Bite Me If You Don't Like It

"Attention, at ease, attention, forward march, one-two-one, one-two-one..." Waves of marching footsteps came from outside the window.

Alpha rubbed his eyes, looking lazy and disheveled. His open shirt revealed a fair yet sturdy chest, but the countless scars marring it made him look all the more savage. After fastening his clothes, putting on his leather armor, and washing up, he pushed open the wooden door. The sight before him changed Alpha's initial impression.

The soldiers were drilling on the crude training ground, their ranks as neat as blocks of tofu. Though the conditions were harsh and the equipment shabby, nothing could dampen their resolve. Sweat flew freely beneath the sunlight, while their resolute faces remained unshaken. Nearby targets were covered in arrows, yet the archers kept nocking arrows and drawing their bows. The swordsmen sparred with wooden swords, rising resolutely to continue training no matter how many times they were knocked down. The riders were armoring their warhorses, making their final preparations for the coming patrol.

"Did you sleep well, Alpha? This place is truly rough, so forgive any shortcomings in my hospitality." Adona walked over from afar in armor. Alpha replied, "I slept very well last night. This is much better than sleeping in the wilderness." Seeing Alpha staring at the soldiers training on the drill ground, Adona suddenly said, "Would you care to give it a try?" "Huh?" Alpha came back to himself and rubbed his hands awkwardly. "Wouldn't that be a bit inappropriate? I won't disrupt the soldiers' training, will I?" Adona smiled. "It's fine. They're almost done anyway. Come on, join them."

"Attention!" Seeing the lord arrive, the centurion shouted. "It's fine, everyone, relax. This is Sir Alpha. He wants to spar with you all," Adona suddenly changed his wording. "Hm?" Alpha immediately turned his head, his eyes full of shock. But seeing Adona's mischievous grin, he could only force a smile and say, "Hello, everyone. Please go easy on me." He assumed a martial stance.

The soldiers exchanged glances, none of them knowing what their lord was up to. When had this man appeared? Why did his outfit look so familiar? It seemed the werewolf who had arrived yesterday had dressed like this too. "I am Siso. Please instruct me, sir!" a young soldier called out loudly as he stepped forward.

The soldiers formed a large circle around Siso and Alpha. Both chose wooden swords. After saluting each other, they swiftly assumed their stances. Siso gripped his sword hilt with both hands and charged forward, bringing the wooden sword down in a direct overhead slash. Alpha also gripped his hilt with both hands, raising his sword to block. He bent his knees in an attempt to lessen the impact. Clang! The two wooden swords crashed together heavily, sending splinters flying.

Seeing that his first strike had failed, Siso slashed three times in succession, but he still could not break through Alpha's defense. He suddenly changed tactics. After his final high slash was blocked, he used the recoil to bring his wooden sword level and launched a horizontal cut—fast, precise, and vicious. But Alpha saw through it all. As Siso shifted his stance, Alpha thrust upward, driving the tip of his sword toward the guard of Siso's wooden blade. With a sharp twist, Siso's wooden sword flew from his hand...

Gasps rang out from the surrounding soldiers. "My apologies." Alpha withdrew his wooden sword and stood straight, looking at Siso. Siso could scarcely believe what had happened. In all of Sentinel Hill, his swordsmanship was among the best, yet he had actually been defeated. His face immediately flushed red. Glaring angrily at Alpha, he said, "Another round. That was only a warm-up." With that, he picked up his wooden sword again and pointed its tip directly at Alpha. Everyone's gaze turned back to Alpha.

Alpha looked at the flushed soldier before him, not knowing what to say. Feeling that things had gone a little too far, Adona stepped in to stop them. "Enough. Go eat breakfast. We still have patrols to make later. Everyone, disperse." Siso was dragged away by his companions as well.

Watching the soldiers disperse, Alpha said to Adona, "My lord, you've really put me in a difficult spot. Did you see that soldier's eyes? It was like he wanted to devour me. That's no way to establish authority." Adona patted Alpha on the shoulder and said indifferently, "I did want to establish authority over you, but who told you to be someone who fell from the sky? Still, you did manage to subdue those brats. Not bad." "You..." Alpha was left speechless.

In the council chamber, Alpha and Adona discussed the current situation after breakfast.

"If you ask me, the key to breaking the current deadlock is figuring out the Defias Brotherhood's present situation. Take care of them, and everything else will fall into place." Alpha bit into an apple as he spoke.

Adona took a sip from his coffee cup and sighed. "I know the Defias Brotherhood is the key, but their influence here is greater than either of us imagines. I'm not afraid of being laughed at—there are quite a few Defias lackeys even within Sentinel Hill. It's not that I don't want to act. It's that once I do, all our plans will be thrown into chaos."

After pondering for a long time, Alpha asked, "Then what are you planning to do? We can't just let them continue acting freely. Do you know where these people gather? Don't tell me you don't. You've been here so long—if you still don't know, then you've been lord for nothing." Adona shot Alpha a glare, thinking this man was truly petty. Wasn't it just because she had set him up once that morning? Still, she obediently answered, "According to my scouts' investigations, the place where all the thieves gather most often is Moonbrook. But that place is now a ghost town, filled with nothing but restless undead."

"Moonbrook, a ghost town. If you ask me, that's the perfect place for a crowd to gather and stir up trouble. From my experience, that will be our breakthrough." Alpha spoke solemnly. Adona, who was looking at the map, said disdainfully, "I know that place is definitely suspicious, but I don't have any spare troops to investigate it. Even if I send someone, I have no idea whether they might be Defias spies. Even if they aren't, the thieves there are familiar with all our faces. We wouldn't be able to learn anything if we went. Unless..." She stared at Alpha and slowed her voice. A bad feeling had just risen in Alpha's heart when she continued, "Unless you go. You only just arrived here, and hardly anyone knows you. Among the soldiers just now, they only know you as an adventurer with decent swordsmanship."

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I knew this wouldn't be good. Alpha cursed inwardly. Seeing the regret on Alpha's face, Adona immediately felt much better. As if remembering something else, she added, "Oh, right. The soldier who fought you earlier is called Siso. His swordsmanship is among the best here. Young men care about their pride. You defeated him in front of so many people, so... he won't let you off. Put away that expression like you want to eat me. Don't like it? Then come bite me. I'm the lord—who would I be afraid of? Hmph." The haughty lord abruptly shed her former calm demeanor, seeming like an entirely different person as she left the council chamber.

Alpha forcefully suppressed the urge to bite that person to death, silently reciting the Purifying Mind Technique again and again to drive away the anger in his heart. Watching Adona's departing back, he gritted his teeth and said, "Pray you never fall into my hands. When that day comes, I'll show you what darkness truly is." At the same time, he could not help but feel that only now did this lord truly regard him as a trusted confidant.

Over the following days, Alpha was either learning about Westfall's current situation and gathering intelligence on Moonbrook, or constantly accepting Siso's challenges.

"Sir Alpha, please instruct me." A wooden sword appeared before Alpha. Looking at the stubborn soldier in front of him, Alpha rubbed his faintly aching temple. "Siso, how many times has this been already? Can't you let me off? I surrender, all right? You win. You're better than me."

"Sir, please do not brush me off. Please instruct me." Siso was not swayed in the slightest by Alpha's words. Alpha's headache grew worse after hearing that, and in the end, he made a decision. "Come inside. I'll make sure you're fully convinced." He turned and entered the room. Siso hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and followed him in. Soon, sounds of banging and crashing came from inside, followed by a scream and the howl of some creature. "You've been driving me crazy these past few days, and you still come bother me every day! If I don't teach you a thorough lesson, you'll never know why the sky is so blue!" Bang! The house shook. Upstairs in the council chamber, the lord leisurely sipped her tea as she felt the tremor. "Have I been squeezing Alpha too hard these past few days? Is that why he's so irritable? Whatever. It wasn't easy to find someone to share my suffering. If I don't torment him, who will I torment? Prince Anduin really did have foresight. Looks like I can go back sooner after all. Hehe, this tea is quite good."