CHAPTER 255: WELCOME LUNCH

The ’light lunch’ that Lorelei mentioned was anything but light. Well, perhaps the dishes themselves were on a lighter side, more like refreshments rather than a full-course meal, but the sheer amount of them was overwhelming... And the way they were served was also like in a five-star restaurant. The ’snacks’ were all decorated, carefully arranged, even the way that any sauce was spread was clearly carefully planned to make it look as classy as possible. A few of the dishes even had edible gold flakes sprinkled on them, which made Felix’s brows raise, as he was struck by a feeling of deja vu.

It was nothing like when Jared had visited the pack, and not just because the Alpha had been vomiting black sludge for hours upon his arrival. Such a reception had never been planned for him.

With Wilder, however, everything was prepared as if he were some sort of extinguished guest. Not an elder and a former leader from a medium-sized pack.

He was truly being treated as the heir’s future father-in-law.

...Felix didn’t quite know how to feel about it. He hadn’t been aware that Wilder’s welcome lunch would be so exquisite. He glanced at his father to check his reaction...

But there was absolutely no change in Wilder’s expression as he looked at the table, as if he were completely unfazed by all those sumptuous dishes. Even though it was something that the Moonhill Pack would probably struggle to afford if the Blackstones chose to visit their pack house in the future, since they didn’t have a chef who had good enough skills to pull it off, and finding one would be... challenging. The cost of hiring a human private chef for a day or a few, including all the premium ingredients needed to prepare such a high-class meal, would already be above their budget, not to mention the fact that they couldn’t exactly bring a random human into the pack house, now could they?

There was no way that Wilder wasn’t aware of it, as the former leader of the Moonhill Pack, who had held the position for over two decades. And yet, he was still able to act as if it were nothing special. As if he ate meals like that every day.

He just glanced at it, and then sat down on the seat that Lorelei’s assistant pointed out. He didn’t comment on the food at all. And yes, he hadn’t tasted it yet, but he could have at least said something about how there was no need to prepare so much, or how nice it all looked...

That’s what Felix would have done in his place.

Einar and Lorelei didn’t expect any compliments or anything, though. They just took their seats as well, as Lorelei waved at her assistant to serve coffee and tea. It wasn’t her assistant’s job usually, they had other people for that, but she was also trained in this aspect, and could do it just as skillfully as the Omegas and Betas who worked as maids all the time. Thus, on an occasion like this one, when privacy was of utmost importance, she could step in to do this job, so that there was no risk of anyone else overhearing something that they shouldn’t. That’s not to say that Lorelei didn’t trust her other pack members...

But confidential information was confidential information, especially when it concerned potential future Luna.

"Coffee or tea?" the assistant asked, turning to Wilder first. He was the guest, after all, and while Einar and Lorelei didn’t actually see him as THAT important - they would have no problems going against him if necessary, even if he was their son’s potential future in-law - they wanted to make him feel as if he was, at least for now. That was a part of their strategy. Appear accommodating to appease Wilder, and make him more susceptible to going along with what they wanted him to do.

Was it working? It was hard to say. Wilder only smiled politely, as he said, "Coffee, please."

The assistant nodded her head, and she reached for a jar of freshly brewed coffee, filling Wilder’s cup with grace, as the rich roasty smell spread around, hitting everyone’s nostrils. It was clearly top-quality coffee, even better than the one that high-ranking members of the Bloodmoon Pack usually drank. She then filled everyone else’s cups, going with the order: Felix (to show that the Bloodmoon Pack valued him), Einar, Lorelei, and finally Kade, before withdrawing to the side, where she waited for any further orders.

With this, the lunch officially started. Einar initiated a light conversation, discussing general things that had been happening in the werewolf community, without touching anything related to their respective packs. Just some small talk that a leader of a pack might have with another leader. It was, once again, very different from how Jared had been treated. It showed that Einar didn’t take Wilder too lightly, and he wanted to build a rapport first, rather than getting straight to the point.

And Wilder was relatively receptive to it. With his broad socializing experience, he was more than used to this kind of talk. However, this time, he seemed to be trying to lead the conversation back to Felix whenever he had an opportunity...

Like when Einar mentioned that the current leader of the Howling Peak Pack, one of the most prominent large-sized packs, had recently had his first pup.

"Ah, is that so? I still remember when he was just a small pup," Wilder said with a pensive look on his face, as if he was recalling some distant memories. "I used to visit their pack house often for business. I even brought Felix with me once before... He got very sick back then, and we had to stay there for over two weeks until he recovered, as he was too weak to travel..."

The atmosphere around the table immediately became uncomfortable. Wilder pretended not to notice anything, and just smoothly changed the topic before the mood got too heavy. "It’s hard to believe that he already has his own pups... But I suppose we are the same, since I’m a grandfather now!"