The streets outside the guild had gone unnaturally quiet.

It wasn’t because there were no people around. Quite the opposite. The road was still filled with merchants dragging wooden carts, mercenaries walking with heavy weapons resting across their shoulders, children chasing each other between market stalls, and ordinary townsfolk going about their lives.

Yet the moment Liam stepped out of the guild’s entrance, the entire atmosphere shifted.

People instinctively moved aside.

Nobody spoke.

Nobody blocked the path.

The crowd split apart on its own, creating a wide passage for him without anyone saying a word.

News traveled frighteningly fast in small settlements.

Everyone had already heard about what happened inside the guild.

The beautiful red-haired girl who had looked gentle enough to be protected had torn apart a seasoned mercenary with terrifying ease after he dared kick the white-haired young man beside her.

Nobody wanted to become the next example.

Liam didn’t even notice the fear surrounding him. His attention was elsewhere as he walked slowly, one hand occasionally rubbing the dull ache lingering inside his chest. His body still felt unbelievably weak, and every movement reminded him of just how much strength he had lost after the portal journey.

The moment she saw him already several steps ahead, she immediately quickened her pace until she caught up beside him.

"Liam."

There was obvious worry in her voice as she looked him over from head to toe.

"Are you okay?"

Her eyes swept across his body, especially the spot on his chest where the kick had landed. Even though she had already made the man pay for it, it still bothered her.

Liam looked down at her and smiled softly.

"I’m okay."

Tatiana wasn’t convinced in the slightest.

She had been there.

She had seen the kick.

Back on Earth, Liam probably wouldn’t even have felt it. The same attack would’ve shattered the attacker’s own leg before making Liam move an inch.

But now...

Now his body was frighteningly fragile.

Mary had warned everyone that the portal had drained far more from Liam than anyone anticipated.

At the moment, his physical condition was actually weaker than that of an average human.

That thought alone made Tatiana’s chest tighten.

She blamed herself.

If she had reacted just a little faster...

If she had stepped between them...

That kick would’ve never landed.

Liam noticed her expression and couldn’t help smiling.

"You’ve been making that face a lot lately."

She looked away.

"I don’t like seeing you hurt."

"I know."

There wasn’t anything else to say.

The silence between them wasn’t awkward.

It was comfortable.

Liam simply stretched his arms slightly before exhaling.

"Let’s go."

Tatiana immediately nodded.

"We have a mission to accomplish."

She smiled.

"Right."

The two of them began walking side by side through the streets, Tatiana unconsciously matching every one of Liam’s slower steps. Normally she walked much faster than this, but now she deliberately slowed herself, making sure she never accidentally left him behind.

Neither of them noticed that people continued watching until they disappeared farther down the road.

Inside many people’s minds, today’s events had completely shattered their first impression.

When Tatiana first entered the guild earlier, nearly every man inside had looked at her the same way.

Beautiful.

Elegant.

Too beautiful for a small town like this.

Beside her stood Liam, whose appearance was equally unbelievable, yet because his aura felt so weak, everyone had assumed he was nothing more than a handsome noble who relied on his looks instead of strength.

Several mercenaries had even laughed inwardly.

A pretty princess traveling with a useless prince.

Easy targets.

Perhaps if they showed enough dominance...

Enough strength...

The girl might even admire them instead.

Instead...

Reality slapped them harder than anything they had ever experienced.

That so-called helpless beauty had turned into a walking nightmare.

She hadn’t screamed.

She hadn’t hesitated.

She had simply walked over and dismantled a fully grown warrior with enough ease that it made everyone inside question whether she was even human.

The memory alone was enough to send chills down several spines.

No one dared look at her disrespectfully anymore.

The journey continued quietly.

The noisy marketplace slowly disappeared behind them as the buildings became fewer and fewer until trees once again replaced stone roads.

Fresh air greeted them.

The familiar scent of the forest instantly relaxed Tatiana.

Leaves swayed gently overhead while unfamiliar birds with brightly colored feathers flew from branch to branch, filling the forest with songs neither of them had ever heard before arriving on this planet.

Liam raised his head.

Even though it was still daytime, the sky here remained strange.

High above the blue heavens...

He could still make out the faint silhouettes of the four moons.

They looked almost transparent beneath the daylight, yet their enormous presence dominated the sky in a way Earth’s lonely moon never could.

He stared at them for several long seconds.

Four moons.

Even now, the sight still felt unreal.

His thoughts wandered before something suddenly clicked inside his head.

He turned toward Tatiana.

"Can I ask you something?"

She looked over.

"Of course."

"Have you gotten stronger since we arrived on this planet?"

Tatiana blinked.

"...Huh?"

She couldn’t help laughing softly.

"What are you talking about, Liam?"

She brushed a loose strand of red hair behind her ear before continuing.

"How am I supposed to have gotten stronger in only two days?"

Liam scratched the back of his head.

"...Right."

"I asked that wrong."

He looked up toward the sky again.

"What I mean is..."

He pointed upward.

"Do you feel stronger since arriving on this planet?"

Tatiana’s smile slowly disappeared.

This time...

She actually thought about it.

Her eyes unconsciously followed Liam’s finger until they settled on the four enormous moons hanging faintly above the daytime sky.

She stopped walking.

"...Feel stronger?"

She whispered the words to herself.

Now that Liam had phrased it differently...

She realized she had never actually considered it.

She closed her eyes briefly, focusing inward.

Her senses.

Her instincts.

Her blood.

Everything felt...

Different.

She couldn’t explain it.

It wasn’t obvious enough to confidently say she had become stronger.

But something certainly wasn’t the same anymore.

She slowly opened her eyes.

"I’m... not sure."

Liam waited patiently.

Tatiana searched for the right words.

"I don’t know if stronger is the right word."

She frowned thoughtfully.

"But..."

She clenched one hand into a fist.

"My body feels..."

She struggled to explain it.

"...More awake."

Liam raised an eyebrow.

"Awake?"

She nodded.

"Like..."

She searched again.

"...Like there’s always energy flowing through me."

She looked back toward the sky.

"It feels... easier to breathe."

"Easier to move."

"And..."

She hesitated.

"My instincts are sharper too."

Liam listened quietly.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

He hadn’t asked the question randomly.

Back on Earth, werewolves had always been deeply connected to the moon.

Transformations.

Instincts.

Their very biology revolved around lunar influence.

So what happened when a werewolf lived beneath not one...

But four moons?

Did the effects multiply?

Did they evolve?

Or was it something else entirely?

He didn’t know.

But judging from Tatiana’s uncertain answer...

Something was definitely changing.