Inside the imperial palace, Chloe could take walks and move around relatively freely, but she could never go outside the garden surrounding the imperial palace.

The reason Calcus gave was that she had been attacked in the Moon Garden, one of the four gardens. It was a truly absurd reason.

About 3 weeks after being detained in the imperial palace, Chloe learned that a guest, namely Reina Tilbut, had come to the palace. No one told her directly, but now it was easy to awaken her senses, and thanks to that, she could easily hear what the servants were saying around her room.

As Chloe was walking with Hugrey in the Sun Garden, she hesitated for a moment but finally decided to ask what she was curious about.

“Is it true that Reina Tilbut has come to the imperial palace?”

She wanted to know if Reina Tilbut’s arrival would help her leave this palace or not. Since she was a wolf shifter, this visit seemed to be somehow related to Hugrey staying at the palace.

“Yes, she came.”

At Hugrey’s short answer, Chloe examined his face.

“Why did she come?”

“Chloe.”

Hugrey’s face darkened, and his voice became so low that a normal human wouldn’t be able to hear even if they were right next to him.

“Yes?”

Chloe also answered softly. When Hugrey lowered his voice like this, it was when he was about to say something secret. She shouldn’t forget that there were many shifters in this palace.

“I’m going to escape this palace with you in five days.”

Chloe’s body stiffened at Hugrey’s unexpected words.

“Why did Reina Tilbut come? Is it related to that escape?”

“No, it’s the opposite. The wolf shifters have abandoned me. Reina Tilbut came to inform me of that.”

“…!”

“They decided to change the Alpha, and I have to protect you alone. Since I can’t bring any weapons, I’ll shift into a wolf that night. And I’ll have to kill all the humans we encounter while escaping the palace. It would be troublesome if it became known that I’m a shifter. If I fail, I might die.”

“Hugrey…”

“Whatever happens that day, whatever you see, I hope you won’t be too shocked or suffer too much.”

“Is it because of me?”

Chloe’s voice was trembling.

Hugrey was the Alpha, how could it be that the wolf shifters were abandoning him?

Surely they would need an Alpha, so the fact that they abandoned him was likely because she was trapped in Calcus’s palace. Or maybe this happened because Hugrey chose her, who wasn’t a wolf shifter.

“No, it’s not because of you, but because of me. I can’t do without you, but my kind can do without you. That’s telling me to die.”

“That’s the same thing.”

Tears were about to come out. Because of her, Hugrey was giving up his kind, and his kind was abandoning Hugrey.

“I’m becoming a burden to you.”

“If you say you’re a burden, are you going to leave me?”

A flash of anxiety crossed Hugrey’s face.

“No! Am I crazy? How could I leave you when you can’t do without me?”

Chloe answered immediately without giving even the slightest pause. A smile instantly spread across Hugrey’s face.

It was a relieved face. This man was clearly more afraid of being abandoned by her than of being abandoned by his kind or abandoning his kind. Even though he might die protecting her.

“Can I shift into a tiger that day? I want to fight alongside you.”

“Try it. Now.”

Hugrey said with a grin.

“What?”

“Hahaha!”

Chloe was irritated by his laughter. This man was clearly teasing her, knowing full well that she couldn’t shift into a tiger at will.

She had shifted into a tiger only once, but that wasn’t by her will. It was when an emotion, whether anger or fear, exploded and she unknowingly became a tiger.

According to Hugrey’s explanation, it was because her attack pheromones reached their peak due to anger towards the enemy, causing her to shift into a tiger regardless of her will. Usually, shifters can change their form at will, but Chloe seemed to have lost that ability itself due to the side effects of long-term suppressant use.

She couldn’t understand what was going through his head, trying to tease her at every opportunity when they were facing an escape in a few days where they might die. She wanted to shift into a tiger to help this man who was going to fight everyone in the palace alone, but he didn’t even appreciate this feeling.

“Stop laughing! Why are you laughing? Is this really the time to laugh?”

“Hahaha! You’re so cute even when you’re angry.”

“No, this isn’t the time for this!”

Chloe had already raised her voice.

“Shh… Why don’t you lower your voice?”

Hugrey whispered, his voice still full of laughter.

“I want to help you too. How can you defeat everyone here alone? Even if you’re an Alpha. Well, you said you’d have to give up the Alpha position soon, right?”

Chloe grumbled on purpose.

“Whether I give up the Alpha position or not, my abilities remain the same, so don’t worry. You just need to hide behind me so you don’t get hurt. I don’t intend to make you fight too. Ah! Running might be a bit difficult. When I’m carrying you while running, you need to hold on tight so you don’t fall. Can you do that?”

This man, really!

“You asked me to protect you before!”

“You only need to protect me when I can’t fight. When I’m dying or when I can’t use my strength during my heat. I plan to be fine five days from now, so I’ll protect you then.”

Hugrey said kindly while patting her head.

Forgetting her anger at those words, she suddenly felt scared.

Dying? What if that really happens? What if she can’t protect him when that happens? She still can’t even shift into a tiger at will.

She was still not a being that could be of help to the man she loved.

“But how can you handle the entire imperial palace alone?”

“I can do it. I’ll have to kill quite a lot, I’m just worried you might be too shocked.”

“I won’t be shocked anymore!”

Of course, she might be shocked, but she won’t be. Hugrey was attempting a life-threatening escape to take her out of this palace, she couldn’t just tremble in fear.

“Remember this garden we’re walking in well. We plan to escape through here. Do you remember the path from your room to here?”

“Ah…!”

Chloe had been walking this path with Hugrey for several days now.

She thought Hugrey liked this path because they always walked the same route, but he had been marking this path as an escape route.

“Yes, of course! I have quite a good sense of direction, you know.”

“Hahaha, if you say so.”

Hugrey laughed.

She couldn’t understand why he was teasing her today as if she were a child who couldn’t do anything.

“Ugh, I really want to hit you at times like this.”

“Even if you want to hit me, hold back for five days. I can’t get hurt by a tiger until then.”

This man didn’t look at all like someone who was going to attempt an escape in five days. How could he look so happy?

“But why that day? Why not escape tomorrow? So I can hit you sooner.”

Chloe asked, fuming. Completely falling for Hugrey’s intention to lighten her mood by deliberately teasing her, she had already forgotten the heavy feeling about the escape and was now bickering with this man, infected by his mood.

“…”

But suddenly Hugrey closed his mouth. He even avoided her eyes.

“Is it related to Reina Tilbut’s arrival? Is there a specific reason why it’s good to escape five days later?”

“I told you earlier. I said I’d be fine that day.”

“Even now you’re… Oh!”

Chloe blushed. She remembered that the Duke’s heat would come within the next two or three days.

Wolf shifters are weakest during their heat, she knew well. She had seen the Duke’s heat several times. If the heat hit during the escape attempt or right after the escape, who knows what situation they’d be in, so the plan was to escape safely after the heat had passed.

“Yes, that’s why.”

It seemed her expression showed that she had realized the reason.

Chloe turned her eyes away from him. Somehow, she felt embarrassed to be having this conversation with him in broad daylight.

“The lion emperor will have to cover his ears that day. Right?”

“Gasp…”

Chloe covered her wide-open mouth with both hands, her ears turning red at the Duke’s words.

“He tied you and me here, so that’s something he’ll have to deal with.”

Chloe started walking fast, looking only ahead. She didn’t dare to face this man and talk anymore.

Men, they have no shame at all. In broad daylight, no less.

“Not that way. The opposite, Chloe.”

Hearing Hugrey’s voice full of mischief from behind, Chloe had to turn around and walk back towards him.

“No, that way was right earlier.”

When she returned to him, Chloe ended up punching him in the stomach at his words.

“Oof!”

Hugrey doubled over as if stabbed with a knife, and Chloe sat down on the ground in surprise, asking if he was okay.

“That’s a fist that could even take down a wolf.”

Seeing his chuckling face, Chloe stomped away towards her room without looking back, snorting as if she might blow steam out of her nose.

Is this really the behavior of someone facing a life-threatening escape in five days?!

She didn’t notice at all that Hugrey’s face was darkening more than ever as he watched her retreating figure, steaming as if hot vapor might be rising from her.

She only realized his wish for her not to worry about anything after she returned to her room.