CHAPTER 106 - HOME FOR THE AMARYLLIS CLANThe pitch-black night that day was still and silent. Except for tiny flashes of light in the form of hundreds of pairs of eyeballs that flashed across the darkness of the forest.
The sound of a gentle wind accompanied the swift movement of the four-legged beasts among the trees, and in the midst of the pack of wolves numbering nearly six hundred individuals, a gigantic grey wolf with black streaks on its back galloped.
On the wolf's back, a young woman with straight pink hair sat riding it. They finally arrived at a cliff, where in front of them was a very deep abyss. Not far from them was a large waterfall rushing.
"Ah! We have arrived!" the pink-haired woman on the giant wolf's back exclaimed cheerfully. They could see a large castle with a vast fortress to the west of the cliff.
West Fort Castle, the territory and estate of the Goldlane Family.
[Yes. We have arrived,]
Miriam heard Heath's voice in her head. The pack of wolves immediately found their way down the cliff and effectively moved so fast. Crossing the detour outside the West Fortress town which was deserted as it was still the middle of the night, they made sure not to wake anyone up.
Before long, they arrived at the Castle, where a middle-aged man in a butler's uniform was waiting.
"Young Lord!"
The man called out to Heath with tears on his face. He felt happy. As he stepped forward to greet the wolf army, he readied the long robe in his hands and prepared to put it on Heath who slowly turned back into a human.
"Ahhh, Young Madam, welcome!" said the man.
"It's good to see you again, John," said Heath, quickly putting on his robe.
Miriam started making small talk with John, as she was surprised to see dozens of women and children rushing out of the castle, toward them.
"Miriam!"
"You guys have arrived!" Miriam opened her arms and embraced the group of women and children. Because there were so many of them, she couldn't greet them all. But Miriam knew them well. They were part of her family!
"I never thought you guys had arrived from the West Continent…" Miriam muttered.
One of the women came forward and held both of Miriam's hands tightly. "We are very grateful that the Hyacinth Crown Prince kept his promise. But some are still on their way…"
Miriam smiled widely, it felt like she was going to cry. One of the promises of the deal made by Crown Prince Heinrich Hyacinth was that they would help the women and children of the Amaryllis Clan to cross the ocean to the Euclase Continent immediately.
However, because they were so numerous and scattered across various areas of the Petunia Continent, it wasn't easy to send all of them right away. Even most were still in hiding.
"We will bring everyone here. I promise we won't have to live apart anymore… We won't have to hide anymore," Miriam said softly.
That day, Heath had decided to bring the entire Amaryllis Clan back to Goldlane's territory. After accepting temporary residence in the North, where the Almandines ruled, they felt it was time for them to go and separate themselves.
It was the most appropriate decision considering Heinrich had promised to bring the rest of their family straight to the West Fort from the ocean. And at the same time, Miriam knew Heath had set out to accept them all with the Emperor's permission in hand.
Miriam saw the women and children welcoming their husbands, fathers and brothers, their sons and their relatives, back from their lycan forms. Then in the midst of it all, Miriam saw Heath smiling warmly. Miriam ran to him and buried herself in his arms.
"What will we do now?" Miriam asked Heath who hugged her tightly.
"A lot of things," Heath replied, looking in all directions.
The two smiled at each other. Being the leader of the clan forced Heath to rack his brains to provide them with the appropriate accommodations, while also giving them jobs to develop.
"First of all, we have to start building houses. Then… we expand our territory to the West, to the shoreline. That means we have to clear the Dark Forest of monsters, and build roads," Heath said softly.
"And build a harbour!" Miriam exclaimed cheerfully.
Heath laughed happily at that.
"Harbour. Right," Heath muttered. He also wanted to build a harbour on the west coast that could be directly used as a place to dock ships from the West Continent. Because someday, they, the Lycans, would visit their hometown in Petunia again.
"From now on, this place will be your home too," Heath said. His words made not only Miriam blink in surprise with a complicated feeling but also the Lycans around them.
Their home. Their own land.
Those who never even thought about ending up here and getting a large piece of land they could call home were somehow moved. Amaryllis had always lived a nomadic life, being chased and always hiding their true identity. They dispersed, hid, gathered secretly and were always cautious all their lives.
But now, they had a home – where they could be their true selves. Where they could be proud as Lycans, and no one would harm their family.
Miriam smiled happily, tears running down her cheeks, and she looked up at Heath who looked so dazzling in the dark night. Only his grey eyes shone like the sparkling light of a shooting star.
It was all thanks to Heath.
After Heath gently stroked Miriam's cheek, he pulled her back into the castle. He had confirmed with the staff from Goldlane that they had arranged a temporary resting place for the Lycans, and he had also made sure they could accommodate some of them in the Castle.
Heath planned to make his Lycan clan's system of organization similar to that of the Almandines of the North.
"Ah, John," Heath called to John, who followed them back into the castle.
"Yes, Young Lord?"
"I will send a letter to my sister and His Majesty the Emperor," Heath said.
Before long, in Heath's room, he was facing two white sheets of paper and two envelopes. First of all, he wrote Harriet a letter informing her that he had arrived at West Fort Castle. He also listed some of his future plans and asked for advice.
Before folding the letter for Harriet and putting it in the envelope, he made sure to write one for the Emperor. This time, it was more like a report, with the same information as what he said in the letter to his sister.
Then Heath wrote the closing sentences with the same code for both letters.
[Second Dragon secured]
Heath had to act carefully from now on. In order to secure the second candidate for the throne, he must not act recklessly in the West.
Knock knock
Heath turned to see the door to his room open. A beautiful young woman with long pale blue hair and dark black eyes appeared. Heath smiled at her. "Long time no see, Ezra."
The woman bowed gracefully while lifting her skirt slightly.
"Nice to see you again, Heath."