CH 61

Looking at him, Jackal said calmly.

“I accept the request.”

“Thank you so much!”

He was grateful, even shedding tears, but somehow he seemed to be engulfed in deep guilt. 

Jackal looked at the members and said charismatically.

“Everyone spreads out and investigates the lake shore.”

“Yes!”

The client handed over to them the items and clothes that the children used to wear.

Jackal and Sosa waited for the members to disappear from sight, then went to a location away from the client and transformed into horses.

The two wild horses sniffed at the scent of the children.

This was the reason why they received search requests in addition to hunting requests.

Horses were indeed animals with a developed sense of smell.

Other members of the organization also searched the area diligently with search dogs.

But Gabe, who was passing by, suddenly noticed two horses walking side by side, sniffing amicably.

He paused for a moment, staring at them puzzled.

The two horses glanced back, perhaps sensing the presence, but soon sniffed again and calmly walked away.

Is that the captain’s horse? He’s such a weird horse…… 

Gabe shook his head. 

He didn’t even go near the client, who was from the same Nasson clan, let alone say hello.

In Lycaon, there were only those who decided to cut ties with their clans and start a new life.

Therefore, everyone tried not to engage in private exchanges with minorities.

The sky turned gloomier in the middle of a search.

Jackal looked up at the dark and thunderous sky as if it was going to rain at any moment.

It would be difficult to continue the search in this weather.

If it rained, not only the smell but also the tracks disappeared, so it was not easy to find tracks.

It was windier than usual and there was a river nearby, so a lot of other smells were dispersed due to the smell of water and rain.

Also, strangely, it was difficult to find the scent of the children due to the pungent smell, as if the surroundings had been burned.

Jackal was going to transform into his human form and tried to tell everyone to leave for today.

But it was then.

In the distance, along with the sound of the horn, an urgent cry was heard.

“Captain! It’s a raid……!”

Jackal’s eyes grew wide.

In an instant, screams, the sound of armor, and the sound of a drawn sword resounded everywhere.

The Lycaons tried to split up and flee, but arrows were flying from all directions as if they had already figured out the escape routes.

The Lycaons quickly stopped running, but some members fell to the ground screaming as they were hit by arrows.

The area around the lake quickly became a mess.

The Lycaons quickly drew their swords and engaged in a sword fight with the rushing knights.

However, it was not enough to defeat them while they were on horseback and armed with armor.

A brief battle ensued, and eventually, Lycaon was quickly surrounded with the lake behind them.

Jackal frowned as he saw a man riding wild in the distance.

Red eyes shone fiercely between the black bangs. 

It was Emperor Karaf. 

Last night, upon hearing Duran’s plan, he was still distraught.

‘Let’s say the minority village made a request to them…… She would help them…….’

‘Yes, that’s right. Moreover, also, I heard that when Lady Vanessa was in the village, she took care of orphaned children. If the children are missing, she probably won’t be able to sit still. Because Lady Vanessa…… is a good person.’

Duran’s expression was also filled with guilt.

Karaf didn’t want to hear or know anything about ethnic minorities, but she still cared about minorities, especially Lycaon.

And that prediction was right. 

Karaf had never felt Asha’s warm heart in such pain as this time.

It was painful for him to use her good heart to help others, but he could never forget that moment when he let go of her hands during the flowering ceremony.

It became a nightmare every night, turning his mind devastatingly upside down. 

It was as if she would disappear forever if he let go of her hand, so every night he couldn’t sleep unless he had something in his hand, be it a pillow or a bottle.

Jackal looked around quickly, but the client was no longer in sight.

No way, was it a trap……?

He gritted his teeth. 

There was more pollen than last time, coming out like spikes from Karaf, who looked crazy.

It was a flower full of threats as if trying to suffocate the opponent to death.

All the Lycaons covered their noses and mouths from the yellow pollen dust.

Quickly dismounting from his horse, Karaf glared coldly at the Lycaons caught in the trap he had set. 

He slowly looked at their faces one by one, but Asha’s face was not there, as if she had been forcibly hidden in case he appeared.

He was a little devastated that he was going to take her immediately after he found her, but he was glad she wasn’t there.

He also didn’t want to show her the cruelty that was about to happen. 

Karaf turned his head and looked at Duran, coldly instructing.

“Eliminate them.”

“Yes.”

Duran raised a hand, and the knights aimed their bows at them at the same time.

“Damn it! These cowards……!”

Gabe uttered a harsh curse. 

Karaf looked around calmly and muttered.

“Now that I think about it, I can’t even see the guy who claims to be your leader. I wondered what kind of man it was that coveted my Vanessa.”

At that, the Lycaons quickly looked around and seemed slightly relieved.

They thought it was very lucky that the captain escaped so he could get Asha to safety.

Karaf laughed at that.

“He abandoned you. You risked your lives following a cowardly leader, right?”

The Lycaons glared at him.

“Don’t talk about our captain without knowing anything!”

Karaf relaxed his expression and said.

“Well, it wouldn’t be bad if he saw his men die in a sea of blood. I need to tell you what kind of disaster your greed has caused.”

The ground was already littered with bleeding men.

The Lycaons’ faces turned miserable.

Gabe frowned and shouted at his comrades.

“We have to make time as much as possible to protect the captain and Asha!”

With Jackal and Sosa gone, the command immediately transferred to Gabe.

Jackal felt something hot rise from inside his chest.

It was his subordinates who followed his opinion 100%, putting Asha first.

Leaving his men behind…… He couldn’t be happy running away alone.

When the Lycaons immediately raised their weapons and formed a defensive formation to attack, Karaf’s eyes flashed, he pointed his index finger at Gabe and spoke coldly.

“Kill him first.”

It was then that Duran aimed his bow at him and shot an arrow.

Jackal, who was nearby, quickly turned into a human and threw himself at Gabe.

An arrow narrowly missed Gabe’s head and the two fell to the ground together.

Everyone’s eyes widened. Karaf’s eyes also grew bigger.

“Damn…… Was that bloody horse you?”

Jackal, who was naked, put on the cloak that he had been holding in his mouth before transforming and getting up from the ground.

His blue eyes glittered with bitterness.

Karaf laughed like it was really absurd.

“What the hell is this amazing thing!? A human who can transform into a horse……! Until when are minorities going to surprise me?”

But the Lycaons also seemed very surprised and froze in place, looking at him with wide eyes.

Jackal looked at Karaf with his blue eyes like a calm storm.

Karaf chuckled.

“Looking at him now, those cheeky eyes are the same as that horse’s… Did you aim at my Vanessa without any fear, even though you’re barely a horse?”

“…… It’s much better than a less fallen flower that can’t bloom on its own without a butterfly.”

Karaf frowned.

“The only thing you know how to do is hurt others with your thorns. I can’t bring Asha back to you. I will never let Asha die twice because of you.”

“What? Who is going to die?”

Karaf snorted.

“It won’t be with me, she will die if she stays with you. From now on, I’m going to slit the throats of every one of you here.”

His red eyes flashed as madness seized him.

He had already looked insane, but it seemed that Jackal’s words made him look completely crazy.

Karaf felt a strong sense of betrayal inside him.

He couldn’t bear it when he thought that he secretly had a sweet tryst with Asha at the Imperial Palace.

As Karaf trembled like an alcoholic, Jackal looked at the white horse a short distance away.

He meant to take advantage of this time when he was confronting him and go to Asha quickly. 

Jackal calmly conveyed his thoughts to Sosa.

[Hurry up. Take Asha and go to a very far place. Let her be free.]

It was a telepathic ability that could only be possessed by the ‘successor’ of a clan with more innate abilities, even if they belonged to the same clan.

Jackal closed and opened his eyes once without saying a word.

Tears welled up in Sosa’s big sky-blue eyes.

Now he was not giving an order, but a sincere request.

They belong to the same Kelpie clan and as the leader of the Lycaon, Jackal wanted to protect Sosa as much as possible.

Understanding in his heart that he couldn’t bear to leave his men alone, Sosa gritted his teeth and began to run like mad.

Karaf saw it, he raised his bow directly with an expressionless face.

“You have to kill horses that don’t listen and do as they please.”

It was at that moment that Sosa was about to be hit by his arrow.

A desperate cry was heard from somewhere, and at the same time, a strong wind blew.

“Everyone stop……! Stop……!”