13 Into the Woods

The parlour was near the entrance, so it was easy for Melva to find her way out of the palace. She had no intention to escape from Vance as of the moment, for it was completely useless and foolish without careful planning and striking a deal with him in her favour. It was the air of freedom and wilderness that she needed.

Melva was used to hunting in the forest every morning. It felt weird for her to wear beautiful dresses and do nothing inside an establishment. She missed the smell of the woods and the thrill of hunting the animals. Although she had no bows and arrows in her possession now, merely taking a peek at the forest nearby that she had seen on her way here would be sufficient for her to finally breathe.

The moment the cool breeze blew on her face, excitement coursed through her veins. The palace guards who were standing near the entrance did nothing to stop her, so she took a walk with ease towards the back of the palace while admiring the beautiful view. For a short while, she could finally forget about her fate that was bound with the werewolf and enjoy her tiny freedom in the wild.

The forest was visible to sight once she passed by the large garden at the palace's backyard with an extravagant fountain in the centre. The garden was beautiful, but in her eyes, the forest was much more attractive. She hurried her steps to approach the forest, getting more impatient now that it was right before her. The dress was hindering her movement, so she gathered the hem of her dress in her arm to free her legs and begin to run.

It was dark inside the forest. Melva was surrounded by tall and thick trees, blocking the sunlight that seeped through the leaves, but she never felt more alive. The birds were chirping, the insects were buzzing, and the frogs were croaking. It was as though the forest was welcoming her.

The sounds and the scent of the woods brought peace to her mind and calmed her senses. She was reminded once again why she was fond of the wild. Even if the forest was different from the one in Ichorhold, it gave her the same feeling of tranquility. Although for a reason she couldn't quite explain, this one somehow felt more magical.

Melva spotted a tree stump near the small river bank and she took a seat there while admiring the scenery before her. The animals were coming out on the other side of the river. Some deers approached the river bank to drink the water. A few rabbits hopped around the trees to return to their burrow. Birds were flying down and hunting fishes in the river.

The animals in this forest were probably never hunted. Although she was sitting there to watch them, none of them were afraid of her. They still went on to do what they had been doing rather than fleeing back to their hiding. They didn't find her presence frightening. It contributed to the magical feeling she sensed from the forest. Perhaps, there really was something magical that protected this forest from hunters.

Taking off her shoes, she dipped her feet in the water of the river. It was cold at first, but it was refreshing once she was used to the temperature. She could do this all day: watching the animals in the forest and listening to their sounds which were like music in her ears. How relaxing and satisfying.

With the trees hiding the sun from view, she had no way to know the time. She realised a bit too late that she might have spent too much time here. Vance might have finished with the council meeting and he might be searching for her right now.

Melva hurriedly moved her feet out of the water and put on her shoes, not caring even if her feet were wet and the shoes would be ruined by the water in her haste. It was when she spun on her heel, a big white wolf was staring back at her. Her whole body tensed in an instant and she didn't dare to make a sudden move, afraid to provoke the beast.

'When did it come? Why did I not hear it coming?' asked Melva to herself, trying to stay calm and breathe evenly, worrying the wolf would sense her anxiety and start attacking.

It had not made any sound and just suddenly appeared behind her, shocking her immensely. How could that be possible? Normally, she would have sensed an animal closing by in the middle of hunting. Was her sense getting dull? Her heart was beating so loudly that she was worried the wolf would be able to hear it.

The wolf which was as big as a horse was staying still in its spot, watching her intently with its blue glowing eyes. While it was doing nothing, Melva was looking at her surroundings, searching for a way to escape from the wolf safely. But there was no way because she was trapped between the river and the wolf.

The only option she had was to cross the river and find another way to return to the castle. However, the river was quite wide and the flow of the water was considerably strong. Also, she was unaware of how deep the river was. She might get drifted away by the force of the water and not make it to the other side.

She wondered why the wolf had not attacked her yet, although she preferred it to stay that way. It didn't show any hostility as it was just standing there as though waiting for something. What was the purpose of it approaching her so closely and yet it was doing nothing?

Then, it struck her so suddenly as she was staring into its glowing eyes. What if this was not an ordinary wolf? It was much bigger than normal wild wolves after all. What if it was actually a werewolf in their wolf form?

There was only one person she knew that also had a pair of blue glowing eyes. She was convinced that the beautiful and distinct eye colour was not one many people would possess, even though there were not many demons whom she was familiar with. The wolf reminded her strongly of someone who had the same eye and hair colour.

"Duke Vance, is that you?" asked Melva warily, preparing to run in case it was not him.

She was not sure if she was imagining it or the wolf was really nodding at her question. The wolf lay flat on the forest ground and waited for her. He turned his head to point at his back, silently asking her to hop on.

Knowing that it was only Vance, Melva mustered her courage to approach the wolf. Even if his wolf form was already flattened to the ground, climbing on his back was still a difficult feat, considering how big the body of the wolf was. It was like climbing onto the back of the horse, which she had to practice for several times before she got used to it.

After Melva was seated on the back of the wolf, she grabbed some of the fur because there was nothing else to hold on to. She could only hope the fur wouldn't fall out. The wolf stood back up when he noticed she was already on his back and grasping his fur.

Fortunately, the wolf was not running too fast with her on his back. He was only trotting slowly through the forest, occasionally turning his head as though making sure she was still on his back, even if he could feel her there the whole time.

Not long afterwards, they reached the end of the forest and the palace came into view. The wolf didn't let her down until they arrived at the carriage that had brought them here. He lay down on the ground again to make it easy for her to climb off his back.

The coachman stepped down from his seat on the front and climbed into the carriage to take out some new clothes. "Milady, will you get into the carriage and wait there while His Grace puts on his clothes?"

Melva's face was red as a beet at the implication that Vance would be completely naked once he turned back into human and that he would need to put on his clothes while being out in the open. It must be embarrassing to not wear any clothes every time after shifting back into his human form and needing to wait for someone else to bring clothes to him.

And the thought that maybe one day that someone would be her made her feel embarrassed more than ever.

"Yes, of course," said Melva hastily in embarrassment as she quickly hopped in the carriage and closed all the curtains.

Then she sat down facing the opposite side from where Vance was changing, her both hands covering her eyes. But her mind was already wandering everywhere, so it was useless. The coachman had already put an image in her head. It was as if she could still see him changing without actually seeing.

'Stop imagining something so impure, Melva!' Melva scolded herself as she shook off the thoughts of Vance changing outside the carriage.

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