Mr. Oliver looked at Sokram and nodded, “Heh, that girly Hilda really gave birth to a little monster, huh? Alright, boy, go on your mission. I’ll wait for your return.”

“Heh, so you knew who I was from the start?” Sokram feigned surprise.

“It’s a small city, boy. Everyone knows everyone. Haha. Now go! Don’t keep your teammates waiting, and don’t die!” Mr. Oliver said, turning away.

‘Great, thanks for the death flag, old man,’ Sokram thought as he nodded and followed Mr. Oliver to the exit.

Before heading to the gates, Sokram made a quick stop at a magic supply shop to pick up a few items he knew would come in handy soon.

Moments later, he crossed through the south gates of the city.

Savannah, Lucy, and Timothy were already waiting, standing near three great wolves lounging in the snow.

“Nice ride, dragon-boy. How about letting big sis ride with you?” Lucy teased, eyeing the Thunder Peko led by Sokram, now equipped with a brand-new saddle Mr. Oliver had gifted him.

“Sure, but be careful, you might get shocked by how wild the ride gets,” Sokram replied with a grin, his words layered with playful innuendo.

Lucy blushed slightly, catching the double meaning, while Timothy shot Sokram a glare sharp enough to cut steel.

Just as Timothy was about to lash out, Savannah interjected.

“Did old man Oliver manage to tame the Thunder Pekos?” she asked, curious.

“Nah, not yet,” Sokram replied. “But if you want one, I can tame one of its siblings for you.”

Timothy scoffed. “As if we’d believe you tamed it yourself. Someone at the Reformed level can barely tame even a Common level one.”

Sokram raised a brow, “Heh, so that’s what it was, huh? Maybe I just got lucky, this one’s Uncommon. You see the white streaks on its beak, right?”

Then, summoning lightning to his palm, Sokram raised his hand toward the bird, letting it rest its head on his hand. “He really likes my lightning. Maybe that’s why it was easier.”

Savannah’s eyes widened in shock. “Synergy… You really did tame it! But how?”

Sokram playfully stuck out his tongue, “Secret. But my offer still stands. If you buy one from Mr. Oliver, I can tame it for you. You too, Lucy. He said he has three.”

Lucy shook her head. “They’re too expensive, but thanks anyway.”

Sokram nodded, understanding that a hunter’s salary in a small city wasn’t great.

Making real money required selling monster corpses to butchers, smiths, or alchemists, which depended on the monster type.

“Well, if I ever come across a nest of Pekos, I’ll give you one,” he offered.

Lucy smiled and thanked him, earning Sokram another glare from Timothy, who pulled Lucy aside to start arguing with her.

Watching the scene, Sokram turned to Savannah. “The men on this team are very insecure, aren’t they? I’m just thirteen. Imagine if I were of age, they’d probably try to kill me.”

Savannah smirked. “They might, even if you’re not of age. Better watch yourself.”

Sokram grinned, exuding confidence. “If they ever try something, don’t get in the way. I promise I won’t kill them, just teach them a lesson. Deal?”

Savannah blinked, caught off guard, but before she could reply, Kazzah and the rest of the team arrived on Great Wolves.

Kazzah approached, smirking as he spotted Sokram’s Peko. “Well, look at that! It’s my first time seeing a lizard riding a chicken. Hahaha!”

Timothy and a few others laughed.

Sokram chuckled too and shot back, “That’s fine, but what I don’t understand is why that Great Wolf is letting a bitch ride him. Shouldn’t it be the other way around?”

The retort was so sharp and unexpected that it left everyone stunned. Laughter erupted, and everyone laughed out loud, except Kazzah and Timothy, who both looked enraged.

Savannah and Lucy, failing to suppress it, laughed heartily too, only fueling their anger.

Before things escalated, Savannah regained her composure and commanded, “Alright! Enough jokes. I want to be back by tomorrow evening. If everyone’s ready, let’s move out.”

Kazzah glared at Sokram but said nothing, taking the lead atop his Great Wolf, with Timothy close behind.

Sokram fell into step alongside the wolf-kin cousins, eager to continue their earlier conversation. “What’s his deal? Isn’t he a wolf? Why does he act like he’s ready to bite my head off every time I make a joke?”

He already knew the answer, but wanted their perspective.

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Kiana was the first to respond.

“The Silverfangs are different,” she explained. “My grandpa calls them ‘domesticated’ wolves. They care more about fitting in with human nobles than playing a bigger role in the wolf tribe.”

Kan nodded. “You might not know this, young dragon, but Norwinter is mostly made up of three tribes: the Wolves, the Lions, and the humans. The Elves and foxes are still minorities; they haven’t fully joined the covenant yet.”

Kan paused, then continued. “The tribes are collections of clans from each race that joined Norwinter. To maintain balance and avoid alienation, nobles are required to marry into each of the main tribes. Lord Licarus did, and Lycius, who’ll succeed him, has as well.”

Sokram nodded. “I’m familiar with the Norwinter Union Covenant. But what does that have to do with the Silverfangs?”

Kiana sighed. “Because they’re so ‘domesticated,’ the human nobles often choose their women as wives. That gives them a lot of political power, but only among humans. Even the Lions don’t recognize their political clout.”

Sokram let out a dramatic sigh. “Foolishness. The beauty of wolf-women lies in their wild pride and feistiness.”

Kan raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you a bit young to be thinking about women like that, young dragon? Especially from our tribe. Since Ferals and Magnis are too different, the Call of the Blood won’t affect them much, you know.”

Sokram smirked. “First off, stop calling me ‘young dragon.’ Call me Sokram or little brother. Second, I’d prefer my women to be free from curses like the Call of the Blood. As for being too young, isn’t my... ‘maturity’ obvious?”, gesturing to his height.

Kiana giggled. “Hehe, yes, it is.”

Kan, too, grinned. “Yeah, you’re already taller than most boys your age. Who knows how tall you’ll be when you reach my age?”

Sokram smiled, pleased.

He was one step closer to earning the trust of Kan, who would one day become the Grey Wolves’ Alpha and the wolf tribe’s leader.

“So, Kazzah is like a spoiled human brat from a noble family?” Sokram asked.

Kan nodded. “That’s exactly how most wolves in our tribe see him and his whole family.”

“It’s a shame,” Kiana added. “He’s a great warrior, but...”

“But you three should lower your voices,” Kazzah called out from the front. “I may be a spoiled brat in your eyes, but I’m still this team’s captain!”

“Hah, you’ve got good ears, Captain,” Sokram replied. “But I was just curious, so I could avoid stepping on your toes. I don’t want to make you cry for your mommy.”

“You shameless...” Kazzah began, but Sokram cut him off.

“We weren’t talking behind your back,” Sokram said calmly. “We all knew you could hear us; it’s no secret. You’re Layca’s son, and Karini spoke with pride about you leading this team. I was just curious why you act so differently from most wolves.”

“Just because a wolf doesn’t indulge in mockery doesn’t make him any less of a wolf,” Kazzah retorted.

“But you did mock his bird,” Amber interjected nonchalantly, flipping a page in her book.

“That’s not... That was...” Kazzah sputtered before throwing his hands up. “Ah, whatever. Just stop talking about me and my family. It has nothing to do with you. No one’s asking why you’re in Norwinter instead of Dracony!”

“I’m not fully dragon,” Sokram replied, his voice steely. “I’m Draconic-Human, like one of Eversnow’s six founders. My surname is also Dracnakrid, but I’m sure you already knew that.”

“Alright, enough bickering!” Savannah barked, her commanding tone silencing the group.

“We’re not bickering, big sis,” Sokram smirked. “The captain’s just getting to know his new team member better, right, captain?”

Kazzah glared but said nothing more.

Savannah sighed. “This is going to be a long trip.”

After that, the trio at the rear continued chatting about other topics. However, Kan's sharp eyes caught an unusual detail: Sokram's Thunder Peko didn’t seem tired at all, unlike their wolves, who were panting after a few hours of travel.

“Why isn’t your bird tired?” Kan asked as they dismounted to let the wolves rest.

Sokram patted the Thunder Peko’s neck affectionately. “Well, he’s a Thunder Peko, and I’m pretty good with lightning. While he runs, I’ve been teaching him how to circulate his inner lightning current properly.”

Kiana raised an eyebrow. “That’s stupid. He’ll grow addicted to you feeding him mana, and when he needs to run without your help, he might push himself too far and die.”

Sokram shook his head with a calm smile. “I’m not feeding him mana. I’m using synergy to guide him. Since he can only use elemental mana, it needs to be circulated properly so he can grow at a healthy pace.”

Kan frowned, still skeptical. “What’s the difference? Aren’t you still injecting your mana into him?”

Sokram scratched his head, then replied, “It’s the opposite. Periklis can run much faster than we’re traveling. But since we’re moving slower, I absorb his excess lightning energy, circulate it through my own body alongside my lightning, and then return it to him in controlled doses. When that’s done, I use synergy to guide the flow of his energy, helping him conserve rather than waste it.”

Kan’s ears twitched in curiosity. “I didn’t know that was possible. Can I do something like that with my wolf?”

Sokram shook his head. “Not exactly. This works because Periklis is an elemental beast. Unless your Great Wolf awakens its base element, you won’t be able to use this method.”

Kan’s ears perked up at Sokram’s explanation, his curiosity deepening. “You said, ‘this method.’ Does that mean you know another way to train a wolf?”

Sokram smiled knowingly. “That could be the case. But if you’re interested, we’d need to negotiate privately.”

Kan returned the smile, clearly intrigued.

Training methods for tamed beasts, especially effective ones, were rare and highly valued, as after being tamed, a beast would stagnate and eventually die.

“The Gray Hunters pack would love to sit down and negotiate with you. How about, after this mission, you bring your elder and visit us at our compound?”

Sokram nodded, mirroring Mr. Oliver’s practiced business smile. “I’d be happy to do business with your pack.”

Hearing the exchange, the lion-kin twins, Nora and Lance, perked up. Nora chimed in, “Hey, what about extending this offer to your master’s family, too?”

Sokram chuckled and nodded. “Of course! I wouldn’t be much of a filial disciple if I didn’t at least offer it, right?”

Their conversation wasn’t lost on the others.

Even Kazzah seemed interested, though he was too prideful to ask outright.

Instead, he abruptly ended the rest break.

“Alright, the wolves have rested enough. Let’s move,” Kazzah said brusquely, mounting his wolf.

Savannah frowned. “It hasn’t even been half an hour, Kazzah.”

Kazzah ignored her, spurring his wolf forward.

Timothy quickly followed, leaving the others to scramble after them.

“What’s his problem?” Kiana muttered, clearly annoyed.

Lucy sighed as she mounted her wolf, “What do you think? He and Sokram have been bickering nonstop since the meeting room.”

Taking the opportunity, Sokram urged Periklis alongside Savannah’s wolf, “Remember,” he said, “if they try something funny, don’t interfere. I’ll handle it.”

Savannah glanced at him sharply. “Do you really believe they’ll try something?”

Sokram raised an eyebrow. “You know them better than I do. So tell me, do you think I’m wrong?”

Savannah hesitated, her gaze shifting ahead to where Kazzah and Timothy were riding close together, seemingly deep in discussion.

From time to time, they would glance back toward Sokram.

Her jaw tightened.

She had to admit, it did look suspicious.

Meanwhile, Sokram’s comment didn’t escape the others, except for Amber, who, being human, lacked the ferals’ keen hearing and was too far away to pick up the exchange.