from where a stinging sensation spreads to his entire body which causes him to shiver.

He stares blankly ahead unable to move from fear, worry, guilt—and above all—a sense of loss.

The little puppy looks up and lick's Rihan's nose gently then sniffed its surroundings curiously.

"Hehe, I'm alright little one," said Rihan quietly with a quivering voice.

The puppy suddenly took off to a corner near the door; it looked around nervously before sitting on its hind legs with its tail wagging quickly before looking towards the wall covered by the bookshelves that lined the walls.

Then it stared at the empty space behind the bookshelves for several seconds before running toward them as if searching for something.

Rihan followed the puppy's gaze only to find nothing there until finally, the small dog stopped at the spot between two bookcases and chewed hard on the shelf.

With his dagger, Rihan pried open both sides of the shelf making an opening big enough to fit inside.

He crawled into the hole without hesitation and saw what had caught the puppy's attention.

Several large sacks filled with rare cultivated herbs and high-ranked crystals were carefully placed within the hidden space behind the shelves.

The space was well hidden because it wasn't easy to find unless someone knew about this secret hiding place—like the little puppy.

As soon as Rihan saw those precious items, anger started to boil in his blood while shame fills his chest.

What kind of people are these!?

To be hiding in here when everyone else is suffering outside—especially during the Virah's wave.

They could've shared their treasures and resources but they chose to hoard them instead, even though others don't even have food or shelter left.

A tear dripped from the side of his eye as rage turns him furious. He wants to rip them apart slowly but he took a deep breath and survey everything first before deciding how to proceed.

With a firm hand, Rihan grab hold of an intricate bag that contained a small red crystal with a complex formation drawn; it must cost hundreds of gold coins to own one of these.

"Hmm, a low-grade holding bag. This will do," whispered Rihan to himself as the puppy sniffed around the floor, finding some scraps of meat which it devoured greedily.

Ignoring the puppy, Rihan placed a finger on the bag and his hand glowed softly for several seconds before the array on the surface of the bag rearranged itself.