The Wolf Servant

Chapter 3 Next time, please don't be so mischievous, young master.

If an hour ago, Arthur's achievement was "somewhat famous," then now, he has become "known to everyone."

Standing in the line of new students, wearing Gavin's hat on his head, Arthur lazily watched the man with soft golden hair standing on the podium, giving a welcome speech to the new students. Despite the thousands of eyes staring, his disheveled appearance didn't seem to embarrass him. He propped his hands, wearing black leather gloves, on both sides of the lectern, his blue eyes, as calm as a still lake, swept over each young face below...

Many newcomers blushed when they were glanced at by those calm lake-like eyes, becoming the first to lower their heads.

Arthur: "……"

Raising his hand, he gently pushed up the brim of the hat with a finger, causing it to lift and then fall, bringing with it a small whiff of tobacco mixed with the scent of other male wolf tribes, strong, restrained, and not at all aggressive, the standard scent of a beta wolf.

His keen nose told Arthur that this was Gavin's scent—

At this point, the boy's slightly scrutinizing gaze had to rest once again on the "rising star" standing on the stage, the center of attention—

If he were an alpha, perhaps he could have a very large group before graduation;

Now, as a beta, he is destined to be the best assistant for alpha wolves from royalty and nobility at the top to grassroots nouveau riche at the bottom in this campus...

Many families must have extended olive branches to him over the years?

However, with only a year left until graduation, Gavin still hasn't chosen his final group affiliation... Well, it's understandable. Today, letting a beta stand on the high stage, making all alphas look up to him and listen to his speech, this shows that within the scope of this school, there is no alpha who can suppress him.

…………………………Of course, he, Arthur the young master, has just enrolled and cannot be so hasty to compare with these old useless sticks, so he doesn't count.

"—Hey, Lancelot."

"……"

His shoulder was nudged, interrupting Arthur's train of thought. He raised an eyebrow, withdrew his gaze from Gavin, and turned his head to find one of the few alphas in his grade standing beside him. This guy was tall and well-built, with light brown skin, slightly pointed ears, and a cleanly shaved crew cut, a typical southern wolf appearance... He seemed to be some young master from the Rhine family. Arthur remembered his sister mentioning it this morning before they left.

……………………Lilith, that wild woman, has been wielding a greatsword and madly pursuing some beta from the Rhine family recently, probably one of his brothers? So, out of love for her beloved, she warned Arthur before leaving to be kind to his future "brother-in-law (by marriage)."

—Otherwise, Arthur would have turned around and left by now.

—If it weren't for his slight fear of his elder sister's nagging.

At this moment, seeing Arthur look over, Manhart Rhine was almost blinded by those piercing black eyes and the stunning, doll-like face. He paused, his mind blank for a few seconds, forgetting what he wanted to say. He suddenly thought of some rumors circulating among the nobility: The Lancelot family has always raised their youngest alpha child as if he were an omega.

Now, this rumor doesn't seem as absurd and laughable as it initially sounded.

Only when those eyes showed a hint of impatience did Manhart manage to pull himself together from various off-topic fantasies. He winked and nudged his chin at Arthur: "Before this, I always heard my brothers discussing that the most outstanding beta of the Royal Knights Academy hasn't found a partner... It's driving everyone crazy trying to get him."

Arthur: "?"

Manhart grinned, showing a wolf tooth: "Now I think I finally understand why..."

Arthur was taken aback, not expecting someone else to be pondering the same thing and reaching a conclusion before him. So, he didn't mind the guy's overly intimate tone and raised his hand to adjust the brim of his hat: "What?"

"You."

"Huh?"

"I said, it's you!" Manhart narrowed his eyes, "Isn't it obvious? His action of giving you the hat just now freaked us all out—now all the alphas in the school probably have received a message: Gavin Lancelot will most likely belong to your group in the future."

Arthur: "?????"

Manhart: "He practically hangs on your every word."

Arthur: "All he did was give me his hat."

Manhart: "He deducted his own conduct points for you!"

Arthur completely failed to understand: "Of course he had to deduct points after giving me his hat. Having the power to deduct points, he wouldn't make special exceptions for himself in front of everyone unless he wanted to quit..."

Manhart wasn't listening at all: "Such an implicit vow is so romantic!"

Arthur: "W-what... Sorry, I don't quite understand—"

Manhart: "You've become the enemy of all alphas in school because you've taken away the best beta."

Arthur: "..."

That statement, Arthur understood.

After a moment of stunned silence, the calm gradually returned to the youth's eyes. He turned his head away and said coldly: "You've misunderstood. He doesn't belong to my wolf pack. As for why he hasn't found a pack yet, it might be due to ambition or stranger quirks... He's graduating in a year, and after entering the military, there will be even better wolf packs waiting for him to choose from. Those famous generals are probably eagerly anticipating this new noble—"

Towards the end, his voice lifted slightly, carrying deeply hidden emotions... As he spoke, Arthur's gaze inadvertently swept towards the stage—

Then unexpectedly met those azure eyes.

Arthur: "..."

The youth was slightly startled - was he watching him?

[You are the empire's future, stars scattered across the galaxy of history. Perhaps your future will dim into silent extinction, or perhaps you'll shine brilliantly to build a bridge across the broader starry seas for the empire...]

The man's deep voice came steadily through the microphone. Across the crowd, when his eyes met Arthur's, he paused briefly... then imperceptibly raised his lips, giving the youth a slight nod—

[Here, I wish everyone present that when your wings are fully grown, you may soar high.]

His gaze seemed to ripple like gentle lake water - mirror-calm on the surface but bottomless beneath.

As thunderous applause erupted, Arthur stood in the crowd, slightly furrowing his brow. He was the first to look away, raising his hand to lower his cap brim, using the shadow cast by it to hide all the emotions in his eyes.

...

The freshman registration day was just an ordinary day for new students to get to know each other and become somewhat familiar with the campus.

After the student representative's speech, everyone dispersed to go about their business - nobles living in the imperial capital went home in helicopters or aircraft, while nobles from out of town had their servants clean the dormitories they would live in for four years.

After everything was done, everyone would retire early that day.

Because the real highlight of the entrance ceremony was on the second day—

People called it the "Day of Sacred Choice."

The origin of the "Day of Sacred Choice" could be traced back several hundred years, when the "Imperial Royal Knight Academy" wasn't called that yet, but rather "Saint Yale Knight Mecha Academy"... At that time, the wolf clan had just begun their journey of interstellar conquest, and "mecha" as the hottest new combat method received much attention.

So as a renowned imperial institution of higher learning, to encourage students to develop in mecha research, the academy decided to conduct mecha-focused tests for new students at the start of school, with voluntary participation—these tests were divided into two types: practical operation control and theoretical knowledge, the former emphasizing combat, the latter academics.

Simply put, the former involved fighting in mechas (self-provided).

The latter involved written tests solving various mecha-related problems.

Regardless of martial or academic achievement, students who performed excellently in the assessment would first gain exposure and focused cultivation from the military department;

Secondly, they could be assigned to better classes for their next four years of study;

Finally, most important for those children from less wealthy families who relied purely on ability to fight their way into this academy among millions—scholarships.

The reason it's called the "Day of Sacred Choice" is because every minute and second of this day could change a person's life, so whether they were outstanding students from poor families or born nobles, everyone eagerly anticipated this day.

All seven of Arthur's brothers and sisters had graduated from this school, so he knew the school's rules like the back of his hand. The day he received his acceptance letter, he unhesitatingly checked "Mecha Combat Practice" on the "Day of Sacred Choice" appendix form... His father was very dissatisfied with this: How could you be so crude as a noble young master?

Arthur just smiled without explanation.

Now.

When returning home that evening, as Arthur opened the aircraft door, he immediately saw another young man already sitting perfectly upright inside, his golden hair impeccable, just like his precisely pressed black school uniform...

Arthur climbed into the aircraft with a cold expression, not intending to acknowledge him.

But Gavin turned around, unusually taking the initiative to speak: "Young master, I saw you chatting happily with the youngest son of the Rhine family today..."

"None of your business." Arthur's climbing motion paused as he said rudely.

He was indeed watching him then, damn it, like a p*****t, so annoying.

Faced with Arthur's non-cooperation, Gavin showed no reaction and chose another topic: "Tomorrow's Day of Sacred Choice—"

This time Arthur immediately frowned, becoming even more impatient, directly interrupting Gavin: "If you have nothing else to say then shut up, are you planning to nag about this forever?"

"...No," Gavin seemed used to his poor attitude and patiently explained, "Miss Lilith asked me to ask you if you'll be using the Star Lord or Snow Leopard tomorrow?"

Arthur settled into his seat, hesitating slightly at these words—

In modern times, the price of a mecha was no longer as expensive as before, and most outstanding students from common backgrounds could afford an ordinary mecha, so compared to when hardly anyone signed up for this event before, the value of this program had increased significantly—

Though there were still unfair factors involved.

For example, commoner students could at most afford a 2555-produced Star Track series, but Arthur used the new Snow Leopard that had just launched at the end of last year. Comparing the two mecha series, the hardware configuration difference was like comparing a Toyota Corolla to a Tesla...

While the Star Lord was a classic series slightly more advanced than Star Track, using it would be more convincing than crushing commoners with new mecha, and would attract less criticism.

Thinking of this, Arthur didn't answer, but instead curled his lips and tilted his head to look at the serious man beside him: "Which do you think I should use?"

"I just adjusted the safety systems of young master's Snow Leopard last month, while the family's Star Lord hasn't been tested for some time," Gavin bent down, lowering his eyes as his long fingers reached over to fasten Arthur's seatbelt, speaking in his usual businesslike tone, "For safety considerations, I personally suggest young master use your own Snow Leopard..."

Arthur half-lowered his eyelashes, watching that gloved hand click his seatbelt with a "snap."

He could feel the man's presence enveloping him... still that faint tobacco scent.

Yet he felt no discomfort.

Arthur didn't move: "Using the Snow Leopard will give people more to talk about, thanks to you, I'm already quite famous today."

As if not hearing the sarcasm in the youth's words, the man's voice remained steady: "Compared to young master's safety, those rumors aren't worth a single strand of your hair—money and bloodline are also part of strength, that's an indisputable fact, only those who can't have it would make a big deal of it."

Arthur raised the corner of his mouth, making an "Oh" sound.

He seemed quite happy to hear this—

Though exactly which part made him happy, no one knew.

The youth thought for a moment, bent down to pick up his schoolbag, and without hesitation took out a brand new school cap from inside, then took off the old one on his head and threw it onto Gavin's lap.

Gavin looked down at the cap thrown onto his lap, then looked at the youth who was humming while putting on his own school cap: "Young master, didn't you forget your cap at home?"

Arthur, without missing a beat: "I lied to you, I brought it."

Gavin: "..."

Arthur turned his head, his clear black and white eyes sparkling: "What, not happy?"

"Not at all." Gavin put on the cap that carried a hint of the youth's scent, looking at him with a flawless smile and speaking in a gentle tone, "Please don't be so mischievous next time, young master."

A moment of silence.

"...Gavin."

"Hmm?"

"They're saying you do whatever I tell you to."

A moment of silence.

The smile in the man's steel-blue eyes became clearer—

"That's the truth, young master, is there something wrong with that?"