chapter107-even busier

lucca pov

This semester, I became even busier.

I am pursuing degrees in both education and medicine simultaneously, while also juggling my involvement in the Babel Tower club activities.

Life is incredibly fulfilling. Thankfully, Luna Nataly is there to help.

After the New Year, she often comes to stay at the hillside villa with Alice. She assists with cooking, feeds the owls and cats, and plays with Alice.

Little did I know that Luna Nataly's return to the pack's social circle would cause quite a stir.

Luna Nataly's initial marriage into the Vincent family was also due to her exceptionally powerful family background. Her brothers all hold prominent positions in the military.

It can be said that "marrying into the military" has been a tradition for Luna and Vincent over the generations.

Though Luna Nataly had faded from the sight of the upper-class lycans for nearly two decades, residing deep in the mountains of Ireland, those who knew her could never forget her grace in the social scene.

Just like the current Luna Linda, she is a woman highly respected in various fields such as art, charity, and jewelry.

Her charity galas in the past, any one of them, could easily buy half of Ireland with the combined net worth of the attendees.

Luna Nataly's return has been low-key. She doesn't attend tea parties or invite old friends for dinners.

The lycans heard that she visited Vincent family's countryside horse ranch at the beginning of the year.

They speculated that Luna Nataly's relationship with the lycans has improved. From this, one can further deduce that, in order to solidify their own position, the lycans have regained support from the maternal family.

And they were right.

The radicals, who had suffered from troop withdrawals due to the war, suddenly made a move.

The pack radio station launched a program called "The Voice of War," dedicated to war and military matters, presenting the grand vision of unifying the East and West continents.

Many veterans with military achievements began touring the country, using patriotism to counteract the negative image of war and conflict among the masses.

At the same time, the radicals led by the Vincent family went to great financial lengths to perfectly resolve the issue of placing war veterans.

The size of their pensions was so generous that it even made many regret not having enlisted.

At the same time, they finally broke through the trade barriers of several hostile countries in the Republic pack.

These countries had relatively backward production capabilities and enormous consumer power, and they lacked weapons like the "Antitrust Law."

The confidence of the pack's citizens in the national economy began to recover. This meant that their willingness to accept foreign wars would also relatively increase.

The change in leadership for the pack's prime minister is just next year.

This year, the pack must put forward a hero who can replace him.

At the same time, they will also face a challenge from the pack's Liberal Party for the majority party status.

Shelter has been abroad since the end of last year.

The Conservative Party does not support the war. This is his biggest disagreement with Vincent. He also needs to secure some interests.

The past six months have passed quickly, with one blockbuster news after another, full of ups and downs, with winners and losers. I have never seen Vincent on the screen so frequently.

His personal charisma alone is more appealing to the public than the pack's prime minister.

His powerful and dazzling eloquence during speeches makes it hard to distinguish between right and wrong.

Later on, I stopped watching these TV programs. I focused on my studies and occasionally helped Simon with his plans.

On April 1st, April Fool's Day, Simon sent me a document. I asked him through a video call, "Is this our club's April Fool's project?"

This was a gray project, involving smuggling goods.

Typically, we smuggled items like hair dye and wigs. Sometimes it also included medicines and books.

Hair dye could help rogues hide their identities better, but it wasn't easy to obtain because you needed identification when purchasing it.

In the information Simon provided, the smuggled goods were stored in a freezer, surrounded by a wooden frame for protection.

It was 1 meter tall, 1.2 meters wide, and on top of it was frozen seafood, weighing a total of about 160 pounds.

Simon wanted to transport it from the city center to Diamond Harbor.

"The journey is too long, with so many checkpoints. What if we get caught?" I asked worriedly.

"It's okay, it's just a loss of a batch of goods. The ones transporting it are our core members with lycan identities. They won't get caught, and it won't involve you or me. After you've worked out the plan, I'll make further adjustments to the checkpoints," I could only agree, arranging the timing and route for him based on the information provided.

On the day of the operation, there was no unfortunate news along the way from the city center to the harbor. I breathed a sigh of relief.

I made some raspberry-flavored chocolate for Alice. I wasn't great at cooking, but I was decent at baking, and Alice loved sweets.

To prevent her from getting cavities, I only baked on weekends. I used it as a reward; if Alice performed well, I'd let her have some.

Luna Nataly had been worrying about Alice's choice of school.

She wanted to contact the private girls' school she had attended before but felt that an all-girls' school might be too closed-off and not conducive to overall development.

"She's so lovely. It would be a shame if she couldn't experience the feeling of being pursued by boys," I said to Lucca while knitting a sweater.

I was carving chocolate flowers.

"I think Alice is too introverted; she might get bullied by boys."

I paused.

"Just like I was when I was a child."

"Oh, poor thing," Luna Nataly looked at me with sympathy.

"Alice, don't touch it; it's not done yet," I picked Alice up from the table and carefully held the carving knife toward myself.

Luna Nataly continued, "Tomorrow's the weekend; I and Alice will go back to Ireland."

"Okay, make sure to bring the chocolate with you too."

I packed all the chocolate shaped like little animals into a box.

Then I offered her a white rabbit-shaped chocolate.

"After eating, remember to brush your teeth," I kissed Alice's nose, "You have to listen to Luna this weekend."

Alice nodded earnestly. I wasn't sure what Vincent had told his mother.

Currently, Luna Nataly visits the hillside villa from Monday to Friday and heads back to Ireland on the weekends.

"By the way, pick a ball of yarn, and I'll knit you a sweater," Luna Nataly tossed her bag to me. I quickly declined, saying, "No need, it's too much trouble for you! These are things I should be doing."

"How about knitting a scarf then? Consider it a belated New Year's gift."

I selected a ball of red yarn.

The following day, Luna Nataly departed with Alice. After bidding them farewell, I headed to school for self-study.

On the way, I heard a radio broadcast. There had been an explosion on the main road in the city center, resulting in a traffic accident, and the current casualty count was unknown.

I immediately called Luna Nataly.

They had just left and wouldn't have taken that main road, but I still advised them to avoid congested areas.

"Lucca?"

Luna Nataly answered the phone and promptly remarked, "Are you worried about the traffic accident in the city center? I heard the broadcast too."

I inquired, "Are both of you okay? Where are you?"

Luna Nataly reassured me that they were fine but mentioned that the road was heavily congested.

The traffic was already quite dense due to the number of cars, and with the city center closing roads, it had become highly congested.

"We're thinking of taking an alternative route," Luna Nataly's end emitted a sharp honking sound.

"Don't worry, we're quite far from that area." My school bus arrived at the stop.

"Alright, take care on the journey."

I felt anxious throughout the morning, sensing that something was about to happen. However, every time I called Luna Nataly, she assured me that everything was fine.

By noon, they had safely returned to Ireland. I could only attribute my unease to the intense pressure of my studies.

In the evening, I returned to the hillside villa, and Vincent was already waiting for me."