After making sure that the coast is clear for the doctor to operate as usual, confirming what Chilve had told them, the doctor passes a bottle of herb ointment to Lune and starts instructing, "apply this to little Snow once everyday. When the wound looks better, you can stop dressing the wounds with bandages. Come back if the wound starts to smell, since it might be infected."
Nodding to his words, they soon bid farewell to the elder man, where Lisa promised to come back for a leisure visit in the near future, and they gather near a shop that sells equipment for adventurers, where Lisa's eyes are gleaming from all the quivers that are being sold, while Lune is upset when Chilve pulls her away to a corner while Snow is still asleep on Lisa's shoulder, "what are yo-"
"Lune, you're ready for your traveling life now, do you?"
She comes to a halt from the question, wondering if there's any meaning hidden in this very question, and when she can't seem to comprehend it fully, she sighs, "are you leaving or something?"
"Yes. If you do remember that I'm actually an alpha of my own pack, I have some work to attend to."
"Didn't you mention that you're only needed for appearance?"
"Apparently," he sighs deeply and she wonders why he even became the alpha in the first place if he seems to be hating it so much from how reluctant he is, "there are some things even my trusted subordinates can't handle themselves. And, there's a new pack that just lost their alpha recently and some power absorption is in order, where I as the alpha will be needed to handle a new pack."
"So you need to go, like right now?" Lune can't believe how needy she sounds once she says that out loud, and tries to remain calm for the sake of her image. He nods and holds her hand, where she shudders a little from the touch and before she can call him out for being a pervert that touches her without a reason, he puts a pouch on her palm and says, "these are the money that we acquired from the adventures these few days, from rewards to selling a few rare items. Now that you have Lisa and Snow with you, I can finally relax a little so that you will not be hurt until I come back for you later."
She blushes, mainly from the words come back for her and tries to be indifferent, and before she knows it, he pulls her into his embrace and hugs her tightly, where Lune smells a little like water in the forest and almost tempted to mark her as his mate right here, but he tries his best to hold his instincts in and warns, "don't you dare look at other guys romantically when I'm not around."
"As if I would do so," his body warmth is so inviting and calming her nerves down, and she wonders if they can stay like this a little longer, though their little moment is interrupted when someone clears her throat and they separate themselves, staring at Lisa who is now having her arms full of arrows asks, "aren't you guys buying anything here?"
"Not for me. I'll be going then, don't miss me."
"Where are you going Chilve?" He waves without turning back and walks out of the shop, where Lune is still a little daze from his warmth and coughs a little from her own awkwardness, "he has something urgent to do, so it's you, me, and little Snow from now onwards."
"I wouldn't say she is little, considering she can be huge when needed."
They exit the shop after Lisa paid for her items, and when Lisa asks where should they go next, Lune smiles and says, "let's just have a walk around and fulfill requests on the go, shall we?"
"Okay, that sounds great too~"
.
..
…
She knows that she shouldn't depend on Chilve too much if she wants to be a full fledged adventurer that is traveling to get to know of this new world herself. Sooner or later, like a hatchling that learns how to fly by falling, Lune must know how to handle things herself or she might be facing huge troubles sooner or later. Though she starts missing his company whenever it's just Lisa answering to whatever she says on the road, and Snow is just being herself, a beast that can't talk unless it can learn the human tongue but chooses not to talk with them. Though Snow is suspiciously understanding when Lune is trying to tell her not to do certain things.
Yet, Lune can be a little stubborn and not someone that wears her feelings fully on her sleeve when it comes to the little wolf she met years ago. No matter how many times Lisa asks if she misses him, she just dismisses and changes the topic to avoid being in the limelight, considering the redhead loves gossiping after knowing her for a while now.
The nights where they camp out also happen to be the time where Chilve is missed by Lune the most, where she often wonders what he is doing right now and if he is staring at the starry sky or busy fighting other wolves for some of his 'alpha duties'. Lune wonders if he eats on time and there is even one time that she asked Lisa if she wants seconds, but calling out Chilve's name instead of hers.
If anyone right now tells Lune that she is hopelessly in love, she would deny it like it's a bad thing.