Chapter 12: Lucien Is Stepping Back!
"Y-You!" Sue almost dropped her hands away from the warm comfort of the man holding her as if she was his most treasured possession. Her eyes dilated for a moment as her heart skipped a beat for reasons she did not know about.
His broad hands secured her from her failed attempt to jump. With a hand around her torso and his other hand holding her knees up save from the fall, Sue's head still rang. When they rolled to the ground, Sue was placed under Lucien for a split second.
But it only took a split second for Sue to relive the nightmares she had brought with her from her past life.
The image of the beastman lowering his pants as he opened her legs on the cliff flashed like a tidal wave to Sue. The desperate scream and the suffocating limbs that stopped her from saving herself came back right at this moment.
On instinct, Sue squirmed from Lucien's grasp when they landed safely on the ground. The white fox immediately vanished as if it was never there in the first place.
Lucien frowned. His beautiful yet savage golden eyes dimmed from the rejection of her actions. Lucien's canines pierced his lower lip as he let go of her, even when his beast howled like a bitch at the back of his mind. Truthfully told, Lucien was a thread away from succumbing to his bestial instincts.
"Hey. Hey, careful." A gentle raspy voice tried to soothe the trembling woman before him.
Sue, who was still seeing the monster who defiled her instead of a red-haired man wolf beastman, scrambled away with her head shaking from left to right as if she was saying 'no' to something – or someone. "Get away from me! Get away!"
Lucien, sporting his usual grin, froze upon hearing her rejection. Action and words had different impacts, and so far, this was the first time someone openly showed disdain for him. He was so used to being the king in every scene and was pushed away by the only woman he was interested in!
Pushing down the clog in his chest, Lucien cleared his throat before he stood up with his right hand outstretched. "Lady, calm down. I was just… trying to help you from falling into that." Lucien nudged his head to where the bubbling lava was. "I figured it would be a shame to have someone so ethereal become a pile of bones because of one missed step."
The Lord System, who was hiding behind a boulder a few feet away from Lucien and Sue, clicked its small tongue.
'What a playboy. The whole time he talked, his gaze could swallow the poor lassie. And she's right; his first stop is her breasts. The man's gaze is practically glued to it.' The Lord System thought with its tails wagging behind it.
The ringing in Sue's mind dwindled bit by bit the moment Lucien stepped away from her parameters – but the trembling of her fingers remained. Slumped down on a scalding ground finally kicked in for Sue; she stood up while hugging her torso. Her eyes were filled with vigilance at the man who was observing her like a piece of meat. The last part did not help Sue with her trust issues in terms of dealing with men in general.
"Thank you, S-Sir Lu-Lucien," stuttered Sue. Yes, at one point, she did brush shoulders with Lucien Lupine when she was young, but they did not really go down to the point where they could say it was a good or bad memory.
Hearing his name from her tiny pink lips made Lucien's grin even more expansive. His golden eyes sparkled. Not noting how Sue distanced herself from him earlier, he stepped closer to offer a handshake and maybe showed a good rapport. "May I know the name of this lovely lady?" Lucien glanced in the direction where the Wolf Tribe was located. "And with the direction you are taking, I think I can surmise that you are going to the Wolf Tribe as well? Why don't we go there together? You know, the road isn't safe for a pretty lady like you. I can offer free protection."
Lucien winked. His long fluttering lashes framed his golden eyes, which gleamed with assurance and conceitedness.
'Oomph! Poor lad. Someone is going to go home today with tails tucked between his legs,' the Lord System thought. His one tail covered his right eye while he kept his left eye open.
Sue opened and closed her lips like a damn fish out of the water. She did not know what to say to Lucien. After all, she was done thanking him already!
Fidgeting her fingers behind her, Sue swallowed twice before speaking. "Sir Lucien, I get what you're thinking, and I am very honored for the kind offer, but I got someone with me and –"
"Wait. You have a companion, yet you almost got toasted alone?" The frown was back on Lucien's face as he took another step toward her. "Who is he? Where is he?"
Sue saw the frown on his face along with the dangerous glint beneath his beautiful eyes. On instinct, Sue took a step backward.
The sound of the pebbles falling into the lava stream made Sue gasp upon glancing and learning that she was standing at the edge of the safe ground. She could not possibly take a step back away from the persistent Lucien anymore.
Left with no choice but to face him, Sue mastered up an all-natural small smile on her sweating face. "Look, Sir Lucien. I really appreciate your concern, but I can manage. I can, really!"
Jaws ticking from clenched anger that he had not felt since he was born, Lucien closed the distance between him and his chosen mate. The closer he got to her, the happier his wolf had become.
The red beast at the back of his soul and mind was practically jumping with joy. The calming aroma she gave off was addicting for Lucien. For once, after his mate died, Lucien had the urge to take a nap with the woman standing an inch before him. His gaze traveled from her soulful eyes down to her pale white neck – where he was planning to stake his claim as her male.
"Tell me your name, pretty lady." Though Lucien's voice was gentle, his words had an underlying command as he addressed her.
Because he was standing too close to her, Sue had to crane her neck just to meet his intense gaze. "If I give you my name, will you leave me alone in my journey then?"
Lucien cocked his head to the side and clicked his tongue. Even when he met his mate for the first time in the past, she did not give him this hardship! This tiny woman before him was a first for Lucien. And like a moth drawn to a flame, his interest in her ignited even more.
Inching his face down to reach her left ear, Lucien whispered. His canines grazed and nibbled the tip of her cute pink ear. "Say it. Your name…"
Sue went entirely still. With no gap between their bodies, she was drowned by Lucien's heartbeat against her maddening chest.
The next thing she knew, she was also whispering her name back. "Sue."
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone