Super Righteous Player
Chapter 797 - 336 Fool_1

Chapter 797: Chapter 336 Fool_1

But Bella chose to refuse.

—Of course, it was impossible for her to defy Vladimir. But Vladimir had taught her not only loyalty to the "Ten Fingers" but also loyalty to the Winter family.

That was a genuine curse.

Etched upon the Curse Binding of Winter’s Hand, a curse to prevent them from ever betraying again... that curse, had at some point been tampered with by Vladimir, who had added a clause of his own design.

Of course, not all of Winter’s Hand.

But those he personally brought out... those who, after their initiation, were fated to follow him and would not enter the service of other "Ten Fingers" had been cursed with the clause, "You must not defy Vladimir’s orders."

And it was by relying on a curse to combat a curse that Bella was able to conceive the notion of resistance—

Because Vladimir’s actions were undoubtedly harmful to the Winter family.

Although she did not know as much as that sycophant who was always by Vladimir’s side... Bella also knew that Vladimir seemed to be conducting an experiment to create artificial Frost Beasts.

She was not very smart. Or to put it differently, werewolves were not very smart.

But her keen intuition told her that once the experiment was completed, it would definitely cause trouble for Dmitry.

However, Vladimir had already placed a curse binding upon her.

She could not reveal any secrets about Vladimir via any means whatsoever.

Even writing in a diary was impossible—

With trembling hands, Bella burned the diary entries she had just written.

If she did not do so, intense fear and guilt would overwhelm her, driving her mad. It was a curse etched upon her soul.

This curse could not compel her loyalty to Vladimir, but it could prevent her betrayal. That was sufficient.

"What should I do..."

She hugged her head in near despair, her erect canine ears drooping helplessly.

And at that moment.

A magnetic voice echoed beside her ear: "If you don’t know what to do... why not let me tell you?"

"Who?"

Bella’s amber pupils immediately became the dangerous slits of a wolf, as fur appeared on her body, and she stooped and stood up, completing a semi-transformation in an instant.

But as soon as she saw who it was, she lost the will to fight.

—Not out of fear.

Having just been threatened by Vladimir, Bella was very aware.

The emotion that surfaced in her heart... was closer to the "reassurance" she felt when with Dmitry.

As if deep down she knew that the person would never harm her.

"Don’t be nervous, Miss Werewolf. I am a friend to all werewolves..."

The man with grey hair and eyes said gently.

He had appeared in Bella’s room at some point, sitting in her usual spot with crossed hands, his movements gentle, earnest, and dignified. His body faintly smelled of alcohol—a bitter scent to werewolves.

As if... he wasn’t just having a conversation with her, but was conducting some kind of sacred and incomparable divine ritual.

Bella recognized his identity at first glance.

Except for the different hair and eye color... this was none other than "Frederick" from the past!

"You may call me the professor."

"Frederick" slowly said: "I am the protector of all werewolves. I think you might have heard my name...

"I am ’Frederick Wolfheart’."

He said "I am," not "My name is."

Bella obviously knew his identity too.

"...I’ve heard of you. You’re the ’Wolf Professor’."

Her attitude visibly softened: "You’ve raised many orphaned werewolves. Although you also had them carry out dangerous missions, but... overall, you’ve saved far more lives than you have taken.

"For my kind, I must thank you."

"Shh..."

The Wolf Professor placed a finger to his lips and chuckled: "There’s no need to thank me, nor to hate me.

"I merely provided them with a job—a job within their capability, where they could use their talents. But I dislike calling them ’tools,’ rather... my apprentices. Or say, ’Collaborators,’ ’Allies’... I prefer that term.

"We both seek what we need, it’s a fair cooperation, a transaction with mutual benefits.

"I came here now to offer you a deal... a deal that might make you seem a betrayer in the eyes of the world, but could instead protect the Winter clan."

The Wolf Professor showed a gentle smile: "I will help you out of your current predicament... Will you trust me?"

"...What will it cost me?"

Bella asked cautiously.

"It’s simple, and you will be willing to do it,"

The Wolf Professor said with a smile: "At an appropriate time, speak up for your werewolf kin, help them find employment... and when the time comes, you’ll surely encounter it."

"...What kind of jobs could werewolves find."

Bella’s eyes dimmed: "We have the blood of madness in us. Not smart enough, not loyal enough... might even harm the employer."

"There will certainly be jobs."

The Wolf Professor affirmed: "It will be a noble job. A sacred mission that only you can fulfill—a great deed that will help the nation return to stability."

"...Is there really such a good thing?"

"There certainly is."

The Wolf Professor nodded, repeating for the second time.

"...Then what do I need to do?"

Bella hesitated, "Tell me first. If it harms Dmitry, I won’t do it."

"Not only will it not harm him, but it will bring good fortunes."

The Wolf Professor slowly stated: "Have you heard about Dmitry preparing to make a sacrifice to the Rotting Hulk?"

"...I’ve heard, it seems to be a gamble suggested by His Highness Annan, aimed at helping Grand Duke Ivan regain his health."

"That could be troublesome."

The Wolf Professor said with concern: "They may not realize that although the Rotting Hulk can indeed bestow ’eternal’ traits to rulers, the Rotting Hulk needs to carry out a sacred ritual that requires killing seven eternals to recover its original strength.

"Which means that as soon as Grand Duke Ivan becomes an eternal, he might not be far from death."

"...But this is just your side of the story. I can’t believe you."

Bella said warily.

"Of course, these are things you can verify. I guarantee there is no discrepancy with the books."

Professor Wolfheart assured her with conviction, "And perhaps you don’t realize... the only way to summon Rotting Husband is to offer fertility as a sacrifice—because what Rotting Husband requires is the ’extinction’ of a royal heir. Only such a gift can please Him, who loathes the monarchy."

Upon hearing this, Bella’s pupils shrank sharply.

The gray-haired and gray-eyed Professor Wolfheart nodded, "That’s right, this is why Dmitry wouldn’t agree to have a child with you. If you were to have a child, Rotting Husband would assuredly kill you... or, to put it another way, Dmitry would have to place your child on the altar as well."

He sighed despondently, "How could he possibly do that... "

"...Yes."

In an instant, tears welled up in Bella’s eyes.

Dmitry wouldn’t do such a thing.

Bella was absolutely certain.

In Dmitry’s cold, joyless heart, there was a fierce love. Or rather, it was this love for his country and for others that kept him from going mad.

He was a gentle man who would never do such a thing.

"So what should I do?"

Bella quickly grasped the crux of the problem, "If the ritual is successful, the Grand Duke will die. And if Dmitry also loses his fertility..."

"That’s right, the title of Grand Duke will fall into the hands of young Annan. He is so young, he will surely be manipulated by others. Then the Winter Duchy will be finished."

Professor Wolfheart expressed his worries, "Winter is the country where werewolves live, how could I let them fall into civil strife?"

And Vladimir is still doing that.

Bella added in her mind. But she couldn’t bring herself to say it aloud.

"Then what should I do?"

She asked urgently.

"It’s simple," Professor Wolfheart replied confidently, "Just lose on purpose."

"Lose...?"

Bella was somewhat bewildered.

"That’s right, since you and His Highness Dmitry are lovers (Bella’s face unmistakably blushed as he said this), Rotting Husband will certainly demand your presence at the ritual.

"All you need to do is lose in the duel you are responsible for, and everything will be resolved."

Professor Wolfheart said with a smile, "You see, the Grand Duke Ivan won’t have to die, and because of your strange actions, the Grand Duke will realize something is wrong with you and conduct a thorough investigation.

"Upon investigating, he will unravel Vladimir’s schemes as well. In doing so, you will have foiled Vladimir’s conspiracy without revealing anything to anyone—and you’ll have saved the life of Grand Duke Ivan. What you lose is only your reputation... As long as Dmitry still believes in you, it’s as if you’ve lost nothing."

"...But the child then..."

Bella’s pupils dimmed.

Professor Wolfheart snapped his fingers, "No need to panic about that.

"I can teach you a ritual—it is designed specifically for werewolves and can bypass most contraception rituals."

As he spoke, he produced a white sphere the size of a little finger.

"...What is this?"

"It’s a special device used for storing embryos, just like a glass vial for holding potions," Professor Wolfheart explained calmly. "After you use it, your ovulation this month will not occur normally. Afterward, when you are intimate with Dmitry once, it doesn’t matter what kind of ritual he uses... When you come back, just bring it to me.

"I will place it into the body of another werewolf who desires children. Since Dmitry doesn’t know he has a child, and the child’s other mother is also unaware, the child will not have the ’potential to inherit the throne.’

"Under these circumstances, even if Dmitry has made a sacrifice of extinction, Rotting Husband cannot find this child—and he hasn’t actually made an extinction. You still have a child with him, it’s just that the child won’t see you or him, that’s all."

Professor Wolfheart spoke slowly, "Are you willing?"

"...I am willing!"

Bella hesitated for only a moment before taking the sphere.

Joy spread across her face.

But she soon furrowed her brow, "But why are you willing to help me this much?"

"Because I am the mentor to all werewolves," Professor Wolfheart stated meaningfully.

Having said that, he smiled silently at Bella, then suddenly disappeared.

At the moment of his disappearance.

The door to Bella’s room was abruptly opened.

The young Annan stood silently at the doorway.

For some reason, Bella felt guiltily panicked and stood up abruptly, hiding the white sphere in her hand.

Under Annan’s calm gaze, she felt somewhat flustered.

"...Prince Annan,"

She said softly.

Annan’s abyssal pupils fixed on her.

He spoke softly, "Cowards wish to apologize before betrayal, and the vile only do so after..."

In an instant, Bella was struck with a chilling dread.

As Annan gazed at her, he continued slowly, "So, which are you?

"—A coward? Or a vile person?"

"I..."

For a moment, Bella felt as if her throat was blocked by something.

She was unable to utter a word.

The two of them were at a standoff for ten seconds.

Those ten seconds felt as long as a century.

Annan nodded slightly and said calmly, "Forget it, I won’t trouble you.

"—You are just a fool.

"Well then, good night."