Arc 3 – The Wolf Knight
On the Celestial Island, ten years after the Demon King's rebirth.
Sakura Dry turned curiously to Eli.
"Well, how were the first two years living in the castle with the White Witch? Did Andras have any difficulties?"
Eli smiled, then shook her head with a laugh.
"You won't believe it, but the Young Wolf decided to turn Noelle into a Magical Maidservant instead of a White Witch! When I first heard it, I nearly fell off my chair."
"Magical Maidservant?" Sakura Dry laughed. "That sounds adorable. What's this, Eli, you're calling him Young Wolf too?"
"Why not?" Eli shrugged. "It sounds cool. I couldn't have thought of a better name myself. Why, what would you call him instead?"
"Andras? Hmm… perhaps 'my dear student,'" Sakura Dry answered playfully.
"Hey, he's my student too!" Eli shot back.
Uriel interrupted, slightly annoyed.
"Quarreling again? Lately you two bicker quite often, sometimes over the silliest things. If I didn't know you, I'd think the root of it was a lovers' quarrel."
"Who would be in love with the Young Wolf?!" Eli burst out.
"How could I fall in love with my own student?!" Sakura Dry protested.
Uriel spread her arms.
"I never said Andras's name."
"It's not like that!" Eli explained. "I just enjoy it, that's all. I like his 'gamer' way of thinking, the way he handles things. But if there's someone who's truly in love with the Young Wolf, it's Noelle!"
Sakura Dry replied thoughtfully:
"I don't know… I think Anita also feels more for him, and those feelings aren't just the love of a big sister. They're not siblings to begin with, so in my view there's more to it."
"When his mission is over, maybe I'll ask him to call me his big sister too!" Eli laughed.
"Or he could call you his grandmother," Sakura Dry teased.
"What?! Did you just insult me? By that logic you could be his great‑great‑great grandmother!" Eli flared up.
Uriel raised her voice.
"Enough already, for heaven's sake! We came here to discuss Andras's mission."
"You're right, sorry," Sakura Dry sighed.
"Hah… as I said, Noelle is completely smitten," Eli continued. "If you looked inside her head, you'd see nothing but thoughts of the Young Wolf."
Uriel nodded.
"Well, indeed. They've been together for two years now. Since then, no one has mocked Noelle, and she hasn't suffered any harm. Andras has completely swept her off her feet."
"I'm not surprised," Eli smiled. "They're together every day, learning magic side by side. If Noelle learns to control her magic, then the chance of her power becoming uncontrollable will be very small. Especially given how talented she is. It was a truly clever move by the Young Wolf to study magic with her daily."
"But the fact that he makes her do a hundred push‑ups every day—that's your fault, Saku!" Eli remarked.
Sakura Dry straightened proudly.
"I do a thousand every day! The fact that she only has to do a hundred means Andras is sparing her."
"You muscle‑brain!" Eli shot back, half annoyed, half laughing.
Uriel interjected calmly:
"Regardless of the number of push‑ups, the mission is going well so far. Noelle is happy, no one harms her. By now even the other maidservants have accepted her. She's gradually learning to control her magic. If things continue like this, we won't need to worry about her becoming the White Witch and cursing the Hero."
"Exactly!" Eli nodded. "I think she's fine now. Especially since she was only supposed to sleep in the Young Wolf's bed during the first week, yet for the past two years she hasn't slept in her own bed even once."
"It doesn't matter," Sakura Dry replied firmly. "They're still only ten years old. That bed is huge. Andras sees her as a little sister anyway. It's safe!"
"For now," Eli muttered. "But what happens when they're fifteen?"
"There still won't be a problem," Sakura Dry shot back. "Andras is a man of culture!"
"And a gamer," Eli added with a smirk. "Anyway, what event comes next, Uriel?"
Uriel answered with a grave expression:
"In the Evil Future timeline of Andras, when he was ten years old, a hunting accident occurred. The Captain of the Wolf Knights had a granddaughter who was very talented in swordsmanship. She was two years older than Andras. Her name was Andrea Wolf. When Andras turned ten and Andrea twelve, the Lord of Wolfwood appointed Andrea as Andras's personal knight.
That summer, a great hunt was held in the forests of Wolfwood. But the two children strayed from the hunting party and came face to face with a monster. It was a massive bear beast: an alpha male Stonebear. Three times the size of a normal bear, its skin covered in stone armor. Such a dangerous creature that even five Wolf Knights would struggle to defeat it—let alone a twelve‑year‑old girl.
Evil Future Andras was so terrified of the Stonebear that he wet himself. Andrea was afraid too, but she had enough courage to stand against the monster as a knight, holding it off long enough for her lord to escape. At twelve years old, the girl died a heroic death. It was never revealed what a fine female Wolf Knight she might have become. It was a great loss to the Wolf knightly family. But not only to them—to all of Wolfwood."
At that time, something broke between the Wolfwoods and the Wolf Knights. Arpad Wolf, Captain of the Wolf Knights, resigned and left Wolfwood. The new Knight Captain, Janos Wolf, tried to drown his sorrow with women and wine.
"This is a very sad story," Sakura Dry remarked quietly.
"And what about in the Earthly Andras timeline?" Eli asked curiously.
Uriel spoke with a serious face:
"The Great Hunt event is about to arrive. One month before, Andrea will be introduced to our Andras as well. Most likely, in our timeline too, Andrea Wolf will be appointed as Andras's personal Wolf Knight."
Eli leaned forward, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.
"Now I'm very curious to see what the Young Wolf will do with the Stonebear… and the knight girl."
Sakura Dry answered confidently:
"Simple. My student will defeat the monster and save the girl!"
Uriel smiled, then nodded.
"I must admit, I'm also interested to see how this will turn out."