Chapter 14 : Silver Wolf (3)

“Damn it.”

Knight Shane looked at the silver wolf before him with a tense expression.

It was rare for Shane, a knight recognized for his skills in the northern part of the Empire, to be this nervous.

Even when he fought against the barbarians who invaded the Empire in the past, Shane wasn’t this tense.

At that time, he had bravely led the charge against the barbarians, repelling them courageously.

The barbarians had even fled with their tails between their legs at the mere sight of Shane.

Yet, now Shane was nervous, facing a single wolf, not even a monster.

Of course, the silver wolf before him wasn’t ordinary.

The wolf emanated a mysterious aura, and its large size indicated it was undoubtedly a magical beast.

Even so, Shane could easily defeat it if he set his mind to it.

Even the Ice Trolls that inhabited the north weren’t a difficult match for Shane.

But that was only when Shane had no one to protect.

Right now, behind Shane stood a boy about ten years old.

This handsome boy, with snow-white skin and jet-black hair, was the heir to the Castarck family, who ruled the northern part of the Empire.

Carl Castarck.

The Castarck family wielded absolute power in the northern regions of the Empire.

The head of the Castarck family and Carl’s father, Gildein Castarck, was known as both the Protector of the North and the King of the North.

Thus, the boy Shane was currently protecting, Carl Castarck, was the young noble who would one day become the King of the North.

Protecting Carl safely was Shane’s duty.

There was no way Shane wouldn’t be tense.

If their opponent were a monster with low intelligence, like an ogre or troll, it would have been much easier.

Such monsters would charge until their death; Shane could simply cut off their heads to end the fight.

But the magical beast, the silver wolf before him, appeared to be quite intelligent.

Even ordinary wolves have the instinct to hunt their prey calmly, so there was no way this silver wolf would recklessly charge at Shane.

Even now, the silver wolf growled, glaring at Shane, but it was clear its attention was on Carl Castarck behind him.

Instinctively, the wolf seemed to think that it couldn’t defeat Shane but that the boy, Carl Castarck, was a more manageable target.

That was indeed the case, which made it hard for Shane to move easily.

The moment Shane took even a single step forward to attack, the silver wolf would leap over him and sink its teeth into Carl’s neck.

Then, it would run away quickly, fast enough that Shane wouldn’t be able to catch up.

“Young Master, you must never leave my side.”

Shane spoke to Carl while keeping his gaze fixed on the silver wolf.

The best-case scenario would be if the wolf backed off on its own, but that seemed unlikely.

Carl had already attacked the wolf.

Originally, Shane and Carl were on their way to the Imperial Capital.

They were going to attend Princess Illiana’s birthday party, which was to be held in a few days.

There were already rumors circulating in the Empire that Princess Illiana and Carl, the Grand Duke of the North, would marry in the future.

Both were still young, but with their striking looks and compatible status, everyone seemed to welcome the match—even the Emperor.

And most importantly, Princess Illiana had fallen head over heels for Carl. She had fallen for him at first sight when he visited the capital before.

So, Illiana had invited Carl to her birthday party this time.

No one would decline an invitation from the Princess.

Naturally, Carl headed to the capital, with Shane as his escort.

Shane was an excellent knight from the North but also Carl’s swordsmanship teacher, so it made sense for him to accompany Carl.

The journey had been uneventful.

Because of Carl’s high status, dozens of knights and soldiers accompanied him, leaving no gaps in their protection, aside from Shane.

However, Carl found the journey to the capital boring and expressed to Shane his desire to go hunting after arriving at the nearby city of Sierra.

He wanted to see firsthand what kinds of monsters inhabited the central forest of the Empire, as opposed to the northern mountains.

Moreover, he wanted to leave the other escorts in the city and go out with just Shane, arguing that traveling in a large group drew unnecessary attention and was cumbersome.

“Sir Shane is more than enough. The other knights and soldiers won’t be of much help anyway.”

Shane agreed with Carl to some extent.

Too many escorts would only draw more attention and make things complicated.

Shane alone was sufficient to protect Carl.

So, Carl and Shane left the city and entered the forest.

Shane had initially warned Carl.

He told him not to attack any monster or beast recklessly, no matter what they encountered.

Shane was confident he could handle most monsters, but there was always a chance something could go wrong.

It wouldn’t be too late to understand their opponent slowly before hunting.

But Carl ignored Shane’s warning and shot an arrow the moment he saw the silver wolf.

The silver wolf, which had been walking with a rabbit in its mouth, didn’t get hit by the arrow, but it seemed furious.

With a fierce roar, it attempted to attack Carl.

Thankfully, Shane drew his sword and blocked it just in time.

If his reaction had been even slightly slower, the silver wolf would have bitten Carl’s neck.

And now, they were stuck in a standoff.

Neither the silver wolf nor Shane moved recklessly.

“Damn it.”

Shane was regretting his decision.

If he had just brought one more knight or soldier, he wouldn’t have to worry about the silver wolf before him now.

If someone could protect Carl, Shane was confident he could plunge his sword into the wolf’s neck immediately.

“But in this situation…”

It was at that moment.

Something dropped between the silver wolf and Shane.

Thud.

With a light sound, a girl landed on the ground.

Shane broke into a cold sweat as he looked at the girl.

The girl’s approach had been so fast that Shane hadn’t even sensed her presence.

If she had been an assassin, Shane would have died without even realizing it.

The girl met Shane’s gaze, her silver hair fluttering.

She seemed to be around ten years old, about the same age as Carl, who was standing behind Shane.

But her eyes, calm and emotionless to the point of emptiness, were far too mature for her age.

Even Shane, who had faced countless trials on the battlefield, found it hard to discern the emotions in her indifferent eyes.

As the girl brushed her messy silver hair behind her ear, her pointed ears were revealed.

The girl was an elf.

Shane didn’t know how to interpret the situation.

He couldn’t tell if the elf girl was an ally or an enemy.

For now, the girl stood facing Shane with the wolf behind her.

Just as Shane was shielding Carl Castarck, the girl was shielding the wolf.

“Is that wolf… yours?”

Shane asked.

As he spoke, he noticed that the silver wolf and the girl had similar features. They both had silver hair and red eyes.

“It’s my wolf.”

The girl replied in a monotone voice that didn’t match her young age.

“Don’t bully it.”

Shane inwardly felt relieved at her words.

If the wolf’s owner had appeared, the situation could be resolved peacefully.

In any case, avoiding a fight was the best option for now.

“Understood. There seems to have been some misunderstanding with the wolf, but if you back off, we won’t think of attacking either.”

Shane sheathed his sword and straightened his posture.

“I am Shane, a knight serving the Castarck family in the North. And the person behind me is the heir of the Castarck family…”

Before Shane could finish his introduction,

The girl turned away and started petting the wolf’s jaw while standing on tiptoe.

“Ahem…”

Feeling awkward, Shane cleared his throat and spoke to Carl, who was standing behind him.

“Young Master, perhaps it would be best to return to the city for today…”

At that moment, Carl stepped beside Shane and shouted at the elf girl.

“Hey, Elf! How dare you! Do you know who you are ignoring? I am Carl Castarck, the Grand Duke of the North! State your name and show your respect immediately!”

Shane’s eyes widened in surprise.

It was rare for Carl, usually a bit arrogant but always cautious and careful, to shout at a stranger like this.

The elf girl, however, did not react much to Carl’s outburst.

If anything, she glanced at Carl with a disinterested expression, as if to say, “Why is this dog barking?”

Then, she gracefully leaped onto the wolf’s back.

A small smile crept onto her lips.

“Hey! Elf!”

Carl grew even more furious at her smile.

“Get off the wolf at once! Can’t you hear me speaking? Such insolence!”

If this were the city and the opponent were just a merchant, Carl’s status would have been enough.

The person would have immediately bowed their head to Carl.

But this was the forest, and the opponent was an elf.

An elf, a creature of the forest, would hardly care about Carl’s status.

The elf girl gently patted the wolf’s head as if it were

very dear and whispered,

“Let’s go, Ghost.”

With that, the wolf, carrying the girl, kicked off the ground and dashed deeper into the forest.

Shane and Carl could only stand there, dumbfounded, staring in the direction where the wolf had disappeared.