Chapter 126
Chapter 126
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 126
Chapter Title: The Full Moon Wolf Legend
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Nihil closed the last ancient tome. His head throbbed painfully.
Regular books had yielded nothing on the Moonwolf tribe. Instead, he'd gleaned a few scraps of information he suspected related to them—from a book he never would have imagined.
About My Husband Being a Werewolf
Had he skipped it based on the title alone, he would have left empty-handed. The book was none other than an essay by a woman married to a man from the ronin tribe.
It lacked any proper format, resembling a haphazard diary with dates jumbled out of order.
What caught Nihil's eye was a single page.
The Full Moon Wolf and the divine punishment. The wolf's death.
Ordinary legends and superstitions might seem absurd to most, but Nihil—having lived through incredibly long ages—knew that most were rooted in actual events. That was why he had to scour every ancient tome tied to such tales.
'We're screwed.'
Nihil rubbed his fatigued eyes, strained from poring over pages of dense text.
The Moonwolf tribe was extinct. Wiped out by divine punishment upon the entire race.
He didn't know the exact reason. He'd hoped to track them down for clues on awakening and perhaps some aid, but that was all for naught now. The bigger issue loomed after the puppy safely completed the Moonwolf awakening ritual.
Would a 'human' who had awakened as a Moonwolf still count as 'human' or as 'Moonwolf'?
Of course, awakening wouldn't strip away one's humanity. But if the gods classified the awakened puppy as Moonwolf by bloodline, divine punishment would surely descend upon that lineage.
'I need to block the puppy's awakening or delay it as much as possible.'
One couldn't trifle with the domain of the gods. A misstep could bring backlash upon them all.
The silver lining amid the misfortune: since the Moonwolf awakening depended on the amount of mana one possessed, it could be postponed more easily than expected.
He felt a twinge of guilt toward the puppy, but until he found a way to evade divine punishment, suppressing growth was the only option.
At that moment, presences approached from afar.
"I swear I saw something white."
"You dreaming? With magic arrays blanketing the place, nothing could slip in!"
"But..."
"Don't you know even a rat sets off alarms here? You dozed off on guard duty, huh? Man."
Nihil slipped out of the library leisurely, eavesdropping on the bickering guards.
'Damn it...'
Sir Evan chewed his lip. Each time his frail body swayed, he barely suppressed the urge to charge forward.
Not content with summoning the kids without warning, now a sudden sparring match? Since when did they even start sparring!'
It was clearly meant to humiliate him in front of the children. There was no chance of victory to begin with. Until one reached the level of reinforcing the body with aura, physique equaled power.
Especially for kids in the thick of growth spurts, not even adults.
Sir Evan squeezed his eyes shut. The gap in skill was vast, yet seeing him give his all was... heartbreaking.
Even amid it all, that damned snake flaunted leisure, pulling reckless stunts.
Thwack!Whirr!
His Highness ended up dropping his wooden sword and tumbling to the ground. The flung sword spun through the air before plummeting toward the Tesaurus Duke's head.
The duke, who looked relatively young for his age, casually snatched the spinning wooden sword and clicked his tongue.
The children began giggling at Lianus, who had lost his grip on the sword. The duke gazed down at him with utter disdain.
"To lack even the basics like this..."
"......"
At those words, His Highness—sprawled on the ground—hung his head low.
Sir Evan ground his teeth unwittingly.
He had never once glanced at our hardworking prince, and yet... dared to pass that kind of judgment...!
Rage boiled within him. He wanted to smash the back of that wretched duke's head right then, but he stood no chance against a Swordmaster.
'I want to grow stronger.'
If he were a Swordmaster, could His Highness have held his head high even a little?
"2nd Prince, start with practicing your grip on the sword..."
The duke's rebukes showed no sign of stopping. Just as Sir Evan steeled himself to intervene,
Clap clap clap clap!
"......?"
Turning at the sudden applause, he saw the leopard boy—who had snuck up unnoticed—bouncing around and clapping gleefully.
Already suspicious with his face shrouded in black cloth, the boy dashed toward the 1st Prince and snatched the wooden sword from his hand.
Then hurled it at the duke.
"......!"
Sir Evan flinched at Nihil's bold move. The wooden sword arced slowly but surely toward the duke.
Thwack.
The duke frowned at the incoming sword and lightly deflected it with the one in his grasp.
"What is the meaning of th—"
Clap clap clap clap!
Before the duke could finish, the leopard clapped again. He even flashed a thumbs-up.
The kids who had been snickering at His Highness blinked in confusion before cottoning on and joining in the applause. They figured currying favor with the duke was wise.
"As expected of the duke."
"So cool!"
"A Swordmaster's movements are just on another level!"
"......"
The children showered the duke with praise. The oppressive mood that had crushed the frail boy shifted to cheerful camaraderie. Even His Highness, deflated from dropping his sword, now stared wide-eyed at the scene.
The duke's expression, meanwhile, soured slightly. The children meant it as admiration, but to a Swordmaster, it felt like being reduced to a mere jester.
Sir Evan was genuinely impressed. So this was how one seized control of a situation. He resolved to learn from the leopard boy this time.
Thus, before the duke could speak, he yanked the boy by the scruff and bellowed,
"You brat! What if you'd hurt the duke, throwing a sword like that?!"
"......"
"My apologies, Duke. The playful child is young and unlearned, committing this rudeness."
"......"
Sir Evan gladly took the blame. Seeing the duke's constipated grimace nearly tugged a smile from him, so he bowed his head lower. Undeterred, the leopard flashed another thumbs-up at the duke before wriggling free and extending a hand to His Highness, still seated on the ground.
"Nil... when did you get here?"
"......"
Silent, Nihil clasped Lianus's hand and hauled him up as if pulling out a radish. Embarrassed at being caught sitting in the dirt, Lianus brushed the soil from his clothes.
'He saw it all, huh?'
He always seemed to show his friend his most shameful sides, and he hung his head unwittingly. His older brother was bigger, sure, but they were the same age and had trained for the same time—losing so easily stung his pride terribly.
"Watching again, I see."
Lawrence de Harpen approached Nihil then. Nihil ducked behind Lianus without engaging. Lawrence's brow furrowed ever so slightly—noticed only by Nihil.
"...Brother, what business do you have with my friend?"
Lianus hardened his expression protectively and stepped in front of Nihil. He was a bit scared, but thrilled that Nihil relied on him.
Lawrence smiled thinly.
"Isn't this a welcome for your playmate? Odd that I should speak to him?"
"...My friend is quite shy. I'd appreciate your consideration."
"Merely addressing him first is consideration enough."
"Consideration heedless of the other is no consideration—it's a burden."
Like ignorant largesse masquerading as generosity, when truly it's deception.
"......"
"......"
A strange tension flowed between Lianus and Lawrence. Lianus strained not to avert his eyes from Lawrence's, who responded by smiling even more deliberately at his brother's direct gaze.
"Lianus, occasions like today—casually mingling with such esteemed bloodlines—are rare. A fine day for your playmate to learn etiquette, no?"
"...Is it? I'm... not sure."
Lianus inadvertently flicked his eyes away from the piercing red stare. Sensing the battle of wills, the other children edged closer, flanking Lawrence and piling pressure on Lianus.
"Exactly. When else would a lowborn rub shoulders with such nobility?"
The red-haired boy spoke as if Lianus himself weren't noble, stepping forward to loom over him. It was Aiden, the Tesaurus heir.
He glanced at Nihil, then reached to yank the face cloth.
Smack!
Lianus boldly swatted the hand away. The lofty gaze terrified him, but he forced out words steadily.
"Even if of lowly station, he entered the palace as my guest. Basic courtesy, if nothing else."
"Ha?"
Aiden curled one lip in disbelief.
"Questioning my manners now? 2nd Prince, reflect on that lowborn's conduct first. Piggybacked into forbidden halls, no greeting, strutting arrogantly."
"...You lot didn't greet me either."
Giggling erupted at Lianus's timid retort.
"Aw~ Hurt we skipped greetings? Then accept one now. Paying respects to the 2nd Pri—"
"No."
As Aiden mocked with exaggerated flourish, Lianus cut him off sternly.
"I need no greeting from you. Nor in future. My friend owes you none either."
"......"
Aiden's brow twitched. Lianus whipped around to Nihil decisively.
"Nil, no need to greet them. Got it?"
Nod nod.
Nihil bobbed his head promptly, twisting Aiden's face further. Nihil found the children's power plays amusing and watched avidly from behind his mask.
Aiden's hand trembled as if to rise, but with eyes upon him, he refrained from folly. A shame—Sir Evan could have stepped in then.
A red-haired girl approached Nihil next—Aiden's sister, Camilla.
"Hey, why hide? Scared of us?"
"......"
"Why no answer? Mute?"
"......"
Nihil tugged Lianus's hem without replying.
"Ah..."
Lianus blanked a moment before recalling the mute excuse and stammered,
"Lady Camilla. My friend, uh, doesn't... can't speak."
Bad at lying, Lianus broke a sweat. Nihil squeezed his hand reassuringly and nodded to the kids, affirming it.
"Ha, can't talk, can't read... So you just park him beside you for monologues?"
Aiden sneered anew, setting off giggles.
"What's the difference from a pet?"
"White hair like some diseased stray he picked up?"
"Hiding an ugly face from illness, maybe."
"Ew, what if it's contagious?"
The kids whispered among themselves, edging back in disgust. Lianus nearly shouted at the insults to Nihil, but before he could,
Nihil darted forward.
"......?"
Puzzlement dawned on the children's faces just as
Nihil thrust both hands high into the air.
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