Selka looked up from Kael and stared straight into Nuan’s eyes. "You saved my son’s life. The pack may be wary of new things, but they are not blind."

"Well... that is true," Nuan murmured, a small weight lifting from her chest.

Selka turned her head toward the young wolf holding the torch. "Koda, help her with her... soup?"

"Yes, soup!" Nuan confirmed with a nod.

Koda grinned and nodded quickly. "I will help!"

"But it won’t be ready until tomorrow," Nuan added, looking down at Kael one last time.

As she and Koda stepped out of the dark den, the heavy silence of the camp hit them. Every single wolf was going about their own business, but the moment Nuan’s boots touched the grass, their eyes snapped right to her.

There were no angry growls this time, just intense, watchful silence.

Over by the fire pits, the younger wolves were busy roasting their meat over the flames, while the elders sat in the shadows, tearing into raw flesh.

Nuan let out a soft sigh as her eyes drifted over to Lyra and Tala. The two girls were sitting far away from the fire, chewing on raw meat together and refusing to look in her direction.

I’ll just focus on making the soup, Nuan thought, walking back to her spot. To do that, I need to bake my clay bowls first.

[ You cannot do that yet, Host. ]

Nuan stopped in her tracks. Hah? Why the hell not?

[ You must let hand-molded clay bowls dry completely in the shade and sunlight for a few weeks before you expose them to direct fire. Otherwise, the moisture inside will trap steam and cause them to explode. ]

Weeks?! That takes way too long!

[ Yes, Host. And given the specific wild river clay you gathered this morning, it might actually take even longer to dry safely. ]

Nuan’s eyebrow twitched in irritation. Wow. And why exactly didn’t you tell me this when I’ve been planning to bake them tomorrow since this morning?

[ I did not find a perfect opening in our conversation to inform you, Host. ]

Yeah, right... Nuan grumbled, rubbing her temples. Great. Now how am I supposed to boil meat for a soup? Wait... I have an idea.

She checked her system screen. Blue Buddy, how many hours until my Craftsmanship Hand ability cooldown is finished?

[ 05:23:04 remaining, Host. ]

Okay... five hours. That gives me a perfect window for tomorrow morning.

"Witch?" Koda asked, shaking her hand gently. Nuan blinked and looked down at the young wolf. "Why are you just standing there staring at nothing?"

"Oh, it’s nothing," Nuan said, snapping out of her thoughts. "Uhm, Koda, when the sun comes up tomorrow, can we go into the woods and find a thick, heavy piece of green wood? Like a fresh log?"

Koda nodded eagerly. "Yes! I will go with you. Let’s make the soup now! How do we make it? Is it like mating?!"

Nuan nearly choked on her own breath.

"No! And please, for the love of God, stop connecting every single concept to mating! We aren’t making the soup tonight anyway because I don’t have the proper bowls ready."

The two of them walked back over to their small stone fire pit and sat down on the dirt. Nuan pulled one of the hares out of her system inventory—one she had already cut the ears and one leg in market.

She removed its fur skin with her hunting knife.

She picked up a sharp stick, impaled the meat, and started roasting it over the crackling flames for her dinner.

As the fat began to sizzle and drip into the fire, Nuan stared into the sparks, her mind wandering. Man, if only I was trapped in one of those cheesy cooking beastworld web novels my niece was always obsessed with back on Earth. The main character always magically finds a perfect flat pan on day one. Not to mention, her hot tiger mate always carves everything she needs out of wood, like a perfect spatula!

She looked down at her small, metal hunting knife and sighed. Well, no point wishing for a fantasy tiger. I’ll just have to use my own hands to carve a thick wooden bowl for temporary use tomorrow morning.

Nuan pulled the sizzling hare off the fire, the rich smell of roasted meat filling the chilly night air. Using her sharp knife, she sliced the meat cleanly down the middle. She handed the bigger half to Koda and kept the rest for herself, blowing on it before taking a careful bite. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

As they chewed, Koda looked up at her, grease on his chin. "Witch, why did you really come to our pack? The elders were all saying you came here to rule over us."

Nuan swallowed her food and stared up at the vast sky, which was completely filled with bright, sharp stars. She let out a heavy sigh. "I didn’t choose to come here, Koda. Your stubborn Alpha literally abducted me and dragged me across the jungle. Otherwise, I would have found a nice piece of land near an isolated river, set up my hunting traps, built a proper solid shelter, and enjoyed my life in peace."

Koda’s ears perked up. "Ohh... so you want to build your own territory?"

"Yes," Nuan said, her eyes narrowing as she thought about it. "My own kingdom where there isn’t some thick-skulled male continuously trying to get into my pants."

Koda just stared at her, his head tilted in utter confusion.

Nuan looked at him and muttered under her breath, Wow. The kid who connects every single conversation to mating is suddenly clueless the moment I am completely direct about it? Typical.

"Anyway," Nuan grumbled, munching on the last piece of her meat aggressively before tossing the bone into the fire.

She pushed herself up onto her good leg, grabbing her knife from the rock. "I’m exhausted. I’m going to sleep now."

Holding her knife tightly, she started limping across the quiet camp toward Kael’s den.

But before she could even reach the cave mouth, two shadows stepped out of the darkness and blocked her path. Lyra and Tala stood shoulder to shoulder, their arms crossed and their faces twisted into angry glares.

"Get back," Lyra hissed, baring her teeth slightly in the moonlight. "You are not a member of the Alpha’s bloodline to go sleeping in our Alpha’s den!"