How to Raise a Dumb Wolf - Chapter 74

At Tina’s words, Aisha’s face slowly turned red. The color spread rapidly from her cheeks to her neck and the roots of her ears until she was flushed all over.

She had deliberately avoided mentioning that Major General Wolf had confessed his feelings to her, since that was far too embarrassing. She never expected Tina to classify him as a suitor anyway. The realization startled her so badly that she sat frozen in place.

Tina laughed to herself for a while. Then she noticed that the precious daughter she had only recently had the chance to dote upon was blushing in silence. Something felt wrong. Her cheerful laughter became strained, then gradually faded away. She stared, frowned, and asked nervously, “Aisha, you don’t… like him, do you?”

The hands Aisha had clenched into fists on her lap jerked. She had no idea how to answer. Pressing her lips together, she said stiffly, “That person did say… that he liked me. But his identity is rather unusual, and the way he stayed around me was strange, so I thought it would be best to come home and confirm a few things.”

“Then you haven’t accepted him, right?”

“N-no, I haven’t.”

Aisha’s answer sounded strangely guilty, and her gaze flickered away. She did not understand why she instinctively avoided her mother’s eyes when she had not lied. Somehow, she simply felt as though she had not been entirely forthright.

Still, Tina relaxed dramatically once she received that confirmation. She released a long breath, surprised by how tense she had become in that brief moment when she had believed herself somewhat prepared for this.

After a pause, Tina smiled. “…Come to think of it, you really are old enough to fall in love now. Mm… I know you probably won’t be thinking of marriage so soon, but it still leaves me a little melancholy…”

She reached out to stroke Aisha’s hair. Embarrassed, Aisha lowered her head and meekly allowed herself to be petted.

“Ah, speaking of that, once you graduate, I should begin teaching you how to manage some of the family’s affairs.”

Tina spoke abruptly, then considered it and changed direction with a smile.

“Of course, you don’t need to think about all that yet. If there’s something you want to do, go and try it. And if there’s someone you like… you can try dating him.”

As she spoke, Tina silently brushed the plain white ring on her ring finger and smiled faintly. Aisha stared.

Tina had not said so outright, but this was the first time she had ever mentioned matters concerning “the family.” Aisha was Tina’s only child. By convention, she would one day inherit the title. Tina was a hereditary noble with her own fief, and although she did not live there, Aisha had seen her manage its affairs. Because Tina also worked for the Federation, she generally reviewed only the overall situation and the most important figures before assigning work to her vassals. Mrs. Maxon, the household steward, appeared to assist her as well.

Truthfully, Aisha had no confidence that she could handle such responsibilities. But Tina had never mentioned them before, and Aisha had not asked. Her studies were more important at present, so she had not looked that far ahead.

But now…

Before Aisha could decide how she ought to respond, Tina clapped her on the shoulder and said with her usual boldness, “As for that man… when you return to Wold, give him a proper answer as you would any suitor. For now, let’s go out. What would you like for dinner?”

Aisha paused, distractedly named a few dishes, then blinked and lowered her head in thought.

…

Tina seemed to believe that liking someone was simple: either you did or you did not. Even if Aisha could not make up her mind immediately, she still had a long time before returning to Wold and could use it to think.

What Tina did not realize was that the suitor Aisha had described was sitting motionless in their drawing room, anxiously awaiting her verdict.

The instant Aisha came downstairs, Les raised his head. He watched her uneasily, his tail swaying from side to side without his awareness.

“Then I’ll… take him to my room?” Aisha asked Tina.

Tina nodded with a smile and raised the long spear that had somehow appeared in her hand. “All right. I’m going out to stretch my muscles. Mrs. Maxon should call for you before dinner. I’ll see you then.”

“All right.”

After saying goodbye to her mother, Aisha turned and discovered that Les had already approached in silence. His long gray fur nearly brushed her, but he carefully kept a sliver of distance between them. He apparently meant to follow her to her room.

Aisha pressed her lips together in discomfort before walking down the corridor without a word.

There was no one nearby, but to be safe, she did not speak to Les immediately. A peculiar tension filled the silence as woman and wolf walked one behind the other, with only the soft sound of their footsteps around them.

At last, they reached Aisha’s bedroom. She opened the door and motioned for Les to enter first. Only after carefully checking that no servants were passing in either direction did she close the door and lock it with a click.

Then Aisha turned around—and jumped.

At some point, Major General Wolf had changed from his beast form into a man. He stood straight behind her in his customary military uniform. They were very close, and Les was so tall that Aisha was almost entirely enveloped by the beastfolk soldier’s shadow. His blue-gray eyes were fixed upon her with grave intensity. The emotions in that gaze were so complex and earnest that they inspired an instinctive trace of fear.

Aisha stared and unconsciously took a step back. Her back met the door. Only then did she realize there was nowhere left to retreat.

“…Aisha.”

After a pause, Les spoke in a hoarse voice.

He did not understand why he felt so restless. It was as though countless invisible sparks darted beneath his skin, impossible to catch and therefore all the more maddening. The agitation had begun the moment Aisha disappeared upstairs. The longer she remained in that room with Tina Killott, the more anxious he became. He had paced aimlessly around the drawing room to release the unease lodged somewhere within him, but it had done little good.

He discovered that whenever he could not see Aisha, anxiety gnawed at him. The thought that she might reject him brought an indescribable fear and pain. Les had believed that seeing her again would ease his emotions, but it had not. He wanted to move closer, yet did not know how.

After hesitating, he asked, “What… was the answer?”

“Mm…”

Aisha nodded. Behind her back, her fingers unconsciously twisted the fabric of her skirt.

“Mother thinks there shouldn’t be a problem with someone in your circumstances, so… I’m relieved. Don’t worry. I don’t think she noticed your identity…”

Aisha pressed her lips together. Unable to think of anything else to say, she let the sentence end there. Silence filled the room for several seconds. Les swallowed, then asked, “And your answer?”

“I…”

Aisha lowered her head, lacking the courage to meet Major General Wolf’s eyes.

She did like him.

She had already understood and confirmed that much. Had everything continued as it had before, Aisha believed they would naturally have become lovers. Only the accident with the white ribbon and Les’s confession had interrupted their smooth progress and tangled her feelings. If she set those factors aside, then she probably… still liked the man standing before her.

Her heart was pounding, and that was surely proof enough. If she did not express her feelings, he would never know. But if she did…

Aisha pressed her lips together and whispered, “I don’t…”

The words turned Les’s entire body cold in an instant. His heart almost stopped. Then, in the next second, the girl before him spoke words that rekindled all his hope—and made her so unbearably endearing that he nearly lost his mind over her.

“It isn’t that I don’t like you. It’s just…”

Admitting it was frightening. She had never experienced anything like this, never felt such a yearning to touch someone coupled with the instinct to flee. It seemed that once she said the words aloud, her life would change beyond recognition and could never return to what it had been. The hope and uncertainty drew her forward even as they terrified her. Accepting any profound change demanded courage.

Yet she no longer had an excuse to run.

Aisha’s face burned. She dared not look up and see what expression Major General Wolf wore. A second after speaking, she was no longer certain what she had said, or whether she had made herself clear at all. Her thoughts dissolved beneath the heat and the rising intimacy in the room.

Then she felt two burning hands settle around her waist and against her back. Startled, she instinctively tried to pull away.

“…Don’t. Don’t pull away from me.”

Major General Wolf’s pleading voice sounded beside her ear. The tension drained from Aisha’s body, and in the next instant she was pulled into a powerful embrace.

The muscles beneath Les’s uniform were even stronger than she had imagined. Every line of his body contained a restrained, explosive force. Yet he held her with care. One broad hand gripped her shoulder while the other encircled her waist, and he seemed to be desperately holding back his strength. They were so close that even so, the pressure hurt a little.

Against her nose, his uniform carried the familiar scent of wind, though now it seemed wilder than usual. She could also feel him trembling.

“…Don’t pull away,” Les repeated, his voice low and rough.

But she had already stopped trying to escape.

Still dazed and uneasy, Aisha blinked in confusion. She tried to lift her head to see his face.

Then the hand at her waist abruptly rose to cradle the back of her head. Before Aisha could react, he pressed her against the door and kissed her hard.

The back of her head struck the door with a dull thud, though it scarcely hurt. Rather than hitting the hard wood, she had landed against Major General Wolf’s broad palm, which absorbed most of the impact. His tall shadow engulfed her.

The kiss came without warning, like a sudden downpour that caught Aisha entirely unprepared.

She did not even have time to gasp before every sound was swallowed. The heat against her lips, tangled with panic and trembling, seized all her attention.

Fear, alarm, and dizziness surged through her at once. Somewhere among them was a faint sweetness, but her spinning head made it impossible to distinguish one sensation from another. She felt as though she had suddenly fallen into an unknown world.

It was her first real kiss.

At least, it was Aisha’s. Major General Wolf was less certain. After all, while he wore his beast form, she had unknowingly kissed him many times. To Les, those had been bittersweet moments too, precious romantic memories.

Still, he had no experience kissing in human form. Once his impulse carried him far enough to touch her lips, he was at a loss. He could only follow instinct and kiss her with all the force of his pent-up feelings.

Aisha clutched the fabric at his shoulders and squeezed her eyes shut. Inexperienced herself, she tried to follow his rough, clumsy kiss. Their bodies were pressed together, and the air between them heated rapidly. Her head spun for lack of breath, while sparks spread from every point where they touched. Unconsciously, she rose onto her toes and leaned toward him…