Howling 3

The sun had set, and it had become nighttime; Adolpha was lying on her bed looking through her window. She hears something coming from behind the cabin and picks up the scent of smoke. Adolpha gets up and goes over to the window; she looks out. The sound of bushes scares her, and she returns to bed; she pretends to sleep. A shadow stopped by her window; it then left after a while.

The shadowy figure walks to the house and stops; again, it leaves after a while. It makes its way to the dock; the moonlight sheds light, and it is Wolf. Wolf looked like a fit beast-man; his clothes were ripped. Wolf reaches the dock and looks around; after a while, he leaves.

Wolf made his way around the island, ensuring nothing suspicious; he returned to his made tent and sat by a fire. Wolf had a collar, just like Adolpha. Wolf noticed some food scraps on the floor; that was what they fed him. He takes them and eats; after he does, he goes on patrol again.

When the sun rises, he returns to his tent and sleeps. Adolpha woke up and was ready for her day; she waited for the maids to feed her. When the maids came to bathe her, she tried asking them about Wolf. They ignored her at first; one of them felt sorry for her. Adolpha again, in a soft voice, asked about Wolf.

One of the maids was throwing the water away; the other was cleaning her plates. She began to speak, saying, "Wolf is Lord Michael's prize fighter; I heard he has won many fights for him." She also mentions that Lord Michael left him to protect the island. Once they finished, they went; Adolpha, in a soft tone, thanked her.

Later that night, Adolpha was lying on her bed looking at the sky and heard Wolf getting ready. She pretends to sleep; Wolf passes her window and looks in. He sees her and walks away; Adolpha gets up and goes to the window. She sees him; Adolpha stares at him. Wolf felt her staring; he ignored her and continued his patrol.

The following morning, Adolpha woke up and went to her window; she waited for Wolf to pass. When she saw him, she would hide; Wolf just passed by. Adolpha would then take a peek. Wolf ignored her; he went into her tent and slept. Adolpha smiled; she felt happy seeing someone of her race.

As time passed, and there was no word from Lord Michael. The residents just kept at it. Adolpha liked seeing Wolf; she was no longer scared of him. It was beginning to get cold; Fall, the cold season, was coming. The year was 834; Mike and Sam lived like they owned the house; they made messes, and the maids had to clean after them.

Victoria, the head maid, calls them and asks them to head to the mainland for supplies. Mike and Sam get their coats and go to the docks; they had gotten one of Lord Michael's bigger boats. Victoria has given them a list of what to get. They depart for the mainland.

As they headed to the mainland, they saw workers picking from the orchards; the islands belonged to Lord Michael. It took about half an hour to get from the island they were on to the mainland. They reached a town of a very decent size; it was full of people. Most were residents living there and working for Lord Michael.

Mike and Sam dock and walk into town; the townsfolk greet them. Sam greets them back; Mike keeps walking. Mike walks to a fruit stand and starts talking to a woman there. Sam knew Mike was trying to make a pass at her; he went to a water fountain and sat.

Sam had some time and went shopping; he returned to the fountain. Mike, carrying a box, finds him and asks if he has gone to get the supplies; Sam says he has purchased everything on the list. Mike handed him a bag of fruit and told him they were heading back; before they left, they went to a post office. Mike picks up several letters.

They returned to the boat and the island; when they returned, they informed Victoria they had bought the supplies, which would be delivered tomorrow. Victoria gets angry when she sees Mike with a box with some wine. She excuses them; they head to the living room.

Mike and Sam were drinking when he remembered he had the letters. He had put them in the box; Mike took one and opened it. The letter was from Lord Michael; it said he would spend more time in the capital. The other letters were about the work on the orchard islands; he had instructions for them.

Time passed, and nothing changed; Mike visited the mainland more often. Sam stays on the island and helps the maids; he is getting friendly with them. Adolpha watched Wolf work; one day, she woke up and saw a seashell on her window. She took it and wondered where it came from. Wolf was sleeping already.

The nights got colder, so Victoria gave Adolpha some thicker blankets. One of the maids asked why she was in the cabin and not the house. Victoria said Lord Michael built the place to keep her hidden; it was special. They look at the cabin, wondering what was special about it.

Adolpha started to feel happier; every morning, a new seashell or a flower was placed on her window; she knew it was Wolf. Adolpha decorated the inside of the cabin. The maids noticed the decorations but said nothing; they were happy for her. Adolpha didn't finish her meal; she left a piece of bread.

That night, she waits for Wolf to go on his patrol; she hears him getting ready. Wolf walks to the window to make sure she is safe. Adolpha sees him; Wolf sees her and is about to walk away. "Wait," said a soft voice. Wolf stops and turns around; Adolpha is by the window, "Here, this is for you."

Adolpha places the bread on the window sill; Wolf stares at it. When he takes it, Adolpha gets excited; she smiles. Wolf goes on his patrol. When Wolf heads to the docks, he sees a boat approaching; he hides. The boat docks, and out stubbles someone; it was Mike, who was drunk. Mike had returned late and headed home.

He was dizzy and had trouble walking in a straight line. Wolf comes out and follows him; Mike feels a presence and gets scared. Mike continues walking but hears someone following him. He sobers a little and walks faster. Mike, scared, starts running; he drops a bag he had. Wolf walks up to the bag and picks it up; a book falls out. He picks it up and looks at it.

Mike reaches the house and trips; he has trouble getting up. He hears them getting closer; Mike nervously turns and looks up. He sees glowing eyes, "AH!" he passes out; Wolf stares at Mike. He picks him up and sits near the house's front door; he leaves the bag but takes the book.

The sun rises, and Wolf makes one more pass before returning to his tent; he walks by the cabin and places the book on the window. Sam had woken up and wondered where Mike was; he dressed and went to the living room. There was no sign of him.

Sam checks the kitchen next, followed by the storage room; nothing. He heads to the front entrance and looks at the stairs, "Mike, you couldn't have!" He was about to head upstairs when he heard snoring. Sam heads to the front door and opens it; he sees Mike lying on the floor sleeping.

Sam gets close to him, and he can smell the alcohol; he shakes his head in disappointment. Sam tries to wake him up. Mike begins to tremble and make weird facial expressions. "Hey, Mike, wake up," Sam shakes him. "No, please don't…." Mike was taking in his sleep. The maids began to come downstairs, and they saw Sam and Mike.

"What is going on," asked Victoria. "AH," Mike screams, which scares them, "Please don't eat me; I taste horrible. Eat Sam instead!" Sam laughs off what Mike said. Mike woke up and saw everyone staring at him; he yawned, "What is going on?" The maids laughed; Victoria angrily stared at him.

Mike realizes where he is; he feels embarrassed and gets up. Victoria tells the girls to get to work. Sam helped Mike up and took him to their room; he picked up his bag, too. In their room, Mike changes into new clothes and suddenly laughs. Sam got worried and asked him why he was laughing.

"I did it," Mike said excitedly. "What did you do," asks Sam. Mike turned to him and smiled, "Remember that beautiful woman at the fruit stand." "Yeah," said Sam awkwardly. "Guess who has a date with her," Mike said as he combed his hair. It took a minute, but Sam understood, "You did it," he said excitedly. Mike and Sam jump, laughing about it.

Meanwhile, the townsfolk were decorating and getting ready for a celebration. The town was starting its morning; stands were opening, and people were heading out. Wagons came to town and dropped off people or picked up supplies from warehouses. It was a cold morning.

A little later, a wagon with adventurer escorts came into town. The driver thanked the adventurers and headed his way. The adventurers went their way; they saw the decoration being put up. "Come, let's get something to eat," said one. They headed into a bar; they sat at a table. A waitress approaches them; she looks at them, "Good morning; what can I get you, fine gentlemen, today."

A good-looking man from the group with blonde hair and glasses spoke up; he asked about the decorations. The waitress looks at him; he wears light armor and carries a sword. She told him they were celebrating their harvest. The adventurer smiles and makes her blush; he then orders some drinks. "That's some talent, Edward," said someone in the group. Edward was the glasses adventurer.

The waitress laughs and then leaves after taking their orders. The group begins to talk; a muscular adventurer looks around the room. He sees other adventurers and some townsfolk; he is not impressed by them, "Weak, is there anyone strong here." "Relax, we don't want to make a ruckus just yet," said Edward. He looks around and confirms they are weak, "If the rest are just as weak as everyone here, then it will make our job that much easier." He explains that their employer will pay them a lot if they can complete their job. "HUFF, all this for a woman, it better be worth it," said the strong adventurer.

Edward gets mad at him, "Fred, relax." Fred was the muscular adventurer; he wore a full suit of armor, but his face could be seen. Fred had a mean look, and you could tell he was bald. Edward reminds him that they need to stay hidden until then. The waitress returned with their drinks and some food; the group began to eat and have a great time. Edward looks at a window, "They should be getting off now."

The wagon they escorted had stopped; another group had gotten off. They headed to an inn—some of the adventurers unloaded weapons. They get rooms, head to them, and put the weapons down. They meet in one of the rooms and discuss the next step: one also has heavy armor. He tells the rest that they need to wait for the leader.

Later that day, Edward came to see them; he entered their room. The group were doing their own thing. Edward tells them to gather; he is reviewing the plan. Edward pulled out a map, and the group gathered around it, "All right, it looks like the information was right about this town having almost no guards."

The map showed the town and the islands; Edward pointed to several islands, "They said the girl is on one of these islands. We will go and investigate them; while we do so, you are to remain hidden." The group asked how long it would take. "I don't know, but we must be careful; Lord Michael could have some traps in store." Edward told them they could go into town and drink, "It shall keep you calm while you wait, but don't cause trouble, you hear."

Some didn't like what they heard, but they agreed. Edward said they would not talk to each other if they walked by, "It's so the enemy thinks there is only one group." The others laughed; Edward left but told them he would be in touch. The group discussed their situation; they didn't like doing things secretly.

"Are we supposed to be afraid of this Lord Michael," said one of the warriors. "I don't know much about Lord Michael, but he is a noble, and they have deep pockets; he might have some tough bodyguards," another said. "It doesn't matter; we were hired to do a job; if they are as tough as you say, then I'm all for it," said the heavily armored warrior. They finished talking, and some decided to go and enjoy the town.

Mike and Sam were in the living room on the island. Mike told Sam how he swooped her off her feet with his talking, "She was excited about the harvest festival, and I told her how much Lord Michael trusts me to run his businesses." "What business do you run for him," Sam asks. "AH, don't worry about that; just be happy for me," Mike said.

Sam asks Mike when his date is. Mike said it would be the festival day and needed a suit. Sam was excited to hear that; he remembered he had no money. "What do you mean you have no money? What about what we get from Victoria." Sam is embarrassed, "I lost it all gambling against some townsfolk." Mike shakes his head.

Mike said he was in a good mood; he told Sam he would let him borrow some money to spend on the festival. Sam became happy and thanked him. Sam praises Mike, and it only adds to his good mood. In the hallway, some maids were mad at Mike's behavior.

It gets late, and the maids eat; Sam and Mike are eating in the living room. Once they were done, they went and took Adolpha her dinner. The maid reached the cabin door and took out a bracelet. She drew Mana, the bracelet glows, and the cabin door reacts.

The maid opened the cabin door; Adolpha was lying on her bed. She saw the maid and went and sat at her table. The maid places her dinner on the table. Adolpha eats everything except the bread. The maid cleared the table and left. A while later, two more maids showed up.

The maids told Adolpha they would change her bath time; the tub was placed on the ground and filled with water. One of them draws Mana and creates fire to heat the water. Adolpha bathes and then changes into cleaner clothes. The other maid takes out a brown crystal.

She draws Mana and activates it; she glows and then easily picks up the tub full of water. She dumps it outside; the other maid brushes Adolpha's hair. Victoria, the head maid, shows up; the other maids are done, and they excuse themselves. One of them hands Victoria the bracelet. Victoria looks at Adolpha and gives her a warmer-looking blanket.

"Thank you," Adolpha softly said. Victoria briefly smiled and left, closing the door behind her. Adolpha jumps to her bed; she wraps herself in the blanket for a while. She then hears Wolf getting up. Adolpha takes the bread she saved and places it on the window sill. Wolf walks by and sees it.

Wolf reaches to grab it but stops; he is mesmerized by Adolpha in the moonlight. Adolpha's beauty shocks Wolf; he froze, looking at her. Adolpha noticed him staring; she felt embarrassed and hid. Wolf snaps out of it and leaves with the bread. Wolf shook his head; he got to the house.

Wolf felt someone looking at him; he saw Victoria staring at him. She shows him the bracelet; Wolf leaves on his patrol. Wolf is on the dock; he looks around and sees no one. He leaves and goes around the island; after a while, he eats the bread. Wolf sees that the sun is beginning to rise; he is by the dock again.

Wolf sees boats arriving on the other islands; workers are starting their day. He goes around the island again; before returning to his tent, he searches for a colorful seashell. He searched for one; his collar glowed, and he knew he was late returning.

Adolpha was up and waiting for Wolf; she stared at the morning sky. Wolf gets to Adolpha's window and places the seashell. Adolpha goes over and takes it; she is happy because of its color and shape. She stares at it, admiring it; after, she looks for a place to put it. Wolf hears her talking to it; he starts a campfire and sleeps in his tent.

The maids were getting ready, and a knock woke up Mike. He stumbles out of bed and opens the door to his room; no one is there. He went to the entrance, and it was empty. He was going back to his room when he noticed a letter. He yawns and walks over to it; he picks it up and looks at it, "What's this?"

Mike sees Lord Michael's seal on it; he reads the letter. Sam had walked out looking for him. The maids were coming down when Mike became upset, "Why, why is this happening now!" Sam asked him what happened. Mike, upset, walks back to his room; he gives Sam the letter.

Victoria came down and asked Sam what the commotion was. Sam read the letter. "I believe this is why," he handed Victoria the letter. Victoria reads it; the other maids are wondering what it says. Vitoria told them to get to work. She looked at Sam, "Looks like we are going to be here longer than anticipated; there is a serious problem in the kingdom."

Victoria said she would hold a meeting; she told Sam to get Mike and meet her in the kitchen. Sam goes to the room and informs Mike about the meeting; Mike is upset. Sam tries to cheer him up, "Come, let's get something to eat; it will calm you down." Mike and Sam change, and they walk to the kitchen.

Victoria was waiting for them; she started the meeting when they arrived. She began by saying that Lord Michael would stay in the capital longer than he thought. One of the maids asked why; Victoria had no answer. She said they would be confined on the island; this upsets them. Mike grunted; Victoria got mad and told them to quiet down.

"Listen, Lord Michael has mentioned that some suspicious people might be coming to town. He doesn't want to take any chances." Victoria told them they would stock on supplies; she asked if they needed anything. They discuss what they need; one maid asks to go into town for personal shopping.

After checking everything, Victoria tells Mike and Sam to go. Mike was still upset he didn't want to; Sam offered to go alone. Victoria didn't want to argue, so she agreed; Sam would take one of the maids with him. Victoria talks to the maid and tells her not to speak to anyone. She nods and gets ready; Victoria tells Sam the same thing.

Mike goes to the living room and begins to drink. Sam and the maid go to the dock; they get on the boat and leave. It took a while to get to the mainland; once there, Sam went to buy what they needed. The maid went her own way. The town was crowded, and everything looked ready for the festival.

On the island, the maids talk about being unable to leave. They were upset they couldn't attend the festival; Mike heard them, making him more upset. He thought about his date; he drank to forget. Victoria saw him, "Why does Lord Michael keep someone like him around?"

Sam had finished placing orders for what they needed and walked to the water fountain. He thought about Mike. Sam trips and is about to hit the floor when he is caught. "You must be careful, sir; watch where you are stepping." "Thank you; I was lost in thought," Sam stands up straight; he sees the person who helped him.

Edward smiled and went on his way; Sam again thanked him. He reached the fountain, and the maid was waiting; she had several bags, "Here, carry these; I need to get one more thing," the maid left. Sam picked up the bags; they had cleaning supplies. As he struggled to pick them up, he noticed the fruit stand.

Sam saw the woman Mike was going on a date with; she looked happy. Sam thought she would feel sad if Mike stood her up. Sam thinks of something; he smiles, "Mike will be happy; I just need to keep Lady Victoria occupied," he laughs. Sam picks up the bags and goes to the boat.

A few minutes later, the maid arrived at the boat with one more bag. She enters the boat, and they leave, returning to the island. As they leave port, Sam and the maid don't realize they are being watched; Edward is looking at them. He orders one of his group members to follow him.

They took their time heading home; workers were heading back to the mainland. They greeted Sam and the maid. Sam waved to them; unknown to him, they were being followed. The adventurer pretends to look at the islands; he greets the others heading back.

The maid got up and looked at the bags to ensure she got everything. Once she confirmed she did, she would sit down; she noticed a boat with a man on it. She knew he didn't belong. The maid sat down and pretended not to notice. The adventurer saw her movements; he slowed down. After a while, the maid looked back; the adventurer was gone.

They reach the island, and Sam docks; he ties the boat. They get off and head to the house. When they reach the home, Sam says he forgot something; he drops off the bags and heads back to the boat. The maid was curious about the stranger, so she went with him, leaving her bag, "I need to make sure I wasn't seeing things."

Mike was walking around the house when he decided to go and see if Sam was home yet. He opens the front door and sees the bags. He seems to still be in a bad mood. Mike looked through them. Sam and the maid were returning; the maid saw Mike holding her bag. "No, don't look at that," she yells.

Mike looks at the bag he is holding; he opens it and grabs something. He pulls out what looks like cloth. The maid ran over to him; Sam was confused. Mike takes a better look and sees it is underwear. The maid takes them and slaps Mike across the face. She angrily goes inside.

Sam saw the whole thing; he placed a hand on Mike's shoulder. Sam shakes his head. Mike was confused about what happened. "Come buddy, let's get you inside," Sam said kindly. "She hit me," Mike said. Victoria came to see what the commotion was; she saw Mike holding his cheek. Victoria called the other maid and told them to bring in the bags.

Sam and Mike were in the living room; Mike was still holding his cheek, "AH, she hits hard," Mike moved his mouth. Sam tells him it was his fault; Mike gets mad at him. Mike was still feeling bad about canceling his date. Sam asked him if he wanted to go on his date. "A course I do; it took me a long time to court her."

Sam makes sure no one is nearby; two maids walk in. They came to pick up some cleaning supplies. Mike smiled; the maids gave him a disgusted look. Mike looks away, embarrassed. Sam told him it would be all right. When the maids left, Sam told him his plan.

"Mike, you are my best friend, and I want you to be happy. I will help you go on your date." Mike stared at Sam, "What do you mean?" Sam told him he would distract Victoria while he sneaks off to his date. Mike tears up, "You will do that for me?" Sam nods his head. Mike hugs him, "I knew you were a good friend. You know what, I will bring you anything you want from the festival," Mike said excitedly.

Sam felt shy, "You don't have to," he said. Mike insisted; Sam took his offer and asked for some wine. Mike promised he would bring him a whole barrel. Mike was happy they went and got some alcohol to drink. The maids could hear them being loud; meanwhile, Victoria was with the maid who went to town with Sam.

"Are you sure," asked Victoria. "Yes, he didn't look like someone from here; his clothes were that of an adventurer." Victoria thinks she tells her not to say anything. Later that day, Victoria goes to see Wolf. Adolpha heard her talking to him.

Adolpha tries to see but can only see Victoria, the head maid. Victoria hands Wolf a sword, "You know what to do." Wolf takes the sword and leaves. He goes to the docks and stands there. From another island, the adventurer watches him; he is taking notes, "Found you."