Chapter 51: Subtle and Gentle Guidance, Part Three

“You, I, this… Sir—”

The guards stammered, stumbling over their words: “You’re, Lord… Lord Hydra?”

Anselm smiled, pointing to the cane by the chair: “I don’t think anyone has the guts or ability to impersonate me.”

Before the rigid guards could respond, he sighed: “I couldn’t sleep tonight, so I went for a night stroll and saw a group of sneaky thieves. With nothing better to do, I followed them here.”

Though Anselm, hiding in the dim room, was far sneakier, he carried himself like the manor’s master, leaving the guards meek and silent:

“And then, I saw an interesting scene.” The young Hydra gave the two guards a half-smile.

“They easily slipped past your watch and stole most of the treasury. If I hadn’t caught them, you’d be in serious trouble.”

“You…” The guards’ eyes widened. “You caught them?”

“Sixty meters west of the mansion, in a small alley.”

Anselm waved a hand: “I left them there. As for the treasury’s contents, they’ll be returned in full after tomorrow’s inventory.”

He flipped a page with one hand, his tone calm: “I’m still a bit bored and plan to wander the mansion. That’s not a problem, is it?”

“Of course! Feel free, sir! We won’t disturb you!”

The guards didn’t dare utter a single objection.

The mansion’s lord was already strung up out there, dried by the north wind.

Fearing their earlier words might have offended Anselm, they scrambled out, not forgetting to close the door.

About ten seconds later, a muffled voice came from under Anselm’s slightly bulging wolf cloak.

“They’re gone?”

“Do they have the guts to come back?” Anselm raised an eyebrow. “I thought you wanted to stay a bit longer, Hitana.”

“Go die!”

Hitana no longer restrained her volume, shouting in fury before letting out an “owoo” howl.

“…” Anselm’s brow furrowed slightly.

He pulled out the hand that had been petting her head under the cloak, revealing a neat row of bite marks on his wrist, some drawing blood.

Anselm wasn’t angry, just slightly surprised: “You’ve got that much strength already… recovering this fast?”

Hitana threw off the cloak, panting heavily, still curled in Anselm’s arms.

That bite seemed to have drained all her energy.

“Bastard… Hydra… I’m done… not playing with you.”

Hitana tried to move away from Anselm, but he pulled her back by the waist.

The young Hydra loved the shape and feel of the young wolf’s waist—seemingly delicate and soft, yet firm and strong.

“Do whatever you want,” Hitana, giving up resistance, lowered her head, sitting on his lap like a duck. “I’m exhausted… you inhumane jerk.”

Her head rested against Anselm’s chest, her tone carrying a hint of grievance.

“It’s a punishment, after all. If it was humane, it wouldn’t be a punishment,” Anselm said, twirling Hitana’s short hair with his fingers, the silky texture revealing another of the young wolf’s charms.

“So… that’s why I’m taking it!”

Hitana couldn’t help but throw another weak punch at his shoulder: “Otherwise, you think I wouldn’t… wouldn’t fight you to the death normally?”

Hitana Lansmarlos was always making mistakes, often the same ones, over and over.

But she never made excuses for her foolishness or errors.

Just as Anselm always forgave her, no matter how “harsh” his punishments were, Hitana always accepted them obediently.

“So, dear Hitana, do you know what you did wrong?”

Anselm rested his chin on her head, asking softly.

“Wrong in… don’t press on me! I’m already exhausted!” Hitana grumbled, nudging his chin.

“Wrong not beating those two bastards to a pulp first!”

“Close.”

Anselm lifted his chin, smiling: “But not quite. Your mistake was not preparing thoroughly for your actions, which led to this mess, forcing me to clean up after you.”

“…You, you’re serious?” Hitana blinked, stunned for a moment. “I thought you’d tell me not to steal.”

“What? Now you think I’m some upright good guy?”

The young Hydra laughed at his foolish little wolf: “That’s not how you usually see me, Hitana.”

“I-I mean… you know what I mean!”

Hitana defended herself weakly: “Didn’t you say in the cell that you can’t indulge my recklessness or whatever… weren’t those your words?”

“Your understanding of ‘recklessness’ is a bit off, Hitana.”

Anselm gently stroked her back, making the increasingly weary girl a bit more comfortable: “The mistake you made back then was venting your anger pointlessly, using power you shouldn’t have.”

“That’s what I call recklessness.”

“But if,” he lifted her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze, speaking with no trace of jest or mockery, utterly serious:

“If you have a goal, a purpose, and you’re absolutely serious about doing something, taking action for it, I will acknowledge everything you do.”

“As long as you know what you’re doing and what you want.”

His sea-blue eyes brimmed with pure gentleness: “Then in my eyes, you are without sin.”

“…”

Hitana, gazing into Anselm’s eyes, felt her pupils tremble.

She couldn’t help but look away, silent for a long while before whispering: “Even… even if I’m opposing you?”

“If that’s what you want,” Anselm smiled, “then keep opposing me.”

“I’ve acknowledged you, Hitana. From the moment that contract was signed, I’ve seen you as my kin, a part of me.”

He rested his chin on her shoulder, utterly relaxed, without any guard: “That’s why I’ll forgive everything you do and why I’ll never lie to you.”

Hitana felt the warmth against her cheek.

It was entirely different from the searing heat of Anselm’s chest… a drifting warmth and serenity.

That warmth reignited the fierce flames she’d tried to quell in her heart.

Today’s Hydra was completely different.

He reminded her of those snowy nights with her parents and sister, sitting around the hearth, chatting until she fell asleep, her mother draping a blanket over her.

In Hitana’s short, unremarkable sixteen years of life, only her family had shown her such gentleness and patience.

Yet even they… had never, in the truest sense, been free of anger or resentment toward her like Anselm was.

She’d endured countless bouts of anger and hatred, her own raging flames never subsiding.

She despised most of this world, and the world rarely offered her kindness or warmth.

In just this short time, Hydra had given her something… something she couldn’t refuse, couldn’t resist.

That understanding, that attention, that deep empathy for everything about her, that absolute acceptance and benevolence, that feeling she wanted to sink into forever.

That sense of belonging, more real than anything else.

“Hey, um… Hydra.”

Hitana no longer resisted his physical closeness, speaking softly.

“What is it?” Anselm responded gently.

“In the future…” The young wolf hesitated for a long time before biting her lip, saying with some awkwardness:

“In the future, stop doing deceptive things. As long as you’re open and honest… whatever you want, I’ll help you. I absolutely won’t oppose you, okay?”

Her cheeks grew hot, flushed and burning.

The girl, speaking so clumsily, stretched out her weak arms to wrap around Anselm’s waist.

But there was no response, only silence.

“You… you really, really don’t lie to me.”

Her inhuman physique had eradicated Stinger’s neurotoxin at a terrifying speed, but with it came an overwhelming exhaustion dominating her body.

Her eyelids drooped, her body growing weaker.

“At a time like this, even if you lied to me a little… wouldn’t I… not have to deal with… all this hassle?”

She gently, gently bumped her head against Anselm’s chest.

“I’m sorry, Hitana. I can’t do that.”

“Bastard… pervert, creep… go die…”

The girl, no longer able to hear what Anselm was saying, vented her final dissatisfaction weakly before succumbing to unstoppable exhaustion.

Her head rested on his shoulder, and she fell into a deep sleep.

“Hydra… Anselm…”

The young wolf, no longer so angry, murmured in her sleep:

“If you were a good person… if you were a bit kinder to me…”

“If only… it would be nice.”

Anselm Hydra lifted Hitana Lansmarlos and placed her on the soft, warm bed, gently covering her with a blanket.

He sat by her side, silently gazing at her delicate, pitiable sleeping face.

His expression shifted noticeably, a vivid fluctuation of emotions that almost never appeared on Anselm’s face.

The boy’s fingers lightly touched the girl’s tender cheek, hovering in a way that seemed both like he wanted to rest his hand there and pull it away.

After a long moment, he seemed to make up his mind and withdrew his hand.

“Good or evil, right or wrong, just or unjust… under the gaze of merciless fate, what difference does it make, Hitana?”

Hydra murmured softly: “You will come to understand this in time, and I will make you understand.”

The coldness in his eyes swallowed any trace of the fleeting warmth that might have existed.

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