CH 12.7

“Lila!”

Lucas sniffed at the fetid odor tangled in her scent, and he became even more distraught.

The foul odor was an estrous agent. It was the kind used on animals, and it mingled with her scent.

Lucas ran frantically, followed by Theobald and the palace knights. No matter how hard they ran, they could not keep up with Lucas.

“What the hell, can he be human?”

The youngest knight asked his senior.

“Shut up and run, unless you want to die.”

The senior knight looked at the crown prince, who had a completely different expression than usual. His expression was uncharacteristic for a man who was always relaxed and commanding.

Lucas stopped in his tracks and looked down, his gaze quickly darting away because her scent was wafting strongly from this place.

And there it was. Staring at a rock stained with blood, Lucas felt his vision go black.

Theobald came up behind him, stunned by the complete loss of scent.

“Hhk, hhk. Where’s the lady?”

“…”

“Lucas!”

Theobald called fiercely when he didn’t answer.

Lucas didn’t hear him. He was desperate to find some sign of Lila.

Then he heard wolves howling. Not one or two, but several.

Lucas instinctively jumped. Hope filled him that if he followed the howls, he would find Lila.

Theobald moved with him. The knights felt a shiver run down their spines at the wolf’s howl.

As believers of Lupus, they do not attack wolves. They only worshipped it.

Running precariously over the edge of the cliff, Lucas spotted a pack of wolves.

Wolves of all colors surrounded something. Recognizing Lila at a glance, Lucas called out.

“Lila!”

Seeing her on the ground, stunned, Lucas felt a surge of heat that threatened to melt his brain.

“Duke!”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Lucas plunged into the ravine, a deep, narrow ravine that could kill him instantly.

Theobald watched in disbelief as Lucas cut through the water. His heart clenched at the sight of desperation.

He didn’t know why he should feel this way.

Lucas made it to the other side safely, and at the sound of the moon, he ran into the wolf pack.

The knights watched with trepidation. Though they revered wolves, they knew they were aggressive beasts.

They were understandably concerned for Lucas, who was unarmed.

But contrary to their fears, the wolf pack made way for Lucas.

“Lila!”

Lucas scooped Lila up from the ground. She was a mess, mangled and bleeding from the head.

As he removed his jacket and applied pressure, Lucas called out to her urgently.

“Wife, wife!”

He pressed his ear to her nose to check her breathing. Seeing that she was breathing, albeit faintly, Lucas gulped down the air that was stuck in his throat.

He put his ear to her heart and checked for a heartbeat. Tears welled up in his eyes as he listened to her throbbing heart.

A pack of wolves watched them for a moment, let out a few howls, then slipped away.

Lucas glanced at them for a moment. Then he remembered Lupus from his dream and whispered a small prayer.

“Dear Lupus, thank you…”

It was the first time he had ever truly thanked the god. With Lila in his arms, he was immobile for a long time.

Meanwhile, two knights crossed the water and approached them.

“Duke, we need to get her back to the palace.”

“We will help you.”

Theobald watched them anxiously from the other side, unable to tear his gaze away from the sight of Lucas carrying her to her feet.

His heart raced with a vague sense that something was going wrong.

Strange, wrong.

Unintelligible whispers chattered loudly in his ears.

“Let me carry her, Duke.”

The knight said, kneeling down, but Lucas didn’t listen.

“Move!”

With his arms wrapped tightly around Lila, Lucas stepped into the ravine. He glided across, undeterred by the rushing water.

“Move!”

Theobald shouted, pushing through the knight in front of them. Lucas gave him the briefest of glances.

“You…”

Lucas’s makeup-less face was covered in light freckles. Unable to tear his gaze away from his features, he rolled his eyes.

His red eyes were wide open. Theobald recognized the woman from his dreams and looked at her in disbelief.

The woman he had whispered love to and held in his arms was in Lucas’s arms, though she was covered in blood, unlike in his dreams. But he recognized her.

Something was wrong with this.

“I will make a formal complaint to the Imperial Court.”

Lucas gritted his teeth and snapped at Theobald.

“Rest…”

Pushing past Theobald and the knights who held out their hands to stop him, Lucas broke into another run.

He was in a hurry. He wanted to get her somewhere safe.

Lupus’s words to beware of the descendants of the black wolf came to mind.

He gritted his teeth, remembering the gray wolf’s words about never being taken away.

“You will never be taken from me.”