Wailing Wolf

"Ah, okay."

The young man took the girl's delicate hand and shoulder again, then focused all his attention on her pretty, picturesque face.

His gaze gradually went blank, and his awareness of his surroundings slowly faded. It was as though the reflection of that lovely face was all that remained in his eyes.

"Y-Your Highness, why are you staring...?"

Watched so intently by the person she admired, Anlìyà could not help lowering her head shyly, a crimson blush spreading from her cheeks all the way to her ears.

But after receiving no response for a long while, she raised her head in confusion, only to see the young man suddenly lead her into motion.

His steps abruptly became smooth and graceful. His strong arm naturally wrapped around her waist, and every movement and turn was perfectly timed.

Though confused at first, the girl was soon lost in the young man's beautiful black eyes, deep as the night sky.

Ah! His Highness was looking at me.

His Highness was only looking at me.

There was only me in His Highness's eyes! The girl seemed immersed in honey-sweet bliss. Her skirt fluttered with her steps, her golden hair gleamed in the firelight, and her smile was like the brightest star in the night sky.

Bright moonlight shone upon the dancing pair, and for that moment, it seemed as though the entire world had fallen still.

The villagers around the bonfire all stopped dancing, giving them ample space.

The young man and girl's dance was simply too splendid, and the villagers could not help cheering.

"Anlìyà is so beautiful! Gods above, if only she were my wife. I'd weave flower crowns for her for the rest of my life."

The young villager who had failed to find a dance partner earlier stared dreamily at the blue figure by the bonfire and blurted it out without thinking.

However, he soon felt his neck being viciously strangled.

"Fair, I need to talk to you. Come with me."

Berg dragged Fair into a nearby thicket, and soon, waves of beating and wailing could be heard from within.

As an attendant, he had a duty to prevent anyone from coveting his lord's woman, even verbally.

Besides, he had long found this brat unpleasant. He never farmed, picked fruit, or hunted, and spent every day shamelessly chasing after the village girls. He was as idle as the big yellow dog at the village entrance!

"Good, all good!"

Robert looked at his adopted daughter dancing with His Highness, then at Berg dragging Fair into the bushes. A trace of comfort and satisfaction appeared on his weathered face.

He felt that today was the happiest day of his life.

Just days ago, the taxes had troubled him so badly that his old head injury flared up, leaving him in splitting pain and unable to sleep all night. Yet now, he was so happy that he wondered whether this was some long, sweet dream. "God of Sun and Justice above, please bless this kindhearted prince. I offer You my humble and devout soul. Perhaps it is of no use to You, but it is all I have."

Gazing at the black figure beside the bonfire, Robert clasped his hands together and prayed to his god with unprecedented devotion.

When the dance finally ended, Xian gradually came back to his senses.

The girl he held around the waist before him was so shy that even the snow-white skin exposed beyond her dress had been dyed with a cherry-blossom pink blush.

Yet her limpid blue eyes still gazed at Xian dreamily, their shifting light utterly captivating.

Then Anlìyà slowly closed her eyes.

When a girl closed her eyes, she was asking you to kiss her.

Xian naturally understood that, so he slowly bent down and kissed the girl's petal-soft lips.

Meanwhile, elsewhere.

After weighing the pros and cons, Thorin Brook decided to temporarily abandon the tax collection task.

After handing the Clay Merchant Mills over to a trusted subordinate and ordering him to send Mills to the Slave Capital, Sauron Knight mounted his swift horse and rode without stopping toward his lord's castle.

After several hours of riding at full speed, Sauron Knight finally reached the heart of the Black Wolf Territory—Black Wolf Castle—when the moonlight was at its brightest.

"Uncle Sean, request an audience with my lord at once. I have critical intelligence to report!"

Sauron Knight leaped down from his horse and urgently shouted at the castle steward.

The old steward, who had lived for sixty years and had watched Sauron grow from a youth into a middle-aged man, had never seen him so anxious. He promptly summoned a maid and sent her to wake the lord, who had already retired for the night.

A moment later, in the castle's great hall.

A massive iron chandelier hung from the lofty ceiling, packed with candles that cast a soft glow through the gloom.

Swords, knives, and shields hung everywhere along the walls, symbols of the lord's extraordinary martial strength.

Above the central high seat hung an enormous banner bearing a black Wolf Head, the crest of the Hughes Family.

Sauron Knight stood quietly on the wolfskin carpet below the high seat, awaiting his lord's arrival. Two beautiful maids stood in attendance on either side of the seat.

Before long, a mature man who looked to be just over thirty entered the hall.

His features were sharply defined and deep-set, his dark green eyes bright and spirited. With his neatly trimmed beard, he looked like a refined gentleman.

However, he was exceptionally tall, a little over six feet three, with broad shoulders and thick arms. One look made it clear that he was a warrior hardened by long training.

The only flaw was that he wore neither an elegant black formal suit nor sturdy armor, but a loose red nightgown.

There were even several lip prints on his neck.

This greatly undermined the lord's dignity, but clearly neither of the two men in the hall cared about such details at the moment, and the two maids could hardly judge their master's dignity.

"My lord, I sincerely apologize for disturbing your Sweet Dreams."

Upon seeing him, Sauron Knight immediately dropped to one knee, bowing his proud head deeply.

"No matter. Coming to see you in my nightclothes is also a breach of etiquette on my part as your lord. We're even."

Karen Hughes, the master of the Black Wolf Territory and the renowned Wailing Wolf, stretched lazily, sat down in the high seat without ceremony, and accepted the red tea offered by a maid, taking a small sip.

Then, for some reason, a trace of gratitude appeared in his gaze as he looked at Sauron below.

At last, I don't have to do my marital duty.

"Sauron, judging by the time, you should not have finished collecting the taxes yet, correct?" Karen asked solemnly.

"Yes. Because the intelligence was too important, I took it upon myself to temporarily abandon the tax collection task you assigned."

Sauron raised his head and replied respectfully.

"I see." Karen's gaze gradually deepened, and he took another sip of tea.

He could not imagine what kind of intelligence could make Sauron abandon the tax collection, ride through the night, and even interrupt his sleep to report it without delay. Could there be another war in the kingdom? If so, that truly would be against his wishes. His beloved son had only just been born.

"Sauron, report."

"In Fruit Basket Village, I encountered a noble prince. His Status Blessing is—"

Bang! The sound of a teacup shattering rang out abruptly.

Please give me some monthly votes, everyone. Monthly votes are the most important thing during a new book's release period. I'm begging you. Thanks (ω)