Ronan Kendrick rose from the passenger seat and went to the vehicle’s door. The moment it opened, all the gray wolves turned to look at him in unison. He locked eyes with the Red Wolf in the middle of the pack. After a few seconds, the Red Wolf let out a long howl and led the wolves to retreat a hundred meters. They remained standing in the distance like sentinels, guarding the two vehicles and everyone there.
"There’s something about these wolves. It’s as if they’ve been trained. Do you think that Red Wolf might have become sentient?"
Evelyn Ford nodded. "That’s possible."
Ronan Kendrick slowly climbed out of the vehicle. He walked a full circle around both vehicles before knocking on the door of the RV in the back.
"We’re safe now."
Ethan Dawson’s palms and back were drenched in cold sweat. He let out a sigh of relief and slumped back in his seat, panting, his eyes fixed on Ronan Kendrick.
"That scared me to death. I really thought we were going to be wolf food today. What did Ronan Kendrick do? Why did the wolves retreat the second he appeared?" Peter Owens wiped the sweat from his forehead, rising unsteadily from his seat.
"Ronan Kendrick knows Beast Taming," Taylor Vance explained.
Ethan Dawson froze for a moment at his words. Then, he opened the car door and stepped out, gun in hand.
"Ronan, are they leaving?" Ethan Dawson walked up to Ronan Kendrick. His legs felt a bit shaky as he asked in a low voice.
"I’m not sure. But I can confirm they bear us no ill will. We should just carry on as we were. Just pretend they aren’t there."
Ethan Dawson gave a bitter smile. With hundreds of wolves standing right there, how could they possibly pretend they didn’t exist?
"These wolves have been following us for half a day. They haven’t eaten or had anything to drink this whole time. They’re not waiting until night to eat us, are they?"
Ronan Kendrick shook his head. "I doubt it. Let’s figure out dinner. We’re having plain noodles tonight. Let’s not create any greasy, meaty smells."
With that, Ronan Kendrick walked toward the wolf pack. Seeing him approach, the wolves grew wary. They began to pace in place, looking agitated. Some started to growl, as if wanting to advance and drive him off. But Ronan Kendrick paid them no mind; he didn’t even break his stride. He slowly approached the Red Wolf. Man and wolf locked eyes for ten seconds. Ronan was now surrounded by gray wolves. Back at the vehicles, everyone was so tense they nearly stopped breathing. Evelyn Ford took out a long rifle and stood at the door, her lips pressed into a thin line.
"What is he doing? He’s insane."
Quincy was beside himself with anxiety, but Wyatt Vaughn put a hand on him, signaling him to be quiet.
Just then, to everyone’s astonishment, Ronan Kendrick reached out and stroked the Red Wolf’s head.
The Red Wolf seemed shocked. It took a step back, its gaze locked on Ronan Kendrick. It was clearly angered by his insolent act; as a fierce predator, it could not accept being touched on the head by a human.
Then, Ronan Kendrick crouched down in front of it and looked up at the Red Wolf. The wolf froze again for a moment, then lifted its front paw and patted Ronan on the head.
This gesture stunned everyone. They all thought the Red Wolf was about to attack, never expecting it to do something like that.
A few minutes later, the Red Wolf let out a long howl and led the pack in a further retreat. This time, they moved about a kilometer away.
Ronan Kendrick stood there for a moment. He waited until the wolf pack was far in the distance before slowly walking back.
"Ronan is truly insane," Quincy said, slumping to the ground.
Evelyn Ford jumped down from the vehicle, rushed over, and hugged Ronan Kendrick tightly.
"I’m fine. Don’t worry."
"You..." The words Evelyn Ford wanted to say caught in her throat. She released Ronan Kendrick and looked him over from head to toe.
"As long as you’re okay."
Ethan Dawson came over. "Ronan, why did the wolves leave?"
"That Red Wolf is very intelligent. I told it that we wouldn’t be staying here long and would leave the Rocksea Forbidden Zone as soon as possible. I told it we need its protection. It touched my head, which was its way of agreeing to shelter us, then it led the pack away."
The others who had gathered around were baffled. "How did you communicate with it?"
Ronan Kendrick shook his head. "It wasn’t really communication, just a Beast Taming technique. I originally intended to hypnotize it, but that could have backfired. So, I chose to ask for its help instead."
"I still don’t get it. The pack is incredibly disciplined, almost like they’ve been trained. But they’re predators—carnivores. It’s impossible for them to see humans and not feel the urge to hunt. Yet they’re so restrained, like they have no interest in us at all. Why is that?"
Ronan Kendrick shook his head. "I’m not sure about that either. But I do have a theory about the stone mounds in the Forbidden Zone. I think they’re graves for the gray wolves that have died. The mounds are constructed very well. The dead wolves are treated like heroes who guarded this place; their bones and skulls are placed on top of the mounds to continue watching over this forbidden zone."
"But wolves aren’t monkeys. Their paws aren’t dexterous enough for that kind of labor. How could they build stone mounds?"
Evelyn Ford’s eyes lit up. "Unless... there are humans actually living here in the Forbidden Zone."
There were many human skulls and skeletons at the entrance to the Rocksea Forbidden Zone. Evelyn Ford suspected those people had died of natural causes. The climate in the uninhabited zone was harsh, and some young people enjoyed exploring and traveling, camping out in the wild. If they encountered extreme weather, they could have easily frozen to death or died from heatstroke.
’Anyone who could live in harmony with a wolf pack in a place like this is no ordinary person.’
Although this was all just speculation, after reasoning it out, the group was no longer afraid.
"Well, time to eat and drink! With Ronan around, these gray wolves aren’t so scary after all. They’re like little lambs."
Evelyn Ford shot a look at Quincy. "And who was it just now whose legs were so weak with fear they collapsed to the ground?"
"Wasn’t me," Quincy coughed, then ran off.
Back in the RV, the group started boiling water and preparing food. Evelyn Ford took out her binoculars and continued to watch the wolf pack standing guard a kilometer away.
"Ronan, there’s a person among the wolves."
Ronan Kendrick moved closer. They both looked toward the distant pack. Standing next to the Red Wolf was a person whose features they couldn’t make out.
"Should we go take a look?"
"No need. He’s coming to us." After he spoke, Ronan Kendrick gave Evelyn Ford’s arm a light squeeze. "Let’s go."
As the person drew closer, Evelyn Ford could make out the gray wolf pelt wrapped around his body. He was a boy who looked to be only in his teens, but his appearance was peculiar. To be more precise, he had human features, but he wasn’t a normal human being.
The others were startled by the sudden appearance of this person. The Red Wolf followed behind the boy, its expression looking somewhat haughty.
The boy stopped about fifty meters away from the group. His eyes were filled with curiosity and confusion, as if he couldn’t understand why so many strange people had suddenly appeared here.
He wore no shoes, and his cracked feet resembled those of a duck—his toes were all webbed together.
The boy wasn’t tall, maybe four and a half feet. He had a cleft lip, a forked tongue, only half a nose, a single eye, and even just one ear.
He reached out and stroked the Red Wolf’s head. Evelyn Ford saw then that his hand wasn’t normal, either. It had no fingers; the palm was split in two, like a fork.