"That's Hog; you'll see him in a moment." Alan hadn't expected Shalltear's nose to be so sharp. "You can identify the scent of a werewolf? Have you seen one before?"
"The scent of a werewolf is so obvious, how could I not recognize it? Werewolves and us vampires are mortal enemies. We've had conflicts with their race for centuries. Those crude beasts actually have the nerve to call themselves intelligent beings." Shalltear curled her lips in disdain. "But why would there be a werewolf here, my lord?"
"He is not a werewolf." Alan shook his head, then briefly explained Hog's origins to Shalltear.
"So he's just a wolf cub. My lord, I advise you to have less contact with these beasts, lest they infect you with their stupidity." Shalltear clearly looked down on werewolves, her face full of contempt.
"Are you telling me what to do?" Alan glared at her again, realizing that Shalltear was very fond of showing off, always appearing lively and unrestrained.
"Uh, no, my lord, I was just offering some small suggestions." Shalltear noticed Alan's unfriendly gaze and immediately reverted to her obedient demeanor.
After warning her, Alan prepared some food for Shalltear. He found that her diet was not much different from a human's, though she occasionally craved blood products. According to her, Shalltear had never tried fresh, raw blood because she found it disgusting; eating raw food was a sign of barbarism that did not match the image of the Toreador Clan.
After Shalltear had eaten her fill, Alan led her down to the shop on the first floor. Kiki and Hog were still diligently guarding the entrance. Due to the effects of Alan casting Finite Incantatem yesterday, the magic on most of the civilian goods in the shop had been damaged to varying degrees and had not yet been re-enchanted.
There were not many goods on the shelves, and the shop seemed deserted. Hog was resting his dog head on his paws, bored and scratching at the table. Kiki, however, was dutifully standing guard. When Alan appeared from the inner door, Hog immediately turned his head excitedly. Business was too slow today, and he was incredibly bored.
"My lord, you're back! How was it? Did you take care of the guy who was causing trouble in the shop?" Hog saw Alan appear and immediately jumped off the counter chair, but then he strangely twitched his nose. "What's going on, my lord? Why is there a strange stench on you?"
"You're the one who stinks; you reek from head to toe."
Before Alan could speak, Shalltear poked her head out from behind him and stared at Hog indignantly. She had heard him and knew this husky was referring to her.
"Who are you, and why are you with my lord?" Hog asked, looking bewildered by the sudden appearance of the girl.
"This is Shalltear, a vampire. From today on, she will be living with us. You two can get acquainted later." Alan glared at Shalltear, telling her to shut up, then briefly explained the events of the previous night and Shalltear's background.
"Oh? So that scoundrel got away? That won't do; we need to find that guy quickly and tear him to pieces! How dare he come to our home and cause destruction." Hog immediately bared his teeth.
"That is my intention as well, but that man is quite strong and his whereabouts are unpredictable. We need to be fully prepared first." Alan glanced at the mostly empty shelves, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Then, my lord, do you have any leads? If that guy escaped with a Portkey, he could appear in any corner of any country. Your current tracker doesn't cover all of Europe yet, does it?" Kiki asked with concern.
"Indeed," Alan said with a cold smile. "So I plan to start with Aseria, and through her, pinpoint the Thunderbird's whereabouts. That man definitely won't abandon Aseria, his inside source."
"Then what should we do? Continue monitoring her? But that level of monitoring didn't seem to reveal if she had contacted him." Hog scratched the back of his head with a hind paw and asked. He then noticed Shalltear covering her mouth and snickering at him. He immediately glared at her in displeasure, but Shalltear pouted and glared right back.
Alan was not too concerned about the interaction between the two. "Ordinary monitoring is no longer enough. I plan to find an opportunity to approach her and take direct control."
"When do you plan to act?" Kiki asked, glancing at Hog and Shalltear, who were still locked in a staring contest.
"Tonight…" Alan stared ahead with a deep gaze. He turned his head and said, "We'll close early today. We'll reopen after the lathe finishes processing those civilian products. Shalltear, get familiar with the environment; you'll be expected to help out in the shop from now on."
After speaking, Alan Apparated away, leaving a vampire, a husky, and a house-elf behind.
Upon realizing Alan had disappeared, Hog immediately looked at Shalltear. "Hmph, I don't know how you got my lord to take you in, but since you've entered this house, you need to know about seniority. As a junior, you need to listen to your elders. Come on, call me Grandpa Hog and let me hear it."
Hog straightened up, looking at Shalltear with an air of smugness, adopting the demeanor of a veteran.
"You?!" Shalltear curled her lips. "The boss here is Lord Wilson. Why should I acknowledge a stinky dog like you as my elder? Are you even worthy?"
"Bah, you dead bat, how dare you talk about me? I'm telling you, I've been with my lord for years! I'm his top general! You're a newcomer; show some respect!" Hog retorted angrily.
"So what if I talk back to you? I'll never listen to a stinky dog like you. You're a stinky dog, a silly dog, a dumb dog…" Shalltear started bickering with Hog like an elementary school child.
"You dead bat! I hope you wake up every morning to the sun!"
"Silly dog! How dare you curse me? I'll pull out all your rotten teeth sooner or later!"
"No returns!"
"No returns on your no returns!"
"No returns invalid!"
Kiki watched the girl and dog fiercely bickering, shrugged helplessly, then closed the shop door and left the scene.