They heard another howl from the forested mountain above and it sounded a bit closer now. Not close enough for them to be on guard, but close enough for them to pick up their pace again. Had the wolf noticed them earlier? He couldn't say, it's possible, but if it had actually seen them it definitely would have attacked by now. Maybe the wind carried their scent but it's not actually sure where they were yet?

Either way they need to get to the clearing below before it does catch up. At least in the open they'll be able to see it coming. Plus they don't know what kind of wolf creature it is so the forested areas or rocks could hide it from view before they even know it's near.

When they finally made it to the gates they were stopped by the guardsmen. They aimed their arrows down at them and demanded to know who they were and what their business was. They explained who they were and why the both of them were there. The guards obviously asked about Leo and that was a little harder to explain, but they seemed to understand.

Just as they were about to raise the gates for them they all shifted their weapons behind them. Knowing what that meant they pushed Leo towards the gate and spun around drawing their swords. The wolf was still kind of far away from them, but they still heard its growl when seeing their weapons. It's a Shadow Wolf, a creature that can actually move within shadows. He's actually glad it didn't catch up to them sooner. With the shadows all around them in the mountains it most definitely would have caught them off guard.

The Guards at the gate opened fire and knowing it was capable of dodging all of them the two of them stayed on guard. Once the dust settled it was even further away, but untouched by the arrows.

"Stay back children, A knight should be here soon to help," one of the guards yelled down from the wall.

Did they already forget who they were? They're about to be Knights in training, not just a couple of useless kids. Jax and Soran shared a look and nodded before slowly closing the distance between them and the wolf.

"Leo, on this I definitely need you to listen. Stay back, stay quiet and do not make any sudden moves," He said to the kid. He couldn't look away from the Wolf for even a second, but the fact Leo didn't respond told him that he understood him perfectly.

Soran and Jax slowly split off in order to flank it from both sides. He could easily surround it with fire to completely cut it off from the shadows. Which would weaken it significantly, but he doubted even then he could take it alone. Soran wouldn't be able to get through the fire like he could. Besides that, he was curious about what Soran could do. Soran was more or less on the same page as Jax, he wanted to show him what he could do and knew that Jax wouldn't be able to use his fire magic in this situation.

"Can you buy me a couple minutes? I'm going to use my explosives on it. When I'm ready you'll have to get back," Soran said and he nodded. He definitely wouldn't want to get caught in the middle of that. If it's just a couple of minutes he can definitely do that.

Physical attacks won't work on it, but with the light the bombs make it'll definitely cause some damage to it. He should also do what he can to slow it down too. As Soran got to work getting his bombs ready he lit his sword on fire and got the wolf's attention by moving in closer.

Those few short minutes seemed to stretch on forever as he and the wolf went back and forth. He even had a close call, where if he hadn't blocked it the wolf's claws would've torn into him. Then at last he heard Soran shout out to take cover. He hurried to put distance between them as he saw Soran throw something at the wolf's feet. He jumped into a slight ditch as he heard three explosions go off.

There wasn't much time to put a whole lot of distance between them so the explosions made his ears ring a little. Still he got back up and closed the distance once again. As the smoke and dust started to clear a little he saw Soran closing in as well.

While it was disoriented and trying to recover from the injuries the explosions caused they made their move. With each of them swinging their swords at different angles they managed to behead the creature in one fell swoop.

The both of them made their way back to Leo and the gates to Fagan.

"That was impressive. I've never seen anyone take down one of those large wolves like that so quickly, especially people who aren't even Knights yet," The Guard Captain said and motioned for his men to open the gate. It seemed like they were surprised by his order and took them a moment to start moving again.

It really wasn't that impressive honestly, that wasn't even really a fight. Without Soran's explosions to block its escape into the shadows he definitely believes they would've been in trouble. They're both just glad that worked out. Still, his ears were still ringing and it did manage to scratch him with its claws. He really needed to learn some long range pinpoint attacks. Right now he only knows wide range attacks and that won't do on a battlefield where he could potentially hit a fellow Knight. He definitely realized that in that fight just now.

As they stepped through the gate and it closed behind them a Knight came up to them. He seemed out of breath like he had run there from across town.

"I came as fast as I could when I heard there was a Shadow Wolf attack. To my surprise it was already over when I arrived. Thanks for your help, but can I ask for your hunting license?" The Knight asked them. They looked at each other knowing they were going to be in big trouble once he found out they don't actually have Hunting Licenses.

"They were hired by my family as my bodyguards. Both of them only fought to protect me. They have those licenses," Leo said, covering their backs. Jax just hoped Soran actually did have one too. Thankfully he did and they were able to smooth things over with the Knight. He'll definitely have to thank the kid later for his quick thinking.

"Anyway, we were expecting you both way sooner than this. We figured something might have happened to you on your journey. We're glad you're okay, though. It would've been a real pain to have to contact other towns, your families, and form a search party. Anyway, the chief has been waiting for you, follow me," The guard said.