At the end of the month.
Catriona finished arranging her work matters and briefed her friends before setting off with her son, filled with anticipation and anxiety, towards the snow mountains.
The place where the werewolves lived was the snow mountain.
She had only heard about it all this time, and now she was finally going.
On the day of departure, as night fell at the Nightblade's old mansion, over twenty werewolves gathered there, all heading back to the snow mountain, hitching a ride with the Nightblade.
They were using a special vehicle that the Nightblade had made at great expense; it would take only half a month to arrive, whereas traveling on foot would take three months.
They had to pack food and clothes for the half-month journey.
Thus, each werewolf carried a hefty bundle.
They greeted Catriona enthusiastically: "Wow, it's the Luna! We met at Alpha Roderick's birthday party last time. Do you remember me?"
"Luna is coming back to the snow mountain with us!"
"Alpha Roderick is taking his mate back to the snow mountain too. When will I ever have a mate? Waaaah..."
Madam Nightblade, Sir Nightblade, Angelina and Brigham were all heading back as well because it was Catriona and her son's first trip to the snow mountain, and the couple would hold their werewolf bonding ceremony there.
What caught Catriona's attention was that among this group of werewolves, there were two pure humans besides her. One was a woman around her age, tightly holding hands with a werewolf who had yellowish-gray ears.
The woman was about five feet six and wore a pink down jacket. She seemed a bit nervous facing so many werewolves.
The other woman appeared to be in her thirties, with a full figure, curves in all the right places, exuding sexiness. She wore bold lipstick and openly surveyed the surrounding werewolves with a daring gaze.
When she noticed Catriona's gaze, the woman gave her a nod and a smile.
Catriona returned the nod with a gentle one.
"What are you looking at?" The man's deep voice sounded.
"If I'm not mistaken, she's a pure human, right?"
Roderick glanced over and replied with a slight sound of acknowledgment.
"This time back to the snow mountain, there are three pure humans."
Catriona looked up at the darkening sky, recalling her conversation with Roderick a few days ago.
"Your werewolf's snow mountains... they must be places humans don't know about, right? Are they at the end of the world? Do you have to fly to the entrance?" At that time, she was nestled in Roderick's arms, stroking his furry ears, lying lazily on the tatami, gazing at the stars above.
His large wolf tail wrapped around her waist possessively, as he relaxed comfortably, his voice carrying a hint of laziness. "The snow mountain is another world."
"Ah?" she exclaimed in surprise. "Is it another planet?"
Roderick's lips parted slightly as he said, "In human terms, the snow mountain is a land of dreams; it exists only for us werewolves."
Catriona was a bit stunned. Catriona was puzzled. "What does that mean? It sounds like a sacred mountains where immortals live—something human can imagine but never see."
Roderick pinched her cheek, a smile playing on his lips. "You could understand it that way."
Catriona felt that...
This world is truly magical.
"Then where's the entrance? Do we need to take a plane?"
"No need; there's an entrance in Capital."
Catriona looked up at him in surprise. "Where?"
Roderick gazed at her adorable expression, tightening his tail around her waist. He lowered his gaze and asked, "Do you remember where those dozens of fallen lone werewolves came down from last time?"
Catriona's eyes widened in shock. "Isn't that... the large mountain behind Luna Palace?"
So close?!
"That's right. The exit and entrance are at the forest's end, at the highest peak."
Catriona was stunned for a few seconds upon learning the truth.
Night fell.
The moonlight hung above the forest.
Dozens of "people" stood at the foot of the mountain.
"Alright, let's set off." With Roderick's words, those "people" began to shift forms, howls echoing as one wolf after another appeared.
The scene was both terrifying and bizarre.
Catriona had seen Roderick transform many times and had experienced the invasion of fallen werewolves at Luna Palace, so she felt no panic or fear at this sight.
She was more accustomed to it than she had imagined.
The woman, wearing a pink down jacket, was clearly startled by the scene before her. She clutched her mate's hand tightly, trembling slightly and afraid to look too much.
Catriona turned to look at another plump woman, who was not afraid at all; her eyes sparkled with excitement, nearly bouncing off the ground.
"This is so freaking awesome! Just like in the movies, it's so freaking cool!"
Catriona: "..."
The woman exclaimed excitedly, "Honey, you should transform too!"
Her mate, a bit shy, chuckled and then, with a sharp gaze, transformed right there into a wolf with black, green, and yellow patches. The colors were so vibrant that Catriona blinked in surprise.
The woman let out a shriek, laughing heartily as the black-green-yellow wolf crouched down, allowing her to leap onto its back. "Honey! Let's go up the mountain!"
"Awoo—"
The couple dashed into the forest.
Catriona watched in awe.
The next moment, her chin was pinched and turned back. She met a pair of emerald-green eyes as Roderick softly said, "What are you looking at? You have one too."
"And you have the biggest one."
Catriona couldn't help but smile and frown at the same time.
In the next moment, she saw Madam Nightblade riding on the back of a pure black werewolf, greeting them, "Kids, we're off!"
This time, not many werewolves returned with mates; most were single. Upon seeing the scene, they howled in envy before charging into the forest in indignation.
Cedric, influenced by so many of his pack members, transformed into a solid little wolf, howling at Roderick.
"Carry Mommy, okay?"
He wanted to charge into the forest like the other werewolves.
He was overestimating himself, relying on his short, chubby little legs.
Roderick scoffed softly, quickly catching the little one who was about to run and placing him in Catriona's arms. "You hold him."
Catriona held the little wolf cub, whose eyes were wide and unwilling, and gently said, "Sweetie, you should stay with Mommy. Don't run off. What if they step on you?"
Cedric:...
Step on him?
Step! On! Him!
Catriona's words were mildly hurtful but extremely insulting...
Her son, however, didn't seem to have the awareness of a young cub.
Catriona was about to speak when she noticed the light in front of her dimming; a massive shadow appeared before her.
"Grr..." A familiar low growl echoed.
She looked up.
A giant wolf, taller than her, stood before her, affectionately licking her face and hands.
Then it grabbed her and tossed her backward, enveloping her and her son in fur.
Catriona gripped the giant wolf's fur, expertly settling herself atop. In her arms was a rebellious, chubby cub, emitting angry little sounds. One day... one day, he would grow bigger than his father, and carry his mother, running freely across mountains and fields!
Catriona couldn't help but smile as she exclaimed, "Honey, we're in last place! What should we do?"
The wolf's eyes glowed green as it howled toward the sky.
The massive tail wrapped around mother and child, as if to protect them from falling. Then, with the speed of an arrow, the body shot forward, weaving through the forest like a gust of wind.
In the darkness, amidst the howling wind, Catriona could see nothing, only hear the lively rustle of the forest all around.
She held her son tightly and laughed, "Honey, you're amazing!"
As soon as she spoke, the giant wolf ran even faster.
So it was no surprise that they reached the mountaintop first.
Catriona smiled, her eyes curving with delight, thinking, ah, how childish she had become.
But she didn't care.
What mattered was that she was smiling and happy.
