Coldsnap: The Billionaire Alpha's Fated Pregnant Princess (GL)-Chapter 343 - The Snake In The Bush Is A Fox With Perked Ears

Chapter 343: Chapter 343 - The Snake In The Bush Is A Fox With Perked Ears

I move before I think it through too much, hopping forward and cradling the balled up snake. Suddenly in the air from where it must have been sitting up high, since the system ability has the Limit on not taking living things...

I sigh loudly. Some habits are hard to break - and that includes a small amount of reverence for the type of shifters that ran my world’s clergy. Even though I barely know which are poisonous and not in this area of the country.

"Holy shit. It really just... isn’t there. No wonder there was no footage."

Surprisingly it doesn’t really react too much to my holding it, unlike the assistant who begins poking and moving around in the now empty space. Its scales feel sort of strange and it takes me a moment to figure out that what I thought was its head is actually a broad tail.

"This would be so useful for grand theft."

"I’m not a criminal."

She turns and gives me a look that immediately makes me want to tell her to shut up. I’m sure she has already thought this through and has numerous ways to pin things on me that may or may not be completely true.

"Identity fraud, squatting, larceny, technically piloting a motor vehicle without a valid driver’s license-"

"Not *that* kind of criminal. I’ve stolen nothing with this ability and do not intend to do so. Unless absolutely necessary."

Looking at me seriously, she smirked then shrugged. Somehow I get the sense that she both expected I would say that and also was happy that I did.

"Ah... well, it does seem like a waste to me in some ways, but I guess with what is coming there is no need to lose your morals early, huh? Leave that for when you have needs that can’t be met with civil discourse. At least when taking just one item or container from people suffices."

Stepping closer and lifting the snake from my palms, which was slowly starting to poke its head out and look around, she strokes its slightly loose skin with care. I thought it might be the case, but she planted that in there, didn’t she?

> Why? To verify what I’d told Kyrie about its limitations. I really hope she did not potentially sacrifice her own pet, but really there is no good way to test without coming off as heartless for a human... is there? <

"...Whose is it?"

"Ah, this thing? Came from Aaron Whitecrest’s apartment. I thought it was cute and friendly, so I’m keeping it company while he is... indisposed."

"Still being held for questioning, then."

Claire had kept me somewhat updated. So I knew that it began the day before yesterday, when the Rimecoat Alpha rolled back into town.

"Yeah. She wasn’t fully satisfied with some of his answers. Officially he is on a sudden secret mission, but that’s not going to last long as an excuse for his family if it leaks that his belongings were gone through."

Despite what she said, there was a bit of a villainous smirk on her face. I think she is hoping someone *will* say something so that she has more leads to follow. Which is... probably not what Kyrie wants - for more of her people to be untrustworthy.

> Well, what she wants isn’t necessarily what is best for her. <

"You should get back before your early lunch break ends."

"Please. I could take a three-hour lunch and Kyrie wouldn’t care, since she approved me doing this."

Shaking her head and walking over to a small cardboard file box I’d ignored nearby, she put the ’rubber boa’ into that makeshift carrier before waving at me with a friendly smile and leaving. It sort of bothers me that she might be using me as leverage against her boss, but also I don’t think she is that brave?

I stood there for a while more, looking at the system map and thinking of my plan for the rest of the day. Vrika huffed unhappily in my mindscape, clearly displeased with the prospect of leaving the city, even if it seemed interested yesterday when I was thinking of letting it run wild.

The black wolf had been unusually content and its questions muted all morning, sprawled in the rooftop garden among ridiculous glory-of-the-snow flowers that kept multiplying out of the concrete like weeds. Summoning the snowflake and hourglass over my head, I point at it while leaning down and petting the spirit’s snout.

> Unfortunately, the countdown doesn’t stop just because we had a nice night. Twenty six days by this evening. We need our survival shelter found now, not later. <

The wolf’s response was to somehow grow even more boneless in what I could only interpret as stubborn refusal to cooperate. While sending imagery of the tall, white, Lunarizon tower.

Fine. I could run the first half in my hybrid form on my own if I had to, until its moodiness resolved!

⧖ ☾ ❄ ☽ ⧖

The scent blocker was taken with a glass of water after I made sure to take off her clothes and use the neutralizer spray. Leaving my apartment in my own set of cheap jogging clothes felt odd, even though I planned to be back in the morning.

Checking the mirror one more time, noting the expensive hair ornaments that I’d somehow forgotten to take off. My fingers traced one of the gray stones before I forced myself to turn away.

> They can go in the backpack like the clothes. Yes. <

Along a path I’d never walked before, Vossden downtown gave way to suburbs with more ’yard’ per building... then to rural roads with more trees than people. Finally to the point I’d noted on the map I could start to disappear into ’nowhere’.

My wolf finally stirred with reluctant agreement after I disrobed and shifted forms, but its cooperation felt begrudging. We still moved at a steady pace as I let my mind drift to the navigation of logs, trunks, rocks and waterways that no car could move straight through.

The Silvertrap Caves, being only about twenty miles away, came close enough after about a half hour of running and scenting for trouble to view on the system map. However, as impressive as the rating information is... and as nice as the surroundings are right now?

> It’s ’only’ a 9.4. I can’t help but remain curious what makes that other one score nearly a perfect 10? <

The terrain grew rougher as I pushed on. The closest location was something I could check out some other day, if necessary. I’d rather press my luck at a more distant place, One that others would be less likely to seek out.

Vrika took more of the burden of controlling the body and I was able to pay even more attention to | Survivor’s Wisdom |. Catching plenty of spots in range of our travel that may be other entrances to this system of underground safe haven.

Many around 9, which surely would be safe enough for humans, compared to the plunging of their current 8 or more homes down toward 3 or worse... when switching from Current to Post modes.

It was one such dark mouth in the hillside, partially obscured by overgrown brush, that I finally got just a little curious another hour later. The caves were supposed to have a stable temperature throughout, but if it was really so large...

> Checking out a 9.5 this far out can’t hurt. <

I was moving closer when I heard voices that told me how wrong I was. Male. Multiple. Rough-edged and casual in a way that suggested they weren’t at all worried about being overheard out here.

Because of course they weren’t, just like I hadn’t thought I would run into anyone. I dropped low to the ground, moving behind a thick cluster of bushes in a stealthy crawl while focusing my enhanced hearing.

The smell was clear enough, as I tried to identify how many there were and what they were doing. A half dozen werewolves, all but one with their spirit. And that was just those that I could make out from being downwind.

"...said this whole area’s perfect for what comes after. The cold won’t bother us in this place and it’s only a couple hours to raid the city."

"Yeah, but what about the other packs? They’re gonna want places like this too."

"Let ’em fight over scraps later while we secure the best spots first. It’s what they’ve always done to us."

"You really don’t think he is just using us to set things up for his Duskpaw pack?"

"Dude has literally kicked around the idea of overthrowing all the Alphas at once to cause chaos before ’the game really begins’."

"Yeah, that tracks. Chad’s gonna be in charge, believe me, but I don’t think he’ll call it Duskpaw anymore."

"Hah, yeah, not when he becomes the big honcho of the whole world’s wolves in the apocalypse."

...What?