Tame or Be Captured (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 002
“Please take me with you.”
“……Oh ho, it’s a girl!”
Burly men wrapped in wolf pelts spotted her and whistled loudly.
But the man who seemed to be their leader asked without blinking an eye.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Asha Camellia. I’m from the Nephesh tribe, a minority group.”
At that, he let out a slight snort and said,
“Minority or whatever—it’s none of my concern. Did you just ask us to take you along?”
“Yes.”
He stared at her with cold eyes for a moment, then turned away and said firmly,
“Go back to your village. This place is where those with nowhere else to go end up.”
Asha hesitated slightly and said,
“But I… I don’t have anywhere else to go either.”
Hearing this, the men blinked in surprise and stared at her curiously.
He paused briefly, then turned back and asked,
“No place to go? Didn’t you just tell me you’re from a minority tribe?”
“Yes. But right now, I’ve left my village and am wandering alone.”
“Ha.”
He clicked his tongue as if utterly baffled.
“……So, after we saved you from those bandits chasing you, instead of thanking us and going your own way, you’re now expecting us to feed you too?”
His lake-blue eyes grew even colder.
Embarrassed by his indifferent response, Asha clasped her bright-red hands together, unsure what to do.
“……That wasn’t my intention at all. I truly thank you. Because of you, I’ve kept my life.”
It was only natural to be rejected after bluntly asking a stranger to take her along.
Asha clasped her hands respectfully in front of her in a polite bow, then quickly hurried back down to where she’d been hiding.
There, a basket rolled around on the snow.
Scattered nearby were shriveled fruits, withered grasses, and bits of bark—evidently dropped when she’d slipped on the snowy path while fleeing.
Though her hands were numb from the cold, Asha began carefully gathering the scattered provisions back into the basket.
Though meager, it was enough to serve as a day’s worth of food.
Asha climbed briskly back up the slope and thrust the basket toward him.
“This food took me all day to find in the mountains. Please accept it as my thanks for saving my life.”
“……I don’t need your thanks. If you’re hoping to win us over with something like this, just stop.”
“It’s only a small token of my gratitude. Please, take it.”
He stared into Asha’s eyes for a moment, then turned to the boy beside him and ordered,
“Naji, take it.”
“Yes!”
The light-brown-haired boy called Naji took the basket, grinned cheerfully, and winked at Asha.
It was his way of saying thank you.
Winters in the northern region were unimaginably harsher than elsewhere.
Food was always precious here, so as their leader, he’d made a pragmatic choice for his comrades.
Seeing the timing was right, Asha gathered her courage and spoke again.
“I swear I won’t be a burden to any of you. As you can see, I can at least provide my own share.”
“……Then keep living on your own like that.”
Still indifferent, he spoke coldly, making Asha grow slightly desperate as she pleaded earnestly,
“Right now… I need strength—the strength to protect myself. Please, let me become one of Lycaon.”
At her words, the men’s eyes widened slightly. Their leader gazed at her intently with his piercing blue eyes and finally spoke.
“So you know who we are.”
“Yes. I’ve heard you’re a group of hunters who never fail a single contract.”
“……And despite knowing that, you still want to join us?”
“Yes, I beg you.”
Asha replied with a serious expression.
In truth, her claim about leaving her village was a lie.
She was an orphan, but at this time, she clearly still had a place to return to.
In the allied village where minorities gathered, there were younger siblings—unrelated by blood—who were waiting only for her return.
Yet she lied precisely because she never wanted to relive the past.
One year from now, that minority village would be utterly crushed and destroyed by the Delphinium Barony.
In that tragedy, rather than being sold into slavery as a butterfly, she would be sold to Emperor Karaf.
Asha would never forget the tears she shed that day, powerless as a butterfly.
This time, she wanted to prevent that tragedy at all costs.
Even if she couldn’t exact revenge on the Emperor herself, she wanted to gain enough strength to save those pitiful villagers with her own hands before leaving.
That was why she believed she’d survived death, regressed through time, and returned precisely to this moment among all the days she’d lived.
To change the future, she needed to choose a different path from the past.
And right now, the person she absolutely must not miss stood before her eyes.
She didn’t know if it was her butterfly’s instinct, but somehow, she was certain of it.
After a long silence, he finally spoke again, his voice heavy.
“……I’m sorry, but women only join our Lycaon when they become companions to existing members. So please, go back now.”
With that, as if refusing to say anything more, he closed his eyes, turned his back, and began walking away.
But then—
“……Then I’ll become your companion.”
He halted abruptly mid-step.
His comrades burst into cheers.
He turned around again. His slightly furrowed brow made it clear he wasn’t pleased.
Seemingly deciding manners no longer mattered, he spoke harshly,
“Huh… You don’t look like the type, but are you really a woman who sells herself so easily?”
Asha’s pride stung, and she bit the inside of her lip.
But she couldn’t back down now.
Gathering her resolve once more, she declared firmly,
“Think whatever you like. The moment I saw you, I fell in love at first sight.”
At her words, the men roared with laughter and cheered even louder.
Whistles rang out loudly from all around.
“Chief! You’ve got to accept her! Even though she’s a woman, her boldness is exactly what Lycaon’s all about!”
“That’s right! And Chief, isn’t it high time you took a companion?”
“A man who refuses a woman who’s fallen for him at first sight deserves to starve to death!”
Annoyed by their reaction, he turned sharply and growled,
“Shut it, all of you.”
The laughter immediately died down.
The chief looked back at her calmly and asked,
“You can’t possibly be serious. Are you really this desperate to join our group?”
“Why wouldn’t I be serious?”
At Asha’s question, the ease vanished from his face, and he fell silent.
Her claim of being in love with him seemed to have struck him more than he’d expected.
His comrades snickered quietly among themselves, whispering.
Soon, one member cleared his throat loudly and said cheekily,
“Well, our chief isn’t exactly bad-looking. With features like his, he’s pretty decent, I’d say.”
“Exactly. A man who looks good even to other men—that’s a truly good-looking man.”
They exchanged glances while subtly checking Asha’s reaction.
Clearly, they all genuinely hoped their chief would finally take a companion.
Flustered by their enthusiastic response, Asha unconsciously blushed.
Though his appearance seemed rough and intimidating, as they’d said, his features were strikingly handsome.
If Emperor Karaf possessed a flower-like beauty, exuding a languid, seductive aura from his eyes, this man radiated the raw, untamed energy of a wild beast.
The wolf pelt draped over his shoulders made his already large frame appear even more imposing, and his ash-gray hair whipped wildly in the snowy wind like a wolf’s fur.
He looked like a lone beast standing firmly in the snow—making him all the more dependable and trustworthy.
“I’ll do anything for Lycaon. So please, accept me.”
“Anything… Do you even realize how dangerous a promise like that is in an all-male group?”
Several men who’d been openly showing interest winced, as if their own feet had suddenly gone numb.
Whenever a Lycaon member took a companion, the group protected her as family.
Their rule was absolute: never lay hands on another member’s woman.
In fact, if their chief refused her, they’d been seriously considering taking her as their own companions.
“I don’t know how long you’ve been sheltered in flower gardens, but take back those words before you regret them.”
“No.”
At Asha’s bold reply, he frowned slightly.
“You really are stubborn. If I refuse to take you, what then? Will you next threaten to kill yourself right in front of me?”
“Why would I threaten the one I fell in love with at first sight? I’ll simply… follow you until you accept me.”
She’d finally resorted to the desperate tactic she never wanted to use.
Asha sighed inwardly, unseen.
Honestly, after enduring Karaf’s obsessive affections to the point of revulsion, she’d sworn never to use such a method…
But if she lost him now, there’d be no other chance.
As far as she remembered, aside from this moment, she’d never cross paths with this man again in her entire life. That’s why she was certain her regression had brought her precisely here for a reason.
Contrary to Asha’s conflicted feelings, her repeated emphasis on “the one I fell in love with at first sight” seemed to leave him momentarily speechless.
He muttered to himself,
“Follow me… all that way?”
“Yes.”
At Asha’s confident reply, he asked without realizing,
“What if you die along the way?”
“Then there’s nothing I can do. I’m not afraid of death.”
“……That’s ridiculous.”
He twisted the corner of his mouth.
Moments ago, she’d been desperately fleeing a gang of bandits for her life—how could anyone possibly believe such words?
Yet through it all, Asha held his gaze unwaveringly, her eyes sincere.
He found that gaze irritating.
“Then do it.”
When Asha’s eyes brightened slightly in response, he said flatly,
“Go ahead and try. If you can safely follow us all the way, I’ll seriously consider whether to accept you into the group or not.”
With that, he walked off. His comrades glanced back at Asha with regretful looks but soon followed him.
Then, Asha called out to stop him.
“Wait a moment.”
He glanced back as he was about to mount his horse.
“What now?”
Asha spoke carefully,
“Please… tell me your name. Just in case I get lost, so I can ask around to find you.”
Someone cheekily whistled again at her words, only to clamp his mouth shut under the chief’s sharp glare.
He stared silently at Asha’s scarred, bright-red hands and feet.
At a glance, she clearly wouldn’t last long in this freezing weather.
Seeing him only stare at her without answering, Asha sighed inwardly.
He truly seemed uninterested in her—so much so that he didn’t even want to give his name.
Resigned, Asha lowered her eyelids slightly and said,
“I’m sorry for being rude and asking your name when we’ve just met. If it upset you, you don’t have to tell me…”
“……Jackal.”
He turned his gaze to the distance and said,
“Jackal Hyacinth. That’s my name.”
Asha’s eyes widened slightly as she looked at him.
It probably wasn’t her imagination—his previously stiff, cold expression seemed just a little softer now.
Male lead is reincarnated to save his wife
I’ve also read this one twice already. The female lead is kinda soft and gets embarrassed easily—not really my type, but the plot is definitely worth reading. Hurry up and read it, y’all!
Intro
When Shen Yuan encountered Su Jin again in his previous life, she had already become the Prime Minister of the current dynasty. As for him, the former top young master of the capital, he had long since fallen into the abyss, becoming a singer on a pleasure boat.
After a song ended, he was redeemed and sent to the Su Residence.
Su Jin respected and cherished him, gave him a roof over his head, and bestowed him with warmth. Shen Yuan fell deeper and deeper, but before he could express his feelings, Su Jin passed away.
Shen Yuan died to follow her in death, but instead, he returned to when he was fifteen years old.
At that time, he was not yet engaged, and Su Jin was just a poor scholar.
Shen Yuan gritted his teeth, casting aside all his pride, and thought of ways to coax and entice her every day.
The colder and more indifferent Su Jin was towards him, the more proactive Shen Yuan became.
He was not afraid of being mocked by the world, only wanting to marry his Wife-master early, to hold her hand and never let go for a lifetime.
[Note: This story will not specifically point out the male lead’s reincarnation time point; it’s all in the details. Whenever you feel that the male lead is acting strangely, he has most likely been reincarnated.]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
No way…did Karaf set up this situation with the assassin or kidnapping attempt to earn points?
Not practically, it is a form of torture. Jackel didn’t jump into the water on his own while tied to the boulder.
It seems backward that the Empress is invited to a Duchess’ tea party.