How to Raise a Dumb Wolf - Chapter 28

Watching Les press his forehead against the girl’s with a perfectly expressionless face, even as affection practically overflowed from his fur, Pal could hardly bear to look.

It was so unfair. Les could take advantage of the fact that no one knew he was beastfolk and let a girl hold him so intimately, while Pal had nothing but a sign to embrace. He felt utterly superfluous, as though he could vanish on the spot and his cousin would not even notice.

Unfortunately, Pal could not vanish. He was still responsible for settling in the new student—namely, the girl in front of him and the wolf beside her. Somehow, that only made the situation more miserable.

Pal silently looked away and awkwardly ran a hand through his unruly black curls.

After discovering that the giant wolf really responded to the name Les—and seemed both familiar with it and very fond of it—Aisha could not resist calling him several more times. The way his entire body immediately went taut every time struck her as adorable. Three or four minutes passed before she realized she had become so absorbed that she might be keeping the reception officer from helping the next candidate. She quickly rose from the ground, though her hand remained resting naturally against Les.

After a pause, she flushed with embarrassment. “Um… I’m sorry. I lost track of the time.”

“No, no, it’s fine. There aren’t many students arriving this early anyway.”

Pal waved both hands repeatedly. He glanced at the large clock in the distance. The hour hand still pointed to nine in the morning. This ship had indeed arrived quite early; most students generally came in the afternoon. Besides, the girl had not delayed him for very long, and in a certain sense, watching her interact with his cousin had greatly satisfied his curiosity.

Of course, from Pal’s perspective, even if she had dragged things out for two full hours, he probably would not have dared criticize her in front of Les if he valued his own safety.

Pal paused and extended a hand. “Then allow me to introduce myself properly. I’m Pal—Pal Paisla, a second-year student at Wold Warrior School. Today I’ll be taking you to your hotel and explaining the revised standards and content of this year’s examinations… No need to thank me.”

“H-hello!” Aisha shook his hand somewhat stiffly. “I’m Aisha Byrd.”

Out of habit, Aisha still used the surname she had always gone by. But there was another reason as well: she did not yet have the confidence to present herself as Tina Killott’s daughter.

Her mother was already extremely famous. Aisha had constantly overheard people discussing her aboard the ship. But unlike her brilliant and noble mother, Aisha knew that she still had the same temperament and habits she had developed while living in Philray. Even her basic etiquette could hardly be called polished. Her parents seemed to think she was perfectly fine as she was, and Aisha felt at ease at home. But here at the Heart of the World… she was still afraid that someone from one of the many peoples might find in her an excuse to mock or slander the gilded name of “Tina Killott.”

Tina had also worried that her identity might bring Aisha unnecessary trouble. All kinds of people lived at the Heart of the World, including many darkfolk. What if someone sought revenge through her daughter? In any case, both Aisha’s examination permit and registration form bore the name “Aisha Byrd.” Under Ryan’s dual-surname system, either surname was valid for official use. Compared with Tina, who was revered as an idol and even a symbol, Hock kept a far lower profile.

Pal took the permit and registration form, checked them, and found everything in order. He nodded, committed the information to memory, and led Aisha away.

…

“The examinations officially begin next Monday. Since the Tower of Magic and our warrior school are holding them jointly this year, there will be changes to the examination content. Several briefing sessions should be held beforehand to explain everything, so make sure you watch the notices. The briefings for mages will probably take place in the Tower of Magic’s lower public section. If you’re lucky that day, you might even run into one of the advanced mages coming or going… Oh, right. Which hotel did you reserve?”

Pal carried Aisha’s luggage with ease as he walked, reciting the examination information with practiced seriousness. This was part of his assignment, and he had memorized the entire explanation long ago.

Aisha quickly gave him the name of the hotel her parents had booked. Then, watching Pal unfold a map to find it, she could not help feeling guilty.

“I’m sorry… Um, are you sure it’s all right for you to come this far with me?”

Pal had been the only person at the harbor holding a sign to receive candidates. Aisha had found it strange at first. Only when she saw him rush off to find nearby classmates, hand them the sign, and ask them to take over his shift did she realize she had probably created extra work for him. She immediately grew nervous.

“…It’s fine.” Pal flashed her a sunny white smile. “After all, I need to help you make arrangements for this wolf, don’t I? Someone else probably wouldn’t know how to handle him as well as I do.”

Seeing that he was not impatient, Aisha relaxed. “I see… Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. It’s no trouble at all,” Pal replied naturally.

Yet although he smiled his way through the exchange, his thoughts were anything but calm.

When beastfolk maintained their beast forms, even other beastfolk found it difficult to distinguish them from ordinary animals as long as they avoided obviously human behavior. Likewise, in human form, unless they had an unusual hair, skin, or eye color—or chose to retain their ears and tail—they were difficult to tell apart from humans. As a soldier, Les would never make a novice mistake. In theory, he should be able to pass unnoticed in Wold without any trouble.

But… but…

How could Pal possibly let someone else deal with his cousin under these circumstances? What if another beastfolk recognized him? A soldier’s beast form was generally kept confidential, so few civilians were likely to know it, but they could not afford to be careless… especially when Les had a human girl beside him!

So many questions clawed at Pal’s mind that it felt as though a hundred rabbits were scratching around inside his skull. Yet he could not expose Les’s identity, and with Les standing right there, he dared not ask anything too direct. He had no choice but to endure the maddening curiosity, answering Aisha’s occasional questions while constantly analyzing every scrap of information her words revealed.

On the way from the harbor to the hotel, Pal suddenly remembered a piece of gossip he had heard from a friend in the army. Supposedly, General Salman himself had said that he had seen Les and his human girlfriend getting intimate on the grass, and that the scene had been extremely passionate.

Pal had not believed it at the time. His cousin handled a mountain of military business every day, and Pal had also heard that Les had been badly wounded during a special mission in Duke and was recuperating. When would he possibly have found time to meet a human girl?

But now…

What in the world was going on?!

Pal was dying of curiosity.

In the blink of an eye, the two people and one wolf arrived at the hotel.

Most schools in Wold did not arrange accommodation for examination candidates. However, countless hotels of every size surrounded the testing grounds. Where a candidate stayed depended entirely on their family’s means, and the better locations had to be reserved two or three months in advance.

That was why Pal could not help stopping short when he saw Aisha’s hotel.

The girl’s clothing and luggage were both so ordinary. He had never expected her to stay somewhere this luxurious…

Pal was secretly astonished. His birth was considered quite privileged among beastfolk, yet even he had not stayed somewhere this fine when he came to sit the entrance examination.

Aisha, meanwhile, was equally startled by the hotel her parents had booked. It stood almost directly opposite the Tower of Magic; the tower’s outer gardens were practically outside its door. Not only that, it rose several floors above the surrounding buildings. Though it could not compare with a landmark like the Tower of Magic, it was imposing enough in its own right.

“Shall we go in?” Pal asked hurriedly, afraid that if he remained stiff with shock any longer, he would look hopelessly provincial.

Aisha nodded quickly and followed him inside.

The Heart of the World lived up to its name. The hotel staff were perfectly accustomed to enormous creatures like Les. Once they confirmed the reservation, they simply handed over the room key.

Aisha’s room was on a fairly high floor, so Pal carried her luggage upstairs. The large trunk that Aisha could barely move looked weightless cradled in his powerful arms. She could not help gazing at him with admiration and surprise.

Even Pal flushed a little beneath the attention of a younger girl. Fortunately, his dark complexion hid most of it. He freed one hand to scratch his hair while the other continued to hold the trunk perfectly steady.

“This is nothing. I’m still a beastfolk with considerable combat strength, and I used to train in hand-to-hand combat. This much weight is no prob—”

The words caught abruptly in his throat when Les entered his field of vision.

Les had done nothing, and the pressure around him had not increased. But Pal suddenly came to his senses.

How could he chat so much with the woman his cousin was courting? What if Les grew jealous?! One glance at the two of them made it obvious Les had not yet spoken a single human word to Aisha…

He had to draw a clear boundary. Absolutely clear!

Enlightened at last, Pal hastily changed course.

“I’m really nothing special! My cousin Les is much stronger than I am! He could carry ten trunks like this all by himself! He could carry you and the trunk to the roof at the same time without any trouble!”

“Huh?”

Aisha froze. Having never had a romantic relationship with a man before, she could not help blushing when she was suddenly linked in such intimate terms with a complete stranger.

The skin beneath the giant wolf’s fur also grew hot. Les had no idea what Pal was trying to accomplish. He only felt awkward, yet at the same time… he found himself anticipating Aisha’s reaction.

As for the feat Pal had described, Les supposed he really could…

He drifted briefly into thought, remembering how little Aisha had weighed when he lifted her onto his back in Dimska.

Pal, however, was still making a desperate effort to continue.

“Les is only twenty, and he’s already a beastfolk major general—the youngest major general in history! He’s also extremely handsome! No family problems! No financial burdens! No bad habits! And most importantly… he has never had a girlfriend!”

Les: …

Pal’s intentions were far too obvious. Aisha gradually understood what he was doing and hurried to stop him.

“You don’t have to tell me so much about your cousin. I’ve never even met him. If I… um… ever want to fall in love, I’ll find someone myself. But I don’t have any plans for that right now.”

“…Oh.”

Pal wilted instantly. He carefully glanced back at Les and caught a flicker of disappointment in the giant wolf’s eyes.

Aisha noticed Pal’s expression and smiled helplessly.

It was not that she truly had no interest in romance. It simply felt strange to be forcibly introduced to a man she knew nothing about by someone she had only just met. And never mind that Aisha knew nothing about him—Major General Les Wolf probably knew nothing about her either. Perhaps he did not even realize his relative was trying to match him with a strange girl.

Besides…

As they walked, Aisha turned sideways and stroked the fur along the giant wolf’s neck.

She already knew a wolf named Les. Would it not be very strange to meet a beastfolk man with the same name? Especially when the wolf supposedly looked almost identical to the man’s beast form…

…

After Aisha refused to let Pal continue talking about his cousin Les Wolf, the atmosphere between them grew awkward, and the subject was abandoned. Fortunately, they were already close to Aisha’s floor. They reached the room amid the peculiar silence, and Pal carefully set her large trunk beside the bed. At last, she was settled in.

“Thank you,” Aisha said with a smile.

“Uh, you’re welcome.” Pal rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Rest for a few minutes. In a little while, I’ll show you around the Tower of Magic and the warrior school. We can also confirm the time of the next briefing and the location of your examination venue. Your examinations will be rather unusual this year… Oh, right…”

Though Pal was speaking to Aisha, his eyes drifted unconsciously toward the giant wolf beside her.

“When I bring you back around dusk, may I take Les out for a while? I need to show him which nearby forests he can hunt in. Uh… and let him exercise while we’re at it. Wolves need a walk every day.”

Aisha did not notice anything odd about him. After thinking it over, she said, “Why don’t I come with you?”

“What? No! There’s no need!” Pal jumped and rejected the idea in a panic. “You’ll definitely be tired when we come back, and you need to prepare for the examinations. It would be better to rest early. I can show you the route after your exams… Wait. Here’s the location of my dormitory. You can come find me there when the time comes.”

…He did have a point.

Aisha accepted the scrap of hotel notepaper Pal had torn off and stared at the dormitory address scrawled across it.

Indeed, if she failed the exam and had to return home, the only inconvenience would be asking Pal to take Les out this one time. And right now, she truly did need to save as much time as possible for studying.

With no reason left to insist, Aisha nodded in agreement.