Author: 冬瓜茶仙人 / Winter Melon Tea Immortal

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 126

Khalif had a headache.

He had many children, but Prima was the only daughter of his favorite mistress and was coincidentally born in the year he became the Wolf King, so he was particularly fond of her. He would present everything to her—indeed, he did just that. After Prima became an adult, Khalif opened a store for her in the busiest commercial center of the inner city every year on her birthday. Today, the young Prima herself was quite wealthy. Additionally, with her gentle beauty and serene personality, she was always the center of attention within the Wolf Family. By all accounts, she should have had nothing to be discontented about.

Except for matters of marriage.

Khalif had watched the entanglement between Prima and Louis all along and could only say that both were stubbornly alike. His daughter wouldn’t let go, and Louis wouldn’t back down. If Louis were just any mediocre young man from any family, Khalif could have easily packaged him up and gifted him to his daughter as a coming-of-age present. Unfortunately, Louis’s family also had a long history within the Wolf Family. Protected by the White Wolf Fahim in his early days, and after Fahim’s death, Louis had grown into the second White Wolf himself. It wasn’t just about influencing his marital affairs. Even trying to meddle slightly in his powers required great caution, or it could backfire.

Khalif wouldn’t discuss this with his daughter, and Prima, understanding well, knew that pressuring Louis with her status would only backfire. So, unless she was unbearably aggrieved, she generally wouldn’t show any signs of sadness to Khalif.

Her absence from her own birthday party was embarrassing enough, and the next day Prima personally went to see him but was met with a closed door—allegedly ill in the afternoon—yet he didn’t cancel his evening meeting with her father. Louis’s stance was clear.

After leaving Prima’s residence, Khalif’s expression was grim, but as he got into the carriage and saw the person waiting inside, his mood immediately lightened.

“How is it?” the woman in the carriage asked him.

“Prima is very sad,” Khalif said. “Louis… huh.”

The woman waiting in the carriage was Xanye, Khalif’s current favorite. She was strikingly gorgeous in appearance and figure. Khalif had broken many norms for her, keeping her close even during working hours, which had stirred quite the gossip—claims that a woman had ruined the wisdom of his earlier years.

But Khalif didn’t care. He was the Wolf King, and no one had the right to judge him.

“I think he’s right, letting Prima give up early so she can see more options.” Xanye giggled. “There are plenty of handsome men if she wants them.”

“Oh, you think Louis is handsome too?” Khalif asked indifferently.

Xanye couldn’t miss the dissatisfaction in his tone. Men were like that, unable to admit when someone might be better, despite age and declining prowess.

“It’s your daughter who thinks so,” Xanye said. Her hand, with brightly painted red nails, reassuringly patted Khalif’s chest. “Don’t be jealous, Lord Khalif. You’re much stronger than those young boys, and not to mention your experiences—”

Such tactics, suitable against young lovers, shouldn’t really apply to someone of Khalif’s age. Khalif understood this too but still found it comforting, no longer dwelling on Prima’s love life.

His concern for Louis was never really about Prima. Although no one dared say it to his face, he knew that as early as a few years ago, some had privately considered Louis as the primary candidate for the next Wolf King, everything depending on when Khalif would step down.

If the Wolf Family really functioned like the ancient wolf packs that revered the alpha, it might be simpler, but over centuries, the vast Wolf Family had grown significantly, with the leader and the council playing crucial roles in its expansion.

While Khalif still had his wits about him, he knew the existence of Louis and the other elders was necessary, especially Louis…

Thinking this, Khalif’s mood soured again.

White Wolf Fahim had cleared the way for Louis well before he rose to power, eliminating competitors of his generation, and once Louis secured his position, he showed no mercy to anyone who might replace him. Indeed, this was the instinct of all those in power. Khalif felt the same towards Louis. Only his reservations were greater because he had been in his position for decades, and by historical standards, it was about time for a new leader—the Elders could be aged, but the leader must be robust.

“The old Wolf King”—this had become a sore point for Khalif over the last five years, and the young Louis was a constant reminder of this affliction. For this reason, he had tried various methods to maintain his appearance and vigor, methods he once scoffed at in his youth, and his taste in women had increasingly shifted towards those strikingly sexy types, almost as if keeping Xanye, who was about his daughter’s age, constantly by his side could make him feel as vigorous as a young man.

It was also why he had never openly agreed to let Prima marry Louis. In truth, the personal wishes of the young people didn’t matter much. If it didn’t involve official duties and powers, a word from him and Louis would likely have to bow his head. He simply didn’t want to add leverage to the already emerging Louis.

Sensing Khalif’s uneven breathing, Xanye casually pulled out a drawer from a delicate hidden compartment next to the carriage seat, revealing a dozen exquisite glass vials, each only half a palm high, filled with a bright red liquid.

“What’s this?” Khalif glanced at it. “An energy potion? I feel the effects are less and less significant.”

“A gift from the Lion family, not yet on the market,” Xanye explained. “Don’t you remember? I had them prepare some here in the carriage.”

Khalif showed interest. “I didn’t notice their gift list. Has it been tested?”

Xanye leaned against him. “It has been tested. It’s different from Monkey’s magic potions—a bit more stimulating.”

Khalif picked up one of the small glass bottles, inspecting it. He had been relying on energy potions for a while (though he wouldn’t admit it), and as the doses increased over the years, the current potions no longer lasted long. The pharmacists only talked nonsense about irreversible tolerance, which was of no help.

The Monkeys, after all, had to rely on magic formulas to make their potions, and the Lions had experience and formulas that Monkeys couldn’t match. Since someone had already tested this new drug, Khalif unhesitatingly popped the cork and downed it. The spicy liquid slid down his throat like molten lava, causing him to shiver uncontrollably.

This was exactly what he wanted—proof of being alive.

……

The warm, amber light uniformly filled the entire hall, and the edges of the dark wood long table were wrapped in animal skin, with the decorative copper nails gleaming as if they were quite aged.

The grandfather clock in the corner had struck seven times, and the main seat at the head of the table remained conspicuously empty. The man sitting next to Louis clicked his tongue, displaying a displeased expression.

Khalif used to be punctual, and in this grand house nestled deep within the inner city, clocks and watches were omnipresent—every member of the Wolf Family knew the family head despised tardiness. Yet, now it was he who was late.

“Adan,” said a blue-eyed man in his forties sitting across from them. “Perhaps something has delayed him on the road.”

Adan, who appeared to be in his thirties with his hair tied back in a ponytail—a popular poet’s style favored by ladies—had thick eyebrows and deep-set eyes that lent him a certain elegance.

Among the five people present, besides Louis, Adan was the youngest. His mind was particularly agile, always coming up with novel ideas for making money, and he was practically carrying the auction on his shoulders—exactly why he was anxious about this ineffective waste of time.

“What else could it be?” Everyone except Louis exchanged meaningful glances. Adan said, “If not that woman from the Monkeys…”

“Enough.” Another red-haired man, who had been as silent as Louis, stopped him.

No one in the room could better understand the influence of that woman named Xanye on Khalif. She was vulgar, hedonistic, and shallow, and Khalif seemed to be reliving a rebellious phase that had disappeared years ago, becoming increasingly indulgent. His former self-discipline was melting away like the last snow of early spring.

It wasn’t a big deal that Khalif loved beautiful women, but it became problematic because Xanye bore the Monkey surname.

Although maintaining a longstanding coexistence, the two families weren’t as closely connected as outsiders believed. A major reason was the Monkey’s penchant for shortcuts and unrestrained use of magic—they weren’t particular about whether it was black or white magic, but to the Wolf Family, anyone with the Monkey name seemed a bit eccentric.

Adan’s frustration was understandable. The auction was starting tomorrow, and the subordinates had been working overtime for who knows how long. Meanwhile, Khalif was only interested in wining and dining with a woman, a neglect that was difficult to accept. But, after all, this was Khalif’s domain, and it was unwise to openly criticize the master of the house here.

Louis seemed the only one unconcerned about Khalif’s tardiness. He idly fiddled with his cufflinks, which were intricately made with dark red amber shaped like beetles, lifelike in appearance.

His eyelashes completely concealed his expression, and the light cast a handsome profile on his face.

Adan leaned back in his chair and adjusted his satin tie, a style not quite formal but with a dash of flamboyance he recently favored.

“Speaking of which, Louis.” Adan casually picked an inconsequential topic. “How’s your wound? I heard you had a fight with a witch?”

At his words, there was a subtle shift in the air—just a slight one.

Louis lifted his eyelids. “I thought you all knew.”

The red-haired man chuckled lightly. “I heard some rumors, but you look quite spirited now.”

“Mages aren’t good at close combat,” Louis said.

“So you killed her? Witch Elena?” Adan asked with interest. “What did she look like? They only said you stabbed her directly in the heart, but it was too dark to see clearly…”

“What else could a witch look like?” The peace-making, blue-eyed man couldn’t contain himself anymore and snorted. “We’ve all seen.”

He clearly implied that Xanye was an unregistered witch, but Louis, remembering Elena’s ordinary, office-worker face, felt they were deeply mistaken.

However, he had no duty to correct their misunderstanding. Louis finally looked around at the other four, trying to read something from their faces, but without success.

Perhaps Elena really had nothing to do with them.

Then, the Monkeys? He heard they were cultivating a number of mages internally, a process that would take at least a generation. Developing externally seemed not entirely impossible.

Adan wanted to ask more, but at that moment, Khalif arrived—his cheeks unnaturally red, his eyes cloudy. Everyone present was no naïve youth. It wasn’t hard to guess that he had just been entangled with Xanye, neglecting them in the process.

The stability White Bridge had maintained for so many years owed much to the balance between the Wolves and Monkeys, each dominating their own spheres. Khalif’s unprecedented dalliance with a woman from the Monkey, was it a sign that this leader of the Wolf Family was steering the ship toward magic?

Could this man believe that magic would reverse time and bring him back to his peak?

In that moment, the same thought crossed the minds of the five under Khalif’s command, but none showed any irony in their expressions. Instead, they stood and bowed to Khalif, who had just settled into his seat.

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>