Chapter 151: Side Story 7 

“Are you feeling much better now?”

Alexa asked more gently than usual. Standing solidly behind her was Karrolf. At over two meters tall, even the most feral wolf patients glanced nervously in his direction.

The patient Alexa was currently tending to was the very first person she had ever treated, the one whose leg had nearly been amputated. Karrolf had made it very clear to both the medical staff and the patients: Alexa’s healing magic wasn’t something that could be used at whim. And if anyone dared to trouble or inconvenience her, he wouldn’t sit idly by.

Even now, Karrolf wasn’t looking at the patient. His gaze was that of a father fiercely guarding his daughter. Under that piercing glare, the patient instinctively hunched over, as though his injured leg had started to hurt again.

“Y-yes! It’s… all thanks to Lady Alexa!”

There was always a standard phrase expected from Alexa’s patients.

“Thank you so much!”

Only then did Karrolf’s gaze soften. Considering Alexa had saved someone who might never have walked again, such thanks were more than deserved. It was just that Karrolf tended to be excessively protective when it came to Alexa, at least.

Watching Alexa scurry around in a white coat that barely fit her tiny frame was nothing short of moving. On top of that, she was both competent and kindhearted. She truly seemed to be becoming the doctor she had always wanted to be.

Perhaps thanks to Brillia’s teachings, she didn’t make the mistake of abusing her magic either. Alexa only used her magic on those who truly needed it. She seemed to wrestle with that decision a lot, but that, too, was a burden only a good doctor would carry.

“Still… your leg will be left with a limp.”

Just as she had originally diagnosed. Magic always had its limits.

“If you work hard on rehabilitation, it might improve a bit… but continuing as a knight will probably be impossible.”

Alexa spoke with a dispirited tone. Her voice was full of regret. This man had lived his whole life as a knight. To deliver such news to someone like that, of course it broke her heart.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Frey.”

“Please, don’t look so heartbroken.”

The man called Frey spoke gently.

“Thanks to you, I’m able to walk on both legs. If not for you, Lady Alexa, I never would have dreamed of it. Perhaps it was fate that my eyes landed on you that day. It’s as if the gods have granted me another chance to walk.”

Tears welled up in Alexa’s eyes.

“I plan to live in gratitude for this second chance. Thankfully, His Grace the Grand Duke has prepared roles for people like me. Even the knight order needs someone handling administrative duties. Most of Thersion’s wolves grow up wanting to be knights. There’s no shortage of aspiring knights, but very few who want to take on administrative work.”

Frey chuckled, saying that had ended up being his opportunity. Apparently, Carlisle had continued to provide work for those who could no longer serve as knights, believing that surviving alone was reason enough.

‘As expected, our Grand Duke.’

Warm emotion surged through her. There was no doubt he was the most admirable wolf in the world.

“It really is a blessing that His Grace is here in Thersion.”

At Alexa’s words, Frey spoke seriously.

“Please be sure to tell him how you felt today.”

“Sorry?”

“Promise me.”

There wasn’t a soul in Thersion who didn’t know what Alexa meant to the place. That included Frey and the other patients here. Carlisle’s grand ‘Wolf Selection Tournament’ still got brought up among the knights now and then. It was only natural some had even declared their candidacy during that event.

Carlisle would surely welcome one more honorary title before his name with a pleased heart.

“Alright, I will.”

Alexa nodded with a puzzled look.

After a bit more conversation with Frey, she turned to leave. As she did, her eyes met Ysildus’s through the window. He smiled at her, the smile Alexa adored. She waved at him, just a little.

‘Ah, this is wonderful.’

The morning was passing in a perfectly peaceful, flawless way.

* * *

Dephensores, too, had gone in search of family. He circled the mountain where Luna resided.

“What a nasty little trick.”

There was a reason he hadn’t yet been able to enter. The mountain was surrounded by a thick and powerful barrier. And calling it a nasty trick wasn’t without reason. This barrier was aimed solely at Dephensores.

He tapped at the barrier with his snout.

Though it was technically a barrier, it didn’t repel him so much as wrap him in gentle warmth. Dephensores let out a quiet snort. He thought he understood the reason behind the trick.

“She was waiting for me.”

He wasn’t the only one who had crossed a long distance, pushing himself to get here. Luna had waited here for him, alone, for a very long time. That thought alone warmed the wild, worn heart inside him.

Dephensores let out a long, deep howl.

More than the thick silver fur covering his body, it was a single thread of Luna’s heart that made him feel warm. And that alone was enough. It was the very reason Dephensores had taken the long road back to this place. With all his might, he hurled himself against the barrier.

* * *

Boom!

Luna, who had her eyes closed, blinked.

That familiar presence…

She leapt to her feet. The drowsiness that had settled over her vanished completely. It seemed her long-held wish had finally come true. And she wasn’t the only one who sensed it.

Tenail charged up the stairs with the force of someone about to break through the floor.

“Mother!!”

He called out to Luna in a voice that could tear the sky.

“He’s here!”

“I told you to call him your father.”

“What father? I don’t even remember his face.”

“Have you forgotten how much he adored you?”

“Are you rewriting history? That man didn’t even see my face.”

“Oh my, so you do remember that?”

“I don’t remember anything!”

Tenail looked utterly exasperated. One needed memories in order to remember anything. All Tenail knew was that Dephensores had existed and gone through something in the past. And even that, he only knew from stories not from actual memory. He let out a short sigh.

Still, maybe it was because the man was his father. Tenail couldn’t deny the way his heart was racing.

Especially seeing Luna so elated, it was impossible for his own emotions not to be stirred. Luna had always been like a young girl, but she was usually serene. Now, however, her joy was undeniable, rising in a perfect upward curve. Even Tenail found himself smiling.

He followed after her with hurried steps. Outside the cottage, the two exchanged words.

“Let’s go greet your father, Tenail.”

“That barrier, though…”

Thud!

Tenail was sent rolling across the ground, struck by the rebound of the barrier. The sudden impact made him instinctively shift into his wolf form. Shaking his head violently, he stomped his paw as if trying to shake off the dirt from his fur.

Luna stood her ground as if nothing had happened.

“Whimper…”

Tenail nuzzled against her. She stroked his head.

“Looks like your father’s being cheeky. What if our baby got hurt?”

Luna chuckled. Even if Tenail was now a fully grown adult, in her eyes he would always be her baby. Tenail nudged her leg with his snout, as if to protest that he was grown now. As Luna wrapped her arms around his neck, something descended upon the earth.

Boom!

It was the same sound from earlier.

Luna took a deep breath. And finally, there he was. A beautiful silver wolf, standing before her.

Her wolf.

Leaving Tenail behind, Luna walked toward him. One step. Then another. Carefully, as if each movement mattered. Her gaze was locked on Dephensores and she couldn’t look away. Maybe it was because she had waited so, so long for this moment. She couldn’t tell if it was a dream or reality.

Slowly, she reached out her hand.

What if he was just an illusion?

Her cautious hand reached out and touched the silver wolf.

“…It really is you.”

What had fallen to the ground just now, was it Luna’s tear, or Dephensores’s?

Luna buried her face in the nape of his neck. It was warm. Both her heart, and her tears.

……

T/N: Lunailliah probably won the waiting game – she waited for Dephensores for a long, long time – from the moment the world was doomed and now that it was saved