Chapter 1620: Joining A New Pack

The three had expected as much. The moment the quest marker changed, they realized that the true objective had never been simply to “meet two individuals.” The real purpose was to reach both of the Packs, Steve’s and Jack’s, and once they had done that, the system considered the objective fulfilled.

Part of them believed that after this, something else would happen. Maybe the scenario would shift, showing them what took place after the two Packs made contact. Perhaps they would be given a chance to witness the events that led to the conflict between the leaders. Maybe they would finally see, directly, what caused Jack to change.

Instead, the quest immediately jumped forward and forced them to choose a side.

Gary stared at the quest window, his jaw tightening.

I don’t like this, he thought. This is exactly what happened between me and Lupus. Everything we’ve learned… there’s a good chance Unzoku interfered here, just like he did with us. So what does it mean if the quest wants us to pick a side? Are we stepping onto the same path that ruined them?

The thought scratched at the back of his skull, refusing to settle. And he could tell from the looks on Kai and Lupus’s faces that they were thinking something similar.

For now, they followed Galdark through the Red Wing base. Seeing it with their own eyes was strange. They knew most of it already, from stories, from their own time, but walking through it while it was still alive and thriving made the experience feel surreal.

There was an open courtyard in the center, large enough for several groups to train at once. Built underneath the curving buildings were small shops, all run by Werewolves.

Some shopkeepers remained in their humanoid forms, sleeves rolled up as they hammered metal or sold goods. Others were partially transformed, ears pointed, patches of fur on their arms, claws tapping against countertop wood. A few stood fully transformed, massive wolf-like humanoids leaning against posts, calmly talking as if nothing about their form was unusual.

Across the courtyard, children ran and laughed. Two chased each other on all fours, claws scraping stone as they slid around corners. Others sat together eating meat skewers that had clearly just come from one of the nearby vendors.

Even though they couldn’t see everything, their hearing and smell caught everything else, the scent of starch, sweat, cooked meat, and the rhythmic clang, hiss, clang of blacksmiths hammering metal deep in the back region of the base.

Galdark continued leading them until they reached another section. They never went into the upper floors of the main building, never even approached Jack’s office. Instead, Galdark took them through a lower hallway and out the far side, where a much smaller training area waited.

Compared to the Knight academy grounds or Steve’s open combat arena, this space looked compact, bare stone flooring, weapon racks along the wall, and only a handful of benches surrounding the perimeter. For a hidden Pack inside a city, however, it was impressive.

There were more Werewolves here than in Steve’s camp, quite a lot more. Dozens visible in this section alone. However, once they mentally filtered out the elderly, the injured, and the children, the number of actual combat-ready fighters seemed nearly equal between the two Packs.

Galdark finally turned to them.

“Alright. These guys will make you feel welcome for now. I’m going to speak to Jack first. If he’s okay with everything, he’ll come and give you an introduction. After that, things should be fine.”

He placed a solid hand on Gary’s shoulder before walking off. Hopefully, things really would work out.

The moment Galdark stepped away, the trio realized something else, something very familiar. Something they had felt the last time they had joined one of the Werewolf packs.

They were being stared at, however unlike with Steve camp where there was a mixture of stares all of them here were staring differently. Not with malice. With curiosity. Excitement. Challenge.

“Hey, do you three know how to fight?”

“Yeah, how strong are you?”

“Want to spar? Maybe we can teach you something!”

“The new guys usually don’t like to fight, so you don’t have to fight, you can just watch if you want.”

Kai’s head slowly tilted back toward the sky.

“Why does this always happen…?”

Still, he stepped forward, cracked his knuckles, and let out a sigh.

“Fine. Come on. Let’s show them what we can do.”

Meanwhile, Galdark headed into the main building.

Although the outer structure curved around the courtyard, the central tower was built upward, several floors higher than the rest. From its top, one could probably see the entire Pack territory, watching over everything like a silent guardian.

Galdark climbed the stone steps and knocked twice.

Inside, Jack was waiting. When he walked in, he looked at the usual books, and everything else in the room looked untouched, and it looked like it had been that way for a while. Before Galdark could even say anything, Jack was the first one to speak.

“What’s the matter? Did you meet someone?” Jack asked immediately.

He was already seated at his desk, elbows leaning on the table, fingers interlocked. He spoke without pause, without surprise, as if he already knew something had happened.

Galdark raised an eyebrow.

“Did you even leave the office today?”

“I haven’t yet,” Jack replied. “I will greet the people as usual soon. I’ve just been thinking… a lot.”

His eyes narrowed slightly.

“But answer me. Did you meet someone? There is a scent on you, and it isn’t one of ours.”

Galdark stiffened. Even his breathing changed.

“Yes,” he admitted. “I have something I need to talk to you about. It’s these three Werewolves.”

****

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