I Accidentally Imprinted On The Wolf Duke - Chapter 61

Knock knock.

Though he wanted to go in and see Chloe right away, Hugrey knocked with his last bit of reason and waited for Chloe’s permission to enter.

“Come in.”

As soon as the answer fell, he opened the door and was about to enter the room when he stopped abruptly.

There stood a person with short, scruffy brown hair, thick and large glasses made even more misshapen due to a broken leg, wearing men’s clothes layered to the point of looking ridiculous. It was his companion Chloe, who had once again become the male servant Clyne.

“Clo…yne.”

An absurd name slipped out. Hugrey frowned at the strange name that came from his own mouth.

It seemed he had opened the door expecting to see the angel-like beautiful Chloe he last saw, only to be shocked by the appearance of Clyne disguised as a man.

“Your Grace, you’ve come? Um… it’s afternoon tea time, shall I prepare some tea for you?”

Even her voice and actions had changed to those of the servant Clyne. Although he had just made up his mind to follow her opinion…

“Chloe, do you really have to disguise yourself like this right away? Can’t you stay as you are in my room for just a few days?”

“No, sir. People will find it strange.”

“But you’re sick right now. You need treatment, how can you act as a servant?”

“My body aches here and there, but not to the point where I can’t move. Actually, I have a constitution that heals quickly…”

“…”

What nonsense was this, when she wasn’t even a therianthrope? Unlike therianthropes with fast recovery, Chloe was just human. My weak, fragile companion.

“Anyway, you don’t need to bring tea or anything, so don’t think about wandering around this house for a while. There’s also an unwelcome guest here.”

“Ah, the person you mentioned earlier? Who is it?”

“Someone you don’t need to know about.”

“Oh… yes.”

He didn’t particularly want to tell Chloe about Tilbeth. He didn’t even want to mention her. However, somehow Chloe’s expression didn’t look good.

“So…”

Concerned about Chloe’s expression, he was about to explain about Reina Tilbeth even though he didn’t want to.

“But Your Grace, about what you were saying earlier. About imprinting and therianthropes.”

However, Chloe changed the subject back. To the imprinting-related topic they had left off earlier. Right, this was a much more important conversation now.

“Yes, ask anything.”

“Actually, I find it a bit hard to believe. Please tell me again.”

“…Hmm.”

He needed to fully explain to Chloe that he was a wolf therianthrope, and the meaning and intensity of imprinting. He thought he should tell her everything truthfully, including the dangers when the imprinting target is human. Even if it would gradually wear away at his lifespan, he had already decided he would restrain himself during mating seasons if she wasn’t ready, rather than risk losing Chloe forever.

However… the pressure and attention from wolf therianthropes. He hadn’t prepared for that yet. Nor how to protect Chloe from his own kind. Reina Tilbeth was just the beginning.

Was it right to reveal everything like this so soon? Was it truly wise to tell her everything honestly? Was it really helpful to her to immediately inform her of the weight she would bear, not only as the companion of a wolf therianthrope but also as the companion of an alpha? Wouldn’t it be better to let her remain unaware for as long as possible, without feeling any weight? After all, he could somehow bear the weight of imprinting and being an alpha alone.

“I’ll explain slowly over time. You’ll probably come to realize it bit by bit as you stay with me. For now, just know that I’m a wolf therianthrope, and that I’ve imprinted on you. Also, keep in mind that no one in this house knows I’m a wolf therianthrope except for Joyce.”

Yes, perhaps it’s better to say just this much for now. At least until that woman, Reina Tilbeth, leaves this house.

When she first opened her eyes, her body had felt as if it had been beaten with a club, but after half a day, it had improved to the point where she could move fairly well. She had thought it was just her imagination, but it seemed her physical strength and wound healing ability had indeed improved.

“Your Grace, dinner is ready. Shall we go to the dining room on the second floor?”

The butler’s voice was heard from the duke’s office adjacent to her room. Forced to lie still in bed on the duke’s orders, she could hear the sounds from beyond the wall better than usual.

“I’ll have dinner with the guest only for tonight. From tomorrow morning, prepare separately.”

The duke’s voice was also heard.

“But Your Grace, the Tilbeth family…”

Lord Joyce’s voice was also heard. It seemed not only the butler but also Lord Joyce had entered the duke’s office.

“Joyce, that’s enough. She’s a woman who has nothing to do with me now.”

Along with the duke’s curt reply, the sound of a door opening and closing was heard, and multiple footsteps gradually faded away.

Perhaps because she had slept soundly for a whole day after fainting, a few words floated around in her wide-awake mind.

Imprinting, wolf therianthrope, young lady of the Tilbeth family.

Clearly, imprinting and wolf therianthrope should be the more unfamiliar terms, but strangely, it was the existence of the young lady of the Tilbeth family that pricked her nerves most like a thorn in her throat. Was the reason it kept bothering her like this due to Lord Joyce’s voice, which had been more urgent than usual when announcing the guest’s arrival in front of the duke’s room?

Tilbeth family. Tilbeth family.

No matter how much she pondered, it was a name she had never heard before. Given that she was called a young lady, she was clearly from a noble family, but it was a family name Chloe had never heard of.

Of course, having grown up secluded in the mountains of Veurgen, she couldn’t be expected to know all the noble families of Elaion. But judging from Lord Joyce’s voice, and considering she was a woman important enough to visit the duke, she must be a high-ranking noble. So why did it sound so unfamiliar?

In fact, whether familiar or unfamiliar, she wouldn’t have felt anything in the past. She would have just thought of her as a guest of the master she served. But now it felt like an extremely important issue.

A young lady… meaning an unmarried woman. Who could she be? Why did she come to see the duke? The duke is my man who has imprinted on me.

‘…!’

Chloe, realizing her own thoughts, looked at the door in shock. As if the duke might have heard her thoughts from outside the door. That’s how ridiculous her own thoughts seemed to her.

My man. And even imprinting.

Although the talk of wolf therianthropes and imprinting sounded absurd, judging from the duke’s serious attitude, she thought it must be somewhat true. But she was scared of herself for developing a subtle sense of possession at the mention of him imprinting on her.

It seemed she wanted to believe it. That the duke had imprinted on her exactly as he explained. But was it really true? Was the duke really a wolf therianthrope, and had he really imprinted on her?

It was the same circular question once again.

If the duke had really ‘imprinted’ on her, was that okay?

She recalled Lord Joyce’s expression she had seen then, and the duke’s face that seemed resigned as he spoke about the night in Arne.

If it’s really the duke’s imprinting, is it really okay for me to have it?

Her resolve to give her heart to the duke began to waver again upon learning this new fact. Not because she wanted to waver, but due to feelings of inadequacy, wondering if it was really okay.

Joyce couldn’t shake off an ominous feeling.

The two ‘Chloes’ he had personally gone to check were not the imprinting partners. The other two didn’t match the physical conditions. But if the Chloes from Kinden and Sorlaine weren’t the duke’s imprinting partners, he needed to go and check on them as soon as possible.

Recalling the duke’s condition during the last mating season, if he couldn’t find his companion by the next mating season, the duke’s condition would worsen even more.

Every time he couldn’t resolve his heat, it would accumulate in the duke’s body, gradually damaging his organs. So why was he leisurely spending days visiting Clyne’s hometown, and now showing no signs of searching for the woman named ‘Chloe’?

And more worrying than all these doubts was the existence of Chloe, said to be Clyne’s sister. Although Clyne had said she was dead, in fact, not a single person in Veurgen had testified that a woman named Chloe had died. He had only confirmed that there were too many matching points with the woman the duke was looking for – blonde hair, slender build, even the height.

A servant’s younger sister, a commoner woman living in the forest of Veurgen. Even without seeing her directly, she was already a woman he didn’t like. He didn’t even want to properly inform the duke about the information on her.

Nevertheless, he truly didn’t add that much personal emotion to it. This was a matter directly related to the duke’s well-being, how could he do such a thing?

He had intended to report even things like Clyne being blonde when Clyne wasn’t present.

But she was said to be dead. Clyne himself had said so. Even the duke said it was true. So with some relief, he was able to cross that woman off the list of candidates.

But was she really dead? Why did the duke stay at Clyne’s house? Why did he spend time with Clyne in Veurgen? Why, when they were attacked by bandits, did the duke personally carry Clyne, who was injured and unconscious, not allowing anyone else to touch him?

After returning to the duke’s mansion, he hid Clyne, allowing no one but the doctor to see him. Ridiculously, the place where that fellow was resting was the duke’s bedroom. It was such a strange course of action that even the lowliest servants who knew nothing couldn’t help but find it odd.

So there was clearly something.

What could it be?