Hati seemed to struggle for a moment, but his master’s command ultimately triumphed over desire. The giant wolf prostrated himself, letting out a low growl from his throat. No matter how the unicorn nuzzled against him, trying to get his attention, he remained perfectly still.

The unicorn’s once-round little head had matured, revealing the handsome contours befitting her kind, but her dark, round eyes still held an air of innocence and bewilderment.

“Yiya?” She seemed confused as to why the once-enthusiastic great white wolf was now ignoring her. She burrowed into his fur, whimpering aggrievedly.

A deeper growl rumbled in Hati’s throat, and his ears twitched rapidly, but he still didn’t spare the unicorn a single glance.

Hati’s obedience brought a sigh of relief to Bai Zhen.

“Wuu wuu wuu…” But Luna was clearly devastated. With a kick of her four little legs, she flopped onto the ground and began to sob pitifully.

Hua Mu was stunned!

Had this heartless white wolf just used and abandoned her… abandoned her spirit animal?

“Miss, your spirit animal is still too young. If Hati spends too much time with her, it’s very likely that…”

“Wait, did you do something? Why is Hati ignoring Luna?”

Where had that super-lecherous white wolf gone?

“Uh… I-I just told him not to be improper with your spirit animal. He was a little out of control today.”

Bai Zhen had never known her spirit animal to have such strong impulses. Perhaps because his ability was ice-related, the wolf himself was usually composed, calm, and possessed great self-control.

A significant reason the white wolf was called an ice wolf was his special ability to lower temperatures. Unlike a Guide, who could only make a person feel cold, Hati could actually decrease the surrounding temperature, even creating ice crystals for a short time.

Although Bai Zhen rarely used this ability and was convinced it was nothing special, the higher-ups in the Tower and the royal family had always placed great importance on it. Compared to the sensory and physical enhancements of most Sentinels, this was a rather unique ability. Its essence was very likely a flow of energy between real space and other dimensions.

Of course, Bai Zhen didn’t care about that. All she knew was that her normally stable and obedient white wolf had lost control more than once today.

“How do you know it’s improper? Look at my Luna… Oh, my poor Luna!” Hua Mu couldn’t help but adopt a dramatic, translated tone.

Not only was she pitiful, but her spirit animal was pitiful too! At least Luna could cry and throw a tantrum. Could she?

Oh, poor her!

“This…”

Bai Zhen looked at the unicorn, who was practically sprawled on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably and looking utterly undignified. A pang of pity stirred within her.

She did look rather pitiful.

“But Hati’s feelings for her…” Bai Zhen found it hard to say. To say Hati coveted Luna felt like exposing her own secret, unspeakable thoughts to the world. “He has a very strong… desire for your unicorn. I was afraid he might try to induce…”

But she had to make this clear to the Young Lady. Otherwise, if something unexpected happened, how would she be any different from a seducer?

Look at that, even your spirit animal has more guts than you!

Hua Mu couldn’t help but curse inwardly.

“It’s too late to talk about inducing anything now. I can see Luna is quite fond of your big white wolf… ahem, she’s fond of him, not me. Can you really bear to see her so sad? A-And besides, we’ve already… done that… Why are you still hung up on such trivial details?”

Hua Mu felt her face burning. Had she been too blunt? Would her image be ruined?

Bai Zhen was taken aback for a moment, but she found that Hua Mu’s words made a lot of sense. If a mental bond was truly unavoidable, it might actually help suppress the impulse for a physical one. More importantly, teaching Luna was impossible without Hati. Keeping them apart was practically out of the question.

“Well… alright then.”

The moment Bai Zhen relented, the white wolf pounced on the black unicorn. His massive body enveloped the small unicorn as if she were a precious treasure, and he began to lick the tears from her face with delicate tenderness.

Luna was dazed for a moment. When she realized Hati was holding her, she immediately brightened up, sticking out her small tongue and licking him back haphazardly.

Hua Mu was disgusted by her spirit animal’s lack of resentment, but for some reason, she also felt a faint twinge of envy. As the two spirit animals embraced, licking each other in blissful oblivion, she started to feel a little angry.

This Sentinel was even dumber than her spirit animal. Utterly hopeless!

Bai Zhen indulged Hati, though a sliver of worry remained in her heart. In the end, she forced herself not to dwell on it. Since things had already reached this point, the most urgent matter was to quickly teach the Young Lady how to control her abilities.

Hua Mu really did attend class for the better part of the afternoon, with almost no rest.

Bai Zhen commanded Hati, and Hua Mu commanded Luna. Whenever Hua Mu couldn’t get Luna to obey, Hati would come to help. The two women and one wolf “played” with the little unicorn for over two hours, and Hua Mu was nearly exhausted.

She didn’t know what special abilities Luna had, only that the little creature was an energetic and demanding handful.

Manifesting a spirit animal was extremely draining on one’s mental energy. By evening, no matter how reluctant the two spirit animals were to part, Bai Zhen made them return to their respective mental landscapes.

Not only had Hua Mu trained for several hours straight today, but she had also fought a major battle in between. She was utterly exhausted after dinner. Thinking back, she felt she had it truly rough. Who goes straight to class right after doing that kind of thing? Was she insane?

“Bai Zhen, come here!”

The Young Lady was not happy.

“Miss, what are your orders?” Bai Zhen had just finished bathing and hanging her underwear out to dry. She was only wearing a loosely draped outer jacket. It couldn’t be helped; conditions were harsh and resources were scarce. Hua Mu could at least use the lining of her skirt to make a spare pair of panties for emergencies, but Bai Zhen truly had to go commando.

Fortunately, Sentinels weren’t too bothered by such things, and she wasn’t as sensitive or embarrassed as the Young Lady.

Hua Mu noticed that Bai Zhen’s hair had grown quite a bit, now reaching her shoulders. For a moment, she was lost in a daze—unwittingly, they had been on the island for nearly three months.

In the beginning, she had thought about going back almost every moment of every day. But in the last few days, she realized she had only thought about it a few times, and only occasionally.

If asked whether she wanted to go back, the answer was a definite yes. She wanted to go back, to see her friends, and she missed her comfortable life. She missed her aunt and father even more. But the thought of possibly being separated from Bai Zhen upon their return, the thought of the inevitable opposition from her family, made those desires less intense.

How long had she hesitated, wavered, and struggled before finally taking this step? But what about this idiot? She still didn’t understand her efforts at all.

“Tell me, what if we really can’t go back? What then?”

The two of them had never seriously discussed this. Rescue was late in coming, and they were powerless to do anything but wait.

Bai Zhen knew she shouldn’t offer any more baseless, hollow reassurances. She frowned and pondered for a moment before saying slowly, “If… if rescue really never comes, then let’s try to build a boat ourselves.”

“Build a boat? Out of wood? The ocean is so vast, and the wind and rain are so unpredictable. Even the most advanced ships can sink. Would we be so lucky again?”

Yes, it was too dangerous. The two of them could survive on the island, but how could they guarantee their safety out on the open sea?

Bai Zhen fell silent.

Hua Mu pressed her lips together, suppressing her unease as she continued, “If we have to spend the rest of our lives in this godforsaken place, what… what are your thoughts?”

Spend the rest of their lives here?

Bai Zhen looked at Hua Mu, an unconcealable pain in her eyes.

How could the Young Lady spend a lifetime in a place like this? She was meant to have a happy and fulfilling life, a brilliant and glorious future. How could she be condemned to a desolate existence on a deserted island?

“I’m very sad…”

Hua Mu felt like she might as well drop dead from anger on the spot.

Bai Zhen knelt by the edge of the bamboo bed. Hua Mu couldn’t resist lifting her foot and prodding her shoulder.

“M-Miss, what’s wrong?”

Unfortunately, she couldn’t budge her. The Sentinel, afraid she might get hurt, carefully cupped her small foot in her palm instead.

“You’re sad? I’m sad too! Why don’t you just go die!”

Hua Mu kicked her legs in frustration. Bai Zhen endured her completely non-threatening punches and kicks, feeling flustered and confused.

“I know you’re sad… but didn’t you, didn’t you tell me not to die?”

If she was so obedient, then why couldn’t she understand her heart?

“Have you never liked someone before? Have you never…” Hua Mu almost blurted it out, but then a very uncomfortable thought occurred to her. “Are you sad b-because if we can’t go back, you won’t be able to see the person you… you like?”

She had been ignoring—or rather, deliberately forgetting—something very important. Although Bai Zhen didn’t have a bonded partner, that didn’t mean she didn’t have someone she liked. There were so many Guides in the Tower, so many comrades who had faced life and death with her. Perhaps… perhaps there was someone she admired?

No, a fool like her probably didn’t even know she liked someone. But not knowing didn’t mean she didn’t like them. Perhaps the pain of never being able to see them again would make her realize her feelings?

Bai Zhen hesitated for a moment, but still nodded.

That was, of course, one of the reasons. Not being able to see her master and her grand-aunt again, not being able to repay those who had helped her, and no longer being able to contribute to the Tower that had trained her did fill her with some regret and sadness.

But the more important reason was that she didn’t want Hua Mu to be imprisoned in this small, narrow world.

Hua Mu’s heart sank. Her eyes turned red, and tears welled up, threatening to spill over. But she didn’t lose her temper. In a choked, nasal voice, she asked, “Who is it that you like…?”

Who on earth was so charming, so amazing, that they could make this stupid Sentinel fall for them?

She had tried so hard, but it had all been for nothing.

Bai Zhen sensed her low spirits and felt a little helpless and panicked. “Miss, what’s wrong?”

Hua Mu kicked at her palm. “Who is it that you like!”

“Ah? Uh, uh, it’s Master…” and the others.

Bai Zhen didn’t know why the Young Lady was so concerned about this. Seeing how anxious she was, the words just slipped out.

But upon hearing this, Hua Mu was completely stunned.