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Reginald was disappointed, but beneath that disappointment, something quieter stirred: a reluctant admiration.
Luo Wei respected her friend. She hadn't presumed to make decisions about Gladys without asking, even though he was Gladys's brother.
When Gladys first told him she had a princess friend who knew she was a werewolf and didn't loathe her for it, Reginald had been suspicious. How could anyone not fear a werewolf? And a noble princess, no less?
He had assumed this girl named Luo Wei must want something from Gladys.
But after meeting her tonight, he understood just how absurd those suspicions had been.
In the span of a few minutes, she had shown him exactly what she was: sharp, composed, intelligent, courageous, and principled. Someone with her status and abilities had no reason to trick a naive werewolf girl. And if she did have some hidden motive, well, being wanted by a person like her would still be an honor for Gladys.
Reginald decided she was clever and upright. People like that, when they wanted something from someone, always gave fair value in return.
She looked like an angel.
A true angel. Pure and kind.
"No need to apologize, Miss Luo Wei , I'm the one who didn't think it through." He bowed his farewell. "I plan to travel through the night and reach Siria ahead of time to wait for her. I'll leave it to you to deliver the 'bad news.'"
Luo Wei nodded. "I'll tell her."
Shortly after, Reginald departed with his men, and the stone fortress fell quiet.
Luo Wei closed her eyes and listened to the wind. She stood still for a moment, then the corner of her mouth curved up in a slow, quiet smile.
The wind carried the sound of sled runners cutting through snow. Crisp and clear.
They hadn't made that much noise on the way in.
She opened her eyes, extinguished her magic wand, and walked back into the stone house.
Whatever that meant could wait. The world could keep its mysteries until morning. Right now, sleep was the only thing that mattered.
...
The next day.
White light crept through the window cracks, and the dim stone house brightened slowly.
Gladys woke, stretched , and froze.
She had somehow ended up sleeping in Luo Wei's arms.
Mortified, she held her breath and carefully, carefully extracted herself from Luo Wei's embrace, then lay rigid in the cold cashmere blanket beside her.
"Mmm..."
Luo Wei woke at exactly that moment. She turned over and opened her eyes to find Gladys lying board-straight beside her, staring at the ceiling like she was practicing to be a corpse. Amusement flickered through Luo Wei's eyes.
"Good morning, Gladys."
The little wolf pretended she'd just been stirred awake. She blinked with convincing grogginess, her voice coming out slightly husky. "Good morning, Luo Wei."
"Time to get up." Luo Wei sat upright. "We need to get moving."
"Okay." Gladys climbed out of the bedding with visible reluctance and dropped her feet to the floor.
"Oh , your brother came looking for you last night," Luo Wei said, her tone easy. "He was worried about you. Said he wanted to travel to Siria with us."
Gladys went tense. "Bad brother — is he still outside?"
"No. I turned him down. He took it well, didn't make a fuss. Left last night to go to Siria and wait for you there."
Gladys let out a quiet breath of relief. There was no way her brother could reach Siria in under half a month. Last time they'd traveled to the academy, they'd set out a full month early and still nearly missed registration.
Not long after dawn, Troy returned with the griffin. He'd restocked at Sisdar Town , a few bags of charcoal and flour, enough to stay warm and eat on the road.
The carriage rolled out of the stone fortress. The group climbed the gentle slope at the end of the fissure and emerged onto the ice plain, heading south.
Two deep ruts cut into the snow behind them. The hoofprints dotted the white expanse like little buns, trailing away into the distance.
Luo Wei lifted the curtain and looked back at the tracks they'd left across the plain. Her smile deepened.
Reginald was a sensible man. She didn't mind doing him a small favor.
Early or late, he'd get there either way. No harm done.
At the edge of the ice plain, Gladys climbed onto Frost's back and let out a series of howls, sending her back to the ice wolf tribe. The road ahead passed through the Kingdom of West Tower, and the villages would grow more frequent the further south they went. Frost would frighten people , she couldn't come.
From the West Tower border to Siria was a seven-or-eight-day ride.
Luo Wei's group pushed day and night. At every town they swapped horses at the nearest stable yard, shaving the eight-day journey down to four. They reached Siria on the evening before the semester began.
Outside the city walls, Luo Wei guided the little wolf , backpack and all , into the hills at the edge of town and set her loose. She called it a wildlife release.
The servants didn't question it. Their master was a kind person. They had known that for a while.
Troy, on the other hand, watched Luo Wei in silence.
Taking a northern snow wolf all the way south to release it into the wild.
His employer had, once again, insulted his intelligence.
Evening, returning to Starry Abode. The carriage hadn't even reached the courtyard gate when Luo Wei heard it: the wailing of a baby.
She blinked. Half a month ago she'd had Hall and the others bring an infant back. She wondered how Bella had managed , whether she'd gotten an early taste of what motherhood felt like.
"There's a carriage — is that the young lady's?"
"Troy's driving it! It's the young lady, it has to be!"
"The master's home!"
"Thank the heavens — the master is finally back!"
The gates of Starry Abode swung wide open. A crowd came pouring out.
Roman sprinted to the front, practically vibrating with excitement, bouncing on his heels as he tried to peer into the carriage.
Rosie was a step behind him. Her face was calm as always, but the composure was strained , her eyes grew brighter the longer she stared at the carriage.
Bella came hurrying out with Luo Lin in her arms, the baby still wailing without pause. The male and female servants streamed out behind her. Tom elbowed his way through the crowd, clearly wishing he could just somersault the whole way there.
The carriage stopped outside the gate. Chris hopped down, set out the small footstool, and helped Luo Wei step to the ground.
"Young lady!" Roman crowed. "You're back!"
"Welcome home, master!"
More than a dozen servants lined both sides of the gate in two precise, evenly spaced rows, and bowed in perfect unison.
This was a ceremony Bella had studied from the city lord's steward. She had been rehearsing it for weeks, waiting for exactly this moment.
Bella handed Luo Lin off to a maid, then took her place at the head of the assembled staff , poised, composed, every bit the proper noble steward. She looked at Luo Wei with barely concealed hope in her eyes.
Had the master noticed? Did she like it?
Luo Wei stared at the two rows of bowing servants.
...
What was there even to say. In any world she would have considered her own normal, this would have been a profoundly public humiliation.
"Bella," she said, expression carefully neutral, "you worked hard."
Hard enough to wrangle a screaming infant and plan a formal welcome ceremony at the same time.
Bella beamed so wide she could barely close her mouth. That was all she needed to hear.
"Master, hot water and food are both ready. Would you prefer to bathe first, or eat first?"
As the start of term approached, Bella had reminded the servants every single day to keep everything prepared for the moment the master returned. The water was always kept hot. She had made more pastries than she could count, just in case Luo Wei came home and found something missing.
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