62: Test before revelation (part 2)

Test before revelation (part 2)

It was impossible. Yet the sardonic expression on the wolf's face matched the sardonic words that Adela heard distinctly in a man's voice within her mind. 2

She pushed herself up and withdrew, her gaze fixed on the wolf's mouth which was shut tight. It evoked too vividly the nightmare in which Andreas had done the same to her.

'Now, you are frightened?'

As impossible as it seemed, Adela became certain that the wolf was speaking to her. She raised her hands with her palms facing the animal.

"Stay right where you are…"

The animal's face managed to convey a bored expression.

'I will give you a quick fact check, child. Physically speaking, you cannot outrun me, and mentally?' The wolf's chest rumbled with what seemed like a human chuckle. 'Let's just say that I was the one who woke you up earlier. Of course, I had to wait until that annoying brat finished his love declaration first before I show myself.'

The wolf's eyes followed Adela as she retreated with a more animalistic expression of exasperation.

'It would be wise of you to cling to someone like me instead of putting distance between us, I was handsomely rewarded for coming here, but I shall not tolerate this sort of insolence,'

She stopped when the wolf's haughtiness piqued her interest, evoking memories of nobles who had been offended in front of her.

"Did you say you were sent here?"

As the Lady patiently waited for the wolf to answer, she wondered if she had finally lost her mind. 

The wolf shifted into a sitting position with his hind legs tucked underneath his body and his front legs stretched out in front of it. His back was straight, his head held high, and his eyes locked onto Adela's as if he was asserting his dominance — he was in charge, and he expected the Lady to acknowledge that fact.

'The necklace around my neck is the sender's safety measure, he cannot hear my thoughts, however, your voice is being transferred to him as we speak,'

With her eyes closed, Adela experienced a mix of apprehension and appreciation as she finally recognized the sender's identity.

"Claude...Thank you," she said with pure gratitude. 

The wolf emitted another chuckle-like rumble from his chest before he spoke again, gesturing for her to climb up and cling to his fur.

'I must take you somewhere else to fully account for the price that was paid for my services,'

Adela hesitated, "What about your injury?" 

In a surprisingly human gesture, the animal let out a sigh.

'That was a test. Are you truly as innocent as you seem to be? Or are you just a little less sharp than your ancestors?' 

Ignoring the rude remark, Adela climbed onto the back of the huge white wolf, throwing her leg over its thick fur and settling herself into a secure position. Her hand gently patted the soft part below the fur, almost instinctively, as she would have done with her mare. 

She remembered her manners, "My name is Adela de Lanark. What can I call you?"

'We do not disclose our names,'

Accepting his eccentricity, she was just about to suggest the best route out of the manor when the wolf suddenly took off, catching her off guard.

Without a saddle, she clung to the wolf's fur with her hands and legs, struggling to adjust to the fluid movements that were far from the rhythmic ones of a horse. The wolf's body was much larger and bulkier than that of a horse, rendering her usual riding posture and balance completely useless.

It was nothing like galloping on a horse.

The wolf ran along unfamiliar routes, passing through fiefs owned by nobles instead of sticking to the main roads, but when those routes ended at the restored cottages on the eastern side of the forest, Adela's panic surged.

"Stop!" She urged, "Stop, stop, stop!" She grasped onto the wolf's fur and pulled hard as she would have done to stop her mare in case of an emergency.

The wolf came to a halt and turned its head towards Adela, growling in frustration. If it wasn't for the quick jerk that its lower back provided, Adela would have fallen off.

'Why are you pulling on my hair, woman?'

"You cannot enter that forest! You will burn!"

'Worried about losing precious information?' 

Adela's eyes stung.

"I just do not wish for the forest to claim another life..."

'Is that so?... Get down then,' he instructed.

She dismounted from the wolf's back. The enormous creature was three times her size, but the intense gaze of his gray eyes as his face came close to hers was not at all intimidating. He circled around her once then stopped when their eyes met again. 

'They have deceived you,' 

A defiant look marred Adela's pale face when the statement sounded like something Egon von Conradie would say.

'Contrary to what you have been told, a part of the enchanted sword of the Archduke was never buried in the forest. Even if it was, it would be inconsequential,'

Slowly shaking her head, Adela took two steps behind, almost stumbling in the process.

"Extremizer…I-It prevents shapeshifters from inhabiting the forest, Lanark is safe because of that," she stuttered and slurred.

'I have just told you that this was a lie,'

"No…" She took another shaky step back, "Father…"

'Don't tell me. Kaiser de Lanark would not deceive you?'

Unable to speak, she nodded. The agreement felt and looked bitter at the same time.

'Fathers, fathers,' his voice sang with a lilting tone in her mind, 'Guilty Fathers... Innocent sons and daughters...' he added cryptically as he rotated around her again, 'Humans run a shorter lifespan, but it is one long chain of misfortune, isn't it?'

Arguing with the animal would be futile, so Adela stared back silently. There was some truth behind his cynical statement, it made her uneasy.

'We do not have much time. Come with me,'

Her eyes drifted nervously towards the trees, and every fiber of her being screamed at her not to let the wolf step inside the forest.

'You are so convinced that Kaiser would not lie to you, is that why you still hesitate?'

"…Yes,"

'Well, the decision is yours, child. But be aware that if you choose to follow me, that path will inevitably lead to the destruction of your ideal world,'

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