Unaware of how the werewolves were talking about her, Catriona returned to her shop with her son, took a sip of water, and began working.
At a certain moment, a thought flashed through her mind, and she suddenly realized, muttering, "The guy in white, Magnus—that's him."
The neighboring city's criminal investigation unit—what exactly his position was, she didn't know, but sometimes she'd come across videos discussing how he'd caught yet another criminal.
Apparently, he was quite skilled, usually very low-key.
Even the occasional photo of him capturing a criminal was always at night.
This guy... was actually not human! Catriona's eyes widened in shock. How had a werewolf ended up working as a human detective?
The other werewolves around her heard her muttered disbelief, and Ruby excitedly bounced over. "Catriona, did you just mention Ruler Magnus? Did you see him today? It's been so long since I last saw him!"
"But if he's here in Capital, does that mean another rogue lone wolf has come down the mountain?"
Catriona was a bit dazed. "Ruler? And rogue lone wolves mean... bad guys?"
"That's right," Ruby replied, eyes flashing with disdain. "They're degenerates, complete scum who want everything for nothing, doing every foul thing you can imagine. They've degraded into nothing more than low-level, mindless beasts. They cause trouble in your world. You humans have too many resources."
She continued, "Actually, we're in contact with the highest human authorities, and Rulers are chosen among Alphas and confirmed by human leadership. Only the strongest and most capable wolves are eligible—they're specifically tasked with capturing those rogues."
She looked at Catriona thoughtfully. "Oh, by the way, Alpha Roderick is Capital's Ruler. If a rogue lone wolf shows up in Capital, he's the one who has to handle it."
Catriona felt like a door to a new world had just opened. "Oh," she replied, stunned.
So, Magnus's identity as a criminal investigator is just a cover; the criminals he apprehends are not ordinary offenders...
Catriona recalled the news reports she had seen about the criminals Magnus had caught.
They were about thefts, robberies, and even petty crimes like stealing chickens or pigs.
"..."
Oh dear.
"In fact, petty thieves are fine, but the truly fallen are..." Ruby suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Catriona stared at her, curious. "Why did you stop talking?"
"I don't dare to say more, well." Ruby stuck out her tongue and turned around to wrap up the flowers. "Don't ask me; even if you do, I won't say anything. Alpha would be angry if you got scared."
Catriona really... felt speechless.
These werewolves always do this; they talk to her nicely, then suddenly bring up Roderick, as if in their eyes, she is a precious treasure that Roderick cherishes in his hands.
Catriona pursed her lips and shook her head, thinking that these werewolves understand nothing.
The Sapphire behind her was not as lively and cute as Ruby; at this moment, her face was slightly pale, as if she had heard something terrifying.
Soon after, she suggested going back to Luna Palace.
...
Going back to the head of the Alpha's house should be safe, right?
——
At the Villa.
Roderick's expression was calm as he said with a slight opening of his thin lips, "There are five in Capital, among which two have completely fallen."
"I understand." Magnus nodded seriously.
"Meet here tonight; we'll catch them in one night."
"Alright."
At this moment, it was only two o'clock.
There was still some time before nightfall.
In a remote, dark, and damp old neighborhood, an elderly man carrying fresh pork he'd bought at the market had it snatched right out of his hands by a tall "man" who brushed past him.
Startled, the old man fell to the ground, too shocked to cry out, and watched as the "man" used the wall for leverage, kicking off with astounding power. In one swift, explosive jump, he scaled the outer wall and vanished.
The old man was left dumbfounded.
Ten kilometers away in another alley, a woman with snow-white skin was being slowly cornered by two tall "men".
If Catriona saw the woman's face, she would gasp, because the woman was her good friend, Eulalia.
"What do you want? Don't come any closer! I'll call the police!"
Eulalia felt like today couldn't get any worse. She had lost weight recently, wore a pretty dress, put on makeup, went shopping, and on her way back encountered hooligans.
Damn it! She was a comic artist; were these people coming to provide material for her work?
She tried not to show fear, but her voice trembled uncontrollably.
"In a society ruled by law, aren't you overstepping your bounds? I urge you to calm yourselves..."
The two men didn't speak, continuing to close in, staring at her as if she were prey.
Eulalia shivered instantly, breaking into a cold sweat; she somehow felt that they weren't human.
But this was a new era; people should believe in science, right?
The next second, one of them shot her a menacing glare and lunged toward her.
"Ah!!" Eulalia's legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground, instinctively raising her arm to shield her eyes, her entire body curling up, trembling.
The expected harm did not come.
She heard a sound like a beast roaring.
"Grey! I advise you not to meddle."
Eulalia cautiously opened her eyes. Before her stood—since when, she couldn't tell—not just a person, but a cosplay enthusiast. The figure wore a pair of grey-black ears atop their head and a matching large, fluffy tail swaying behind them, looking startlingly lifelike.
Was this person cosplaying a werewolf?
Or... a husky?
She heard the man in front of her speak; his voice carried a hint of youthfulness. Looking at his back, he seemed tall and wasn't very old.
"The ruler of Capital is my Alpha; I have reason to detain you."
"Well, 'Alpha', I remember you were kicked out. Look at the clothes you're wearing; how many days have you gone without changing them? You are the lone wolf just as us!"
Eulalia looked at the man's clothes in front of her; indeed, they were somewhat dirty...
But, what were these people talking about, Alpha? Rulers? Was this a stage play? Were they playing at role-playing?
Those two hooligans sure acted well, didn't they!!
And, she was just a passerby! Why did they involve her in their act?
Eulalia's mind raced with thoughts.
The next second, she raised her hand and slapped her face, "Ah! Wake up! Stop thinking! This isn't a play show!!"
She had run into thugs! Now she was saved by this cosplayer... oh, briefly saved.
While they were locked in a standoff, she carefully pulled out her phone and dialed the police, slowly crawling to the corner of the wall. "Hello, This is..."
At the same time, the two thugs' tones grew increasingly impatient.
"Get lost!" a sneer spat out, "Grey, you're just a spineless wretch! Throwing yourself into dangerous work for a werewolf who couldn't care less about you. Does he even know? He has plenty of werewolves at his beck and call. What are you to him? Does he care whether you live or die?"
Grey gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, "...I may be a lone wolf now, but I'm better than you degenerates who willingly fall to ruin!"
"Haha! Making yourself sound noble, huh? How did your Alpha kick you out, did you forget? I heard you attacked the mother of a cub."
"I didn't attack!!" Grey was thoroughly enraged, "I just wanted to scare her."
As he finished speaking, his entire face transformed into the frightening appearance from that night—fangs and green eyes, his hands and feet turning into sharp claws, he pounced.
Eulalia had called the police, and when she looked up, she was terrified.
The three of them grappled and bit each other, the low growls of beasts piercing her eardrums, like wolves, no, deeper and more terrifying than wolves.
In the chaos, red blood splattered onto her face.
Eulalia gripped tightly, her eyes wide open, frozen. She felt something was wrong.
The tail of that cosplayer was real, wasn't it? His face...
His...face...?
When she saw the wolf face clearly, Eulalia's vision went black, and she fainted.
After being unconscious for an unknown period, she sensed someone calling her.
"Wake up, wake up, did you call the police?"
"Was she bitten by this big gray-black dog on the ground?"
"No, the blood on her face isn't hers; she isn't hurt at all. It's this big gray dog that's badly injured."
"Hey, what breed is this big gray dog? It's so big, I've never seen a dog this size. Is this big dog dead?"
Eulalia abruptly opened her eyes and sat up straight.
Dead? Who died?
Then, she froze.
Not far from her lay a huge gray dog, covered in blood, emitting a heavy smell of blood.
The three men from earlier were gone.
But, no, that wolf-faced...
Eulalia's eyes widened as she slowly glanced over at the large dog's tail beside her—it was identical to the tail worn by that cosplayer.
"Miss, did you call the police?"
"..." Eulalia was dumbfounded, unable to speak.
"Did this big dog attack you?"
"..."
"Are you not hurt? Then we'll take this vicious dog away and deal with it?"
"No!" Eulalia snapped back to her senses, running a hand through her hair. Dazed, she muttered, "Sorry about this—this is my dog. It chewed up my thirty-thousand-dollar bag, and in my frustration, I hit it and called the police. Sorry for the trouble of making you come all this way."
"Did I... kill it?" She said blankly, "Can you help me carry it to the hospital... No, the pet hospital? No, it should be our human hospital, right?" She scratched her head again, feeling a bit crazy and confused.
The police officer gave her a sympathetic look.
While he didn't understand why women liked bags so much, a bag worth thirty thousand dollar being bitten by a dog would infuriate any owner.
But that beating... she almost beat it to death, didn't she?
This woman, with her fair, soft, slightly plump appearance—who would've thought she could be so ruthless...
He thought about his wife's expensive bag at home and silently decided to stay away from it starting today.
In the end, they helped her carry the big dog to the pet hospital.
After bandaging and treating it, Eulalia heard the veterinarian say there was no problem, and the dog would wake up in about two hours, asking her not to worry.
She wasn't sure if she breathed a sigh of relief or held her breath.
Nor did she know whether to leave or stay.
Her confusion was driving her mad!
Right then, the veterinarian hesitantly spoke, "What breed is your dog? I've never seen one like it, it seems like a wolf..."
Eulalia:...
"It's not seriously injured. You... can carry it back now. I won't report you." The vet closed his eyes, seeming to prefer not to get involved.
"Miss, my kid is coming home soon, please carry it away..."
Eulalia was going crazy, "Doctor, do you think it's a wolf too?"
"It's definitely a wolf! However, I've never seen such a big wolf. Why are you keeping this..."
Eulalia, on the brink of tears, muttered, "It's not even my dog..."
Today's events had thoroughly shattered her understanding of reality, though being a comic artist with an ever-wandering mind, she could handle quite a bit. What scenario hadn't she already imagined?
In the end, the vet had all but thrown her out.
Concerned about alarming passersby, she asked for a cloth to wrap up the wolf. Thankfully, her home wasn't far, but carrying the massive creature felt like lugging a grown man on her back. She bent over so much her forehead nearly touched her knees, gasping as she hauled the large gray wolf home.
She couldn't just leave him outside, not with those wounds all over him—could he even survive in that state?
Despite the dreamlike haze of it all, one thing remained clear: he had saved her, and that's why he was so badly hurt.
For someone who would risk his life to save a stranger, he surely couldn't be all bad, could he?
Thinking this, she gently laid the so-called Grey down in her guest room, tying him up just in case.
This was her apartment in Capital—a two-bedroom with a living room, kitchen, and bathroom. It was more than enough space for one person.
When Grey finally stirred, pain riddled his entire body.
He recalled clashing with those two degenerates. He was outmatched, fighting two against one.
"Grey, why not just join us? Look how free we are now. We can get whatever we want in the human world—women, food, fun. Isn't that good?"
His eyes turned fierce. "Get lost! You're a disgrace to werewolves, scum! Alpha will be coming for you tonight."
After that, things became hazy. The two thugs had clearly decided to end his life. He could feel their teeth tearing into his flesh, his blood spilling.
Numb from the pain, he thought, This time, he might really die here.
When he was young, that pure human had tied a rope around his neck, locking him in a filthy pigsty, starving him, beating him. How had he escaped and survived back then?
This time, he had no strength left.
Hearing the sound of a human police car, he thought, he protected a pure human on behalf of the Alpha.
He'd been of some use, after all, hadn't he?
Nearly twenty years old, he felt no regrets about being saved and accepted by the Alpha, who was such a powerful werewolf.
Those fallen werewolves had claimed that the Alpha didn't care about him. He didn't believe that.
When that woman fell down the stairs, it hadn't been his fault, but it was certainly his mistake. The Alpha had only spoken a single sentence, neither punishing him nor showing anger.
Didn't that alone say so much?
All he'd wanted was for that woman to leave, for the Alpha to be happy and unburdened—not for her to be hurt.
Yet he had caused more trouble, failed to bring any joy, and only added to Alpha's burdens.
When the human police arrived, those two thugs ran, and he shut his eyes, reverting to his pure wolf form.
He'd thought he was dead.
But opening his eyes, he felt a momentary shock, quickly realizing he couldn't move.
He was tied up!
Could it be... he was captured by humans again? The shock and despair nearly overwhelmed him.
Struggling fiercely, he disregarded his injuries, thrashing against the ropes.
Were he not injured, these ropes would have been easy to break; he was no longer that helpless cub he once was.
Just then, a woman burst in, startled.
"Don't move! You're hurt—you're bleeding again!"
Eulalia looked at the large gray dog on the bed, anxiously saying, "Can you understand what I'm saying? You... you're the one who saved me, aren't you?"
"I tied you up because I was afraid you'd hurt me! Please, calm down."
At her words, he froze.
Unable to speak in his pure wolf form, Grey could only growl lowly.
He watched as the woman's hands trembled, as though she were the one tied up. "I'll untie you, but you mustn't hurt me."
With shaky hands, Eulalia undid the ropes.
The moment he was free, Grey bolted toward the door, barely hearing her frightened scream. Ignoring it, he reached the living room, then the front door. He had to leave this stranger's house.
But his body refused to cooperate, and at the entryway, he collapsed, unable to move.
From behind the table, he heard her slow voice, "Rest up here until your wounds heal, then leave. I won't harm you, and you shouldn't harm me either."
"Thank you for saving me."
Lying helplessly by the entryway, his tail gave an involuntary twitch, and he could only stare up at the shoe rack...at a pair of silver high-heeled sandals.
The woman's.
"..."
He couldn't bear to look, nor did he want to; shutting his eyes, he surrendered to stillness, giving up the struggle.
——
As Catriona rode home from work, she saw a message from her friend.
[Eulalia]: "Oh, Catriona, this world feels so... surreal."
That was it, a single, cryptic line.
Catriona, exhausted from a full day, rolled her eyes and typed, "Speak clearly."
After a while, Eulalia replied, "I just... I can't make sense of it all anymore. My head's spinning~"
Catriona: "..."
[Catriona: "Lady, do I need to pay for a therapist appointment for you?"
...
