In the distance, a realization struck. “They’ve come again. Foxes,” Kennard muttered. His calm voice prompted Serin to rise swiftly, brushing dirt off his rear.
Serin contemplated, “Could it be the White Fox Tribe?”
He leaped onto a nearby rock, taking a deep breath akin to Kennard. “I sense a faint trace of them, but it’s within the forest. They wouldn’t dare venture into Your Highness’s territory unless they’ve gone mad,” Serin remarked.
“Perhaps they’re being driven all the way up to the northern edge,” Kennard grumbled, stroking his chin. Every night during his hunting expeditions, the White Fox Tribe’s pheromones made him uneasy. Instead of anger, he found it puzzling when they secretly intruded and inadvertently marked their territory all over the forest.
“Care to go fox hunting today?” he proposed.
“Both of us?” Serin inquired.
Kennard chuckled and replied, “Why not? Don’t you trust your skills? I’ll take the lead, and you can head to the castle and gather some of your subjects to join.”
Serin gave Kennard a confident look, and Kennard burst into laughter. He understood Serin’s independent nature better than anyone else. Serin might grumble about it initially, but when nudged like this, he would charge ahead with unwavering determination.
“It has been a while,” Serin mused. “I might fashion a cape with fox fur trim.”
Kennard quipped, “Thanks to those, you’ve got a longer life.”
Serin responded with a wry smile, stepping back from Kennard. His dark eyes, marked with concentric rings, widened, and the veins on his face pulsed as his skeletal structure shifted. His bipedal form transformed into that of a Greywolf with silver-gray fur, covering his entire body.
“Let’s go,” Kennard suggested.
Serin released a frosty breath and gracefully jumped down from the rock. As Kennard watched this transformation, an eyebrow arched in curiosity.
“You’re not eager to meet your end, are you?” Kennard inhaled deeply, then exhaled, his pumpkin-colored irises widening. Slowly, his face and body’s structure contorted, until he transformed into a sleek Blackwolf, his coat glistening with obsidian sheen.
Balanced on the rock with all four paws, Kennard gazed into the distance. His dark fur gleamed brilliantly in the cold and gusty wind.
It appeared that the same creatures that had pursued Elena that day were still crossing the border. The reasons behind the relentless pursuit by the White Fox Tribe remained shrouded in mystery, and the extent of harm inflicted upon Elena puzzled Kennard.
The intrigue of it all continued to gnaw at him.
On that very day, Kennard scoured the forest for any sign of those elusive creatures, yearning to capture even one to unveil their motives. Yet, his efforts had been in vain, netting only a deer.
But today was different; their pheromones had spread across the woods, almost taunting Kennard, challenging him to come and claim them. He descended into the shadows, his inky black fur gleaming like moonlit obsidian.
Following the scent trail of the White Fox Tribe, Kennard and Serin reached the border, finding themselves surrounded by a dense thicket of coniferous trees. These ancient giants reached skyward, their branches intertwined like the secrets of centuries past.
Despite the persistent scent of the White Fox Tribe, there was no sign of their presence. “Maybe they’ve fled,” Kennard mused.
Serin nodded in agreement. “That’s possible.”
Both the Fox Tribe and the Wolf Tribe possessed keen senses of smell. When beings with such potent pheromones were in the vicinity, their presence could not easily escape detection.
Of all the pure-blooded individuals, Kennard possessed the most potent pheromones, making it a challenge for him to mask his scent.
Currently, there was another scent in the air, one even more powerful than the pheromones of the White Fox Tribe. It was so familiar that it seemed to be etched into his very being, a scent he recognized well.
Kennard shifted back into his human form and began to move slowly in the direction of this intriguing aroma. Serin, having already shifted into human form ahead of Kennard, quickened his pace.
“Your Grace, please take a look at this,” Serin called out.
Kennard came to a halt, his attention drawn to whatever had captured Serin’s interest.
