Evening, in a forest outside the City of Marnes.
The sun’s final rays sank below the long horizon, and the curtain of darkness gradually fell. Shadows seeped from rock crevices and tree roots, blanketing the entire forest.
Silence filled the dim woods, with the faint sound of a nearby stream trickling. Combined with the weak, hoarse chirping of late autumn insects, a lonely atmosphere settled over the forest.
“Awoo~”
A soft, sweet-sounding wolf howl startled a nest of birds about to sleep. Their fluttering wings knocked down a few withered leaves, which drifted down one by one.
One lucky leaf landed on the tip of Vivienne’s ink-black hair. She brushed it aside, sweeping the leaf away.
Then, Vivienne raised her proud head again and cupped her hands around her mouth like a megaphone. Taking a deep breath, the girl’s flat chest gradually puffed up.
Then.
“Awoo~”
Vivienne was tirelessly imitating the night howls of wolves. Having spent almost all her past life in the city and never seeing the wilderness, Vivienne found this quite novel.
‘I heard that if you howl loudly at night, wolves will respond. I have to see if that rumor is true today!’
Vivienne stood under a withered tree with great anticipation, waiting for an answer. After a moment, a few confused wolves on a distant hillside raised their heads in bewilderment.
‘Why does this howl have an accent?’
Although the pack sensed something was off about the howl, they still let out a few weak cries in response to Vivienne. This made the girl’s eyes light up. She excitedly puffed up her chest once more.
Just as she was about to let out another “hungry wolf roar.”
*Clonk!*
A heavy flick landed on her round head.
“Ow!”
Vivienne cried out and whipped her head around.
‘Who is it! Who dares hit my head!’
“I told you to catch some prey for dinner, and you’re here howling like a wolf?” Nolan said irritably, carrying a long-horned roe deer.
Hearing Nolan’s scolding, Vivienne felt dissatisfied. But knowing she was in the wrong, she couldn’t act tough. She could only pout aggrievedly and mumble under her breath, “You don’t understand. I’m commanding the pack, directing them to hunt. In a moment, they will offer sacrifices to me, the King of Wolves…”
Seeing Vivienne’s lack of submission, Nolan didn’t go easy on her and retorted bluntly, “The supreme Hunter God is on the northern snowfields, conducting a never-ending Great Hunt. If He’s a petty deity and hears your words… heh. He’ll likely summon a pack of wolves to bring down a divine punishment on your head.”
Hearing this, Vivienne quickly shrank her neck and involuntarily crossed her arms. She looked around nervously, afraid a few wolves might actually jump out from a corner to bite her.
In this world, gods truly existed. Although most gods remained aloof and no longer interfered in mortal affairs, a few still walked the earth, exercising their great power. The self-proclaimed supreme Hunter God was one of them. He was the guardian of hunting and wolves, and the northern snowfields were His hunting grounds. If He knew someone was secretly taking sacrifices that belonged to Him, He would definitely retaliate.
“I… I was just joking. Nolan, why are you being so serious…?” Vivienne said, looking down and fidgeting with her fingers.
‘So rare?’
Nolan was surprised; he had never seen Vivienne looking so submissive. Then, Nolan’s eyes darted around, and he suddenly reached out a mischievous hand with a smile. While Vivienne was feeling down, he gently patted her beautiful, black hair a few times, making up for the regret of not being able to pat her head to his heart’s content earlier that day.
‘It’s so soft and smooth. It feels great.’
Then he quickly withdrew his hand.
‘If I get carried away, I’ll get punched,’ Nolan warned himself, not wanting to overindulge in the feeling. After clearing his throat twice, he said, “Let’s go back and eat. Blake has probably finished setting up camp by now. Don’t keep him waiting.”
“Mhm,” Vivienne nodded obediently, her voice as quiet as a mosquito’s hum.
Nolan chuckled, shouldered the roe deer, and took Vivienne’s small, cold hand. The two walked deeper into the forest.
—
At a clearing in the forest.
In the center, a campfire crackled, with a large pot blackened by thick smoke hanging over it. Earlier that day, the three had decided to go to Thistle Slope outside the city to investigate a demon attack. But they soon realized it was already late when they left the city. Since Thistle Slope wasn’t close, they would have to travel for a while. They would likely spend the night in the wild, so Blake suggested bringing his camping and cooking gear. The other two had agreed.
*Gurgle, gurgle.*
A string of boiling bubbles rose from the bottom of the pot, bursting softly on the surface of the milky-white broth.
*Plop~*
Blake’s thick fingers grabbed several peeled and chopped potato chunks and tossed them into the pot, sending up white splashes. He picked up a bone staff leaning nearby and stirred the pot twice to ensure the potatoes cooked evenly.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Blake shouted behind him, “Vivienne, are you two done yet? The soup is going to boil away if you wait any longer.”
Blake lied through his teeth while looking at the full pot, impatiently urging his companions.
“Coming, coming!” Nolan’s urgent voice came from the bushes behind a tree trunk.
“Let go of it already!” Nolan’s voice rang out as he cursed through gritted teeth.
“No, let me have one more bite~” came a girl’s coquettish plea.
“Get off, Vivienne!”
With a roar, Vivienne’s figure was thrown high from the bushes. She flew through the air like a human projectile. Then, the hem of her clothes got caught on a stray branch. Vivienne ended up hanging from the tree…
But there wasn’t a trace of frustration on her face; instead, there was an excited flush.
“Hehe, I got some~”
Vivienne narrowed her eyes comfortably and chuckled sillily. She wiped the residual blood clots from the corner of her mouth, looking completely unsatisfied.
Just a few minutes ago, Nolan had wanted to slaughter the silly roe deer by the stream behind the bushes to add meat to their dinner. Vivienne had volunteered eagerly to help. Seeing someone willing to assist and save him some trouble, Nolan naturally agreed.
But what he didn’t expect was that while he turned around to sharpen his knife, Vivienne lunged directly at the roe deer lying on the ground! She latched onto its neck and took a deep suck.
Hearing the commotion behind him, Nolan reacted quickly. He dropped his hunting knife and ran over to pull the two apart. But Vivienne was stuck to the deer’s neck like a blood-sucking insect. The person and the deer were locked in a stalemate.
Finally, unable to take it anymore, Nolan forcibly pried Vivienne off and threw her away to stop her from interfering. But Vivienne had already succeeded; the poor deer had been drained dry by her.
‘This saves the bloodletting step. I’m such a thoughtful wife…’ Vivienne thought smugly.
**[Fullness: 72]**
She glanced at the panel data at the bottom of her vision and then closed it. The stats hadn’t increased much, and she didn’t feel very full. The fullness replenished by animal blood was too little… This meal was just a drop in the bucket.
‘I need to find a time to bite Nolan. You’re already my husband; what’s wrong with taking a little bite?’