"Grateful, huh? Is that 'warrior grateful' where you give me a heavier spear, or 'yurt grateful' where I actually get to finish a conversation without an apprentice-shaped grenade going off?" Robin panted, his legs feeling like they had been replaced by two lead weights.
The walk back from the Silver-Crag Lake was significantly slower than the frantic climb up. The sun—the pale, cold one—was fully up now, casting long shadows across the newly formed lake that filled the Whispering Hollow. The air was crisp, and the smell of ozone and wet earth was almost refreshing compared to the cloying scent of the void-silk.
Lunara, whose silver hair was still damp and plastered to her neck, didn't answer immediately. Instead, she looped her arm through his, pulling him closer until his side was pressed firmly against her hip. Her tail, thick and luxurious, wrapped around his waist like a fuzzy seatbelt.
"A bit of both," she teased, her golden eyes darting to him with a warmth that made his heart skip. "But for now, I think you've earned the right to just walk without being poked by my spear. You did well, Robin. My father isn't going to believe his eyes when he sees the valley. You turned a death trap into a reservoir."
"I just used what was there," Robin said, leaning into her strength. He felt the system chime in the back of his mind.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[BOND STATUS: LUNARA (45%) - 'Sovereign Companion']
[TRAIT PROGRESS: 'TRUSTED SOUL' - Tribe members will no longer question your presence in restricted areas.]
"And that't why you're dangerous," Lunara whispered. She stopped, turning him to face her. The light of the morning made her bronze skin glow. She reached up and brushed a smudge of limestone dust from his forehead. Her touch was lingering, her claws fully retracted, her fingers soft. "Most of my kin only know how to break things. You... you know how to change them. It's a powerful magic, Robin. More powerful than you realize."
She leaned in, her nose brushing against his, and for a second, Robin thought she was going to finish what they had started on the ridge. But then, she pulled back with a wicked smirk, her ears twitching.
"But we really should get back. If we're gone much longer, Mina might actually explode from worry, and I don't want to have to clean up the 'apprentice-shaped grenade' residue."
"Right. Mina. And the Shaman. And the five thousand eggs we just turned into fish food," Robin muttered, though he couldn't help but smile back.
The return to the village was nothing short of a parade.
Word had traveled fast. As they crossed the South Fence, warriors stood atop the iron-oak pillars, howling in a synchronized, melodic rhythm that sent shivers down Robin's spine. It wasn't the scary, 'we're going to eat you' howl; it was the 'song of the victors.'
"They're howling for you, Robin," Lunara said, her voice filled with a rare, quiet pride. She kept her arm linked in his, ensuring everyone saw that the 'star-boy' was under the direct protection—and favor—of the Alpha's daughter.
Mina was the first to reach them. She practically flew across the plaza, her floppy ears flapping like wings. She didn't stop to apologize this time; she simply collided with Robin, wrapping her arms around his middle and burying her face in his chest.
"You're alive! The trees! The trees are singing!" she cried, her tail wagging so violently she was shaking both of them. "Mother Kaia felt the water! She said it was like a cold drink after a thousand-year fever! Robin, you did it!"
"We did it, Mina," Robin corrected, patting her shoulder. The girl smelled like lavender and damp moss. "Lunara threw the flasks. I just pointed."
"You did more than point," a deep, rumbling voice said.
Chief Fenris stood at the entrance of the great yurt. He looked exhausted, his fur matted with the grime of the night's battle, but his eyes were sharp. He looked at the wet gear his daughter was wearing, then at Robin.
"The Hollow is a lake," Fenris stated. It wasn't a question.
"It is, Father," Lunara said, stepping forward but not releasing Robin's arm. "The brood is gone. The Mother Tree is washed clean. We've bought the forest another season of peace."
Fenris nodded slowly. He walked over to Robin, his massive shadow falling over the human. For a long moment, the plaza went silent. Then, the Chief placed a heavy, clawed hand on Robin's shoulder.
"I have lived sixty winters," Fenris said, his voice carrying to every ear in the village. "I have fought the great serpents of the deep and the fire-drakes of the peaks. But I have never seen a man fight a brood with a lake. Robin... you are no longer a guest. You are of the Lunawolf. My daughter has claimed you as her squire, but today, I claim you as a son of the pack."
[SYSTEM ALERT: REPUTATION RANK UP!]
[NEW STATUS: 'PACK BROTHER']
[GLOBAL INFLUENCE: LUNAWOLF TRIBE - 100% AFFINITY]
The village erupted in a deafening roar of approval. Robin felt a lump in his throat. He had come here as a snack, and now he was a brother.
The celebration was intense, but as the evening approached, the physical toll of the last forty-eight hours finally caught up with Robin. His muscles felt like they were vibrating, and every joint ached from the limestone climb.
"You look like you're about to melt into the dirt," Lunara said, appearing at his side as the communal fires were being lit. She had changed into a softer, loose-fitting tunic made of white fur, which highlighted the silver of her hair. She looked incredibly feminine, her movements relaxed and swaying.
"I think I might actually be dying," Robin groaned, sitting on a log.
"Not yet. I still haven't collected that interest," she reminded him with a wink. She reached down and grabbed his hand, pulling him up. "Come. The tribe has a place for this. The Silver Springs. It's a natural hot spring near the Shaman's Grove. The water is heated by the earth's mana. It'll fix your 'melting' problem."
"A hot spring?" Robin's eyes lit up. "That sounds like heaven."
"It's better," Lunara promised.
They walked away from the noise of the feast, heading toward the quieter, greener part of the village. The springs were nestled in a grotto of glowing crystals and weeping silver trees. The air was thick with steam, smelling of minerals and wild jasmine.
"There are separate pools for the warriors and the elders," Lunara explained, leading him toward a smaller, more secluded pool tucked behind a curtain of ivy. "But as the Alpha's daughter, I have my own. And today... I'm sharing."
Robin stopped. "Wait, you mean... together?"
Lunara turned, her tail twitching in amusement. "In the tribe, we don't have the strange 'shame' of the stars, Robin. We are wolves. We groom each other. We bathe together. It's how we strengthen the bond." She stepped closer, her voice dropping. "Unless... you're afraid of a little steam?"
"I'm not afraid," Robin said, his face heating up. "It's just... different."
"Different is good," she whispered.
She reached for the ties of her white fur tunic. With a practiced, graceful motion, she let the garment fall to the mossy ground.
Robin's breath hitched. He had seen her in battle gear and sleep-tunic, but this was different. She was a masterpiece of biological engineering—powerful, lean, and utterly beautiful. The silver fur along her spine shimmered in the crystal light, and the curves of her body were softened by the steam. She walked into the turquoise water with a sigh of contentment, the water rising to her waist, then her chest.
"Well?" she called out, leaning her head back against the smooth stone rim of the pool. "The water is perfect. Are you coming in, or are you going to keep the ivy company?"
Robin took a deep breath, his heart racing. He kicked off his boots and shed his leather tunic and trousers, feeling incredibly vulnerable and very, very human compared to her. He slid into the water, and the heat was instantaneous. It felt like every cell in his body was sighing in relief.
"See?" Lunara said, drifting closer to him until their knees touched underwater. "Better than heaven."
"Yeah," Robin whispered. "Much better."
They sat in silence for a few minutes, the only sound the gentle trickle of the spring. The steam curled around them, creating a private world.
"Robin," Lunara said softly. She reached out under the water, her hand finding his. Her fingers were warm and gentle. "About the voice you heard. The mask."
Robin stiffened. He hadn't told her yet. "How did you—?"
"I'm a wolf, remember? I could smell the fear on you when the mask shattered. And you've been looking at the shadows differently ever since." She moved closer, her shoulder pressing against his. "What did she say?"
Robin sighed, the weight of the secret finally lifting. "She said I drowned her children. She called me 'little star.' And she said she'd see me in the City of the Pale Ones."
Lunara's ears flattened against her head. Her grip on his hand tightened. "The Demon City. Astrum-Vale."
"Is that where we're going?"
"It's where the Weaver originates," Lunara said, her voice turning serious. "The 'Pale Ones' are the High Elves who fell to the void. If she's retreating there, she's going home to build a bigger web."
She looked at him, her golden eyes searching his. "It's a long journey, Robin. Dangerous. You don't have to go. You've done enough. You could stay here, under my father's protection. You'd be safe. You could build your pipes and your fences..."
"No," Robin said firmly, turning to face her. "I'm not staying behind while you walk into a spider's nest. I'm your squire, remember? And besides..." He reached out, his hand finding the damp silver hair at the nape of her neck. "I don't think I could stand being that 'safe' without you."
Lunara's expression softened into something profound. She didn't say anything, but she moved into his space, her arms winding around his neck. The water sloshed between them as she pulled him close. Her skin was hot, slick, and velvet-soft.
"You're a fool, Robin," she whispered against his lips. "A brave, stubborn, clever fool."
She kissed him then—not the fierce, desperate kiss of the ridge, but something slow, deep, and filled with a mounting tension. Robin felt the system flare in his mind, but he ignored the boxes, focusing entirely on the feeling of her tail wrapping around his thigh and the way her body molded to his.
"I'm your fool," he murmured as they pulled apart.
Lunara smirked, her eyes heavy with affection and a hint of that Alpha mischief. "Good. Because I have no intention of letting you go. Ever."
She reached for a bowl of aromatic soaps sitting on the edge of the pool. "Now... since you're my squire, you can start by washing my back. Properly this time. No 'green slime' and no interruptions."
She turned around, exposing the long, elegant line of her back. "And be careful, Robin. I'm very... sensitive tonight."
The grooming took a long time. It was a strange mixture of casual conversation and intense, simmering tension. Robin washed the silver fur of her tail, marveling at how soft it was when wet, while Lunara told him stories of her childhood—of how she had once tried to hunt a kodo-beast by herself and ended up stuck in a tree for three days.
"You? Stuck in a tree?" Robin laughed, scrubbing the soap into her shoulders.
"I was young! And the beast was very large!" she defended herself, her ears twitching. She looked over her shoulder, her eyes sparkling. "And don't laugh too hard, or I'll tell the tribe how you look when you're trying to outrun a 'brisk walk'!"
They laughed together, the atmosphere light and intimate. But eventually, the water began to cool, and the moons climbed higher in the sky.
As they climbed out of the spring and dried themselves with thick, woven towels, the reality of the situation began to settle back in.
"We leave in three days," Lunara said, pulling on her white fur tunic. She looked at Robin, who was struggling with the leather ties of his trousers. She walked over and brushed his hands away, tying the knots for him with a feminine efficiency. "My father is calling a council of the beast-tribes. We need to secure the borders before we head for the City."
"Three days," Robin repeated. "What do I do until then?"
"You train," Lunara said, her eyes flashing. "If we're going to the Demon City, you need to be able to do more than throw flasks. You have the 'Fluid' magic now. We're going to see what else that star-fall spirit of yours can do."
She stepped close one last time, her hands resting on his chest. "But tonight... tonight we sleep. In my yurt. Together."
"Together?"
"Don't sound so surprised," she teased. "The whole village knows you're mine now. It would be scandalous if you slept anywhere else."
She gave his chest a playful pat and headed out of the grotto, her tail swaying behind her.
Robin followed, his mind a whirlwind of emotions. He was becoming a warrior, a hero, and the partner of a wolf-princess. But as he looked up at the crimson moon, he remembered the Weaver's voice.
I will see you in the city of the pale ones.
The journey was just beginning.