If You’re Being Held Hostage, Wiggle the Carrot! - Chapter 96 - It Doesn't Matter that We're Different

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Ivan scanned their expressions before speaking up.

“I’m sure you’ve all heard, but there’s a tribe that dared to plant cursed dolls in the territory of our duchy.”

“How dare they…”

“What kind of tribe would commit such heinous acts? No matter how long ago it happened, this is unacceptable.”

The atmosphere in the room, which moments ago had been jovial, turned grim in an instant. They were outraged by the vile incident that occurred in what was essentially their neighbor.

“Now, everyone, let’s remain calm.”

His words silenced the guests. Gently drawing their attention to him, Ivan continued.

“The agenda for today’s meeting isn’t about the cursed dolls.”

“Yes? Then what is it about?”

At Zeigler’s question, the guests tensed up once again. Could it be related to that outsider after all?

“It’s likely you all already know. We have a guest here at the duchy.”

“Yes…”

They all nodded, their assumptions confirmed. Morado, in particular, was visibly tense, sweat beginning to form on his palms.

“Countess Rosa is from an undocumented Pink Rabbit Tribe within the Empire. She sought out our Wolf Tribe at great risk to her life to make a request.”

“…”

The guests were now fully focused on the unexpected turn of events.

“She says the entire tribe, excluding her, has been abducted by the Golden Lion Tribe.”

“This is…”

“In this day and age, who would dare to commit such madness?”

“What a tragic situation.”

Perhaps due to the Wolf Tribe’s exceptional affection for other tribes, the guests momentarily forgot the rumors they had heard and focused on feeling sorry for Ruby.

“She believes that there’s no tribe other than ours that can stand against the Lion tribe, so she came to us. It must have been the only option for her, left alone after losing her tribe,”

“That’s true.”

As the guests nodded in sympathy for the unfortunate situation, Ivan brought up the real agenda of the meeting.

“Therefore, I made a promise to her. I promised to find her tribe.”

“But, Your Grace…”

Morado desperately tried to interject, but Ivan raised his hand to pause him before continuing.

“I’m not offering help without expecting something in return. I, too, wish to repay the favor I received from her. However, as this involves the Lion Tribe, we can’t predict how far this might escalate. That’s why I urgently convened this meeting.”

Silence fell over the meeting room for a moment. The vassals exchanged glances and assessed the situation among themselves.

“Your Grace, please enlighten us about the assistance you received. If it’s a problem we can help solve, there’s no need to burden ourselves with the request of that rabbit shifter,” Morado urged, and the surrounding guests nodded in agreement.

While it was a sad situation, it wasn’t their tribe’s issue, and dealing with conflicts with the Lion Tribe was no easy task even for the Wolf Tribe.

Ivan let out a small sigh at the anticipated question.

“If I could have told you, I would have,” he admitted.

Being manipulated by ghosts was humiliating, but more importantly, he couldn’t risk revealing his weakness. He couldn’t trust my vassals to tell me anything, because I never knew when or how someone would turn.

Of course, before meeting Ruby, he might have spoken despite the embarrassment. But recent events, like the incident with Leslie, had changed his mindset. Even though male wolf shifters might be different from females, if his mate or even his offspring were threatened, their loyalty to the Alpha could easily be tested.