MHWSW | Chapter 003

Chapter 3

As always, my father was indifferent to matters concerning my mother. Always watching from a step away, no more.

Everything felt infuriating. But I couldn’t pinpoint exactly why.

With my father’s final words, I rose from my seat. Over my shoulder, as I prepared to leave, his stern voice came.

“As I said before, my words are your priority. Understood?”

“….”

“Answer.”

“…Yes, Father.”

As always, the conversation ended with a confirmation of my loyalty to my father. As if he were a master dealing with his dog.

But if the master abandons his loyal dog, it’s only natural for the dog to bare its fangs and bite.

Click.

The door to my father’s office closed. Firmly.

Likewise, my gaze was entirely different from the one I had when I entered the office.

It was no longer the gaze of a loyal dog that had been abandoned.

It was the gaze of a wolf about to hunt its prey.

That was only natural.

Because I intended to bite my father and escape this cursed family.

Thanks to that, what I needed to do became clear.

But I couldn’t act recklessly. My father is a suspicious man; if I tried to bite him without preparation, I might be the one caught instead.

‘So I must plan carefully and precisely.’

In a way that my father would never imagine I was scheming. So that when my plan surfaces, he finds himself powerless to counter it.

Since things had come to this, I had only one plan.

“Another political marriage.”

In other words, a contract that would stake my life.

Under different circumstances, it would have been utterly humiliating. I had carried great pride as the heiress of Guinevere.

That pride hadn’t suddenly vanished even now.

“But… there’s no other choice.”

Even if I wanted to reclaim my position as heiress, no one would support me, a non-Alpha wolf. And what other family would help me?

Me, who had already been abandoned.

I bit my lip again in the face of my harsh reality. With the sharp pain, my mind regained clarity.

“This isn’t the time to think about humiliation.”

I had endured enough humiliation in that moment. That experience had awakened me.

If I accepted this situation and lived like this, I would continue to suffer such things forever.

“Before that happens, I’ll escape this family.”

I hadn’t struggled my entire life to live like this. If my family abandoned me, I would sacrifice myself, even if it meant borrowing the power of another family, to forge my own life.

When I thought of it that way, the political marriage, which seemed horrifying when my father first mentioned it, no longer felt so terrifying.

“If I can escape this family.”

Yes, if I could escape this family, I would do anything. My resolve wasn’t so weak.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

Return a bite with a bite. That was my goal.

“So, if I can secure a political marriage before my father does.”

It would be splendid revenge.

If that happened, my father’s plan to control the Regulus family’s power would collapse in an instant. And I, too, would be able to escape this family.

Thus, there was one thing to do.

Approach another family and secure a political marriage with them before the Regulus engagement progresses.

“The problem is how to accomplish that.”

With my father’s temperament, he would surely keep a close eye on me, fearing I might do something reckless. It was so obvious it made me yawn.

But my father should know.

What he abandoned was a masterpiece of his own making.

I already had a way to evade surveillance.

“There’s a perfect opportunity.”

In two days, the grandest festival hosted by the Guinevere family.

“At that time, I can move on my own.”

For now, that was the best method. And the best option, too.

All I had to do now was wait for that day to approach.

With meticulous preparation.

***

Two days later, on a bright, sunny day with a gentle breeze.

The Guinevere family’s lands were brimming with vitality.

At the family’s castle, the elders and all the wolves gathered, and outside the castle, beastmen gathered with the same spirit, all looking at one place.

At my father, standing on the black altar atop the castle. Perhaps because it was the second day after the Alpha’s birth, the faces looked exceptionally serious.

As if they hoped the miracle that brought an Alpha wolf would come to them as well. Even my father, carefully observing this, seemed satisfied despite pretending otherwise.

At that moment.

Ding!

When a loud, ear-piercing bell rang, the noisy lands quieted. My father scanned the crowd, his eyes full of authority, and spread his arms.

“We now begin Pyrotus!”

His majestic voice reached the crowd, who threw the black roses in their hands and cheered. After the cheering, they gathered in small groups, holding hands, dancing, or singing.

The festival of black roses and songs, Pyrotus.

This festival was a tribute to something in Mount Anlindri, the snowy mountain in the far north of Guinevere’s lands.

This festival is always held on the day when spring meets summer. There was no precisely fixed date. It was set for the day after the night when the snowy mountain’s peak sparkles. A strange method of calculation, but the Guinevere lands celebrated this festival earnestly, to the point that there was a role dedicated to watching the snowy mountain every night during this time.

Because Pyrotus is not just a festival. It is a tribute to Pyrotus himself.

Pyrotus, the greatest being in these lands. To the beastmen, he is like a ruler, one of the few surviving dragons. His slumbering presence in the snowy mountain is considered a blessing to these lands.

Yes, the Pyrotus festival is a ritual that evolved into a celebration to pray for peace for the year to Pyrotus, sleeping in the snowy mountain.

“A dragon that may or may not exist.”

An old tale. Only one sighting, when that dragon settled in its true form in Mount Anlindri.

Thus, there weren’t many who believed in Pyrotus’s existence in these lands. But since Guinevere rules these lands, this traditional festival continued, and everyone enjoyed it nonetheless.

And as the festival continued traditionally, one event persisted stubbornly. The most important event: one of Guinevere’s direct members offering a tribute at Pyrotus’s nest in the snowy mountain, which is assumed to no longer exist. It had lost its meaning long ago, but it remained a continued custom.

“And now…”

In the Guinevere family, I was the direct member who went to the snowy mountain. And this week, which would give me the time to execute my plan, would begin during the tribute-offering journey.

It would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“Of course, I’ll be accompanied by others.”

But I planned to shake off my companions halfway and head to the Snow Leopard family, located behind Mount Anlindri. They had power comparable to Regulus and were independent.

Most importantly, they had the custom of separating from the family after marriage.

That was the opposite of wolves, who continue living together even after marriage, and this point particularly appealed to me.

‘These are ideal circumstances for me. And I also have something to offer them.’

Including myself. Over these two days, I had made many preparations.

‘Still, being the temporary head means I also have to prepare for the festival.’

That was exhausting enough.

But I wasn’t in a position to complain.

As I reviewed my plan once more,

Ding!

When the bell rang again, my father descended from the altar and looked at me. I quickly realized what his gaze meant. He had something to say to me before I left. I approached him immediately, waiting for him to speak.

“Go, and afterward, we’ll proceed with the political marriage.”

On the surface, his words might seem to be in my favor, but he meant for me to plan during this week to take control of the Regulus family.

“Very well, Father.”

I answered as usual. If my father grew even slightly suspicious and blocked my path, it would cause a significant disruption.

My father, no different from usual, looked at me, then turned and entered the castle. I turned as well and headed to where I had prepared my belongings.

***

Mount Anlindri, the snowy mountain.

At first, the path is relatively gentle, but it quickly becomes rugged. Not only because of the incline but because the path to Pyrotus’s nest is covered in rocks and snow, making it extremely dangerous. Even I, who was accustomed to climbing it every year, always had to prepare thoroughly.

Of course, I didn’t climb alone. My closest companions were always with me: my maid, Mary, and the knights, Riel and Arin. Mary, as usual, was meticulously adjusting my clothing. Riel and Arin were arguing over who would carry the luggage, but they were reliable enough for me to depend on.

My eyes fell on Riel and Arin. They turned to me, their eyes wide open, flaunting their strong arm muscles, and approached me—or rather, the luggage behind me. The brothers were always competing over the pettiest things.

“My lady, let me carry it!”

“No, I’ll carry it.”

Riel and Arin, with their brown hair, were of the bear clan, so they weren’t affected by the cold and had immense strength. Because of this, they could carry a week’s worth of food and offerings without any issue on this rugged path.