After the Black Moonlight’s "Death Escape" Failed [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 35

Chapter 35: The Wolf and the Whip-Wielder

◎ Do you want to treat your face first, or your legs? ◎

A “heat period,” just as the name implies.

Al understood what the word meant, but she had never imagined that one day it would have anything to do with her. Once she confirmed she hadn’t misheard the syllables, she almost lost control of her expression. Meanwhile, the gray wolf, blissfully ignorant, continued to chatter:

“Little Highness, you’re too small. You’ve probably only passed two full moons since your bloodline awakened. After the third full moon, once you’ve finished your heat and found a mate, you’ll be able to grow up…”

Before it could finish, Al silenced it with a swift paw to the mouth.

The gray wolf assumed it had said something wrong and didn’t dare struggle. In that moment of silence, two figures much taller and more upright than the guards walked toward the fence. It was Meg and Liz; their blonde hair was striking even under the dim courtyard lights.

“Seems like nothing’s happening… he probably just didn’t want to be tied up and howled a bit,” Liz said, yawning.

Meg silently inspected the fence and the hemp rope used to bind the wolf. She gave a curt “Mm” and said, “Let’s go.”

As they turned to leave, Liz began talking to her sister about the events of the morning. Hidden in the shadows, Al listened as Liz mentioned “the Prince” over and over, her claws ripping a chunk of sod out of the ground.

Seeing Liz get more excited, her eyes shining with light, Meg interrupted: “You should focus on your work instead of fantasizing about unrealistic things.”

“…” Liz went quiet for a second before muttering, “I know… but I really can’t help but care about Her Highness…”

As they walked away, their voices blurred into the wind. However, those few sentences were enough to turn Al’s expression grim, every hair on her body radiating a dangerous aura. But she had business to attend to and suppressed her impulses with logic.

Just as Al calmed down, the gray wolf spoke up indignantly: “Little Highness, that woman wants to steal your human.”

The wolf’s strange accent, a mix of various wolf dialects, made Al choke on her words, and her anger dissipated slightly. But then Al remembered that this wolf had insulted Jiao Qingyin during the day, and she barely resisted the urge to claw its mouth again.

Sensing Al’s ill intent, the gray wolf shrank its neck. Guided by a strange intuition to avoid landmines, it asked: “Little Highness, is that human your… Princess Consort?”

Al slanted a look at the gray wolf, who scrambled aside in fear. Al stared for a long time before subtly changing the subject. “The heat period—what are the specific symptoms?”

The gray wolf blinked, not understanding why Al asked such a basic question. To it, Al was just a tiny cub. It thought for a moment and replied:

“A heat period is a heat period! We are wolves; when it arrives, if we haven’t found a mate, it will be very painful.”

“Mate.” Al suddenly repeated the word.

“Mate”, the gray wolf echoed.

Al took a deep breath. A moment later, in the cold wind, she asked in a much softer voice: “What kind of… person can be called a mate?”

The gray wolf never expected to become an emotional mentor. It stuttered, “It’s… someone you can m-mate with, someone you can have cubs with…”

“If,” Al interrupted, “being with them makes you happy, seeing them close to others makes you angry, and you want to guard them for a lifetime… is that… wanting them to be your mate?”

“Of course”, the gray wolf said without hesitation. Wolves were loyal; such feelings meant that person was the wolf’s fated mate.

“Then, if they become a mate, can I… ahem.” Al coughed, unable to bring herself to say the word “mate” (as a verb).

The gray wolf was on a roll and understood immediately. It blurted out, “I heard from others that in this case, after snatching them home, you won’t be able to stop for several days and nights—”

Al pinned it to the grass with a paw to make it shut up. After a mouthful of mud, the gray wolf had a sudden realization: “Are you talking about your human?”

For once the wolf was smart, but it earned a fierce glare from Al and shrank back into a ball. How nice, the Little Highness is in love, the wolf thought secretly, missing its own lost partner.

Al felt the wolf’s emotions. It was a mysterious sensation; Al felt that if she wanted to, she could transmit orders directly into the gray wolf’s brain. She didn’t try, however. Instead, her ears burning, she jumped onto the fence and looked down.

The “window paper” she hadn’t been able to poke through was now completely shredded by this stranger’s words. Finally understanding her true feelings, Al felt uncharacteristically at a loss.

Having survived at the bottom of society, Al knew what “mating” was. She knew that if you liked something, you snatched it. She knew she liked Jiao Qingyin, but she had thought it was just possessiveness. She had never thought about… mating with her.

But once the thought took root, it spread like a wildfire. Memories of Jiao Qingyin’s pale back while bathing, her adjusting her garter, that single tear… Al felt hot all over.

She desperately wanted to see Jiao Qingyin. She turned to leave, but asked one last question: “Are you a regressed demi-human, or can you switch between human and wolf forms?”

The gray wolf looked up at her silvery fur. “My mother was human. I was a demi-human, but I turned into this recently and can’t change back. I don’t know much… but I know that after the heat period, many wolves gain ancestral memories. Does that help?”

Al gave a soft “Mm.”

“Behave lately. Don’t do anything extra. Act like you don’t know me… I will come for you later and arrange for your departure.”

Before the words finished, Al vanished.

Jiao Qingyin woke to a moist sensation on her cheek. She saw Al lying by her head, flattened like a pancake, her pink tongue sticking out in deep sleep. Jiao Qingyin reflexively poked the tongue. Was Al licking me?

“Ahem.”

A light cough from the corner made Jiao Qingyin snap her head up. Al—the human version—was sitting in a pile of cushions, her silver hair messy and her eyes red from sleep. She gave a faint smile.

“Good morning, Your Highness,” she said.

A blush crept up Jiao Qingyin’s neck. She sat up and adjusted her collar, trying to ignore the other’s presence, though her fumbling with her buttons betrayed her mood. While Jiao Qingyin struggled, Al moved herself into her wheelchair.

“Your Highness, shall I help you dress?” Al was suddenly by the bed.

“No,” Jiao Qingyin refused stiffly. She finally unbuttoned the top two buttons, but as she moved toward her chest, she stopped under Al’s gaze.

Al didn’t look away. “Your Highness, it’s inconvenient for you to undress yourself. Let me…”

“Why are you no longer calling me ‘Your Grace’ (using the formal ‘you’)?” Jiao Qingyin asked, focusing on the change in address.

Al smiled. It was a beautiful smile that made Jiao Qingyin feel a bit lightheaded. Something had changed in Al overnight; she seemed to have found a clear goal. Before Jiao Qingyin could react, Al reached out and deftly unbuttoned the bottom of her nightgown.

A patch of skin on her belly was exposed. Jiao Qingyin was slender and soft. Al, following her heart, reached out and touched it. The soft skin felt like silk, making Al want to do more.

“Are you looking to die?” Jiao Qingyin hissed, grabbing Al’s wrist and pinning it to the bedsheet while pulling her gown down.

Al’s knuckles twitched. “You’ve grown quite bold lately,” Jiao Qingyin growled, grabbing Al’s chin and pulling her close. “Don’t play dumb.”

“Since Your Highness is going to call someone to help you dress anyway, it might as well be me…” Al said. She hated the maids who touched Jiao Qingyin, especially the slave named Flora. She was jealous.

Jiao Qingyin pinched Al’s cheek. She realized that even though Al was pushing boundaries, she couldn’t feel any ill will toward her. Even catching her hand was because Al’s fingers were cold, not because she was repulsed.

Suddenly, Al lowered her head and lightly bit Jiao Qingyin’s index finger. Her sharp canine teeth grazed the fingertip, sending a jolt of heat through Jiao Qingyin’s body.

“Get out!” Jiao Qingyin snapped, pulling her hand back. Her ears were burning.

The System, which had been monitoring the data, was silent. “Host…”

Jiao Qingyin tried to excuse Al: “…You can count this as a result of the brainwashing.”

The System looked at the Trust Value: 90%. The silence became even more deafening.

Two weeks later, Al had become like a “human-shaped glutinous rice cake,” sticking to Jiao Qingyin’s side constantly. Jiao Qingyin realized it was time to talk.

“I don’t want—”

“Do you want to treat your face first, or your legs?”

They spoke at the same time. Al froze.

“You don’t want to?” Jiao Qingyin asked, pulling her sleeve away.

Al’s mind was blank. She had never expected this. She had always planned to heal herself alone; she never thought of asking for help.

“It’s not that I’m helping you,” Jiao Qingyin lied, following the “villain” script to cover her guilt. “I just don’t want a slave who has trouble walking. Once you’re healed, you’ll have to serve me well. I need someone to test my ‘little toys’ on.”

The System expected Al to be furious, but instead, Al’s eyes lit up like a lamp in the dark.

“Legs,” Al said immediately.

Jiao Qingyin felt a pang of guilt. She knew Al hated being crippled. The royal poison on Al’s legs was a result of the original owner’s cruelty. According to the library, the only way to cure it was to transfer the toxin to another person.

“Your Highness, what is it?” Al asked. Her blue-green eyes were clear.

“If you want to be completely cured… it will be very painful,” Jiao Qingyin said.

Al smiled brightly. “Will Your Highness stay with me?”

Jiao Qingyin turned her head away. “In your dreams.”

Al’s smile widened. She knew that meant “yes.”

“With Your Highness there, I’m not afraid of pain.”

Jiao Qingyin looked at the sky, pretending not to hear. She had already decided. She wouldn’t find an innocent scapegoat; she would transfer the toxin to herself. She was leaving the world in a year anyway; her body would reset. She just had to make sure Al didn’t find out, or the girl would be furious.