Landlord in the Arctic

Meanwhile, the Tiger Pack led by Tyson was now bearing down on the Wolf Pack.

These tigers had been pampered in captivity. Every one of them was well-fed to the point of being heavyset and over-nourished, but they had absolutely no fighting experience.

But now, the sight of the Wolf Pack ahead and the thought of their master and home behind them made them muster their courage.

One by one, they unsheathed their sharp claws, arched their backs, and postured as if ready for a fight to the death.

When the two sides were merely a dozen or so meters apart, they all halted, staring each other down.

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze.

Prince gazed at the group of strange big cats that had appeared before him, blinking his almond-shaped doggy eyes. He carefully sized up these creatures he'd never seen before, silently wondering to himself.

'Why do they look so much like Ms. Cola?'

'They're just a lot bigger than Ms. Cola, as sturdy as the musk oxen on the Tundra.'

Tyson, for his part, was just as confused.

He was confused by the pack of white "dogs" before him. Why were they so different from the dogs he'd seen before?

In his limited experience, dogs were supposed to be small and docile.

'But these creatures have a wildness in their eyes, completely different from the dogs I'm used to seeing.'

'So fierce!'

Just as the two sides were locked in a tense stalemate, Prince suddenly made a bold move.

He cautiously left the Wolf Pack and walked, step by step, toward the center of the standoff.

Upon reaching the middle, he tilted his head back and barked a few times at the Tiger Pack, his calls tentative, as if sending a friendly signal.

Seeing this, Tyson refused to be outdone and also stepped forward, looking rather charmingly naive.

He then tilted his signature "hamburger head," which had a distinctive tuft of black fur on each side, making it look like a super-sized hamburger with black meat patties wedged in.

His large eyes blinked in bewilderment as he tried to figure out what this strange creature wanted and whether it was hostile.

However, a fierce conflict did not break out between them.

Because, as they slowly drew closer, they each caught a scent wafting from the other—the unmistakably familiar smell of their master.

This scent was like a key, instantly unlocking their defenses and dispelling their mutual wariness.

The tense atmosphere immediately eased as both sides realized the creatures before them were family.

Just then, a frantic Feng Shan came sprinting after them.

His heart had been in his throat the entire way, his mind replaying gruesome scenes of tigers and wolves locked in a bloody, chaotic battle.

He worried that if they actually started fighting, the situation would spiral completely out of control.

Only when he arrived at the scene, panting for breath, and saw that there was no fight did his heart finally settle. He let out a long sigh of relief.

Immediately, Feng Shan strode over to Prince.

He raised his hand high, as if to strike, but let it fall gently instead.

He gave Prince's head a soft pat, his face a mask of feigned anger as he said irritably,

"So you decided to come back, did you? Look at you, leading the Wolf Pack back in a hunting formation! Anyone who didn't know better would think you were attacking the camp!"

WOOF WOOF!

Prince could tell his dad wasn't really angry.

He immediately started wagging his whole body to curry favor, circling Feng Shan joyfully while letting out occasional playful yelps.

Just then, Princess trotted gracefully out of the Wolf Pack, whimpering softly, and leaped straight into Feng Shan's arms.

"Our Princess is so well-behaved, not reckless like you." Feng Shan's face broke into a doting father's smile as he looked at the obedient Princess. He squatted down and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug.

Princess was beside herself with excitement.

Her little tongue darted out, licking him all over. Feng Shan laughed and dodged her affectionate assault, all while continuing his lecture to Prince, who stood off to the side.

Prince was long accustomed to his dad's occasional lectures.

He let his eyelids droop, putting on a defiant expression that clearly said, 'This is who I am. What are you gonna do about it?'

"Let me introduce you to some new friends." After a moment, Feng Shan stood up. He waved to the Tiger Pack in the distance and called out in a louder voice, "Tyson! The rest of you, come on over."

Hearing their master's summons, Tyson took the lead, cautiously guiding the Tiger Pack forward one slow step at a time.

Although these tigers had been raised in captivity and lacked the savagery of their wild counterparts, they were still tigers.

The innate aura of a Fierce Beast washed over the wolves.

The moment the Tiger Pack drew near, the once-relaxed Wolf Pack tensed up again, immediately assuming a wary stance.

This was especially true for a few of the Taiga Wolves who had only recently joined the pack. They had clearly never been this close to a tiger before.

Terrified, they tucked their tails between their legs and bolted without a second glance.

"Your boys aren't very brave, are they!" Feng Shan said with a laugh, pointing at the fleeing White Wolves as he teased Prince.

WHINE!

Seeing his subordinates act so timidly, Prince felt he had lost face. It was a blow to his pride.

A flash of indignant shame appeared in his eyes.

The next second, he shot off like a bolt of lightning, charging straight for the White Wolves that were fleeing with their tails between their legs.

As soon as he reached them, Prince opened his mouth and started snapping at them.

Of course, it was all for show—just to scare them. He didn't actually bite down hard.

The White Wolves yelped in alarm as he chased them, scattering across the mossy ground with their tails tucked.

Meanwhile, Princess's attention was completely captivated by the majestic Tyson.

She ambled over to Tyson, her head tilted slightly, her eyes filled with curiosity.

Then, she cautiously extended her nose, inching closer and closer to Tyson to investigate, gently sniffing the tiger's unique scent.

After sniffing for a moment, Princess, apparently not yet satisfied, began to circle Tyson.

As she circled, she would periodically stop to lean in and take another sniff.

She paid special attention to the area behind Tyson's thick tail.

Princess lingered there for a particularly long time, her little nose twitching nonstop as if a great secret were hidden there.

Tyson, who had never experienced anything like this, stood frozen in place, at a complete loss. He stared wide-eyed at the strangely behaving wolf.

After a moment, he seemed to realize what Princess was doing and turned away, a little scared.

'Why is she sniffing where I pee?' he wondered.

'This is so weird!'

Having finished disciplining the runaway White Wolves, Prince trotted back, still fuming.

The sight of Princess circling and sniffing Tyson made his anger flare up in an instant.

'He's blatantly hitting on my wife!'

'This is intolerable!'

WOOF WOOF!

Without a second thought, Prince threw his head back and let out a furious volley of barks.

Then, like a madman, he charged, baring his fangs and preparing to bite Tyson.

However, Prince seemed to have forgotten a cruel reality: the inherent gap between their species.

As the king of beasts, a tiger's size, strength, and hunting prowess are far beyond what a wolf can match.

In a one-on-one fight, courage alone could never bridge such a massive gap in strength.

Tyson was annoyed by Prince's unprovoked attack.

He arched his back slightly, muscles tensing, his already enormous frame looking even more intimidating.

He then swiped out with a paw the size of a dinner plate. The movement looked casual, but it carried immense force.

There was no way Prince could withstand such power. Like a fallen leaf caught in a gale, he was swatted aside with a WHOOSH, tumbling pathetically across the mossy ground for several rotations before finding his footing.

Seeing their leader get knocked down, the other members of the Wolf Pack instantly bristled. They curled their lips back, baring rows of sharp fangs.

Low snarls rumbled in their throats, and their eyes glinted with resolute ferocity.

The Wolf Pack then quickly fanned out, moving to encircle Tyson.

Their movements were agile and perfectly coordinated. They were clearly bent on avenging Prince.

A lone Husky was no match for a tiger, but the combat prowess of an entire pack of wild Taiga Wolves was not to be underestimated.

For a tiger with no experience surviving in the wild—one who had been raised in captivity—the outcome was uncertain if it were truly to be surrounded by the Wolf Pack.

The situation had instantly become dire.

...