6. Awaken

Rainer didn't know how long he had been dragging his limp leg, but by the time he realized, he had gone further into the forest.

Is that woman didn't chase him?

Rainer looked back. There was no sign that she was pursuing. He exhaled before falling into a sitting position, trying to calm himself.

The one thing he had never thought as a rogue, packless wolf with a weak physique was finding a mate. When his parents learned about his unusual physical condition, they said it would be difficult for him to find a mate. He wouldn't be able to smell his mate's presence even if his mate was standing right in front of him. It would also be difficult for his mate to find him because his wolf seed is undetectable. Even though he smells like other werewolves and can be recognised as a werewolf. Finding a mate still requires the power of wolfseed.

Rainer had given up on finding his mate since learning about his condition. He even imagined that life would be easier without a mate. Who would have guessed that someone would bite him and mark him as her mate?

That dreadful woman...!

Rainer grumbled with frustration. He'd never heard of a shewolf initially marking a hewolf. This was a disgrace. That damn woman shouldn't have started first, even though he was weak and lacked strength!

So what now? Although his sense of smell was inferior, he could tell his body was enveloped in her scent. That being said, he was now hers.

How annoying! It was a good thing that he managed to escape. Otherwise, that damn woman would have forced him to mate. What a shame for a hewolf to let a shewolf take the lead!

Rainer growled again. He tried to remember the woman's conversation with the Alpha wolf who had attacked him earlier.

"I'm Brianna, Alpha of the Crimson Pack...."

"Don't think that you're lucky. The Crimson Pack is notorious for being vicious and cruel to rogues...."

Rainer gasped. Alpha? Crimson Pack?

That woman was an Alpha? The leader of a giant pack in the Southern region? And he had just been marked by her? He... was her mate?

Rainer shuddered. Thank goodness he managed to escape!

Touching the bite mark on his neck, Rainer glanced at his injured leg. It was still bleeding, but he could feel its severed cells starting to regenerate and fuse slowly. It was a good thing that even though his recovery was slow, at least he could walk normally again, not dragging his leg like before.

Now, he just needed to find another way out of this forest. Although it had been years since he left the pack, this was the North, and he had explored it many times as a child. He still remembered some places that were safe and rarely travelled by werewolves. He just had to make a slight detour and avoid the previous path.

Rainer had barely stood up when he felt like his chest was on fire, causing him to fall back down and have trouble breathing. He groaned in pain as if his heart would blow up.

"She's in danger."

Rainer blinked. Just now, he seemed to hear someone speaking in his mind. The voice was heavy, full of threats and displeasure. But Rainer couldn't care about it as the pain spread throughout his body.

"It's the Heart Pendulum! That little girl is using it to transfer her pain! How sneaky!"

Rainer heard the voice again. This time, with a growl in its voice. "Who...." He tried to ask, but his voice was so weak it only sounded like a soft moan.

"That's stupid, asking something like that. Shouldn't you start closing your eyes and focus on me?"

Rainer fell in silence. Is that...

Biting her lip as he endured the pain, Rainer then followed the voice's words, closed her eyes and began to enter his subconscious. It was pretty tricky as he couldn't focus his mind correctly due to the pain that continued to eat away at him.

Not many people knew how a human could change into his wolf form. The wolf and human forms have different souls. The wolf seed that people are constantly told is another soul living in one body, which will only appear once the human can enter his subconscious and then make a bond. Usually, a person can enter their subconscious as a child or when they grow up. That's when he will meet his wolf seed and make a bond.

Rainer has been able to enter his subconscious since he was five years old. However, he never met his wolf seed, and even the seer his father met said that he didn't have a wolf seed in him at all.

But right now, standing before him was a white, furry figure taller than any werewolf he had ever met. It was probably about two and a half metres tall or even taller. Its red eyes looked at Rainer with a gaze of interest but also disdain—his wolf seed.

"Boy." The wolf spoke. Its voice echoed in Rainer's subconscious.

Rainer frowned. Was every wolf seed like this? This one seemed so powerful that it gave him a disgusted look.

"Are you just going to keep quiet? If you have nothing to say, come out. I have no problem being here forever." The wolf snorted, turned around and laid down, giving his back to Rainer.

"Uh... hello...?" Rainer scratched his head. It seemed like this creature was challenging to deal with. "W-was that look I've been feeling coming from you?"

"Is that something to ask?" The wolf glanced at her lazily. "Yeah. I've been with you since you were in your mother's womb."

"But I never saw you. The seer who once entered my subconscious said nothing was inside me." Rainer was confused. If this creature had been with him for so long, why hadn't he realised it?

"Your age and strength are not enough to accept me, so of course, you won't be able to see me. And I hate people who casually enter one's subconscious, so I hide my existence," said the giant wolf.

Rainer was silent. This creature was quite arrogant.

"You're not even capable of accepting me right now. But that damn girl used the Heart Pendulum to share her pain with you. Whether you want to or not, you must accept me immediately and save her." The wolf growled, its eyes flashing with anger.

"Heart Pendulum?" Rainer tilted her head, confused.

"A mighty seer made that cursed thing. It's a binding device for conflicting werewolf couples. You don't want her, and she dislikes you even more. The more opposed you are, the stronger the effect of the Heart Pendulum will be. Right now, if she dies, you will die too."

Rainer was dumbfounded. "Isn't that the same as the fated mate effect?"

"Not the same. A fated mate would not bind a couple to die together. But let me tell you, I think she is your fated mate."

"What?" Rainer widened his eyes.

"But I don't like her." His wolf sneered. "You do."

Rainer blinked. He didn't like her either, okay? He was afraid of her.

"You seduced her with your scent," the wolf continued.

Rainer chose not to respond.

"We're done with this small talk. Now, are you not going to accept me?" The wolf stood up and approached Rainer. "I don't like bowing. But just this once, I'll humble myself for you. Give me a name. Hurry up; that girl is in danger and only survives because she shares her pain with you. I don't want to die with you before seeing the world."

This creature was coarse and without any decency!

Frowning in annoyance, Rainer grabbed the creature's head, pressing their foreheads together. "I, Rainer of Philo... a rogue without a pack, accept you as my wolf seed. From now on, your name will be Fubar. I am willing to share my mind and body with you."

"Pretty good name." Fubar chuckled. "Prepare yourself. I'll try to suppress my power so as not to hurt you. Now, get up."

Rainer was thrown from his subconscious, causing him to wake up and feel the pain shared by his mate again.

Then, Rainer felt his body being entered by some enormous and powerful force. At first, he was pretty comfortable as the power suppressed the heat he was suffering, but then he felt pain all over his body, and every joint felt like it was being pulled forcefully, making him scream out in pain.

Is every acceptance this painful?

Rainer writhed in pain. He bit his lip until it bled while his hand reached the root of the tree he was sitting on, gripping it tightly until it shattered.

It hurts too much!

"Just a little more." He heard Fubar whispering in his mind.

Rainer felt like his body was going to explode. Maybe Fubar was right; he was still too weak to accept Fubar as his wolf. Coupled with the pain shared by the woman, he was even more unable to bear it.

Rainer wanted to give up. He wants to sleep for a while.

"Open your eyes, damn it! Stay awake!" Fubar's angry roar startled him. "If you want to die, you'd better never have lived!"

Grimacing, Rainer opened his eyes and bit his lips again, forcing himself to stay awake. He could feel his muscles stretching and his cells undergoing changes. Each change brought unbearable pain.

The acceptance process lasted ten minutes, but Rainer felt like he had just spent ten years of his life going through it. When it was over, Rainer lay weakly on the ground, breathing heavily.

"You almost killed me." Fubar protested in his mind.

"Do all wolves have this kind of power?" Rainer asked in a low voice. He felt like his body was a balloon filled with tap water. The sudden swelling feeling made him shudder in horror.

"I'm different. The wolves you've met so far are just the weak wolves." Fubar purred comfortably. "So this is how it feels to be accepted. I can see your world clearly, not vaguely like before."

"Are you stronger than that woman? By the way, you know a lot about werewolves. You even know about the Pendulum of Hearts." Rainer stood up, wincing as he realised his clothes were full of rips here and there. Then, he chuckled as he realised that his body had changed. His body was now full of muscles and very muscular, not skinny and weak like before.

"That woman? You'll see. Werewolf knowledge is something that is passed down through generations. Every wolf seed inherits its parents' knowledge. Don't you even know about this?" Fubar scoffed.

"I've heard my mother tell me about it." Rainer nodded. "It's been over ten years since I left the pack; so much I've forgotten."

Fubar was silent for a while. "Let's switch," it said then. "Your mate is dying."

Rainer did not need to agree because Fubar immediately took over his body, transforming into a large white wolf with fiery red eyes and galloping in the direction Rainer had been travelling.

***

Brianna didn't know what to do when the rogues approached her. She could imagine how her life would end up in the hands of these rogues.

"She's in heat," one of the rogues whispered.

"The smell is intoxicating," another continued.

"The most fun is torturing a shewolf in heat."

"We don't even bother going to the small herd, which comes to us on its own."

Brianna growled. Their words made her sound like prey that was about to die. But there was nothing she could do but curl up in pain. Was this the end of her life?

In desperation, she touched the necklace around her neck, clutching it tightly as she thought of Eliot. He was not only her father but also her best friend, who would always protect her. If Eliot were here...

"Eliot... Anyone... Help ...." She whispered. She closed her eyes, giving up.

Just as one of the rogues was about to pounce towards her, Brianna felt her body lighten, and the pain faded. She quickly jumped up and switched into her wolf, biting the nape of the rogue before her and throwing it away.

Seeing this unexpected turn of events, the other rogues moved and attacked simultaneously. Brianna dodged and shot back.

There were a total of eight wolf rogues that she fought against. The death of one of them made them act brutally. Their bared fangs opened up whenever they reached Brianna, but Brianna managed to dodge them. She jumped, dodged and then pounced back, biting and clawing at them. Although rogue wolves are powerful in attack and defence, their recovery is not as fast as Brianna's. Whenever she is injured, the wound closes quickly.

This battle lasted almost an hour, and Brianna began to feel pain again in her chest and lower abdomen. Her movements began to slow down.

"Shit...!" she cursed. She glanced at the five remaining rogues. There was no way she could win against them. Their movements were swift, and Brianna had already suffered injuries here and there. Her recovery speed began to slow down as her energy was draining.

"A she-wolf in heat can kill three of us. You're more than a brave girl." One of them growled. His body was more significant than the others. Probably their leader. Brianna remembered her arm got bitten by this creature, and it still hurt even though the wound had closed.

Brianna was silent. She slowly backed away and leaned against the tree behind her. These rogues didn't give her a break. Even as their leader spoke, one tried to pounce on her.

"I appreciate your persistence, but this is it. I'm going to tear your body apart and take your heart, then swallow it. Don't worry, I'll put your body out in the open and let the vultures peck at you until there's no meat left." The wolf continued as it leapt forward, moving quickly towards Brianna.

Brianna could see death dancing before her, taunting her while laughing merrily. But she refused to give up. Even if she had to die, she would face it without blinking.

"I didn't know that not only you are the wild creatures but you also have foul mouths."

A roar echoed out, deafening. Brianna felt the pressure of a great force protecting her. The next second, she saw the rogue leader thrown dozens of metres and groaning in pain. Then something white blocked her view, enveloping her with a soothing aura, like the smell of winter trees, so refreshing.

"Mate...!" Her wolf let out a cry of joy.

***