Here is the graduation examination venue of Greenshade High School, where the optimistic students are more or less nervous, facing a crucial test. The young Therianthropes graduating from high school will determine their future through this examination. The acceptance rate for universities is not very high, with only about half of the Therianthropes qualifying for university. The coveted slots in top-tier universities are even scarcer. Therefore, most Therianthropes must give their all to pursue their ideals.
From the peripheral wall of the campus, the families of the Therianthrope candidates anxiously pray and wait for their children, including Carol's parents, Megatron and Whitney. In the years of raising Carol to adulthood, the couple's faces have gradually aged, marked by the passage of time on the corners of their eyes and their temples. Yet, they remain deeply in love and happy. Over the years, thanks to Whitney's exquisite culinary skills, Megatron has gained some weight, typical of Chow Chow Therianthropes who tend to have robust bone structures. He has become significantly rounder, resembling a large stone lion when standing next to the slender Whitney. Megatron is still prone to tears, his eyes now reddened. With one arm affectionately wrapped around the eagerly anticipating Whitney, and the other hand searching his pocket, he grumbles to Whitney about the lack of a tissue, "Darling, get me a tissue. I don't want to shed tears in front of our son's school."
Whitney's expression remains unchanged, seemingly accustomed to Megatron's tendency to cry. She efficiently retrieves an entire pack of tissues from her small handbag and hands it to Megatron, saying, "Take it. Don't cry endlessly this time! We still have to take the boys out for a meal! From Coa to Belga, from going to school to graduating, you've been crying. I'm afraid you'll pass this bad habit on to our two precious sons. If they end up like you, they'll be laughed at when they enter society! Also, suck in that belly of yours and straighten up. You look so slouchy! After Coa goes to college, our family will start a collective fitness and diet plan. Since Bell wants to join the military academy and work on physical fitness, you should exercise with my sons!"
"What?! No! My dear queen, considering my daily hardships and efforts for the family, I don't want to eat any healthy diet. My daily small cake is my only solace. Don't be so cruel." Megatron widens his teary eyes, and the flesh on his round, cornerless face trembles in grievance. He looks incredulously at the woman who runs the household with an iron fist, saying, "Leave running and such to the young ones. Our Bell is a diligent and brave boy. I believe he can stick with it on his own! If not, just call Coa to supervise him. Bell loves his brother the most and listens to him the most. I have no influence. So..."
"You better not!" Whitney forcefully interrupts Megatron's plea. Her orders in this house always represent the highest authority, a decree, a divine oracle! Moreover, she is wholeheartedly thinking for her family, doing only the most righteous things! Whitney sneers lightly and says, "If Coa hadn't been working so hard on his study recently, you should have been living a life of vegetarianism and pumping iron every day. How could you still enjoy the carefully crafted meals from Mommy's heart for my precious sons! I declare your protest invalid. Look at your chubby self in the mirror. If you don't want to be violently controlled by me, behave yourself. At least until Coa leaves for college, you can mooch some roast chicken from him!" Thinking of her children still taking exams, Whitney can't help but sigh softly. She is not worried about her children's grades, especially since Coral has always been at the top. Assuming nothing unexpected happens, he will get into a top-tier university. It's just that time flies so fast. The little fluff ball who used to run around her, laughing and calling "Mommy," seems to have grown into a big boy in an instant. Will he leave the family to soar far away? This really makes her reluctant! Whitney's nose tingles, she forces herself to stay calm, but her slightly wrinkled nose betrays her.
At the same time, Coral is fervently writing on a desk, surrounded by the rustling sound of classmates writing. His movements are very quick, and fortunately, three days ago, he encountered a speculative question with the same content as this exam during practice. So, this time, repeating it doesn't cause the same conceptual hiccups as before, and his answers flow smoothly. Exams are probably one of Coral's strong suits. After finishing the last question and checking it several times, he agonizes while waiting to hand it in. "Ah, who decided that you can only submit the paper 30 minutes early? Waiting is a kind of torture." Coral muses. During the wait, his thoughts completely deviate from the exam content, and he gleefully thinks, "Hehe, after today's exam, I'm going to ask Mom for a meal of beef and onion!"
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His superstitious mom, Whitney, who excessively believes in the Therianthrope myth that eating birds will ensure success in exams, has subjected the whole family to a week of chicken. Initially, when Coral and Belga saw the heartwarming roast chicken, they were delighted. Then came the second meal of chicken porridge, the third of cold chicken jelly, the fourth of chicken dumplings... Each meal had a different presentation, but it was all chicken, and the family developed a chicken-induced PTSD. "Will our home turn into a 'chicken hell' again when Belga is taking exams?" Coral wonders. Over a dozen years, the little coal nugget by his side has grown into a handsome young man. In these years, his height has surged, already towering over Coral by a head! Coral can't quite describe what he feels about his little brother who has grown up alongside him. He never thought that one day they would part ways. There's just a sense of certainty in his heart that they will be family forever, that they will always have each other.
Exiting the campus, Coral took a relaxed breath and shared a warm embrace with the eager Megatron and Whitney who hurriedly approached. "How did it go, my child?" Megatron gently patted Coral's back, looking at him with anticipation. Whitney rolled her eyes and delivered a sharp elbow jab to her impulsive husband, "We'll know when the results are out. Why are you asking so early?" She turned to comfort her son, "Don't mind your dad. No matter how you did, we support you. Let's go, we'll relax at home. Today, we'll have a good meal! Grilled beef ribs with Jack potatoes. I also made your favorite crème brûlée for you and your brother." The family walked home together, chatting and laughing. The atmosphere was indescribably light and pleasant.
At that moment, Megatron suddenly recalled something. He paused and said to his family, "Do you remember my old friend Raymond De Redwood, who used to visit our house frequently a few years ago? The 'Uncle Redwood' that Carol always insisted on taking fishing and fruit picking with him!"
"Ah, Uncle Redwood! Of course, I remember. I used to love it when Uncle Redwood took me and Bell out to play when we were kids! How has he been? It feels like it's been ages since we heard from him," Coral replied with a smile. Whitney also looked at Megatron curiously. She had a good impression of this old friend - polite, warm, and kind. However, he always kept to himself and had unpredictable whereabouts. Indeed, it had been quite a while since they last saw him, maybe three or four years.
"Raymond De Redwood sent a letter saying that he'll come to the Frostlands to celebrate Coa's successful entrance into university, and he brought some small gifts," Megatron said with a gleeful smile. "However, this time, it seems he has something quite important to attend to, and he's handling it alone. So, he might need a bit of, um, minor assistance from our family." Megatron looked cautiously at Whitney and continued, "Well, it's summer vacation, and the kids have finished their exams... We do have some energy left, don't we?"
"Alone?" Whitney wasn't buying into her husband's flattery. She questioned, "But isn't Raymond De Redwood always on his own? He's always lived decently, never once thought of borrowing money from us. He just often dines and lodges in our house when he's in the Frostlands. What does that have to do with our children finishing exams? What secret agreement have you made behind the scenes?"
Seeing Whitney getting more upset, Megatron quickly interrupted her wandering thoughts. He said, "It's not as you're imagining. Raymond De Redwood is still single, and he hasn't asked to borrow money from us. He wrote to me saying that he adopted an orphan named BamBam at the 'autumn breeze' border. However, lacking parenting experience and not having dealt with adoption procedures before, he thought of bringing the child to us during the summer break to learn and consult about the process of finding a suitable school for her."
"That sounds good," Whitney mused, "BamBam seems to be a poor yet fortunate child. When the time comes, Coral and Belga can take her around for some sightseeing, and we can treat her to delicious meals at home."
Despite her stern exterior, Whitney was a kind and gentle soul. Megatron felt even more fortunate to have her in his life. Seizing the moment, the Chow Chow Therianthrope continued, "By the way, Raymond De Redwood brought some important news. It involves recent intrigues in the royal court and something related to the special decree— the prohibition of Therianthropes practicing magic. He also mentioned the ancient legendary race—the Shadowmoon Wolf Tribe." Although the distance from the borderlands to the imperial capital, the center of royal power, was considerable, caution was always wise. Megatron glanced at Whitney, and without saying more, they both tacitly changed the topic.
"The Wolf Tribe—" Whitney's heart sank. The secret they had hidden for over a decade always unsettled them. "If possible, I'd rather my dear Bell never know this secret! But it doesn't seem fair to him." Whitney pondered, watching as the approaching agreement with the person from their past brought increasing unease. Because of this, she cherished the remaining, dwindling moments she had to spend with her younger son even more. Little did she know, her seemingly carefree husband by her side was also sorrowfully counting the days until the impending revelation of the secret, waiting with a heavy heart for that destined day to arrive.