Chapter 23: Teasing – The Human Who Cries At the Drop of a Hat Part 2

Ji Yingran smiled gently. “Look at you, getting all fierce again. Be a little softer, won’t you?”

The Snow Wolf bared her fangs. “Woof!”

On impulse, Ji Yingran reached out and grabbed one of those sharp fangs.

The ferocious wolf froze, her expression stunned.

She shook her head furiously—shake, shake, shake—trying to fling the human hand away.

Ji Yingran withdrew sheepishly. “Can’t blame me—you flashed those big teeth at me, so I just grabbed.”

The Snow Wolf instinctively started to bare her fangs again but held back, fearing another grab.

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she glared at the human.

Ji Yingran sniffed the hand that had touched the fang, surprised. “Huh, it doesn’t even smell! Wolfie, are your teeth scented or something?”

Wild beasts’ teeth were usually rank from all that raw meat and no brushing. It’d be weirder if they didn’t stink.

The Snow Wolf’s hostile gaze faltered, and she stared at Ji Yingran like she was some kind of freak.

“What kind of look is that? Hey, I just sniffed out of habit. I’m complimenting you—saying they smell nice!”

At those words, the Snow Wolf scooted farther away, putting some distance between herself and the weirdo.

Ji Yingran: “…”

No wonder the Snow Wolf saw her as a total perv. Ji Yingran could get pretty unhinged around small animals—going absolutely feral when snuggling cats or dogs.

She was holding back with the Snow Wolf only because of her massive build and wild nature.

Holding back, and still this bold. It was easy to imagine what full unrestraint would look like.

Ji Yingran cleared her throat. “Wolfie, don’t you think this kind of perfect weather is just right for… doing something special?”

The Snow Wolf didn’t even twitch an eyelid, completely ignoring her.

Undeterred, Ji Yingran kept chattering on, rambling this way and that for a solid ten minutes of one-sided monologue until she finally circled back to the point.

“On a day like this, don’t you think it’d be perfect for helping me fetch my backpack!”

The Snow Wolf’s ears, which had flicked now and then, stilled. She shot the human a glance: Just knew this human was up to no good, yakking on forever and circling back to her backpack.

This Wolf isn’t going!

Such great weather—she wasn’t wasting it on some backpack hunt. She wanted to bask in the sun.

Ji Yingran watched her expectantly, awaiting a response.

The Snow Wolf simply turned around, presenting her butt to the human in the most obvious rejection possible.

Ji Yingran wasn’t disappointed, though. Her eyes locked onto that fluffy wolf rear.

It looked so soft and inviting to the touch.

Ji Yingran reached out with one gloved hand and gave that wolf butt a solid pat. Through the glove, she couldn’t feel much, but she could tell there was plenty of padding there.

Whoosh!

You pervert human! Is this how you chase wolves? This isn’t the first time! This Wolf doesn’t blow up, and you think she’s a pushover?

“Smack, smack, smack.”

A few more in quick succession.

Ji Yingran covered her head under the onslaught.

Covering her head didn’t help; if the face was off-limits, the hands became the new target. She was getting smacked no matter what.

Too much wolf bullying! Sneaking feels on her chest while she slept once, pinning her paw once, surprise smooch-attacks twice, and now patting her butt?

This boundary-blind, utterly rude two-legged beast!

I’ll smack you! Smack smack smack!!

The Snow Wolf glared daggers: Still after getting This Wolf to fetch your backpack? No way!

Undiscouraged, Ji Yingran pivoted. “Well then, Wolfie, don’t you want some yummy food?”

The wolf, whose anger had been flaring, perked her ears up instantly at that.

The lure of good eats always worked on her, no matter the timing.

“There’s no food left in the cave. If Wolfie wants to eat, you’ll have to go hunt it up.”

The wolf, who had been lying stubbornly still a second ago, jumped to her feet. Sunbathing forgotten, she was suddenly raring to go forage.

Ji Yingran pressed her advantage. “Wolfie, since you’re heading out anyway, could you grab my backpack on the way? Pretty please?”

The Snow Wolf rolled her eyes.

Ji Yingran quickly added, “Once you bring the backpack back, no matter what food you haul in, I guarantee it’ll taste amazing—I’ll make it super delicious for you!”

The Snow Wolf glanced at her, expressionless.

Ji Yingran took that as agreement. That was just this wolf’s personality—twisted and tsundere, never admitting yes outright even when she meant it.

“You remember where you found me, right?” Ji Yingran gave detailed instructions, lest she bring back the wrong pack. “My backpack’s nearby—just search carefully. It’s purple.”

She clasped her hands together pleadingly. “Please, Wolfie. You have to bring it back for me.”

No telling if the Snow Wolf had taken it all in, but she turned and left anyway.

Ji Yingran watched her go, with no intention of following. With her stamina, tagging along would just slow her down. Better to let the wolf go solo than drag her along.

Even soaking in the hot spring—a full hour’s trek round trip—left her needing two or three rests.

“Hurry back safe!” Ji Yingran called after the departing wolf. “I’ll be home waiting for you!”

The Snow Wolf sauntered off in her cat-like gait, not looking back, though her ears flicked.

Farther and farther she went.

Soon, the Snow Wolf vanished from sight, leaving only a trail of wolf paw prints in the snow.

Ji Yingran crouched down, placing her hand beside one of the prints. The paw was a full size larger.

She loved comparing her hand to the wolf’s paws, just like this.

Ji Yingran smiled, withdrawing her hand. She looked toward where the Snow Wolf had disappeared, took a deep breath, and hoped she’d bring back the backpack—that everything would go smoothly.

Compared to the Snow Wolf’s previous two hunting trips, Ji Yingran was much more relaxed this time. Far less anxious, her mindset steadier.

She wouldn’t stand at the cave mouth anymore like some lovesick statue, peering out every few minutes.

Perhaps because she’d built some bond with the Snow Wolf—close enough to cuddle in her sleep at night, bold enough to pat her butt—Ji Yingran felt secure. She knew the wolf wouldn’t just abandon her.

Ji Yingran rubbed her forehead. She’d just convinced herself she wasn’t anxious, but not even a minute had passed before reality slapped her in the face. Here she was, already wondering how long it would take the Snow Wolf to return.

She gathered her thoughts and headed back to the mountain cave.

When the Snow Wolf was around, she could tolerate the outdoors without freezing. Without her, though, the cold quickly became unbearable—even with the sun shining brightly, it couldn’t ward off the bone-chilling wind.

The inside of the mountain cave maintained a steady warmth, like an entirely different world from the frozen landscape outside.

Ji Yingran took off her gloves, goggles, and hat, then sat on the stone bench, lost in idle daze.

After a while, she stood up, picked up the Snow Wolf’s treasured fluffy blanket, and draped it over her legs.

One hand stroking the soft fur, she let out a low chuckle. She could already picture the Snow Wolf storming back in, furious that someone had touched her precious blanket again. The image made her want to laugh.

Last time, she’d borrowed it out of sheer necessity because of the cold. This time, it was different—their bond had deepened, and she simply wanted to tease the wolf a little.

She stroked the blanket and laughed to herself for a bit. Once the amusement faded, she slipped back into her blank stare.

The cave was deathly quiet, not a single sound to break the silence. Outside, there had at least been the roar of wind and snow before. But today, with the sun out, even the wind had gone still.

In such utter stillness, anxiety inevitably began to creep in again.

She placed the blanket back on the bench and gave her little kitchen a thorough cleanup, then boiled some water to drink.

This water had an even richer flavor than before—lingering traces of rabbit meat this time, after the fish residue from earlier.

Boiling water in a pan that had been used for stir-frying always left a weird taste, no matter how well it was cleaned. It would still carry hints of salt and spice. Besides, she didn’t have the luxury of scrubbing it spotless.

With the gas canister needing to be conserved, she usually just brushed the pan with snow and gave it a quick rinse while heating the water.

Cradling her bowl, Ji Yingran leaned against the cave mouth and gazed off into the distance.

In surroundings this quiet, the mind had a way of wandering into dark corners. She started worrying about her parents. Out of contact for so many days, they must have heard the news by now. Who knew how frantic they were?

Once those worries eased, her thoughts shifted back to the Snow Wolf. She knew the wolf had thrived on Snow Mountain for years, probably the unchallenged apex predator—a tyrant of the peaks. Few animals could pose a real threat to her.

But what if something happened?

Polar bears were massive; even the Snow Wolf might struggle against one. An avalanche could bury her alive, or she might slip and tumble into a valley.

Ji Yingran shook her head. What on earth was she doing, conjuring up every catastrophe imaginable?

She was only making trouble for herself, forcing anxiety where there was none. No—she couldn’t dwell on the negative. Such thoughts could swallow a person whole.

Without her spirits lifted, surviving in this place would be that much harder. She had to cling to optimism.

Tipping her head back, she drained the bowl and retreated into the cave.

Fortunately, this wait didn’t drag on.

As Ji Yingran tidied the leftover hot water, a sound echoed from the cave mouth.

She looked up and spotted a snow-white wolf sauntering in, tail held high behind her, something gripped firmly in her jaws.

Ji Yingran quickly set down her bowl and trotted over, excitement bubbling in her voice. “Wolf, you’re back so fast this time!”

Her eyes fixed on the item in the wolf’s mouth, and her expression froze.

It was a black-headed, white-bodied fragrant pig, around forty pounds—and unmistakably a farm-raised edible breed.

Ji Yingran now seriously suspected the Snow Wolf could teleport down the mountain and raid a hog farm!

“Wolf, tell me the truth. Can you teleport? Cast spells? Yeah, you must be using magic. How else is this cave so perfectly warm?”

“And these foods you drag back—they’re downright ridiculous. If it didn’t feel so real, I’d swear this was some dying dream.”

Only a dream defied logic like this.

The Snow Wolf dropped the fragrant pig to the ground and nudged it with her paw. She ignored Ji Yingran’s barrage of questions entirely. All she cared about were two words: Cook it.

This Wolf wants something delicious.

Ji Yingran tamped down her rising absurdity. Fine, whatever. First fish, then rabbit—now a fragrant pig? No big deal.

It was just one more layer of nonsense on top of the rest. This wolf had never made a lick of sense anyway.

Ji Yingran’s mind even wandered to a third escape plan: Have the wolf cast a spell to fly her down the mountain.