Coldsnap: The Billionaire Alpha's Fated Pregnant Princess (GL)-Chapter 45 - Moonlight Over Knowledge

Chapter 45: Chapter 45 - Moonlight Over Knowledge
After walking back towards the city proper, I
eventually
started to see places of pedestrian business. Including one that caught my eye.
The sign above the door read [Moonlit Pages],
another reference
to wolves and lunar cycles in this city. At this point, I was starting to think the Rimecoat Alpha
must own half the businesses
here.
Or at least, her pack has had a
deep influence
throughout the city for some time.
Light grey eyes stare back from the reflection in the store’s window as I consider entering.
Clean.
Presentable
. Somewhat.
My hands trace the
imperfect
placement of the twin tails at the top edge of my skull.
> It really is harder to do on your own than I expected. I’ll have to practice. <
I pulled open the thick glass door and was immediately hit by the scent of
inked paper
, hot coffee, and a
peculiar chemical smell
.
Some sort of cleaner that seemed to be used in
most commercial spaces
in this world. Because a
similar
smell wafted near each shop as I passed by.
Unlike the diner where I’d eaten yesterday at noon, no one looked up when I entered this place. An
oddly opposite
reaction both here and
out on the street
, today.
I received a lot more
lingering
looks this morning than when I walked around in that hunter’s old clothing. Then, people seemed to go out of their way to
ignore
me entirely.
But now that I look
acceptably dressed
...
> Well, appearance is valuable for a reason. I wonder if there is some way that I could possibly make money off of that? <
As my mind drifted to Helene’s memories of
models and photography
, which I have not the
slightest idea
how to get into if I could, I glanced toward the patrons that were too absorbed in their own activities.
Everything I might expect from a
bookstore
based on what I knew.
Some were reading in comfortable chairs and sipping from
logo branded
cardboard cups... just like the original occupant of this body had seen on television. Some browsed shelves with the intense concentration of hunters stalking for the
choicest
prey.
A little
ecosystem
all on its own. One which I was about to join.
While I wandered the aisles, I finally had a few sets of eyes in this place watching my movements. A
couple customers
and one of the
staff members
behind a sales counter.
But I barely had time to bother with them as I marveled at the sheer volume of information
available
in a single store. And that was even sticking to the
non-fiction
side of the shop... which was a lot smaller.
Descriptive titles on the
glossy covers
did a lot to tell me their contents and each section of books was labeled by their genre or purpose. Clearly meant to be accessible to the
casual visitor
rather than the private methods of the royal librarians in my kingdom.
I’m sure it was
largely
due to them that I’d
never developed
a love for reading. They were always so insistent that I must look through certain things before other things.
Having
my curiosity limited
like that only made me want to escape the lessons taking place in that room more... and the arguments with the instructors that the old married couple of
book enthusiasts
constantly had in front of me.
"Those were such wastes of time."
When I am passing along what appears to be a ’health’ section, I notice dozens upon dozens of different books on a
specific topic
. Each promising to be the
definitive guide
to pregnancy and childbirth.
In my world, such things had been passed on orally through midwives or the royal physicians. Never collected in a form so
accessible
to the
common public
.
Opening and glancing through, I selected three that seemed most
comprehensive
. Helene was an ignorant child, even if she was
fairly well read
for her pack.
I’m sure there are things about the human body in this world that she does not know. Assuming that
everything
works exactly as it did in my past would be a
mistake
.
> After all, we did not have hybrid forms. Who knows what else could happen? <
A section labeled [Local Interests] caught my attention next. Guidebooks and other materials on the
history of Vossden
and the overall region are lined and stacked together.
"Perfect..."
I needed to understand this territory beyond what
limited memories
provided. For now, a
thin paperback
called [Newcomer’s Guide to Vossden] joined my stack.
Growing excited now that I was making progress, I realized I’d
started to smile
. Being this
happy to read
may be the first time in decades!
Fragments of quiet conversation briefly broke the silence as I kept looking for my next find. People discussing the details of some
piece of fiction
on the other side of the shop.
Funnily enough, there were posters of
werewolves
on the walls in both the Fantasy and Romance sections. Yet, I would wager none of them know about the
genuine supernatural world
existing alongside theirs.
How strange that they could live their
entire lives
not knowing what walked among them. Half the humanoid population of my world were shifters and
everyone
knew it.
There had been no such
deeply segregated
and hidden division among us. True beasts, shifters, and humans coexisted in
full awareness
of each other’s nature.
With all the
complications
that arguably brought, it felt far more
correct
than how things developed here.
I turned a corner around one aisle and found myself in a section labeled [Self-Help]. What an
odd concept
...
Books that purported to solve
personal life
problems while somehow still attributing it to
your own work
? It sounds... what was the word... ’oxymoronic’?
However,
one hardcover title
caught my eye: [Building a New Life After Trauma].
I added it to the pile in my arm without examining
why
too closely. Though I was vaguely starting to feel that the
overall collection
was beginning to paint a picture of my situation.
One that I wasn’t sure I
liked
others to know.
> You’ve been pretty quiet since I left the motel, can you please just... I don’t know, bite me or bark or whimper or something?! <
Flipping into my mindscape, Vrika tilts his head at my
demanding
fox form. It walks over slowly,
looming
over me before...
Hopping and flopping its whole,
black furred chest
onto my cream colored back.
> Okay. I did say ’something’. This is certainly something. What are you doing? <
I
struggle
only a little, knowing I could just
leave
at any moment. But the wolf spirit doesn’t do anything else at all.
The behavior could easily be attributed to trying to show
dominance...
but that doesn’t feel right. Neither is it really a hug or
affection
exactly... not without any attempt to groom.
More like an older, bigger member of the group trying to
calm
or just stop the smaller, excitable one from making noise or
hurting
itself. Treating me like a child now...
In the ’real’ world, my free hand rubs the
corners of my eyes
before I make my way to the quiet part of the reading area. I settled down into a
public armchair
with my selections before opening one of the pregnancy books first.
The
detailed illustrations
and matter-of-fact descriptions are so striking. Medical knowledge in this world is so different from the
veiled
version of my own.
It helps that beasts and shifters from my world tend to be
hardy
and instinctively know what to do or eat to feel better if we do get sick. We also do not have very many problems
conceiving
and giving birth - unlike here.
Werewolves... there definitely seems to be a
larger reason
why they are a
severe minority
. And it is not just because they were hunted or persecuted.
Something in their ’biology’? Even the number of wolfless Omegas - essentially human entirely - that are
successfully given birth to
are lower than one might expect.
"It’ll be fine."
My hand rests on my abdomen as I turn the pages, starting to
irrationally
worry more than a bit.