HBWnovel Chapter 23 - Moon Wolves
Chapter 23 - Moon Wolves
023: Moon Wolves
Nightfall arrived.
The Rock Armored Turtle stopped to rest.
Bang, bang, bang!
Mu Liang knocked on the door. “Mino, come out for dinner.”
“You eat first. I’m not hungry,” came the shy voice from the room.
Standing at the door, Mu Liang muttered loud enough to be heard, “A fourteen-year-old girl... Could she be entering her rebellious phase?”
The door, made from wooden planks, offered little soundproofing.
Whoosh!
The door flung open instantly.
Mino appeared at the doorway, her cheeks flushed red, her blue eyes glaring.
Hands on her hips, she scolded, “I’m not rebellious!”
“Right, right, not rebellious.” Mu Liang suddenly felt like he was raising a daughter.
Smiling, he lightly flicked her forehead and gently said, “Come on, dinner’s ready.”
“Eh?! Eh?! Eh?!”
Mino’s eyes widened in shock as she saw the completely transformed hall.
At some point, a tall square table and four benches had been added.
A steel pot sat in the middle, with wooden bowls and chopsticks neatly placed across from each other.
“Why are you just standing there? Come eat,” Mu Liang beckoned calmly.
“Did you make all this this afternoon?” Mino sat down in a daze, running her hand over the smooth table and bench.
“I made them along with the big bathtub,” Mu Liang casually ladled meat soup for her. “We can’t keep crouching by the fire pit to eat.”
“A big bathtub too?!” Mino almost bit her tongue in surprise.
“To store water and for bathing, I made a big tub,” Mu Liang pointed to the half-human-height tub in the corner.
With his current strength, handling wood was easy.
Previously, he had to shave wood little by little. Now, a single swipe sent large chunks flying.@@@@
“That tub must hold a lot of water.” Mino momentarily forgot her meal and ran over to inspect it.
“It could fit at least ten of you,” Mu Liang took a sip of soup.
“Mu Liang, come inside quickly!” Mino’s raspy, anxious voice called out.
She stood at the door, waving frantically.
“What’s wrong?” Mu Liang approached, noting her reddened eyes.
“Get inside. It’s too dangerous out there,” Mino tugged him in, slamming the door shut.
She rushed to the fire pit, removing logs to dim the fire.
Huff, huff... Mino exhaled, visibly relieved.
“Because of the wolf howls?” Mu Liang asked gently.
“The Moon Wolves are dangerous beasts,” Mino sniffled.
She had been moved to tears by the painting moments ago, only to be terrified by the wolves now.
“Did you forget? We have our own beast.” Mu Liang chuckled, stomping his foot.
Awooo! The Rock Armored Turtle let out a warning growl.
Awoooo!
In response, a distant wolf howl echoed.
Awoooo!
Then, the howls grew fainter as the Moon Wolves left the area.
“They’re gone,” Mino blinked in disbelief, her floppy rabbit ears slowly standing upright.
“Yeah, they left,” Mu Liang, now familiar with beast communication, roughly understood their messages:
The turtle warned the Moon Wolves: Get off my turf.
The wolves retorted: Just you wait.
“Good riddance,” Mino rekindled the fire.
A second later, she realized she’d forgotten something.
“My painting!” Mino paled, frantically searching until she spotted it on the table, sighing in relief.
She had set it down in her concern for Mu Liang’s safety.
“How should I preserve it?” she asked.
“Hang it on your wall,” Mu Liang suggested warmly.
“Help me hang it.” Mino held the painting up, a bit flustered.
“Sure,” Mu Liang agreed, touched by how much she treasured it.
For some reason, it made him happy.