Thomas ignored him.
Then Marlon remembered—the trap.
"The trap!! Big rock on the right!" he shouted to Thomas' retreating back.
Thomas had left Marlon several dozen meters behind when he veered sharply to the right, nearly slipping. Marlon knew Thomas would stop once he spotted his target—that was usually when they'd start planning their next move.
Thomas disappeared behind two massive boulders that almost resembled a gate, just as the howling grew louder, closer.
Finally, Marlon reached the front of the stone gate. The growling came from behind it. His steps slowed as he prepared to aim his crossbow.
What is Thomas doing? he wondered.
Slowly, he stepped past the boulder, twice his height, and the sight that greeted him made even Marlon's lazy eyes widen in shock.
A vast clearing stretched before him, surrounded by dense, shadowy trees. Yet, at its center lay only short green grass, almost like a carpet, with not a single tree covering it. The light of the full moon shone brightly, reflecting off a werewolf the size of a human. Its fur was pure white, nearly glowing as it caught the moonlight.
Its leg was trapped in the silver-toothed snare Marlon had set earlier. But the creature seemed too terrified to struggle—Thomas, with his massive arm, was pressing a silver sword against the white wolf's throat.
Marlon was certain he saw tears glistening in the beautiful creature's eyes, shimmering under the moonlight.
Suddenly, a blinding blue light flashed right beneath the creature's neck, emanating from a tattoo nearly identical to the one on the werewolf they had killed earlier. But instead of two crossed swords above it, a crescent moon covered the flaming fang symbol.
Startled by the blue light searing his vision, Thomas jerked his sword back, his left hand reflexively shielding his face.
Seeing this, Marlon quickly tossed his backpack and crossbow aside, sprinting as fast as he could toward Thomas. His lean, athletic frame, unburdened by weight, allowed him to run and leap like a full-grown stag.
As soon as his vision cleared, Thomas swung his sword forward to strike the werewolf.
With barely thirty centimeters between the blade and the creature's neck, Marlon lunged, slamming into Thomas with enough force to send them both tumbling into the grass.
The silver sword flew from Thomas' grip, landing right beside the beautiful creature.
"What the hell, Marlon?!" Thomas roared, shoving Marlon away with both hands.
Without wasting a second, the werewolf reached for the sword beside it.
But to its shock, the moment its palm touched the hilt, sparks of fiery dust erupted from its skin. The creature howled in pain and immediately flung the sword away.
Seeing this, Thomas scrambled to his feet to retrieve his weapon—but once again, Marlon blocked him, this time by wrapping his arms around Thomas' legs, sending him crashing back down.
"Wait, Thomas!!" Marlon urged.
Thomas struggled to free his legs from Marlon's grip while trying to stand.
"What do you want?!" Thomas snapped again, pushing his younger brother away.
"Just wait, Thomas—listen to me, this is important!" Marlon insisted, locking eyes with Thomas carefully.
"Fine, fine—let go of me," Thomas finally relented, shoving Marlon aside.
Marlon remained sprawled on the grass beside Thomas, catching his breath before speaking.
Thomas sat on the grass, his right arm resting on his knee while his left rubbed the back of his neck, head bowed, waiting for Marlon's explanation.
"Do you realize, Thomas… who that werewolf is?" Marlon said, slowly pushing himself up.
He stepped in front of Thomas, blocking his view of the creature.
Thomas looked up at Marlon's face, his expression curious.
"What are you talking about?" Thomas asked impatiently.
"I'm almost certain she's the princess of the Royal Canine clan," Marlon explained, jerking his thumb over his shoulder. "I've seen that tattoo in dad's books."
"Do you know what happens if we kill the Royal Canine's princess?" Marlon continued, hands on his hips as he caught his breath.
"War?" Thomas guessed.
"Yep. Right here. In our city," Marlon affirmed, still panting.
"Okay, okay—I get it," Thomas conceded, extending his right hand for Marlon to help him up.
Marlon took it and pulled, but this time, Thomas yanked hard, sending Marlon stumbling backward past him.
"You bastard," Marlon grumbled, punching the ground before standing.
Thomas glanced back with a smug grin, as if his revenge was complete.
But when he turned forward again, he froze—stunned by something astonishing.
Marlon walked up beside Thomas, punching his arm lightly, but Thomas didn't react, his face turning red.
Confused by Thomas' unresponsive, flushed expression, Marlon followed his gaze.
The two brothers stood side by side, staring ahead motionless, faces burning.
Across from them, a naked woman crouched, arms covering herself, her leg still caught in the trap.
A beautiful woman with shimmering silver-gray hair, glistening under the moonlight.
"Ahem!!" After a few seconds, Marlon snapped out of it, breaking the silence with a fake cough.
He lowered his gaze, stepping forward while removing his black leather coat.
Meanwhile, Thomas remained hypnotized, unmoving.
Marlon turned, picked up a pebble, and hurled it straight at Thomas' head.
Thwack!
"Ow!!" Finally snapping out of it, Thomas glared at his brother, who was now walking backward toward the woman.
Marlon shot Thomas a disapproving look, shaking his head while raising his arms in exasperation.
"Oh. Right. Sorry," Thomas muttered, turning away in embarrassment.
The woman flinched as Marlon approached, and he averted his eyes.
"Stay back! I'm not a killer!" she shouted, her voice trembling with fear.
Hearing that, Thomas almost turned around.
"Don't even think about peeking, Thomas!!" Marlon yelled without looking.
"Okay… okay," Thomas replied.
"How'd you even know?" he grumbled, kicking a pebble.
Marlon walked slowly toward the woman, keeping his eyes averted.
"Calm down. We won't hurt you," Marlon reassured, tossing his coat to her.
"Put this on," he added, still looking away.
Then he turned and walked back to Thomas' side.
"What do we do with her?" Marlon whispered.
"Whatever it is, we can't just let her go. And we definitely can't kill her," Thomas murmured.
"We already killed her companion. If we release her, she might attack us—forcing us to kill her. Or worse, she escapes and brings the entire pack down on us," Marlon countered, running his fingers through his hair.
"Easy, easy—give me a second to think," Thomas said, folding one arm across his chest while the other touched his chin.
"Hey!! Let me go!!" the woman shouted from behind.
The two brothers remained with their backs to her, silent.
After a long moment, Thomas' expression shifted.
He glanced at his brother and asked:
"Did you bring the tranquilizer gun in your backpack?"
"You sure about this?" Marlon asked, confirming Thomas's decision.
"Not like we got another choice," Thomas replied firmly to his younger brother.
"Fine, I'll grab it," Marlon said as he strode toward the backpack he had tossed aside earlier.
"And don't forget the damn cuffs!" Thomas added.
"Hey! What the hell you think you're doing?! You know who I am?!" the woman shouted furiously.
"Yeah yeah, we know who you are," Thomas answered dismissively. "Relax, we ain't gonna hurt you."
"You've got no clue what you just started!!" she challenged loudly, hurling a rock toward Marlon—though it fell short.
Without turning, Marlon sighed and continued rummaging through his backpack.
The woman didn't stop hurling threats at the two of them.
"Got it," Marlon said curtly.
He tossed a slender, long-barreled pistol toward Thomas, who caught it effortlessly with one hand.
Marlon turned and slowly approached the woman.
Her curses and threats grew fiercer as he drew nearer.
"That one of your guys?" Marlon pointed behind her, trying to distract her.
The woman fell silent for a moment, staring at him before glancing back to check.
THWACK!
Without waiting for confirmation, Thomas fired a tranquilizer dart into her arm the instant she turned.
"You—!!" she tried to yell, but before she could finish, her body went limp, and she collapsed into a deep slumber.
Marlon walked over and freed her leg from the trap, while Thomas moved away.
"Where you going?" Marlon called, looking back.
"Get her to the car. I'll deal with the bodies," Thomas replied without turning.
Marlon removed the trap from her leg, took out a bandage from his bag, and carefully wrapped her wound.
Then he paused, deciding to take a closer look at her face.
What he saw made his heart pound unexpectedly.
Her thin, dark brows, long lashes, and crimson lips—striking against her pale, flawless skin—made his pupils dilate.
What is this feeling? he wondered.
Until now, women had never held his interest. He had always considered them irrelevant to his life.
At least, that was the case—until this moment.