Chapter 9
On the morning of the fourth day, Wayne's persistence finally paid off—he intercepted Luce.
Wayne blocked the path, baring his fangs and letting out a low, vibrating growl, his eyes flashing with a reddish tint of aggression. Luce, however, didn't even acknowledge the lion's challenge. He simply pivoted and glided in a different direction, continuing his business with cold indifference.
"Awooo!" Wayne roared, launching into a chase.
But Luce was a higher-ranked beastman, and snakes were naturally built for swift, silent movement. He easily outmaneuvered Wayne, disappearing into the underbrush to find the specific plant he had been searching for. Wayne was left fuming, snorting hot, frustrated breaths before trudging back to the tribal gates to resume his vigil.
Luce eventually found what he was looking for: Fluffy Fruit. These were large pods that, when ripe, split open to reveal clumps of soft, white, cotton-like fibers. He gathered an armful, ate a quick meal, and caught a wild boar to take back to the cave.
To avoid another confrontation with Wayne, he bypassed the main gate entirely and scaled the high tribal wall. The patrolling warriors recognized him but wisely chose to look the other way, pretending the tribe's strongest hermit wasn't currently "smuggling" a boar over the ramparts.
When Luce returned to the cave, he found Euphoria sitting in a state of visible distress. Her long, pale legs were stained with blood; despite her attempts to clean herself with rough animal hides, she couldn't get the stains out.
The primal scent of the female hit Luce like a physical force, rekindling the desire he had spent all morning suppressing. His body stiffened. He handed her the Fluffy Fruit and turned to head down to the fire, needing to put some distance between them.
"Wait!" Euphoria called out. She was thrilled to see the cottony fruit, but she was still missing her modern essentials.
"Could you go back to Wayne's and get something for me? The... item you had on your head that day." Euphoria felt her face burning as she thought of the "pink crown" incident, wondering how Luce would react once he understood its true purpose. "Actually," she added, "just bring all my clothes and my backpack."
Luce gave a curt nod and vanished again.
The Fluffy Fruit was a godsend. It was as soft as cotton but much larger; a single pod provided enough material for one change. Using a stone bowl of water, she finally cleaned herself up and felt human again.
Luce returned shortly, having scaled the walls once more to retrieve her camouflage gear and her modern tactical bag. Euphoria was ecstatic to have her belongings back. Once Luce retreated to the lower ledge, she stripped off the furs and began pulling on her own underwear, padding her panties with the soft fibers of the fruit.
She had just snapped her bra into place when Luce ascended the ledge.
"Do you want—"
He had come up to ask about dinner, but the words died in his throat. He was met with the sight of her slender, graceful back.
Euphoria jumped, frantically pulling up her panties and spinning around to glare at him. Though she was technically covered, the modern lingerie accentuated the perfect curve of her bust and the lean lines of her waist in a way that was far more provocative than the crude animal skins.
Luce was paralyzed. He had never imagined a female body could be so breathtaking. The blood in his veins began to boil. Before she could blink, he moved with the speed of a striking viper, tackling her onto the thick bed of grass.
Euphoria wasn't hurt—Luce was careful with his weight—but he was so fast that her lips were claimed in a searing kiss before she could even draw breath.
She snapped out of her shock and tried to shove him off, but he was a mountain of muscle. He pinned both of her small hands above her head with just one of his. Furious, she tried to drive her knee into his midsection, but Luce anticipated the move, pinning her legs down with his own.
This kiss was nothing like the brief taste from the morning. It was hungry, passionate, and invasive. Euphoria struggled until her face was flushed, her muffled protests lost against his mouth.
Finally, Luce pulled back, his lips lingering near her ear. His voice was thick with raw longing. "Once the bleeding stops, we mate."
"I am not mating with you!" Euphoria gasped, her chest heaving as she glared at him.
Luce lifted his head, his expression shifting into something colder. His red pupils contracted into sharp needles. "Say that again," he said quietly.
Euphoria lifted her chin, meeting his gaze with zero fear. "I said... I... will... not... mate... with... you." She enunciated every syllable, a direct challenge to his authority.
Luce went still. He reached out a hand and slowly, almost gently, stroked her cheek. "Even if you turn into a ghost beast, you will never leave me."
Euphoria jerked her face away from his touch, her eyes full of defiance. Luce's heart sank; he saw the unmistakable flash of disgust in her expression. But it didn't matter. She was his.
He looked closer at her face, noticing something. "The color on your skin... it's fading?"
Euphoria ignored him. She knew the camo paint was wearing off with each wash and would be gone in a few days.
"What do you want to eat?" Luce asked, his tone unnervingly soft, showing no outward anger at her rejection.
Euphoria kept her head turned away, refusing to answer. Luce let out a low, dry chuckle, released her, and left the cave.
Euphoria sat up and aggressively brushed her hair back, quickly finishing her dressing. Her ankle would be perfect in four or five days, right as her period ended. She had to escape then. Luce was too strong to fight head-on; she found herself missing the "innocent" Wayne. He was a handful, sure, but he was easier to manage than this possessive serpent.
She took a deep breath, walked to the cave entrance, and shouted down, "I want to go down!"
Luce appeared instantly to help her descend. She spent the afternoon washing her face and cleaning her teeth with river plants, all while secretly scouting the terrain.
Luce's territory was massive—nothing but endless mountains and ancient trees. He lived in isolation; no other orcs lived nearby. Escaping the cave was the easy part; the hard part was getting out of the tribal lands. Females were too precious; no guard would let her just walk out.
She glanced back at the cave, and a brilliant, tactical smirk crossed her face. She had an idea.
Five days later, Euphoria's foot was fully healed. Her period was over, and she could feel Luce's gaze becoming increasingly predatory.
That morning, as he checked her ankle, he asked, "Is it better? Can you walk?"
Euphoria's heart hammered against her ribs. She shook her head convincingly. "It still hurts the moment I put weight on it."
Luce's brow furrowed. "I'll go back to the doctor and get stronger herbs."
Euphoria nodded, playing the part. Luce finished the application and headed out to hunt. The moment his silhouette vanished into the treeline, Euphoria sprang into action. She holstered her dagger, shouldered her tactical bag, and scrambled down the rock face with practiced agility.
She ran a short distance, threw a spare piece of animal hide into some high grass to create a false trail, then doubled back. She climbed to the high ridge above the cave, found a patch of dense brush, and crawled inside, covering herself with grass.
Seconds later, she saw Luce returning. She held her breath, lying perfectly still.
Luce had spent the hunt thinking of her, a helpless smile on his face. He realized he was already "spoiling" her before they had even mated. He sensed her scent of blood had vanished; tomorrow, she would finally be his.
He entered the cave, but his red eyes narrowed instantly. The air was cold. Empty.
His pupils flared. Someone had stolen his female! He flicked his tongue, picking up the scent trail she had left on the ground. He transformed into a massive python and tore off into the woods. He found the discarded animal skin and tasted the air. Nothing. No scent of a kidnapper.
He looked up at the sky. A flier? He bared his fangs and surged forward into the forest.
Euphoria watched him disappear in the wrong direction. She waited ten minutes, then climbed down the opposite side of the ridge and ran for the tribal boundary.
After thirty minutes of hard sprinting, she reached the outer wall. Seeing no guards, she scaled the barrier and vanished into the wilderness.
What she didn't know was that a tribal eagle-beast had seen the whole thing from high above. Stunned to see a female scale a wall and flee on her own, the scout immediately flew to find Luce.
When Luce heard the news, his face became a mask of pure, terrifying rage. He dismissed the scout and surged toward the escape point. His eyes were a horrific, glowing red.
Deep in the woods, Euphoria was running at full tilt when a sudden, inexplicable cWayne washed down her spine. She checked her perimeter, saw nothing, and pushed her legs to go even faster.