How to Raise a Dumb Wolf - Chapter 84

They had discussed making their relationship public before.

There was no need to hide it in Wold, nor to announce it with great fanfare. If they continued behaving as they did now, the people around them would naturally notice. Only their closest friends needed to be told directly.

For Aisha, therefore, “making it public” primarily meant telling her parents.

She had no intention of carrying on a secret romance. That would be unfair to Les, who had already spent far too long hidden in her room. Aisha also believed her parents deserved a clear understanding of her feelings and that she should not conceal them.

Even so, asking Les to face Tina and Hock immediately as her boyfriend would have been far too fast and placed enormous pressure upon him. Aisha therefore calculated how long he would remain in the Helman Federation. Admittedly, one reason she made the calculation was that she desperately wanted to know when he would return.

Only when she believed he had probably left Helman did she send the letter with great anxiety.

Naturally, she could not be entirely confident in her estimate. Otherwise, she would not have been so surprised and delighted when Les appeared outside the Tower of Magic.

After a pause, Aisha asked carefully, “I wasn’t completely certain I had avoided the timing. How did things go on your side? Did you meet my parents? How did they react?”

She looked extremely nervous. Les squeezed her hand and recalled his time in Ryan.

“They probably didn’t know then,” he answered truthfully. After thinking, he continued, “But they were very kind to me.”

Even Les could not remain entirely calm when facing Aisha’s parents under his true identity. Before, he had always appeared to them as a giant wolf. Meeting Tina Killott and Hock for the first time as Major General Wolf inevitably left him even stiffer than usual.

Fortunately, Tina and Hock did not seem to mind his unnatural manner. They even spoke with him about casual subjects, which left Les both honored and overwhelmed. Hearing Tina discuss “the wolf her daughter kept” had admittedly been rather awkward.

“I see. That’s good.”

Aisha finally released a breath.

She did not understand why telling her parents about the relationship worried her so much. Her mother had already given her what amounted to a pass when she said Aisha should date if she wished. Even so, the thought of revealing her love life still frightened her—especially when it came to Tina.

Aisha did not know where the feeling originated. Perhaps Tina sometimes continued to care for her as though she were a child, and might change her mind and decide that an adult man was too dangerous. Or perhaps it was something else. Whatever the reason, Aisha was uneasy, and she feared her mother’s reaction more than her father’s.

Still…

Surely it would be all right.

Aisha considered the matter and smiled. No matter what happened, Tina and Hock could hardly rush from the Helman Federation to Wold. Even if they wished to come, high-ranking Federation officials could not easily obtain enough leave to travel abroad.

If her parents truly became angry that she was dating a beastfolk man, they would have plenty of time to digest the news and calm down.

Once Eric completed the Tower of Magic examinations, he was supposed to teach her communication magic. She could contact her parents promptly then and confirm that everything was all right.

Aisha remained optimistic.

With the issue of her parents settled in her mind, she looked back at Major General Wolf and began with a shy smile, “Um, Major General Wol—mm.”

The sudden kiss made Aisha blink in confusion. She instinctively glanced around.

At some point, their walk had carried them to the central square. Night had long since fallen. Between the hazy darkness and the passing crowds, no one noticed the lovers beneath the black shadows of the trees.

Relieved, Aisha looked back at Major General Wolf.

Even in the dark, she could reconstruct his expression from the outline of his face. Yet the intensity with which he watched her still startled her.

“My name…”

Les frowned faintly. Only now did he seem to realize that Aisha still addressed him as she had before learning his identity, when his human form inspired distance and fear. At that time, she had refused to call him Les because it happened to be the name of the wolf she kept.

There was no reason for that now. He wanted Aisha to behave intimately with him.

Still, asking for such a thing was embarrassing.

Forcing himself through the discomfort, Les said stiffly, “You should call me by my name. We are…”

“Lovers.”

At last, he managed to utter the word that made his heart race merely by being spoken.

“I understand.”

Aisha’s cheeks reddened without her noticing.

“…Les.”

His heart leaped.

“Aisha.”

They spoke each other’s names and met one another’s eyes, only to look away in flustered haste. Both found breathing suddenly difficult, while the air around them seemed to grow warmer.

Their relationship was still new. Fully adjusting to this life would require time.

…

It would have been best if they managed before a certain furious mother arrived.

More than half a month passed in the blink of an eye, and the mage examinations approached their conclusion. The day came for Eric to accept the practical challenge of Frey, the mage who occupied the eighth floor of the Tower of Magic’s upper section.

Because Eric had once again declined to challenge Claudia, the confrontation between the Tower’s second- and third-ranked mages would be the highest-level battle of the year. Spectators with tickets packed the Tower of Magic’s small arena.

The private arena was not intended to make a profit and offered very few seats, yet countless mages and ordinary spectators were willing to squeeze inside.

Aisha did not need to join them. As Eric’s student, she could remain backstage and assist him if anything went wrong. But the privileged position only made her nervous, even though she was not the one about to fight—especially because Thorne had his own event and Aisha sat alone in the student section.

“Teacher… aren’t you nervous at all?” she could not help asking as Eric calmly inspected his wand beside her.

According to Thorne, Frey challenged Eric every year. Before Eric reached the ninth floor, Frey had long been considered second only to Claudia among advanced mages. He held the floor below hers for more than ten years and confidently challenged her every year. He was unquestionably powerful.

Eric’s victory over him had shocked countless people, probably including Frey himself. From then on, Frey loathed Eric and attacked him with the same annual determination he had once directed toward Claudia. He had not yet succeeded.

Aisha did not know how Eric had won in previous years. This year, every category except combat magic was already complete. Frey trailed Eric slightly overall, but the margin remained narrow. As far as Aisha knew, combat spells were not Eric’s specialty, while Frey was highly accomplished in them.

Perhaps reading her thoughts, Eric gave her a cool glance.

“What is there to be nervous about? Only someone capable of defeating an opponent with his weakest skills is qualified to teach students. Don’t worry. I’ll finish shortly. If you become bored…”

Eric looked around, tore a sheet from a nearby stack, and used his wand to write a long series of incantations. He sketched a magic array without activating it, marked several important points, and handed the paper to Aisha.

“If you become bored, teach yourself this. At your current level, you should be able to learn it. I’ll examine you when the match ends.”

His tone was casual, as though this were the most natural arrangement in the world.

Aisha did not know whether to laugh or cry at her teacher wasting magical power just before a match. She accepted the sheet, glanced over it, and asked in surprise, “Is this communication magic?”

“Yes.”

Eric nodded.

“Haven’t you always wanted to contact your parents? The match is about to begin. I’m going.”

Aisha detected a peculiar stiffness when he said “your parents.” But by the time she looked up to examine his expression, Eric was already striding into the arena. His excessively thin frame made his magical robe look far too large, and only his back remained visible.

Across from him, Frey glared viciously. Although he was a scrawny middle-aged mage, he cracked his knuckles like a warrior, as though preparing to beat Eric to death with his wand.

The arena quickly came alive, and the practical duel began.

Aisha desperately wanted to watch, but she also had to deal with the assignment Eric had created on a whim. She was briefly overwhelmed. When Eric said he would examine her after the match, he truly meant it. And by asking her to teach herself a new spell during the duel, he had made his opinion perfectly clear: there was nothing worth watching.

Aisha disagreed. A battle between the mages of the ninth and eighth floors was not something one could witness easily.

Within seconds, the fight became ferocious. Both men chanted with extraordinary speed. A tremor of the lips and a motion of the wand were enough to summon blinding magical light. As flashes alternated between brilliance and darkness, Eric’s and Frey’s faces brightened and faded with them—one calm, the other fierce. Even the nature of their magic reflected their personalities.

Frey attacked without pause, but every spell shattered against Eric’s defenses like hail upon an iron roof. Nothing had any effect. Frey looked ready to curse him aloud.

He hated opponents who devoted everything to defense and refused to attack. Eric was like a turtle withdrawn entirely into its shell, impossible to handle. Worse still, one could never predict when such an opponent might thrust out his head and bite.

And since the opponent Frey hated most happened to be Eric, his fury nearly twisted his teeth crooked.

To Aisha, however, the defensive magic of an advanced mage at Eric’s level possessed enormous value. She was poor at offensive spells herself. Defensive magic shared certain principles with healing and was comparatively easier for her to learn.

The battle soon entered a stalemate. Eric would not attack, but Frey could not break through him. Victory remained uncertain.

Aisha looked up periodically to check the fight, then lowered her head and hurried through Eric’s assignment. Just as she finished memorizing every magical symbol, Eric abruptly dropped half his defenses.

Frey would never ignore such an opportunity. He gathered all his strength. His lips moved in a frantic blur as he hurled one enormous offensive spell after another at Eric without any regard for the cost of magic.

At that same instant, Eric stamped his foot. A magic array blazed to life beneath Frey.

Frey recoiled. The array was too large to evade. His eyes moved furiously as he analyzed Eric’s spell, while his lips raced through a counterspell. Within seconds, a second array appeared over Eric’s and erased it.

But the distraction sent Frey’s offensive magic off course, robbing it of the intended effect. By then, exhaustion was clearly overtaking him.

The battle turned. Frey struggled desperately as attacker and defender exchanged roles. In the end, one of Eric’s most ordinary offensive spells broke through Frey’s final defense and decided the outcome.

Combined with Eric’s slight lead in the other categories, the victory settled the challenge conclusively.

Only when cheers erupted through the arena did Aisha realize she had watched too intently and barely studied the communication spell. Panic seized her. She hurriedly lowered her head and tried to understand a little more.

But Eric was already standing before her.

“How is your communication magic?” he asked calmly.

Startled, Aisha shook her head instinctively.

Once she did, fear followed. Eric was always strict with them and particularly disliked incomplete or poor assignments. Admittedly, he had invented this task at the last moment, but…

After a pause, Eric said, “Don’t reject the possibility before trying. This isn’t a difficult spell. Have you memorized it? If you have, attempt it first.”

He guided her in the same slow voice as always, showing no sign that he had just finished a battle.

Aisha glanced toward the arena and happened to see Frey storm furiously into the opposite backstage area. She hurriedly closed her eyes, gathered her magic, and began reciting in silence.

She had indeed memorized the symbols, but she had not sorted out their relationships, much less learned to construct the array from them alone. Aisha could only feel her way forward by instinct, understanding as she chanted. Eric occasionally corrected a single syllable.

Several seconds later, heat suddenly touched the back of Aisha’s hand.

She opened her eyes. A silver-coin-sized array had appeared there and was turning slowly.

Eric nodded. “There. Now, speak the name of the person you wish to contact, and you can converse. It is best to use the spell when the other person is free to talk. Also, communication magic can consume power rather quickly, which is why I did not teach it to you before. You should be capable of using it freely now, but you still need to exercise care.”

Aisha was overjoyed. She quickly agreed and stared happily at the rotating array.

With communication magic, speaking to her parents, Elizabeth, and Les would become far easier. Les no longer lived with her, and even seeing him every day did not feel like enough.

Eric saw her delight and said nothing more. He inclined his head and left.

Aisha watched the array for several more seconds before remembering that someone was waiting outside the Tower. She hastily gathered her things, rose, and raced through the doors.

As expected, Les already stood in their usual meeting place. At the sight of the familiar, tall beastfolk figure, Aisha smiled without noticing. She waved from far away and ran to him.

They naturally embraced and kissed in greeting.

The kiss ended quickly. With his hands still around Aisha’s shoulders, Les asked in an ordinary tone, “Shall we… take a walk somewhere today?”

“Anywhere is fine.” Aisha smiled, then suddenly remembered something. “Oh, wait a moment.”

The half-completed array still turned on the back of her hand. Afraid of leaving Les waiting, she had run outside before testing it. Now she could hardly wait to try.

Aisha mentally reviewed her parents’ work schedules and decided her mother should be relatively free today. Without hesitation, she spoke the name “Tina Killott.”

The rotating array stopped abruptly and began to shine.

The small array flashed, plainly completing its activation.

Nervous and excited, Aisha said, “Mother, can you hear me?”

“…Aisha?”

The voice on the other side hesitated before responding.

“Yes, Mother, it’s me. I can use communication magic now.” Speaking to the back of her own hand suddenly felt peculiar, so Aisha moved closer to Les for reassurance and nestled into Major General Wolf’s arms. Only then did she continue, “This means I should be able to contact you often from now—”

“I can see that,” Tina interrupted.

For some reason, Aisha thought she heard a strange emotion in her mother’s voice.

She stared, unable to understand. “What?”

“I can see both of you. I can see you using the spell.”

Tina paused on the other side.

“Aisha, I’m already in Wold, near the Tower of Magic. Look to your right.”

What?

Aisha’s mind went blank. She turned instinctively and, sure enough, saw Tina standing about twenty meters (roughly 66 feet) away. Her expression remained difficult to make out at that distance. When Tina noticed Aisha looking, she waved and strode toward them.

She crossed the distance with astonishing speed. Somehow, Aisha found herself whisked out of Major General Wolf’s arms. After their customary embrace, Tina swiftly placed Aisha behind her.

She gave Major General Wolf an excessively friendly smile and greeted him with equally excessive warmth.

“Major General Les Wolf. We meet again.”