Chapter 32
Chapter 32
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: The Wolf's Promise
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“Did Young Master Theodor wrap this bandage himself?”
Breina's question made Lara nod.
Breina carefully unwrapped the bandage. The treatment had been done well, but the knee, where the scar had barely started to fade, now bore a fresh blemish. Breina's heart ached as she spoke.
“How on earth did this happen...? It must have hurt so much.”
“I'm fine. It's just a minor wound.”
Though she said that, Lara felt terribly sorry for having unintentionally left bloodstains on Theodor's dazzling silver fur while climbing onto the back of the massive wolf he had become the day before.
When Lara dismounted from the wolf's back and belatedly noticed the marks, she panicked, not knowing what to do. In an instant, Theodor shifted to human form and slowly knelt before her.
‘...! I-It's fine...’
‘It hurts. Stay still.’
The sudden transformation from a massive wolf to human was shocking enough, but seeing him kneel before her was even more bewildering. Lara hesitated but didn't back away further at Theodor's words.
Theodor examined Lara's knee and then lifted her gently into his arms.
‘...!’
Carrying Lara back to the main building's office, Theodor sat her on the bed and bandaged her knee. Once again, he had lowered himself before her as she sat on the edge of the bed.
Lara silently gazed at Theodor for a long while, watching him kneel so casually for her sake.
It felt utterly strange.
Until now, Theodor had always kept a proper distance from Lara.
Lara, too, had never dared to approach him first. She liked Theodor, but she knew her place was too lowly to get close to someone like him.
He was noble, unlike her. She believed someone like herself could never draw near.
Aside from the rare faint smiles he gave when looking at her, the light pats on her head, or escorting her to and from the carriage, Theodor had never made any unnecessary physical contact with Lara.
And Lara soon realized that Theodor intensely disliked others approaching him at all.
That made her even more cautious. All she wanted was for Theodor not to find her displeasing. If he ever did, it would break her heart.
She thought that if she could just continue spending time with him like this, she would want for nothing.
So even when she desperately wanted to hold onto him, Lara couldn't even find her voice.
But now?
An inexplicable feeling washed over Lara.
The walls she had built herself to ensure Theodor would never come to hate her seemed ridiculous now. He had casually torn them down and approached her.
‘Your eyes are beautiful.’
‘As beautiful as you are.’
His words, spoken while staring straight into her eyes—eyes that others had pointed at as symbols of misfortune—had been the first to stir her hardened heart.
It was the same now. Theodor was always like this. And Lara always found herself utterly captivated by him.
A man with black hair and red eyes. No—a massive wolf with fur so white it dazzled, silver in the light.
Lara didn't care what Theodor was. Wolf, human, or something else entirely—it was all fine with her.
When a house-sized wolf appeared before her, Lara hadn't felt the slightest fear.
What terrified Lara had always been humans like herself. They tormented her relentlessly, wearing faces not so different from her own.
The Laden Director, the dorm supervisors, the orphanage children, the old noble who had tried to buy her.
‘No questions?’
Theodor, who had been silently treating Lara's knee, suddenly asked. Lara lifted her gaze.
What should she ask? About Theodor's true nature? Who that frightening man from earlier was? After much thought, Lara simply shook her head.
‘You look okay now, Theodor. That's a relief.’
To Lara's eyes, Theodor seemed fine now. He wasn't retreating to his lonely lair to suffer alone. At least not in this moment.
Theodor seemed to recognize that as well.
Her knee was wrapped neatly in clean white bandages. After laying Lara down on the bed and covering her with the blanket, Theodor spoke, noticing her anxious upward gaze.
‘I'll stay by your side until you fall asleep.’
‘...Really?’
‘Yes. I promise.’
His words melted away her tension, and sleep came flooding in. Her body, exhausted from roaming the estate for two straight days, sank heavily into the bed.
Theodor would keep his promise to her.
Undoubtedly...
‘...Good morning.’
When Lara opened her eyes, he was truly there by her side.
Lara loved Theodor's morning greeting more than anything.
‘Good morning to you too, Theodor.’
Theodor's lips seemed to curve into a faint smile at her quiet reply from beneath the covers.
“...So, Miss Lara, you must be careful for the time being. Understood?”
Lara, lost in reminiscence, belatedly nodded at Breina's urging.
It wasn't proper in front of Breina. Feeling she had made a mistake, Lara pulled herself together. Come to think of it...
“Breina, what about Rin...?”
Breina gave an awkward smile at Lara's question, having noticed Rin's absence.
“Rin's confined to her room for now. We're sorry for causing you worry, miss. And... thank you for trusting Rin.”
Breina conveyed her thanks on Rin's behalf.
Though the incident stemmed from Rin's beastkin instincts heightened by Moonlight and wasn't her true intent, the fact remained that she had intruded into the room of the lady she was meant to serve and touched her belongings. In ordinary circumstances, it would be unforgivable.
“I... I heard from Marsha that you brought Rin here for me.”
“Don't worry about that, miss. We'll find a new girl to attend you. Just give us a little time...”
“No, I like Rin. If you and Rin are okay with it, I'd love for her to stay with me.”
Lara mustered her courage and spoke first.
Since the incident, Rin's face had often come to mind—her terrified expression, her desperate denials. Lara had defended her because she saw herself in Rin.
Herself, trembling in fear and waiting desperately for forgiveness.
“But miss, even so...”
“I like Rin.”
Breina, struggling to respond to Lara's proposal, finally nodded.
“...Rin will be over the moon when she hears this. Thank you, miss.”
Lara smiled softly. That was a relief.
“Then I'll discuss this with Marsha. Please rest easy, miss.”
Breina left with a joyful heart, her mind filled with visions of Rin's delighted face.
...Though her head already ached thinking of all the ways to rein in Rin's excitement, it was happy news nonetheless.
After Moonlight passed, Theodor's condition was returning to normal faster than usual.
Theodor began investigating Lara's unique constitution from various angles—how it affected even beastkin who weren't wolfkin.
‘With so little known, it feels like stumbling blindly through a blizzard.’
Duke Theodor Diarc, visiting the Repalun imperial palace after leaving Aren territory for the first time in ages, drew all eyes upon him while exuding an icy aura.
Even the human emperor, encountering him after so long, paled slightly as he asked.
“Well, well, who might this be? Duke Diarc. What brings you to the palace...?”
This was the current head of Diarc, who rarely even attended important meetings.
It was their first meeting since the funeral of the previous head, Filos Diarc. Tension was inevitable.
Theodor offered a brief bow before the emperor.
“I come before His Imperial Majesty, Emperor of Repalun, on a personal matter.”
“I see. Then stay as long as you need.”
Theodor nodded without further words and soon vanished from the emperor's sight. The emperor's closest aide, who had been holding his tongue, now wore a face full of grievances.
“How can he not even exchange pleasantries? Your Majesty, Duke Diarc is far too willful. Even as head of Diarc...”
“It's easier that way. Keeping the five great houses at arm's length is wiser for the imperial family's future.”
The white-haired emperor chuckled dryly.
“Better if taboos remain unbroken.”
“Your Majesty...”
“Whichever side it may be.”
Provoking them into lingering at the capital would be riskier than letting each guard their own domain. It was a hard-earned lesson from their ancestors.
The minister grunted in response to the emperor's cryptic words, shot a glare in the direction Theodor had gone, and followed behind.
After his audience with the emperor, Theodor headed straight to the imperial library.
His ducal authority granted access even to the inner chambers, but despite investing considerable time, he found nothing of value. Nearly all books and records were gathered here, yet useful information was scarce.
“Theodor? That's you, right, Theodor?”
As Theodor turned to leave empty-handed, a familiar yet irritating voice called out.
Theodor scowled and looked at him.
“...Claude.”
Claude grinned broadly, his eyes sparkling with the thrill of discovery.